Barcelona beats Valencia to advance to Copa final

Cesc Fabregas scored one goal and set up another as Barcelona beat Valencia 2-0 on Wednesday to advance to the Copa del Rey final against Athletic Bilbao.

Lionel Messi lobbed a long pass that Fabregas chased down and deftly chipped over goalkeeper Diego Alves for Barcelona's 15th-minute opener.And after Sofiane Feghouli left Valencia with 10 men late on after receiving his second booking, Fabregas set up Xavi Hernandez to send Barcelona through 3-1 on aggregate.

The final will pit the two most successful teams in the competition. Barcelona will look to add to its record 25 titles on May 25, while Bilbao aims to avenge its 2009 final loss to the Catalans that denied the club a 24th title.

"I am happy with the Copa campaign that my team has had, but we were playing against the best team in the world," said Valencia coach Unai Emery, who has yet to beat Barcelona in eight tries.

"We had our chances until the second goal but Barcelona is a great team."

Valencia received a setback just before kickoff when leading scorer Roberto Soldado was ruled unfit to play because of the flu. He was replaced by Basque striker Aritz Aduriz up front.

Barcelona, meanwhile, received a boost by the return of Xavi and Alexis Sanchez to the starting 11 and Andres Iniesta to the bench, while Isaac Cuenca and Thiago Alcantara again filled in for the injured Pedro Rodriguez and Sergio Busquets.

Contrary to Barcelona's usual style, Valencia owned possession for the first 10 minutes and made all the attacking plays at Camp Nou stadium.

Feghouli had Valencia's first clear chance when he was played behind Barcelona's high defensive line and sent a left-footed blast into the side-netting in the 12th.

But Messi soon turned the flow of the game in the 15th, lobbing a long-range pass from the other side of the half-way line for Fabregas to run down and lift over Diego Alves.

It was Fabregas' 15th goal of the season in all competitions. At this pace, he should have little trouble breaking his season-best tally of 19 from his time at Arsenal.

Messi almost set up another goal for Barcelona four minutes later after robbing defender Adil Rami, but Diego Alves blocked his shot and Cuenca sent the rebound wide.

Back in control, the Catalan giants settled into Valencia's territory with Fabregas testing Diego Alves with a pair of strikes from inside the box before halftime.

Valencia caught Barcelona flatfooted after the restart, though, winger Jordi Alba and Aduriz drawing good saves from goalkeeper Jose Pinto.

Again it was Messi who put Barcelona back in charge, first firing a shot off a defender that hit the crossbar and then showing a lightning-fast change of foot to squirm through three defenders and flick a shot that Diego Alves dived to parry.

Yet unlike the first half, Valencia responded and Aduriz soon caught Pinto off his line, but Javier Mascherano cleared the danger.

Messi, who has had problems finishing off chances recently and had a penalty blocked by Diego Alves in the first leg, again missed from point-blank range after Alexis had robbed the ball and set him up with only the 'keeper to beat.

Jonas, Valencia's scorer in the first leg, forced Pinto to tip his rising strike over the bar in the 73rd as the game turned into an up-and-down contest late on.

But Feghouli left Valencia a man down from the 76th, and Fabregas rolled Alexis' low cross over to an unmarked Xavi on the right side for his Spain teammate to blast into the left corner of the net in the 81st and seal the series.

Bilbao eliminated third-tier club Mirandes on Tuesday by an 8-3 aggregate score.

Chelsea ready to use Torres as makeweight to fund £50m move for Falcao

Chelsea are planning a raid for Atlectico Madrid striker Falcao and could use Fernando Torres as part of the deal for the Colombian. 

The Blues have been sent club representatives to watch the 25-year-old for the last three months and the move is being pushed forward by manager Andre Villas-Boas who managed the player at Porto.

The Stamford Bridge club are willing to cut their losses on Torres whose record-breaking move to west London has become a nightmare, according to the Daily Star.

The Spaniard has managed three league goals since his move south and could view a return home as the best way to rediscover his form. 

Falcao has had no such problem since moving from Portugal to La Liga side Atletico last summer: he scored 62 goals in 72 games following his move to Europe from River Plate in 2009. 

He bagged 33 in 36 outings under Villas-Boas last season, including 17 in 14 Europa League games for winners Porto to set a new European scoring record.

And he has picked up where he left off last year with another 17 goals in 25 games for Atletico.  

Novak Djokovic Determined To Win ‘Golden Slam’ In 2012

Novak Djokovic is already off to a great start in 2012 after beating Rafael Nadal to win the Australian Open, but it turns out the Serbian tennis star has higher aspirations than that. Much, much higher. According to CNN, Djokovic has his sights set on winning the “golden slam” — all four major tournaments plus Olympic gold — in 2012. “Obviously it will be a hard task to win the ‘golden slam,’ but the thought excites me,” Djokovic said. “It gives me goosebumps and little butterflies in the stomach when I start thinking about the ‘golden slam.’ You have to consistently be successful to be one of the top players in the world, and everything is possible in life.” The golden slam has only been achieved once before, in 1988 by women’s No. 1 Steffi Graf. Djokovic, whose Aussie win last month was his eighth major championship, is confident he can become the first male player to pull it off. Djokovic won the bronze medal in 2008 in Beijing, but he has bigger goals in London this summer. “The Olympic Games is certainly high on my priority list this year,” Djokovic said. “The difference is that I will be representing my country, rather than myself, and that’s something that I am really looking forward to.”

Four held over volleyball match-fixing in SKorea

South Korean prosecutors have arrested four people over alleged match-fixing in professional volleyball, officials said Wednesday. A former player with the KEPCO45 team allegedly took bribes from a gambling broker in return for trying to rig the results of games last year, an official at the prosecution office at the southeastern city of Daegu said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because an investigation was under way. Two other former and incumbent KEPCO45 players have also been arrested for their alleged involvement, the official said. A KEPCO45 official confirmed the arrests, saying his team "feels sorry" for the fans. He wished to remain anonymous citing department rules. The detained broker placed bets on an illegal online gambling website after the results were arranged, the prosecution official said. The outcome of at least four volleyball games last year were rigged, he said. The four people were separately arrested in late January and early February and prosecutors plan to indict them later this month, the official said. The official refused to disclose further details but Yonhap news agency cited the Daegu prosecution office as saying the arrested players told investigators that more players were involved in match-fixing schemes. Last year, South Korea s football league was also hit by a massive match-fixing scandal last year, with nearly 80 footballers and brokers convicted. 

Suarez return fails to inspire Liverpool

Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez returned after a nine-match absence but failed to inspire Liverpool to victory in a cagey 0-0 draw with Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Monday. Spurs manager Harry Redknapp, who hoped to fly to the match after the end of the day’s court proceedings in his tax evasion trial, missed the game because of a technical fault that prevented his plane from taking off. He did not miss a great deal of action but his team defended resolutely to leave Anfield with a point after failing to score in the league for the first time for 23 matches. Spurs stayed third on 50 points, seven behind leaders Manchester City and five adrift of champions Manchester United. They also remained seven clear of fourth-placed Chelsea following their London rivals’ 3-3 draw with United on Sunday. Liverpool, who remain unbeaten in the League at Anfield but have drawn eight of their 12 home matches, remained seventh on 39 points, one behind Arsenal. Liverpool enjoyed more possession than Spurs but failed to seriously trouble the visitors, though manager Kenny Dalkglish was happy with the performance. “I’m really pleased with the way the team played. We kept them under a lot of pressure. We just needed the bounce of the ball to go our way and if we’d have got one, I think we would have won it,” he told Sky Sports. Tottenham assistant manager Kevin Bond, in charge at Anfield in Redknapp’s absence, told the BBC: “We had to work really hard and defend for our lives at the end. “We didn’t create many chances but we had the best chance of the match five minutes before the end, and it just was not meant to be. For Gareth Bale’s chance, the goalkeeper stood up well and it was a big moment for us, but a point was a good result for us.” Liverpool striker Andy Carroll had a good opportunity to score after 74 minutes but skied a half-volley over the bar while Suarez headed straight at former Liverpool keeper Brad Friedel from a free kick with his only real chance. Suarez came on after 66 minutes following the end of his suspension which included an eight-match ban for racially abusing Manchester United’s Patrice Evra in October and one game for giving Fulham fans the finger in early December. Spurs’ best chance fell to Bale five minutes from time, but the Welsh midfielder hurried his shot and fired straight at Pepe Reina, one of the few attempts the Liverpool goalie had to deal with. There were few real chances at either end and one of the highlights of the first half was when a cat ran on to the pitch and caused a short delay.

Defeated England 'quarrels with Ajmal's action'

In keeping with the tradition of faulting foreign players after English defeat, the British media twisted a quote from the Pakistani spinner s interview in which he referred to his earlier clearance by the ICC. Saeed Ajmal, the 34-year-old off-spinner who took 24 wickets in the 3-0 Test series whitewash of England, was quoted by the British and other western media as that the International Cricket Council (ICC) has allowed him extra leniency, up to 23.5 degrees to bend his arm. "I don t know about my bowling action, but somebody was telling me your action is bad. ICC has allowed me 23.5 because my arm is not good because of an accident, that is why a problem," BBC television showed Ajmal as saying on Monday after being declared man-of-the-series. "Otherwise no problem, straightaway cleared by ICC." Pakistan won the third and final Test here by 71 runs. His bowling action, reported by match officials during a one-day series against Australia in 2009 before it was cleared after remedial work by experts, once again came under suspicions following his career-best 7-55 in the first Test, also played in Dubai. Former England paceman Bob Willis raised suspicions over his  doosra  (second one) -- a ball which turns the other way than a normal off-break -- while England coach Andy Flower said he has his own opinion and left the matter to the ICC. But after Ajmal s claim on relaxation, Flower on Tuesday showed surprise. "If that s the degree, then there s a problem, said Flower when asked about Ajmal s claim of special dispensation. "That s ridiculous." "That is an ICC issue, though. They are there to police the game, and make sure that it is played within the rules, so they ve got to scrutinise his action. "We ve all got our own views, but our job is to combat whoever is put against us, and part of it is also to play the game in the right spirit." Pakistan cricket team management said Ajmal was cleared by the ICC within the permissible limits and they will issue a further clarification shortly. An ICC spokesman said that the game s governing body was looking into Ajmal s comments and that no player has been given permission to allow bending arms beyond 15 degrees.  A Pakistan Cricket Board spokesman meanwhile said that Ajmal is not a native English speaker, and his comments could have taken in the wrong context.   

FIFA pays $250K to families of Egypt riot victims

FIFA is giving $250,000 in aid to the families of victims of the Egyptian football stadium disaster last week. FIFA says it will pay the money into a charitable account opened by the Al-Ahly club. Fans of the Cairo club were among more than 70 people who died in a violent rampage and stampede after a league match between Al-Masry and Al-Ahly in Port Said. FIFA President Sepp Blatter says "many of the victims were so young. They were also a crucial support for their families, who now need help." Police have been accused of failing to protect Al-Ahly fans, who helped lead protests last year against the regime of ousted president Hosni Mubarak. The stadium tragedy fueled renewed protests against Egypt s military rulers.

PCB chairman wants Amir return

PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf has said that Mohammad Amir, the Pakistan fast bowler who was released from custody in the UK on Wednesday, will be welcomed back to the national team once he has served his ICC ban. Ashraf added that Amir would be given financial support while undergoing rehabilitation.

The 19-year-old Amir was released from Portland Young Offenders Institution in Dorset after serving half of a six-month sentence for his part in a spot-fixing scam. He is currently in London where he will meet his lawyers to draw up an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the five-year ban imposed on him by the ICC for the same offence.

"Once he serves the ban, then he could come into the team," Ashraf said. "He is a young Pakistani, he committed a mistake and it was a case of a huge talent lost.

"We will have to see how his appeal goes in the CAS. After serving the ban he can come back in the team, but the final decision will be down to the selectors who will judge his fitness.

"I want to see Amir back, but only after considering the legality of the case and only after he serves the ban. We can do the rehab programme while he is serving his ban. We can do the rehab programme and also use him in lectures to other players so that he can be financially helped."

An ICC tribunal banned Amir for five years in February 2011. His team-mate Mohammad Asif was given a seven-year ban - with two years suspended - and the former Pakistan captain Salman Butt was banned for ten years, five suspended. Shortly after the decision Amir announced his intention to appeal the decision to the CAS, an arbitration body set up to settle legal disputes relating to sport.

Amir and his two team-mates were give custodial sentences in November 2011 after being convicted at Southwark Crown Court of conspiracy to accept corrupt payments and conspiracy to cheat at gambling. A plot to bowl deliberate no-balls in a Test against England in 2010 was uncovered in a News of the World sting operation. Amir and Butt lost an appeal against the sentence in November in the Court of Appeal in London.

The judge, Mr Justice Cooke, ruled at Southwark Crown Court that the affair was "so serious that only imprisonment will suffice". Butt was sentenced to two-and-a-half years, Asif was jailed for one year, and Amir for six months. Mazhar Majeed, the players' agent, received a sentence of two years eight months. Majeed had boasted to undercover reporters that he could arrange for Pakistan cricketers to rig elements of games for money and was surreptitiously filmed accepting £150,000 in cash from a journalist.

Ashraf blamed Majeed for the players' involvement in spot-fixing and reiterated that Pakistan cricket would not give up on Amir.

"Definitely we will rehabilitate Amir through an education programme," he said. "Whatever has happened we are sad, not only me but also most of the Pakistani people are sad for this young boy who, with the other players, was trapped by Majeed."