Koscielny signs new deal

Laurent Koscielny has signed a new long- term contract with Arsenal.

Koscielny has made 163 appearances for the Gunners since arriving from Lorient four years ago and signed his previous deal
as recently as 2012.

The France centre-half's form this season has seen him linked with Bayern Munich and Paris St Germain, but he has now
joined defensive partner Per Mertesacker in extending his Emirates contract.

"I am very proud to have reached
agreement with the club on a new
contract," he told the Arsenal website.

"I have enjoyed four great years at Arsenal already, and I look forward to continuing to help the team in the years to come."

Arsene Wenger said: "Laurent has proven himself to be an outstanding player since
joining us in 2010 and has showed his quality once again this season.

"I am delighted he has decided to commit his future to the club."
Koscielny's partnership with Mertesacker has left club captain Thomas Vermaelen on
the sidelines for much of the current season.

He is the eighth member of Arsenal's first- team squad to sign a new contract this term.

Mexico unveils squad

Carlos Salcido was a surprise inclusion in the 23-man Mexico squad for the FIFA World Cup named by Miguel Herrera on Friday.

The 34-year-old is yet to feature
under Herrera for his country but
secures a berth and will feature in his third World Cup in Brazil, which gets under way next month.

He will add further experience to
Mexico's defensive ranks with captain Rafael Marquez set to feature at the competition for a fourth time.

Manchester United's Javier Hernandez will shoulder much of the goalscoring burden due to Carlos Vela's predictable absence.

The Real Sociedad man has not played for his country since 2011 following a long-running disagreement with those in charge of the national side.

As a result, the Mexican Football
Association confirmed in February he would not be selected for the
competition while there is also no
place for fellow La Liga striker Javier
Aquino of Villarreal.

Herrera and co will open their World Cup campaign against Cameroon in Natal on June 13.

Squad in full:

Goalkeepers: Jesus Corona (Cruz Azul), Guillermo Ochoa (Ajaccio), Alfredo Talavera (Toluca)

Defenders: Paul Aguilar (Club
America), Miguel Layun (Club
America), Rafael Marquez (Leon),
Hector Moreno (Espanyol), Diego
Reyes (FC Porto), Francisco Rodriguez (Club America), Carlos Salcido (Tigres)

Midfielders: Isaac Brizuela (Toluca),
Marco Fabian (Cruz Azul), Andres
Guardado (Bayer Leverkusen), Hector Herrera (FC Porto), Juan Carlos Medina (Club America), Luis Montes (Leon), Carlos Pena (Leon), Jose Juan Vazquez (Leon)

Forwards: Giovani dos Santos
(Villarreal), Javier Hernandez
(Manchester United), Raul Jimenez
(Club America), Oribe Peralta (Santos Laguna), Alan Pulido (Tigres)

Italy to last play Fluminense

MILAN (AP) — Italy will play Brazilian club Fluminense in a final warm-up match before the start of its World Cup campaign.

The match will take place in Rio de
Janeiro on June 8, six days before Italy's first World Cup test against England in Manaus.

Italy also faces Costa Rica and Uruguay in Group D.

Cesare Prandelli's side plays Luxembourg in Perugia and Ireland in Italy in two other friendly matches before its departure to Brazil.

Osaze: i'm ready

Stoke striker Peter Odemwingie is
preparing for a frosty reception when he returns to West Brom for the weekend's season-closing Premier League clash.

The Nigerian striker, 32, famously tried to engineer a move away from The Hawthorns in 2013 - handing in a transfer request and travelling to QPR on the evening of January transfer deadline day.

A move failed to materialise and
Odewingie endured a difficult stay with the Baggies before he was sold to Cardiff last summer. He then moved on again to Stoke
in January, for whom he has scored five goals in 14 appearances.

Odemwingie said of returning to face his old employers: "I played against West Brom at Cardiff, but this will be my first time back at The Hawthorns.

"It's going to be a mixed reception after my last six months there and I'm not expecting anything different.

"Some fans are grateful for the 30 goals I scored for them and some still feel offended, but it was a choice I had to make.

"I had to move on for my life. Some
people understand, some don't. You can't please everybody."

Kenneth Omeruo turns down new Chelsea deal

Kenneth Omeruo's representative has claimed that the Nigeria international has snubbed a new contract offer from Chelsea.

The 21-year-old defender has just returned to Stamford Bridge after spending the second half of last season on loan at Middlesbrough.

Omeruo impressed hugely at the Riverside and Boro boss Aitor Karanka has already confirmed his interest in bringing him back.

However, Omeruo first needs to resolve his Chelsea future with just 12 months left on his current deal.

Omeruo - who is set to go to the World Cup with Nigeria - has now turned down an initial offer, according to his agent.

Omeruo's adviser Chika Akujobi is quoted by AfricanFootball.com suggesting their proposal is not good enough.

"We want them to double the offer, but they said they have a new policy for young players who have yet to break into their first-team and this ensures they do not go
overboard with their offers," he said.

"But Kenneth has already proved himself in the English Championship which is even
more forceful and physical than the English Premier League, which is more about tactics.

"Chelsea have to come up and they have to do so soon, before the club go on summer holidays."

Bayern unveils Barça home kit replica

Bayern Munich have unveiled their home kit for the 2014-15 season - and have moved away from their traditional all-red shirts.

The Bavarians are instead harking back to their 1996 Uefa Cup triumph, when they beat Bordeaux 5-1 on aggregate in the final, with Mehmet Scholl on target in both
legs.

However, their choice of colours may raise eyebrows, with Bayern having added Barcelona-esque blue stripes to their kits.

The neck area will feature the slogan Mia San Mia - Bavarian for "we are what we are" - and the shirt will be worn with red shorts and white socks adorned with red
and blue.

The new kit will be modelled for the first time during Saturday's home clash with Stuttgart, which is due to kick off at
15:30CET.

Allardyce : We'l give in everything to hand Liverpool the title

Sam Allardyce says West Ham will give everything to upset Manchester City on Sunday and deliver the title to "neutrals' choice" Liverpool.

Allardyce and his players are now all that stand between City and a second Premier League in three years, and a point at the Etihad will be good enough barring a 13-
goal victory for Liverpool over Newcastle.

The omens are good for Manuel Pellegrini's side - in three previous meetings with West Ham this season they have won three
times and scored 12 goals - but Allardyce has a personal motive for spoiling City's title party.

He said: "From a neutral's point of view I think everybody would like to see Liverpool win it, and from a personal point of view I'd like to see Steven Gerrard win it.

"It's the last thing for him which he hasn't quite achieved at Liverpool. He's been a one club man all his life. Obviously they've let it slip out of their hands. They had it to take, but they've now left it in the hands
of Manchester City.

"We all know Man City in full cry are very difficult to play against. We've got to go out there and give a fantastic performance to stop them trying to grasp the title on
that day.

"Of course that will be hugely difficult - this is the best team at home in the league.
They've only lost once, against Chelsea, their goal record is fantastic and they've got great, great players.

"So every player on top of his form, every player can go out and give everything they've got from the basis we're already in the Premier League next season.

"Let's try and spoil Manchester City's party."

Pepe on brink of missing UCL final

Real Madrid defender Pepe is a doubt for the UEFA Champions League final after suffering a calf injury.

The defender picked up the problem during Real's 1-1 draw with Real Valladolid on Wednesday and was sent for tests to determine the extent of the problem.

On Friday, the club announced Pepe had suffered a "grade one" injury which could reportedly see him sidelined for up to two weeks,
meaning he would face a race against time to be fit for the European final in Lisbon on May 24.

"After receiving imaging tests today,
the Real Madrid player Pepe was
diagnosed with a grade one injury in the calf muscle of his left leg," the club statement read.

"The player's progress will be
monitored."
Real will already be without midfielder Xabi Alonso in the final due to suspension, and not having the Portugal international in defence would be a blow for head coach Carlo Ancelotti.

Pepe has made 48 appearances for
Madrid this season in all competitions and could be replaced at the heart of their defence by the fit-again Raphael
Varane should he fail to recover in
time.

Three new Europa League slots for three countries

Norway, Sweden and Finland have all been allocated an additional UEFA Europa League place for next season.

The news comes as part of the
announcement of UEFA's Fair Play
ranking, which was topped by Norway, with Sweden and Finland coming second and third respectively.

As a result each country will be
granted an additional slot in the first qualifying round of the Europa League to be allocated to the teams that have won their respective domestic top-tier fair play awards.

The ranking is based on all UEFA
competition matches played at both club and national team level from May 1 2013 to April 30 2014, and takes into account a variety of criteria including positive play, respect of the opponent, respect of the referee, behaviour of the crowd and of the team officials, as well as cautions and dismissals.

France narrowly missed out on an
additional place as they finished fourth in the ranking, while England rounded off the top five.

The first qualifying round of the Europa League begins on July 3, with the draw taking place on June 23.

PSG crowned champion despite loss

Paris Saint-Germain were crowned Ligue 1 champions but then
slumped to a shock 2-1 defeat at home to Stade Rennais .

After learning that Monaco had gifted them a second successive title by drawing at home to Guingamp, Laurent Blanc's men
only added to the party atmosphere at the Parc des Princes by taking the lead just three minutes in through Ezequiel Lavezzi.

However, Rennes stunned their hosts with two goals in four first-half minutes, through Foued Kadir and Paul-Georges Ntep.

Iran unveil world cup squad

Iran coach Carlos Queiroz has named the following 28-man squad for training camps in Tehran and Austria ahead of the World Cup finals.

Iran are in Group F with Argentina, Bosnia and Nigeria for the opening round of June 12-July 13 tournament in Brazil.

The deadline to announce the final 23- man squads for the World Cup is June 2.

Iran will play their first game against Nigeria on June 16.

Goalkeepers – Daniel Davari (Eintracht Braunschweig), Alireza Haghighi (Sporting Covilha, on loan from Rubin Kazan), Rahman Ahmadi (Sepahan), Sousha
Makani (Foolad Khuzestan)

Defenders – Khosro Heidari (Esteghlal), Hossein Mahini (Persepolis), Steven “Mehrdad” Beitashour (Vancouver
Whitecaps), Pejman Montazeri (Umm Salal), Jalal Hosseini (Persepolis), Amir Sadeghi (Esteghlal), Mohammad Reza
Khanzadeh (Zob Ahan), Ahmad Alenemeh (Naft), Hashem Beikzadeh (Esteghlal), Ehsan Hajsafi (Sepahan), Mehrdad Pooladi
(Persepolis).

Midfielders – Javad Nekounam (Al
Kuwait), Andranik Teymourian (Esteghlal), Reza Haghighi (Persepolis), Ghasem Hadadifar (Zob Ahan), Bakhtiyar Rahmani
(Foolad), Alireza Jahanbakhsh (NEC
Nijmegen), Ashkan Dejagah (Fulham).

Forwards – Masoud Shojaei (Las Palmas), Mohammad Reza Khalatbari (Persepolis), Mehdi Sharifi (Sepahan), Reza
Ghoochannejhad (Charlton), Karim
Ansarifard (Persepolis, on loan at Tractor Sazi), Sardar Azmoun (Rubin Kazan).

Brazil names world cup squad

Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has
announced his 23-man squad for the upcoming World Cup, featuring 16 of the players in the winning Confederations Cup squad last year.

His list contained no major surprises, although AC Milan forward Robinho (92 caps) missed the cut along with former world players of the year Ronaldinho (97
caps) and Kaka (87 caps).

Liverpool midfielders Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Leiva, Sao Paulo's on-loan Corinthians forward Alexandre Pato and Paris St Germain winger Lucas Moura were also overlooked.

Scolari has chosen Chelsea quartet David Luiz, Ramires, Willian and Oscar, along with Manchester City's Fernandinho and Tottenham's Paulinho.

Scolari's squad will instead be led by 22- year-old Barcelona striker Neymar, the player carrying most of the fans' hopes.

"We know that not everybody will agree with all the names, it's normal," Scolari said.

"But now that we have the 23 players, we would like to ask that our fans support all of them so together we can focus on our
goal of winning the World Cup."

Scolari has already said that the starting goalkeeper will be Cesar, who is playing for Toronto FC in Major League Soccer.

A mix of veterans and newcomers playing for clubs across Europe, Scolari has insisted that any lack of international experience will not hinder Brazil's performance.

"I don't think this lack of World Cup
experience will play a big part," Scolari said.

"Our players have been gaining experience in their leagues in Europe and I don't think they will be affected by this too much,
although in certain World Cup situations, having that experience would be important.

"I fully trust these players."

Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar (Toronto FC), Jefferson (Botafogo), Victor (Atletico Mineiro).

Defenders: David Luiz (Chelsea), Dante (Bayern Munich), Thiago Silva (Paris Saint- Germain), Henrique (Napoli), Maicon (Roma), Dani Alves (Barcelona), Marcelo
(Real Madrid), Maxwell (Paris Saint-
Germain).

Midfielders: Luiz Gustavo (Wolfsburg), Paulinho (Tottenham), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Ramires (Chelsea), Oscar (Chelsea), Willian (Chelsea), Hernanes (Inter Milan).

Strikers: Hulk (Zenit St. Petersburg),
Bernard (Shakhtar Donetsk), Neymar (Barcelona), Jo (Atletico Mineiro), Fred (Fluminense).

City on brink of title

An Edin Dzeko brace and late strikes from Stevan Jovetic and
Yaya Toure gave Manchester City a vital 4-0 win over Aston Villa on Wednesday, leaving them on the verge of winning their second Premier League title.

Having witnessed Liverpool draw 3-3 with Crystal Palace on Monday, City knew a win over Villa would leave their destiny in their own hands heading into the final day of the season.

A win over West Ham will see Manuel Pellegrini's men crowned champions again, with their superior firepower vanquishing
Paul Lambert's men, who can relax on the last day having already secured their Premier League safety.

Nigeria names world cup provisional squad

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi has named 30 players in his provisional squad for next month's World Cup. The reigning African champions will be making their fifth appearance at world football's major showpiece and have been
drawn in the same group with Argentina, Iran and Bosnia.

Usual suspects Vincent Enyeama, Mikel Obi, Efe Ambrose, Godfrey Oboabona, Ahmed Musa and Victor Moses have been included,
as well as dark horses Ramon Azeez, Michael Babatunde and Azubuike Egwuekwe while midfield ace Joel Obi and Peter Odemwingie return after several months in the international wilderness.

Top scorer of the 29th Africa Cup of
Nations, Emmanuel Emenike, back from injury, returns to the fold.

However, injured Nosa Igiebor and Reuben Gabriel are the surprise inclusion in the squad while the Keshi snubbed Ikechukwu Uche, Dynamo Kiev's Brown Ideye, Hull
City’s Sone Aluko and Fegor Ogude who have had enjoyed productive seasons.

There are four goalkeepers, eight
defenders, eight midfielders and ten strikers.

Full Squad

Goalkeepers : Vincent Enyeama, Austin Ejide, Chigozie Agbim, Daniel Akpeyi.

Defenders : Elderson Echiejile, Juwon Oshaniwa, Efe Ambrose, Godfrey Oboabona, Azubuike Egwuekwe, Kenneth Omeruo, Joseph Yobo, Kunle Odunlami.

Midfielders : John Obi Mikel, Ogenyi Onazi, Ramon Azeez, Ejike Uzoenyi, Sunday Mba, Reuben Gabriel, Nosa Igiebor, Joel Obi.

Strikers : Ahmed Musa, Shola Ameobi, Victor Moses, Emmanuel Emenike, Obinna Nsofor, Osaze Odemwingie, Michel Babatunde, Michael Uchebo, Nnamdi Oduamadi, Uche Nwofor

Goodluck to them.