Under starter's orders: Republic of Ireland Under-21 manager Don Givens has called up five uncapped players for the friendly international against Scotland at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock on February 11th.
Stephen Brennan (Newcastle), Stephen Paisley (Manchester City), Seán Thornton (Sunderland) Gary Dempsey (Dunfermline) and JJ Melligan (Kidderminster) are all called into the panel as Givens uses the game as a chance to take a look at a number of new players.
Paisley and Dempsey have both been called up before and will be hopeful of starts while Brennan impressed Givens at the recent Under-20 tournament in the United Arab Emirates - a tournament Thornton missed because Sunderland needed him for first-team action at the same time.
SQUAD: Murphy (West Brom), Stack (Beveren), Brennan (Newcastle), Goodwin (Stockport), Thompson (Nottingham Forest), Byrne (Scunthorpe), Butler (Sunderland), Paisley (Man City), Tierney (Crewe), Dempsey (Dunfermline), Miller (Celtic), Melligan (Kidderminster), Thornton (Sunderland), Daly (Stockport), Reid (Nottingham Forest), Barrett (Brighton), Hoolahan (Shelbourne), Hunt (Dunfermline).
FAI seek key player
The FAI will tomorrow publish advertisements seeking to recruit a new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). One of the key recommendations arising from the Genesis report was the appointment of a full-time CEO.
The contents of the advertisement are:
The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) is seeking to recruit a Chief Executive Officer to lead, direct and manage the activities and services of the association. This is a challenging role and requires a decisive and dynamic leader to:
develop and deliver the future vision and strategy for football in Ireland.
integrate the sport and the business in an increasingly competitive and professional environment
manage the relationships and needs of all members of the football family
improve administration and support structures to deliver effective service to all stakeholders.
Trying to save face
Goalkeeper Mark Bosnich yesterday contested his sacking by Chelsea as he took his case to a Premier League tribunal.
Bosnich was accompanied by his legal team at the Premier League's London headquarters, but the hearing was not concluded and will continue today.
The Australian, who has been suffering from depression, is arguing that Chelsea acted improperly in the way in which they dismissed him following his positive drugs test for cocaine in November last year.
The club initially suspended him without pay before issuing him with a 14-day notice period for his contract to be terminated.
Barca's reality check
Barcelona , 13th in La Liga, will apply to play in the InterToto Cup this summer as insurance should they not win the European Cup. Barca, who parted company with their coach Louis van Gaal for a second time on Monday, are three points above the relegation zone and seven off the final UEFA Cup place, and must finish above 12th to qualify for the InterToto.
Their president Joan Gaspart has opened negotiations with Cesar Luis Menotti, (64), another former Barca manager, who coached Argentina to victory in the 1978 World Cup.
He last coached at Nou Camp in 1984 and Gaspart is out of step with the majority of his board, who prefer Raddy Antic, the former Atletico Madrid coach.
Going for the double
The Italian Football League is considering a plan to radically transform Serie A. Yesterday, the league's council presented to club officials a series of proposals including one for Serie A to be expanded to two groups of 20 teams. The top division currently has 18 clubs.
The shake-up is seen as a possible way of boosting Italian soccer, which is suffering from acute financial problems. A spokesman for the league said the radical proposal for a two-group Serie A would see top-placed teams in each group play off for the title with other teams entering a "play out" to avoid relegation.
Europe against the world
Europe's leading clubs dealt a potentially fatal blow to the controversial World Club Championship by yesterday outlining their opposition to the tournament.
A statement released by the 102 clubs in the European Club Forum after a meeting in Nyon, Switzerland, yesterday afternoon made clear they will resist FIFA's plans to stage the club tournament in 2005.
The statement from the club forum read: "We do not believe that there is a need or a desire for this competition among European clubs, fans, players or commercial partners. We would oppose it being played in the future.
"At a time when European football has made the step of reducing the number of top-class competitive games by abolishing the second group stage of the UEFA Champions League it doesn't make sense to try and introduce another international club competition."
The final countdown
The proposed transfer of Danny Higginbotham from Derby County to Southampton appeared to be in limbo last night because the central defender is still waiting to be given permission to speak to the club.
With January's transfer window closing at midnight, Higginbotham fears there will not be sufficient time for him to complete the formalities involved in a transfer that was first mooted three weeks ago.
Sweet FA tie on BBC
The BBC will show the FA Cup fifth-round tie between Manchester United and Arsenal at 12.15 p.m. on Saturday, February 15th and Rochdale's trip to Wolves the following day.
Sky will screen the Sunday afternoon tie between Crystal Palace or Liverpool versus Gillingham or Leeds United at 2.0 p.m. and follow it with Stoke versus Chelsea.
An Italian job
Former Chelsea manager Gianluca Vialli is set to return to Italy after seven years in England. The former Italian international striker joined Chelsea as a player in the 1996/97 season from Juventus and went on to coach the club from February 1998 to September 2000, taking over from Dutchman Ruud Gullit.
Vialli, who also managed Watford, told Italian TV programme Un squaddra per amico his intention to return to the Italian football scene.
"It is a decision linked with football obviously, but for the time being I cannot say more," said Vialli.
In brief. . .
Slovakia defender Vratislav Gresko has joined Blackburn Rovers on loan from Serie A side Parma until the end of the season. Bolton manager Sam Allardyce has snapped up Salva Ballesta on loan subject to the 27-year-old Valencia striker passing a medical. Glenn Roeder is in transfer talks with Leonidas Vokolos' agent as he tries to make the Greek international centre back West Ham's third signing of the month. Discussions with Derby duo Malcolm Christie and Chris Riggott are still ongoing as Middlesbrough try to thrash out the details of a deal which would see both men head for the Riverside. Celtic will be without Johan Mjallby for the next month after the Sweden captain tore a thigh muscle in Wednesday's match with Dundee United, who have sacked manager Paul Hegarty and replaced him with Ian McCall. Nigerian Taribo West has signed with Yugoslav champions Partizan Belgrade.
