Two Years in Spain Too Long for Blanco
Mexico World Cup striker Cuauhtemoc Blanco agreed Wednesday to rejoin his former team, Club America of Mexico, for one year after earlier rejecting a contract offered by the Mexico City-based club.
Blanco, 29, had been demanding $1 million a year but was believed to have settled for less, although terms of the contract were not revealed.
He spent the past two seasons with Valladolid in Spain but failed to have much impact on the Spanish league and said he was pleased to be returning home.
“After the experience I had in Spain, I don’t want to leave Mexico, I want to stay here,” he said in Mexico City.
“I don’t want to return to Europe. I had an offer from [an unnamed team in] England, but I didn’t want to go. I’m happy here.”
New Stadium for Arsenal
Arsenal, the north London team that completed “the double” last season by winning the English Premier League title and the F.A. Cup, was given judicial approval to build a $623.5-million, 60,000-seat stadium and shopping complex only one mile from its current stadium in Highbury.
Local residents in Ashburton Grove had challenged the proposal on environmental grounds, citing noise and pollution, but after a three-day hearing a London High Court judge ruled that the residents’ case was “unarguable” and gave Arsenal the go-ahead to proceed with the project, which includes restaurants, offices and a casino.
The club has played at Highbury since 1913, but the 38,500-seat ground is too small to meet the club’s needs and cannot be expanded. The new stadium, on a 60-acre site, is expected to be ready for the 2005-2006 season.
South Korea’s Ahn Dispute
The dispute between South Korea World Cup striker Ahn Jung-Hwan and his Italian club, Perugia, moved closer toward resolution when Ahn agreed to return to the team provided it trades him to another European club.
Perugia’s president had lambasted Ahn after the forward scored the goal that knocked Italy out of the World Cup, saying he would never play for the club again. When Ahn subsequently refused to return to Perugia, the club suspended payment of his salary.
Ahn’s agent and lawyer will travel to Italy this weekend to complete details of his transfer to another team, although it was not clear which league that might be. Perugia will likely seek the highest bidder.
Argentine Teen Injured
Fernando Canenaghi, the teenager whose 15 goals last season made him the top scorer in the Argentine league, suffered a knee injury in River Plate’s opening game of the new season and will be sidelined for six weeks after undergoing surgery, the Buenos Aires club said.
England to Play Portugal
England’s first game since its 2-1 loss to eventual champion Brazil in the quarterfinals of the World Cup will be against Portugal on Sept. 7 at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, the English Football Assn. announced.
New Coach for South Africa
The South Africa Football Assn. (SAFA) appointed Ephraim Mashaba as its national team coach, replacing Jomo Sono, who led the “Bafana Bafana” (“the Boys”) at the Korea/Japan ’02 World Cup.
Mashaba, 51, was hugely popular as a player and has enjoyed success on the youth levels. He coached South Africa’s under-20 team to second place in the African championship in Morocco in 1997; earned the bronze medal with the country’s under-23 team at the All-Africa Games in 1999, and coached South Africa’s team at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
