Sporting briefs

Joe Cole: Chelsea and England midfielder Joe Cole, out of action with a serious knee injury since January, has undergone another operation. Cole will miss the club's pre-season trip to the United States after having minor surgery to correct a small meniscus tear in his right knee. Cole ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in an FA Cup tie against Southend United in January.

Scotland: Scotland's goalkeeping options have been thrown into disarray because of injury to keeper Craig Gordon, team boss George Burley said. Burley says the potential non-availability of the 26-year-old for the match against Norway in Oslo on August 12 because of a knee problem is likely to cause serious concerns to Scotland. "Craig has not recovered and that's a worry after his operation," Burley said.

Downing: Winger Stewart Downing completed a 12 million pounds ($19.69 million) move to Aston Villa yesterday, saying it was essential to play in the Premier League to achieve his England aspirations. Downing, who arrived at Villa's training ground on crutches because of a broken foot that will keep him out of action until September, signed a four-year-deal.

Hartson: John Hartson, 34, has received a message of support from Lance Armstrong as he battles cancer. Hartson, whose clubs included Arsenal, West Ham and Celtic, was diagnosed with brain cancer last week and was in a critical but stable condition yesterday after undergoing emergency surgery. "My thoughts go out to John Hartson. Livestrong, John! We're pulling for you! Folks, hold him in your thoughts and prayers please," Armstrong said.

Lyon: Deposed French champions Lyon agreed to pay rivals Lille €18 million for Brazilian midfielder Michel Bastos. The 26-year-old is expected to sign a four-year deal. Bastos scored 14 goals last season and with his accuracy with free-kicks will be seen as the ideal replacement for fellow Brazilian Juninho who has left for Qatari club Al Gharafa.

Athletics: Cuba's Dayron Robles, the 110 metres hurdles world record holder and Olympic champion, will compete in London for the first time at next week's Crystal Palace grand prix, UK Athletics said. Robles, who is unbeaten in five races, will be up against Americans David Payne and David Oliver who took silver and bronze behind him in Beijing last year.

Sports promotion: India has set up an annual government award for companies which promote sports in the medal-starved nation. It would be among the sports prizes given by the country's president every year with companies spending $1 million or more annually on sports promotion eligible to apply. Indian companies heavily sponsor cricket and most of the other sports are forced to rely on government funds.

Doping: Former Serbia cycling coach Aleksandar Nikacevic has been arrested in north-eastern Italy as part of a doping probe. A statement said 30 people were charged after the raids, 12 of them professional cyclists, and prohibited substances were taken away including the newest version of blood booster EPO.

Tennis: France's Richard Gasquet has been cleared to return to the tour after testing positive for cocaine. The world no.32 was provisionally suspended in May after a sample he had provided in March in Miami tested positive for benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine. The ITF said Gasquet's 'inadvertent contamination' in a nightclub the night before his scheduled match meant a 12-month suspension would be disproportionate.

Boxing: Canadian-based Romanian Lucian Bute will risk his International Boxing Federation super middleweight title and unbeaten record against Mexico's Librado Andrade in a November rematch, promoters said. Bute, 24-0 with 19 knockouts, won a unanimous 12-round decision over Andrade last October but the Mexican, 28-2 with 21 knockouts, took a unanimous decision from Ukranian Vitali Tsypko in April to claim another chance at the crown.