Summer Transfers 2007

[Welshboy Taffy]

23/07/07

FREDDIE READY TO LEAVE ARSENAL
By general consent, Freddie Ljungberg will move from Arsenal to West Ham today.

The Hammers have moved in for the ageing Swede after new signing Julien Faubert was ruled out for six months with an Achilles injury.

'Talks between Arsenal and West Ham over a £3million switch are at an advanced stage,' says The Daily Mail.

'Ljungberg, 30, is ready to drop his aversion to playing for another Premiership club after the Hammers' tabled a £60,000-a-week deal - £30,000 more than offered by Italian side Fiorentina.'

The Sun is unequivocal, declaring: 'FREDDIE LJUNGBERG will complete a £3.5million move from Arsenal to West Ham today.

'The Swedish midfielder, 30, has left the Gunners' pre-season training camp in Bad Waltersdorf, Austria to tie up with the Hammers and had a medical yesterday.

'Ljungberg agreed terms on a £60,000-a-week deal, having been told by Arsene Wenger he no longer figures in his first-team plans.'


DYER NEWS FOR TOON
It looks likely that Kieron Dyer will shortly be leaving Newcastle.

Sam Allardyce has pointedly refused to declare that he wants the occasional winger to stay at the club and The GuardIan reports: 'Over the past few days Dyer and Allardyce seem to have reached the same conclusion - that the player would be better off leaving the club he has been at since 1999.'

Even the loss of Joey Barton for up to a month 'does not mean that Newcastle will persuade Dyer not to leave, with the club apparently preparing to receive an offer for him from West Ham, Tottenham or Manchester City this week. It is unlikely Newcastle would turn down £5m or more.'


TWO MORE FOR SUNDERLAND
Sunderland boss Roy Keane admits he is hopeful of signing Wigan's Leighton Baines and Hearts goalkeeper Craig Gordon "in the next few days".

The Black Cats chief has been busy in the transfer market already this summer, spending over £15million on Russell Anderson, Michael Chopra, Dickson Etuhu, Greg Halford and Kieran Richardson.

But Keane has not finished his shopping spree yet, and aims to wrap up the captures of Baines and Gordon this week.


VILLA STILL WANT JUSSI, SAM TOUTS ANELKA
Despite reports linking them over the weekend with a move for Scott Carson, who said on Saturday that he would not be happy sitting on Liverpool's bench this season, the Daily Telegraph believes 'Martin O'Neill remains keen on tempting Jussi Jaaskelainen, the Bolton Wanderers goalkeeper, away from the Reebok Stadium.'

And while we're at Bolton, we should mention Fat Sam endearing himself to fans of his former club by recommending that Sir Fergie gives up on Tevez and brings in Nicolas Anelka.

Without checking, we're fairly sure Sam and Sir have won a similiar number of titles...what's that? None? None at all? So why on earth is he giving Sir advice?

Anyway, popping back to the Telegraph, 'Sammy Lee is hoping to persuade Esteban Granero, the 20-year-old Real Madrid midfielder, to reject the offer of a new contract in favour of a move to the Premiership.'


KANU OUT BUT TAYLOR PRICED OUT OF MOVE
Kanu, says the Daily Mirror, is off to Espanyol after failing to agree personal terms at Pompey.

But Matt Taylor won't even be given the chance to talk to other clubs, after Pompey put a whopping £8m price tag on his head. Everton were hoping to strengthen their left-hand side (and avoid the embarrassment of conceding 40-yard goals when they visit Pompey) wby recruiting Taylor, but do not have the funds.


AND THE REST
Manchester City boss Sven-Goran Eriksson wants Sevilla hard man Ivica Dragutinovic to toughen up his defence...Sunderland have taken Trinidad & Tobago midfielder Silvio Spann on trial...Steve Bruce wants to sign Arsenal central defender Johan Djourou on a season-long loan deal.

 

[Welshboy Taffy]

24/07/07

POOL AND MANYOO HEADING TO COURT OVER HEINZE
As The Guardian puts it, 'Previously cordial boardroom relations between England's two most successful clubs have deteriorated over Gabriel Heinze's future'.

That future is set to be decided in the courts after ManYoo reiterated their determination not to sell the defender to Liverpool. But Heinze, and Pool, believed they are legally permitted to finalise a deal.

According to Heinze and his representatives, ManYoo signed a 'valuation letter' earlier this summer which stipulated that the player could leave Old Trafford if a £6.8m fee was secured. They claim that no restriction on which clubs Heinze could join was mentioned.

But according to David Gill, ManYoo's chief executive, the letter is "meaningless".

'Gill also insists he verbally informed Heinze's agent that United would not be prepared to do business with any of their main Premier League rivals, specifically Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea,' reports The Independent.

Relations between the club have been further eroded by Sir Alex Ferguson's hint that ManYoo are investigating whether Liverpool made an illegal approach for Heinze.

"We are examining some of the statements coming from his agent and when contact was first made with Liverpool," he told reporters on the pre-season tour of Asia. "We are not happy with the agent's conduct in the matter and we are examining that, but it will take a couple of days before we have anything more to say."


DYER TO LEAVE TOON THIS WEEK
Although The Sun says that Joey Barton's injury 'put a spanner in the works' in the plan to offload Kieron Dyer, The Times reckons that 'Newcastle United believe that Dyer's future will become clearer this week, with West Ham United, Manchester City or Tottenham Hotspur expected to formalise their interest in the England midfield player in the next 48 hours'.

Although there hasn't been a formal transfer request, it is believed that both Dyer and Sam Allardyce have realised that the player should leave the club.

The winger would cost around £5m and 'West Ham and City, who are flush from recent foreign takeovers, would not balk at furnishing Dyer with a lavish salary - Tottenham, who operate a far stricter policy, are a different matter.'


MILAN CAN'T AFFORD SHEVA
Silvio Berlusconi fears the European champions have been priced out of a move to take Andriy Shevchenko back to the San Siro.

Berlusconi is keen to re-sign the Ukrainian, just 14 months after selling him to Chelsea for £30million.

But he does not believe the Rossoneri have the financial clout to prise him away from Stamford Bridge.


MAKELELE STAYS FOR FINAL YEAR
Claude Makelele is to stay at Chelski.

The Guardian reports that the French midfielder has rejected offers from Villarreal, Paris St-Germain, Olympiakos and Major League Soccer to see out the final year of his contract at Chelski.

'The France midfielder has been thwarted in his desire for a single year's contract extension at Stamford Bridge,' the newspaper reports. 'But, although he is likely to relinquish his first-choice status to the Nigeria international Mikel John Obi, the 34-year-old will stay at Chelsea until his contract expires.'


CASTILLO FOR CITY
Manchester City have reportedly agreed a £10million fee for Mexico striker Nery Castillo. But new owner Thaksin Shinawatra has told manager Sven-Goran Eriksson he must also look to Thailand for new signings.

The Daily Mirror claims City have agreed a deal with Olympiakos for Castillo, who impressed during the recent Copa America, after a two-man delegation flew to Athens.


ERM, KLUIVERT TO WEDNESDAY
Sheffield Wednesday have offered a trial to former Holland striker Patrick Kluivert.

The ex-Ajax, AC Milan and Barcelona forward - currently at PSV Eindhoven - has already had a spell in England when he spent the 2004/05 season with Newcastle.

Owls manager Brian Laws confirmed the Coca-Cola Championship club have invited the 31-year-old for a trial but played down its significance.


AND THE REST
Ex-Charlton midfielder Zheng Zhi is keen on a return to England with Newcastle...Nicky Shorey's future will be decided this week when he sits down with Reading boss Steve Coppell and director of football Nicky Hammond to discuss a new deal...Jason Roberts has dismissed talk he wants to leave Blackburn...Hameur Bouazza has been told he can leave Watford for £5million - Fulham and Portsmouth are interested in the Algerian forward...

Leicester boss Martin Allen is set to make MK Dons striker Izale McLeod his 13th summer signing...Hull have launched a £600,000 bid for Sunderland striker Stern John...Southampton manager George Burley wants former Liverpool left-back Gregory Vignal as his replacement for Gareth Bale...Juventus are set to make a £3million bid for Arsenal defender Philippe Senderos...Sheffield United boss Bryan Robson wants Michael Brown to return to the club from Fulham...

 

[joe516]

Everton boss David Moyes has made a shock bid to hijack Wigan defender Leighton Baines' move to Sunderland. (Daily Mirror)

Wigan boss Chris Hutchings will move for West Brom's Paul Robinson if Baines leaves the club. (Daily Mail)

Martin Petrov's switch to Tottenham from Atletico Madrid has moved closer after he was allowed to fly to London for talks. (The Sun)

Man City are in talks with Shakhtar Donetsk's Brazilian midfielder Elano over a £7m move. (Daily Mirror)

Sunderland boss Roy Keane is to switch his attentions to Middlesbrough goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer. (Daily Star)

Blackburn boss Mark Hughes is trying to push through a £4.5m deal for Bayern Munich striker Roque Santa Cruz. (Daily Mirror)

Newcastle are in talks for West Brom defender Curtis Davies, but their £6m offer is still £2m short of the Baggies' valuation. (Daily Mail)

Bolton boss Sammy Lee has talked Swede Christian Wilhelmsson into joining for £2m from Nantes. (Daily Mirror)

Man City want Juventus left-back Giorgio Chiellini and midfielder Manuele Blasi. (Guardian)

Plymouth have put striker Cherno Samba on the transfer list. (Daily Mirror)

Birmingham have joined Newcastle in the race to sign China's captain Zheng Zhi from Shandong Luneng. (Guardian)

Aston Villa and Newcastle will slug it out over Danish defender Brede Hangeland. (Daily Mirror)

Norwich and Watford could battle it out for the services of Leicester striker Matty Fryatt. (Daily Mirror)

French defender Frank Signorino, a £1m-rated left-back, is a target for newly-promoted Birmingham. (Daily Mirror)

Fulham's Michael Brown is set to move to Wigan on Wednesday. (Daily Star)

Luton defender Leon Barnett has finalised a £2m switch to West Brom. (Daily Mirror)

Liverpool have made a swoop on Real Madrid for 20-year-old midfielder Javi Garcia. (Daily Mirror)

Arsenal are chasing 17-year-old Spanish full-back sensation Alberto Morgado. (Daily Mirror)

Oldham are lining up a move for veteran former Sheffield United defender Alan Wright. (Daily Star)

Charlton are set to make former Barnet midfielder Dean Sinclair their latest signing. (Daily Mirror)

Dundee United are on the verge of signing Polish keeper Grzegorz Szamotulski on a six-month loan deal from Sturm Graz. (Daily Record)

Hibs and Hearts have both been linked with moves for Rosenborg striker Daniel Braaten. (Daily Record)

Hibs have also renewed interest in Cork City striker Roy O'Donovan. (Daily Record)

Spanish midfielder Ruben Palazuelos has signed a four-year deal with Hearts, according to his agent. (Daily Record)

 

[Welshboy Taffy]

25/07/07

RAFA: EVERYONE KNEW ABOUT HEINZE LETTER
Rafa Benitez has waded into the argument about Gabriel Heinze's availability by saying that every club in Europe knew that the defender was available this summer. Actually, Rafa said that "everyone in the world" knew, but we suspect that might be an exaggeration.

Pool matched the £6.8m fee stipulated in a document reputedly sent to Heinze's representatives by the Old Trafford hierarchy which confirmed the player's availability.

"A lot of clubs, in many different countries, knew what the situation was," the Liverpool manager complained. "I do not know what the problem is. We made an offer, they rejected it. Everyone in the world knows they [United] signed a document."


AJ WON'T LEAVE EVERTON
Andy Johnson has insisted that he will not leave Everton.

West Ham were reportedly ready to offer the England striker a bonkers amount of money but Johnson has no intention of departing Goodison Park.

"There is no way I'm leaving. No way at all. It never crossed my mind when I saw the stories. It was just speculation and you can't stop that," he told The Sun.

"I suppose the speculation is good because it means you are doing your job properly. But the speculation was there for Tim Cahill and Mikel Arteta as well.

"It was silly. Stupid figures and stupid money. Yet it hasn't unsettled any of us.

"Tim and Mickey are sorted and I've got four years left on my contract. I'm not going anywhere."


BRUM IN FOR UNDER-RATED DEFENDER
Birmingham have once again raised the possibility of taking Johan Djourou from Arsenal on a season-long loan.

The Sun says that Steve Bruce has targeted the Swiss defender, 20, after being scared off by Aston Villa's £2.5million valuation of Liam Ridgewell, 23.

"I have not spoken to Arsenal for a while about Djourou but I'll see where we are," the Brum manager commented. "We are still hopeful something can be done."


TWO ITALIANS FOR CITEH
According to The Guardian, 'Manchester City are attempting to sign the Juventus left-back Giorgio Chiellini and midfielder Manuele Blasi, both Italy internationals, a move that could prove successful after the coach Claudio Ranieri admitted that his squad is too large for next season'.

Chiellini, skipper of Italy Under-21 side, is available for around £8m after falling out with Ranieri. He has been linked with Liverpool who, F365 presumes, will make a move for the youngster if their bid for Heinze is aborted.

Meanwhile, Citeh appear to be losing their fight with Tottenham to sign Martin Petrov. The Bulgarian midfielder, supposedly a good chum of Dimitar Berbatov, has been allowed to leave Atletico Madrid's training camp and flew to London last night.


SPURS STILL WANT THEIR PRINCE
Talking of Spurs, The Times reckons that their move for Hertha Berlin's Kevin-Price Boateng has been reignited.

Two weeks ago, the midfielder appeared set to complete a move to the Premiership after a £4.5m fee was agreed, only for the deal to collapse over personal terms. However, The Times says that the 'player's agent has now resumed talks at White Hart Lane'.


WIGAN GO BROWN
Manager Lawrie Sanchez expects to hear 'within a couple of days' whether Michael Brown will leave Fulham for Wigan.

Brown was excused from the Cottagers' visit to Hong Kong for the bi-annual Barclays Asia Trophy after Latics boss Chris Hutchings lodged a bid to take the former Manchester City midfielder back to the north-west.

Sanchez confirmed no further progress on the reported £2million deal had been made but the matter should be resolved by the time Fulham return to London at the weekend.


THE DEFENDER-GO-ROUND
If Leighton Baines leaves Wigan, says the Daily Mail (and the Daily Mirror claims David Moyes is ready to hijack Sunderland's bid for him), then Chris Hutchings will move for West Brom's Paul Robinson, whose experience of getting relegated will stand him in good stead for next season at the JJB.

West Brom defenders are in fashion today, with Newcastle looking to sign Curtis Davies. They have already bid £6m for the vastly-overrated centre-half, but WBA are determined to hold out for £8m.

The Daily Mirror also links Newcastle with Danish defender Brede Hangeland, although he would also be offered a move to join international buddy Martin Laursen at Aston Villa if the Midlands side do get shot of Liam Ridgewell.


AND TALKING OF VILLA...
As reported elsewhere on this site, Martin O'Neill has ruled out making a bid for Shaun Wright-Phillips but plans to further strengthen his squad before the new season begins.

"I will not not go into any other specifics about who I want or don't want to sign but rumours that we are after Shaun Wright-Phillips are not true," said the Villa boss, whose side kick off their pre-season tour of North America at some daft hour tonight.


AND THE REST
Bolton are close to signing Sweden winger Christian Wilhelmsson...Former Aston Villa defender Alan Wright is on trial at Oldham after being released by Sheffield United...Norwich and Watford are battling it out for Leicester striker Matt Fryatt...Egyptian club Al Ahli claim Middlesbrough are set to pay £1.5million for striker Emad Meteb and £250,000 for midfielder Mohamed Shawki...Watford striker Darius Henderson is mulling over a £1m move to Preston, though Sheffield Wednesday are also interested...Sunderland boss Roy Keane has launched a £1.5million bid for unsettled Middlesbrough goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer...Polish goalkeeper Grzegorz Szamotulski is on the verge of joining Dundee United on a six-month loan deal.

 

[Welshboy Taffy]

26/07/07

NOW WEST HAM WANT ANELKA
The latest very nice young man to be linked with West Ham is Nicolas Anelka.

The Hammers are believed to have tabled a formal offer for the Bolton striker.

According to The Daily Mail, the east Londoners have 'bid a club record £12million'. That seems a tad excessive given that The Independent reports: 'Although the Bolton manager, Sammy Lee, said that he would sell the player to a Champions League club, a bid of between £5m and £6m should be enough to secure Anelka's services.'

Not that the Indy believes that the Hammers are feeling particularly thrifty. Apparently, 'the France international will be able to command wages of £90,000 a week' if he agrees to move to Upton Park.

Hammers fans, you must be so pleased with the direction your club is taking...


AND THEN THEY COULD WANT DYER
Contrary to previous reports, the prevailing impression is that Sam Allardyce would like to see Kieron Dyer stay at Newcastle but "family problems" mean that the winger is set to leave the north-east.

'Allardyce does not particularly want to sell Dyer and will attempt to help resolve his problems,' claims The Indy. But The Times says that 'Newcastle will probably allow Dyer, who has two years left on his contract, to leave for £5 million.'

"At this time Kieron hasn't handed in an official transfer request, but if these problems cannot be resolved we will have to let him go which is obviously a shame," Allardyce commented.

Allardyce has also voiced his frustration at his repeated failure in recent weeks to add defensive reinforcements.

As for Dyer, West Ham remain favourites to sign him.

Hammers fans, you must be so pleased with the direction your club is taking...


MANYOO WILL WAIT AND WAIT FOR TEVEZ
Terrific news, everyone: ManYoo are ready to wait beyond the August 31 deadline day for Carlos Tevez.

The Argentine's proposed move to Old Trafford has been further delayed by KiaJoorabchian's decision to give the Court of Arbitration for Sport a miss in preference to a day out at the High Court, but ManYoo remain undeterred.

"Once it goes to the high court, you never know what will happen, but it's better for us because we will know exactly where we stand and that's the best way to resolve it. I would imagine that it would be done before the deadline, but we would wait for him anyway if we have to. We've gone so far now, there's no point stepping back," said Sir Alex.


BAINES FOR EVERTON
Despite being yet to make a formal bid for the left-back, Everton are expected to sign Leighton Baines after he became the latest player to reject Sunderland.

According to The Daily Mirror, a move to Goodison would suit Baines 'personally, financially and emotionally'. Which is jolly nice.

However, a potential stumbling block is, as ever, the fee. The paper reports that Everton have offered £4.5m for Baines - but Wigan are demanding at least £6m.


SOL MOVING OUT OF POMPEY?
The 32-year-old Sol Campbell has given a less-than-subtle hint that he could be about to leave the south coast by announcing: "I don't think Portsmouth is my last club."

Campbell has grown disenchanted with the club's endeavours in the transfer market and is subject to growing interest from Villarreal.

"I still feel we need a couple more players to really move in the right direction," he complained. "The back end of last season was disappointing."


THE DAILY CITEH GOSSIP
The latest player to be linked with Manchester Citeh is Nikola Zigic.

The Sun, describing the player as a Serbian giant, says that 'Negotiations have already opened with Zigic's Spanish club Racing Santander. But the 6ft 7in target man, one of Europe's tallest players, is still not convinced about a move to England.'

Meanwhile, The Independent says that Citeh have made an improved £6m bid for Atletico Madrid winger Martin Petrov.

'The Bulgarian is expected to arrive in Manchester to discuss personal terms within the next 48 hours and, despite the lure of Uefa Cup football with Tottenham next season and the prospect of recreating a successful international partnership with Berbatov at club level, City officials are confident they can persuade Petrov to sign,' the very gossipy newspaper reports.


AND THE REST
Sheffield Wedensday are close to signing striker Grzegorz Rasiak from Southampton for £2million...Birmingham's £9million double move for Tottenham duo Mido and Hossam Ghaly has collapsed because of their wage demands...Cardiff hope to seal the signing of former player Mark Delaney from Aston Villa...Blackburn are in talks with Danish youngster Adda Djeziri, who had a spell at Rangers, over a £125,000 move...

Middlesbrough have had an offer for Manchester United's Alan Smith accepted, but the striker would prefer a move to Everton...West Brom striker Nathan Ellington has warned he will quit the club if he does not get regular first-team football this season...Hull have failed in an ambitious move for former Italy international Christian Vieri...Southampton are hoping to sign Sam Sodje from Reading for £500,000...

QPR are lining up a £350,000 move for Charlton's Simon Walton...Luton are set to sign Arsenal youngster Joe O'Cearuill after he impressed while on trial.

 

[Welshboy Taffy]

27/07/07


WELL, THINGS ARE GETTING OUT OF HAND HERE, AREN'T THEY?
We don't think we've ever heard anything quite like this. Gabriel Heinze, says The Guardian, 'has defied Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United by taking the extraordinary step of employing Liverpool's legal advisers to secure what would be a controversial and highly acrimonious move to Anfield.'

'His action is on the grounds that United had allegedly agreed in writing to sell him to any club that matched their valuation of £6m.'

ManYoo have indicated that they will fight the legal action, and have brought in their own solicitors. But is there really any point, other than to secure as much money as possible?

After all, ManYoo's fans are unlikely to think kindly of someone trying every trick in the book to get a move to their most hated rivals. Nor is Sir Fergie, whose own feelings about Liverpool are public knowledge.

Anyway, moving back onto more gossipy stuff, ManYoo bigwig David Gill confirmed last night that: "As yet, we have not had any firm offers for Alan Smith," said Gill.


JUST LYON AROUND
Talking of left backs leaving ManYoo, the Daily Mirror reckons Mikael Silvestre is off to Lyon for £3m.

And the French champions are also keen to bring in Arsenal's Jose Reyes, who finds it too hot in Spain and too rainy in England. So should find France just about right.


SVENNIS SPLASHING MORE CASH
There'll be a ladykiller match made in heaven when Kieron Dyer, according to The Sun, completes his move to Man Citeh, and links up with the Notorious S.V.E.N.

After forking out £4.5m on the Newcastle midfielder, Citeh are expected to turn their attention to wasting £9m on overrated Championship defender Curtis Davies.

The Daily Mirror, meanwhile, have Citeh linked with Nery Castillo, of Olympiacos (he's good), Giorgio Chiellini of Juventus (he's alright) and Nantes midfielder Emerse Fae (we've never heard of him).


STRIKER LIGHT
Aston Villa scored four goals on Wednesday night, but saw one of only two goalkeepers in their squad carried off with a hamstring injury.

So the Daily Mail's logic that they have turned their attention to Alan Smith might surprise some. But hey, that's football. Everton are apparently after him as well, but before we get carried away, let's revisit those lines from just up the page: "As yet, we have not had any firm offers for Alan Smith," said Gill.

Middlesbrough, who had been strongly linked with a move for Smith, will instead turn to Mido, who has turned down a move to Birmingham City.

And who knows? Maybe they're one of the three clubs who, along with Blackburn, have been given permission to woo £4.5m striker Roque Santa Cruz.

From what we've seen, £4.5m isn't bad money for the Bayern Munich player. It's very, very, VERY bad money for James Beattie, who, according to the Daily Mirror, will be offered the chance to spearhead Bryan Robson's destruction of Sheffield United when the Blades waste that much on capturing his bumbling, goal-shy efforts.

And finally, Bolton will apparently sell Nicolas Anelka for £13m. He's not a popular guy, so naturally West Ham are desperate to bring him in.


AND THE REST
Bristol City have tabled a £1million bid for Swansea striker Lee Trundle...West Brom are set to make a renewed approach for Stoke defender Carl Hoefkens...Wigan are set to make a £1.5million bid for Bolton defender Abdoulaye Faye, but Birmingham also want the Senegal man...Derby boss Billy Davies has offered Patrick Kluivert a trial after he turned down a similar deal with Sheffield Wednesday...Steven Naismith has handed in a transfer request at Kilmarnock.

 

[Welshboy Taffy]

30/07/07 & 31/07/07

30/07/07

OH PLEASE MERCIFUL GOD, MAKE IT STOP
One day in the future, it will be safe to pick up a newspaper without reading the words 'Carlos', 'Tevez' and 'saga'.

However, those days are a mere pipe dream at the moment, and our glorious red tops all carry their own unique twist on the story this Monday morn.

The Mirror claims that the Premier League will suggest that Kia Joorabchian pay West Ham £5.5 million for Tevez's playing registration, but that the MSI head honcho will tell them in no uncertain terms to do one.

The Sun seems to think the same thing, but this time the fee will be £6 million. Any suggestion that they're just picking these figures out of thin air will be strenuously denied.

Meanwhile, the Star reckons that Joorabchian will offer the Hammers a token £100,000 for the rights, on the basis that a court case will be hugely embarrassing for all concerned. The idea that this whole sordid tale isn't already hugely embarrassing is laughable in itself.


FINALLY, FINALLY, FINALLY ON HIS WAY?
Third on the rundown of most tedious transfer saga of the summer (a short nose behind Heinze) is Arjen Robben's proposed move to Real Madrid.

However, there might well be light at the end of the tunnel in this one. After the ever-reliable Spanish daily Marca reported at the weekend that Robben will sign for Real on Wednesday, the Star reckons that Chelsea have given the Dutch winger until Tuesday to sign a £90,000-a-week contract at Stamford Bridge, otherwise he will be politely shown the door.

If the Daily Mail is to be believed, as Robben goes out the door, a shiny cheque for £20 million will drop on the Stamford Bridge doormat with Ramon Calderon's signature on it.


'I'LL GO QUITE LITERALLY ANYWHERE ELSE'
The Gossip Column has never had Alan Smith down as a chap overloaded with common sense, but he seems to be showing bags of the stuff in recent weeks, simply by refusing to move to Middlesbrough.

Well good news for Smudger - he looks to have a couple more options to mull over. The Mail reports that Newcastle will make a 'surprise' £6 million bid for the former Leeds man, while the Telegraph reckons that Sven will abandon his policy of signing foreigners that nobody has ever heard of, by offering £7million for Smith.

That seems unlikely. After all, Smith doesn't strike you as a man who would leave a club for it's deadliest rivals, does he?


TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING
It is true that you can have too much of a good thing. The Gossip Column for example gets an achy tummy when it's had too much Angel Delight.

However, the insistence of Sheffield United to make total fools of themselves in any number of ways over the summer is simply priceless.

If being relegated with as little dignity as possible wasn't enough, they then appointed Bryan Robson as manager, and now they have admitted - apparently without shame - that they have made a £4 million - £4 bleeding million - bid for James Beattie.

Honestly, it really is almost too much.


AND THE REST
Manchester City last night agreed a £7.4million deal for Brazilian midfielder Elano, who plays for Shakhtar Donetsk...Leroy Lita insists he has no plans to walk out on Reading despite not finalising his contract...Wigan will spark a bidding auction between Everton and Manchester City for Leighton Baines today - by signing Paul Robinson from West Brom...Reading want to sign Sheffield Wednesday's Glenn Whelan in a £1.4m deal...Unsettled Portsmouth striker Lomana LuaLua is at the centre of a transfer tug-of-war between Sevilla and Espanyol...Steve Bruce reckons Spurs midfielder Hossam Ghaly will sign for Birmingham today...Ricardo Vaz Te is ready to fill the gap if Nicolas Anelka quits Bolton before the start of the new season...Sam Allardyce insists Kieron Dyer is still heading for the exit door at Newcastle...Blackburn striker Benni McCarthy has turned down a new contract in a bid to secure Champions League football.

31/07/07

WHAT'S THIS ROYSTON? A DECENT PLAYER?
After spending the first half of the summer spunking piles and piles of cash on deeply, deeply average players, Roy Keane seems to have broken the habit by expressing interest in a striker who isn't likely to get laughed at in the Premier League.

The Sun reckons that Sunderland have made a £6million bid for ManYoo's Alan Smith, and that Keane will invite Smudger round for tea and biscuits to discuss the move this week.

Having already turned down a move to a dead-end north-east club so far this summer, one would hope that Smith holds out for a side that actually have a chance of doing something this year.

He might not get that chance if Alan Curbishley has his way, as the Daily Express reckons that West Ham are lining up a £17 million DOUBLE SWOOP for Smith and Eidur Gudjohnsen.

However, there might be some hope for him if the Daily Mail is correct, as they claim Everton are on the verge of snapping him up. For his sake, please let it be so.


THEY COME OVER HERE, TAKING OUR JOBS....
Most places report this morn that PSV/Chelsea (because nobody is really sure, are they?) defender Alex was prevented from entering the country last night by immigration officials.

To pick a tab at random, the Daily Mail leads with the line that Alex was 'dramatically refused' permission to enter Blighty.

However, when the story is read more closely, it turns out that the big centre-half simply got the hump with the four hours of questioning from officials and hopped back on a plane to his native Brazil.

Still, far be it for the Mail to misreport and sensationalise a story about immigration, eh?


COME THIS WAY JOSE
Barcelona fancy-dan midfielder Deco apparently wants to play for Jose Mourinho again, reports the Sun.

The Brazilian-born Portuguese international is DESPERATE to work with the Special One again, but goes with the classic line of 'at the moment I'm a Barcelona player'.

However, as the new Galacticos of Spain seem intent on buying every attacking player going at the moment, he might not have a chance to be a cule for very long.


DOOM AND GLOOM IN THE TOON
Newcastle fans, stop right there. If you thought you were looking good for the new season, then new saviour Fat Sam Allardyce is ready to p*ss right on your fire.

The Daily Mirror reports that Allardyce is set for 'clear the air' talks with new Toon chairman Chris Mort, over the lack of transfer funds at his disposal, as he's only been able to sign Joey Barton and David Rozenhal for fees this summer.

And the big man reckons that unless cash is splashed, then United will be going nowhere this term.

"I certainly wouldn't like to start the season with the players who finished the game. Pre-season friendlies tend to give false hope. Just because we've beaten Juventus and Celtic doesn't mean we'll start the season well."

Never mind, Geordies - another season of mediocrity awaits.


AND THE REST....
Wigan manager Chris Hutchings last night told Everton they must stump up £6million for Leighton Baines...Neil Warnock will give himself until Christmas to find a new job in football...Robert Pires wants Nicolas Anelka to join him at Villarreal in Spain...Seol Ki-Hyeon is ready to quit Reading to become the latest addition to Lawrie Sanchez's Fulham revolution...Fulham boss Lawrie Sanchez is making a £3million bid for Newcastle's Charles N'Zogbia...Bolton are ready to sell Abdoulaye Faye, wanted by old boss Sam Allardyce at Newcastle...Richard Scudamore faces being called into the dock to explain his role in the Carlos Tevez affair...Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez is ready to smash through the £50million barrier in his frenzied summer spending spree...Holland want Tottenham manager Martin Jol to take over as their new national-team coach after Euro 2008...Juventus have confirmed their interest in Manchester United defender Gabriel Heinze...Vladimir Romanov said last night he will not stand in Craig Gordon's way if the goalkeeper decides to leave.

 

[Welshboy Taffy]

01/08/07

NAUGHTY HEINZE TO ROT AT MANYOO
With Sir Alex Ferguson insisting that he will not sell Gabriel Heinze, there is a strong possibility that the Argentine will be left to rot in the reserves for the next 12 months as punishment for his impertinence.

Sir Alex gave short shrift to reports that Liverpool had written to the Premier League, requesting their assistance to sign the defender, telling a press conference: "They can do what they like. We are quite confident about our position. Gabby is due back at training next Monday and, once we have a meeting with him, his position may become a little clearer."

According to The Guardian, with the mooted transfer to Anfield apparently doomed, Heinze now 'faces the distinct possibility of being frozen out at Manchester United' with Ferguson 'so appalled at the defender's conduct that there are misgivings within Old Trafford about whether the Argentina international should be considered for first-team action for as long as the dispute remains unresolved'.

'The key piece of evidence for Heinze is a fax, signed by United's chief executive, David Gill, and sent to the player's agent this summer, saying he could leave if United received a bid of £6.8m. Although the club seemingly went back on this agreement when Liverpool came in for the 29-year-old, United will argue that they have a far more significant piece of paper in the form of a legally binding contract that ties Heinze to Old Trafford for another two years.'

Nicely put.


SMITH TO REPLACE DYER RATHER THAN MARTINS
Another angry manager is Sam Allardyce. The Toon boss has issued a strongly-worded statement on the club's website, dismissing reports that he wants to sell Obafemi Martins as "complete and utter fabrication".

It had been claimed that Martins would be offloaded for around £13m in order to provide Allardyce with the necessary funds to purchase two new defenders. The story had been fuelled by Newcastle's £6m bid for Alan Smith, with whom Allardyce is expected to hold talks over the next 24 hours, but The Guardian claims that 'if he arrives at St James' Park it is likely to be as a midfielder, quite possibly filling the seemingly soon-to-depart Kieron Dyer's old boots'.

Nonetheless, it is undeniable that Allardyce still needs to buy a left-back and a central defender.


OLD LADY WANTS OLD MAN
'Juventus are closing in on the Chelsea midfielder Claude Makelele who has been told by his club that he can leave this summer as long as they find a replacement for him before the transfer window closes,' reports The Independent.

Although Jose Mourinho considers Mikel and Michael Essien as superior players to the 34-year-old Makelele, he still wants another central midfielder while Michael Ballack recovers from ankle surgery. Presumably that also means that want-away Lassana Diarra will not be allowed to depart.


ALEX TO FLY BACK THIS WEEKEND
Meanwhile, The Times claims that, despite running back to his native Brazil after being subject to four hours of questioning by Her Majesty's Immigration Officers, 'Chelsea expect Alex to arrive at Stamford Bridge to negotiate personal terms this weekend.'

He's really building up those air miles, isn't he?

Alex's arrival - and, erm, actual entry into Blighty - has suddenly become rather important for Chelski with at least ten players currently ruled out with injury, including skipper John Terry. The England captain hasn't trained for the past week due to a broken toe.

'Chelsea's appeal against the Home Office's decision to deny Alex a work permit has been scheduled for later this week and the defender has been told to fly to London as soon as it is granted. Chelsea's lawyers are confident of winning the appeal on the grounds that he is an exceptional talent, the same criteria that enabled them to bring Mikel and Kalou into the country after their spells at European clubs,' the newspaper reports.

'At the age of 25, Alex is older than those two talented African youngsters, but Chelsea will point to the unusual depth of Brazilian football and the fact that he played in all of his country's six matches in last month's victorious Copa America campaign as an indicator of his outstanding ability.'


ALVES SET FOR CHELSKI
According to The Sun, Chelski will spend the money made from Arjen Robben's sale on Daniel Alves, who handily wants out of Sevilla. At £19m, it sounds an awful lot for a right-back...but at the moment, Chelski have only got awful right-backs.

"My objective is to play in another team," Alves told Arena Sportv. "I have been at Sevilla for five years and now I think it's the moment to give a step forward in my career and play at a European giant."

Failing that, we suppose he'll join Chelsea.


AND THE REST
Spurs have opened talks with West Brom over highly-rated defender Curtis Davies...Derby are ready to throw Charlton's Jerome Thomas a Premier League lifeline with a £3million bid...Roy Keane is hoping to land Cork City's Irish prospect Roy O'Donovan before the end of the week...Leighton Baines fuelled speculation about an imminent £6million move to Everton by watching their 2-2 draw with Werder Bremen from the directors' box at Goodison Park...Sheffield United boss Bryan Robson has bid £1.5m for Republic of Ireland midfielder Kevin Kilbane, who has only been with Wigan for a year...

...Abdoulaye Faye, linked with a move to Newcastle, has agreed a new three-year deal at Bolton...Hibs and Hearts have lost out on Rosenborg winger Daniel Braaten, who has joined Bolton for £425,000...Manchester City are set to complete the signing of Spanish defender Javi Garrido...Derby have completed the signing of Andy Griffin from Portsmouth.

 

[Welshboy Taffy]

ALLARDYCE CAN ONLY BUY AFTER SELLING DYER
Kieron Dyer should complete his £6m transfer from Newcastle to West Ham in the next 24 hours. Oh what a lovely club the Hammers have become.

Toon's response will be to try to sign at least three new players, of whom Alan Smith is one. "There might be an interest in Alan Smith now," Sam Allardyce confirmed. "Has there been a bid made for Alan from Newcastle? There have been many bids made."

"I think we'll be close by the end of the week to maybe one or two players, I would hope. Then after that I would look to get at least another two or maybe three in because if Kieron goes, whoever comes in to replace him, that's only one for one, so it's not actually improving the squad in terms of strength in depth.

"There's still three or four players need to be got on top of whoever we replace Kieron with."

That Allardyce is only making another appearance in the transfer market after selling one of his prized assets is a worrying development for Newcastle fans.

According to The Daily Telegraph, Mike Ashley's £134 million takeover of Newcastle United was only recommended by the club's previous board after he made a vague promise of investing 'some' of his £1bn fortune in the club.

'Allardyce held clear-the-air talks with new chairman Chris Mort, a corporate lawyer from City firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, on Monday but remains frustrated at Ashley's failure to make serious funds available,' the newspaper reports.


CITEH POISED TO SIGN FOUR
Manchester Citeh are about to get seriously busy.

First up, according to reports in Croatia, will be Vedran Corluka. A fee of about £9m has apparently been agreed with Dinamo Zagreb for the defender.
The Guardian, meanwhile, says that 'City have put in place a deal with Shakhtar Donetsk for the Brazilian midfielder Elano Blumer and a £2m deal has been agreed for Real Sociedad's Javier Garrido to play on the left side of an increasingly cosmopolitan team.'

And that's not all.

The Daily Telegraph reckons that 'Sven-Goran Eriksson has made a late entry into the race to sign Wigan Athletic defender Leighton Baines by offering Manchester City forward Darius Vassell in a player-plus-cash package worth £6 million.'

Baines was thought to be heading for Everton after rejecting a move to Sunderland, but Wigan weren't interested in the Toffees' offer of £4m plus Andy van der Meyde. Well, would you be?


HEINZE TO ITALY?
Citeh's interest in both Baines and Garrido suggests that they have given up on attempting to sign Juventus' Giorgio Chiellini, adding credence to reports in Italy that ManYoo could use Gabriel Heinze as bait to buy the left-back.

Corriere dello Sport claim that Ferguson is a big fan of the left-sided Italian Under-21 captain, while Juventus are acknowledged admirers of Heinze.


SUNDERLAND FRITTER AWAY £6M
With the new season less than two weeks away, it could be argued that Premiership clubs are becoming increasingly desperate with their forays into the transfer market.

Apropos to nothing, The Daily Mirror announces that 'Sunderland boss Roy Keane last night completed a shock £6million swoop for Spurs' Egyptian striker Mido.'

Yes, £6m.

If true, Mido will soon enjoy a reunion with his former employers - Tottenham visit the Stadium of Light on the opening day of the campaign.


THEY REALLY ARE GETTING YOUNGER
Sir looks to have taken his summer policy of buying young players to something of an extreme.

The Sun reports that ManYoo have snapped up nine - that's nine - year-old prodigy Rhain Davies after being 'wowed' by a DVD sent in by the wee whipper-snapper's grandpapa.

The child from Brisbane holds a British passport through his mother's side of the family, and he moved to Blighty last month to try and work his way up through the dizzy heights of the United under-12s side.

And as with most things these days, his talents are available to view on the web, so have a butchers at his skills. And don't worry, you won't get in trouble for looking at videos of this nine-year-old.


AND THE REST
Daniel Alves will force his way out of Seville to join Chelsea....Roy Keane is back in the race for Hearts keeper Craig Gordon....Reading boss Steve Coppell wants to sign Fulham defender Liam Rosenior....Barcelona are ready to tempt Claude Makelele away from Stamford Bridge with a two-year contract.....Liverpool defender Sami Hyypia turned down lucrative offers from a number of clubs - including Fulham - for one last crack at the Premier League title at Anfield....Derby boss Billy Davies has spent the summer fending off interest in Giles Barnes but fears he won't be able to keep him at Pride Park if he proves to be a Premier League hit.....Newcastle boss Sam Allardyce is ready to launch a £3million bid for Fulham midfielder Papa Bouba Diop.....Portsmouth striker Lomana LuaLua has been assured he has a future at Fratton Park.....Arjen Robben has told Chelsea: Pay me what I am worth, but his future is likely to hinge on the club's pursuit of Royston Drenthe.....Benni McCarthy is set for a bumper new contract after his stunning impact at Blackburn.

 

[TheEspionage]

Tevez cleared to sign for Man Utd

Striker Tevez will now complete his move to Old Trafford

West Ham have revealed they have reached agreement for Carlos Tevez to leave Upton Park and complete his protracted move to Manchester United.

The settlement ends the threat of High Court action between West Ham and Tevez's representative Kia Joorabchian.

West Ham will receive a £2m fee for Tevez's registration.

The 23-year-old Argentine striker is understood to have already passed a medical and trained with United on Friday morning.

All sides were keen for the matter to be settled ahead of that time with the transfer window closing on 30 August.

Tevez's switch had stalled over who will be paid the transfer fee.

The Premier League and West Ham said the Hammers should receive the fee but companies MSI and Just Sports Inc, which belong to Joorabchian, said they owned the striker's economic rights.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/6922733.stm

 

[Welshboy Taffy]

03/08/07

SMITH STILL BOUND FOR TOON
Alan Smith should finalise his £6m move to Newcastle today.

If you are, like us, wondering why Kieron Dyer didn't manage to complete his proposed move to West Ham yesterday, The Guardian has the answer: 'The England midfielder, who is understood to have agreed personal terms at Upton Park, spent yesterday undergoing an exhaustive medical at a London hospital after Newcastle accepted Alan Curbishley's £6m offer.'


ALEX GETTING CLOSER TO CHELSKI
Alex is halfway to completing a transfer to Chelski. Better still, he will actually be let into England.

Having returned to his native Brazil at the weekend after taking the hump with questioning by immigration staff, a statement on the Chelsea website said: "At a hearing today, Alex was granted a work permit.

"He still has to agree personal terms with Chelsea Football Club and have a medical."


ALVES REALLY DOES WANT TO JOIN CHELSKI
Dani Alves has embraced subtlety and announced he rather fancies a move to Chelski.

On his first day back at training with Seville, Alves said: "You have to make the most of your opportunities - a footballer's career is very short. I always said that I wanted to leave Seville on a high and after the way things went last season we are on an all-time high and if an offer comes in... well it's not that I want to leave but you have to take the opportunities.

"I would like that if an offer came in for me the club will study it. And of course I would like to leave here with the president by my side in a press conference, although my thoughts right now are on playing in the Champions League with Seville."

Which is all very jolly nice. However, as The Independent notes, 'The player added that he was not going to get "over-excited" about the possibility of moving to Chelsea, aware that the £20m Seville are demanding for his signature might put Roman Abramovich off.'


ANOTHER NEW FACE AT FULHAM
The Sun predicts that Fulham will sign Hameur Bouazza from Watford for £4m within the next 48 hours.

'Boss Lawrie Sanchez wants another central striker and will revive his bid for Blackburn's Jason Roberts if he can recoup more cash from the sale of Liam Rosenior to Reading,' the newspaper reports.

DEAD IN THE WATER? APPARENTLY NOT
The Times reports that, despite claiming the deal was dead in the water, and that he was moving on to other targets, Roy Keane has caved and agreed to pay Hearts a whopping £9 million for Hearts' keeper Craig Gordon.

Apparently a deal has been thrashed out between the two clubs for the 24-year-old Scotland goalie, and Sunderland hope to have the move all wrapped up by the time Juventus arrive for a friendly at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.

AND THE REST
Neil Warnock says he was offered the manager's job at Chelsea...towards the end of the 1990-91 season....Kieron Dyer must convince some angry West Ham fans that he has the desire to take the club to the top.....Martin Jol says his summer spending spree has increased the pressure on him as Tottenham manager....Sam Allardyce will follow up the signings of Alan Smith and Cacapa by paying Wigan £6million for Leighton Baines....Curtis Davies last night pleaded with West Brom to grant him a dream return to the Premier League with Tottenham. Spurs are trying to agree a fee with the Baggies for the England Under-21 international.....Portsmouth are closing in on Real Mallorca's Argentine winger Jonas Gutierrez - known as 'Spiderman'. The 24-year-old caught Harry Redknapp's eye last season and will probably cost around £4million....Aston Villa are set to sign £4million rated centre-half Brede Hangeland from FC Copenhagen....After missing out on Alan Smith, Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate will turn his attentions to Nantes striker Luigi Pieroni....West Ham have made Eidur Gudjohnsen their top transfer target after the Tevez saga finally came to an end....Franck Queudrue looks set to complete a £2 million move from Fulham to Birmingham.

 

[Falkirk_Bairn]

Falkirk will sign goalkeeper Tim Krul on a six-month loan from Newcastle, subject to a medical examination.

AND

Austrian International Striker Roman Wallner, has signed for Falkirk and subject to international clearance will be available for selection for tomorrows match against Gretna..>>>



Roman Wallner has signed a one year deal with Falkirk with a Club option for a another year. Wallner began his career with hometown club Sturm Graz in 1998. In the following year he moved to Rapid Wien, where he notched up 42 goals in over 100 matches in his five seasons with the club. He then spent one year spells at German club Hannover 96 and VfB Admira Wacker Mödling before signing with Austria Vienna in 2005.


Cannot wait to see these two!