Stuart Clark ruled out :

SYDNEY: Australian seam bowler Stuart Clark was on Wednesday ruled out of the ICC Champions Trophy with a thigh injury he picked last weekend playing club cricket. Clark had a scan on Tuesday which showed a tear in his left quadriceps which will not heal in time for the one-day tournament starting in India on October 7, Cricket Australia said. A replacement is yet to be announced. — AFP

Reyes withdraws :

MADRID: Jose Antonio Reyes has withdrawn from Spain’s squad to play Sweden and Argentina due to torn fibers in his thigh muscle. Tests on Tuesday confirmed the Real Madrid forward’s injury from the 1-1 league draw with Atletico Madrid on Sunday. Reyes was in Spain’s 18-man squad for the European Championship qualifier against Sweden on Saturday and the friendly with Argentina four days later. — AP

Villa sign Chris Sutton :

BIRMINGHAM: Aston Villa signed striker Chris Sutton on a free transfer on Tuesday until the end of the season. The 33-year-old was a free agent after leaving Villa’s city rival Birmingham at the end of last season. The 33-year-old joined Birmingham from Celtic in January and scored once in 11 appearances. Sutton will compete with Juan Pablo Angel, Milan Baros, Gabriel Agbonlahor and Luke Moore for a place in attack. — AP

FA charge Collymore :

LONDON: Player agent Charles Collymore has been charged by England’s national football association as touting footballers to other clubs. Action has been taken against Collymore, who featured briefly in the BBC’s Panorama investigation into corruption in football, after claims made by football club Luton Town manager Mike Newell. It is alleged Collymore offered Nigerian forward Enoch Showunmi to Millwall football club while the player was still contracted to Luton. — Agencies

Ecuador call up Zura :

QUITO: Ecuador’s national football coach Luis Fernando Suarez has called up Edmundo Zura, B team’s leading goalscorer, for the friendly against Brazil. Zura, 23, has scored 15 goals for the B team and is currently playing club league with Deportivo Imbabura since 2002. — Agencies

Rui Costa injured :

LISBON: Benfica were on Wednesday dealt a Champions League hammer blow when midfielder Rui Costa was ruled out for one month with a thigh injury. Costa, 34, will miss two outings for Benfica in European football’s top competition against Celtic, on October 17 and November 1. — AFP

Egypt crush Arab 7-0 :

CAIRO: Egypt defeat an all Arab team 7-0 in a football charity match in support of Lebanon, which suffered massive damages during the Hezbollah-Israel conflict. Ahmed Hassan and Mohamed Zidan each scored a brace while Emad Meteb, Ahmed Hossam “Mido” and Hossam Ghaly scored goals apiece on Tuesday, local website reported. The friendly was aimed to raise funds for the victims of the 34-day-long conflict in Lebanon, which ended on August 14. — Agencies