Paper Talk - 05 June 2013

• Jose Mourinho has made Edin Dzeko his number one transfer target at Chelsea.


• Roberto Martinez has been given the green light to sign James McCarthy and Callum McManaman when he finally joins Everton - but only if the price is right.


• Hull's Steve Bruce may well make Wigan's Maynor Figueroa his first summer signing.


• Jose Mourinho hopes to tie up a £20m deal to make Andre Schurrle his first signing since returning to Chelsea.


• Jesus Navas snubbed a move to Real Madrid to join Manchester City.


• Robin van Persie says Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement will not stop Manchester United from winning.


• West Ham have been told they won't get Celtic striker Gary Hooper on the cheap.


• Fabio Capello has refused to rule out a move to PSG.


• Bacary Sagna has opened the door for an Arsenal exit after contract talks stalled.


• Atletico Madrid are prepared to offer £24m to win the race for Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke.


• Aiden McGeady has put Premier League clubs on alert after he admitted he fancied a chance to play in England.


• David Moyes will make £10m PSV midfielder Kevin Strootman his first signing as Manchester United boss.

• Tottenham have offered Jermain Defoe in a cash-plus player exchange deal for Christian Benteke.


• Patrice Evra is the latest player to join the Monaco revolution.


• Andy Carroll is demanding £100,000 per week to complete his £15.5m move to West Ham.


• Wayne Rooney wants to play up front if he is to stay at Manchester United.


• Real Madrid have put a £20m price on tag on defender Pepe.


• Marouane Fellaini and Javier Mascherano are on a shortlist of targets for Rafa Benitez at Napoli.


• Fabio Capello has not ruled out a move to PSG.


• Steve Bruce will make Maynor Figueroa his first signing this summer at Hull.


• Jesus Navas has revealed he rejected Real Madrid to join Manchester City.

• Jose Mourinho's first significant act since returning to Chelsea could be to hijack Arsenal's attempts to sign Montenegro striker Stevan Jovetic.


• Andy Carroll is seeking an increase in his weekly wage to £100,000 to make his move to West Ham from Liverpool permanent.


• Wayne Rooney has warned Manchester United he wants to play as the main striker next season if he is to stay at Old Trafford.


• Manchester City are likely to intensify their efforts to sign Brazil midfielder Fernandinho from Shakhtar Donetsk.

• Manchester United are ready to step up their interest in Everton's Leighton Baines.


• Tottenham are prepared to break their transfer record for Valencia striker Roberto Soldado.


• Aston Villa are interested in striker Ivelin Popov from Kuban Krasnodar in Russia.


• West Brom are weighing up a cut-price move for PSV Eindhoven striker Ola Toivonen.


• Besiktas are keen on Arsenal goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski.

• Manchester United have stepped up their efforts to make Cristiano Ronaldo the signing of the summer.


• Bayern Munich want Luis Suarez and are ready to offer Liverpool Arjen Robben as part of a deal.


• Bacary Sagna could quit Arsenal as contract talks have stalled.


• Jose Mourinho has told his Chelsea stars: You have not been good enough.


• Tottenham are ready to launch a £9m bid for former Birmingham striker Christian Benitez.


• Monaco are ready to bid £15m for Liverpool defender Daniel Agger.


• Paolo Di Canio is lining up Argentina winger Ignacio Scocco for Sunderland.


• Cardiff and Crystal Palace are set to battle it out for £2.5m Bristol City winger Albert Adomah.


• Real Zaragoza plan to swoop for supsended Brighton boss Gus Poyet.


• Aston Villa are locked in a battle for £12.5m Montpellier midfielder Younes Belhanda.


• Steve Bruce is being targeted for a shock return to Wigan.


• Cesc Fabregas says he does not want to quit Barcelona, despite reported interest from Manchester United and former club Arsenal.

• Manchester United are ready to step up their interest in Leighton Baines by making a £10m offer to Everton.


• Cristiano Ronaldo has fuelled speculation he could leave Real Madrid this summer by putting his villa up for sale.


• Chelsea target Wesley Sneijder has hinted at a reunion with Jose Mourinho.


• West Ham have signed Spanish keeper Adrian from Real Betis.

• Monaco will offer John Terry a tax-free £150,000 per week in an effort to persuade him to leave Chelsea.


• Tottenham are considering a bid for Valencia striker Roberto Soldado.


• Manchester City will complete the signing of Brazilian midfielder Fernandino.


• Dave Whelan has made an audacious approach for former manager Steve Bruce as he looks for a successor to Roberto Martinez.


• West Ham have failed with a club-record £14.5m bid for Spain forward Alvaro Negredo.


• Lauen Koscielny has heaped further pressure on Arsene Wenger to make some major summer signings at Arsenal by saying he will "take a look eslewhere" if they do not have a squad to challenge for trophies.

• Monaco are also keen on Daniel Agger, but Liverpool are hoping to keep him at Anfield.

Cesc Fabregas wants to stay at Barcelona

Cesc Fabregas has refused to talk about the rumours of a transfer to Manchester United and says he only wants to stay at Barcelona.



The former Arsenal star has been linked with a big-money switch to both Manchester clubs and Arsenal this summer, with the intriguing prospect of him rekindling his great understanding with Robin van Persie on tthe cards if he were to choose Old Trafford.



But the Spaniard, who has hit 14 goals this season, has made it clear he has no intention of leaving the Nou Camp.



When quizzed on his future, Fabregas told a Catalonian radio station: "There is nothing to say.

"I'm very happy at Barca, and I want to stay for many more years to come.



" Fabregas has been played out of position as he cannot displace any of the three regular starters in Barca's much-vaunted midfield.

And the signing of Brazilian whizkid Neymar means it is even less likely that he will squeeze into the side as a forward next season.



Fabregas left Arsenal for Barcelona in 2011 and still has three years left on his contract.

Aston Villa launches bid for Belhanda

Montpellier president Louis Nicollin says Aston Villa are one of five clubs to have made a bid for creative midfielder Younes Belhanda.



The highly-rated Moroccan international has admitted he would like to move to England, and had been strongly linked with Arsenal and Tottenham in the past.



But Nicollin has now revealed that Villa are currently the only bidders from the English top flight for Belhanda, who is set to leave the Ligue 1 outfit a year after helping them lift the title. "He is leaving," Nicollin told LeSport10.



"There are four or five clubs that have come in. It is now down to the player to choose now because we are almost in agreement with the clubs. He will leave for 14-15 million euros." Asked if the offers were concrete, he replied: "Yes.



From AC Milan, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Galatasaray and Aston Villa. "We have no problem now, he [Belhanda] has the authority to agree with whoever he wants now.



"Villa already have Belhanda's Moroccan international teammate Karim Al Ahmadi on their books and Paul Lambert is looking to add a creative spark to his side to play behind the striker.

Djukic to be confirmed as Valencia boss

Miroslav Djukic is set to be confirmed as the new Valencia coach after meeting with club officials.



The Serbian, who announced last week he was stepping down as Real Valladolid boss, will replace Ernesto Valverde who left Valencia after it narrowly missed out on UEFA Champions League football on the final day of the Spanish season.



The 47-year-old will be formally presented on Wednesday, but told Marca he was looking forward to returning to the club where he played from 1997 to 2003.

"There is a good squad here who can achieve great things," he said. "To me, it's a dream to come to Valencia. This is home to me, and I have always regarded it as so."

Djukic had been at Valladolid since 2011, guiding it to promotion and then securing its top-flight status with a 14th-place finish this season.

Agent confirms Granero exit

Esteban Granero's agent has confirmed the midfielder will quit relegated QPR this summer.



The former Spain Under-21 international joined from Real Madrid last August, penning a four-year deal at Loftus Road.



He was one of a number of big-money signings to sign for Rangers last season but they failed to revive the team's fortunes, with the club eventually finishing bottom of the Premier League.



In order to adjust to life back in the Championship a number of the team's high earners will need to be sold to balance the books.



Granero's agent, Teo Lazaro, has revealed the 25-year-old is among those who will need to seek a new club during the close season.



"QPR will have to part ways with a number of highly paid players following their relegation from the Premier League," he told Izvestia.



"Among those players listed is the name of my client. Basically, we have to find a new club."

Townsend suspended by FA

Andros Townsend has been banned from football for four months, three of them suspended, for breaching betting rules.



The Tottenham winger admitted the charge last month and voluntarily withdrew from the England squad for the forthcoming European U21 Championship.



Three quarters of his ban is suspended until July 1, 2016 and will be immediately invoked if there is a further betting offence.



The remaining month is backdated to May 23, meaning Townsend must refrain from all football activity until June 23.



The 21-year-old, who spent the second half of last season on loan at QPR, has also been fined £18,000.

Negredo wanted by Hammers

West Ham made an offer of £17m for Alvaro Negredo back in January as the striker prepares for a summer move away from Spain.



Everton were strongly linked with Negredo back in the New Year but £20m proved to be too much - now Sevilla president Jose Del Nido has revealed that the Hammers made an offer of £17m which was turned down by the Spanish club.



Sevilla have a release clause of £20m on the 27-year-old who scored 25 goals last season and they are looking to get full value for the striker.



His agent, Juanma Lopez, has confirmed there is interest from the Premier League for the player but hinted that Rafael Benitez's Napoli may be his preferred option.

"Alavaro has played a very important season and many clubs are coming forward for him," Lopez told tuttomercatoweb. "I think he can go either to England or Italy.



"Napoli is a possibility given that [Rafa] Benitez likes the player and the team will play in next season's Champions League, a competition that Negredo would like to take part in.



"The final decision is up to Seville, whoever wants Negredo has to find an agreement with them."