January Transfer Window Rumour Mill

[GaNgStA kEeKs]

Thought we coudl have a thread where everyone posts up some of the latest rumours doing the rounds.

Just been reading there bout Celtic's interest in Distin as his contract is up in the summer.

He is exactlythe type of central defender i would love at Celtic. Lots of pace but plenty of talent also.

Been reaidng about Villa to Chelsea and Torres to Man Utd again but i really cant see a side like these two that is going so well splashig out so much in January, maybe at the end of the season but not just now.

[Hippy Dave]

Originally Posted by Kiko

plenty of talent also.

That rules him out from playing in the SPL then

[Oddsfellow]

Celtic will no doubt want players who can play in champs league so Distin fits the bill. Could be a very interesting transfer window this time around with Aston Villa, West Ham, Portsmouth and potentially Liverpool all with wealthy new owners looking to bag a bargain. On top of that you have Celtic looking to bolster their squad, Arsenal needing to strengthen and Chelsea will always sign anybody who is available just to stop them signing elsewhere.

I think with Larsson coming on loan the chances of Torres going to United must be slim. I would expect them to sign a wingman though for when either Giggs, or Ronaldo are out. Richardson is there but has fallen foul of Fergie.

As discussed elsewhere Shaun Wright Phillips is likely to be farmed out somewhere with Pompey and West Ham being the favs. As he is being lined up by so many clubs his move will need to happen first so that the other clubs will know what they still need.

[slick]

Well i hope Distin doesnt go as it would leave us with a huge headache at the back and the rumour down here is that the is due to sign a new contract very soon but money talks and i wouldent be surprised to see him move on.

Distin is a class player and fast as fcuk but prone to mistakes and probbaly one of the reasons non of the top Prem clubs have ever gone for him

[Winrew]

is a class player and fast as fcuk but prone to mistakes

I heard my mrs on the phone to one of the coven ( one of the othe 5 sisters she has ) i assumed to she was on about me , i didnt realise any of the others were Man City fans

[christianu]

ohh winrew when will you learn

Distin isnt that good, flatters to deceive, and for the winrews amongst you (i.e winrew) that means looks a whole let better than he is.

Onouha and Richards are ready made replacements. Both very quick and strong just like Distin but I expect both will be better positonally.

I hope we sell him in the window.

[crowie]

Distins' agent is Willie McKay so its no surprise that he is being linked with all and sundry. Wouldn't surprise me to see him either go (so agent gets a cut of transfer fee) or sign a new contract (so agent gets a cut of signing on fee).

After all McKay has to do something in between trying to get Thomson and Brown of Hibs moved/signing new contracts.

[christianu]

It wouldnt suprise me either if he went or stayed as you've put it, what would suprise me is if he turned into an elf.

[slick]

Onouha and Richards are ready made replacements Chris but i'm more worried about what happens if one of them gets a knock as we have no other decent cover, as it is now with Richards playing mainly right back, Onouha provides good cover @ the back (don't know why Pearce didnt replace Richards with him on Saturday).

Distin may well go but it will leave us with a headache like i have allready mentioned unless we replace him, the same thing happened with the forwards over the summer , he sold Cole and let Fowler go for obvious reasons but never replaced like for like and now were struggling up front.
Don't know who he would have replaced those two with mind but there has to be better options around than Dickov and Carradi

[all_funkt_up]

I think Pearce will be tempted to keep Distin til the end of the season and let him go for nowt. That is preferable to selling him for buttons and being left short for the last 5 months of the season IMO.

I think I am happy with the Liverpool team. I would rather see continuity and stability above all else. We already have a glut of goalkeepers dotted around the premiership. We are steady in defence, another right back to offer an attacking option would be a bonus. I like Daniel Alves but the price is prohibitive.

As for midfield, I think the ones we have just need time to settle and bed in. I am thinking about the likes of Gonzalez, Aurelio and Pennant. I would like to see Didi Hamann come back and Zenden go.... anywhere. I would pay him to live in exile on Elba or something.

We have enough strikers and I think we have the quality too. Yeah we could always do with Adriano and I like the look of Fred, but being realistic (as I ALWAYS am) I dont think there are better options out there within our price range.

Saw there were rumours of the barcodes landing Shevchenko and Crouchyon loan in January. Fuck right off. Crouchy isnt going anywhere. He's immense....

[kompressaur]

thought this might be interesting as a betting tool poss

[kompressaur]

what im on about i do not know

[kompressaur]

[all_funkt_up]

I see that Stephen Pressley is due to sign for Charlton. He was in the crowd for the game the other night and is having a medical today by all accounts. Charlton have already signed the Chinese captain I heard today on 5-Live. Never seen him play, but based on the quality of previous Chinese imports into the premiership (Li Tie and that Fan bloke) I cant see him being much kop. They usually arent big or strong enough to cut it with the big shit house players we get over here. You need a bit of muscle at the sharp end of the Premiership.

More worryingly, it appears as if Crouch could be on his way out of Anfield. Bloody good luck to him if he is because I think he has been treaten really shoddily.

He was brimming with goals earlier in the season, England's top scorer of all time in a calendar year. I dont want to hear people moan about how he faced easy teams etc etc. We have always played good and bad teams. I remember playing the Andorrans and San Marino and people NOT getting a hat-full. You can only score against whom you play. Its still a great achievement.

Yeah so anyway, Crouch was on fire and we pissed on it. Up until boxing day, he had played 44 minutes of football in december. An average of 11 minutes a game. Fully fit, on fire, brimming with confidence and Rafa leaves him out of the team. He then plays on boxing day for 57 minutes and gets slated in the press for not being on top form. Poor lad.

Roeder has shown his interest a few times this month and has come out today saying he likes Crouch, but it isnt fair to speculate on another club's player. Seems as if another move could be on the cards for Crouchy. Massive, massive mistake if we let him go. I really cant say how disappointed I am in the club's attitude to Crouchy.

[all_funkt_up]

Originally Posted by theBEEB

Liverpool will sell striker Peter Crouch to Newcastle for £12m, but insist they need a replacement first. (The Sun)

The replacement they want is long-term target David Villa, the Spanish striker who could cost £22m from Valencia. (The Sun, Independent)

Newcastle and Aston Villa are ready to lock horns in a £6m battle to sign Curtis Davies from West Brom. (Daily Star)

Tottenham and Newcastle are leading the chase for Derby's £3m wonderkid Giles Barnes. (The Sun)

Liverpool have joined Juventus in the chase for West Ham's Argentine flop Javier Mascherano. (Daily Express, Daily Mirror)

Bolton boss Sam Allardyce has told Chelsea to forget about signing Tal Ben Haim on the cheap. (The Sun)

Southampton are hoping Real Madrid drive up the price for their wonderkid left-back Gareth Bale. (Daily Express)

Fulham are in talks with Roma about signing striker Vincenzo Montella, possibly on loan until the end of the season. (The Times, Guardian)

Former Hearts captain Steven Pressley had a medical at Charlton on Thursday and is set to sign for the club on Friday. (Guardian)

Celtic have made an increased offer to Steven Pressley in an attempt to prevent the defender joining Charlton. (Daily Record/Daily Mail)

Celtic manager Gordon Strachan wants Hibernian midfielders Scott Brown and Kevin Thomson - but would prefer to wait until the summer. (The Sun)

Man Utd striker Giuseppe Rossi is set to end his loan spell at Newcastle and join Sunderland instead. (The Sun)

Sheffield United boss Neil Warnock is poised to make a £500,000 offer for QPR striker Ray Jones. (Various)

Rangers could move for Andy Webster after the Scotland defender was told he could leave Wigan in January. (Daily Mail)

Arsenal have rejected Falkirk's request to extend striker Anthony Stokes' loan with the Bairns beyond Sunday. (Daily Mail)

Derby are leading the chase for Hull City striker Craig Fagan, thought to be worth around £750,000. (The Sun)

Sheffield Wednesday boss Brian Laws has warned clubs off signing centre-back Madjid Bougherra. (The Sun)

Sunderland have bid £1m for Luton midfielder Carlos Edwards. (Daily Mail)

West Brom boss Tony Mowbray has told Wigan to forget any plans to sign striker Nathan Ellington. (The Sun)

Goalkeeper Dean Kiely is in line for a shock move from Portsmouth to West Brom in the transfer window. (Daily Mail)

Middlesbrough manager Gareth Southgate has told Fabio Rochemback to forget about a move back to Portugal with Spoting Lisbon. (Various)

Birmingham could be ready to cut their losses on David Dunn, who may go back to Blackburn for £2m. (The Sun)

Wolves are ready to sell out-of-favour midfielder Denes Rose. (The Sun)

Nottingham Forest are set to sell striker Neil Harris to raise cash to buy David Prutton from Southampton. (Various)

Hearts have beaten Celtic in the race for Romanian superkid Dumitru Copil, 16. (Daily Record)

Blackpool are battling with Bournemouth to sign midfielder Simon Gillett from Southampton. (The Sun)

West Brom manager Tony Mowbray is set to make a January transfer bid for Celtic forward Derek Riordan (Daily Express)