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(CNN) -- A small boat matching the description of a skiff reported missing with 15 people aboard 600 miles southeast of Guam has been spotted on an uninhabited atoll, the U.S. Coast Guard said Friday.

The small boat, which was carrying six children and nine adults, was last seen near Chuuk, a group of islands in the Federated States of Micronesia, on Monday, the Coast Guard said.

The crew of a vessel leaving Ruo Island, the intended destination of the missing skiff, reported seeing an overturned boat on the beach of the Fanano atoll, the Coast Guard said in a statement.

Several people were also on shore, it said.

A long-range Navy search plane flew over the area after the Coast Guard received the report.

"Once on scene, the aircraft reported back that a damaged vessel was overturned on the beach and several crude shelters had been erected on the beach," the statement said.

"Three other boats could be seen on the island and people on the shore began waving at the plane as it soared overhead."

Communication in the area is extremely limited. The Coast Guard has redirected one of its ships to Fanano to confirm whether the people spotted on the beach are in fact the missing passengers, said Capt. Thomas Sparks, commander of the Coast Guard's Sector Guam.

The small boat was headed for tiny Ruo Island, also part of the federation, about 70 miles northeast of Chuuk, said the Coast Guard.

Most of the missing people work in Chuuk state and were traveling home to Ruo, according to Petty Officer 3rd Class Anthony Soto of the Coast Guard in Hawaii.

The Chuuk State Department of Transportation reported the boat missing to the Coast Guard Tuesday morning when it was overdue at Ruo Island.

The national government of the Micronesian federation, the Chuuk state government and the Guam sector of the Coast Guard coordinated a joint search to find the boat.

The Federated States of Micronesia is a democratic island group in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and Indonesia. Independent since 1986, the vast archipelago of hundreds of tiny islands comprises a land mass of just 702 square miles, about the size of Singapore. It includes the Chuuk Islands, Yap Islands, Kosrae and Pohnpei.

CNN's Molly Green contributed to this report.

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(CNN) -- Manchester City's Carlos Tevez will not be returning to Corinthians after the Brazilian club pulled out of negotiations to sign the Argentina striker on Wednesday.

Corinthians had wanted to bring the 27-year-old back to the team he represented between 2004-06, but they have now said it would be impossible to conclude the deal before the Brazilian transfer window shuts on 20 July.

City manager Roberto Mancini said on Monday the English FA Cup winners had accepted a bid from the Sao Paulo outfit for Tevez, but it seems Corinthians were unable to close the deal.

"The board of Corinthians hereby officially announce the impossibility of hiring the Argentine striker Carlos Tevez," read a statement on the club's official web site.

Copa America flops: Who is to blame?

"While acknowledging the efforts of Manchester City and all involved in the negotiation, more time is needed for the transfer to be achieved, given that the window to sign players from abroad closes on Wednesday, 20 July."

Despite being unable to conclude a deal for the forward, the team based at the Pacaembu Stadium did not rule out a future bid for Tevez.

"We are aware our fans wanted Tevez to join our club again and we hope we can have the player with us in the future," the statement added.

Tevez has been linked with a move away from the Etihad Stadium since handing in a transfer request in December 2010.

City accept Corinthians offer for Carlos Tevez

The former West Ham United striker arrived in England in 2006 and moved to City from their local rivals Manchester United in 2009.

Tevez has scored 43 goals in 63 appearances for City and was a key member of the team that finished third in the English Premier League last season, a position which meant qualification to the European Champions League for the first time in their history.

Meanwhile, one player has definitely left City after the club confirmed that Brazilian striker Jo has returned to his native country, signing a permanent deal with Internacional.

The 24-year-old was briefly City's record signing when he joined from CSKA Moscow in 2008 for a fee of around $30 million.

However, he only scored six goals in 41 matches and has now left the club after loan spells at Everton and Galatasaray.

In other transfer news, Galatasaray have confirmed the signing of Lazio goalkeeper Fernando Muslera.

The Uruguay number one, currently with Oscar Tabarez's squad in Argentina preparing for Sunday's Copa America final, has signed a five-year deal with Istanbul-based team.

The 25-year-old joined Lazio from Montevideo Wanderers in 2007 and has represented Uruguay on 25 occasions.

Meanwhile, Brazilian midfielder Denilson has also returned to his homeland after Arsenal agreed to allow the 23-year-old to join former club Sao Paulo on a season-long loan deal.

Denilson has played 96 times for Arsenal since making his debut in 2006, scoring seven goals.

Another Brazilian on the move is Danilo, who has agreed a switch from Santos to Europa League winners Porto.

The young full-back becomes new Porto coach Vitor Pereira's sixth signing of the current transfer window.

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(CNN) -- Manchester City's Carlos Tevez will not be returning to Corinthians after the Brazilian club pulled out of negotiations to sign the Argentina striker on Wednesday.

Corinthians had wanted to bring the 27-year-old back to the team he represented between 2004-06, but they have now said it would be impossible to conclude the deal before the Brazilian transfer window shuts on 20 July.

City manager Roberto Mancini said on Monday the English FA Cup winners had accepted a bid from the Sao Paulo outfit for Tevez, but it seems Corinthians were unable to close the deal.

"The board of Corinthians hereby officially announce the impossibility of hiring the Argentine striker Carlos Tevez," read a statement on the club's official web site.

Copa America flops: Who is to blame?

"While acknowledging the efforts of Manchester City and all involved in the negotiation, more time is needed for the transfer to be achieved, given that the window to sign players from abroad closes on Wednesday, 20 July."

Despite being unable to conclude a deal for the forward, the team based at the Pacaembu Stadium did not rule out a future bid for Tevez.

"We are aware our fans wanted Tevez to join our club again and we hope we can have the player with us in the future," the statement added.

Tevez has been linked with a move away from the Etihad Stadium since handing in a transfer request in December 2010.

City accept Corinthians offer for Carlos Tevez

The former West Ham United striker arrived in England in 2006 and moved to City from their local rivals Manchester United in 2009.

Tevez has scored 43 goals in 63 appearances for City and was a key member of the team that finished third in the English Premier League last season, a position which meant qualification to the European Champions League for the first time in their history.

Meanwhile, one player has definitely left City after the club confirmed that Brazilian striker Jo has returned to his native country, signing a permanent deal with Internacional.

The 24-year-old was briefly City's record signing when he joined from CSKA Moscow in 2008 for a fee of around $30 million.

However, he only scored six goals in 41 matches and has now left the club after loan spells at Everton and Galatasaray.

In other transfer news, Galatasaray have confirmed the signing of Lazio goalkeeper Fernando Muslera.

The Uruguay number one, currently with Oscar Tabarez's squad in Argentina preparing for Sunday's Copa America final, has signed a five-year deal with Istanbul-based team.

The 25-year-old joined Lazio from Montevideo Wanderers in 2007 and has represented Uruguay on 25 occasions.

Meanwhile, Brazilian midfielder Denilson has also returned to his homeland after Arsenal agreed to allow the 23-year-old to join former club Sao Paulo on a season-long loan deal.

Denilson has played 96 times for Arsenal since making his debut in 2006, scoring seven goals.

Another Brazilian on the move is Danilo, who has agreed a switch from Santos to Europa League winners Porto.

The young full-back becomes new Porto coach Vitor Pereira's sixth signing of the current transfer window.

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Debt compromise a heated subject

Washington (CNN) -- The Senate is set to vote Friday on the "cut, cap and balance" deficit reduction plan backed by tea party conservatives but dismissed by President Barack Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said.

This plan, which calls for cutting the nation's debt by about $3.7 trillion over the next 10 years, was passed by the Republican-led House of Representatives on Tuesday.

"Cut, cap and balance" is widely acknowledged to have virtually no chance of clearing the Senate or overcoming a promised presidential veto. Voting on it, however, allows Republicans to demonstrate their preference for steps favored by many in the tea party movement.

The plan includes the requirement that Congress pass a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution before agreeing to extend the federal debt ceiling.

Obama was continuing Thursday to pursue a different plan that White House Press Secretary Jay Carney called the most "significant deficit reduction package possible."

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Zakaria: Cutting too fast slows growth

The president and Vice President Joe Biden met for almost two hours Thursday with Democratic leaders from the House and Senate as sources indicated the negotiations were focusing on a deal to cut $3 trillion in federal deficits over the next 10 years that would be accompanied by a debt ceiling increase.

According to the congressional aides who spoke on condition of not being identified, the possible deal remains in limbo over a disagreement on whether to extend Bush-era tax cuts for families earning more than $250,000 a year. Nothing has been agreed to yet, they noted.

The possible deal would include spending cuts expected to total $1 trillion or more agreed to in earlier negotiations led by Biden, the sources said. It also would reform entitlement programs by changing the eligibility age for Medicare over time, and using a more restrictive inflation index for Social Security benefits, according to the sources.

On taxes, it would permanently extend the Bush tax cuts for families earning less than $250,000 while allowing the cuts to expire at the end of 2012 for those with income above that, the aides said. At the same time, the deal would include a commitment to reform the tax code next year, which is expected to lower all tax rates and eliminate loopholes and subsidies, the sources said.

However, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, wants the deal to make all of the Bush tax cuts permanent while keeping the commitment to tax reform, the sources said. Republicans oppose any tax hikes, and their resistance has been a major obstacle to any deal in the negotiations so far.

Some sources said the deal would work in two stages, with spending cuts and a debt ceiling increase occurring right away while entitlement reforms and tax reforms would occur later.

Earlier, Carney denied a report by the New York Times that Obama and Boehner were close to reaching a deal.

"There is no deal. We are not close to a deal," Carney told reporters. "There is no progress to report."

A spokesman for Boehner's office echoed Carney, denying any reportable progress. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Virginia, told reporters he was "unaware of any deal that has been struck."

Other signs pointed to possible movement in the talks. Carney signaled to reporters earlier in the week that Obama may now be willing to sign a short-term debt limit extension if Democratic and Republican leaders are close to agreement on a broader deficit reduction deal that includes both tax hikes and spending reforms.

Obama previously indicated he would veto any short-term extension.

Boehner huddled with some Republican freshmen after meeting with Obama on Wednesday night, and is set to hold meetings with the entire House GOP caucus Friday. He told reporters Thursday that while some House Republicans wouldn't compromise, he didn't believe they "would be anywhere close to the majority."

The highly contentious negotiations -- reflecting the core ideological beliefs of both parties -- have now become a race against the clock. If Congress fails to raise the $14.3 trillion limit by August 2, Americans could face rising interest rates, a declining dollar and increasingly jittery financial markets, among other problems.

The seriousness of the overall situation was reinforced last week when a major credit-rating agency, Standard and Poor's, said it was placing the U.S. sovereign rating on "CreditWatch with negative implications." Another major agency -- Moody's Investors Services -- said it would put America's bond rating on review for a possible downgrade.

"Even if Washington did raise the debt ceiling after just a few harrowing days following a default ... we envisage that the economy could fall quickly back into recession," Standard and Poor's said in a report Thursday

Lawmakers are also continuing discussions focused on the $3.7 trillion debt reduction blueprint put forward by the "Gang of Six," a group of three Democratic and three Republican senators.

Under the group's proposal, $500 billion in budget savings would be immediately imposed, with marginal income tax rates reduced and the controversial alternative minimum tax ultimately abolished.

The plan would create three tax brackets with rates from 8% to 12%, 14% to 22%, and 23% to 29% -- part of a new structure designed to generate an additional $1 trillion in revenue. It would require cost changes to Medicare's growth rate formula as well as $80 billion in Pentagon cuts.

Obama has praised the plan, calling it "broadly consistent" with his approach to debt reduction because it mixes tax changes, entitlement reforms and spending reductions.

Congressional leaders, however, have warned that there is most likely not enough time to translate the Gang of Six plan into legislation, tie it to a debt ceiling hike and pass it by August 2. In addition, the proposal has been hit with a barrage of criticism from both the right and the left.

Conservatives have complained about some of the plan's tax changes, while liberals have warned it would cut entitlement benefits too deeply.

CNN's Ted Barrett, Kate Bolduan, Lisa Desjardins, Deirdre Walsh and Jessica Yellin contributed to this report.

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NFL rookie mowing lawns during lockout

(CNN) -- There are signs that the bitter labor battle between the National Football League owners and players could end as early as Thursday.

The league's 32 owners are scheduled to meet in Atlanta on Thursday, where they are expected to vote on a new labor agreement with the players' union, the NFL said.

Both the owners and players are expected to have separate votes that could end the work stoppage.

Many fans will rejoice if the dispute ends before any games are missed.

But no one may be more happy about the end of the labor battle than rookie players drafted this year.

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Some players would have already received NFL paychecks that would've changed them from broke college students to millionaires, but have not because of the work stoppage.

One is Marcell Dareus, the former University of Alabama standout who was chosen third overall by the Buffalo Bills this year.

As Dareus waits for a resolution he has been working cutting lawns as a landscaper in Alabama.

"I'm really anxious about the season starting," said Dareus, 21, from atop his John Deere riding mower. "I can't wait to get to Buffalo to see the fans. I can't wait to get the whole feeling of the NFL. It's surreal."

The league's owners imposed a lockout on March 11, suspending the then-labor deal in hopes of creating a new financial structure.

Since then, the two sides have faced off in courts and around conference tables. The major issues have revolved around how to divide the billions of dollars of revenue reaped via the league each year, rules of free agency, a possible rookie wage scale, retirement benefits and a host of other matters.

All this followed last season's Super Bowl, affecting payment to and organized workouts for players but no games. Yet that could soon change, if an agreement is not reached.

The first preseason game -- the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, between the Chicago Bears and St. Louis Rams -- is scheduled for August 7.

The regular season is supposed to open on September 8.

CNN's Kevin Conlon contributed to this report.

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(CNN) -- Champions League winners Barcelona have signed Chilean star Alexis Sanchez from Serie A Udinese on a five-year deal.

Barcelona confirmed Thursday on their website that they had been successful in their pursuit of the 22-year-old, who had been linked to a number of other top European clubs.

Sanchez has cost the Spanish champions ?26 million ($38.2m) but could pay an additional ?11.5 ($16.5m) depending on appearances.

He will be the first Chilean to play for the Catalan giants and gave clear indications that he wanted to join them in preference to other clubs.

"He has been strongly committed to playing for Barca," the statement said.

Sanchez will have medical before being officially presented at the Nou Camp Monday.

Sanchez, who was voted best player in Serie A last season with 12 goals in 31 games, is Barcelona's first major signing of the close season transfer window.

In another major signing Thursday, Portuguese giants Benfica completed the signing of Spain's World Cup winning defender Joan Capdevila from Villarreal.

The 33-year-old left-back has been signed as a replacement for Portugal international Fabio Coentrao, who departed Lisbon for Real Madrid earlier this month.

Capdevila played every match of Spain's successful campaign in South Africa and the former Atletico Madrid full-back has signed a two-year deal at the Estadio de Luz.

The one-time Deportivo la Coruna player has represented Spain on 57 occasions and was also part of Luis Aragones' victorious Euro 2008 squad.

Elsewhere, Dutch coach Ronald Koeman returned to football Thursday after agreeing to take the reigns at Dutch first division club Feyenoord.

The 48-year-old has been out of the sport since leaving AZ Alkmaar in December 2009 and signed a one-year deal with the Rotterdam side.

As a player, Koeman won the 1988 European Championships with Netherlands and the European Cup with both Barcelona and PSV.

He also spent two years with Feyenoord between 1995-97.

Former Feyenoord coach Mario Been left the club after a disappointing season yielded a 10th place finish in the league and saw the one-time European champions humiliated 10-0 by PSV Eindhoven last October.

Koeman has previously had spells in charge of Ajax, Benfica, PSV and Valencia.

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Washington (CNN) -- The Senate may begin considering a largely symbolic proposal Thursday to raise the nation's debt ceiling -- but only if Congress cuts and limits spending and balances the federal budget through a Constitutional amendment.

Democrats have dismissed the plan, advocated by tea party conservatives. It passed the House on Tuesday night in a vote that was largely along party lines, but it faces stiff opposition in the Senate, and President Barack Obama has said he would veto it in the unlikely event that a bill did pass the Senate.

More attention has been focused on a proposal to raise the debt ceiling by August 2 and make significant cuts to the federal deficit. House Speaker John Boehner and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi are likely to discuss their thoughts on those proposals when they meet separately with reporters on Thursday.

Obama held separate meetings Wednesday with top congressional Democrats and Republicans as part of ongoing talks on to avoid a government default.

Cheat sheet on debt debate

With time running out to reach an agreement, the possibility of a comprehensive deficit-reduction deal sought by Obama appeared less likely, with the president and Congress instead being forced to focus on a narrower goal of increasing the government borrowing limit in the next 13 days so it can pay its bills after August 2.

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If Congress fails to raise the current $14.3 trillion debt ceiling by that date, Americans could face rising interest rates, a declining dollar and increasingly jittery financial markets, among other problems.

What if U.S. defaults?

At his daily briefing, White House press secretary Jay Carney signaled to reporters that Obama would be willing to accept a short-term increase in the debt ceiling -- which caps the amount of money the government can borrow -- if it is tied to agreement by both parties on a broader deficit reduction deal.

Obama previously rejected such a short-term increase in the debt ceiling, and Carney's remarks sought to bolster support for a compromise.

"We believe a short-term extension absent an agreement to a larger deal is unacceptable," Carney said.

He later issued a statement saying Obama opposes a short-term extension of the debt limit, but "the only exception to that is in the event that both sides reach a deal on a long-term extension of the debt limit plus significant deficit reduction, and we needed a very short-term extension (like a few days) to allow a bit of extra time for a bill to work its way through the legislative process."

So far, the main sticking point has been Republican refusal to accept increased tax revenue sought by Obama and Democrats as part of a deal. Spurred by conservatives elected with tea party backing, Republicans seek to shrink the size of government through spending cuts while either keeping tax revenues where they are now or reducing them through a reformed system.

Obama argues for a balanced approach that includes spending cuts and increased tax revenues to enable the government to continue what he calls critical spending for future economic growth in education, infrastructure development and clean energy.

In addition, Republicans are linking proposals to shrink the mounting federal deficit to getting their support for raising the federal debt ceiling, while Obama and Democrats say the two issues should be separate to prevent politics from affecting the U.S. credit rating in the event of a government default.

Anti-tax crusader Grover Norquist, whose Americans for Tax Reform is spearheading Republican opposition to any tax increase, told CNN on Wednesday that a likely deal will mean "the president will get less money than he wanted, the Republicans will get less spending cuts than they wanted, but it won't raise anybody's taxes."

Grover Norquist: The man who drew the GOP's 'line in the sand'

Top Democrats from both chambers met with Obama for about 50 minutes on Wednesday afternoon. Later, the top two House Republicans -- Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor -- met with the president for about 80 minutes.

Boehner then gathered with members of his staff and six first-term House Republicans -- elected in last year's tea party-backed conservative wave -- for talks over pizza in a Capitol building conference room.

Earlier, Democratic and Republican sources confirmed that the top four House leaders -- Boehner, Cantor, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and No. 2 Democrat Steny Hoyer -- had their own meeting to discuss proposals to raise the debt ceiling.

The White House meetings came a day after Senate negotiators from both parties, the so-called "Gang of Six," unveiled the possible compromise plan, and the House voted 234-190 almost completely on party lines to pass a tea party-inspired "cut, cap and balance" bill dismissed by Obama and Democrats.

House passes GOP debt measure

Key administration and congressional officials are currently focused on the new bipartisan $3.7 trillion debt reduction plan by the "Gang of Six" -- the latest effort to avoid a potentially catastrophic default next month on the federal government's financial obligations.

Obama has offered strong praise for the initiative, calling it "broadly consistent" with his own approach to debt reduction because it mixes tax changes, entitlement reforms and spending reductions. However, Carney made clear Wednesday that Obama was not adopting the plan outright, and that further negotiations on specific provisions would be necessary.

The seriousness of the overall situation was reinforced last week when a major credit-rating agency, Standard and Poor's, said it was placing the United States' sovereign rating on "CreditWatch with negative implications." Another major agency -- Moody's Investors Services -- said it would put America's bond rating on review for a possible downgrade.

In an interview Wednesday with KMBC-TV of Kansas City, Missouri, Obama called the situation "a self-created crisis in some ways" because of political intransigence.

"It has to do with folks who are digging into set positions rather than saying how do we solve a problem," Obama said.

The House Republicans' "cut, cap and balance" bill would raise the debt ceiling while imposing strict caps on all future federal spending and making it significantly tougher to raise taxes -- the solution favored by hard-line conservatives.

CNN's Ted Barrett, Kate Bolduan, Lisa Desjardins, Paul Steinhauser, Deirdre Walsh, Xuan Thai and Jessica Yellin contributed to this report.

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Atlantis' last wake up call

(CNN) -- Atlantis has been given the "go" to come back to Earth.

The shuttle will fire its orbital maneuvering rockets at 4:48 a.m., which will bring it in for a landing at Kennedy Space Center at 5:56 a.m. ET.

When Atlantis returns, it will cap a 30-year shuttle program that sent 355 astronauts into space.

The crew woke up to "God Bless America" on their final morning in space in honor of all the men and women who have worked for the program, NASA said on its website.

"The forecast remains very favorable, with no predicted flight rule violations that would prevent landing," NASA said hours before the scheduled landing.

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Bolden: NASA is very busy

Atlantis' landing will leave the United States with no way to lift humans into space for the first time in decades, leaving Russia as the only option to ferry American astronauts to orbit.

The crew on the mission known as STS-135 relished their final hours in space as they discussed their next frontier in flight.

"What we're going to see in the next few years is a very broadening horizon," shuttle commander Chris Ferguson told CNN's Ali Velshi hundreds of miles above Earth. "What we'll do is we'll turn over the reins of that business to commercial partners."

Atlantis mission specialist Rex Walheim said he hopes the end of NASA's shuttle program marks the beginning of more flight opportunities.

"I think it's going to open up a new era of space flight," Walheim said. "We want to take that next step -- get access to Earth orbit cheaper and more frequent. We can do that by partnering with our commercial partners, and that will allow NASA to really focus on the exploration," such as going beyond the Earth's orbit or to asteroids and Mars.

Atlantis lifted off July 8 on NASA's final space shuttle mission.

The first shuttle, Columbia, blasted off in April 1981. Since then, space shuttle crews have fixed satellites, performed scientific studies, and ferried materials and people to International Space Station Alpha, a football field-sized construction project in orbit.

NASA has sent five space shuttles on a total of 135 missions.

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