Dempsey speaks about Fulham saga, looking ahead

"I'm disappointed in the way I was portrayed, in the end, with Fulham,'' Dempsey said. "I always wanted to play at the highest level possible. That was never a secret. That's something I always said. It would be a dream of mine to play Champions League and you want to play on the best team possible to try to get there. That's definitely a team with a lot of quality in it, but now it's all about the team that I'm with.'' The saga started over the summer, when Dempsey - who was in the last year of his Fulham deal - first was linked to Liverpool when Reds coach Brendan Rodgers acknowledged inquiring about his availability. Fulham coach Martin Jol later said Dempsey refused to play for the club, one of the salvos in a back-and-forth that led to Dempsey tweeting that there were two sides to the story. On Monday, Dempsey said he was simply relieved to look ahead.

MLS: Five things we learned in Week 26

• Columbus Crew end Montreal Impact's winning streak

• Johnson unlikely hero for Real Salt Lake against DC United

• Chicago Fire take their chances to beat tired Houston Dynamo

• Sporting Kansas City's overturn half-time deficit to win

• San Jose Earthquakes ease past Chivas USA as rivals battle

FIVE

Americans Abroad

Jones scores as Schalke 04 wins

Jermaine Jones started and scored for Schalke on Saturday as the club outclassed FC Augsburg 3-1. Jones' goal came just after the restart as he dribbled past a few defenders before putting one in off the woodwork. The win was the first for Schalke this season.

The Rest

Raphael Honigstein in Germany

Markus Babbel is under pressure after his nine-man Hoffenheim were destroyed 4-0 at home by Eintracht Frankfurt.

500 litres of beer, 800 Bratwürste – but no points for hapless Hoffenheim.

Tim Vickery in South America

World Cup qualification resumes in South America this Friday, with a question mark hanging over the team which have been the continent's form side over the past two years. Might the London Olympics mark an unwelcome turning point for Uruguay?

On the face of it there should be no cause for alarm. World Cup semi-finalists in 2010, Copa America champions last year, Uruguay's senior side have gone 18 games without defeat. They have made a solid start to the 2014 qualifiers. Leaders Chile sit out Friday's round, where a win for Uruguay would take them to the top of the table.

But from certain angles, in the light of what happened in the Olympics, the glass does not look quite so full.

Zenit St Petersburg spend £64m to sign Hulk and Witsel

Brazil striker Hulk, who had talks with Chelsea in May, has joined Zenit St Petersburg from Porto in a transfer deal worth £32m. The 26-year-old has signed a five-year contract with the Russian champions, who are managed by Luciano Spalletti.

Liverpool Fallout

Henry Winter: Liverpool owner John W Henry offers some laughable points with his letter to fans

David Conn: John W Henry admits he and FSG have made Liverpool mistakes too

Andy Hunter: Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool position undermined by FSG over Dempsey

Liverpool reject Michael Owen deal

Liverpool's striker hunt may start from within the club

Football Weekly: Liverpool's problems mount after Arsenal defeat

Jimbo and the podders reflect on Brendan Rodgers' woes on and off the pitch. Plus, Paolo Di Canio loses his rag, and Cristiano Ronaldo loses his mojo.

It's a vintage lineup for today's Football Weekly, with James Richardson joined by Jonathan Wilson, Rob Smyth and John Ashdown.

Paolo Bandini in Italy

The returning Giallorossi coach has his team pressing, chasing and attacking opponents just like in his previous tenure.

Roma make time stand still under Zdenek Zeman as Inter are swat aside.

Phil Ball in Spain

Falcao and friend...

It's been quite a week again, what with the usual last-minute shenanigans surrounding the transfer deadline, the SuperCopa clásico Round Two, the Champions League draw and more happiness for the city of Madrid on Friday night with Atlético's storming victory over Chelsea in the European Super Cup, played over in Monaco. Has the season only just started? Phew.

Monday Musings with Gabriele Marcotti: Ronaldo sad, Ferguson rolls the dice

Cristiano Ronaldo is sad.

We know this because he told us. He didn't celebrate the two goals he scored against Granada on Sunday in Real Madrid's 3-0 win and, after the match, explained just why. "I am sad and the club knows it, that's why I didn't celebrate the goals," he said. "The people in the club know why."

Dimitar Berbatov rips Sir Alex Ferguson

The Bulgarian striker last week joined Fulham in a deal worth a reported 5 million pounds ($7.9 million) after falling out of favor at United.

The 31-year-old cost United 30.75 million pounds ($48.8 million) in 2008 and was the Premier League's top scorer in 2010-11 but made just 12 league appearances last season.

"I found it hard to accept his decision -- I still have my dignity. I scored many goals, I won the league two times, and I was the league top scorer, so it's not bad.

Liverpool's transfer strategy defended in open letter by John W Henry

Liverpool's principal owner, John W Henry, has taken the unusual step of defending the club's calamitous end to the transfer window in an open letter to supporters that appears to condemn Brendan Rodgers' pursuit of Clint Dempsey.

Phil McNulty: Arsenal defeat adds to Liverpool's off-field worries

Liverpool's inner workings will soon be exposed to public gaze via a fly-on-the-wall documentary. It may be to their eternal relief that the cameras stopped rolling before transfer deadline day. The events of the last 72 hours would have held huge appeal for football voyeurs - but may have made grim viewing for manager Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool's owners Fenway Sports Group.

England: Premier League Weekend Reports, Analyses, Etc.

Manchester City 3 - 1 QPR

Paul Wilson at the Etihad Stadium

Newcastle 1 - 1 Aston Villa

Kevin McCarra at St. James' Park

Tottenham 1 - 1 Norwich

Amy Lawrence at White Hart Lane

Ben Findon at White Hart Lane

Southampton 2 - 3 Manchester United

Daniel Taylor at St. Mary's

Henry Winter at St. Mary's

Liverpool 0 - 2 Arsenal

Richard Jolly at Anfield

Andy Hunter at Anfield

Louise Taylor at Anfield

Chris Bascombe at Anfield

Weekend Analysis

Team of the Week I

Team of the Week II

Team of the Week III

Garth Crook's Team of the Week

Italy: Serie A Weekend Review

Champions Juventus sent out a resounding message to their title rivals with a comprehensive 4-1 win over Udinese. Roma also made their intentions for the season clear with an outstanding 3-1 win at Inter Milan. Lazio are one of the sides with a 100% record thanks to their 3-0 win over Palermo. Napoli are also among that group following a 2-1 victory over Fiorentina. On Saturday, Giampaolo Pazzini scored a hat-trick as AC Milan beat Bologna 3-1, while Torino recorded a 3-0 home win over Pescara.

Review

Spain: La Liga Weekend Reviews

Barcelona retained the only 100% record in Spain's La Liga with a fine strike by Adriano sinking struggling Valencia 1-0. Real Madrid registered their first league victory of the season after a comfortable 3-0 win over Granada at the Bernabeu. Athletic Bilbao put an end to their nightmare start to the season with a comfortable 2-0 win over Real Valladolid at San Mames.

Review

Ronaldo angry with Real Madrid officials

Nicholas Rigg: Ronaldo's double trouble for Madrid

Martin Rogers: Clint Dempsey's move to Tottenham makes him highest-paid U.S. soccer player ever

The terms of EPL contracts are not made public but a source close to the deal confirmed that Dempsey is committed to Tottenham until 2015, with Fulham receiving a transfer fee of $9.6 million as compensation for losing their biggest star.

Fan does a faceplant while trying to catch ball at Morelia-Pumas match

As he leaned forward to try and make the grab, he lost his footing and faceplanted into the seat in front of him.

Monday MLS Breakdown

One word tends to make all the difference in the coaching ranks, but the recent alteration of a key term in his job title didn't much matter to Philadelphia manager John Hackworth after the Union's 0-0 draw with New England on Saturday night.

Breakdown

The Fifth Official: Van Persie's spot of bother, Carroll singing

Few of us like Monday but The Fifth Official does, for it brings with it a chance for him to point the finger and laugh. Here he pulls out the pretty, the puzzling and the downright pig-ugly from a week brimming with potential victims.

The Joy of Six: Memorable Manchester United v Southampton Matches

From the George Best show in 1971 to United's title win at the Dell in 2000, via a 1976 FA Cup final upset.

England: Premier League Previews & Predictions

Liverpool and Arsenal will each be hoping to pick up their first Barclays Premier League win of the season when they meet at Anfield this weekend. In Saturday's late kick-off, champions Manchester City host QPR in a repeat of last season's epic final-day fixture. Manchester United travel to St Mary's to take on promoted Southampton after picking up their first win of the season against Fulham last weekend but will be without Wayne Rooney, who is set to miss up to a month through injury.
Swansea and Everton will be hoping to continue their 100% starts to the new season, as Michael Laudrup's side host Sunderland while the Toffees travel to West Brom. Elsewhere, Tottenham welcome Norwich to White Hart Lane with both sides still searching for their first win. Fulham make the trip across London to face Sam Allardyce's West Ham, while Wigan and Stoke meet at the DW Stadium. On Sunday, Newcastle entertain an Aston Villa side still to register a point.

Preview

Lawro's Predictions

Paul Merson's Predictions

10 Things to Watch the Weekend

Weekend Previews: Spain, Italy, Germany

Spain: La Liga

Italy: Serie A

Germany: Bundesliga

Jonathan Wilson: Champions League Draw Baffles and Surprises

There are times when Uefa's seeding system seems significantly flawed and, while a Champions League group that pits Real Madrid against Manchester City, Ajax and Borussia Dortmund promises fun for everybody not directly involved, it does suggest major problems with the whole process. The champions of the three highest ranked sides in the Uefa coefficients surely shouldn't be meeting at this stage. Nothing highlighted the vagaries of the coefficient system quite so much as Dortmund's position in Pot Four. If ever evidence were needed that the Champions League is a tournament that protects the status quo and resists usurpers, this is it. Dortmund have won the past two Bundesliga titles and are on a record unbeaten run. The suggestion that they are anything other than an extremely good side is laughable. And yet, because their titles were preceded by several years in which they made no impression on European competition, they are ranked alongside Nordsjaellend, BATE and CFR.

The Mill + Deadline Day Insanity

Friday's Rumours

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Ready for lift off! Hammers land Carroll on loan as Liverpool call time on £35m misfit.

BBC Live Blog

Italy legend Alessandro Del Piero on verge of joining Sydney FC

Van der Vaart moves to Hamburg

Stoke complete Adam signing

Sinclair completes move to Man City

De Jong leaves Man City for AC Milan

Dempsey turns down move to Aston Villa

Fulham sign Richardson from Sunderland

Liverpool make bid for Sturridge on loan

European Match of the Weekend: Barcelona v Valencia

Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova has work to do on his defence before the visit of Valencia this weekend after errors from Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano handed Real Madrid the Spanish Super Cup.

UEFA Europa League: The Groups

GROUP A

Liverpool

Udinese

Young Boys

Anzhi

GROUP B

Atletico Madrid

Hapoel Tel-Aviv

Viktoria Plezn

Academica

GROUP C

Marseille

Fenerbahce

Borussia Monchengladbach

AEL

GROUP D

Bordeaux

Club Brugge

Newcastle

Maritimo

GROUP E

Stuttgart

FC Copenhagen

Steaua Bucharest

Molde

GROUP F

PSV Eindhoven

Napoli

Dnipro

AIK

GROUP G

Sporting Lisbon

Basle

Genk

Videoton

GROUP H

Inter Milan

Rubin Kazan

Partizan Belgrade

Neftci

GROUP I

Lyon

Athletic Bilbao

Sparta Prague

Hapoel Kiryat Shmona

GROUP J

Tottenham

Panathinaikos

Lazio

Maribor

GROUP K

Bayer Leverkusen

Metalist

Rosenborg

Rapid Vienna

GROUP L

Twente

Hannover

Levante

Helsingborg

Michael Cox: European Football in Review

The European football season has gotten off to an enthralling start. Going forward, I plan to review the highs and lows across the continent at the end of each month. Here's the first installment. 

UEFA Champions League: The Groups

Group
A	Porto	Dynamo Kiev	Paris Saint-Germain	Dinamo Zagreb
B	Arsenal	Schalke	Olympiacos	Montpellier
C	AC Milan	Zenit St. Petersburg	Anderlecht	Malaga
D	Real Madrid	Manchester City	Ajax	Borussia Dortmund
E	Chelsea	Shakhtar Donetsk	Juventus	Nordsjaelland
F	Bayern Munich	Valencia	Lille	Bate Borisov
G	Barcelona	Benfica	Spartak Moskow	Celtic
H	Manchester United	Braga	Galatasaray	CFR Cluj

UEFA Champions League: The Group Stage Draw is Today

The champions of England, Spain, Italy and Germany could all be drawn in the same Champions League group on Thursday in Monaco.

Thirty-two clubs feature in Thursday's draw in Monaco, which will divide teams into eight groups of four. Teams from the same country cannot be drawn against each other in the group stages, which run from 18/19 September to 4/5 December.

Uli Hesse in Germany

Among many other things, the first matchday of the new Bundesliga season proved that many clubs have bought wisely, not least the two that are expected to slug it out for the league title.

Jim White: Name five famous Belgians? Just look at the Premier League

One of the weariest jokes in British comedy – one dog-eared through overuse – involves the difficulty of naming five famous Belgians. A gag that must always have gone down a bomb in Brussels and Bruges, it ignores the fact that Rubens, Herge, Audrey Hepburn, Rene Magritte and Georges Simenon are names familiar in many a British household. And that’s without even mentioning Plastic Bertrand.

The sneery assumption behind the gag is that Belgium is a sort international adjunct, forever withering in the shadow of its neighbour France, contributing little to international culture beyond chocolate and urinating statuary.

The Mill Insane-a-Thon

Thursday's Rumours


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Moussa Dembele on Wednesday signed with Tottenham but further doubt was cast on the future of Rafael van der Vaart as Andre Villas-Boas continued to revamp his squad.


Transfer deadline day: The expert view from across Europe


Berbatov has medical at Fulham

New-look AC Milan taking long road back to the top

Passengers on one of Milan's old orange trams witnessed an odd sight on their commute this summer. As they slowly made their way through via Turati in the centre of the city, those looking out of the window caught a glimpse of a crowd that had gathered outside the office block where AC Milan's headquarters are located. A ceremony was taking place. Prayers were read out, flowers laid and candles lit. The mood was mournful. It was a funeral for the club. Passers-by stopped to read the epitaph that the mourners had left at the entrance. "AC Milan December 16, 1899 — July 22, 2012," it read, "he lacked affection for his loved ones."

Michael Bradley may miss qualifiers

U.S. midfielder Michael Bradley is in doubt for next week's World Cup qualifiers after he strained a muscle in his right thigh.

Spanish Super Copa: Real Madrid Defeat Barcelona

Real Madrid 2 - 1 Barcelona

Sid Lowe at the Bernabeu

Graham Hunter at the Bernabeu

Richest Bundesliga Move Ever: Javi Martinez Joins Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich signed midfielder Javi Martinez from Athletic Bilbao in the richest transfer in the 50-year history of the Bundesliga. The 23-year-old Spanish defensive midfielder cost Bayern 40 million euros ($50 million), breaking the previous transfer record set when Mario Gomez joined Bayern from VfB Stuttgart in 2009.

Alecko Eskandarian's Best XI: Underrated Players in Major League Soccer

Here is my list of lunch-pail guys who don't necessarily get the stats or glory, but are vital to their team's success.

Athletic Bilbao’s Wantaway Stars

Barcelona fans are happy with their 100 per cent winning start to the season, more so because Real Madrid fans are bewildered why their side has managed just a draw and two defeats from their first three games. The champions hope that new signing Luca Modric will add an incisive touch and speed of thought absent in their performances so far. Other talking points in Spain concern the dreadful crowds (the derby game between Getafe and Real Madrid was watched by just 8,000), ridiculous kick-off times and high ticket prices, but in Bilbao there's a different agenda — and not only because Athletic have started the season with two heavy losses.

Raphael Honigstein in Germany

After just one game of the new campaign, the obituaries are already being written for one top-flight German side in serious decline.

Hamburger begin new Bundesliga season without any relish.

Paolo Bandini in Italy

Milan's ponderous performance exposes the folly of a lack of investment in new recruits and raises fresh doubts over the manager's capacity to get the best out of the players he has.

Milan's painful Serie A defeat piles pressure on Massimiliano Allegri.

Americans Abroad

Another high-profile American likely to be on the move is Oguchi Onyewu, who is far from the given for Sporting Lisbon's first team that he was a season.

After a rough national team showing in May and June, Onyewu is still trying to fight his way back onto Jurgen Klinsmann's radar, but his being left off Sporting Lisbon's teamsheet again on Monday adds credence and rationale to the Portuguese reports linking him to clubs in Spain and France.

That the lumbering center back was sending non-game-related tweets during Sporting Lisbon's match on Monday is a further indication of someone who will not be staying put much longer.

The Rest

Amy Lawrence: Exit Luka Modric but will Tottenham send a big-money message of intent?

The only way for Daniel Levy to combat the scepticism around White Hart Lane is to be audacious and ambitious between now and the closing of the transfer window.

Jeremy Wilson: Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger believes he has plenty in reserve if Theo Walcott leaves

Another day and yet another Arsenal first-team regular edges towards the exit door. The obvious interpretation of news that Theo Walcott’s six-year spell at Arsenal is nearing its end is of another hammer blow to Arsene Wenger’s grand project at the Emirates.


At one level, that is true. Wenger does want to keep Walcott and, following the departures over the past 15 months of Cesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri, Gael Clichy, Robin van Persie and Alex Song, Arsenal face being without six of the 10 outfield players who generally started during the 2010-11 season.

Yet, as Wenger has consistently argued, each circumstance is different and should be considered in isolation. And it is clear that the current Walcott situation has far more in common with the losses of Clichy and Song than Van Persie, Nasri and Fabregas. Of the latter trio, Wenger was convinced by their world-class status and genuinely distraught at being forced into a situation where he must sell.
With Walcott – as was the case with Clichy and Song – the position is rather more nuanced. 

The Mill +

Wednesday's Rumours


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Paul Wilson: Premier League clubs are signing No10s, but none are English

The Arsenal flyer shows that England can still produce valued wingers but where are all the native No10s?

Theo Walcott's pace is still an asset but No10s have the greatest currency.

Brian Blickenstaff in Germany: Bundes-Blogging, Week 1

Opening days always feel a little uneasy. It doesn't matter whether you're in the United States or Germany, watching football or baseball. I'm not talking about nerves, either. Nerves are obviously part of it: The players look anxious, as do the fans, who have spent the offseason consuming transfer news and carefully calibrating expectations.

UEFA Champions League: Tuesday's Wrap

Braga booked its place in the group stages of the Champions League after coming through a penalty shootout against Udinese Tuesday night. Elsewhere, Anderlecht left it late before wrapping up a 3-2 aggregate victory against Cypriots AEL. Joining them in the lucrative group stages are Dinamo Zagreb, who won 1-0 in Maribor to seal a 3-1 aggregate success.

Wrap

Sid Lowe in Spain

After summer troubles, capped by wantaway Javi Martínez and Fernando Llorente, the new season has brought no respite.

Athletic Bilbao impotent as Marcelo Bielsa's project unravels apace.

Tim Vickery in South America

Manchester City coach Roberto Mancini was frustrated when his striker Sergio Aguero was called up by Argentina for a friendly against Germany two weeks ago.

And he is exasperated to see Aguero's name in his country's squad for the coming World Cup qualifiers.

The trip to Germany came just a few days before City began their defence of the Premier League title. And Aguero's injury means that he has limited chances of being fit in time to play for his country next month. A journey across the Atlantic is quite possibly not an ideal part of the player's recovery. Mancini's position, then, is totally understandable.

But so too is that of Argentina boss Alejandro Sabella.

The Mill +

Tuesday's Rumours



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Spain: Malaga's Champions League journey clouded by financial crisis

When Malaga's status rocketed following a takeover from the Qatari royal family, it appeared that the route to the promised land of Champions League football would be a smooth one. But the Andalusians head to Athens for the return leg of their Champions League play-off with Panathinaikos on the back of a journey that has taken a twist or two more than even the most thrill-seeking fan would have hoped for. Financial problems have meant La Liga's biggest spenders of last season have become the only team in Spain not to sign a single player this summer.

Good Looking Kits

There are plenty of good looking kits being showcased across Europe as the 2012-13 season gets underway. Goal.com counts down the 10 best home kits in Europe this season.

Fergie car ban! United boss puts his foot down on young players

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has banned the club's young stars from driving flashy sports cars from new sponsors Chevrolet. United recently signed a multi-million-pound deal with the American car giant, who will become  the name on the club's shirts from the start of the  2014-15 season. As a gesture of goodwill, Chevrolet immediately offered United's first-team stars a choice of luxury cars and understandably many of the club's big names plumped for iconic Corvettes.