Mallorca set Vales free

RCD Mallorca have terminated the contract of midfield player Marcos Vales by mutual consent. The 29-year-old, who joined in the summer from Sevilla FC, suffered the recurrence of a foot injury and underwent an operation in October. After assessing the situation, both player and club have decided that it would be best for Vales to leave and he is now considering retiring from the game because of the injury.

VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach have awarded 18-year-old Eugen Polanski and 19-year-old Marcell Jansen professional contracts. Both players are products of Borussia's youth system and have signed deal tying them to the club until the summer of 2008. "We are convinced that they can make it in the Bundesliga," said Mönchengladbach sporting director Christian Hochstätter.

The Royal Netherlands Football Association (KNVB) has signed new sponsorship deals with Nationale-Nederlanden and ING until the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South-Africa. The new deals continue the KNVB's co-operation with both companies. Nationale-Nederlanden, an insurance company, has sponsored the Dutch association since 1988 and ING, a bank, since 1997. "The fact that the contract has been extended until 2010 shows there is a lot of confidence," said the KNVB's director of professional football, Henk Kesler.