Immobile: I will play for Dortmund

The Italy international says signing his contract with the Bundesliga side is a mere formality and added that the whole Italy squad feels sorry for injured Riccardo Montolivo

Ciro Immobile insists he will be a Borussia Dortmund player next season as he moves closer to a transfer from Torino.

The 24-year-old, who was top scorer in Serie A last season with 22 goals, has long been linked with a summer switch to Jurgen Klopp's side, with Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc confirming earlier this week that talks between the clubs had been "promising."

Speaking after Italy's 0-0 draw with Republic of Ireland, Immobile insisted that he simply needs to put pen to paper on a contract with the Bundesliga runners-up before he can officially secure the move.

"It is done, I told you some time ago," he told RAI Sport. "Now I'm just waiting to put my signature on the contract."

AC Milan captain Riccardo Montolivo suffered a broken leg in the clash at Craven Cottage, ruling him out of the World Cup and Immobile admits the whole squad has been shaken by the blow.

"It was a friendly game," he continued. "We are sorry for Montolivo, we know how much he wanted to be with us. We hope he can come back soon.

"I was excited to debut as a starter. We had heavy legs, but we are working hard."

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Luka Rakitic: My son has offers from Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico

The father of the Sevilla star claims the top three Liga clubs in 2013-14 want to sign his son, but hinted the Blaugrana are the preferred option

The father of Sevilla midfielder Ivan Rakitic says his son has received offers from Real Madrid, Barcelonaand Atletico Madrid.

The Croatia international scored 12 goals in 34 league appearances last term, as well as being a crucial player in Los Rojiblancos' Europa League-winning campaign.

And, according to the player's father, his performances have not gone unnoticed by Spain's top three teams last season.

“His brother Dejan, who is his agent, has offers on the table from Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atlético," Luka Rakitic told Croatian newspaper Jutarnji. "But we’ll decide after the World Cup.

“However, the conditions on offer are not better than those he has at Sevilla. He is a God there.”

Meanwhile, Luka Rakitic also talked about which club his son might prefer. “Barcelona are still Barcelona,” he added.

Seedorf: I've had no contact from AC Milan

The Dutchman claims he is grateful for the support of the club's fans as Filippo Inzaghi is lined up to replace him as head coach

AC Milan coach Clarence Seedorf says he has had no contact from the club as speculation mounts about his future.

Seedorf's future at the club has been shrouded in doubt for some weeks and the Milan hierarchy have lined up Primavera coach Filippo Inzaghi as his replacement for this summer.

And the Dutchman has confirmed he is in the dark over whether he will take charge of the team next season, though he admits he appreciates the support of the Rossoneri faithful.

"I'm reading everything, just like you," he told Sport Mediaset.

"I have had no communication from the club.

"I'm well, I've been spending some time with my family and friends. The affection of all the fans I've been bumping into has really pleased me.

"I can say 'Forza Milan' because Milan will always be there, like the fans."

Seedorf, who replaced Massimiliano Allegri in January, could only guide Milan to an eighth-placed finish in the 2013-14 season.

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Shaw leads Lambert praise in Liverpool move

The England left-back joined fellow defender Jose Fonte in showing his gratitude to the 32-year-old striker on Instagram as his move to Liverpool was announced

Luke Shaw has heaped praise on departing Southampton team-mate Rickie Lambert after the striker's move to boyhood club Liverpool was confirmed.

Full-back Shaw took to social networking site Instagram to praise Lambert's contribution to Southampton's rise from League One to eighth in the Premier League.

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6/1	Southampton are 6/1 with William Hill to be relegated in the 2014-15 season

And the 18-year-old revealed he hopes his fellow England World Cup squad member can continue his fine form of recent years at Anfield.

"So happy for Lambo, he deserves everything he gets. Been a massive part of Southampton's recent success, his dream really is coming true and I wish him all the best and success in his new journey. Thanks for everything," he wrote alongside a picture of he and the 32-year-old celebrating during the 2013-14 season.

Shaw wasn't the only member of the Southampton squad to show his gratitude to Lambert, with defender Jose Fonte also wishing him the best of luck on what the striker has described as a dream move.

"Mixed emotions!!! So sad to see you go but also happy you achieved one of your dreams!! We had many great moments together that I will never forget!! We got where we got mostly because all your goals!! Thanks for everything and I know you will keep scoring and stepping it up!!" he wrote on his Instagram.

Lambert is the first player to leave St Mary's this summer, though with Adam Lallana also interesting Brendan Rodgers and Shaw on Manchester United's radar, he may not be the last.

London looking for a new sponsor to stump up £37.5m for Boris bikes

For £37.5m you get the right to name the scheme and change the colour and branding on more than 10,000 bikes used for short journeys in London. Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/PA

Transport for London (TfL) is looking for a company to pay at least £37.5m to sponsor its cycle hire scheme after Barclays ends its support after five years.

TfL is seeking £5.5m or more annually over seven years for the right to name the scheme and change the colour and branding on more than 10,000 bikes used for short journeys in the capital.

The sponsor's brand would also go on vehicles, docking points, pay terminals and staff uniforms for the scheme, which has so far notched up over 30m journeys.

Barclays agreed to pay £5m annually to be the first sponsor for five years when it launched in July 2010. The bank's new management has decided not to extend its sponsorship beyond next summer.

TfL said it hoped to have a new sponsor in place by early 2015.

London mayor's, Boris Johnson, said: "This is a unique opportunity for a commercial partner to put their stamp on a mode of London transport that is now as recognisable as our iconic black cabs and red buses. We are looking for a sponsor whose aspiration matches our own, one with the passion to take the scheme to the next level and get even more people pedalling."

Barclays said six months ago that it would cancel its sponsorship of the bikes as part of a review of its marketing spending. The original deal was agreed between the bank and Johnson, who had close links to its then chief executive, Bob Diamond.

Barclays sponsorship was contentious from the start because there no formal tendering process. The London assembly's budget committee questioned whether Barclays had paid enough for the right to have its brand seen across London.

However, though the service is officially called Barclays Cycle Hire most Londoners refer to the cycles as Boris Bikes after the capital's cycling mayor.

Barclays' unused three-year option to extend its sponsorship would have cost the bank an annual £8.3m. TfL said £5.5m a year was the minimum it was asking for the new deal and that it hoped to get more because several companies had expressed an interest.

Google to spend more than $1bn on satellite internet, reports indicate

Google's satellite fleet could replace or augment the company's Project Loon to spread internet around the globe. Photograph: Marty Melville/AFP/Getty Images

Google plans to spend more than $1bn on a fleet of 180 satellites to beam internet access to unconnected parts of the globe.

The project will use small, but high capacity low-Earth orbiting satellites that sit lower in the sky than traditional satellites, a report by the Wall Street Journal indicates.

The satellite venture will be an extension of Google’s Project Loon, which uses high-altitude balloons to carry internet signal across areas of New Zealand with the intention of establishing an uninterrupted internet signal around the 40th parallel of the Earth's southern hemisphere.

Reporting directly to Larry Page

Satellite-communications expert Greg Wyler, who founded specialist startup O3b Networks, is reportedly leading the new project for Google reporting directly to chief executive Larry Page with a team of about 20 people.

Google recently purchased drone-maker Titan Aerospace to deliver solar-powered high-altitude drones that can stay airborne for five years at a time. The drones, called “atmospheric satellites”, could replace the balloons in Project Loon.

'Beam internet to people from the sky'

Facebook is also looking to connect unwired parts of the globe with its Connectivity Lab – a direct challenge to Google's Project Loon. The social network purchased Somerset-based solar-powered drone designer Ascenta as part of its internet.org initiative, which plans to “beam internet to people from the sky”, according to Facebook’s chief executive Mark Zuckerberg.

“It’s easy to take for granted that most people have access to the internet, but only one third of the world, 2.7 billion people, currently have access to the internet,” said Zuckerberg in his MWC keynote. “We’re not on a path to connect everyone right now, unless something dramatic changes.”

Both Google and Facebook will have to overcome regulatory hurdles, as well as design and financial complications before their respective satellites and drones can be deployed.

"Internet connectivity significantly improves people's lives. Yet two thirds of the world have no access at all," said a Google spokesperson in a statement sent to the Guardian. "It's why we're so focused on new technologies—from Project Loon to Titan Aerospace—that have the potential to bring hundreds of millions more people online in the coming years.”

Google declined to comment further on the reported satellite project.

Asset-backed securities poised for comeback, says Bank of England deputy

Customers queue outside a branch of Northern Rock, 2007. Asset-backed securities, where mortgages, loans or other debts are bundled up and sold on to other investors, were used by nearly every large bank before the financial crisis. Photograph: Alessia Pierdomenico / Reuters/REUTERS

The Bank of England is seeking to revive the market for asset-backed securities, the asset class widely denounced as "toxic sludge" for their role in causing the global financial crisis.

Sir Jon Cunliffe, on of the Bank's deputy governors, said that with the right safeguards in place, asset-backed securities were a useful mechanism for lending.

Asset-backed securities, where mortgages, loans or other debts are bundled up and sold on to other investors, were used by almost every large bank before the financial crisis. But the device was tainted by spectacular failures, such as Northern Rock, which had sold mortgages to investors as asset-backed securities, as well as toxic securities made from US sub-prime mortgage loans that spread contagion through the financial system.

Securitisation is now back in vogue as it is seen as a cheap source of funding when many investors are still struggling to get credit.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Monday, Cunliffe said: "Securitisation is a mechanism, it could be exploited, it could be abused. And what happened in the financial crisis, particularly with assets originating in the US, is that it was exploited and abused and it spread risk, the so-called toxic assets through the system. But in the end securitisation is a just a mechanism for banks to make loans, to bundle up those loans and to be able to sell on those loans to other investors who want to be lending to real economy, to households, to businesses."

He added: "We want to see if the market can develop standards and ways of doing this that actually deals with the risks … and can enable securitisation to happen in an beneficial way."

Last week, the Bank of England and the European Central Bank set out proposals to revive the market for asset-backed securities. The reputation of securitisation was "severely tarnished by the financial crisis", the paper says, citing the prominent role of asset-backed securities in complex structures and poorly underwritten loans, where there was over-reliance on a highly leveraged group of investors.

But the banks believe the revival of "plain vanilla" securities can play a useful role in ensuring risk does not build up in the system, as well as a source of funding. The change of heart has come about as the industry has sought to persuade policymakers that only a small part of the market, securities linked to US sub-prime mortgages, were responsible for much of the damage.

Acknowledging that the market had been abused in the past, Cunliffe said it was important that banks keep part of any investment, so they would share in the losses if things turned bad. "If all they do is originate poor quality loans and bundle them up and sell them to investors who don't understand them they will take some of the risk on that."

He also said standards needed to be developed to ensure asset-backed securities were transparent and easy to understand.