Vieira wants Pires to stay at Highbury

PATRICK Vieira has admitted he fears Arsenal could lose FA Cup final hero Robert Pires this summer. Pires, who is reportedly wanted by Valencia, has two years left on his current contract and is stalling on a new deal with the Gunners.

Arsenal skipper Vieira believes his French international team-mate could quit Highbury and feels that keeping Pires is more important than any signings boss Arsene Wenger might make this summer.

He admitted yesterday: "My biggest fear is not who we will sign this summer, but who we will lose.

"I know Manchester United and Newcastle will probably buy big players but, despite that, we will still have enough to get the championship back next season. But it is vital the current team stays together and my real concern is that Pires will go."

Pires scored the winner in the FA Cup final against Southampton and got 16 goals this season after winning the Football Writers' Player of the Year award in 2001-2. Vieira added:

"I'm not worried about speculation over Arsène Wenger's future or even my own but Robbie must stay."

Argentine international striker Gabriel Batistuta has become the latest veteran star to commit his final playing days to the tiny Gulf state of Qatar by signing a reported eight-million dollar contract with club side Al Arabi.

The 34-year-old, who played last season on loan with Inter Milan, signed the two-year deal in Rome on Saturday, said Sheikh Falah bin Jassem Al-Thani, the president of Al Arabi.

Press reports in Argentina said that Batistuta would earn 5.5 million dollars for the first year and 2.5 million dollars for the second.

Qatar, with huge financial resources thanks to its oil and gas wealth, has attracted numerous top-level players in recent months including Brazilian striker Romario, Frenchman Frank Leboeuf and German veterans Stefan Effenberg and Mario Basler.

Meanwhile, Northern Ireland manager Sammy McIlroy is aiming to persuade Nottingham Forest striker David Johnson to come on board. Johnson was born in Jamaica but would qualify for the province because he holds a British passport.

He scored 29 goals for Forest last season as they reached the Nationwide Division One play-offs.

The 27-year-old frontman has already been contacted about the possibility of him playing for Northern Ireland. "He has not turned us down yet so I am taking that as a positive sign," McIlroy said.

"David has a knee injury at the moment but when pre-season training starts I plan to have a chat with him. David is a player I would like in my squad but it will be his call whether he plays for us or not."

Johnson pledged his future to Scotland in October 1999 ahead of the Euro 2000 play-off against England.

However, he was not named in the squad after it was discovered he was ineligible under a ruling agreed by the Home Nations where players were not allowed to face British opposition.

Earlier that season he had trained with Wales but felt his international prospects would be brighter with Scotland. Now McIlroy has come calling in a bid to end a scoring famine.

Northern Ireland go into the Euro 2004 qualifier against Spain on Wednesday at Windsor Park without a goal in 882 minutes following the 2-0 defeat by Italy in a friendly last week.

*Lecce and Ancona secured promotion to Italy's Serie A on Saturday to join Siena and Sampdoria in moving from the second division to the elite.