Sat, Apr 24, 2010 page18

• Soccer Shorts

  • AGENCIES
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  ■ENGLAND

  Beckham reigns supreme

  David Beckham, even in the twilight of his playing career, still reigns supreme in the world of soccer as the highest-earning player in the world, according to Forbes magazine. Beckham earns US440 million a year. Portugal midfielder Cristiano Ronaldo is second on the Forbes list, earning US$30 million a year. Brazil playmaker Kaka, Ronaldo’s teammate at Madrid, is third on the list, earning US$25 million annually. Ronaldinho is fourth on Forbes’ list, also earning US$25 million a year. Rounding out the top five is France striker Thierry Henry, who makes US$24 million a year. Lionel Messi, the reigning FIFA World Player of the Year, is sixth on the list with earnings of US$20 million annually. Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard is seventh, earning US$17 million, with teammate John Terry in eighth, earning US$16 million. Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is ninth, also earning US$16 million, while Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard earns US$15 million in 10th place.

  ■ITALY

  Maldini under investigation

  AC Milan legend Paolo Maldini and his wife are being investigated over corruption and illegal access to tax records, ANSA news agency reported on Thursday. The former international defender is accused of bribing an incomes official to avoid tax controls, but his lawyer, Danilo Buongiorno, insisted that his client’s role in the investigation was merely minor. “He’s calm and serene. In contesting the accusations, which are without a doubt baseless, he’s certain that he will be able to demonstrate that he and his wife had absolutely nothing to do with this and that they must be injured parties and certainly not those being investigated,” he said. The former AC Milan star is being investigated following a separate probe into an incomes official who has since been imprisoned.

  ■FRANCE

  Davies comeback ruled out

  Charlie Davies’ chances of making the US World Cup squad have taken a significant blow after the president of French club Sochaux ruled out any chance that he would play again this season. Davies nearly died in October last year in a car accident that killed another passenger and left the 23-year-old striker with career-threatening injuries. After making an incredible recovery, Davies returned to training with Sochaux last month in a bid to win his place back in the team before the end of the season — but there are now only five games left. “He will not play again in Ligue 1 this season,” Sochaux president Alexandre Lacombe told the online version of daily newspaper L’Est Republicain on Thursday. Davies suffered two broken bones in his right leg, a broken and dislocated left elbow, a broken nose, forehead and eye socket, a ruptured bladder and bleeding on the brain in the crash.

  ■SPAIN

  Dragutinovic ruled out

  Sevilla’s Serbia defender Ivica Dragutinovic will miss the rest of the season and the World Cup after he tore his Achilles tendon during training on Thursday, the Spanish club said. “The Serb tore his left Achilles tendon and in this way says goodbye to a campaign where be was performing superbly,” the club said in a statement. Dragutinovic, 34, will travel to Finland to be examined by Sakari Orava, the specialist who operated on David Beckham, who also suffered a torn Achilles tendon. “If there is a person who does not deserve an injury, although nobody deserves one, it was Drago, for everything he has done and what he means to the dressing room,” Sevilla captain Andres Palop said.
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