Serie A has been thrown into crisis after the Italian Professional Players’ Association (AIC) voted to go on strike on the weekend of September 25-26 and bring the league to a halt.

The players are protesting against the failure to agree a new collective-bargaining agreement between AIC and the Lega Calcio which would guarantee players’ rights.

The club owners of Serie A had said they would propose a new collective deal this Monday but their attempts to “impose new contractual rules” was met with resistance by the players, who also feel aggrieved at a clubs trying to force players to move teams in the last year of their contracts.

Milan full-back Massimo Oddo read out the following statement: “The association, in accordance with the players of Serie A, has decided that they will not take to the pitch for the fifth round of matches of the Serie A championship on September 25 and 26 in protest against requests to impose new contractual rules.”

Oddo added: “The players are fed up with being treated like objects and not like people. We are dealing with human rights here.”

The strike will take place on a weekend scheduled to host a full programme of Serie A games, including a high-profile clash between Roma and Inter.

A meeting will take place on Monday between Italy’s football federation president Giancarlo Abete and his Serie A and AIC counterparts to discuss the way forward.

“The strike is likely to take place regardless of the decision that could come out of Monday’s meeting,” added Oddo.

AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic claims his new club are better than Spanish champions Barcelona – the team he left just last month.

Ibra and Robinho excited by Milan

Ibrahimovic swapped the Nou Camp for the San Siro in a 24 million deal after falling out with manager Pep Guardiola and slipping down the pecking order.

Milan president Silvio Berlusconi swooped to rescue the Swedish international from life on the Barcelona bench and Ibrahimovic claims he just couldn’t resist a call from the Rossoneri.

“No player can say no to Milan. There’s nothing much to think about, you just say yes and thank the club,” Ibrahimovic said. “I think Milan are greater than Barcelona if you look at the history. I don’t know what the problem was at Barcelona, but Berlusconi convinced me to come here.

“I spoke to him twice and he said many important things. It convinced me. I was already ready, before the clubs agreed. Galliani then came to Barcelona and he said to me ‘I won’t go back to Milan without you’.”

The former Inter player will be sure to be given a hot reception in the Derby della Madonnina but Ibrahimovic is particularly looking forward to that game and writing a new chapter in his career.

“I can’t wait to play against Inter. I had a great time at Barcelona and Inter, but Inter are the opposition and I cannot wait for the derby. This year’s Serie A is between two clubs… Milan and Inter, but we will finish first and they will finish second.

“Now I am a Milan player. I don’t care what Inter have been saying. Milan is my future. We are complete now and have a great mentality. We are favourites to win the Scudetto now. I won at Inter, but now I am here to win. I hope I can do better here compared to what I did at Juventus and Inter. We will make sure the fans enjoy the season.”

Real Madrid defender Pepe is champing at the bit to play his first game at the Bernabeu since December.

The 27-year-old missed much of last season with cruciate ligament damage and, although he recovered to feature for Portugal at the World Cup, has since suffered a calf injury.

He appears to have fully recovered, though, and could play in Madrid’s second Primera Division match of the season against Osasuna on Saturday.

“I feel fine and anxious to step onto the pitch and help the team,” Pepe, whose side drew their opening fixture against Real Mallorca in his absence, said. “I can’t wait to play at the Bernabeu again. It is very
important to me.

“We always try to win, but it isn’t possible all the time. It is our duty to do a good job and fight to the end to take three points. That’s what we’ll do.”

Pepe expects a tough challenge on Saturday, especially from Osasuna strikers Walter Pandiani and Carlos Aranda.

“They are strong strikers,” he said. “They like to fight hard. Osasuna have a good squad and a strong coach. They’ve been doing a good job. We have to try to control the pace to our games from the start.”

City rivals Atletico Madrid opened up with a 4-0 win over Sporting Gijon to top the table after a single match, and they travel to Athletic Bilbao. Defender Alvaro Dominguez admits he has enjoyed sitting at the top of the pile over the international break.

“We’ve had this weekend off to enjoy the lead,” he said. “It is always nice to be top but we know that we’ve had just a week of competition and it’s too soon to boast.”

Also on Saturday, Barcelona host Hercules who, as one of the newly promoted
sides, are one of only two top-flight teams Lionel Messi has not scored against, while Racing Santander go to Valencia.

Sevilla were convincing victors, 4-1 at Levante, on opening weekend and they will look for a second win against Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday. Midfielder Didier Zokora is happy with the make-up of the team.

“I prefer 4-3-3 because we have more options,” he said. “With Renato and (Luca) Cigarini we complement each other very well, because they are more creative and therefore I can do the defensive work. I am very pleased to be able to play next to them as the team is more offensive.”

Elsewhere on Sunday, Sporting host Mallorca, Malaga go to Real Zaragoza, Getafe entertain Levante and Villarreal face Espanyol.

Monday’s match sees Almeria take on Real Sociedad.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is ready for his AC Milan debut on Saturday as the Rossoneri look to claim the second straight win at the start of the season when they play at newly-promoted Cesena.

Ibrahimovic joined Milan last week from Barcelona and is eager to start playing for his new club.

“We have one of the best striking forces in the world,” said Ibrahimovic. “I want to repay the fans for their great reception. I hope to score at least 25 goals this season although the most important thing is for the team to win.”

Ibrahimovic, who played for Milan’s city rivals Inter before leaving for Spain last year, is competing with Alexandre Pato and Ronaldinho for a place in the starting XI. The Brazilians shone in Milan’s 4-0 triumph over Lecce in their Serie A opener, which was Massimiliano Allegri’s first game in charge of Milan.

Defending champions Inter go in search of their first league win against Udinese on Saturday. The Nerazzurri were held to a goalless draw at Bologna in their opener. Inter coach Rafael Benitez will be hoping for an improved performance from his players.

Juventus are looking to halt a poor run of form when they square off against
Sampdoria, with their last league victory having come back on April 25. Luigi
Del Neri’s men fell to a 1-0 defeat at Bari on day one of the campaign.

Roma will not be taking Cagliari lightly when they make the trip to Sardinia
this weekend. Last season’s runners-up were held to a 2-2 draw on their last
trip there.

Fiorentina will be without suspended Alessandro Gamberini and Juan Vargas when
they travel to Lecce on Sunday. The Viola have not won on the road since March
11.

Genoa are in buoyant mood going into their home game against Chievo following a
1-0 triumph at Udinese. That victory was especially sweet for the Grifoni as
they won just three times away from home in their 19 road games last season.

Bari will look for their first Serie A win at Napoli since 1959.

Meanwhile, Alberto Malesani will make his coaching debut with Bologna when they
travel to Rome to face Lazio. Malesani replaced Franco Colomba, who was sacked on the eve of his team’s
opener against Inter.

Parma will have to overcome the absence of striker Alberto Paloschi when they
visit Catania. Paloschi sustained a muscular injury while on international duty with Italy’s
under-21 team last week.

Palermo are still without last season’s top scorer Fabrizio Miccoli because of
injury as they go after a first win off the season when travelling to Brescia.

Bayern Munich will be looking to get their season back on the rails when they meet in the clash of two of the Bundesliga’s most successful clubs in European football on Saturday evening.

The last two German clubs to play in a European final – Werder Bremen lost in the UEFA
Cup final two years ago while Bayern were beaten in the Champions League final
last year – lock horns at the Allianz Arena just days before
starting their Champions League campaigns next week.

But first, the priority is getting points in the Bundesliga. Bayern were beaten 2-0 by Kaiserslautern a fortnight ago and
risk making a similarly poor start to last season if they fail to beat their
rivals from the north.

“Playing against Bayern is always something special,” said Bremen midfielder
Torsten Frings, who also played for Bayern for two seasons, to Bild. “We are travelling there to get something. We want to win there.”

Bremen make the trip south without former Bayern striker Claudio Pizarro and
defender Per Mertesacker, who are injured, but with new signings Wesley and
Mikael Silvestre.

Joint League leaders Hoffenheim get the ball rolling this weekend with a home game
against Schalke, who have yet to win a point yet this season.

Wolfsburg, champions in 2009, are also still searching for their first point of
the season and coach Steve McClaren may be without influential attacking
midfielder Diego for the trip to Borussia Dortmund on Saturday due to an ankle
injury.

Hamburg, on the other hand, have made a perfect start to the season with two
straight wins and they will be confident of making it three out of three against
Nurnberg.

Elsewhere on Saturday, free-scoring Borussia Monchengladbach host Eintracht
Frankfurt fresh from their 6-3 triumph over Bayer Leverkusen while Freiburg and
Stuttgart meet in a Baden-Wurttemberg derby and Hannover host Leverkusen.

Sunday’s games see high-flying Mainz and Kaiserslautern meet in another derby
while Cologne entertain St Pauli.

Werder Bremen defender Per Mertesacker suffered a broken eye socket in Germany’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Azerbaijan on Tuesday night, the Bundesliga club have confirmed.

Mertesacker only lasted 11 minutes of the 6-1 victory in Cologne after being caught by an elbow and, after having a gash under his eye stitched, he went to hospital for X-rays.

And those X-rays have revealed a break, with the 71-cap centre half set to undergo further tests later today, although he will not need an operation. It means he is a big doubt for Bremen’s league clash with Bayern Munich on Saturday.

A statement on Bremen’s website read: “Mertesacker suffered a broken eye socket and a gash under his left eye in the German national team’s 6-1 victory over Azerbaijan in the Euro 2012 qualifier in Cologne.

“Doctors said Mertesacker does not need an operation. As planned, the defender drove back to Bremen overnight on Tuesday. He will undergo further examinations on Wednesday.”

Fiorentina president Andrea Della Valle says he was “totally stunned” by midfielder Riccardo Montolivo’s decision to stall over a new contract.

The Italy international was expected to sign a new deal with the Viola but instead broke off talks in order to assess the options available to him.

Montolivo has been linked with Premier League clubs Arsenal and Manchester City, as well as Italian champions Inter, and Della Valle was shocked when the player refused to commit his future to the club at such a late stage.

“I was left totally stunned by this Montolivo contract renewal situation,” Della Valle said.
“There were only a few details left to be decided. I would hate for his agent to be involved in this turnaround.”

Following Italy’s 5-0 win over Faroe Islands on Tuesday night, the player sought to underline that he wants time to consider his options.

“My links with the fans and the city and not up for debate, but the contract extension is another question,” he told Rai Sport. “We are talking about a decision that’s relative to my future, so there is need of time to evaluate every aspect of it. My actual deal lasts until June 2012, so there is a long time to think about it.”

England Under-21s kept alive their hopes of qualification for next summer’s European Championships with a convincing victory over Lithuania at Colchester.

Pearce heaps praise on Wilshere

England had to win to stand a chance of securing one of the four
best placed runners-up spots to make the play-offs for Denmark.

After a tense first half, a brace from Sunderland forward Danny Welbeck and
Aston Villa youngster Marc Albrighton secured the victory which, given results
elsewhere, secured England’s passage to the play-offs.

Pearce had named an unchanged side from the 1-0 win in Portugal, which meant
Arsenal youngster Jack Wilshere had to again be content with a place on the
bench.

It was a nervy opening from the Young Lions at the Weston Homes Community
Stadium, and Blackburn defender Phil Jones had to make an important saving
tackle as Arvydas Novikovas broke into the left side of the penalty area.

The first decent opening for England came on 11 minutes when Chelsea forward
Daniel Sturridge dragged his shot wide after good work down the left by Ryan
Bertrand, on loan at Nottingham Forest from Stamford Bridge.

Slowly the home side started to get control of the midfield, with Lithuania
picking up two quick bookings for late challenges.

Jones headed over a corner from Tom Cleverley, on loan at Wigan from Manchester
United, before captain Michael Mancienne – another of the Chelsea youngsters,
spending the season at Wolves – saw his long-range effort saved.

Tottenham winger Danny Rose drilled the ball just over as England continued to
press for the breakthrough.

There was a let off for the home side on 35 minutes when a 25-yard free-kick
from defender Mantas Fridrikas squirmed through the grasp of keeper Frank
Fielding and hit the base of the post.

Welbeck dragged his 20-yard shot wide as England finished the half on top, but
still unable to breakdown the stubborn Lithuania defence.

Wilshere was introduced at the start of the second half, replacing Kyle Walker
and immediately England looked more assertive.

Rose had a shot blocked, while Sturridge curled his shot just wide.

The breakthrough finally came on 61 minutes when Welbeck stroked the ball into
the far corner after being played through the left side of the penalty area by
Wilshere’s fine pass.

England knew their play-off hopes could come down to goal difference, and so
continued to press.

Sturridge saw his neat finished ruled out by the offside flag as the game
entered the final 20 minutes, before Welbeck looped his header onto the roof of
the net.

The pace of Welbeck soon opened up Lithuania again and his angled shot was
almost bundled into the net by a combination of keeper and defender, before,
with 11 minutes left, Albrighton stabbed the ball home at the far post.

Welbeck wrapped up victory when he scored a second in stoppage time.

Pearce heaps praise on Wilshere

Stuart Pearce praised Jack Wilshere’s maturity after the
Arsenal midfielder came off the bench to help fire the Young Lions into the
European Championship play-offs with a 3-0 win over Lithuania Under-21s.

”Jack gave us a lift when he came on and had an impact on the game,” said
Pearce. ”For a young man, who in his own mind is expecting to be playing on Friday and
then on the back of that was not in the starting line-up again, he has handled
that extremely well.

”It was probably only Welbeck’s performance in training which kept Jack out of
the team, that coupled with the fact that Jack did get caught up with the
headlines in the papers.

”He will readily admit that, and it was important that he put that to bed. In some ways there is no situation. He
is a quite a level-headed kid. It is difficult for young men as they get thrust in the limelight and they
are bombarded with information about who they should be, Eusebio or whoever. Any
form of adversity they are left high and dry.

”Credit to him. The only thing that matters is his performance when he steps
over that line.”

England finished second in Group 9 and will join winners Greece in October’s
play-offs – along with Scotland – as one of the four best runners-up to battle
for a place in Denmark next summer. Pearce intends to press for a strongest possible squad.

”I will speak to [England manager] Fabio [Capello], give him a piece of paper
and say that this is the squad I want,” said Pearce. ”In August, he said you are not having [Kieran] Gibbs and Jack. It will be the same this time – although I might get cheeky and ask for [Theo] Walcott.’

”When these boys met up 10 days ago, it was two must-win games otherwise we were finished. It is hard work to play under that sort of pressure We won the first game where it was slightly easier with a team coming at you. We knew what Lithuania would throw at us today, sit behind the ball and it was important we got an early goal which we didn’t, that compounded the problem.

”The performance was not fantastic, we played a lot better in second half. I am pleased that we have an opportunity to get into play offs and stake claim for the tournament.”

European clubs have appealed to football’s authorities to start paying insurance premiums to cover players injured whilst on international duty.

Just as England prepared to take on Switzerland in one of a raft of qualifiers across the continent, so Europe’s largest representative body of clubs said it could no longer run the risk of players picking up injuries on international duty.

“FIFA and UEFA have to care about our players,” said Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, chairman of the 197-strong European Club Association. “It is no longer acceptable that we have to give up our players … and then they come back injured.”

Although FIFA compensated clubs for the use of their players during the World Cup, this was mainly to cover salaries on a daily basis rather than take account of injuries.

The world governing body has also moved international double-headers from Saturday and Wednesday to Friday and Tuesday in order for players to get back to their clubs in decent time for weekend domestic games. But neither measure, according to Rummenigge, goes far enough.

“If I rent a car I have to bring it back clean as if it was unused,” he said. “With players we have to give them up yet have to pay, twice over if you like, when we get them back injured.”

Tottenham will be without their captain Michael Dawson for up to eight weeks after the central defender was stretchered off against Bulgaria last Friday while Rummenigge’s own club, Bayern Munich, will be missing former Chelsea winger Arjen Robben for possibly the rest of the year.

“Robben is a classic case of a player going to the World Cup already injured and coming back in a worse condition and now we have to pay the bill,” he said.

Rummenigge said insurance packages must cover all international fixtures, including friendlies and youth games, and ideally all European-based players even if they are from other continents.

UEFA, he said, was the best outlet for bringing about some kind of firm agreement in the hope that FIFA would follow suit and change its statutes, which currently insist that clubs have to insure their own players at all times.

“We have had discussions with FIFA in the past but they were not successful,” Rummenigge said. “We appreciate that FIFA paid compensation during the World Cup but the income they make is thanks to our players, who are paid by our clubs.”

He admitted negotiations would be tough. “We have to establish the length and cost of policies,” he said. “Obviously if a player returns with nothing more than a pulled muscle there is no sense taking out a huge and expensive insurance policy.”

At a news conference following its two-day annual meeting, the ECA also called on FIFA to scrap worthless internationals and give greater priority to the well-being of players.

Coaches from across Europe, most vociferously Spurs boss Harry Redknapp, were furious at losing their international players for a programme of friendlies last month just as they were preparing for the new domestic season.

“We will intervene more and more in the international match calendar,” Rummenigge said. “Some countries are already playing their third series of internationals since the World Cup. We need deep discussions to find a solution. Federations like FIFA need to recognise that the players are our employees and we have to be involved in these kinds of discussions.

“The August friendly date was a nonsense. We have to make FIFA understand that certain things don’t make sense. We have to discuss this with Mr (Sepp) Blatter and his colleagues in order to do something for the good of football. It is very dangerous to come back from a long tournament with only three
weeks of holidays and with less than one week of preparation and then play a friendly for the national team. That kind of date has to be given up.”

Meanwhile, Manchester United chief executive David Gill retained his position on the revamped 15-strong ECA board, switching from a regular board member to take up a place on Uefa’s influential Professional Football Strategy Council.

Gill is the only English representative on the board, though Rangers’ John McClelland remains third vice-chairman.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic believes there is no reason he cannot play alongside AC Milan’s Brazilian trio up front.

Sweden striker Ibrahimovic, who joined the Rossoneri from Barcelona last month, is expected to make his Serie A debut for the club in Saturday’s match at Cesena.

Milan now have an abundance of attacking options with Robinho, Alexandre Pato and Ronaldinho also at the club but, asked if they could play with four strikers, Ibrahimovic told Gazzetta dello Sport: “Of course we can. It works very well in my national team.

“I don’t know what tactical line-up we will play with but I believe this one would be a valid one. Attack is always the best defence – that is my philosophy.”