Soccer Capsules: Onyewu in California for medical checkup
MILAN, Italy — AC Milan defender Oguchi Onyewu has traveled to California for a checkup on his knee as he recovers from surgery that has sidelined him for most of this season.
Onyewu was to be examined by Dr. Bert Mandelbaum, who operated on Onyewu last Oct. 21, seven days after he ruptured the patellar tendon in his left knee during a World Cup qualifier against Costa Rica. At the time of the surgery, Onyewu was projected to be sidelined for six months.
"He is currently working with the U.S. team’s medical staff. He is expected back in Italy at the end of the week," AC Milan spokesman Riccardo Coli said Tuesday.
Onyewu was seen at last weekend’s Los Angeles Galaxy opener watching with David Beckham, on loan from the Galaxy to AC Milan when he ruptured an Achilles’ tendon on March 14.
Onyewu hopes to play for the U.S. at this year’s World Cup. The 27-year-old appeared in just one of the AC Milan’s 10 competitive matches this season before getting hurt.
Feilhaber ‘fighting fit,’ back on bench for Aarhus
COPENHAGEN — American midfielder Benny Feilhaber is returning from an ankle injury and will be on the bench for his Danish club AFG Aarhus in a league match Wednesday against Esbjerg.
Team spokesman Bo Jensen says the 25-year-old Feilhaber is expected to be in the starting lineup in the following match Monday against Randers.
Jensen told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Feilhaber is now "fighting fit."
Feilhaber injured his ankle Feb. 15 while training with Aarhus. He has two goals in 31 international appearances, playing in all five U.S. games at last year’s Confederations Cup.
Leiweke, joins U.S. World Cup bidders
NEW YORK — Tim Leiweke, president of the Los Angeles Galaxy and Houston Dynamo parent company Anschutz Entertainment Group, has joined the U.S. bid committee trying to win the right to host the World Cup in 2018 or 2022.
England, Netherlands-Belgium, Russia, Spain-Portugal, Australia and Japan also are bidding to host both World Cups. Qatar and South Korea are bidding for 2022 only.
FIFA’s executive committee will vote on Dec. 2.
Other U.S. board members include former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, boxer Oscar De La Hoya, comedian Drew Carey and director Spike Lee.
FC Dallas’ Davies out 6-8 weeks with broken arm
FRISCO — FC Dallas defender Kyle Davies is expected to miss at least six weeks after surgery to repair his broken right arm.
The team says Davies had surgery to repair an ulna fracture and radius dislocation in the arm. He was injured in Saturday’s season opener in a collision with Houston Dynamo forward Dominic Oduro in a 1-1 tie.
The 20-year-old Davies is expected to be out between six weeks and eight weeks. He started 10 games as a rookie last season.
Red Bulls sign Richie Williams to extension
SECAUCUS, N.J. — The New York Red Bulls have given assistant coach Richie Williams a contract extension.
Williams is in his fifth year as a Red Bulls’ assistant. He worked under Mo Johnston during the beginning of the 2006 season, then served as interim head coach for eight regular season games. Williams also served as interim head coach for eight games last season after Juan Carlos Osorio resigned.
Williams played eight years in the MLS, spending six seasons with D.C. United and two with New York. He was a member of D.C. United’s MLS Cup championship teams in 1996, 1997 and 1999.
MLS Cup to be played in Toronto for the 1st time
TORONTO — Major League Soccer’s title game will be played in Toronto for the first time this year.
The league, which started its 15th season last week, said Tuesday it will hold the MLS Cup on Nov. 21 at BMO Field, which made the switch to grass this season. The stadium, which hosted the league’s 2008 All-Star game, is undergoing renovations that will increase capacity to 21,800.
Mexico Soccer
Blanco, Hernandez on Mexico roster for exhibitions
MEXICO CITY — Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Javier Hernandez have been put on the roster for Mexico's next four exhibition games along with 37-year-old goalkeeper Oscar Perez and forward Adolfo Bautista.
Blanco and Hernandez were dropped for last week's 0-0 tie against Iceland at Charlotte, N.C., when Bautista played his first match for Mexico since 2008. Perez is hoping to appear in his third World Cup.
Mexico plays Ecuador on May 7 in the first professional game at the New Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., then faces Senegal on May 10 at Chicago and Angola on May 13 at Houston before hosting Chile on May 16 in Mexico City.
Mexico figures to be without Europe-based players for the games in the U.S., including defenders Rafael Marquez, Hector Moreno, Ricardo Osorio, Francisco Javier Rodriguez and Carlos Salcido; midfielders Jonathan Dos Santos and Andres Guardado; and forwards Giovanni Dos Santos and Carlos Vela.
El Tri opens the World Cup on June 11 against host South Africa.
The roster: Goalkeepers: Luis Michel (Chivas), Guillermo Ochoa (America), Oscar Perez (Jaguares); Defenders: Paul Aguilar (Pachuca), Efrain Juarez (Pumas UNAM), Jonny Magallon (Chivas), Jorge Torres (Atlas). Juan Carlos Valenzuela (America); Midfielders: Adrian Aldrete (Morelia), Israel Castro (Pumas UNAM), Gerardo Torrado (Cruz Azul), Pablo Barrera (Pumas); Forwards: Adolfo Bautista (Chivas), Cuauhtemoc Blanco (Veracruz), Javier Hernandez (Chivas). Alberto Medina (Chivas), Miguel Sabah (Morelia).
Pachuca, Toluca draw in CONCACAF Champions League
TOLUCA, Mexico — Edgar Duenas scored in the second half to help Toluca salvage a 1-1 tie against Pachuca in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions League semifinal on Tuesday.
Dario Cvitanich converted Paul Aguilar's cross in the 35th minute for Pachuca, but Duenas' header tied it in the 78th to leave the clubs all square ahead of the second leg next Wednesday.
Toluca finished with nine men after red cards for Miguel Angel Almazan in the 79th minute and Diego Novaretti in the 82nd.
The first leg of the other semifinal — also between Mexican clubs — will be played Wednesday when Pumas hosts Cruz Azul.
Copa Libertadores
Estudiantes moves atop Group 3; Lanus rescues draw
CHICLAYO, Peru — Gaston Fernandez and Rodrigo Brana scored as defending champion Estudiantes La Plata moved atop Group 3 in the Copa Libertadores with a 2-0 win at Peru's Juan Aurich on Tuesday.
In the day's other match, Lanus of Argentina salvaged a 1-1 draw at Paraguay's Libertad despite losing striker Santiago Salcedo to a red card just before half time.
Estudiantes struggled in the first half on the synthetic pitch at Juan Aurich's stadium in Chiclayo, but Fernandez opened the scoring with a simple finish after Jose Sosa beat three challenges and passed the ball square in the 52nd minute.
Brana scored an eye-catching second goal after winning the ball in the middle of the pitch and lofting a shot from the center circle over goalkeeper Diego Morales in the 68th minute.
The win lifted the Argentine club to 10 points after five games. Alianza Lima is one point behind Estudiantes in Group 3 but has a game in hand.
In Group 4, Adalberto Roman glanced a left wing free kick into the net to give Libertad the lead against Lanus in the third minute.
Salcedo was sent off in the 42nd minute, but Maxi Velazquez' cross was deflected over goalkeeper Bernardo Medina for a freak equalizer in the 84th.
Libertad leads the group with nine points from five games, followed by Universitario of Peru with eight points from four. Lanus has played five games and has seven points, while Bolivia's Blooming is bottom after losing all four games so far.
The Copa Libertadores is the top club competition in Latin America. The eight group winners plus six best-placed runners up will advance to the knockout round of 16.
Mexican clubs Guadalajara and San Luis will enter in the knockout round after being forced to pull out of last year's tournament at the same stage because of the swine flu outbreak.
League News
Bayern gets Champions League revenge on Man United
LONDON — Bayern Munich showed Manchester United what it's like to lose a crucial Champions League match in injury time with a 2-1 victory Tuesday, while Lyon beat Bordeaux 3-1 in another quarterfinal match.
United, which scored twice in added time to shock Bayern 2-1 in the 1999 final, had not long conceded a 77th-minute equalizer to France winger Franck Ribery when Ivica Olic dispossessed Patrice Evra in the United area and shot low into the bottom corner.
And United's bad night got worse seconds later when star striker Wayne Rooney, who had opened the scoring with his 34th club goal of the season, was helped from the field with an ankle injury that could threaten his involvement in next week's second-leg match at Old Trafford.
United can still advance to the semifinals for a fourth straight year with as little as a 1-0 win, but veteran midfielder Paul Scholes is the only fit player in United's squad to have scored more than one goal in the club's nine Champions League matches.
"He's got a kick in the ankle," United manager Alex Ferguson said of Rooney. "We'll just have to wait and see tomorrow. Hopefully it's not too serious."
Ferguson said Rooney could sit out Saturday's crucial Premier League meeting with Chelsea, which trails the defending English champion by just one point with six games remaining.
But it was not a lack of cutting edge that cost United victory on Tuesday at Allianz Arena.
"Bayern were the better team; we can't complain about that," Ferguson said. "But we're better than that in possession. We kept giving it away and it causes your own downfall."
United appeared to be cruising after Rooney's 11th goal in nine matches, but Ribery equalized with a free kick that deflected off Rooney and beat goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar.
United was trying to keep possession for the closing moments and hold on for a draw but Olic ran from behind Evra to steal the ball and feint to beat Van der Sar with a side-footed shot.
Lyon secured victory over Bordeaux through two goals from Lisandro Lopez, a string of saves by goalkeeper Hugo Lloris and defensive blunders from its French rival.
Lopez put Lyon ahead in the 10th minute before Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh equalized four minutes later with a header.
Brazilian winger Michel Bastos made it 2-1 from a tight angle in the 32nd and Lopez sealed the victory in the 77th with a penalty, sending goalkeeper Cedric Carrasso the wrong way.
But Lloris made an amazing reflex save with the score at 2-1 in the 61st, blocking a volley from five meters (yards) by Chamakh. Seven minutes later, the France goalkeeper stopped Yoann Gourcuff's free kick that was headed toward the top corner.
"We're unhappy that they scored," Lyon midfielder Kim Kallstrom said. "But overall we're pretty pleased with our performance."
The result ended Bordeaux's unbeaten run in the Champions League this season, but Lyon will miss Lopez and France winger Sidney Govou to suspension in the April 7 second leg after both picked up yellow cards.
Bordeaux nearly conceded a fourth in the last minute but Tremoulinas cleared Cameroon midfielder Jean Makoun's header off the line.
The first-leg matches of the remaining quarterfinals are scheduled for Wednesday, when defending champion Barcelona is at Arsenal and Inter Milan hosts CSKA Moscow.
-- Stuart Condie
Iran's Zob Ahan upsets Scolari's Bunyodkor
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Iranian club Zob Ahan upset Luiz Felipe Scolari's Uzbek giant Bunyodkor for the second straight week to move atop Group B in the Asian Champions League on Tuesday, while Japan's Kashima Antlers secured a spot in the next round with its fourth consecutive win.
J-League champion Kashima scored three goals in the first half of a 3-1 win over Indonesia's Persipura Jayapura in Jakarta to move to 12 points with two games remaining in Group F. Korean club Jeonbuk Motors, the 2006 champions, also ensured they'll progress from the group with international striker Lee Dong-gook's second-half free kick giving them victory of Changchun.
After a 3-0 win at home last week, Zob Ahan scored a 1-0 win at Tashkent on Tuesday to improve to 10 points from four matches while Bunydkor slipped to third place in the group with six points.
Mohammad Khalatbari scored the only goal — from three yards after goalkeeper Ignatiy Nesterov inexplicably dropped the ball in the first half — while Bunyodkor finished with 10 men after Brazilian Rivaldo was red carded for a high challenge on Mohammad Mansouri.
Scolari, who guided Brazil to the 2002 World Cup title and coached Portugal and Premier League giant Chelsea before taking a lucrative contract in Uzbekistan, said the whole Bunyodkor team had to take responsibility for the loss.
"On the goal that we conceded, I could not just accuse our goalkeeper," Scolari was quoted as saying on the Asian Football Confederation's Web site. "All the players were involved.
"We had more chances to score but we made mistakes. Now we have to win both matches to continue in the tournament."
Two-time Asian champion Al Ittihad moved into second place in Group B with a 4-0 win over last-place Al Wahda giving the Saudi club seven competition points.
Iran's Mes Kerman had a 3-1 win over Qatari club Al Sadd in Group D, allowing Al Hilal to take control of the group when Korean Lee Young-pyo scored in injury time to seal a 3-2 win at Al Ahli. Al Hilal has 10 points, four clear of both Al Sadd and Mes.
In Group H, Sanfrecce Hiroshima ended Adelaide United's three-match winning streak when Hisatao Sato scored just before halftime to help the Japanese club to a 1-0 victory, it's first of the tournament.
Defending champion Pohang Steelers had a 2-1 away win over China's Shandong Luneng and shares top spot in the group with Australia's Adelaide on nine points.
In Wednesday's matches, unbeaten group leader Suwon Bluewings hosts Henan Jianye in Group G and Gamba Osaka is at home to last place Singapore Armed Forces.
In Group E, Seongnam Ilhwa is aiming for its fourth straight win when it travels to Beijing Guoan, while Melbourne Victory hosts Kawasaki Frontale at Docklands.
Elsewhere
Improved Gago playing his way onto Argentina radar
MADRID — Fernando Gago is taking advantage of injuries at Real Madrid to play his way back into Argentina's World Cup plans.
Gago featured regularly in Argentina coach Diego Maradona's lineup during qualifying for this summer's finals. But Gago hasn't been included in Argentina's team lately after spending most of the Spanish league season on the sidelines after falling out of favor with Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini.
After hiring a personal coach and playing well while Lassana Diarra and Mahamadou Diarra have been out, Gago is again on the radar even after a January transfer to Manchester City to gain extra playing time fell through.
"The World Cup is still far away," Gago said. "But you have to have an objective in life and mine is to play."
Gago has played well for four straight games — all victories for the Spanish leader — after having featured just five times in the previous 26. Gago was a regular in the two-plus seasons before Pellegrini's summer arrival, and helped Madrid win consecutive league crowns in 2007 and '08.
"That's football, that's Madrid," Gago said. "I just have to keep playing this way, I have to keep working. I have to show it on the field."
Gago reportedly hired a personal trainer to help bulk up and sharpen his skills with most of his playing time having come just from practice sessions. His patience appears to be paying off as Pellegrini's two preferred holding midfielders have been hampered by injuries in 2010.
Maradona openly criticized Madrid director general Jorge Valdano this year, saying the club was trying to get rid of the little used Gago, who had a last-ditch effort to move to Manchester City blocked by the Spanish giant at the winter transfer deadline.
"I'm happy because it's always nicer to be playing football. I'm calm," the former Boca Juniors player said. "I've always given the same level for the coach, who I have no problems with. I don't like much not playing but that's only helped me believe."
Gago made his Albiceleste debut in 2007 and won gold at the 2008 Olympics.
-- Paul Logothetis
Euro 2012 stadium contractor in Lviv discharged
KIEV, Ukraine — The main contractor working on construction of the Lviv stadium for the 2012 European Championship was removed after criticism of delays at the site by UEFA president Michel Platini, a top cabinet official said Tuesday.
Ukraine Deputy Prime Minister Borys Kolesnikov said the contractor, Ukraine-based Azovintex construction company, was discharged due to slow work. Platini said on Monday that construction in Lviv "has made no progress whatsoever."
Another Ukrainian financial and industrial group, Altcom, will be new main contractor instead with Azovintex still doing minor work on the stadium, Kolesnikov said.
Altcom deals with mining and construction. It's currently building a new runway at Donetsk airport, and has also been chosen as the main contractor to build a runway at Lviv airport.
Kolesnikov said earlier Tuesday that an international consortium of Ukrainian, Turkish, Croatian and Macedonian companies will build the Lviv stadium. His office couldn't be immediately reached to explain the discrepancy in his statements.
"The stadium will be built by late 2011 by all means," Kolesnikov said.
There is also concern at the lack of hotels to host fans and teams in Lviv, along with the slow construction of new ones.
Poor transport connections between the airport and the city center add to the problems, according to Markiyan Lubkivskiy, the Ukraine Tournament Director for Euro 2012.
"Lviv is on the verge of an abyss. Very little time remains. Lviv (can do) nothing but meet all UEFA requirements. There is no choice," said Lubkivskiy.
Meanwhile, a construction company in Kiev said renovation work on the Olympic stadium, which is three months behind schedule, will catch up on its timetable by June.
Platini is expected to visit Ukraine next week.
Rooney limps out of United's Champions League loss
MUNICH — Wayne Rooney limped out of Manchester United's 2-1 Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich on Tuesday with an ankle injury.
The England striker put United ahead in the second minute with his 35th goal of the season, but Bayern went ahead in injury time before Rooney twisted his right ankle while competing for the ball with Mario Gomez.
Rooney immediately signaled to the United bench that he had to come off the field and hopped from the field, leaning on the shoulder of one of United's medical staff. His right boot was off.
"He got a kick in the ankle," United manager Alex Ferguson said. "We'll have to wait and see tomorrow."
The injury comes just over 10 weeks before England's opening World Cup match on June 12 against United States.
Rooney broke a metatarsal bone in his foot in the buildup to the 2006 World Cup and his lack of fitness was cited as one of the reasons for England's quarterfinal exit.
But United's immediate concern is whether Rooney, who has hit 34 goals for United and one for England this season, will recover in time for Saturday's Premier League meeting with title rival Chelsea.
Rooney may also be a doubt for next week's return meeting with Bayern.
CSKA Moscow faces Inter following bombings
MILAN — CSKA Moscow intends to play with "great pride" in its Champions League quarterfinal at Inter Milan on Wednesday, two days after suicide bombers killed 39 people in Moscow subway stations.
CSKA will likely wear black armbands for the first-leg game.
"It’s a real tragedy, there’s no other way to describe the pain," CSKA manager Leonid Slutsky said Tuesday. "The city of Moscow has cried and it’s a loss for all of Russia. We will do our utmost to honor our country and our football with great pride."
CSKA is the first Russian team to reach the quarterfinals since Spartak Moscow in 1996.
"I’m expecting an ugly game tomorrow, against a team that will play very defensively, forcing us to play with a lot of focus," Inter manager Jose Mourinho said. "It would have been better to play the first leg against a team like this in Moscow, especially since the artificial turf there is going to give us problems."
Two CSKA players — defenders Sergei Ignashevich and Alexei Berezutsky — were suspended for one game each after testing positive for a stimulant found in a cold remedy after a 3-3 draw with Manchester United in November.
"If two players go to doping control and they discover substances banned in the Champions League, there’s something gray there," Mourinho said.
Greek league protests sponsorship freeze
ATHENS, Greece — Greece is suspending 40 million euros ($54 million) in state-controlled sponsorship for professional soccer leagues in response to crowd violence, a move league officials called blackmail.
General Secretary for Sport Panayiotis Bitsaxis said the funding will resume once organizers guarantee a crackdown on unrest.
Fans fought at three league matches Sunday, and hundreds clashed on the field and outside the stadium before a Greek Cup semifinal last week in the northern town of Kavala. Last month, a steward at a game between league leaders Panathinaikos and Olympiakos was mutilated when a flare exploded in her hands.
Greece’s OPAP betting monopoly, in which the state holds a minority stake, has sponsorship deals with the league and the football federation.
"OPAP has no reason to advertise itself through a violent and utterly vile product," Bitsaxis said. He described soccer as dominated by "the law of the jungle, violence and fanaticism."
The government has banned fans from traveling to away matches, threatened to close stadiums that don’t meet security standards and pressured the soccer federation to relegate or ban clubs that fail to control their fans.
The Super league said Bitsaxis’ "irregular" decision amounted to "financial blackmail," and urged him to reconsider.
Bitsaxis said Greece’s national team still will receive OPAP sponsorship funds.
Indonesia football community starts review
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia's president opened a national football conference on Tuesday reviewing the poor results of the national team and the country's top football official.
Indonesia finished last in its qualifying group for next year's Asia Cup in Qatar, and during the recent Southeast Asian Games it lost to minnow Laos.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told the conference in the east Java city of Malang that the national team should be able to beat such teams in regional competitions and should even aim to compete at the global level.
"I want to see Indonesia revive ... to arise again and become the tiger of Asia ... even the tiger of the world," he said.
Indonesia has played at only one World Cup, in 1938.
Much of the finger-pointing over the national team's poor performance in recent years has been aimed at Indonesia Football Association chairman Nurdin Halid, whose leadership will be questioned again. Many expect delegates will recommend he be removed from his post.
Critics have complained that Halid, who was once convicted of corruption charges and spent time in jail, has put his own interests above improving the quality of football in the country. Halid has called the allegations groundless.
Organizers say that delegates will also look into widespread allegations of match-fixing in local leagues and discuss fan violence that has marred several games.
UEFA bans Drogba for two European club matches
LONDON — Chelsea striker Didier Drogba was handed a two-game European suspension by UEFA on Tuesday for being sent off in the Champions League loss to Inter Milan this month.
However, Drogba escaped a further two-game ban as UEFA declined to activate a suspended sentence it imposed last year.
Instead, UEFA extended Drogba's period of probation by two years until July 2013. He was given an initial two-year probation — on top of a three-match ban — after his aggressive behavior toward the referee last season when Chelsea was eliminated by Barcelona in the Champions League semifinals.
"The suspension applies to the next two UEFA club competition matches for which Drogba would be eligible," the European football authority said in a statement.
Drogba is set to miss the first two Champions League group-stage matches next season as Chelsea is almost certain to qualify directly by finishing in the top three in the English Premier League. He would carry the suspension with him if he moved to another European club in the offseason.
Drogba was banned for the first three group matches this season after his finger-wagging rant at Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo after the final whistle of Chelsea's ousting by Barcelona.
His suspended sanction would have been enforced for a further offense of abusing match officials.
Drogba was shown the red card against Inter for stamping on midfielder Thiago Motta's foot in the closing minutes of a round-of-16, second-leg match at Stamford Bridge on March 16. Inter advanced 3-1 on aggregate.
He has three days to appeal.
Maradona bitten by dog, has lip surgery
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Argentina coach Diego Maradona was bitten by one of his pet dogs and had reconstructive surgery on his upper lip.
The Los Arcos clinic said the 49-year-old soccer great was discharged and in good condition Tuesday. He entered the clinic earlier in the day.
Attempts by The Associated Press to reach Maradona’s personal physician, Alfredo Cahe, were unsuccessful.
Argentine television said Maradona was playing with the dog at his home in suburban Buenos Aires. The breed was identified as a Shar Pei, often used as a guard dog.
Maradona led Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title and is revered in his country despite problems with drug addiction, eating disorders and scandals — and lately the poor play of the national team, which struggled to qualify for the World Cup despite featuring Lionel Messi.
Argentina plays Canada on May 24 in Buenos Aries before leaving for training in South Africa. Argentina is grouped with Nigeria, Greece and South Korea.
-- Almudena Calatrava
Former Germany 'keeper Lehmann to end career
STUTTGART, Germany — Former Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann will retire at the end of this season.
"I will play my last game on May 8 (when the Bundesliga season ends)," the 40-year-old Stuttgart 'keeper said on Tuesday. "That's what the family council decided."
He added that he won't consider any offers from abroad. He played 61 times for Germany and was the national team's first-choice 'keeper at the 2006 World Cup and the 2008 European Championship.
Lehmann's last game for Germany was the 1-0 loss to Spain in the final of Euro 2008. Lehmann won the UEFA Cup with Schalke in 1997, before moving to Italian side AC Milan. He was unable to establish himself in Serie A, making just five starts, and after one season was transferred to Borussia Dortmund, with which he won the Bundesliga in 2002.
Lehmann played for Arsenal for five years — helping the club to remain unbeaten on the way to winning the English Premier League in 2004 — before returning to Germany in 2008 with Stuttgart.
He will appear as an expert for Sky television at this year's World Cup in South Africa.
Portsmouth's Hreidarsson, Webber out for 6 months
PORTSMOUTH, England — Portsmouth's hopes of reaching the FA Cup final have been rocked by Hermann Hreidarsson and Danny Webber being ruled out for at least six months.
Both players were injured in Saturday's 2-0 Premier League loss at Tottenham, which is also Portsmouth's opponent in the FA Cup semifinal scheduled for April 11.
Scans revealed that Hreidarsson, the 35-year-old Iceland defender, ruptured an Achilles' tendon in his left leg and will require surgery next week.
Webber, a 28-year-old striker, ruptured an anterior cruciate ligament.
The cup offers Portsmouth a chance of salvaging something from a bleak season, with relegation almost a certainty for the bottom-placed club.
Della Valle steps down at Fiorentina
FLORENCE, Italy — Fiorentina owner Diego Della Valle has decided to distance himself from the club, relinquishing control to his brother Andrea. The move comes after a tumultuous week at the Tuscan team, with Della Valle trading jabs with coach Cesare Prandelli in the press.
Della Valle issued a statement saying he would no longer be Fiorentina's patron, adding that he hopes the fans support his brother, who resigned temporarily earlier this season.
Immediately after Della Valle's statement was issued, Fiorentina said Prandelli will remain with the club until the end of his contract, which lasts through next season.
Prandelli had been linked with a possible move to Juventus or the Italian national team.
Italy coach Lippi to step down after World Cup
ROME — Italy coach Marcello Lippi has indicated he will step down again after the World Cup in South Africa.
Lippi said that Italian football federation president Giancarlo Abete "already knows what I will do after the World Cup."
Lippi has been linked with a return to the club he formerly coached, Juventus, in a managerial position.
The Gazzetta dello Sport on Tuesday was already considering Lippi's possible replacement, with Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti and Cagliari coach Massimiliano Allegri topping the list.
Lippi already resigned after leading Italy to the 2006 World Cup title, then returned two years later.
Mainz signs Greuther Fuerth defender Caligiuri
MAINZ, Germany — Bundesliga side Mainz has signed defender Marco Caligiuri from Greuther Fuerth of Germany's second division on a three-year contract.
Mainz said Tuesday that the 25-year-old Caligiuri, who played in the top division between 2005 and 2007 with Duisburg, will join the club at the end of the season.
Mainz manager Christian Heidel described Caligiuri as a versatile defender who will strengthen his squad.
