Prior seals series
England skipper Andrew Strauss (C) holds the trophy as he celebrates with teammates their one-day international series victory after the third and final match against the West Indies at Edgbaston on Tuesday.Matt Prior's one-day international best of 87 set up England's 58-run win in the third and final match of their series against the West Indies at Edgbaston here on Tuesday.
Victory saw England win the series 2-0 after a six-wicket win in Bristol on Sunday following Thursday's washout at Headingley.
Wicketkeeper Prior's innings was the centrepiece of England's imposing total of 328 for seven in their permitted 50 overs.
That was their highest in this form of cricket against the West Indies, surpassing the 306 for five they made in a 55 overs per side match at the Oval in 1995.
West Indies, chasing 329 to win, finished well short on 270 all out.
Prior has not been selected for next month's World Twenty20 in England, with James Foster the hosts' specialist wicketkeeper.
But the Sussex gloveman, who has been struggling with a right ring finger injury, was not too disappointed.
"I'm actually quite looking forward to having time off to get the finger right," man-of-the-match Prior told reporters.
However, he added: "It's a World Cup in your home country, of course you would be gutted to miss out.
"But there are a huge amount of positives to have come out of the last month. I couldn't have wished for a better Test series and to get the opportunity at No 3 (in the one-dayers) was fantastic."
Defeat completed a miserable tour for the West Indies, who suffered a pair of heavy losses in their preceding 2-0 Test series loss to England.
They only arrived in the early part of an English season after Sri Lanka, the scheduled tourists, had pulled out because of their players' commitments in the Indian Premier League.
West Indies captain Chris Gayle, whose side were beaten by six wickets in the second one-dayer in Bristol after the series opener at Headingley was washed out, did not look especially enthusiastic about having to cut short his time in the IPL to come on this tour.
Asked if this was one of his worst experiences as West Indies captain, Gayle replied: "It is. It wasn't the best but I have to give credit where it is due, England set the game up in the batting department."
Prior put on 149 for the third wicket with Owais Shah, who made an entertaining 75, after Gayle had won the toss and chose to field.
Prior, batting at No 3 in place of the injured Kevin Pietersen, saw his innings better the 52 he made against the West Indies at Edgbaston in 2007.
Miscast as a 'pinch hitter' early in his career, Prior was happy to be batting at first-wicket down.
"I was told you are batting at three in your own right," he said.
Gayle - a man whom the tourists would have been looking to for a big score - fell for just 11 when he miscued a pull off Stuart Broad to Ravi Bopara at mid-on.
And when England captain Andrew Strauss held a brilliant one-handed catch in the covers off Stuart Broad to get rid of Ramnaresh Sarwan, the West Indies had slumped to 22 for two.
Shivnarine Chanderpaul, a class player in all forms of the game, steadied the ship with an innings of 68 and put on 82 with wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin (45).
But the run-rate was always against them and when they both fell in quick succession, Ramdin departing after a diving one-handed catch by Prior off James Anderson, the West Indies were 189 for six and the game all but over.
England openers Strauss (52) and Bopara (49) made a solid start.
The fifty came up in 62 balls and Bopara continued to find the boundary with some superb square-cuts and drives in a spell of four fours in nine balls.
But Bopara was one short of his fifty when he played on to Dwayne Bravo.
Strauss, who has opted out of the World Twenty20, did get to fifty, off 65 balls with seven fours, but his next ball saw him stumped by wicketkeeper Ramdin off giant spinner Sulieman Benn.
Strauss's Middlesex colleague Shah completed a run-a-ball fifty in flamboyant fashion with a wristily pulled six off Bravo that also brought up a century partnership with Prior.
Crespo going to Genoa
Genoa president Enrico Preziosi on Tuesday claimed his club were close to tying up a deal to sign Inter Milan pair Hernan Crespo and Ricardo Quaresma.
Inter are themselves close to finalising a deal for Genoa stars Diego Milito and Thiago Motta and now it seems Crespo and Quaresma will travel in the opposite direction in a direct swap.
"I'm meeting (Fernando) Hidalgo (Crespo's agent) on Wednesday to finalise the Crespo deal," Preziosi told Radio Radio TV.
"We're (also) interested in Quaresma, there's a deal in place with Inter on the basis of 10 million euros and now we just have to come to an agreement with the player."
Quaresma only joined Inter at the beginning of the season but was a complete flop and was loaned out to Chelsea in January.
However, he couldn't force his way into their team either and has hardly played this season since joining from Porto for 19 million euros last August.
It is the second time a move to a big club has gone sour for the Portugal winger after he also struggled at Barcelona in 2003-04.
American tycoon Ellis Short is to secure 100 per cent control of English Premiership club Sunderland.
The club's majority shareholder, who bankrolled their summer spending spree last year, will complete his buy-out of the Drumaville consortium put together by chairman Niall Quinn three years ago.
Quinn told the club's official website, www.safc.com: "This is fantastic news for the club.
"Ellis has already shown tremendous commitment to date, but today's announcement opens the door for a new era at the Stadium of Light."
Short, who had previously kept a low profile since becoming involved with the club, has recently become a more public figure, appearing beside Quinn in the directors' box at Portsmouth last Monday and then again at the Stadium of Light at the weekend.
He was on hand to witness the wild celebrations as the Black Cats secured their Barclays Premier League status despite a 3-2 defeat by Chelsea as arch-rivals Newcastle slipped into the Coca-Cola Championship.
However, amid suggestions he could pump up to a further 20 million pounds into the club, Quinn revealed Short has already played a major role in its recent development.
"Even before today, he has personally invested more in Sunderland than all previous chairmen, directors and owners combined in the club's history.
"Late last summer, he injected tens of millions of pounds to fund our new signings and the resultant increased wage bill.
"In going forward, as long as we invest the funds wisely, he will continue to provide what has been the missing ingredient in Sunderland's make-up, namely the financial muscle necessary to compete at the highest level.
"And Ellis' involvement to date also enabled us to turn down a club record bid of up to 20 million pounds for Kenwyne Jones from Tottenham Hotspur in the January transfer window."
News of Short's takeover came as the club launched its search for a new manager, although amid suggestions they have gone some of the way towards appointing Wigan's Steve Bruce, Quinn insisted they would take their time.
He said: "It goes without saying that the search for a new manager has started, and we will take what ever time is necessary to make this important appointment.
"It is imperative that we find somebody who will raise the bar and introduce a whole new mentality to our dressing room."
Juninho set to leave
Olympique Lyon captain Juninho leaves a press conference after announcing his departure from his club in Lyon on Tuesday.Former Brazilian international midfielder Juninho will certainly play his last match for seven-time French champions this weekend ending a spectacularly successful spell there, club president Jean-Michel Aulas announced on Tuesday.
The 34-year-old has been the inspiration behind Lyon's seven titles, including last year's domestic double, since joining from Vasco da Gama in 2001.
He notched up his 100th goal for the club - including 44 from freekicks - last weekend.
However, Aulas has reluctantly agreed that perhaps the greatest player in the club's history can leave prematurely.
"Juninho is going to leave us," Aulas told a press conference.
"We are going to allow him to terminate his contract early as there is still a year to go on it. He can go where he wants."
Aulas, who will endure a trophyless season for the first time in eight seasons, said that the strong emotions swirling round the club reflected the ties the 44-times capped Brazilian had established in his time there.
"Everything that Juninho has brought to Lyon whether it be to do with the tactics, or his passion and professionalism, is reflected this evening by the highly charged atmosphere here," commented Aulas.
"Because we are coming to the end of a superb relationship which was shared equally by the club and the supporters with Juninho.
"It's the end of an era, of a story and it is hard to swallow."
Juninho, who reached three Champions League quarterfinals with Lyon and is their leading scorer in the competition with 18 goals, was so moved by the occasion that he left the press conference without saying a word.
Gareth stays Boro boss
Gareth Southgate will remain as manager of Middle-sbrough and try and guide them to an immediate return to the Premier League the club chairman Steve Gibson told the BBC on Tuesday.
The 38-year-old former England international has been in charge since June 2006 but having taken them to 13th in his first campaign he failed to keep them up this term as they joined fellow North east club Newcastle in being relegated.
However, Gibson, who has bankrolled the club for well over a decade insisted that Southgate - capped 57 times by England but who will probably be best remembered for failing to convert a penalty in the Euro '96 semifinal defeat to Germany - was the right man for the onerous task of lifting them out of the Championship.
"Gareth has convinced me he knows what it takes to get us back up," Gibson told BBC Radio after meeting with Southgate.
"He is a man I know and admire and we will work together to get this club back to the Premier League."
Gibson, who has seen his side lift the League Cup and reach the UEFA Cup final when Steve McClaren was in charge, said that there should be no witch hunt of Southgate.
"We will not have a scapegoat at this football club, it will not be Gareth Southgate," added Gibson.
"He is a good man, an intelligent man capable of being a top, top manager.
"What we need is the support of the fans and the town, and let's work together to get the club back in the Premier League.
"You may disagree with my decision and I respect that, but I have to make the decision and I am convinced that Gareth is the right man for the job."
Gibson also rejected claims that the club was in a parlous state financially and was in no danger of going into administration, insisting that the 90million pounds debt had been reduced by two thirds.
He was also at pains to deny he was pleased they had fallen into the Championship so it would mean he could cut costs with several of their higher paid stars set to move on such as Turkish international Tuncay Sanli.
"We hate the Championship, we don't want to be here," he said.
"We are a Premier League club, we are a Premier League town with Premier League supporters.
"At the moment, I am a Championship chairman - I want to be a Premier League chairman. It's daft to suggest anything else.
"It's just daft. There is no evidence to support that theory whatsoever."
Ajax appoint Jol
Martin Jol was handed the task of reviving the fortunes of ailing Dutch giants Ajax on Tuesday when he was named their new coach according to a statement on the side's website.
The 53-year-old Dutchman had guided Bundesliga side Hamburg to fifth place - and to semifinals in both the German and UEFA Cups - in the championship and was under contract to them till June 2010.
However, the former Spurs manager is to sign a three-and-a-half-year contract with the four time European champions, whose previous coach Marco van Basten resigned at the beginning of the month after a disappointing campaign which saw them finish third and fail to gain a Champions League place for next season.
Ajax, who won the last of their record 29 league titles in 2004, have handed Jol full powers in not only the head coaching role but also in terms of transfers and the youth programme.
"Ajax have offered me a fantastic opportunity to develop a long term plan and also handed me responsibility in all fields," said Jol.
"I am delighted to come home after several years abroad."
Rik van den Boog, the club's managing director, said that Ajax had pulled off a remarkable coup in persuading Jol to take the post.
"Martin is experienced. He has all the qualities required for our club," said van den Boog.
"He is a coach that gives young players their opportunity to shine at this level and that is number one for Ajax."
Ajax had already been rebuffed in their search for a coach by Co Adriaanse, Frank Rijkaard and Danish duo Michael Laudrup and Morten Olsen.
Six of the best European Champions League (European Cup) finals from the tournament's history:
1960 GLASGOW
Real Madrid (ESP) 7 Eintracht Frankfurt (GER) 3
Real's fifth consecutive victory in the competition, the 1960 final also saw more goals than any other final. The 135,000 fans crammed into Hampden Park saw Eintracht go ahead only for the Germans to be overwhelmed by the combined magic of Alfredo Di Stefano, who scored three, and Ferenc Puskas (four).
1967 LISBON
Celtic (SCO) 2 Inter Milan (ITA) 1
Celtic became the first British winners of the European Cup when Steve Chalmers scored a late winner to down the cautions Italians, who had taken the lead through Alessandro Mazzola before Tommy Gemmell's equaliser.
1968 LONDON
Manchester United (ENG) 4 Benfica (POR) 1 (aet)
Ten years after the horrors of Munich, when Manchester United's 'Busby Babes' were decimated in a plane crash, the English champions finally delivered an emotion-fuelled victory at Wembley. Bobby Charlton scored two of United's goals, with George Best and Brian Kidd adding the others.
1972 ROTTERDAM
Ajax (NED) 2 Inter Milan (ITA) 0
A match often described as the defining moment in the history of 'total football'. Ajax, with two goals from Johan Cruyff, scored the second of three consecutive European Cup wins after overwhelming a negative Inter Milan employing the 'catenaccio' system.
1999 BARCELONA
Manchester United (ENG) 2 Bayern Munich (GER) 1
A forgettable final made unforgettable by the most thrilling finish in Champions League history. Trailing 1-0, United looked beaten as the match headed into injury time. But an equaliser from Teddy Sheringham (90+1) was followed by a winner from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (90+3). The victory earned United a remarkable treble.
2005 ISTANBUL
Liverpool (ENG) 3 AC Milan (ITA) 3 (aet; Liverpool 3-2 on penalties)
A match that has became known simply as the Miracle of Istanbul. Trailing 3-0 at half-time, Liverpool looked to be heading for a humiliating defeat to the Italians. But goals from Steven Gerrard, Vladimir Smicer and Xabi Alonso drew the English team level before Jerzy Dudek's heroics in the shoot-out.
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