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Alexander Bukharov was called up to Russias squad on Friday for World Cup qualifiers against Liechtenstein and Wales next month after scoring 10 goals in 18 games for his club Rubin Kazan.

The striker, who has played for Russia at youth level but never for the senior team, has helped take defending champion Rubin Kazan to the top of the Russian league standings.

Bukharov will compete with Arsenals Andrei Arshavin, Tottenhams Roman Pavlyuchenko and Stuttgarts Pavel Pogrebnyak for an attacking spot in Russias team to play Liechtenstein at home on Sept. 5 and at Wales four days later.

Russia coach Guus Hiddink also selected midfielder Alexei Rebko, who returns after a three-year absence, to the 23-player squad. Lokomotiv Moscow midfielder Diniar Bilyaletdinov and Zenit St. Petersburg goalkeeper Vyacheslav Malafeev are back from injury.

Russia is second with 16 points in Group 4 of European qualifying, trailing Germany by four points but with a game in hand.

Russia hosts Germany on Oct. 10 in a match that could decide which team qualifies automatically to next years tournament in South Africa.

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Squad:

Goalkeepers: Igor Akinfeev (CSKA Moscow), Vladimir Gabulov (Dinamo Moscow), Vyacheslav Malafeev (Zenit St. Petersburg).

Defenders: Aleksandr Anyukov (Zenit St. Petersburg), Aleksei Berezutsky (CSKA Moscow), Vasili Berezutsky (CSKA Moscow), Sergei Ignashevich (CSKA Moscow), Denis Kolodin (Dinamo Moscow), Renat Yanbaev (Lokomotiv Moscow).

Midfielders: Yuri Zhirkov (Chelsea), Alan Dzagoev (CSKA Moscow), Sergei Semak (Rubin Kazan), Igor Semshov (Dinamo Moscow), Diniar Bilyateldinov (Lokomotiv Moscow), Konstantin Zyryanov (Zenit St. Petersburg), Igor Denisov (Zenit St. Petersburg), Vladimir Bystrov (Spartak Moscow), Alexei Rebko (FC Moscow).

Strikers: Andrei Arshavin (Arsenal), Pavel Pogrebnyak (Stuttgart), Roman Pavlyuchenko (Tottenham), Alexander Bukharov (Rubin Kazan), Alexander Kerzhakov (Dinamo Moscow).

Liverpool has completed the signing of Sotiris Kyrgiakos on a two-year deal after the Greece center back passed his medical examination.

The Reds have an option to extend the 30-year-old Kyrgiakos spell at Anfield by a further year.

The Premier League club paid AEK Athens a reported 1.5 million pounds ($2.5 million).

The 1.92-meter (6-foot-3) Kyrgiakos has made 50 appearances for Greece, but missed the 2004 European Championship triumph because of an injury.

Police have detained some 150 Red Star Belgrade fans after they attacked tourists ahead of an Europa League qualifying match against Slavia Prague.

Police spokeswoman Andrea Zoulova says Thursday that police confronted aggressive fans who also damaged several restaurants in downtown Prague. Officials say four fans sustained minor injuries.

On Wednesday, 29 Red Star fans were expelled from the country shortly after crossing the Czech border because they were stealing goods at a gas station. Another 19 were detained in Prague.

About a thousand Red Star supporters were expected to attend the first leg of Europa League playoff round match in the Czech capital.

Home teams listed first
Europa League
Qualifying Playoffs.

First Leg

BATE Borisov (Belarus) 0, Litex Lovech (Bulgaria) 1

Baku (Azerbaijan) 1, Basel (Switzerland) 3

Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv (Israel) 0, PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) 1

CSKA Sofia (Bulgaria) 0, Dinamo Moscow (Russia) 0

Guingamp (France) 1, Hamburg (Germany) 5

MFK Kosice (Slovakia) 3, AS Roma (Italy) 3

Teplice (Czech Republic) 1, Hapoel Tel-Aviv (Israel) 2

Trabzonspor (Turkey) 1, Toulouse (France) 3

NAC Breda (Netherlands) 1, Villarreal (Spain) 3

PAOK Thessaloniki (Greece) 1, Heerenveen (Netherlands) 1

Ajax (Netherlands) 5, Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia) 0

Benfica (Portugal) 4, Vorskla Poltava (Ukraine) 0

Brondby (Denmark) 2, Hertha Berlin (Germany) 1

Galatasaray (Turkey) 5, Levadia Tallinn (Estonia) 0

Genk (Belgium) 1, Lille (France) 2

Lazio (Italy) 3, Elfsborg (Sweden) 0

Lech Poznan (Poland) 1, Brugge (Belgium) 0

Metallurg Donetsk (Ukraine) 2, Austria Vienna (Austria) 2

Partizan Belgrade (Serbia) 1, MSK Zilina (Slovakia) 1

Rapid Vienna (Austria) 1, Aston Villa (England) 0

Sarajevo (Bosnia-Herzegovina) 1, CFR Cluj (Romania) 1

Sion (Switzerland) 0, Fenerbahce (Turkey) 2

Sivasspor (Turkey) 0, Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) 3

Slavia Prague (Czech Republic) 3, Red Star Belgrade (Serbia) 0

Steaua Bucharest (Romania) 3, St. Patricks Athletic (Ireland) 0

Sturm Graz (Austria) 1, Metalist Kharkiv (Ukraine) 1

FC Twente (Netherlands) 3, Qarabag (Azerbaijan) 1

Vaslui (Romania) 2, AEK Athens (Greece) 1

Dinamo Bucharest (Romania) 0, Slovan Liberec (Czech Republic) 2, abandoned, fan violence

Dinamo Zagreb (Czech Republic) 4, Hearts (Scotland) 0

Everton (England) 4, Sigma Olomouc (Czech Republic) 0

Fulham (England) 3, Amkar Perm (Russia) 1

Genoa (Italy) 3, Odense (Denmark) 1

Maribor (Slovenia) 0, Sparta Prague (Czech Republic) 2

Stabaek (Norway) 0, Valencia (Spain) 3

Werder Bremen (Germany) 6, Aktobe (Kazakhstan) 3

Nacional (Portugal) 4, Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia) 3

Athletic Bilbao (Spain) 3, Tromso (Norway) 2

Barcelona has given forward Pedro Rodriguez a contract extension that will keep him at the European champion until 2014, the Spanish club said on Thursday.

Barcelona also announced that Pedro, who came up through Barcelonas youth system, will have a buyout clause of ?75 million ($107 million).

Pedro has been a regular for coach Pep Guardiola during Barcelonas preseason, scoring three goals in six friendlies. The 22-year-old forward scored the winning goal in Barcelonas 2-1 Spanish Supercup first-leg victory over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.

The upcoming season is crucial for Italian soccer at home and on the international front.

With a World Cup defense looming at the end of the season, national coach Marcello Lippi hopes the Italian league will make the world take notice before the tournament begin in South Africa.

Defending champion Inter Milan is going for a fifth straight title and is the team to beat. Juventus, coached by Jose Mourinho, appears the strongest rival.

For Inter in particular and Italys clubs in general, Europe is the big test, with clubs expected to improve on last years performances.

Last season, neither Inter, Juventus, AS Roma nor Fiorentina made it past the Champions League last 16. Udinese went further than any other Italian team in Europe, losing to Werder Bremen in the UEFA Cup quarterfinals.

This year, champion Inter, Juventus, AC Milan and Fiorentina will play in the Champions League. Genoa, AS Roma and Italian Cup winners Lazio will take part in the Europa League.

Internationally, the league needs to bolster its image after years of corruption, dwindling crowds and now declining standards. How well Italys club perform in Europe will go some way toward improving the leagues standing.

This summer, Serie A was hurt when the leagues two biggest stars headed to Spain - Milans Kaka joined Real Madrid for $95 million and Inters Zlatan Ibrahimovic went to Barcelona for $70 million. Barcelona striker Samuel Etoo of Cameroon arrived as part of the Ibrahimovic deal.

Prime Minister and Milan president Silvio Berlusconi wasnt exempt from criticism, with fans protesting at his reluctance to part with the money the club received for Kaka.

In the future we will only buy players under 23 years of age, he declared, much to the chagrin of new coach Leonardo, before signing Klaas-Jan Huntelaar for $21 million.

Juventus bucked the trend more than any other club. Diego came in from Werder Bremen for $35 million, Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro returned to the club he left in 2006 and defensive midfielder Felipe Melo arrived from Fiorentina.

Juventus still hasnt decided how to best use 23-year-old attacker Sebastien Giovinco despite some impressive performances last year. The club also gave a two-year contract extension to 34-year-old Alessandro Del Piero.

Roma extended Francesco Tottis contract by five years, keeping him at the club till he is 37. Meanwhile, the club was happy to sell 25-year-old Alberto Aquilani to Liverpool for $33 million despite him being with the club since childhood.

On the whole, clubs have been content to pick up bargains where they can and hold onto their money. Teams like Fiorentina, Lazio and Roma seem content to wait until the end of the transfer window to see who becomes available.

While such policies make sense in financially difficult times, they will do little to improve Italian clubs performance in Europe, let alone return the luster to a league that dominated European competition in the 1990s.

Home teams listed first
Qualifying Playoffs.

First Leg

Tuesday, Aug. 18

Celtic (Scotland) 0, Arsenal (England) 2

Sporting (Portugal) 2, Fiorentina (Italy) 2

FC Copenhagen (Denmark) 1, APOEL (Cyprus) 0

Sheriff (Moldova) 0, Olympiakos (Greece) 2

Timisoara (Romania) 0, Stuttgart (Germany) 2

Wednesday, Aug. 19

Panathanaikos (Greece) vs. Atletico Madrid (Spain)

Levski Sofia (Bulgaria) vs. Debrecen (Hungary)

Lyon (France) vs. Anderlecht (Netherlands)

Salzburg (Austria) vs. Maccabi Haifa (Israel)

Ventspils (Latvia) vs. Zurich (Switzerland)

Results Tuesday in English football (home teams listed first).

Premier League

Sunderland 1, Chelsea 3

Wigan 0, Wolves 1

League Championship

Barnsley 0, Preston 3

Blackpool 0, Derby 0

Bristol City 1, Queens Park Rangers 0

Doncaster 0, Coventry 0

Ipswich 1, Crystal Palace 3

Nottingham Forest 2, Watford 4

Peterborough 2, West Bromwich Albion 3

Plymouth 1, Cardiff 3

Scunthorpe 0, Middlesbrough 2

Sheffield United 1, Leicester 1

Swansea 0, Reading 0

League One

Brentford 2, Norwich 1

Colchester 2, Gillingham 1

Exeter 1, Yeovil 1

Hartlepool 1, Bristol Rovers 2

Huddersfield 7, Brighton 1

Leyton Orient 1, Charlton 2

Millwall 2, Oldham 0

Stockport 1, Carlisle 2

Swindon 1, Southampton 0

Tranmere 0, Milton Keynes Dons 1

Walsall 1, Leeds 2

Wycombe 1, Southend 1

League Two

Accrington 0, Northampton 3

Barnet 2, Morecambe 0

Bournemouth 1, Aldershot 0

Bradford 0, Lincoln 2

Burton 0, Torquay 2

Dagenham Redbridge 5, Shrewsbury 0

Darlington 0, Crewe 1

Grimsby 1, Rotherham 2

Hereford 1, Bury 3

Macclesfield 2, Port Vale 0

Rochdale 0, Cheltenham 1

A Marseille fan who sustained back injuries after falling from a stand during a French league match this weekend will undergo an operation this week.

The 28-year-old Cedric Poudet fell several meters after a sudden surge forward by Marseille fans who were gathered behind one of the goals Sunday at the Stade de la Mosson stadium in Montpellier.

He was kept overnight at a nearby hospital and has since been transferred to another hospital in the region to prepare for surgery, either Tuesday or Wednesday, the club said.

The good news is that all his limbs are functioning and he suffered no bang to the head or did not lose consciousness, Marseilles head of security Guy Cazadamont said on Marseilles Web site.

Marseille, which won the match against Lille 1-0, was playing at Montpelliers stadium because of an ongoing inquiry into an accident that killed two workers at Stade Velodrome earlier this month.

On July 16, two workers were killed and eight injured at Marseilles stadium when part of a roof of a stage built for a scheduled Madonna concert collapsed.

Results from Allsvenskan, the Swedish first-division league (home teams listed first).

Saturdays Games

Hammarby 2, Elfsborg 3

Kalmar 1, Gefle 1

Sundays Games

Brommapojkarna 2, Trelleborg 2

IFK Goteborg 2, Helsingborg 2

Mondays Games

Gais 1, Orgryte 0

Halmstad 1, AIK 2

Malmo FF 1, Hacken 2

Orebro 2, Djurgarden 0