ALEX FERGUSON is ready to let Wayne Rooney loose on Champions League foes Otelul Galati tonight.

Bundesliga side Freiburg have agreed to sign Swiss defender Beg Ferati from nearby FC Basle for next season.

ROMANIAN outfit Cluj have dismissed coach Sorin Cartu after he destroyed a section of a dugout in Tuesday’s Champions League defeat at Basle.

Roy Hodgson set his sights on a return to Italy after Fulham qualified for the knock-out stages of the Europa League with a well-deserved 3-2 victory over FC Basle last night.

FC Basle 2 Fulham 3

FULHAM striker Andy Johnson has suffered another injury setback after being ruled out of tonight’s decisive Europa League clash with FC Basle.

Fulham have Chris Baird, Eric Nevland and Paul Konchesky suspended for tomorrow’s Europa League decider against FC Basle.

Portsmouth 2 Vitoria Guimaraes 0

Manchester City will begin their preparations for next season in Switzerland.

New signing Mile Sterjovski hopes to make his Derby debut this weekend against Tottenham after finally being granted a work permit.

Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp could barely contain his excitement tonight as he edged closer to bringing Jermain Defoe to Fratton Park.

Manchester City are on the brink of landing strikers Benjani Mwaruwari and Felipe Caicedo.

Barclays Premier League clubs have until midnight tonight to bolster their squads this season as the January transfer window closes.

Fiorentina romped to their first UEFA Cup triumph of the Group C campaign with a crushing 6-1 success at home to Elfsborg to go top of the table.

Blackburn have signed Swiss international left-back Bruno Berner from FC Basle.

Celtic have been told to increase their bid if they want to sign Swiss youngster Zdravko Kuzmanovic.

Middlesbrough 1 West Ham 0

Today’s first round draw in Monaco paired eircom League side Shelbourne, whose quest to reach the Champions League was ended on Tuesday by Deportivo la Coruna, against French League side Lille.

Tottenham are set to sign Cameroon international Thimothee Atouba from FC Basle.

England have been warned to beware of Swiss “spirit and pride” at Euro 2004.

Australia “don’t deserve” Mark Viduka after the “insensitive” decision to ban the striker from playing against Manchester United this weekend, according to Leeds chief executive Trevor Birch.

Newcastle will believe they have a good chance of reaching the last 16 of the UEFA Cup after being drawn to face Norwegian side Valerenga in the third round.

Newcastle 1 FC Basle 0 (aggregate 4-2)

Newcastle 1 FC Basle 0 (agg 4-2)

Alan Shearer may have stolen the headlines with his century of goals for Bobby Robson, but it was Jonathan Woodgate who left the biggest impression on the Newcastle manager.

NEWCASTLE midfielder Kieron Dyer is raring to go for Saturday’s Barclaycard Premiership clash with Manchester City after putting his latest injury misery firmly behind him.

Newcastle stars Kieron Dyer and Jonathan Woodgate will both get a chance to stake their claims for first-team returns tonight.

Basle 2 Newcastle 3

Basle 2 Newcastle 3

Newcastle midfielder Kieron Dyer is out of tomorrow night’s UEFA Cup second round clash with FC Basle in Switzerland as he is struggling to shake off a hamstring injury.

LIVERPOOL manager Gerard Houllier believes his side could not have been handed a tougher draw than Steaua Bucharest in the UEFA Cup second round – but sees a positive omen in the pairing.

Celtic midfielder Neil Lennon has insisted he will put off-field worries to one side to concentrate on the Champions League game against Bayern Munich.

Celtic defender Johan Mjallby is hoping for a return to Helsinki as the Hoops attempt to book their place in the Champions League.

Celtic could be given the opportunity to dump HJK Helsinki out of Europe for the second time in two years.

MARTIN O'NEILL faces a battle to land Georgi Kinkladze but his agent claimed yesterday Parkhead would be the perfect destination.

Celtic chairman Brian Quinn has confirmed manager Martin O’Neill will not have millions at his disposal for players this summer despite the club’s UEFA Cup heroics.

Celtic chairman Brian Quinn has confirmed manager Martin O’Neill will not have millions at his disposal for players this summer despite the club’s UEFA Cup heroics.

Alex Ferguson will sit back and hope to be surprised by his young charges at the Riazor Stadium tonight.

Gary Neville will not hear a bad word against former team-mate Dion Dublin despite the Aston Villa striker’s red card shame two weeks ago.

CONFIRMED Champions League quarter-finalists Manchester United seek their 10th victory in this season’s competition tonight with Alex Ferguson claiming his squad is not big enough to cope.

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy today became the sole director of the club’s majority shareholders following the £40.3m (€58.3m) cash-buyout of ENIC by Kondar Limited.

MIKAEL SILVESTRE believes Manchester United’s under-pressure squad can put a few sleepless nights behind them now and make a final push for Premiership glory.