The latest transfer gossip, rumours and damned lies
Stewart Downing to Aston Villa The Spoiler assumed that replacing Martin Laursen and Gareth Barry would be Aston Villa’s priority right now but apparently not. The Daily Mail claim that Martin O’Neill is looking to thwart Spurs (and they sure will be heartbroken!) by signing Downing on a loan deal with an option to make the move permanent.
The Spoiler truth-o-meter: This has to be nonsense. Villa have a lot of work to do this summer and bringing in someone who plays in the same position as their star player Ashley Young is surely not top of the agenda.
Joleon Lescott staying with Everton
The Daily Star report that Manchester City have been priced out of a move for
We’re not sure what kind of Vegas pool party Frank Lampard is attending, but he appears to approve of the female clothing ban
[Corriere dello Sport via Kickette]
A further helping of transfer gossip, rumours and damned lies
Ricardo Carvalho and Deco to Inter Milan
The biggest transfer news of a very slow day comes from Italy’s Sky Sport 24, who claim that Chelsea do not want Nicolas Burdisso or Maicon in exchange for Jose Mourinho’s good friends Deco and Ricardo Carvalho and are instead holding out for around £12 million for the pair.
The Spoiler truth-o-meter: Maicon’s agent Antonio Caliendo says that he expects his client to stay put this summer so it would make sense for Chelsea to take as much money as they can and shop elsewhere.
Felipe Melo is staying with Fiorentina
Just a day after being urged by international teammate Gilberto Silva to sign
Gica Popescu accused of helping brutal Commie regime
Gica Popescu is a bit of a legend in his native Romania. The former defender was never outside the top 4 in the Romanian Footballer of the Year awards for 13 years from 1989 until 2001, thanks in part to the European Cup Winners’ Cup medal he earned in 1997 as captain of Barcelona, and also a season in the Premiership with Tottenham.
Popescu is currently campaigning to become head of the Romanian Soccer Federation, but his bid has been hampered by allegations that he supplied to the Securitate (Romania’s rather nasty communist secret service) with information from 1986 until the regime was toppled in 1989. The Canadian Press (huh?) reports:
The 41-year-old Popescu said he once signed a document promising to “defend the national interests” during the regime of the late dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.
“I signed a very general thing. My conscience isn’t clear, it’s very clear,” he said at a news conference. “I didn’t inform on anyone.”
In the late eighties, the Securitate kept tabs on all Romania’s athletes, and those competing in international tournaments were allegedly made to share the details of their conversations with foreigners.
Although the regime employed half a million informants out of a population of just 22 million, Popescu has dismissed the claims as a “big lie” designed to derail his current ambitions within Romanian football’s governing body.
Will Tevez shock the world again or is Kia just being clever?
Nothing is ever simple where Kia Joorabchian is concerned so it wasn’t a huge surprise when he declared yesterday that there is a mystery club battling it out with Manchester City and Chelsea for Carlos Tevez.
The Telegraph claim that Barcelona are the team in question but Joorabchian stated last week that Tevez would “definitely” join a Premier League club.
The Argentine’s agent said he wouldn’t swap Man United for Liverpool, which would leave just Arsenal and potentially Aston Villa, Spurs, Everton and West Ham as even mildly viable options. It’s very unlikely that any of those clubs could afford to break their transfer record to buy him let alone pay his wages.
So do we therefore assume that the mystery team are based abroad after all, or has Joorabchian just invented this third party (ha!) in an attempt to pressure Chelsea and City into offering better terms. The Spoiler is leaning towards the latter but let us know what you think with a vote and comment below:
The latest transfer gossip, rumours and damned lies
Emmanuel Adebayor to AC Milan
Manu has been touting himself to the Rossoneri for bloody ages, and has moved a step closer to his Beyonce-inspired dream following comments from Milan club administrator Adriano Galliani. The Uncle fester-alike could go for the Togo hitman if a move for Bundesliga top scorer Edin Dzeko falls through:
“If we fail to get Dzeko then (Sevilla striker) Luis Fabiano could be an alternative - as could Adebayor.”
The Spoiler truth-o-meter: Wolfsburg will be very reluctant to part with Dzeko, and Arsenal fans won’t exactly cry themselves to sleep if Adebayor leaves, so this move could be on.
Sebastien Bassong to Arsenal. Or maybe Tottenham. The Newcastle Evening Chronicle claim the Toon defender has been flattered by interest from Arsene Wenger. Confusingly, Goal.com reference the report in the local paper, but instead claim that Harry Redknapp is ahead of the pack in chasing the Cameroonian.
Spurs boss makes unexpected declaration in newspaper column
Picutred: Harry Redknapp’s home in Sandbanks, Poole
In his weekly column for The Sun, Harry Redknapp today gave his reaction to the Premier League fixture list. He asserts that Birmingham’s baptism of fire at Old Trafford is a good thing, as they will face a side with hurting from Champions League defeat and the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo. It’s a valid point, but we’re not so sure his assessment of newbies Burnley is quite as cogent:
Burnley will be the poor relations, if you are honest. Anything Owen Coyle can do will be a marvellous achievement on top of an already fantastic job just getting the team into the Premier League.
Is that the same Burnley who beat your relegation-threatened side in January, Harry?
Towards the end of the column, the Tottenham manager admits that he isn’t missing the daily routine of a Premier League manager during the closed season:
It does not seem like five minutes ago that the season ended and yesterday I was in my back garden feeding the birds and enjoying a break.
I love football, it is in my blood. But I would be lying if I said I am missing it just now.
Instead of getting up at 5.30am to drive to Tottenham’s training ground, I can stay in bed a bit longer.
Every day it feels like I have won the Pools.
Granted, the daily drive from his home in Poole to the Spurs training ground isn’t enviable (it’s nearly a 300-mile round trip!), but we’re not convinced Mr Redknapp should be admitting his reticence to return to the job in a daily newspaper.
Spoiler bonus: Our hats go off to The Sun today for an article based around a two-day old picture of Cristiano Ronaldo, in which they hilariously suggest that the Portuguese star looks like a member of the cast of Baywatch. Check out the picture mockup they have produced, and applaud the Photoshop skills that suggest C-Ron has grown an extra limb.
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