Wasit Akui Atur Laga MU Vs Shenzhen

BEIJING, KOMPAS.com - Kepada pengadilan, seorang wasit China, Huang Junjie, mengaku menerima suap untuk mengatur dua pertandingan persahabatan antara tahun 2005-2009. Salah satu pertandingan itu adalah antara Manchester United (MU) dan Shenzhen, pada 2007. Belum ada indikasi bahwa klub yang terlibat mengetahui adanya skandal tersebut.

Kasus Huang Junjie, yang telah menjadi wasit selama lebih dari 20 tahun dan masuk nominasi wasit terbaik China pada 2009 lalu, adalah salah satu kasus dugaan korupsi di sepak bola China.

Huang Junjie mengaku menerima 245.000 dollar AS untuk mengatur dua pertandingan persahabatan internasional dan 20 suap lainnya dari enam klub China, antara tahun 2005-2009.

Menganai pertandingan MU melawan Shenzen, Huang Junjie mengaku menerima 13.000 dollar AS supaya Shenzen memenangi undian koin untuk kick-off. MU memenangi pertandingan itu dengan skor 6-0.

Pertandingan lain yang diatur Huang Junjie adalah antara Shenhua dan klub Australia Sydney, pada 2009.

Seorang wasit lain, Lu Jun, akan menjalani sudang pada Rabu (21/12/2011). Sementara 20 mantan ofisial pertandingan dan wasit dijadwalkan menjalani sidang pada beberapa hari setelahnya.

Menurut media-media lokal, Federasi Sepak Bola China secara rutin mengatur pertandingan, termasuk pertandingan tim nasional dan liga. Mereka diduga membayar tim atau wasit yang terlibat. Mereka juga disebut menerima bayaran dari pemain yang ingin masuk tim nasional.

Hal itu mengakibatkan sepak bola China ditinggalkan sponsor. Stasiun Televisi CCTV bahkan menolak menyiarkan pertandingan liga utama China.

Sumber :
AFP

Drogba Ingin ke China, Lampard Menyusul

. Sementara Frank Lampard mengindikasikan akan menyusul pergi.

Sepak bola China memang sedang bergairah. Sebelumnya, striker Chelsea lainnya, Nicolas Anelka, pindah ke Shanghai Shenhua. Kini, Drogba ditawari klub China lainnya, Dalian Aerbin, dengan iming-iming gaji 200.000 pounds per pekan (sekitar Rp 2,8 miliar). Gaji sebesar itu juga diberikan kepada Anelka di Shenhua.

Sementara dalam pembicaraan kontrak baru di Chelsea, Drogba hanya dijanjikan gaji 120.000 pounds (sekitar Rp 1,7 miliar) per pekan. Artinya, jika Drogba membela Dalian Aerbin, dia akan mendapat penghasilan 20 juta pounds (sekitar Rp 281,3 miliar) dalam setahun. Sementara jika bertahan di Chelsea, dia hanya akan mendapatkan penghasilan 6,5 juta pounds (sekitar Rp 91,4 miliar).

Sebenarnya, Drogba ingin bertahan di Chelsea asal tuntutan gajinya dipenuhi. Namun, Chelsea menolaknya. Maka, Januari 2012, dia kemungkinan besar menerima tawaran klub China tersebut.

Sementara Frank Lampard merasa tak masuk dalam rencana utama Manajer Andre Villas-Boas (AVB). Ia mulai sering menjadi pemain cadangan, bahkan pernah tak dimasukkan ke dalam skuad. Sudah 10 tahun membela Chelsea, merasa pantas mendapat penjelasan dari AVB, tetapi hingga kini belum dijelaskan juga.

Sebab itu, Lampard pun mulai berpikir pindah klub. Maka, kemungkinan pada Januari nanti Chelsea akan kehilangan Drogba dan Lampard.

Sementara itu, AVB menjelaskan, "Banyak pemain yang mendesak untuk dimasukkan ke dalam tim dan Lampard bukan satu-satunya. Lampard dan John Terry merepresentasikan hal terbaik dalam sejarah klub. Namun, setiap pemain harus diperlakukan seadil mungkin," kata AVB kepada The Sun.

Kontrak Lampard masih tersisa 18 bulan. Dia digaji 170.000 pounds (sekitar Rp 2,3 miliar) per pekan. Namun, dia merasa tak bahagia karena dicadangkan dalam dua pertandingan terakhir saat melawan Valencia dan Manchester City.

Saat melawan City, Senin (12/12/2011), dia tampil sebagai pemain cadangan dan mencetak gol. Chelsea pun menang 2-1 dan rekor tak terkalahkan City terhenti. Namun, Lampard kemudian menyatakan kekecewaannya menjadi pemain cadangan.

AVB menambakan, "Saya berbicara dengan Lampard setiap hari dan dia akan tetap menjadi pemain penting di klub ini. Saya tahu agennya, Steve Kutner, telah mengontak Ron Gourlay (Kepala Eksekutif Chelsea) tentang kontraknya. Namun, kami belum membuat keputusan."

Ron Gourlay membenarkannya, "Benar, kami sudah melakukan pembicaraan belum lama ini. Kami mendiskusikan peran penting Lampard di klub, baik di lapangan maupun di sisi bisnis. Kami bahagia masih mengikatnya dengan 18 bulan kontrak."

Nazaruddin Bicara Soal Kisah Asmara Angelina

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — Nama Angelina Sondakh tak asing lagi bagi Muhammad Nazaruddin. Wakil Sekretaris Jenderal Partai Demokrat itu pernah menjadi rekan kerja Nazaruddin baik di partai maupun di Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat.

Belakangan ini, Angelina kembali menjadi sorotan karena hubungan asmaranya dengan seorang perwira polisi yang sebelumnya penyidik Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi, R Brotoseno.

Terkait hubungan Angelina dengan Brotoseno itu, Nazaruddin pun angkat bicara. "Mungkin Anas (Anas Urbaningrum) yang suruh kali, tanya saja sama Pak Anas," kata Nazaruddin di Pengadilan Tindak Pidana Korupsi, Jakarta, Rabu (14/12/2011).

Nazaruddin memang kerap mengait-ngaitkan nama Ketua Umum DPP Partai Demokrat Anas Urbaningrum terkait kasus yang melilitnya. Lebih jauh, Nazaruddin enggan menjelaskan pernyataannya. "Itu urusan pribadi Ibu Angie," ucap mantan anggota DPR itu.

Seperti diberitakan, akibat kedekatannya dengan Angelina, Brotoseno dikembalikan oleh KPK ke institusi Polri. Alasannya, untuk menghindari konflik kepentingan. Hal tersebut mengingat Angelina menjadi terperiksa kasus yang ditangani KPK.

Kemarin, Angelina berkomentar soal isu kedekatannya dengan Brotoseno. Wanita asal Manado itu tidak membantah, tetapi juga tidak membenarkan hal tersebut. "Teman saya banyak ya. Dari pengusaha ada, politisi ada, tukang koran, tukang bakso, juga ada. Apalagi polisi," katanya.

Physicists Anxiously Await New Data on ‘God Particle’

Dennis Overbye in The New York Times:

High noon is approaching for the biggest manhunt in the history of physics. At 8 a.m. Eastern time on Tuesday morning, scientists from CERN, the European Center for Nuclear Research, are scheduled to give a progress report on the search for the Higgs boson — infamously known as the “God particle” — whose discovery would vindicate the modern theory of how elementary particles get mass. The report comes amid rumors that the two competing armies of scientists sifting debris from hundreds of trillions of proton collisions in CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, or L.H.C., outside Geneva, have both finally seen hints of what might turn out be the elusive particle when more data is gathered next year. Alternatively, the experimentalists say that a year from now they should have enough data to rule out the existence of the most popular version of the Higgs boson, sending theorists back to their blackboards in search of another explanation of why particles have mass.

So the whole world will be watching.

Among them will be Lisa Randall, a Harvard particle theorist and author of the new book “Knocking on Heaven’s Door: How Physics and Scientific Thinking Illuminate the Universe and the Modern World.” In an interview with Dennis Overbye of The Times, Dr. Randall provided this guide to the action for those of us in the bleachers.

Q. What is the Higgs and why is it important?

A. The name Higgs refers to at least four things. First of all, there is a Higgs mechanism, which is ultimately responsible for elementary particles’ masses. This is certainly one of the trickier aspects of particle physics to explain, but essentially something like a charge — not an electric charge — permeates the vacuum, the state with no particles.

Blagojevich Sentence: 14 Years In Prison For Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich

CHICAGO (AP) — Rod Blagojevich, the ousted Illinois governor whose three-year battle against criminal charges became a national spectacle, was sentenced to 14 years in prison Wednesday, one of the stiffest penalties imposed for corruption in a state with a history of crooked politics.

Among his 18 convictions is the explosive charge that he tried to leverage his power to appoint someone to President Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat in exchange for campaign cash or land a high-paying job.

Judge James Zagel gave Blagojevich some credit for taking responsibility for his actions – which the former governor did in an address to the court earlier in the day – but said that didn't mitigate his crimes. Zagel also said Blagojevich did good things for people as governor, but was more concerned about using his powers for himself.

"When it is the governor who goes bad, the fabric of Illinois is torn and disfigured and not easily repaired," Zagel said.

As the judge announced the sentence, which includes a $20,000 fine, Blagojevich hunched forward and his face appeared frozen. Minutes later, his wife, Patti Blagojevich, stood up and fell into her husband's arms. He pulled back to brush tears off her cheek and then rubbed her shoulders.

On his way out of the courthouse, Blagojevich cited author Rudyard Kipling and said it was a time to be strong, to fight through adversity and be strong for his children. He said he and wife were heading home to speak to their daughters, and then left without answering any questions.

The twice-elected Democrat received by far the harshest sentence among the four Illinois governors sent to prison in the last four decades. He is the second in a row to go to prison; his Republican predecessor, George Ryan, currently is serving 6 1/2 years. The other two got three years or less.

Blagojevich, in a last plea for mercy, tried something he never had before: an apology. After years of insisting he was innocent, he told the judge he'd made "terrible mistakes" and acknowledged that he broke the law.

"I caused it all, I'm not blaming anybody," Blagojevich said. "I was the governor and I should have known better and I am just so incredibly sorry."

But Zagel gave him little leeway.

"Whatever good things you did for people as governor, and you did some, I am more concerned with the occasions when you wanted to use your powers ... to do things that were only good for yourself," Zagel said.

The judge said he did not believe Blagojevich's contention, as his lawyers wrote in briefings, that his comments about the corruption schemes were simply "musings." Zagel said the jury concluded and he agreed that Blagojevich was engaged in actual schemes, and the undeniable leader of those schemes.

"The governor was not marched along this criminal path by his staff," Zagel said. "He marched them."

Prosecutors had asked for a sentence of 15 to 20 years, which Blagojevich's attorneys said was too harsh. The defense also presented heartfelt appeals from Blagojevich's family, including letters from his wife and one of his two daughters that pleaded for mercy.

But the judge made it clear early in the hearing that he believed that Blagojevich had lied on the witness stand when he tried to explain his scheming for the Senate seat, and he did not believe defense suggestions that the former governor was duped by his advisers.

The 54-year-old was ordered to begin serving his sentence on Feb. 16. In white-collar cases, convicted felons are usually given at least a few weeks to report to prison while federal authorities select a suitable facility. Blagojevich is expected to appeal his conviction, but it is unlikely to affect when he reports to prison.

Most of the prisons where Blagojevich could end up are outside Illinois. One is in Terre Haute, Ind., where Ryan is serving his own sentence. In prison, Blagojevich will largely be cut off from the outside world. Visits by family are strictly limited, Blagojevich will have to share a cell with other inmates and he must work an eight-hour-a-day menial job – possibly scrubbing toilets or mopping floors – at just 12 cents an hour.

According to federal rules, felons must serve at least 85 percent of the sentence a judge imposes – meaning Blagojevich wouldn't be eligible for early release until he serves nearly 12 years.

Going into the sentencing, many legal experts said the governor – who became a national punch line while doing reality TV appearances such as "Celebrity Apprentice" while his legal case unfolded – was likely to get around 10 years. A former Blagojevich fundraiser, Tony Rezko, recently was sentenced to 10 1/2 years, minus time served.

Prosecutors have said Blagojevich misused the power of his office "from the very moment he became governor." He was initially elected in 2002 on a platform of cleaning up Illinois politics in the midst of federal investigations that led to the prosecution and conviction of Ryan.

Defense attorneys have said Blagojevich has already paid a price in public ridicule and financial ruin, and had proposed a term of just a few years.

Blagojevich's sentencing came just days before his 55th birthday on Saturday, and nearly three years to the day of his arrest at dawn on Dec. 9, 2008, when the startled governor asked one federal agent, "Is this a joke?" In a state where corruption has been commonplace, images of Blagojevich being led away in handcuffs still came as a shock.

It took two trials for prosecutors to snare Blagojevich. His first ended deadlocked with jurors agreeing on just one of 24 counts – that Blagojevich lied to the FBI. Jurors at his retrial convicted him on 17 of 20 counts, including that he demanded a donation from a hospital executive in return for increased state support for children's health care, and seeking to extort donations from a racing executive in exchange for quick approval of legislation.

FBI wiretap evidence proved decisive. In the most notorious recording, Blagojevich is heard crowing that his chance to name someone to Obama's seat was "f---ing golden" and he wouldn't let it go "for f---ing nothing."

Blagojevich clearly dreaded the idea of prison time. Asked in an interview before his retrial about whether he dwelled on that prospect, he answered: "No. I don't let myself go there."

In the same interview, Blagojevich also explained that the family dog Skittles was bought after his arrest in to help his school-age daughters, Amy and Annie, cope with the stress of his legal troubles. He said he joked with them that, "If the worst happens (and I go to prison), you can get another dog and call him `Daddy.'"

BCS Standings create Alabama-LSU rematch in title game

By Kelly Whiteside, USA TODAY

For all those not looking forward to a rematch in the Bowl Championship Series title game between No. 1 LSU and No. 2 Alabama after the Tigers won 9-6 in overtime last month, Alabama coach Nick Saban says look to the NFL.

• 

As for those not looking forward to another defensive slugfest, Saban countered, "Two great defensive teams, no doubt. … There are so many good players on both sides for both teams …I think there's a lot of opportunity for the game to be completely different and have a completely different flavor from what the first game did."

A rematch seemed like a foregone conclusion heading into conference championship weekend until Oklahoma State narrowed the gap behind Alabama in the polls. But the Crimson Tide edged No. 3 Oklahoma State by .0086 in the final BCS rankings released Sunday, the closest margin in the eighth year under the current formula. The previous closest margin between No. 2 and 3 was .0157 separating No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 3 Auburn in 2004.

While the BCS title game selection held to form, the Sugar Bowl provided the controversy. The Sugar bypassed BCS No. 7 Boise State and No. 8 Kansas State in favor of No. 11 Virginia Tech and No. 13 Michigan. The Hokies, the most baffling pick, were routed by Clemson 38-10 in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game.

Clearly, ticket sales trumped rankings. Chief executive officer Paul Hoolahan said Virginia Tech's history of bringing fans to New Orleans was "extremely important."

Hoolahan also said he wasn't concerned that Virginia Tech hasn't beaten any opponents in the BCS top 25. "They've proven over the years the caliber of football team that they are," Hoolihan said.

Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer also cited the program's previous body of work, as opposed to this season's performance, when asked why the Hokies were chosen over higher ranked teams.

"I think Virginia Tech over the years has built a name for itself. … We've been to three BCS bowls over the last four years. … The number of years we've won 10 games, I think that's another thing," Beamer said.

This is the first time in the BCS era that two teams not in the top 10 of the USA TODAY Coaches Poll will meet in the Sugar Bowl. Virginia Tech is No. 11 in the coaches poll and Michigan is No. 12. Since USA TODAY started administering the coaches poll in 1991, there has never been a Sugar Bowl with both teams outside the top 10 of the coaches poll.

With No. 14 Clemson, the ACC champs, headed to the Orange Bowl, it's the first time two ACC teams are headed to BCS bowls. The Tigers will face Big East champ No. 22 West Virginia.

Though LSU vs. Alabama on Jan. 9 in New Orleans might seem like a been there, done that bowl, it's also a matchup of firsts. It's the first rematch in BCS title-game history and the first time teams from the same conference will meet in the BCS' 14-year-history. The matchup also guarantees the Southeastern Conference its sixth consecutive BCS title.

Though it's a rematch, what's at stake makes the game bigger than Nov. 5, LSU coach Les Miles said.

"The opportunity to go play for the national championship is a completely different scenario," Miles said. "It's a different place. It's the same opponent. But it will be played with the title at stake."

•Western Kentucky (7-5), which won seven of its last eight games, with the loss to No. 1 LSU, was the only team with a winning record that did not get a bowl spot. Ball State (6-6) was the only other bowl-eligible team not selected. Meanwhile, 6-7 UCLA is in.

•The Harris Interactive Poll produced a final regular-season Top 25 that mirrored the USA TODAY Coaches Poll, down to BYU being the first team among others receiving votes. The Harris poll does not begin its balloting until roughly the first month of the season is played partly in response to concerns that there is too much importance placed on the preseason poll — yet both ended in the same spot.

BCS Rankings: Alabama Or Oklahoma State For No. 2 Spot?

BY RALPH D. RUSSO, Associated Press

Too soon to call, but things are looking up for Alabama.

Alabama and Oklahoma State are awaiting word on which team will play LSU in the BCS national title game on Jan. 9 in New Orleans.

The returns have been trickling in Sunday, and so far the Crimson Tide seems to be in the lead.

In the USA Today coaches' poll, Alabama was No. 2, but the commanding lead it had last week is now down to 22 points. The coaches' poll and the Harris poll count for two-thirds of a team's BCS score.

The Harris poll was due out later Sunday.

A compilation of six computer ratings will determine the final third of a BCS score. The Sagarin ratings released early Sunday had Alabama No. 2 and Oklahoma State No. 3.

Unbeaten LSU is the top-ranked team in all the polls out so far, including the AP Top 25, which is independent from the BCS rankings.

A rematch between LSU and Alabama in the national title game seemed almost a foregone conclusion heading into conference championship weekend.

But with Alabama idle, Oklahoma State made one last, strong push by beating Oklahoma 44-10 to win the Big 12 title.

Now, instead of Sunday being a coronation there's another BCS controversy: Should Alabama get another shot at the only team that beat the Tide, even if that means an all-SEC title game and a matchup that will surely play far better in the South than anywhere else? Or should the Cowboys, who beat five teams ranked in the last BCS standings and whose only loss was a double-overtime upset on the road to Iowa State, get the nod?

"If you want the best two teams in college football to play then there has to be a format to decide that," Alabama coach Nick Saban said Saturday on ESPN as he made sure the Tide wasn't forgotten while the other top teams played. "If you want a regional game that matches up people from different parts of the country you can't say `Let's have the best two teams play.' It's not really up to me. I can't really be objective here. We do have a dog in this hunt. That's my opinion."

Working in Alabama's favor is the Crimson Tide's dominance throughout the season - all of its victories have been by at least 16 points - and the fact that no other team has challenged LSU this season.

The Tide and Tigers played what was billed as the Game of the Century on Nov. 5 in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The Tigers won it 9-6 in overtime, a hard-hitting defensive slog that didn't exactly have fans around the country clamoring for more.

Immediately the talk of rematch started, pro and con. But Oklahoma State was in position to keep it from happening. The Cowboys were undefeated and second in the BCS standings heading into a Friday night game at Ames, Iowa, a day after Oklahoma State women's basketball coach Kurt Budke and an assistant coach were killed in a plane crash.

The Cowboys lost 37-31 in double OT to the so-so Cyclones (6-6), missing a potential game-winning field goal at the end of regulation by inches.

With no other undefeated teams left from the major conferences, Alabama returned to No. 2 and the debate has grown more furious ever since.

On one side, Alabama supporters say it's simple: The system is supposed to match the best two teams, regardless of conference, and the Tide have been one of the two most dominant teams in the country.

On the other side, the Oklahoma State supporters say the Cowboys have accomplished more to get to 11-1 than the Tide, playing a tougher schedule and winning their conference.

Alabama fans counter by saying the SEC is the best conference in the land. What more proof is needed than five straight BCS championships?

"I would certainly understand if college football decides it should be two SEC teams playing for the national championship," LSU coach Les Miles said after the Tigers pounded Georgia 42-10 in the SEC championship game. "It's a very special conference with very special teams."

Oklahoma State fans say their team's super-charged offense, second in the nation in scoring and third in yards, would put up some touchdowns against LSU's tenacious defense.

Alabama fans think those flashy Big 12 offenses are no match for an SEC defense, and no team, not even LSU, has allowed fewer yards and points than the Tide.

Oklahoma State's reply: If the regular season is a playoff, the way BCS officials suggest, didn't LSU eliminate Alabama?

"They had their shot," Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said after the Oklahoma game. "Give us ours."

Alabama fans say this isn't pee-wee soccer where everybody gets a chance to play.

Whichever team wins out, expect another of blast of criticism directed at the BCS. As the power-brokers in college football start to plot how top-tier bowls will be set up in the future, the 2011 season is once more exposing the flaws in the system now.

Two teams with perfectly good arguments are fighting over one spot, with subjective voters and mysterious computer ratings - the formulas of which are not even publicly known - doing the choosing.

If Alabama is the pick, the Tide will be playing for its second BCS title in three seasons. Alabama claims 13 national championships overall and is one of the most decorated programs in the land. It's won seven AP titles since the wire service started its poll in 1936.

For Oklahoma State, just getting into any of the marquee BCS bowls will be a first. The Cowboys have never won a national title, and some Oklahoma State fans have wondered if their team is also losing the battle of the brands.

There has never been a rematch in the previous 13-year history of the BCS, nor has there ever been a championship game with both teams from the same conference.

The closest thing to a potential Alabama-LSU II college football has had in recent years was in 1996, when Florida State beat Florida in its final regular season game then drew the Gators again in the Sugar Bowl.

Steve Spurrier's Gators beat Bobby Bowden's Seminoles 52-20 to win the national championship.

Bowden wasn't happy to face Florida again.

"If it's somebody you beat, you don't want to play them," Bowden said Sunday in a phone interview.

"The team that won, it's just hard to get your boys as inspired as the other team can get inspired."

Yet as far as a rematch this year, Bowden said both teams can make a good case, and he's not opposed to giving Alabama a second chance.

"If that's the way it shapes up that's OK," he said. "You got to get the best two teams in the country playing for the national championship."

Remember, of course, that Bowden was born in Birmingham, Ala.