SOCCER SHORTS:IRELAND supporters face the prospect of a major scramble for tickets for tickets for the last away game of the Euro 2016 campaign after Uefa yesterday rejected a request from the Andorran FA to stage the match on October 7th at Espanyol's stadium in nearby Barcelona.
The decision means that the game will almost certainly take place in the principality at the Communal Stadium which holds just 850 spectators, less than Ireland would bring to virtually any competitive game and far short of what had been expected to travel to Barcelona in the event that Giovanni Trapattoni’s side are still in contention to qualify for next summer’s finals in Poland and Ukraine.
The Andorrans had originally considered playing the game there but changed their minds as Ireland continued to challenge with Russia and Slovakia for top spot in the group and the FAI, conscious of the attractiveness to fans of travelling to a game in Barcelona, advised them that significantly larger numbers might be expected.
The actual scale of the demand will not be known until after next month’s games against Russia and Slovakia are out of the way but previously more than 5,000 have routinely travelled for games in circumstances where the team is firmly in the hunt for qualification towards the end of the campaign.
It was unclear last night whether the FAI might try to have Uefa rethink their decision but Andorran officials seemed confident that the match will now go ahead on their own territory.
– Emmet Malone
Tottenham sign Adebayor on a season-long loan
TOTTENHAM yesterday completed the signing of Emmanuel Adebayor from Manchester City on a season-long loan, the London club confirmed. The former Arsenal striker’s move back to the capital has been confirmed after City’s football administrator Brian Marwood had earlier revealed he had undergone a medical. Harry Redknapp has been in the market for a striker all summer after Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe and Roman Pavlyuchenko all failed to score regularly last season.
The Togo-born striker moved to the Premier League in January 2006 from Monaco and scored 81 goals in 186 appearances in all competitions during spells with Arsenal and Manchester City. Adebayor fell out with City boss Roberto Mancini last season and the Italian made it clear the striker had no future at the club. The 27-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at Real Madrid, where he scored twice against Tottenham in the Champions League quarter-final first leg clash at the Bernabeu.
Ferguson ends dispute with BBC
MANCHESTER United manager Alex Ferguson has ended his long boycott of BBC interviews, the Premier League champions said yesterday.
Ferguson stopped speaking to the broadcaster both on television and radio in 2004 after it ran a programme about his son Jason, then a soccer agent.
“Sir Alex Ferguson and the BBC have decided to put behind them the difficulties which led to Sir Alex feeling unable to appear on BBC programmes,” a club statement said.
“This follows a meeting between Sir Alex and the BBCs director general, Mark Thompson, and BBC North director Peter Salmon, and the issues have been resolved to the satisfaction of both parties.”
Ferguson faced a series of escalating fines for the boycott, which went against protocol whereby managers and players must make themselves available to broadcasters who pay to cover matches.
No details were given on the reasons why Ferguson has changed his stance.
