Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

Arsene Wenger believes highly-rated Lille playmaker Eden Hazard has ‘what it takes’ to play for a top-level club such as Arsenal.

Hazard has attracted the interest from a string of Europe’s leading clubs and has previously been linked with a £30million move to Arsenal’s London rivals Chelsea.

Hazard confirmed that he would finish the season with reigning French champions Lille, but revealed his future ambition is to play in the Premier League.

Arsenal are reported to be long-term admirers of the 21-year-old and Wenger feels Hazard has the talent to be a success on the biggest stage.

“I like Eden Hazard a lot, and for many reasons,” Wenger told La Derniere Heure.

“His creative ability, his talent for unbalancing opponents, his vision of the game, and his consummate skill in making the final pass all make him an in-demand player.

“Hazard has what it takes to play for a top-level club, and Arsenal are a top-level club.”

SOURCE: Sky Sports

So there you have it. Arsene Wenger is essentially saying ‘I want Eden’ but is the Arsenal boss ready to fork out £30m, well it appears he would like to do so, hence his glowing words of admiration towards the Belgian international.

It may however prove more difficult to nab the Lille man if the North London club do not secure a top four finish as te 21 year old would be keen to continue playing in the Champions League. Indeed failure to qualify for Europe’s showpiece tournament would be something of a disaster.

The likes of Robin Van Persie and Theo Walcott are less likely to put pen to paper on new contracts if they feel the Gunners have gone backwards so Wenger must hope his side look to make up ground on Chelsea who are just three points ahead of Arsenal in fourth spot.

Hazard has made it clear he will leave the Stade Metropole in the summer and many of Europe’s elite will be keen to nab the young attacking midfielder, with Barcelona and Real Madrid linked with the Lille man, as well as the Premier League pair named by this source.

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

Olivier Giroud targeted by Arsenal for summer transfer
Montpellier striker Olivier Giroud is close to the top of Arsenal’s summer transfer window hit-list, according to scout Gilles Grimandi.

Giroud was linked with Newcastle last month, but the Magpies eventually signed Papiss Demba Cisse in a £9 million deal from Freiburg.
He could still have the chance to move to the Premier League, as the Gunners’ French scout Grimandi is watching him closely.
‘Always we look at interesting players and we are following Giroud,’ Grimandi told Le 10 Sport.

SOURCE: Metro

Giroud may well be the archetypal Arsene Wenger signing. The Montpellier man is clearly not a household name but may well be the type of signing that the Gunners boss thinks he can help to fulfill their potential. The 25 year old has been a veritable goal machine this term, netting 18 goals in 25 appearances in all competitions and the Arsenal boss may see the big forward as a good target man to play alongside Robin Van Persie.

The 6ft 3in French international has come through the lower leagues and taken to life in the top tier incredibly well and he could well book himself a spot in Laurent Blanc’s Euro 2012 squad as a result, and this may well result in the player’s valuation increasing significantly.

For scout Grimandi to openly name a player they are scouting is fairly rare and may well be a statement of intent. Having seen Gervinho and Marouane Chamakh fail to make an impact up front a move for Giroud in the summer could become more probable if the pair fail to pick up their games once they return from the African Cup of Nations.

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has extolled the skill of Lille OSC winger Eden Hazard, but warned that a bid for the Belgium international could prove difficult.

“Hazard has a very high level of talent and is able to play at the top level,” Mancini is quoted as telling French weekly newspaper Le 10 Sport.

“But we know there is interest from the big European clubs and any deal will not be easy.”

City are far from the only team likely to be interested in obtaining the services of Hazard, with Real Madrid, Chelsea and Arsenal expected to also be in the running.

Should a bidding war escalate though, only Real Madrid and Chelsea are likely to be able to challenge Manchester City in terms of financial might – whether Arsenal have the available capital or not remains a mystery.

Earlier this week, Hazard signalled his intention to leave Lille this summer, adding that his preferred choice would be a team in the Barclays Premier League.

“After thinking about my next move, I’m leaning towards England,” said the Belgian.

“It’s a style of play that suits me and it’s there that you can learn the most. I want to play for a big club, but also one where I will play every week.

“‘I’ve played more than 100 games in Ligue 1 so I would prefer to go abroad. I want to discover something new and playing abroad is a conscious decision.”

Arsenal shouldn’t be totally ruled out of the running, with Hazard seen before in the stands at the Emirates Stadium, but as with many things in football, it may come down to money.

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

Arsenal will make an ‘interesting’ bid for Eden Hazard in the summer. Arsene Wenger is known to be a fan of the wonder kid and could offer £30m + Theo Walcott for him.

Hazard is considered to be one of the brightest young talents in European football at the moment and has attracted the attention of several big clubs, including Chelsea & Real Madrid. It is Arsenal however who are thought to be leading the chase to land the Belgian by offering a whopping £30m + Theo Walcott in return for his signature.

SOURCE: Footy Bible

Well this would be a quite a coup. Arsene Wenger is known for his rather stingy attitude to player purchases so for the Gunners boss to make such a huge offer for 21 year old Lille player. Given that Theo Walcott will have just a year to run on his Arsenal contract by the summer his value will be reduced but we are still talking about a combined offer worth over £40m for the Belgian international, almost three times the North London club’s current record transfer spend.

Hazard has stated his intention to leave his Ligue 1 side this summer and a host of clubs are understandably keen on the Lille star, who helped his side to their first domestic title in over 50 years last term.

Arsenal may find it hard to lure Eden Hazard to the Emirates Stadium if Wenger hasn’t secured a top four finish this term and that must be a fear for the Gunners as they may also then struggle to keep hold of their star performers if they do indeed fail to clinch a spot in the Champions League for next term.

Hazard has notched up over 150 appearances for Lille and boss Rudi Garcia will be loathed to lose the talented goal scoring midfielder, who can play out wide or an advanced midfield role. There is talk of a possible move to make Joe Cole a permanent addition at the Stade Metropole if they do lose their prized asset.

Andrei Arshavin may well be on his way out in the summer so there would be even more need for the addition of an effective creative addition at Arsenal and perhaps Hazard is the ideal man for the job.

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

Olympique Marseille forward Andre-Pierre Gignac has claimed he turned down a transfer to Everton in the January transfer window – and hopes to join a club like Manchester United.

The France international has fallen out of favour at Stade Velodrome, with Marseille typically playing a lone forward in Loic Remy, and has started just one match this season.

Still, Gignac has an enormous amount of faith in his own ability.

“Everton is a top club in England but for me Marseille is bigger and more attractive,” Gignac told Sky Sports.

“I want to play one day abroad but at a bigger club like the Manchester Uniteds of this world.

“I do want to make a name for myself at Marseille. I love the club.”

A tall and burly striker, Gignac is not the most prolific in world football.

He has managed just 8 goals in 39 appearances since he moved to Marseille, which is perhaps less than a team such as Manchester United would hope for, but his previous spell at Toulouse was more productive.

34 goals in 98 games is a respectable record, but the Premier League is a step up from Ligue 1 and at the age of 26 that move is less likely than perhaps Gignac would have us believe.

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

Manchester United are interested in signing Nice right back Diacko Fofana, according to the Daily Mail.

The 17 year-old has only recently broken into the French side’s team, with just one Ligue 1 match to date, but that and his performances for the youth teams have reportedly impressed Red Devils’ scouts enough for them to believe he could make it at the highest level.

Fofana is just one of a number of players Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson is reportedly considering bringing in for the full back positions, with the Daily Mail story naming Crystal Palace starlet Nathaniel Clyne and Jetro Willems of PSV Eindhoven as alternative targets.

Of all three, Fofana is by far the least experienced.

Clyne, now 20 years of age, was the youngest player to take part in every single game in the nPower Championship last season, and earned the club’s player of the year award for 2011 – having taken the gong for the young player of the year in both 2009 and 2010.

Willems is also a regular in his team – but like Fofana is just 17. He also has the additional bonus of European experience with PSV. Having had an immensely successful spell with Sparta Rotterdam, he was brought into the PSV side in November.

He hasn’t looked back since.

Still, Fofana is by no means behind schedule, and breaking into the first team at 17 in the French top flight is impressive stuff.

If Manchester United are looking at him, he must have considerable potential.

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

Highly-rated playmaker Eden Hazard has confirmed he wants to move to the Premier League, but he intends to finish the season at Lille.

The Belgium international is among the most coveted young footballers in Europe and has been linked with a string of major clubs.

Inter Milan and Paris St Germain are rumoured to be admirers of the 21-year-old, while London rivals Arsenal and Chelsea have regularly been credited with an interest.

However, Hazard has ruled out leaving Lille before the close of the January transfer window as he wants to remain part of the club’s bid to successfully defend the Ligue 1 title.

Hazard could depart at the conclusion of the campaign, though, and has admitted his preference is to play in the Premier League.

“I think I’m heading to England, the style of play suits me,” he said.

SOURCE: Sky Sports

This statement will greatly please Arsene Wenger and Andre Villas-Boas, not least because there had been growing speculation that big spending Ligue 1 table toppers PSG were said to be leading the chase for the 21 year old Belgian international.

Eden Hazard has been in sparkling for over the past 18 months and after helping Rudi Garcia’s side to their first domestic title in over 50 years the young attacking midfielder has once again led Lille to within reach of silverware. The Stade Metropole side are just seven points off the pace in third spot, having lost just twice in 21 matches.

Arsene Wenger has been linked with interest in Hazard for the best part of two years and many see the youngster as the player who could best replace Samir Nasri, after the Frenchman left for Man City last summer. The adaptable Lille man can play in a number of positions but is most effective in a floating role that is more commonly used out wide.

With the likes of Theo Walcott and Andrei Arshavin putting in inconsistent displays this term there may well be a great need for such a player and clearly the youngster will be aware of Wenger’s reputation when it comes to making household names out of youthful talents.

However perhaps Chelsea will prove more of an interesting prospect for Hazard. Andre Villas-Boas is a coach who also believes in trusting to youth and the Blues boss is looking to build a Stamford Bridge squad for the future and to that end brought in the likes of Juan Mata, Oriol Romeu and Romelu Lukaku whilst offloading Nicolas Anelka and Alex.

A lot could well depend on which of the two interested Premier League sides secures a top four finish and therefore the resultant Champions League spot. Chelsea lead Arsenal in that pursuit at present, with the West London side pulling five points clear of their North London rivals.

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

szólj hozzá: Lille StEtienne 3:0 HIGHLIGHTS

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

szólj hozzá: Brest vs PSG 0:1 HIGHLIGHTS

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!

Free goal alerts on your iPhone or iPod

Paris Saint-Germain have completed the £4.2m signing of Alex from Chelsea.

Alex, who is believed to have signed a three-year deal, will link up with his former Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti in the French capital.

The Brazilian, 29, handed in a transfer request after slipping down the pecking order at Stamford Bridge following the arrivals of David Luiz and Gary Cahill.

“He is a great professional,” said Ancelotti. “It was a good opportunity given his price.”

SOURCE: BBC Sport

Indeed that is a good price. £4.2m in today’s transfer market is a bargain buy for an experienced performer like Alex and Carlo Ancelotti is clearly more than aware of the job the Brazilian can do, having managed the centre back for two years before the Italian left Stamford Bridge in the summer.

Alex made 115 appearances for Chelsea, whom he joined in 2004 before being loaned out to PSV Eindhoven for three seasons, picking up a trio of domestic league titles in the process, before landing a domestic double at the West London club in Ancelotti’s first season in charge.

The 29 year old is a no nonsense performer who Ancelotti will hope boost PSG’s chances of securing their first Ligue 1 title in almost two decades. The newly installed Parc des Princes boss may well be looking to make one or two more additions before the transfer window slams shut and the club’s Qatari owners have the cash to help fund bids this month.

Andre Villas-Boas appeared to have little faith in Alex and only only picked him for three Premier League appearances thus far this season and the signing of Gary Cahill this month was effectively the death-knell for the big Brazilian at Chelsea.

Join the Best Football Manager game now, Its Free!