Associated Press
NEW YORK ó Matt Stover, the Baltimore Ravensí veteran kicker, has begun a campaign to replace Gene Upshaw as executive director of the NFL Players Association by next March.
Stoverís action comes at a time when the union could be heading for critical negotiations with the league on the collective bargaining agreement.
iI feel that the board must begin to prepare for a change in leadership immediately,î Stover said in an e-mail to the unionís executive board and player representatives that was obtained Tuesday by ESPN. iI believe we have the proper environment with our teammates and leadership within the board to execute the process of this selection.î
Union president Kevin Mawae of the Tennessee Titans said that Stoverís opinion does not reflect the opinion of the players.
SOCCER
LIVERPOOL, England ó Steven Gerrard converted a tiebreaking penalty kick to give Liverpool a spot in the European Champions League semifinals, just one minute after Emmanuel Adebayor appeared to put Arsenal in the final four.
Gerrard scored in the 85th minute and Ryan Babel added an injury-time goal to give Liverpool a dramatic 4-2 quarterfinal victory over Arsenal on Tuesday night.
Liverpool won the home-and-home series on 5-3 aggregate and advanced to a semifinal matchup with Chelsea, which defeated visiting Fenerbahce 2-0 for a 3-2 aggregate victory.
TENNIS
AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. ó Six-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams will be sidelined indefinitely, though she did not say why she will be out of action.