North America

+ Ben Rycroft: Hamilton and Ottawa formally apply to NASL.

+ David Beckham has ”no interest” in leaving the Los Angeles Galaxy and has had no contact with West Ham.

England

+ Manchester United are lining up a £12million bid for Germany playmaker Mesut Ozil.

+ Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed plans to devise a formula to pair Javier Hernández with Wayne Rooney in a new-look Manchester United strike force following the Mexican forward’s stunning debut against the MLS All-Stars in Houston.

+ Manchester City’s talks with Santos about the future of Robinho have broken down and the player is preparing to return to England and the deeply unsatisfactory prospect of beginning the season at a club where he knows he is not wanted and is profoundly unhappy.

+ Landon Donovan has held preliminary talks over a permanent transfer to the Premier League and revealed he would love the opportunity to return to Everton.

+ Benfica midfielder Ramires has pleaded with the club to resolve his transfer to Chelsea and release him for his "dream move" to Stamford Bridge.

+ Cesc Fabregas has revealed the conflicting thoughts dominating his mind as the transfer saga of the summer – his will it/won’t it happen move to Barcelona – rumbles on.

+ Mark Hughes will attempt to scupper Tottenham Hotspur’s move for Craig Bellamy after he was confirmed as Fulham’s new manger.

+ Liverpool have failed to land Luke Young after the Aston Villa defender refused to take a £10,000-a-week pay cut.

Spain

+ Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo is eager to don the number 7 jersey formerly donned by legend Raul.

+ Maicon’s move to Real Madrid is being sabotaged by someone, according to the player’s agent.

Italy

+ Lazio have signed left-back Javier Garrido from Manchester City just days after selling their defender Aleksandar Kolarov to the English side.

+ Genoa have joined the race for Sebastian Giovinco just a day after the Juventus player became very tempted by Bari’s offer.

France

+ Nicolas Anelka is suing L’Equipe for defamation over their publication of his alleged outburst at Raymond Domenech at the World Cup. In response to Anelka, L’Equipe say they will call on witnesses who saw his confrontation with Domenech. Will the ‘traitor’ be unmasked? [via @tomwfootball]

+ Marseille defender Souleymane Diawara will be out for four to six weeks with a thigh injury sustained in Wednesday’s Champions Trophy.

Portugal

+ Porto has signed Brazilian striker Walter to a five-year deal.

Greece

+ Lyon defender Jean-Alain Boumsong is on the verge of sealing a move to Panathinaikos after landing in Athens.

Scotland

+ Celtic have announced the signing of Israel midfielder Beram Kayal.

+ Former Germany international Timo Hildebrand has claimed he has had an approach from Celtic and is seriously considering it.

Europa League

+ David Ngog struck twice as Roy Hodgson began his reign as Liverpool manager with a comfortable 2-0 victory from a potentially tricky Europa League test at FK Rabotnicki.

+ Uefa have confirmed they are aware of claims that racist chants were directed at Liverpool’s players during last night’s Europa League qualifying game against Rabotnicki in Macedonia.

+ Shamrock Rovers’ hopes of causing a huge upset are all but over after a double from Amauri gave Juventus a 2-0 victory in the first leg at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin.

Argentina

+ Carlos Bilardo, who has been accused by Diego Maradona of betrayal and working behind the scenes to have him dismissed as Argentina’s coach, says the former playing great was to blame for his own downfall.

+ Joel Richards: Maradona exit as chaotic as his tenure.

+ Juan Roman Riquelme has agreed to a new four-year deal with Boca Juniors.

North America

+ Manchester United defeated the MLS All-Stars 5-2 in Houston.

+ Jerome Soloman: Manchester United puts MLS in its rightful place.

+ The Vancouver Whitecaps won a coin toss Wednesday against the fellow 2011 expansion Portland Timbers, earning the right to pick first among eight different MLS player acquisition procedures.

+ The Whitecaps defeated the Impact 1-0 in Montreal last night.

+ The Yorkies: TFC midterm reports at Preki Jr high.

+ Mexico captain Rafael Marquez has refuted reports that he is set to retire from international football, revealing that he plans to play for his country for at least two more years and may even continue until the next World Cup.

+ Red Bull forward Macoumba Kandji has reportedly drawn interest from at least four teams in England, including the two he faced in the recent Barclays New York Challenge.

England

+ Mark Hughes set to be named Fulham manager within next 24 hours after agreeing to fill vacancy left by Roy Hodgson.

+ Daniel Taylor: Mark Hughes and Fulham a perfect fit.

+ Manchester City are set to unveil Mario Balotelli to take their summer spending past the £100million mark.

+ Bristol City have launched an audacious bid to sign David James.

+ Manchester City have begun trimming their squad by holding talks with Lazio over the sale of the left-back Javier Garrido for £2.5m.

+ Arsène Wenger has suggested that Cesc Fábregas and Robin van Persie will struggle to be fit for Arsenal’s opening game of the Premier League season, against Liverpool at Anfield two weeks on Sunday.

+ Newcastle United have confirmed that defender Steven Taylor is expected to be sidelined for the next three months.

+ Spurs are planning to offer Manchester City £4million for Craig Bellamy.

+ Chelsea have confirmed that their striker Didier Drogba is not for sale and also that the manager Carlo Ancelotti will be handed more transfer funds if the Italian asks for them.

+ Sir Alex Ferguson has defended the Glazer family, claiming Manchester United’s American owners have been treated unfairly by fans desperate to get them out of Old Trafford.

+ Supporters of Norwich City claim they have been plagued by bugs since their team switched to new bright yellow shirts.

Spain

+ Jose Mourinho has given the clearest indication yet that he will be reunited with Chelsea centre-back Ricardo Carvalho at Real Madrid before the start of the season.

+ Sami Khedira’s move to Real Madrid looks certain to go ahead after Stuttgart confirmed he has asked to leave the club.

+ Real Madrid hope to convince Mesut Ozil to snub a move to England and wait a year to clinch a move to the Bernabeu.

Italy

+ The Full 2010-11 Serie A fixtures are finally here!

+ Napoli have got a green light to sign Parma striker Cristiano Lucarelli after Udinese agreed to take German Denis off their hands.

+ Inter defender Nicolas Burdisso would like to join Roma amid interest from Juventus, according to his agent Fernando Hidalgo.

+ AC Milan vice president Adriano Galliani believes the club are unlikely to dip into the transfer market this summer, though he revealed that talks aimed at keeping veteran midfielder Gennaro Gattuso at the San Siro have been positive.

Germany

+ New St. Pauli frontman Gerald Asamoah could be out of action for around four weeks after being diagnosed with a partial tendon tear in his right thigh.

+ Mainz have yet to decide whether or not to sign Ghana international Dominic Adiyiah from AC Milan despite agreeing terms with both the player and the Italian club.

France

+ Ex-Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Edouard Cissé struck the winning penalty against his former club as Ligue 1 champions Marseille lifted the first trophy of the season, taking the shootout 5-4 in front of a new Champions Trophy record attendance of 55,000 in Radès, Tunisia after it finished goalless after 90 minutes.

Russia

+ Aleksandar Luković has left Udinese  for  FC Zenit St. Petersburg, who have also secured a new deal with their vice-captain Igor Denisov.

Greece

+ Olympiakos supporters are really excited about the Albert Riera signing.

Champions League

+ UEFA Champions League debutants SC Braga have one foot in the play-offs after a 3-0 victory in the first leg of their third qualifying round tie against Celtic FC.

+ PAOK FC gave new coach Pavlos Dermitzakis a night to savour by holding Ajax to a draw in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League third qualifying round tie.

+ An 89th-minute penalty from Moreno Costanzo earned BSC Young Boys a 2-2 draw with ten-man Fenerbahçe SK and prevented the Turkish club from taking a lead into next week.

Argentina

+ Outgoing Argentina coach Diego Maradona has launched a sensational attack on AFA president Julio Grondona and director of national teams Carlos Bilardo, claiming he was "lied to" and "betrayed" and effectively sacked from the role.

+ Tim Vickery: Maradona outmanoeuvred in Argentina battle of wills.

Brazil

+ Santos are increasingly confident they can see off Chelsea and West Ham’s interest in 18-year-old wonderkid Neymar. The Brazilians are ready to give him a pay hike.

North America

+ Toronto FC defeated Motagua 1-0 in the first leg of their Concacaf Champions League tie at BMO Field last night.

+ Paul James: Impressive TFC surprise Motagua.

+ The View from the South Stands: Post-game vlog.

+ Jeremy Loome: The time is right for Toronto to sign academy players Nicholas Lindsay and Doneil Henry.

+ The Los Angeles Galaxy lost 4-1 at home to the Puerto Rico Islanders in the first leg of their Concacaf Champions League tie.

+ Rafa Marquez’ move to the Red Bulls is complete and he will be presented to the media on Friday, according to ESPN Deportes.

+ The Chicago Fire will officially unveil the signing of Nery Castillo at a press conference on Thursday.

+ A report in Expressen claims five teams in Europe are interested in the services of Freddie Ljungberg.

+ Down the Byline: Kansas City Wizards looking to rebrand with new stadium?

+ Some Canadian Guys: Euro updates — Haber, de Guzman and McCallum.

England

+ Arsenal are preparing to make a £5.5 million offer to land Italy’s World Cup goalkeeper Federico Marchetti from Cagliari.

+ Arsene Wenger has once again reinforced Arsenal’s position that Cesc Fabregas is not for sale at any price, having turned down an approach from Barcelona.

+ Arsene Wenger has confirmed striker Nicklas Bendtner will miss the start of the Premier League season due to a persistent groin injury.

+ Roy Hodgson says that Fernando Torres will resume training next week after pledging loyalty to Liverpool.

+ Aston Villa defender Luke Young has emerged as a target for Liverpool – and is weighing up whether to make a cut price £2.5 million move to Anfield.

+ The agent of Royston Drenthe has revealed that the Facebook account claiming the player’s imminent move to Liverpool is fake.

+ Manchester City are on the verge of conceding defeat in the race to sign Edin Dzeko because of the refusal of Wolfsburg to reduce their £35 million asking price.

+ Martin O’Neill on Tuesday night admitted that Manchester City have refused to improve their bid for James Milner, but he would not reassure Aston Villa supporters that the midfielder would be in the Midlands next season.

+ Chelsea have been told they must stump up £33million to sign top defensive target David Luiz from Benfica, or risk losing out in the battle for his signature.

+ West Ham have confirmed they have rejected an offer from Tottenham for Scott Parker, with chairman David Sullivan insisting the midfielder is not for sale at any price.

+ Stoke City are considering an ambitious move for the Manchester City striker Roque Santa Cruz.

+ Sol Campbell will remain in the Barclays Premier League next season after signing a one-year deal with newly-promoted Newcastle.

+ West Brom have abandoned their interest in signing former Manchester United and Aston Villa midfielder Eric Djemba-Djemba on medical grounds.

Spain

+ Mallorca have confirmed the signing of Jonathan de Guzman from Feyenoord.

+ Marcos Senna says that he is honoured to be linked to Barcelona, as the Spanish champions look to replace midfielder Yaya Toure.

+ Barcelona lost more than €77m last season, the club’s vice-president for economic affairs Javier Faus has revealed.

+ Real Zaragoza striker Ikechukwu Uche has suffered another injury setback, with his club confirming he has torn cartilage in his left knee.

+ Espanyol have completed the signing of Mallorca defender Felipe Mattioni on a five-year deal.

+ The president of La Liga has attributed Spain’s phenomenal football success to a deliberate policy among the clubs of promoting young, home-grown players.

Italy

+ Lazio have flown to Brazil with a view to signing Sao Paulo’s highly-rated midfield general Hernanes.

+ There are reports in Russia that CSKA Moscow winger Milos Krasic will join Juventus by the end of the week.

+ Juventus will launch a final bid for Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko this week before definitively ending their interest in his services.

+ Juventus’ ultras have made no secret of the fact they want players like Mauro Camoranesi sold this summer.

+ Fiorentina have suggested the deal to sign Liverpool defender Emiliano Insua could be in jeopardy due to the player’s wage demands.

+ Bologna have confirmed they have signed Rene Krhin in a co-ownership deal with Inter Milan, with youngster Lorenzo Paramatti going the other way.

Germany

+ Raúl has signed a two-year deal with Schalke, the club have confirmed.

+ Werder Bremen are hoping to hear positive news on the results of a knee examination for injured centre back Naldo.

France

+ Sochaux have agreed a deal to sign Malian international attacker Modibo Maïga from Ligue 2 club Le Mans.

Argentina

+ Diego Maradona has left his post as Argentina boss after a unanimous vote from the Argentine Football Association.

North America

+ Multiple reports in Spain and France claim Rafa Marquez will be granted a release for a free transfer out of Barcelona — but only if he signs with the Red Bulls.

+ Spanish paper La Vanguardia claims that Espanyol striker Raul Tamudo is pondering an MLS offer.

+ The Chicago Fire have traded midfielder Justin Mapp to Philadelphia Union for allocation money.

+ The Kansas City Wizards say they sold 700 season tickets after their exhibition win over Manchester United.

+ Duane Rollins: Clichés about half-full glasses.

England

+ Mario Balotelli is on the brink of joining Manchester City from Inter for an initial £24million. The 19-year-old is believed to have agreed terms on a £65,000 a week five-year contract.

+ Javier Mascherano has told Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson that he wants to leave the club for Inter Milan.

+ Caught Offiside: Ryan Babel — an Anfield man who is very misunderstood. (Hat-tip Kevin Smith)

+ Chelsea hope to secure the capture of Benfica’s Brazil midfielder Ramires this week, when he returns to Lisbon from his post-World Cup break.

+ Harry Redknapp has raised fears for Jonathan Woodgate’s career after revealing that the central defender remained "nowhere near" a return to fitness despite spending significant periods of the past eight months consulting with the world’s leading specialists on his groin problem.

+ Owen Hargreaves faces the prospect of being ruled out of Premier League action until January under new rules.

+ Sol Campbell is due to have a medical with Newcastle this afternoon with a view to signing for the newly-promoted Barclays Premier League club.

+ Nice chairman Gilbert Stellardo has revealed that West Ham United are the only English club to be in contact over striker Loic Remy.

+ Marcos Alonso says he turned down the chance to sign for Benfica in order to play with Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium this season.

+ Paul Scholes has revealed he regrets rejecting an England comeback at the World Cup and may have gone to South Africa had Fabio Capello made the offer instead of his No2, Franco Baldini.

Spain

+ Real Madrid midfielder Rafael van der Vaart insists that he won’t be leaving the club this summer and claims that reports which suggested otherwise saw him ”misquoted”.

+ Barcelona board spokesman Toni Freixa has revealed Arsenal are simply unwilling to negotiate the sale of Cesc Fabregas.

+ Barcelona have agreed to loan Brazilian defender Henrique to Racing Santander for another season.

Italy

+ Roma captain Francesco Totti insists he was joking when he said that referees helped Inter steal a couple of Scudetti from his side.

Germany

+ Raúl says he is considering a move to England following his departure from the Bernabéu, denying a deal with Schalke has already been done.

+ American defender Steve Cherundolo has been named as the new captain of Hannover.

+ Fredi Bobic has been named Stuttgart’s new director of sport following Horst Heldt’s acrimonious departure for Schalke.

Russia

+ FC Porto captain Bruno Alves looks set to finalise his transfer to Zenit St-Petersburg, according to reports in Portugal.

+ Jonathan Wilson: Zenit St Petersburg reach pivotal stage in their relentless title march.

Netherlands

+ Martin Jol is to make a double move to strengthen his Ajax attack, agreeing deals to bring in Mounir El Hamdaoui and Mido.

Brazil

+ New Brazil coach Mano Menezes has stamped his mark firmly on the Selecao by only including four players from their World Cup campaign in his first squad.

Iraq

+ Iraq’s international future could be in jeopardy after elections to select a new Iraq Football Association board were postponed.

North America

+ Paul James: Final phase hurting Toronto FC.

+ The Vancouver Whitecaps have released fan favourite Justin Moose.

+ Whitecaps residency player Russell Teibert (two-time Canadian u-17 player of the year) is expected to join the senior side for their matches against Montreal and Carolina this week.

+ The Red Bulls’ on-again, off-again search for a Classic 10 attacking midfielder is back on. Well, at least on life support, at least.

+ Down the Byline on Kansas City’s 2-1 win over Manchester United: Friendly or Not, that was a good result.

England

+ Inter Milan striker Mario Balotelli has signed a five-year deal with Manchester City, according to reports in Italy.

+ Roberto Mancini has confirmed Manchester City are willing to underwrite a British record transfer for Fernando Torres should the Spaniard decide to leave Liverpool.

+ Stephen Ireland’s future at Manchester City is in serious doubt after he was told he may not make Roberto Mancini’s final 25-man squad for next season and should consider severing his ties with Eastlands.

+ Manchester City have completed the signing of left-back Aleksandar Kolarov from Lazio, for an undisclosed fee believed to be around €22.5m (£18.9m).

+ James Milner is expected to hold talks with Martin O’Neill when he returns to Aston Villa for pre-season training tomorrow, with the furore last week about his future still fresh in the mind.

+ Rio Ferdinand may not return to action until early September after the Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson revealed he is still six weeks away from full fitness.

+ Newcastle United hope to sign Marseille winger Hatem Ben Arfa in a loan deal.

+ Didier Drogba is set to miss next month’s Community Shield and Chelsea’s Premier League opener after undergoing groin surgery which will rule him out for three weeks.

+ Chelsea expect to see Ricardo Carvalho at pre-season training despite his desire to join Jose Mourinho at Real Madrid.

+ Former Manchester United and Aston Villa midfielder Eric Djemba-Djemba has emerged as a target for Barclays Premier League newcomers West Brom.

Spain

+ Real Madrid legend Raul bid farewell to the Bernabeu on Monday after 16 years of service. He will join Bundesliga club Schalke on a two-year deal

+ The father of Inter full-back Maicon has revealed that his son only wants to move to Real Madrid.

+ Germany World Cup star Mesut Ozil is in advanced talks with Barcelona, according to elmundodeportivo.

+ Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta does not believe the Spanish champions will be able to sign Cesc Fabregas this summer and will instead have to wait 12 months to get their man – and it’s all because of the Arsenal fans.

+ Real Mallorca are set to appeal their expulsion (on financial grounds) from the Europa League next season.

+ Brazilian full-back Filipe Luis has joined Atletico Madrid from Deportivo La Coruna in a deal that is reported to be worth euro 13.5 million.

Italy

+ Sebastian Giovinco’s agent Claudio Pasqualin has hinted that The Atomic Ant’s future may lie with Parma.

+ Palermo have apparently agreed a deal with Boca Juniors to sign highly-rated centre-back Ezequiel Munoz.

+ Genoa full-back Domenico Criscito has been ruled out for three weeks after injuring his left knee.

Germany

+ Hamburger SV have signed Serbian international midfielder Gojko Kacar from Hertha BSC, on a five-year contract through to June 2015.

France

+ Marseille president Jean-Claude Dassier believes a clearer picture will emerge within eight days regarding their bid to lure Bordeaux captain Alou Diarra to Stade Velodrome.

+ An ankle injury has come at the worst possible moment for Lorient star Kevin Gameiro, scuppering the striker’s chances of being named in Laurent Blanc’s France squad for the friendly against Norway on August 11.

+ Brazilian centre-back Cris has signed a contract extension with Lyon that sees him linked to the club until 2013.

Turkey

+ Besiktas look set to complete the signing of Guti, who has officially left Real Madrid after 15 years and 542 matches.

Greece

+ Olympiakos have announced the signing of Liverpool midfielder Albert Riera on a four-year deal.

Scotland

+ Celtic have completed the signing of Mexican international Efrain Juarez, who joins the club on a four-year deal

+ Scotland boss Craig Levein is confident controversy over his pursuit of players such as England Under-21 striker Andy Carroll will be forgotten if he produces a winning team.

Brazil

+ Mano Menezes has been confirmed as the new Brazil coach, replacing Dunga, whose contract was not renewed following Brazil’s disappointing World Cup campaign.

+ Tim Vickery: Brazil job will test Menezes’ inner calm.

Argentina

+ Argentina coach Diego Maradona is keen to sign a new contract – as long as he is allowed to retain his entire backroom staff.