When a joke146;s not a joke

German striker Lukas Podolski will take legal action against national broadcaster ARD over a local radio show that makes fun of him in a spoof 8220;Lukas8217;s Diary8221; segment. Podolski has told ARD he will not give them any more interviews until the segment on a Cologne station is pulled.

German striker Lukas Podolski will take legal action against national broadcaster ARD over a local radio show that makes fun of him in a spoof 8220;Lukas8217;s Diary8221; segment. Podolski has told ARD he will not give them any more interviews until the segment on a Cologne station is pulled. The 21-year-old feels the show makes him out to be an idiot. 8220;I have a sense of humour but these jokes are below the belt,8221; he told a news conference on Monday. 8220;I8217;m entitled to seek justice.8221; The German Football Association DFB has given full backing to Podolski, said spokesman Harald Stenger. 8220;Comedy is all well and good but this is attacking his dignity,8221; Stenger said.

Fred8217;s Father8217;s Day gift
MUNICH: Substitute Fred planned a special Father8217;s Day gift to celebrate his goal in Brazil8217;s 2-0 World Cup win over Australia on Sunday. 8220;I8217;m going to give the ball as a present to my father,8221; Fred told reporters after scoring an 89th-minute goal. 8220;I hope I can get everyone else to sign it for him. 8220;Thank God we were able to win. I8217;m really happy about scoring a goal so shortly one minute after I got on. 8220;We8217;ve qualified for the next round so now we8217;ll be able to play more openly. 8220;

Golmohammadi out
RAVENSBURG: Iran defender Yahya Golmohammadi will miss his team8217;s last match against Angola and will be out for the next three to four weeks, the side8217;s team doctor Sasa Jankovic said. Golmohammadi, who has scored Iran8217;s only goal in the finals so far, was booked for body-checking Portugal8217;s Cristiano Ronaldo in their 2-0 defeat and had to go off injured clutching his shoulder after the foul. Iran stand no chance of qualifying for the second round after their two defeats against Mexico and Portugal.

Kewell accused of insults
BERLIN: Australian winger Harry Kewell could be suspended for his team8217;s final group match against Croatia on Thursday after he was accused on Monday of insulting a referee. German referee Markus Merk has alleged that the 27-year-old insulted him several times after the final whistle of Australia8217;s 2-0 defeat to Brazil in Munich on Sunday. Kewell was not booked by the referee, but Merk put the incident in his official report to FIFA and the matter will be dealt with by FIFA8217;s disciplinary committee.

Web debate over pitch prayer
RIYADH: Islamists and Saudi soccer fans have clashed over the Web after the kingdom8217;s team prayed on the pitch during their first World Cup game last week. The Saudi players prostrated themselves on the ground to offer prayers of thanks after both goals they scored against Tunisia last Wednesday, sparking a furious debate over the Internet about whether this was acceptable. 8220;The players were actually praying to their team mate who scored the goal, and this is considered blasphemy and polytheism since only God should be offered thanks,8221; one surfer on the popular Al Saha website said.