WARSAW (AFP) ― Russia coach Dick Advocaat said on Tuesday he considered Spain, Netherlands and Germany to be the clear favorites for Euro-2012 adding he did not count Russia to be among them.“One friendly victory even if it was a thrashing of Italy (3-0 last Friday) doesn’t make us the Euro favorites,” the Dutchman told a press conference.“We should remain realists, it was just a warm-up game.“It’s good that we scored three goals against Italy to boost our team’s self-confidence but we still nee

Manchester United announced on Wednesday that it will sign on Japanese midfielder Shinji Kagawa, casting doubt on Korean midfielder Park Ji-sung’s future at Old Trafford. The Premier League team has agreed to bring in the 23-year-old from German club Borussia Dortmund for a reported initial fee of 12 million pounds ($18.5 million).The move is expected to threaten Park’s future at Old Trafford, as both play the same position.Park’s contract ends after the 2012-2013 season and his performance last

SEVILLE, Spain (AP) ― Spain midfielders Andres Iniesta and David Silva combined to score a late goal in a 1-0 victory over a stubborn China on Sunday in the team’s last warm-up before defending its European Championship title.Iniesta jumped on a loose ball inside China’s half and scurried into the area before passing to Silva for the 84th-minute winner that gave the World Cup champion its 25th straight victory at home.China was better in the first half, taking advantage of several uncharacterist

England won for the second straight time under Roy Hodgson on Saturday, while European Championship co-host Poland and the Netherlands enjoyed romps in their tuneups.Danny Welbeck scored his first international goal in the 36th minute to give England a 1-0 victory over Belgium at Wembley that was far from convincing. The English will enter Euro 2012 with a perfect record since Hodgson became coach, having beaten Norway by the same score last weekend.Poland swept aside lowly Andorra 4-0 in Warsaw

MADRID (AP) ― Spain’s entire squad has finally come together for the last exhibition before the European Championship, with the defending champions playing China on Sunday.A week later, Spain opens against Italy to start the campaign to retain the title and give the debt-stricken nation a morale boost.Nine players from the Copa del Rey final between Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao, who missed Spain’s training sessions in Austria and wins over Serbia and South Korea, joined the team on Friday.While

KIEV (AP) ― Ukrainian officials are denying that football fans of African and Asian origin will be the targets of violence by racist hooligans at the European Championship, and a top tournament organizer says stewards ― and not police ― will be the most visible security at stadiums.A BBC documentary this week showed footage of Ukrainian hooligans attacking Asian fans supporting the same team at a domestic league match, as well as examples of blatant anti-Semitism.Former England soccer player Sol

The days when K-League teams sat on the throne of the AFC Champions League seem to have come and gone. Korea, which produced the top tier teams in the past three years, will be lucky to even have a team in the semifinals as all but Ulsan Hyundai have been ousted. Ulsan is the only remaining club out of the four K-League teams sent to the AFC. The club goes into the quarterfinals after beating Kashiwa Reysol 3-2.The team is a relative newcomer to the Champions League and will now have to represen

LONDON (AP) ― Liverpool appears set to hire Brendan Rodgers as its new manager.The hire would vault the Northern Irishman from relative obscurity to one of the toughest jobs in soccer, with his current club Swansea claiming a deal was expected to be finalized on Thursday.Following talks with Liverpool’s American owners ― Fenway Sports Group, which owns the Boston Red Sox ― Rodgers told Swansea on Wednesday he has been offered the job as Kenny Dalglish’s replacement at Anfield and was ready to ac

SAO PAULO (AP) ― FIFA and Brazilian organizers announced Tuesday that “All in one rhythm”will be the official slogan of the 2014 World Cup, representing the “unique flavor that Brazil will bring”to football’s showcase event.FIFA said the unveiling of the slogan represents a “major milestone in the path”of the World Cup. Secretary General Jerome Valcke said it will help bring fans together for a uniquely Brazilian celebration.“The official slogan is the result of a joint effort between Brazil and

VALENCIENNES, France (AP) ― Franck Ribery scored his first international goal in more than three years and Adil Rami had the late winner in France’s 3-2 comeback victory over Iceland on Sunday in a European Championship warmup match.Coach Laurent Blanc picked an experimental and attacking lineup, featuring several fringe players. The move backfired when Iceland went 2-0 in the first half on goals from Birkir Bjarnason and Ajax striker Kolbeinn Sigthorsson.Right back Mathieu Debuchy made it 2-1 e