Results from the 18th round of the French football league (home teams listed first):
Saturdays Games
Rennes 1, Valenciennes 0
Nice 1, Brest 1
Saint-Etienne 2, Arles-Avignon 0
Montpellier 1, Auxerre 1
Toulouse 3, Lorient 0
Paris Saint-Germain 2, Monaco 2
Sundays Games
Sochaux 1, Bordeaux 1
Marseille vs. Lyon (late)
Lille vs. Nancy, postponed
Lens vs. Caen, postponed
Results from the 16th round of Spains first-division football league (home teams listed first):
Saturdays Games
Villarreal 3, Mallorca 1
Levante 1, Athletic Bilbao 2
Deportivo La Coruna 1, Sporting Gijon 1
Espanyol 1, Barcelona 5
Real Sociedad 1, Valencia 2
Sundays Games
Almeria 2, Getafe 3
Osasuna 0, Zaragoza 0
Malaga vs. Atletico Madrid
Real Madrid vs. Sevilla (late)
Mondays Game
Racing Santander vs. Hercules
Sochaux forward Ideye Brown scored a first-half equalizer to give his team a 1-1 draw with Bordeaux in the French league on Sunday.
Brown found the net in the 35th minute from midfielder Marvin Martins season-leading eighth assist.
Brazilian midfielder Jussie had opened the scoring for Bordeaux by heading home a corner from Jaroslav Plasil in the 28th minute.
Bordeaux has 26 points, five behind leader Lille.
Lens match against Caen and Lilles game versus Nancy were postponed because of heavy snowfall.
Lille tops the standings on goal difference, level on points with Paris Saint-Germain and Rennes. But Lyon could go top by beating Marseille at Stade Velodrome later Sunday.
Two goals from striker Alecsandro helped Internacional of Brazil account for 10-man Seongnam Ilhwa of South Korea 4-2 to take third place at the Club World Cup on Saturday.
Seongnam was already 2-0 down when defender Jang Suk Won received a second yellow card in the 34th minute for bringing down Tinga. A dominant Internacional made it 4-0 after the break, but Colombian-born Mauricio Molina scored twice at the end to give Seongnam some compensation.
Four days after being stunned by African champion TP Mazembe in the semifinals, Internacional was praised by coach Celso Roth for continuing to attack. The key difference this time, he said, was being able to get in front early and control the tempo.
“Today, we had patience and the balance. It was a good game with good quality,” Roth said.
Internacional took the lead in the 15th when a diving Tinga headed a shot beneath Seongnam goalkeeper Jung Sung Ryong. Alecsandro fired in Internacionals second 12 minutes later after collecting a pass from midfielder Andres DAlessandro.
The Copa Libertadores champs missed three or four easy chances before going up 3-0 in the 52nd when Alecsandro blasted from outside the area past a diving Jung. The fourth came when Tinga dummied a pass across the goalmouth that seemed to fool Jung and Alecsandro tapped it in for his second.
Feeling very comfortable, Internacional sent in retiring keeper Roberto Abbondanzieri, but he was caught out twice by the Asian Champions League winner, with midfielder Molina scoring in the 84th and 93rd.
Seongnam coach Shin Tae Yong blamed his teams defeat on fatigue, a lack of experience in big games, as well as the loss of Jang so early in the match. That, he said, only put further pressure on a weary defensive line.
“If we played 11 players we might have been able to put a little more pressure on them,” he said. “Having one player out and the Brazilians scoring first, that affected our game overall.”
Shin admitted his strategy was to hold Internacionals pressing attack with the hope it would tire as it did against Mazembe. But the strategy fell apart when the Brazilian side was up 2-0 by halftime.
As snowstorms wiped out most English Premier League matches on Saturday, West Ham drew at Blackburn to remain frozen to the bottom of the standings and Sunderlands push for Europe heated up with a victory over Bolton.
Junior Stanislas salvaged a 1-1 draw for West Ham by canceling out Ryan Nelsens scrappy goal for Blackburn, but the point will do little to secure the future of either teams managers.
Avram Grants West Ham remains stranded three points from safety having played a game fewer than its relegation rivals.
And Steve Kean is hoping to be handed the Blackburn job permanently following Sam Allardyces firing this week.
At the top of the table, Sunderland leapfrogged Bolton into sixth place after Danny Welbeck headers clinched a 1-0 win.
Fanis Gekas scored a late winner Saturday to give Eintracht Frankfurt a 1-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund to deny the leader from claiming another record in the Bundesliga.
It was Dortmunds first defeat away from home - and second overall of the season - and it leaves it one point short of the record 44 at the halfway stage set by Bayern Munich in the 2005-06 season.
Going into the winter break, second-place Bayer Leverkusen is 11 points behind ahead of its game against Freiburg on Sunday.
Gekas - the leagues top scorer with 14 goals - scored with three minutes remaining when he was set up by Martin Fenin and blasted the ball into the roof of the net from 13 meters (yards).
Ricardo Clark made his first start of the season for Eintracht Frankfurt and the American twice went close for his side in the first half.
However, the best chance fell to Dortmunds Lucas Barrios. A great long pass from Nuri Sahin left him with just the goalkeeper to beat but the striker hit the ball well over the bar at the end of the half.
Dortmund appeared tired after its efforts in the Europa League midweek against Sevilla and Gekas was causing it plenty of problems in defense.
Coach Juergen Klopp was becoming increasingly animated on the sideline and he brought on striker Robert Lewandowski for midfielder Kevin Grosskreutz with 17 minutes to go.
Barrios went close again from a corner late in the game before Gekas scored.
Elsewhere, Raul Gonzalez scored a hat trick for Schalke in a 3-0 home win over Cologne.
The Spaniard signaled his intent early on when he headed Jefferson Farfans corner into the arms of Faryd Mondragon. The 39-year-old goalkeeper was likely playing his last game for Cologne before an expected move to MLS side Philadelphia Union.
Raul got his first goal when he headed in a cross from Ivan Rakitic after 30 minutes following a mistake from Cologne defender Christopher Schorch.
His second came early in the second half when the ball fell kindly for him to volley it past Mondragon following a poorly defended cross from Farfan, and the 33-year-old completed his hat trick with another header with three minutes remaining. It brings the strikers season total to nine goals.
Visiting Kaiserslautern beat Werder Bremen 2-1 with two goals from Srdjan Lakic, with both sides having a player sent off.
The Croatian scored after just 23 seconds when he headed in a cross from Christian Tiffert on the right wing.
Bremen equalized through a penalty from Aaron Hunt in the 34th after Mathias Abel brought the hardworking Marko Marin down in the penalty area.
Kaiserslautern regained its advantage early in the second half when Lakic poked the ball past goalkeeper Tim Wiese after he was set up by Ivo Ilicevic as slippery conditions hampered Werders attempts to defend.
Alexander Bugera was sent off for the visitors, before Sandro Wagner earned a red card for fouling Tiffert late in the game.
Steve McClarens Wolfsburg remains winless in six games after it fought back to earn a 2-2 draw at home to Hoffenheim.
Two goals from Luiz Gustavo and Gyfli Thor Sigurdsson gave Hoffenheim a deserved lead at halftime, but Diego scored with 15 minutes remaining when the Brazilian met a cross from compatriot Grafite and Edin Dzeko netted the equalizer in the 90th minute.
“We showed what we are capable of,” McClaren said.
Hannovers fine run of five victories in a row - a club record - was ended when it lost 3-1 in Nuremberg.
An own goal from Steven Cherundolo gave Nuremberg the lead in the home sides first attack after 28 minutes. The American was unlucky to see Ilkay Guendogans rebound deflect off his foot into his own net.
Nuremberg captain Andreas Wolf added another from close range when the ball fell to him after a scramble following a corner.
Hannover scored a penalty through Sergio Pinto with 15 minutes remaining, but the home side restored its advantage with a header from Julian Schieber.
An Egyptian family completed the protracted takeover of second-tier English side Hull on Friday.
Local businessmen Assem and Ehab Allam initially struck a deal on Nov. 10 to purchase the northern club, which is reported in the British media to have debts of around 20 million pounds ($31 million), from then-owner Russell Bartlett.
Hull, which is in 19th place in the 24-team League Championship, confirmed on Friday that the buyout has been completed.
Assem Allam, who runs diesel generator manufacturer Allam Marine with his son Ehab, has a personal fortune of 150 million pounds ($230 million), according to this years Sunday Times Rich List.
Ehab Allam said the family has injected 30 million pounds ($46 million) into the club as well as “personal guarantees,” which are reported to be valued at 10 million pounds ($15 million).
Hull was relegated from the Premier League at the end of last season.
The draw Friday for the rounds of 32 and 16 in the Europa League:
(Home teams listed first)
First Leg
Tuesday, Feb. 15
Aris (Greece) vs. Manchester City (England)
Thursday, Feb. 17
Napoli (Italy) vs. Villarreal (Spain)
Rangers (Scotland) vs. Sporting Lisbon (Portugal)
Sparta Prague (Czech Republic) vs. Liverpool (England)
Anderlecht (Belgium) vs. Ajax (Netherlands)
Lech Poznan (Poland) vs. Braga (Portugal)
Besiktas (Turkey) vs. Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine)
Basel (Switzerland) vs. Spartak Moscow (Russia)
Young Boys (Switzerland) vs. Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia)
PAOK Thessaloniki (Greece) vs. CSKA Moscow (Russia)
Sevilla (Spain) vs. FC Porto (Portugal)
Rubin Kazan (Russia) vs. FC Twente (Netherlands)
Lille (France) vs. PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands)
Benfica (Portugal) vs. Stuttgart (Germany)
BATE Borisov (Belarus) vs. Paris St. Germain (France)
Metalist Kharkiv (Ukraine) vs. Bayer Leverkusen (Germany)
Second Leg
Tuesday, Feb. 22
CSKA Moscow (Russia) vs. PAOK Thessaloniki (Greece)
Porto (Portugal) vs. Sevilla (Spain)
Thursday, Feb. 24
Villarreal (Spain) vs. Napoli (Italy)
Sporting Lisbon (Portugal) vs. Rangers (Scotland)
Liverpool (England) vs. Sparta Prague (Czech Republic)
Ajax (Amsterdam) vs. Anderlecht (Belgium)
Braga (Portugal) vs. Lech Poznan (Poland)
Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine) vs. Besiktas (Turkey)
Spartak Moscow (Russia) vs. Basel (Switzerland)
Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia) vs. Young Boys (Switzerland)
Manchester City (England) vs. Aris (Greece)
FC Twente (Netherlands) vs. Rubin Kazan (Russia)
PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) vs. Lille (France)
Stuttgart (Germany) vs. Benfica (Portugal)
Paris St. Germain (France) vs. BATE Borisov (Belarus)
Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) vs. Metalist Kharkiv (Ukraine)
Round of 16
First Leg
Thursday, March 10
Benfica (Portugal) or Stuttgart (Germany) vs. BATE Borisov (Belarus) or Paris St. Germain (France)
Besiktas (Turkey) or Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine) vs. Aris (Greece) or Manchester City (England)
Rubin Kazan (Russia) or FC Twente (Netherlands) vs. Young Boys (Switzerland) or Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia)
PAOK Thessaloniki (Greece) or. CSKA Moscow (Russia) vs. Sevilla (Spain) or FC Porto (Portugal)
Lille (France) or PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) vs. Rangers (Scotland) or Sporting Lisbon (Portugal)
Metalist Kharkiv (Ukraine) or Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) vs. Napoli (Italy) or Villarreal (Spain)
Anderlecht (Belgium) or Ajax (Netherlands) vs. Basel (Switzerland) or Spartak Moscow (Russia)
Sparta Prague (Czech Republic) or Liverpool (England) vs. Lech Poznan (Poland) or Braga (Portugal)
Second Leg
Thursday, March 17
Paris St. Germain (France) or BATE Borisov (Belarus) vs. Stuttgart (Germany) or Benfica (Portugal)
Aris (Greece) or Manchester City (England) vs. Besiktas (Turkey) or Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine)
Young Boys (Switzerland) or Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia) vs. Rubin Kazan (Russia) or FC Twente (Netherlands)
Sevilla (Spain) or FC Porto (Portugal) vs. PAOK Thessaloniki (Greece) or. CSKA Moscow (Russia)
Rangers (Scotland) or Sporting Lisbon (Portugal) vs. Lille (France) or PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands)
Napoli (Italy) or Villarreal (Spain) vs. Metalist Kharkiv (Ukraine) or Bayer Leverkusen (Germany)
Basel (Switzerland) or Spartak Moscow (Russia) vs. Anderlecht (Belgium) or Ajax (Netherlands)
Lech Poznan (Poland) or Braga (Portugal) vs. Sparta Prague (Czech Republic) or Liverpool (England)
The Club World Cup final appears to be a mismatch: Inter Milan with its squad of global football stars against a TP Mazembe side comprised mostly of unknowns from Congo.
But the European champions insist they wont be taking the opposition lightly when they meet on Saturday in Abu Dhabi, especially after Mazembe upset Copa Libertadores champion Internacional to become the first African team to reach the final in the tournaments 50-year history.
“Its a good team, strong physically and two or three players who can make a difference,” Inter coach Rafa Benitez said. “They work from beginning to the end so it will be a tough game.”
There is much riding on the final for Benitez, whose team has slumped to seventh in the Serie A standings and stumbled into the Champions League knockout stage where it will face Bayern Munich in a rerun of last seasons Champions League final. The Italian media has suggested a loss Saturday could cost the Spanish coach his job.
The match also offers Benitez a chance to make up for his Liverpool sides narrow loss in the 2005 final to Sao Paulo of Brazil.
Benitez has insisted he is not feeling the pressure and remains confident despite the teams recent struggles. But he seems to recognize the importance of the match - especially after Inter president Massimo Moratti suggested anything short of the Club World Cup title would be unacceptable.
“Its an honor and its something very challenging for us,” he said. “This is very important for us because it would be part of club history.”
Benitez also highlighted the significance of the final for FIFA, which has overhauled the tournament in recent years from one featuring the best in Europe and South America to one that includes teams from around the globe.
“Playing against the best African team is a reason to be proud: its a huge moment for Africa but for Inter too, because this will be remembered as a historic Club World Cup final,” he said. “How do I feel? Were about to play a final that decides who is the best team in the world - were going to go for it. Its the last game of 2010 and I expect to play and win lots more in 2011.”
Inter, which won a prior incarnation of the competition in 1964 and 1965, will likely take heart from its dominant performance in Wednesdays 3-0 semifinal win against Asian champion Seongnam Ilhwa.
Helped by the return of defender Cristian Chivu, striker Milito and goalkeeper Julio Cesar, the team showed some of its old flair, easily breaking down the Korean defense and scoring at will.
The only disappointment was the loss of playmaker Wesley Sneijder, who limped off in the semifinal with a leg injury and wont play in the final.
The victory over Seongnam seemed to revive Inters confidence. Now, the team is talking of matching some of last seasons heroics which it achieved under Jose Mourinho, who is now with Real Madrid.
“Its a great final and great opportunity to bring Inter back to the top,” captain Javier Zanetti told reporters. “We will put in our best effort to win tomorrow.”
Still, Zanetti refused to accept that Inter comes into the match as the favorite - realizing that was the mistake Internacional made.
“In the game, there are no favorites, especially these days,” Zanetti said. “All the matches are well balanced. We are at the same level. It would be mistake not to think this way.”
Fresh from its historic victory, Mazembe is not lacking for supporters. The club may have been little known outside Africa before this week but has since been talked up by the likes of Portuguese great Luis Figo, who is an adviser to Inter, and FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who on Saturday hailed Mazembes win as a victory for African football.
“To have TP Mazembe in the final against the famous football team Internazionale Milano, the reigning European club champion, is a very big event,” Blatter said.
Mazembe, dubbed the Chelsea of Africa by the media for its big-spending ways in the impoverished country, has been a dominant force in Congolese football over the past 30 years, winning 10 championships. It demolished Esperance Sportive de Tunis 6-1 to win a second continental championship in two years.
Outside Africa, though, the club was little known and given little chance in the tournament having lost both of its matches last year. But it beat Mexicos Pachuca in the quarterfinals and then upset Internacional 2-0 in the semis, giving the team a sense that it could pull off a “surprise” against Inter.
Mazembe coach Lamine NDiaye said it was “an honor” to be playing against Inter in the final but that he and his players were not intimidated by a team made up players like Samuel Etoo who they have admired from afar.
“We have to put on a good match and represent the African continent,” NDiaye said. “No matter the result is, Ill be proud of these players for their achievements and performance and by the fact they have shown for the past four months beautiful results.”
Los Angeles Galaxy and United States striker Edson Buddle is on trial at Premier League club Birmingham during the Major League Soccer offseason.
Birmingham manager Alex McLeish is searching for a new forward with the central England club two points above the three-team relegation zone after scoring just 17 goals in 17 matches.
The 29-year-old Buddle was the leading scorer in the MLS for most of the 2010 season despite missing more than a month for the World Cup. Buddle ended the regular season as the second-highest scorer with 17 goals in 25 matches.
“Hes been training with us this week and hes done OK, but were not at a stage yet where were going to make any commitment,” McLeish told the BBC on Thursday.
Named after Pele - whose full name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento - Buddle has played for the Galaxy since 2007.
His Galaxy teammate Landon Donovan came to England on loan this year, spending January to March at Everton before returning for the MLS season.
However, the Galaxy were frustrated that midfielder David Beckham was injured in March during a second stint on loan at AC Milan.
