LONDON: Former England manager Terry Venables may still get to coach at next year's World Cup finals.

Venables's Australia team failed to qualify after being held to draw by Iran, but he is now a target for finalists Nigeria. The Olympic gold medalists are currently without a manager after Frenchman Philippe Troussier quit.

Nigerian Football Association chairman Colonel Abdulmumuni Aminu told the London daily Telegraph,`` If Terry says yes, the job is providing the salary he would want, is reasonable.'' He added that,``Terry speaks English, which is an advantage to us, we know he is a fighter and we think he will understand the Nigerian way of playing.''

Greek violence leaves 30 injured

ATHENS: At least 30 fans were injured when the Olympiakos versus Panathinaikos Greek first division match erupted in violence yesterday with stands at the Olympic Stadium set on fire and scores of seats hurled in the pitch.

The clashes, the latest in a series that have dogged Greek soccer in recent weeks, started midway through the second half when three Panathinaikos players were sent off for bad tackles within 15 minutes. Fans set hundreds of seats on fire while police fired percussion bombs to keep the fans from entering the pitch.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.