Yeung completes Birmingham takeover

Carson Yeung's takeover of Birmingham was completed on Tuesday when the Hong Kong businessman's Grandtop Holdings announced the acquisition of 94 percent of the shares in the club.

By passing the 90 percent threshold, Grandtop are now in a position to oblige the remaining independent shareholders to sell their stake, clearing the way for the club to be de-listed from the Alternative Investment Market and run as a private business.

Yeung is expected in England next week for talks with Birmingham boss Alex McLeish, who has said he is looking forward to working with the new owners.

"We are looking forward to a new era," McLeish said earlier this week. "There is a buzz about the place and the fans and they are anticipating another step forward.

"I am looking forward to working with the new owners. I am ambitious and they are ambitious and, of course, if there is money to spend, we would welcome it.

Queiroz counting on fit Ronaldo for World Cup qualifiers

Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz expressed his confidence on Tuesday that Real Madrid striker Cristinao Ronaldo would be fit for key World Cup qualifiers against Hungary and Malta on October 10 and 14 respectively.

Ronaldo missed Real Madrid's first Liga loss of the season at Seville last weekend with an ankle injury.

But Queiroz believes he will be fit and included him along with Rangers midfielder Pedro Mendes and Malaga striker Edinho among his 24-man squad.

Queiroz put his side through their paces at Obidos on Tuesdsay with six players missing because of fitness worries.

Portugal, who are third in Group One with 13 points, need to win both matches and for second-placed Sweden to slip up in Denmark, to book their ticket to South Africa.

Abgonlahor determined to grab World Cup chance

Gabriel Agbonlahor could be about to find out if he got the biggest call of his career right.

As a teenager, the Aston Villa striker had the option of playing international football for either Nigeria, the land of his doctor father, or Scotland, from where his mother hails.

Instead, he backed himself to make the grade with England and now he finds himself vowing to grab his chance to force his way into Fabio Capello's World Cup plans.

Agbonlahor has been in superb form this season after undergoing an upper-body strengthening regime and, after five goals in as many games, has been rewarded with a call up to Capello's squad for the upcoming qualifiers in the Ukraine and at home to Belarus.

The matches are effectively irrevelant for England, who have already booked their place in South Africa after eight straight wins in their group. But, for fringe players like Agbonlahor, the stakes are extremely high with Capello facing tough decisions on who to include as back-up strikers for his first-choice forward combination of Wayne Rooney and Emile Heskey.

England-Ukraine clash to be screened live.. online

England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine on Saturday is to make history by being the team's first international to be shown live in cinemas and on the Internet but not on TV, media group Perform said.

With England already qualified for next year's World Cup finals in South Africa, major television stations such as the BBC and Sky have opted against buying the rights to screen live coverage of the match being played in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine.

Irish satellite broadcaster Setanta had been due to cover the match live but the group's British arm went bust in June.

Fans not travelling to the Ukraine can still see the game live at Odeon cinemas across England and over the Internet for a fee of between 5.0 and 12 pounds.

English FA ask Ferguson to explain Wiley rant

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has been asked by the English FA to explain his controversial comments about referee Alan Wiley.

Ferguson questioned Wiley's fitness after Manchester United's 2-2 draw with Sunderland on Saturday and claimed the 49-year-old was struggling to keep up with the pace of the match at Old Trafford.

Having looked at the remarks, the FA have now requested that Ferguson explain the reasons behind his outburst.

"I was disappointed with the referee," Ferguson said at the weekend. "He was not fit enough for a game of that standard.

"The pace of the game demanded a referee who was fit. He was not fit. It is an indictment of our game.

"You see referees abroad who are as fit as butcher's dogs. We have some who are fit. He wasn't fit.

Al Faraj company lands majority Portsmouth stake

Saudi Arabian businessman Ali Al-Faraj has completed his takeover of English Premier League club Portsmouth, the club said late Monday.

The club confirmed on their website former owner Sulaiman Al-Fahim had sold 90 percent of the shares to Falcondrone Limited, a company owned by Al-Faraj, in a move freeing up funds to pay players and executives.

A statement on the Portsmouth website said: "The takeover will ensure Portsmouth Football Club's future is safe and will bring financial stability.

"Once the takeover is complete the club will undergo refinancing in order to grow and develop every part of the business.

"Mr Al-Faraj is very supportive of the club's plans for a new training ground and the development of Fratton Park."

Al-Fahim retains a 10 percent share in the club and will remain as non-executive chairman until at least the end of next season, while Peter Storrie will continue in his role as chief executive.

Owen set to resume training on Tuesday

Manchester United striker Michael Owen will return to full training on Tuesday after missing his side's draw with Sunderland on Saturday.

Owen was forced off during last week's Champions League victory over Wolfsburg after suffering a groin injury and didn't recover in time for the Sunderland clash.

But, although it was initially feared the former Liverpool star would be out for three weeks, he is now ready to return to action.

"I'm back in full training from tomorrow (Tuesday)," Owen told At The Races on Monday. "The older you get the more you get to learn your body.

"Probably a few years ago I would have carried on playing and pulled something and been out for a couple of months or a few weeks at least.

"I felt something coming. If I'd continued or done another sprint then I think I would have pulled my groin.

"So I came off just before it happened and instead of three or four weeks it's three or four days. So that's something you get with experience."

Ronaldo says will be ready for Portuguese call

Cristiano Ronaldo said Monday he was ready to answer the call for Portugal in Saturday's crucial World Cup qualifier at home to Hungary after missing Real Madrid's first Liga loss of the season at Seville with an ankle injury.

"I have recovered well. We'll see how things go but I think I'll be fine come Saturday," Ronaldo said on arriving at Obidos, where the squad are preparing for a match which will go some way to deciding if they can snatch a playoff place after a poor showing in Group One.

The Portuguese currently stand third - five points behind leaders Denmark and two adrift of Sweden, while Hungary are level on points with Carlos Queiroz's side, rendering a win imperative ahead of an expected three easy points in their final game against Malta.

The Swedes have a tough encounter away to the Danes on Saturday.

"These are decisive matches which we must win," observed Ronaldo, who said that team spirit was "fantastic" despite his country's irregular showing to date.

Hughes hails red hot Bellamy

Mark Hughes believes Craig Bellamy can provide the firepower to shoot Manchester City into the Champions League after the striker's goal earned a 1-1 draw at Aston Villa.

Bellamy hit his fourth goal of the season after half-time at Villa Park on Monday to cancel out former City defender Richard Dunne's opener for the hosts.

Hughes's side are now fourth in the table heading into the international break and the City boss is convinced they can stay there if Bellamy maintains his scintilating start to the campaign.

"He is playing out of his skin at the moment," Hughes said. "It doesn't matter what position I use him in, he is still having a positive impact on the game and it was the same tonight.

"He is playing with great confidence. He always thinks he is the best player and most of the time he has been."

Hughes had every reason to sing Bellamy's praises after he ensured Dunne wouldn't return to haunt his former club.

Arsenal hit Rovers for six

Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal are capable of mounting a sustained challenge for the Premier League title this season after his side routed Blackburn 6-2 at the Emirates Stadium.

Wenger became Arsenal's longest serving manager on Thursday with 13 years service and Sunday's eye-catching display was the ideal way to mark the anniversary of his arrival in north London.

The Gunners, without a trophy since 2005, were widely written off as title also-rans in pre-season following Wenger's decision not to spend big to replace Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure after their exits to Manchester City.

But his faith in his young squad is being rewarded and Arsenal are now in fourth place - six points behind leaders Chelsea with a game in hand.

Wenger said: "There is a real togetherness about the team. They are enjoying themselves and playing some wonderful football. I think we are strong.

Wenger eyes title challenge after Arsenal hit Rovers for six

Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal are capable of mounting a sustained challenge for the Premier League title this season after his side routed Blackburn 6-2 at the Emirates Stadium.

Wenger became Arsenal's longest serving manager on Thursday with 13 years service and Sunday's eye-catching display was the ideal way to mark the anniversary of his arrival in north London.

The Gunners, without a trophy since 2005, were widely written off as title also-rans in pre-season following Wenger's decision not to spend big to replace Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure after their exits to Manchester City.

But his faith in his young squad is being rewarded and Arsenal are now in fourth place - six points behind leaders Chelsea with a game in hand.

Ancelotti's Chelsea take title initiative

Carlo Ancelotti has warned Manchester United that the destiny of the Premier League is in Chelsea's hands after the Blues went back to the top of the table with a 2-0 win over Liverpool.

Ancelotti's team took advantage of United's 2-2 draw against Sunderland by over-powering the Reds at Stamford Bridge thanks to second half goals from Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda.

Chelsea are two points clear of second placed United and six points ahead of Liverpool, leaving the title momentum firmly with the west Londoners going into the international break.

Ancelotti admitted he was surprised to see United drop points at Old Trafford and he is convinced Chelsea can win the title if they remain focused on their own game.

"Their result was a surprise for sure but we want to stay concentrated on our own season," Ancelotti said.

"This season depends only on us. We're top of the table and we prepare for the next game with concentration and determination.

Wenger eyes title challenge after Arsenal hit Rovers for six

Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal are capable of mounting a sustained challenge for the Premier League title this season after his side routed Blackburn 6-2 at the Emirates Stadium.

Wenger became Arsenal's longest serving manager on Thursday with 13 years service and Sunday's eye-catching display was the ideal way to mark the anniversary of his arrival in north London.

The Gunners, without a trophy since 2005, were widely written off as title also-rans in pre-season following Wenger's decision not to spend big to replace Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure after their exits to Manchester City.

But his faith in his young squad is being rewarded and Arsenal are now in fourth place - six points behind leaders Chelsea with a game in hand.

Ronaldinho rescues point for Milan as Juventus crash

Substitute Ronaldinho popped up seven minutes from time to salvage a point for AC Milan in a 1-1 draw at 10-man Atalanta on Sunday but that might not be enough to save coach Leonardo from the chop.

Meanwhile, the last unbeaten record in Serie A disappeared as Juventus were beaten 2-0 at Palermo to drop to third in the table.

Milan may have come from behind to earn a draw but their hosts played almost an hour with 10 men and it took the seven-time European champions 45 minutes to break down their lowly opponents with a numerical advantage.

It was also only Milan's fourth goal in seven league matches in which the struggling giants have managed just two wins.

Real Madrid handed first Spanish League defeat

Real Madrid's "Galacticos" crashed to their first defeat of the season losing 2-1 at title rivals Sevilla on Sunday as Barcelona opened a three-point lead at the summit.

Real were aiming to make it a perfect six wins and join Barcelona on maximum points, but instead Sevilla underlined their own credentials with a fifth straight win to move level on points with Real.

"We played really well and are on a roll at the moment," said Sevilla striker Luis Fabiano. "If we continue playing like that we can compete with Real and Barca at the top."

Sevilla were good value for the win and could have won more convincingly had it not been for Real goalkeeper Iker Casillas.