Latest Transfer Update at 18-11-11

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Villas-Boas: Unconcerned by Hiddink
AVB UNMOVED BY HIDDINK SPECULATION

Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas insists he is unconcerned about Guus Hiddink being back on the managerial market.
Hiddink left his position as Turkey head coach by mutual consent two days ago following the country's failure to qualify for the European Championships.
The 65-year-old, who won the FA Cup while caretaker Chelsea manager in 2009, was heavily linked with a return to Stamford Bridge in the summer, with reports claiming he was Roman Abramovich's number one choice to replace the sacked Carlo Ancelotti.
The job went instead to Villas-Boas, who the Blues have repeatedly insisted was their primary target all along.
Since leaving Turkey, Hiddink has been linked with a return to the club in an directorial capacity but Villas-Boas all but ruled that out.
He also shrugged off the prospect of the Dutchman being parachuted in as manager - as he was almost three years ago when Luiz Felipe Scolari was jettisoned - should his own position come under threat.
Villas-Boas said of Hiddink's current status as a free agent: "I have no problem with it."
Hiddink was only in charge of Chelsea for three months, losing just one Premier League game and a controversial Champions League semi-final on away goals.
"This was a good period for the club," said Villas-Boas.
"That doesn't mean he could always be as successful as that in a club of this dimension.
"But Guus is one of the best managers in the world.
"At the moment, there's not a vacancy. When there's a vacancy, I'm sure that he'll be one of the top candidates."
Hiddink, who is close to Abramovich and has reportedly advised the Russian in the past, may be more interested in a sporting director-type role.
"It's not structurally even thought about within the club," said Villas-Boas, who had "no idea" whether Hiddink continued to advise Abramovich.
Villas-Boas' job is under no immediate threat, unlike his bank balance and ability to patrol the touchline on matchdays should the FA find him guilty of improper conduct.
The Portuguese this week denied a charge over the comments he made about referee Chris Foy in last month's controversial west London derby at QPR.
Villas-Boas accused Foy at the time of failing to treat both sides equally but he insisted today that did not mean he had branded the official biased.
He said: "The charge implicates that I was calling him biased or questioning his integrity. I was not."
Asked why he had decided not to plead his case to the FA in person, he replied: "Because I have other things to do.
"I'm not worried. I understand that a charge cannot be taken lightly.
"It's the maximum body of English football, and I respect that, but it doesn't mean I agree with it and it doesn't mean I have to defend it to death.
"I think I am defending it to death with you, publicly.
"It's not for me to go in front of a panel to talk about it. I don't have to do that."
Villas-Boas also insisted he remained convinced Didier Drogba would sign a new contract at Chelsea.
The 33-year-old has yet to reach an agreement to extend the deal which expires next summer and was linked this week with both AC Milan and mega-rich Russians Anzhi Makhachkala.
Drogba could make his comeback from suspension and arm surgery in Sunday's crunch clash with Liverpool, although he is likely to play second fiddle to £50million man Fernando Torres once more.
Torres flopped on his Chelsea debut against his former club in February but Villas-Boas was confident Kenny Dalglish's men would see a different player this time around.
He said: "Fernando has, of course, picked up from last season, as you've been aware, not only with his form, physically, but also his availability in terms of movement for the team.
"(He's) back to his old sharpness and goalscoring terms, so we are pretty happy with the way he's performing."

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Reina: Liverpool haven't missed Torres
REINA: TORRES NOT MISSED DUE TO SUAREZ

Goalkeeper Jose Reina believes Liverpool have not missed striker Fernando Torres since his £50million move to Chelsea as replacement Luis Suarez is even better.
Reina and Torres sat on the same bench together at Wembley a week ago for Spain's 1-0 defeat to England but on Sunday they face each other for only the second time since the forward's transfer to Stamford Bridge.
Back in February Torres made his Chelsea debut against his former club but drew a blank and was replaced after 66 minutes as Raul Meireles - now also at Stamford Bridge - scored the only goal for the Reds.
Since then the paths of the 27-year-old Spaniard and that of new Anfield hero Suarez have taken different directions.
Suarez has assumed his predecessor's role as primary goalscorer and quickly won over fans with his performances and goals - he's got seven already this season.
Reina expects the £22.8million January arrival from Ajax to match and then surpass Torres' record of 81 goals in 141 appearances in three-and-a-half years.
"Fernando is top class; Luis is as good or even better than Fernando," said the Reds goalkeeper, speaking at the launch of his book Pepe: My Autobiography.
"Those players are really special. You don't find those kind of players very often.
"The club did a good job in signing Luis and hopefully he will be many years with us and hopefully he will score as many goals as Fernando."
Torres has admitted he has found it more difficult to settle in London than he did in Liverpool and that has been reflected in his form.
In the first half of last season he scored nine Premier League goals in a red shirt but since moving to Chelsea he has just three league goals and two Champions League goals (both in the same match against minnows Genk) to his name.
Reina counts Torres as one of his best friends in football and they lived in the same street in Woolton in Liverpool before his compatriot left and Suarez moved into the same house.
And despite the striker's struggles at Stamford Bridge he expects him to rediscover the form which made him one of the most deadly strikers in the world at his peak.
"He is the same player but it is a different team so it is difficult to judge (how he compares to his best form for Liverpool)," added Reina.
"I think there are a lot of periods when goalscorers' lives are like that.
"Sometimes you do it, sometimes you go through bad spells but Fernando does know how to score and is a very good player.
"With Juan Mata (another international team-mate) behind him he will deliver more goals and will be better.
"He (Torres) is such a good player and he will be a real threat for us - not just him because they have a lot of good players that can create us problems.
"It is going to be a tough game. We have to do things right and hopefully we will take three massive points."
While the former Atletico Madrid's forward departure from Anfield almost a year ago still rankles with many fans Reina was not surprised.
Torres handed in a transfer request just days before the end of the January window and his deal went through just minutes before it closed.
But Reina admitted in his book he had expected him to leave in the summer after he returned to Merseyside as a World Cup winner.
"It was his decision. We have to respect that," he said.
"It (the transfer fee) was such a large amount of money but it was still a difficult thing for the club.
"Nothing was clear but Fernando, for me, thought he had to leave the team to continue growing as a player."
Reina himself has been close to leaving on a couple of occasions during the troubled reign of former owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.
However, under the ownership of Fenway Sports Group, who celebrated their first anniversary in charge last month, he views the situation much more positively.
"I am glad to be here and still be a part of this club," he said.