MADRID, July 29 (Reuters) - Real Madrid have not given up hope of landing a high-profile player such as [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kak%C3%A1]Kaka[/url] to bolster their squad for next season, new coach Bernd Schuster has said.

'A few months ago Real were after (Manchester United's) Cristiano Ronaldo, then after (AC MIlan's) Kaka and offered €80 million for him. This option is still there,' Schuster told German television station ZDF.

'We've got a big fat suitcase full of cash, and there will definitely be a player or two to come. But it's difficult to lure top players away from their clubs,' he said on Saturday.

The Spanish champions have already brought in four players to strengthen the side ahead of next season, spending €30 million to land centre-back Pepe from Porto.

But the other three, Germany defender Christoph Metzelder, Poland goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek and Argentina striker Javier Saviola, have all arrived as free agents and none have filled Real's demanding fans with excitement for next year.

Kaka has been a target for the Madrid club since president Ramon Calderon was elected in July 2006 when he promised to sign the Brazilian playmaker.

Last month their drive to secure Kaka appeared to have run into a dead end as the player committed himself to Milan, where he has a contract until 2011. Kaka said the door was closed for a move unless the Italian club chose to sell him.

Another target, Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas, has also ruled himself out of a move to the Spanish capital.

However, Real believe they are close to landing Chelsea's Dutch winger Arjen Robben. They are reported to have tabled a €31 million bid, although the Premier League side have resolutely refused to accept their offer so far.

Spanish media have reported tht Robben and Feyenoord fullback Royston Drenthe are set to join Real next week.


ESPNsoccernet

SINGAPORE, July 30 (Reuters) - Olympiakos Piraeus striker Nery Castillo is set to sign a lucrative deal with Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk, according to reports in the Greek media.

Olympiakos officials admitted on Monday that nothing had been signed but they had had an offer from Shakhtar and an official statement is expected later in the day.

Sources close to the forward, who starred for Mexico in the recent Copa America and has been linked to English Premier League side Manchester City, suggested that Shakhtar have agreed to pay Olympiakos around 15 million euros ($20.5 million).

Meanwhile, Shakhtar have signed Brazilian defender Ilsinho from Sao Paolo on a four-year, 10 million euro contract with an option that it could be extended for one more year.

ESPNsoccernet

Reyes completes move to Atletico

Arsenal have confirmed that Jose Antonio Reyes has joined Atletico Madrid for an undisclosed fee.
Reyes, who is set to sign a four-year deal, will have a medical on Tuesday before being officially unveiled.

Atletico were seen as favourites to sign the 23-year-old for a reported £6m after Real Madrid apparently refused to offer more than £4m.

Reyes was on loan with Real last season and scored the vital goals against Mallorca to help the side to La Liga.

An Arsenal statement said: "Everyone at Arsenal thanks Jose Antonio for his contribution to the club and wishes him the best of luck for the future."

The winger was close to joining Atletico last summer, signing a pre-contract deal, before opting to join their city rivals.

Lyon also made a bid for Reyes, who cost Arsenal £10.5m when he arrived from Sevilla four years ago, but they all but admitted defeat after the player said he wanted to remain in Spain.

Reyes, who has won 21 caps for Spain, made a total of 110 appearances for the Gunners and scored 23 goals.

He made 30 appearances with Real, mostly as a substitute, and scored six league goals.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/a/arsenal/6921902.stm

Spurs are set to tie up the signing of £4.5m Hertha Berlin midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng this week.

Tottenham are in talks about signing Dynamo Zagreb right-back Vedran Corluka.

Winger Seol Ki-Hyeon is ready to leave Reading for Fulham in a £1m switch.

Newcastle have told striker Obafemi Martins he can leave if they find a suitable buyer.

Real Madrid's German coach B. Schuster has indicated interest in M. Ballack and Chelski promptly responded by placing a €27million price tag on the midfielder. . . .

so what if Madrid are up to it? does this mean that Ballack is surplus to requirements at Chelski

If this is true I think the price tag is just to put any interested party off because nobody in his right senses will buy a 31 year old for  €27million. But then again its Madrid involved, they make the most bizarre signings.

Manchester United have sold Giuseppe Rossi to Villarreal with the move subject to a medical.

The Spanish side have beaten a host of Italian clubs to the highly-rated striker's signature.

Rossi spent the second half of last season on loan at Parma and he impressed at the Ennio Tardini.

United have decided to let Rossi leave Old Trafford as he is well down the pecking order in Sir Alex Ferguson's plans.

The impending arrival of Carlos Tevez from West Ham would push Rossi further out of the picture for a place in the starting XI and United have opted to let the Italian Under 21 international move on.

Villarreal have paid an undisclosed fee for the diminutive forward with the player expected to undergo a medical later this week before putting the finishing touches to the move.

Rossi will help fill the void left by the departure of Diego Forlan at Villarreal next season.


Skysports.com

Tottenham have completed the signing of Kevin-Prince Boateng from Hertha Berlin.

The Germany Under 21 international is regarded as one of the best young midfielders in Europe.

Tottenham have been chasing the 20-year-old for some time and they beat off interest from a host of clubs to land Boateng.

Boateng is excited at the prospect of playing in the Premier League with Tottenham.

"For me it is amazing to be in England," Boateng told the club's official website. "To be in London and playing for Spurs will be great for me.

"It has been my ambition to play in England, I am 20 now and am about to quickly realise my dream.

"I know that Spurs are a team who like to play offensive football. The club want to climb higher next season and I want to be a part of it.

"I watched the Premier League regularly in Germany, it is the most famous league in the world and I have always enjoyed it."

Spurs boss Martin Jol hailed the signing of Boateng and he believes he will be a valuable addition to the squad.

"Kevin is a talented player who plays for the Under 21 side of his country," said Jol. "You could compare him with the likes of Aaron Lennon and Tom Huddlestone in that he is an exciting player for now and the future.

"He is an attacking midfield player, very strong and that is one of his main assets.

"In Germany he is regarded as one of the biggest talents, we recognised this and went in for him."

Skysports.com

West Ham and [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_T%C3%A9vez]Carlos Tevez's[/url] advisers will confirm on Friday that they have reached an agreement over the striker's registration, Five Live understands.

With the threat of High Court action on 22 August hanging over negotiations, talks have been ongoing this week.

BBC Five Live's Nigel Adderley said: "A settlement has been reached, and that could be ratified by the Premier League and Football Association on Friday."

It is thought Tevez's advisors MSI will pay West Ham between £1m and £3m.

That will free the 23-year-old Argentine to complete a move to Manchester United, whose manager Sir Alex Ferguson has made no secret of his desire to sign the player.

Tevez's switch to United had stalled over who will be paid the transfer fee.

The Premier League and West Ham say the Hammers should receive the fee but Kia Joorabchian's companies MSI and Just Sports Inc claim they own the striker's economic rights.

Adderley explained: "West Ham need to reach a settlement which proves to the Premier League they are the significant beneficiaries of any transfer involving Tevez."

Tevez, meanwhile, has said he expects to join United, adding: "To play for a super-club like Manchester United without any pre-season work behind me is going to be a real handicap."

BBC Sport

Chelsea have moved a step closer to the capture of Brazil defender Alex after he was granted a work permit.
Alex has been at PSV Eindhoven for the past two seasons after he was deemed ineligible for a permit, but should now complete a permanent move to the Blues.

A statement on the Chelsea website said: "At a hearing today, Alex was granted a work permit.

"He still has to agree personal terms with Chelsea Football Club and have a medical."

Alex arrived at Heathrow on Sunday only to then return to Brazil, despite being granted permission to enter the country by immigration staff.

Permit rules require a player to have played for his country in at least 75% of their competitive 'A' games in which he was available for selection, during the two years preceding the date of the application for the permit.

Alex has played in eight of the 14 Brazilian games he was available for in the last two years and was not selected for the others.

BBC Sport.

Manchester United have signed a gifted nine-year-old after his grandfather sent the Premier League champions a DVD showcasing the boy's talents which has become a YouTube sensation.

Watch the Video

Rhain Davis, who was born in England [Images] but has lived in Australia since the age of four, was hailed by the British press on Thursday as the next Wayne Rooney after the United striker.

The boy's dribbling and goalscoring prowess for an Under-10 side in Brisbane, Australia, feature in a four-minute YouTube clip, already viewed more than 800,000 times.

United confirmed the signing but played down the hype around Davis, who has moved back to Cheshire in northern England with his father, near the club's training ground.

"He's a member of our academy and we don't comment on individual members," a United spokesman told Reuters.

He added that the club sign about 40 players of Davis's age every year and, as is standard, will decide annually whether to renew his contract or release him.

What was so unusual in Davis's case was that his skills were brought to the attention of United's youth scouts by the DVD submission, which could inspire other hopefuls, the spokesman said.

"We're bracing ourselves for a whole series of DVDs," he added.

Davis has been thrilled at the chance to rub shoulders with some of his idols.

"The best part has been meeting lots of players like Wayne Rooney," he told British newspapers.

www.rediff.com.

Manchester City have signed Brazil midfielder Elano from Shakhtar Donetsk for £8m to complete a hat-trick of deals within 24 hours.

Manager Sven-Goran Eriksson also picked up Javier Garrido from Real Sociedad for £1.5m and Vedran Corluka from Dinamo Zagreb for an undisclosed fee.

Elano, 26, and left-back Garrido, 22, have secured a four-year contracts.

Croatia defender Corluka, 21, who can play at either right-back or central defence, has signed a five-year deal.

Elano scored twice in the 3-0 win over Argentina at the Emirates Stadium last year and has been a regular in the Brazil squad since 2004, helping the national side to triumph in the recent Copa America.

Garrido made his debut for Sociedad during the 2004/2005 season, making 86 appearances in total.

Corluka arrives from Dinamo Zagreb for an undisclosed fee - reported to be around £7m.

He has been capped nine times for his country and his versatility is something that attracted Eriksson.

"He's a good defender, another good player first of all and that's the most important thing," said the former England boss.

"He's young and the good thing with him is that he can play in different roles - centre half or right-back. He's a tall, big guy and we look forward to him starting here, it's one more and I hope he will do very well for us."

Corluka insisted he had no regrets about leaving a Champions League club to join City.

"I was preparing to play for Dinamo in the Champions League, but since then things have happened very fast and I'm very happy to be here," he told the City website.

"Every boy in Croatia dreams of playing in the Premier League and my dream has come true.

"I think the Premier League is in some ways better than the Champions League at times."

Eriksson has now made seven new signings since he took the City helm, with Rolando Bianchi, Martin Petrov, Gelson Fernandes and Geovanni all moving to the club.

City chief executive Alistair Mackintosh said: "Today has proved to be an immensely productive one, the outcome of which is the acquisition of three top quality players for Manchester City.

"This has been achieved as a result of some tremendous teamwork and I would like to praise everyone involved for their efforts.

"I would particularly like to thank owner Dr Thaksin, without whom the signings would not have been possible."

BBC Sport

West Ham striker Carlos Tevez will be free to join Manchester United this weekend, BBC Sport understands.
The player's representatives and the Hammers have agreed to compensation of about £2m and he can move as soon as the Premier League approves the deal.

Tevez will return from his holidays this weekend to finalise a two-year loan move to Old Trafford on a salary of £4.5m a year.

United then have an option to buy Tevez on a three-year contract for £30m.

With the threat of High Court action on 22 August hanging over negotiations, talks have been ongoing this week.

All sides were keen for the matter to be settled ahead of that time with the transfer window closing on 30 August.

Tevez's switch to United had stalled over who will be paid the transfer fee.

The Premier League and West Ham said the Hammers should receive the fee but companies MSI and Just Sports Inc, which belong to Tevez's representaive Kia Joorabchian, said they owned the striker's economic rights.

BBC Radio Five Live's Nigel Adderley said: "West Ham need to reach a settlement which proves to the Premier League they are the significant beneficiaries of any transfer involving Tevez."

Tevez, meanwhile, has said he expects to join United, adding: "To play for a super-club like Manchester United without any pre-season work behind me is going to be a real handicap."

BBC Sport

Manchester City's aggressive summer of recruitment has continued with the capture of Fiorentina striker Valeri Bojinov.

The talented Bulgarian, who spent last season on-loan at Juventus, arrives at Eastlands on a four-year deal - subject to a work permit - after passing a medical.

Bojinov becomes City's fourth signing in just two hectic days in Manchester and the indications are that [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sven-G%C3%B6ran_Eriksson]Sven Goran Eriksson[/url] has not put his chequebook away just yet.

It is expected the former England chief will make further additions to his playing ranks before the close of the transfer window and City chief executive Alistair Mackintosh believes this latest capture is testimony to the Swede's pulling power.

[url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_2638482,00.html]Skysports.com[/url]

Newcastle United have completed a £6m deal to sign Manchester United's England striker Alan Smith.

Smith, 26, has agreed a five-year contract and trained with his new team-mates on Friday.

Newcastle fought off competition from several clubs to sign Smith, who had been had been told he would not be offered a new deal at Old Trafford.

Boss Sam Allardyce is now reported to pondering a last-ditch bid to sign Wigan defender Leighton Baines.

Out-of-contract Lyon captain Cacapa, 31, has also had a medical at Newcastle.

The Brazilian central defender, who skippered the French champions in each of their last five title-winning seasons, has also discussed personal terms with the club.

"He is a top player and we will be delighted if we can pull this off as we regard him as a big capture," manager Sam Allardyce told the Newcastle Chronicle.

"Our fans should not be put off by the fact they may not have heard of Cacapa because he has certainly been heard of in Brazil and France."

Smith could make his Newcastle debut alongside former Leeds team-mate Mark Viduka in a pre-season friendly against Sampdoria on Sunday.

Allardyce had already added Viduka, Joey Barton, David Rozehnal and Geremi to the squad since arriving at the club.

But with six players departing and Kieron Dyer also set to leave, Allardyce has been frustrated over the lack of new faces.

Smith battled back from a broken leg to play last season but the offer of a new deal at Old Trafford did not materialise.

The striker was signed from Leeds for £7m three years ago.

BBC Sport

A number of clubs, including Portsmouth, are still tracking Middlesbrough striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni.

However, the player's agent Barry Silkman doubts that Portsmouth would be able to match Boro's valuation of the Nigerian.

"Yakubu will not come cheap," Silkman warned.

"I honestly believe Pompey don't have the money to pay for him.

"Maybe Portsmouth thought the price would go down the closer it got to the (start of the) season.

"But Middlesbrough will look at the money Portsmouth have spent for David Nugent, Sulley Muntari (£7.2million) and John Utaka and think Yakubu is worth more."

The likes of West Ham, Manchester City and Aston Villa have also been linked with the Nigerian who is believed to be unsettled on Teesside.

[url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_2639109,00.html]Skysports.com[/url]

Birmingham City have confirmed the signing of Aston Villa's Liam Ridgewell.

The 23-year-old has put pen-to-paper on a three-year deal at St Andrews after completing his medical.

Birmingham will pay £3million to their Second City rivals for the young defender.

The signing of Ridgewell is the second defensive recruit in 24 hours for Steve Bruce, after Franck Queudrue finalised his move earlier on Friday.

"I am looking forward to working with Steve. He is a good manager and he has done a lot in his career as a centre half, so that's a lot to look up to," he told the club's website.

"Playing for so many years at Manchester United you can't go wrong and I'm sure I'll learn a lot of him because I am still young and making my way in the game."


[url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_2639009,00.html]Skysports.com[/url]

@ Dinozzo, dis is some hard work man, thanks for the updates.

de nada

Everton have made £11m bid for Porto's Argentina midfield man [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luis_Gonz%C3%A1lez]Luis Gonzalez[/url].

Boss David Moyes is attempting to push through a deal for the 26-year-old as Everton face competition from Juventus and Lyon for Gonzalez's signature.

BBC Sport understands Everton are now awaiting a response to the bid, which would beat the club record £8.6m paid to Crystal Palace for Andrew Johnson.

Everton are also poised to pay £5m for Wigan's Leighton Baines after Newcastle admitted defeat in the transfer battle.

Gonzalez - known as "Lucho" - is a key figure in Porto's line-up, and figured in Argentina's squad at the recent Copa America.

Whether Everton pull off the coup remains to be seen, as Moyes bids to end a summer of frustration in the transfer market.

Everton have signed Phil Jagielka from Sheffield United for £4m and signed South African midfield man Steven Pienaar on a season-long loan from Borussia Dortmund.

But 22-year-old Baines looks set to sign before the start of the season, with Moyes also hoping to close a deal for Gonzalez.


BBC Sport

West Ham manager Alan Curbishley has said that Kieron Dyer's move from Newcastle is "definitely off".

The two clubs had agreed a fee thought to be £6m for the 28-year-old midfielder but Curbishley has blamed Newcastle for the move collapsing.

"We made an offer, had it accepted, agreed personal terms and the player passed a medical," he said.

"But it was pulled at the 11th hour by Newcastle and there's not much we can do about that."

He added: "It has never happened to me before. We are disappointed and the player is very disappointed but it's definitely off."

Dyer is keen to leave the north-east club and move south for "family reasons" and a move looked set to be completed after Newcastle boss Sam Allardyce's comments earlier this week.

"We've agreed a deal so you would have thought he will end up where he needs to be in order to solve his family problems," Allardyce said after his side's 1-0 defeat to Hull in a friendly.

"From our point of view and from his it's a satisfactory result."

The reasons for Newcastle's apparent change of heart are not yet known.

They have signed striker Alan Smith and centre-back Claudio Cacapa in the last two days.

The St James' Park outfit are also close to signing left-back Jose Enrique from Villarreal, according to the Spanish side.


BBC Sport

MADRID, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Real Madrid have offered Chelsea a combined bid of up to £27million for Germany captain Michael Ballack and Dutch winger Arjen Robben, Spanish media reported on Saturday.

The Spanish champions have been negotiating for Robben for a number of weeks, but the sudden inclusion of midfielder Ballack in the deal comes as something of a surprise.

Media said Real were lining up a five-year deal for Robben, 23, and one of three years for Ballack.

The Germany captain, who turns 31 next month, has struggled to adapt to life in the Premier League after moving from Bayern Munich on a free transfer in May 2006.

Real's new coach Bernd Schuster, a former Germany international, said he wanted a player of Ballack's characteristics a week ago.

Robben has been stalling over signing a contract extension at Chelsea, though his current deal has two years left to run.

The pacy, left-footed winger joined the Londoners from PSV Eindhoven for £15million in 2004 but has struggled with inconsistency and injury in his three years at the club.

Real have made no secret of their desire to sign Robben since president Ramon Calderon promised to bring him to the Bernabeu when he took office last year.


ESPNsoccernet

Brazil full-back Daniel Alves has admitted he is interested in a potential move to Chelsea.

The 24-year-old has been linked with a £20million switch from Sevilla to Stamford Bridge.

Alves claims he is happy to stay with the Spanish club but would have to give consideration to any good offers.

He said: 'I am flattered that Chelsea is interested in me. The career of a footballer is very short and it's necessary to take advantage of all the opportunities that come your way.

'I always said that I wanted to leave Sevilla by the front door, especially after the great season we've had. It's not that I want to leave, but I cannot turn down the opportunities that I have.'

ESPNsoccernet

MILAN, Aug 3 (Reuters) - European champions AC Milan have won the race to sign 17-year-old Brazilian forward Alexandre Pato from Internacional, the Italian club said.

The highly-rated Pato shone for Brazil at last month's Under-20 World Cup in Canada and Milan beat Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Chelsea to his signature following lengthy negotiations.

'The great talent Alexandre Pato will train with Milan and will be able to play friendly matches from the 3rd of September 2007,' read a statement on Milan's website.

'From the 3rd of January 2008 onwards he will also be able to play in the official games.'

No further details were given on the deal, which was struck after Milan sent officials to Brazil in pursuit of Pato, who goes by the nickname of 'Alex the Duck' in his home country.

Italian media reports said he cost 22 million euros ($30.1 million) and had penned a five-year deal.

Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti was keen to play down comparisons with the club's Brazilian playmaker Kaka.

'It is a different situation from that of Kaka, because when Kaka arrived he was already an accomplished player and older than his age,' Ancelotti said.

'Pato is a young, strong boy but he needs to be given the necessary time to grow and mature.'

The Serie A club had been under pressure to bring in new faces after vice president Adriano Galliani pledged to bring in one of Samuel Eto'o, Ronaldinho, Andriy Shevchenko, Didier Drogba or Pato.

Eto'o and Ronaldinho quickly said they were happy at Barcelona while former Milan striker Shevchenko looks set to stay alongside Drogba at Chelsea in a bid to prove his worth after a difficult first season in England.

Pato was the easiest option and his signing is unlikely to placate Milan supporters who fear the club are resting on their laurels following May's Champions League triumph.

Ancelotti's side have made no other signings with target Julio Baptista saying on Thursday he was happy at Real.

ESPNsoccernet

Newcastle United have signed Spain Under-21 international [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Enrique_S%C3%A1nchez]Jose Enrique[/url] from Spanish side Villarreal for £6.3m.

The 21-year-old left-back, who watched the Magpies beat Sampdoria 1-0 on Sunday, has agreed a five-year deal.

Enrique said: "I believe very much in Sam Allardyce and believe they're going to be one of the top teams."

Newcatle manager Allardyce is also reportedly interested in signing 31-year-old Serbian defender Ivica Dragutinovic from Seville.

Capped 31 times by Serbia and Montenegro, Dragutinovic's three-year contract with Sevilla expires in 2008.

Dragutinovic was part of the Serbia defence that conceded just one goal in qualifying for the 2006 World Cup.

BBC Sports

Everton have completed the signing of Leighton Baines from Wigan for an fee that could be worth £6m.

The 22-year-old left-back has signed a five-year deal with the Merseysiders after agreeing personal terms and passing a medical on Monday.

The Kirkby-born defender is Everton's third signing of the summer, following Phil Jagielka and Steven Pienaar.

Baines, who turned down a move to Sunderland, is doubtful for the start of the season with a hamstring injury.

Everton initially saw a bid of about £4m rejected by Wigan, but the two clubs have now come to an agreement over the price.

The Toffees will pay an initial £5m but the deal could cost them another £1m in potential add-ons.

He is a lifelong Everton supporter and was at Goodison Park last Tuesday when they played Werder Bremen.

The defender sat alongside Everton striker James Vaughan in the directors' box, fuelling speculation that a move was imminent.

Baines, who will wear the number three shirt, told the club's website: "I am very happy now it is all done and I am looking forward to getting on with it.

"I think people knew this was the place I wanted to come and I am glad now that it is all done.

"I am a local lad and all my family support Everton so it's good to be here at last."

Baines made his debut for Wigan in 2002 and gone on to play over 150 times for the club.

He has 16 caps for the England Under-21 side and started every game at the European U21 Championship finals in Holland this summer.

Wigan agreed a £6m deal with Sunderland, but Baines decided to reject a move after holding talks with the Black Cats.

Sunderland manager Roy Keane admitted at the time that Baines was keen on a move to Everton.

Keane said: "Football is a small world and you hear things through the grapevine.

"I just got the impression that Leighton had his heart set on a move to Everton. I don't blame him for that.

"When I left Manchester United, it didn't matter which team came in for me, I was always going to go to Celtic."

Baines leaves Wigan with Latics boss Chris Hutchings's blessing.

"He has done a fantastic job for this club after coming through the system," said Hutchings.

"He was brought up here and knows a lot of people but sometimes you need to make a change in your life."

BBC Sport

[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_T%C3%A9vez]Carlos Tevez[/url] will not complete his move to Manchester United on Tuesday and may not be registered for the start of the new season, Sky Sports News understands.

The Argentina international had been expected to join The Red Devils last month, but a dispute between West Ham and Tevez's agent Kia Joorabchian has held up the switch.

The transfer has been dragging on all summer and it first seemed unlikely any move would be completed before the start of the season after Fifa refused to arbitrate on Tevez's contractual situation.

This subsequently led to Joorabchian's Media Sports Investments group issuing a High Court writ against The Hammers in order to push through the deal.

A suitable agreement between all parties was reached last week, but the transfer has yet to be rubber-stamped.

United boss Sir Alex Ferguson is hoping to be able to hand Tevez his debut in one of Wednesday's friendlies against either Dunfermline or Glentoran.

[url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_2645625,00.html]Skysports.com[/url]

Gabriel Heinze is to take his transfer dispute to a Premier League arbitration panel.

The Argentine international wants to quit Manchester United and he favours a move to Liverpool - who have made a bid of £6.8million.

However, despite Liverpool's offer matching their valuation of the player, United are insistent that they will not let Heinze move to Anfield.

The 29-year-old has now hired lawyers to work on the case with they hope they can facilitate his move to Liverpool, and the latest step has seen him ask the Premier League to step in.

The Premier League has confirmed that a three-man panel will convene next week to look at the case.

Heinze met with United manager Sir Alex Ferguson on Monday and was again told he could not move to Liverpool, but the player maintained his stance of wanting to join the Merseyside giants.

United maintain that although they told Heinze he could leave for a set fee, they would still have the final decision on where he could go.

[url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_2645105,00.html]Skysports.com[/url]

Premier League chief Richard Scudamore has confirmed they will hear the Gabriel Heinze case.

However, he has played down talk of a specially convened panel, revealing it will be the board of the Premier League that are to look at the on-going saga involving Heinze, Manchester United and Liverpool.

United are refusing to let Heinze join Liverpool and the player is now calling on the Premier League to resolve the issue, with the hope they will give him the green-light to move from Old Trafford to Anfield.

Board not panel

"Everyone gets the phrases mixed-up a little bit," Scudamore explained on Sky Sports News.

"Quite frankly a normal club or player dispute comes before the Board of the Premier League.

"As often we do appoint a different person to hear rather than myself. Therefore I won't be sitting on that one."


Result soon


Scudamore thinks the case will be heard soon.

"I think it'll all be resolved before the end of the transfer window," he continued.

"All parties want it resolved quickly. The machinery is in place to do that."

He also insisted that the board ruling on such a matter was not an unusual occurrence.

"We do this all the time. Often player disputes, if you look through our board minutes, any board meeting, we're dealing with various club/player disputes," he concluded.

"We do these five, six, seven, eight times every month. It's not a new unique thing. It's high-profile, it's two high-profile clubs and a high-profile player."

[url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_2645379,00.html]Skysports.com[/url]

Feyenoord starlet Royston Drenthe is reportedly ready to take his club to the court of arbitration over his potential move to Real Madrid.


The Dutch U21 defender has made it clear that he wants to move to the Spanish champions, although the club insist that he will only be allowed to leave if they receive a high enough offer.


Drenthe has enlisted the help of lawyer Harro Knijff, who supported Ronald and Frank de Boer when they had a similar case against Ajax in 1998, in order to push the move through.

'I can confirm that I am busy preparing the request for an arbitration case,' Knijff told Sportweek magazine.

However, Feyenoord's general manager Peter Vogelzang has expressed his disappointment at Drenthe's stance.

'We regret that things are turning towards this,' Vogelzang told the club's official website.

'We have made our standpoint public a few times already and nothing has changed in that: Feyenoord doesn't want to see Royston Drenthe go to another club.

'Our intention is to keep him at the club for at least one more year and if possible longer. We did not extend and renew his contract in April until the summer of 2011 for nothing.

'Feyenoord only wants to sell Drenthe if we get an offer that is as high as we think Royston Drenthe is worth to us.'

ESPNsoccernet

Daniel Alves insists that Chelsea have made an offer for his services and he is now waiting for Sevilla to accept.

The Brazilian is desperate to seal a move to Stamford Bridge, but Chelsea cannot find an agreement with his club Sevilla.
Alves has returned to pre-season training with the Uefa Cup winners, but the wing-back is adamant that a move to West London is what he wants.

Wanting out

"My agent has been in England for some time handling the offer made by Chelsea and that is really what interests me," he told Antena 3.

"This is a wonderful chance for my career and I want to take advantage of it.

"If they [Sevilla] respect me they will analyse the offer made by Chelsea.

"I have behaved very well during my four years, so I am just asking Sevilla to behave as well - it is a necessity they look at the offer which has arrived.

"I am not looking to leave Sevilla in a bad way, but I have already said I want to play for a European giant and take advantage of what is going my way at the moment."


[url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_2649166,00.html]Skysports[/url]

Drenthe formerly of Feyenoord has agreed to sign for Real Madrid for four years.