Monaco spend big on Porto duo

Monaco have confirmed the signings of FC Porto duo Joao Moutinho and James Rodriguez on five-year deals for a combined fee of €70million.

Both players collected Portuguese winners' medals for the third season in a row earlier this month and a number of European clubs were believed to have been chasing their signatures before Russian billionaire owner Dmitry Rybolovlev opened his chequebook.



Portuguese international Moutinho, who has spent the last three years with Porto since joining from Sporting Lisbon in 2010, came at a price of €25million.



News of the 26-year-old's transfer will be a major blow for Tottenham Hotspur, who had been expected to revive their interest in the midfielder this summer after missing out last year.



Colombian winger Rodriguez has collected eight trophies in a three-year spell in Portugal and has commanded a €45million fee.



A statement issued by Porto read: "Futebol Clube do Porto would like to inform the market that it has reached an agreement with Association Sportive de Monaco Football Club for the permanent transfer of players James Rodriguez and Joao Moutinho.



"The combined fee of this transfer is €70million (£60m), €45m (£38.4m) for the transfer of James Rodriguez and €25m (£21.4m) for the transfer of Joao Moutinho."



Claudio Ranieri's side have also been linked with a big-money move for Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao, who has attracted interest from Real Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester City.

Moutinho cools Porto exit talk

Joao Moutinho insists he has "no intention" of leaving Porto, after being once again linked with a big-money move to Tottenham this summer.

The Portuguese midfield star has long been linked with former boss Andre Villas Boas, who has tried to sign him for Chelsea and more recently Spurs.



But big spending Monaco are now said to be lining up a move for him, as well as team-mate James Rodriguez.



However, Moutinho is more than happy with life at Porto, where he has just won his third successive league title.

"Right now nothing will make me change clubs. I am extremely happy here and the most important is happiness and winning titles," Moutinho said.



But he added: "My future is up to FC Porto. No player is immune to leaving. But if something does come up, it has to be something good for both parties."



"We want to improve the campaign from last year, we want to improve on the European level, we want to win everything you enter and it is with this in mind that we will enter the first day of the season," he said.

Moutinho says Porto are determined to improve on their European performances next year.

Dortmund eyeing move for Porto star

Portuguese newspaper A Bola has suggested that Borussia Dortmund are keeping close tabs on Porto striker Jackson Martinez.



With Mario Gotze set to join Bayern Munich in the summer and Robert Lewandowski also expected to leave, the Millionaires will have between €80m and €100m to spend on new players in the summer transfer window.



According to A Bola, BVB boss Jurgen Klopp is pondering a move for FC Porto striker Jackson Martinez.



The Colombian has been in scintillating form since arriving at the club in the summer, but the Dragons are not too keen on selling their prized asset.



Martinez has scored 25 goals in 26 Primeira Liga matches for Porto, while netting three times in eight Champions League fixtures.



The 26-year-old, who has also been linked with Galatasaray and Anzhi, has a €40 million release clause inserted in his deal and will only leave the Dragons if a club meet the asking price.

Porto host 'expensive' PSG tonight

Paris Saint-Germain's bid to compete with the elite of European football continues with a trip to face Porto in the Champions League.

Funded by their wealthy Qatari owners, PSG have spent big to bring a host of star names to the Parc de Princes.



Ezequiel Lavezzi, Javier Pastore and Marco Verratti are among the recent arrivals, with Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, a double capture from AC Milan, the most audacious acquisitions yet.



Sweden striker Ibrahimovic has already begun to provide a healthy return on the investment, netting nine goals in eight appearances to date this season.



A slow start in Ligue 1 means PSG are three points behind leaders Marseille, but they hit the ground running in Europe, registering a comprehensive 4-1 win at home to Dynamo Kiev on matchday one.



Their next challenge is a trip to Estadio do Dragao, where seasoned European campaigners await in the form of Porto.



Regular participants on the global stage, Porto failed to escape the group stage of the Champions League last term, before bowing out of the Europa League at the hands of Manchester City.



They had won the Europa League in some style the previous season, but have since lost the services of coach Andre Villas-Boas, as well as star forwards Falcao and Hulk.



Vitor Pereira is now in charge of the Liga Sagres title holders, who will rely on the likes of Portugal international midfielder Joao Moutinho and lively Colombia forward James Rodriguez as they seek to advance in the competition.



Porto registered a 2-0 win away to Dinamo Zagreb on matchday one, and will pose the sternest test yet of Carlo Ancelotti's expensively assembled PSG.



In the other Group A match on Wednesday, Ukrainian powerhouse Dynamo Kiev are at home to Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb.



Kiev are second in the Ukrainian Premier League, six points behind leaders Shakhtar Donetsk after 10 matches of the domestic season.



Retired club favourite Oleg Blokin serves as head coach of both Dynamo and the Ukraine national team, coaching several of his charges at club and international level.



Home-grown talent in the Dynamo squad such as Andriy Yarmolenko, Artem Milevskiy and Denys Harmash are complemented by Croatia playmaker Niko Kranjcar, Nigeria forward Ideye Brown and Portugal midfielder Miguel Veloso.



As for Dinamo Zagreb, the Croatians are seeking to avoid a repeat of the embarrassments they suffered in the competition last term, losing 7-1 at home to Lyon and 6-2 at Real Madrid, ultimately finishing bottom of their group without a point.

Joao Moutinho still wanted

Spurs will make a renewed bid to sign Porto midfielder Joao Moutinho in January but are unlikely to match their offer of £24m.



Spurs had almost completed the signing of the Portuguese international on deadline day only for the deal to collapse at the last minute with many blaming Porto for the failure of the deal.



Chairman Daniel Levy looks set to make a renewed bid for the 25-year-old in January as he looks for a long term replacement for Luka Modric but the signs are that the 25-year-old has priced himself out of a move and Tottenham will eventually look elsewhere as they refuse to be held to ransom by Porto.

Hulk sign for Zenit St Petersburg

Zenit St Petersburg have signed highly-rated Brazilian forward Hulk from FC Porto on a five-year contract.



The Russian giants also managed to secure the services Axel Witsel for a reported £30million from Benfica on a five-year deal.



Hulk is believed to be a long-time target of Chelsea but the Russian giants have ended speculation linking him with a Stamford Bridge move after confirming their swoop for the forward on their official website on Monday evening.



The club did not disclose the transfer fee but reports claim they have parted with €50million (£39.6m) to secure the frontman.



The 26-year-old made a huge impact at Porto after joining from Tokyo Verdy in 2008.



But the Brazil international had long been linked with a new challenge, with his agent admitting earlier in the summer that the "time was right" for the player to move on.



Last week, Porto president Pinto da Costa revealed he had turned down an offer worth €50m from Zenit for the powerful forward, but a deal has now been reached by the two clubs.



Hulk scored 21 goals in all competitions last season and played a crucial role in Porto's Europa League title-winning campaign in 2010-11.



Belgian international Witsel, 23, only joined the Portuguese side in 2011 from his hometown club Standard Liege, where he started his career in 2006.



He will link up with fellow new signing Hulk as the Russian champions prepare for the Champions League this season in Group C against AC Milan, Anderlecht and Malaga.