Morning all. Throughout January, Soccerlens are going to be bringing you a daily round-up of the morning’s various goings-on. Be it juicy morsels of spurious transfer gossip or real, actual bona fide news, rest assured, we’ll have it covered.
Here’s this morning’s batch.
Liverpool to ‘break the bank’ for Sevilla striker…
Reports emanating from Spain and being carried by several websites this morning are suggesting that Liverpool are once again courting Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo, with the Reds said to be weighing up a hefty £17 million bid for the former Real Madrid man – a bid they hope will be substantial enough to persuade the Spanish outfit to renege on their €70 million buy-out clause.
The very same reports are also suggesting that, should ‘Pool be successful in their attempts to land Negredo, German side Hoffenheim will make an official approach for peripheral forward Ryan Babel, after staging a bout of informal talks with the Dutchman last week.
City wrap up Dzeko deal…
Who’d have thunk it? It seems like that last great bastion of journalistic integrity, The Sun, were talking complete and utter cobblers yesterday when they claimed that Edin Dzeko‘s move to Man City could be delayed for up to 4 weeks by a VISA-related issue as, just 24 hours down the line, the club have announced that the £27 million deal has now officially gone through.
Via a statement on their official website, City have confirmed that Dzeko has signed a four-and-a-half year contract at Eastlands and will be handed the vacant ‘number 10’ shirt.
Although the former Wolfsburg striker completed his move too late to be considered for City’s FA Cup third-round tie at Leicester tomorrow, he is more than likely to make his debut against Wolves in the Premier League next Saturday.
Hazard definitely on Wenger’s radar…
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has admitted that he is aware of Lille starlet Eden Hazard‘s insistence that moving to the Emirates would be a ‘dream come true’, though the veteran Frenchman is adamant that he will not be making a move for the 20-year-old Belgian tyro this season as he already has ’17 similar forwards’ at his disposal.
Meanwhile, Wenger has also told the gathered press that there is now a ‘small chance’ that out-of-sorts ‘keeper Manuel Almunia will be leaving the club during January, with Atletico Madrid, Osasuna and Valencia all said to be waiting patiently in the wings.
Sunderland line up double swoop…
According to several outlets, Sunderland are beavering away to seal loan deals for Inter Milan midfielder Sulley Muntari and PSG flanker Stephen Sessegnon to help ease the impact of the considerable injuries sustained by Danny Welbeck, Lee Cattermole and David Meyler over the last week or so.
Sessegnon recently signed a new contract with PSG, though the Benin international is understood to be available, whereas a move for Muntari may be scuppered by the fact that his wife is reportedly pining for a move to London.
The best of the rest:
Tottenham winger David Bentley is set to join Birmingham on loan until the end of the season at some point within the next few days…
Fulham are hoping to hijack the Blues’ £7 million move for Robbie Keane and West Ham’s bid to sign Steve Sidwell from Aston Villa. The rotten swines!
West Ham and Villa are interested in snapping up Manchester City left-back Wayne Bridge on loan, but both sides are being put off by his frankly ridiculous £90,000-a-week wages…
Villa manager Gerard Houllier has confirmed his interest in signing Lyon midfielder Jean Makoun, though the Frenchman admits that the current asking price (believed to be around £7 million) is too high…
Everton are now the verge of signing Azerbaijan defender Araz Abdullayev from Neftchi Baku, after the deal was put on hold by the Toffees back in June of last year…
After being scuppered in their pursuit of Edin Dzeko, Juventus are now planning a €15 million January move for Atletico Madrid forward Diego Forlan…
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