2010 Summer Football Transfers

[Valerus]

No use.. Wenger would still start Denilson ahead of them :p

Don't even joke about that!

If he starts Denilson and Diaby I will kill someone.

[Rappy Veteran]

Inter Milan full-back Maicon has revealed he has a burning ambition to play for Real Madrid.

The Brazil international was part of the Inter side that won the treble last season, topped off with a triumph in the UEFA Champions League.

Former manager Jose Mourinho masterminded the Nerazzurri's success, but he has now moved on to pastures new at the Bernabeu and Maicon wants to follow suit.

He told Spanish daily AS: "What I want is to play at Madrid and for me it would be an honour to be able to do that because I've already said it would be a great opportunity in my career."

The 28-year-old has been strongly linked with a move to Los Merengues, and he has dismissed speculation regarding a move to Premier League outfit Manchester City.

"With Manchester City I have nothing (agreed), I can assure," he added.

"I'm going to say it very clearly so there are no misunderstandings. I want to play at Madrid, I don't want to go to Manchester City.

"Moreover, I repeat that I have nothing (agreed) with the English club."

Maicon is preparing to compete in this summer's World Cup with Brazil, but is hoping to get his club future resolved.

He admits he had a great relationship with Mourinho during his time in Italy, and the former Cruzeiro and Monaco player seems set on linking up with him in Spain.

"Mourinho is a great coach and I don't think anybody can dispute that," he remarked.

"I have a great relationship with him and for me it would be nice to be able to play under him again.

"We have won many things together and I hope to be able to repeat that. He's one of the best coaches that I've come across in my life."

Source: Sky Sports

[rajputwarrior]

Premier League - Papers: Gerrard to follow Rafa out

Eurosport - Thu, 03 Jun 09:01:00 2010

Liverpool might be losing more than just their manager this week: their iconic skipper Steven Gerrard could also be on his way after becoming Real Madrid's number one transfer target this summer.

The Daily Telegraph reports that Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has identified the 30-year-old as the top priority for the Spanish giants, with new manager Jose Mourinho determined to bring him to the Bernabeu.

The paper adds that the sacking of Rafa Benitez will not be enough to keep Gerrard with the club; apparently, he will want assurances that the new manager will have money to spend. And considering that Benitez was recently told the transfer kitty would be ?5 million - barely enough to buy a limb of a top player - it looks like there could be plenty more intrigue left to come from Liverpool over the next couple of months.

Benitez's sacking - or agreement to leave, depending on who you believe - naturally dominates today's back pages.

The Daily Mirror puts it in the bluntest terms: "SACKED!" is their giant headline, claiming that "the decision was taken last night to sack the Liverpool manager". Latest news from Anfield suggests it's a cat-and-mouse game of negotiation over a multi-million-pound pay-off rather than a done deal.

While most of the papers claim the pay-off offered will be ?3m, the Daily Mail goes one better - or one million better - by claiming that it's ?4m.

Either way, you have to wonder where Liverpool are coming from with this. The Daily Star tells us that Benitez was ordered back from a family holiday on the charming Mediterranean island of Sardinia in order to face the music in the Anfield boardroom; and having been dragged away from champagne cocktails by the pool, they have then asked him to take a ?13m hit in the wallet.

The Sun believes that the carrot which will tempt Rafa away is the promise of replacing Jose Mourinho at Internazionale; but if he's on a hiding to nothing at cash-strapped Liverpool, wouldn't trying to follow an iconic, treble-winning manager at one of Europe's very biggest clubs be just as tough?

In other news this morning, Manchester City's interest in Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko is still rumbling on, with the Daily Express claiming that City will hope to land the player for far less than stipulated in the ?34 million buy-out clause that expired earlier this week.

City are also keen on Inter right-back Maicon, although the Brazilian is also a target for Mourinho at Real Madrid.

Birmingham and Stoke are getting ready for a bidding war to pinch Andy Carroll from Newcastle. Carroll was a key player for the Toon in their Championship-winning campaign, but off-pitch troubles - or rather on-training-pitch bust-ups with team-mates - prompt the Daily Mail to claim Newcastle will sell for around ?4.5m.

And finally, The Sun runs a story claiming that locals in South Africa are looking forward to watching Wayne Rooney more than any other player at the World Cup - and with the home side in patchy form they're all backing England to win as their second-choice side.

Needless to say there is incontrovertible evidence for the assertion. First up is an advertising billboard with Rooney's face on it (so are the faces of Cristiano Ronaldo and Didier Drogba); and secondly, the top item on a local TV news show was Benni McCarthy missing out for the Bafana-Bafana, closely followed by Theo Walcott being left out of the England squad. Which proves that it must be true.

Eurosport

[Valerus]

I'd rather not have Pool lose Gerrard to Real Madrid...

[Rappy Veteran]

Yaya Toure's agent claims his client will be playing in England next season, with a deal already agreed.

The Barcelona midfielder's representative has refused to state with which club an agreement has been struck, but the Ivorian has been strongly linked with Manchester City of late.

The Blues, who already boast Toure's brother Kolo on their books, are believed to be leading the race for his signature, keen to add some much-needed steel in the centre of the park.

The Barca ace has, however, attracted interest from Manchester United and Arsenal in the past, so it is far from certain that he will be turning out at Eastlands next season.

"If everything goes well, Yaya will go to England," Toure's agent, Dimitri Seluk, told Ona FM.

"But we can't talk about definite clubs. We already have a closed deal, and all will be resolved before the World Cup."

Toure joined Barca from Monaco in 2007 and quickly became an integral part of their side, patrolling the area in front of the back four.

Price tag

He has landed six major trophies during his time at Camp Nou, but has fallen down the pecking order over recent seasons.

Some reports have suggested that he could be used as a makeweight in Barca's protracted efforts to lure Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas back to Catalunya.

That may provide his best route out of the Primera Liga giants, as an asking price of around ?36million (?30m) could scare off some potential suitors.

Seluk added: "It seems to me too much money. His club have shown they want him to leave, it's not normal that they're asking for this amount.

"If (Barca president Joan Laporta) likes Toure so much, he could have explained why he didn't play so much.

"This year we haven't spoken to him even one time, and if he leaves it's because that was lacking."

[Bassem]

'Stressed' Fabregas examining legal options to push through move from Arsenal to Barcelona Gunners midfielder increasingly anxious dream move will fall through

Goal.com

3 Jun 2010 10:46

Cesc Fabregas is examining his legal options in a bid to force through a move to Barcelona, Goal.com UK can exclusively reveal.

The Arsenal skipper is so keen to engineer a transfer to his boyhood club that he has even considered the possibility of exploiting a FIFA rule that allows players to buy out the remainder of their contract.

The problem for Fabregas is that it would cost ?28.6million to buy out his ?110,000-a-week contract, which has five years still to run.

Article 17 of FIFA?s Regulations for the Status and Transfer of Players, known as the ?Webster ruling?, states that a player who signed a deal before the age of 28 can buy himself out of the remainder of the contract three years after the deal was signed.

Fabregas would be eligible because he signed his original eight-year contract in 2006 before, as Goal.com UK exclusively revealed, it was topped up last year with a ?3m ?golden handcuffs? payment, a 40 per cent pay rise and extended by another 12 months.

The 23-year-old is understood to be increasingly anxious about whether his return to Barcelona will go-ahead and has told friends that he is feeling ?stressed? and ?powerless? as the negotiations between the two clubs becoming increasingly fractious.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is keen for Fabregas to commit to another year at Emirates Stadium but the player is adamant that he wants to return to Spain after the World Cup.

Barca made a bid of ?29.2m on Tuesday evening but their first official approach met with a blunt refusal from Arsenal.

Arsenal?s attitude now is that they will only respond to specific offers from Barcelona for Fabregas and will not enter into any negotiations, whether formal or informal.

The Premier League club issued a statement, believed to have been written by Gunners chief executive Ivan Gazidis, on Wednesday, which was their first since Fabregas informed Wenger that he wanted to leave, and was unusually strongly worded.

"Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas is under contract with the club until the summer of 2015," said the statement. "He is a highly valued member of the team and part of our future plans. As there has never been any official approach for him, only two informal exchanges, in which we made it abundantly clear that we have no interest in transferring Cesc, we have refrained from publicly passing comment.

"However, [on Tuesday evening] we received an offer from Barcelona for Cesc and in response, we immediately and resolutely told them once again that we have no intention of selling our captain.

"We will not make any kind of counterproposal or enter into any discussion. Barcelona have publicly stated that they will respect our position and we expect that they will keep their word."

That, however, is highly unlikely, with Barcelona believing that they have now taken the first step in a process of negotiations.

"We won?t be hasty but nor will we let up," said Barcelona director Rafael Yuste. "The ball is in Arsenal?s court now and as we have an exceptional relationship with them I am optimistic."

[Rappy Veteran]

I think its going to be stretched out all summer :unsure:

[Kralik]

Funny how they just know that this is happening without naming Cesc or any credible source for the story.. how arrogant can Barca get? They already owe us money from Hleb and Henry sales and now are constantly insulting us with this transfer.. and are insulting Cesc (a player they discarded coz they tht he is not good enf to wear their jersey) with only a £33M offer.. Cesc is worth atleast £55M.. it's funny that they would pay Eto'o plus £30M to Inter for Ibra.. an almost useless and vastly overrated piece of **** striker and offer just £33M for Cesc who is capable of being the backbone of any top club in the world..

No use taking it to FIFA or UEFA though as Sepp Blatter/Platini will say that he is a "slave" at Arsenal and of course take the side of the Spanish club.. The FA should step up and take notice..

The last thing I heard Cesc say was he wanted to concentrate on the WC and wants to resolve this ASAP.. now that he is in training for the WC, I find it hard to believe that he will be giving this as serious tht as this story suggests..

Hoping Jose Mourinho would put Barca in their place and take the league trophies away from them..

Barca fans should be ashamed of supporting a club that shows so little respect to other clubs and players..

[Bassem]

I think its going to be stretched out all summer :unsure:

I sure hope not.

Funny how they just know that this is happening without naming Cesc or any credible source for the story.. how arrogant can Barca get? They already owe us money from Hleb and Henry sales and now are constantly insulting us with this transfer.. and are insulting Cesc (a player they discarded coz they tht he is not good enf to wear their jersey) with only a ?33M offer.. Cesc is worth atleast ?55M.. it's funny that they would pay Eto'o plus ?30M to Inter for Ibra.. an almost useless and vastly overrated piece of **** striker and offer just ?33M for Cesc who is capable of being the backbone of any top club in the world..

No use taking it to FIFA or UEFA though as Sepp Blatter/Platini will say that he is a "slave" at Arsenal and of course take the side of the Spanish club.. The FA should step up and take notice..

The last thing I heard Cesc say was he wanted to concentrate on the WC and wants to resolve this ASAP.. now that he is in training for the WC, I find it hard to believe that he will be giving this as serious tht as this story suggests..

Hoping Jose Mourinho would put Barca in their place and take the league trophies away from them..

Barca fans should be ashamed of supporting a club that shows so little respect to other clubs and players..

Yes, I forgot how Goal.com UK is owned by Barcelona. :rolleyes: Exactly how is Barcelona insulting Cesc? A player who obviously doesn't care about the money, and has shown his desire to go back home. Obviously he's worth more than 29M but it's not like Arsenal is willing to negotiate. If he wants to leave, they should let him. They don't want a player that doesn't want to stay but they can and should make this easier. And no offense but Cesc doesn't owe the club anything, he's done more than enough. This is about Arsenal, who - even after having failed miserably to convince their captain to stay - are still refusing to even consider a negotiation. And it's not like Barcelona is helping either, with the media and all, but then again, Arsenal completely ignored Cesc's wishes by asking Barca to back off and that they have no intention of selling their captain (?). How's the Gourcuff deal by the way?

Respect? If Arsenal did respect their players, or in this case, their most valued player, they would've made this much easier for him, so he can concentrate on the World Cup and put this behind him.

Again, Barcelona shouldn't be using the media like this, but when a player expresses his wish to leave a club, things tend to get complicated.

I don't care about Mourinho, he doesn't even fit in La Liga, even if he does win anything. I don't think Real Madrid should've sacked Pelligrini in the first place but again, it's always been like this with Real.

I've always been a fan of Arsenal, technically, they're one of the best teams in the world. I have nothing but respect for them but this has to end.

Personally, I don't really care for the management. I think Barcelona is a great team, it's a pleasure watching them play.

[Kralik]

Gourcuff is a great player and the only way we can play him in the squad is if we sell Cesc or not buy J Cole.. which indicates to me that we are ready to sell Cesc but Barca are adamant about not paying more than "market value" which they seem to estimate as not more than £35M.. that's what I feel is insulting for a player of that calibre.. they bought Ibra for £30M + Eto'o.. thats almost £70M? The insult Cesc by first discarding him like he was not good.. and still they undervalue him.. if it was that they first discarded him (like they did) and now they were saying.. we made a mistake.. you are great player.. we'd pay £55M for you.. I'd be saying fair enf.. but we MUST not let him go at this price.. I just hope he doesn't end up like Henry or Hleb did at Barca..

I've also heard talk of AW being interested in Pjanic as a replacement.. Arsenal has every right to keep a hold of him even if he wants to leave.. he has 5 years on his contract.. don't sign a long contract then if you can't live with it.. Barca has no right to keep using the media like this and keep chasing a player who is on contract with us after we have said "back off"!

[Rappy Veteran]

As reported by AS, Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho's summer transfer budget to form his ideal team will be in the ?100 million range.

"I want three or four defensive-minded players but I want for us to improve in attack," said the Special One in a recent interview with the Spanish tabloid. And thus, Los Blancos are preparing to put the wheels in motion to make Mourinho's requests a reality.

The three defensive-minded players the Portuguese coach has his eye on are Inter's Maicon (right-back), Lazio's Aleksandar Kolarov (left-back) and a midfielder (either Roma's Daniele De Rossi or Liverpool's Steven Gerrard).

Negotiations for the Brazilian right-back have taken a favourable turn in that the player has publicly declared his desire to play at Real Madrid, effectively shutting Manchester City out of a swoop, but Inter are insisting on a fee of ?35m, while Madrid seem unwilling to shell out more than ?25m.

The same is the case for Kolarov, who Lazio price at ?20m but Madrid are insisting on paying only ?15m for him. For either De Rossi or Gerrard, Los Blancos are at liberty to pay ?30m.

The only offensive player Mourinho is willing to shell out on is Benfica's Angel Di Maria and in that case the two teams are at an impasse; Madrid are unwilling to increase their offer past ?30m, while Benfica continue to demand ?40m for the star Argentine. Should Di Maria's transfer fail, Valencia's David Silva has also been strongly tied to the Bernabeu.

Madrid could be convinced to include players in their respective deals in cash plus player options and Royston Drenthe, Ezequiel Garay and Marcos Alonso are just some of the names that have been mentioned in reports.

Los Blancos are reportedy in no rush to make the signings should teams be unwilling to negotiate this early in the summer. In fact, Florentino Perez and co. are intent on waiting until August if needs be to see the price of some of the players come down.

Source: Goal

[Bassem]

Gourcuff is a great player and the only way we can play him in the squad is if we sell Cesc or not buy J Cole.. which indicates to me that we are ready to sell Cesc but Barca are adamant about not paying more than "market value" which they seem to estimate as not more than ?35M.. that's what I feel is insulting for a player of that calibre.. they bought Ibra for ?30M + Eto'o.. thats almost ?70M? The insult Cesc by first discarding him like he was not good.. and still they undervalue him.. if it was that they first discarded him (like they did) and now they were saying.. we made a mistake.. you are great player.. we'd pay ?55M for you.. I'd be saying fair enf.. but we MUST not let him go at this price.. I just hope he doesn't end up like Henry or Hleb did at Barca..

I've also heard talk of AW being interested in Pjanic as a replacement..

That's what bothers me, they're willing to look for someone to replace Cesc but they refuse sell him? I agree that Cesc is worth more, which is why Barcelona is willing to negotiate, Arsenal is not. The rumored ?80M price tag is ridiculous, they're just playing "hardball". The thing is, as much as Barcelona would love to have Fabregas, they don't need him, Arsenal does.

[Bassem]

I've also heard talk of AW being interested in Pjanic as a replacement.. Arsenal has every right to keep a hold of him even if he wants to leave.. he has 5 years on his contract.. don't sign a long contract then if you can't live with it.. Barca has no right to keep using the media like this and keep chasing a player who is on contract with us after we have said "back off"!

If Arsenal has no intention of selling their player then you have nothing to worry about, considering Cesc has already made up his mind. I don't see how the media has anything to do here. And the 5-year contract? I don't blame him, really, Arsenal is a great team, but things have changed.

Mate, nobody's denying Arsenal's right to keep hold of him, Barcelona officials were very clear regarding that matter, but we both know where this is going, he wants to leave, it's useless to keep him.

He fits perfectly in Barca.

[Zoom7000]

Avram Grant has just made his first signing as West Ham manager:

West Ham sign German midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger

Source - BBC Sport

[Rappy Veteran]

Avram Grant has just made his first signing as West Ham manager:

West Ham sign German midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger

Source - BBC Sport

meh :rofl:

[Rappy Veteran]

Argentine winger Angel di Maria has told his Benfica team-mates that he is leaving the club to join Real Madrid next season, according to reports from Spain.

The 22-year has long been thought to be heading to the Spanish capital this summer after los Blancos admitted their interest in securing his services, but AS reports that the player has already said goodbye to his colleagues, all but confirming that the transfer has been finalised.

Benfica value Di Maria in the ?40m bracket and until now Di Maria has refused to be drawn on questions over his future, but after Benfica clinched the Portuguese league title, Di Maria is thought to have said, ?Boys, next season I will play for Real Madrid.?

His agent, Jorge Mendes, said that an agreement had been reached in principle to let him leave the Lisbon club, and that both he and the player were aware that Jose Mourinho would be appointed as coach following the departure of Manuel Pellegrini.

The full details of the transfer are not yet known. Real Madrid squad players such as Royston Drenthe and Ezequiel Garay have been mentioned as makeweights in the deal, and the Spanish giants are thought to be hopeful of concluding a deal before the World Cup starts on June 11.

Source: Goal

[nothuman]

According to Marca Gerrard said the exact same thing. It's marca so don't need to pay attention.

[Kralik]

Roy Hodgson favourite to take over at the Kop..

13/8 Roy Hodgson; 3/1 Martin O'Neill; 4/1 Kenny Dalglish; 9/1 Sven; 12/1 Harry Redknapp; 14/1 Klinsmann; Hughes; McLeish.40/1 Moyes; Thompson; Keegan.

[Martyn]

Moyes?

Did they give him odds just for the comedy value :laugh: ?

[Rappy Veteran]

Moyes?

Did they give him odds just for the comedy value :laugh: ?

are you saying you dont want him then? :p :rofl:

Barcelona have rejected speculation that Arsenal have told the Catalans to double their offer to land Cesc Fabregas.

The Catalan giants had a €35million (£29m) offer for the Arsenal skipper rejected last week.

Reports on Monday suggested Arsenal are now prepared to accept an offer - if Barca increase their bid to €70m (£58m).

But Barcelona director general Joan Oliver has rejected this speculation, insisting they have heard nothing from the Gunners.

He said: "They said they would not sell, it's logical therefore that they have not set a price for him.

"We made a formal offer. The only official response we have from Arsenal is that they are not ready to sell the player, for which it would be difficult for them to be putting a price when they say they are not selling."

While Oliver was keen to add that in Barca's favour is Fabregas' "desire to come", he admits it will be impossible without either the green light from Arsenal or Fabregas - who is under contract with the Gunners until 2015 - forcing his club's hand.

"On our part, after having made an offer we are ready to sign the deal this very morning," Oliver continued.

"We still have time to do it, but it is a deal we cannot do just by ourselves."

Source: Sky Sports

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez says the club are eyeing two or three major signings for new coach Jose Mourinho.

Former coach Manuel Pellegrini was sacked after the Spanish giants failed to secure any silverware last season, allowing former Inter Milan boss Mourinho to step in as his successor last month.

And Perez has revealed Real are looking to bring in a handful of new players to bolster the squad next term.

Signings

"What we are definitely going to do is bring in two or three top players to complete the squad," Perez told television station Antena 3.

Real have been linked to several players, including Inter right-back Maicon, Sevilla winger Jesus Navas and Benfica midfielder Angel Di Maria.

When questioned about Maicon, who helped Mourinho's Inter to UEFA Champions League glory last month, Perez said: "There is no rush but Maicon is one of the top players in his position."

On Navas and Di Maria he added: "They are two players who I also like very much but I think it's still too early and we will work over the summer to bring in those players who will complete the magnificent squad we already have."

Perez also revealed the club are tracking Bordeaux midfielder Yoann Gourcuff.

"Some have even said he is the new (Zinedine) Zidane," said Perez.

"He (Gourcuff) is a player we have followed in the same way as others who we think will be the top players of tomorrow."

Perez insists a player not on his radar is Barcelona's Lionel Messi, claiming it would be a mistake to put him alongside Real's record-signing Cristiano Ronaldo.

"Messi is the second-best player in the world after Ronaldo and it would not be a good thing to have both in the same team," he said. :rofl:

"That way there is more competition."

Source: Sky Sports

[Kralik]

Real Madrid are preparing to offer as much as £10 Million more for Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas but even that may not be enough to persuade the Arsenal board to allow Fabregas to leave The Emirates. Real Madrid it has been reported are preparing a bid in the region of £40 Million, still below Arsene Wenger's valuation of his captain.

[Bassem]

"Messi is the second-best player in the world after Ronaldo and it would not be a good thing to have both in the same team," he said. :rofl:

:rofl:

Real Madrid are preparing to offer as much as ?10 Million more for Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas but even that may not be enough to persuade the Arsenal board to allow Fabregas to leave The Emirates. Real Madrid it has been reported are preparing a bid in the region of ?40 Million, still below Arsene Wenger's valuation of his captain.

You have to admire their ambition.

[Rappy Veteran]

Fulham have completed the signing of former Arsenal defender Philippe Senderos on a three-year deal.

The Switzerland international moves to Craven Cottage on a free transfer after his deal with the Gunners expired and he was not offered fresh terms.

Senderos spent the second half of last season on loan with Everton and the entire previous campaign in Serie A with AC Milan.

The 25-year-old joined Arsenal from Servette in Switzerland in the summer of 2003 but was unable to establish himself as a regular in Arsene Wenger's first-team plans.

Senderos, who is currently in South Africa preparing for the World Cup with Switzerland, is relishing the chance to work under Cottagers boss Roy Hodgson.

[Valerus]

meh.

[Kralik]

Was that a free transfer? If not then how much did we make from his sale... I think he had a couple of seasons left on his contract..