In case you hadn’t heard or read already, Manchester City have failed in their bid to sign Kaka from AC Milan.
However, the January transfer window has not come to a stop, and there’s plenty to talk about in today’s roundup of transfer news and rumors.
Spain
Though Kaka has turned down City (or is it the other way around?), he apparently has his heart set on a summer move to Real Madrid, according to none other than David Beckham, as reported by AS. (Goal.com)
Analysis: Nostrabecks? Considering the source, there’s not a lot to read into this one right now. Could he move to Real in the summer? I’m sure, but if he does, let’s not hail Becks as a prophet.
England
Manchester City may have missed out on Kaka, but they have completed the £14m signing of Craig Bellamy from West Ham. (Daily Mail)
Analysis: Mark Hughes knows what he’s getting himself into, so all I can say is good luck.
City are also set to make one final bid for Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz, hoping that an offer of £15m up front will finally land their former top target. (The Mirror)
Analysis: Sam Allardyce recently said that it’d take 40m to sell Santa Cruz, but considering that he still wants to leave, it might not be a bad idea to take the 15m and spend a chunk of it on Marc Janko.
However, it appears that they may well be losing out on Wigan’s Wilson Palacios. It looked like the Honduran midfielder was going to turn down Tottenham, but he was set to be at White Hart Lane to agree terms and have his medical today to put the finishing touches on a £14m move. (Daily Mail)
Analysis: Guess that big contract offer did sway him after all.
He could be joined soon by Inter Milan defender Nicolas Burdisso, as Tottenham have had an offer of £8m accepted for the Argentine international. (Tribalfootball)
Analysis: With injuries in the backline always a concern for Harry Redknapp, adding a quality defender like Burdisso would be a great January addition.
Chelsea have joined the race for Wigan winger Antonio Valencia, and a £7m bid could be tabled soon. (Daily Mail)
Analysis: £7m? If they wanted £20m from Real Madrid, and they’re selling Palacios for £14m, Steve Bruce will have quite a laugh at that offer.
This one is a couple of days old, but Arsenal could make a £4.5m move for Rangers keeper Allan McGregor. (News of the World)
Analysis: £4.5m is lower than Rangers’ asking price for McGregor, but since their hopes of selling Kris Boyd are in limbo, at best, they might consider it. However, with Celtic having allowed them to tighten the deficit at the top of the SPL, the club may not look to sell their first-choice keeper.
Aston Villa are interested in Everton defender Leighton Baines, and they could use the out-of-favor Nicky Shorey to tempt Everton into selling. (The Mirror)
Analysis: Baines may not be keen on leaving Merseyside, and Everton may not be willing to sell Baines to Villa when both are chasing a top finish. But if they do, they’ll be looking to recoup most of the £5m they spent on him in 2007.
This shouldn’t come as a surprise, but West Ham have Inter Milan striker Mario Balotelli on their wish list. (The Mirror)
Analysis: And next Gianfranco Zola himself will be coming out of retirement to lead the West Ham front line.
Germany
Martin Jol wants Tottenham’s Tom Huddlestone to replace Manchester City-bound Nigel de Jong at Hamburg SV. (Daily Telegraph)
Analysis: This could be a good move for Huddlestone, as he could work under a familiar manager and develop in a top league. And if he can have the kind of success in the Bundesliga that he hasn’t had as of yet at Tottenham, he could certainly work himself into Fabio Capello’s plans.
If you have a juicy rumor that we may have missed, post it in the comments along with the link to the source.
And if you want to keep up with all of the latest confirmed transfers, check out our updated January 2009 transfer lists.
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