Summer transfer gossip

[DmanDmythDledge]

Gareth Barry in talks with Man City.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/a/aston_villa/8079088.stm

So much for only leaving Villa for CL football. City aren't even in Europe.

[Roo69]

Gareth Barry in talks with Man City.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/a/aston_villa/8079088.stm

So much for only leaving Villa for CL football. City aren't even in Europe.

Players say things to ease the pressure on them, but when the money men come a calling it's a different story. Certianly the type of player City need if they want to improve on last season and push up the table.

Other stories in the press today include:

Barry Ferguson to WBA
Steve Bruce to Sunderland as manager
Roberto Martinez to Celtic/Wigan as manager
Ronaldo to Real :rolleyes:
Moussa Dembele, Pato and Glen Johnson to Chelsea
Blackburn Rovers sign Van Heerden
Michael Owen to Everton
Christian Benitez to Birmingham
Man Utd to sign Tevez on a permanent basis

The fun has already well and truely begun...

[Noelys Guitar]

Denilson previously the most expensive player in the world has signed for Hai Pong Cement in Vietnam! Is he building bridges?

[tetsujin1979]

Tony Adams to take over at Celtic, with Wim Jansen?? Did they learn nothing from the John Barnes/Kenny Dalglish debacle??

[Mr Maroon]

Xabi Alonso to Real?



Guillem Balague says he expects Xabi Alonso to sign for Real Madrid later this month.

The highly-rated Spanish football pundit and close friend of Rafa Benitez believes the opportunity to return to Spain may be too good for Alonso to turn down.

Balague said: "Xabi Alonso is also a definite Real Madrid target and Rafa Benitez is aware of that fact.

"After 5 years at Anfield, the player could be feeling that now is the right time to return to Spain – plus Benitez could certainly make use of the €25 million or so he will receive for Alonso in the transfer market this summer.

"I am under the impression that this deal could be concluded relatively quickly and be finalized within the next three weeks or so."

koptalk.co.uk

[Den Perry]

Tony Adams to take over at Celtic, with Wim Jansen?? Did they learn nothing from the John Barnes/Kenny Dalglish debacle??

Good God, Adams who failed at Pompey and Wycome Wanderers FFS

[eirebhoy]

Adams was just a Wim Jansen recommendation. Roberto Martinez is the guy Celtic want and he wants to join Celtic. From what I've read about him this week I'd happily take him.

Piece from his autobiography:

“Football is a results industry, but I don’t believe the result can ever make your style of play irrelevant. To me it is important that the route to the result is attractive…You have to find the chance to score rather than chase it. As well as the skill, you need a clear understanding of the game and a clear control of the tempos of play with the possession of the ball. As a manager I want to rely on the talent of the player, not on percentage football, to win a game. I believe this approach is vital. I will never subscribe to the view that as a manager you can take any way to a win because that can only bring success to the football club in the short term. It doesn`t allow you to build and grow something for the future.”

Tommy Docherty:
"I saw Swansea twice last year in the FA Cup against Fulham and they played the best football outside of Barcelona that I saw all of last year. The football was a joy to watch."

Guillem Balague: "He's the Spanish Arsene Wenger"

[NeilMcD]

Tony Adams is deluded. If you listen to an autio of the interview its pretty much David Brent like.

[SaucyJack]

Denilson previously the most expensive player in the world has signed for Hai Pong Cement in Vietnam! Is he building bridges?


and oddly, Kaka, another Brazilian is/might be about to become the most expensive player in the world by going to Madrid for 65 million, hasn't been confirmed yet but it's already on his wiki page.

[DmanDmythDledge]

and oddly, Kaka, another Brazilian is/might be about to become the most expensive player in the world by going to Madrid for 65 million, hasn't been confirmed yet but it's already on his wiki page.
"I say it for the last time, I don't want to leave Milan," Kaka told Gazzetta dello Sport.

"To the millions of AC Milan fans I say my decision has been made. I have said I want to stay."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8078735.stm

[oscar]

Gareth Barry in talks with Man City.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/a/aston_villa/8079088.stm

So much for only leaving Villa for CL football. City aren't even in Europe.

he signed this evening

[eirebhoy]

Good signing. They've 3 players that can play a defensive midfield role at City and Ireland and Elano who are attack minded but no real box to box player like Barry. Exactly what they need.

[TheBoss]

and oddly, Kaka, another Brazilian is/might be about to become the most expensive player in the world by going to Madrid for 65 million, hasn't been confirmed yet but it's already on his wiki page.

I think Kaka is a top player but €65m is way over the top for him.

[Dodge]

I think Kaka is a top player but €65m is way over the top for him.

Well its all relative. They won't get him for less than that and if he helps them win the Champions League and sells a million replica jersies then he'll have paid them back in a year

[TheBoss]

It is the defense that needs sorting, they can buy all these attacking players but they hate defending, they will not get away with things by trying to get Kaka/Ronaldo etc, they will make them worse defensively if anything.

[Roadend]

Xabi Alonso to Real?



Guillem Balague says he expects Xabi Alonso to sign for Real Madrid later this month.

The highly-rated Spanish football pundit and close friend of Rafa Benitez believes the opportunity to return to Spain may be too good for Alonso to turn down.

Balague said: "Xabi Alonso is also a definite Real Madrid target and Rafa Benitez is aware of that fact.

"After 5 years at Anfield, the player could be feeling that now is the right time to return to Spain – plus Benitez could certainly make use of the €25 million or so he will receive for Alonso in the transfer market this summer.

"I am under the impression that this deal could be concluded relatively quickly and be finalized within the next three weeks or so."

koptalk.co.uk

I think I've spotted a monumental flaw in the article

[old git]

I think Kaka is a top player but €65m is way over the top for him.

and yet man city offered 100 million earlier in the season... and milan let him go at 35 million lower :confused:

[KK77]

Tevez 'to sign for Man City'
Monday 08 Jun 2009

Reports suggest that Carlos Tevez has agreed to play for Manchester City next season, rejecting an offer from champions Manchester United.

The Argentinean international has spent the last two seasons on loan at Old Trafford, but reports are claiming that he will make a permanent move to Eastlands.

CARLOS TEVEZ United had been negotiating with his owner Kia Joorabchian for the past few months, only last week agreeing to meet the asking price.

However, Tevez was unhappy at the marginal role he had in the United team last season, and has seemingly decided to take the option of moving to City instead.

Liverpool had also been interested in signing him, but their financial woes look to have ruled them out of the race.

Tevez would be the second signing of the summer for Mark Hughes, with Gareth Barry having arrived last week from Aston Villa.

[Lionel Ritchie]

Citeh supporters will have some laugh about their 'feeder' club up the road if that goes through. :D

[TheBoss]

Tevez was not been played cause I think Ferguson thought that he does not show enough qualities to be a striker, he already has a workaholic in Rooney and does not need 2 players that virtually do the same thing, he wants all his forward players to be different, thats what I think is the case. Ferguson would rather a have a 20+ goal striker than a working player that does not score too many than he should.

[superfrank]

All the Man U fans I know have been bitching about Berbatov and saying Tevez is much better. They have all been complaining about Ferguson not picking the better player. Imo, Ferguson's just too stubborn to admit that he wasted money on Berbatov. I don't have a clue why he won't sign Tevez.

El Pais are saying Kaka's signed for Real for €65m.

Perez's circus is starting up again, I'm surprised Pellegrini agreed to be involved in that mess. He seems like a pretty good and intelligent manager so it's a shame that his head'll be on the line the moment he starts there.

[TheBoss]

Confirmed on their respective websites.

It will be something different for Pellegrini, will he be able to cope with the pressure from Perez, we will have to see.

I think Berba is a good player, but they spent way too much for him, for fans to judge him after 1 season is a bit unfair, wait till the end of the next season and then make a opinion.

[Oink]

Yep, seems Kaka has gone for £59m and cites the recession as the swaying factor.

great place for transfer news if anyone is interested: http://www.sportinglife.com/clients/tiscali/football/transfer_centre/

[gustavo]

All the Man U fans I know have been bitching about Berbatov and saying Tevez is much better. They have all been complaining about Ferguson not picking the better player. Imo, Ferguson's just too stubborn to admit that he wasted money on Berbatov. I don't have a clue why he won't sign Tevez..

AFAIK all the regular match day goers there appreciate Berbatov every bit as much as Tevez

[Lev Yashin]

Confirmed on their respective websites.

It will be something different for Pellegrini, will he be able to cope with the pressure from Perez, we will have to see.

I think Berba is a good player, but they spent way too much for him, for fans to judge him after 1 season is a bit unfair, wait till the end of the next season and then make a opinion.

I'd agree with that if he had come from the continent...but he had a few years in England so should have preformed better. comes across as lazy and arrogent...which was acceptable when you were as talented as Cantona but not Berba.

Macherano to Barcelona? hope not.

[KK77]

Real Madrid send doctor to check on Cristiano Ronaldo as Perez caves in on £75m fee to sign Manchester United star

Real Madrid have reportedly agreed to pay a world record fee to sign Cristiano Ronaldo and have dispatched a doctor to examine his hernia problem.

Widespread reports in Spain say the club's new president Florentino Perez has sanctioned a deal that will dwarf the £56m paid to AC Milan for Kaka.
It has long been said that there is a pre-contract agreement to sign Manchester United star Ronaldo - understood to be set at £75m.
The contract, which United have previously denied the existence of, would have to be executed before June 30, with Madrid paying a £26m penalty if they broke the terms.
Perez's predecessor Ramon Calderon has persistently hinted that Ronaldo will arrive at the Bernabeu because of work he had already done on the deal last summer.
Perez is understood to be unhappy at such a high fee and has reportedly been in talks with United chief executive David Gill over the last few days in an attempt to renegotiate the deal.
But the Barclays Premier League champions have refused to budge other than agreeing to take the payments spread over five years, leaving Perez to reluctantly sanction the transfer rather pay £26m and have no player.
El Mundo Deportivo says that a representative of the club and a doctor have been sent to meet the 24-year-old in Los Angeles, where he is recuperating after injury forced him out of the Portugal squad.
His prospective new employers want to examine the suspected hernia to see if it needs surgery, which may rule him out of the start of the season, but they could move quickly to finalise the deal if they are satisfied. He would receive about £200,000 a week on a similar deal to Kaka.
Reports in Portuguese newspaper A Bola say Ronaldo will not need surgery and that his pain is the natural result of a 59-match season.

While Calderon angered United boss Sir Alex Ferguson by courting Ronaldo in public, Perez has not met the same resistance despite constantly stating in interviews in recent days that he was determined to sign the Portugal international.
Perez, 62, is said to have a much better relationship wit the Old Trafford hierarchy, dating back to a time when he chaired the now disbanded G-14 collection of Europe's elite football clubs.
Bernabeu insiders insist the spending will not stop with a player they have spent two years chasing. There is an estimated £260m budget, with deals still in the offing for Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery, Liverpool's Xabi Alonso and plus Valencia trio David Villa, David Silva and Raul Albiol.
He has also spoken warmly of Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, though it appears the club's

[old git]

Real Madrid send doctor to check on Cristiano Ronaldo as Perez caves in on £75m fee to sign Manchester United star

Real Madrid have reportedly agreed to pay a world record fee to sign Cristiano Ronaldo and have dispatched a doctor to examine his hernia problem.

Widespread reports in Spain say the club's new president Florentino Perez has sanctioned a deal that will dwarf the £56m paid to AC Milan for Kaka.
It has long been said that there is a pre-contract agreement to sign Manchester United star Ronaldo - understood to be set at £75m.
The contract, which United have previously denied the existence of, would have to be executed before June 30, with Madrid paying a £26m penalty if they broke the terms.
Perez's predecessor Ramon Calderon has persistently hinted that Ronaldo will arrive at the Bernabeu because of work he had already done on the deal last summer.
Perez is understood to be unhappy at such a high fee and has reportedly been in talks with United chief executive David Gill over the last few days in an attempt to renegotiate the deal.
But the Barclays Premier League champions have refused to budge other than agreeing to take the payments spread over five years, leaving Perez to reluctantly sanction the transfer rather pay £26m and have no player.
El Mundo Deportivo says that a representative of the club and a doctor have been sent to meet the 24-year-old in Los Angeles, where he is recuperating after injury forced him out of the Portugal squad.
His prospective new employers want to examine the suspected hernia to see if it needs surgery, which may rule him out of the start of the season, but they could move quickly to finalise the deal if they are satisfied. He would receive about £200,000 a week on a similar deal to Kaka.
Reports in Portuguese newspaper A Bola say Ronaldo will not need surgery and that his pain is the natural result of a 59-match season.

While Calderon angered United boss Sir Alex Ferguson by courting Ronaldo in public, Perez has not met the same resistance despite constantly stating in interviews in recent days that he was determined to sign the Portugal international.
Perez, 62, is said to have a much better relationship wit the Old Trafford hierarchy, dating back to a time when he chaired the now disbanded G-14 collection of Europe's elite football clubs.
Bernabeu insiders insist the spending will not stop with a player they have spent two years chasing. There is an estimated £260m budget, with deals still in the offing for Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery, Liverpool's Xabi Alonso and plus Valencia trio David Villa, David Silva and Raul Albiol.
He has also spoken warmly of Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, though it appears the club's

rafa b were are you getting this information from can find anything on t.v anywere :(

[Roadend]

Here I'd imagine The Oracle (http://www.football-rumours.co.uk/)

[Longfordian]

It's from the Daily Mail so therefore it's obviously true.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1192045/Real-Madrid-send-doctor-check-Cristiano-Ronaldo-Perez-caves-75m-fee-sign-Manchester-United-star.html?ITO=1490

[DmanDmythDledge]

Looks like Owen is going to sign for Man Utd. Having a medical at the moment. Could be a great signing.

[KK77]

Could be a great signing.

You are joking?

[Dodge]

30 goals in 65 games for a ridiculously crap Newcastle team

Owen may be crocked but he'll score goals when on the pitch, and if the money is right he's a far better striker than most of those being linked with British clubs

[KK77]

30 goals in 65 games for a ridiculously crap Newcastle team

Owen may be crocked but he'll score goals when on the pitch, and if the money is right he's a far better striker than most of those being linked with British clubs

Sweet Jaysus:eek::eek:

All those goals helped Newcastle loads! He's finished as a player. Yeah he'll get the odd goal here and there but how anyone can think this is a good signing is beyond me but i suppose a good spin has to be put on it.

[DeLorean]

You are joking?

It's fairly no risk and a no brainer for me. Seeing him kitted out for Hull or Stoke next season would have been a travesty. If he stays reasonably injury free his career could reignite, if not then there's not too much lost from United's point of view.

[KK77]

It's fairly no risk and a no brainer for me. Seeing him kitted out for Hull or Stoke next season would have been a travesty. If he stays reasonably injury free his career could reignite, if not then there's not too much lost from United's point of view.

Can't agree but jmo. You have to look back to 2004 to his best days and that's a long time ago now. Shocked Utd have signed him but i suppose with them being knocked back on their main targets who else could they sign.

[Dodge]

Sweet Jaysus:eek::eek:

All those goals helped Newcastle loads! He's finished as a player. Yeah he'll get the odd goal here and there but how anyone can think this is a good signing is beyond me but i suppose a good spin has to be put on it.

Name 10 better strikers in the premiership. You won't be able to. Owen's role has changed. he's no longer the "stud" striker but he'll be an excellent 2nd/3rd/4th striker for a club like man U

Oh and your comment about Newcastle makes no sense. How can he be blamed for their failures when he did his job?

[KK77]

Name 10 better strikers in the premiership. You won't be able to. Owen's role has changed. he's no longer the "stud" striker but he'll be an excellent 2nd/3rd/4th striker for a club like man U

Oh and your comment about Newcastle makes no sense. How can he be blamed for their failures when he did his job?

Torres, Rooney, Tevez, Arshavin, Adebayor, Anelka, Drogba, Keane, Berbatov, Santa Cruz, Crouch.

My comment about Newcastle does make sense. So he was a success at Newcastle?? He's no longer in the England squad because he's finished as a player. Not being smart at all but look at his last four seasonsand compare them to pre 2004. If any other top four sided signed him would you be saying what your saying. Be honest!

[Dodge]

Do you think I'm a Man U fan? Way, way off the mark there

Arshavin isn't a striker. Tevez is the most overrated player in the world. Owen is far better than keane. Berbatov isn't good enough. Crouch is a different type of player (and one I like) but if I@m looking for goals, he's not the man.

You're completely missing the point. They're not signing owen to build a side around him (like they may have if they signed him 5 years ago), and of course he's not as good as he was....

BUT he's still far better than most players avilable and having him as an option in a good team like Utd suits him and the club.

[DeLorean]

Can't agree but jmo. You have to look back to 2004 to his best days and that's a long time ago now. Shocked Utd have signed him but i suppose with them being knocked back on their main targets who else could they sign.

That's a big part of it I'd say. I agree his best days look over but I still think he would contribute heavily in an injury free season. Going to Hull/Stoke would have put the final nail in his coffin. The confidence alone he would gain from United signing him would be considerable I think.

[KK77]

Do you think I'm a Man U fan? Way, way off the mark there

Arshavin isn't a striker. Tevez is the most overrated player in the world. Owen is far better than keane. Berbatov isn't good enough. Crouch is a different type of player (and one I like) but if I@m looking for goals, he's not the man.

You're completely missing the point. They're not signing owen to build a side around him (like they may have if they signed him 5 years ago), and of course he's not as good as he was....

BUT he's still far better than most players avilable and having him as an option in a good team like Utd suits him and the club.

Did i say your a Man Utd supporter? How am i missing the point? I never once said Utd were signing him to build a side around him. Anyway just our different opinions. Time will tell how it works out.

[KK77]

That's a big part of it I'd say. I agree his best days look over but I still think he would contribute heavily in an injury free season. Going to Hull/Stoke would have put the final nail in his coffin. The confidence alone he would gain from United signing him would be considerable I think.

Suppose the key is getting him injury free.

[Macy]

It's a no brainer to me too. It'll be pay for play, or small basic plus appearance bonus's. No fee due, and you'd suspect he wouldn't be looking for a massive signing on fee to go to United compared to the no mark teams he was linked with. If it works, it'll be a masterstroke, if it doesn't then not much lost.

It's only the 3rd July ffs, a bit early to be suggesting it as a panic signing after other targets have been lost - time will tell, but it just looks like good business to me.

[DmanDmythDledge]

Never mind Ronaldo, Kaka or Benzema- Darius Vassell (http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055609078) is the biggest signing of the summer apparantly!

[gustavo]

It's true

He's taken his medical (http://i41.tinypic.com/vipkhs.jpg)already

[Razors left peg]

Im sure there were some very shocked reactions when United signed Sheringham, if Owen works out as well as that it will a great bit of business

[brianw82]

He's signed. It's on their website.

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={F9E570E6-407E-44BC-800F-4A3110258114}&newsid=6635648 (http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid=%7BF9E570E6-407E-44BC-800F-4A3110258114%7D&newsid=6635648)

[Lionel Ritchie]

Never mind Ronaldo, Kaka or Benzema- Darius Vassell (http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055609078) is the biggest signing of the summer apparantly!

Does that man look terrified or what? :D

Not since Asprilla arrived to Newcastle in the snow has a mans eyes darted about like that ....Possibly seeking out his agent with the intent of snapping him like an old dry twig.


It's a no brainer to me too. It'll be pay for play, or small basic plus appearance bonus's. No fee due, and you'd suspect he wouldn't be looking for a massive signing on fee to go to United compared to the no mark teams he was linked with. If it works, it'll be a masterstroke, if it doesn't then not much lost.

It's only the 3rd July ffs, a bit early to be suggesting it as a panic signing after other targets have been lost - time will tell, but it just looks like good business to me. My thoughts pretty much too. A relatively modest investment from ManUs' perspective (on their terms I daresay) for a potentially sweet return.

[DmanDmythDledge]

Chelsea sign Zhirkov. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/chelsea/8135341.stm)

Good signing. Wonder what that means for Cashley.

Man Utd also about to sign this guy apparantly.
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_5416628,00.html

[coast boy]

My thoughts pretty much too. A relatively modest investment from ManUs' perspective (on their terms I daresay) for a potentially sweet return.[/quote]

Ya he'l keep the medical team busy anyway!

[old git]

Chelsea sign Zhirkov. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/chelsea/8135341.stm)

Good signing. Wonder what that means for Cashley.

Man Utd also about to sign this guy apparantly.
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_5416628,00.html
i thought zhirkov played leftside midfield/ winger should not really impact on cashley :D