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Holland captain Mark van Bommel has joined a lengthening injury list after pulling out of the Euro 2012 qualifier against Hungary in Budapest on Friday with a thigh injury.

The AC Milan midfielder will not travel with the rest of the Holland squad tomorrow as he has decided to undergo intensive treatment in a bid to be fit for the return fixture against Hungary at the Amsterdam ArenA on Tuesday.

Van Bommel told the Dutch federation website: ”It is annoying but harmless. We have made every effort for Friday’s game. That did not work.

”The fact that I am staying with the group indicates that we hope for significant progress.”

Coach Bert van Marwijk, who is not expected to call up a replacement for Van Bommel, was already without goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg, winger Arjen Robben and forward Klaas Jan Huntelaar.

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Bayer Leverkusen still hope to tie goalkeeper Rene Adler down to a new contract, but have accepted that convincing him to stay may be tricky if Manchester United make a bid this summer.

Adler, 26, has been at Leverkusen all his career and has established himself as one of the most consistent goalkeepers in the Bundesliga over the past few years.

And with United scouring Europe for a replacement for retiring Edwin van der Sar, Adler’s name has been among those linked with a move to Old Trafford, with the likes of Manuel Neuer, David De Gea and Maarten Stekelenburg also reportedly on their radar.

United’s goalkeeping coach Eric Steele was sent on a scouting mission to Germany last weekend, where he saw Adler keep a clean sheet in Leverkusen’s 2-0 victory over Neuer’s Schalke.

Leverkusen remain hopeful of retaining Adler’s services and discussions about a contract extension are well under way, with general manager Rudi Voller staying calm over speculation linking Adler with a move away from the club.

“It’s a usual circumstance in football to have players being watched by other clubs,” Voller said. “We have the desire to sign a new deal with Rene Adler, this is a fact.”

But Leverkusen executive Wolfgang Holzhauser says he is concerned that negotiations would be difficult should United swoop for the Germany international.

“There have been talks between the club and Rene Adler already, however we are still far off an agreement at this point in time,” Holzhauser told Bild.

“If a club the size of Manchester United comes up, I feel signing a new deal with Rene Adler would not become easier.”

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Athletic Bilbao striker Fernando Llorente has hailed Spain team-mate Xavi as the best Spanish footballer of all time.

Xavi is set to earn his 100th cap for his country and has earned rave reviews for his performances for both Spain and Barcelona over the past year. With a nomination for the World Player of the Year and records broken aplenty for his passing at the World Cup, the classy midfielder has been in fine form and now Llorente has labelled him the best.

“Xavi is an unbelievable player, the best Spanish footballer of all-time,” Llorente told Sport.es. “He has won everything in football with Barca and Spain.

“It is wonderful to watch Xavi play. It takes many years at a very high level to do what he does. We are now eager to get a result in these two very important matches. Let’s see if we can do the job and get the points.”

Spain are currently top of Group I with three wins out of three and face the Czech Republic in a Euro 2012 qualifier on Friday before a friendly clash with Lithuania next Tuesday.

Coach Vicente del Bosque has warned his players not to “switch off” against the Czechs as he feels Michal Bilek’s side pose a major challenge.

“They are our biggest threat,” Del Bosque said. “They have great physical and technical qualities. They are very strong and have been one of the best teams in Europe in recent years.

“The worry for us is that most of our players are involved in domestic and European campaigns with their clubs and will continue to be so until the end of the season.

“We need to go into Friday’s game with the right mentality because if any one of us is switched off, it could really complicate things.”

Striker Fernando Torres is certainly sounding the right notes, telling El Mundo Deportivo that the players are focused on retaining their European title.

“The difficult thing in football for national teams is learning to win,” the Chelsea player said. “Spain did after many years of disappointments. There is now another challenge to retain the European Championship, something that nobody has ever done before.”

Valencia midfielder Juan Mata could get a rare start on Friday and is looking forward to the game, despite the distraction of the latter stages of the league campaign in Spain.

“Being selected is very important and takes all our focus now,” he said. “In La Liga it is the most crucial time of the season but that’s after the game against Lithuania.”

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Former Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz has had his six-month ban for allegedly disrupting an anti-doping testing session before last year’s World Cup lifted on appeal.

The Portuguese Anti-Doping Authority handed down the suspension last August after an incident with three of their doping control officers at the Portugal training camp in May.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport today ruled that the former Manchester United assistant’s conduct had not “disturbed the sample collection process or the work of the anti-doping officers”. But the panel did brand his behaviour “unacceptable”.

The CAS ruling said: “After their arrival, the anti-doping officers were approached by Mr Queiroz. Following a discussion, the anti-doping officers left to continue the anti-doping control and, as he was walking away Mr Queiroz uttered some very distasteful and sexually descriptive comments regarding the mother of the ADoP president.”

CAS said no players were directly involved in the incident and there was “no evidence that Mr Queiroz’ behaviour was intended to disturb the doping control”.

The ruling said Queiroz “did not dispute the fact that his comments were both inappropriate and offensive”.

Queiroz, the former Real Madrid coach who had two spells as Sir Alex Ferguson’s assistant at Old Trafford, was sacked as Portugal coach two days after a surprise 1-0 defeat to Norway in Euro 2012 qualifying last September.

He announced his intention to appeal against his suspension later that month, meaning he was free to work until the appeal hearing, though he has not found work since then.

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Dirk Kuyt has signalled his intention to commit his future to Liverpool, hailing the Reds’ recent resurgence and their renewed “ambition” under Kenny Dalglish.

After a poor start to the season that saw Roy Hodgson relieved of his duties, Liverpool are mounting a surge and Kuyt has played a key part in their revival.

The Dutchman has thrived on the responsibility of playing a prominent role in the absence of the injured Steven Gerrard and has weighed in with some key goals.

The January arrivals of Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez have raised expectation and Kuyt feels the signs for the future are positive.

“Liverpool is a club that should be playing for trophies and I guarantee that will be happening soon,” he said. “With Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll arriving we have become stronger and I have a strong suspicion that the club will reinforce again in the summer.

“This helps my belief that we will be playing for trophies again next season. I want to stay because the club is showing ambition, the team is getting stronger and my family and I absolutely love it here.”

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