COMPENSATING THE CLUBS?


Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez complained about FIFA on Saturday, saying clubs should be compensated when their players are injured while playing for their national teams.


Benitez's outburst came days after France and Liverpool striker Djibril Cisse broke his leg in France's World Cup warmup game against China.

"There are wages to pay and also we can't sell the player," he said in an article on Liverpool's Web site. "It's clear there is a problem with the rules."

Cisse was expected to be sold to Marseille for $14.7 million after a fallout with Benitez. With the striker out until Christmas after having surgery on his leg, Benitez won't be able to sell him.


FIFA introduced a special insurance pool this year to cover the costs if a player is injured at the World Cup. It amounts to $12.5 million or 5 percent of the tournament's prize pool. That sum is unlikely to appease clubs since FIFA is expected to take in $2.3 billion from this World Cup.