The 21-year-old American no longer fits in the plans of Argentine coach Hector Cuper at Greek club Aris, his fourth club since moving to Europe three years ago.

FC Sion Sportchef  Fredy Chassot has  confirmed that Adu is in Switzerland. The young striker, who has featured in the USA U-17 and 20 teams at the FIFA World Cups began his career with DC United in 2004 before moving to Real Salt Lake in 2007 and later to Benfica.

Adu arrived at Aris in January on loan from Benfica after a loan spell at Belenenses last fall did not pan out. Cuper hoped Adu would be the answer on the left wing, but the American scored only one goal and played sparingly.

He wasn’t included in Aris’ squad for its preseason camp in Austria. Aris opens its season Thursday at Jagiellonia Białystok in the Europa League.

Benfica signed Adu from Real Salt Lake following the 2007 Under-20 World Cup. In his first season in Lisbon and second year on loan at French club Monaco, his playing time dwindled quickly.

The German girls like the three other teams in the semi-finals are debuting but lead striker, Alexandra Popp believes they can beat Korea and move on to the final.

“The coach gave me the job of heading up the side and I think I’m doing quite well at the moment. The team are providing me with the service I need, and I just have to put the chances away,” she continued. “I was really looking forward to this World Cup because I knew I would have a team behind me that can really play football. That’s shown in the seven goals I’ve scored so far.”

The strong striker has scored seven goals in the tournament is angling for more goal and has been tipped among the ten nominees for the golden boot award

“The quarter-final win against the North Koreans was definitely the toughest match we’ve had. Now we need to stay fully focused and motivated and take each game as it comes,” said the FCR Duisburg starlet in an exclusive interview with FIFA.com. “Of course we’re hoping to win the title, but we can’t make the mistake of thinking it’s already in the bag. We have to remain disciplined. We respect all our opponents, something that’s very important at a tournament like this.”

Nigeria on the other hand is relying on the motivation by the country’s President, Goodluck Jonathan, who has dispatched a team made up of top ministers in his cabinet to Germany to watch this game.

Nigeria like Colombia do not have experience at this stage of the tournament, and are gunning for new records which make the encounter more interesting.

Golden booth nominee, Ebere Orji says they just want to be in the final: “Our target for now is the final. We’re not looking at our opponents achievement in this competition, we’re considering our feat, beating the defending champions was no mean achievement.

The West African country has undergone steady improvement over the recent past. In 2002 they were bottom of their group; in 2004 they finished third, which was enough to take them into the quarter-finals; two years later they were second before losing to Brazil in the last eight; and in 2008 they topped their group but fell to France in the quarter-finals.

The renowned ‘Nigeria spirit’, a never-say-die determination, gives them a good chance of going all the way this time. As does the level of fitness within the group, a result of the hard work masterminded by technical advisor James Peters in the four-week training camp held in Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire.

“I told them that what a man can do, they can do even better,” Peters said. “I worked them as hard as I did my men’s teams when I worked in the US, and the results are there to be seen. Against USA we started very slowly and conserved our energies, and the final result was something we had all been dreaming about.”

Lady Andrade (16, COL), Choe Un-Ju (7, PRK), Antonia Goransson (15, SWE), Mana Iwabuchi (10, JPN)

Ji So-Yun (10, KOR) and Kim Na-Rae (8, KOR). Others include Kim Kulig (19, GER), Sydney Leroux (19, USA), Ebere Orji (8, NGA) and Alexandra Popp (11, GER)

Players chosen first receive five points, while there are three points for second and one for third. The points will be counted by FIFA at the conclusion of the final next Sunday, with the winner being presented with the adidas Golden Ball.

At the previuos edition in Chile two years, Sydney Leroux won the coveted award by dint of her consistent performances, and the USA player is once again in the running this year.

At Russia 2006, China‘s Ma Xiaoxu was voted best player, having played a decisive role in her team’s strong showing at the tournament and impressed observers with her individual brillance.

Back in 2004 in Thailand, it was Brazilian star Marta, then a mere 18-year-old who won the award. Since then she has become a linchpin of the senior national team and been named FIFA Women’s World Player four times, leading most observers to consider her the finest ever proponent of the women’s game.

The first FIFA Women’s U-20 tournament was held in Canada in 2002, where local favourite Christine Sinclair took the inaugural award. She has since gone on to play 138 times for Canada, making the 27-year-old her country’s most-capped player.

The announcement followed a dispute involving second-division club FSV Frankfurt, which last year gave a formal warning to three of its players for fasting.

During Ramadan, devout Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. The club had a clause in contracts stating that wasn’t allowed without its express permission.

Germany’s Central Council of Muslims said it sought advice from Al-Azhar in Egypt, the pre-eminent theological institute of Sunni Islam, and elsewhere.

Al-Azhar ruled that if a footballer is obliged to perform under a contract that is his only source of income, if he has to play matches during Ramadan, and if fasting affects his performance, then he can break his fast, the council said.

The European Council for Fatwa and Research supported that ruling, it added.

“The Muslim professional can make good the fasting days in times when there are no matches, and so continue to pay God and the holy month of Ramadan honor and respect,” Aiman Mazyek, the general secretary of the Central Council of Muslims, said in a statement.

He noted that “keeping the body healthy plays a leading role in Islam.”

“We very much welcome it that an arrangement has now been found that allows players to carry out professionally their work in high-performance sport and in doing so live their faith to the full,” FSV Frankfurt manager Bernd Riesig said.

The declaration by Hammam, a Qatari, meant the gulf nation would get at least one of the 24 votes from FIFA’s executive committee that will decide the host countries for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups when it meets in December.

“I have one vote among 24 votes and frankly speaking I will vote for Qatar,” Hammam said Wednesday. “But if Qatar is not in the running, I will vote for another Asian country.”

Under bin Hammam’s presidency, Qatar had already been awarded the 2011 Asian Cup unopposed. Australia, which joined the Asian confederation from Oceania after its second-round exit at the 2006 World Cup to eventual champion Italy, is expected to be awarded the 2015 Asian Cup.

Bin Hammam’s latest declaration was sure to cause a stir in Australia, where organizers were surprised last month when the AFC chief announced he would vote for a European host for 2018, even though Australia was still in the bidding. Australia subsequently dropped out of the 2018 race to focus on 2022.

Qatar is considered an outsider in the bidding to host 2022 but the head of its bid committee thinks the desert nation has a good chance to be chosen by FIFA.

“Our chances are good,” Hassan Al-Thawadi told reporters at an Asian football forum in Singapore. “It will be a close call, but I do believe coming to Qatar and the Middle East in 2022 will be a new frontier for FIFA.”

Qatar is bidding against the U.S., Japan, South Korea and Australia. It is aiming to become the first Middle Eastern country to host football’s biggest tournament, but faces several hurdles, including its scorching summer heat and restrictive alcohol and dress policies. Australia has never hosted the World Cup, but has hosted the Olympics twice—at Melbourne in 1956 and Sydney in 2000 — and the World Cups of rugby and cricket.

Al-Thawadi said Qatar is developing “second-generation cooling technology” which will keep stadiums, training facilities and fan areas at about 27 Celsius (81 degrees), far cooler than the 41 degrees Celsius (106 degrees) that Qatar averages in June, July and August. Qatar also plans to allow alcohol consumption in fan zones and bathing suits to be worn at hotel pools.

“I don’t see it as a cultural clash,” Al-Thawadi said. “We accept other people’s cultures.”

“It’s Euro 2012 or I’m going,” Blanc said in an interview with sports daily L’Equipe Wednesday. “I will be judged on results. It’s not my thing to keep going when I’ve failed.”

Blanc’s contract would normally take him well past France’s last qualifier against Bosnia-Herzegovina in October 2011 and any playoff matches a month later. But Blanc is adamant he will not be like his predecessor.

Meza is the current coach of Mexican club Cruz Azul, and Flores is a former coach of Chivas Guadalajara. Neither is considered a candidate for the permanent job.

Aguirre resigned after Mexico was eliminated by Argentina in the second round at the World Cup.

The Argentine Football Association, following a unanimous vote of its executive committee, said that his contract would not be renewed after Maradona had said he would only accept the AFA’s offer of a new four-year deal through to the 2014 World Cup if his entire staff also remained.

That was unacceptable to Argentine Football Association president Julio Grondona. He had asked for several assistants to be replaced. One of them is Maradona’s close friend, Alejandro Mancuso.

The federation’s executive committee sided with Grondona, a little more than three weeks after Argentina was eliminated in the World Cup in South Africa with a 4-0 loss to Germany.

AFA spokesman Ernesto Cherquis Bialo called the decision “very painful for the AFA” but said there was no way to solve the impasse.

“The president said that there was a significant difference between what AFA wanted to achieve and Maradona’s aspirations for the future,” Cherquis Bialo said. “There was a wide gap, and it was impossible to narrow it.”

The AFA said youth team manager Sergio Batista would be the interim coach for the friendly against Ireland on Aug. 11 in Dublin.

Despite Maradona’s contract not being renewed, Cherquis Bialo hinted there might be a role in the future for him.

“This marks the end of a first chapter with Mr. Maradona,” Cherquis Bialo said. “The doors to this house, as always, will be open to him.”

Possible successors include two club coaches in Argentina: Alejandro Sabella of Estudiantes and Miguel Russo of Racing. Former Argentina coach Marcelo Bielsa has also been mentioned as an option. Bielsa led Chile to the final 16 of the World Cup.

Asked who will be the new coach, Cherquis Bialo offered nothing.

“The people who were in the meeting have no name in their imaginations,” Cherquis Bialo said. “It has just been announced that the contract with the coach will not be renewed, and so, a new stage begins.”

Maradona tried to do it his way, a style which brought him glory in leading Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title.

“Diego shut himself off to any change,” executive committee member Luis Segura said on Argentine televison. “Diego has all the right to do what he wants. But so does AFA.”

Maradona was also at odds with Carlos Bilardo, the current director of the national team who coached the 1986 World Cup side. He also lobbied to have Oscar Ruggeri on his staff. Ruggeri was a defender in the 1986 team but has fallen out with Grondona.

The 49-year-old Maradona became Argentina’s coach in November 2008, replacing Alfio Basile and taking over a team he led to Argentina’s second World Cup title. His results were mixed. He had little coaching experience, and the team suffered two of the worst losses in history: a 6-1 hammering at Bolivia in World Cup qualifying, and the recent World Cup defeat to Germany.

Argentina played with flair in South Africa, notably Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain and Carlos Tevez. But Maradona’s inexperience was obvious in the loss to Germany, which exposed Argentina’s defensive frailties and lack of midfield speed. Dressed in a gray suit, Maradona’s enthusiastic and demonstrative antics on the sidelines simply failed to mask his tactical deficiencies.

Messi, widely regarded as the sport’s best player, left the World Cup without scoring a goal. Maradona never explained why Messi, who had a roaming role on the pitch, failed to score and he had no answer for the piercing attack of Germany coach Joachim Loew.

“Nobody ever told me where to play. So I shouldn’t have to tell Messi where to play either,” Maradona said.

Maradona is a larger-than-life icon in Argentina who beat cocaine and alcohol addiction. He grew up in a Buenos Aires slum and his escape from poverty has endeared him to many. But he has worn out his welcome in other quarters.

Maradona got offside with the government of President Cristina Fernandez, who twice invited him to meet with her. She had been openly supportive of keeping him as coach, while one legislator has even proposed building a monument to honor him.

Cabinet chief Anibal Fernandez said Maradona failed to respond or answer the phone, forcing the president’s secretaries to leave messages.

Two weeks ago, the AFA offered Maradona the chance to renew his contract for another four years. But Maradona put off meeting with Grondona to travel to Venezuela at the invitation of his friend, President Hugo Chavez.

Maradona’s relationship with key figures in Argentine football was also tense. He denied the leaders of AFA and businessmen with commercial ties to the organization any access to practice sessions in South Africa but allowed reporters to attend.

Still, Maradona had many loyal supporters.

“I want Maradona to stay,” Interior Minister Florencio Randazzo said Tuesday in an interview on Argentine radio. “We will support his decision. If he leaves, we will miss him.”

Team trainer Fernando Signorini added: “I have no doubt they didn’t want him. Maradona is like a stone in the shoe of power.”

Africansportsdigest.com learned exclusively from the striker that he will also considers the offers from other clubs provided he gets a club he would feature in the first team.

“I think there is nothing wrong in moving on, but I have a contarct with Manchester City which takes precedence. Others would be considered on real value to my career and prospect of reaching my goal of being the best striker,” Adebayor told closed friends Monday.

French club Marseille have joined Juventus in keeping tap on the player with view to snatching him from Man City.

Man City are not sitting tight for instance Inter Milan hot shot Mario Balotelli is set to be the latest recruit, with a £24million deal expected to be concluded this week, while Roberto Mancini can also call on attacking talents Carlos Tevez, Robinho, Roque Santa Cruz, Craig Bellamy, Jo and Felipe Caicedo.

Juventus started showing interest after being told by Wolfsburg that Edin Dzeko is not for sale, while Marseille are keen to add another striker and have been linked with a season-long loan.

“We’re looking for the big pie now after making history with the Semi-Finals’ qualification. It would be great to break the record we’ve created and  move onto the final where the trophy which is the tournament’s highest prize will be in view,” Egan enthused.

The coach added that Augsburg was a good place for them and they are eager to settle down in Bielefeld to work for the next victory come Thursday: “We’re comfortable with the venues here, and the support from the crowd has been overwhelming, my girls just like it. No one will stop us from playing our normal game. I just want the players to concentrate.”

Egan explained that when he went down on his knees with both hands lifted towards heavens was his own simple way of celebrating Helen Ukaonu’s superlative equalizing goal against the USA.

Said he: “It was a supplication to God for giving us that goal, because the girls tried so hard to score in the match. They missed many scoring chances. I was happy even overwhelmed  as the goal came at the right time. Beating  not only the defending champions, but  the most successful team in the history of the competition was a no mean feat.

“To be in the steering wheel when such a feat is accomplished calls for that type of celebration. I just went down on my knees to praise God for  the goal which ushered in the winning.”

The Nigerian coach is not surprised with the calm display of the Colombians being a South American team, he however envies the new comers for unsettling on doubting thomases and moving on to the semis in style.

“The Colombians are a good side. They are tactically disciplined and have managed to keep their rhythm for the entire 90 minutes in previous games in this competition, this is what we’ll be battling against, he said.

Menezes picked AC Milan forward Alexandre Pato, Santos scoring sensation Neymar and Santos midfielder Paulo Henrique Ganso for the Aug. 10 exhibition against the United States, the first match as Brazil prepares to host the 2014 World Cup.

Manchester United defender Rafael da Silva, Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva and Real Madrid defender Marcelo also are on the 24-man roster for the match at the New Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

“There are several ways of winning and I respect all of them,” Menezes said. “I will try to choose the way that gives us the best chance of winning. If that can be done with the ‘beautiful game’ that everyone likes, it would be the best. We will try to get as close as possible to that.”

Only four of the players picked were on Brazil’s 23-man World Cup roster: Barcelona defender Daniel Alves, Benfica midfielder Ramires, AC Milan defender Thiago Silva and Santos forward Robinho, who is on loan from Manchester City.

Eleven players were summoned for the first time, and seven young enough to play in the 2012 Olympic under-23 tournament, a competition Brazil has never won.

Kaka, Luis Fabiano and goalkeeper Julio Cesar were not selected.

“It’s the beginning of a renovation, with the goal being the 2014 World Cup and the (2012) London Olympics,” Menezes said.

He accepted the Brazil job on Saturday, a day after Fluminense would not release Muricy Ramalho from his contract.

Menezes replaced Dunga, fired after Brazil’s 2-1 loss to Netherlands in the World Cup quarterfinals.

“It’s always difficult when Brazil loses, especially because we tend to think we are better than everybody else,” Menezes said. “In the last two World Cup we were not, and we need to regain this form again. We still have the technical quality to do it.”

Dunga’s team achieved significant results ahead of the World Cup, but his defense-oriented tactics failed to gain his nation’s sixth world title.

“Dunga’s team was disciplined tactically and that was positive,” Menezes said. “That’s what I want for Brazil, to be well-organized tactically. Because with the talented players that we have, we will always have the capacity to win.”

Menezes said one player on the World Cup roster did not want to be immediately summoned again. After being questioned by reporters, he said only that it wasn’t Kaka.

“We are not excluding any of the players from the previous World Cup,” Menezes said. “We understood that some of the players needed a momentary rest. With time, we will probably have them back in the national team.”

Four players were selected from Brazil’s Santos, the most of any team. Moments after the announcement was made in Rio de Janeiro, TV images showed the Santos’ players celebrating as if they had scored a goal, hugging each other.

Menezes said some players will be replaced because of age. Brazil arrived at the World Cup with the tournament’s oldest roster, with an average age of over 29.

He has the difficult task of coaching Brazil as the World Cup’s host nation for the first time since 1950.

“The World Cup in Brazil will make things harder in a way, but we also will have bigger support,” Menezes said. “We need to be ready to overcome the pressure and to be in position to win the title.”

The roster:

Goalkeepers: Jefferson (Botafogo), Renan (Avai), Victor (Gremio)

Defenders: Andre Santos (Fenerbahce, Turkey), Daniel Alves (Barcelona, Spain), David Luiz (Benfica, Portugal), Henrique (Racing Santander, Spain), Marcelo (Real Madrid, Spain), Rafael da Silva (Manchester United, England), Rever (Atletico Mineiro), Thiago Silva (AC Milan, Italy)

Midfielders: Carlos Eduardo (Hoffenheim, Germany), Ederson (Lyon, France), Hernanes (Sao Paulo), Jucilei (Corinthians), Lucas Leiva (Liverpool, England), Paulo Henrique Ganso (Santos), Ramires (Benfica, Portugal), Sandro (Internacional)

Forwards: Andre (Santos), Neymar (Santos), Alexandre Pato (AC Milan, Italy), Robinho (Santos), Diego Tardelli (Atletico Mineiro)

Federer has slumped from No. 1 in the ATP rankings to third following his quarterfinal loss at Wimbledon. It’s his lowest ranking since November 2003.

Annacone is leaving as the coach of men’s tennis in Britain in November.

The 16-time Grand Slam champion says “as Paul winds down his responsibilities working for the Lawn Tennis Association, we will explore our relationship through this test period.”

Federer adds that Annacone will work alongside his existing team.

Corinthians fans saluted Menezes, who walked around the field after the match waving at supporters in the grandstands. Players hugged Menezes and hoisted him into the air a few times.

Corinthians now lead the league with 24 points, one more than Fluminense.

Jorge Henrique opened the scoring with a close-range header off a corner a minute into the match at Pacaembu stadium. Guarani equalized via Mazola in the 64th, but Bruno Cesar gave Corinthians the win with a free kick goal in the 78th and a diving header in the 85th.

The four-time Brazilian champion was coming off its first loss in the competition on Wednesday, a 3-1 result at Atletico Goianiense.

Menezes will replace Dunga, who was fired after Brazil’s disappointing 2-1 World Cup quarterfinal loss to Netherlands in South Africa.

Menezes was offered the job after Fluminense coach Muricy Ramalho rejected it because the club wanted him to honor a contract which runs until the end of 2012.

This year’s Rogers Cup Tennis Championship will be very interesting with the return of recent past Cup champions which include Murray (2009), Nadal (2008, 2005), Djokovic (2007), Federer (2006, 2004), and Roddick (2003).

Tennis Canada announced the official list of players accepted for the 2010 Rogers Cup presented by National Bank, which is scheduled to hold from August 7 to 15 at Rexall Centre in Toronto. Each of the Top 44 players on the ATP World Tour have been listed for the Masters 1000 event, including world No. 1 and recent Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal, the most decorated Grand Slam titlist Roger Federer, and defending champion of Rogers Cup, Andy Murray.

“We are thrilled to welcome the best tennis players on the planet back to Toronto this summer,” said tournament director Karl Hale. “The world-class players list, combined with a festival-like atmosphere, makes Rogers Cup presented by National Bank one of the best sporting events in Canada. We just witnessed an historic Wimbledon and we are looking forward to seeing similar tennis drama unfold at Rexall Centre.”

The stars list also includes local fan-favourite Novak Djokovic, American Andy Roddick and recent Wimbledon finalist, Tomas Berdych, among others.

There are 20 countries represented in the official player acceptance list, including Spain, who leads the tally with nine men scheduled to compete, followed by France (5), USA (4), Croatia (3) and Argentina (3).

To complete the 56-player draw, seven positions are reserved for qualifiers; four spots are held for wild card entrants at the discretion of Tennis Canada. One additional position is reserved for any special exemptions. These entrants will be announced at a later date.

Rogers Cup represents a long-standing Canadian sport tradition. Celebrating its 129th anniversary, it serves as the third-oldest tournament behind only Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.

As an ATP Masters 1000 event, the highest-level tournament outside of the Grand Slams, Rogers Cup is a mandatory event on the men’s tennis calendar. More than a tournament, Rogers Cup presented by National Bank brings elite tennis together with 15-acres of family-oriented promotions, fireworks, a retail village, restaurants, bars, auctions, live music and more.

Tickets to main draw action start at $25. Session seats, group offers, packages and executive suite opportunities are still available. Inventory for championship Sunday is very limited according to the organizers.

The young Nigerian, who is making her second appearance in the championship revealed in a chat with africansportsdigest.com this morning that the team has stepped up a gear now and they are looking forward to making good use of the opportunity.

“We’re aiming for the best now having made it to this round. It was a big game for us as the USA came out smoking and were really in high mood in this competition, therefore we’re trying to make new records like the Colombians, who are first timers. We want to be in the final,” she said.

Her timely goal dragged the match into extra time which did not produce any more goal, as both teams had to settle for the mandatory five penalties which the USA missed two and Nigeria scored all four kicks taken to lift themselves to the Semi-finals for the first time at this level.

Ukaonu earlier told Africansportsdigest.com immediately after the match that she just decided to aim at the goal after the ball was rolled to her off a free kick: “We all wanted to win despite trailing 1-0 till the 78^th minute. It was a difficult game not because we could not lift our game beyond the USA’s rhythm but somehow psychologically when you’re playing against a team of such strength, things just get awry and you make mistakes.

“It’s enough trouble for one day, we’re going back to celebrate in our camp and plan ahead against Columbia knowing what is in store for us. But this was a great feat,” she added.

The sensational player hopes to see her colleague improved on their game stressing that they want to add speed to their free flowing football as they would likely score more goals in counterattacking situations.

Reigning champions USA began the tournament slowly with a draw against Ghana, but kick-started their campaign with a 5-0 victory over Switzerland and a 1-0 win against Korea Republic. Six goals in two matches tell their own story, and further underline the burgeoning talent in American women’s football at present.

Nigeria also began the competition with a draw but celebrated a convincing victory over Japan in their second group match. The Africans went on to book their place in the quarter-finals with a 1-1 draw against Mexico.

Although, they have met on three occasions at FIFA Women’s World Cups (1999, 2003 and 2007), as well as once at the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament in 2000, with the Americans coming out on top in each of those occassions.

The Falconets have never won a quarter-final match at a women’s tournament previously. The USA, on the other hand, have reached at least the semi-finals at every U-20 women’s competition they have participated in, making the Stars and Stripes strong favourites to continue that trend.

Nigerian coach, Egan Adat says he is gunning for victory: “We want to win the match, that’s our honest target and nothing will stand on our way. I am playing for the girls to have a good day.”