There’s not a lot to report in the way of signings in this morning’s transfer news and rumors roundup, but we could have some major signings to report in the near future, if the speculation is to be believed.
Which players could join our lists of confirmed transfers soon? Check out the latest transfer speculation from Europe’s biggest leagues below.
England
Benitez Wants Starlets In Xabi Swap
So far, all indications are that Rafa Benitez isn’t going to entertain the thought of selling Xabi Alonso (or Javier Mascherano, for that matter), but reports continue to come out about it. The latest has Benitez fancying forwards Alvaro Negredo and Alberto Bueno in a swap deal with Real Madrid. (Tribal Football)
Analysis: Such a move could help solidify Liverpool’s front life for years to come, but I don’t put a lot of stock into it. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Negredo end up at Liverpool, but it’d be in a completely separate deal.
Arsenal Wasting Time With Toure Chase?
Arsenal are said to be readying a £15m bid for Barcelona’s Yaya Toure (Tribal Football), but according to Toure’s agent, Yaya won’t be joining up with brother Kolo at the Emirates, as he has better offers than Arsenal (The Independent).
Analysis: There’s a chance that he could be referring to Manchester City as one of the clubs with a better offer, as they were linked with a £24m bid for Yaya in January. They also want Kolo, so it could be said that they stand a better chance of having the Toure brothers next season than Arsenal do.
Arsenal Join Hunt For Wantaway Lazio Striker
Lazio star Goran Pandev has stated his desire to leave the club, and there could very well be a battle between Arsenal and Juventus for the Macedonian striker, who could cost as much as £17m. (Daily Mail)
Analysis: There’s a chance that Arsenal could be willing to splash out some significant cash on a striker if they happen to sell Adebayor, but otherwise, Pandev might be out of their range. He’s a quality striker with a solid scoring record in Serie A, but he isn’t nearly the same must-buy prospect that Arshavin was (and that fee has proven to be justified and then some).
Everton To Land Leeds Star Delph?
The race for one of the top young prospects in England may or may not be over, depending on who you believe. It’s being said that Everton have agreed a £4m deal for Leeds star Fabian Delph The Mirror, but there’s a contradictory report from Leeds, denying that such a deal has been done (Daily Mail).
Analysis: £4m would seem a little low for Delph, considering what he’s been valued at in the past (anywhere from £7-10m, at least), but a move to a club like Everton (or Fulham, who he’s also been linked with) would be good for him, because he wouldn’t walk into the level of pressure that he would if he went to a club in the top four.
Moyes Wants Galatasaray Duo
Everton are also interested in highly-rated Galatasaray stars Arda Turan and Mehmet Topal. (Tribal Football)
Analysis: Turan, who was the subject of serious interest from Newcastle last summer, is also a target for Tottenham and has also been linked with Arsenal, and both of those clubs could be willing to splash out a little more for Turan than Everton might (though you can’t put it past Everton to spend big for the right player like they did for Fellaini). Turan has the skills to flourish at the highest level, as he showed at Euro 2008. Topal would likely come a little cheaper than Turan, but that’s not saying anything about his quality, with his ability to be an asset in both defense and in midfield.
Everton And Tottenham After Dirar
Everton and Tottenham could be set to battle it out for Club Brugge midfielder Nabil Dirar. (Sky Sports)
Analysis: Everton struck gold in Belgium with a Moroccan player (well, Moroccan descent) last summer, and Dirar is just another one of many talented young Belgian players or foreigners that are currently plying their trade in the Belgian top flight right now.
Sunderland Set For Bent Bid
Sunderland are getting ready to make a £10m bid for Tottenham striker Darren Bent. (Daily Express)
Analysis: Seems to be a mere formality here that he’ll be a Sunderland player in the near future. Tottenham don’t want him, and they should feel good about recouping most of the £16.5m fee from their purchase of Bent from Charlton in 2007 (if they’ve even paid out all of that £16.5m, that is).
Spain
Real Madrid Claim Ronaldo Negotiations Underway
Real Madrid director Jorge Valdano is claiming that negotiations are already underway for Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo (The Mirror). There are also reports that Real Madrid are dish out an increasingly meaningless record amount of £82m to land Ronaldo (Goal.com).
Analysis: It will never end until he actually moves to Madrid. United sure could do a lot with £82m though, but I digress.
Barcelona Agree Ibrahimovic Deal?
Have Barcelona agreed a deal for Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic? According to reports, Barca have agreed a deal of £9m plus Samuel Eto’o for the Swedish star. (Tribal Football)
Analysis: Inter are denying that these reports are true, and I can’t say I buy them myself. After valuing him so highly, I don’t see them coming down from that valuation as much as that report says.
Italy
Udinese Sign Caruso
Udinese have signed 27-year-old Argentine striker Leandro Caruso for £2.5m. The Godoy Cruz striker has scored seven goals in 16 games in the current Clausura and 13 overall in the Apertura and Clausura combined. (Sky Sports)
Analysis: Udinese needed to add to their front line after selling Fabio Quagliarella to Napoli, and with one of last season’s top scorers, Gaetano D’Agostino, soon to be a Juventus player. They may not be done yet, but we could see Antonio’s Di Natale and Floro Flores be the top two forwards next season, with Castro as the third striker option.
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