McGeady: Aiden McGeady has completed his protracted transfer to Russian side Spartak Moscow from Celtic, the Scottish club confirmed yesterday. Ireland international McGeady had been linked with Spartak for several weeks and has finally sealed a £10 million switch despite interest from Aston Villa.
Sculli: Giuseppe Sculli, 29, is set to take Mario Balotelli’s place at Inter next week according to the Italian media. Genoa forward Sculli, brought up in the Juventus youth team, will be signed by Inter for close to €5m.
Dembele: Alkmaar forward Moussa Dembele has targeted a move to Fulham. The Belgium international is keen on furthering his career in the Premier League but this week turned down a move to Birmingham.
Villa: Aston Villa caretaker boss Kevin MacDonald will be without defensive duo Carlos Cuellar and James Collins for the league opener against West Ham today. Cuellar has failed to recover from a hamstring injury while Collins is out with a calf problem.
Ederson: Lyon have been hit by the news that Ederson’s injury is worse than first feared and the Brazil midfielder will undergo surgery on Monday. Ederson was forced off with an injury to his left leg minutes after making his Brazil debut in this week’s friendly against the US.
Ireland: The Football Association of Ireland are hoping to resolve a dispute with their Slovakian counterparts over the venue for October’s European Championship qualifier. The Slovaks originally said the Group B match would take place in Bratislava. However, yesterday they informed the FAI that they had changed their mind and the game would now take place in Zilina.
Elia: Dutch international Eljero Elia, who impressed at the World Cup, will remain at Hamburg for this season. “Elia is staying with us, I won’t let him go,” said Armin Veh.
Powerade Cup: Ħamrun Spartans vs St Andrew’s 4-0; Qormi vs St George’s 1-1.
League One: Leyton Orient vs Charlton 1-3.
Federation Cup: Venus and Serena Williams have committed to play for the US in the Fed Cup final against Italy in November. Neither Williams has competed in the Fed Cup since 2007. US captain Mary Joe Fernandez said she was “very excited” about the sisters’ decision, saying “you always want to have your best players”. The US haven’t won the nations tournament for women since 2000. The best-of-five final will be played at the San Diego Sports Arena.
Tennis: Top-seeded Jelena Jankovic and second-seeded Caroline Wozniacki were knocked out of the third-round at the Cincinnati Women’s Open. Qualifier Akgul Amanmuradova used a strong service game to topple Jankovic 7-6, 6-4, shortly after 16th-seeded Marion Bartoli won eight straight games on her way to a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Wozniacki.
Golf: Italian Francesco Molinari fired a four-under 68 to seize a share of the lead with American Bubba Watson in the first round of the weather-hit PGA Championship. Molinari hit 16 of 18 fairways on the Whistling Straits course and rolled in five birdies to go with a bogey in his second appearance in the final major championship of the season. Tiger Woods rolled in a birdie on his final hole to get to one-under 71.
Rugby Union: Dan Vickerman has boosted the Wallabies’ second row for next year’s World Cup by re-signing with Australian rugby from next June until the end of 2013. Vickerman, 31, is the country’s third most capped lock forward with 55 Test appearances, having previously represented South Africa at U-21 level.
Weightlifting: Melbourne 2006 gold medallists Deborah Acason and Ben Turner highlight a 15-strong Australian weightlifting team to compete at the Commonwealth Games in October. Acason (nee Lovely), 27, will be chasing her second gold medal in the 75+kg category in India. Turner, 26, will also defend his Games title in Delhi, but this time in the 77kg class, moving up from 69kg.