Fulham not happy with Liverpool’s Dempsey pursuit

LONDON, England   ●   Fulham has complained about Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers to the Premier League over the club’s pursuit of striker Clint Dempsey.

The U.S. international has been linked with a move to Liverpool throughout the offseason, and Rodgers was quoted as saying “Clint is a player we’ve inquired about” on the website of Liverpool’s owners.

The website also wrongly claimed last month that Dempsey had moved to Anfield.

The Premier League said on Thursday that it has received a complaint from Fulham “regarding certain comments made by Liverpool FC officials and is currently looking into the matter.”

Dempsey has reportedly refused to play for Fulham and is seeking a move to Liverpool. He’s been looking for a transfer, but is in limbo because no official bid has been lodged.

Fearing that Fulham’s prized asset has been distracted and isn’t ready to play, manager Martin Jol dropped him for the 5-0 victory against Norwich last weekend and will omit him from Saturday’s squad to face Manchester United.

“Mentally, Clint wants to move, he doesn’t want to stay here. His head was turned and that was the problem,” Jol said Thursday. “It’s a problem and a situation you don’t want. It’s not something you can talk to a player about every day because he doesn’t want to.

“I don’t know if he’ll remain a Fulham player. I’d love to keep him, but I’m not sure. Hopefully if he stays, then in the next couple of weeks he will change his thoughts about us.”

Jol denied that Dempsey had refused to play for Fulham again, instead insisting it was his decision to drop the 29-year-old player who has entered the final year of his contract.

“I was probably a bit naive, asking, `Clint, do you want to start?”’ Jol said. “All he said was, `You know what I want’ … after that it was very difficult to communicate. He was not committed to the team.

“For us it would have been better had Liverpool followed it up with a formal bid, but they haven’t.”

●  Inter Milan has signed Uruguay midfielder Walter Gargano on loan from Napoli and can make the move permanent at the end of the season.

Both clubs announced the deal on their websites on Thursday, with Inter confirming Gargano has signed a four-year deal at the San Siro.

Gargano joined Napoli in the offseason of 2007 from Uruguayan club Danubio and has made 163 Serie A appearances, but he asked for a transfer after the club reinforced its midfield in the preseason.

Gargano has played 44 internationals for Uruguay.

●  Valencia says it has reached an agreement to sign French left back Aly Cissokho from Lyon.

The Spanish league club said Thursday that the 24-year-old Cissokho has agreed to a four-year deal but needs to pass his medical to confirm the transfer. Valencia did not release the cost of the deal.

Cissokho joined Lyon from FC Porto for ?15 million (then $24.3 million) in 2009, several seasons after a move to AC Milan fell through when a medical test showed Cissokho apparently had a dental problem that could cause muscular injuries.

Valencia sport director Braulio Vazquez says Cissokho will reinforce the left flank as the team looks to maintain its third-place position behind Real Madrid and Barcelona and perform well in the Champions League.

●  American winger Robbie Rogers has been loaned from English second-tier club Leeds down a division to Stevenage until January.

The 25-year-old started just one game after joining Leeds from Major League Soccer’s Columbus Crew in January, with three appearances as a substitute. He sustained a concussion 12 minutes into his debut on Feb. 18 and didn’t get into another game until April 6.

Rogers said on Twitter that he’s “ready for real games and to make a name for myself.”

He has two goals in 18 appearances for the U.S. national team.