LONDON – Tottenham captain Ledley King is on course to return to full training in around two weeks as he steps up his recovery from knee surgery.

King, 27, has been plagued by injuries in the last two years and has yet to feature for Martin Jol’s side this season.

But Jol believes the England defender should be able to play by the end of November if his return to training goes as planned.

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BIRMINGHAM, England – Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill has played down reports that he is one of the favourites to replace Steve McClaren as England coach.

Villa chairman Randy Lerner said this week that he would not stop O’Neill taking the England job if McClaren is sacked.

The England boss looks likely to lose his position if England fail to qualify for Euro 2008, but O’Neill is far from certain that will happen.

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LONDON – Chelsea captain John Terry will be out of action for up to three weeks after undergoing knee surgery on Friday.

Terry had delayed the operation so he could play in England’s Euro 2008 qualifier against Russia, but the defender aggrevated the problem in training before the match in Moscow.

Chelsea have also confirmed that left-back Ashley Cole will be out for around four weeks after injuring his ankle during England’s win over Estonia last Saturday.

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MADRID – Barcelona midfielder Ronaldinho will be dropped for Saturday’s match against Villarreal because he failed to make a training session due to his late arrival back from Brazil, the club said Friday.

“The Brazilian, who took part in Brazil’s crushing victory over Ecuador, did not return in time to join the last preparation session before the match on Saturday at Villarreal,” Barcelona said in a statement.

“The manager Frank Rijkaard decided not to include him in the line-up for this encounter.”

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DUBLIN – Republic of Ireland manager Steve Staunton faces a fight to keep his job after his boss stopped short of giving him his unequivocal backing.

Staunton’s side were eliminated from the race to qualify for Euro 2008 after being held to a 1-1 draw by Cyprus at Croke Park on Wednesday.

The Irish fans showed their displeasure by jeering Staunton and Football Association of Ireland chief executive John Delaney has hinted that a meeting to discuss his country’s poor campaign could be brought forward to this weekend.

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MANCHESTER, England – Sir Alex Ferguson claims Arsenal’s young stars are serious rivals for Manchester United’s Premiership crown and Arsene Wenger’s league leaders must be taken seriously this season.

United manager Ferguson takes his team to Aston Villa on Saturday bidding to keep within touching distance of unbeaten Arsenal, who have made a hugely impressive start to the campaign, despite the summer exit of Thierry Henry.

Arsenal have displayed breathtaking football and a menacing goal threat with a team of young players including Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie and Brazilian youngster Denilson.

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LONDON – Managerless Bolton have turned to Real Sociedad boss Chris Coleman after being snubbed in their bid to lure Steve Bruce to the Reebok Stadium.

Bolton are searching for a new manager after sacking Sammy Lee and Coleman’s agent revealed the Premier League club have asked Sociedad for permission to speak to Coleman.

The former Fulham boss, who has only been in Spain for four months, is Bolton’s latest target after Birmingham rebuffed an attempt to talk to Bruce.

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BELGRADE – Partizan Belgrade on Thursday warned any big European clubs eyeing their striker Stevan Jovetic that they will have to wait for the 17-year-old star.

Jovetic, a Montenegrin national, has been linked this week in the British press to Premiership champions Manchester United and Spanish giants Real Madrid among other European sides.

“A lot of clubs are determined and serious in their interest of Jovetic, who is one of the most promising players in Europe according to the experts,” said Partizan president Tomislav Karadzic.

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AMSTERDAM (TICKER) — Adrie Koster will be the new man in charge of Ajax when the Dutch giants host third-bottom NEC Nijmegen in the Eredivisie this weekend.

The former boss of the Amsterdam club, Henk ten Cate, departed for the coaching ranks of big-spending English Premier League side Chelsea and Koster has moved into the hotseat.

Ajax, unbeaten in the top flight, are in their customary position of being right in the thick of the title race with five wins and two draws so far – leaving them one point adrift of Feyenoord and level with champions PSV Eindhoven.

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HAMBURG (TICKER) — Stuttgart travels to Hamburg this weekend in need of a win to turn around what is becoming a dismal campaign.

The Swabians were surprising Bundesliga winners last season, but have been unable to maintain their form this term.

With nine games of the season gone they have only 10 points and are closer to the bottom three than the top four.

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