Tottenham are closing in on a shock move for Barcelona's Dutch attacking star Ibrahim Afellay.
Spurs chief scout Ian Broomfield watched the exciting target in the Audi Cup clash with Brazilian club Internacional in Germany last night.
Afellay played the first half – enough time to let Broomfield send a report back to Harry Redknapp about his form.
Kenny Dalglish is prepared to play a waiting game to land Jose Enrique.
The Liverpool boss has been put off by Newcastle's vastly inflated valuation of the Spanish international left back, and has resisted the temptation to make a formal offer.
But Enrique has just a year left on his current deal, and has indicated he has absolutely no intention of renewing after the club failed to make him an improved offer.
Newcastle have already been looking for a replacement for the Spaniard, and have intensified their efforts after Enrique criticised their lack of ambition this week.
The player was fined for that outburst, and Magpies boss Alan Pardew has drawn up a shortlist of potential successors, with Manchester City misfit Wayne Bridge a top target.
All that has persuaded Dalglish to wait for the right moment to make a reduced offer for the player, whom he values at around £5million.
Newcastle won't want to go into the new season with the risk of losing him on a free, which would happen should they fail to sell him before the summer transfer deadline expires.
And that should see them reduce their asking price significantly, as the end of the transfer window looms at the end of August. Liverpool are prepared to wait that long.
Enrique himself is desperate to move, and would welcome the chance to go to Anfield, given the club's obvious ambition.
Arsenal were last night closing in on a £15million deal for Juan Mata – paving the way for Cesc Fabregas to go to Barcelona.
Fabregas will not be involved in this weekend's Emirates Cup, a clear sign that the Gunners are becoming resigned to losing him.
But that blow is likely to be softened by the signing of Valencia's exciting winger Mata – as predicted by the Mirror last month .
The Spanish star's family and representatives flew into London yesterday for talks.
Versatile Mata, 23, can play wide or as an attacking midfielder and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes the deal will be a major boost for his squad.
He is still hoping French midfielder Samir Nasri – a target for Manchester United and Manchester City, with just one year left on his current contract – will sign a new five-year deal.
Fabregas has made it clear that he wants to join Barca, although the European champions have yet to meet Arsenal's £40m asking price.
That has left the Gunners' skipper, who has missed all of Arsenal's pre-season games with a hamstring injury, working on his own at the training ground.
Barcelona made an initial bid of £27m and followed that up with two more conversations.
But, despite promising a deal will be done by this weekend, they still haven't come back with an increased offer. The art of the Mata: The 10 best Juan Mata goals, skills and tricks videos on the web Walcott leaves Arsenal training camp to have ankle scan
[h=1]Park Ji-sung poised to sign new contract at Manchester United[/h] • South Korean offered two-year extension at Old Trafford
• Faces increased competition after Ashley Young's signing
Park Ji-sung, who has won four Premier League titles since signing from PSV Eindhoven in 2005, said he had never thought of leaving Manchester United. Photograph: Andy Rain/EPA
Manchester United are close to agreeing a new contract with Park Ji-sung after the South Korean confirmed he wants to remain at Old Trafford despite the increased competition now that Ashley Young has joined the club.
Park, whose contract has only 12 months to run, has been offered a two-year extension to take him past his 33rd birthday and he hopes an agreement can be reached before the start of the new season.
"I have never thought about leaving the club," said a player who has won four Premier League titles since signing from PSV Eindhoven in 2005. "My mind was always on staying. We have had some early conversations [about a new contract] and hopefully before the season we will get everything sorted out.
"The first talks have taken place and when you are at a club like Manchester United you don't want to leave. Everyone would love to play for a club such as Manchester United and it's not often that players want to leave."
Park welcomed the addition of Ferguson's three signings – Young, Phil Jones and David de Gea – and spoke of his confidence that the champions were equipped to "do better than last season".
Young's signing from Aston Villa could have ramifications for Park, with both players competing for the advanced left-sided position in which Nani also usually operates.
"Yes, but as a Manchester United player you know everyone has to fight for places, particularly in the wing positions because of the manager's rotation policy," Park said. "Everyone gets the opportunity to play and when you get that opportunity you have to show you deserve to play more."
[h=1]Sergio Agüero is so much more than Carlos Tevez Mark 2[/h] The Argentinian striker has been compared to Romário and is poised to be the master of invention at Manchester City
Sergio Agüero, who has cost Manchester City £40m, scored 68 league goals in the past four years for Atlético Madrid, five more than Carlos Tevez. Photograph: Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images
The son-in-law of God appeared in Manchester on Wednesday. It was not the city Giannina Maradona's husband expected to turn up in when he announced that he was leaving Atlético Madrid. Nor was it the one El Diego foresaw. Maradona, who once advised Sergio Agüero to "run all the way to Inter Milan", leaving the Vicente Calderón in his wake, had been as adamant as he was categorical: in 2011-12, he said, Sergio Agüero would still be in Madrid – just up at the other end of the city, playing for rivals Real.
Maradona is prone to outbursts, prone to getting it wrong too. But he was not alone. Truth be told, the man they call Kun did not plan it this way. He had spoken to Juventus but hoped to force a move to Real Madrid, who had informed him of their interest. The delay in completing a move to Manchester City that had been in place for over a fortnight was caused by his desire to wait for his original suitor.
Atlético, though, did not budge. Real did, reluctantly giving their word that there would not be a hostile, and thus hugely expensive, bid. In the end, Agüero had little choice.
Yet if that sounds as if City fans should have misgivings, they should not. The greater reservations were not in Manchester, but in Madrid. Real fans are disappointed that the 23-year-old Argentinian will not be joining them. That alone hints at the fact that City have signed a genuinely special footballer, the man of whom the Lokomotiv Moscow coach declared: "Watching Agüero play is like visiting the Prado museum."
Nor should City necessarily fear a Tevez-style episode. The Maradona family makes for quite an entourage but Agüero is brighter and sharper than the countryman he describes as one of his heroes – something that comes as a timely reminder that he is still young. He is quiet in interviews but the hint of quick-witted mischief is confirmed when the tape is turned off; he will travel with his wife and two-year-old, Benjamín Agüero Maradona; and his forced departure from a declining Atlético appears more legitimate, in purely footballing terms, than Tevez's cries for freedom.
Bluntly, Agüero had become too big for Atlético. Deep down, Atlético fans knew that. There is cold comfort in him not staying in the city to rub it in daily. "He reminds me of Romário," Anatoliy Byshovets had said that night in Moscow, "except that he pressures all over the pitch and plays a greater role in the team's play." That night, Agüero had carried Atlético to victory. The kid who remembers playing five games a day as a 12-year-old, crisscrossing Buenos Aires dreaming up new gambetas (dribbles), and who at 15 years, one month and three days became the youngest footballer to play in the Argentinian first division, was only 19.
At that point, he had been in Spain 18 months and after a difficult first year – he ate too much meat, drank too much Coke and stayed up too late, Atlético insiders confirm – he was turning in superb displays with striking regularity. In March, Agüero beat Barcelona 4-2. And, yes, that does say 'Agüero' - the Argentinian providinged two goals, an assist and a penalty out of nothing. The Atlético-supporting columnist Iñako Díaz-Guerra raved: "In 30 years, I've seen some great players, from Hugo Sánchez, to Torres, Futre, Caminero and Kiko, but none ooze excellence like Kun," while his newspaper gave Agüero four stars – out of three.
That season, 2007-08, Agüero was Spain's outstanding player, taking Atlético to the Champions League for the first time in 11 years. When he played in the Champions League, Didier Drogba noted: "The only word I can use to describe Agüero is spectacular. I don't want to disrespect Atlético but great players end up at great clubs." The "And Atlético are not a great club" went without saying.
When Agüero signed off last season with an astonishing hat-trick it seemed to corroborate Drogba's view. Now that has been confirmed – not because Chelsea signed him, even if Carlo Ancelotti openly said, "every big club has looked at him", but because City have.
In a sense the surprise is that it has taken this long. Agüero may not have matched that second season but he has been remarkably consistent, even as the risk of stagnation hung over him. In the last four years, Agüero has scored 68 league goals. That's five more than Carlos Tevez. But it's not just about the goals; it's more about the inventiveness. "I play with shadows," Agüero says. He is not talking about his team-mates but at times he might have thought he was. "You two [Reyes and Agüero] are really destroying teams," José Antonio Reyes was told after one game last season. "Well, er, two?" replied Reyes. "Kun."
As Javier Mascherano notes: "Kun is dangerous because it's impossible to know which way he is going to go. His dribbling is a 10 out of 10 and his imagination is too: he never does the same thing twice – he is always inventing something new."
"His cutbacks, dribbling and chips are works of art," one Spanish newspaper has said. "Agüero is a virtuoso who's worth the entrance fee. He destroys his opponents with pace and strength, spilling creativity, ingenuity and pure talent all over the pitch."
For €45m City have bought a striker with a slight upper body but powerful legs and backside – he can leap 60 centimetres from standing. He never shirks physical challenges, once telling Fabio Cannavaro: "That round thing is the ball." Capable of exploiting the tiniest of spaces in penalty areas and the biggest of spaces outside of them, he is skilful, quick and clever; target man, goalscorer and playmaker all rolled into one. Indeed, for a No10, Agüero played much of his Atlético career further forward than the striker Diego Forlán, receiving aimless punts and turning them into something else,something good.
Watch highlights and reaction from the match Link to this video Manchester United have now scored 18 times in four pre-season matches in the United States and while the standard of opposition may not be the most challenging, Sir Alex Ferguson is still entitled to be encouraged by the frequency with which his team have demonstrated the imbalance of talent.
This was another impressive performance from the Premier League champions, Anderson and Park Ji-sung putting them 2-0 ahead at the interval before Dimitar Berbatov and the substitute Danny Welbeck completed the rout in the second half.
It was Berbatov's first goal of their tour and, after the trauma of not even getting on the substitutes' bench for the Champions League final, it was noticeable that Sir Alex Ferguson made a point of greeting him warmly when he was taken off just over an hour into the match.
Ferguson used 20 players in total – only Phil Jones and Patrice Evra lasted the full match – but there was a clear gulf between the two sides despite all the experimentation, particularly once Anderson had opened the scoring in the 20th minute.
Jones, the new £16m signing from Blackburn Rovers, had a relatively trouble-free evening and Anders Lindegaard can also reflect on a satisfactory 45-minute display, demonstrating once again that he has legitimate credentials to challenge David de Gea, the £18.3m recruit from Atlético Madrid, to be known as United's first-choice goalkeeper next season. Lindegaard, who made way for Ben Amos at half-time, has had an impressive tour and looked assured behind a defence in which Jones, a centre-half by trade, started at right-back.
Jones coped ably with the sporadic threat of Thierry Henry during the former Arsenal player's 45 minutes on the pitch. Ashley Young, another of United's new signings, flickered only sporadically but, overall, there was plenty to satisfy Ferguson on a night when Wayne Rooney set up two of the goals and his team demonstrated a ruthlessness in attack.
That Anderson scored the first will also be encouraging for Ferguson because it is undoubtedly time the Brazilian improved on his record of a mere five goals in 129 appearances. Anderson has run the danger at times of becoming synonymous with poor finishing but on this occasion it would have been almost impudent to miss the chance that Rooney teed up for him after a neat exchange of passes with Berbatov.
Park's third goal in four pre-season matches was more of a solo effort, the South Korean taking the ball from Evra on the left-hand corner of the penalty area, turning past the right-back, Sean Franklin, to score with a left-foot, diagonal shot combining equal measures of power and precision.
The more dangerous moments concocted by the MLS team invariably stemmed from the right boot of David Beckham, whose passing was sublime during the opening half. It was a stylish display from the former England captain, but it was also a hot and humid evening and he faded after the restart, with United taking control.
Berbatov's goal stemmed from a carefully weighted through ball from Rooney, the Bulgarian holding off the nearest defender, Geoff Cameron, before lobbing the goalkeeper, Tally Hall. The ball came back off the crossbar but Berbatov was first to the rebound, turning in his shot from six yards.
Welbeck, one of six substitutes introduced in the 61st minute, then scored the fourth when he darted in from the left and lashed in a right-foot shot that took a decisive deflection off Cameron to wrong-foot Hall.
Ferguson rested De Gea, Ryan Giggs and Rafael da Silva while Javier Hernández was left at the team hotel after being concussed during a training session in the stadium on Tuesday, the Mexican spending the night in hospital for precautionary tests. MLS All-Stars (4-3-2-1): Mondragon (Hall, h-t, Keller, 83); Franklin (Beckerman, h-t), Olave (Cameron, 38), Ream (Besler, 76), Convey (Ashe, 62); Joseph (LaBrocca, h-t), Beckham, Davis (Jewsbury, 62); Cummings (Pearce, h-t), Henry (Wondolowski, h-t); Bravo (Agudelo, 81). Manchester United (4-2-2-2): Lindegaard (Amos, h-t); Jones, Ferdinand (Smalling, 61), Vidic (Diouf, 73), Evra; Carrick (Cleverley, 61), Anderson (F da Silva, 73); Park (Nani, 61), Young (Welbeck, 61); Rooney (Macheda, 61), Berbatov (Owen, 61).
Att: 26,760
The Toffees are stuck on Adam Johnson. Photograph: Scott Heppell/AP
In the process of collecting the brightest, shiniest, most-coveted rumours of the day, the Mill naturally accumulates a lot of swapsies. No matter, such a stockpile can come in useful. For instance, when we head down to the playground at break and try to scalp something fresh from the slower tabloid school hacks – what matter if another Fábregas to Barcelona whisper slips back into circulation if it means the Mill is in possession of a rare new snippet of tittle-tattle for the sticker album?
However, recently the "got, got, need" ratio has reached a level of inequality worthy of a hand-wringing Guardian editorial. The dog-eared and crumpled rumours being offered the Mill are so tiresomely familiar that even the most underwhelming of prospects can take on a certain lustre, if they haven't crossed our path before ... And it is by which turns we arrive at a tale of two Johnsons: Everton want to take Manchester City midfielder Adam Johnson on loan AND Leicester want to take Manchester City midfielder Michael Johnson on loan.
"Got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got, got ..." Chelsea are ready to make a £30m "take it or leave it" offer for Luka Modric, which inevitably means they will be linked with a £35m bid this time next week. And having spun the Rolodex again only to come up with zippo, the Blues are going to redial Anderlecht's number and yell, "£20m for Romelu Lukaku! Talk to me" down the line.
In defiance of the fact that Arsène Wenger has already signed one multimillion-pound player this summer and that'll be quite enough, thankyouverymuch, Arsenal are apparently still favourites to sign Valencia's Juan Mata, who has a £13.5m buyout clause. Wenger has admitted that he fancies a new hat stand for his office, though, and Christopher Samba is tall and immobile enough to fit the bill – not that he knows anything about nothing: "I don't know what is happening with Arsenal because I am not dealing with it and it's not my problem," he said, though you wonder whose problem it is, if not his. "At the minute I am still at Blackburn but it would be a big lie if I told you 'everything is good and I don't want to play in the Champions League'." Arsenal are also set to tease Everton further by upping their bid for Phil Jagielka to £15m, plus tickets to a West End show and a signed 2001-02 photo of Francis Jeffers. West Brom have been busy little Baggies, sounding out Birmingham over Ben Foster and Liam Ridgewell and making encouraging noises about Motherwell's £1m midfielder Jamie Murphy. Foster could initially move on loan, giving Roy Hodgson time to see if the 28-year-old is a big enough galoot to fill Scott Carson's recently vacated oversized clown shoes. Birmingham, meanwhile, will attempt to plug one of the gaping holes in their squad with free agent Anthony Gardner (no relation).
And finally, the crumbs from the Mill's breakfast table: Bolton have pulled out of a £5m deal for Barcelona's Jeffrén Suárez, amid fears over his readiness to handle pluvial evening conditions in the Potteries region. Millwall are discussing a loan move for Aston Villa's Australian defender Shane Lowry; Wolves' Richard Stearman will discover that East Angular is not a foreign country when he rocks up at Ipswich for £1m; and Southampton forward Jason Puncheon, one half of the famous seaside double act, could be off to QPR in return for £500,000 plus sibilant centre-half Kaspars Gorkss.
Nicklas Bendtner is set for a fresh start away from Arsenal as the Denmark striker closes in on a £9million move to Sporting Lisbon.
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger last week revealed the 23-year-old had been given permission to miss the friendly against Cologne and training camp in Germany "to sort out his future".
Bendtner, who has been pushed further down the pecking order following the £11million arrival of Ivory Coast forward Gervinho, was photographed in Portugal and is expected to push through the formalities of his move over the weekend.
Two other Arsenal players who look set to miss the Emirates Cup - which will see former Gunners striker Thierry Henry return to the club with New York Red Bulls - are captain Cesc Fabregas and England winger Theo Walcott.
Fabregas, who remains the subject of a £30m transfer bid by Barcelona, has not featured at all during pre-season, training with the youth squad this week as he works on a hamstring injury, which, officially at least, has been the reason for his extended absence.
Walcott, meanwhile, was sent home early from Germany because of a niggling ankle complaint, with the results of scans expected to reveal whether or not the England forward will be in contention for the start of the new domestic season in a fortnight.
With Bendtner's departure set to follow that of long-serving defender Gael Clichy, Wenger is likely to quickly reinvest those transfer funds, which could be boosted by a further £4m should Emmanuel Eboue join Galatasaray.
Valencia's Juan Mata has long been on the Arsenal manager's radar, and his £15m signature would go some way to offsetting the impending departure of Fabregas, as well as guarding against the uncertain future of contract rebel Samir Nasri.
A centre-back is also high on Wenger's wanted list, but Arsenal will have to significantly increase their £10m offer to test Everton's resolve over England international Phil Jagielka.
Blackburn's Christopher Samba would be a cheaper option and has made it clear he would relish a move to the Gunners, with the chance of Champions League football.
Feyenoord sporting director Martin van Gael confirmed Arsenal are looking to push through Ryo Miyaichi's 'special talent' work permit application, after the Japan youngster impressed when linking up with the first-team squad for the Asia tour on the back of a promising loan spell in Holland.
Wenger, though, insists his squad only needs minor tinkering to get them over the line in 2011-12, having fallen apart spectacularly following defeat in the Carling Cup final to Birmingham at Wembley.
Midfielder Andrey Arshavin agrees. Speaking in the Emirates Cup souvenir programme, the Russian said: "I think we will get stronger and stronger.
"In particular I think our work on set-pieces, both attacking and defending, will be better.
"We will also play a pressing game - if we do that well, I am sure you will see an improved team." Mata entourage fly in to discuss Arsenal move The art of the Mata: The 10 best Juan Mata goals, skills and tricks videos on the web Samba drops big Blackburn exit hint
Michael Johnson has joined Leicester on loan from Manchester City in a bid to rekindle his once-promising career.
Johnson, 23, has featured just twice for City since suffering an abdominal injury in 2008 and former Blues boss Sven Goran Eriksson has signed him on a season-long deal.
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It looks like we're going to be seeing a LOT of 'Wesley Sneijder to Manchester United' stories between now and the summer in the wake of the midfielder's recent 'come and get me' plea .
But what would Fergie be getting in the Dutch star? Here's all you need to know about the Inter Milan man...
1) Wesley Benjamin Sneijder was born in Utrecht, Holland, on 9 June 1984.
2) At the age of seven he joined the Ajax academy, where his older brother Jeffrey was already training. Jeffrey went on to play in the lower Dutch leagues. Younger brother Rodney is also at the youth academy - and big bro Wesley thinks he should learn his trade before landing a move to a bigger club, once shutting down Rodney's discussions with Real Madrid.
3) He signed as a pro with Ajax at 17, earning a full contract after impressing on trial. His first team debut came on 22 December 2002 in a 2-0 win over SBV Excelsior.
4) After 57 goals in 180 games, the Eredivisie title and two Cups, Sneijder was sold to Real Madrid for €27million in August 2007.
5) Sneijder took over David Beckham's number 23 shirt and got off to an impressive start, scoring the winner in his first La Liga match - the Madrid derby against Atletico - and then netting twice against Villarreal next time out. His first season brought nine goals and the La Liga title.
His second season at the Bernabeu, wearing the No. 10 shirt this time, ended in disappointment as Real lost their title to arch-rivals Barcelona and Sneijder was pushed out.
6) Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan were more than happy to snap him up for a bargain €15million and Sneijder was the midfield engine as the Special One cleaned up with an unprecedented Serie A, Coppa Italia, Champions League Treble.
7) Sneijder debuted with the Dutch Under-21 side in March 2003 aged 18 - but made his full Holland debut just over a month later against Portugal. His first goal for the Oranje came in a Euro 2004 qualifier against Moldova later that year.
8) The midfield star has been in the last four Dutch squads for major tournaments. A sub in 2004, he started all Holland's matches at the last World Cup. His impressive performances in Euro 2008 saw him named in the team of the tournament - something he could repeat this time around.
9) Sneijder married Ramona Streekstra in 2005 and they had a son, Jessey, the following year (look out for the tattoo on Sneijder's left arm, dedicated to his boy). But the marriage came to a messy end last year when he was caught snogging Yolanthe Cabau van Kasbergen, then the girlfriend of Dutch pop star Jan Smit, on CCTV at a petrol station.
He married the glamour model in March - and the WAG is rated as Holland's answer to Cheryl Cole, Victoria Beckham AND Jordan. Since getting together with Yolanthe he has converted to her Catholic faith, and was recently baptised in Italy.
9) His list of career honours to date puts most established clubs to shame. Wesley has won the Champions League, domestic titles in three countries (Holland in 2003-04, Spain in 2007-08 and Italy in 2009-2010), the equivalents of the FA Cup in both Holland (twice) and Italy, three Johan Cruijff-schaals (the Dutch version of the Community Shield), the Spanish and Italian Supercups and the 2010 Club World Cup. His personal awards and medals warrant a separate Top 10 of their own, but amid all the player and team of the year accolades, we'd wager the one Wesley surely prizes most highly is being named the Best Dutch Free Kick Taker of 2008. Yes, really.
10) As a player, Sneijder is a two-footed midfield general, though he has also played on the left wing. He takes a mean free kick and has become the dead-ball specialist in all the teams he has played at.
In the manner of Big Brother's Davina McCall, here are some of his best bits...
Football Spy has signed up some of the web's top foreign football experts to provide you with first-hand information on the latest Premier League transfer targets. Here's French Football Weekly 's Andrew Gibney with in-depth profile of new Arsenal signing Gervinho.
***
This week finally saw the end of a transfer saga that at times looked to rival the on-going "Cesc-gate".
Ivorian winger Gervinho finally completed the protracted move from French champions Lille to Arsenal .
At no point did the move ever look in doubt, though. The player had stated very clearly that he wanted the move to happen and Lille weren't going to stand in his way.
Arsene Wenger has been a keen admirer of the 24-year-old for a few years now.
The story goes that Wenger actually had the chance to sign Gervinho from Le Mans in 2009, only for the player to end up joining his former manager Rudi Garcia at Lille. The two years that he played in northern France saw his game go from strength to strength.
With only 12 months left on his contract, it seems that the move to London benefits all involved parties.
Lille receive a reported €12million for a player who could have left for free a year from now, while Gervinho himself mentioned on numerous occasions that Arsenal was his preferred destination this summer.
But what sort of player have the Gunners paid £10.5million for?
He is exceptionally quick, and combines that with great upper body strength. That gives him a great base to take on defenders and he usually succeeds in beating his man.
During his time at Lille, his finishing has improved. With 15 goals and 10 assists last season, he is a very dangerous player once inside the box, with the ability to find a team-mate or provide the finish.
He was one the main reasons Lille finished top of Ligue 1 last time.
Not only does his pace give him the ability to take on players but he also has the intelligence to use it to run in-behind defences and latch onto any passes played through the middle.
In Lille's fluid 4-3-3 system, the winger was allowed to drift inside and find the space created by the movement of Moussa Sow and Eden Hazard.
This is an ability that would be ideal in the current Arsenal system - the movement of Robin van Persie could benefit the runs of Gervinho and in Nasri and possibly Fabregas they have the players to find his well-timed runs.
Not everything in the 24-year-old's game is complete, however.
His style is still very raw, when he is running with the ball he doesn't always look in control - "Bambi on ice" is a phrase that has been used to describe his running technique.
At times his passing can also leave a lot to be desired - not the actually quality of the pass, but the timing of the delivery.
The prime example of this came in the Coupe de France final.
Gervinho broke down the left and, with Hazard racing through on the inside, a well-timed pass would have put the little Belgian through on goal, but his pass was poor and the chance was lost.
There is still time for him to improve this and there isn't a better place than Arsenal to improve your passing.
Under Wenger's guidance, Gervinho could become the player that everyone in France knows he has the potential to be.
Unfortunately for Ligue 1 fans, Lille have lost one of their most potent attacking threats.
On the flip side, Arsenal have gained a very dangerous weapon who will have Premier League defenders slightly worried come the start of the season.
Liverpool have suffered a blow after Kop flop Alberto Aquilani's move to Fiorentina fell through.
Fiorentina could not agree a fee with Liverpool to buy Aquilani when his proposed loan spell would have ended next summer.
The Italian midfielder was reluctant to take a pay cut of over 50 per cent to fit within the Serie A side's £30,000-a-week wage ceiling.
Aquilani also preferred to make a permanent switch rather than another temporary one after spending last season on loan at Juventus.
Aquilani's agent Franco Zavaglia claims no deal has been done.
"An agreement between Fiorentina and Aquilani hasn't been reached," he said. "Fiorentina haven't come to a decision with regard to us."
[h=1]Sergio Agüero signs five-year deal at Manchester City[/h] • Striker has completed £38m move for Atlético Madrid
• Agüero will wear the No16 shirt at the Etihad Stadium
Sergio Agüero signs autographs following his medical ahead of his move to Manchester City. Photograph: Dave Thompson/PA
Sergio Agüero believes he has joined a club that "will be fighting every year to win major trophies" after completing his move to Manchester City, declaring he was happy to be moving to a city that his new team-mate Carlos Tevez has openly admitted disliking.
Perhaps tellingly, Agüero revealed he had taken the advice of another of his Argentina team-mates, Pablo Zabaleta, before signing a five-year contract to commit himself to a move that will initially cost City £35m, rising to £38m depending on his success with the FA Cup winners.
"I spoke to Zabaleta and he talked really positively about the club," Agüero said. "When we were talking I asked my agents to do everything they could because this is a good club and I'd always wanted to play in the Premier League. It's a good club and it felt right."
Agüero, who will wear the No16 shirt, made it clear he would not go down the well-trodden route of complaining about the English climate. "Firstly I don't like very hot weather so on that side of things I will be OK. I'm sure I'm going to enjoy myself here and life will be fine."
He added: "Zabaleta has told me all about [the other players] and it's all very positive. He has told me it's a happy squad so when I get the chance to meet my team-mates I'll be able to see exactly what they are like. I've heard only good things about them and I can't wait to meet them."
Roberto Mancini, the City manager, is now deliberating with Agüero about whether he should be involved in Sunday's friendly against Internazionale in Dublin, or whether the 23-year-old needs more recovery time after playing for Argentina in the Copa América.
Agüero was asked whether he anticipated any difficulties settling into a new team and a new league. "To be honest, I don't think so," he replied. "I don't think I'll have too many problems. I'll obviously be doing my best to do what the manager asks and, of course, he will know how he wants to use me. But once I'm out on the pitch I will get to know my way around. I can't say for certain, because I have not even made my debut yet, but I'm sure everything will be fine. I am going to be relaxed about it."
Describing the qualities that have persuaded City to make him the most expensive player in their history, he said: "My style has always been fight to the death for every ball and give 100% in every game, concentrate to the maximum in everything I do, movement, running off the ball, winning the ball back and scoring goals. I'm not a player who can do everything but I have plenty to offer."
Agüero also revealed he had taken advice from Maxi Rodríguez, Liverpool's Argentina midfielder, about life in England. Tevez, perhaps diplomatically, was not mentioned by a man who had watched May's FA Cup final victory against Stoke City on television. His new team, he said, "will be fighting every year to win major trophies and let's hope that it's quite a few major trophies".
[h=1]Sergio Agüero signs five-year deal at Manchester City[/h] Striker has completed £38m move for Atlético Madrid
Agüero will wear the No16 shirt at the Etihad Stadium
Sergio Agüero signs autographs following his medical ahead of his move to Manchester City. Photograph: Dave Thompson/PA
Sergio Agüero believes he has joined a club that "will be fighting every year to win major trophies" after completing his move to Manchester City, declaring he was happy to be moving to a city that his new team-mate Carlos Tevez has openly admitted disliking.
Perhaps tellingly, Agüero revealed he had taken the advice of another of his Argentina team-mates, Pablo Zabaleta, before signing a five-year contract to commit himself to a move that will initially cost City £35m, rising to £38m depending on his success with the FA Cup winners.
"I spoke to Zabaleta and he talked really positively about the club," Agüero said. "When we were talking I asked my agents to do everything they could because this is a good club and I'd always wanted to play in the Premier League. It's a good club and it felt right."
Agüero, who will wear the No16 shirt, made it clear he would not go down the well-trodden route of complaining about the English climate. "Firstly I don't like very hot weather so on that side of things I will be OK. I'm sure I'm going to enjoy myself here and life will be fine."
He added: "Zabaleta has told me all about [the other players] and it's all very positive. He has told me it's a happy squad so when I get the chance to meet my team-mates I'll be able to see exactly what they are like. I've heard only good things about them and I can't wait to meet them."
Roberto Mancini, the City manager, is now deliberating with Agüero about whether he should be involved in Sunday's friendly against Internazionale in Dublin, or whether the 23-year-old needs more recovery time after playing for Argentina in the Copa América.
Agüero was asked whether he anticipated any difficulties settling into a new team and a new league. "To be honest, I don't think so," he replied. "I don't think I'll have too many problems. I'll obviously be doing my best to do what the manager asks and, of course, he will know how he wants to use me. But once I'm out on the pitch I will get to know my way around. I can't say for certain, because I have not even made my debut yet, but I'm sure everything will be fine. I am going to be relaxed about it."
Describing the qualities that have persuaded City to make him the most expensive player in their history, he said: "My style has always been fight to the death for every ball and give 100% in every game, concentrate to the maximum in everything I do, movement, running off the ball, winning the ball back and scoring goals. I'm not a player who can do everything but I have plenty to offer."
Agüero also revealed he had taken advice from Maxi Rodríguez, Liverpool's Argentina midfielder, about life in England. Tevez, perhaps diplomatically, was not mentioned by a man who had watched May's FA Cup final victory against Stoke City on television. His new team, he said, "will be fighting every year to win major trophies and let's hope that it's quite a few major trophies".
[h=1]Arsenal's Arsène Wenger ready to move for Phil Jagielka and Juan Mata[/h] • Everton may set Jagielka's price at more than £18m
• Valencia also want to keep Mata, valued at £17.5m
Everton's Phil Jagielka, who could help solve Arsenal's problems at the back, is pictured battling for the ball with Samir Nasri, who is expected to see out the last 12 months of his contract at the Emirates. Photograph: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Arsène Wenger intends to ease the transfer window frustration of Arsenal supporters with successful moves for the Everton defender Phil Jagielka and the Valencia winger Juan Mata.
The manager has waged a battle throughout the summer to retain his captain, Cesc Fábregas, and the midfielder Samir Nasri, and it has felt, even to a section of the club's board, that he has done so to the detriment of seeking new signings.
Fábregas looks certain to get his long-touted switch to Barcelona – Wenger wants the issue resolved in the coming days – while Nasri is likely to be held to the terms of his contract, which has 12 months to run. He could then depart on a highly lucrative Bosman free transfer.
Wenger has signed the forward Gervinho from Lille for £10.6m, together with the reserve right-back Carl Jenkinson from Charlton Athletic, but many of the club's fans have been desperate to see him make a major impression in the market.
The arrivals of Jagielka and Mata, together with the short-term retention of Nasri, would go some way to answering the critics. Wenger has already seen one bid for Jagielka, of around £12m, rejected by Everton but he is preparing a renewed offer that he hopes will force the Merseysiders' hand.
David Moyes, the Everton manager, has made it clear that Jagielka is one of the few players whom he does not want to sell and it may need an extraordinary offer, of upwards of £18m, to tempt him and his directors.
Wenger wants a commanding central defender with Premier League experience, a player to address Arsenal's achilles heel of set-piece concessions, and Jagielka, the England international, would fit the bill. Wenger has also been linked to Gary Cahill of Bolton Wanderers and Chris Samba of Blackburn Rovers.
Mata would not be a like-for-like replacement for Fábregas. The 23-year-old tends to play on the left, although he could play in a central position. He has emerged as one of Europe's most coveted young players after his starring role for Spain's Under-21s in their triumphant European Championship campaign last month. He was also a part of the victorious senior squad at the World Cup finals last summer.
Wenger has experimented in pre-season with Nasri in an advanced central midfield role, rather than his more accustomed position on the left. Gervinho also likes to come in from the flank.
Valencia do not want to sell Mata, who is valued at £17.5m, but the technical secretary Bralui Vázquez admitted he could not rule out the possibility. "We have a back-up plan in case Juan leaves," he said. "That's not just the case for Juan, though. We have a plan like that for every player. We have to be prepared if something happens."
[h=1]Javier Hernández's former club claim he has a neurological condition[/h] • Chivas de Guadalajara say Mexico striker has a problem
• Sir Alex Ferguson plays the condition down as concussion
Javier Hernández has spent time in hospital in the United States but Sir Alex Ferguson claims the striker was merely concussed. Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA
Sir Alex Ferguson has said he has no lingering concerns about Javier Hernández's health despite claims from the Mexican's former club that the striker is suffering from a pre-existing condition that had never been revealed to his current employers.
Hernández was taken to hospital on Tuesday evening after complaining of dizziness and the concerns about the Manchester United striker were exacerbated when Rafael Ortega, the doctor at Chivas de Guadalajara, told reporters in Mexico that the player had suffered from neurological issues since he was a teenager.
Ortega said: "I remember in his time as a youth player at Chivas he suffered from acute migraines. Originally it manifested itself as a headache but afterwards the symptoms disappeared. We had some studies done on him but that was six years ago and he has done well since."
Hernández spent the night in hospital and was unable to fly with the rest of the squad when they made the journey from New York to Washington on Thursday. Ferguson, informed of Ortega's comments, said he was unaware of a pre-existing condition, describing it as a "straightforward concussion", but he has ruled out the 23-year-old for two weeks, meaning he will not be involved in the Community Shield against Manchester City on Sunday week.
"Concussion is something you don't want to happen but usually time heals that and we'll give Chicharito plenty of time," Ferguson said. "We won't be rushing him back. I'll bring him back only when the doctor tells me I can bring him back."
Ferguson said a ball had hit Hernández "on the top of the head" during a training session at the New Jersey Red Bull Arena. The striker lasted the full session, even staying behind for extra shooting practice, before falling ill at the team hotel.
"When he was taking his meal he felt sick and he was sick," Ferguson said. "He had headaches, so we removed him to the hospital where he stayed in overnight."
Hernández had an MRI scan that gave him the all-clear but United's medical staff may choose to request more information from Chivas about the player's medical past.
Ortega added: "I don't know if this will affect him in the future but I'm sure United will send him to a specialist and the situation will be resolved."
Hernández may not attend the FedEx Field in Washington on Saturday when United take on Barcelona in a rematch of last season's Champions League final, albeit one missing Lionel Messi, rested after playing for Argentina in the Copa América.
Ferguson has told his players they cannot allow themselves to "be alarmed or to worry about" the side that beat them so comprehensively at Wembley in May, but he acknowledged that Pep Guardiola's men had legitimate claims to be recognised as superior to any other team on the planet.
"Their performances and feats over the last two or three years have elevated them to a position, in everyone's mind, where they're the best team currently in the world," Ferguson said.
"I'm quite happy to be in second place at this moment and our challenge is to get to that level. It's not just about the football team – it's the philosophy, what they believe in, how they coach, how they produce young players."
United have scored 18 times in their four games of this tour but Ferguson was not entirely satisfied. "We've been very good in front of goal, but we have been loose in midfield and at the back and teams have been creating chances against us."
The United manager reported that Antonio Valencia had returned to training in Manchester and should be fit for the start of the season despite damaging his ankle while on international duty with Ecuador.
Ferguson also noted Manchester City's £38m signing of Sergio Aguero as confirmation that Roberto Mancini's team would challenge for the Premier League. "Five teams will contest the league, and any one can win it. The best thing we can do is deal with ourselves. The challenge, the expectation and the pressure is on us – good."
[h=1]Argentina appoint Alejandro Sabella as coach[/h] • Replaces Sergio Batista who was sacked after Copa América
• Won Libertadores Cup with Estudiantes in 2009
guardian.co.uk, Friday 29 July 2011 00.46 BST Article history
Alejandro Sabella has been appointed coach of Argentina to replace Sergio Batista, who was sacked after the country's disappointing exit from the Copa América, the Argentinian news agency Telam reported.
Sabella coached Estudiantes to the Libertadores Cup in 2009 and was due to take over at Al-Jazira in the United Arab Emirates but Argentina's quarter-final defeat by Uruguay in the Copa América led to a change of mind.
The 56-year-old, who played for Sheffield United and Leeds United, had been tipped to take over from Diego Maradona after he parted company with the national team following the 2010 World Cup.
[h=1]Select committee to propose radical overhaul of English football[/h] A report by the parliamentary select committee on culture, media and sport could have major ramifications for the game
England's 2010 World Cup failure provided the impetus to confront issues that have long bedevilled the game's administration. Photograph: Scott Heavey/Action Images
They have heard hours of evidence from scores of witnesses, taken trips beyond Westminster to Germany, Burnley and Wembley, and spoken to most of the dramatis personae past and present in one of the most intractable and long-running soap operas in the game. On Friday, the culture, media and sport select committee – after an interlude while they were diverted by the dramatic twists in their phone-hacking investigation – will deliver their long-awaited report on the future of football.
The sports minister, Hugh Robertson, was unequivocal in his view earlier this year when he said: "Football is the worst governed sport in this country, without a shadow of a doubt."
The Rugby Football Union may have since seized that unwanted crown, but although Robertson is understood to feel that David Bernstein is making progress as the FA chairman, the minister is expected to warn English football in the autumn that it will have a year to get its act together. If significant progress is not made by autumn 2012, he is expected to replace carrot with stick and threaten to legislate.
The most headline-grabbing evidence came from the wronged former FA chairman Lord Triesman and his nemesis, Sir Dave Richards (below right). But the most meaningful came from Lord Burns, who conducted a review of FA governance in 2005 and lamented that he had not been more radical, and Ian Watmore, the former FA chief executive who patiently set out the frustrations inherent to the role. "Vested interests blocking change meant I was going down culs-de-sac everywhere I turned. I was wasting my time," he said.
[h=2]Why is the select committee report important?[/h]Partly because of the timing – in the wake of England's failure in South Africa and the 2018 World Cup bid humiliation – there was a feeling that the momentum existed to confront some of the issues that have bedevilled the administration of the game for years. That followed the collective bout of soul searching that preceded last year's general election, when all major parties promised to overhaul football governance and improve supporter representation amid the fallout from protests at Liverpool, Portsmouth, Manchester United and elsewhere.
And partly because the government, through the sports minister and the culture secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has promised to take action to force the sport to reform.
"There is a moment now, with the select committee inquiry, with the humility we have to feel over the lack of success of that [World Cup] bid and the England team in South Africa, when we can come together and create something that works," Hunt told the Guardian in March.
[h=2]What will it recommend?[/h]The committee is expected to propose a quid pro quo whereby the FA is ordered to accelerate the process of governance reform, including the make-up of its main board and the FA Council. If it can do so satisfactorily, the report is expected to propose a licensing system that would be administered by the FA, in consultation with the professional leagues, but would give it ultimate oversight of the regulatory and financial issues of clubs. Bernstein suggested in his evidence this could extend to a financial fair play-style scheme. Neither would go down well with a Premier League determined to hang on to its sovereignty and fearful that the FA could derail its success.
The Premier League is also expected to be told to reform its governance arrangements. There may be explicit encouragement for Richards, the personification of many of the bitter turf wars that have hamstrung the FA board, to stand down. Even if he sees out his two remaining years as chairman, there is likely to be a call for a fixed term for his replacement.
Under the broad heading of boosting the fortunes of the national side, the committee may call for the introduction of a winter break, and will urge faster progress in boosting grassroots participation and developing homegrown talent. The committee is expected to recommend miscellaneous changes to football's rulebook, including the scrapping of the creditors rule that allows football debts to be settled in full but often leaves small local businesses out of pocket. It is expected to call for the disciplinary system to be overhauled so that it becomes, in the words of the evidence of Manchester United chief executive David Gill, "semi-autonomous".
There is likely to be strong support for the Arsenal Supporters Trust model of fan engagement, even as the organisation faces an uncertain future in the wake of Stan Kroenke's takeover.
[h=2]What will the report mean for the Premier League?[/h]The Premier League will argue forcefully that the select committee has asked the right questions but alighted upon the wrong answers. It is expected to cast doubt on whether the best way to reform the FA – a process that it claims to have supported since it backed the original recommendations of the Burns review – is to offer the carrot of overseeing a licensing system.
As the league did in its evidence, it will point to reforms it has instituted in the past two years since the implosions at Portsmouth and Liverpool and insist it remains the best body to regulate clubs effectively. Pointing to the Premier League's global success, it will insist maintaining control of its own rulebook and argue a de facto licensing system already exists through the need to provide future financial information and the Uefa licensing system. It is clumsy and inappropriate to try to impose the same regulations on Manchester United as Yeovil Town, it will argue.
And while it may admit privately that in the past personalities and petty politics got in the way of real progress, the league will commit to helping the FA focus on the areas it believes should be its core focus – England, coaching and the grassroots.
The dysfunctionality has been a function of personalities as well as politics, and Robertson has been gunning for the divisive Richards. It is likely he will step down in two years, at which point the Premier League will be forced to accept that his replacement should serve for a fixed term.
[h=2]What will it mean for the FA?[/h]The FA will be told to slim down its main board – one of the main reasons why so many crucial strategic decisions end up in deadlock. The two nonexecutive directors Bernstein proposes to add to the board following tortuous negotiation with the FA Council will be welcomed as a positive first step but it is expected to be told more must follow.
There are other structural problems with the FA that need addressing – the unrepresentative and unwieldy FA Council, the labyrinthine committee structure. Here, too, there are likely to be renewed calls for the FA to become a more modern, representative body.
If – and it is a big if – it can satisfactorily reform, the committee and the government are expected to promise to strengthen its remit to take a stronger role as the regulator of the club game. Working in concert with the leagues, it would be expected to be more proactive on matters of ownership and finances. Bernstein hinted at this when he talked of the FA taking a "more supervisory role" over the professional game.
[h=2]What will it mean for fans?[/h]While the backing for more supporter representation will be welcome, many fans' groups are likely to feel that the report does not go far enough. There have already been concerns aired about the limited amount of time given to the subject as the committee have chased more newsworthy targets. The radical proposals aired at the height of concerns over ownership and finances have been parked. Much will depend on what practical assistance can be given to supporters wanting to have a bigger say in how their clubs are run.
Given that the one reference to football in the coalition's "programme for government" was an explicit promise to "encourage the reform of football governance rules to support the co-operative ownership of football clubs by supporters", there may be widespread disappointment.
[h=2]Has the committee done a good job?[/h]They called the right people, past and present. But sometimes they asked the wrong questions. And they arguably ranged too far and wide, disappearing down blind alleys and trying to cover too much ground rather than focusing on the intractable governance issues that need to be unblocked to make progress on everything else.
But to their credit some on the committee, particularly the Tory MP Damian Collins, have pursued long-standing issues such as the mystery surrounding the ownership of Leeds United with a campaigning zeal. And it could be argued that the inquiry helped focus minds at Wembley and Gloucester Place.
[h=2]What happens next?[/h]The government will come back in the autumn with its own proposals, expected to endorse most of the committee's recommendations. It will urge constructive dialogue between the bodies to enact the recommendations, but warn that legislation remains a possibility if they cannot. The danger is superficial reform that gives the politicians a warm glow but allows all parties to carry on as before.
A more optimistic reading would be to laud the belated progress being made at the FA in key areas (youth development, long-term strategy, grassroots) and take Bernstein at his word when he says a slow, steady and consensual approach is the only meaningful way to reform. The rate of progress, and the extent to which the Premier League can convince that it is part of the solution rather than part of the problem, may decide whether this process produces meaningful change or is yet another false dawn.
[h=1]Bob Bradley sacked as USA coach after four years in charge[/h] • USA won Gold Cup in 2007 under Bradley
• 'Now was the right time for us to make a change'
Bob Bradley's time as the coach of USA has come to an end after four and a half years in charge. Photograph: Martin Rose/Getty Images
The USA have parted company with their coach Bob Bradley. He had been in charge of the national team since January 2007.
Bradley, aged 53, led the USA to success at the Gold Cup months after taking charge and to the last 16 of the 2010 World Cup having finished runner-up in the 2009 Confederations Cup in South Africa, losing 3-2 to Brazil in the final, but the US Soccer president, Sunil Gulati, felt a new face was needed.
"We want to thank Bob Bradley for his service and dedication to US Soccer during the past five years," Gulati told ussoccer.com. "During his time as the head coach of our men's national team he led the team to a number of accomplishments but we felt now was the right time for us to make a change."
Gulati also took the opportunity to wish Bradley good luck for the future. "It is always hard to make these decisions, especially when it involves someone we respect as much as Bob," he said. "We wish him the best in his future endeavours."
US Soccer will make a further announcement on Friday. The former Germany coach, Jürgen Klinsmann, is the favourite to succeed Bradley.
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