Madrid  - Coach Vicente del Bosque said Tuesday he planned to retire from football once his current mission as Spain manager ends.

"I have entered the fifth stage in my sporting life and I think it is going to be the last in football. I hope it ends well and I hope I can fulfil my role as well as possible," he said in Madrid

The former Real Madrid coach took over the Spanish national team in September, succeeding Luis Aragones who stepped down after he led the team to the title at Euro 2008.

Madrid  - Struggling Spanish Liga club Numancia announced on Tuesday afternoon the sacking of veteran coach Sergio Kresic.

The final nail in the coffin of Kresic was Sunday's 1-0 defeat at home to fellow strugglers Mallorca. This was Numancia's fifth straight defeat and leaves them second from bottom.

Kresic took over the Numancia bench in July after Gonzalo Arconada, who had guided the Soria club to promotion, had left for Almeria.

Kresic has been replaced by the club's sporting director Jose Rojo, known as Pacheta.

Brussels - The European Union's executive sent a formal letter to Spain on Tuesday asking for more information on a 4.1-billion-euro (5.4-billion-dollar) rescue plan for the car industry, officials in Brussels confirmed.

The move is a "precautionary measure, because we have not received full details" of the rescue package which the Spanish government finalized on Friday, Jonathan Todd, spokesman for EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, told journalists in Brussels.

Madrid - Spanish cycling star Alejandro Valverde has asked for a further postponement of a hearing by the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) in a doping investigation, Spanish media reported Tuesday.

Valverde had originally been ordered to appear before a CONI panel on Monday, but the hearing had been postponed to Wednesday at the Caisse d'Epargne rider's request.

According to the reports, Valverde has sought another 48-hour postponement to allow his lawyers more time on the case.

Barcelona, Spain -The world's largest telecoms manufacturer insisted there was no "crisis" in the phone business despite the worldwide economic slump, as the industry's main trade fair opened in Barcelona on Monday.

"There is no telecoms crisis," Ericsson's chief executive Carl- Henric Svanberg told reporters at the Mobile World Congress.

Mobile networks are suffering from fluctuating exchange rates, and with it how much companies can charge, but the telecoms business was not shirking the challenge of the downturn.

Madrid  - Real Madrid hero Raul will play one more game for Spain, according to radio station Cadena SER on Monday evening.

SER claims that Raul, 31, will be invited to play in the November friendly, probably against Argentina, that the Spanish federation is organizing to celebrate its centenary.

According to SER, the idea comes from Fernando Hierro, the federation's sporting director, and former team-mate of Raul for Spain and Real. National manager Vicente del Bosque is believed to be receptive to the idea.