A few old, and a few new, names enter the gossip columns today, and they are pretty tasty names too.
Try as we might, we simply can’t avoid Wayne Rooney this morning. Rumbles about a new contract have been ongoing for a while but after a summer of uncertainty, we thought he was sure to stay at Old Trafford past his current deal which runs out in the summer of 2015.
But after seeing the mayhem that his interest caused over the summer just gone, Jose Mourinho looks to be in the mood to repeat the trick, with the Daily Telegraph reporting that Chelsea are ‘confident’ they can nab Rooney this summer.
The Blues need a striker, and Rooney may be looking for one, final big juicy contract, so it does make sense but you can’t help but think it is just Jose trying to upset everyone at Old Trafford even more than they already are. Time will tell, and who knows what the situation will be like at United when the summer rolls around anyway.
In other United news today the Mirror say that Rio Ferdinand sent Cristiano Ronaldo an 'SOS' to rejoin the Red Devils this summer, a request that was clearly ignored. And Ivan Rakitic, the Sevilla midfielder, also a reported target for David Moyes, seems to be staying in Spain, according to the Express.
Liverpool also fancied the talented Rakitic, but they have turned their attentions to Dynamo Kiev’s Andriy Yarmolenko, according to the Mail. With the Mohamed Salah deal from Basle stalled, Brendan Rodgers is eyeing up the Ukranian international. At £15million, he could be a fine bit of business, if the Reds can pull it off.
Arsenal’s search for a striker also continues. Their pursuit of Real Madrid’s Alvaro Morata is either pointless (Mail) or still on (Mirror) but a new name has also entered the mix today. Juventus’ diminutive striker Sebastian Giovinco is rumoured to be another loan target for Arsene Wenger this month. At 5’5”, the man known as Atom Ant would take the title of Premier League’s smallest player by about half an inch from Aaron Lennon, giving the Gunners yet another win over their north London rivals.
Away from the top of the table, Steve Bruce is in a huff as he can’t get his hands on either Steven Fletcher or Shane Long so he has turned his affection towards Everton’s Nikica Jelavic (Mail), Everton have joined the race for Blackpool hotshot Tom Ince and Iago Aspas could be packed off back to Spain, with Valencia sniffing around (talkSport).
Finally, in a bid to sign him for the 5,435th time, Harry Redknapp is trying to scupper Jermain Defoe’s proposed move to Toronto by bringing him to QPR instead (Mirror). However, it looks like that deal has fallen apart as the MLS club appear very confident they have secured the English striker. Better luck next time 'Arry.
