Football transfers rumours: Aston Villa defender Ron Vlaar to Tottenham?
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Version 0 of 1. Yesterday’s Nani to Arsenal game-changer left the Mill feeling spent, a bit light-headed. Today the Mill feels spent and light-headed and low, so low, after a right demeaning from Gareth Bale. “The Premier League is great,” he reckons, “but Spain is the most exciting … we’re attracting the world’s best players to La Liga.” All based on nothing more than the arrivals of £63m James Rodríguez and £20m Toni Kroos and £75m Luis Suárez to join £85m Bale and £71m Neymar and £80m Him. The most exciting transfers are all in Spain, Gareth? Really? So what about this? Liverpool want a new left back – specifically Ryan Bertrand from Chelsea, for £8m. Ryan Bertrand from Chelsea, for £8m! Again! There’s plenty else to disprove Bale’s cheap point, too, including news that the Ron Vlaar saga may now include Tottenham, who could offer Lewis Holtby and Michael Dawson as makeweights in a bid which may beat bids from Queens Park Rangers and Southampton. Or may not. Paul Lambert says he’s unmoved. “Ron’s not only an Aston Villa player, he’s our captain,” he observed. “We aren’t selling. It’s as simple as that.” Elsewhere, Knack’s Andy Carroll could be replaced by Monaco’s £15m Lacina Traoré at West Ham, after Sam Allardyce said Carroll’s latest knock was a worry, and something he doesn’t want. “It’s a worry. It’s something we don’t want.” And Steve Bruce says his old club Crystal Palace can forget about luring away his captain. “Curtis Davies won’t be going anywhere, no matter what, that’s for sure.” Tony Pulis will turn instead to the better-named Cameroon ace Jean-Armel Kana-Biyik, and also fancies paying Marseille £2m for Morgan Amalfitano. Fabio Borini’s press conference unveiling at Sunderland where he says joining the club on a full-time basis was always his dream as a boy and he would have walked over hot coals to seal the deal is looking harder and harder to pull off, with the weighing-up process still ongoing. Gus Poyet is confident, though. “There’s no reason for it not to happen. We have an agreement with Liverpool, and there’s no doubt about his connection with this club.” No doubt. Nigel Pearson says Leicester’s spending will continue despite having a £7.5m bid for Watford’s Troy Deeney knocked back. “I’m not discounting any more business,” he tantalised – see, Gareth? – “This is our first year back in the Prem for a decade. We have to do the right business.” Peter Crouch says he wants to stay at Stoke and form the World’s Most Unlikely Partnership Ever with new boy Bojan Krikic. “I’m really happy with how the club is moving forward.” And James Milner plans to end his Manchester City hell by looking on the bright side and staying at Manchester City. And finally: Galatasaray have made a £10m bid for Cardiff’s Gary Medel; Feyenoord have told Ronald Koeman that he can’t have Jordy Clasie or Terence Kongolo for Southampton; Harry Redknapp is making a new bid for Norwich’s Leroy Fer; Everton have done a deal with Ferencvaros for the Bosnia World Cup midfielder Muhamed Besic and another with Anderlecht for the young striker David Henen; and Hamburg are battling Southampton, Swansea and Sevilla for Celtic’s Virgil van Dijk. Celtic want £8m. |