Formula One McLaren: Team ordered to pay US$50million
Thursday October 25, 2007 By Theodore Liasi
LONDON (espnstar.com) - McLaren have been ordered to pay over US$50 million to Formula One’s governing body, the FIA, who will use the money to promote safer motorsport worldwide.
"Following the judgement of the World Motor Sport Council on 13 September (when McLaren was fined), a sum in excess of US$50 million will be paid in December to the FIA," they said in a statement after a meeting of its world council in Paris on Wednesday.
"This will be used to establish the FIA Development Fund, which will assist the work of National Sporting Authorities (ASNs) in promoting the development of safer motor sport worldwide, especially in countries where the motor sport infrastructure is in need of support", the statement read.
The FIA had imposed on McLaren a US$100 million fine and the loss of their 2007 Constructors' points.
However, the FIA said the size of the original fine could be halved, with revenues and prize money deducted from it according to where the team would have ended up at the end of the season with the points scored prior to the hearing.
Bolton: Trotters get permission to speak to Megson
Thursday October 25, 2007 LEICESTER (AFP) - Bolton were granted persmission to speak to Leicester's Gary Megson about their vacant manager's position on Wednesday.
The Premier League club had twice been told they would not be allowed to talk to Megson, but Leicester owner Milan Mandaric reluctantly agreed to the approach after a late-night meeting with his manager following their defeat against Sheffield United on Tuesday.
Bolton have been searching for a new boss since sacking Sammy Lee last week and had seen attempts to hire Birmingham's Steve Bruce and Real Sociedad's Chris Coleman rebuffed.
Now they seem set to land Megson, who has only been in charge of the Championship club for six weeks following 18 months out of the game.
Mandaric's statement on the Leicester website outlined how hard it had been for him to let Megson leave.
"It is with disappointment and great reluctance that I have today agreed to allow Gary Megson to open talks with Bolton Wanderers regarding their vacant managerial position," he said.
"Despite my best efforts to retain his services and turning down two formal approaches from Bolton, Gary left me with no choice last night when he informed me he wanted to leave Leicester and talk to the Premiership club.
"I made it abundantly clear that Bolton's interest was neither welcome nor invited but it was evident to me that following a meeting requested by Gary following last night's home defeat by Sheffield United that his loyalties and heart lay elsewhere.
"Naturally, I am very disappointed. My objectives were to stand firm in the face of mounting interest from Bolton and intense media speculation over Gary's future, but in the end these completely undermined my firm determination to retain his services.
"In point of fact it was abundantly clear to me that if I stood in Gary's way it would have a detrimental effect on the club and I was not prepared to allow that to happen."
Arsenal: Almunia won't let Lehmann jibes bother him
Thursday October 25, 2007 LONDON (AFP) - Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia insists he won't let Jens Lehmann's jibes ruin the best season of his life.
Lehmann launched an astonishing attack on Gunners manager Arsene Wenger on Tuesday for "humiliating" him by choosing to play Almunia ahead of him.
The German international also claimed Almunia has yet to show he is experienced enough to deal with the pressure of big matches.
But Almunia underlined why Wenger has kept faith with him this season by keeping his seventh cleansheet in eight games as Arsenal beat Slavia Prague 7-0 on Tuesday.
The Spanish keeper is determined not to let Lehmann get to him as he enjoys the chance to play with the Premier League leaders.
"If I read the papers and listen to what other people say about me and all these things I will turn crazy. I don't want that," Almunia said.
"When I'm playing well, I honestly don't mind other things. Maybe if I will be playing badly or not too good I would be more worried, but for me life is fantastic and I want to take my chance.
"The goalkeeping position is a difficult one. I will stay positive.
"I've been here almost three years without playing in the league. It's normal for people to assess the situation.
"But I forget the past and now I'm playing so it's not a problem."
Thursday October 25, 2007 MANCHESTER (AFP) - Ryan Giggs believes Manchester United's Champions League victory against Dynamo Kiev proves they can cope with the injury problems that threaten to derail their season.
Sir Alex Ferguson's side romped to a 4-2 win in the Ukraine on Tuesday despite being without Paul Scholes, Patrice Evra, Gary Neville, Owen Hargreaves, Michael Carrick and Louis Saha.
The Premier League champions lost Scholes to an injury in training before the match, while Evra was ruled after suffering an injury in the pre-match warm-up.
With so many senior players on the sidelines it would have been easy for Ferguson's team to feel sorry for themselves against Dynamo.
But instead they responded with their third consecutive four-goal haul, leaving Giggs to praise Ferguson for his decision to spend big money strengthening the squad in pre-season.
"The manager has chopped and changed this season already, whether that be due to injuries, or suspensions or whatever and we have coped with it, just as we coped with what happened in Kiev," Giggs said.
"It just proves the value of having a good squad. I think a few players are due to come back shortly and once that happens, we will start to look strong again."
Carlos Tevez, Anderson and Nani, Ferguson's three main signings this season, all played a part in the victory and Giggs has been impressed with how quickly they have settled at Old Trafford.
"It is important for the players who have come in to bed in as quickly as they can," he said.
"All the signings have bedded in and played some good stuff and overall it is looking really good."
After a succession of scrappy performances, United are hitting their stride. They have won 11 of their last 11 matches and Giggs insists his team-mates have finally found their cutting edge.
"To score four goals away from home against any team in Europe is fantastic," he said.
"The main thing is we are starting to put our opportunities away now, while retaining that defensive steel at the back.
"Over the last few years, our away form in Europe has not been the best but we are on a real run now and we want to carry it on in every competition."
Chelsea: Grant's shrewd moves keep Blues revolution on track
Thursday October 25, 2007 by Steve Griffiths
LONDON (AFP) - Avram Grant knows his Chelsea revolution is still a work in progress but he believes it is only a matter of time before he delivers the fantasy football that Roman Abramovich demands.
Grant's dour demeanour hides a shrewd character and he has so far managed to avoid the pitfalls that eventually cost Jose Mourinho his job.
Where Mourinho was unable to back down in his power struggle with Abramovich, Grant is proving adept at telling the Blues owner exactly what he wants to hear.
The Russian has made it clear he expects Chelsea to play with style as well as substance and Grant is talking up his desire to turn the London team into entertainers at every opportunity.
Grant's side showed signs of living up to his lofty billing as they cruised to a 2-0 win over Schalke 04 in the Champions League on Wednesday.
There was still more than a hint of the no-frills efficiency that was the hallmark of Mourinho's reign, but Chelsea undoubtedly played a more open game against the Germans.
Grant is pleased with the progress of a side which has now won their last four matches but he was keen to emphasis it will take time to fully establish his purist principles.
"We have won games and played well but we have to go step by step," he said. "We always want to be better but I don't want to look at the sky and say this is the limit.
"We are improving every game. You see that the players have commitment to win the game and also to play positive football.
"I don't think it was not good in the past but we are trying to change it to do something else.
"The past is past. I respect it but I am looking forward. I can say that we are on the way to getting the team how I want to play."
As Grant concedes, Chelsea's engine still needs some fine-tuning, so it must be slighty unnerving to see the finished article going at full speed just across London.
Arsenal are playing some of the most breathtaking football in Europe and underlined their quality with a 7-0 demolition of Slavia Prague this week.
While Grant admires Arsene Wenger's side, he insists they are not the benchmark for his own club.
"I respect Arsenal and I respect other clubs but we are not taking examples from other teams," he said.
"We want to play our game. It will be positive football most of the time.
"It has taken a long time for Arsenal to build their style. They play their football, we play ours and Manchester United play theirs.
"We don't take examples from other teams."
Chelsea are in pole position in Group B after easing past Schalke.
They were gifted the lead in the fourth minute when Florent Malouda's low shot squirmed through goalkeeper Manuel Neuer's legs.
Didier Drogba put the result beyond doubt early in the second half when he finished a flowing move with a diving header from Paulo Ferreira's cross.
Abramovich, watching from the stands, certainly couldn't have asked for more as he celebrated his 41st birthday and he leapt off his seat to celebrate Drogba's goal.
While Chelsea appear to be heading in the right direction, Schalke are in danger of slipping out of the competition.
They were unfortunate to a have a goal wrongly ruled out for offside when Carlos Grossmuller beat Petr Cech from close range and their coach Mirko Slomka is determined to give Chelsea a harder time when they meet again next month.
"When it is a matter of points you can't ignore the maths," Slomka said. "But we still have a chance to finish second. We are at home to Chelsea next and I hope we can challenge them and provide stiffer opposition."
