[Football] Summer Transfers 2008

[Martyn]

I always rated Cisse....in fm but not in real life but lets hope Keane gets the best out of him.

Real life is all that matters. Football Manager is a game.

I always felt Cisse had the potential to be one of the greatest strikers the Premiership has ever seen. He was so unlucky at Liverpool, he suffered two broken legs, and in his last season with Liverpool he played on the right wing (and still scored 19 goals).

He lacks game intelligence, but makes up for it with his other attributes (speed!!).

He's a funny fella as well.

[Mike]

I dont know man.. i've seen him give away penalties and get sent off far too many times to be comfortable with him coming to Emirates.. I don't think he has much left.. he hasnt seen much first team action lately for Man Utd and France.. :huh:

silvestre is not slow, cant think of many penalties he's given away either. as for sendings off, only 1 comes to mind which i guess isn't enough to become an arsenal player :p

[Kralik]

I always rated Cisse....in fm but not in real life but lets hope Keane gets the best out of him.

That can be the signing that takes then to intertoto or even UEFA cup next season!!

In other news:

EVERTON have seen off Newcastle in the battle to bag Juventus midfielder Tiago. The Toffees agreed to pay Juve ?250,000 to take the 27-year-old on loan for a season ? and could sign him permanently for ?8m next summer.

ARSENAL are weighing up a move for midfield man Xabi Alonso.

The Liverpool ace is down the pecking order at Anfield but the Gunners need the Kop to lower their ?16million valuation.

BLACKBURN have slammed Manchester City after snubbing their ?12million Roque Santa Cruz bid.

Rovers have turned down the offer from ex-boss Mark Hughes, who is desperate to bring the Paraguay hitman to Eastlands.

And they have blasted City for refusing to take no for an answer.

A club statement read: "A bid came in last night and it was immediately rejected.

"Various Manchester City officials have been advised on a number of occasions that the player would not be for sale.

"We are very disappointed, therefore, that they have continued their interest."

CHELSEA will lodge a new ?23million bid for Robinho, who has told Real Madrid: 'I must go'.

The Brazilian superstar is even ready to strike in a bid to engineer a move to Stamford Bridge.

Liverpool are having a hard time in their search for a left-sided player, with Espanyol demanding GBP 16 million for the services of Albert Reira.

The Spanish club are aware that the Reds have money to spend after they missed out on the signing of Gareth Barry, but manager Rafael Benitez has valued the player at no more than GBP 9 million.

Benitez considered making an offer in June but chose not to enter a bidding war for the player.

Reira's agent, Magico Diaz, said: "Liverpool want Riera but Liverpool are reluctant to meet Espanyol's demands."

Earlier in the summer Reira said: "If Espanyol do finally receive an offer I do not want to miss the opportunity to go to Liverpool. The option to join a super-club doesn't come every day.

"I am a realistic person but this has given me something to look forward to.

"To reject the possibility of a move would be madness."

[Kralik]

:o

Arshavin's agent Dennis Lachter claims his client wanted too high a salary to agree to a move to Emirates Stadium.

Wenger was serious about buying Arshavin," said Lachter in the Daily Express.

"If Andrei could have tempered his financial appetite, it was quite possible he would be playing at the Emirates right now.

"Arsenal were prepared to pay about ?15million for him.

"(Arsene) Wenger is indeed a cunning fox who always says one thing and does the other. He wanted Andrei, but Arsenal are the only top English club who do not pay large salaries."

[Rappy Veteran]

Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko is close to securing a return to AC Milan, according to one of their directors.

The 31-year-old Ukrainian has endured two disappointing years in England since his ?30m move from Milan.

Milan director Silvano Ramaccioni said: "We are close to the end of the deal and I hope these little things that have to be fulfilled are done soon."

Shevchenko is AC Milan's second-most prolific goalscorer of all-time with 127 goals from 208 games.

An initial one year loan deal was reportedly discussed when Milan chairman Silvio Berlusconi met Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich in Sardinia last Thursday.

--

Manchester City face a probe by Fifa after Shakhtar Donetsk lodged a complaint about a payment they say they are owed for the sale of Elano.

The Ukrainian club, who sold Elano, 27, to City in 2007, say they are still owed a ?475,000 "solidarity payment".

These payments relate to compensation for clubs involved in the development of a player, and usually equate to 5% of the transfer fee.

A Manchester City spokesman declined to comment on the issue.

"We can confirm that Donetsk lodged a claim with Fifa regarding this matter," a Fifa spokesperson told BBC Sport on Wednesday.

"As the relevant procedure will be started in due course, we cannot provide further comments for the time being."

Fifa did not comment on what the potential punishments could be if they ruled against City.

[Rappy Veteran]

Confirmed Now!

Arsenal have signed Manchester United's France international defender Mikael Silvestre for an undisclosed fee.

The 31-year-old joined United in September 1999 and had one year left on his contract at Old Trafford, but has now signed a two-year deal at Arsenal.

He made 249 Premier League appearances in nearly nine years with United.

Silvestre, also linked with Manchester City and Bordeaux, missed most of last season with a knee ligament injury, but returned to action in April.

[Rappy Veteran]

Manchester City have agreed a fee to sign Belgium international defender Vincent Kompany from Hamburg, according to the German club.

[Kralik]

Zenit said they had given Tottenham until three days ago to meet their demands over Arshavin and that Spurs had missed that deadline. "The uncertainty of the situation does not make it possible for the club to seek out a replacement for Andrei [before the September 1 transfer deadline] and Zenit consider the question of the transfer of the player to Tottenham closed," the Russian club said.

[Rappy Veteran]

Arsenal full-back Armand Traore has joined Portsmouth on a season-long loan.

The 18-year-old Frenchman is highly-rated at Emirates Stadium, and will look to gain valuable first-team experience during his time at Fratton Park.

Traore's switch to Harry Redknapp's side follows Arsenal's surprise capture of experienced defender Mikael Silvestre from Manchester United on Wednesday.

The attacking left-back, who can also operate in midfield, recently penned a new long-term contract with the Gunners.

Redknapp was able to bring Traore to the South Coast after Jerome Thomas' loan move from Charlton was turned into a permanent deal.

[Kralik]

Fulham striker David Healy is set for a medical at Sunderland, Roy Hodgson has revealed.

He said: "If David has been spotted at Sunderland he didn't wear that disguise I told him to!

"It's no secret that Sunderland admire David and have talked about a transfer. He's up there for a medical today.

"We'll see what happens now, but it's certainly a possibility the transfer could go through."

This is a huge step forward for the Black cats first Cisse and now Healy... 2 top class strikers :p

Edited August 21, 2008 by Kralik

[Kralik]

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has hinted he will make one more signing this summer following the surprise arrival of Mikael Silvestre.

The French defender completed his move to Arsenal on Wednesday, although Gareth Barry's name continues to be linked with the club.

The England international had been expected to join Liverpool this summer, but with the clubs yet to agree a fee, The Gunners have been linked with a cheeky bid.

Although Wenger is refusing to publicly state Barry is on his wanted list he has hinted he is looking to make one more signing before the transfer window closes.

"I can surprise you sometimes, as I got one in whom you did not expect, and there still might be one more player coming in," he stated.

"You know the position, but I cannot tell you much more. There is interest always (in players). I do not want to give you any names.

"But we are not in a desperate situation because we have [Alexandre] Song back from the Olympics, [Abou] Diaby does not look too far away and hopefully we can have good news from [Tomas] Rosicky in the next two weeks.

"We are not quite short, but one more body is possible."

When asked if Barry's ineligibility for the group stages of this season's UEFA Champions League had created a problem for Wenger, he replied: "Not really.

"I believe that once somebody cannot play for you in Europe it devalues the player for the season. It doesn't necessarily stop you from buying the player."

I so hope its Xabi Alonso!!! :woot:

[rajputwarrior]

^ you can't have him... he's mine!!!!

[Rappy Veteran]

Chelsea have signed Sporting Lisbon striker Fabio Paim on loan with a view to securing him on a permanent deal.

Chelsea have agreed a deal with the Portuguese club for the 20-year-old to join on an initial one-year loan.

Striker Claudio Pizarro recently left Stamford Bridge to join Werder Bremen on loan, while Andrei Shevchenko's future remains unclear.

Sporting have an excellent record in developing young players, most notably Cristiano Ronaldo.

Under contract to Sporting until 2010, Paim was loaned to Portuguese club Pacos da Ferreira last season.

[Zoom7000]

Back home he goes!

Shevchenko heads back to AC Milan

Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko is to re-join Italian side AC Milan after completing a medical on Monday.

The 31-year-old Ukrainian cost the Blues ?30m in 2006 but has failed to make an impact in the Premier League.

Shevchenko is AC Milan's second-most prolific goalscorer of all-time with 127 goals from 208 games.

"Chelsea have agreed terms for Andriy Shevchenko to return to AC Milan," said Chelsea's website. "Details of the agreement will remain confidential."

Shevchenko failed to earn a regular spot in the first team at Chelsea following his move to Stamford Bridge, scoring just nine goals in 47 appearances.

His first season ended prematurely when he had hernia surgery, forcing the striker to miss the Champions League semi-final against Liverpool and the FA Cup final.

New Chelsea coach Luiz Felipe Scolari did not pick him for their first Premier League match of the campaign last weekend, prompting Milan to launch the latest in a string of attempts to bring the Ukraine international back to Italy.

AS Roma and Sampdoria also expressed an interest but returning to Milan was always his preferred choice.

"For me it's like winning the Champions League," Shevchenko told Italy's ANSA news agency. "There were complications but now everything is resolved I'm really happy."

Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani was overjoyed to re-sign Shevchenko.

"After a series of frenetic phone calls during the whole day, we reached an agreement with Chelsea," said Galliani.

"Tomorrow he will be in Milan, Monday he will undergo a medical and then sign a contract.

"We have managed to bring home a player who has scored the most goals in our shirt in the last 50 years."

Galliani had said earlier this week that talks over Shevchenko had stalled with Milan wanting a loan deal but Chelsea only interested in a permanent transfer.

The details of their eventual agreement remain confidential.

After buying Ronaldinho from Barcelona at the start of the close season, Milan had said they would not bring in any more players.

However, an injury to Marco Borriello, Alexandre Pato's stuttering form for Brazil at the Olympics and Filippo Inzaghi turning 35 have made the signing of another striker necessary.

"I have heard from Andriy about 48 times in the last three hours. Andriy made a mistake in leaving and I think after two years he has understood that this is his home," Galliani added.

"Now he has made economic sacrifices but at this point what counts is that he has come back to us."

Shevchenko began his career at Dynamo Kiev, winning five league titles and two national cups with the team between 1994-99.

He spent seven successful years at Milan, helping the Rossoneri clinch the 2002/03 Champions League 2003/04 Serie A title.

He was also named European Footballer of the Year in 2004.

However, he missed the penalty that gave Liverpool victory in the 2004/05 Champions League final.

The Serie A season kicks of 31 August with Milan due to host Bologna in their opening game.

Source - BBC Sport

[Rappy Veteran]

I wish I had 30m to waste :p

[gregb0b]

Finally getting rid of Shevchenko. What a piece of trash he was at the bridge.

[rajputwarrior]

i agree, he was useless there...

[Rappy Veteran]

West Ham manager Alan Curbishley says the club have accepted a bid from Sunderland for Anton Ferdinand.

The 23-year-old defender is mulling over Sunderland's offer, with the transfer fee reportedly as much as ?8m.

Curbishley said: "The board have accepted the bid - he's not renegotiated his contract - and the decision has been taken out of my ands.

"I don't know where Anton is in terms of signing for Sunderland but once the club accept the bid it moves on."

Ferdinand, the younger brother of Manchester United star Rio, signed a three-year contract extension in July 2005 and his current deal is due to expire in 2010.

oh joy...that means we will not buy anyone to replace him either...time for Trevor Booking to come back playing methinks:pp

[Martyn]

Just seen that on your blog Damien!

I think Anton has stagnated at West Ham, but then again West Ham in general seem to be stagnating whilst almost every club in the league is moving forward and improving.

[Rappy Veteran]

Just seen that on your blog Damien!

I think Anton has stagnated at West Ham, but then again West Ham in general seem to be stagnating whilst almost every club in the league is moving forward and improving.

Yeah I mean Sunderland is an example really a year ago I would of said favourites to go down and no real chance now they have Ciss? who already wants to sign on for 4 years and other top stars like Malbranque while we stick with the has beens like Mullins and Etherington.

[Crazysah]

Sunderland do have a very promising future I must say!

[Rappy Veteran]

Andriy Shevchenko has thanked the Chelsea fans as he prepares to complete a return to AC Milan.

The 31-year-old Blues striker is in Italy having a medical after the two clubs agreed terms on a deal to take the Ukrainian back to the San Siro.

"I'm so very happy to be here," he told the Italian club's official website.

"At this special moment, I want to send a message to the Chelsea fans who have always made me feel their support. A heartfelt thank you for that."

Shevchenko, AC Milan's second-most prolific goalscorer of all-time, with 127 goals from 208 games, cost the Blues about ?30m in 2006 but has failed to make an impact in the Premier League.

[Rappy Veteran]

Sky Sports News understands Arsenal defender Philippe Senderos is due to undergo a medical at AC Milan on Tuesday.

Senderos has been linked with a move away from Emirates Stadium following the surprise capture of Mikael Silvestre from Manchester United last week.

Premier League side Newcastle United and Milan have both been mooted as potential suitors for the 23-year-old as he seeks regular first-team football in the new season.

However, Milan head coach Carlo Ancelotti ruled out a move for the Switzerland international on Saturday.

But it is now believed that Senderos is poised to join up with former Arsenal team-mate Mathieu Flamini at the San Siro on a season-long loan deal.

[Martyn]

Baros has gone to Galatasaray. Good move for him I think!

[Martyn]

Liverpool have agreed a fee for Riera as well, ?8 million.