On show at the Confederations Cup are some of the World’s top players with coaches and scouts in Brazil monitoring the progress of some of the competition’s stars.
With the summer set to be as busy as ever for transfers, the competition presents an opportunity for clubs to have a good look at potential signings. Here are the top ten players currently playing in the Confederations Cup who could be moving clubs this summer.
10- Keisuke Honda- CSKA Moscow
The midfielder is one of Japan’s star players alongside Manchester United’s Shinji Kagawa and has been linked with some of Europe’s top clubs for awhile now. Honda helped CSKA Moscow’s side win the Russian League and was one of the teams stand-out performers but is now out of contract with the Russian club and is looking to move on. The midfielder is believed to want to join Kagawa in the Premier League and he will have no shortage of potential suitors. Front-runners for the Japanese international’s signature are Everton, with new manager Roberto Martinez keen to re-enforce his midfield for next season. The Spaniard also sees Honda as a replacement for Marouane Fellaini.
The Belgian is strongly linked with a move away from Goodison Park this summer, with Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea all eyeing up the midfielder. Honda could prove to be an excellent replacement for Fellaini but the Toffees will surely have competition for the midfielder, with Spurs and Aston Villa being long-term admirers of Honda.
9- Hulk- Zenit St Petersburg
The Brazilian is a highly-rated member of his country’s team and has attracted many potential suitors since his days at Porto. Last summer, the striker moved to big spending Russian side Zenit St Petersburg, despite reported interest from many of Europe’s top clubs. It appears that Hulk’s time in Russia hasn’t been a particularly happy one and the striker is now looking to move away from Zenit as he hasn’t been able to settle properly. This has alerted many clubs throughout Europe with his agent saying that the strikers future will lay away from Russia. Chelsea are reportedly interested in signing Hulk and the striker admitted that there have been talks between him and the Blues. Jose Mourinho is in the market for a strong, physical striker, in the mould of former Chelsea front-man Didier Drogba and he appears to have found him in the form of Hulk. One possible problem for Chelsea could be that Zenit are demanding £50 million for the striker. The club are determined to make a profit on a player they signed only a year ago and negotiations could be long and drawn out.
8- Javier Hernandez- Manchester United
The striker has been at United for three years and has been prolific for the Premier League champions despite not being able to hold down a place in the clubs starting eleven. Hernandez has had to compete with the likes of Robin Van Persie and Wayne Rooney at Old Trafford, meaning first team appearances have been slim, with the Mexican having to resort to scoring goals when he comes off the bench. While Hernandez enjoys playing for United, it is no secret that he would like to be playing first team football and their are plenty of top clubs throughout Europe who would be willing to offer it to him. A possible destination for the Mexican that has been reported this summer has been Italian Champions Juventus, who are looking to add a goal scorer to their side this summer. Juve are reported to be readying a bid of around £17 million for Hernandez and that could interest United, as they have plenty of options up front and could use the money they would raise on buying a top quality central midfielder. Real Madrid have always been an admirer of Hernandez and could join the race if Hernandez decides that he wants to leave Old Trafford.
7- John Obi Mikel- Chelsea
The Nigerian was rated as one of the most exciting young players in the world when he chose to sign for Chelsea over Manchester United but despite being a first team regular for Chelsea, he has never really managed to reach the lofty heights that people expected him to. Mikel was seen as a replacement for French midfielder Claude Makelele, who helped control Chelsea’s midfield during Jose Mourinho’s early years at Chelsea. Mikel never managed to really replace the Frenchman and with Mourinho coming back to Chelsea this summer, it seems that the Nigerians time at Stamford Bridge is coming to an end. The player himself has stated that he will be leaving the Blues this summer to join up with former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba at Galatasaray and the midfielder will be looking to become a central part of the Turkish clubs midfield. One possible problem could be how much Galatasaray pay for Mikel, with the two clubs differing on how much the Nigerian is worth. The Turkish side are only willing to pay £7 million for Mikel, whereas Chelsea are demanding at least £10 million for him and think they should recoup a decent portion of the £17 million they paid for him in 2006.
6- Paulinho- Corinthians
The midfielder is one of the most highly-rated young players in Brazil and has been impressive during his international career and his club career with Corinthians. His impressive career in Brazil has led to speculation that he maybe following many Brazilians to Europe very soon. The midfielder has been linked with a move to one of Europe’s top clubs for the past few summers, with Inter Milan interested in the 24 year old last summer. Now it appears that Paulinho could be bound to the Premier League, with Tottenham leading the race for the midfielder. Spurs have reportedly agreed a £17 million fee with Corinthians and will be discussing a move with Paulinho when the midfielder finishes playing for Brazil in the Confederations Cup. While Spurs are reportedly close to signing Paulinho, they will be worried by the news that Chelsea are reportedly interested in making a move for the midfielder. Chelsea succeeded in making a last ditch attempt to sign Oscar last summer, right under the noses of QPR and they will be looking to do the same this summer to Spurs.
5- Daniele De Rossi- AS Roma
De Rossi has been at AS Roma for all of his career and is a huge figure at the Italian club. The Italian is one of the most highly-rated defensive midfielders in world football and has been attracting the interest of some of Europe’s biggest clubs for awhile now but has never wanted to leave the Italian capital. Roberto Mancini tried to bring De Rossi to Manchester City last summer but the midfielder decided to stay with Roma. However, last season wasn’t particularly successful for De Rossi and the midfielder fell out with coach Zdenek Zeman several times and the midfielder suffered from a lack of form for most of the season. This has led to speculation that De Rossi may leave the club this summer and his most likely destination seems to be Chelsea. The Blues new boss Jose Mourinho is a big admirer of De Rossi and likes a strong enforcer right at the heart of his midfield. Manchester City may also make an attempt to sign De Rossi and will hope they will be more successful this summer. However, despite all the speculation, Roma want to hang on to their most prized asset and Roma’s new manager Rudi Garcia has said that he has no intention of letting De Rossi leave.
4- David Villa- Barcelona
Villa is one of the most highly-rated strikers in Europe having scored many goals for both his club and his country. However, he has recently returned from injury and has found that it is not as easy for him to get into Barcelona’s first team. He has often spent his time on the bench for Barca and at 31, some at the club believe Villa’s best is past him. This has led to speculation that the Spanish striker could leave the club this summer, in search of first team football that would guarantee his place in Spain’s World Cup squad for next summer. His most likely destination appears to be the Premier League and the striker has admired English football for sometime. Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham appear to be in the running to sign Villa, with Spurs being frontrunners. Spurs manager Andre-Villas-Boas is desperate to sign a quality striker this summer and Villa is thought to be his main target. Villa would certainly get the first team football that he is looking for but not Champions League football, due to Spurs failure to qualify for the competition last season. Also reports have suggested that Italian side Fiorentina could come into the race for Villa and the striker has said a move to Italy would interest him.
3- Claudio Marchisio- Juventus
Marchisio is another highly talented Italian central midfielder and has had a very successful season for Juventus, having helped the club reclaim their Serie A title. The talented midfielder has attracted interest from other clubs through excellent displays for his club and country and one team that is very interest is Manchester United. New United boss David Moyes is desperate to sign a quality midfielder this summer, with Paul Scholes having retired last season. Moyes has identified Marchisio as a possible replacement for the United legend and Marchisio has already said that he would be interested in a move to Old Trafford. However, Juventus are unlikely to want to let one of their best players go without a fight and are more interested in buying players than selling. However, if Marchisio continues to say how much he would like to move to Old Trafford, the Turin based club may have no alternative but to sell.
2- David Luiz- Chelsea
When Chelsea signed David Luiz they thought that they were getting one of the best young defenders in the world. However, the Brazilian has struggled to hold down a regular position in the Blues team, often being used as a central midfielder because of his desire to get forward and start attacks. While he can play a brilliant pass or score a fantastic free-week, his desire to get forward has caused problems at the back for Chelsea and has meant he is often not given a place in central defence. Jose Mourinho likes strong, reliable centre backs and reports suggest that he is ready to sell Luiz because he doesn’t rate his defensive abilities. This has meant that a whole host of clubs have become interested in the Brazilian, with Barcelona and Paris St Germain both said to be possible destinations. Both see Luiz’s desire to go forward as a positive and think that he can be moulded into a quality centre-back. At Barcelona, being good on the ball is a minimum requirement for a centre back because they often get attacks going while PSG hope to pair Luiz with another Brazilian, Thiago Silva.
1- Edinson Cavani- Napoli
The Cavani transfer saga is certainly one of the biggest stories of the summer and could continue right to transfer deadline day. The striker has been prolific for Napoli during his time at the club and helped them finish second in Serie A last season. This has lead to plenty of interest from clubs throughout Europe, most notably, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester City. This striker has made comments about all three clubs but Real Madrid is believed to be his preferred destination and the Spanish giants have stepped up their interest in the Uruguay international in recent weeks. Also Manchester City appear to be out of the running at this stage, having had a bid rejected by Napoli. The Italian club have said that they won’t let Cavani go unless a team pays £54 million, which is the strikers buy-out fee. Both City and Chelsea are reluctant to pay that amount of money while Real Madrid are hoping that Napoli lower their demands. Cavan’s buy out clause expires on August 10th and Cavani may wait until then before demanding a transfer so that he can get a better deal for his new club.