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Landon Donovan says his short-term spell with Everton has been “fantastic”. The United States star believes his time at Goodison Park has been a success as he gears up for his final match with Everton this weekend.

Despite the Toffees’ interest in extending the initial 10-week deal, the forward has been recalled by Los Angeles Galaxy for the start of the season, which kicks-off on March 27.

However, Donovan, who scored two goals in nine Premier League appearances, claims his time at Everton has been a success. @Soccerway

Ronaldinho is confident that he can win back his place in the Brazil squad for the World Cup. “I can even play in midfield.”

The Milan star will take to the field in tonight’s Champions League clash with Manchester United.

He has recently been snubbed by Seleçao boss Carlos Dunga, who also dropped teammate Alexandre Pato.

“If I continue to play well with Milan, then I will be part of the squad,” assured Ronaldinho on a Brazilian radio station.

“My objective is to prove I’m going through a good period of form and can help Brazil in the World Cup. @Italia

Oh to be Landon Donovan. The most wanted American in England since David Bieber (and for much, much nicer reasons, though I’ll admit to not having heard of him until he popped up in a Wiki search), our little Landycakes has finally made his bones in Europe, and is now the subject of a transcontinental tug of war over his services.

Everton want him to stay, and why wouldn’t they? Their return to form coincides nicely with his arrival, and despite a terrible miss against Tottenham which might have kept their unbeaten streak going, Donovan is the toast of Goodison Park. @FFT

United States international Landon Donovan’s run with Everton appears to be coming to a close right on schedule despite an appeal to the Los Angeles Galaxy to keep the American in the Premier League for an additional month.

Saturday’s match at Birmingham City will mark Donovan’s final match of his successful 10-week loan with the Merseyside club in which the 28-year-old scored two goals and assisted on three others in just seven Premier League games.

Despite Everton’s wishes of an extension, the LA Galaxy intend to stay with the March 15 deadline on Donovan’s loan and have the reigning MLS Most Valuable Player return to prepare for their MLS season opener on March 27 against the New England Revolution. @Goal

Landon Donovan has made a personal plea for LA Galaxy to extend his stay at Goodison Park after admitting he was in awe of the work ethic among England’s leading players.

Everton’s on-loan midfielder may have questioned David Beckham’s commitment to being Galaxy captain last summer, when he fumed: ‘Maybe he’s not a leader or captain. Fair enough. But as a minimum, you should bust your ass every day. That hasn’t happened.’

He has no issues with any of Beckham’s home-based England team-mates, though, after viewing them at close quarters over the past two months and says their dedication has been an eye-opener. @Dailymail

The US sports broadcasting giant ESPN said today that it was unlikely to cut its subscription rates when it loses half of its 46 live Premier League matches in the summer. The company made a decisive move into the British sports broadcasting market in the summer when it paid an estimated £90m to pick up the last remaining year of Setanta’s Premier League contract when the Irish broadcaster went bust.

John Skipper, ESPN’s executive vice-president for content, today told Bloomberg that it will not cut prices in the summer, when it will lose half of those matches as a new three-year, £159m deal kicks in. “I don’t anticipate we’ll change price point. It’s clearly the signature product. Having 46 games this year was a real luxury. We’ll have to supplement the 23 important games next year. There’s no question the English Premier League remains the premier product for us,” he said. @Guardian

MLS peered into the future of its local television broadcasts during the offseason as it searched for new ways to improve its product.

The new image arrived in high definition.

Every team in MLS will produce its local broadcasts in high definition in 2010, according to a directive handed down by the league this winter.

The mandate cements a movement towards HD started by HDNet’s coverage from 2003 to 2008, continued by ESPN’s move to HD in 2007 and accelerated by local HD broadcasts in markets such as Salt Lake City, Seattle and Washington, D.C. over the past couple of seasons. @Goal

Manchester United are reportedly set to make a shock summer move for Chelsea’s midfield maestro Joe Cole, with the Blues set to replace him with American midfielder Landon Donovan.

According to the Sunday People, the Premier League champions are in negotiations with the Blues over a move for Cole who is out of contract in the summer, and has seen recent contract negotiations at Stamford Bridge stall.

The tabloid claims Sir Alex Ferguson is keen to follow last summer’s free transfer swoop for Michael Owenwith a similar move for the England international. @Goal

Everton could be frustrated in their efforts to extend the loan of the striker Landon Donovan after the player’s parent club, LA Galaxy, said they had no intention of allowing him to remain on Merseyside any longer than was initially agreed. His temporary contract with Everton expires following next weekend’s game against Birmingham City.

Such has been the 28-year-old’s impact at Goodison Park, with Donovan adding balance and pace to David Moyes’ side and requiring little time to adapt to the English game, that the club’s officials, encouraged by the American, had approached LA Galaxy about extending the original 15 March deadline. The first game in the new MLS season is on 27 March but Everton had hoped to negotiate a return in mid-April. @Guardian

Roberto Mancini has been accused of managing with “a lack of ability” in the latest demonstration from Robinho that he does not want to go back to Manchester City when his loan arrangement with Santos ends.

Although Mancini maintains that he would like Robinho to return to the club in August, the Brazilian has confirmed he has no intention of moving back to Manchester to play for a manager he blames, in part, for his poor form this season. Robinho has already shipped all his belongings to Brazil and instructed his representatives to find him a new club, and after scoring four goals in six games for Santos he has publicly criticised Mancini for the first time since leaving City.

He said: “At City, when I was playing, I knew that at some point the substitution board would go up and I was going to come off because the manager didn’t have trust in me. Then, you start to lose your confidence on the pitch.” @Guardian