Gunners backfire: Arsenal's decision to plunge Patrick Vieira back into action against Dynamo Kiev appears to have rebounded on them following the news their captain is set for another spell on the sidelines after a recurrence of his thigh injury.
The influential Frenchman made his first appearance for almost a month on Tuesday night in their 2-1 defeat in Ukraine which has left their Champions League campaign in disarray.
"Patrick has had a setback and he will be out again for a few weeks," revealed manager Arsene Wenger yesterday. "I was cautious with him because we took the needed time. But as well, maybe we were a little bit optimistic with him given the situation.
"We don't know what is happening with his muscle. But he is not right, and it will be at least two more weeks. He definitely misses this weekend; there is no doubt about that."
One to go
Ireland's under-17 side secured a 1-0 victory over Belarus in Lyss, Switzerland, in terrible conditions yesterday to boost their European Championship qualification hopes ahead of tomorrow's final game against Switzerland.
With heavy snow falling during the game on a pitch already well covered by snow, conditions for football were appalling, but Ireland produced a magnificent performance and deservedly won the game thanks to Billy Clarke's second-half goal.
A win tomorrow would guarantee Ireland a place in the second phase qualifiers, while even a draw may be enough if Belarus fail to win their final game against the already qualified Austria.
IRELAND: Randolph (Charlton Athletic); S Kelly (Kingdom Boys), O'Dea (Celtic), O'Leary (Aberdeen), Reilly (Shelbourne); JP Kelly (Liverpool), Morris (Leeds United), Fitzgerald (Lourdes Celtic); Anthony Stokes (Arsenal), O'Carroll (Celtic), Clarke (Ipswich Town). Sub: Chambers (Shelbourne) for Morris (9 mins).
Black Cats are unlucky
Sunderland have been dealt a major blow with the news that Seán Thornton could be sidelined for months through injury. Thornton was carried off with suspected ankle ligament damage just eight minutes into last night's 3-1 reserve team defeat by derby rivals Newcastle.
The Irish midfielder has played a major role in the club's encouraging start to the season, and Mick McCarthy now faces an anxious wait to discover just how serious the injury is.
"We think he's damaged his ankle ligaments," the Sunderland boss said. "We don't think it's as serious as we first thought, but until we can assess it and have X-rays or scans on it and find out exactly the extent of the damage, we won't know."
Risky business
David Beckham is almost certain to miss Real Madrid's Primera Liga clash with Racing Santander tomorrow because of a thigh strain.
The England captain sustained the injury last weekend, and although he managed to play the full 90 minutes in last night's Champions League win over Partizan Belgrade, he is unlikely to be risked against Racing.
Real are hopeful the midfielder will be back in time for Tuesday's trip to Real Zaragoza.
In brief. . .
Tottenham have confirmed Frederic Kanoute is facing two months on the sidelines after the Frenchman suffered an ankle injury against Leicester last weekend. Spurs' £4 million summer signing was stretchered off after a bad tackle by Muzzy Izzet in Sunday's 2-1 victory at Leicester. Oxford chairman Firoz Kassam has revealed he is considering selling the club for a pound. "If only they (the fans) knew what I had to go through on a day-to-day basis they would be shocked," said Kassam, who bought the debt-ridden club for the same token sum four years ago. Former Italian champions AS Roma have announced they made a 25 million net loss between July and September, narrower than a loss of 40.6 million a year earlier. And Inter Milan striker Mohamed Kallon has been suspended after testing positive for the banned steroid nandrolone, the Italian Football Federation said yesterday.
