Upset Paraguay players ban Swedish reporters (Reuters) Updated: 2006-06-13 10:47
OBERHACHING, Germany, June 12 - Swedish reporters were barred from attending
Paraguay's World Cup training session on Monday at the request of the players.
The session was described as open to the media and Paraguay players had
agreed to speak to reporters afterwards.
But they requested that Swedish reporters should be kept out, the Paraguayan
delegation's vice-president Juan Angel Napout.
He told Reuters: "There was a story written in one Swedish newspaper which
has upset the players.
"It was a kind of fabrication written about things they said happened when we
played in Denmark - and they are upset about it.
"They said that the players were chasing some girls and they did some
interviews, but the lads say it is not true.
"So they said they don't want any Swedish reporters here for the training."
Paraguay drew 1-1 with Denmark in Aarhus last month.
Paraguay's head of media relations Guillermo Battilana said: "It was all a
fantasy written by the Swedes."
There were no Swedes present when the session began. They were stopped at the
security cordons surrounding the training field at the Paraguay squad's retreat
at the Oberhaching Sports Complex in southern Germany.
Paraguay play Sweden in their second group B fixture in Berlin on Thursday.
They lost their opening encounter against England 1-0 in Frankfurt last
Saturday.
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