ARSENE WENGER is monitoring the progress of Paris Saint-Germain’s Mamadou Sakho as he looks for a solution to Arsenal’s defensive problems.

A bloody footprint on a bathroom rug matched that of an Italian man charged with the murder of a British university student in 2007, an expert told a court today.

Tottenham have reached an agreement with Perugia to sign Italian youth goalkeeper Mirko Ranieri.

An Italian coroner conducted a post-mortem examination tonight on the body of a British university student found dead with a knife wound in her neck in her bedroom last week, and said the exam yielded “interesting” details.

NOTHING falls down more easily than an Italian soccer player — with the possible exception of an Italian soccer player’s pants.

Japan international Hidetoshi Nakata has announced his retirement from football in an open letter published on the website of Italian Serie A side Fiorentina.

One man’s sound reasoning is another’s rant. Here Colm O’Connor remembers those men who lost their rag so memorably at the World Cup.

New Charlton manager Iain Dowie has wasted little time in beginning to shape his side for next season with the announcement that both striker Jay Bothroyd and defender Chris Perry are leaving the club, while centre-half Jonathan Fortune has agreed a new deal.

Southampton manager Harry Redknapp is hoping to tie up the signing of Millwall midfielder David Livermore before Saturday’s home clash with Norwich.

Bolton manager Sam Allardyce has confirmed he is in talks with Japan international Hidetoshi Nakata about a possible move to the Reebok Stadium.

West Ham managing director Paul Aldridge has appealed for patience from supporters as he revealed that the club are “in talks with a number of potential new signings“.

The Old Firm took centre stage as midnight approached on transfer deadline day with Craig Bellamy and Barry Ferguson both moving north of the border.

Norwich 1 Blackburn 1

Blackburn Rovers 2 Liverpool 2

Australia coach Frank Farina has named a 20-man squad for next week’s FIFA Confederations Cup qualifiers against the Solomon Islands.

REAL MADRID midfielder David Beckham was sent off in the 36th minute of his side's Primera Liga match against bottom club Murcia last night for insulting a linesman.

VALENCIA clinched their second Spanish title in three seasons after goals from midfielders Vicente and Ruben Baraja earned them a 2-0 victory at Sevilla last night.

Inter Milan clinched a 1-0 win over Parma to move into fourth spot in Serie A - a position which will see them qualify for next season’s Champions League preliminary round if they hold it for one more week.

AC MILAN won the Italian league title yesterday after beating Roma 1-0 at the San Siro.

BARCELONA progressed to the fourth round of the UEFA Cup following a 2-1 (3-1 on aggregate) win over Brondby last night.

REAL Madrid took full advantage of a slip-up by title rivals Valencia when they stretched their lead at the top of the Primera Liga to eight points following a 4-2 victory over struggling Celta Vigo last night.

ANTONIO Cassano scored twice as AS Roma crushed Italian champions Juventus 4-0 last night to keep within five points of Serie A leaders AC Milan.

REAL Madrid beat Deportivo Coruna 2-1 at the Bernabeu last night to extend their perfect home league record and stay two points clear at the top of the Primera Liga.

GERARD HOULLIER, stricken by flu after a week of high pressure, turned his assistant Phil Thompson on Liverpool’s detractors last night.

The draw for the third round of the UEFA Cup is:

AT MANCHESTER UNITED David Beckham became a 21st century icon.

IT WOULD have caused a sensation had Swedish strikers Hanna Ljungberg and Victoria Svensson accepted the offer of Perugia president Luciano Gaucci to sign for the Serie A club.

Dundee have been placed in administration, financial consultants Ernst & Young have confirmed.

BAYERN MUNICH captain Oliver Kahn is confident his team will raise their game for their Champions League match against Celtic in Glasgow tomorrow night.

ECCENTRIC Perugia president Luciano Gaucci has slammed two female footballers who snubbed his offer to make them the first women to play in Italy’s Serie A.

PERUGIA could be within a week of becoming the first leading men's football club to sign a female player.

Perugia president Luciano Gaucci has claimed his club will open negotiations next week with a view to signing a leading woman player.

ITALIAN club Perugia is courting the star of Sweden’s World Cup women’s football team Victoria Svensson apparently to play in the Serie A.

Perugia 1 Dundee 0 (Aggregate: 3-1)

Libyan international midfielder Saadi Gaddafi has stepped down from the Juventus board, clearing the way for him to make his playing debut with Perugia.

Olimpija Ljubljana 1 Liverpool 1

JUVENTUS began the defence of their Italian league title in style with a thumping 5-1 home win over Empoli yesterday.

Blackburn and Turkish rivals Genclerbirligi both insist there will be no security fears stemming from the clubs being paired in the first round of the UEFA Cup.

Squads for the Republic of Ireland v Australia friendly at Lansdowne Road in Dublin tomorrow night.

SERIE A side Perugia paraded the most unorthodox signing of Italy’s closed season yesterday when they presented al-Saadi Gaddafi, son of Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, to the press.

Juventus won the 27th Serie A championship of their history today although a 2-2 draw with Perugia was not the perfect way to celebrate.

Celtic manager Martin O’Neill has offered Croatian international star Milan Rapaic the chance to win a dream move to Parkhead after inviting him to train with them this week.

Christian Vieri outshone Inter Milan new boy Gabriel Batistuta by grabbing a hat-trick as the Nerazzurri moved back into second place in Serie A with a convincing 3-0 victory against Empoli.