Cristiano Ronaldo has been in superb form for the Red Devils this season and Spanish giants Real Madrid are reported to have renewed their interest in the player even though Manchester United said that the Portuguese star is not for sale.
Sergio Alves, who claims to be a representative of the winger, told Barcelona radio station Onda Cera: "When Real and Barca are involved the future is always open, not closed.
"Given a little bit of time, the situation may change, let's see."
Ronaldo's future in England looked unwelcoming after he was made a scapegoat for England's World Cup exit to Portugal in the summer.
He overcame the early-season taunts to find his best form to date for United and is currently the second top scorer in the Barclays English Premiership with 13 goals.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Cristiano Ronaldo linked with Real Madrid and Barcelona
Liverpool permitted to sign Mascherano
Liverpool have been given the go-ahead from FIFA to sign Argentina midfielder Javier Mascherano from West Ham.
The deal with Liverpool was initially in doubt because Mascherano had already played for two clubs competitively this season - the Hammers and Brazilian club Corinthians.
The Argentinian has failed to make an impact at Upton Park, after joining the Londoners on the final day of the summer transfer window along with compatriot Carlos Tevez. The transfer itself was shocking football fans and it was thought that the MSI owner, Kia Joorabchian only want to made profit.
A statement from FIFA this morning read: "After due consideration of all aspects, the FIFA single judge ruled that 'upon registration for Liverpool FC during the present registration period, the player Javier Mascherano is eligible to play in official matches with the said club with immediate effect'."
The ruling by FIFA appears to take into account the fact that the Brazilian and English seasons do not run parallel, with the Campeonato Brasileiro beginning in April and ending in December - thus cutting through the close season in this country.
The FIFA statement continued: "Particular emphasis was given to the safeguard of the sporting integrity and the crucial element of overlapping sports seasons between associations, notably in cases in which a sports season starts prior and ends beyond July 1.
"Yet, the single judge made it clear that such permission can only be granted under very restrictive preconditions, such as they exist in the case at stake, yet never occurred in a case that was submitted to the attention of the competent deciding bodies at an earlier stage.
"In particular, he emphasised that a series of elements related, on the one hand, to the duration and the positioning of the relevant sports seasons as well as to the respect of the registration periods and, on the other hand, to the duration and respect of the employment contracts concerned, need to be cumulatively met."
Monday, January 29, 2007
Ronaldo goes to Milan
AC Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani is confident Ronaldo will be wearing the Rossoneri's colours in the next few days.
Galliani will travel to Spain on Monday to meet Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon in the hope of completing the signing of the Brazilian forward.
"I have a meeting at 5pm on Monday in Madrid with the Real Madrid president," said Galliani.
"Only one million (euros) separates us from reaching an agreement. Hopefully, we will reach an agreement and Ronaldo can train with his new team by Tuesday."
Milan have made a six million euro offer for the former Internazionale striker, but Real will not sell him for less than seven million.
Although the deal has yet to be completed, Ronaldo underwent a medical on Friday at Milan's headquarters and Galliani was satisfied with the player's form.
"He is in good condition," said Galliani. "Better than what doctors had expected."
This transfer also supported by AC Milan Coach Carlo Ancelotti who really like to played the Brazilian player.
The 30-year-old is expected to complete his transfer to the Rossoneri later on Monday in a reported 7million euros transfer.
The former Internazionale forward has been out of favour at Real Madrid and his imminent move to the Rossoneri has met with mixed reactions from supporters who claim he is far from his physical peak.
"Ronaldo is not fat," Ancelotti said.
"He is a very robust player. I think his problem is the fact that in recent times, he has not had much motivation.
"From a physical point of view, he hasn't trained much because he has been excluded from Real Madrid's team and he has lost motivation in training.
"But he remains a great player. In the last five years at Real, he has scored almost 100 goals. No one in the world has done that."
Sunday, January 28, 2007
MILAN ADMIT LAMPARD INTEREST
AC Milan general director Ariedo Braida has admitted the Italian club could be ready to make a cut-price summer move for Chelsea's Frank Lampard.
FIFA rules state that players who have served out three years of a contract signed when the player was under 28 can buy themselves out of their own deal with just 15 days' notice at the end of the season.
The buy-out fee is based on wages not market value meaning Lampard could be available for around £8million.
Braida was interested in the news and raised the possibility of a summer bid for the England midfielder.
"Is this true? Lampard available for £8m?" Braid told the Sunday Mail. "If this is the case, of course it is interesting news.
"Lampard is a very good player, one of the best around, and this is something I wasn't aware of at all. I am glad I have been made aware of this situation."
The Stamford Bridge club last week suggested that they were close to signing a new deal with Lampard but nothing concrete has emerged from talks between club and player.
Braida, meanwhile, confirmed that a host of European clubs would join the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal in opposing new UEFA president Michel Platini's plans to limit each country's Champions League quota to three.
He told the News of the World: "None of the Spanish, Italian, English or German clubs want this and we [AC Milan] don't want it either.
"Platini is a good man and a real football man. We congratulate him on his appointment.
"But he must know there isn't another competition like the Champions League in the world and we don't see the need to change it."
Friday, January 26, 2007
RONALDO GOING NOWHERE - FERGIE
By Simon Stone, PA Sport Chief Football Writer
Sir Alex Ferguson has slapped a 'not for sale' notice on Cristiano Ronaldo, no matter how much Real Madrid are prepared to pay for the brilliant Manchester United winger.
Reports in Spain suggest the nine-times European champions are preparing a massive £35million offer for the 21-year-old, who expressed a desire to join the club during last summer's World Cup.
Since then, Ronaldo has returned to Manchester, has risen above the abuse of opposition fans and produced the best form of his life.
With 13 Premiership goals to his name, Ronaldo trails only Didier Drogba in the scoring charts and he is one of the major contenders for this season's prestigious player of the year awards.
Earlier this week, Ferguson's assistant Carlos Queiroz suggested United were ready to open contract negotiations with Ronaldo, even though the Portugal international's present deal does not expire until 2010.
Ferguson joked he would be 'in a wheelchair' by that time, although he was deadly serious when he stated Real have no chance of getting their man.
"We sell players we want to sell and there is absolutely no way Cristiano Ronaldo is leaving," he said.
"The boy has done fantastically well. He is developing as a professional, as a person and as a player.
"He is happy here. He has a contract until 2010 and we are not interested in even thinking about selling him."
FERGUSON STILL HOPEFUL ON HARGREAVES
By Simon Stone, PA Sport Chief Football Writer
Sir Alex Ferguson has not yet abandoned all hope of luring Owen Hargreaves to Manchester United.
The Red Devils have reportedly upped their bid for the England midfielder to £20million, yet Bayern Munich are still refusing to sell.
With the transfer window due to close next week, it is looking increasingly likely United will have to wait until next summer at the earliest to sign the midfielder.
Ferguson recognises the difficulty in trying to sign top quality talent at this stage of the season, pointing to a similar lack of activity at Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal.
However, he is not prepared to throw in the towel just yet.
"I am not giving up on anything that makes us better," he said.
"We have been active in one or two areas but it is not as easy as you think. There are a lot of things to consider and many clubs do not want to sell in January.
"You see the four top clubs; ourselves, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal. There has been no movement.
"The teams doing the buying are the ones trying to pull away from the bottom of the league like Aston Villa and West Ham."
Blackburn signed Cristhoper Samba from Hertha Berlin
DR Congo international Samba, 22, has signed a three-and-a-half year deal and earned the move after a successful trial spell with the Ewood Park outfit.
"Chris came in last week," Hughes told the club's website. "I think you get a better idea of what players are about, and he impressed us.
"He's is upwards of 6ft 5ins and a big powerful guy."
He added: "Sometimes when you have players of that stature they don't really leap to their maximum height but he certainly does.
"He's quick enough, he's got a big long stride and covers the ground very easily. he is also a good passer of the ball.
"We think he is a good addition to the squad."
Samba has already played for Hertha Berlin in the Uefa Cup this season and is ineligible to play for Blackburn in Europe for the rest of the campaign.
"I'm very grateful that I'm here, I'm very happy to be here," said Samba.
"It's a dream for me to play in England in this league, and at a great club like Blackburn, it is perfect for me." "It was a good experience (in Germany), I think of all the leagues it is the one that is most similar to the English league.
"It is a very strong league but in England it is more intensive and stronger."
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Owen Hargreaves going to Manchester United on winter?
This transfer rumor really took a long time to be ended. Since summer 2006 Manchester United has been declared that they are very interested to make Owen Hargreaves move to Old Trafford. But Bayern Munich reject Manchester United’s bid because Bayern Munich think that they still need Owen Hargreaves, even though they bought Mark Van Bommel who can replace Owen Hargreaves in midfield. After that rejection, Manchester United decided to change their target. Their new target is another Englishman, Michael Carrick. Even after bought new player, Sir Alex Ferguson still think that his squad need additional player in midfield area. So, He will bought Owen Hargreaves on winter.
Mean while in Munich, Owen Hargreaves who out for approx. 5 month replaced by Mark Van Bommel. Luckily for Bayern Munich, Mark Van Bommel played really well. So, they think that their side can make profit by selling Owen Hargreaves to Manchester United on winter with high price.
When winter transfer opened, Manchester United made their move. But their first bid rejected by Bayern Munich because Bayern Munich thought that the price is still low for a player like Owen Hargreaves. Manchester United reacted to it with 25 mil euro, but surprisingly Bayern Munich reject it and declared 30 mil euro as acceptable price for Owen Hargreaves.
So with the current flow, I think Owen Hargreaves will not move to Old Trafford on this winter transfer window. I don’t think that Sir Alex Ferguson want to spend 30 mil euro for one player. Even 25 mil euro for a player like Owen Hargreaves is maximum (for right now). The reason why the transfer cannot be made on this winter is because they are so many condition that make Owen Hargreaves not in his maximum value. The first one is he is injured since 4 month ago and still injured for approx 1 month. So what is the brilliant idea for buying a player in his maximum price while he was out from the field for a long time. Reason number two is Owen Hargreaves cannot play in European Champion League 2006/2007 because he is already make his appearance for Bayern Munich this season in ECL. The third is Sir Alex Ferguson doesn’t need Owen Hargreaves service to maintain their current position until the end of English Premier League (according to his statement while Manchester United battle against Aston Villa in FA Cup). And the fourth is Bayern Munich demand for Owen Hargreaves may goes down on the next summer.
