Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg has accused illustrious teammate Michael Schumacher of being a sore loser but insisted harsher criticism of the multiple world champion is wide of the mark.

Rosberg consistently out-qualified seven-time world champion Schumacher over the season and also beat him regularly enough to the finish line to see out the year one place and 13 points above his teammate.

The U.S. Grand Prix has been included on the 2012 Formula One calendar, ending fears the race in Austin, Texas, would be cut for financial reasons.

The sport's governing body said Wednesday on its website that the 2012 "calendar was confirmed as previously published." The unchanged F1 calendar was approved at a World Motor Sport Council meeting in New Delhi, India.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger could head into the busy program of fixtures over Christmas without any recognized full backs after Andre Santos injured his right ankle in the Champions League loss to Olympiakos.

The Brazilian left back, one of the few first-team regulars selected for the 3-1 defeat on Tuesday, was forced off early in the second half.

Bayern Munich's Dutch star Arjen Robben and Germany midfielder Toni Kroos will both miss Wednesday's Champions League clash at Premier League leaders Manchester City with flu.

Robben has only recently returned after groin surgery in October and Bayern's director of sport, Christian Nerlinger, said he cannot play, despite the Dutchman having scored twice in Saturday's 4-1 win over Werder Bremen.

Roberto Mancini has hit back at Karl-Heinz Rummenigge after the Bayern Munich president again questioned Manchester City's ability to meet UEFA's Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations.

Rummenigge called on European football's governing body to impose strict sanctions on clubs who fail to meet the criteria for FFP and supports the proposed bans from the Champions League and Europa League.

AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri accused his side of letting their concentration slip as Viktoria Plzen hit back from 2-0 down to snatch a 2-2 draw in the Champions League.

Milan still took second place in the Group H with Plzen finishing third and booking a spot in the Europa League.

Didier Drogba's double fired Chelsea to a 3-0 victory over Valencia at Stamford Bridge that sent the Blues into the Champions League knockout-stages as Group E winners on Tuesday.

Andre Villas-Boas' side knew a defeat or score-draw in this qualification shoot-out would put Valencia through at their expense, but two goals from Drogba either side of a Ramires strike eased Chelsea's path into the last 16.

The Los Angeles Lakers will play games on the first three nights of the NBA season, the first of 42 back-to-back-to-back sets of games that teams will face during this lockout-shortened season.

The NBA announced the compacted, 66-game schedule on Tuesday night, one that will require every team to play on three consecutive nights at least once.

Serie A leader Juventus has lost striker Mirko Vucinic for about three weeks because of a right thigh muscle tear.

Vucinic was injured during Juve's 2-0 win over Cesena on Sunday. The Montenegro international underwent medical exams Tuesday.

Marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe has been selected for her fifth Summer Olympics after she was included in Britain's team for next year's London Games.

The 37-year-old Radcliffe completed her first marathon in two years in September's Berlin Marathon and has been picked alongside fellow marathon runners Mara Yamauchi and Scott Overall as the first track and field competitors for the host nation.