In a bid to introduce more transparency into the country's football
league, the Romanian Football Federation (FRF) "has decided to limit the
number of clubs where officials can work to two per season" (INSIDE WORLD FOOTBALL, 8/4). ... Ekstraklasa side Legia Warsaw has "been awarded a 3-0 win" in the first leg of its Europa League qualifier against FK Kukesi. The match in Albania last Thursday "was abandoned after 51 minutes when Legia's Ondrej Duda was hit by a stone thrown from the crowd as his team celebrated taking a 2-1 lead." The verdict from UEFA's Control, Ethics & Disciplinary body also sees Kukesi fined €70,000 ($76,000) and ordered to play its next home game in UEFA competition "behind closed doors" (BT SPORT, 8/4). ... UEFA dismissed Turkish side Fenerbahce’s protest against Shakhtar Donetsk "fielding a player in a Champions League qualifying match who previously tested positive for doping at the Copa América." UEFA said that Shakhtar’s Fred "had not been suspended by the South American confederation" CONMEBOL when the first leg was played. However, "he is unlikely to play on Wednesday because of the doping case" (AP, 8/4). ... Scottish Premiership side Celtic has been granted official permission "to run the rule over Qarabag’s pitch" on Tuesday. Confusion had surrounded Champions League preparations in Baku after UEFA insisted the team "would not be allowed to train on the damaged surface at the Tofiq Bahramov Stadium." Little more than two hours before the match was scheduled to begin its final preparations, UEFA has "finally confirmed" it has U-turned on its original decision to keep both teams off the grass until kickoff time Wednesday (Scotland DAILY RECORD, 8/4).
