Drogba Withdraws from Ivory Coast's National Team

As the start of the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying draws near, the Ivory Coast's National Soccer Federation is once again in the spotlight. Just weeks after announcing former team member Francois Zahoui as their new coach, the Cote D'Ivoire's best-known player, Didier Drogba, has announced that he will step away from international competition.

According to Goal.com, the 32-year-old striker informed Zahoui that he was physically tired and wanted to withdraw from the Cote D'Ivorie squad. The English Premier League's leading scorer has had little time to rest as of late. After a grueling 2009-2010 Chelsea schedule, which included numerous domestic cup games as well as matches for the Champions League, Drogba broke his arm during a World Cup warm-up match. Despite his broken arm, Drogba was able to play for the Ivory Coast during the World Cup. Despite Drogba's brave efforts, the Ivory Coast failed to advance to the second round of play, finishing behind Brazil and Portugal in their group.

Drogba began his youth playing career in France, where he also made his professional debut. Before joining Chelsea in 2004, Drogba played for Le Mans, Guingamp, and Marseille, A prolific scorer, Drogba has become an unstoppable scoring threat for the defending English Premier League Champions. Drogba began the current 2010-2011 Premier League campaign by producing four goals in just three matches. Drogba's decision to not play for his country will certainly delight Chelsea fans who have already been hampered with injuries. John Terry and Frank Lampard each suffered injuries during the third week of the Premier League campaign. Chelsea's next match is scheduled for Sept. 11 at West Ham United's Upton Park.

The Ivory Coast will play a qualifying match for the Africa Cup of Nations against Rwanda on Saturday, Sept. 4, in Abidjan. The Ivory Coast is playing in qualifying group H with Rwanda, Benin, and Burundi. With Drogba no longer on the roster, the Ivory Coast will rely on other internationally successful players, such as Emmanuel Eboue and Drogba's Chelsea teammate, Kalou.
With a squad consisting of numerous players who play throughout top leagues in Europe, the Ivory Coast should easily advance through group H, even without their superstar. Despite Drogba currently withdrawing from the National Team, many believe that the phenomenal striker may eventually play for the Ivory Coast again in the future.

Sources:

Kingsley Kobo, "Didier Quits Cote D'Ivoire National Team" Goal.com

Inter Milan 0-2 Atletico Madrid

Rafa Benitez insisted he needs more time to make his mark on Inter Milan after the reigning European champions slumped to a 2-0 defeat against Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup.

The former Liverpool manager admitted Inter were below par against the Europa League winners, who triumphed through goals by former Arsenal forward Jose Antonio Reyes and Argentina striker Sergio Aguero.

Benitez said he wants to change some of the things put in place by his predecessor Jose Mourinho but needs time to do so.

"Some things we will need to do in the same way as we did before and change the way we do some other things,'' said Benitez. "It's clear we will need some time but how long you never know. We have not had much time since the World Cup with the players. We were not at the level we needed to be against a team that was physically stronger and very good tactically.''

Benitez added that Inter's Champions League group with Tottenham, Werder Bremen and FC Twente was potentially dangerous.

"It's a really difficult group,'' he said after the match in Monaco's Stade Louis II. "There is not a big difference between the teams and that can be dangerous. This will be very tough.''

Reyes was named man of the match and expressed his delight at being the matchwinner.

"It was a tremendous joy,'' he said. "To score a goal in the final is every player's dream.''

Group of Champions League 2010/2011

Group of Champions League 2010/2011

Group A
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Inter Milan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Werder Bremen	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Tottenham	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
FC Twente	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group B
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Lyon	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Benfica	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Schalke	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Hapoel Tel Aviv	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group C
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Manchester United	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Valencia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Rangers	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Bursaspor	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group D
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Barcelona	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Panathinaikos	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Copenhagen	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Rubin Kazan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group E
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Bayern Munich	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Roma	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Basel	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
CFR Cluj	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group F
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Chelsea	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Marseille	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Spartak Moscow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
MSK Zilina	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group G
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
AC Milan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Real Madrid	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ajax	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Auxerre	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group H
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Arsenal	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Shakhtar Donetsk	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Braga	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Partizan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Spurs get holders Inter, Real's group of death

Tottenham will face reigning champions Inter Milan in the Champions League group stages, while they also face German side Werder Bremen and Steve McClaren's former side FC Twente. Spurs' first attempt on European club football's top prize is not an easy task with Rafa Benitez now at the helm at the San Siro and Bremen, who finished third in the Bundesliga last season.

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• Forum: Will a London club make the final?

Manchester United face up against Rangers in another 'Battle of Britain' after their last clash in 2003-04 and must contend with Valencia as well - although the Spanish side have been weakened by the summer exits of David Villa and David Silva - and shock Turkish champions Bursaspor.

Didier Drogba gets a reunion with former club Marseille as Chelsea are drawn in a group with the French champions, but they also face a tough trip to Spartak Moscow and Slovakia's MSK Zilina. Marseille boss Didier Deschamps got the better of Chelsea in 2004 when in charge of Monaco but, having lost two of their first three league games, will have to turn things around.

Arsenal will be reunited with Eduardo after the striker moved to Shakhtar Donetsk, while they also face Braga - who hammered Sevilla in the play-offs - and Serbian side Partizan. The Gunners lost 3-0 in Donetsk back in 2000, but turned it around in the second leg as they sealed a thrilling 3-2 win thanks to Martin Keown's two late goals.

The group of death is undoubtedly the one containing AC Milan, Real Madrid, Ajax and Auxerre. Real and Milan clashed last season in the group stages, with Milan coming out 3-2 winners at the Bernabeu, but Milan will have extra motivation this year as former Inter coach Jose Mourinho is now at the helm of the Madrid side.

Conversely, Barcelona have been granted one of the easiest groups ever seen in the Champions League. They have a tough trip to Rubin Kazan - who beat them at the Nou Camp in the group stages last season - but Copenhagen and Greek side Panathinaikos shouldn't prove too much of a test for Lionel Messi and company.

Group of Europa League

Group of Europa League

Group A
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Juventus	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Manchester City	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Salzburg	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lech Poznan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group B
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Atletico Madrid	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Bayer Leverkusen	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Rosenborg	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Aris Thessaloniki	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group C
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Sporting	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lille	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Levski Sofia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Gent	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group D
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Villarreal	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Club Brugge	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Dinamo Zagreb	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
PAOK	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group E
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
AZ Alkmaar	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Dynamo Kiev	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BATE Borisov	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
FC Sheriff	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group F
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
CSKA Moscow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Palermo	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Sparta Prague	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lausanne Sports	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group G
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Zenit St Petersburg	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Anderlecht	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
AEK Athens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Hadjuk Split	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group H
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Stuttgart	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Getafe	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Odense	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Young Boys	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group I
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
PSV Eindhoven	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Sampdoria	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Metalist Kharkiv	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Debreceni	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group J
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Sevilla	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Paris Saint Germain	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Borussia Dortmund	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Karpaty	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group K
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Liverpool	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Steaua Bucharest	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Napoli	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Utrecht	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group L
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Porto	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Besiktas	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
CSKA Sofia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Rapid Vienna	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Europa League : Man City face Juventus in Group

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini will return to his native Italy after the club were placed in the same group as Juventus in Friday's Europa League draw.

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The ceremony, which took place in Monaco ahead of the European Super Cup, pitted big-spending City against Juventus, who finished seventh in Serie A last season. The Old Lady of Italian football recently signed Alberto Aquilani on loan from Liverpool and have also recruited Serbian winger Milos Krasic, who was linked with a move to Eastlands.

The other two teams in Group A are Austrian club Salzburg and Lech Poznan of Poland. City qualified for the group stages of the competition following a 3-0 aggregate win over Timisoara.

Meanwhile, Liverpool were handed a tricky draw in Group K, where they will face Steaua Bucharest, Napoli and Utrecht. The Italian club, who signed Andrea Dossena from Liverpool in January, were one of the toughest sides in Pot Three.

Liverpool played Steaua in the UEFA Cup in the 2003-04 season, drawing 1-1 in Romania thanks to a goal from Djimi Traore and winning the return leg of the second-round tie 1-0, with Harry Kewell scoring the only goal of the game. Only captain Steven Gerrard remains from the squad that contested the second leg.

Liverpool club secretary Ian Sylvester said: "We don't have to travel to Ukraine or Belarus - we've just been on a four and a half hour flight - so travel-wise could be a lot worse. I don't know too much about Utrecht but any team that beats Celtic 4-0 must be a decent side. We will treat all three opponents with respect - Steaua Bucharest were top of the seeds in the second pot so that will be difficult too."

Other notable aspects of the draw include a clash between reigning champions Atletico Madrid and Michael Ballack's Bayer Leverkusen in Group B, Sevilla, Paris Saint Germain and Borussia Dortmund meeting in Group J and Ricardo Quaresma returning to Porto with Besiktas in Group L.