Sports

LIBREVILLE: Goals have been a scarce commodity with just five in the last five showpiece games at the biennial tournament.

And three of those came when hosts Tunisia edged Morocco in 2004 for a maiden title, with a solitary goal in two others and another couple settled by penalty shootouts following 120 barren minutes.

A glance at the 26 matches that crowned the best national football team on the continent shows an alarming dip in goals with the first 13 producing 42 and the second 13 only 18 for an overall 2.3 average.

LIBREVILLE: A brilliant individual goal from Gervinho put Ivory Coast into the African Nations Cup final with a 1-0 win over Mali in the semifinals yesterday morning.

LONDON: Fabio Capello resigned as manager of England on Wednesday following the Football Association's decision to strip John Terry of the captaincy, the FA confirmed.

In a remarkable twist to one of the most dramatic days in English football history, Capello's resignation was confirmed just hours after his likely successor – Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp – was cleared of tax evasion charges.

MANCHESTER: Patrice Evra will be asked to shake hands with Luis Suarez when the pair come face to face on Saturday.

The Premier League has confirmed the pre-match ritual will go-ahead at the weekend when Manchester United entertain Liverpool, despite the ill-feeling surrounding the showdown.

Suarez has just returned to action from the eight-match ban imposed after he was found guilty of racially abusing the Old Trafford defender Evra, and is almost certain to play in the high-octane game.

MANCHESTER: Dimitar Berbatov expects to remain at Manchester United beyond this season but has reiterated his disenchantment at his lack of playing time at Old Trafford.

The 31-year-old was linked with a move away from the Red Devils in the January transfer window, but no deal was completed.

It is now expected that the club will activate a one-year extension to his contract — a clause written into his deal when he signed for United from Tottenham in 2008.

LONDON: Manchester United have been warned to watch out for Luis Suarez at Old Trafford on Saturday.

Emotions are running high ahead of the Liverpool clash, which will see the Uruguayan face Patrice Evra for the first time since their fateful October meeting.

MANCHESTER: Edwin van der Sar has told David de Gea (pic) he has to “deal with” the pressure of being the Manchester United goalkeeper.

De Gea has struggled to fill the boots of Van der Sar since the Dutchman retired at the end of last season, making a number of high-profile blunders that saw him dropped from the side.