Archive » 2009 » December » 04

Stoke want to sign Huddersfield keeper Alex Smithies in a £3million deal and then loan him back to the Terriers. Potters boss Tony Pulis reckons that is the only way the League One outfit will agree a deal for the highly-rated 20-year-old. Smithies is the hottest young keeper prospect in the country with Everton and Middlesbrough also desperate to snap him up. But Huddersfield insist they do not need to sell and want Smithies to help them win promotion to the Championship.

Source: The Mirror

Laurent Robert is lining up a shock Newcastle return – at a £10million discount. Robert, 34, cost a whopping eight-figure fee when Sir Bobby Robson landed the former France international in 2001. But the free-agent winger is available for nothing and would love a second stint at St James’ after earning cult status by playing a big part in the Geordies’ back-to-back Champions League campaigns. Robert is training with Paris St Germain and has passed his number to Newcastle boss Chris Hughton.

Source: The Sun

Sol Campbell last night claimed Newcastle have rejected the chance to sign him in January – an hour after boss Chris Hughton said he was “still an option.” The former England defender is free to strike a deal with a new club after negotiating a release from his contract with Notts County this week, after the PFA confirmed his is now eligible to sign for any club, including in the Premier League, next month. But Campbell believes the chance to move to St James’s Park has disappeared. Newcastle last week turned their attention to landing £2million Sheffield United stopper Matthew Kilgallon.

Source: The Mirror

AC Milan star Gennaro Gattuso could be heading for the Premier League after talks over extending his AC Milan deal broke down. The Italian side have offered the midfielder a contract extension but Gattuso has so far failed to respond to the proposal. Vice president Adriano Galliani said: “Milan’s consideration for Gattuso is such that the club has a contract extension ready for him. The offer would allow him to end his career with us. He has not responded yet to our offer but we will meet again and I hope he will accept.” The 31-year-old’s current deal with the Rossoneri ends in June 2011 and Manchester City have been linked with a January move for him.

Source: The Sun

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti is ready to darken Arsene Wenger’s mood further by going head to head with the Arsenal manager for Inter Milan striker Mario Balotelli. The 19-year-old is among the names Wenger is considering buying in January as a replacement for injured striker Robin van Persie, despite Inter’s reluctance to sell. But Ancelotti is ready to tempt Balotelli with the offer of first-team football as he steps up his search for reinforcements to cover the loss of strikers Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou to the Africa Cup of Nations. ‘I would sign a player like Balotelli,’ said Ancelotti. ‘I like him and he would always be in the first team under me.’

Source: Daily Mail