Van Nistelrooy on award shortlist

Ruud Van Nistelrooy, of Manchester United, as well as Real Madrid's Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo, has made the list of nominees for UEFA's annual awards, for outstanding performances during last season's UEFA competitions.

Zidane and Juventus' Pavel Nedved were each nominated for both the Best Midfielder and Most Valuable Player awards, while Real's Roberto Carlos was nominated as MVP as well as best defender. Italian clubs collected 11 nominations. In contrast, only two players from the Premier League were nominated, for three awards.

The 33-year-old Norwegian defender Henning Berg, formerly of Manchester United and Blackburn, has signed a one-year deal with Rangers and joins former Parma and Bologna left-back Paolo Vanoli at Ibrox.

Birmingham expect finally to clinch a loan deal for Fulham goalkeeper Maik Taylor this week. The Blues, whose move for the Northern Ireland international was delayed over the weekend, are attempting to finalise the transfer paperwork.

Wimbledon have reached an agreement with Crystal Palace to play home matches at Selhurst Park until the end of September while the National Hockey Stadium in Milton Keynes is prepared.