Mesut Ozil signed a $20 million deal with Real Madrid last Tuesday.

The midfielder signed with Werder Bremen for two years, but his impressive performance has made him a sought after player in the international ranks.

The 21-year-old was reportedly wooed by Arsenal, Barcelona, Chelsea, and Manchester United. But, in the end, it was Real Madrid who landed the prized soccer player.

The deal is now pending a physical examination.
 

Jeering England fans showed more emotion than Fabio Capello.

The coach, who has faced as much criticism as his players since the World Cup, was devoid of any passion at Wembley Stadium, remaining impassively lodged to his seat even as Steven Gerrard spared him from embarrassment against Hungary.

The captain responded to Hungary's disputed opening goal by scoring twice in a five-minute span of the second half for a 2-1 victory Wednesday night in England's first match since its second-round elimination at the World Cup.

So while South African flops Wayne Rooney and Ashley Cole were showered with jeers, cheers were reserved for Gerrard.

"It is always the same. When you score you are good. When you win you are good. When you lose, you are nothing," Capello said. "I think it is not only about my reputation, but we win together and lose together."

There were fewer than 20,000 empty seats in the 90,000-capacity stadium, where attendance was 72,024. Fans were encouraged by Capello to attend — and boo.

"A lot of criticism had been directed at us saying that we don't care and it doesn't mean anything for us to play for England," Gerrard said. "So I think from my reaction for the first goal, you can see how much it means to myself and the players to be part of this group.

"On the back of the disappointment of the World Cup, there was a lot of pressure on the players to get a win tonight and put a performance in."

England's hopes of rebuilding before qualifying for the 2012 European Championship starts next month looked like they would be derailed in the 63rd minute, when Phil Jagielka sent the ball into his own net. Replays, however, showed the ball didn't completely cross the goal line, reviving memories of Frank Lampard's disallowed goal in the 4-1 loss to Germany in June.

"We showed good character after going a goal down and we stuck in there," Gerrard said.

The Liverpool midfielder tied it six minutes later from 25 yards, then went around three defenders for his second goal in the 73rd minute. He left to a standing ovation in the 83rd minute when he was replaced by 18-year-old Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere, who made his England debut.

"I am happy with the performance. We played well in the first 30 minutes, but the last 10 minutes of the first half were not so good," Capello said. "They were really compact and it was difficult to find space."

Goalkeeper Joe Hart made his first start for England. Adam Johnson and Theo Walcott — two wingers cut from the 30-man preliminary World Cup roster, were in the starting lineup and showed the pace that was missing when England was ripped apart by a young German side.

Their inclusion also enabled Capello to end his rigid adherence to a 4-4-2 formation in the first half, deploying Rooney as the lone front man in a 4-5-1.

Rooney, who failed to score at the World Cup after a standout season for Manchester United, was ruled offside when he found the net in the third minute after racing onto Gerrard's through ball. Rooney has not scored for England since September.

Lacking sharpness, Rooney was given support in the second half by Fulham's Bobby Zamora, one of four players to make their England debuts in the second half.

Centre back Michael Dawson replaced John Terry, while 20-year-old left back Kieran Gibbs came in for the much-booed Cole. Ashley Young replaced Walcott.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst has only one better way to say goodbye for good. That is to score in his last competitive game as well, and finally give the Netherlands the World Cup.

"I hope it will be the most beautiful game of my life," said Van Bronckhorst, who is retiring from football after the tournament but made sure he will go out in style by scoring the first goal in a 3-2 win over Uruguay in the semifinals Tuesday.

His name has already been scrapped from the teamsheet of his last club, Feyenoord Rotterdam — but the Dutch team will keep him on until Sunday, and for good reason.

The captain gave the Dutch the lead with a blistering 35-yard left-foot drive that sailed past Fernando Muslera and went in off the post to break open the game against Uruguay.

Van Bronckhorst then claimed the biggest defensive play of the semifinal too, when he rushed back to head a dangerous high ball out of the goalmouth in the 49th minute, with the score at 1-1.

At 35, Van Bronckhorst was more than two years older than anyone else on the pitch, yet celebrated like a teenager with the rest of the team, almost an hour after the match.

"There were no tears, just joy," he said. "The last game in my career and it's a World Cup final, what can you say? It could not be more beautiful."

Wherever he has gone, Van Bronckhorst has reaped success, whether with Rangers, Arsenal or Barcelona. He has won league titles in three countries — Scotland, England and Spain — and the Champions League with Barcelona.

And made friends along the way too. With his success at the World Cup, he already received messages of support from a wide cast of characters, including Thierry Henry and Sol Campbell. Lionel Messi once even picked him as the best left back in the world.

As a defender, he is known for his dashes upfield on the left, clean marking and his tight organizational instincts to read and neutralize opposing plays as they develop. And though he tends to be understated as a person and defender, his goals can be spectacular.

"It was super, and great for him," forward Arjen Robben said. "He was playing the last two matches of his career and now the very last one is the final of the World Cup. It's fantastic."

He was given the captain's armband only two years ago, when goalie Edwin van der Sar retired from international play. He was seen as a transitional figure at best, not a standout leader thriving on bluster and brawn.

Yet now, he has taken the team as far as Johan Cruyff did in 1974. The Dutch will either play Spain or Germany, who meet in Durban on Wednesday.

"For everyone, it will be the game of their life," Van Bronckhorst said.

For himself, the last game of his life.

He began his international playing career against Brazil on Aug. 31, 1996, and played his 105th match for Oranje Tuesday, scoring his sixth goal overall.

Only Van der Sar with 130 international caps and Frank de Boer with 112 have made more appearances for the Netherlands.

"It was incredibly beautiful. It was really a perfect shot," said De Boer, now the assistant coach of the Dutch, when describing the opening goal. "It will almost certainly never happen again to strike a ball like that."

Considering Van Bronckhorst only has one game left, De Boer's prediction stands a good chance to hold true.

Even without one of world soccer's biggest stars, Portugal's World Cup clash with Brazil promises a feast of skilful, attacking soccer as both teams seek to win and avoid a possible round of 16 clash with Spain.

"It is going to be a very good game for us and for all football-lovers and fans," Brazil coach Dunga said Thursday.

Not surprisingly, given the pedigree of both teams and their close cultural and historical ties, the match between Brazil and Portugal was one of the first World Cup matches to sell out. Brazil is ranked No. 1 in the world and Portugal is No. 3.

"The world's attention has been focused on this game, taking into account the quality of players both teams have," Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz said. "It's all about beautiful football, the quality of the game and creativity of our players."

The lustre was taken off slightly when midfielder Kaka was sent off in the 88th minute of Brazil's 3-1 win over Ivory Coast, meaning he will be banned from a showdown against Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo in Durban.

Portugal midfielder Tiago said Brazil would not have a problem filling Kaka's boots.

"Brazil has a very strong squad," Tiago said. "They have other players who can step into that position."

Julio Baptista and Daniel Alves played with the main team at training Wednesday, an indication they could replace Kaka and Elano, who is still in doubt after injuring his right ankle against Ivory Coast.

Dunga appeared to have settled Thursday on Baptista as Kaka's replacement.

He "has already played in the Copa America. He's good in midfield and going forward," Dunga said. "Kaka is unique, but Baptista is good."

Portugal will be missing injured midfielders Deco and Ruben Amorim, Queiroz said.

Both coaches are hoping the pitch at Moses Mabhida Stadium will be good enough to allow the teams to play their flowing soccer. The teams were prevented from training in the stadium to preserve a playing surface that is showing signs of wear after hosting four World Cup matches already. It also will host a round of 16 match and one of the semifinals.

"If the pitch is not up to scratch, that's bad for both teams," Queiroz said.

Dunga agreed.

"The pitch is one of the important factors that contributes to the beautiful game," he said.

Portugal, meanwhile, has Ronaldo back in scoring touch after he broke a two-year international goal drought in his team's emphatic 7-0 demolition of North Korea.

"Without a doubt he is a great player, he has been showing this for a long time," Brazil captain Lucio said. "We need to try to defend as a team, it's key we help each other and stay focused. We will have to pay attention to a player like Ronaldo and also to the others."

Queiroz was critical of the yellow card shown Ronaldo against Ivory Coast, but said the star would not change the way he plays out of fear of picking up a second yellow and a one-match suspension.

"He has to play his normal football," he said.

Brazil's defeats of North Korea and Ivory Coast guaranteed it a place in the round of 16. It now wants to continue its winning ways to top Group G and avoid a possible match against fellow World Cup favourite Spain in the next round.

Portugal is second in the group on four points after starting the tournament with a lacklustre 0-0 draw against Ivory Coast before hitting form against North Korea. That means a draw is enough for a place in the next round, while a victory will see Queiroz's team win the group.

"Portugal is going to have to attack in order to secure points in this group stage," Dunga said.

Portugal's quick passing and silky ball skills have earned the team the reputation of "Brazilians of Europe." Its squad also includes three Brazilian-born players — defender Pepe, midfielder Deco and striker Liedson.

While Deco has not recovered from a right hip injury, Pepe and Liedson are fit to play.

All three rose to stardom in the Portuguese league and became naturalized Portuguese when Brazil failed to give them an international call-up.

"They're Portuguese, as far as we're concerned," midfielder Tiago said. "They've brought quality to the squad. We're glad they're on our side."

Underscoring the cross-pollination between the two football powers, two members of the Brazil squad, Luisao and Ramires, play for Lisbon club Benfica.

"There is always a lot talked about when Brazil and Portugal play," Luisao said. "We will have to play at our best because they have a team with a lot of quality."

Brazil has won the World Cup five times, while Portugal's third place in 1966 is its best finish. Portugal also was a semifinalist four years ago in Germany, losing 1-0 to France.

Brazil has won 12 of the 18 games between the two countries but they have met just once at a World Cup, in 1966 when a Portugal team led by Eusebio beat Brazil and the South Americans were knocked out in the group phase.

However, the last time the two met, Brazil beat Portugal 6-2 in Sao Paulo.

Queiroz said his team still remembers that result.

"There is a question of pride. But there is no question of revenge or anything like that," he said. "There will be two great teams on the pitch. When two teams like Brazil and Portugal play, then anything can happen."