Read the First half of the article here
Welcome to Part 2 of this article which aims to explore the possible ins and outs from each Premier League side and where better to start than with the current champions, Manchester United.
Manchester United
It is the beginning of a new era at Old Trafford with Sir Alex Ferguson finally calling time on his prestigious career and being replaced by David Moyes. Moyes’ first mission will be to bring England international left back Leighton Baines to the club but the Red Devils have already had one bid knocked back from Everton. If Baines does indeed join his former boss at United then it should see Patrice Evra moving back to France, with Monaco being a likely destination. Another defender on the Scottish manager’s wish list is Argentina centre back Ezequiel Garay. The former Real Madrid player is thought to be the ideal replacement for the aging Rio Ferdinand who will likely be playing a more bit part role this coming season.
Perhaps the most interesting story to come out of Manchester this summer will be to do with Wayne Rooney. The England striker has rejected claims that he handed in a transfer request last season and David Moyes will be eager to keep the forward at the club, even despite their storied past.
Newcastle United
With Newcastle United having appointed Joe Kinnear to a role at the club, it could become a difficult summer for manager Alan Pardew in terms of signing players. Out of favour Aston Villa striker Darren Bent remains a long time target of former West Ham and Southampton boss Pardew and he is eager to bring in him to form a partnership with Papiss Cisse, but the quoted transfer fee from Villa could prove to be a stumbling block. The fee of around £15 million pounds might see Newcastle looking elsewhere for another goalscorer and this could come in the form of Andre-Pierre Gignac. Gignac currently plays for Marseille and is thought to be available for around £12 million.
Wilfried Bony is attracting a lot of interest from across Europe, with Newcastle also favouring a move for the Ivory Coast international. Bony is holding out for a move to the Premier League and a bidding war could erupt between the Magpies and Swansea City. In terms of outs, Newcastle will face stiff competition to keep hold of midfielder Yohan Cabaye who is attracting interest from Barcelona and Monaco.
Norwich
Norwich have already acquired the services of Dutch striker Ricky Van Wolfswinkel from Sporting Lisbon for a club record fee and have also made Javier Garrido’s loan move permanent from parent club Lazio. Chris Hughton is looking to bring in Gary Hooper from Scottish champions Celtic to form a partnership with Van Wolfswinkel which could pave the way for Grant Holt’s exit. Jonjo Shelvey is also a long time target and Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers could allow him to join the Canaries on a season long loan deal.
The only other player linked with a move away from Carrow Road is goalkeeper John Ruddy. The keeper has gone from strength to strength since joining the club from Everton and establishing himself as number one. This progression has been noticed by new Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho who would like the English shot stopper to move to Stamford Bridge and battle it out with Petr Cech for the number one position.
Southampton
Southampton have pulled off a real coo with the addition of Dejan Lovren from French club Lyon in an £8.5 million deal. Mauricio Pochettino will be hoping Lovren can tighten up the Saints’ defence and could be partnered by Cagliari centre half Davide Astori who is available for under £10 million. Victor Wanyama has held talks with the club regarding a move from current club Celtic. Wanyama is highly sought after with Cardiff City and Arsenal also possible destinations for the Kenyan. Argentinian manager Pochettino will also be hoping to hang onto star player Gaston Ramirez despite his somewhat slow start to Premier League life.
Stoke City
Stoke City are preparing for life under new manager Mark Hughes after his somewhat controversial appointment and he has wasted no time in getting to work, bringing in PSV Eindhoven full back Erik Pieters. Hughes is prepared to give former Chelsea player Michael Mancienne another chance in England by snapping him up for a nominal fee from Hamburg and will look to link up with David Bentley once again after the winger was released by Spurs. However, Roque Santa Cruz will snub his former manager and move back to the Bundesliga with Hamburg.
Sunderland
Paulo Di Canio has moved fast to change up his Sunderland side inherited from Martin O’Neill, bringing in El-Hadji Ba and David Moberg Karlsson from Le Havre and Gothenburg, respectfully. Mobido Diakite, Valentin Roberge and Cabral have also joined the revolution taking place at the Stadium of Light in what will be Paulo Di Canio’s first full season in the Premier League. With these signings coming from foreign teams, the outspoken Italian will also be looking to add some Premier League experience to his ranks and the ideal player will be Tom Huddlestone who has struggled to hold down a first team place at Tottenham. Huddlestone could replace Lee Cattermole who Di Canio doesn’t feel is up to the task of leading the side next season.
The sale of number one goalkeeper Simon Mignolet to Liverpool means the priority for now for Sunderland is to sign a replacement. Sources close to the club indicate that a fee may have been agreed for Arsenal keeper Vito Mannone who has largely spent most of his time out on loan.
Swansea
Perhaps the best piece of business Swansea have made this summer is keeping hold of manager Michael Laudrup. The Dane has been instrumental in the recent success of the Welsh club and has now set his sights on picking up where left off at the end of the season. Jonathan De Guzman has returned to the club from Villareal on a second successive season long loan deal and has also been joined by Jose Canas and Jordi Amat, both of whom have also joined from Spain. Swansea owner Huw Jenkins has informed Michael Laudrup that he can pursue more ‘up-market’ players, which will allow him to chase Wilfried Bony from Vitesse Arnhem. The club may also rival Norwich’s bid to bring in Jonjo Shelvey on loan.
Tottenham
Tottenham missed out on Champions League football for the coming season after finishing fifth and manager Andre Villas Boas will be looking to kick on this campaign and deliver the goods. In order to do this, AVB will make a bid for Barcelona striker David Villa, who at just 31 years old is still at the right age to be considered in his prime. The only other expensive deal in the pipeline at White Hart Lane is the possible deal for Brazilian playmaker Paulinho who has attracted a host of admirers due to his exploits in Brazil’s Confederations Cup victory. The deal for Paulinho looks to be a matter of ‘when’ and not ‘if.’ Deals for the future progression of the club are also thought to be in the offing with Croatian pair Tin Jedvaj and Alen Halilovic close to finalising a move to England.
Of course the main goal for Spurs this summer is to keep hold of Welsh sensation Gareth Bale. Real Madrid are thought to be hot on the trail of the former Southampton player.
It has been a somewhat quiet summer for West Bromwich Albion thus far with no deals finalised as of yet but the club are hoping to build on last season’s impressive eighth place finish. The midlands club are thought to be at the top of the list of clubs after winger Scott Sinclair who has not made the grade since his move to Manchester City last year. Yossi Benayoun is also expected to hold talks over a potential move to the Hawthorns. Other than that, manager Steve Clarke is holding his cards very close to his chest and is not letting any rumours circulate as of yet.
West Ham United
West Ham United have been very busy already in the transfer market, snapping up Andy Carroll for a club record fee of £15 million. They have also acquired the services full back Razvan Rat from Shakhtar Donetsk and goalkeeper Adrian from Betis, both on free transfers. The only major departure from the club so far is Carlton Cole and Sam Allardyce will be looking to sign another forward to play alongside England international, Carroll. One name being mentioned for this role is Nabil Ghilas who currently plays for Moreirense in Portugal. The Algerian forward is widely expected to join Portuguese champions FC Porto however and West Ham may be forced into making a loan signing, Romelu Lukaku has been mentioned.
There could also be more departures on the way with Ricardo Vaz Te, Mobido Maiga, Matt Taylor and Alou Diarra all being told they can find new employers.
Comments are closed.