Court rule: Ajax's season opening match against ADO Den Haag in the Dutch first division has been postponed until January 7 following a ruling by an Amsterdam court yesterday. The match was initially scheduled for today but Ajax were blocked from hosting the encounter after Amsterdam mayor Job Cohen said his police force was overstretched and could not provide adequate security in August.

Essien: Chelsea target Michael Essien has been left out of Lyon's team for their Ligue 1 match at Marseille tomorrow. "I will not include him in the team as long as his case is not settled," Lyon coach Gerard Houllier said, hinting negotiations over the Ghana midfielder were ongoing.

Balde: Defender Bobo Balde is to start Celtic's Scottish Premier League clash with Falkirk today despite reports he was trying to negotiate a deal to move to French club Marseille. "He's been truly fantastic in training this week," manager Gordon Strachan said. "He will play, he's okay."

Moyes: Everton are out to prove this season that their fourth place in May was no fluke, manager David Moyes said yesterday. "My target is to finish higher than we finished last season and to show people that wasn't a one-off," he said.

Dyer: Kieron Dyer has signed a four-year contract extension with Newcastle. The deal will keep the England midfielder at the club until 2009.

Saviola: Barcelona striker Javier Saviola will join Sevilla on loan for the new season. The 23-year-old, who had also been linked to a move to Espanyol, will fill the gap left by Julio Baptista who left Sevilla for Real Madrid last month.

In England: The Championship - Cardiff vs Watford 1-3. League One - Tranmere vs Oldham 4-0.