Hulk lined up as £38m Chelsea signing

Chelsea are closing in on a deal to sign Porto striker Hulk after reportedly agreeing a £38 million transfer fee with the Portuguese club.

GettyImages Hulk has won seven major trophies in his four years at Porto, including this season's league title

Hulk's personal terms are not expected to be a problem and the Brazil international will become Roman Abramovich's second signing of the summer. The Chelsea owner has already agreed a £32 million deal to bring playmaker Eden Hazard from Lille just days ago.

EURO stage braced for teenage kicks

UEFA EURO 2012 will showcase some of the most recognised footballers in the world but there is also a clutch of teenage starlets hoping to make a name for themselves.

When UEFA EURO 2012 gets under way in earnest in just over a week, aficionados of the beautiful game will get to see some of the finest players in world football. From Xavi Hernández to Cristiano Ronaldo, Robin van Persie to Philipp Lahm, Zlatan Ibrahimović to Gianluigi Buffon, the continent's best-known footballers will be all competing to emerge as conquerors of Europe.
But at every major tournament a new star is born.

Spain 4 - 1 South Korea ( friendly)

Netherlands 2 - 0 Slovakia ( friendly)

Netherlands suffered two injury scares ahead of Euro 2012 as Wilfred Bouma and Wesley Sneijder were forced off during a 2-0 home victory over Slovakia in Rotterdam.

GettyImages

Wesley Sneijder,Stijn Schaars and Ibrahim Afellay celebrates the opening goal

PSV Eindhoven centre-back Bouma had to be substituted after a collision in the first minute when he and defensive colleague Johnny Heitinga clashed heads. Feyenoord's Ron Vlaar was Bouma's replacement, while Heitinga was comfortable enough to stay on the pitch.
Ibrahim Afellay helped to put Holland in front after seven minutes when the Barcelona forward, who returned to action only last month after a serious knee injury, produced a tricky run along the left and his low cross prompted Slovakia defender Kornel Salata to put the ball into his own goal.
After defeats to Bayern Munich and Bulgaria, Holland were seeking a confidence-boosting win ahead of their European Championship campaign.
Robin van Persie fired a shot over the crossbar but was mostly kept quiet by Slovakia around the penalty area, and Klaas Jan Huntelaar came off the bench to replace the Arsenal man midway through the second half.
Sneijder had already gone off by that stage, the Inter Milan playmaker suffering an ankle knock in the 51st minute, with Holland boss Bert van Marwijk wanting to take no further risk with such a key player.
Rafael van der Vaart doubled Holland's lead after 75 minutes with a precise low right-footed shot from 15 yards across goalkeeper Jan Mucha and into the left corner.
Afellay made way for Dirk Kuyt late on, while Luciano Narsingh was brought on in place of Arjen Robben for an international debut.
Holland complete their match preparation for Euro 2012 when they play Northern Ireland in Amsterdam on Saturday.
Source: Soccernet.com

Live streams: Netherlands v Slovakia (Friendly)

International Friendly
18:30 +00:00, May 30, 2012
De Kuip Stadion , Netherlands
Live streams: Veetle , sopcast
Holland winger Arjen Robben insists he can cope with his Champions League final heartbreak and has been buoyed by his return to the international fold.
Robben missed an injury-time penalty as Bayern Munich met Chelsea at their Allianz Arena home on May 19. The west Londoners eventually prevailed on a penalty shoot-out and Robben was subsequently jeered by the Bayern fans when the German club played Holland in a friendly three days later.
The former Real Madrid winger was upset at his treatment but, having spent some time with the Oranje squad as they prepare for the European Championship, is adamant he is now fully focused on the tournament in Poland and Ukraine.
Speaking ahead of tomorrow night's friendly clash with Slovakia in Rotterdam, he told De Telegraaf newspaper: "It was a special week but I am back here on the practice field with Holland and the Euros is the new target.
"I am comfortable with the national team and I am focused on the Euros.
"I think I have proved in the past that I have a lot of mental strength. I promise the fans that we will have a good tournament and I will be there against Denmark on June 9.''
Robben played the final 13 minutes of Saturday's surprise 2-1 home defeat by Bulgaria and was delighted with the reception he received from the crowd at the Amsterdam ArenA.
"It is a nice feeling when you are so welcomed in your own country,'' he added. "I want to thank the crowd.
"The positive feedback makes you want to play with your heart and soul.''
Holland boss Bert van Marwijk will be expecting his men to bounce back from their weekend setback.
Oranje were poor against the Bulgarians and today came under fire from former Holland playmaker Johan Cruyff.
Writing in his column for De Telegraaf, Cruyff felt the balance of the team was wrong.
He wrote: "Because (Rafael) Van der Vaart and (Robin) Van Persie were not using the full length of the pitch, there were hardly any crosses.
"That in turn meant few balls being cleared out of the penalty area to be picked up by the Dutch midfield and fired back at goal.
"Even an average team like Bulgaria can defend against that.''
Van Marwijk is expected to make changes tomorrow with Stijn Schaars one definite inclusion at left-back.
Source: Soccernet.com