ESPN Soccernet - On The Move
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On The Move
Posted by ESPNsoccernet Staff on 07/21/2012

ESPNsoccernet's On the Move transfer blog is where you will find a hearty round-up of all the rumours and signings during the summer transfer window. Get your teeth into what's below to find out which player(s) your club are being linked with today.

Also, you can always check the full list of completed deals in England and the SPL by clicking right here.


Van Persie: Him again © Getty Images

00.00 BST That's all for today's blog folks but be sure to join us from 0900 BST on Sunday for a host of new rumours and those ever elusive done deals. Don't expect the €100 million transfer of Cavani to be one of those though!

23.40 BST Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis says Edinson Cavani will not be allowed to leave the club for less than €100 million. Realistic.

23.06 BST Aaron Ramsey joins Arsene Wenger in expressing his hope that Robin van Persie stays with the Gunners: "We don't know anything that goes on. We hope that he stays at Arsenal. He had a brilliant season last year and he is a big player for us, so we are just hopeful that he will stay.''

22.45 BST Roberto Mancini says Kolo Toure is free to move to Bursaspor but has questioned whether the Turkish club can afford him.

"It is up to Kolo to decide if he wants to go to Bursaspor or not," Mancini said. "However, can they meet his demands?"

22.18 BST Manchester City playmaker David Silva will be handed a lucrative new deal worth ÂŁ190,000-a-week in an attempt to stave off reported interest from Real Madrid, according to Goal.com.

21.53 BST Wolfsburg defender Simon Kjaer a target for Lille, according to reports in France. But LOSC are apparently baulking at an asking price of 6 to 7 million euro.

21.12 BST Sky Sport Italia are reporting that Marco Borriello is ready to leave Roma - with Tottenham Hotspur, Werder Bremen and Galatasaray among his apparent suitors.

20.53 BST Paulo Assuncao has joined Sao Paulo after reaching an agreement to terminate his contract with Atletico Madrid.

20.38 BST We mentioned earlier that Marc Overmars suggested Ajax are interested in Arsenal youngster Ryo Myiaichi, but Frank De Boer has now said: "In my opinion he is not an option any more. There are several candidates. We'll know more soon."

20.06 BST Guti has claimed he turned down a move to Argentinian giants River Plate, writing on Twitter: "I'm not going to play for River, and, honestly, I don't want to play in Argentina. But I'm grateful for the interest."

19.43 BST Arsenal are one of a group of top Premier League clubs closely watching Santos attacking midfielder Paulo Henrique Ganso, according to ESPN sources.Story here.

19,16 BST DONE DEAL: Panathinaikos have made Uruguayan forward Bruno Fornaroli their sixth signing of the summer after snapping him up from Sampdoria on a three-year deal.

18.55 BST ESPN's Italian football expert Adam Digby (@Adz77) on Twitter: "Julio Cesar, Giampaolo Pazzini & Maicon have been left out of the #Inter squad for the Trofeo TIM as all three are expected to leave"

18.37 BST There are claims that Bundesliga rivals Borussia Dortmund and Schalke are trying to sign Ibrahim Afellay from Barcelona.

18.09 BST Free agent Alessandro Del Piero is still very much available. “I still don’t know where I will play next season,” he said. “It certainly won’t be an easy decision after playing at Juventus for 19 years but I am relaxed.”

17.48 BST Remember Harry Kewell? Well, the ex-Liverpool winger is back in England and seearching for a club. But with Blackburn, Middlesbrough and Swindon among those linked with him, the Australia international is keen to bide his time before choosing where to continue his career. Story here.

17.26 BST David Moyes believes Everton are close to tying up the signing of Steven Pienaar from Tottenham. Story here.

16.49 BST Rangers boss Ally McCoist says the club have not accepted the SFA's offer of a transfer embargo beginning on September 1. Story here.

16.31 BST Nottingham Forest have taken 27-year-old striker Bader Al-Mutawa - or “Kuwaiti football's hottest property”, as their official site likes to call him - on a month-long trial. He said: "The club's reputation for attractive football is well known in the Middle East, and it's exciting to be coming here when a new manager is looking to play the kind of football that I want to be part of.”

16.26 BST The Daily Mail is suggesting Charlie Adam could be offered to Fulham as part of Liverpool’s bid to sign Clint Dempsey.

16.21 BST Mattia Destro has failed to agree terms with Roma, and Genoa's president has launched into an almighty rant about it. Click here for the story.

15.40 BST Diego Simeone is adamant that Adrian will be staying at Atletico Madrid. Story here.

15.15 BST We seem to be getting a lot of questions all at once so figured we’d answer a few all in one go.

Coach McGuirk

“Guys, I'm a bit confused about the disparity of transfer fees for Van Persie v. Modric (and even this 35M number floated for Suarez). Van Persie was a one-man wrecking crew for Arsenal last season - top 3-5 striker in the world last year, right? How is that worth a transfer fee of 20M compared to Modric for 40M? Definitely not taking anything away from Modric, but in my naivete, I'd think the pure goal scoring talent would trump in the transfer market. Most other transfer values make sense (this year at least - let's not get started on the Year of Dalglish), but this Van Persie valuation is throwing me for a loop. Any chance we could get some analysis on this?”

Arsenal would tend to agree with you - it seems they want around £30 million - but as Van Persie is 29 in a couple of weeks, has one year remaining on his contract and had, until last season, struggled with injuries, it seems unlikely they’ll get what they want.

Swanseafan

“have been seeing a lot of talk about Joe Allen to liverpool. was there not an agreement between swansea and liverpool that they would not be able to buy swansea players for 12 months as part of the Rodgers deal?”

The situation appears to be that Liverpool are allowed to bid for players on the proviso that other clubs are bidding too - there’s not much point in Swansea reducing the number of bidders after all. Whether they’ll sell Allen anyway if he wants to leave, given Laudrup’s quotes, is another question.

Ross

"In what world are Malaga cash strapped? Did you sleep through last summer?"

They have debts on their previous transfers and have failed to pay their players 40% of their wages, according to the president of the Spanish Footballers' Association.

15.04 BST AS claims Arsenal could outbid Spurs for Malaga’s Spain international Santi Cazorla.

14.54 BST Swansea would allow Joe Allen to leave if he asked to do so, but Liverpool are yet to get in touch. Story here.

14.14 BST We’re a bit late on this one but never mind: Galatasaray vice-president Refik Arkan says they’re interested in signing Dimitar Berbatov from Manchester United. “We have had discussions with Berbatov's management,” Arkan said. “We want to have a world-class striker. Our president also wants this. Berbatov is one of the possibilities.”

13.48 BST Shakhtar Donetsk star Willian is desperate to join Chelsea, and doesn't believe the Blues' move for Oscar should derail the bid. Story here.

13.13 BST FC Twente are unsure whether Douglas wants to join Newcastle. Story here.

12.55 BST We mentioned a claim a couple of days back that Porto and Brazil star Danilo was unhappy that AVB had been to visit Hulk. Seems it was all made up.

"Various Portuguese media reported something I supposedly said, criticising the visit of former FC Porto technician Andre Villas-Boas of Hulk at the hotel to the Brazilian team!" he wrote. "For clarification, I DO NOT USE FACEBOOK! I admire the work of the Villas-Boas and do not see any problem in paying a visit to a friend with whom he worked and was very successful! #clarification"

12.29 BST AS claims Barcelona want to sign 20-year-old Isco from cash-strapped Malaga.

12.01 BST Desperate for yet more on the Robin van Persie saga? Here's the Irish Examiner's take, as provided by Soccernet contributor Miguel Delaney: "The Irish Examiner understands that United feel they have made a very persuasive case to the forward, despite competition from Juventus and Manchester City. Van Persie is known to be a long-time supporter of the Serie A club but, although he would hugely welcome the opportunity to play in Turin, he is less willing to accept the kind of reduced wages such a transfer would necessitate, given his market value. Juventus are apparently struggling to come up with the funds to get anywhere near the Manchester clubs."

11.48 BST Ajax director of football Marc Overmars has confirmed the club want Arsenal youngster Ryo Miyaichi on loan. Story here.

11.32 BST The full story on Steven Davis joining Southampton is here.

11.03 BST Here's our story on Brendan Rodgers' loan plans for Raheem Sterling. Story here.

11.01 BST: FEE AGREED Rangers have accepted a bid from Southampton for midfielder Steven Davis.

10.33 BST ...and yet more RVP news. He's been left out of the 24-man squad list for Arsenal's Asia tour.

10.24 BST For Wenger's quotes on Robin van Persie, click here.

10.07 BST: RVP UPDATE Arsene Wenger still wants to keep Robin van Persie. “For me, Van Persie is one of the best strikers in the world, if not the best, and my desire is to keep him at the club," he told Arsenal Player. More to follow...

09.53 BST Marca is reporting the same line as the UK papers: “Luka Modric has put his cards on the table and is intent on pushing things as much as possible to be transferred as soon as possible to Real Madrid. As the fact that he did not train with the team as planned could be interpreted.

“Officially, the player is expected to be present at midday to board the plane that will take the whole team to Los Angeles for the second part of the Spurs preseason. However, as MARCA has discovered, Modric’s intention as of last night were to not go.”

09.47 BST Juventus have given up on Robin van Persie, according to reports in Italy, due to a £25 million asking price. They’re focusing on Fiorentina’s Stevan Jovetic instead.

09.28 BST ...and here’s the full paper round-up. You’ll notice a large part of it is taken up with papers putting various fees on the size of the two, or three, Robin van Persie bids. Sorry about that.

The Times: Juventus remain hopeful of prising Robin van Persie away from the Premier League and have told the Dutchman they also intend to sign Luis Suarez from Liverpool.

The Sun: Robin van Persie is caught up in a huge bidding war between Manchester United and Manchester City… Roberto Mancini says it is up to Kolo Toure whether he joins Bursaspor… Michael Laudrup says Swansea have yet to receive an approach from Liverpool for Joe Allen but accepts the player may move on… Evian striker Yannick Sagbo is eager to move to Fulham… Wigan have bid £3 million for Real Mallorca centre-back Ivan Ramis but face competition from Aston Villa… Wolves have rejected a £1.8 million bid for Ronaldo Zubar from Besiktas.

Daily Mirror: Luka Modric has gone AWOL ahead of the club’s pre-season tour to the US in a desperate attempt to force through a move from Spurs to Real Madrid… Arsenal are adamant they will not accept less than £20 million for RVP after the first round of offers (Juve: £8m, Man Utd: £10m, Man City: £12m)… Man City striker Roque Santa Cruz would be willing to join Championship sides Blackburn or Bolton so he can keep his family in the North West.

Daily Mail: Sir Alex Ferguson fears Robin van Persie’s price will rise to £30 million due to the interest of Juventus and Manchester City... Botafogo are threatening to hijack West Brom’s bid to sign Racing Club midfielder Claudio Yacob... Besiktas want Arsenal striker Marouane Chamakh on loan with a view to a permanent £4 million deal.

The Guardian: Luka Modric did not report for Tottenham training but Real Madrid have so far offered only offered €32 million with a further €8 million in add-ons, which is not enough for Tottenham.

Daily Star: Manchester United bid ÂŁ14 million for Robin van Persie, while Juventus bid ÂŁ17 million, but Arsenal want ÂŁ30 million.

Daily Telegraph: Manchester United’s bid for Robin van Persie was worth only £10 million... Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers may send Raheem Sterling out on loan.

09.20 BST While you’re waiting, another one from overnight: AC Milan have been told Brazil striker Leandro Damiao is not for sale. Full story here.

0904 BST To start us off, it's widely reported that Manchester United and Manchester City have both registered bids for Arsenal captain Robin van Persie. The Sun puts United’s bid at £13 million - ESPN understands it may have been as low as £12.5 million - while City’s, apparently lodged on Friday, is said to be £15 million, but Arsenal reportedly want £20 million. Perhaps the most significant aspect of all this, though, is that Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed he was in for him. You’ll find that story here, if you missed it before.

Elsewhere, Brazilian starlet Oscar has confirmed he has undertaken a medical with Chelsea, although he says he won’t be making a firm decision on his future until after the Olympics. That story is here.

Full paper round-up to follow…

Comments

Posted by Swanninho on 07/21/2012

Please DONT send Sterling out on loan! He is an exciting young player, everything Downing isn't! Keep him, even if its just to bring him on for the last 15 of every game. I think all LFC fans want to see him break into the first team this year!

Posted by Aneesh Chandoke on 07/21/2012

rvp story is a disgrace.he should have atleast this much respect for Arsenal and Gooners.he will not play for any other premier league player he and his dad himself said some time ago.

Posted by Nits on 07/21/2012

Juventus wants to sign Suarez, they will have to spend 35 M to get him though he wont leave liverpool, Interesting thing to notice with italian teams like Inter milan, Ac milan and Juventus, they always want to have players on loan, they never buy, lol,

Posted by daniel on 07/21/2012

I heard that chelsea has made a bid for lewandoski because cavani wages where to high

Posted by Ross on 07/21/2012

In what world are Malaga cash strapped? Did you sleep through last summer?

Posted by Jay on 07/21/2012

I bet Daniel Levy is kicking himself for not taking the guaranteed 40 million Chelsea offered last season for modric. Seems like the best Spurs will be able to get this season is in the 32-35 million range.

Posted by Coach McGuirk on 07/21/2012

Guys, I'm a bit confused about the disparity of transfer fees for Van Persie v. Modric (and even this 35M number floated for Suarez). Van Persie was a one-man wrecking crew for Arsenal last season - top 3-5 striker in the world last year, right? How is that worth a transfer fee of 20M compared to Modric for 40M? Definitely not taking anything away from Modric, but in my naivete, I'd think the pure goal scoring talent would trump in the transfer market.

Most other transfer values make sense (this year at least - let's not get started on the Year of Dalglish), but this Van Persie valuation is throwing me for a loop. Any chance we could get some analysis on this?

Posted by qwobbity on 07/21/2012

When did Malaga become "cash-strapped"?
I thought they had a billionaire sheikh owner.

Posted by Charles on 07/21/2012

Is it true that Arsenal made a bid for Santi Cazorla? Would be an exciting player for the Gunners, and Malaga seem to be having a few financial difficulties.

Posted by Swanseafan on 07/21/2012

have been seeing a lot of talk about Joe Allen to liverpool. was there not an agreement between swansea and liverpool that they would not be able to buy swansea players for 12 months as part of the Rodgers deal?

Posted by saintroy16 on 07/21/2012

I think Modric's price is probably based on what Chelsea were going to pay for him last summer. If I remember, that was around 35 mill, so, as a negotiation ploy, Tottenham have added 5 mill. Also, Modric is a prove Prem playmaker who is 26. He could be at the top for four or five more years at his best.

RVP is probably cheaper because teams feel like they can bully Arsenal to some extent. His price hasn't been confirmed the way Modric's has, so bidding teams are low balling it to try and save money. His wages are also probably more than Modric's. RVP is also 28 years old, with perhaps 2 or three seasons at the tip top of his powers. Modric is more of a bid for a longer lasting player.

Posted by 321 on 07/21/2012

Pienaar back to the Toffees is great - it's where he thrives - but for 5 million? did they not sell him to Spurs for only 3? and how much is Yobo really worth to Fenerbahce?

Posted by osubucks on 07/21/2012

Any news on Joao Mutinho to Spurs supposed to be decide this week?

Posted by Marcus Ritchie on 07/22/2012

Dear Sir Alex: forget Van Persie and Moura... sign Ajax's Eriksen and make Del Piero this year's Larsson.

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