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Juventus out to halt Inter Milan's run in Serie A


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Updated Feb 10, 2011 7:45 AM ET
With only one loss since Leonardo took over as coach from Rafa Benitez at the end of last year, Inter Milan will be looking to maintain its form Sunday when it faces Juventus in Serie A.
The Champions League title holders have moved up to third place in the league while Juventus, which won at Cagliari last week and is in eighth place, is also on the upswing.
"We have to continue the improvement we showed at Cagliari against a very confident Inter side," Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini said. "Winning would give us a huge confidence boost, especially because we would be taking points from a direct rival.

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"It is a massively important game for us, both for our place in the standings and for our fans. We are hopeful of having a good February to make up for the problems and bad luck we had the start of the year."
The only loss Inter has under Leonardo was a 3-1 setback against Udinese, but since then the Brazilian has been able to reinforce his side by signing Giampaolo Pazzini, Houssine Kharja, Andrea Ranocchia and Yuto Nagamoto.
Pazzini made an immediate impact by scoring two goals in three games, while Kharja weighed in with his first in an Inter shirt by netting the opener in the 3-0 win over Bari.
"We are delighted with how we've done since Leonardo arrived," Inter goalkeeper Julio Cesar said. "We are on the right path and we have to keep on in this direction. Pazzini, Kharja and Nagamoto are excellent purchases and since they arrived they've done very well."
Also, league leader AC Milan hosts Parma at the San Siro after four draws in its last seven matches.
Despite not winning in its last two games, Milan is unbeaten in seven, leads by three points and has the best defensive record in the league.
"We're first in the league and intend to stay there until the end of the season," Milan goalkeeper Christian Abbiati said. "This is the right mentality to have.
"At the start of the season teams were hitting us on the counterattack, but then we got ourselves organized and if we don't concede any goals, sooner or later we will score."
Second-place Napoli faces a big test against AS Roma, which is smarting from a 5-3 loss to Inter last week.
"We know it is an important game and if we get a point there it will be another sign of the growth of this team," Napoli captain Paolo Cannavaro said. "(Jeremy) Menez is very quick and is good at beating his man and we can't forget about (Francesco) Totti, who is a fantastic player.
"It is true that we are starting a run of big games, but we will continue to take things match-by-match and we will treat the game with Roma like a final."
Also, it's: Palermo vs. Fiorentina; Bari vs. Genoa; Brescia vs. Lazio; Cagliari vs. Chievo Verona; Catania vs. Lecce; Cesena vs. Udinese; and Sampdoria vs. Bologna.
 
Abate: Milan the ones to catch




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Updated Feb 10, 2011 9:35 AM ET
AC Milan full-back Ignazio Abate has warned the Serie A chasing pack they are still the team to beat.
The Rossoneri have seen their momentum slip somewhat of late with four draws in their last six matches, and their lead over second-placed Napoli is now just three points.

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However, Abate told the club's official website: "We knew that it would be a long and tough season but I feel we are doing well.
"We have to look at the positives and when the other teams go through a bad period they tend to lose more often.
"We are still the league leaders and it is up to the others not to slip up if they want to catch us."
Abate has missed the last three Serie A matches through injury but is now back in training and could feature against Parma on Saturday.
"I am feeling better," he said. "I have been training for three or four days and I can now feel the strength coming back in my legs.
"I will look to improve my strength bit by bit every day."
 
Juventus keen to keep Del Piero




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Updated Feb 7, 2011 10:51 AM ET
Juventus are hopeful captain Alessandro Del Piero will sign a contract extension in the coming weeks.

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The 36-year-old former Italy forward has scored four goals in 22 Serie A appearances for Juventus this season.
Del Piero's current deal is due to expire this summer.
"The door for his contract renewal is always open," Juventus general director Giuseppe Marotta told Gazzetta dello Sport.
"We hope we will arrive at an understanding as soon as possible so that he will continue with us.
"We would like to see Del Piero step onto the pitch of our new stadium, which we will play in next season."
Despite reports linking him with a move to Major League Soccer in the summer, Del Piero recently indicated he would prefer to stay at Juventus, the club he joined from Padova as an 18-year-old.
 
Hicks, Gillett seeking sale damages


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Updated Feb 9, 2011 4:43 PM ET
LONDON (AP)

The bitter court battle over the sale of Liverpool soccer club resumed Wednesday with the American former co-owners pursuing a $1.6 billion damages claim for what they called a "giant swindle."
The case in London comes as Liverpool's fortunes on the field have been revived for the first time since Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr. were forced to sell the club against their will to the owners of the Boston Red Sox in October.


Lawyers for Hicks and Gillett need the approval of the High Court judge to pursue damages against the Royal Bank of Scotland and three then-club directors who approved the $476 million sale to New England Sports Ventures.
In October, Hicks and Gillett had to withdraw a temporary restraining order blocking the sale, which they had obtained in a Texas court, to avoid being declared in contempt of the London court.
"There is no settled decision by us to sue in England or abroad," Paul Girolami, representing Hicks and Gillett, told London's High Court on Wednesday.
Hicks has claimed "the British Establishment" conspired to sell the club for less than half of what it was worth to NESV, which is led by Red Sox owner John Henry.
Hicks and Gillett were not in court Wednesday.

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The case centers around whether three English board members had the power to overrule them and approve the sale to Henry's ownership group.
Hicks and Gillett were forced to put the club up for sale in April after struggling to meet the repayments resulting from their 2007 leveraged takeover. Debts had reached around $459 million at the time of the sale and Hicks and Gillett want damages for the losses they incurred as a result of the NESV buyout.
RBS, which held the bulk of Liverpool's debt, and former chairman Martin Broughton are countersuing to try to stop Hicks and Gillett from the pursuit of damages.
Liverpool was facing relegation at the time of the sale in October after the team's worst start to a season in about 50 years.
But the 18-time English champions, who fired manager Roy Hodgson and replaced him with Kenny Dalglish, have won four consecutive matches and are in sixth place in the Premier League.
 
Europa League draw: Reds to battle Sparta




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Updated Dec 17, 2010 5:10 PM ET
Liverpool will face Sparta Prague in the Europa League round of 32, while Manchester City meet Aris Thessaloniki and Rangers take on Sporting.
Should Roy Hodgson's Reds make it past Sparta to the round of 16, they will meet Lech Poznan or Braga.
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Lying in wait for City after their Greek test would be Besiktas or Dynamo Kiev, while the reward for the Gers for seeing off Lisbon opposition would be a tie against Lille or PSV Eindhoven.
Aris' coach is the vastly-experienced Argentinian Hector Cuper, who like Mancini once managed Inter Milan.
Man City's football administrator Brian Marwood told Sky Sports News: "It's two former Inter Milan coaches going head to head and I'm looking forward to it.
"With the preparation time we have, we feel we're in a very strong position in terms of our squad. Roberto has had the opportunity to rotate the group which allows players to be rested before certain games.
"It will be a difficult period, I think we play Manchester United before the away trip but as we get close we will prepare accordingly.
"The beauty of having a squad like ours, when we have important games, if we can stay clear of injuries and suspensions, we feel we're in good shape.
"You saw last night even with a lot of players who are not playing regularly, they were very sharp, very bright and there was a good intensity to the game."
Rangers beat Sporting Lisbon in the quarter-finals en route to the UEFA Cup final in 2008, clinched by a 2-0 win in Portugal.
Rangers manager Walter Smith told the club's website: "We know we will face two really tough games because they are playing well at the moment and we had to play well to win there last time out.
"We played some good football against them across the two legs and we will really have to repeat those kinds of levels to have success in the Europa League.
"Of course Pedro Mendes is there so we know the quality of player that we will face."
Steven Whittaker scored the second goal against Sporting in 2008 and he added: "There is no doubt that is the best I have scored, purely because of the importance of it and what it meant to the team.
"To see the ball hit the net was an unbelievable feeling, the best ever, and the atmosphere in the dressing room was fantastic."
 
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