Daily Mail

INTERNATIO­NAL

SHORTS

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CHRIS COLEMAN has told Aleksandar Kolarov to mind his own business and focus his attention on Gareth Bale after the Manchester City defender inflamed Welsh passions. Serbia’s left back upset Scotland with talk about ‘long ball’ tactics after their clash at Hampden Park last Saturday. A further declaratio­n that ‘all the teams from the island play the same way’ has not been well received. ‘We are better than Wales,’ added Kolarov, ‘but our work-rate will have to match our talent because just turning up won’t be enough.’ Told Kolarov had described Wales as a long-ball team, Coleman replied: ‘How much has he seen of us? It’s up to us to keep Mr Kolarov busy. If Gareth plays down his side he’ll have to concentrat­e hard on his own game rather than worrying about us.’ Although Joe Allen flew with the squad, the Liverpool star is unlikely to be over the virus that saw him miss the 2-0 loss to Belgium. TV: LIVE on Sky Sports 2 from 7.25pm. ÷ NORTHERN IRELAND skipper Steven Davis is anxious for his side to inject momentum into their campaign against Luxembourg tonight. After Friday’s 2-0 loss in Russia and another tricky game in Portugal next month, Davis said: ‘Internatio­nal football is getting harder… but it’s one we’re looking to get three points from. Home games will have a big say in how the campaign goes for us.’ ÷ ENGLAND will play the Republic of Ireland at Wembley in May as part of the FA’s 150-year anniversar­y. It will be their first meeting since the 1995 clash at Dublin’s Lansdowne Road was postponed due to rioting England fans. The FAI have been trying to fix a meeting since Lansdowne Road was rebuilt as the Aviva Stadium two years ago. A match in Dublin at the end of last season was postponed as both sides made Euro 2012, setting up a possible quarterfin­al. Ireland face Oman at Fulham tonight. ÷ SCOTLAND boss Craig Levein yesterday hit back at critics who said Saturday’s 0-0 against Serbia at Hampden was a huge blow to any hopes of reaching Brazil. Tonight’s Group A home game against Macedonia should offer a good chance of a win, but Levein said: ‘We still have 27 points to play for. If we win and other results go our way, we could be top of the group. All of a sudden, the point (against Serbia) becomes important… it might be the one that makes all the difference.’

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