[Thelomen Toblerone]

If you useless Blue Square bastards can get youselves promoted this year, it's so on for next season. Barnet vs Salisbury, the big one (well, home and away fixtures, so two). We'll have to go along and cheer our shit lads on.

[caladanbrood]

Definitely. I'll be there if you buy me a pint

[Thelomen Toblerone]

Agreed. And you buy me a pie.

Well well well, Juve have pulled out of signing Alonso. It seems crazy old Rafa's mad valuations have come back to bite him in the bottom, as Juve just went and got Poulsen instead.

This could have big implications for the Barry deal - where are Liverpool going to get the money from now? Will Hicks and Gilette splash out? Or will Benitez decide that with Alonso, Mascherano, Lucas and Gerrard, he has enough in the middle of the park and pull out of the Barry move?

IF he does, it'll make Barry look like a right tit, and Im not sure he'll be ale to stay at Villa. That said, who else is going to pay silly money for him? The papers were reporting Arsenal's interest, but I severaly doubt those tight gits would pay any more than £10mil.


Also, the Keane deal - I read somewhere that Liverpool would only buy Keane if they werent spending all their money on Barry - could that one be on the cards now?

[Thelomen Toblerone]

FINALLY, Hleb is off, for about £12mil to Barca.

Looks like Gilberto's off too, and Ronaldinho's going to AC. I knew finally we'd get a day where transfers actually happened.

Looks like no-one wants Adebayor anymore then, the stupid berk's going to regret being an utter twat all summer next season. Unless all the other strikers get injured. Which they will. Again. Sigh.

Arsenal must be in for a CM now though, you dont flog two and not get in at least one replacement - could it be Barry? Or, far more likely, a foetus from France?

[caladanbrood]

Villa must be pissed about Scott Carson. They were told they had to stump up £8million for him, and now Liverpool have accepted £4million bids from both West Brom and Stoke...

[Sir Bob]

anyone else head that arsenal are thinking about barry and alonso? this could be nothing more than the papers making stuff up for the hell of it but ive heard it a few times.

[caladanbrood]

Barry, plausible. But Alonso? I'm very sceptical about that.

[Cougar]

Where would they get enough money for them?

[Thelomen Toblerone]

Villa and Liverpool have definitely got a hate thing going on now. I wouldnt be surprised to see Villa sell Barry to someone else for £10mil, just to stick up two fingers at the scousers.

O'Neill says Arsenal made a call to ask how the Barry deal was going along with Liverpool, then said they'd be following the situation. Interest maybe, but half-hearted by the looks of things. Not a chance with Alonso though, he's no cheaper and I just cant see it. I reckon Arsenal might go for Barry if Liverpool pull out for sure. Barry cant really stay, and Villa have been interested in a couple of Arsenal players like Hoyte for a while now. In that scenario, Arsenal could well do a £10mil + Hoyte + a couple of add-ons.

Cant see it actually happening though.

[caladanbrood]

Cougar;352355 said:

Where would they get enough money for them?

They could afford one or the other. They just got £12million for Hleb, a few more for Gilberto by the looks of it - and they're not exactly poor, they're just tight-fisted.

[Sir Bob]

and if ade goes thats another 15-30mill depending on the random valuation generator...

[Cougar]

I can't believe someone is paying for Gilberto he had a terrible season.

[caladanbrood]

True, but the previous season he was their captain and almost irreplaceable in midfield. Maybe he just had a blip

On a lighter note:

Transfer Talk said:

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/16072008/58/...t-old-mess.html
Some of you may remember Australian A-League goalkeeper Danny Vuckovic he-man bitch-slapping a referee in last season's grand finale down under.

Well, he was slapped in return - with a lengthy ban that has seen his club, the delightfully-named Central Coast Mariners, search for a replacement goalkeeper whose "vast and impressive professional experience, his very presence at training will be an inspiration for our younger players ahead of the regular season".

So they have plumped for a sieg-heiling, reality-TV starring, booze-hounding reformed cokehead.

A man who has not played professionally since his sacking by Chelsea for a failed 2002 drug test which he initially claimed was sabotage, before later admitting that he snorted up to ten grams of blow a day.

A man who once claimed an "ironic" Nazi salute aimed at Spurs fans was a response to abuse they directed at him and then, years afterwards, reckoned Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson ditched him because of his "right-wing" politics.

That's right, Mark "it wasn't me... oh, alright then, it was" Bosnich will be the shining example to the kids of New South Wales. Words would fail TT if it wasn't verbally incontinent.

[Thelomen Toblerone]

I thought the last line was referring to me and my own verbal incontinence for a second.

According to the Birmingham Mail, that internationally reputable source, Villa are about to sign Brad Friedel for £2.5mil.

Now, why on earth Paul Ince is allowing Friedel to go I dont know. Possibly it's just because he's a poo manager. Regardless, you have to say, what a piece of transfer wheely-dealering O'Neill's done there. It's Redknapp-esque! I think he's a top keeper, and a bargain, even though he's only got a couple of years left in him.

They're also reporting Villa are ahead int he race to sign Bentley, which ties in with Cougar's question about Arsenal's resources. Bentley's still got a sell-on clause, so if he goes for the reported £15mil, Arsenal supposedly get £3mil of that.

They also got a couple of million from the Muamba deal, not to mention the £12mil from Hleb and the reported £2mil for Gilberto.

So, roughly £20 mil, to add to the £20mil the board claimed was the transfer kitty at the start of the summer. £5mils gone on Ramsay, and a further £12mil on Nasri. So, theoretically at least, Arsenal still have £20million odd to spend. They wont though.

[caladanbrood]

Thelomen Toblerone;352579 said:

I thought the last line was referring to me and my own verbal incontinence for a second.

That's why I left it in, hunni:hetan:

Quote

According to the Birmingham Mail, that internationally reputable source, Villa are about to sign Brad Friedel for £2.5mil.

Now, why on earth Paul Ince is allowing Friedel to go I dont know. Possibly it's just because he's a poo manager. Regardless, you have to say, what a piece of transfer wheely-dealering O'Neill's done there. It's Redknapp-esque! I think he's a top keeper, and a bargain, even though he's only got a couple of years left in him.

I don't think this will happen. Ince was talking about the Bentley = Robinson + Monies the other day, and he said it couldn't happen because he had every intention of keeping Friedel. I do agree he's a seriously class goalkeeper though. One of the most consistant performers the premiership has ever seen.

[caladanbrood]

So Carson has gone to West Brom for just under £4million. Villa and Stoke must be properly pissed

[Macros]

caladanbrood;348417 said:

I doubt they'd do a straight money swap. Benitez is far too wayward with his valuations of players.

Redknapp actually sold Crouch within two days of taking over at Pompey the first time, and then sold him again six months after taking over Southampton, so I'm not sure they have the best record together;)

All quiet on the Berbatov front for now... but it won't last, I doubt.

Aparently Spurs' new target winger is Juan Arango - anyone heard of him?

behind schedule and havent read on to see if this has been answered but arango is reasonably competent, can show a bit of flair when needed but I've read somewhere he can be a bit of a whinger

[caladanbrood]

Does he get injured a lot? If so, he's the complete Spurs package already!

[Thelomen Toblerone]

If he's inury prone, Im sure you'll have competition for his signature from us. Poor old Rosicky, RVP, Eboue, and Gallas are all so lonely in the treatment room nowHleb's gone that Wenger's bound to buy someone to keep the numbers up.

Apparently Drogba's on his way to Barca, but this is according to a story in Marca, and therefore is utter poo.

Arsenal are definitely buying one more player, and possibly two, so all expectant mothers across France are preparing themselves for a payday of epic proportions.

The most intriguing stories of the day though come yet again from our transfer rumour victim neighbours across North London, the Spuds. Apparently, despite Spurs insisting repeatedly that Keane is staying and Berbatov too, the newspapers are convinced they're going to be sold for £57mil and 4 replacements brought in. You've gotta love the work ethic of the newspapers in thinking up shit.

[caladanbrood]

£57million? Let's buy Drogba!!