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Kaka would vote for Cristiano Ronaldo as Europe's best

MILAN: AC Milan and Brazilian playmaker Kaka has said he would vote for Cristiano Ronaldo if he could vote for the European footballer of the year.

Kaka is a hot favorite to win the award next month, handed out by the magazine France Football, but believes Manchester United's Portuguese winger deserves the accolade this year.

"He is the best, not only for his technical ability but also for what he has done with Portugal," Kaka was quoted as saying in Italian media from Brazil on Sunday.

Kaka, 25, also said he hoped to captain his country when Brazil hosts the 2014 World Cup.

"In 2014 I will still be playing and it would be a marvelous experience to be captain of our national team," he said.

However, one of Kaka's main dreams lies away from soccer.

"I would like to meet Michael Jordan. He has been the best basketball player of all time," he said.

Lehmann denies making gesture to fans

BERLIN: Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann has denied making a disparaging gesture to fans during the team's 4-0 win over Cyprus in Hanover.

German media suggested TV pictures showing Lehmann scratching his head with a middle finger might have been a gesture aimed at fans who were chanting for Hanover goalkeeper Robert Enke to come on.

"It's nonsense," Lehmann told reporters after making his 50th international appearance on Saturday. "I've never done anything like that."

German Football Association president Theo Zwanziger gave his full support to Lehmann, saying: "I will stand up for him here. He knows there's no reason to make gestures that could hurt fans. I know he respects the fans."

Argentina coach Basile says Riquelme was worth the risk

RIO DE JANEIRO: Argentina coach Alfio Basile admitted that he had risked his reputation when he decided to persist with Juan Roman Riquelme as his playmaker, despite the player's inactivity at club level.

Riquelme has not played at all for Villarreal this season after falling out with coach Manuel Pellegrini, yet has produced three inspired performances for Argentina in the World Cup qualifiers.

On Saturday, he scored two stylish goals in the 3-0 win over Bolivia, adding to the two free kicks he converted in its opening 2-0 win over Chile last month and the goal he set up in a 2-0 win in Venezuela.

"I'm full of pride and happiness to have a player such as him in the team," Basile told reporters after the Bolivia game. "The goals he scored were extraordinary.

"I've put a lot on the line by picking him. The knives were out for me because he wasn't playing with his club...but that's life.

"I think he's the only player who can play for his national team even when he's not playing for his club."

Riquelme had a lethargic first half against Bolivia but came to life after the break.

Haas blood tests find no evidence of poisoning

BERLIN: Blood tests have revealed no evidence that Tommy Haas was poisoned during Germany's Davis Cup defeat by Russia in Moscow in September, the German Tennis Federation (DTB) said.

"It's no longer an issue," the DTB quoted Haas as saying in a report on its website (www.dtb-tennis.de).

"The tests gave no results," Haas was further quoted by German media. "It was too far in the past."

Alexander Waske, a doubles player on the beaten German team, was quoted in German media earlier this month as saying an unnamed person had told him in Moscow that Haas had been poisoned.

Haas, who was beaten in straight sets on the opening day of the semifinal and was unable to play in the reverse singles because of gastro-enteritis, had tests in New York to see if there was anything to the rumor.

"I wanted to be absolutely clear about what was happening to my body," Haas told the DTB.

Haas had a minor operation on his right shoulder while in New York.

(China Daily 11/20/2007 page23)