Carroll: Newcastle have made a sensational approach to Liverpool to bring Andy Carroll back to Tyneside. Reports last night said the Magpies are keen to secure a season-long loan deal for the man they sold to the Reds for £35m in January last year. The news comes amid speculation that the 23-year-old is not part of manager Brendan Rodgers’s long-term plans.

Strasser: Milan’s Rodney Strasser has been ruled out for up to 10 weeks after fracturing his ankle. Strasser, 22, is back at Milan after a loan spell at Lecce. The Sierra Leone midfielder picked up the injury during training at Milanello on Saturday.

Mariappa: Brian McDermott is confident Watford defender Adrian Mariappa will be a Reading player this week. An agreement has now been put in place between the two clubs, with the 25-year-old set to complete a switch to the Madejski Stadium once he has passed a medical. “We have got a formality to take care of and I think once that’s done and dusted we are hopeful of getting him signed,” McDermott said.

Violence: Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund lost a friendly match which was overshadowed by crowd disturbances at Club Bruges late Saturday. Violent scenes just before the start of the game as groups of rival fans clashed, meant a delay to the kick-off with the Belgian league runners-up eventually winning 3-1.

Beckham: David Beckham claimed a classy double to show Great Britain manager Stuart Pearce what he was missing as Los Angeles Galaxy beat Portland Timbers 5-3 in a league match on Saturday. Former Rangers striker Kris Boyd put the Timbers ahead but Beckham levelled in the 20th minute with an exquisite curling strike and put his team on their way with a trademark free-kick.

Lupatelli: Veteran goalkeeper Cristiano Lupatelli has joined Fiorentina on a one-year contract. The much-travelled no.1 has agreed to a short-term deal with the club and is expected to act as a stand-in. Lupatelli, 34, previously played for Fiorentina between 2004 and 2008.