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Bulgarian still working to fit in at Old Trafford

Dimitar Berbatov admits he still needs to change in order to fit in at Manchester United.

The Bulgarian failed to hit the heights expected of him in his first season following his £30.75million move from Tottenham last year.

The 28-year-old scored just nine league goals last term and came in for some major criticism from the Old Trafford faithful.  But Berbatov admits that it is him who needs to adapt to life at United.  “That is my fault, not theirs. It is me who must change,” he said of the criticism. [+]

Anfield boss anticipates tough test when renewing Ancelotti rivalry

Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez knows that Sunday’s crucial meeting with Chelsea can contribute towards the outcome of the Premier League title race.

The Reds travel to London to take on their fierce rivals in determined mood as they aim to respond to critics who have already questioned their 2009/10 credentials.  Defeats to Tottenham and Aston Villa have already rocked Benitez’s plans and allowed the doom-mongers to congregate around Anfield before August had come to an end. [+]

Barcelona midfielder Xavi has risked infuriating Arsenal by expressing his ambition to play with Cesc Fabregas at the Nou Camp and claiming his Spain team-mate has ”Barca DNA”.

Fabregas started his career at the Catalan giants before Arsene Wenger recruited him in 2003 as a 16-year-old – but he has consistently been linked with a return to La Liga since establishing himself in the Premier League. [+]

Nigeria beat Tahiti 5-0 on Thursday to maintain a slim chance of qualifying for the knockout stage at the Under-20 World Cup.

Nigeria must wait on other results to see if it qualifies as one of the four best third-place teams from six groups. [+]

Juventus will be without captain Alessandro Del Piero for about six weeks after the 34-year-old forward damaged his left thigh during training on Thursday. Midfielder Tiago has also been ruled out for three weeks with a comparable problem.

Del Piero recently recovered from a similar injury and played six minutes as a replacement in the 1-1 draw against Bologna FC last Sunday. He was an unused substitute in last night’s goalless draw at FC Bayern München, but pulled up in training today and will now almost certainly miss Juve’s back-to-back Group A games against Maccabi Haifa FC on 21 October and 3 November. [+]

Chelsea FC may be one of only six teams with a perfect record after two UEFA Champions League matchdays, but goalkeeper Petr Čech says there is plenty of room for improvement when the London club tackle Club Atlético de Madrid over their next two Group D fixtures.

Chelsea followed up their 1-0 home victory against FC Porto with another single-goal success away to APOEL FC last night, Nicolas Anelka scoring with a side-footed finish from the edge of the area after 18 minutes. As against the Portuguese champions, however, Chelsea failed to build on their advantage and had to endure a couple of nervous moments as APOEL went in search of an equaliser. [+]

The Italian Football Federation (Figc) has announced the 12 cities involved in its bid to stage the 2016 European Championships.

Figc, which also unveiled the official logo for its candidacy, said the cities are Bari, Bologna, Cagliari, Florence, Genoa, Milan, Naples, Palermo, Rome, Turin, Udine and Verona. [+]

France coach Raymond Domenech insisted Thursday he would stand by Karim Benzema after picking the Real Madrid striker for 2010 World Cup qualifiers at home against the Faroe Isles on October 10 and Austria four days later.

Benzema caused a storm after last month’s draw with Romania, which compromised French chances of overhauling group leaders Serbia to reach the finals, when he suggested he had not given 100 percent after being restricted to a late appearance from the bench. [+]

Carlo Ancelotti has insisted it is only a matter of time before Frank Lampard’s goal drought comes to an end — and the Italian would love to see it happen against Liverpool on Sunday.

Lampard went through the entire month of September and a total of eight games without a goal, a rarity for the England midfielder, and Chelsea suddenly appear to be struggling a little after losing to Wigan last weekend and then labouring to a 1-0 win over APOEL Nicosia in the Champions League on Wednesday night.

Ancelotti however professes to be unconcerned. ‘I’m not worried because Lampard will score and he is working hard for the team, for me this is important,’ he said.

Chelsea will be without suspended goalkeeper Petr Cech against Liverpool, who ended Chelsea’s 86-game unbeaten run at Stamford Bridge in the corresponding fixture last season. [+]

Manchester City striker Emmanuel Adebayor has escaped a ban over his controversial goal celebration against former club Arsenal last month.

Adebayor did receive a two-match suspended ban and a 25,000-pound fine from the Football Association. [+]