Manchester United Consider Move for £12m Rated German International Giant

Sir Alex Ferguson keen on bringing solid centre back to Old Trafford.

Manchester United are weighing up a move for Werder Bremen’s vastly experienced centre back Per Mertesacker this summer. Sir Alex Ferguson is known to be an admirer of the giant German international and the recent defensive crisis at Old Trafford has led the Scot to believe he may need another option at the back and will look to make an offer for the 26 year old when the transfer window re-opens.

Having amassed over 70 caps and almost 300 top tier appearances for Werder Bremen and Hannover it is believed that 6ft 6fin defender Mertesacker would be open to moves from the continent and that has led to much interest in the Premier League, primarily from Arsenal. With his side struggling just four points from the drop, in marked contrast to last season’s third placed finish, the tough tackler is keen to explore alternatives to his current Bremen club.

Having five seasons at the Weserstadion and eight seasons in the Bundesliga as a whole, Per Mertesacker has achieved precious little in the way of silverware and despite his undoubted success at international level (two World Cup third-place finishes and one European Championship runners-up medal) he is yet to prove himself at club level and would surely be interested in a move to either the Emirates or Old Trafford.

Manchester United have struggled at the back this term as the usual starting partnership of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic has barely featured together with the former England captain suffering with injury problems that may well curtail his career. Jonny Evans has suffered with poor form that could see him offloaded and whilst Chris Smalling has impressed, Ferguson probably didn’t plan on the youngster being shoved into the first team spotlight quite so soon.

Mertesacker is repotedly available for around £12m and would represent a very solid defensive alternative who may well suit the physical approach of the Premier League.

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Tottenham Consider Move for Unhinged Manchester City Striker Mario Balotelli

White Hart Lane boss wants Eastlands youngster.

Real Madrid are watching Mario Balotelli’s situation at Manchester City. AC Milan remain favourites for the ex-Inter striker, who is expected to be dumped by City in the summer. However, his former coach at Inter, Jose Mourinho, is also watching developments, according to Milan sources. Tottenham are also being linked with the Italy international, though those close to Balotelli say if he is to leave City, it will be to return home to Milan.

SOURCE: Tribalfootball

Is Harry Redknapp’s love of playing the transfer game really likely to stretch as far as to make a move for troubled Italian Mario Balotelli? Tottenham’s current quartet of strikers have struggled badly to find the back of the net in Premier League action this term. Peter Crouch, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe have netted just 11 Premier League goals between them this term and as a result the White Hart Lane boss is reportedly frantically searching for new additions.

Recent comments from Roberto Mancini suggest that he too has ran out of patience with the 20 year old former Inter Milan man and interest from Real Madrid would be surprising as Jose Mourinho would surely no better than most just what a disturbing influence Balotelli can be in the dressing room.

Even a move to AC Milan would make little sense given the myriad of striking options available to San Siro boss Massimiliano Allegri.

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Manchester United Consider Using Berbatov In £20m Serie A Swap Deal

Old Trafford side to use top scorer to land Italian international?

Roma midfielder Daniele de Rossi is reportedly looking to secure a move to Old Trafford in the near future, in a deal which could see striker Dimitar Berbatov go in the opposite direction.
The Italian is considering moving his family out of the city after his father-in-law was murdered and he is now understood to be the victim of a blackmail campaign.

He also admitted to falling out with the Stadio Olympico faithful: ‘They (Roma fans) used to treat me as one of their own, they would tell me to throw in another elbow, but now the wind has changed.’
Representatives of the central midfielder are understood to have met officials at the club to make them aware of his availability next summer, indicating the World Cup winner’s desire to move to Manchester.
De Rossi still has over a year left to run on his £60,000-a-week contract in Rome, but the opinion of the Italian media is that he could in fact be the centre of a transfer battle in August, with a number of clubs tracking his situation.
Real Madrid have been linked with the £20 million-rated star and Roma have indicated they would not stand in the way of the 27-year-old if he wished to leave the club.
Roma are reported to be interested in signing Dimitar Berbatov, who has been used sparingly in recent weeks by Sir Alex Ferguson despite being United’s top scorer, and it is rumoured that de Rossi could be involved in a cash-plus-player deal in the summer.

SOURCE: Metro

This move would be something of a surprise given that Manchester United are reportedly looking to offer Bulgarian international Dimitar Berbatov a brand new contract in reward for his successful efforts this season. However the former Tottenham man may consider his options given that of late he has been left on the bench whilst Javier Hernandez and Wayne Rooney have been forming a pretty useful partnership.

Given that Berbatov is now 30 years of age, he won’t want to be wasting his best years on the Old Trafford bench and may be tempted by a new challenge but a lot would depend on whether caretaker boss Vincenzo Montella were to stay on as Stadio Olimpico boss beyond this season as it is unlikely a player would move to a club only to see the boss who bought him leave, and therefore potentially leave the purchased player hoping to be to the new boss’s liking.

Sir Alex Ferguson is known to be a fan of Daniele De Rossi so perhaps the Man United boss would be open to some sort of swap deal, but only if Berbatov were to push for such a deal. One has to feel for the stylish striker, after two decent seasons where he was pilloried for lacking an end product and lacking the ability to be a 20-25 goal a season man, when he finally does start to become prolific, 20 goals in 22 Premier League starts, he then finds it hard to get a regular spot in the starting eleven.

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Arsene Wenger orders Premier League to consider simultaneous kick-offs

Arsene Wenger has called for the final three Barclays Premier League games of the season to be played simultaneously.  As it stands, only the final round of fixtures kick-off at the same time. But the Arsenal manager believes the current format should be altered as the race for the title reaches a dramatic climax.   Changing times: Wenger has called for the Premier League to consider altering their current format 'I think they should make each team's last three fixtures all kick off at the same time, not just the last one,' Wenger told the Official Arsenal Magazine. 'There are advantages and disadvantages to kicking off later than the other teams. If you kick off later than your rivals, and they have lost, then you are in a more comfortable situation. 'Psychologically it can give you a lift, and it's true that it can apply for us or Manchester United or Chelsea, but I think it would be better not to give any team this advantage. Grudge match: United will host Chelsea in the final month of the campaign 'Weekends where you win and your opponents lose become absolutely pivotal now.' Wenger also revealed that he doesn't keep track on a rival's score if they kick-off at the same time.  'No, I wait until afterwards,' the Frenchman added. 'If they play before us, then I like to know the result, but if it's the same time, I don't mind not knowing until the end.   'I tell the players to forget about the other matches as far as possible, and just focus on how they want to play.'  Arsenal rocked by fresh takeover fears at Usmanov increases stake in clubVan Persie: Title in Arsenal's hands... and we won't drop it!Nasri urges under-achieving Arsenal to sign Udinese defender BenatiaArsenal FC news, features and opinion  Explore more:People: Arsene Wenger

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