RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil -- The first test of Brazils ability to host the World Cup and Olympic Games over the next three years begins on Saturday when the eight-nation Confederations Cup tournament kicks off. Tomas Hertl Sharks Jersey . The new or renovated stadiums around Brazil are ready, give or take a lick of paint and a final sweep. And violent protests on the streets of two of the biggest cities, Rio and Sao Paulo, have tested authorities ability to deal with civil unrest. The tournament starts in the capital Brasilia with a game between the host and Asian champion Japan. It ends in Rio de Janeiros Maracana Stadium two weeks later. The tournament is held every four years - always one year before the World Cup - between the champions of each football confederation. Workmen were still applying cement onto walls, attaching glass panels and painting at several stadiums as the clock ticked down to kick-off, but FIFA President Sepp Blatter said he was not worried about the last-minute preparations. "Theres a lot of work that will be done in the last minute," he said. "So for me it is not a surprise that two days to go there is still work somewhere. It means that something is not finished so we should just say, okay, and finish it." While the paint and cement dry, tournament officials have been keeping an eye on the street protests, handling team complaints, and hoping Nigeria turn up on time. In the capital Brasilia, about 200 people burned tires and blocked the main road in front of the Brasilia stadium which will host the Confederations Cup opener. The protest was organized by local groups complaining about the excessive cost of the Confederations Cup and World Cup. A black cloud of smoke was seen near the stadium Friday morning as protesters held banners complaining about the local government. Thousands of protesters marched in Rio and Sao Paulo on Thursday to rage against increases in bus and subway fares, and some clashed with police. Officials said roughly 5,000 protesters were in Sao Paulos central area, where they clashed with police who fired tear gas to try to disperse the crowd. Police said 40 people were detained, some with knives and gasoline bombs. Police in Rio said about 2,000 people protested there. FIFA expressed "full confidence" that Brazilian police can cope with disorder in the streets after the violent protests. Asked about the protests, FIFA spokesman Pekka Odriozola said that "we are monitoring the situation and we are in touch with the local authorities." But he insisted that FIFA has "full confidence and trust in the local authorities" to cope with "any circumstance." In Recife, Uruguay was forced to go looking for a new practice pitch because the stadium chosen by the squad was not in good condition following heavy rains. "For the World Cup, we have to be on alert so the same mistakes dont happen again, especially the delays, the increased costs and the use of public funds," congressman and former Brazil striker Romario said. Latin America is represented here by Brazil, Uruguay and Mexico, Europe by Spain and Italy, Africa by Nigeria, Asia by Japan and the tiny footballing nation of Tahiti, which had an easy passage to the tournament against weak opposition in the Oceania group. Italys star forward Mario Balotelli exited the training pitch with a right leg muscle problem, two days before the Azzurri play their first game against Mexico. The Italian football federation said that Balotelli walked off a closed training session with team physician Enrico Castellacci but that it was only for precautionary reasons and related to a previous physical problem. Nigeria gave world football authority FIFA a shock on Thursday when its players threatened to go on strike and not travel to Brazil because the countrys football association suddenly cut players bonus payments. Nigerias players, in Namibia for a game, missed their connection to Brazil and will arrive late on Saturday or Sunday, leaving them very little time to prepare for their first game on Monday. Their first game is against the part-time players of Tahiti, who should present little threat. The competition is split into two groups, with Brazil, Japan, Mexico and Italy in Group A and Spain, Uruguay, Nigeria and Tahiti in Group B. Brazil, Italy, Spain and Uruguay or Nigeria are favoured to reach the semifinals, with many football fans hoping for a Brazil vs.Spain final at the iconic Maracana on June 30. Brazil has dominated global football for years, but has slipped in the last decade, with Spain rising to become the top global team, holding the world and European titles. Brazils football-mad supporters have been embarrassed to be relegated to 22nd in FIFAs latest rankings, sandwiched between Ghana and Mali, and are looking for salvation from the latest goal-scoring sensation Neymar, who signed for Barcelona last month. Neymar will be wearing the No. 10 shirt for Brazil, a weighty burden considering it was worn by Pele, arguably the best player ever. Luiz Felipe Scolari, the Brazil coach who led the countrys national team to its fifth World Cup title in 2002 and is back for a second spell in charge, is playing down Neymars influence. "Hes not going to play with 11 jerseys on his back. He plays with one jersey," Scolari said Friday. "I have nothing to demand from him." On Sunday, Mexico play Italy in Rio and Spain play Uruguay in the rain-soaked northern city of Recife. Tahiti meets Nigeria in Belo Horizonte on Monday, ending the first round of games. Brazil, a rising global economic power which still suffers from some of the headaches of a developing nation, should be able to handle the Confederations Cup with ease because it faces two massive challenges over the next three years. Next year it hosts the World Cup in 12 cities across a country which is similar in size to Europe, and then in 2016 Rio will host the Olympic Games. Joel Ward Sharks Jersey . The Swede became the first golfer to win the PGA Tours FedEx Cup and European Tours Race to Dubai in the same season. "It is still taking a little time to sink in what Ive achieved this week as was the case when I won the FedEx Cup but then it just kept getting better and better as the days went on and I am sure this will be the same," he said. Patrick Marleau Jersey . - Levi Browns tenure at left tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers is over before it even began. http://www.officialsharksnhlshop.com/paul-martin-jersey/ . -- Jonathan Drouin gave Halifax the boost it needed to edge host Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. NEW YORK -- One year later, the New York Mets finally landed All-Star outfielder Jay Bruce to boost a struggling lineup. And now, hell provide protection for Yoenis Cespedes rather than an alternative to him.Minutes before Mondays trade deadline, the third-place Mets obtained Bruce from the Cincinnati Reds for young infielder Dilson Herrera and minor league left-hander Max Wotell.The 29-year-old Bruce was hitting .265 with 25 homers and a National League-leading 80 RBI. He made the NL All-Star team for the third time.This was an opportunity to deal from a position of relative strength in the system to acquire some offense that we felt we needed, general manager Sandy Alderson said.Bruce is expected to arrive Tuesday, manager Terry Collins said.New York also re-acquired lefty Jon Niese from Pittsburgh for reliever Antonio Bastardo. Niese will work out of the bullpen at first but also gives the Mets an experienced starter who could fill in for a rotation missing injured Matt Harvey and rehabbing Zack Wheeler.The moves follow last years trade-deadline acquisition of Cespedes, whose offensive spark helped the Mets reach the World Series for the first time since 2000.Before getting Cespedes from Detroit for pitcher Michael Fulmer, the Mets nearly completed a deal with Cincinnati for Bruce. When talks fell through, New York soon turned its attention to Cespedes.Look, it was an extraordinary turnaround last year. All we can do is try to acquire as many good players as we can to put ourselves in a position to maybe have that magic again, Alderson said. I do think, given our situation right now and the quality of players we have right now otherwise in the clubhouse, somebody like Jay Bruce can be a catalyst for more productive performance out of the other players that we have, especially sitting in the middle of our order.The banged-up Mets began Monday with a 54-50 record, 6 1/2 games behind NL East-leading Washington and 2 1/2 games back for the NLs second wild card. Their .237 batting average was the lowest in the major leagues.Bruce has been a clutch hitter this season, and New York is in dire need of one. Dreadful with runners in scoring position, the Mets ranked 13th out of 15 NL teams in runs.I think hell make a big impact, Collins said.Bruces dangerous left-handed bat should slot in nicely behind Cespedes -- if and when the right-handed slugger is healthy enough to play.Hampered by a strained right quadriceps thats been nagging him for weeks, Cespedes was out of the starting lineup Monday night against the New York Yankees for the second consecutive game.Bruce joins a crowded outfield that includes two other left-handed hitters in Curtis Granderson and Michael Confortto. Joe Thornton Jersey. Alderson acknowledged that Bruce is not an absolute perfect fit for us.We start with the need for offense and work from there, the GM said.Bruce, however, is under team control next season and does provide another type of protection for Cespedes, because the Cuban star can opt out of his contract and become a free agent again after this years World Series.We would not have done the deal without the extra year of control, Alderson said. We were not looking for a rental player, certainly not looking to give up the kind of talent we did for the next two months.Bruce homered in five straight games in late July, a career best. A downside has been his career-long penchant for following a torrid streak with an incredibly cold one.Bruce has a .249 career average with 233 homers in nine major league seasons. He is earning $12.5 million this year, and his contract includes a $13 million team option for 2017 with a $1 million buyout.New York clinched the NL East title in Cincinnati last September and return for a three-game series from Sept. 5-7.Cincinnati is into its second year of rebuilding, trading any high-priced veteran it can. The Reds dealt starters Johnny Cueto and Mike Leake, All-Star Home Run Derby winner Todd Frazier and closer Aroldis Chapman in the past year.They tried to trade second baseman Brandon Phillips to the Nationals, but blocked the deal. They also had the framework of a three-team deal in place that wouldve sent Bruce to Toronto in the offseason, but that fell through.Herrera, 22, was once regarded as the Mets future second baseman. He made his major league debut in 2014 and hit .215 over 49 big league games in the `14 and `15 seasons. He was batting .276 with 13 homers and 55 RBI this year at Triple-A Las Vegas.We liked Dilson very much, no question about that, Alderson said. Its not that our estimation of Dilson has gone down, we realize we have some other options and seem to be well-covered there.Traded from the Mets to Pittsburgh last December for second baseman Neil Walker, Niese struggled during his time with the Pirates. He went 8-6 with a 4.91 ERA and was moved to the bullpen earlier this month.The 29-year-old Niese is making $9 million in the final season of a deal he signed with the Mets in March 2012, a contract that includes a $10 million team option for 2017 with a $500,000 buyout.Bastardo, who went 4-1 with a 2.98 ERA in 2015 with Pittsburgh, posted a 4.74 ERA in 41 appearances for the Mets. Bastardo agreed to a $12 million, two-year deal with New York in January and is owed $6.5 million in 2017. 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