Slocum denies Woods with brave last hole putt

# Story Highlights

• # American Heath Slocum wins The Barclays in New Jersey
• # He finishes with a 20-foot par putt to deny four-man group tied for second
• # Tiger Woods one shot back with Ernie Els, Padraig Harrington and Steve Stricker

Lippi opts for continuity in Italy squad

MILAN (AP) - Italy coach Marcello Lippi opted against making wholesale changes to the team that drew 0-0 with Switzerland in August and named a largely unchanged squad to play the World Cup qualifiers away to Georgia in Tiblisi and at home to Bulgaria in Turin.

The world champions are one point above Ireland in their qualifying group with one game in hand and hope to gain some breathing space before a match between the sides in Dublin on October 10.

Daniele De Rossi and Nicola Legrottaglie return after missing the game in Basle and there is a first call up for Marco Marchionni following impressive displays for Fiorentina after his summer move from Juventus.

Domenico Criscito and Claudio Marchisio retain their spots after impressing in Switzerland.

In attack, Lippi has opted for Antonio Di Natale, who has returned from injury and leads the Italian league in scoring with three goals Udinese. He is joined by Fabio Quagliarella, who scored twice for Napoli against Livorno, and Vincenzo Iaquinta, who hit the winner for Juventus on the opening weekend.

Fabio Cannavaro is captain once more and will likely extend his Italian record of 127 caps.

Lippi will be hopeful that the understanding Cannavaro has struck up with Giorgio Chiellini since returning to Juventus will continue in a blue shirt and help Italy win its first match since the 3-1 victory over the United States on June 15. ___ Squad:

Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Morgan De Sanctis (Napoli), Federico Marchetti (Cagliari). Defenders: Fabio Cannavaro (Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Gianluca Zambrotta (AC Milan), Fabio Grosso (Lyon), Nicola Legrottaglie (Juventus), Davide Santon (Inter Milan), Domenico Criscito (Genoa). Midfielders: Gaetano D'Agostino (Udinese), Angelo Palombo (Sampdoria), Mauro Camoranesi (Juventus), Daniele De Rossi (AS Roma), Simone Pepe (Udinese), Andrea Pirlo (AC Milan), Marco Marchionni (Fiorentina), Claudio Marchisio (Juventus). Forwards: Antonio Di Natale (Udinese), Alberto Gilardino (Fiorentina), Vincenzo Iaquinta (Juventus), Giuseppe Rossi (Villareal), Fabio Quagliarella (Napoli).

Espanyol captain Jarque dies

(CNN) -- Espanyol captain Daniel Jarque has died from a heart attack while on a pre-season training camp in Italy.

The 26-year-old defender died at the hotel where the team were staying in the town of Coviciana.

He was found after teammates realized he had not come for an evening meal.

Club doctors and Italian paramedics tried to revive Jarque, a product of the Espanyol youth system, but without success.

Jarque's death comes two years after the death, also from heart failure, of Sevilla defender Antonio Puerta, who died after collapsing in the opening game of the Spanish Primera Liga season.

It is shattering blow for the Barcelona-based club, who beat Liverpool 3-0 in a pre-season friendly as part of their preparation for the start of La Liga with Jarque playing in the match.

A statement on the club Web site, www.rcdespanyol.cat confirmed the terrible news on Saturday night.

"Tragedy struck Espanyol and the family of Dani Jarque this evening. The blanquiazul player died from a cardiac arrest. "

"The doctor Cervera carried out CPR on the player and used a defibrillator, which showed that the arrest was non-responsive.

"The medical services continued carrying out CPR, administering adrenaline and atropine for an hour, but the player's heart did not react, so finally that determined his death.

"RCD Espanyol, broken with pain, wish to put themselves at the absolute disposition of the family of our captain Dani Jarque, to whom go our warmest thoughts."

Espanyol, who had been due to play Italian side Bologna on Sunday, have suspended their pre-season tour of Italy and will fly back to Barcelona.

Jarque joined Espanyol at the age of 12, making his debut in 2002, and was given the captaincy this summer as a reward for his strong performances.

Superb Woods claims 70th PGA Tour title

(CNN) -- Tiger Woods claimed his 70th PGA Tour title with a four-shot victory in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio.

Even by the world number one's standards, this was a remarkable victory as he got the better of Ireland's Padraig Harrington in a compelling last-round head to head.

The turning point came on the par-five 16th where Harrington, leading by one, ended up making a triple bogey eight to a brilliant birdie by Woods.

The four-shot swing all but insured Woods' fifth victory of the year and he wrapped it up with a birdie on the 18th for a final round 65 and a 12-under total of 268.

Harrington had withstood a front nine charge from Woods, who went out in five-under 30, but the Dubliner made a series of hashed shots on the 16th, culminating in hacking his fourth from the greenside rough into the water.

It later emerged that the pair, who were watched by an enormous gallery, were given a warning for slow play and placed under the watch by match referee John Paramor.

Harrington admitted he had felt rushed on the crucial hole, but Woods was more forthright in his opinions when asked by reporters about the incident.

'I'm sorry that John got in the way of a great battle,' because it was such a great battle for 16 holes," Woods said. "And unfortunately, that happened."

Paramor, the chief referee for the European Tour, said that when they reached the 16th green, Woods and Harrington were 17 minutes behind schedule.

"The 16th hole had opened up before they cleared the 15th green," he said. "And therefore, we had no choice but to put them on the clock at that stage," he added.

Schumacher scraps F1 comeback plans

(CNN) -- Michael Schumacher has called off his eagerly-anticipated Formula One comeback with Ferrari because he has not recovered from a neck injury he sustained in a motorcycling accident earlier this year.


Schumacher was due to replace the injured Felipe Massa for the Italian team at the European Grand Prix in Valencia on August 23, but announced on his personal Web site that these plans have now been scrapped.


"Unfortunately I'm not able to step in for Felipe," the statement read.



The seven-time world champion added: "The consequences of the injuries caused by the bike-accident in February, fractures in the area of head and neck, unfortunately have turned out to be still too severe."


The 40-year-old German started a two-day test session on Tuesday at the Italian circuit of Mugello ahead of his return.


An earlier one-day test behind the wheel of a 2007 Ferrari had given the first hints that Schumacher was struggling for fitness


Last week, he told his Web site www.michaelschumacher.de:


"I only have to admit that my neck pinches a bit. We have to get a grip on that as health has priority -- that's the clear arrangement made with Ferrari and, by the way, with my wife, too,"


After Schumacher announced he was unavailable for the Italian-based racing team, Ferrari confirmed on their official Web site the vacant berth will be filled by test driver Luca Badoer for the race in Valencia.


Massa is recovering in Brazil from the serious injuries he received in a freak crash in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix and is set to miss at least four races.


Schumacher has worked as a special adviser to Ferrari since his retirement from Formula One in 2006, after winning five championships during his time with the team to add to the two he won at Benetton.


His seven world titles surpass the five won by the Argentine legend Juan Manuel Fangio and his tally of 91 grand prix wins from 250 races is also a record.


Schumacher broke the news that he would not be returning to Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo and team principal Stefano Domenicali on Monday evening.


His decision followed a further thorough examination of the extent of his neck injury.


"I really tried everything to make that temporary comeback possible, however, much to my regret it didn't work out," he said.


"I can only repeat that I tried everything that was within my power. All I can do now is to keep my fingers crossed for the whole team for the coming races."


Di Montezemolo responded with a statement on the Ferrari Web site that read: "I am very unhappy that a problem means that Michael cannot return to racing.


"In the past few days, I could appreciate his great efforts and extraordinary motivation which had spread through the team and fans around the world.


"No doubt his return would have been good for Formula One and I am sure it would have seen him fighting for wins again.


"In the name of Ferrari and all the fans, I wish to thank him for the strong attachment he displayed for the team in these circumstances.


"In agreement with Stefano Domenicali, we have therefore decided to give Luca Badoer the chance to race for the Scuderia after he has put in so many years of hard work as a test driver," his statement read.

Iconic Subaru quits world rally championship

(CNN) -- The world rally championship is facing a major crisis after Japanese carmaker Subaru announced on Tuesday that it was quitting the competition ahead of the 2009 season. Subaru's withdrawal comes just a day after rivals Suzuki pulled out of rallying's premier competition, which has lost one-third of its constructors this week as the global economic downturn bites.

It follows the shock decision of Honda, Japan's second biggest car manufacturer, to withdraw from Formula One.

"Our business environment has been dramatically changed due to the quick deterioration of the global economy," Subaru parent company Fuji Heavy Industries said in a statement released on Tuesday.

"In order to optimize the management resources and to strengthen further the Subaru brand, FHI decided to withdraw from WRC activities at the earliest timing."

Subaru has been one of the leading constructors in the rally championship, helping British drivers Colin McRae and Richard Burns to world titles. But in recent years its fortunes have waned, with the Citroen team of current world champion Sebastien Loeb and Ford dominating. Subaru finished a distant third in this year's constructors race.

The team is run by Prodrive, whose chairman David Richards issued a defiant message as the news of Subaru's pull out became public.

"Subaru's departure from the world rally championship is a great loss as it is one of the sport's icons," he told Press Association.

"Although this decision closes a significant chapter in Prodrive's history, our focus now turns to the future."

Richards said that his company hopes to run a team in the 2010 championship when a raft of new technical regulations will be implemented to drive down costs

Ramos replaces Schuster at Real Madrid

(CNN) -- Former Tottenham manager Juande Ramos has replaced Bernd Schuster as head coach at Real Madrid with immediate effect. Schuster stepped down from his role with the Spanish giants after agreeing a severance deal with the Madrid club, spokesman Miguel Ángel Arroyo told the club's Web site on Tuesday.

Former Sevilla boss Ramos has signed a six-month contract.

He joins the club after being sacked as manager of Tottenham in October, following the north London club's worst start to a season.

Schuster departs having overseen a run of indifferent form for the defending Spanish champions with Madrid currently in fifth place in the Primera Liga, nine points behind arch-rivals Barcelona.

They were also knocked out of the Copa del Rey by minnows Real Union, but the final straw was Sunday's 4-3 home defeat by fellow title challengers Sevilla after which Schuster said it would be "impossible" for Real to win at Barcelona next Saturday.

The Madrid board had previously given Schuster, 49, several votes of confidence, but finally lost patience with the German.

Ronaldo rejects chance of Champions rest

VILLARREAL, Spain (AP) -- Cristiano Ronaldo wants a starting place when holders Manchester United fight to retain top spot in their Champions League group against Villarreal in Spain on Tuesday.

The Portugal winger limped out of a frustrating 0-0 draw with Aston Villa that left the defending Premier League champions eight points behind pacesetters Chelsea and Liverpool.

Manager Alex Ferguson said Ronaldo had a taken "a couple whacks on Saturday and a few cuts, but nothing serious."

"I'd rather leave him out but he wants to play," Ferguson said. "When a player shows that kind of enthusiasm you don't curtail it, you encourage it."

The clubs are tied atop Group E with eight points -- six clear of Celtic and Aalborg -- with a draw being enough to see both progress to the last 16.

United have not lost in eight away matches but have only one prior victory in 17 trips to Spain. The Red Devils are unbeaten in 17 straight European games.

Ronaldo provides a boost to Ferguson's offense, which will be without striker Dimitar Berbatov because of a hamstring injury.

The Red Devils are already without the injured Wes Brown, Paul Scholes and Owen Hargreaves and recent matches have taken their toll with defender Gary Neville and striker Danny Welbeck also out.

Darren Fletcher is racing to return from a knee injury while Tomasz Kuszczak will replace Edwin van der Sar in goal.

"It's a matter of judging the right time and occasions of when you are going to introduce different players," Ferguson said. "The rest is when you have injuries. Circumstances dictate."

Villarreal has never lost a home game in European Cup play, but are coming off an embarrassing 3-0 loss to Valladolid for their first defeat at El Madrigal stadium in nearly a year.

Coach Manuel Pellegrini expects a better outing after the club saw their 17-match unbeaten run -- stretching to last season -- snapped as Villarreal dropped to third, four points behind leader Barcelona.

But consecutive league disappointments -- Villarreal allowed a last-minute equalizer the week before at Malaga -- had Pellegrini sounding like he would be happy with another draw.

"Clearly, our first objective is to qualify and then to finish first. If we are, even better, but we qualify with a draw and that would keep us happy," the Chilean coach said.

Giuseppe Rossi looks set to start against his former club with fellow strikers Nihat Kahveci and Joseba Llorente out to injury and Jozy Altidore unavailable. Midfielder Diego Godin is also missing because of a hamstring problem.

The Red Devils fear that Rossi could come back to haunt them after the 21-year-old striker left Old Trafford in 2007 after three years and just five appearances.

Ferguson praised Rossi and Pellegrini, whose success at Villarreal he compared to the late Nottingham Forest coach Brian Clough and Arsenal's Arsene Wenger.

"To do that from small resources which Villarreal have, which are nowhere near the resources of Real Madrid, Barcelona and even Valencia, they are a fantastic team," Ferguson said. "Pellegrini sculpts Villarreal as his team."

It will be Rossi's first meeting against his former club after missing the first-leg match to injury. The young striker has sounded a warning about his former teammates.

"English football is much faster, more direct and more physical, while in Spain it's much more technical with more possession," he said. "It's going to be a game with a lot of options and dangerous chances at both ends, and I hope we can take advantage of our own."

United are eager to secure a place in the knockout phase after having missed a chance earlier this month when held 1-1 by Celtic.

Montgomery 'doped' before 2000 Olympic gold

LONDON, England (AP) -- The International Olympic Committee is ready to "take the necessary actions" after disgraced American sprinter Tim Montgomery admitted he doped before the Sydney Games, where he won a relay gold medal

Montgomery said in a U.S. television interview that he took testosterone and human growth hormone before the Sydney Olympics in 2000, and doesn't deserve his gold in the 4x100 relay. Montgomery ran in the preliminaries but not the final.

"The IOC will look into the matter as part of its open file on the BALCO case and take the necessary actions," IOC spokeswoman Emmanuelle Moreau said in an e-mail Monday. "Back in 2004, the IOC set up a disciplinary commission with a view to how the case might have affected Olympic Games' competitions."

Moreau also said the IOC supports the U.S. Olympic Committee's call for Montgomery to voluntarily return his medal.

The International Association of Athletics Federation needs formal notification from Montgomery in writing before its anti-doping board can review the case, IAAF spokesman Nick Davies said.

Montgomery's admission was made during an interview scheduled to air Tuesday night on HBO television.

"I have a gold medal that I'm sitting on that I didn't get with my own ability," Montgomery said. "I'm not here to take away from anybody else's accomplishments, only my own. And I must say, I apologize to the other people that was on the relay team if that was to happen."

Montgomery never tested positive for drugs, but he was banned for two years and his world record in the 100 meters was erased after he was linked to the BALCO doping investigation. He retired after the ban was imposed in 2005.

How Montgomery's admission might affect his 2000 relay teammates is uncertain.

Jon Drummond, Bernard Williams, Brian Lewis, Maurice Greene and Kenneth Brokenburr were the other members of the team. Drummond, Williams, Lewis and Greene ran in the Olympic final.

The IOC had previously tried to strip the entire U.S. 4x400 relay team of its Sydney gold over a previous doping violation by team member Jerome Young.

But Young had not run in the final, and the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the rest of the team should not be disqualified.

However, the entire team had to give up its medals this summer after Antonio Pettigrew -- who did run in the final -- admitted doping.

The IOC also vacated the victory by the U.S. women's 4x400 relay team in Sydney and the third-place finish of the 4x100 relay squad because Marion Jones, Montgomery's former girlfriend, had doped.

Montgomery is currently in prison after being convicted of check fraud and heroin trafficking.

He did not say in the HBO interview when or how often he had taken testosterone, just that he had done so before Sydney. He also said he took HGH four times a month.

"If Tim Montgomery cheated at the games, then he should step forward and voluntarily return his medal, just as others from the 2000 team have done," Darryl Seibel, spokesman for the U.S. Olympic Committee, said on Sunday. "By using a banned substance, any result he achieved is tainted."

Fabregas named as new Arsenal captain

(CNN) -- Cesc Fabregas has been named as the new captain of English Premier League side Arsenal on the eve of Tuesday's Champions League clash against Dynamo Kiev

The 21-year-old Spanish midfield star replaces William Gallas, who was stripped of the captaincy last week after publicly questioning the attitude of his team-mates.

Goalkeeper Manuel Almunia skippered the side for the 3-0 defeat at Manchester City on Saturday, a match which Gallas missed following his outburst.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger declined to say why he had taken the captaincy away from the 31-year-old Galllas, but confirmed it was a permanent switch.

"I don't think I have specially to explain why I make the decisions," Wenger said on Monday. "William is a player that I rate and a man that I rate as well. I have a big respect for him.

"He was working as a captain and was in a very difficult media environment. He was under big pressure from the press and at some stage you do not want that (outside) pressure to affect him and the team.

"He's a player who's committed to the club. I think he will be stronger as a player because he took all the problems of the team to his heart."

Asked why he had given the captaincy to 21-year-old Fabregas, Wenger again declined to give a reason.

"I believe that for me the captain is the voice of the club towards the outside and is one of the leaders of the team," he said.

Serena Williams upset by Li

STUTTGART, Germany (AP) -Serena Williams' game collapsed after she swept the first set Wednesday, leaving her with a 0-6, 6-1, 6-4 loss to China's Li Na that will cost her the No. 1 ranking.

By dropping the second-round match at the Porsche Grand Prix, Williams will be overtaken by Jelena Jankovic when the new rankings come out Monday, the WTA said. The American gained the top spot when she beat Jankovic in the final of the U.S. Open three weeks ago for her ninth Grand Slam title.

Jankovic plays her first match in the tournament on Thursday against Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine in the second round.

Bay blast leads Red Sox past Angels

ANAHEIM, Calif. - No matter how much the Angels dominate Boston during the regular season, they can’t beat the Red Sox in October.

Jason Bay hit a two-out, two-run homer off Los Angeles ace John Lackey in the sixth inning, and the Red Sox beat the Angels 4-1 Wednesday night in the opener of their first-round AL playoff series.

“I think we proved a lot,” Bay said.

The Angels won eight of nine regular-season games between the teams this year, outscoring the Red Sox 42-17 in the final six. But the Red Sox have won 10 straight postseason games against the Angels dating to 1986, including first-round sweeps in 2004 and 2007 en route to World Series titles.

The World Series champion Red Sox tied a major league record for consecutive postseason wins over the same opponent, a mark Oakland set against the Red Sox from 1988-03.

Acquired in the three-team trade that sent Manny Ramirez to the Los Angeles Dodgers two months ago, Bay brought Boston back from a 1-0 deficit in the first postseason game of his career, and the Red Sox got a big start from John Lester (1-0), who allowed only an unearned run in seven innings.

“We had some chances early, and couldn’t get some hits to fall in,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “Lester was on his game. He’s having a terrific year. He’s got a great arm and his velocity was up a bit from earlier in the year and he was able to get the fastball on both sides of the plate.”

The Angels will try to draw even Friday night in Game 2 of the best-of-five series, with Ervin Santana pitching against Boston’s Daisuke Matsuzaka.

While just four of 28 teams to lose NL division series openers have come back to win series, it’s been an even 14-14 split in the AL, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

“We expect to go out and win every game, even though that’s not the way it always works out,” the Angels’ Gary Matthews Jr. said. “You never go into a game expecting to lose. Santana’s had an outstanding year for us, pitched with poise and confidence all year and he was a completely different pitcher than he was the year before.”

There were plenty of dramatic moments in the opener.

With Boston clinging to a 2-1 lead and rookie Justin Masterson on the mound, Jacoby Ellsbury made a great diving catch on Mark Teixeira’s sinking fly to center starting the eighth.

“I thought he had no chance. It just looked like it was in no-man’s land,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said.

Vladimir Guerrero followed with a single before Torii Hunter blooped a hit over first baseman Kevin Youkilis, who quickly recovered and easily threw out Guerrero at third.

“Vlad is aggressive, and it was a tough read, and it was behind him, and I thought he thought the ball was a little further out there than it was,” Scioscia said. “And give Youkilis credit. He maintained his composure, got the hop and made a good throw to third base.”

Hunter said he was surprised Guerrero tried to go from first to third on the play.

“Vladdy was aggressive. That’s what we’ve been known for, but sometimes you have to be kind of smart,” Hunter said. “Sometimes it’s good to be aggressive, and sometimes it’s bad to be aggressive. But Vladdy is Vladdy. He thought he could make it, but it just didn’t work out.”

Ellsbury and David Ortiz added RBI singles in the ninth off Scot Shields, and Jonathan Papelbon finished for his fifth postseason save, extending his postseason scoreless streak to 15 2-3 innings.

The Angels had broken on top with an unearned run in the third on Hunter’s two-out, RBI single. Garret Anderson hit a one-out single and, after Teixeira struck out, rookie shortstop Jed Lowrie muffed Guerrero’s grounder before Hunter lined a 1-2 pitch to left that dropped in front of Bay.

Lowrie, making his postseason debut, set a major league record for rookie shortstops by handling 155 chances without an error in 49 games at that position during the regular season.

“I just rushed a little bit, I think I was trying to flip the ball to second before I fielded it,” Lowrie said. “It kind of looked for a while there like it might be the difference.”

Bay hit an 0-1 pitch far over the left-field fence with Youkilis aboard. He flipped his bat as he began his home run trot upon leaving the batter’s box, long before the ball landed in the seats beyond the double-decker bullpen.

“He left a fastball up, and I hit it,” Bay said.

Lester got the Game 1 assignment after Josh Beckett was pushed back to Game 3 because of an oblique problem. He retired his final seven batters, striking out four, and only one outfielder had a putout during his stint. Lester struck out seven and walked one.

“Early he established his fastball in,” Francona said. “Once we got the lead, he really went after ’em. He came with a vengeance and struck out the side.”

That was in the bottom of the sixth, when Lester fanned Howie Kendrick, Mike Napoli and Matthews.

The Angels, who wrapped up the AL West title with 2½ weeks left in the regular season, finished with a franchise-best 100-62 record that was tops in the majors. But they lost for the eighth time in 10 postseason home games since winning the 2002 World Series.

Lackey, who won Game 7 of that World Series, allowed two runs and four hits in 6 2-3 innings with three walks and five strikeouts.

“John pitched a terrific ballgame and certainly gave us a chance to win,” Scioscia said. “He didn’t make many bad pitches tonight.”

Andy Roddick

Top American wins 26th career title, taking the China Open -- even more fun than eating cocktail weenies at Mardy Fish's wedding. After playing in Madrid last week, it's been a nice frequent flier miles haul for Roddick as well.

Rossi secures sixth MotoGP world crown

(CNN) -- Italian legend Valentino Rossi clinched his sixth MotoGP world title with a thrilling victory in Japan on Sunday. Rossi was getting his hands on the world title for the first time since 2005.

Rossi, riding a Yamaha, went clear of his arch-rival and defending champion Casey Stoner with 11 laps to go at the Motegi circuit to win by nearly two seconds from the Australian. Spain's Dani Pedrosa was third with compatriot Jorge Lorenzo, who started from pole position, in fourth place.

But all the attention focused on the remarkable Rossi, who was claiming his eighth victory of the season and his fifth straight since he took the United States Grand Prix in July.

It left him needing just a podium finish to reclaim the title he last won in 2005.

"It's difficult to compare the titles," Rossi told Associated Press. "This one is great because we really battled here. There have been a lot titles in my career but maybe this is the one that required the most effort."

American Nicky Hayden pipped Rossi to the title in the last race of the 2006 season while Stoner dominated in 2007. With three races left in the season, Rossi has 312 points, 92 ahead of Stoner.

Sunday's race quickly became a contest between Stoner and Rossi as the two riders opened up a comfortable lead ahead of the pack.

"I felt good at the start of the race," said Stoner, who wrapped up his 2007 triumph with a sixth-place finish at Motegi last year.

"I needed a few laps to warm up the tires, then I got a little tired changing the direction of the bike and Valentino came forward."

Rossi is now closing fast on the all-time record of eight world titles held by compatriot Giacomo Agostini. He pulls clear of Australian Mick Doohan who had also won five titles

Ronaldo return can fire United title defense

LONDON, England (AP) -- Cristiano Ronaldo returns to Champions League action on Tuesday in a bid to kickstart Manchester United's title defense after the club's jittery start.

Ronaldo's return can kickstart Manchester United's European title defense after the club's jittery start.

The Portuguese winger, who scored 42 goals during United's double triumph in Europe's top club competition and the Premier League, is back to full fitness after an ankle operation.

After a 0-0 draw with Villarreal in a group which is searching for its first goal, the Red Devils hope Ronaldo will be the catalyst to a much-needed victory against Danish side Aalborg.

Ronaldo scored in United's League Cup 3-1 win against Middlesbrough last week and in Saturday's 2-0 Premier League victory over Bolton.

Ronaldo faces an Aalborg defender who almost missed the game through a suspension he did not deserve.

Michael Beauchamp was sent off in the 0-0 draw with Celtic in Glasgow but the referee had sent off the wrong player.

When Aalborg appealed and UEFA realized that Michael Jakobsen had committed the foul that led to his red card, Beauchamp won a reprieve. He will now face United while Jakobsen serves the one-game ban.

"Luckily everything has been put to rights," the Australian defender said. "Apart from the referee, everyone could see it wasn't me but Michael Jakobsen who made the challenge."

"Now I'm available for a dream match which my parents are flying over from Australia for," Beauchamp said. "Strictly speaking our chances of winning are minimal. Instead we're viewing this match primarily as a great experience."

Celtic goes to Villarreal in the other Group E game with both clubs coming off domestic victories at the weekend.

Like Man United, Arsenal had a shaky start to its Champions League campaign, needing a late equalizer at Dynamo Kiev.

But their 2-1 loss at home to Hull City on Saturday was one of the biggest shocks since the Premier League started 16 years ago. Arsene Wenger needs a home victory over Group G leader FC Porto to steady the nerves of the Gunners fans.

"I don't know if we can afford to lose again but what we delivered (against Hull) was not good enough," Wenger said. "We know that. So the important thing now is not how many games we can lose this season but preparing well for Tuesday night."

Porto won their opening game 3-1 against Fenerbahce which hosts Kiev.

Villa double sees Valencia go top in Spain

MADRID, Spain (AP) -- A double strike from David Villa helped Valencia beat Deportivo La Coruna 4-2 on Sunday to move them top of the Spanish league, ahead of Villarreal on goal difference.

The visitors took the lead when Valencia defender Emiliano Moretti put through his own net in the 11th minute, after redirecting Pablo Alvarez's cross past keeper Renan Brito at his near post.

However, man-of-the-match Juanma Mata levelled in the 35th minute when the young winger headed home a flicked-on cross from Joaquin Sanchez at the far post.

Villa made it 2-1 when he ran onto Mata's ball early in the second half, before cutting inside and stabbing home a right-foot shot.

Sanchez added Valencia's third in the 69th minute when converting Mata's cross from close-range and Mata also set-up the fourth, breaking down the left before feeding Villa at the far post for an easy tap-in that took the Spain striker top of the scoring charts with six goals from five matches.

Angel Lafita pulled a consolation goal back for added Deportivo with five minutes remaining.

Meanwhile, Almeria continued their fine start to the season, but they needed a goal deep in injury time to beat Recreativo Huelva 1-0 to move level with Barcelona in the table with 10 points.

Alvaro Negredo scored the late winner after Recreativo had been reduced to nine men following the dismissals of Jesus Vazquez and Oliveira in the closing stages. Sisinio Gonzalez was then sent off for dissent following Negredo's fourth goal of the season.

Elsewhere, Malaga secured their first victory of the season with a 2-1 win over Valladolid.

Manuel "Lolo" Ortiz slotted a low shot home through a crowd in the 34th minute for Malaga's first goal of the season after 394 minutes played.

Adrian Lopez then secured promoted Malaga's first three points in the 55th minute when the substitute poked Eliseu's cross under goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo. Pedro Leon pulled a goal back for Valladolid when he sidefooted in Haris Medunjanin's rebound at the near post.

Spectacular Singapore lights the way for F1

LONDON, England (CNN) -- Formula One turned to the dark side at the Singapore Grand Prix and judging by how well it was received the sport's first night race will not be its last

Even if it had not thrown up an unlikely winner after a dramatic two hours of racing, Singapore delivered something different.

"It has a good chance of challenging Monaco for being the jewel in the crown of Formula One," Frank Williams told The Guardian newspaper.

With the wildcard element of thunderstorms staying away, the early stages of the race followed a predictably processional pattern as Ferrari's Felipe Massa drove away serenely at the front.

But Nelson Piquet's crash soon after ruined all the best-laid plans and Massa's bungled pitstop, which saw him drive off with the fuel hose still attached, left spectators rubbing their eyes -- and not because it was nearing bed-time.

It swiflty became clear that Singapore could end up with a very different podium and so it proved, with Fernando Alonso winning for the first time in a year and Nico Rosberg achieving his best F1 result.

Singapore at night looked good on television -- and that was the whole point of the exercise as far as the organizers were concerned.

The cameramen had obviously been briefed to pan out from the action and across Marina Bay towards the twinkling, towering city skyline whenever possible.

There were also some spectacular shots of car headlights streaming along the dark flyovers that criss-crossed the early part of the lap, while their floodlit F1 equivalents raced around at treble the speed underneath. Read more about F1 at The Circuit.

It all added to the sense of spectacle, a point not lost on Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong who attended the race.

"I've been watching it on TV the last couple of nights, not watching the cars, but watching the skyline, to see whether the skyline shows up and we see Singapore showing off its best," he told the Straits Times.

"And I think that it's a city we can be proud of, and this is a valuable buzz, publicity for us around the world, which will benefit us in many ways."

McLaren boss Ron Dennis was equally impressed with what the city-state had delivered after months of being left in the dark.

"It is not just a new experience," he said. "It is a real big step in the history of grand prix racing because it has been done so well.

"There are very few places that don't look even better at night because they are beautifully lit and it is the same of this city.

"When you see the shots of the city and the way they have brought the whole atmosphere of Singapore into the event, it is just phenomenal."

The novelty and intrigue generated ahead of the inaugural trip to Singapore may disappear, but the increase in the number of people watching night races will not.

With a lunchtime start in F1's European heartland, the move to night-time starts in Asian races means the sport's money men can milk the international TV market for all its worth.

The Malaysian Grand Prix organizers are looking at running their 2009 race under floodlights and F1 promoter Bernie Ecclestone wants the Japanese Grand Prix to go the same way.

"We're going to try to get Japan to do it. I hope when people see Singapore they realize it wasn't a stupid idea," he told BBC Radio 5 Live.

Dennis, though, is looking at potentially having night races revolutionize F1 closer to home.

"Everything has been proven to work and we can take this model and apply it anywhere. It could be used in Europe to bring us into night and we can change the viewing times," he added.