Here's a round-up of the news across Europe from Monday, 14 August.

Yep, not just a flesh wound.

(1) Rooney out 2 Months with Fractured Left Foot

Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed in a press conference that star forward Wayne Rooney suffered a hairline fracture in his left foot in the first half of the defending Premier League Champions' 0-0 draw with Reading on Sunday. The initial prognosis is that the injury is similar to the one suffered by Rooney in 2004 and 2006, which led some pundits to wonder if there's something to his boots, which are supplied by Nike as a part of his rather lucrative deal with the athletic apparel giant.

In a move that took the weight of the world off of our shoulders, Nike immediately laid to rest that thought on the UK's Channel 4 today. Nike UK Head of Corporate Communications Charlie Brooks said "He [Rooney] himself is personally absolutely confident, as we are, that the boot had nothing to do with his injury. [In fact,] Nearly 20% of the professional players in the Barclays Premier league this weekend were wearing this boot."

Whomever's fault it was is not the concern of England Manager Steve McLaren, who now must come to grips with the fact that he must go outside the box to get him a serviceable striker to go with his favourite Michael Owen in their upcoming crucial Euro 2008 qualifiers against Israel and Croatia. 6 points from those matches are a must if the Three Lions hope to qualify for Euro 2008. Yeah right.

(2) Royson Drenthe and Wesley Sneijder introduced at Real Madrid

We're rather stoked, honest!

In front of a crowd of around 5,000, Real Madrid introduced their new Dutch duo of defender Royston Drenthe and midfielder Wesley Sneijder. Of course, both bubbles of enthusiasm are just part of Real's €90 million spending spree this summer. Both are expected to play in Real's Spanish Super Cup return leg against FC Sevilla this Sunday. Sevilla leads 1-0 on aggregate.

(3) Freddy Adu added to Benfica UEFA Champions League Roster

American wunderkind Freddy Adu was named to Portuguese giant Benfica's UEFA Champions League roster for their third round matchup with Danish side FC København. And in the 37th minute of Benfica's 2--1 win in the first leg, Adu came on as a substitute, replacing injured defender Anderson Luisao. No word yet on his performance, but regardless, I'm rather stoked at Adu's appearance, but not quite as stoked as Drenthe and Sneijder seem to be.

(4) Rafael van der Vaart's potential move to Valencia is a "Dream."

Yo no amo Hamburg!

Hamburger SV captain and Dutch International Rafael van der Vaart is quoted in a special report in today's Hamburger Abendblatt that "I absolutely want to leave [Hamburg], Valencia is my dream... If I had to stay in Hamburg it would be painful." Van der Vaart has been extensively linked with the Spanish side recently, though Hamburger SV have yet to receive an official transfer offer.

Of course, van der Vaart claimed in an interview earlier this year that "Real [Madrid] is my life’s dream. That is where I really want to play.” Perhaps van der Vaart failed Spanish Geography class in school?