30/08/2010 – Monday Transfer Talk

Manchester United are preparing a £10m-plus Michael Carrick bid for Everton midfielder Jack Rodwell before the transfer deadline at 18:00 BST on Tuesday.

Tottenham will make a late £15m bid for Aston Villa winger Ashley Young and they are willing to offer the likes of Robbie Keane, Jermaine Jenas and Alan Hutton as sweeteners.

West Ham have rejected Liverpool’s opening £7m offer for Carlton Cole, but are believed to have Brescia targetman Andrea Caracciolo as a back-up.

Manchester United are monitoring the progress of 22-year-old Sunderland midfielder Lee Cattermole.

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp will launch a last-gasp bid to sign Sevilla’s Brazilian striker Luis Fabiano, while moves for Villarreal forward Giuseppe Rossi and AC Milan hitman Klass-Jan Huntelaar remain possibilities.

Spurs have been told by AC Milan to come back with a better offer for Huntelaar after the Italians refused to let him leave on loan. The Dutch striker could cost £11m.

[picapp align=”left” wrap=”true” link=”term=sulley+muntari&iid=9276263″ src=”http://view3.picapp.com/pictures.photo/image/9276263/sports-news-july-2010/sports-news-july-2010.jpg?size=500&imageId=9276263″ width=”234″ height=”275″ /] Harry Redknapp is also in talks with Inter Milan over a move for Ghana midfielder Sulley Muntari, 26 (left).

Wigan are hoping to finalise a £2m deal for Chelsea striker Franco di Santo, 21, and want Man Utd midfielder Tom Cleverly to join on loan.

The Latics are also expected to offer Bolton £3m for their goalkeeper Ali-al Habsi.

West Brom want to sign Aston Villa midfielder Steve Sidwell, 27, for £3m before the transfer window.

The Baggies are also in talks with former Wigan midfielder Paul Scharner over a deal to take him to The Hawthorns.

Barcelona will sign one final player before the deadline after Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s exit to AC Milan, with Man City’s Robinho and Valencia’s Juan Mata top of their wanted list.

Sunderland are closing in on a £15m move for Rennes’ Ghanaian striker Asamoah Gyan, who starred for his country at this summer’s World Cup.

Juventus are trying to sign Arsenal left-back Armand Traore, 20, on a year-long loan deal.

Newcastle are planning a £8m swoop for Dutch striker Ricky van Wolfswinkel, who last week hit a hat-trick for Utrecht as they knocked Celtic out of the Europa League.

Birmingham have been offered Spartak Moscow’s 31-year-old captain Martin Jiranek, who can play at centre-back or left-back.

Reading midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson is a shock £4.25m target for German side Hoffenheim, the leaders of the Bundesliga. The Royals could use the cash to bid £1m for Leicester striker Matty Fryatt.

Stoke are preparing a £7m bid for out-of-favour Spurs midfielder Jermaine Jenas, while Potters boss Tony Pulis is also keen on Portsmouth skipper Marc Wilson, Wigan striker Hugo Rodallega and ­Middlesbrough defender David Wheater.

[picapp align=”right” wrap=”true” link=”term=eidur+gudjohnsen&iid=3598847″ src=”http://view1.picapp.com/pictures.photo/image/3598847/soccer-2009-barcelona-beat/soccer-2009-barcelona-beat.jpg?size=500&imageId=3598847″ width=”234″ height=”314″ /] The Potters are also in talks to sign Monaco’s Eidur Gudjohnsen (right) on loan.

Blackpool have made a late bid to sign Barnsley’s 22-year-old forward Adam Hammill.

Manchester City are lining up a bid for Watford goalkeeper Scott Loach, 22, who was called into the England squad for the Hungary game.

Bolton boss Owen Coyle are back in the hunt for Spanish striker Rodrigo Moreno, 19, as the £5m man is set to leave Benfica on loan.

Derby are favourites to sign West Brom’s New Zealand World Cup striker Chris Wood, 18, on loan.

Sheffield United boss Gary Speed is ready to take Stoke midfielder Michael Tonge, 27, to Bramall Lane.

England coach Fabio Capello faces a defensive crisis ahead of their opening Euro 2012 qualifiers, with Rio Ferdinand and John Terry both missing.

But Capello delivered a double snub to Spurs stars Aaron Lennon and Tom Huddlestone as he left them out of his 24-man squad to take on Bulgaria and Switzerland.

Bayern Munich’s Dutch World Cup hero Arjen Robben could be out of action for the rest of the year with the hamstring injury he aggravated in South Africa.

Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson has begged Spain not to pick striker Fernando Torres and let him continue his recuperation from a knee injury at Anfield.

Charles N’Zogbia’s £9m move from Wigan to Birmingham collapsed after he asked for an extra £10,000-a-week to take his wages to £50,000-a-week.

For full stories, head over to the BBC website.

29/08/2010 – Sunday Transfer Talk

Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson will make a last-ditch attempt to sign West Ham striker Carlton Cole. Hodgson is also close to sealing deals for Fulham defender Paul Konchesky, but may drop his interest in PSV Eindhoven forward Ola Toivonen because of the Dutch club’s £13m asking price.

Hodgson is also attempting to arrange a loan deal to bring Bayern Munich striker Mario Gomez to Anfield.

Manchester United are ready to test Everton’s resolve to hang on to midfielder Jack Rodwell with a £20m bid.

Scott Parker could leave West Ham to bring in some much-needed funds to Upton Park. Tottenham are in pole position to sign the £8m-rated midfielder.

Tottenham will turn their attentions to Villarreal’s former Manchester United frontman Giuseppe Rossi if their loan move for AC Milan’s Klaas-Jan Huntelaar fails to materialise.

[picapp align=”left” wrap=”true” link=”term=rio+ferdinand&iid=8947995″ src=”http://view.picapp.com/pictures.photo/image/8947995/sports-news-may-2010/sports-news-may-2010.jpg?size=500&imageId=8947995″ width=”380″ height=”346″ /] Tottenham have had an enquiry into the availability of Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand (left) rebuffed by the Old Trafford hierarchy.

Charles N’Zogbia’s proposed move to Birmingham from Wigan has collapsed over the versatile Frenchman’s wage demands.

Tottenham striker Robbie Keane is set for yet another move as Aston Villa and Newcastle look to snap up the Republic of Ireland international before the transfer window shuts.

Wigan have agreed a £2m deal to take Chelsea forward Franco di Santo to the DW Stadium.

Ajax goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg will rebuff any approach from Arsenal in favour of staying with the Amsterdam club.

Shay Given may be on the move, however, with the Manchester City goalkeeper determined to switch to Fulham before the transfer window shuts.

Reading goalkeeper Adam Federici is being lined up by Fulham as a replacement for Arsenal-bound Mark Schwarzer.

Tottenham midfielder Jermaine Jenas will stay at White Hart Lane after deals to Aston Villa and Inter Milan fell through.

West Ham have made a £1.5m move for Hamburg defender Guy Demel and are competing with Stoke for the signature of Portsmouth defender Marc Wilson.

The Hammers are also poised to sign AFC Valenciennes left-back Siaka Tiene.

Former Arsenal midfielder Robert Pires could make a surprise return to the Premier League after the 36-year-old turned down a move to Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua. West Ham, Wigan and Bolton are all monitoring the player, who is a free agent after leaving Villarreal.

On-loan striker Craig Bellamy will move to Cardiff permanently from Manchester City if the Bluebirds gain promotion from the Championship.

AC Milan have reached an agreement to take striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic on loan from Barcelona for the rest of the season. The Rossoneri will then have the option to buy the Sweden forward for £19.7m.

Former Celtic loan signing Landry N’Guemo has not given up hope of a return to the Glasgow club, who could not agree a fee for the midfielder earlier this summer, now that he has been transfer-listed by Nancy.

Arsenal forward Nacer Barazite says he has not given up hope of joining Rangers on loan before Tuesday’s transfer deadline after his trial at Ibrox.

Francisco Sandaza’s transfer to Swansea City is on the brink of collapse as the Welsh club want him on loan, an arrangement that does not interest the striker or his present club, Dundee United.

Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has set his heart on a coaching role with boyhood club Oldham Athletic after his playing career ends.

West Ham manager Avram Grant has accused Scholes, who has repeatedly snubbed Fabio Capello’s attempt to lure him out of international retirement, of letting down his country.

England boss Fabio Capello has performed an astonishing U-turn after telling David Beckham he will consider the LA Galaxy midfielder for selection if he is fully fit. “First Beckham has to be playing again but the door is always open,” said Capello, who earlier this month had called time on the former Manchester United man’s international career.

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has admitted that he could one day coach Real Madrid. The Italian, who was managed by Fabio Capello in his final season as a player at AC Milan, has described the England coach as a “grouch” in the latest extracts from his book.

Former Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier could return to English football if Aston Villa decide not to appoint caretaker boss Kevin MacDonald on a permanent basis.

Alternatively former Germany and Bayern Munich manager Jurgen Klinsmann is top of Aston Villa’s wish list.

A trio of Australian investors have joined the running to take control of Blackburn Rovers after lodging a bid of £25m for the Ewood Park club.

Defender Steven Taylor could be excluded from Newcastle’s 25-man Premier League squad as his dispute with the club over a new contract continues.

New Barcelona midfielder Javier Mascherano has denied that he went on strike to force through his move from Liverpool.

Celtic manager Neil Lennon is considering calling in a psychologist to cure his club’s poor away record in Europe – which now stands at one win in the last 29 games.

Rangers manager Walter Smith says he “might as well chuck it” if the club sells Kenny Miller or Madjid Bougherra before the closure of the transfer window but insists that it is not going to happen.

Manchester City’s new £24m striker Mario Balotelli emerged unhurt from a collision between his Audi sports car and another vehicle on his way to the club’s Carrington training ground on Friday.

Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has donated £25,000 from his testimonial to Everton to give to a charity of their choice. Carragher, who supported the Toffees as a boy, will play in a game between a Liverpool XI and Everton XI on Saturday.

A photographic timeline running round the outside of Everton’s Goodison Park has provoked anger amongst some of the club’s fans. Nick Barmby, the midfielder who controversially quit the club for local rivals Liverpool, features alongside legends such as striker Dixie Dean.

For full stories, head over to the BBC website.

2009 So Far

First Written – 18th March 2009

2009 So Far

December 2008 ended full of promise, hope, optimism and even allowed us kopites to smile at the thought of winning our first league title since 1990, coincidentally the year I was born, rather than wondering how we were out of the title race by November once again. Whilst Sunday’s victory over Chelsea allowed us to move back to second place in the league, it is looking increasingly difficult to see how teams are going to be capable of taking points off Manchester United.

The victory over Chelsea is all the more frustrating as it has been our first in the league of the year after very disappointing draws against Everton and Wigan to name just two. Along with this, take into account draws at Anfield to Stoke, Hull, Fulham and West Ham, that is just four points from a possible twelve. Eight points dropped to must supporters. It is this inability to beat the so called ‘lesser teams’ that makes January seem an even more frustrating month for Liverpool.

Robbie Keane’s departure back to Tottenham seems strange to say the least and with Fernando Torres struggling with fitness this year, Dirk Kuyt and rookie David N’Gog are our only other recognised first team strikers. Robbie Keane never really seemed to get a fair crack of the whip under Rafa Benitez, scoring just 7 goals. We’ve only lost one league game all season, to Tottenham ironically, yet we have had the most 0-0 draws in the league this season with 5. We’ve got more draws than an IKEA warehouse! Signing Keane for £20m to rarely use him, even when we are in need of a goal, suggests there are other issues at Anfield that the fans do not know about.

The lengthy saga of Benitez signing a new contract to constant takeover reports which today co-owner George Gillett further fuelled by saying he is ‘open’ to offers. On and off the field, it seems like a very lengthy first month of the year. Benitez not signing a new contract again shows a frosty relationship still between himself, the owners and the more and more unreliable figure that is Rick Parry. As well as the Keane blunder, Parry’s inability to offer key players Daniel Agger and Dirk Kuyt new contracts, as well as allowing Jermaine Pennant to go on a six-month loan deal to Portsmouth with just six months remaining on his contract, further showing that Parry is no longer up to the job. The frosty relationship suggests a power struggle within the Liverpool hierarchy and rather unfortunately, it seems as if Robbie Keane has been used as a pawn in the games.

Robbie Keane’s deadline day departure ruled out realistic possibilities of signing a replacement, despite murmurs of Javier Saviola joining from Real Madrid, or Aaron Lennon joining from Tottenham. It seems that the last six months have seen Benitez struggle to land Gareth Barry, a player he wanted, and suggests Keane was bought in but not by Benitez’s say so. The same six months has now seen Liverpool spend £20m on a player only to sell him back to the same club for just £12m. Although neither sums were paid up front and were dependant on success, it has not left my beloved Liverpool FC covered in glory. The cliché goes that a lot can happen quickly in a football, and it seems Liverpool are going to have to learn this the hard way.

Mark Jepson