Pelé in hospital in Sao Paulo

Brazilian football legend Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known as Pelé, has been admitted to hospital in Sao Paulo.

A spokesperson for the Albert Einstein hospital of Sao Paulo confirmed that the former footballer, who won the World Cup with Brazil three times, had been admitted to the hospital, but gave no further information, at the request of Pelé's family.

Sao Paulo newspaper 'Folha' has reported that Pele went into hospital for a hip operation, in order to resolve a problem in his thighbone, while 'Globo TV' claims he will be discharged on Wednesday.                                                       

                                                                                                                          by: www.as.com

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Roger Federer beat David Ferrer to reach the semi-finals of the ATP World Tour Finals

Federer improved to 14-0 against the Spaniard as he ground out a 6-4 7-6 (7/5) victory at the O2 Arena in London.

He did not have things all his own way against Ferrer, who defeated Juan Martin del Potro in his opening match, but came through in an hour and 49 minutes to stay on course to defend his title at the event.

Ferrer headed into the clash on an 11-match winning streak following his triumph at the Paris Masters last week but, having managed only three sets in his previous meetings with Federer, made a poor start as his Swiss rival broke en route to an early 3-0 lead.

But that did not tell the whole story as the world number two was forced to fend off six break points in doing so and they were back level after Ferrer finally took his eighth chance.

As so often, though, Federer moved up a gear just when he needed to and, with his opponent serving to stay in the first set at 4-5, he emphatically broke to love to take control of the contest.

Ferrer had further opportunities at the start of the second set but once again could not take them, Federer saving two more break points.

The set remained tight throughout and Ferrer stayed with his opponent all the way until an inevitable tie-break, but once there an error on the sixth point proved crucial.

Federer had been immaculate on serve and took his third match point when a Ferrer return dropped long to become the first singles player through to the last four.

Redemption for ferocious Juventus Nordsjaelland thrashed in Turin

Juventus steamrolled Nordsjaelland in Turin by a score line of 4-0. Marchisio, Vidal and Giovinco found the net in the first half before Quagliarella followed in the second. Juve looked particularly fierce against the unfortunate Danes. They were foaming at the mouth, as they did last season when they resembled a beast that was hungry for goals. The beast was wounded this time, after the defeat against Inter, with a tangible desire for redemption. They thrashed a modest team, but it was the same team that held them to a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Copenhagen. The run of nine consecutive draws in European competition has been broken. However, the path forward in Group E of the Champions League remains difficult. The match against Chelsea, who beat Shakhtar Donetsk in the 94th minute at Stamford Bridge, will be crucial. The Bianconeri are still in third, behind the Englishmen and the Ukrainians who are each ahead by one point. To be certain to qualify they need 4 points from their last two games. Juve also dispelled any possible doubts about their physical condition. They pressed high, stormed through their opponents’ box and then kept them playing in their own half for 90 minutes. It was domination without a pause.

Santillana: "Madrid needs prestigious players"

Former Real Madrid striker Carlos Santillana has stated that the club considers "prestigious players who can sell its image" to be very important, although this does not mean that the youngsters should be forgotten and a "balance" needs to be struck between the two.

"Football has changed. There are massive signings, they cost a lot of money and they have to pay for themselves; but it's not easy. They have to support the youngsters, but they also need players who sell an image of prestige, which is very important for a team like Madrid. That's why they need to strike a balance between the two so that young players have a chance of debuting with the first team," he explained in statements during his involvement in the '2nd Conference in Support of Aid for Chad'.

Santillana does not like controversies such as the one which has put José Mourinho at loggerheads with the Castilla coach, Alberto Toril. "Whoever is responsible will have to set things straight and do things right, and these things should definitely not be aired in public until they are resolved, like what happened with Cristiano Ronaldo. It's important for them to be sorted out in the dressing room," he added.

"They should sit down, discuss it and find a solution. They should say how they have to treat the home-grown players and how they want to train them so they can make it. Everything that leaks out is bad for everyone, and the club has to step in," explained the legendary striker.

Celtic prove Barça can be beaten

Good defensive tactics, an amazing performance by Forster in goal, a partisan crowd and a pinch of good luck. With these ingredients, Celtic cooked up a night in which Barcelona was unable to offer its best side.

The game took a turn for the worse for Barça on 20 minutes and a comeback proved impossible on the night. Considering how the home fans celebrated winning a corner, the whole of Celtic Park seemed to be aware of the aerial threat posed by the Scots.

Everyone that is, except Jordi Alba, who failed to mark Wanyama properly, allowing him to head the ball home at his leisure. The Kenyan midfielder took his chance and opened the scoring with a superb header.

Of course, Barça tried everything to turn things around and didn't give Celtic a moment's piece all night, but they lacked accuracy in front of goal.

In the first half, Celtic's defence made a number of mistakes – none of which were taken advantage of by the visitors – but it grew in stature as the minutes ticked by.

The hosts started to believe they could pull off the win, although that wasn't going to change their game plan. All that was left for them to do was continue parking the bus and resist Barça's continued attacks.

But, just as a Barça comeback looked most likely, the visitors suffered another unexpected setback. Forster kicked long, Xavi failed to control, the ball found Watt, who comfortably beat Valdés after Mascherano failed to close him down in time.

Messi gave Barça a glimpse of hope in the 90th minute, but the cards had been dealt and Celtic had pulled off a coup, not without first withstanding a four-minute onslaught from the visitors. Three points for the Scots, second in the group. Barcelona, two points ahead, remain in top spot.