CUP RUNNETH OVER: Italian runner Devis Licciardi

Juventus coach Antonio Conte has been banned for 10 months in relation to a match-fixing investigation.

Typically they feature dawn raids and search warrants; obscure provincial prosecutors with snappy wardrobes and an eye for publicity; pictures of sheepish young men emerging from police stations; extracts from mobile phone taps selectively leaked to the papers; condemnation and summary convictions; and then a five-year appeal process during which it emerges that everyone was doing it but the accused had the misfortune or the stupidity to be caught.

Former Fiorentina coach Delio Rossi has been banned for three months by the Italian football league after he attacked midfielder Adem Ljajic during yesterday’s 2-2 draw against Novara.

Real Madrid sealed a first La Liga title in four years last night after cruising to a 3-0 win at Athletic Bilbao.

Serie A strugglers Genoa have today sacked coach Alberto Malesani after just three games back in charge and appointed Luigi De Canio as his replacement.

A post-match row between Zlatan Ibrahimovic and a female journalist has overshadowed AC Milan’s 2-0 win over Lecce at San Siro on Sunday.

Nil-nil is a scoreline that can tell you a lot or a little.

Italy

BARCELONA defender Gerard Pique has hailed team-mate Lionel Messi as the finest player in the world as the Argentinian waits to discover if he has won the FIFA Ballon d’Or award for 2011 today.

Ghana’s Kevin-Prince Boateng has announced his retirement from international football aged just 24, the country’s Football Association have confirmed.

HEADING into another international break in this stop-start season is not just frustrating for fans right across Europe, it’s a serious concern for managers, coaches and players.

JUVENTUS have appointed Antonio Conte as their new head coach on a two-year contract.

AC Milan had Zlatan Ibrahimovic sent off as they were held to a shock draw at home to basement boys Bari at the San Siro.

Palermo have appointed Serse Cosmi as their new coach following the sacking of Delio Rossi.

AC Milan maintained their four-point lead at the top of Serie A thanks to a 2-0 win over Cesena at the San Siro this evening.

AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri insists there is no cause for alarm despite his side drawing their last two league games.

Rafael Benitez has dismissed the latest jibe from predecessor Jose Mourinho as he attempts to maintain Inter Milan's domestic dominance when Serie A resumes this weekend.

Former Real Madrid, Barcelona and Inter Milan striker Ronaldo has announced he will retire from football at the end of next year.

Italy coach Marcello Lippi has called up eight uncapped players for the friendly against Northern Ireland on June 6.

SACKING Claudio Ranieri was the “last resort” in a bid to halt Juventus’ slide down the Serie A table, according to general manager Jean Claude Blanc.

Serie A clubs are on the verge of breaking away from the rest of the Italian football league and creating a new championship to be known as Lega Serie A.

Andriy Shevchenko’s agent admits it is highly unlikely the AC Milan striker will stay at the San Siro beyond the end of the season.

Luckless Manchester City striker Valeri Bojinov has hit the comeback trail again.

Leaders Inter Milan returned to winning ways in Serie A with a comprehensive 3-0 victory at lowly Lecce this evening.

JOSE MOURINHO tightened his grip on Serie A and claimed bragging rights in his personal duel with Claudio Ranieri after Inter defeated Juventus 1-0 on Saturday.

Italy 2 Montenegro 1

CRISTIANO RONALDO has admitted that he is pleased to see Chelsea top of the Premier League because it reflects well on his former international coach, Luiz Felipe Scolari.

Manchester City are expected to confirm the £5.75m capture of Valeri Bojinov from Fiorentina within the next 48 hours.

LAZIO and Fiorentina have been reinstated to Serie A but Juventus remain in Serie B following their appeals against the sanctions imposed as a result of the match-fixing scandal.

Juventus president Giovanni Cobolli Gigli reacted angrily and vowed to appeal against the club’s relegation following the investigation into match-fixing.

Juventus president Giovanni Cobolli Gigli has announced his club will appeal against the punishment handed out following the investigation into match-fixing.

Roberto Donadoni has been named as the new coach of the Italian national team.

WORLD CUP-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro has paid a glowing tribute to Marcello Lippi, who yesterday made an “irrevocable” decision to step down as coach of Italy.

The trial into allegations of match-fixing in Italian football has been postponed until July 3, it has been announced.

TORINO will battle it out with Mantova in the Serie B play-off final for the last remaining promotion place to the top flight.

Dusan Petkovic, the son of Serbia and Montenegro coach Ilija Petkovic, has pulled out of the World Cup squad after a media outcry against his inclusion.

GERMAN playmaker Michael Ballack’s move to Chelsea is “set in stone”, according to Bayern Munich director Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

Juventus drew at home against 10-man Lazio and saw their lead in Serie A over AC Milan reduced to just three points with three rounds remaining after the Rossoneri triumphed 3-1 at Messina.

THIERRY HENRY has called on his Arsenal team-mates to “stay cool” as they look to secure a safe passage into the semi-finals of the Champions League against Juventus tomorrow night.

AC MILAN’S Champions League clash with Lyon tonight has taken on extra importance following the Rossoneri’s Serie A defeat to Lecce on Saturday.

JUVENTUS and AC Milan failed to beat the bottom two clubs in Serie A on Saturday, with Milan suffering a humiliating defeat.

JUVENTUS striker Alessandro Del Piero has been ruled out of tomorrow night’s Champions League quarter-final, first leg away to Arsenal.