OBI MIKEL PULLS OUT OF WORLD CUP

 

Nigeria midfielder John Obi Mikel has been ruled out of the World Cup amid fears over his recovery from knee surgery. Mikel becomes the latest Chelsea player to suffer World Cup heartache with Michael Ballack and Michael Essien unavailable for Germany and Ghana and with Didier Drogba's tournament with Ivory Coast in severe doubt.

 

The 23-year-old missed the closing weeks of the domestic season as the Blues clinched a Premier League and FA Cup double after going under the knife to cure a knee complaint. And he will not feature at this summer's showpiece in South Africa despite being named in the 23-man squad after informing his country that he did not want to risk his long-term recovery.

 

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ANELKA ESCAPES INJURY

 

Nicolas Anelka has survived a scare when he crashed during a mountain bike ride at France's World Cup training camp on Tuesday.

 

Anelka escaped unhurt after losing his balance on a slippery road and falling at the end of a 50-minute ride on the French Indian Ocean island of Reunion.

 

The Chelsea star avoided injury, though, which is a big boost for France as the 31-year-old striker is set to lead the line for Les Bleus at this summer's World Cup finals.

 

 

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BALLACK FEELS GOOD CHANCE FOR ENGLAND

 

Michael Ballack says England have the quality to win the World Cup but their history could prove their main stumbling block.

 

Having spent four years in the Premier League, the Germany captain has witnessed several occasions where England have under-achieved, most notably their failure to qualify for the 2008 European Championship.

 

However, the 33-year-old midfielder believes Fabio Capello's men boast one of the best squads for this year's World Cup in South Africa, but must put their national team's previous tournament failings firmly to the back of their minds.

 

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WARM UP: JAPAN 1 - ENGLAND 2

 

England needed two late own goals from Japan defenders Marcus Tanaka and Yuji Nakazawa to gain victory in their final World Cup warm-up match in Graz.

 

England were stunned on seven minutes when Japan surged ahead as Marcus Tulio Tanaka converted Endo's corner with a timely low drive that flew past David James.

 

Frank Lampard saw a penalty saved early in the second period. But Tanaka levelled matters when deflecting in a cross from Joe Cole and then Nakazawa suffered the same fate from a centre by Ashley Cole.

 

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MOURINHO TO LEAVE MILAN FOR MADRID

 

Inter Milan have confirmed they have reached an agreement over compensation for Jose Mourinho and he is now expected to be presented as the new manager of Real Madrid on Monday.

 

Madrid sacked Manuel Pellegrini on Wednesday and outlined their intention to replace him with Mourinho once both they and the Portuguese had negotiated his release from Inter.

 

The two clubs had been struggling to reach a compromise as Inter were insisting they must be paid the full €16 million due to them under the terms of Mourinho's contract.

 

However, an agreement, reported to be worth €8 million, has been reached after a meeting between Real president Florentino Perez and his Inter counterpart Massimo Moratti in Milan.

 

Miroslav Klose, the man with the most caps in Low's squad, missed out on the captaincy due to the fact he has not played many games this season for Bayern.

 

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ESSIEN IS OUT OF WORLD CUP

 

Ghana will need a tactical rethink for the World Cup after losing Michael Essien, described by coach Milovan Rajevac as arguably the best player in the world in his position. Chelsea midfielder Essien was ruled out of the June 11 to July 11 tournament in South Africa on Thursday after failing to recover from a knee injury.

 

Essien picked up the injury during the African Nations Cup in Angola in January, where the Ghanaians reached the final even though he played only 45 minutes for them. Rajevac said several other players were battling to be fit for Ghana's World Cup Group D opener against his native Serbia in Pretoria on June 13.

 

 

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OBI MIKEL IS READY FOR ACTION

 

John Obi Mikel is 'fit' and will join the rest of his Nigeria team-mates on Friday, a spokesman for the country's football federation has announced.

 

The Chelsea midfielder has been in doubt for this summer's World Cup after undergoing a recent operation to repair a torn meniscus in his knee.

 

But Nigeria Football Federation media officer Idah Peterside has revealed a medical team from the Super Eagles that visited Mikel's London club to determine how long he would be out have returned with encouraging news.

 

 

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BALLACK SAYS NO TO MIRACLES

 

Michael Ballack insists his World Cup dream is over, despite being approached by 'wonder-healers' who claim they could cure him within a fortnight.

 

The Germany captain was ruled out of the South Africa finals after suffering serious ankle ligament damage in Chelsea's FA Cup final win over Portsmouth just over a week ago.

 

Germany doctor Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt said it would take up to eight weeks for the 33-year-old to fully recover but several other doctors have claimed to have trialled ground-breaking treatments which could have Ballack back on his feet within two weeks.

 

That would mean the former Bayern Munich performer would be fit for his country's opening World Cup fixture against Australia in theory, but the Chelsea midfielder is not holding his breath.

 

 

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INTER MILAN IS CHAMPION OF EUROPE

 

Diego Milito was overcome with emotion after his two goals handed Inter Milan their first European Cup win in 45 years with a 2-0 win over Bayern Munich, and the striker's first continental trophy of a career that has blossomed in the past year.

 

Milito struck twice in the Bernabeu as Inter defeated Bayern to claim the Treble with a deserved victory in the Champions League final. The brace took Milito's tally for the season to 30, ensuring his first season at the club following a move from Genoa has been wildly successful.

 

Focus will now turn to Mourinho's future after he became only the third coach in history to win the European Cup with two different teams, following in the footsteps of Ernst Happel and Ottmar Hitzfeld. Inter forward Goran Pandev certainly hopes the club retain the services of the self-titled 'Special One'.

 

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SVEN WARY OF THE KOREANS

 

Ivory Coast coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has said that Group G rivals North Korea could be a tough proposition for his side at the World Cup.

 

The North Koreans - appearing at their first World Cup tournament since 1966 - are very much an unknown quantity, but despite the fact that Eriksson is coming up against Brazil and Portugal in the group, he has his eye on the underdogs.

 

Eriksson also insisted that Chelsea striker Drogba would be crucial to his side's hopes of progressing in the competition, due to the goal threat he possesses.

 

 

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