Hertha Berlin coach Otto Rehhagel has told his players they must show courage and passion if they are to throw a spanner in the works of Bayern Munich's goal-machine on Saturday in the German league.

Bayern have scored a remarkable 14 goals in their last two games having hammered Hoffenheim 7-1 in Munich in the Bundesliga, then demolished FC Basel 7-0 in the Champions League.

Roberto Mancini saw his expensive Manchester City side fail in Europe once more on Thursday, but still insisted they can still win their first ever Premier League title.

The Italian held himself responsible for the end of their European interest, as a 3-2 second leg victory led to defeat on away goals against Sporting Lisbon, a team currently fourth in the Portuguese league.

Sir Alex Ferguson admitted he was at a loss to explain Manchester United's dismal performances in Europe this season, after they were knocked out of the Europa League by Athletic Bilbao.

United were outplayed in both legs of their last-16 tie and went down 5-3 on aggregate after a chastening 2-1 defeat at Bilbao's imposing San Mames stadium on Thursday.

Barcelona's French international defender Eric Abidal will undergo a liver transplant in "the coming weeks", the Spanish club said Thursday.

The 32-year-old, who signed from Lyon in 2007, underwent surgery in March 2011 to remove a liver tumor.

The Chicago Bulls beat a determined Miami Heat 106-102 on Wednesday without the help of the NBA's Most Valuable Player Derrick Rose, stretching their Eastern Conference lead.

"This was a big game. I'm not going to lie," said Chicago's British forward Luol Deng, who returned from a two-games on the sidelines after injuring a wrist.

Rafael Nadal raced into the Indian Wells quarterfinals with a dominating win, while Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer needed three sets each to beat unseeded opponents.

Tennis' big three progressed in the California desert with world No. 2 Nadal storming into the quarters by beating 21st seeded Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-3, 6-2 in just 76 minutes.

Egypt's top prosecutor on Thursday charged 75 people with murder and negligence in connection with a deadly football riot last month in the Mediterranean city of Port Said.

At least 74 people were killed in the February 1 riot, the world's worst football-related disaster in 15 years.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as nine-time champions Real Madrid eased into the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday, a 4-1 win over CSKA Moscow giving Jose Mourinho's men a 5-2 aggregate victory.

Gonzalo Higuain and Karim Benzema were also on target as Real joined bitter rivals Barcelona in the last eight, the draw for which will be held on Friday.

The New York Knicks responded to the turmoil of coach Mike D'Antoni's resignation with a resounding 121-79 victory over Portland that ended a six-game NBA skid.

D'Antoni departed Wednesday morning, under fire as defeats piled up and star player Carmelo Anthony failed to mesh with headline-grabbing newcomer point guard Jeremy Lin.

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton is looking forward to a "fresh start" in the new Formula One season after being hit by problems on and off the track last year.

The 27-year-old Briton says he is aiming for a more focused approach than 2011, when he was distracted by relationship problems with his pop-star girlfriend and also changed his management set-up.