Wednesday's gossip column

[Offshore Toon 0]

BREAKING GOSSIP

 

Chelsea striker Didier Drogba will decide on his future within the next 10 days, his agent Thierno Seydi has told France Football. (0923 BST, Press Association)

 

TRANSFER RUMOURS

 

Newcastle boss Kevin Keegan has beaten Portsmouth, Sunderland and Benfica to the signature of Pablo Aimar and is set to complete a £7m deal for the Real Zaragoza forward. (Daily Mirror)

 

Wayne Bridge's new contract at Chelsea will be worth £16.6m over four years as manager Luiz Felipe Scolari has made keeping the left-back at Stamford Bridge one of his top priorities. (The Sun)

 

Stoke are poised to shatter their transfer record with the £4.5m signing of Reading striker Dave Kitson. (The Sun)

 

Striker Dimitar Berbatov faces an anxious wait over his future after Tottenham indicated that they do not intend to negotiate with Manchester United or any other club. (The Guardian)

 

England midfielder Frank Lampard is to ask Chelsea for a transfer to join former boss Jose Mourinho at Inter Milan after rejecting a £140,000-a-week four-year contract to stay at the Bridge. (Daily Mirror)

 

Chelsea are confident they can secure the signature of Robinho from Real Madrid for around £20m, laughing off claims they have made a £48m bid for the forward. (Daily Star)

Chelsea monitoring Real's Robinho

 

Hull boss Phil Brown is ready to break the club's transfer record with a £5m bid for Manchester United striker Fraizer Campbell, whose goals during his loan spell last season played a part in securing their promotion to the Premier League. (Daily Mirror)

 

Kevin Keegan is in talks to sign versatile Holland midfielder Nigel De Jong in a £3m deal from Hamburg. (The Sun)

 

Newcastle are stepping up their recruitment drive a notch as the Magpies are set to swoop for Liverpool's 19-year-old Argentine left-back Emiliano Insua. (Various)

But Newcastle have suffered a setback in their transfer plans as West Ham defender Anton Ferdinand has pulled out of transfer negotiations with the club. (The Independent)

 

Midfielder Xabi Alonso's failed move to Juventus means Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has abandoned plans to buy David Villa and David Silva from Valencia - and may have to give up hope of signing Tottenham striker Robbie Keane. (Daily Mirror)

 

However, depending on what you believe, the Merseysiders are willing to spend £20m to sign the 28-year-old Spurs striker. (The Sun)

 

England midfielder Gareth Barry will plead with Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill to stop jeopardising his dream move to Liverpool when he returns to training on Wednesday. (Daily Mirror)

 

Arsenal expect to be in a position to make an offer for Barry this week when they finally close the deal to sell their former captain Gilberto Silva to Greek side Panathinaikos. (The Independent)

 

Blackburn defender Andre Ooijer is a shock target for Panathinaikos, while Martin O'Neill wants to sign Rovers goalkeeper Brad Friedel by the end of this week. (Daily Mirror)

 

Rovers boss Paul Ince will assess striker Robbie Fowler at the club's German training camp before deciding whether to give his former Liverpool team-mate another shot in the Premier League. (Daily Star)

Fowler to link up with Blackburn

 

Chelsea defender Tal Ben Haim will make a decision in the next 48 hours on whether to accept an offer to move to Manchester City in a £5m deal. (Daily Mirror)

 

Chelsea's other fringe players have been challenged by Luiz Felipe Scolari to prove they are worth a place in the squad during their pre-season tour to China, Malaysia and Russia. (The Times)

 

Australia defender Lucas Neill moved a step closer to joining Manchester City after West Ham agreed a deal with Lazio right-back Valon Behrami. (Daily Mail)

 

Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp is considering a surprise move for former Manchester United midfielder Quinton Fortune, who is available on a free transfer. (Daily Mail)

 

Rangers boss Walter Smith is lining up Cardiff's Glenn Loovens after pulling the plug on his bid for Watford's Danny Shittu. (Daily Record)

Shittu still keen on Ibrox move

 

Auxerre expect Celtic to conclude a £3.5m deal for Romanian defender Gabriel Tamas in the next 48 hours. (Daily Express)

 

Hibs and Motherwell have joined Kilmarnock in the chase for Linfield striker Peter Thompson. (Daily Record)

 

Czech midfielder Rudi Skacel looks set to complete his £1m move to Ipswich this week after being banned from full training by Southampton. (The Sun)

 

Midfielder Ferrie Bodde has snubbed Derby by signing a long-term deal to remain at Swansea. (The Sun)

 

OTHER GOSSIP

 

Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan will sell the club next year. The Eagles chairman is furious a tribunal ruled Spurs had to pay Palace just £700,000 for teenage midfielder John Bostock. (Various)

Jordan warns Spurs-bound Bostock

 

Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood has blasted the summer transfer market as out of control. He said football is living in a fantasy world during a time the business community is heading for recession. (The Sun)

 

The Football Association will act to counter what it believes is a persistent problem in the transfer market by writing to all clubs warning against dealing with unlicensed agents. (The Guardian)

 

Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs received yet another award on Tuesday when he was given an honorary degree by Salford University for his contribution to sport and charitable causes. (Daily Star)

 

AND FINALLY

 

Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari has impressed his players by storming up the table of the club's darts league. The Brazilian has joined the players' arrows session and despite being a newcomer to the game is only behind England stars John Terry and Joe Cole in the league. (The Sun)

 

 

Busy day.

[Besty 4]

No Anton.