European Play-off's Drawn

France have been drawn against Ukraine in the European play-offs for the 2014 World Cup.

Portugal face Sweden, which means either Cristiano Ronaldo or Zlatan Ibrahimovic will not take part in next summer's tournament in Brazil.

Iceland, the lowest-ranked team in the play-offs, must beat Croatia to reach their first ever major tournament, while Greece meet Romania.

The two-legged ties will be played on 15 November and 19 November.

The eight nations all finished second in the qualifying groups, with 1998 World Cup winners France runners-up to current holders Spain in Group I.

"We were not seeded and could have played Portugal or Croatia who have a long history, but Ukraine is not a simple draw either," said France coach Didier Deschamps, who captained them to their 1998 triumph, told Eurosport. 

"They are on a run of seven matches without defeat and they concede very few goals as well as a long trip over there, but it's good to have the return leg at home."

Ukraine were beaten to automatic qualification by Group H rivals England.

Defender Artem Fedetskiy said: "After a poor start in the qualifying campaign every single match for us was like the final, like a do-or-die mission.

"Now we have serious experience of playing the most important matches. We are a cohesive team now and, I believe, we have fair chances to go through."

Portugal, Greece, Croatia and Ukraine were the four seeded teams in the draw which took place on Monday.

"We have been drawn against a Sweden team against whom we will be playing two complicated and relatively balanced matches," said Portugal coach Paulo Bento.

"Besides having one of the best strikers in the world (Ibrahimovic), the quality of their team is their collective spirit."

Greece coach Fernando Santos admitted he was disappointed to be playing their first match at home.

He said: "The Romanians are of great quality and dangerous and difficult opponents. I would have preferred the first match to be away."

The four teams that qualify will complete a total of 13 European nations at the tournament in Brazil.

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Seven Fail Moscow Dope Test

Seven athletes failed drugs tests at August's World Championships, the International Association of Athletics Federations has announced.

Roman Avramenko of Ukraine, who finished fifth in the men's javelin, was the only one of the group to reach a final at the event in Moscow.

The IAAF said that all seven have been sanctioned or provisionally suspended.

It had promised a stringent testing programme in Moscow after a recent series of high-profile doping cases.

Former world champion Tyson Gay and ex-100m world record holder Asafa Powell both tested positive for banned substancesahead of the championships.

Their doping positives were made public in July, a month after it was announced that Veronica Campbell-Brown, 200m champion at London 2012, had tested positive for a banned diuretic - something which is viewed as a masking agent by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

The 25-year-old Avramenko recorded a personal best throw of 84.48 in June before competing in Moscow, Vítezslav Vesely of the Czech Republic won the gold medal.

Avramenko tested positive for the steroid dehydrochloromethyltestosterone.

The other athletes found to have tested positive at the World Championships were Massoud Azizi (Afghanistan, men's 100m), Elyzaveta Bryzgina (Ukraine, women's 200m), Ayman Kozhakhmetova (Kazakhstan, women's 20km walk), Ebrahim Rahimian (Iran, men's 20km walk), Yelena Ryabova (Turkmenistan, women's 200m) and Jeremías Saloj (Guatemala, men's marathon).

The IAAF said that in addition to taking urine tests from 538 athletes in Moscow, 1,919 blood samples were collected as part of its Athlete Biological Passport programme, designed to detect abnormalities in an athlete over time.

The president of the IAAF, Lamine Diack, said: "The specialised analyses and the blood samples taken in connection with the Athlete Biological Passport emphasise the IAAF's firm commitment and resolve to use the most sophisticated methods at our disposal in the fight against cheating in sport."

Positive tests at Moscow 2013

Roman Avramenko, (Ukraine, javelin)

Massoud Azizi (Afghanistan, men's 100m)

Elyzaveta Bryzgina (Ukraine, women's 200m)

Ayman Kozhakhmetova (Kazakhstan, women's 20km walk)

Ebrahim Rahimian (Iran, men's 20km walk)

Yelena Ryabova (Turkmenistan, 200m)

Jeremías Saloj (Guatemala, men's marathon).

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Hodgson Surprised by Lineker

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England manager Roy Hodgson says he is "surprised" by Gary Lineker's criticism of his side's performance in Tuesday's World Cup qualifier in Ukraine.

Match of the Day presenter and former England skipper Lineker was frustrated by the goalless draw in Kiev.

But Hodgson has defended his tactics and questioned Lineker's observations.

"I am surprised that anyone who has played for England, captained England and played in games of this nature can be that critical," Hodgson said.

The point in Ukraine keeps England top of World Cup qualifying Group H.

Victories in their two remaining matches at Wembley, against Montenegro on 11 October and Poland four days later, will secure automatic qualification for next year's finals in Brazil.

Hodgson said he told his players to bypass midfield in the early stages of the game in Kiev.

England's second highest goalscorer behind Sir Bobby Charlton, Lineker - who netted 48 times in 80 caps between 1984 and 1992 - said in a Tweet on Tuesday that he later deleted that Hodgson's side were "awful" and added: "What happens to some of these players when they pull on an England shirt?"

The Ex-Tottenham, Everton and Barcelona striker, who said England's tactics were "a step back to the dark ages" against the Republic of Ireland in May, subsequently insisted he was fully behind Hodgson as he moved to clarify his comments.

He said: "I'd like to make it clear I'm fully supportive of Roy and think he's doing a good job."

But Hodgson added: "He has done it for the second time.

"I remember Gary Lineker playing, I remember him captaining the team and playing some great games for England.

"But I am pretty sure he also played in some games where it wasn't that easy. I don't think every game he played for the England side was a total success."

Asked about his tactics in Ukraine, Hodgson said: "Did we play longer balls forward early? Yes, we did.

"We didn't want to play out from the back and invite pressure."

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Ukraine Target Harry Redknapp

Ukraine want former Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp to take charge of the national team, according to a statement on the federation's website. 

Ukrainian Football Federation (FFU) officials met on Tuesday to discuss appointing Redknapp to replace Oleg Blokhin, who left for Dynamo Kiev.

FFU official Mikhail Fomenko said Redknapp was an ideal replacement.

"He has lots of experience, coaching talent and knows how to motivate," he said.

"In whatever team he led Redknapp very quickly improved the quality of the play and achieved significant progress.

"Today he is an expert in the game and one of the best English coaches."

Ukraine had sought to appoint striker Andriy Shevchenko but have now turned their attention to Redknapp after the former Chelsea and AC Milan player said it was a "premature step" for him.

"The presidium took the decision to begin talks with Redknapp's representatives relating to him working in the post of chief coach of the national Ukraine team," added the FFU statement.

Redknapp, 65, was sacked by Spurs in June after almost four years in charge.

He was heavily linked with the England national team as a successor to previous coach Fabio Capello, who resigned in February, before Roy Hodgson's appointment.

Redknapp returned to League One club Bournemouth, the club he managed for nine years from 1983 to 1992, in an advisory capacity in September but is thought to be no longer at the club.

Ukraine sit in fifth place in their 2014 World Cup qualifying group, with two points from three games.

They are 55th in Fifa's world rankings.

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Shevchenko Turns Down Ukraine

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Former Ukraine striker Andriy Shevchenko has turned down an offer to become his national side's new manager.

The 36-year-old retired after Euro 2012 and Ukraine's football federation (FFU) wanted him to succeed Oleg Blokhin, who has joined Dynamo Kiev.

"I believe that today leading the national team of Ukraine is a somewhat premature step for me," said ex-AC Milan and Chelsea forward Shevchenko.

"I hope the leadership of the football federation understand my decision."

Shevchenko, who had previously spoken of his desire to go into politics, is the top goal scorer in the country's history, scoring 56 goals in 111 appearances, and has also captained his country 56 times.

His decision leaves the FFU with the need to find an alternative to improve Ukraine's chances of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Ukraine are in the same World Cup qualifying group as England but, despite a 1-1 draw at Wembley, they face a battle to reach Brazil in 2014 following defeat to Montenegro and a draw with Moldova that left them second from bottom in Group H.

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