Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola says he was not surprised by the level of performance shown by Mexican side Guadalajara, who overcame the European champions 4-1 in front of 70,080 fans at Sun Life Stadium on Wednesday night in Miami.GettyImagesJose Luis Verduzco celebrates with his team-matesMarco Fabian was the hero for the Goats, scoring two goals in as many minutes midway through the second-half to set up the historic victory in the World Football Challenge. Giovani Casillas and Jose Luis Verduzco also put their names on the scoresheet in the second stanza as Chivas thrashed Barca."I am not surprised by Chivas' performance," Guardiola said. "Mexican football is very dynamic and entertaining."Barcelona did manage to take the lead early on through David
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Management hope Ferris and D’Arcy will travel
by Brendan Cole Ireland manager Paul McNaughton remains 'hopeful' that injury-hit duo Stephen Ferris and Gordon D'Arcy will be fit in time for the Rugby World Cup opener against USA in 41 days time. Ireland's tournament is due to get underway with an 11 September clash against the Eddie O'Sullivan-coached Eagles. Both Ferris and D'Arcy are battling injuries sustained last year. Ferris missed last year's RBS 6 Nations and key Ulster games due to a knee injury, while D'Arcy picked up an ankle injury in Leinster's Heineken Cup final victory over Northampton in May. Speaking to RTÉ Sport's Michael Corcoran at Ireland's training camp in Carton House, McNaughton said: "We have several players who are on the injury list. Most of them are 'legacy'
Friendlies: Liverpool held in Valerenga thriller
Liverpool failed to win for the third consecutive pre-season match after they were held to a 3-3 draw by Valerenga in Oslo. GettyImagesKenny Dalglish has planning to do. Kenny Dalglish fielded a strong line-up after suffering 3-0 defeats in his previous two warm-up games, against Hull and Galatasaray, but the Reds were 2-0 down early on after goals from Lars Iver Strand and Fegor Ogude. Andy Carroll pulled a goal back before half-time, albeit after the ball seemed to hit his hand, and Liverpool looked like they had pulled off a victory when Daniel Agger scored twice from two corners in the final five minutes. An entertaining contest had one more goal left in it though, as substitute Mohammed Fellah scored from long range
Joey Barton threatens to expose Magpies
Joey Barton has risked the wrath of Newcastle's management board after blasting how the club is being run, insisting there will be a "time and a place" to tell the fans "exactly how it is" at St James' Park. PA PhotosJoey Barton has entered the final year of his contract at Newcastle • Barton happy at Toon Newcastle's pre-season preparations have been overshadowed by unrest within the squad with defender Jose Enrique, who has one year remaining on his contract, fined two weeks' wages for taking to Twitter to state that "this club will never again fight to be among the top six" if they continued to let their best players leave. Newcastle, who were relegated to the Championship in 2009 before returning to England's
‘Nothing official’ on Joel Campbell
Joel Campbell's agent has told ESPNsoccernet there is "nothing official" regarding reports the Saprissa striker has joined Arsenal. GettyImagesJoel Campbell has been making a big impact on the international stage for Costa Rica • Gunners to miss out on Campbell Reports on Thursday night suggested an agreement between Campbell and Arsenal is now in place, with the player set to join the Gunners once he has finished his participation for Costa Rica at the Under-20 World Cup. However, Campbell's representative, Joaquim Batica, has insisted the speculation is premature. Batica has now headed for Colombia, where Campbell is representing Costa Rica. The Gunners were recently thought to be on the brink of signing 19-year-old Campbell for around £900,000, only for Saprissa president Juan Carlos Rojas to claim
Inter open to Sneijder sale, no Man United bid
Inter Milan chief executive Ernesto Paolillo has suggested the club could be ready to sell Wesley Sneijder, but that Manchester United have not made any contact. GettyImagesWesley Sneijder: Ex Real Madrid and Ajax • MLS All Stars 0-4 Manchester United• Vucinic for United? Gill drops hint• Fergie happy with squad• Hernandez hospitalised in USA• Anderson to replace Scholes Sir Alex Ferguson has insisted that United will not bring any more players in during the summer transfer window, despite a shortage of creative midfield talent in his squad and relentless speculation over a pursuit for Netherlands international Sneijder. Although United have also been linked with AS Roma's Montenegro international Mirko Vucinic, it still seems more likely that Sir Alex will eventually make a move for the 27-year-old Sneijder. Speaking after the
FC Copenhagen 1-0 Shamrock Rovers
By Rob Wright Shamrock Rovers will welcome FC Copenhagen to Tallaght with every chance of progressing to the play-off round of the Champions League after a great European display in Denmark. Playing against a team that made it to the last 16 of last season's Champions League and one that held Barcelona to a 1-1 draw at the same venue, Rovers never looked daunted and indeed were the better team for much of the game. Manager Michael O'Neill will be left to rue several great chances that went a-begging, but after going behind in the fourth minute, he should be happy to take the tie back to Tallaght Stadium with the Hoops still very much in the game. The absence of goalkeeper Alan Mannus,