Scolari: Former Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari was accused of unprofessional conduct last weekend after he abandoned his Gremio side before the end of their 1-0 home defeat by lowly Veranopolis. An angry Felipao, as he is known in Brazil, left the dug-out and walked to the dressing room with four minutes still left in the game. “I sent myself off,” he told reporters after Gremio’s third defeat in four matches. “It’s impossible to be more embarrassed than that,” said the man at the helm when Brazil lost 7-1 to Germany in the World Cup semi-finals last year.

PAOK: PAOK Salonica’s dreams of a first title since 1985 were in tatters yesterday after a crushing 4-0 loss at Atromitos Athinon left Angelos Anastasiadis’ team 11 points adrift of leaders Olympiakos Piraeus. PAOK, who had topped the standings in the first half of the season, suffered their biggest defeat this term against an Atromitos side for whom new coach Nikos Nioplias was making his debut in the dug-out.

Ajax: Ajax Amsterdam’s Ricardo Kishna struck twice in the second half as they recovered from an early goal down to beat Twente Enschede 4-2 in the Dutch league yesterday and cut PSV Eindhoven’s lead back to 12 points. Kishna’s late double included Ajax’s 500th goal in the top flight after they went in 2-1 ahead at half-time. Ajax have 49 points from 23 games behind PSV on 61 and eight ahead of Feyenoord who lost 2-0 at Heracles Almelo on Saturday.

A-League: Nebojsa Marinkovic kept Perth Glory top of the A-League with a brilliant second-half equaliser in a 1-1 draw at title rivals Adelaide United yesterday. The Serbian attacking midfielder found the top corner with a sumptuous strike from the edge of the area in the 53rd minute to cancel out Pablo Sanchez’s goal before the break. The result maintained their one-point lead over second-placed Melbourne Victory, who managed a 3-3 draw away to Sydney FC on Saturday.