Thigh injury robs Inter of Milito

FC Internazionale Milano have been dealt a blow with the news that striker Diego Milito could be sidelined for at least a month because of a thigh strain suffered in the Nerazzurri's 2-1 victory against Udinese Calcio on Saturday.

The 30-year-old was replaced by Mario Balotelli 25 minutes into the Serie A fixture at San Siro and scans on Sunday revealed the player has a "first degree strain in his right thigh". Milito, who has scored five goals in seven league appearances this term, is thus a major doubt for Inter's UEFA Champions League Group F encounter with FC Dynamo Kyiv on 20 October. Lucio was also substituted with a similar problem but the club's medical staff revealed the centre-back has only strained the adductor muscle in his thigh, meaning the Brazilian is likely to recover in time for the visit of the Ukrainian side.

via uefa.com

Pjanić steps up to fill Juninho void

Juninho Pernambucano left some big shoes to fill when he departed Olympique Lyonnais in the summer having won seven Ligue 1 titles in eight years, but in 19-year-old Miralem Pjanić the French club may have found the ideal replacement.
Pjanić scored the only goal in Lyon's Group E opener against ACF Fiorentina last Wednesday and also made a telling contribution in the previous round when his free-kick broke the deadlock against RSC Anderlecht, paving the way for a comfortable 5-1 first-leg win.

Of course I'm happy to have scored and played a decisive part. I am playing more now, but it is only thanks to the team that I can make the difference. I have tried to do so since the beginning of the season, and it has worked well up to now.

Pjanić watches his words carefully when he speaks to the press, but on the pitch everything he does comes naturally. Against Fiorentina he was quickest to react on 78 minutes when Sébastien Frey could only parry Kim Källström's strike and stole in to fire in the rebound. Then again, Pjanić is used to doing things quickly on the football field. After the war had driven his family from Tuzla, they settled in Luxemburg and Miralem joined FC Metz.
Aged 14 he made an immediate impression at youth level and by 2007/08 had established himself in the first team. He made 27 appearances that season and caught the eye for his control on the ball, set-pieces and knack for delivering when it mattered most. Enough certainly for Lyon to think that paying €7.5m for his services in June 2008 was a sound investment. That is exactly what it has proven to be. Pjanić started just five league games in his first season at the Stade de Gerland – not unusual for an 18-year-old – but having found his feet he has thrived since being handed Juninho's old No8 shirt.

via uefa.com

Ibrahimović to Barça, Eto'o to Inter

FC Barcelona have signed Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimović from FC Internazionale Milano with fellow forward Samuel Eto'o plus midfielder Aleksandr Hleb going in the other direction and the UEFA Champions League holders also paying the Italian side €46m.
Ibrahimović, 27, has signed a five-year contract with Barcelona, while the 28-year-old Eto'o also agreed a deal until 2014 at Inter, with Hleb on loan until the end of the season. Signed by Inter from Juventus in 2006, Ibrahimović won Serie A in all his seasons in Milan and the former Malmö FF forward was last season's top scorer in the league with 25 goals. That took his tally with the Nerazzurri to 57 in 88 top-flight games, and he has struck 21 times in 58 appearances for Sweden.
Ibrahimović said:

Every player wants to come to Barça but not everybody can. It's hard to express how I feel at the moment; I'm the happiest man in the world. There are winners in every facet of this team and I want to learn from everybody here.

While Ibrahimović was unable to end Inter's 44-year wait to win the European Champions Clubs' Cup during his time in Milan, Eto'o has helped Barcelona lift the trophy twice, scoring in the 2006 and 2009 final wins against Arsenal FC and Manchester United FC respectively. The former Real Madrid CF player joined Barça from RCD Mallorca in 2004 and has won three Liga titles at Camp Nou and struck 130 goals in 200 appearances.
Eto'o also aided Cameroon to two African Cup of Nations titles and 2000 Olympic gold. He is expected to play alongside Diego Milito at Inter, newly signed from Genoa CFC.
Eto'o said:

I'm extremely happy to join Inter. I'm here to work hard and win the Champions League. I want to thank Inter president Massimo Moratti. He is a person with a great heart.

Belarus midfielder Hleb, meanwhile, moved to Barcelona in 2008 after three seasons with Arsenal FC. The 28-year-old former FC BATE Borisov and VfB Stuttgart player is under contract at Barcelona until 2012 and appeared 35 times in their treble-winning campaign. Inter have the option to make the deal permanent next summer for €10m.

via uefa.com

Barça invest in Palmeiras prodigy

UEFA Champions League winners FC Barcelona have agreed to sign Keirrison from Brazilian side SE Palmeiras for a fee which could rise to €16m, with the striker likely to be loaned out for the coming season.
The 20-year-old will sign a five-year contract at the Spanish and European champions on Friday provided he passes medical tests. Keirrison started his career at Coritiba FC, helping the club win promotion to the Brazilian top division and finishing 2008 as the league's joint top scorer with 20 goals in 31 appearances. He joined Palmeiras in January and has scored five league goals in six starts for the Sao Paulo side. Barça, who have also added Brazilian full-back Maxwell to their ranks, will begin this season's UEFA Champions League in the group stage.

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Group-stage hopefuls face fate

The prospect of a meeting with Olympiacos CFP will keep ŠK Slovan Bratislava and NK Zrinjski on their toes, with shocks in the offing as the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round concludes.

Bosnian champions Zrinjski celebrated their first home win in UEFA Champions League qualifying last week, with Krešimir Kordić scoring the only goal in their win against Slovan. However, the Slovakian side have home advantage as the tie concludes on Tuesday, and will be eager to win through and earn a meeting with Greek titleholders Olympiacos, one of three sides who will join the existing Champions Path hopefuls in the next round.

The situation will be even more tense at the Ljudski vrt Stadium in Slovenia where NK Maribor host FC WIT Georgia after a 0-0 draw in the first leg, with the eventual winners meeting FC Zürich in the next phase of the competition. Things are a little easier for Moldova's FC Sheriff, who won 1-0 at FC International Turku last week and need only avoid defeat to link up with SK Slavia Praha in the next round.

The five former group-stage contenders on duty in the second qualifying round – FC BATE Borisov, PFC Levski Sofia, FC København, FK Partizan and Maccabi Haifa FC – all won comfortably last week and can be reasonably confident of progressing, but the same cannot be said of Austria's FC Salzburg or Wisła Kraków of Poland.

Austrian champions Salzburg drew 1-1 at home against Ireland's Bohemian FC last week and can expect a tough ride in Dublin. It took an added-time goal, meanwhile, for Wisła to snatch a similar scoreline at home against FC Levadia Tallinn, and – like Salzburg – they now need an away win or a high-scoring draw on Wednesday to forge on in the competition.