Flares: FIFA president Sepp Blatter does not want to see any more flares and firecrackers in soccer stadiums and described the people who let them off as arsonists. “We don’t need fire and flames in the stands,” he wrote in FIFA’s weekly magazine. “We drum the dangers of fire into every little child but self-styled, grown-up, so-called football fans still ignite flares and let off acrid smoke bombs generating temperatures above 1,000 degrees Celsius,” he said. “Where’s the sense in shrouding yourself in a fog and placing others in acute danger?”

Fined: CONMEBOL determined to root out all trouble from the Libertadores Cup, have fined Newell’s Old Boys $12,000 after their last home match was interrupted by smoke from flares lit by their fans. Newell’s fans lit the flares as their team crushed Nacional of Uruguay 4-0 at the Marcelo Bielsa Stadium in Rosario in a Group Six match two weeks ago and Chilean referee Enrique Osses halted play for a minute while the smoke cleared.

Cantona: Former Manchester United striker Eric Cantona, the catalyst for the club’s first English league title win for 26 years in 1993, was arrested on Wednesday following reports of assault, British media reported. The 47-year-old Frenchman, who retired as a player in 1997, was detained near Regent’s Park in London, Sky News said yesterday. Police refused to confirm the identity of the man but said in a statement they had arrested a male in his mid-40s. No further details were immediately available.

Monk: Garry Monk does not care that Ronald Koeman’s agent has been touting his client for the Swansea job. Koeman’s agent Guido Albers told the BBC that the former Holland defender is interested in moving to the Barclays Premier League when his contract expires with Feyenoord in the summer. “I don’t care – it doesn’t affect me,” the Swansea manager said. “Players and managers will always be linked with other clubs, but I can’t worry about that.”