Football | Champions League

Celtic may come to regret not making Jo Inge Berget's loan a permanent move as his double for Swedish side Malmo saw them only lose 3-2 away in their Champions League playoff first leg match on Wednesday and leave the Scottish champions hopes of a place in the group stage in the balance.

Elsewhere Valencia's hopes of a return to the lucrative group stages after a three year hiatus look more assured after beating last season's quarterfinalists Monaco 3-1 in Spain, the impressive Algerian international Sofiane Feghouli creating one and scoring the crucial third goal.

Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk also look nicely-placed for the group stages – they have reached it on every occasion since the 2009/10 campaign – after coming away with a 1-0 win against Rapid Vienna, who were last in the group stages in 2005/06.

Skenderbeu's chances of becoming the first Albanian side to make the group stages of a European club competition look slender after losing 2-1 at home to Dinamo Zagreb, the Croatian side coming from behind with Algerian El Arabi Hilal Soudani getting the equaliser and then in the dying second Josip Pivaric scored the winner.

Berget made Celtic pay badly for failing to keep their concentration both times after they had a seemingly comfortable two goal advantage – a bad habit that has been a feature of their recent play and the players had been warned about correcting by Celtic manager Ronny Deila.

The Norwegian – who has lost just once in seven meetings with Malmo counterpart and compatriot Age Hareide – could not have hoped for a better response as his side stormed into a 2-0 lead within the opening 10 minutes.

Leigh Griffiths – another who had warned his teammates about keeping their focus – slotted in the first after just three minutes rewarding Deila's call to start with him and not summer signing Nadir Ciftci, having been set up by a brilliant slide rule pass from Stefan Johansen, and seven minutes later Israeli international Nir Bitton heading home from Johansen's corner.

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However, as in previous matches this season Celtic took their foot off the pedal and spurned several chances which came back to hurt them seven minutes into the second-half as Berget, who was on loan at Celtic last season, reduced the deficit with a superb goal, curling the ball past Craig Gordon.

That, though, appeared to be the kick in the pants Celtic needed for shortly afterwards they restored their two goal cushion as the alert Griffiths nipped in to lob the ball into the net after the visitors failed to clear their lines.

However, Berget struck again as Celtic failed to clear a corner and left the tie intriguingly balanced.

FEGHOULI LIFTS VALENCIA

Valencia also took an early lead at home to Monaco as Rodrigo was on hand to tap home after Feghouli had stolen in ahead of a Monaco defender to set up the goal.

Monaco – who had a goal in the first-half ruled out – levelled early in the second half as Croatian midfielder Mario Pasalic, on loan from Chelsea, scored but 10 minutes later Daniel Parejo gave the hosts the lead once again converting substitute Pablo Piatti's cross.

Pasalic looked to have restored parity only for Australian goalkeeper Matthew Ryan – signed earlier in the close season purposefully because the club wanted a 'keeper equal to Champions League level football – to produce a stunning save to keep the hosts noses in front.

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Indeed they should have gone two clear but Feghouli's brilliant set up was not rewarded as Parejo missed the target – the impressive Algerian decided it was better to try it on his own when he next had a chance and he made no mistake to give Valencia a 3-1 lead.

Shakhtar were often second best in their match in Vienna but they used a let-off when their goalkeeper Andrey Pyatov pulled off a remarkable save late in the first-half to their advantage going down the other end to break the deadlock Brazilian Marlos slotting home.

Tennis News

The two-time Grand Slam champion has been romantically linked with 19-year-old Croatian player Donna Vekic, who played mixed doubles with Kokkinakis at the Australian Open last year, since he separated from his wife in April.

Wawrinka spoke to Sky Sports after fighting off Borna Coric to reach the third round of the Cincinnati Masters with a 3-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 win on Wednesday, saying Kyrgios hasn't apologised for his on-court jibe.

And Petchey said of the situation: "If what he just said is true and I think I heard him right - I'm sorry but what he did didn't just cross the line, it vaporised it for everybody that loves this sport.

"The argument that it happens in every other sport doesn't make it right, it's wrong in the other sports as far as I'm concerned.

"If that's how socially we're supposed to act with our fellow human beings in a sporting occasion then it's just wrong.

Nick Kyrgios' failure to apologise to Stan Wawrinka angers Mark Petchey

Nick Kyrgios' derogatory comments to Stan Wawrinka speaks volumes for his character and has "vaporised" everybody's love of the sport, says Mark Petchey.

The tennis expert admitted that it now "leaves an even worse taste in the mouth" after Wawrinka revealed to Sky Sports that the Australian hadn't yet apologised to him for his on-court sledging at the Montreal Masters.

Kyrgios was fined and sparked a global uproar after an on-court microphone recorded him utter an insult involving Wawrinka's "girlfriend" and Australian player Thanasi Kokkinakis during their encounter at the Montreal Masters last week.

Hand of God ref meets Maradona

Diego Maradona kissed and hugged the referee who allowed his handball goal in the 1986 World Cup and presented him with a signed Argentina jersey when the two met in Tunisia this week, local media reported.

Maradona's quarterfinal goal against England in Mexico City gained added notoriety when the tiny Argentine, who tapped the ball over the head of onrushing goalkeeper Peter Shilton with his fist, claimed it had been scored by the 'Hand of God'.

Tunisian referee Ali Bennaceur failed to spot the handball and allowed the goal to stand amid furious protests from the England players, prompting a debate, that still rages on today, over the use of referees from smaller nations in major matches.

The pair exchange gifts for the cameras when they met in Tunis on Monday with Bennaceur handing the former Argentina skipper a framed photo of himself, Maradona and Shilton, who captained England, before the match at the Azteca Stadium.

In return, the 71-year-old former referee received a Maradona shirt inscribed with the words "For Ali, my eternal friend".

In interviews in later years, Bennaceur blamed his Bulgarian assistant Bogdan Dotchev for failing to alert him to the moment when Maradona punched the ball past Shilton to give Argentina the lead in the match they went on to win 2-1.

"Before the game, Fifa gave us clear guidelines: 'If your colleague is better placed than you are, his decision should take precedence.' That's what I did: my assistant did not raise his flag," he told a French football magazine So Foot recently.

He also claimed a role in Maradona's second strike, a brilliant weaving run that started in his own half and continued through the entire English defence which is often described as the 'goal of the century'.

"Maradona did not score that all by himself, that goal. I was his assistant: I played three advantages. I did not have to. For the first foul, he stumbled. The second came just on the edge of the area. I shouted 'advantage, advantage'.

"And when he entered the area, I was expecting (Terry) Butcher to slice him down. I put my whistle to my lips, I was ready to intervene but I didn't blow."

Argentina went on to beat West Germany 3-2 in the final.

1986 Diego Maradona vs England - World Cup

Bayern Munich

German champions Bayern Munich have urged for an end to the ongoing transfer speculation regarding attacking midfielder Mario Goetze, with the Germany international still without a starting spot in his third season at the club.

The 23-year-old, who scored the winner for Germany in last year's World Cup final, has again started the season as a little used substitute while also refusing to commit to a future at Bayern despite a contract till 2017.

"Can we agree on one thing, to allow Mario to play football?" Bayern sports director Matthias Sammer told reporters after Monday's 3-1 friendly win over Dynamo Dresden.

"He enjoys our trust but we need to leave the boy in peace."

Goetze has struggled under coach Pep Guardiola and last season the Spaniard used him over the full 90 minutes in just 16 of their 34 league games, raising questions about whether he would see out his contract or leave.

He was also a little-used substitute in the German Super Cup defeat to VfL Wolfsburg earlier this month and again came on as a second half substitute in their Bundesliga opening 5-0 win over Hamburg SV on Friday.

Instead of spearheading Bayern's attacking midfield Goetze has languished on the Bayern bench, unable to find consistency and the player vented his frustration earlier this month saying it had been a difficult two-year period so far.

"We will see what happens," Goetze, who joined from Borussia Dortmund in 2013, had said on August 5. "Now I will just let things come to me. For anything else we will have to see."

Sammer said the club and player were working hard on his form and it would work out for both sides.

"That lightness, the trust, the last two or three percent, we are all working on that together. It is all good. It does not get better if we constantly talk about it."