The Irish international has had a very big price tag slapped on his head and it might scare off some suitors.
It’s been a summer of downward moves by Irish footballers. Richard Dunne has dropped down to QPR, Shay Given seems to be on his way to Doncaster or at least out of the top flight anyway and dear old Rory Delap joined Burton Albion last week.
The one player we hoped would make a move up the divisions was James McCarthy. The Irish international was top class for relegated Wigan last term and after the Latics slipped out of the Premier League it was widely hoped, and expected, that he would get a move to one of the bigger clubs in the top flight.
Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal were all mentioned but as the summer has worn on, the rumours have dried up. But today we hear that Spurs are interested in the talented 22-year-old, via the Mirror.
The only problem with this move, which would be great for the player and for Ireland, is that Wigan want £20million for McCarthy, and that is putting AVB off. You could argue that with his mix of talent, experience and potential, that number is about right for McCarthy but it is still a lot of dough. The paper says that Spurs may come back with a different bid, one that includes some player exchange. One will keep an eye on.
Away from the McCarthy news, another story continues its glacial progress. Luis Suarez will meet up with Brendan Rodgers this week to discuss his future, according to The Sun, while the Express say that Uruguayan striker is waiting to see if Arsenal will pony up the £40m to get him.
And if the Star can be believed, the Reds are already eyeing up a replacement as they have entered the race for Valencia striker Roberto Soldado. Spurs have been after him for ages but a £17m bid by the Londoners has been turned down by the La Liga side, so Liverpool have decided to nip in.
Now to bit with more striker news than ‘France Public Sector Weekly’. It seems that Nikica Jelavic could be off to Hamburg from Everton (Mail), while the same paper reports that Benfica’s Nelson Oliveira could be on his way to Stoke. And Fantasy Football favourite Ricky Lambert might be out of the game if he does hook up with old gaffer Nigel Adkins at Reading (Mirror).
Finally, because we’d hate to leave Arsenal fans hanging, Gonzalo Higuain is reported to have stalled on a switch to Napoli as he wants to live in London (Mirror). Good news for Arsene Wenger then or just game playing to get a few more quid from the Italians. The pain goes on for long-suffering Gunners fans…
