ROME -- Ming. Hapsburg. AC Milan. All dynasties come to an end, and the European and three-time defending Italian champions, hampered by injuries and inconsistent play, find themselves behind seven squads in the first division and in last place in their Champions League group, going into a tough Sunday match against Sampdoria.


Coach Fabio Capello must be wondering how long the job is his.


The Devils' latest lackluster outing, Wednesday's scoreless draw with AEK Athens in the Champions League, had the Italian media writing obituaries.


"Old Milan you're no longer you," pronounced Thursday's Corriere Dello Sport's front-page banner headline.


Worse still was Milan's stunning 2-0 league defeat Sunday at the hands of Padova. The loss left the Red-and-Blacks with a 3-1-2 record for 10 points, four behind first-place AS Roma.


And Sunday, instead of getting a chance to recover against a mediocre squad, Milan begins the roughest stretch of its schedule with Sampdoria of Genoa. Games against Juventus of Turin, second-place AC Parma and crosstown rival Internazionale follow.


The Genoa side, third to Milan last season, knocked Parma off the top of the standings with a 3-1 comeback win last week. Sampdoria also has a 3-1-2 record, but its goal-differential of seven puts it ahead of Milan, with a zero differential.





English Premier League


English titlist Manchester United follows up its high-powered Champions Cup game against Barcelona with a Sunday game at Blackburn Rovers that could have a major bearing on the domestic championship.


The Rovers are third in the standings behind Newcastle and Nottingham Forest and United is fourth. If the Reds lose at Blackburn, they could wind up 10 points behind the leader a quarter of the way through the season while Rovers would stay well in the hunt for their first league title since 1914.


A United victory, however, would be a major boost to Alex Ferguson's team which has got off to a slow start in the title race with three defeats coming in its first 10 games.


Among other games Saturday, league leader Newcastle is favored over erratic Sheffield Wednesday, second-place Forest visits struggling Aston Villa, and fifth-place Liverpool faces lowly Wimbledon.





French First Division


Busy on both the domestic and international fronts, the French soccer league leaders Nantes believe they can remain unbeaten for weeks.


"I don't want to talk about defeat because it is a word we have banned from our vocabulary," said defender Serge Le Dizet.


Coach Jean-Claude Suaudeau admitted, however, that his squad has begun to feel weary ahead of Saturday's tricky league game away at lowly Sochaux.


A first defeat this season in their 14th league match may not be disastrous since Nantes's nearest rivals, Lyon and Cannes, both travel on Saturday.


But Nantes players, who have lost only once this season, to Volgograd in the UEFA cup first round, fear a first defeat may break their momentum.


(AP, Reuters)