Football - Premier League Paper Round: Real Madrid offer players to Tottenham as Bale bait Now Real Madrid have their manager in place, they have turned their attention to tempting Gareth Bale to join them from Tottenham. And in order do that, The Times report, they will offer Gonzalo Higuain and Fabio Coentrao as makeweights in a players-plus-cash deal. Higuain is an especially controversial player to propose to Spurs, as it is believed that the Argentine striker is on the brink of joining north London rivals Arsenal. But the paper says that in 2011 Andre Villas-Boas attempted to sign Higuain – when he was manager at Chelsea. Spurs are in the market for at least one striker this summer, so Higuain’s proven class could tempt them – while 25-year-old Coentrao, a £24m acquisition for Madrid just two years ago, still appears to have his best years ahead of him. The Times decline to mention how much the ‘plus-cash’ part would be if Higuain and Coentrao were included in the deal, but repeated the estimate of £85m for a straight cash deal. The Daily Mirror have the very same idea of a player-plus-cash bid for Bale, but a different player – Angel di Maria. Di Maria, 25, is the player most likely to make way in the Real Madrid first team if Bale arrives – but has won praise across Europe for his fine performances in a white shirt and could soften the blow of losing Bale if he turns up at White Hart Lane. The Daily Star, meanwhile, trot out the Bale rumour but also mention that Luis Suarez has agreed terms with Real Madrid ahead of a possible move. The striker’s agent, they add, is expected in Madrid for further talks, although if the personal terms are already agreed it’s hard to see what else he has to talk about. The Daily Telegraph say Liverpool are not at all happy about those reports of an agreement, which seem to have originated in Spanish paper Marca – and they are seeking urgent talks with their star striker to assess whether he has breached his contract. Now that Uruguay’s interest in the Confederations Cup is over, the Reds hope to clarify Suarez’s future, although the paper reports that they won’t be bullied into selling him for less than £40m. The Reds have asked Barcelona, however, if they can loan teenage winger Gerard Deulofeu next season (Daily Mirror). And a bigger name linked with a Barcelona exit is David Villa, who the Daily Mail claim is to hold crunch talks with Tottenham over a summer transfer. Newly-installed technical director Franco Baldini is leading the talks, although Roberto Soldado and Leandro Damiao are the back-up options. Also in the same paper are reports that Spurs want to beat Arsenal and Roma to the signing of 17-year-old defender Tin Jedvaj, who may set them back as much as £6.5m. Manchester City are back in the mix to sign Robert Lewandowski, claim the Daily Express – the loss of Carlos Tevez mean their striker search has been stepped up. City’s interest reportedly cooled when it looked like the Pole was set to leave Borussia Dortmund for Bayern Munich, but Dortmund’s statement that they would not do business with their domestic rivals has given fresh hope, and they would be prepared to let Edin Dzeko head the other way as part of the deal. Elsewhere in the back pages West Ham are keen to sign winger Jefferson Montero and will trigger his £3m release clause from Mexican club Morelia (Guardian). Newcastle will go for Darren Bent and James Tomkins after manager Alan Pardew passed the names on to his director of football Joe Kinnear (Daily Mirror). And Swansea have been quoted £5m for Jonjo Shelvey if they are to prise the young midfielder away from Anfield (Daily Mail).
Posted on: Thu, 27 Jun 2013 08:02:06 +0000
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