Zenit St Petersburg forward Hulk has claimed he was the victim of racial abuse from visiting Spartak Moscow fans on Saturday, the second such incident to rock the Russian league in a week.
“During the game, racist abuse was directed towards me from the Spartak section of the ground,” Hulk said.
“In the first half, I clearly heard monkey chants shouted in my direction and this was not only on one occasion. It was coming from a large group of people.
“I think that such things have absolutely no place and the football powers-that-be must take action in the fight against the occurrence of racial hatred.”
Coach Rada makes Rapid return
Marian Rada has returned for a sixth coaching spell with Rapid Bucharest since 2008, the three-times Romanian champions said.
The 54-year-old former centre-back replaced Ionel Ganea after signing a contract until the end of the season.
Former Romania striker Ganea became the 10th coaching victim in the Romania league this season when he was sacked after Rapid’s 3-0 home loss to city rivals Dinamo on Saturday.
Rada, who spent six years at Rapid as a player, also coached the reserve team of the Bucharest side in the 2008-2009 season.
Park joins Saudi side Al Shabab
South Korean striker Park Chu-young has signed a one-year contract with Saudi Arabian side Al Shabab, the latest attempt to kick-start the talented forward’s flagging career.
Park, who has scored 24 goals in more than 60 matches for South Korea, had been without a club since ending a three-year spell with Arsenal in June.
The 29-year-old former international captain spent most of his final two years on loan at other clubs and was included in South Korea’s squad for their woeful World Cup campaign in June where they exited Brazil with just one point at the group stage.
Aguirre recalls Kagawa, Havenaar
Japan boss Javier Aguirre re-called playmaker Shinji Kagawa and striker Mike Havenaar to another experimental squad for the friendlies against Brazil and Jamaica this month.
The Mexican also included the uncapped trio of Gen Shoji, Tsukasa Shiotani and Yu Kobayashi in the 23-man squad named yesterday for the fixtures in Niigata against the Jamaicans on October 10 and the five times World Cup winners in Singapore four days later.
Aguirre replaced Alberto Zaccheroni as head coach in July but only took charge of the Asian champions for the first time last month in a disappointing 2-0 home loss to Uruguay and a 2-2 draw with Venezuela.
Ferdinand questions Etihad expansion
Former Manchester United captain Rio Ferdinand taunted Manchester City and their supporters after the club could not pack out the Etihad Stadium for the Champions League game against Roma.
Ferdinand, who left United in the summer after 12 years and is now at QPR, questioned why City would want to expand their home ground if they cannot fill their stands for important European games.
Ferdinand wrote on Twitter: “How many empty seats are there at the City vs Roma game by the way... big CL game & fans would rather Ramsays Kitchen or something at home.
“Expanding the stadium for what though?? For who???”
Guardiola haunted by empty arena
Bayern boss Pep Guardiola admitted playing in front of an empty stadium at CSKA Moscow made for a strange experience.
Bayern won 1-0 in their Champions League clash on Tuesday, Thomas Mueller scoring the only goal from the penalty in a match played behind closed doors. The Arena Khimki was empty due to sanctions imposed on CSKA for crowd misbehaviour last season.
“Two wins in two matches is a good outcome,” Guardiola said on the club’s website.
“We were alert and controlled the match. It’s always difficult against teams who defend like that.
“It was odd with no fans in the stadium. It’s always better if the fans are there. Football is there for the people. I hope that what happened never happens again.”
Dawson: Contract decision was easy
Craig Dawson has described his West Brom U-turn as “easy” after signing a new contract.
The defender has penned a deal until 2017 to draw a line under his summer of uncertainty. The 24-year-old handed in a transfer request and Albion rejected three bids from Burnley for the player.
After scoring his first goal for the Baggies in their 4-0 win over Burnley, Dawson insisted all he wanted was a fair chance.
“It (the contract) was an easy decision to make for me, especially as I was playing games,” he said.
“It’s hard when you don’t play.
“You work hard in training during the week, don’t get the chance to play, and it affects your fitness and confidence.”