Liverpool are eyeing Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo.

The People says Sunderland want £15million-rated Sevilla striker Negredo to replace Darren Bent.

But Black Cats boss Steve Bruce knows he faces a fight to sign the 26-year-old Spain forward as Liverpool are also showing an interest.

SOURCE: Tribalfootball

One wonders quite where Kenny Dalglish would place Alvaro Negredo in his starting line-up, if indeed this source is correct and Liverpool are keen on the Spanish international, however the former Real Madrid man is a consistent goalscorer and may be seen as a third attacking option and a player who can keep Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll on their toes next term.

Real Madrid apparently still have a buy back option and are reportedly considering exercising that option and using the 26 year old to help lure Atletico Madrid striker Sergio Aguero to the Bernabeu, but that hasn’t stopped the likes of Sunderland and Valencia taking a keen interest.

Negredo has notched up 65 goals over the past four seasons and is on the fringes of the national team set-up and is strongly linked to leave Sevilla this summer. Sunderland’s need may be more pressing as they appear to have struggled since the sale of Darren Bent to Aston Villa.

No doubt Liverpool will look to bring in new additions but most sources state that they are primarily looking for left sided players to fill that ‘problem’ area.

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Accoring to Goal.com the following 19 players were subject of at least a passing interest from the North London club, but could this just be a case of a source being a little liberal with the truth?

Charlie Adam BID ACCEPTED
Sergio Aguero BID REJECTED
David Beckham ADVANCED TALKS
Karim Benzema ENQUIRY
Andy Carroll BID REJECTED
Edinson Cavani ENQUIRY
Lassana Diarra BID REJECTED
Edin Dzeko ENQUIRY
Luis Fabiano BID REJECTED
Diego Forlan ADVANCED TALKS
Hulk ENQUIRY
Fernando Llorente BID REJECTED
Romelu Lukaku ENQUIRY
Scott Parker BID REJECTED
Alvaro Negredo BID REJECTED
Phil Neville BID REJECTED
Giuseppe Rossi BID REJECTED
Luis Suarez ADVANCED TALKS
Mirko Vucinic ENQUIRY

Now one wonders just how many of these ‘targets’ were actual offers made by Tottenham, after all quite of few of these bit of speculation were outright denied by Harry Redknapp. What can’t be denied is the fact that the Spurs boss was trying to get some new blood into the team in January but only managed to land Everton playmaker Steven Pienaar and South African defender Bongani Khumalo.

Perhaps more surprisingly Redknapp also loaned out a large chunk of his first team squad with the likes of Robbie Keane, David Bentley, Jamie O’Hara, Kyle Walker and Giovani all leaving on temporary deals. Given that Tottenham are fighting for a crucial top four spot as well as still competing in the Champions League it may have been remiss of Harry to agree to so many players being sent out.

That said it is still true that Tottenham have got a wonderful squad at their disposal and but for a few centre back injury concerns and a misfiring strike force, should be a okay for the rest of the season.

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Liverpool have been given the green light to make a £17m offer for Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo.
Negredo, 25, has been attracting interest from a number of top clubs following his impressive displays in La Liga.
Liverpool are keen to bolster their forward line and give some much needed support to Fernando Torres who looks well below his best this season.
Kenny Dalglish has just taken charge of first-team affairs but the club have been working hard to bring new faces into the squad.
Reports in Spain suggest that Sevilla would not block a sizeable bid for their star forward and would consider a £17m offer. (TalkSPORT)

Speculation linking Alvaro Negredo with a move to Liverpool is growing rapidly and there appears to be some meat to this story and the Sevilla man may well be the type of player that Director of Football Damien Comolli has earmarked as a potential Anfield signing, despite the rather large valuation placed on the 25 year old Spanish international.

The former Real Madrid man first made an impression in La Liga with minnows Almeria whom he successive mid table finishes thanks to 32 goals in two seasons which resulted in a move to Sevilla where he has struggled to make an impact, which is not that surprising that the club already has the likes of Freddy Kanoute and Luis Fabiano going great guns, both of whom may be 30 years and over but have notched 120 and 100 goals respectively for the club.

This has led to the La Liga side being willing to sell Negredo and if their valuation of £17m is met then he may well be joining his fellow Spaniards Pepe Reina and Fernando Torres at the Merseyside club.

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Liverpool are set to launch a summer swoop for Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo, according to reports.

Goal.com Spain can exclusively reveal that the Anfield club are already looking to next season, and maintain the belief that striker Fernando Torres will express a desire to move on next summer.

The likes of Bayern Munich and Manchester United have been linked with a move for ‘El Nino’, and therefore the Reds are lining up replacements, with Negredo allegedly topping their list of targets.

The 25-year-old moved to Andalucia from Real Madrid for a fee of €15 million in the summer of 2009, but has enjoyed a difficult spell at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, and the club may be willing to let him leave should the price be right.

Negredo’s current buy-out clause is in excess of €80m, but a bid closer to the €20m mark would entice Sevilla into negotiations and allow coach Gregorio Manzano the funds to approach his own transfer targets next season. (Goal.com)

Former Real Madrid man Negredo had a decent first season at Sevilla, scoring 16 times, but has seen his side slide down the table this term and may well be looking for an exit and a move to join his countrymen Pepe Reina and Fernando Torres at Anfield may well appeal to the 25 year old.

Negredo could well make a good foil for Torres and Roy Hodgson is looking for new attacking options and the Madrid born striker is a consistent performer who may well be an ideal signing to help take the some off the weight off Liverpool’s main goal threat.

Clearly the Merseyside club may wait before making any January signings as Liverpool’s owners are still apparently unsure as to how much longer they will stick with Hodgson however as Director of Football Damien Comolli appears to be in charge of signing players perhaps they can still make a bid for the Spanish international.

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FIFA announced their shortlist for the top ten goals of 2010 towards the end of last year, and if you missed that article then click the link below to see what they thought were the most beautiful of that 2010.

FIFA Puskas Award

The trouble is, their award doesn’t include the whole of 2010. In fact, the award covers the period from January 1st 2010 – October 15th 2010, which could potentially omit some crackers.

As the 2009 award did the same thing, for this top ten list we will include goals from between October 16th 2009 – December 31st 2010. They will be in chronological order, rather than any kind of hierarchy.

Have a happy new year!

10. Benjamin Huggel – FC Basel – 28th October 2009

Voted the best goal of the 2009-2010 season by Guardian readers, this is the first of the two goals inelegible for either the 2009 or 2010 Puskas awards. FC Basel’s players perform a quite sensational team move which is concluded with some style by Benjamin Huggel. The opposition couldn’t even get near the ball.

9. Didier Drogba – Chelsea – October 31st 2009

The other of the two goals from late 2009 ineligible for any Puskas Award so far. Chelsea’s fourth goal against Bolton Wanderers was a wonderful piece of interplay between Deco, Frank Lampard and Drogba that completely flummoxed their opposition. It’s easy to see why.

8. Karim Benzema – Real Madrid – January 30th 2010

Benzema’s finish is about as ordinary as they come, but the sheer audacity of Guti to backheel when one on one is the kind of genius that cannot be taught. It showed astonishing awareness and impudence, given how much Guti would have been castigated in the media had the ball not gone to a team-mate.

7. Alvaro Negredo – Sevilla – 31st January 2010

Sure, the trick pass from Jesus Navas was almost unnecessary showboating, but once the sublime chip from Negredo drops into the net it only adds to this goal’s beauty.

6. Maicon – Inter Milan – April 16th 2010

After his annihilation by Gareth Bale for Tottenham Hotspur in the UEFA Champions League (twice), people forget that Maicon was widely considered the best right back in the world under Jose Mourinho. This magical piece of ball juggling could only be produced by a Brazilian.

5. Denis Kolodin – Dynamo Moscow – July 17th 2010

Denis Kolodin is a Russia international footballer, so of course he has to have talent, but would you expect a central defender to be able to do THIS?

4. Sidney Sam – Bayer 04 Leverkusen – November 7th 2010

Remember Zinedine Zidane’s goal for Real Madrid in the 2002 UEFA Champions League final against Bayer Leverkusen? This similar effort from Bayer Leverkusen winger Sidney Sam wasn’t in such an important match, but may well be its equal. Sam looks as stunned as the FC Kaiserslauten players he has just scored against.

3. Mark Davies – Bolton Wanderers – November 27th 2010

I think it’s safe to say that Bolton wouldn’t have scored a goal like this under Gary Megson, but Owen Coyle has the Trotters playing some glorious football. Chasing the game after Blackpool took a two goal lead, not many teams would attempt this sort of move, but it worked to perfection as Mark Davies completed an excellent team move.

2. Samir Nasri – Arsenal – December 4th 2010

Arsenal were chasing a goal against Fulham to keep them in the title race, and having already scored a wonderful solo effort, he managed to beat it with this brilliant skill and improvisation to finish from a tight angle.

1. Eran Zahavi – Hapoel Tel-Aviv – December 7th 2010

Eran Zahavi turned the game around in this UEFA Champions League match against Lyon in remarkable fashion, scoring this overhead kick with impeccable timing.

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Hull City have been linked with a move for Real Madrid striker Alvaro Negredo.
The Barclays Premier League club have failed to land a number of strikers and are now ready to fight the likes of Roma in a bid to sign the 23-year-old Spaniard, according to Spanish newspaper Marca.
The paper, which has well-placed sources at the Bernabeu, says Hull have made a ‘firm offer’ for Negredo which would include a buyback clause for the Spanish giants.

White hot: Alvaro Negredo plays against DC United on Real Madrid’s US tour
Real sold the player to Almeria last summer but brought him back on a similar buyback option for £4.25m purely with objective of selling him on at a higher price following an impressive season that saw him score 19 in 35 appearances. (Daily Mail)

So the Real Madrid man who at one time was touted as a potential partner for Fernando Torres could well be on his way to the KC Stadium, although the source below reckons Zenit St Petersburg could well be in for the striker, even though the Russian club have just sacked their boss.

Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez is set to miss out on Real Madrid forward Alvaro Negredo after Zenit St Petersburg came in with a 15 million euro bid for the player nicknamed the ‘Beast of Vallecas.’ Spanish newspaper AS are reporting that an offer has been made with the Russian club willing to pay Negredo 3.5 million euros a year. (Sport.co.uk)

So Hull City can afford to bid for a £13m rated player even though they haven’t received a penny from player sales in two seasons and yet we are seemingly unable to buy unless we sell, how did this happen?

Let me make it perfectly clear. I am a big fan of Rafa and believe he knows what he is doing but I have some very big concerns that Tom Hicks and George Gillett are going to bleed the club dry and then leave setting the club back big time in the process!

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Alonso’s heart is set on Madrid and the Spanish giants are keen to offer players to try to break the impasse in negotiations.
Madrid have struggled to offload players and are prepared to offer Liverpool one of Alvaro Negredo, Rafael van der Vaart or Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, according to reports in Spain.
Anfield boss Rafa Benitez is thought to have some interest in 23-year-old Negredo, but with Madrid valuing the striker at about £15m, Liverpool would prefer to take the cash.
Alonso is said to be dreaming of making his debut in his hometown of San Sebastian, where Real Madrid are the visitors for Real Sociedad’s centenary match on August 15. The player started his career at the Basque club.(Daily Mail)

Now I think the La Liga giants are beginning to understand the best way to make up for the difference in both club’s valuation of Xabi Alonso, that’s right, offer players instead!

In the current financial slump, albeit one that doesn’t appear to have affected Real Madrid, offering players rather than cold hard cash is the way to go and may be the way Rafa and Liverpool can sell their Spanish international for less than the sum they wanted without looking like they backed down.

Of the three players mentioned I would say that Rafael Van Der Vaart looks the most pleasing to the eye and the most likely to make the Anfield boss consider such a deal. I like many other Liverpool fans have been hoping the club signs another striker but then it’s not like we struggled to score last term, 105 in all comps, so perhaps there is less need for the likes of Negredo and Huntelaar.

Obviously if the club were to take just the Dutch attacking midfielder then they would require some cash on top of the deal and it might just be the deal that suits all parties and puts an end to this very long running saga!

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Real Madrid striker Alvaro Negredo says he’s prepared to move abroad for regular football.

A target for Tottenham and Liverpool, Negredo said: “Of course I would like to stay, but I have to do what’s best for me and if it can not be here, I must find minutes elsewhere.

“I cannot rule out playing in another league.” (tribalfootball.com)

Now this is more like it. Rafa needn’t break the bank to find a back up for Torres or indeed a player to line up alongside El Nino and making a move for Real Madrid bench man Negredo makes a great deal of sense to me.

Given the the fact we are soon to be down two Spaniards it’s good to bring some in so that the other Spanish internationals don’t get to homesick. Also the 23 year old knows only to well that he has no chance of forcing his way into the La Liga sides starting eleven, hell he will struggle to even get on the bench. Have you seen who is ahead of him in the striking queue? Its incredible! The following players will almost certainly get a place ahead of the former Almeria part owned player; Raul, Gonzalo Higuain, Karim Benzema, Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

He was only bought back by the Bernabeu so that he could be used as a bargaining chip in their Galactico deals but still finds himself at the club. Rafa would do well to make a move for the well built striker as Negredo will want to force himself into the international set up with the World Cup looming and is unlikely to attract Del Bosque from the bench.

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The Rumour

Tottenham have tabled a £17million bid for ‘The Wild Animal’.

Spurs want to sign Real Madrid striker Alvaro Negredo whose nickname is ‘The Wild Animal of Vallecas’.

Negredo’s agent Alejandro Camano claims several clubs from England and Spain have shown an interest with Tottenham well ahead in the queue for the 23-year-old.

Negredo, whose pet name comes from the Vallecas neighbourhood where he grew up in Madrid, scored 19 goals playing on loan for Almeira last season and has previously attracted the attention of Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez.

The Source: (Daily Mirror)

The Analysis

Alvaro Negredo looks set to leave the Bernabeu after essentially only being bought back from his successful spell at Almeria because they realized they could cash in one of last seasons Top La Liga finishers and both Tottenham and Liverpool have shown very real interest in the 23 year old forward.

More often than not Negredo has been linked with swap deals to bring in more big names to Real Madrid with Rafa considering offering Alvaro Arbeloa in return according to some reports. The striker originally joined the club’s B team before being loaned out to minnows Almeria where he proved to be a stunning success and helping the newly promoted side to successive respectable mid table finishes.

Many believe that Fernando Torres could do with some help up front and the powerfully built workhorse could well form a good partnership with the Anfield man. However Harry Redknapp also feels the need to freshen up his attack and looks likely to offload at least half of his international level quartet of strikers.

The Likelihood

Negredo to Liverpool/Tottenham: It seems very likely that the Real man will leave given the big names already in front of him in the first team queue, but it remains to be seen who will be the first club to get a bid accepted for the up and coming talent.

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The Rumour

David Silva, 23, to replace him. Crisis-hit Valencia want nothing less than a straight cash deal for Silva, rated at around £20m. Barcelona are no longer interested.

The Reds also want striker Alvaro Negredo in a swap for defender Alvaro Arbeloa, and may sign longterm target, Athletic Bilbao’s 20-year-old central midfielder Javi Martinez.

The Source: (The People)

The Analysis

Yes it’s The People, not a publication to stake your life on and therefore not sure if anything should be made of this speculation. Clearly Rafa would love to get his hands on David Silva, and depending on whether Liverpool need to sell to buy, he would surely make a bid, but would Valencia sell?

The cash strapped La Liga side do need to sell another big name after offloading Raul Albiol to Real Madrid they may well end up losing David Villa in a similar direction. Benitez is known to be a big fan of up and coming talent Javi Martinez but he was considered more as a potential replacement for Alonso so unless that deal ever gets done I am not sure the Bilbao man will be moving any time soon.

In many ways the deal for Alvaro Negredo may be the most straightforward of the lot. He was essentially only brought back from Almeria so that he could be cashed in on after he had a great season with the Spanish minnows. He doesn’t stand much of a chance of getting a look in at the Bernabeu given the fact that even before the Galaticos arrived he wasn’t making an impact. Arbeloa is very likely to move in the other direction meaning a deal could be thrashed out.

The Likelihood

Silva/Martinez/Negredo to Liverpool: All have a slight change of happening but probably only one deal will be completed this summer.

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