Javier Clementes reputation for being a hardliner with no tolerance for big egos made many in Serbia wonder how a group of players accustomed to having it their way would respond to the 57-year old Basque.

Almost a year on from his appointment, it turns out that Clementes iron first is exactly what was needed after a dismal World Cup.

Clemente swept away a group of ageing and unproductive veterans and then made it clear to their replacements he expected nothing less than full commitment and discipline.

As a result, Serbia remain very much in the hunt to reach the Euro 2008 finals after a 2-0 win in Finland that followed a rough patch Clemente had weathered with some ease.

Unlike his predecessors, who often wilted to media outcries after embarrassing defeats, Clemente stoically faced the music following a 2-1 setback in Kazakhstan and rubbished suggestions it was a disaster of biblical proportions.

I dont understand why people here see every defeat as a tragedy and every victory as a conquest, he said after the Finland win.

Clementes no-nonsense approach seems to have taken effect at all levels as the under-21 side, headed by half a dozen talents he had brought into the first team, got off to a perfect start at the European Championship in The Netherlands with an industrious 1-0 win over favourites Italy.

Serbias passage to the Euro 2008 finals in Austria and Switzerland will probably hang in the balance until the final qualifying day but fans can at least be certain this group of players are willing to go the extra mile for their coach in a bid to get there.

Zoran Milosavljevic reports on soccer for Reuters from Belgrade

Bayern Munich have ripped up their transfer rule book after finishing a distant and discouraging fourth in the Bundesliga last season and have now thrown open their wallets to buy some top European talent. For Germany, it has been an unprecedented show of financial muscle, and one that must have been designed in part to appease their frustrated fans.

For years, Bayern have been able to dominate the Bundesliga and even win the Champions League by signing the best players, German or otherwise, who perform well for their nearest Bundesliga rivals, and only occasionally going after a bigger fish abroad.

After it all went wrong last season, when Bayern were regularly humiliated by sides fighting relegation, Uli Hoeness vowed a house-cleaning. The pugnacious Bayern manager has done just that. He’s also given up his preference for foreigners who speak German by signing France midfielder Franck Ribery and Italy striker Luca Toni.

In 2003, Bayern spent months haggling over the transfer fee for Roy Makaay with Deportivo Coruna before finally agreeing to a then-record 18 million euros, just as the transfer window was about to close.

This year they’ve spent 60 million in transfer fees and it’s only early June! The 26 million fee for Ribery could rise to 30 million euros and smashes all Bundesliga records. In fact, Bayern have spent far more than rest of 17 Bundesliga teams combined.

Hoeness may well prove to look like a genius. But if the revamped Bayern strategy fails to deliver results and titles — and there will be a lot of unhappy internationals sitting on the Bayern bench — he could be in for an uncomfortable season.

Erik Kirschbaum is a Reuters correspondent based in Berlin

Lionel Messi has repeatedly said he will never be able to emulate Maradona but he is giving it his best shot, managing near carbon copies of Maradona´s most famous and infamous goals in the same season.
 
First was the run from the halfway line, on the right, skipping past defenders to score against Getafe, then Saturday´s “hand of god” copy against Espanyol, getting his small frame almost to the ball before keeper Carlos Kameni and sticking his hand out to make the extra centimetres.
 
Coach Alfio Basile now sees Messi as the player to lead Argentina to the Copa America title this year.

Basile is trying Messi out as a “media punta”, playing in the hole behind twin strikers. There was a marked improvement in the little genius over the 180 minutes of the recent friendlies against Switzerland in Basel and Algeria in Barcelona.

Messi laid on the goal for Carlos Tevez in a 1-1 draw in wet conditions which favoured the muscular Swiss, and then took out the magic wand to lead his country to a 4-3 win over Algeria.
 
“I hope he continues to convince me to put him in the position in which he played these two matches,” said Basile. ”But he’ll be there somewhere because cracks (geniuses) play
anywhere.”
 
Basile is building his team for the Copa America in Venezuela, starting in less than three weeks’ time. Basile has a good Copa America history, having won it in 1991 and 1993, Argentina’s last major international trophies.

Ronaldinho and Kaka, who on the night of Argentina’s 4-3 win were playing for Brazil in the dour 0-0 draw in Dortmund, will not be there to compare with Messi and Tevez. This is Argentina’s chance to prove they are the entertainers of the moment and that the loss of Juan Roman Riquelme is a minor glitch.

Rex Gowar is a Reuters sports reporter based in London. You can read his recollection of that England-Argentina 1986 World Cup quarter-final here. 

Italian actress Sophia Loren joked she would strip if favourite club Napoli won promotion, yet it was the players who were left in their underwear on Sunday.

Genoa and Napoli drew 0-0 on the final day of Serie B to both clinch promotion back to the top flight after Piacenza could only draw 1-1 with Triestina. Fans ran onto the pitch in Genoa to celebrate when Piacenza’s result was confirmed, and promptly started taking off the players’ shirts and shorts to keep as mementos.

However, the Italian tradition of stripping your heroes backfired when the referee said the final minute of stoppage time had to be played. Once the fans were cleared from the pitch, several players were wandering around in their underpants.

A frantic Genoa kitman charged down the tunnel to find some spare kits which were swiftly given to the players before the referee blew the definitive final whistle.

Now it is 72-year-old Loren’s turn to bare all.

Mark Meadows, Milan

Real Madrid fans will be toasting the other Raul, Espanyol forward Raul Tamudo, if, as expected, they go on to secure the league title next weekend.

Ruud van Nistelrooy supplied more heroics on Saturday as Real came back to snatch a 2-2 draw away to Real Zaragoza, but that result would have counted for nothing had Spain’s second most famous Raul not struck twice, including a late equaliser, to deny Barcelona victory at the Camp Nou.

We will have to treat him to supper and he can eat and drink as much as he wants, said Real coach Fabio Capello after Saturday’s results left the club needing just a win at home to Real Mallorca to seal the title.

Tamudo also scored when Espanyol tore Barcelona apart 3-1 earlier in the season in January.

Real Madrid’s Raul has only scored seven goals this season and was subbed at halftime in the Zaragoza game with Real losing 1-0.

Simon Baskett, Madrid

Claudio Ranieri has to bring in several signings to make Juventus great again, but Gianluigi Buffon’s contract extension could well be the best bit of business he does all summer.

Despite their promotion back to Serie A, the Italy number one had contemplated leaving the club but Ranieri’s appointment following the resignation of Didier has convinced him to stay.

Ranieri cannot rest on his laurels, though, if he is to meet expectations and lead Juve to Champions League qualification at least next season.

The defence needs rebuilding with error-prone Frenchman Jean Alain Boumsong even struggling in Serie B. Fabio Cannavaro, Lilian Thuram and Gianluca Zambrotta all left after Juve’s demotion for match-fixing last year, and replacements of similar quality are hard to find. Jonathan Zebina has extended his contract, Ajax’s Zdenek Grygera has arrived on a Bosman and attacking fullback Federico Balzaretti is improving, but more reinforcements are needed.

The midfield also requires work. Pavel Nedved is still a superb player but is 34 while Mauro Camoranesi has hinted he may leave. Bayern Munich’s hard-working right winger Hasan Salihamidzic, who joins in July, could make up for the loss of Camoranesi but centre midfield is the main worry.

Media have speculated that Frank Lampard, who Ranieri brought to Chelsea, is a possible signing but the coach has said he must not “delude” the fans that the England man is coming.

Upfront, Alessandro Del Piero is another year older and David Trezeguet is yet to commit to the club. A raft of possible signings, including Italy’s midweek hero Fabio Quagliarella, have been mentioned in the press and one big name forward seems certain to arrive.

Mark Meadows, Milan

David Bentley’s decision to pull out of England’s Under-21 squad has given a fresh twist to the ever-simmering club v country row.

England Under-21 manager Pearce told Sky Sports News that Bentley, 22, had informed him he was fatigued after a busy year with Blackburn Rovers and was worried about “possible burnout” next term.

Pearce tried to persuade Bentley of the honour of representing his country, of the tournament experience he’d gain, of the fact James Milner and Nigel Reo-Coker among others had also had tough seasons, and also of the regulations which prevent England from replacing him in the squad. All to no avail.
 
Clearly, the affair does not put Bentley in a particularly good light. But Blackburn are an ambitious club and the former Arsenal midfielder will be key to their cause next season, having recently been voted the club’s Player of the Year.

What’s more, a common refrain from the England senior camp, after bowing out of their latest tournament at the quarter-final stage, is that the Premier League is the most exhausting of the lot, and that it takes a long time to recover.

Ahmed Bilial at Soccerlens speculates that Bentley has his eyes on a place in the senior England squad for Euro 2008, and needs to be fully fit next term to push his claims. Other bloggers have shown less sympathy.

Should Bentley be criticised for his stand, for ignoring his country’s call, and, what’s more, missing the chance to make a name for himself on an international stage? Or is it just the logical consequence of a football system that has become dominated by club interests?

Trevor Huggins, London

It’s just like old times in Spain, where a thrilling title race between Real Madrid, Barcelona and Sevilla looks set to go down to the wire.

When I arrived in Spain in 1992 the first three seasons I witnessed were all decided on nerve-shredding final days of the season.

Real Madrid were twice pipped at the post by Barcelona in 1992 and 1993 after shock last-match defeats against Tenerife, while the Catalans snatched the league trophy from the grasp of Deportivo La Coruña in the most dramatic climax of all in 1994.

Needing to beat Valencia in the final game to wrap up the their first league title, Deportivo were awarded a penalty in the last minute. Leading scorer Bebeto turned down the spot kick, Yugoslav fullback Miroslav Djukic stepped up instead, took a deep sigh and then rolled the penalty into the arms of the keeper. Barça, meanwhile twice came from behind to win 5-2 against Sevilla and took the title by virtue of a better head-to-head record.

The way things are going this season we may well end with an equally dramatic finish.

The present campaign has been full of surprises what with Barcelona showing the tell-tale symptoms of Galactico fatigue, Real Madrid hauling themselves back into contention after a grim start, and Sevilla lasting the pace despite having to cope with exhausting runs to the finals of both the UEFA and Kings Cups.

Real could win the title this weekend, but only if they beat Zaragoza and both Barca and Sevilla slip up in their respective clashes against Espanyol and Mallorca. It would be a more fitting end to a roller-coaster season, however, if it does go down to the last match.

Simon Baskett, Madrid

Granada 74, a team from the depths of the Andalucian league, have managed to leapfrog 400 other teams in Spain and secure themselves a place in the second division (Segunda A) without kicking a ball.

Not for them the time-consuming process of trying to win promotion, instead they became the first team in Spain to take advantage of new rules that allow clubs to sell off their right to play in a league rather like an American-style sports franchise.

Granada 74s president Carlos Marsa bought Ciudad de Murcias berth in the second division for around 20 million euros.

The only problem is that Marsa had to sell off the clubs present ground to finance the offer. With two other local teams already using Granadas stadium, the local council have refused him permission to use their facilities so now he is looking for a nearby town that might allow him to use the 6,000-seater ground the team will require if there are to be allowed to play in the Segunda A.

Simon Baskett, Madrid

England coach Steve McClaren isn’t jumping on the David Beckham bandwagon with quite the enthusiasm of most other people, even if his comments after Wednesdays 3-0 win over Estonia in the Euro 2008 qualifiers were complimentary.

McClaren had axed Beckham from the England squad on taking over after the World Cup. Recalled last week against Brazil, where he set up Englands goal in a 1-1 draw, Beckham went one better against Estonia by creating two of the three strikes in a fine all-round performance.

What was intriguing in the press room at the A. Le Coq Arena was the way McClaren started his response to the obvious question about Beckhams contribution to the win.

You know it, I know it and you can see it. It seemed his first reflex was to distance the judgement from himself, and to portray his verdict as a reflection of what everyone else is thinking, although he duly went on to describe that contribution as immense.

However, he then said: David Beckham, the player, is a very very good player and deserves to be in our team.

Beckham the player. So is there a difference in McClarens mind between Beckham, the footballer, and perhaps Beckham the sport/fashion icon and VIP who dominates the England media spotlight?

McClaren was also surprisingly shy about saying anything about Beckhams future prospects with England, which have to factor in his move to a new career in California with LA Galaxy.

Its not a question for tonight. Theres still a long time between now and August when we play the first friendly of the season, he said of the game with Germany at Wembley.

Beckham has talked about playing for England for “many, many years”. Let’s see if McClaren shares that view.

Trevor Huggins, Tallinn