(Getty)

After dropping Wayne Rooney from the starting XI for Tuesday's Champions League match against Real Madrid, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has announced his intent to give the out of favor striker to Arsenal for nothing in return.

"We've realized that there would only be a handful of clubs that could afford Wayne's wages," Ferguson told reporters. "So to spare him the indignity of being sold for less than Liverpool paid for Andy Carroll, we're just going to give him to Arsenal for free. We'll even continue to pay him. Because, frankly, we feel a bit bad about the Robin van Persie business. They gave us Robin -- who has been absolutely tremendous -- for just £22.5 million and they're having a tough time now, so it would make us feel less guilty if we just send them Wayne free of charge and call it even. Maybe we'll take Theo Walcott. And Cazorla. But that's it."

Rooney has scored 12 goals and set up 12 more in 26 Premier League and Champions League appearances this season,

It isn't unusual for someone to have a beer (or 20) before a football match, but that someone usually isn't usually a participant sitting on the bench. Yet, cameras caught Celta Vigo midfielder Enrique de Lucas having a small beer before his side's 4-1 loss to Sevilla on Monday -- a game in which he entered as a substitute in the 75th minute.

Before you assume the former Chelsea man is in need of an intervention, consider that he might have been drinking something like Erdinger Alkoholfrei -- a Bavarian non-alcoholic beer that is positioned as a sports drink. "The company touts the beverage as an isotonic, vitamin-rich, no-additive beverage with natural regenerative powers that help athletes recover from a workout," says the AP. "In other words, it's carbohydrate-loaded refreshment without the alcoholic buzz of beer or the jitters caused by some energy drinks."

Judging by how open De Lucas was about his drink, it didn't seem like he felt he was doing anything wrong. And if it was a

Juventus completed their dismantling of Celtic's Champions League's hopes by winning the second leg of their round of 16 tie 2-0 and advancing to the quarterfinals on a 5-0 aggregate score. It was a painful experience for Celtic fans -- a few of which had a cry after the first leg -- but it didn't prevent the two sets of supporters from showing each other a bit of respect and camaraderie.

During the second leg at Juventus Stadium, TV cameras spotted a Juve supporter and a Celtic supporter each flopping their respective club scarves over the plexiglass partition between them. Once the swap was completed, they each put a hand on the divider, waved goodbye and went on their way. They didn't threaten each other's lives, attempt physical violence or engage in racism/homophobia. They just added to an experience at a sporting event with a friendly exchange.

A similar interaction actually played out after the first leg in Glasgow, as well. There, the two sets of supporters tossed their scarves over the heads of the stewards and cops separating them and then the Juve section sang Celtic's name. Here's video...

nani

When Manchester United's Nani was sent off in the 56th minute of Tuesday's Champions League round of 16 second leg against Real Madrid, the home fans were outraged. The sending off for a boot to Alvaro Arbeloa's belly was soon followed by two goals from Real Madrid, which was enough to give them a lead they would not lose. So, an 18-year-old Man United fan watching at home decided to call emergency services to report the dismissal as a "crime" for police to investigate.

From the PA:

18-year-old United fan, who watched the Champions League match on TV, was so disgusted by the Turkish referee Cuneyt Cakir's decision to send off the United forward Nani that he contacted emergency operators to claim a "crime" had occurred. The armchair fan, who has not been named, rang 999 at around 9.20pm on Tuesday night from his home in a village near Bingham, Nottinghamshire.

The fan later apologized and claimed "to have been caught up in the excitement." The Nottinghamshire Police were still quite

(Getty)

Have an extra $5.25 million? In the market for a human foot made of gold? Well, this is your lucky day, friend, because Japanese jeweler Ginza Tanaka is putting a 25-kilogram (55 pound) pure gold replica of Lionel Messi's left foot on sale at that, low, low price of $5.25 million (or 486,500,000 yen). And just to make the deal that much sweeter, a certificate of authenticity from the Leo Messi foundation and duralumin case are even included free of charge. But you must act fast because the one-of-a-kind item will only be available from March 7 to June 6, 2013.

[Also: Ronaldo, Real Madrid salvage season, leave Man Utd seeing red]

Ginza Tanaka held a special launch event in Tokyo with the help of Messi's brother Rodrigo. The Golden Foot, which commemorates Messi's world-record 91 goals and 2012 record fourth Ballon d'Or win, will be on display at various Ginza Tanaka stores in Japan through June.

(Getty)

Iker Casillas traveled with Real Madrid to watch them knock Manchester United out of the Champions League and advance to the quarterfinals. The club's captain hasn't played since fracturing his hand in January and in the last week alone, he's only been able to sit by and watch as his side beat Barcelona twice and now Man United at Old Trafford without him. After that most recent success, manager Jose Mourinho declared Casillas' replacement, Diego Lopez, the Man of the Match.

Given all this, it's easy to understand how Casillas might be feeling a bit like the forgotten man. Especially when he has Manchester United supporters reaching around him like he isn't even there to get his teammates' autographs.

Here he is at the Camp Nou, watching Madrid win the second leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal a week earlier...

(Getty)

A heavily debated red card for Nani in the 56th minute of the Champions League round of 16 second leg match between Manchester United and Real Madrid proved to be quite a turning point. Man United had a 1-0 lead in the game and 2-1 lead on aggregate before Nani's high boot that caught Alvaro Arbeloa in the midsection and less than 15 minutes after Man United were reduced to 10 men, Real Madrid scored twice to take a lead they wouldn't give back.

[Related: Ronaldo, Real Madrid salvage season, leave Man Utd seeing red]

Here's video of Nani's sending off, including Alex Ferguson angrily shuffling down the stairs...

Ronaldo pleads innocence after scoring against his former club. (Getty)

With a bit of help from Nani's high boot and the referee's red card, Real Madrid came from behind to win the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie against Manchester United 2-1 and advance on an aggregate score of 3-2. Less than 15 minutes after Nani was sent off in the second half, Real Madrid scored the two goals they needed with Cristiano Ronaldo notching the decider against his former club. After the match, Jose Mourinho admitted, "The best team lost. We didn't play well, we didn't deserve to win but football is like this." Which begs the old question, "What if it continued?"

97' -- Sergio Ramos hopes that everyone has forgotten about his own goal by now. And his missed penalty in last year's semifinal shootout. And the time he dropped the Copa del Rey trophy under the bus.

101' -- Real Madrid keeper Diego Lopez falls down pretending he's hurt to waste time and accidentally falls asleep.

105' -- Ronaldo scores again, holding his hands up as he does it so as not to offend Man United fans. This permanently ruins the life of a kid in the stands holding a "We want you back Ronaldo! But... don't score tonight!" sign.