Real Madrid said Arjen Robben will be unavailable for Thursday’s Spanish Cup match against Mallorca due to a muscle strain, the latest injury to the club’s costliest pre-season signing.

The Dutch midfielder has now suffered four injuries and failed to make an impression since joining the club from Chelsea for 36 million euros (52 million US dollars) on a five-year contract.

The 23-year-old has made only five starts since joining Real Madrid, two of them in the league, the newspaper El Mundo noted on its website.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger denied Wednesday newspaper reports in Germany that goalkeeper Jens Lehmann was on the brink of joining Borussia Dortmund.

“It’s not true,” Wenger told Sky Sports after Arsenal’s 1-1 League Cup semi-final first leg draw at the Emirates Stadium. “Not for Jens and not for us,” the Frenchman added.

“I deny that Jens has agreed personal terms with Dortmund and I deny that we have an agreement with Dortmund.”

The German club’s sporting director Michael Zorc told Thursday’s edition of the Bild newspaper: “Between Lehmann and ourselves everything has been settled, we’ve been in permanent contact.

Marseille president Pape Diouf insisted Tuesday he has no intention of selling Djibril Cisse after turning down a move from English Premier League club Manchester City for the striker.

“I will make myself very clear concerning Djibril Cisse: he will not leave, he will stay at Marseille until the end of the season,” said Diouf.

“It is certain many English clubs have shown interest in him. I have been approached very officially by Manchester City, to whom I categorically said no,” confirmed Diouf.

FIFA have ordered FC Porto’s former Dutch coach Co Adriaanse to pay the club 1.15 million euros (1.7 million dollars) in compensation for abruptly terminating his contract without a reason in 2006, the Portuguese outfit announced Tuesday.

A judge sitting on the governing body of world football’s Player Statutes Commission examined the case and found against Adriaanse and his assistant Jan Olde Riederink, who was told to pay 146,250 euros (656,423 dollars) in compensation, FC Porto said in a statement.

Brazilian superstar Ronaldo could make his injury comeback for AC Milan in Tuesday’s friendly against a United Arab Emirates representative team in Dubai.

Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti told the official AC Milan website that Ronaldo will play some part in the match.

The three-time world player of the year has only played one game this season, when he started against Cagliari, hitting the post with one shot and winning a highly dubious penalty in an eventful game.

World footballer of the year Kaka admitted in an interview to be published Tuesday that he thought about quitting AC Milan last season.

Kaka was the inspiration behind Milan’s Champions League triumph in Athens in May, when two Filippo Inzaghi goals proved enough to beat Liverpool 2-1 in the final, but incredibly he has now admitted that he considered making that his last game for the club.

“Did I think about leaving Milan? Only before the Champions League final in Athens, but not any more,” he told weekly magazine Guerin Sportivo. “One day I want to captain Milan.”

Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann’s future with the Premier League leaders is set to be decided within days, according to Gunners boss Arsene Wenger.

The temperamental German international made the most of a rare start in a season where he has spent much of the time behind Manuel Almunia to keep a clean sheet as Arsenal advanced into the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 2-0 win away to Championship side Burnley.

Lehmann has been linked with a transfer window return to Germany with Borussia Dortmund and his current manager admitted he was still uncertain over the veteran’s future with the north London giants.