The Middle East to move for Terry

John Terry’s name is being bounded around in the United Arab Emirates, as the money men look at the possibility of bringing the former England captain to the region.

Terry, 32, has been pushed to the outskirts of the Chelsea team by Rafa Benitez and clubs in the UAE are investigating a lucrative deal as the Blues captain nears the end of his career.

A source in the UAE told the Sunday Mirror Sport: “There are a few clubs that could afford John Terry and his signing would be a massive coup over here.”

One of those rumoured to be interested is his former England manager Sven Goran Eriksson, who is the current Sporting Director at  Al Nasr, others are UAE Pro League champions Al-Ain and Al Jazira.

Terry has already been approached by the chairman of Al Jazira Sports Company, Sheikh Mansour, who tried to tempt him to Manchester City in 2009.

The 32 year old’s contract, which he got as a result of City’s interest, runs out next year, meaning Chelsea chairman Roman Abramovich will have to decide if he wants to keep Terry at the club beyond his current £150,000 a week deal. The Russian’s choice of new manager could play a role in the defender’s future, as some may favour him more than others.

Terry has expressed his desire to stay at the Bridge for the remainder of his career, but he and his family regularly holiday in Dubai and negotiations over a new contract haven’t taken place yet, alerting clubs in the Middle East of his possible availability.

Sides in the region have moved away from buying players towards the end of their career; who were brought in for off the field benefits, and have recently gone for players at the peak of their powers.

As Terry enters the twilight period of his career, he may see the opportunity to move to the UAE as one last big pay day, but he has turned down large money moves in the past, as football is usually his first choice.

PSG will go to all lengths for Welsh winger

PSG “will do everything in their power” to sign Bale

Paris Saint-Germain “will do everything in their power” to attract Gareth Bale to the French capital, according to the person who brought him to White Hart Lane, say the Daily Mail.

Former Tottenham director of football, Damien Comolli, identified Bale as a future prospect while at Southampton and advised Spurs chairman Daniel Levy to sign the Welshman in 2007.

Bale has been the main threat in a Tottenham side that sit third in the Premier League and are in pole position to claim Europe’s elite prize; Champions League football, with North London rivals Arsenal seven points adrift in fifth place.

Comolli told the Sun: “When you leave Tottenham and you are a player like Bale, there are only three or four clubs you can go to.

“If PSG know the player is on the market – and there is a possibility – it wouldn’t surprise me if they did everything in their power to get him.”

Bale would be offered a huge deal to move to Paris, as the French club aren’t shy to throw their money about, in their attempt to make the club a world superpower.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Sliva were brought to the Parc de Princes in the summer, David Beckham was added to the roster in January and Bale would be a huge coup over the rest of Europe.

The 23 year old has impressed domestically and abroad scoring 11 goals in 2013, attracting the interest of Europe’s elite, with Spanish duo Real Madrid and Barcelona showing interest.

Bale has hinted that the French leaders could be out of the question if he is to leave North London. He told French TV show Telefoot: “PSG are a great team. This is a club for the future, but they are still not at the level of great clubs. Not like Bayern, Real or Barcelona.”

Clubs will have to pay huge sums for the winger, Real Madrid are rumoured to be weighing up a £110 million package to land the winger, knowing they will have to compete with a pay rise at White Hart Lane if Spurs make the Champions League.

Bale hasn’t ruled out staying in North London and Daniel Levy will fight to keep his man by shattering his strict wage structure, offering the Welshman up to £160,00 a week.

PSG can fight fire with fire in the financial department, the big stumbling block for the French side will be the player’s needs. Bale’s footballing needs will see him stay at Spurs or move to either Spain or Germany, wage needs would land him in France.

If Bale can believed through his quotes, it is his footballing needs that will prevail; then it will all depend on whether Champions League football will make its return to White Hart Lane next season.

Liverpool’s Luis Suarez vs Manchester City’s David Silva

Two players shine week in, week out for Manchester City and Liverpool and they didn’t disappoint in the 2-2 draw at the Etihad Stadium.

David Silva and Luis Suarez are the stand out performers for their sides this season, and whoscored.com put together a comparison table of the two players to highlight where they may just have the edge over each other.

whoscored.com

They both play an integral role for their respective clubs, but who is more valuable to their team?

They undertake different roles, while being equally pivotal to their sides goal threat; Liverpool look to Suarez to be their hit-man, while City see Silva as the mastermind just behind the front man, but also chipping in with the odd goal.

Suarez, 26, has had his troubles on and off the pitch in his time at Anfield, but has the Kop’s hopes resting on him. In 24 Premier League games he has notched up 17 goals, scoring a goal every 126 minutes of football, making him the leagues second highest goalscorer behind Robin Van Persie.

The Uruguayan’s importance in front of goal is represented in the club’s goal tally, as captain Steven Gerrard is second on the list with six league goals and January singing Daniel Sturridge third with three.

The down side to the striker is his discipline, Suarez has picked up seven yellow cards this season and is starting to get a reputation for simulation, but there is no doubt he is key to Liverpool’s chances of reaching European football and Brendon Rogers knows this. When he is fit and available, Suarez starts, and he hasn’t found himself on the bench this season in the league.

Silva on the other hand goes about his business quietly keeping his head down, not picking up a single booking in 22 games. He is the typical modern Spanish midfielder, small, quick, agile, with a great touch and vision.

Silva creates space between City’s midfield and striker, finding that killer ball that splits defences in half. The World Cup winner has a pass completion rate of 85.5%, which is highly impressive given that the Spaniard has made 1,304 passes, which has enabled him to  create 64 chances for his teammates, while having five assists.

Both players are two of the best in world, but for the impact each has on their team, Suarez is the most valuable. Liverpool wouldn’t have thoughts of Europe if the Uruguayan wasn’t at Anfield; and even with the additions of Sturridge and Philippe Coutinho, Suarez is still the main threat for opposition defences. While at City they have a number of players that could come in and do a similar job; maybe not to the same quality but who still have that creative mindset.

Cavani’s £54m buyout clause doesn’t phase Manchester City or PSG

A week hasn’t gone by since transfer deadline day, already managers and chairman are lining up transfer targets for the summer, with Manchester City and PSG setting down their markers for Napoli’s £40 million Edinson Cavani according to the Daily Mail.

Cavani, 25, has a buy out clause of £54 million in the five year contract he singed in 2011 and buyers have been warned they will have to pay up if they want the services of the Uruguayan international.

Roberto Mancini is reportedly looking to offload Carlos Tevez, Edin Dzeko and Samir Nasri in the summer as a result of the UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules, and has made the striker his main target for the summer to replace January export Mario Balotelli.

Cavani has scored 18 goals in 20 appearances this season in Serie A, 26 in all competitions, but its not just this season in which he’s been exceptional. In the previous two seasons for Napoli, the Uruguayan recorded 26 and 23 goals in 35 league games each term, showing why he has such a high price on his head and attracting admirers with the capabilities of City and PSG.

The French giants have the financial power to meet the Italian’s price demand and the Star reported that PSG’s director of football Leonardo and Cavani’s representatives met in January and they are still showing interest in the striker as he tried arrange the beginnings of a summer transfer.

They are looking to strengthen their forward line which is currently dominated by Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who has scored 20 goals in Ligue 1; PSG’s next highest goal scorer is Kevin Gameiro with only five and so Cavani would give the Swede much needed support.

The 25 year old, who had been linked with a bid from Arsenal in January, has been quoted as saying: “If a club has a clear project and they want to focus on me, they can’t be frightened in front of this figure.”

Both clubs also  have their sights set on the same second choice striker, Atletico Madrid’s Radamel Falcao, so be prepared for a high price shootout between two of football’s richest clubs.

Southampton’s net transfer spend was £4.2m : Analysis

There wasn’t a lot of business done at St Mary’s in January but there was plenty of change at the South Coast club.

Nigel Adkins was sacked as manager after his side came back from 2-0 down against the champions of Europe Chelsea to snatch a 2-2 draw, leading them to three points above the relegation zone. This was too little too late to save Adkins and Argentine Mauricio Pochettino was brought in by Southampton chairmen Nicola Cortese.

The Saints did make an addition to the playing staff despite the change of manager. Vegard Forren, 24, was purchased for £4.2 million from Norwegian champions Molde, signing a three and a half year deal, after initially being linked with Liverpool.

The left footed centre back won awards back in Norway after his performances in 2012; collecting the NISO Golden Ball (player of the year) and 2012 Knicksenprisen (defender of the year), as well as being awarded his first international cap for Norway and has now got five caps to his name.

Pochetinno will look to Forren to add quality to the defence and help sure up the Saints back line, as they fight to stay in the Premier League.

Disappointment for Saints would be in the failure of their linked transfer with Liverpool’s new signing Philippe Coutihno. Southampton were rumoured to be looking to hijack the Red’s bid, as new gaffer Pochetinno worked with the Brazilian in Spain at Espanyol. The 20 year old could have played a significant role at Southampton and would have gone a long way to securing their safety in the top flight, with the quality he would have  brought to the midfield.

On the other hand the Saints fans will be happy they managed to keep the first team intact especially captain Adam Lallana, who will be like a new signing, coming back after two months from a knee injury.  Striker Rickie Lambert also remains st St Mary’s as does youngster Luke Shaw, who will sign a new contract on his 18th birthday, after collecting admirers from Premier League clubs with his performances this season, none more so than Arsenal.

Not a lot of money has been splashed out at Southampton, but I feel they have enough to beat the drop.

West Brom may grant Peter Odemwingie a London move after all

Peter Odemwingie’s future looks like it could lie at Selhurst Park as the emergency loan window opens, according to reports in  the Daily Mail.

Championship promotion chasers Crystal Palace are showing interest in West Brom’s forward, after he drove to QPR to try to force a move on deadline day; but these ill fated actions fell through, and subsequent disciplinary measures have been taken.

Palace are looking to loan the striker with the intention of a permanent deal at the end of the season, paying an initial fee, then a further payment if the Eagles are promoted to the Premier League this campaign.

Odemwingie, 31, has been criticised by Baggies chairmen, manager and fans for his actions on deadline day after the move collapsed. He also faced a barrage of abuse on Twitter, but has now accepted West Brom’s punishment and returned to training making him available for first team selection.

The move to South London may come down to whether the Nigerian would drop down a level to the Championship for the remainder of the season, while at the same time West Brom boss Steve Clarke has a difficult decision to make. Moving Odemwingie on, will leave him short of options, but keeping the striker at the Hawthorns may disrupt the dressing room, as the actions of the past couple of weeks hasn’t sat well with some members of the squad.

Another factor will be if Palace can afford his reported £39,000 a week wages, but they will want to spend some of the £15 million they recieved for Wilfried Zaha on a replacement. If they do achieve promotion, Odemwingie would give them valuable experience in their first season back in the Premier League.

The 31 year old has now apologised for the actions which Clarke described as “total lunacy”, and the manager has said he hasn’t played his last game for the Baggies. Now the apology has come, Odemwingie’s West Brom future might be saved, but if he has caused a rift too wide in the Hawthorn’s dressing room he maybe moving to London after all; just not to the club he first thought.

Have Newcastle £13m Earmarked For Summer Signings Already?

Newcastle United’s French revolution looks as though it is to continue through the summer, as they have their sights set on Pierre-Emerick Aubameya and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin, according to reports in Italy.

Newcastle set a Premier league record against Aston Villa for the most French players to represent a club in a season, as Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa became the eighth French player to play for the Toon this campaign, and Newcastle managing director Derek Llambias has revealed they haven’t finished yet.

There might be slight disappointment for the Franco-Newcastle fans, as Aubameya represents Gabon at international level, but he is French speaking and did represent France U21’s for one game. The striker, who is known for wearing a pair of £2,500 crystal covered boots, was valued by his club St Etienne at £10 million, when Toon boss Alan Pardew offered the French club £8 million in January.

The French born striker has scored 11 goals in Ligue 1, as his side sit fourth in the league; and with the vacancy that Demba Ba left on Tyneside when he moved to Chelsea, Pardew will be hoping he can get his man as back up for Papiss Cisse.

The gaffer maybe looking for another replacement in his second target Isimat-Mirin, with center back Fabricio Coloccini possibly making a return back to his native Argentina.

Like Aubameya, Isimat-Mirin was also pursued in January and the 21 year old was rated at £5 million by his club Valenciennes.

They made no offer in January for the French under 21 international, who graduated from the Clairfontaine Academy, which boasts producing players such as Thierry Henry, Louis Saha and David Trezeguet.

The center back, who is out of contract in 16 months, has the physicality and aerial strength to survive in the Premier League, the problem comes when he tries to steal the ball. His judgement and timing is still a bit weak, but the youngster is improving with experience and taking things on board.

Liverpool were also showing some interest in the defender, but the French revolution in the North East looks set to continue for another transfer window at least.

Why Danny Graham is worth all the fuss

Swansea’s Danny Graham is about to take the central role in a bidding war as Queens Park Rangers join the battle to sign him in the January transfer window.

Sunderland, Norwich, Aston Villa and Reading have already showed interest in the 27 year old who has been on the rough end of Miguel Michu’s run of excellent form, starting just 10 league games this season.

According to the Daily Mail Harry Redknapp is considering a £4 million bid for the forward but it is Sunderland who are the favourites to sign the Englishman.

Last season Graham was one of the main men at the Liberty Stadium but has fallen out of favour with the emergence of the Spaniard, but has still managed to bag himself six goals in all competitions.

The striker still has a lot to offer for a mid table side that plays his style of football. He wouldn’t fit into a club that plays a direct game, but with the ball played into his feet, Graham will be effective for the manager.

The Gateshead born player showed how valuable he was to the Swans when his late goal against Arsenal kept them in the FA Cup and there is one thing for sure, the 27 year old knows where the goal is.

The majority of clubs chasing Graham are in trouble at the bottom of the table or trying to stay out of the relegation battle and he could be just the player they need. He will give a 100%, cares about both the team and individual performance, which is what Redknapp  is unsure some players at Loftus Road are committed to. With the lack of goals at QPR, he should match up well with Adel Taarabt  if he did make the move.

His statistics from last season show what Graham can do when he is getting regular football in the Premier League. In 32 league starts he found the back of the net 12 times, which is a smart return for a team in their first season back in the top flight, helping the Swans secure their Premier League status.

It’s not just his goal scoring, he’s confident on the ball, dictating play, and taking a huge role in the play in the final third.

For £4 million, Graham is worth all the attention he is getting at the moment from a number of clubs. With passion, pride and a sense of knowing where the goal is, he is made up of the qualities clubs and managers in the bottom half of the table want, so it’s no surprise there may be a bidding war about to start.

Five Kevin Strootman facts

PSV’s dominating midfielder Kevin Strootman has three top English clubs chasing his signature according to Talksport.

The Dutchman has been linked with Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool for some time, but PSV have insisted that the 22 year old is not for sale, yet inside sources have suggested if the price is right he will be allowed to leave, which may start a bidding war between the three giants.

The price believed to be the magic number is £18 million and reports in Italy have stated that an English club have come forward. With AC Milan also showing interest, it’s Old Trafford that is at the forefront of the Strootman’s mind as he openly spoke about the pride of being linked with United and has expressed his desire to play in the Premier League.

Here are five things that we might need to know about the 22 year old, if indeed he does come to the Premier League.

1) Strootman made his international debut four days before his 21st Birthday in a friendly against Austria and he has gone on to win 15 caps; scoring his maiden goal against Finland in September of the same year. The Midfielder came through the ranks of the Dutch set up and was included in their Euro 2012 squad.

2) The 22 year old became Holland’s youngest ever captain in a competitive match, when he led his country out in World Cup qualifiers against Andora and Romania in the absence of Wesley Sneijder, demonstrating the promise and respect he has in Holland. He has gone from second tier football to national captain in just two years.

3) Even though he is known as a deep lying, holding midfielder, he used to be more attacking earlier in his career, especially during  his days playing for Sparta Rotterdam, and that has shown in his play this season. With the introduction of Mark Van Bommel at Philips Stadion, he has been allowed not to just think about being a containing midfielder but also to look forward and affect the play in the opposition half, resulting in five goals and five assists in 18 Dutch Eredivisie appearances, which has been by far his most prolific season in front of goal. He hasn’t forgotten his main job though, picking up four yellow cards in the league.

4) In his short career he has felt the pain of relegation. In his opening season of first team football, he was outstanding playing for Sparta and excitement was created around the youngster. His second season was completely different, the lowest point of his career, as Sparta for only the second time in their history were relegated to the second tier football.

5) Strootman signed for Sparta in 2007 and was elevated to the first team in 2008. After a fantastic first season of professional football he created real interest from other clubs. After relegation the following year, he gained a lot of respect in Holland for  his loyalty by staying with the club at the start of the following season, when bigger teams namely champions at the time FC Twente came calling. He played another 16 times for Sparta, before moving back to the top flight in the winter, signing for FC Etrecht and quickly moved on to PSV. He has emerged as one of the best midfielders of his age around the world.

http://threeandin.com/2013/01/09/5-kevin-strootman-facts-some-of-which-are-almost-worth-knowing/

Modric could make a quick U turn back to England

Real Madrid failure Luka Modric is looking for a way back to England before his career in Spain has even got underway. 

The former Tottenham midfielder hasn’t managed to set La Liga alight this season, producing some patchy performances resulting in him being voted the worst summer transfer in Spain on Marca’s website.

The Croatian has started just eight league games this season and scored  only one goal in 19 appearances in all competitions since his £33 million move from White Hart Lane, being unable to force his way into the side in front of Mesut Ozil, Jose Callejon and Angel di Maria.

Modric knows he hasn’t lived up to expectations, much like he failed to do so in his early career with Tottenham, he told Sportske.net: “This is Real Madrid, I know the huge media pressure on transfers.

“I’m not looking for an alibi, I’m not that guy, but it’s very demanding to adjust to a huge club like Real Madrid.

“I have had some solid performances, I have failed in some but overall I proved I can offer something.”

The Daily Mail suggests there are a whole host of English clubs showing interest in the 27 year old  if he does want to leave the Santiago Bernabeu. Those interested are the two Manchester giants, Chelsea and a return to Tottenham shouldn’t be ruled out. It is unlikely he will move in January but a summer move is  highly possibile if he doesn’t come to terms with life in the Spanish capital.

Manchester United have been linked with a number of attacking midfielders with Paul Scholes’ second retirement on the cards. Wesley Sniejder is the favourite to fill his boots at the moment and with the Champions League clash between United and Madrid would the Spaniards really let  Modric go to Old Trafford. Another reason Old Trafford may not be his destination are the rumours that Cristiano Ronaldo is unsettled and wants a return to Manchester. With the huge amount of cash it is going to take to get the Portugal captain out of Madrid in the summer will they be able to afford Modric.

United’s city rivals have also shown interest, with the absence of Yaya Toure due to the African Cup of Nations it might be an option. Roberto Mancini has expressed his attraction for the Croatian and after failing to bring Daniele De Rossi to the Etihad he might pursue the situation if Modric becomes available.

If it’s not Manchester, London will be his destination. A move back to White Hart Lane is a possibility. Madrid have shown interest and are pushing for a move for Spurs midfielder Gareth Bale, so a switch could be on the cards, but that all depends on Welshman’s wishes. If  Bale doesn’t want to leave Andre Villas Boas’ side, Tottenham will have to stump up the money, which they might not have at the moment, but it won’t cost £33 million this time to complete the deal.

My favourite to sign the 27 year old is Chelsea. Modric has nearly signed for the Stamford Bridge side in the last two summers, but stuck with Spurs then moved to Madrid. He would fit right in with the Chelsea midfield and he should be guaranteed a starting position. With Frank Lampard getting ever closer to the end of his Chelsea days, Roman Abramovich will be looking for a big name to take over; and when the Russian has his heart set on something he usually gets it.