Latest Transfer Update at 30-06-11

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Latest Transfer Update at 30-06-11

Fabregas - Barcelona return?

FABREGAS 'OPTIMISTIC' AMID BARCA TALK

Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas has declared himself calm and optimistic as speculation rumbles on over his possible return to boyhood club Barcelona.
The Gunners are understood to have rejected one cut-price £27million offer, but Barca are expected to return with an improved deal - offering a player exchange as a sweetener - for the Spain midfielder.
Speaking today at a football campus in Tordera, Spain, the 24-year-old was quoted as saying in AS: "I'm calm and I am optimistic. I have nothing to say and there is nothing to speak of.
"If something happens, it is because it has to happen.
"For my part, I've begun to get in shape, which is what I have to do."
He added: "If a player is on the market it is because the club does not want him. I have no problems."
Arsenal have yet to make any official comment, as they did last summer, on reports regarding a return to the Nou Camp for Fabregas.
The World Cup winner is continually linked with a move back to his boyhood club during every transfer window.
Last summer, the Gunners rejected a £30million offer for their inspirational skipper.
However, with Fabregas appearing more determined to rejoin the club he left as a teenager in 2003, Arsenal are said to be ready to allow the deal to go through, if the European champions improve their £27million bid.
BBC Sport earlier this week quoted a senior Arsenal official as saying: "The offer was made formally in writing to our chief executive (Ivan Gazidis), and we said no straight away."
When asked if the club expected an improved offer this week, the source added: "Possibly yes, and if it's enough then I expect we'll have to sell."

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Harry Redknapp - looks set to sign Pedroza.
PEDROZA CLAIMS SPURS SWITCH AGREED

Young Mexican striker Antonio Pedroza claims a deal has been agreed for him to join Tottenham from Jaguares in his homeland.
The 20-year-old, who has previously had spells on trial with Arsenal and Chelsea, was born in England and still has family in this country.
Pedroza was reported to be in the frame for inclusion in England's squad for the Under-20 World Cup in Colombia this summer, but did not make the 21-man squad.
His contract with Jaguares expired this summer and he elected against signing a new deal when the opportunity of a move to join Harry Redknapp's side emerged.
"I can announce that my transfer to Tottenham has been arranged," Pedroza said.
"I didn't want to renew my contract with Jaguares because I knew that there was a chance to be transferred to a team in the Premier League.
"I am very happy and satisfied having played for an important team like Jaguares. Now I have the chance to make a dream come true to play in Europe.
"I have spoken with the officials of Jaguares and they have confirmed to me that everything is OK for me to leave and be transferred to Tottenham.
"The only thing that is left to resolve is something related to my journey to England."

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Craig Gardner - next at Sunderland?
BLACK CATS SWITCH FOCUS TO GARDNER

Sunderland boss Steve Bruce is working to tie up a move for midfielder Craig Gardner after landing teenage striker Connor Wickham.
The Black Cats quickly put their delight at seeing off the competition to snatch the 18-year-old Ipswich frontman in an £8.1million swoop to one side to concentrate on a man they hope will be one of his team-mates next season.
Birmingham's Gardner was also on Wearside for talks with Bruce keen to tie him up as quickly as possible as he closed in on a fifth summer signing following in the wake of Ahmed Elmohamady, Wickham and Bosman free transfers Keiren Westwood and Sebastian Larsson, who will formally complete their moves on Friday.
Sunderland are hopeful of being able to prise the player away from relegated City as they prepare for a promotion push with new boss Chris Hughton knowing he will lose some of his bigger-name players, just as he did during his time at Newcastle.
If nothing else, the Black Cats have issued a statement of intent in recent weeks by getting a significant proportion of their business done early.
In committing a sum which could eventually amount to £12million to secure Wickham's services, they managed to ward off the attentions of his fellow suitors to tie up a player regarded as one of the most promising home-grown prospects in the game.
Wickham, who had been linked with Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham, signed a four-year deal after heading for the north-east on Tuesday evening for a medical, and Bruce could hardly have been more delighted.
He said: "A number of top sides have been chasing Connor for some time now, so naturally we are absolutely delighted he has chosen to come to Sunderland.
"He's still very young, but at 6ft 3in he's a physical presence. With his height and style of play, he will offer us a threat in front of goal and complement our existing strikers.
"We have been watching him for a while now and he is improving and developing all the time. He's a great prospect and I'm sure our supporters will love watching him play."
Wickham himself insisted the speculation surrounding his future had not affected him adversely, but he admitted he was pleased to know where he will be playing his football next season.
He told SAFC TV: "Ever since the speculation, I have never felt pressured. I have never felt intimidated by what has gone on off the pitch or who has come in or anything like that.
"But now I am obviously relieved to have everything done. The weight has been lifted off my shoulders now.
"I can get back to playing football, and I know where I am going to be next season. I just want to play now."

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Andre Villas-Boas - new Chelsea boss.
VILLAS-BOAS UP FOR UNITED CHALLENGE

Andre Villas-Boas will consider showing his Chelsea players images of Manchester United celebrating their Barclays Premier League title success to motivate them to regain their crown.
Villas-Boas used a similar tactic after taking charge of Porto a year ago, making his squad watch a video of Benfica's championship party.
And the new Chelsea boss would not rule out something similar when the Blues players report back for pre-season training on Wednesday.
"We just need, as technical staff, to make the right moves," Villas-Boas said during his official unveiling as manager on Wednesday.
"Maybe a United photo, an Arsenal photo, to show they've been successful."
Villas-Boas admitted United were the benchmark and urged Chelsea to reclaim the mantle they held under Jose Mourinho, Guus Hiddink and Carlo Ancelotti.
"United are a reference - they're pretty clear," he said.
"A big, successful club, as this club was when Jose, Carlo and Guus were here. That's the challenge we face next season.
"If we are going to provoke them in that way, that's for our technical staff to decide."
As well as motivating from the outside, Villas-Boas will need his players to motivate each other, and he sees captain John Terry as integral to that aim.
Terry has been accused in the past of being too strong an influence but Villas-Boas said: "Most of the players in the dressing room see John as a leader and a player who motivates them.
"There are lots of leaders in the dressing room. If John is in the team, he will be the captain. He represents the history of this club, the successful history of this club in the last six or seven years."
One player who is also part of the club's history - if only for being their most expensive ever player - is Fernando Torres.
Torres became a £50million misfit last season after moving to Stamford Bridge from Liverpool, the Spain striker netting just once for his new club in almost four months.
Ancelotti tried everything he could to get Torres scoring but it seemed Chelsea did not play to the 27-year-old's strengths.
That appeared certain to change next season but Villas-Boas does not believe in building the team around one man, having faced the same problem with Falcao while at Porto.
"He was a striker who didn't find the back of the net in pre-season and was frustrated," Villas-Boas said.
"We didn't tune the team to provide to him. We tuned the team as a whole.
"Once we did that, he scored 30 goals.
"It's about fine-tuning the team, not the player. The quality is amazing at every player at Chelsea. We have to fine tune the whole organisation of the team."

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De Gea - relishing United chance.
DE GEA KEEN TO EMULATE VAN DER SAR

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson handed David de Gea the job of filling Edwin van der Sar's vast legacy at Old Trafford - and immediately packed his new recruit off on holiday.
Having come through his medical without a problem on Monday, United have confirmed De Gea will eventually put pen to paper on a five-year contract, becoming Ferguson's third signing of the summer.
Unlike Phil Jones, and to a lesser extent Ashley Young, there will be no easy introduction to life at United for De Gea.
With Van der Sar now retired, the 20-year-old will start the new campaign as United's first-choice keeper, aiming to prove he is worthy of all the high praise he has received in just two seasons as a senior professional.
"The manager said that I should enjoy the holiday I've been afforded now but of course I'm more excited about getting started in training and meeting my future team-mates," De Gea told MUTV.
"Edwin has been the best goalkeeper in the world whilst here at United.
"I hope to emulate him and spend a great number of years here. Hopefully I will equal or even surpass the performance and contribution he made to the club."
After helping Spain clinch the European Under-21 title in Denmark at the weekend, it is likely De Gea will be a late arrival on the Red Devils' three-week pre-season tour to the United States, when he will begin the acclimatisation process.
Although there is an obvious example of a positive goalkeeping transition from Spain to England in Liverpool's Jose Reina, the learning curve is going to be steep.
Manchester City lie in wait at Wembley for the Community Shield on August 6, with the champions' Premier League opener at West Brom the following weekend.
"There are differences between the two (leagues)," said De Gea.
"The Premier League is known to be a more physical style of play.
"There are a lot of high balls and a lot of play in the air but I hope to adapt fairly quickly and with my own style hope to contribute to it being an all-round success."
Having known for some considerable time that Van der Sar would be leaving at the end of last season, Ferguson and his coaching team carried out extensive research on the veteran's replacement, desperate to avoid the difficulties United experienced when Peter Schmeichel left in 1999.
Manuel Neuer is thought to have attracted some interest before moving from Schalke to Bayern Munich and Ajax's Maarten Stekelenburg was also scouted.
However, it soon became apparent De Gea was Ferguson's preferred option, the only doubt being over the Atletico Madrid player's willingness to leave Spain at such an early stage of a career that has already drawn favourable comment from his national captain and goalkeeping legend, Real Madrid's Iker Casillas.
"When a club the size of Manchester United comes in for you it obviously makes you very happy," said De Gea.
"I saw their interest as an extra motivation to work even harder to show off my ability.
"I am young but I'm coming here on the back of two full seasons in La Liga in Spain so I think I've got enough experience to contribute to such a big club.
"I am planning to work extremely hard and do the best I can."
The transfer takes Ferguson's summer spending over the £50million mark and seems certain to signal the departure of Tomasz Kuszczak, who was on the bench for United's Champions League defeat to Barcelona last month.
A search for further reinforcements will continue, especially now Paul Scholes has followed Van der Sar into retirement, with a move for Arsenal's Samir Nasri now anticipated as hopes to capture Wesley Sneijder, Luka Modric and Alexis Sanchez start to recede.
However, De Gea already feels United have plenty to look forward to, and reckons avenging that Champions League loss is not the impossible dream it appeared at the time.
"Of course everybody wants to win the Premier League," he said.
"That's no different from me - I'd like to do that but also aiming to win the Champions League is realistic. That is what we're going to do."

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David Goodwillie - Rangers target.
RANGERS MUST UP THE ANTE

Rangers will have to up the ante to land Scotland pair David Goodwillie and Lee Wallace.
The Clydesdale Bank Premier League champions had a bid for Dundee United striker Goodwillie rejected on Wednesday after finally acting on their long-standing interest in the 22-year-old, who signed a one-year contract extension until 2013 with Dundee United in March.
Rangers will have to dig deeper to land Goodwillie, who has also been the reported subject of interest from npower Championship side Cardiff.
A United spokesman told Press Association Sport: "We can confirm we have received a bid from Rangers for David Goodwillie.
"The bid has been rejected because it does not meet our valuation."
Hearts were understood to be mulling over a fresh approach for Wallace after rejecting a bid of £300,000 last week for the left-back, who is out of contract next summer.
Rangers boss Ally McCoist earlier this week admitted his interest in the pair.
Meanwhile, the Glasgow club expect David Healy to extend his stay at Ibrox, but the future of SPL-winning captain David Weir remains uncertain.
Northern Ireland international striker Healy endured an injury-ravaged spell at Ibrox last term but has apparently done enough to earn a new deal under McCoist.
Weir, though, may have to wait to discover if he is part of McCoist's plans for next term. The 41-year-old defender is out of contract this summer.
Coach Ian Durrant hopes Weir has a future at Ibrox.
Durrant said: "Davie is a great person about the dressing room and has been our leader for the last four years. Hopefully he and the boss can come to an agreement."

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Dele Adebola - joining Hull.
DELE ADEBOLA SEALS HULL MOVE

Hull have completed the signing of veteran striker Dele Adebola on a free transfer from Championship rivals Nottingham Forest.
Adebola has been strongly linked with a move to the KC Stadium in recent weeks and has now agreed a one-year contract with the Tigers.
He will add a physical presence to Nigel Pearson's attack next season and the 36-year-old is looking forward to a new challenge.
"I saw as an outsider what an impact the manager and his playing squad at Hull had on the Championship last season and I want to be involved in the progress made here last season," Adebola told the club's official website.
"I'm really excited about taking on a new challenge and to get that opportunity at a big club such as Hull is great for me."
The former Crewe and Coventry forward scored five goals in 62 Championship appearances during his time at Forest and becomes Hull's third signing of the summer.

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Torsten Frings - moving to Canada.
TORONTO SNAP UP FRINGS, KOEVERMANS

Major League Soccer outfit Toronto FC have announced the signings of veteran duo Torsten Frings and Danny Koevermans.
Former Germany international Frings, 34, and Koevermans, 32, have arrived at the Canadian side on free transfers, putting pen to paper on 'designated player' deals - meaning their contracts fall outside the constrictions of the club's salary cap.
Midfielder Frings, who has made 79 appearances for Germany, was released by Werder Bremen at the end of last season while Koevermans, a prolific striker in his homeland and capped four times by Holland, has been without a club since leaving PSV Eindhoven.
Toronto's director of player development Paul Mariner hailed the double capture as a major coup for the club.
"From a development of players view point, to bring players in of the calibre of Torsten and Danny, it's going to be big for the young players," said Mariner.
"They are going to have some unbelievable role models to look up to.
"I know that they are the right people, the right calibre of people, because contrary to popular belief, players like this don't grow on trees.
"I know there are a lot of players available now with contracts ending over in Europe, but you've got to sift through and go through the right character as well as the right abilities."
Toronto's coach, former Holland international Aron Winter, also welcomed the arrival of the new big-name signings.
"This is a big day for us," Winter said.
"In the system that I want to play, it's very important that each line has a leader."
Frings and Koevermans are not eligible to play for their new club until July 15. Their MLS debuts are therefore likely to come against FC Dallas on July 20.

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Lee - linked with a move to join Allardyce at West Ham.
SAMMY LEE LEAVES LIVERPOOL - REPORT

Liverpool have reportedly parted company with assistant manager Sammy Lee.
The reasons for the Anfield legend's departure are unclear and the club have yet to comment on the reports, but the appointment of Steve Clarke last season may have minimised his role.
Lee, who had been working as part of Kenny Dalglish's staff, has already been linked with a move to West Ham, where he would be reunited with former Bolton colleague Sam Allardyce.
The ex-Liverpool player had been a part of the coaching staff since being appointed as reserve team coach by Graeme Souness in 1993.
He was promoted to a first-team role under Roy Evans and kept his position when Gerard Houllier became the sole manager.
Lee left Liverpool in 2004, when he took up a full-time position with England before becoming Allardyce's assistant at Bolton.
The now-52-year-old succeeded Allardyce as manager at Bolton, but was sacked after winning just one match in 11 and returned to Anfield in 2008 as a deputy to Rafa Benitez.

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Mouyokolo - loan confirmed by Sochaux.
MOUYOKOLO JOINS SOCHAUX ON YEAR LOAN

Wolves defender Steven Mouyokolo has moved to Sochaux on a season-long, according to the Ligue 1 club.
Mouyokolo passed a medical this morning before agreeing a deal that Sochaux can make permanent at the end of the season.
"The FCSM has registered their second arrival with the loan of Wolverhampton Wanderers central defender Steven Mouyokolo," a statement on the club's website, www.fcsochaux.fr, read.
"He will be officially presented on Wednesday afternoon.
"Mouyokolo committed to the club this morning after a meeting and successfully completing his medical.
"The central defender, who turned 24 on January 24, is on loan with option to buy."
Mouyokolo moved to Molineux from Hull last summer but his first-team opportunities were severely limited.
He will now return to France, where his impressive form during short spells at Gueugnon and Boulogne saw him signed by then-Hull boss Phil Brown in 2009.
The Congolese-born Frenchman becomes Sochaux's second summer signing after the club completed a deal to sign midfielder Sebastien Roudet from Lens.