It's here. Transfer deadline day. We'll be updating this post throughout the day with all the latest transfer deals, rumours and humorous observations on Sky Sports News' coverage. Leave your own rumours and reactions in the comments section below. 2.29pm: Spurs have an £18m bid for Loic Remy rejected, according to Marseille's chairman.

With the ice storm following the snow storm Seattle Sounders FC canceled today's practice. It was to be the formal opening to training camp, even though most players have participated in voluntary workouts for some time. They've been doing that not just because of the roster competition, but because game one this year is in the CONCACAF Champions League against Santos Laguna.

It's been a few weeks since we've had an open thread, but this weekend's Premier League fixtures offers plenty of opportunities for some of the underdogs in the league to register an upset. With no early and no late kick-offs ...
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With all the MLS SuperDraft chatter that this the next Taylor Twellman and that player being the next Steve Ralston it helps me think about hopeful visions of the future. In sports the Draft, the Minors and Academies give eternal hope that any player can become the next big thing.

There's something about a good taco - hard shell, or soft; Street cart, sit-down or home; chicken, steak, ground whatever or veggies; corn or flour; authentic or - they have a great appeal. An appeal so large that Erik Friberg has probably the most famous tweet in Seattle Sounders history. It was one word - tacos.

As always this is your open thread for the week to talk all things not quite Sounders &/or soccer related. The community guidelines still apply. Our entry to OFF-topic today is winter beer. I expect that those that imbibe have had a few already. I know I've been browsing from Brrrrr to Ebenezer to Snow Cap to Snow Day to who knows how many more.

During the off-season we'll be putting out a weekly open thread to discuss all things this community wants to discuss. While the launch point will be flavor (I like flavor) don't consider that a mandatory topic. Considering the Thanksgiving Holiday and Black Friday madness it seems like a great day to relaunch Open Flavor Fridays.

The Champions League has surprised and baffled the press, but were you bamboozled by the odd happenings in Manchester or do you see what needs to change? This is the Open Thread for you to give your opinions on the ...
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Already two trades have become known. Ryan Smith goes to Chivas USA for 1st and 3rd Round Supplemental draft picks. That's picks 43 and 81 overall. so we're talking no-risk, flyer types in a draft that constantly adds more picks. Also, it came out today that the Portland Timbers loan of Ryan Pore also included an international slot and a promise from the Montreal Impact that they wouldn't take a player who ended the year on Portland's active roster.

Follow The European Transfer Window Madness

If you're interested in following the all the European transfer window madness, SB Nation should have you pretty well covered with this link. It will be updating throughout the day. If you're interested in discussing all that, please feel free to consider this your open thread.

We're only about 36 hours from the Union kicking off in Columbus against the Crew (8:00 PM Eastern, The Comcast Network) in a matchup of the two top teams in Major League Soccer's Eastern Conference. We'll have our preview up later today, but this one's going to be a big deal. Today's open thread for all things Union and MLS.

It should probably be named a transfer window closing thread, but this will have to work. There's been a request for an open thread to throw all the stories, rumors, speculation, love, hate and everything else into this weekend, so this is what you get. The Seattle Sounders have a very short amount of time to make a deal before the transfer window closes, and with a calm settling over team headquarters, it's been very quiet -- at least when it comes to rumors.

Just another reminder - there is no game this weekend. It has been rescheduled. So while the Seattle Sounders team trains and prepares for the many thousand mile trip from SeaTac to Panama to Houston to SeaTac in just a week there are still a few games this weekend.

Jeremiah has previewed each MLS v MLS match over at SBNation.

Hope Solo of course gets the most attention in these parts of the ladies on the United States Women's World Cup squad. Some of that is due to her growing up in our state and playing for the Huskies, it is also because she's quite good. The other most recognizable name for Sounders fans that have only casually watched the games is Alex Morgan.

Liverpool fall to Villa in the final match of a rollercoaster season.

For the time being, I'm going to leave this as an open thread, as I missed almost all of the first half and was interrupted for large spells of the second. From what I hear there wasn't much to recap anyhow, with few chances for either side and a pace dictated by the fact that neither side looked like they could be bothered to do much.

Since CONCACAF redesigned the Champions Cup into the Champions League MLS sides have struggled. Except for one, and with even a poor performance tonight they could still advance to the CCL final. They face former Sounders opponent Saprissa, down in Costa Rica, but start with a two goal advantage and no away goals against.

Photo by Tim Bertuchi

Sunday features four different matches involving Premier League clubs. The first is the Black Country derby between West Bromwich Albion, with Roy Hodgson in charge of his first match for the Baggies, against Wolverhampton Wanderers. The next match on deck is the Fourth Round FA Cup replay between Manchester City and Notts County at Eastlands.

It's a different type of weekend in English football these next two days. There's one Premier League match being played tomorrow (West Brom vs Wolves), while some of the other Premier League teams are competing in the FA Cup. Those FA Cup matches kick off today with Chelsea playing Everton, Manchester United against non-league Crawley Town, Birmingham City against Sheffield Wednesday and Stoke against Brighton.

It's been a very long time since the margin of difference in talent between Manchester United and Manchester City has been this thin. Whatever happens, it's going to be a very close game with so much on the line. A win for City will catapult their league title ambitions. A win for United will move them into pole position to win the league.

There may not be any mid-week Liverpool match to look forward to, but at least there are a handful of international friendlies. To sort of half look forward to, I guess. Because it's football, and what would you rather be doing? Working? Doing chores? Eating a nice meal with your family? So, yeah.

On a historic weekend of football in the English Premier League – one that saw a record number of Saturday goals, Manchester United's first loss of the season, and a memorable capitulation from Arsenal – the story was Kenny Dalglish; or, the story was Carlo Ancelotti, depending on how you want to look at Sunday's match at Stamford Bridge, a 1-0 win by Liverpool in Fernando Torres's Blues debut.

For many of you, it's Super Bowl Sunday, so we're moving the show up one hour giving you a slightly larger gap between show and Bowl. For myself, Laurence McKenna and Kartik Krishnaiyer, it was Chelsea-Liverpool Sunday, with Kenny Dalglish leading the Reds to a potentially season-defining win at Stamford Bridge.

Photo by toksuede.

The stage is set. The actors have rehearsed their lines. Now we're ready for the play to begin. Except today's two matches have no script and we have no way of knowing how they'll turn out. It's spontaneous theatre played out on the hallowed pitches of Stamford Bridge and the Boleyn Ground.

Photo by adifferentorder.

After an exhilarating round of mid-week matches in the Premier League, our favorite day of the week returns with a busy schedule of Saturday matches.

I may be proven wrong on this one, but I have a sneaking suspicion that the early kickoff between Stoke City and Sunderland will turn into a goalfest.

There are plenty of intriguing FA Cup matches scheduled for today including the tricky clash between Everton and Chelsea, where both teams will be tested, as well as Birmingham City against Championship side Coventry City and last but not least, Southampton against Manchester United.

Or: An open thread, 'cause the last one's getting too damn full...

Torres may have asked Liverpool to consider Chelsea's offer?
Eh, seems unlikely, and they might still land Suarez, which
would make Torres super-happy and stuff.

Manchester United is again alone at the top of the English Premier League, their 5-0 victory over Birmingham City giving them the lead after Manchester City lost Saturday at Villa Park, 1-0. Darren Bent's debut with Aston Villa saw him score the match's only goal, allowing Arsenal's 3-0 win over Wigan Athletic to vault the Gunners into second place.

The race at the top of the Premier League tightened-up this weekend. Manchester United got a good result at White Hart Lane (0-0), but with Saturday wins by Manchester City (4-3, over Wolves) and Arsenal (0-3, at West Ham United), the league's top three teams are within two points of each other.

Depending on who you support and how passionate you are about your club, I'm sure there would be plenty of disagreement regarding which is the biggest Premier League match of the today. With Sunderland and Newcastle United as well as Birmingham City versus Aston Villa already in the bag, our attention today now turns to Liverpool against Everton followed by Tottenham Hotspur versus Manchester United.

It is another Open Flavor Friday; a weekly open thread to talk flavor.

We'll talk beer, wine, food and maybe other beverages. Others will talk coffee - I can't as it is my full time job.

Let's get a few things out of the way. If you are not of legal consumption age in your place of residence do not drink alcohol.

Liverpool continue the slide, falling 2-1 at Blackpool.

Dunno whether it's just my flu getting worse or if watching was that traumatic, but I'm feeling like shit, so this'll be an open thread for now. Some positives to go with the supremely disappointing result better football played by Liverpool on the whole, particularly in the first half, and signs that there's enough talent in the squad to play that type of football on a consistent basis.

The FA Cup's full weekend came an went in the show of the new around Anfield Park, where Roy Hodgson and Liverpool mutually agreed to part ways before the Reds took the pitch Sunday at Old Trafford. There, Howard Webb tilted the match, giving a dubious second minute penalty. When Steven gerrard saw straight red just after the half-hour mark, Liverpool was on their way out of the FA Cup, their 1-0 loss to Manchester United a sour return to the bench for King Kenny Dalglish.

Two big FA Cup matches are on television today. The first featuring Manchester United against Liverpool, where Kenny Dalglish returns for his first game in charge of the club again. The second features Leicester City, managed by Sven Goran-Eriksson against Manchester City. Both ties promise to be very entertaining.

After many requests from MLS Talk readers, we're glad to announce that the MLS Talk Podcast is now available as an app on the Android smartphone.

The app is just $1.99 and is automatically updated on your phone as soon as each new podcast episode is released. Download the MLS Talk Podcast app for Android today.

For those of you who'll be in South Florida this weekend, I'd like to invite you to an important meeting with Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber.

The meeting begins at 1pm Saturday, January 8th in Fort Lauderdale. Commissioner Garber will be there to meet with Miami Ultras and soccer fans who are interested in bringing a MLS team back to South Florida.

The Top Five have separated themselves from the league after Sunday's draw at Stamford Bridge. Ciaran Clark's stoppage time equalizer means five points separate fifth place Chelsea from Sunderland, the Black Cats' win over Blackburn vaulting Steve Bruce's charge over Bolton, into sixth place.