Albania appeal: Albania will appeal against FIFA's decision to ban their fans from two home World Cup qualifiers. Albania were also fined 40,000 Swiss francs ($34,500) after ugly scenes at their last qualifier against group leaders Ukraine in Tirana on February 9. Ukraine won 2-0. The fans were reported by the referee and the match commissioner to have thrown bottles of water, lighters, coins and flagpoles on to the pitch. They also lit a number of flares and stormed the pitch at the end of the match.
Probe: Monaco-based Scottish football agent Willie McKay has been questioned by French police as part of a wide-ranging investigation into suspected tax evasion at Ligue 1 clubs. "I have spoken to the French police and I have nothing to hide," McKay said. "This is absolutely no problem to me. I even opened up my accounts to them, which I was not obliged to do."
Henry: Arsenal striker Thierry Henry will be sidelined for two or three weeks with a calf strain, manager Arsene Wenger said yesterday. Henry picked up the injury during the Premier League side's Champions League exit to Bayern Munich on Wednesday. Henry scored in a 1-0 Arsenal win at Highbury but Bayern went through to the quarter-finals 3-2 on aggregate. Brazilian midfielder Edu, who has a knee injury, will also be out for at least a month.
Di Canio: Lazio striker Paolo Di Canio has been fined €10,000 for the fascist-style salute he gave at the end of the Rome derby in January. The Italian Football League also handed Lazio a fine for the same amount yesterday after a hearing into the January 6 match against Roma at Rome's Olympic stadium.
Forlan: Villarreal striker Diego Forlan will be recalled to the Uruguay squad after ironing out his differences with coach Jorge Fossati. Fossati is set to name a squad today for World Cup qualifiers at the end of March and said yesterday that former Manchester United striker Forlan would be included. "We've spoken to Diego and everything's fine, it's all settled and so he will be picked for the next two games," Fossati told reporters.
Overweight striker: Scottish third division side Albion Rovers are trying to release striker Mark Yardley amid claims he is unfit and tipping the scales at 20 stone. Yardley has furiously denied the claims and has now spoken with the Scottish Professional Footballers' Association (SPFA) to try and resolve the situation.