Luxembourg: Guy Hellers stepped down as coach of Luxembourg yesterday after nearly six years in the job. The 45-year-old former international – capped 55 times by Luxembourg – replaced Dane Alan Simonsen in December 2004 but said that it was time to ‘turn over a new leaf’. U-21 boss Luc Holtz will take over as caretaker coach.
Castro: Gonzalo Castro has signed a contract extension with Bayer Leverkusen, committing himself to the club until 2014. The 23-year-old, capped five times by Germany, has made 149 Bundesliga appearances for Leverkusen, scoring seven goals.
Cameroon: Cameroon have named several new faces in a squad of 22 players to take on Poland in a friendly next week. There are 14 survivors from the 23-man World Cup squad. Former captain Rigobert Song, who announced his retirement from international football last week, is one change. His nephew, Arsenal midfielder Alex Song, is also missing.
Jara: Gonzalo Jara has return-ed to West Brom after an extended break following World Cup duty. Jara played a major role in Chile reaching the second round in South Africa after recovering from a broken metatarsal suffered in February. The 24-year-old missed the start of pre-season to recuperate.
Cheap ticket: Wigan offer the sixth-cheapest season ticket of all 92 English professional clubs according to a magazine survey. The Premier League club’s most expensive season ticket for the 2010-11 season comes in at £295, with only Accrington, Bradford, Hereford, Crewe and Port Vale coming out cheaper. Arsenal offer the most expensive season ticket in the country at £1,825.
Godin: Uruguayan international Diego Godin completed his move from Villarreal to A. Madrid. The 24-year-old defender is due in Madrid today to go through a medical and sign a five-year contract.
Rafinha: Brazilian defender Rafinha has completed his move from Schalke to Genoa, the Italian first division club announced yesterday. Details of the transfer have not been announced but media reports put the fee at between eight and 12 million euros.
Cricket: Recalled Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf flies to London today to join his embattled team ahead of the second Test against England, which starts in Birmingham tomorrow. Yousuf was recalled from retirement on Sunday, hours after Pakistan’s crushing 354-run defeat in the first Test at Nottingham, giving England a 1-0 lead in the four-match series.
Adidas shares: The world’s second biggest sports equipment and clothing maker, Adidas, raised its earnings per share outlook yesterday after a strong second quarter thanks to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. The Bavarian-based group that also owns the US brand Reebok had already said football-related sales should reach €1.5 billion in 2010, which meant overall profit should rise. Adidas said earnings per share should now increase to between 2.50 and 2.62 euros, compared with a previous estimate of 2.05 to 2.30 euros.
Athletics: Disgraced 2004 Olympic 100 metres champion Justin Gatlin won his first two races after returning from a four-year doping suspension in Estonia, on Tuesday. The 28-year-old American, who tested positive for testosterone three months after equalling the world record in 2006, timed 10.34 seconds, the fastest time of the two heats. Gatlin, who achieved the 100/200m sprint double at the 2005 world championships, improved on that time in the final with a mark of 10.24sec – short of his aim of going under 10 seconds.
Basket, NBA: LeBron James, who left Cleveland for Miami in July, will make his debut for the Heat at Boston on October 26 in the NBA season opener. James joined pals Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Heat roster and was joined by Lithuanian Zydrunas Ilgauskas, another former Cavaliers centre, on a Heat squad that is expected to challenge for the championship.