Aston Villa Transfer News and Rumours, Friday 31 December
Villa Set To Hold Talks With Young
Aston Villa are set to hold talks with Ashley Young in a bid to keep the England winger at Villa Park.
The 25-year-old has stalled on talks about signing a new £75,000-a-week contract at Villa Park and has been linked with a move to Manchester United, Spurs or Liverpool. However, Villa chief executive Paul Faulkner is set to speak to Young before Sunday’s clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in an effort to get him to change his mind.
Young has 18 months left on his current deal and Villa will make a decision regarding his sale after his talks with Faulkner. The club may decide to sell him in January to take full advantage of his £25 million valuation which is likely to fall as his contract moves towards its expiry.
After rumours in the summer linking him with a move to Spurs, Young is favourite to move to Manchester United as Sir Alex Ferguson steps up his attempts to find a replacement for Ryan Giggs.
The recent bad weather is still affecting the football programme with a large number of games postponed despite slightly milder conditions in some areas over the past couple of days.
The full list of postponements for games on Tuesday 28 December is as follows.
List correct at 11am on Tuesday 28 December.
Championship
Doncaster v Ipswich
League One
Brentford v Tranmere
Carlisle v Exeter
Colchester v Oldham
Hartlepool v Leyton Orient
Rochdale v Bristol Rovers
Sheffield Wednesday v Yeovil
Walsall v Dagenham & Redbridge
League Two
Burton Albion v Stevenage
Bury v Torquay
Chesterfield v Wycombe
Crewe v Southend
Hereford v Northampton
Lincoln v Shrewsbury
Morecambe v Aldershot
Rotherham v Accrington Stanley
Blue Square Bet Premier
Altrincham v York
Barrow v Wrexham
Crawley v Hayes & Yeading
Gateshead v Darlington
Grimsby v Rushden
Kettering v Histon
Luton v Tamworth
Scottish Cup
Annan Athletic v Brechin City
Beith v Airdrie
Stenhousemuir v Threave Rovers.
West Ham Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 28 December
Piquionne Refuses to Rule Out Villa Move
West Ham striker Frederic Piquionne has refused to move out a rule to Aston Villa in January.
Despite only arriving at Upton Park during the summer the 32-year-old has been linked with a move to the midlands where he would team up with French coach Gerard Houllier.
Asked by a French radio reporter about a move to Villa Park Piquionne replied: “Why not? He is a very well renowned coach in France and in England. I have read there is some interest but there has been nothing concrete. I am not worried about it.
He added: “I am happy at West Ham and it is going relatively well for now. I am here to help the team climb the table. I leave my agents to deal with the transfer window.”
Piquionne was signed by his former manager at Portsmouth, Avram Grant, in a £1 million deal in July.
West Ham Close In On £6m Ba
Meanwhile, West Ham are closing in on the £6 million signing of Hoffenheim striker Demba Ba.
The French-born Senegal international has hit six goals in 17 league games this season for the Bundesliga side and was recently linked with a move to Aston Villa.
The 25-year-old had a season at Watford in 2004-05 but failed to make the grade at Vicarage Road and moved back to France for spells with Rouen and Mouscron before joining Hoffenheim in 2007.
The 6ft 3in Ba has a reputation in Germany as a powerful target man. His most successful season was in 2008-09 when he scored 14 goals for a Hoffenheim side that at one stage was challenging for the league title before fading away in the second half of the season.
Liverpool Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 28 December
Huth Bid Set To Fail
Liverpool look set to fail in their attempt to sign Stoke defender Robert Huth. The 26-year-old centre-half was said last week to be the subject of some interest from the Anfield side who were ready to put in a £5 million bid, but the German defender said he is happy enough at the Britannia Stadium.
“I had some texts telling me about the story,” he said. “It doesn’t bother me because it’s great here at Stoke for me.’’
Liverpool Interested In Palace Striker
Liverpool are interested in signing Crystal Palace teenager Wilfried Zaha.
The 18-year-old Ivorian striker has scored once in 14 games this season but with Palace financially stricken and manager George Burley keen to raise funds to bring in new faces a £2 million bid from the Anfield side could see Zaha heading north.
Liverpool have watched him play on a number of occasions but could face competition for his signature with Fulham also said to be interested.
Newcastle United Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 28 December
Carroll Pledges Future to Newcastle
Andy Carroll has pledged his future to Newcastle United, though it remains to be seen whether the club’s owners will want to cash in on him.
The news came from Toon boss Alan Pardew who said that Carroll informed him on Christmas Day that he has no intentions of leaving the club he supported as a boy.
Carroll has been linked with Spurs, Manchester City and Chelsea in recent weeks but in a training ground exchange Pardew was told that a move away from St James’s Park was furthest away from Carroll’s mind.
“I spoke to Andy on Christmas Day,” said Pardew. “I asked him what he wanted to do; if he wanted to stay.
“I said to Andy, ‘I do not want to talk for you; we are talking together. If you remain here it is great news for us. But it is important that you want to stay.’
“Wanting to stay was the case that Andy put to me and it is great news because we will make sure he does. That is why I am so confident there will be no problem with Andy in January – or, hopefully, next summer, the following January and the summer after that. He is handling all the speculation very well but the most important thing is that Andy wants to play for Newcastle United.”
Carroll has been in impressive form scoring 11 times in the first half of the season as Newcastle have consolidated their position in the Premier League.
‘Villa In Barton Move’ – Report
Meanwhile, the Daily Mail speculates that Aston Villa boss Gerard Houllier will make a move for Newcastle midfielder Joey Barton.
Houllier is confident he can prise the tempestuous midfielder away from St James’s Park but Alan Pardew wants to hold on to Barton and is ready to offer him a new contract, while Barton himself said recently that he wants to spend the rest of his career at Newcastle.
Taylor Delighted With New Deal
Newcastle defender Steven Taylor says he is delighted to have signed a new contract with Newcastle.
The former England under-21 star signed a five-and-a-half year deal at St James’s Park after months of speculation and says the future looks bright for the club and its young players.
“The club are going forward now,” he said. “A few players have signed five-year contracts.
“I wanted stability at this football club, and they have proved they wanted me for the next five and a half years.
“That is all I cared about. There is a structure at this football club and I am happy with that.
Manchester City Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 28 December
City In Talks With Dzeko Agent
Manchester City have begun talks with Edin Dzeko’s agent over a £30 million move to Eastlands in January, according to the Daily Mail.
The Bosnian striker’s club, Wolfsburg, were reported to have dropped their asking price despite the club’s lowly position in the Bundesliga at the half-way stage.
The paper understands that City will make a down-payment of £30 million for Dzeko with additional add-ons and performance-related bonuses to follow.
Dzeko has scored 10 goals for Wolfsburg this season and is also wanted by Juventus and Liverpool but after City’s pursuit of him during the summer he wrote to the club telling them how much he admires City and how much he wants to play for the side.
New Wolfsburg boss Steve McLaren gave Dzeko the captain’s armband in a bid to placate the striker, a move which didn’t go down well with the rest of the Wolfsburg side. Now with the club struggling in 13th place as the Bundesliga starts its winter break McLaren has decided to part with his side’s best player in a bid to stop the rot and bring some harmony into the camp. As a result Wolfsburg has dropped its £38 million asking price.
West Ham Keen On Bridge Loan
West Ham are interested in taking Wayne Bridge on loan from Manchester City for the rest of the season.
The Hammers are looking for City to subsidise at least some of the former England international’s £90,000-a-week wages but City are looking to get some of their high earners completely off the payroll and West Ham will have to fund the whole of Bridge’s salary themselves.
Balotelli Struggling With Life In England
Mario Balotelli is struggling to adapt to life in England and has told friends in Italy that he wants to move back to his homeland, according to reports in a number of today’s papers.
The striker, signed for £25 million at the start of the season from Inter Milan, is believed to have struggled to make friends with his team-mates and believes that the situation isn’t going to improve.
Balotelli was seen speaking to AC Milan director Adriano Galliano following the recent Milan derby leading to speculation that Balotelli was looking for a move to the club he has openly admitted that he supports.
The 20-year-old has scored five times in his 10 appearances for City this season but has also picked up four yellow cards and one red.
Santa Cruz Set For Lazio Move
Roque Santa Cruz looks set to move on from Manchester City in the January transfer window.
The Paraguayan striker has been looking for an exit from Eastlands since it became obvious last summer that he was no longer in Roberto Mancini’s plans after just a season at the club. Fulham and Marseille have been linked with a move for Santa Cruz but Lazio have emerged as the most likely destination, according to the Daily Mail, just six months after a loan move to the Serie A side broke down.
According to the Mail, Lazio will pay City £250,000 for a six-month loan with a view to a £2.5 million permanent transfer in the summer. That represents a £15 million loss on a player they signed from Blackburn for around £17.5 million in the summer of 2009.
City Set for £7m Diarra Bid – Report
Manchester City are looking to make a £7 million bid for Bordeaux’s former Liverpool defensive midfielder Alou Diarra.
The French newspaper Le Parisien reports that Bordeaux are keen to hang on to the 29-year-old who didn’t make a single appearance for Liverpool during a two-year spell at Anfield between 2002 and 2004.
The following is a list of postponed games for Sunday 26 December. List is correct as at 12.50pm Sunday 26 December.
Premier League
Blackpool v Liverpool
Everton v Birmingham
Championship
Crystal Palace v Norwich
Middlesbrough v Nottingham Forest
Scunthorpe v Preston
League One
Bournemouth v Plymouth
Bristol Rovers v Walsall
Charlton v Southampton
Dagenham & Redbridge v Brighton
Exeter v Swindon
Leyton Orient v MK Dons
Notts County v Rochdale
Oldham v Carlisle
Peterborough v Colchester
Tranmere v Sheffield Wednesday
Yeovil v Brentford
League Two
Accrington Stanley v Crewe
Aldershot v Gillingham
Bradford v Chesterfield
Macclesfield v Morecambe
Northampton v Burton
Port Vale v Lincoln
Shrewsbury v Bury
Southend v Barnet
Stevenage v Oxford United
Stockport v Rotherham
Torquay v Cheltenham
Blue Square Bet Premier
Bath v Newport
Darlington v Fleetwood
Eastbourne v Crawley
Forest Green v Kidderminster
Hayes v AFC Wimbledon
Histon v Cambridge
Mansfield v Grimsby
Rushden & D v Luton
Southport v Barrow
Tamworth v Kettering
Wrexham v Altrincham
York v Gateshead
Scottish Premier League
Dundee United v Hamilton
Kilmarnock v Hearts
Scottish Football League Division One
Dunfermline v Falkirk
Ross County v Cowdenbeath (Monday)
Queen of the South v Dundee
Stirling v Morton
Scottish Football League Division Two
Aidrie Utd v East Fife
Brechin v Ayr
Dumbarton v Forfar
Peterhead v Stenhousemuir
Scottish Football League Division Three
Annan Athletic v Berwick Rangers
East Stirling v Albion
Elgin v Clyde
Liverpool are the latest club to be linked with a move for Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko.
The surprise news comes as Manchester City renew their interest in the Bosnian international with whom they were linked during the close season.
Wolfsburg want a fee of £38 million for Dzeko although the release clause in his contract is set at 40 million euros (£34 million). Both Liverpool and City have offered players in part-exchange for Dzeko; Liverpool have offered Ryan Babel and Daniel Agger while City have offered Togo international striker Emmanuel Adebayor although he has turned down the prospect of a move to Germany.
Whether or not Wolfsburg will part with Dzeko remains to be seen as the Bosnian is their top scorer with 10 goals as the Bundesliga heads into its winter break. The side lies perilously close to the drop zone with Dzeko’s contribution arguably keeping them out of one of the relegation slots. As it is they lie just four points above the drop zone.
Even if Babel and Agger do go to Wolfsburg as part of the deal Liverpool’s new owners NESV are likely to have stump up a considerabe amount of cash before the deal can go through.
iverpool Transfer News and Rumours, Friday 24 December
Liverpool ‘Set For Huth Bid’
Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson is looking to make a £5 million bid for Stoke defender Robert Huth, according to the Daily Mirror.
With Jamie Carragher out for up to three months and Daniel Agger’s season also hit by injury Hodgson is looking to beef up his defensive options and is set to make an opening offer to tempt Huth away from the Britannia Stadium.
Stoke boss Tony Pulis is likely to resist any bids for the player – certainly any bid less than the £6 million Huth cost last year.
Tottenham Transfer News and Rumours, Thursday 23 December
Spurs Linked with Julio Baptista
Former Arsenal striker Julio Baptista could be on his way back to North London – only this time with Spurs.
The Brazilian – now with Serie A side Roma – has revealed that he has received an offer from an English club and TalkSport are speculating that club is Spurs.
“I have received something but there is nothing formal,” he told Canal Sur in Spain. “There is an offer from Brazil and one from England.” However, Baptista did reveal that he had had no offer from either of the Manchester clubs.
Baptista spent the 2006-07 season on loan at the Emirates and although he scored 10 times for the Gunners the majority of those were in Cup games.
Steve Kean Appointed Blackburn Rovers Manager To End Of Season
Kean Takes Temporary Charge
Blackburn Rovers have appointed Steve Kean as manager until the end of the season.
Kean took temporary charge of the club after they sacked Sam Allardyce last week but after talks with the club’s owners, Venky’s, in India this week the club has announced on its website that “Venkys London Limited – Blackburn Rovers – has decided to continue with Mr. Steve Kean as Manager, until the end of the season, June 2011.”
After a playing career with Celtic, Swansea and Portugese side Academica Coimbra Kean worked as a coach at Reading, Fulham, Real Sociedad and Coventry City before being appointed first-team coach at Blackburn in 2009.
Yesterday Venky’s chair Anuradha Desai told the Lancashire Evening Telegraph: “Steve will still be doing the job January.
“He will have control over the signings in January and, although he will have to discuss things with the board, he will have the final say.”
However, it now appears that Kean will remain as team manager until the end of the season though in the absence of a bigger name some Rovers supporters may well wonder why Allardyce wasn’t kept on.
Kean is expected to have a transfer budget of around £5 million.
Sunderland Transfer News and Rumours, Wednesday 22 December
Sunderland Eye Up City Pair
Sunderland are looking to sign Manchester City duo Adam Johnson and Nedum Onuoha according to the Daily Mail.
The City defender is already on loan at the Stadium Of Light and Sunderland boss Steve Bruce is ready to offer £6 million to make the deal permanent. Onuoha has impressed at centre-half and right-back this season and has enjoyed playing regular first-team football.
Bruce is also set to make an offer to take Johnson on loan for the rest of the season. The Black Cats thought they had landed Johnson in a £6 million transfer from Middlesbrough in January of this year but a last-minute £8 million bid from City along with £60,000 a week in wages saw Johnson snatched from under Steve Bruce’s nose.
However, like so many of City’s stars, Johnson has found a regular start in the first team hard to come by and although he has failed to appear in just four games this season most of his appearances have come off the sub’s bench.
Last month he told The Sunthat he would consider a move away from Eastlands to get first-team football but added that it was too early then to make a decision. Johnson’s family still live in the north-east but the former Middlesbrough academy graduate would either have to move on a permanent deal or see Onuoha’s or Danny Welbeck’s loan deals become permanent moves as Premier League rules state that clubs may only loan two players from other English clubs.
Blackburn Rovers Transfer News and Rumours, Wednesday 22 December
Samba In Blackburn Quit Threat
Blackburn Rovers defender Christopher Samba is ready to quit the club following the sacking of Sam Allardyce.
The Blackburn skipper is upset over the sacking of Allardyce and has told The Sun: “If this is the way the club’s going to be run from now on, I don’t want to be part of it and I want to leave.
“As captain it’s very difficult to say this but I’ve thought long and hard about it. Nobody in football understands the decision to sack Sam.”
Samba praised Allardyce for the job he did last season taking Rovers to 10th position in the Premier League having taken over a side in the relegation zone at the end of 2008.
“Sam saved the club, so how can he be treated like this now?”
He added: “The players and fans need answers about the club’s future. Unless we commit to who the manager is, how can we attract big players in January?
The 26-year-old Congo international was signed for Blackburn by Mark Hughes at the beginning of 2007 in a £450,000 deal from Hertha Berlin and has since made 150 appearances for the club.
There has been widespread criticism over the sacking of Allardyce and the role of football agency Kentaro-SEM in his dismissal. It is believed that Allardyce put forward a list of transfer targets to Rovers’ new owners, the Venky’s group, and that Kentaro-SEM put forward another list. At that stage Venky’s decided to part company with their manager.
Allardyce’s former coach, Steve Kean, himself a Kentaro-SEM client, is in temporary charge at the club and the Lancashire Evening Telegraph suggests that he may be given until March to prove himself. Venky’s are believed to be ready to give Kean a transfer kitty and the opportunity to prove that he’s the man for the job.
Venky’s chair Anuradha Desai told the paper: “Steve will still be doing the job January.
“He will have control over the signings in January and, although he will have to discuss things with the board, he will have the final say.
“There is more than £5million available to him. I would rather not say how much, I will say that when the time is right, but I can say there will be a lot more than £5m.
“We are looking at options for January but please give us some time.”
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Manchester City Transfer News and Rumours, Wednesday 21 December
City Target Dzeko and Alves In £50m January Spree
Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini has been handed a £50 million transfer budget to buy new players in the January transfer window, according to a report today.
The Daily Mirror says that the club’s hierarchy have told Mancini they will spend whatever it takes to get City’s Premier League title hopes back on track after Monday’s 2-1 home defeat by Everton. That saw them miss the opportunity to go into Christmas at the top of the league for the first time in 81 years.
Mancini is said to be looking for two strikers to take the heat off Carlos Tevez with Wolfsburg’s Edin Dzeko still top of their list. City were involved in a protracted attempt during the summer to sign the Bosnian international and although they were ultimately unsuccessful Dzeko is said to have written personally to the club expressing his admiration for City and saying that he hoped to sign for them.
Wolfsburg played hardball during the summer and can be expected to do the same again, but the German club will also be wary of parting with their best player at a time when they lie just four points above the Bundesliga relegation play-off position. Dzeko was the leading goalscorer in the league last season but lies in fifth place this term having scored 10 goals for the side. The Mirror suggests that if Dzeko does come to Eastlands then he will cost City around £30 million.
City are also interested in Porto striker Hulk, who is rated by his club at around £20 million while Dani Alves is also said to be a target for Mancini. The Barcelona defender has stalled on signing a new deal at the Nou Camp amidst rumours that City may be ready to put in a bid. His current deal expires in 2012 and the Mirror suggests that Barcelona may let him go for around £12 million rather than risk losing him for nothing when his current deal expires.
Chelsea Transfer News and Rumours, Wednesday 22 December
Chelsea Target Lukaku Won’t Be Moving Until Summer
The BBC reports that Chelsea target Romelu Lukaku will not be leaving Anderlecht in January. The prodigious 17-year-old striker has been linked with a move abroad after scoring 13 goals for an Anderlecht side that sits at the top of the Belgian League.
Chelsea, Real Madrid and Spurs have all been linked with Lukaku with the Blues in pole position after the teenager was photographed wearing a Chelsea shirt after a tour of Stamford Bridge earlier this year.
Lukaku scored 15 goals as a 16-year-old in his side’s championship-winning season last term and has begun this season in equally spectacular fashion attracting the likes of Chelsea and Real Madrid in the process.
“It is obviously for Romelu to decide how long he stays with us, but I hope I can play with him for as long as possible,” Anderlecht and Belgium goalkeeper Silvio Proto told the BBC.
“At some point he will probably have to move because of his incredible talent.
“I must say, he is simply brilliant, both as a human being and as a footballer. Romelu is an intelligent person and he is very well advised by his parents and the club.”
Indeed such is the wealth of advice given by the Anderlecht hierarchy and the teenager’s parents that it was decided as long as July that Lukaku would be going nowhere until the summer of 2011. At the time the club’s general manager Herman van Holsbeech said that both the club and the player’s father want the 17-year-old to complete his education at the club’s school. “He has another year to go,and that is another reason why we have no intention of selling him this summer,” van Holsbeech said then. It would appear then that little has changed in the meantime.
Anelka Could End His Career In The States
Chelsea’s Nicolas Anelka could be ready to end his career in the USA, according to the Daily Star.
The 32-year-old striker’s current deal at Stamford Bridge runs out in 2012 and he has yet to be offered a new contract. This had led to the Star speculating that he could be on his way out of the Premier League altogether.
Anelka’s brother Claude, who acts as his agent, said “Nicolas told me he is interested in playing in the United States.
“We could see him crossing the Atlantic, and I’m serious when I say this. He asked himself what he will do once his current contract runs out.
“The US is quite something, and a dream destination. He says he will give it a try, even though he would earn less money than in somewhere like Qatar.”
Chelsea and Real Madrid are fighting it out to sign Colombian striker Cristian Nazarit, according to radio reports from Spain.
The 20-year-old Santa Fe striker has earned a reputation as a free-kick specialist in his homeland and is being likened to a young Samuel Eto’o. He has scored 15 goals in 49 games for Santa Fe since arriving from the America club of Cali two years ago.
Chelsea are believed to have watched him at under-20 level while Real Madrid are also said to be interested.
Talks have broken down between West Ham and Robbie Keane over a possible January loan move for the Spurs striker.
Keane has been linked with a move to Upton Park in January but sources close to West Ham say that the deal is close to collapse over the demands of both Keane and Tottenham.
“The terms the player and the club are demanding are impossible,” a West Ham source has told ESPNSoccernet today.
It has also been reported that Manchester City’s Emmanuel Adebayor has also turned down a move to Upton Park but while it has been suggested in some quarters that the player is ‘ready to fight for his place at Eastlands’, West Ham’s interest cooled when it became clear that they would have to fund most, if not all, of the Togo international’s £180,000 a week.
Spurs’ Jamie O’Hara was also being linked today with a move to the Hammers but his persistent back injury means West Ham have turned their attention to Aston Villa’s Steve Sidwell and talks are in progress over a January move.
Arsenal Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 21 December
Denilson Linked With Barcelona
Arsenal midfielder Denilson is being linked with a move to Barcelona.
The 22-year-old Brazilian has been touted as a possible sale in January with the money being used to buy a central defender – Manchester City’s Joleon Lescott has been mentioned.
Now, Barcelona-based newspaper, Sport, is linking Denilson with a move to Barcelona. The newspaper suggests that Barcelona rate Denilson at around 12 million euro, which tallies with Arsenal’s valuation of £10 million.
The midfielder has been at Arsenal since 2006 but reports suggest that Arsene Wenger believes that he hasn’t progressed as much as he would have liked and is ready to cash in on him.
“There is talk of possible interest from Barcelona and you cannot rule out a change of scenery, but at the moment I’m at Arsenal,” Denilson told Sport.
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West Ham Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 21 December
Hammers Set To Offer Keane Loan
West Ham are set to offer Robbie Keane a loan deal when the transfer window re-opens in the New Year, according to the Daily Telegraph.
The Spurs striker is surplus to requirements at White Hart Lane and has been linked with moves to Newcastle, Aston Villa, Wolves, Birmingham, Everton and even to the Vancouver Whitecaps in the MLS.
Spurs may try to offer Keane in part-exchange for Scott Parker though Parker is one player the Hammers will try to hang on to. However, it is likely that Jamie O’Hara will be offered a move to West Ham although the Hammers’ interest remains cool given that O’Hara is recovering from a back injury.
Meanwhile, Manchester City’s Emmanuel Adebayor has turned down the opportunity of a loan move to West Ham. The Manchester City striker has been linked with a move away from Eastlands in January and hasn’t featured at all in the City line-up since he came on as a substitute in the Europa League game with Salzburg at the start of the month.
Piquionne Rejects Villa Talk
One player who won’t be leaving Upton Park in January is Frederic Piquionne. The former Portsmouth man only joined the Hammers in a summer move from Lyon but he has scored just four times in the Premier League this season – out of just six goals scored the Hammers’ front line – and has been linked with a move to Aston Villa. But the 32-year-old insists these reports are wide of the mark.
“I read in the papers about Aston Villa’s interest in me, but I have not had a phone call from Gerard Houllier,” Piquionne said on Monday. “He wanted to take me to Lyon while I was still with St Etienne. But there have been no concrete approaches for the time being.”
Liverpool expect to offer midfielder Jay Spearing a new extended contract as the club’s recently-appointed director of football strategy, Damien Commolli, continues his policy of tying down the club’s young talent.
Spearing has 18 months to run on his current deal and negotiations have started on a new three-and-a-half year contract.
Teenage forward Pacheco has already signed a two-year extension while Martin Kelly has signed a three-year extension to his current deal.
Spearing has found first-team opportunities limited at Anfield and has mainly been used in European games and Carling Cup ties. A loan spell last season at Championship side Leicester City saw him score one goal in nine appearances for the Foxes but the Reds rate him highly enough to want to keep him at the club as Commolli repeats part of the strategy he used at Spurs which, since his departure in 2008, has seen the likes of Gareth Bale come through the Spurs youth ranks.
Manchester City can confirm to its fans that “clear the air” talks have been held with Carlos Tevez.
During the meeting Carlos expressed his absolute commitment to the Club and formally withdrew his transfer request. Carlos’ contract remains unchanged and both Carlos and the Football Club are keen to focus on the opportunities that lie ahead.
Roberto Mancini commented “Carlos is a world class player whose contribution since he joined the Club has been invaluable.
I am pleased that we are now able to focus on pure football matters and to be able to look forward to Carlos continuing to play a significant role in the Club’s progress.”
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