Real Madrid brought the curtain down on 2011 by hammering lowly Ponferradina 5-1 at the Bernabeu on Tuesday to ease into the last 16 of the Copa del Rey.

Already two goals up from the first-leg, Madrid coach Jose Mourinho sent out a largely second-string side that added further goals from Jose Callejon and Nuri Sahin in the opening period.

Choi Kang-Hee, coach of K-League champions Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, was Wednesday named the new boss of the South Korean national team.

The Korea Football Association said Choi would replace Cho Kwang-Rae, sacked two weeks ago after a shock defeat to Lebanon left the 2002 semi-finalists at risk of missing out on the 2014 World Cup.

It seemed like something out of a movie script the moment the Chicago Bulls took Derrick Rose with the No. 1 pick in the draft.

The latest twist? A maximum contract extension.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson believes the club's injury problems are finally starting to clear up as he prepares to head to Fulham on Wednesday.

The first half of United's campaign has been dominated by Ferguson contending with one of the worst injury lists in his 25 years in charge at Old Trafford.

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini on Tuesday ruled out a loan move involving Carlos Tevez as the Premier League leaders prepared to meet officials from AC Milan.

City chiefs are due to meet Milan officials on Thursday to discuss Tevez's future but the Serie A club has made it clear they only want to sign the Argentinian striker on loan.

NBA free agent guard Baron Davis took phone calls from the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers, but the offer he accepted on Monday came from the New York Knicks.

Davis, dropped by the Cleveland Cavaliers last week under a salary amnesty program in the new NBA collective bargaining agreement, signed with the Knicks for the veterans minimum salary of $1.4 million.

David Villa has only a slim chance of playing for Barcelona again this season and could also miss the 2012 European Championship after undergoing surgery on his broken leg on Monday.

One of the doctors who performed the operation said the 30-year-old Spain striker would be sidelined for four to five months.

AC Milan forward Antonio Cassano, who underwent a heart operation on November 4, could return to training in January, according to a surprising prediction by club owner Silvio Berlusconi on Sunday.

"The doctors aren't ruling out the possibility that Cassano could return to training at the end of January," Berlusconi told Sky Sport.

Lionel Messi scored twice and Barcelona beat Brazil's Santos 4-0 on Sunday to win its second Club World Cup in three years.

Messi, Xavi and Cesc Fabregas scored in the first half as the European champions won its 13th trophy under coach Pep Guardiola, solidifying its stature as the best club team in the world.

Veteran striker Raul has said he is eager to stay at Schalke 04 with his contract set to expire in 2012 and extension talks with the Royal Blues due to be held in the winter break.

The 34-year-old served a timely reminder of his finishing skills with a hat-trick in Schalke's 5-0 drubbing of Werder Bremen on Saturday before the German league began its traditional winter break.