Manchester United's new £19 million striker Ruud van Nistelrooy insists he will revel in the pressure of being Britain's most expensive footballer. Nistelrooy dismissed any notion that he will be burdened by the record fee. Instead he sees it as a compliment that United feel he is worth the cash. "It's not heavy for me," said van Nistelrooy at his Old Trafford unveiling yesterday.
Van Nistelrooy flew back to Holland after the press conference and will now concentrate on helping PSV win a Dutch league and cup double. He will then officially sign his five-year contract and become a United player on July 1st, his 25th birthday.
Meanwhile, Dwight Yorke insisted yesterday he was determined to stay at United and fight for his place. Yorke is seen as the striker most likely to make way for the Dutch international forward and already Aston Villa manager John Gregory has said he would be interested in taking him back to Birmingham.
Lazio's Portuguese international captain Fernando Couto, who tested positive for the banned anabolic steroid nandrolone, has been banned with immediate effect by the disciplinary committee of the Italian football league, the league confirmed yesterday. Couto, who will now miss tomorrow's derby with league leaders AS Roma, has been banned pending the outcome of his appearance before the Italian Olympic committee (CONI) anti-doping commission on May 8th-9th.
David Seaman (37) has signed a one-year extension on his current Arsenal contract and Les Ferdinand has agreed to sign a new two-year deal with Tottenham.
Former Leicester midfielder Theo Zagorakis was yesterday cleared of taking performance-enhancing drugs by an independent judge in Greece.
Sunderland boss Peter Reid yesterday furiously denied that striker Kevin Phillips has submitted a transfer request. Phillips arrived at the club's Whitburn training ground yesterday and went straight to see his manager amid reports that he was ready to quit Wearside. But after a short conversation, Reid angrily rubbished the claims. "I've had the boy in and it's rubbish," he said. "If the boy had a problem, I would be the first to know."
Leeds striker Mark Viduka yesterday admitted a move to Real Madrid would be a "giant step" in his career. Reports in Spain claim the Primera Liga leaders have registered their interest in the 25-year-old Australian international.
However, manager David O'Leary has revealed if Viduka were to leave, the decision would be his rather than those who pull the financial strings at Elland Road, and then only if the player is unhappy.
Emmet Malone adds: The National League's management committee will decide today on how to apply the now traditional shelving of late season suspensions aimed at allowing players at clubs involved in the cup final to take part in the game.
At a meeting scheduled to follow a workshop aimed at exploring ways in which the benefits of summer soccer might be maximised, delegates will discuss a proposal that all suspensions intended to take effect from next Tuesday be rolled over into next season.
Had the season run to plan such a move would only have affected the cup final but if was to be adopted now, in the aftermath of the foot-and-mouth crisis, a number of players whose clubs are also involved in crucial league games would also benefit.
Also likely to be considered is a protest from Shelbourne regarding the timing of next week's vital games.
Shelbourne want their game against Shamrock Rovers and Bohemians' game at Longford to be played at the same time but the midlands club wants to play on Wednesday night while the Dubliners prefer Thursday night because of the potential clash with televised Champions League football.
