United favourites but Chelsea not dead yet

Fortress Old Trafford, Chelsea's flat form and a welter of statistics point to Manchester United advancing to the semi-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday -- yet one goal changes the whole tie.

United hold the whip hand following Wayne Rooney's goal in their 1-0 quarter-final first-leg win at Stamford Bridge and in most circumstances in the Champions League and for United, that would be that.

Alex Ferguson's team have lost one of their last 30 matches in the competition at Old Trafford and none in the last six years. They have progressed in all 16 European ties where they won the first leg away from home.

This season they have conceded only two goals in nine Champions League games while in the Premier League they have won 15 and drawn one of their home games.

Since the Champions league began only two sides have recovered from a first-leg home defeat to win a knockout tie -- Ajax Amsterdam against Panathinaikos in 1996 and Inter Milan, who recovered from a 1-0 defeat by Bayern Munich with a 3-2 win in Germany last month.

Yet the particular nature of this all-English tie means that such statistics are undermined in a game between two teams who know each other so well.

Although Chelsea have won only one of five away games in all-English Champions League ties, they won at Old Trafford in the Premier League a year ago and know that they need only one goal on Tuesday to swing the advantage their way.

Only two of the teams' last 12 competitive games have been decided by more than one goal so both sides know the Londoners are still very much in the tie.

"Of course Chelsea can do to us at Old Trafford what we've done there," said Ferguson. "We've only got a one-goal lead and we have to be very careful and give a top performance.

"It will be a tough game. The tie is not done."


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Vettel takes the cake, Webber gets the crumbs

WORLD champion Sebastien Vettel won the Malaysian Grand Prix with a dominant drive yesterday as his Red Bull teammate Mark Webber came unstuck once again to finish fourth.

Vettel converted his pole position into back-to-back wins to open the season and take an early grip on the formula one driver's championship.

The 23-year-old German won from McLaren's Jenson Button, the 2009 champion, and Nick Heidfeld, who finished third for Renault.


Vettel's second start-to-finish win in two outings this year came despite further problems with Red Bull's faulty Kinetic Energy Regeneration System (KERS), which gave Webber a nightmare start.

The Australian dropped from third on the grid to 10th before storming back to finish fourth ahead of the two Ferraris of Brazilian Felipe Massa and two-time champion Fernando Alonso.

Alonso suffered damage to his car in a late charge for the podium when he collided with the rear of Briton Lewis Hamilton's McLaren, suffering a broken front wing that required a pit stop.

Hamilton, the 2008 champion, looked set for a podium spot but finished seventh after a slow pit stop and then a struggle with worn tyres in the closing stages.

Having won in Australia and Malaysia this season, Vettel is five from his past six races all up.

It was another stunning performance from Vettel after the Red Bull team told their drivers they could not use the KERS power-boost for most of the race.

''In the heat, we kept our heads cool,'' he told the Red Bull crew on his victory lap. ''It is a pleasure every week to drive with you boys and I'm loving it.''

The track temperature was 31 degrees at the start in 83 per cent humidity, a sure sign that rain was likely as Vettel led the cars on the formation lap to the grid.

Vettel made a smooth start, pulling clear of the pack as Hamilton, on the dirtier side of the circuit, struggled to retain second place and, running into turns one and two, was passed on the outside by Heidfeld.

At the same time, Webber was beset by problems. His car had suffered a pre-race KERS failure and this made him slow off the start, dropping seven places.

Webber was first in for new tyres after 11 laps and was followed by Hamilton, who was nine seconds behind Vettel when he pitted.

Webber swiftly set about making up ground and set the fastest lap, as did Hamilton and then Alonso soon after.

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Hamley's toy store produce new doll ahead of the Royal Wedding

She's about to join the Royal Family as the wife of the future king. So could anything make Kate Middleton’s life more perfect?

How about her very own Barbie-style doll?

The grinning figure, complete with glossy mane of brown hair and distinctive fascinator headwear just like Kate’s, has gone on sale at Hamley’s, the London toy store.



Anyone wanting the ‘Princess Catherine Doll’, which comes in a regally purple box with crown and Union Jack motifs, will have to pay £35.

Just 10,000 of the dolls have been created, dressed and accessorised by seven British fashion designers. The Eaton clutch bag is an exact replica of Kate’s, with gold mock snakeskin leather effect, horseshoe clasp and gold chain.

The doll’s high-heeled slingback shoes are inspired by British shoe maker Beatrix Ong, even featuring a miniature label on the insole.

Not only that, but the ring the doll is wearing contains a real purple amethyst – so perhaps this is one doll that’s not really for the children.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1374709/Royal-Wedding-Hamleys-toy-store-produce-Kate-Middleton-doll.html#ixzz1Iu89HiYT

Mark Webber heads Lewis Hamilton in Malaysian GP practice

Red Bull's Mark Webber comfortably out-paced Lewis Hamilton's McLaren to top practice at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

The Australian, who took pole here in 2010, was 1.665 seconds ahead of Hamilton and three seconds faster than team-mate Sebastian Vettel in 17th.

Mercedes's Michael Schumacher was third, Ferrari's Fernando Alonso ninth and Jenson Button's McLaren 15th.

It was a bad start for Renault as both cars suffered serious brake problems.

Renault were aiming to build on Vitaly Petrov's third place in Melbourne last weekend, with team boss Eric Boullier saying the team could go even faster.

But the team's preparations were hit when Nick Heidfeld and Petrov both retired from the session in spectacular fashion because of brake problems.

Heidfeld had to nurse his Renault back to the pits after the brakes jammed on his front right wheel.

BBC F1 pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz watched as the car was surrounded by mechanics as it returned to the pits.

"There is a nice burning brakes smell and a lot of brake dust," commented Kravitz. "He has also made a right mess of the floor."

Things got worse for Renault when Petrov ploughed his car into the gravel and reported on the team radio a brake and suspension problem.

McLaren arrived in Malaysia optimistic about their chances of challenging Red Bull at Sepang's fast and flowing circuit and Hamilton was the champion's closet rival, just as he was in Australia's opening race.

The gap to Vettel's pole position time was 0.8 secs in Melbourne, but the margin here between Hamilton and Webber's leading time of one minute 37.651seconds was more than double that.

Button, who won in Malaysia in 2009, complained that he was losing rear grip the more time the Pirelli tyres spent on track.

"This will be the story of the weekend, with the rear tyres sliding away time and time again," commented BBC Radio 5 live analyst Anthony Davidson.

Vettel did not show his hand in opening practice, with Davidson suspecting that Red Bull were running different fuel loads in each of their cars as they did race-preparation work.

Ferrari also chose not to focus on outright pace during first practice and instead ran through aerodynamic set-up work on a track where efficient downforce is critical to overall performance.

The Italian team, who said they were still trying to unlock the full potential of their 2011 car, spent the session swapping variants of front and rear wings.

Alonso, who ran off into the gravel late in the session but was able to return to the track, was almost three seconds off the pace, while his team-mate Felipe Massa fared much better in sixth.

After failing to qualify for the Australian Grand Prix under the re-introduced 107% rule, Hispania had also been confident of a more positive weekend in Malaysia.

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Brazil Gunman Attacks Rio de Janeiro School, Kills 12 Children

The gunman who allegedly opened fire in a Rio de Janeiro school this morning, killing 12 children before shooting himself, left behind a suicide note asking for forgiveness and revealing that he had HIV, officials said.

Ten girls and two boy were killed in the shooting, and another 12 children were injured, 10 of whom were girls. All the victims were 10 to 15 years old, and they were shot either in the head, chest or abdomen, the Brazilian government said, indicating that the shooter wanted to kill.

"We give our support and solidarity to the families of the young boys and girls [victims] of this psychopath, this animal," Sergio Cabral, the governor of Rio, told reporters.

Gunman a Former Student, Police Say

Police said the shooter, a man in his early 20's, was a former student at the school named Wellington Menezes de Oliviera who carefully planned the attack. Some students said that the shooters picked off his victims.

According to Brazil's Alerta News, de Oliviera lived just a few blocks from the school. People who knew the suspect described him as antisocial, a loner who didn't care for himself, Brazilian media reported.

While police are still trying to piece together exactly what happened, the gunman apparently entered the school claiming that he was there to give a speech or presentation to students. He was apparently clothed in black and was carrying two revolvers and ammunition.

No Guards on Duty at School

While no security guards were on duty at the school, police responded quickly, exchanging shots with the gunman, witnesses said. 400 students were in the building at the time of the shooting. According to the first officer who arrived at the scene, after the gunman was shot in the leg by police, he raised his gun to his head and killed himself.

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http://abcnews.go.com/International/brazil-school-shooting-gunman-kills-12-children-reveals/story?id=13319050

Conrad Murray's lawyers ask judge to bar mention of his affairs, out-of-wedlock children

Dr. Conrad Murray's legal team asked a judge Thursday to prohibit any mention of the physician's extramarital affairs, out-of-wedlock children or penchant for strip clubs at his manslaughter trial next month in the death of Michael Jackson.

In papers filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, the defense argued that such evidence was irrelevant and would be used by prosecutors only "to inflame the passions of the jury."

"The prosecution's case involves the treatment and care of Michael Jackson provided by Dr. Murray. It is not about the existence and number of children Dr. Murray has, or about his personal sexual relationship with women," wrote defense lawyers Ed Chernoff and Nareg Gourjian. The filing also seeks to bar prosecutors from presenting evidence about lawsuits against Murray for failure to pay business debts and his home mortgage.

The request came a day after Murray's lawyers said they intended to make Jackson's precarious financial state central to their case. When Murray began working as Jackson's $150,000-a-month personal physician, the entertainer was nearly $500 million in debt and rehearsing for a make-or-break comeback attempt.

Meanwhile, Murray owed a host of creditors and was behind in child support for some of the six children he had fathered with four women.

The prosecution has indicated it will link Murray's complicated private life and attendant financial burdens with his desire to keep the job with Jackson and his medical performance.

The defense also objected to the use of pictures of Jackson's body at the trial, saying the "graphic, gruesome and highly prejudicial" photos would appeal to jurors' emotions and jeopardize Murray's right to a fair trial.

Judge Michael Pastor ordered a hearing on the requests for April 21.

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EU states hunker down as migrants flood in

BRUSSELS — The European Union is failing to act fast enough to help Tunisia overcome economic hardship that has fuelled an exodus, and few states are willing to share the burden to ease the migratory flow, officials say.

Immigration is always a politically sensitive issue in Europe, but the flood of illegal migrants pouring into Italy's island of Lampedusa since Tunisia's January revolution has brought out a bunker mentality in the 27-nation European Union, officials lament.

"Right now it's 'every man for himself'... There is no spirit of cooperation," an EU official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

"The atmosphere is not good," the official said.

Italy has pleaded for help from the rest of the EU to cope with the arrival of some 22,000 migrants on its shores, many of them Tunisians seeking a better future in other nations such as France, Belgium or non-EU but wealthy Switzerland.

However, Italy's EU partners have shown little enthusiasm to take in migrants.

Italy wants to issue temporary permits allowing illegal migrants to travel within Europe for six months, but the idea could anger its neighbours.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and French President Nicolas Sarkozy will discuss immigration at a meeting in Rome on April 26.

Alain Lamassoure, an influential French member of the European Parliament, complained about a lack of solidarity among EU states.

"In every European country, the tendency is to turn inwards while the reverse should be happening. We must work at a European level," Lamassoure said.

Officials say the problem must be addressed at its source, by prodding Tunisia to step up its own efforts to keep people from fleeing the country.

"The problem is in Tunisia. We must convince Tunisian authorities to stop the departures and take back citizens who arrived illegally in EU countries," another European official said.

"But for this to happen, we need (to offer) incentives," the official said.

Tunisian authorities want financial aid to revive the country's economy and provide jobs to a restless young population as a well as easier access to visas to visit Europe.

As long as the EU drags its feet, Tunisian authorities will not act, says the European Commission.

Tunisian officials have told European counterparts that agreeing to take back migrants who travelled illegally to Europe would only exacerbate Tunisia's unemployment problem.

A spokeswoman for EU neighbourhood policy commissioner Stefan Fuele explained that Brussels could not negotiate an "advanced status" deal with Tunisia because the country is still led by an interim government.

Such status, which Morocco enjoys, provides trade and travel advantages to partner nations.

In a letter to EU governments, EU home affairs commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem warned that the "continuous and possible increase" of flows of refugees fleeing Libya looms as another "issue of major concern".

Malmstroem, writing ahead of a meeting of EU interior ministers next week, called for short-term measures to cope with the situation, including boosting the technical resources of operations coordinated by the Frontex border agency in the Mediterranean.

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