Alessandro Del Piero confirmed the Coppa Italia final on May 20 will be his last game for Juventus.
The 37-year-old will leave the club at the end of the season and the match against Napoli will be his last for the Bianconeri as he will not renew his contract in summer.
“I know that my career is nearing its end,” Del Piero said.
“The way things stand today, the Coppa final will be my final match for Juventus. The affection which the supporters show me on a daily basis is incredible and I thank them.
“But, at this delicate moment of the season, all I am thinking about is the pitch.”
Sirigu doesn’t expect slip-ups
Paris SG goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu admits rivals Montpellier would be “idiots” to let the Ligue 1 title slip away after PSG’s 2-1 upset to Lille left them five points adrift of the leaders with four games remaining.
Paris SG are only two ahead of Lille, raising the spectre of slipping into third place which would force them to enter next season’s Champions League at the third qualifying round.
Sirigu said: “The title is for-gotten – if Montpellier let it slip away, they are idiots. The disap-pointment is enormous. Never-theless, we have to finish well for the club’s reputation.”
Luxemburgo angry at young ball boy
Former Brazil coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo was sent off following a row with a ball boy in a Gremio match on Sunday.
Luxemburgo ran down the touchline to confront the ball boy by the corner flag, leading to an incident which held up the Porto Alegre derby against Internacional for five minutes and involved around 30 people.
He was apparently angry because the youngster, employed by Internacional, placed the ball for a corner to be taken by the hosts while Gremio’s defence were out of position.
Internacional players later ran to celebrate with the ball boy after Fabricio grabbed a late goal to give them a 2-1 win.
Robben ponder
Arjen Robben’s dressing room bust-up with Franck Ribery during the interval of Bayern Munich’s 2-1 win over Real Madrid may force the Dutchman out of the club.
Bayern’s president Uli Hoeness has confirmed that negotiations with Robben over a new contract have broken down and the forward admits “recent develop-ments” have led him to reconsider his situation.
“Franck knows that he cannot do what he did. These are all things which are not positive so I need to consider everything well,” Robben said.
Robben and Ribery are reported to have come to blows after a discussion over who should have taken a free-kick boiled over.
Advocaat to quit Russia after Euro
Russia coach Dick Advocaat has revealed he will step down after the end of the European Championships this summer.
“It’s true, I will resign after the end of the Euros,” Advocaat said.
“I don’t want to disclose the reasons for my decision but money wasn’t the issue. I didn’t tell the players that I’m going to resign but I’m confident it will not affect our preparations for the Euro.”
Reports said that Advocaat has already received offers from clubs including PSV Eindhoven, where he worked from 1995-98, and Russian top-flight side Dynamo Moscow.
Tevez wants long-term stay
Carlos Tevez has told Manchester City he wants to stay at the club for the long term in a remarkable turnaround for a player who was an outcast only months ago.
Speaking before the derby last night, Tevez said he had repaired his relationship with manager Roberto Mancini.
“My relationship with the manager is totally fine, he’s been as good as gold with me and there have been absolutely no problems,” he said.
“I want to work hard and win things with Manchester City in future.
“I’ve been here since the start of the club’s project and I want to stay here as long as it takes to make the project a success.”
Palermo to decide on new coach
Maurizio Zamparini, the owner of Serie A club Palermo, told reporters he has still not made a decision on who will be the team’s coach for next season.
This season, Zamparini has already appointed three coaches, the latest being Bortolo Mutti who replaced the in-experienced Devis Mangia in December.
“It’s too soon to talk about the coach,” Zamparini opined.
“At this point in time our coach is Mutti. He’s doing a great job with care and professionalism. At the end of the season we will weigh things up and decide what to do.”
Palermo are being linked with a move for Giuseppe Sannino, currently coach of Serie A mid-table side Siena.