Advertisement

Help
You are here: Rediff Home » India » Sports » Football » Reuters > Report
Search:  Rediff.com The Web
Advertisement
   Discuss   |      Email   |      Print | Get latest news on your desktop

Juventus back Liverpool's Champions League bid
Alastair Himmer
Get Sports updates:What's this?
Advertisement
June 02, 2005 11:41 IST

Juventus added their support on Wednesday to Liverpool's bid to defend their Champions League trophy next season.

Europe's governing body UEFA [Images] is under pressure to include Liverpool in next season's competition even though they failed to qualify after coming fifth in the English Premier League.

Also Read


Liverpool win Champions League

Liverpool's greatest six minutes

FA to fight Liverpool's cause

The champions parade


"Liverpool won the European Cup and they should have the right to defend their trophy," Juventus coach Fabio Capello said after his team's 1-0 win over Japan's [Images] Yokohama F-Marinos.

"The champions should be involved but I think they should have to qualify like Brazil [Images] have to qualify for next year's World Cup."

Liverpool were crowned champions of Europe for the fifth time last week after staging a remarkable recovery from 3-0 down to beat AC Milan on penalties.

Pressure has mounted on UEFA since then after the G14, the grouping of elite European clubs, called for the Reds to be let into next season's Champions League.

Juventus playmaker Pavel Nedved also backed Liverpool, who knocked the Italian champions out of this season's competition at the quarter-final stage.

"Everyone wants to see how Liverpool go about defending the title," the Czech told reporters. "Everyone wants Liverpool to be in it and of course everyone wants to beat the defending champions."

Juventus captain Alessandro Del Piero added his support to Liverpool's bid for re-entry.

"In my opinion, Liverpool should be able to defend their cup," he said. "They must be let in."

The matter could be resolved by UEFA's 15-man executive committee at their meeting in Manchester on June 17.

UEFA president Lennart Johansson has voiced his support for Liverpool's inclusion.



© Copyright 2008 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.
 Email  |    Print   |   Get latest news on your desktop

© 2008 Rediff.com India Limited. All Rights Reserved. Disclaimer | Feedback