One more day to go and Happy Hour will be upon us. Most clubs out there are queuing up in the same orderly fashion that one witness outside state-run beverage corporations, but there’s always that over-smart bugger going “Jaanta hai mera baap kaun hain?” (translates to “do you know who my daddy is) trying to cut the line by waving his huge wallet in everyone’s faces... But enough about China, let’s move on to the real deal shall we?
So here are all the best little pieces of transfer news and rumours from yesterday’s ‘action’.
Serie A
- AC Milan are interested in Francesc Fabregas and Jack Wilshere. We don’t know why the sudden “was-great-at-Arsenal” players love in comes from, but the Rossoneri – on the rise since their rather abrupt decline into nothingness – are interested in signing on or both of the little midfield tyros as they try to recreate a fraction of the class that used to ooze across the San Siro turf just a few years ago, While Fabregas is unsettled at Chelsea – what with Signor Antonio Conte prefferring the much more positionally reliable Nemanja Matic and N’Golo Kante to do the the job in his new-fangled good ol’ 3-4-3 – and may well be interested in a move to Italy. Meanwhile Jack Wilshere has gone all of half-a-season un-injured (*crosses fingers* *touches wood*) and has already started attracting interest from everywhere – joining Milan in the hunt for the talented Arsenal player are fellow Juventus-chasers AS Roma.
- AC Milan are at it again. This time they are being linked with ex-La Masia graduate and current Everton disappearing act Gerard Deulofeu. They have come a long way from the times of Kaka and Clarence Seedorf, have the Milanese. With Ronald Koeman using the exciting, if a tad inconsistent, young winger in intermittent fashion, this is another rumour that may well come into fruition sooner rather than later. Just to make sure there is an element of fun is involved, Deportivo La Coruna and Marseille are both also interested in the winger, who will be a useful addition as an X-Factor to any side.
– Meanwhile cross-town neighbours Inter Milan are considering a staggering £43m bid for Marcelo Brozovic, from guess whom... an unnamed Chinese club. The Blue and Black half of Inter are currently dependent on their two Croations – Ivan Perisic and the aforementioned Brozovic - to provide them with some quality wingplay, but 43 mill of the good stuff may just be too good an offer to turn down.
Bundesliga
- Borussia Monchengladbach have reportedly agreed a transfer fee with Sevilla for Timothee Kolodziejczak. The centre back with a last name that is the absolute dream for most of us live-blog-commentators is set to ply his trade in the Bundesliga now after the Spanish giants (wait, is owning the Europa League enough to categorize a club as a giant? Let’s give them the benefit of the doubt shall we?) accepted a bid that is believed to be in the range of 8-10 million pounds. Not too shabby for a 25 year old – some sanity at last. Thank you Gladbach.
- Bayern Munich assistant coach Paul Clement is all set to try his hand at the Welsh version of Russian Roulette (Welsh Roulette?) by agreeing to hold talks with Swansea for their recently vacated manager’s post. Bob Bradley being sacked – who saw that coming, eh? Enough of this silly talk,, though (People leaving Bayern! Humph!), the Bavarian giants don’t feel it’s right to leash David “total footballer” Alaba to the left flank anymore and are intested in signing the Napoli’s highly rated, and highly coveted Faouzi Ghoulam. This is one move that has the potential to develop rather quickly – watch out for this in January.
- Meanhwile, Napoli continue to be viewed as Italy’s best meat larder with both Wolfsburg and Southampton interested in their highly-acclaimed hitman Manolo Gabbiadini. The striker hardly gets an playing time at the Naples outfit, what with their fluid, interchangeable 4-3-3 being exactly the kind of formation the big Italian dislikes the most. It is believed that both have submitted bid close to 18 million pounds, but the German team are said to have an edge. Maybe Manolo just doesn’t fancy fish and chips, eh?
Premier League
- With Alexis Sanchez playing dumb whenever Arsene Wenger comes close to him holding a pen and paper, it looks highly likely that the Frenchman will have to dust off his Sunday best and wade out into the amazing place that is the Transfer Market. According to reports in the English Media, this may just mean crossing the Channel, and France, into Germany to reach out to the notoriously hard-to-buy Marco Reus of Borussia Dortmund fame – in case Sanxhez doesn’t deem it appropriate to sign on the dotted line, that is. Reus would bump the quality of the team up a notch, but signing the man is always easier said than done. Maybe they can go on and sunmit a bid for GBP 40 million and 1, eh?
– Isco is about as valued at Real Madrid these days as talented not-so-young Spanish footballers are at the Bernabeu – which is not very much, in case you are wondering. This has made him hesitant to sign a new deal/contract extension with the European and World (Club) Champions and has in turn alerted the bloodhounds in the market. One of those said to be sniffing around with increasing interest is one Senor Pep Guardiola of Manchester City. The Catalan philosopher has struggled to impose his playing style at the Etihad, and signing the Spaniard who is well versed in the essentially Iberian style of pass-and-go would be a massive relief for him. If Real are not in the mood to pick a fight, this may just go through thanks to Pep’s star-pulling power.
- Chelsea don’t have a striker. Or so the lament seems to be in Antonio Conte’s office. Of course, they have the red-hot Diego Costa, but whoever has heard of a team that has won the League with just one striker? Having seemingly misplaced Michy Batshuayi somehere in the Bridge, they are on the look-out for more talent that can warm that pretty little bench, and thus have turned their sights to Swansea’s in form (yes they have people who are in form!) Fernando Llorente. If the choice ever came down to Llorente – Chelsea or Swansea – we guess the Spaniard’s mind won’t be all that confused with whom to go with.
La Liga
– Real Madrid receive World Record bid for Cristiano Ronaldo. Yes you read that right... someone just bid a cool €300 million for the man who just days ago sealed his fourth Balon d’Or triumph before going out collecting his third trophy of the year by smacking a hattrick and winning the FIFA Club World Cup. Who someone you ask? A Chinese Super League someone. *shakes head and starts muttering to ourselves*
Read more of that fantastic bid in – Real Madrid received a €300 million bid for Cristiano Ronaldo, claims his agent Jorge Mendes
- Barcelona seek out Branislav Ivanovic. Again, you read that right – Barcelona FC want Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic. Once the most terrifying right back the Premier League had ever seen, last season was a horror show for the big Serbian. Now cast out into the wilderness-of-Chelsea-rejection, Ivanovic would not have dreamed that such a rumour would even be generated (factual or otherwise). But then he doesn’t know how bad Barcelona want a right-back. After selling Dani Alves to Juventus and signing a perfectly good replacement in Aleix Vidal and not playing him (instead playing a young central midfielder there), Barcelona have realised that the position of full-back can’t be taken too lightly. Just because you have MSN, doesn’t mean you can win everything – this isn’t playstation, Luis. But how far of a solution Ivanovic will be... only time and common sense can tell.
- Real Madrid are back in action. After having been banned for a couple of transfer windows, and then having seen that lowered to just one (this January), Florentino Perez and Zinedine Zidane (if the coach has any say in these things) are set to make “irresistable” offer for Thibaut Courtois. The last time Los Blancos came a-calling, Roman Abrahamovic put a nice little tag around the Belgian’s neck that read £73 Million, so if they do make an offer that even Roman can’t refuse – they will absolutely shatter the world-record-fee-for-goalkeeper into smithereens.And when Real Madrid want something, they generally tend to get it.
Do they really need to though, what with Keylor Navas in such stellar form? Thankfully for us, such logical questions have no place in the Transfer Market – long may the inanity continue!
- Meanwhile Valencia’s Cesare Prandelli has handed in his resignation after barely four months on the job. The grand old club are stranded on 17th, and if something isn’t done soon, they may well go down this year. You can already hear the vultures swooping in to clean the carcass to the bone – Diego Alves, Nani, Ezequiel Garay are but a few of the various tasty morsels that may soon be up for grabs
Rest of the World
- Everton are reportedly intested in bringing back Ligue 1 leaders’, Nice’s, top scorer Mario Balotelli. After a half-season where he has either scored, been booked or sent off in every single game he has played, Super Mario is already attracting interest again from English shores, with Ronald Koeman being the latest to believe that he can tame the beast. Why he would leave the brilliant envions of Nice for Liverpool, though, is another question altogether.
- After sewing up Julian Draxler, PSG’s immense appetite is still not satiated and are reportedly considering a sweep for Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-Min. After having let Zlatan Ibrahimovic go to Manchester United on a free (if anyone ever “let’s” Zlatan do something), they haven’t been as brilliant going forward in Ligue 1 as is their wont, and by their standards are struggling in 3rd, five whole points behind the leaders, Nice. With Son and Draxler, they will be looking for the goals to close that gap down in 2017. If nothing else, it will atleast raise the profile of the club in the Far East, and that is just good business.
- A Chinese club reportedly bid €50million for current Fiorentina (and former Blackburn Rovers) man Nikolas Kalinic. FIFTY MILLION.
That’s it. We’re out.
