Schwarzer staying put

Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer is staying put after a deal which would have seen him sign with rivals Arsenal couldn't be finalised.

The 37-year-old's future has been the subject of intense speculation in recent weeks after Arsenal declared their interest in the stopper, but it now looks as though Schwarzer will be in goal for Fulham's next English Premier League fixture against Wolves on September 11.

It had been reported Fulham boss Mark Hughes made an approach to Manchester City in the hope of luring Irish international keeper Shay Given to his side, such was the likelihood Schwarzer would depart.

But with Given deciding to remain at City, Hughes was keen to hold on to his No.1 custodian.

"We talked about Mark's situation on a number of occasions and ideally we wanted him to stay," Hughes told Sky Sports News.

"We understood that there was an interest from Arsenal but given our current goalkeeping situation there was no chance of him leaving."

Hughes dismissed reports Arsenal had upped an initial bid to four million pounds: "There were two real strong enquiries but there was never a bid today," he said.