Man Utd have been warned off Southampton midfielder Adam Lallana, with Saints’ manager Mauricio Pochettino insisting that the club are under no pressure to sell any of their star players.
The England man has been in fine form this season, with Boxing Day newspapers (via SkySports) linking the 25-year-old with a January move to Old Trafford.
But Pochettino has rubbished claims that the midfielder could be on his way,
“I think Adam and other players are going to stay with us,” said Pochettino after Southampton’s win at Cardiff on the weekend.
“There is no pressure to sell them, Adam has said he is happy at Southampton and Southampton have no plans to sell him.”
With the Saints standing firm this January, David Moyes will have to wait until the summer if he is to launch a bid for Lallana.
The player only recently signed a new five year contract at St Marys, so Utd will have to stump up serious cash if they are serious about prising the midfielder away to Manchester.
Meanwhile, ‘noisy neighbours’ City are bracing themselves for a January bid from Valencia for Bosnian striker, Edin Dzeko.
Spanish newspaper ‘Marca’ claim the 27-year-old is a target for ‘Los Che’, with the club set to turn their season around in dramatic fashion.
The Spanish side are on the verge of being bought by Singaporean billionaire Peter Lim, and could be in line for a large cash injection to invest in the January market.
Currently languishing in 11th place in La Liga, Valencia have reacted by appointed Juan Antonio Pizzi as manager and are looking to bulk up their squad in the upcoming market.
Dzeko has been at Man City since 2011, but has never cemented his place in the starting XI, which is partly due to the club’s ever improving squad. Currently third in the pecking order, Dzeko may be tempted by the offer of first team football in Spain.
But with fourth striker Stevan Jovetic currently struggling to adapt in England, a January move for Dzeko may hinge on whether City can find adequate replacement.
What do you think? Should City be rid of Dzeko? Would Lallana succeed at Old Trafford? Let me know in the comments below…
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