Buffon: Italy and Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has revealed that he hid in a car boot to avoid rival Fiorentina fans after Sunday's 1-1 draw. "It is not the first time I invented a trick in Florence but the second. One time so opposing fans would not recognise me I wore a clown mask," Buffon told reporters. "I was young..."

Ashton: West Ham striker Dean Ashton has been ruled out of action for up to six weeks after suffering a knee ligament injury. Ashton, who returned this season after a year out with a broken ankle sustained in training with England in August 2006, hurt his knee on Saturday and had to pull out of England's Euro 2008 qualifiers against Estonia and Russia this month.

Brown: England defender Wes Brown has been ruled out of Saturday's Euro 2008 qualifier against Estonia with a knee problem, coach Steve McClaren said yesterday. "Brown has unfortunately gone back to Man. United, he will be assessed on a daily basis, he may return next week but it's unlikely," he said.

Drogba: Chelsea's Didier Drogba has been included in the squad for Ivory Coast's friendly international against Austria on Oct. 17 in Innsbruck. Coach Uli Stielike included the striker after injury kept him out of last month's African Nations Cup qualifier against Gabon.

Security: The Ligue 1 match between Metz and Nancy, to be played on October 27, has been brought forward from 1800GMT to 1510GMT for security reasons, the French League said. Last weekend, the derby between Metz and Racing Strasbourg was twice interrupted after brawls erupted in the stands. Strasbourg won the game 2-1.

Ajax: Adrie Koster will take over as head coach of Ajax Amsterdam for the rest of this season. Koster, who was responsible for the reserves, replaces Henk Ten Cate, who is in talks with Premier League club Chelsea.