Keane: Republic of Ireland skipper Robbie Keane was on his way to Dublin yesterday following the birth of his second son. The 35-year-old striker and his wife Claudine, who have six-year-old son Robert Jr, announced the news in a statement on his Facebook page. Keane, who scored for his club the Los Angeles Galaxy in Sunday’s 1-1 draw in Seattle, was expected to arrive yesterday evening to join up with his international team-mates ahead of tomorrow’s Euro 2016 qualifier against Germany and the trip to Poland which follows it.
Carvajal: Spain will be without Real Madrid right-back Dani Carvajal for their upcoming fixtures after he suffered tendon damage in his ankle. Carvajal suffered the injury to the peroneal tendons in his right ankle in the in 1-1 draw with derby rivals Atletico Madrid in the Primera Division on Sunday. Carvajal is expected to be sidelined for three weeks.
Cherchesov: Former Russian goalkeeper Stanislav Cherchesov has been appointed as the head coach of Legia Warsaw, the club said yesterday. The 52 year-old, who has previously coached Spartak Moscow and Dynamo Moscow, replaces former Norway international Henning Berg at the Polish club. He has signed a contract until the end of the 2015-16 season.
Fined: The Hong Kong Football Association has been fined after fans booed the Chinese national anthem and threw an object on the pitch during a World Cup qualifier last month. FIFA released a statement yesterday saying it had fined the HKFA 5,000 Swiss Francs ($5,126) over the incidents in the September 8 match between Hong Kong and Qatar. Although Hong Kong has a separate team for international tournaments, it has shared the same national anthem as mainland China since Britain handed the former colony back to China in 1997.
McArdle: Northern Ireland have added defender Rory McArdle to their squad for decisive Euro 2016 qualifiers against Greece and Finland. Michael O’Neill’s side are within touching distance of a first major tournament in 30 years but have been disrupted by fitness problems in defence. West Brom centre-half Jonny Evans has remained with his club having suffered a hamstring problem against Crystal Palace and looks unlikely to be available to face Greece tomorrow.