Want to know who is joining which club, when and for how much ….?
With the summer transfer window having officially now been opened for the past two-and-a-half weeks, there is currently much rumour and speculation flying around Planet Football.
However, as is so often the case in the silly season, it often just needs one big move to take place and then a whole plethora of other transfers immediately start to happen as the domino effect kicks in.
So far, that mega transfer is still to happen this summer, but will still plenty of time left until the window slams shut once and for all on Aug 31, things are most definitely hotting up at present across the Continent, and so we at Caughtoffside have looked into our crystal ball to predict what may happen in the coming weeks in the transfer merry-go-threat.
Christian Eriksen: Ajax to Liverpool
Liverpool have been keeping close tabs on the twinkle-toed Ajax playmaker for the past year now, with a view to bringing the Denmark international to Anfield this summer, say the Daily Express, although as yet the Reds have still to make their move for the 21-year-old as they concentrate on keeping hold of front man Luis Suarez.
However, with the Uruguayan seemingly still intent on pushing through his controversial £40 million move to Spanish giants Real Madrid, the Merseysiders will now push ahead with signing the Danish creator for £15m, which will in turn allow Suarez to complete his dream move to the Santiago Bernabeu.
Luis Suarez: Liverpool to Real Madrid
This is already turning out to be one of the close season’s most talked-about transfers after the Uruguay international made clear his desire to quit the Reds this summer in order to move to the Spanish capital and join los Blancos.
However, with the Merseyside giants insistent on any potential buyer of their star man meeting in full their £40m price tag, as yet only Arsenal of those clubs interested in the controversial attacker have actually submitted a firm bid for the player, and even that fell £10m short of the Reds’ asking price.
But with the London club reportedly set to return with a second improved offer of £35m for Suarez, Madrid are also now expected to enter the race for the forward, who has his heart set on signing for the nine-time European Champions, reports the Daily Mirror.
And when that £40m transfer is finally settled, it will allow Madrid centre-forward Gonzalo Higuain to seal his long-awaited move to Arsenal.
Gonzalo Higuain: Real Madrid to Arsenal
Like the ongoing Suarez saga, Higuain’s on-off move to Arsenal has also been one of the summer’s longest running transfer topics, with supporters of the north London club still waiting to see if the Argentinian marksman will be joining the Gunners next season after all.
Initially, it had appeared to be a done deal, especially after rival bidders Juventus dropped out of the running following their capture of Manchester City forward Carlos Tevez last month.
However, as yet the prolific 25-year-old is still a Madrid player, although now that new coach Carlo Ancelotti has finally been appointed to succeed Jose Mourinho at the Bernabeu, it is expected that the wheels will start to turn into action with this transfer, especially given that the player himself is desperate to move to London in order to follow his partner to the capital, who has gone there to study.
And with Madrid having finally completed their long-running move for Liverpool striker Suarez, Higuain will be free to join the Gunners for a fee of £23m, says the Guardian, which will in turn allow misfiring front man Gervinho to join Galatasaray.
Gervinho: Arsenal to Galatasaray
The inconsistent Ivory Coast international has been told by Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger that he no longer has a future at the Emirates and is free to start looking for a new club while the Gunners take part in their pre-season tour of the Far East, with many European sides believed to be interested in the 26-year-old.
However, it is understood that Turkish champions Galatasaray are the favourites to land the Ivorian this summer for £12m, according to the Daily Express, and so bringing an end to the front man’s brief two-year stint in north London.
And, with Gala’s notoriously demanding fans having been appeased by the arrival of Gervinho in Istanbul for next season, the Turks will then feel more comfortable about allowing veteran striker Didier Drogba to re-join Chelsea.
Didier Drogba: Galatasaray to Chelsea
Despite now being 35 years old, the powerful Ivorian is still as fit as an ox and said to be desperate to be reunited once again with mentor Jose Mourinho for a second spell at Stamford Bridge together, with the self-styled ‘Special One’ also believed to be keen on the idea say the Metro.
The centre forward may have only moved to Istanbul in January on a one-and-a-half-year deal, but it is thought that his Turkish paymasters are happy to let the player make an emotional return to what he calls home this summer, as long as the Blues pay a small fee in compensation for Drogba’s services.
Drogba may only have a few more years left at the very top, but his influence on the rest of the Chelsea team cannot be overstated, a fact that Mourinho understands, although one man who would not be so happy to see the Ivory Coast international back at the Bridge is fellow attacker Fernando Torres.
As a result, the misfiring Spaniard will be allowed to depart the club following Drogba’s return, with Liga champions Barcelona acting quickly to bring the striker home to Spain in a cut-price deal.
Fernando Torres: Chelsea to Barcelona
No one should be that surprised that after a return of just 34 goals in 131 matches for the west London club since joining Chelsea from Liverpool for a British-record transfer fee of £50m in January 2011, the Blues would be happy to let their star man leave, especially following the stunning return of Drogba to the Bridge.
However, what would perhaps raise a few eyebrows amongst Blues fans is the price that the Catalans are able to buy the Spain international for, with Barca agreeing a fee of just £17m for the 29-year-old according to reports on Sky Sports.
Either way, the move suits both parties, especially the Spanish giants who, having returned the striker to his homeland to play in an eye-catching attacking front free alongside Lionel Messi and fellow new arrival Neymar, are now happy to sanction playmaker Cesc Fabregas’s transfer to Manchester United.
Cesc Fabregas: Barcelona to Manchester United
At first it appeared as though new Red Devils head coach David Moyes was destined to fail in his audacious attempts to get his managerial career at Old Trafford off to a flying start by luring the former Arsenal skipper to the north west in a deal worth a reported £26m, with both the player himself and his club adamant that the Spain international was not for sale at any price.
However, as is so often the case in complex and sensitive transfers such as this one which involves the possible departure of a hugely popular home-grown star, the combination of both time and the arrival of an equally popular new recruit to the club can often soften such hard stances.
And with Fabregas himself now realising that his chances of holding down a regular starting berth in the Barcelona front free following the double capture of Torres and Neymar had further receded, he took the only option really left available to him by making a return to the English top flight with Premier League champions United, a club he reportedly has always supported, to replace the recently retired Paul Scholes in the centre of the park.
All of which has cleared the path for unsettled Red Devils striker Wayne Rooney to join Paris Saint-Germain, with Moyes set to use Fabregas as part of a five-man midfield next season, although pushed further forward into the ‘hole’ to support lone front man Robin Van Persie in a position that the Englishman used to occupy.
Wayne Rooney: Manchester United to Paris Saint-Germain
With preferred choice Chelsea having dropped out of the running for Rooney following their signing of Drogba and Arsenal having also landed centre-forward Higuain from Madrid, the England international had little option other than moving across the Channel to the big-spending Ligue 1 champions in a deal worth £25m, with the Parisians having been tracking the player all summer long according to the Independent.
And with PSG having also snapped up Edinson Cavani in a French-record 64m euros deal earlier this month, new manager Laurent Blanc is set to take on the rest of Europe next season armed with one of the most fearsome strike duos the world of football has ever seen.
However, despite being bankrolled by the mega-rich Qatar Investment Authority, the French outfit are, just like any other club competing in Europe, subject to Uefa’s Financial Fair Play Regulations, meaning PSG needing to balance their books, and so resulting in the departure of coveted attacker Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Manchester City.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic: Paris Saint-Germain to Manchester City
City have been keeping close tabs on the giant Sweden international for some time now, without ever managing to be able to convince the striker to move to Eastlands, that is until his current employers snapped up two of world football’s most sought-after attackers to play in his own position that is.
And as soon as both Cavani and Rooney were added to the PSG playing squad, the 31-year-old knew that his time at the Parc des Princes was up, although changing clubs is nothing new to Ibra, who has turned out for the likes of European giants Ajax, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Juventus and Barcelona over the years.
However, one league that the forward has never played in is the English Premier League and seeking one last pay day, Ibrahimovic finally agreed to make the move to the north west in a big-money transfer that the Daily Star predicted would happen in July, which in turn allows want-away marksman Edin Dzeko to join Napoli.
Edin Dzeko: Manchester City to Napoli
Despite having been at City for the past two-and-a-half seasons, the tall Bosnian has never really managed to hold down a regular starting berth up front for the mega-rich Premier League side, having to constantly compete in attack with the likes of Sergio Aguero, Carlos Tevez, Mario Balotelli et al.
But perhaps the straw that finally broke the camels back for the 27-year-old came with Ibra’s arrival, especially as Dzeko believed he would finally be handed his chance to demonstrate his true worth under new City boss Manuel Pellegrini next season following the recent departures of both Balotelli and Tevez.
That, though, was clearly not the case, with the Chilean set to partner Aguero with Ibrahimovic at Eastlands in the new campaign, meaning yet more time warming the substitutes’ bench for the front man, who instead decided that enough was enough, preferring to play regular football for Rafa Benitez’s Napoli, themselves desperate for a striker to replace the PSG-bound Cavani, rather than be a bit-part player for City.