Dubai - France midfielder Franck Ribery took the wheel of the Bayern Munich team bus and knocked over two signs outside the players' hotel in Dubai - but the incident hasn't dented his standing with the German champions.

"Franck wanted to have a bit of fun," said coach Juergen Klinsmann, relieved that the prank only caused minor damage.

General manager Uli Hoeness was meanwhile left to smooth over the incident with an angry hotel management, while team-mate Tim Borowski admitted the players were slightly shaken by the unscheduled spin around the hotel on Thursday.

Madrid - Uruguayan striker Sebastian Abreu has agreed to join Spanish second division side Real Sociedad from Argentina's River Plate, the Spanish club said Friday.

Abreu, 32, has agreed to a six-month contract with the Basque club, with the option for it to be extended until June 2010. He is due to fly in to San Sebastian on Friday evening for medical checks.

The striker, known as the "madman" because of his eccentric mannerisms, has played for 15 different clubs in a colourful career.

He was signed by Liga club Deportivo Coruna in 1998 but hardly managed to get a game for the Galicians.

London. Jan 9 : English football fans fear a mass exodus of top football stars amid claims that the Premier League is facing a cash crisis. Sports experts reckon the world's best league could lose key sponsor Barclays, as the bank tightens its belt to beat the credit crunch, the Daily Star reported.

Officials would be left with a 70million pounds black hole if the firm decides to pull funding from next year.

Stockholm - Veteran forward Henrik Larsson will not join the Swedish squad that later January travels to the United States for two friendlies, raising questions about his future international career.

Larsson, 37, has "not decided on his future football career," Sweden coach Lars Lagerback and his deputy Roland Andersson said in a statement on the Swedish Football Association's website late Thursday.

Although the Helsingborg IF player is currently not in football training he is keeping in shape playing floorball - a popular sport in Sweden.

London, January 9 : Manchester United football star Cristiano Ronaldo, who has destroyed his 193,000-pound Ferrari only two days after getting it, now faces a police probe into how fast he was driving at the time of accident.

The investigators will try to determine how fast the 205mph car was going when it careered across a dual carriageway before hitting a barrier inside a tunnel under Manchester Airport, say reports.

Madrid - Spanish leaders Barcelona are ready to move to their new training ground in Saint Joan Despi, according to Catalan daily Sport on Friday.

The "Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper" ("Joan Gamper Sporting City"), named after the club's 1899 Swiss founder, is located in the district of Sant Joan Despi, 4.5 kilometres from the club's famous Camp Nou stadium and covers 136,839 square metres.