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Keane eager for penalty chance

LONDON: Tottenham striker Robbie Keane said he will not shirk penalty-taking responsibilities despite missing a crucial spot-kick in the 2-1 loss at Arsenal last weekend.

Spurs face Fulham on Wednesday and the veteran Irish international wants to immediately make up for the pain of missing the penalty at the Emirates Stadium when the scores were level.

"Of course I will, no question," said the 27-year-old. "You just have to get on with it - there's nothing else you can do."

Keane's recent suspension stopped his purple patch of form that saw him score 27 goals in his last 37 Spurs appearances, a run that started against Fulham in the FA Cup last season.

Djukic takes charge of Serbia national soccer team

BELGRADE: Miroslav Djukic was on Tuesday named as the new coach of Serbia with a mission to qualify the team for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

The Beta news agency said that the Serbia Football Federation had also put Djukic in charge of the Olympic team for the 2008 Games in Beijing.

Djukic was handed a two-year contract, which will be automatically extended if Serbia qualifies for the 2010 World Cup.

The new coach takes over from Spaniard Javier Clemente, who was sacked after his failure to qualify for the Euro 2008 finals.

Djukic, who was in charge of Partizan Belgrade, led Serbia's under-21 team to the European finals earlier this year.

Former Chelsea midfielder takes over at Partizan Belgrade

BELGRADE: Serbian first division leader Partizan Belgrade named former Yugoslavia and Chelsea midfielder Slavisa Jokanovic as its new coach on Tuesday.

Jokanovic takes over from Miroslav Djukic, who was earlier in the day appointed head coach of the Serbian national team.

The 39-year-old Jokanovic has no prior coaching experience and was originally assigned to the club's administrative department before Djukic's unexpected departure last week.

Partizan president Tomislav Karadzic was confident that Jokanovic, who scored 10 goals in 64 international appearances, would carry on successfully where Djukic had left off.

Troubled sumo champion gives up New Year homecoming

TOKYO: Japan's sumo authority on Tuesday forced controversial grand champion Asashoryu to give up his wish to spend New Year's Day with his children in his native Mongolia.

The 27-year-old behemoth's professional activities have been strictly controlled by the Japan Sumo Association even after a two-tournament ban on him ended at the end of November.

He was punished in July for skipping a regional exhibition tour citing injuries but then being caught on camera cheerfully playing a charity football match at home in Mongolia.

"I won't go home. I can't see them (the children)," said Asashoryu, whose real name is Dolgorsuren Dagvadorj, according to Kyodo News. "Why is everybody making a fuss?"

The wrestler had told reporters on Monday that he had promised his two children, who live in Mongolia with his wife, that he would spend a few days with them around New Year's Day.

(China Daily 12/27/2007 page23)