THE BEST SOCCER PLAYERS

A paper cup was blasted into the pitchside wall. The roof of the dugout reverberated to a slap of the hand. His boots were torn off and thrown at the grass. Imprecations were uttered. Wayne Rooney was in a strop. But it was a rage of frustration, a young man's anger that he had been unable to finish the match and to complete the job he had started. "I asked him about it afterwards and he told me it was because he was disappointed," Sven-Goran Eriksson said, reflecting on his decision to remove the 20-year-old in the 69th minute. "But he played better than last time. He lasted longer, and he will get better and better. I took him off because I can't risk him getting injured." Seldom was a truer word spoken by an England manager. The team's absolute reliance on Rooney's presence was emphasised last night by a first half in which they functioned properly for the first time in the tournament, despite starting the match with a stroke of wretched misfortun

Michael Owen will miss the rest of the World Cup after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. The England striker was injured Tuesday in the second minute of his team's 2-2 draw with Sweden in Cologne. Owen had a scan on his knee Wednesday near England's team base in southern Germany and was to return home later in the day. "Obviously it's a massive blow to suffer the injury -- and be out of the World Cup," Owen said in a statement. "As soon as it happened I knew I was in trouble. It was a major disappointment to pick up the injury so early in the game." Owen's right knee buckled after he played a pass. He rolled off the field and lay on the sideline clutching his leg while play continued. He was treated by doctors and then strapped to a stretcher and taken away. The English Football Association said Owen's recovery would be handled by his English Premier League club Newcastle. Freddy Shepherd, the club's chairman, said Owe

High-flying Spaniard Fernando Torres is set to blow his way through Saudi Arabia's leaky defence boosting a World Cup goals tally that could in turn spark English Premiership interest in his talents. The Spain striker, who sits one goal behind Germany's four-goal hero Miroslav Klose in the World Cup scoring table, may be relatively unknown outside the Primera Liga where he plays for Madrid's unfashionable Atletico. However his World Cup performances for Spain - capping some blistering attacking displays with three goals in two games - could change his footballing horizons. Torres has in the past been courted by some of England's biggest clubs and at only 22 years old, the player known as 'El Nino' (The Kid) is still a huge prospect. Torres opened his account with a goal against Ukraine, and was on hand with two crucial goals to help Spain qualify for the second round in Stuttgart on Monday with a convincing 3-1 win over Tunisia. While regularly criticised for m

Michael Essien is on the verge of leading World Cup stunner Ghana into the second round, the Chelsea midfielder having already convinced a worried US squad that he could destroy their Cup dreams. A victory over the Americans here Thursday in a Group E showdown would send the World Cup debutantes into the round of 16, possibly against reigning champion Brazil. "It would be hard, but we are prepared for it," Essien said. "We're not afraid to meet the Brazilians. We are ready to play anyone. First we have to deal with the USA. They play good football and they will be tough." The 23-year-old star sparked Ghana past second-ranked Czech Republic 2-0 in the biggest Cup shocker so far, a landmark triumph for the Cup debutantes. "It really shows what we are made of," Essien said. "The win was very important for Ghana and for African football." A draw with the USA might be enough to send the Black Stars through, but with their destiny in their hands,

Spanish football icon Raul shook off a dose of the substitutes' blues to help relaunch Spain's World Cup campaign in a pulsating 3-1 win over Tunisia in Group H on Monday. Raul came off the bench at the start of the second half to equalise Jawer Mnari's shock eighth-minute opener for Roger Lemerre's former African champions to settle the nerves of Luis Aragones and his players. Atletico Madrid's Fernando Torres then struck the first of two goals after beating the Tunisian defence to a through ball from second half substitute Cesc Fabregas. Torres, who also scored in Spain's 4-0 thrashing of Ukraine, finished Spain's top scorer on the night after he beat Tunisia keeper Ali Boumnijel from the penalty spot to take his World Cup tally to three goals. However it was Raul's revival, after what has been an uncertain start to his third World Cup, that stole the show as Spain booked their second round ticket with a match to spare. Torres admitted it was Raul'

England's ambition at the World Cup is a mosaic of individual aspirations. This is a youngish squad yet its members have mostly been around long enough to experience the struggle of a career. John Terry, captain of dominant Chelsea though he may be now, recalls how far he was from being equipped for the 2002 version of this tournament when he was 21. "It didn't even enter my head that I should be in the squad," he said. "I wasn't ready. When you look at Rio [Ferdinand] and Sol Campbell, they were different class. I wasn't near them. I feel ready now and it's time for me to prove myself." Terry is right to suppose that he is still to demonstrate his worth fully. During Euro 2004, his sole tournament with England, they conceded four goals in the three matches he played. Though he was not particularly to blame, all their attacking prowess will be in vain this summer unless the defence functions much better. He feels added experience and greater unde

If you were one of England's team of physios, you might try to talk Frank Lampard out of wearing the gigantic gold-encrusted watch that glittered from his left wrist when he turned up to meet the press in the garden cafe of a Baden-Baden hotel yesterday. Not only did it look heavy enough to pull his vertebrae out of alignment, its high bling quotient seemed an affront to a man who, having grown out of his phase of youthful indiscretions, otherwise radiates maturity and good sense. Unfailingly polite and considerate, he was nevertheless quick to correct one journalist who prefaced a question about a 40-year record of disappointment in major tournaments with the casual suggestion that "England are the greatest nation in the world". "I don't think anyone's got a divine right to win any tournament," Lampard replied. "And I don't know about England being the greatest nation in the world. I understand what you're saying, and with the top clubs and

On the eve of the World Cup Germany's captain Michael Ballack yesterday gave a remarkably bleak assessment of their prospects in the tournament, describing his team as "deficient". In an interview with the German newspaper Der Tages-spiegel Ballack admitted his side, who take on Costa Rica tomorrow in the opening match in Munich, lacked the experience of previous squads. Ballack, who is almost certain to play tomorrow after being cleared by doctors to resume training after a calf strain, said: "In comparison with some of the big teams we have deficiencies. Perhaps I'm wrong. I very much hope I'm wrong." The midfielder missed two training sessions this week, prompting fears that Germany would be without their talismanic captain tomorrow, but he said: "It's not so bad. I'm sure I can play against Costa Rica. It's a hangover of the game against Colombia. I noticed on Sunday evening that there was still a stubborn twinge in my calf. But I

Djibril Cissé's chances both of featuring in the World Cup finals and leaving Liverpool appeared to have been dashed last night when he was stretchered from the field with a suspected broken leg during France's final pre-tournament friendly against China in Saint-Etienne. The 24-year-old striker was chasing the ball down the right flank only 10 minutes into the fixture when he was knocked off balance by a China defender and, as he fell, his right leg twisted under him and buckled above the ankle. He departed the turf in agony and was replaced by David Trezeguet, with the France medical team's initial assessment suggesting he had broken his right tibia. Should scans on the injury confirm the worst today Cissé will definitely miss his country's campaign in Germany - they depart for Hanover this morning - and may also be denied an escape route from Anfield. The Marseille sporting director Pape Diouf was on Merseyside yesterday discussing a possible move for the former Auxe

Sven-Goran Eriksson today insisted Wayne Rooney is "injury free" and now just needs to obtain match fitness before he plays in the World Cup. The England coach declared the final decision on when the Manchester United striker can play in Germany will be "Rooney's and mine" after the player's club stated that independent medical opinion pointed to him not being ready to play until after the group stage. Rooney joined in training with the rest of the squad in Baden-Baden this morning after undergoing a scan on his broken metatarsal in Manchester yesterday. United said last night that the 20-year-old "will require very careful assessment in order to address his suitability" to play. However, Eriksson said today: "The good news from yesterday evening and today is Rooney has no more injury. He is injury free and it is up to us now to get him match-fit and when we think he is match-fit I am prepared to take him to any specialist we or Manchester Un

Can Ronaldinho, the smiling, mouth-full-of-teeth, feet-full-of-tricks Brazilian midfielder and goalscorer approach or even surpass the stature of Pele? Epoca, a Brazilian weekly magazine, asks that question in a recent cover story. The fact it even dares to raise the issue suggests how far Ronaldinho, 26, has come in a few years from humble beginnings at the Gremio soccer club in southern Brazil. Without question, Ronaldinho is now the best-known, most-feared footballer around. When he gets the ball a hush descends. Anything can happen: an opponent left gaping; a defense-splitting pass of perfect weight and unlikely vision; a shot of outrageous precision. All executed with a playful whimsy, as if genius were the most natural thing in the world. Ronaldinho has just helped his club, Barcelona, to its second consecutive Spanish League title, and to a European Champions League triumph over Arsenal. He was the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2004 and 2005, and also won the Golden Ball awar