Latest Transfer Update at 14-04-2012

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Latest Transfer Update at 14-04-2012

Balotelli: Told his attitude must change

BALOTELLI ON THIN ICE - MANCINI

Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini has told controversial striker Mario Balotelli he must change his ways to remain at the club.
The warning came as a leading players' union official claimed the 21-year-old needs professional help for his disciplinary problems.
Mancini said he would "probably" try to sell Balotelli in the summer after his sending off in last weekend's defeat at Arsenal, which was merely the latest in a long line of misdemeanours.
Balotelli has since apologised and stated his commitment to the club, a gesture which Mancini has accepted but the City manager today indicated actions would speak louder than words.
He said: "We are happy but it doesn't change the situation.
"If he wants to stay he should change his mind.


"I spoke with Mario a lot of times about this.
"I don't think he can stay here for 10 years together with me. This is impossible.
"But if tomorrow, or in two or three years, he changes managers or squads
it is important he changes his behaviour.
"He has a lot of quality but he can lose it with his attitude."
Balotelli has courted controversy for his antics on and off the field throughout his two seasons at City.
The Italian might also have been hit with an additional ban on top of the three-match suspension he received for his Arsenal red card had a studs-up challenge on Alex Song been punished.


Theo van Seggelen, the secretary general of world players' union FIFPro, believes Balotelli has to accept he has a problem.
Van Seggelen told BBC Sport: "I think he is a good guy but he has to change his behaviour for two reasons.
"First he is a role model, but also he is playing in a team and he is playing against another team and he has to respect his colleagues.
"I think that we have to realise and conclude that, after all these incidents, my personal opinion is that he needs, really, professional help.
"I don't want to blame Manchester City because it is his own responsibility, but Manchester City [have] their responsibility.
"I have looked back over all the incidents that happened in the last couple of years and it seems to me he is apologising all the time, but he has proved he cannot do it by himself and therefore I said he really needs professional help."
Balotelli serves the second game of a three-match ban for his latest red card as City travel to Norwich on Saturday.

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Eden Hazard: Wanted by Manchester United

MAN UTD COACH CONFIRMS HAZARD CHASE

Manchester United coach Rene Meulensteen admits Eden Hazard is on Sir Alex Ferguson's wanted list.
Hazard is being chased by a host of clubs across Europe, with the Belgium international expected to leave Lille in the summer.
United, Manchester City and Tottenham have all watched the schemer in action as they weigh up moves for Hazard at the end of the season.
Hazard has previously admitted he was flattered by United's reported interest in his services and now Meulensteen has confirmed the 21-year-old is highly thought of at Old Trafford.
"The manager wanted to see (Eden) Hazard by himself. That's a sign he thinks it's an interesting player. We talked a lot about him," Meulensteen told Voetbal International.


"For a club it's important that you keep refreshing your squad.
"Hazard is a special talent, but it always takes a while. As (an) example, we followed David de Gea for a long time before we got him.
"Ferguson wants to know the character of the player. Because of that he's going to look himself for players. Hazard is 'the man' at Lille. Ferguson wanted to see if that had an influence on him."

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Dalglish: No danger of losing his job

COMOLLI OUT BUT DALGLISH SAFE

Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has admitted owners Fenway Sports Group decided director of football Damien Comolli was not the man to deliver their vision for the club.
But manager Kenny Dalglish has been told his position is not under immediate threat.
"We've got great confidence in Kenny," Werner told Liverpool's website. "We feel the team is going to make strides in the future and he enjoys our full support."
When they bought Liverpool in October 2010, the Americans were keen to implement the 'Moneyball' theory to transfers which had been so successful at their other high-profile acquisition, the Boston Red Sox.


However, the owners have forked out the best part of £125million - with a net spend of about £70million - on big-money purchases like Andy Carroll (£35million), Luis Suarez (£22.8million), Stewart Downing (£20million) and Jordan Henderson (£16million) with limited success.
"We've had a strategy that we have agreed on. There was some disconnect on the implementation of that," said Werner, confirming they had made the decision to remove Comolli and also Peter Brukner, the head of sports medicine and sports science.
"That strategy is a strong one and it will continue. We need to build a strong system under the first team. We're hard at work identifying transfer targets and we will be better next year.


"Frankly, we make these decisions with a great deal of care because it's our track record in Boston to give people authority and we've had great success with our manager, who was there for eight years, and our general manager, so we prefer stability.
"But when it's time to act, we need to act. We're coming close to the end of the season and the transfer window for the summer and we felt it was important to make this change expeditiously.
"We feel there is enough talent on the pitch to win and I would say we certainly have the resources to compete with anybody in football.
"But we're also talking about the future. We have a strategy we need implemented and we felt Damien was probably not the right person to implement that strategy."


Comolli's departure does not, however, mean the director of football role has been abandoned entirely, although it may be return under a different guise.
"We're still confident the structure we've discussed is the right structure," Werner added. "That doesn't mean we won't look at tweaking it, but we feel a collective group of people making football decisions is healthy.
"The debate is healthy. Part of the reason we made this decision now is because we want to start the process of finding an excellent replacement."


Principal owner John Henry's target at the start of the season was to make it back into the top four, but their recent run of poor results scuppered those chances.

"We've been dissatisfied, as most supporters have been, with the results so far," said Werner of Liverpool's current position of eighth in the Premier League.
"We feel we are a club that needs to be perceived as the strongest club in football and we want to get there."

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Peter Odemwingie: Not for sale

HODGSON HOLDING ON TO ODEMWINGIE

West Brom manager Roy Hodgson is adamant star striker Peter Odemwingie is not for sale and insists the Nigerian will be at the Hawthorns next season.
Hodgson has rubbished speculation linking Odemwingie with a move to Fulham in exchange for Andrew Johnson.
Odemwingie was Albion's top scorer with 15 goals last season and has netted another 10 so far in the current campaign despite a series of injury niggles.
Hodgson said: "Peter Odemwingie is an important player for us and a player we believe in and a player we want to keep and a player who is not for sale.
"We don't welcome offers for Peter Odemwingie. He is a West Brom player at the moment and will be next season.
"We want to keep him and he is under contract. Very simple really."


Hodgson worked with Johnson during his spell in charge at Craven Cottage.
But he said: "It is very irritating when people just out of the blue suddenly start linking us with other players.
"I presume the link with Andy Johnson is based on the fact we worked together at Fulham and it is a player I admire as a footballer.
"He did a great job for me but, to be fair, he is not a player we've actually discussed in terms of next season."
Albion have a group of players out of contract or approaching the final 12 months of their current deals in James Morrison, Jonas Olsson, Keith Andrews, Nicky Shorey, Steven Reid, Paul Scharner, Jerome Thomas and Marc-Antoine Fortune.
But Hodgson is not expecting any swift decisions on their futures.
He said: "I don't think the situation we are in is any different to any other club. Every club has players who are either running out of contract or entering the last year.


"It is part and parcel of this time and year and trying to prepare for the next season.
"We've got time and most squads won't be finalised until August. That is how it's been the last few years and that is how it will be this year.
"I hope the players we are holding talks with would love to stay, I hope they sign the contracts and stay with the club."

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Sergio Aguero: Staying at the Etihad

SERGIO AGUERO: I'M GOING NOWHERE

Manchester City's top scorer Sergio Aguero has reiterated his commitment to the club following fresh speculation over his future.
The Argentinian spoke only recently about his love for life at the Etihad Stadium but rumours linking him with Spanish giants Real Madrid still resurfaced.
The 23-year-old, who has scored 26 goals since his club record £38million move from Atletico Madrid last summer, insists he will not be leaving and reports to the contrary are merely attempts to unsettle him.


When asked if there was any truth in the rumours, Aguero said: "No no, all of that, no.
"The truth is that I am happy here, happy with my fellow players and the rest of the staff.
"The only thing I have to do is enjoy playing football.


"I hardly ever do interviews. Sometimes I have to get in touch to deny or correct the claims but I can't dispel every claim that is written about me.
"I repeat that I am very happy here and they invent things to try to compromise me."
Aguero struck twice as City returned to form and cut Manchester United's lead at the top of the Premier League to five points with a 4-0 defeat of West Brom on Wednesday.
Manager Roberto Mancini felt his performance underlined just how damaging his recent two-game absence was.
Aguero was missing as the team were held to costly draws by Stoke and Sunderland because of a foot injury that was exacerbated by a treatment spray.


Mancini said: "I have always said he is our best striker and I was really upset to lose him for two games. That was like United losing (Wayne) Rooney."
Aguero also set up another on Wednesday for countryman Carlos Tevez, who scored for the first time in 11 months while making his first start since September.
The pair had started together for City only once before and have rarely been paired for their national team, but Aguero feels the partnership has promise.
He said: "Yes, obviously Carlos is a great player, like Edin (Dzeko) and Mario (Balotelli), and fortunately we know each other from (playing with) Argentina.
"He knows how I move and play and I know his game so we hope to be able to keep getting to know each other better and I'm happy for his first game."


City's other headline-grabbing striker, Mario Balotelli, missed the game as he began a three-match ban for his sending off against Arsenal on Sunday.
Mancini had said he would "probably" sell the 21-year-old after that latest in a long line of misdemeanours but Balotelli has since apologised and tensions seem to have eased.
His agent Mino Raiola told Sky Italia on Thursday: "There was a tense time between them but now all is calm."
He added: "Manchester City have no intention of selling him, on the contrary, they want to grow together."
Mancini said: "I accepted his apology - it is normal [now]. Everyone can make mistakes."

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Asamoah Gyan: Sunderland return unlikely Asamoah Gyan: Sunderland return unlikely

O'NEILL: GYAN UNLIKELY TO RETURN

Sunderland boss Martin O'Neill has hinted that record signing Asamoah Gyan is unlikely to return to the club.
The £13million-plus Ghana international striker is currently with United Emirates side Al-Ain on a season-long loan deal after securing a shock move away from the Stadium of Light in September.
That agreement was made three months before O'Neill succeeded Steve Bruce, the man who had signed the 26-year-old Gyan from French side Rennes barely 12 months earlier, and although there was talk of a return to Wearside in January, the lucrative agreement between the two clubs did not allow for that.
However, Gyan has two years remaining on his contract and while any decision on his future is yet to be finalised, O'Neill has suggested it may not lie with him.


He said: "The situation is, I believe it was a year-long loan for a start for which they had to pay us some money of the transfer fee which we paid in the first place, and that is still in existence.
"There was some talk between all parties in January that didn't come to anything. I wasn't party to those conversations, although I was kept informed of them, of course.
"I think it will be the end of the season before I can assess anything.
"There has to be a willingness on behalf of all parties as well; you wouldn't really want somebody who is really unwilling to come back to the football club, if that's the case.
"It's unfair of me to say that because it might not be the case, but it seems to be the message that's coming across."
While it would be no real surprise if Gyan did sever his ties with Sunderland, it would leave the Black Cats once again searching for a prolific goalscorer.
Gyan was signed to partner Darren Bent, who left for Aston Villa a little more than four months later, and Danny Welbeck's return to Manchester United and Gyan's unexpected departure left Bruce and then O'Neill short of firepower.
Nicklas Bendtner's capture on loan from Arsenal for the current campaign has gone some way towards addressing the situation, but with youngster Connor Wickham and South Korea international Ji Dong-won yet to be given their heads and Fraizer Campbell still dealing with the aftermath of a second lengthy injury lay-off, the cupboard remains rather bare.


However, amid mounting speculation over potential targets and possible departures, O'Neill insists he is yet to speak to owner Ellis Short about his plans for the summer.
He said: "I haven't considered it and I certainly haven't had an opportunity to speak to a very important man at the football club who happens to own it.
"We will sit down, we will assess it. I think he is going to be here for the last couple of games of the season, which is encouraging."
Meanwhile, the Black Cats will head into tomorrow's Barclays Premier League clash with bottom side Wolves with the respective fortunes of the two clubs having differed markedly since they last met on December 4.
That day O'Neill sat in the stands at Molineux having been announced as manager but yet to take charge, and saw the team he was about to inherit lose 2-1 despite taking the lead and squandering a penalty.
Wolves went three points ahead of their visitors that day but have since claimed just eight more, while O'Neill's men have amassed a further 31 to secure their place in the top flight.
O'Neill said: "I have to say I was obviously very concerned coming in. I got a great response from the players, a great response from the supporters and between them they got some results."


Sunderland might not have been in league action this weekend had they managed to make the most of the FA Cup quarter-final replay they earned with a 1-1 draw at Everton, although a 2-0 defeat on Wearside ended their dreams for another season.
O'Neill said: "I must admit, I look with a bit of envy at the match this weekend between Liverpool and Everton.
"I know how far we have come ourselves, so I don't know whether to be spurred by that there or to be in a state of deathliness."

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Giuseppe Rossi: Faces lengthy spell on the sidelines

ROSSI OUT OF EUROS WITH KNEE INJURY

Villarreal striker Giuseppe Rossi will miss Italy's Euro 2012 campaign after suffering another serious knee injury.
Rossi injured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during a defeat to Real Madrid last October and has aggravated the problem during a training session.

The 25-year-old former Manchester United forward will now require further surgery and faces another lengthy spell on the sidelines.


Rossi scored 32 goals in 56 appearances in all competitions during the 2010-11 season, leading to Italy coach Cesare Prandelli stating his desire to have the striker in his squad for this summer's European Championships in Poland and Ukraine.
Rossi has scored six goals in 27 appearances for Italy, also captaining the team in their friendly with Romania in November 2010.

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Rangers: Preferred bidder announcement delayed

MILLER STILL KEEN ON GERS TAKEOVER

American businessman Bill Miller remains in the running to takeover Rangers and has backed proposed changed to Scottish Premier League rules which would result in tougher sanctions for clubs who go into administration in future or face the prospect of liquidation.
Miller, a Singapore-based consortium led by Bill Ng - who on Thursday indicated he has no plans to withdraw his offer - and former Ibrox director Paul Murray's Blue Knights are in the running to take over the Glasgow giants.
Administrators Duff and Phelps said on Wednesday they were forced to delay announcing a preferred bidder as a result of the SPL resolutions, which will be considered on April 30.
If Rangers are liquidated, a 'newco' would be deducted 10 points for two seasons if accepted straight back into the SPL, and would also face financial penalties in the form of league payments being slashed by 75% for three seasons.
Miller has no qualms about the proposed regulations.
"I have responded to Duff and Phelps that I am in favour of a CVA (company voluntary arrangement) exit from administration," he told the Scottish Sun.
"After carefully reading the proposed SPL sanctions, it appears the only penalty that could impact the club is if Duff and Phelps was unable to complete the CVA by the start of the season.
"Consequently, my bid continues to be in place.


"In reviewing the proposed sanctions, it is clear any club going into administration in the future, including Rangers, would be severely penalised.
"In my view, this falls in line with the appropriate efforts of the various governing bodies to ensure clubs are operating within their means and are not mortgaging the future with excessive debt.
"I hope the Rangers representative at the SPL meeting votes in favour of all of the proposals as I believe they are in the best interest of the league and its members - including Rangers."
Meanwhile, directors Andrew Ellis and Dave King have called for the resignation of Rangers chairman Craig Whyte and approached administrators with their demand.
London property developer Ellis and King, a South Africa-based businessman, have contacted Duff and Phelps to call for Whyte to step down.
Ellis told The Daily Record: "Dave King and I do not want Whyte having any influence. He must resign."
Whyte has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing since taking over Rangers last May and since the club was plunged into administration on February 14.


A spokesman for Duff and Phelps, who are in discussions with three parties over a takeover at Ibrox, said: "The powers of all directors are effectively removed when a company goes into administration - unless the administrators decide otherwise.
"We will consider the request of Messrs Ellis and King and, if necessary, will review the position of any or all directors should it be a material issue for the preferred bidder, once that party is selected."

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Redknapp: Spurs' form has slumped of late

REDKNAPP: I DON'T THINK ABOUT ENGLAND

Harry Redknapp insists the possibility of taking to the Wembley dugout as England manager will not enter his mind when he takes Tottenham to the home of English football to face Chelsea in their FA Cup semi-final.
Redknapp is the overwhelming favourite to assume the England manager's role, which has been left vacant since Fabio Capello resigned in February.
Tottenham have won just twice in the Barclays Premier League since the Italian walked out on the Three Lions and critics say the two variables must be linked.
Redknapp himself takes offence at that suggestion, however, and insists his sole focus remains Tottenham.
"I never think about it (England). Honestly, I swear, I never think about anything other than just Tottenham Hotspur," Redknapp said, ahead of Sunday's clash.


"All I think about is trying to finish this season in that top four and get to the FA Cup final. Other than that there is nothing else to occupy my mind at all."
Redknapp's hopes of beating Chelsea to end Tottenham's 21-year wait for an FA Cup triumph have been hit by an injury crisis.
Younes Kaboul, Michael Dawson, Niko Kranjcar and Tom Huddlestone are all out this weekend while there are also doubts over the fitness of Ledley King and Louis Saha.
The problem is so severe Redknapp is considering recalling David Bentley, who has been out since October, when he suffered a knee injury while on loan at West Ham.
"We haven't got loads of players and looking at the squad, there is every chance David Bentley could be back on the bench. He is in the running," Redknapp said.
"David hasn't even played a game this season. He has been injured since he went to West Ham, but I'm struggling to find seven subs."
The likely centre-back pairing of William Gallas and Ryan Nelsen have a combined age of 68, but Redknapp has no qualms about throwing them in to battle against the likes of Juan Mata, Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba.


"I had five centre-halves in January but now those two are the last men standing," Redknapp said.
"But Ryan Nelsen wouldn't let me down, he's a fantastic competitor."

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Jurgen Klopp: Contracted until 2016

KLOPP GOING NOWHERE - DORTMUND

Borussia Dortmund general manager Hans-Joachim Watzke has warned that coach Jurgen Klopp is not going anywhere for at least the next four years.
Klopp led Dortmund to the title last season and the Westphalians are just two wins away from successfully defending their Bundesliga trophy, while they can then crown their season with a DFB-Pokal triumph next month.
The former Mainz coach recently signed a new contract until 2016 and Watke says there is no way that deal will be broken.
"We will be sticking to our agreements," Watzke told the Bild newspaper. "We have sworn an oath as friends.


"Klopp would not be available even for the Germany job, and we did discuss every eventuality during negotiations.
"Until 2016, there is nobody who can separate us."
Bayern Munich made enquiries about Klopp before he joined Dortmund four years ago and Watzke can understand their regret at that decision.
All he can advise Bayern president Uli Hoeness to do now is invest in his club by buying shares.
"People are making a good business out of them," he said. "It would not be a stupid idea for him to buy more Dortmund shares.


"He did buy a small amount back then (when the club was floated on the stock exchange), but he bought them at a bad time.
"The shares were a lot more expensive at floatation. Alone after our win over Bayern, 600,000 shares were traded.
"We are even going to suggest paying a dividend to our shareholders this year for the first time."