City players convinced Ronaldo is on his way
For quite a while now, it’s been generally accepted that it was only a matter of when, not if, Cristiano Ronaldo would return to Manchester.
In an interesting turn of events, though, it seems that cross-town rivals Manchester City have muscled in on a potential deal for the Manchester United hero. Speaking to Revista de La Liga, Spanish football expert Graham Hunter has said players at the Etihad firmly believe that the club have made a move for the Ballon d’Or winner.
I know that the players at Manchester City were talking very, very firmly that they believed there was a successful move coming from that club over the last couple of weeks, said Hunter.
Whether that makes it true or not, I wouldn’t like to say.
What we know is the mega clubs, with petrodollars, there’s never been a better time to say: ‘Well, would you like to cash in on your chips?’
Ronaldo’s behaviour toward the Bernabeu faithful has been in the spotlight recently, and one wonders if the power brokers in Madrid might feel the time is right to move the 30-year-old on while he still has market value?
You can already hear the howls from the Red half of Manchester.
United miss out on Darmian, too
The news coming out of Italy doesn’t get any better for Manchester United, with the Express reporting that Bayern Munich have won out over Louis van Gaal’s men in the race for the signature of Azzurri international Matteo Darmian.
Right-back has been a problem area for the Dutch tactician since arriving at Old Trafford at the start of the season, with the more attack-minded Antonio Valencia being preferred over the likes of Rafael, who has struggled for fitness and form all campaign.
United had previously been linked to the likes of Nathaniel Clyne and Kyle Walker, but it’s believed that the £15 million rated Torino defender was Van Gaal’s preferred choice.
Back to the drawing board then!
Spurs set Lennon price
After scoring a late winner against Queens Park Rangers on Sunday, it comes as no surprise that Everton are looking into making Aaron Lennon’s loan deal permanent.
The Telegraph reports that Tottenham have set a £6 million asking price for the winger, who clearly was never rated very highly by Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino.
Roberto Martinez, however, has been impressed by the 27‑year-old’s recent displays and will likely make a bid for the England international once the transfer window opens. The Toffees boss has a record of making similar deals, with both Romelu Lukaku and Gareth Barry joining the Merseysiders last summer after impressing on loanee stints.
Tap-ins
– The Sun says Liverpool and Chelsea are both weighing up bids for Manchester United flop Radamel Falcao.
– Melbourne Victory’s star import Fahid Ben Khalfallah looks set to be snapped up by either the Western Sydney Wanderers or Melbourne City at the end of the season. The Australian reports that the Kevin Muscat-coached side won’t be able to hold on to the French-born Tunisian, who has registered five goals and seven assists in 22 games, because of salary-cap restrictions — opening the door for other A-League clubs to make a play for the 32-year-old. Sydney FC and Perth Glory are also said to be interested.
– The Mirror don’t agree with Graham Hunter’s line from above, saying United and City will instead duke it out for Real Madrid’s other attacking superstar, Gareth Bale.
– The Paul Pogba transfer saga rumbles on, with the Manchester Evening News reporting that Juventus’ general manager, Guiseppe Marotta, has insisted that no club has been in contact with the Old Lady about purchasing the French starlet.
