AFR Transfers

By Eric Beard, writing from Barcelona

Spanish paper MARCA reported today that Chelsea are preparing to place a 59 million euro bid for the Arsenal captain this summer. The article states that Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich believes Barcelona cannot match the wages he is ready to offer Cesc.

This is not going to happen, of course. Let’s get that out of the way. But Arsenal fans, don’t be upset by some Madrid-based banter, this is brilliant news. We all know that there will come a time in Cesc’s career, whether it be this summer or the next, when Spain’s number 10 returns to Catalunya. Competition in the transfer market is never a bad thing is it?

Last summer, with the media buzzing every day about Cesc’s move to his homeland, the bids from the Blaugrana were nothing short of a disgrace. They started with a 29 million euro bid and eventually worked their way up to 40 million euros. If it didn’t appear a completely disgraceful valuation then, it certainly does now after this winter’s transfer window (i.e. Fernando Torres for £50m and Andy Carroll for £35m).

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Benfica’s star centre-back David Luiz is expected to complete a January move to Premier League champions Chelsea within the next hours. According to Lisbon-based newspaper A BOLA, the Benfica president has travelled to the English capital to negotiate a deal ranging between €25-€30m(£21m-£25m) plus the inclusion of players. David Luiz is protected by an elevated €50m release fee clause but with a saturated market and Benfica eager to make money, the deal would be superb for all three parties.

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Despite sitting at the top of the table, winning the Premier League will be a monumental challenge for Chelsea. The defending champions started the season in top form, but after a humiliating 3-0 defeat to Sunderland last weekend, signs of weakness started to show. It’s clear Chelsea lack options in the attacking zone which is ageing and requires strengthening. The ambition to sign AC Milan’s Alexandre Pato appears to have faded away and the club turned their attention to in-form Cardiff City striker Jay Bothroyd.

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One of Brazil’s most reputable newspapers, Folha de Sao Paulo, claims that in a meeting held in New York after the USA-Brazil friendly there was a finalised decision to allow the 18-year-old, who just earned his first cap for Brazil, to leave Santos for Chelsea.

Supposedly the meeting was held in the presence of Neymar himself, his father, agent Wagner Ribeiro, Santos president Luiz Alvaro de Oliveira Ribeiro, Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck and agent Pini Zahavi. And the rest appears to be history as Neymar agreed to sign for the Blues, who will pay Santos €25 million.

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According to Portuguese sports newspaper Record, Ricardo Carvalho has left Chelsea to team-up with José Mourinho for the third time in his career. The Portuguese centre back will sign a 2 year contract with a one year option and cost Real Madrid €8m. After Benfica rejected Real’s lucrative offer for David Luiz, Mourinho turned his attention to the 32 year old whom he has admired for years. Carvalho is the club’s 5th signing of the season and will soon be presented to the media as a Madrid player.

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Carlo Ancelotti has got his man! Portuguese league champions Benfica have agreed to sell star midfielder Ramires to Chelsea for €22m. With the departures of Deco, Joe Cole and Michael Ballack, the 23 year old is the ideal replacement who can operate either as a central midfielder or right winger. Over the following hours a medical will be passed and a contract signed.

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Werder Bremen’s Mesut Ozil is Europe’s most wanted man, however the talented midfielder has decided to honour his contract with the Bundesliga side. The contract expires next season which means he will be free to join any club. Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Real Madrid are leading the race to sign him, they’ll be trying to reach a verbal agreement with the player so for next season. Who will win the race?

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It seems absurd to say that it has not been a good year for Fernando Torres, as there is no greater moment in a footballer’s career those hoisting the World Cup. But it really hasn’t. Sure, he had moments of brilliance with Liverpool such as injury time game-winner vs. Aston Villa, but let’s all be honest, the real Fernando Torres has not been with us in months. Maybe it was a nagging injury or maybe it was Rafa’s rotation policy, but either way the Spanish striker now has supposedly decided that Liverpool isn’t the right place for him anymore, and there doesn’t seem to be anything Roy Hodgson can do about it.

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Benfica’s midfielder Ramires is wanted by Europe’s top clubs with Chelsea and Manchester City leading the race for his signature. After a strong season for the Portuguese champions and Brazil, his departure is highly likely. However, many clubs aren’t prepared to pay the €30m release for clause. For City, money is not a problem, but Chelsea offer Champions League football which has put them in pole position, a move could be announced by the end of the week.

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Liverpool have beat out the likes of Tottenham and Arsenal by offering £90,000-a-week wages to former Chelsea man Joe Cole. Cole, who was a free agent after his contract with Chelsea ran out in May, so he was of particular interest to clubs because there was no transfer fee involved. The flamboyant midfielder has a deft touch that is rare to find in an English footballer, and he has something to prove as his injury spell last season limited his time at Stamford Bridge and also his time in South Africa with England. Cole has signed a four-year deal with the club.

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Mario Balotelli is a talented player. Maybe the most talented one Italian football has produced since Totti, or Cassano. The truth is that it seems there is no more room for him in Serie A. The young Inter striker is now facing a crucial point of his career. At the age of 19, he already won 3 Italian titles, 1 Italian Supercup, 1 Italian Cup, and, last but not least, 1 Champions League. Impressive, even more if you consider he had an important role in most of the victories (the most important one in sealing his first Scudetto during Mancini’s last campaing at Inter).

Last season he had some tough problems tough with the team by showing a lack of respect for his teammates. When AC Milan came closer to Inter in the table in April, he sang Milan’s song in the dressing room. With the manager, he almost began physcially fighting on the training pitch with José Mourinho. And with the fans, he put on an AC Milan shirt in a TV interview and then threw Inter’s shirt on the ground at the final whistle in the San Siro match against Barcelona. All of this led up to the point in which we now are looking at.

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Real Madrid appear to be getting ever closer to signing Chelsea defender Ashley Cole after the World Cup winning captain, Iker Casillas claimed: “From what I am hearing the signs look good.”

Cole, 29, has been strongly linked with a move to the Spanish giants in recent weeks following the much publicised problems in his personal life.

The Chelsea left-back is understood to be fed up with life in England and is keen to make the move to the Bernabeu to link up with former manager Jose Mourinho.

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Israel international Yossi Benayoun is reportedly set to leave Anfield and join Carlo Ancelotti at Stamford Bridge on a four-year contract. Seen as an immediate replacement for Joe Cole, Benayoun has been eager to find a new club since falling out with former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez. According to Israeli Sport 5’s website, all that is left is for Chelsea and Liverpool to agree on a transfer fee. This could potentially be a problem, as Chelsea want to spend £4m while Liverpool were hoping to get close to £10m for the 30-year-old winger.

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Remember when Chelsea were placed under a transfer ban? Well, things might have been different if that ban had been upheld. As it is, Messrs Cole, Belletti and Ballack will be looking for a new team for next season - though it’s probably a good bet that they won’t have to look too hard.

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