The latest transfer news gives Aston Villa supporters something to finally be excited about after a summer that has seen the club part with one of their stars in Gareth Barry.
Manchester City’s summer spending started with their signing of Barry, and they’re looking to continue flashing and splashing their cash by moving for a couple more Englishmen, according to recent reports.
What else is in the latest transfer news and rumors? Find out here, and also make sure you check out all of the updated summer transfer lists, which include the signings detailed here and many, many more news moves.
England
Villa Sign Downing
Aston Villa have signed Middlesbrough’s Stewart Downing. The 24-year-old has penned a four-year deal and moves to Villa for a fee of around £12m. (Sky Sports)
Analysis: Will this be the highlight of Villa’s summer moves? There’s still money to be spent, and there’s no doubt many a Villa fan who hope for some of it to be spent to prove the club’s ambitions.
City Offer Lescott, In For Bentley
Manchester City have made a £15m offer to Everton for defender Joleon Lescott. (The Guardian)
Analysis: Doesn’t appear that they’re going to give up on Lescott easily, but Everton are going to either hold firm or force City to stump up £20m or upwards.
Manchester City have emerged as the latest contender for Tottenham winger David Bentley. (The Mirror)
Analysis: Well, it’s a deal that’s mutually beneficial for all parties. If Bentley can show his pre-Tottenham form, then Manchester City come out looking good. Judging by what City have shelled out for their recent signings, Bentley’s going to get paid pretty well, and he’ll get a fresh start after a forgettable season at Tottenham. And as for Tottenham, City might be the only suitor out there willing to pay a fee that will see Spurs not take that significant of a loss on Bentley.
Negredo Close To Tottenham Move?
According to Spanish news reports, Real Madrid striker Alvaro Negredo will sign for Tottenham before the end of the week in a deal that could be worth £13-15.5m. (Daily Mail)
Analysis: Negredo’s proven that he’s got a ton of talent with his play with Almeria in the last couple of seasons, and here’s a little video proof of his skills. However, another big investment on a young-ish striker could be met with skepticism by some Tottenham fans after the investments made in Darren Bent and Roman Pavlyuchenko.
Crouch Favors Fulham
Portsmouth striker Peter Crouch met with Sunderland manager Steve Bruce on Thursday, but he could be set to turn down a move to the Stadium of Light in favor of. (Daily Mail)
Analysis: As I said in the previous roundup, Sunderland would likely offer Crouch superior wages, but Fulham have the draw of European football, and there’s the added draw of being able to stay in London, so I’d have to give the edge to Fulham if they can fork out the money needed to land him.
Blackburn Move For Hoffer
Blackburn could be set to make a move for Rapid Vienna striker Erwin Hoffer. The 22-year-old was second in scoring in the Austrian Bundesliga last season, netting 27 goals to help Rapid finish second behind Red Bull Salzburg. (The Sun)
Analysis: Red Bull Salzburg’s Marc Janko, who was the top scorer ahead of Hoffer with an astounding 39 goals, has been a target for Blackburn for a while, but Hoffer could prove to be a more appealing target than Janko or several others on Blackburn’s list, because he’s young and would be relatively inexpensive compared to many other potential targets.
Wigan And Wolves Battle For McCarthy
Wolves appeared to be in pole position for Hamilton starlet James McCarthy after Hamilton accepted their bid for the 18-year-old midfielder (Sky Sports), but Wigan have made a late move for McCarthy, putting in an offer of £2.6m that has been accepted by Hamilton (The Sun).
Analysis: Hamilton have attempted to rebuff interest in McCarthy as long as possible, but both bids are sizable enough for them to let McCarthy pursue a move to England.
No Hull Move For Murphy
Hull City have pulled out of a deal to sign Sunderland striker Daryl Murphy. Hull agreed an initial £1.5m fee for the 26-year-old Irishman, but a breakdown in contract talks has seen the deal collapse. (Sky Sports)
Analysis: So where are they going to turn now? They’re running out of potential targets, and they’re also running out of time if they’re looking to have a new striker in enough time to get him acclimated to his new surroundings before the season starts.
Spain
Barcelona Turn To Ibrahimovic?
After meeting more rejection from Valencia in their bid to land David Villa (ESPN Soccernet), Barcelona could be set to move for Inter Milan’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti has confirmed that the two clubs have held talks regarding Ibrahimovic, and there are reports that Barcelona could send Inter €40m plus Samuel Eto’o and Alexander Hleb for Ibrahimovic. (Goal.com)
Analysis: Might just be me, but if that proposed deal went through, Inter would be the bigger winner by far.
Valladolid Land Bueno
Real Valladolid have signed young Real Madrid striker Alberto Bueno for €2.5m. (Tribal Football)
Analysis: Bueno needed to go somewhere that he could get a chance to shine, and he can do that at Valladolid, who are in need of scorers after losing their top scorer in Henok Goitom. Quick success for Bueno will pay as many dividends for Real Madrid as it will he and Valladolid, because they can buy him back for a relatively inexpensive price in the next couple of years and sell him off for a profit (as they’re about to do with Alvaro Negredo), or perhaps bring him into the side (as with Ruben de la Red and Javi Garcia).
Italy
Inter Move For Lucio
Inter Milan have reached a deal to sign Bayern Munich center back Lucio. (Sky Sports)
Analysis: Perhaps not the slice of youth that Inter’s back line could use when you take the future into consideration, but getting a quality, experienced defender like Lucio will certainly make them all the better at the back, especially with last season’s injury problems in mind.
France
Lyon Sign Bastos
Lyon have signed Lille star Michel Bastos for €18m. The 25-year-old Brazilian has inked a four-year deal. (Sky Sports)
Analysis: That’s more than €40m in the last week, and the spending won’t stop there, as they’re close to a €15m deal Porto defender Aly Cissokho, will spend a fair amount on another new forward, and could splash out more cash on other reinforcements.
Davies Joins Sochaux
American striker Charlie Davies has moved to Sochaux from Swedish side Hammarby. (Sky Sports)
Analysis: Davies has a chance to establish himself as a starter up front for Sochaux, and if he can do that, it’ll put him in line to be a key player for the U.S. national team come next summer.
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