Arsenal Chase £44m Strike Trio as Arsene Wenger Looks to Re-Shuffle Attacking Options

Emirates Stadium boss keen to spend this summer.
 

Udinese striker Luis Muriel is the latest striker to be linked with Arsenal, joining the likes of Lukas Podolski and Edin Dzeko to be linked with a move to The Emirates in the summer.

Muriel who is currently on loan to Italian side Lecce is also being monitored by Inter and AC Milan as well as Spanish giants Barcelona.

Reports are emerging that Arsene Wenger has had the Colombian watched several times this year and is currently weighing up a potential move when the transfer window opens in the summer.

Chelsea to Launch £83.6m Bid for Real Madrid Stars Cristiano Ronaldo & Gonzalo Higuain

Stamford Bridge side plan huge Bernabeu coup.

Chelsea sizing up £80m summer move for Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuaín.

Chelsea are considering whether to launch an incredible €100 million (£83.6 million) bid to sign Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuaín as part of a major overhaul of the squad this summer.

We can’t play it again

BOLTON will hold talks with the FA in the next 48 hours before deciding whether to quit this season's FA Cup.

The club could feel it is too much to ask players to return to White Hart Lane so soon after witnessing Fabrice Muamba's harrowing fight for life.

Saturday's quarter-final with Tottenham was abandoned after the midfielder's collapse and a rematch would usually be played next Tuesday or Wednesday.

The entire club and especially the playing staff have been badly affected after Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest.

Some players have already talked privately about not wanting to go back so quickly to the north London ground.

But senior figures at the Reebok see it as an opportunity to win the tie for Muamba — and will gauge feelings before making a decision.

The match was called off after medical teams worked to resuscitate the player on the pitch.

He was then taken to London Chest Hospital.

Bolton's game at Aston Villa tomorrow has been postponed.

Boss Owen Coyle said: "The players wouldn't be in any fit state to play. Football pales into insignificance at this time."

Muamba remained in critical condition in hospital last night.

Jan wants Gunners move

AJAX star Jan Vertonghen has told Arsene Wenger he is ready to join Arsenal this summer.

Gunners manager Wenger is keen on the £10million-rated centre-back, who plays alongside Gunners ace Thomas Vermaelen for Belgium.

Vertonghen, 24, said: "Arsenal are a magnificent club. I have instructed my agent carefully. He knows which clubs I want to join and Arsenal are one of them.

"If a club of their calibre can reach agreement with Ajax then I will gladly go over.

"I went to watch them against Milan, together with my Ajax team-mate Siem de Jong."

Wolves 0 Man Utd 5

THERE is nothing like a game against Wolves to boost the confidence and goal difference.

United exited Europe with their tail between their legs last Thursday, having been given a football lesson by Spain's seventh-placed club Athletic Bilbao.

But that tail is wagging again after mauling the Wolves, who, frankly, have gone to the dogs.

This was a third successive defeat under caretaker boss Terry Connor and the third time in five games they have conceded five.

Yet there has to be a little bit of sympathy for Connor, who has been thrust into the spotlight following the axing of Mick McCarthy.

What the former assistant boss did not need was to be let down by his brainless defender Ronald Zubar, whose two reckless tackles before the break earned him a red card.

Paul Scholes coming out of retirement has had much to do with United's resurgent league form, which has seen them win eight and draw one since the veteran midfielder put the red shirt back on.

Hope is fading fast for Wolves and chairman Steve Morgan is cutting a forlorn figure. The sacking of McCarthy has not had the galvanising effect he had hoped for.

But credit to the home fans, who have resorted to gallows humour as their side sit rock bottom of the Prem table.

They never shut up all afternoon and amusingly baited United by singing 'How **** must you be, you've only scored five'.

Then they were urging their side forward to the cries of 'We want one' as the scoreline ticked upwards.

Strangely, Wolves did not do too badly in the early stages. Steven Fletcher really should have scored when Matt Jarvis picked him out in the box, only for the striker to glance his header wide.

United took their foot off the gas and Wolves almost got the goal their fans craved when the previously unemployed David de Gea saved sub Michael Kightly's strike and also pushed away another Fletcher header.

Home keeper Wayne Hennessey ensured United would not add to their tally, after being left one-on-one with Welbeck and blocking with his outstretched foot.

The message from Connor was 'Do not write us off'.

Forgive me, Terry. I have.

Chelsea 5 Leicester 2

HIS worryingly-good impression of Andriy Shevchenko has stopped. Finally.
 

Fernando Torres scored his first goal for 151 days — spanning 25hrs 41mins of game time for Chelsea — before delivering an equally rare sight in west London. A beaming smile.

The Spaniard delivered his finest performance in a Chelsea shirt with two goals, two assists and in general, was a total pain in the backside for Leicester's defence.

For that, Roman Abramovich must thank Roberto Di Matteo.

Blues' Italian caretaker boss has steered them into the quarter-finals of the Champions League and now the semi-finals of the FA Cup — to face either Spurs or Bolton.

Yet his biggest achievement of a four-game reign is to make Torres believe in himself.

The striker then took little time before plunging the knife into the back of ex-boss Andre Villas-Boas, claiming it was nice to once again have the backing of a manager.

Di Matteo is a cocky individual and may not be a massive favourite at the club's training ground.

Equally though, he has massaged a few bruised egos within the squad while repairing the shredded confidence of this one-time goal machine.

Unfortunately for Torres, 28 tomorrow, he will not come across lumbering centre-backs like Sol Bamba and Wes Morgan every week.

Albeit against second-tier opposition, Torres looked a real menace and his finishing was excellent.

Many believe Chelsea have recreated history by signing a player who will rank alongside £30.8million Ukranian striker Shevchenko as a total flop. Yet £50m Torres is better than that.

On Wednesday evening, we will see whether Torres can once again bully the best when his team travel to Manchester City.

Suddenly, though, Chelsea may fancy their chances, providing Torres can continue to show such enormous belief.

This entertaining game, which included four goals in the last 13 minutes, would not have made comfortable viewing for City's defenders, even though they have conceded just six goals this term.

At one stage, it looked as though Torres would suffer another day of frustration, despite playing well and having set up Salomon Kalou for the second goal.

Yet after 66 minutes and 54 seconds, the goal finally came. Like a London bus, goal No 2 came on 84 minutes and 54 seconds.

Before then, Chelsea defender Gary Cahill put Chelsea into the lead after rising above Bamba to head past Kasper Schmeichel. It was Cahill's first goal since joining from Bolton but in a subdued celebration, he pulled up his shirt to reveal a 'Pray for Muamba' message.

A comfortable win looked certain when Torres picked up the ball 10 yards inside his own box, tore past Ritchie Wellens and cantered towards Schemichel's goal before squaring for Kalou.

Torres sent a simple header straight at Schmeichel before being denied with a smart save. Finally, though, he scored for the first time since he faced Genk on October 19 to end his nightmare.

Ironically, it was former Liverpool team-mate Raul Meireles who was the provider, with Torres taking one touch before sending a delicate side-foot into the corner of the net.

Hardly surprisingly, Torres' strike was met by a massive roar from the Chelsea fans, whose support throughout for their much-maligned player had been impressive.

The home players flocked to congratulate Torres with Branislav Ivanovic running the length of the pitch for a hug.

Leicester, of course, know all about wasting money, as their Thai owners have blown £53m on the club. In return, they have got a mid-table Championship team. While his fee remains a ludicrous amount of money, maybe after the most torrid of spells Torres will come good in a blue shirt.

Maybe, Di Matteo will be remembered as the man who succeeded where Carlo Ancelotti and Villas-Boas failed and get the best out of this undoubted talent.

If he can continue this type of form and re-establish himself as one of the most menacing strikers in the world, then Chelsea's season could end with a silver pot.

Arsenal Plot Move to Sign £25m-Rated Germany Playmaker

It appears as though Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger could be raiding German football for yet another player after the Frenchman was linked with a move for Borussia Dortmund midfielder Mario Gotze. 
 

Wenger signed German international defender Per Mertesacker at the start of the season and it seems a deal for Cologne forward Lukas Podolski has also been finalised.

Now it seems Wenger has turned his attention to Gotze who according to a report in the Daily Mail is valued at £25million by the Bundesliga club.

Wenger attempted to sign the midfielder last summer and had a £20million offer turned down by Dortmund who were keen to hang on to one of their brightest young stars.

The paper also believes that Wenger will hope that Mertesacker and Podolski will help persuade Gotze to chose a move to the Emirates rather than one of the other big European clubs.

Gotze is contracted to Dortmund to the summer of 2014 so it will take a huge offer to prize the attacking midfielder away from the club.

However, Arsenal may be able to raise some of the money by moving on players on the fringe of the first team. Andrey Arshavin is currently on-loan and could move in the summer, while Nicklas Bendtner, Carlos Vela and Denilson, all on-loan, could also be sold in the summer.

The Gunners are now just one point behind Tottenham and seem almost certain to finish in the top four and achieve Champions League football once again, something that would be important in persuading Gotze to come to the Emirates.

Arsenal, PSG battling for Juventus veteran Del Piero

Arsenal and PSG head the queue of interested clubs for Juventus icon Alessandro del Piero.


Gunners boss Arsene Wenger, following the success of Thierry Henry this season, sees Del Piero's experience as a useful addition to his squad.

"Del Piero's brother and agent, Stefano del Piero, told ilSussidiario: “At this moment there is nothing new. However, all roads are open. There are no restrictions on what type of project is behind a proposal [to the player]. "

“The type of football [exotic or European] does count, but the main interest is the project. So, all tracks are currently open.

“I think that after 20 years with Juventus and having given his availability to the club to sign a new deal since last February, it is now very difficult to remain in Italy.

“We are not close to anything, but I think it will be hard to remain in Serie A.”

Reds eye Napoli duo

Reds boss Kenny Dalglish was expected at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night apparently watching Edison Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi.

The Napoli front duo are wanted by a host of clubs and there were plenty of watching scouts in attendance to see the pair in action against Chelsea on Wednesday.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has made it very clear he has no intention of selling either or both of his star turns but at the same time he says if anyone comes up with a whopping £100m he will sell.

"Right now everyone wants Cavani and Lavezzi but we are not looking to sell," De Laurentiis said."We are not using our players for the transfer market.

"But if some crazy guy wants to put down £100million, then, maybe."

Uruguayan striker Cavani is supposedly the main target for Dalglish who is looking to add to his misfiring front line, the 25-year-old having netted 16 goals in just 25 games for Napoli this season.

Dimitar Berbatov nearing Manchester United exit

Manchester United's record signing Dimitar Berbatov has told Sir Alex Ferguson he his frustrated with his role as a bit-part player with the Red Devils.

Berbatov fell out of favour following the emergence of Javier Hernandez in the latter third of last season and didn't even make the squad for last May's Champions League final.

Things have got little better for the Bulgarian since despite scoring five goals in two games over the Christmas period.

Ferguson confirmed the pair have spoken about the Berbatov's predicament. And, for the first time, the United boss conceded it is likely his £30.75million costliest purchase will be leaving in the summer.

"We will be taking up the option on his contract but, having had chats with him, I understand he wants to get first-team football," said Ferguson.

"It is something we need to consider at the end of the season. For a player of his age and his ability it is disappointing for him that he is not getting first-team football.

"We will look at the end of the season but until then, he remains at United."

Berbatov has won two Premier League titles, scored 56 goals in 147 United appearances and shared the Golden Boot prize with Manchester City's Carlos Tevez last term.

However, the 31-year-old has been shunted even further down the pecking order following the emergence of Danny Welbeck this term and has made just 19 appearances, including five Premier League starts.

Although he has plenty of admirers, Berbatov has never been able to shake off the tag of being a luxury player, whose laid-back style is at odds with United's traditional all-action approach.

United have triggered the one-way clause in his four-year contract but that means little other than ensuring he will not be able to leave on a Bosman free transfer in the summer.

"He could play against Bilbao but I have good options in terms of front players with Javier Hernandez, Danny Welbeck and Wayne Rooney," said Ferguson.

Didier Drogba keen to stay at Chelsea

Didier Drogba repeated his desire to stay at Chelsea for "as long as possible" after their historic Champions League comeback against Napoli but insisted: "I am not master of my destiny".

Drogba proved last night that, even at the age of 34, he was still the Blues' main man, opening the scoring in their thrilling 4-1 extra-time win at Stamford Bridge.


The striker currently looks set to leave the club - seemingly for a lucrative payday in China - when his contract expires at the end of the season following failed negotiations over a new deal.

But he admitted last night's 5-4 aggregate success made him want to stay put even more.

He told Canal+: "I am not master of my fate, but I will stay as long as possible.

"I am happy here, to experience moments like these. I hope there will be many others."

Chelsea became only the fourth team in 45 attempts to overturn a first leg deficit of two goals or more, belying the predictions that last night would be the likes of Drogba's final Champions League outing for the club.

The Ivorian said: "Many have said that it was my last game, but the adventure continues.

"It has been a long time since I have seen a Chelsea like this."

Indeed, the Blues have come under heavy criticism for their performances this season, which led to the sacking of manager Andre Villas-Boas almost two weeks ago.

Midfielder Frank Lampard, who also scored last night, said: "The only way to answer it is to win games and play well and we've done that.

"It was an amazing night here. I've had some very good nights here in the Champions League at home and this one goes straight in right at the top because being 3-1 down against a quality team and performing like we did was a great feeling."

Lampard, whose fractious relationship with Villas-Boas was also arguably a factor in the Portuguese's downfall, insisted last night's win would mean nothing if Chelsea failed to qualify for next season's Champions League.

He said: "It needs to be a real step forward for us in the Premier League as well.

"We need to enjoy the fact that we're still in the Champions League but we need to make sure we carry that form into our league games."

Arsenal Transfer News: Lukas Podolski Passes Gunners Medical, Report

Lukas Podolski passed a medical at Arsenal on Tuesday, according to Daily Star reporter David Woods, as reported on Twitter by the Guardian and Sports Illustrated's well-respected German soccer expert, Raphael Honigstein.

It had been reported last week that the German international had agreed to a £10.9 million-deal to join the Gunners in the summer from Koln, and it appears that the transfer has taken another step closer to completion.

Arsenal's interest in Podolski had long been known and the forward was close to joining the Premier League side in January. On that occasion, though, Podolski elected to stay at Koln, rather than risk disruption to his form ahead of Euro 2012.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger would appear eager to get the deal for Podolski wrapped-up early rather than risk leaving transfer dealings until late in the transfer window as happened last summer.

Last August Wenger lost both Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri close to the August transfer deadline, meaning that he had to make several rushed-purchases to add to his depleted squad.

Arsenal will also be optimistic that securing at least one high-profile signing early will help demonstrate their intent to star-striker Robin van Persie. The Dutchman has postponed talks on a new contract, which expires in the summer of 2013, presumably waiting to see what changes are made to the Arsenal squad in the summer.

Podolski has been in excellent form for his German club this season. The 26-year-old--who can operate either as a left-sided forward, or a central striker--has scored 16 times in the Bundesliga.

Podolski also has an exceptional record for the German national team. In 95 appearances for his country, Polish-born Podolski has scored 43 times.

Arsenal's eagerness to get the signing completed now may also be their fear that Podolski's transfer value will go up, should he have an impressive European Championships this summer.

Gerro bumps ’em off - Liverpool 3 Everton 0

STEVEN GERRARD showed the stomach for battle as his stunning hat-trick sank Everton in the Merseyside derby.

Skipper Gerro lumped it to Liverpool's old rivals — and walked off the pitch with the match ball shoved up his shirt.

The midfielder celebrated his 400th Premier League game by becoming the first player to score a derby treble since his idol Ian Rush 30 years ago.

Gerrard, 31, said: "I suppose it does make it more special with Ian Rush. He's a hero of mine. I looked up to him for a long time and watched many, many videos of him.

"But let's not be stupid, I'm not comparing myself to Ian Rush. He scored 300-odd goals so he's a different breed.

"But to beat Everton is always special, so to get three goals is a little bit extra."

Welsh legend Rush scored FOUR for Liverpool at Everton's Goodison Park home in 1982.

Liverpool had lost three straight league games for the first time in nine years ahead of last night's clash.

Gerrard added: "The inconsistency we've been showing in the league has been frustrating.

"We're going from one extreme to the other at the moment and we need to find a level of consistency where we go on a winning streak.

"Otherwise we'll find ourselves in a position in the league we don't want."

Kop boss Kenny Dalglish said: "Steven Gerrard has been fantastic for this football club. There's no way I can do him justice.

"I haven't got enough words in my vocabulary. But he'll get the headlines and three goals is a fantastic reward for him.

"He's had a few bumps this year. It will put a smile on his face.

"I've always believed in the way we play and now we want to carry on and do the best we can."

Everton chief David Moyes saw his 10th anniversary celebrations fall flat — and gave no excuses for making six changes to his team.

He said: "We've got a big week coming up with the FA Cup quarter-final on Saturday.

"We took three points from matches against Tottenham and Liverpool so I can't be too disappointed with that.

"But we gave away three terrible goals and it hurts because I'm the Everton manager and we lost to Liverpool."

Cesc: Wenger’s a great boss with great players. He WILL turn it around

CESC FABREGAS has urged Arsenal fans to keep their faith in Arsene Wenger. 

The former Gunners skipper, who left for Barcelona last summer, knows that the supporters' patience has been stretched to the limit by a seventh successive season without a trophy.

And he is also aware of the growing fears that star striker Robin van Persie could soon follow him through the Emirates exit in search of greater glory.

Yet Fabregas is adamant things WILL turn around for Arsenal and says no one should doubt the man who propelled him to stardom.

The Spanish international said: "Arsenal have great players, great fans and a great manager. They'll turn it around. There is no point to keep comparing the team to the Invincibles. That will not get you anywhere.

"Some very important players like Jack Wilshere, Thomas Vermaelen, Bacary Sagna and Abou Diaby have been injured for a long time and so they have to be patient.

"I still have a huge affection for the club and it definitely makes me sad whenever I see them lose. But Arsene Wenger knows the club and players and will turn it around. Being a manager is a very difficult job and you are always criticised when things don't go well.

"But that happens at every club in the world and I have the perfect example of that at Barcelona, where the team has won something like 15 of the last 17 trophies yet people are now upset because this season we are second in the League to Real Madrid.

"In Spain there is 1,000 times more pressure on the manager.

"In England the fans will give the boss time and remember what he has done in the years before. In Spain they don't even remember what you have done last week. It's crazy."

Fabregas, 24, spent eight years at Arsenal but won only a single FA Cup in 2005 before his £29million move to the Nou Camp. Yet he denies it was the lack of silverware which drove him away.

"It was a very difficult and very personal decision for me," he says.

"I didn't leave because I was unhappy or wanted more money. I just wanted to play for the club I'd loved since I was very little.

"I was at Arsenal for eight years and always gave it the best I could. But then I had the chance to join Barcelona and took it.

"If it wasn't Barcelona, I would have stayed at Arsenal. For sure. It's not just about winning trophies or not. Every club has seasons when it doesn't go your way.

"When I was little, Barcelona went five years without anything and it seemed like the end of the world. Now it seems they are the best team in the world. Football changes quickly. Arsenal will be back to the top soon."

Fabregas is still in contact with his old team-mates and tries to watch their TV games.

He revealed: "I spoke to Mr Wenger a few months ago when I went back to see everyone at London Colney and I said something to him for his birthday.

"I still have my house in London and friends so I come back as often as I can.

"Some people see me and say 'Come back to Arsenal' and others 'Go back to Barcelona'. There are always opinions for everything.

"But once you make a decision the most important thing is to be happy with it yourself. My last season at Arsenal was very difficult because I kept picking up injuries.

"I definitely regret playing at Barcelona in the Champions League last season because I was injured for 50 or 60 minutes and maybe if I hadn't done that we might have gone through.

"But I felt that I wanted to help the team on so many occasions and some of the time it didn't work."

While Arsenal went out of the Champions League to AC Milan this week, Fabregas was part of the Barca team who thrashed Bayer Leverkusen 10-2 on aggregate. The Spanish champions are hot favourites to lift the European Cup again in May as English clubs struggle to make any impact.

Fabregas said: "It was definitely a surprise when Manchester United went out in the group stage.

"But this is just one season out of many successful ones. If it happened for many years then you could say the balance of power has shifted. But not yet.

"In any case, Chelsea could still make it through to the quarter-finals."

Fabregas has already won the UEFA Super Cup, Spanish Super Cup, FIFA World Club Cup and is in the final of the Copa Del Rey with Barca. Not bad in just seven months.

But he says simply winning trophies is not enough. He said: "A lot of English fans wouldn't like the way we play because we maintain possession and maybe they don't have this patience to keep the ball.

"But what makes this club so special is that just winning is not enough. You must win in style. If you hit the ball high in the air from the centre-back to Leo Messi, they would not like that."

DONE DEAL: Arsenal Complete £31.7m Signing as Attacker Handed Four Year Contract Worth £100k a Week

German striker Lukas Podolski turned down a 40 million pound bid by Russian club Anzi Makhachkala to sign with English Premier League side Arsenal.

The Russian side managed by Dutchman Guus Hiddink offered the German a whopping 200,000 pounds a week over four years in comparison to Arsenal's offer 100,000 pounds.

The North Londoners agreed a fee of 10.9 million-pound fee with German club Cologne for the services of Podolski. The Polish-born forward will move to the Emirates Stadium at the end of the summer on a four-year deal.

"Money is not the most important thing for me. What is crucial is the development of my game," Podolski was quoted as saying by Daily Mail.

Arsene Wenger, manager of Arsenal, sent chief scout Steve Rowley to keep an eye on the forward in Cologne's pre-season friendly against the Gunners last summer.

Germany coach Joachim Low has backed Podolski to be a success in England.

"Four or five years ago I would have told Lukas that it was better for him to stay in Germany. Today the situation is different. Lukas has become more mature, he can take the step abroad now more easily," said Low.

Podolski has scored 16 goals in 22 club games this season in the German Bundesliga and netted three times to help Germany qualify for Euro 2012.