Hoffenheim coach Ralf Rangnick believes it is “unrealistic” to consider winning the Bundesliga title this season despite his side winning their first three matches of the season.
Hoffenheim currently lead the way, like they did in the 2008/09 season when they were top of the table at the midway stage of the campaign only to fall away and finish seventh.
And Rangnick says his players are not wasting their energy on thinking about winning the title this year.
“We are not thinking about it at all,” he said.
“We are preparing for our next opponent. Only that way have we any chance of beating them. We have learnt that the weight of expectation damages us.”
Russian oil magnate linked with Roma
Russian oil magnate Leonid Fedun is being linked with a takeover bid for debt-ridden Roma.
The Lukoil vice-president is said to be in the list of interested buyers assembled by Rothschild Bank who were contracted by Roma president Rosella Sensi.
Rothschild have reportedly produced a short-list of 20 interested parties ready to invest in Roma.
Fedun is apparently prepared to invest €200m into the club.
La Gazzetta dello Sport said Fedun wants 50 per cent of the shares now and another 35 per cent in 2012. That would give him complete control of the club.
Sno suffers heart attack during match
Ajax midfielder Evander Sno suffered a heart attack during a reserve team match with Vitesse Arnhem on Monday but medical staff managed to resuscitate the 23-year-old.
“Sno suffered a heart attack midway through the second-half,” read the statement on the Vitesse website.
“The defibrilator was used on four occasions and it appears that saved Sno’s life.”
Sno was a former great hope of Dutch football when he began his career at Ajax before being offloaded to Celtic in 2006.
Ajax took him back in 2008 but loaned him out to Bristol City for the 2008/09 campaign.
Cahill loses red card appeal
Bolton Wanderers defender Gary Cahill has lost his disciplinary appeal over the red card he received in the 4-1 Premier League loss away to Arsenal on Saturday.
England international Cahill will now be banned for three matches after being dismissed for a foul from behind on Arsenal striker Marouane Chamakh at the Emirates Stadium.
“At a regulatory commission hearing, a claim for wrongful dismissal from Bolton defender Gary Cahill was dismissed,” said a statement issued by the FA.
“As a result, Cahill’s three-match suspension will remain.”
Cahill, 24, will miss this weekend’s Premier League trip to Aston Villa and the League Cup tie at Burnley, as well as Manchester United’s visit to the Reebok Stadium.
Best yet to come from Jovanovic
Liverpool new-boy Milan Jovanovic insists he has far more to offer than he has shown so far. The Reds are still finding their feet under Roy Hodgson and following Sunday’s draw at Birmingham, currently find themselves in the wrong half of the table.
The 29-year-old Serbian inter-national is yet to score since his summer move from Standard Liege. But he insists it is a situation he does not expect to continue for much longer.
“I was happy with how I played against Birmingham but I know I can do better,” the striker said.
“I am disciplined. I am not in the best form and I can play better than I have shown so far. But I know I can score goals and make assists for this team. I am sure I can.”
Bayern threaten to sue Dutch
Bayern Munich’s chairman has threatened to sue the Dutch federation for compensation for a bad injury picked up by Arjen Robben in the World Cup.
“If we don’t manage to come to a just and reasonable agreement with the Dutch, we will have no other choice but to launch legal proceedings against them and their team doctor,” Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said.
Rummenigge said he wanted a “seven-figure” sum in compensation after Robben aggravated a torn muscle in his left thigh which he picked up during the World Cup. Robben, 26, is not expected to play again for the Bavarians until next year.
“It was unreasonable to take him to the World Cup. It is the fault of the Dutch and the doctor alone,” Rummenigge said.
Russia to adopt new league format
Russia is set to adopt the same league format as other major European leagues after the Russian Football Union approved plans to switch to an ‘autumn-spring’ calendar.
RFU chief Sergei Fursenko said that next year’s Russian Premier League will be a transitional championship that finishes in the spring of 2012.
The Russian Premier League currently runs from spring until autumn, putting it at odds with major European championships.
However, the players’ union’s said that a poll conducted among members from nine of the Premier League’s 16 clubs resulted in 73 votes against the new format and only 23 in favour.