TTT Transfer Talk Tracker Aug 3-9

TTT Transfer Talk Tracker Aug 3-9
August 8, 2013 Chris Rowland

By Chris Rowland.

First, some confirmed business outwards – Jack Robinson‘s on loan to Blackpool, and Jay Spearing‘s transfer to Bolton for an undisclosed fee, believed to be in the region of £1.5m.

We’ll start this week with another one to cross off. It looks like Keisuke Honda’s on his bike (sorry, had to) to AC Milan. The CSKA Moscow man was said to be a Liverpool target. Which is not the same thing as actually being one.

Now one we’ve been linked with many times before that isn’t definitely off:

Portugese giants Sporting Lisbon are willing to sell in-demand winger Diego Capel but only for £7 million. Marseille have seen two bids for Capel, who has also been linked with being on the shopping list of Premier League outfit Liverpool. The capital club have rebuffed offers of £3.5 million and £4 million for the Spanish winger. However, according to Portugese daily A Bola, Sporting Lisbon are prepared to sell the former Sevilla man. Such a price tag appears to be out of reach for Marseille, who were forced to call off their pursuit of Arsenal forward Gervinho due to financial concerns. However, £7m may well be within reach for Liverpool, even if the Anfield outfit have not yet submitted a firm offer for the 25-year-old. The former Barcelona youth player has represented Spain at various youth levels, making his senior debut in 2008. Inside Futbol Aug 5.

However across la Manche, France’s Sport 24 claim Diego Capel says he would be “delighted” to sign for Marseille.

Liverpool Echo’s round up on Aug 5:

Liverpool will step up their pursuit of Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa this week but Brendan Rodgers has shelved plans to sign Benfica left-back Lorenzo Melgarejo.

The Reds tabled a bid of £21.8million for Costa last week and hope Atletico will grant them permission to hold talks with the Brazil international. Costa, who played for Atletico against Nacional in the final friendly of their tour of South America yesterday, has already indicated he’s keen on making the move to Anfield.

However, Melgarejo won’t be signing for Liverpool. The Reds had agreed a season-long loan deal in principle with a view to a permanent transfer next summer and were expected to apply for a work permit. But Rodgers’ interest in the Paraguayan defender has cooled and he intends to look elsewhere for left-back cover. Granada’s Guilherme Siqueira and Valencia’s Aly Cissokho are under consideration.

However on Aug 6 InsideFutbol cast doubt over the Costa move: “Costa says he wants to stay at Atletico Madrid despite interest from Liverpool.” And on the same day BBC Sport reported:

Atletico Madrid reaffirm their commitment to keeping hold of Diego Costa, despite interest from Liverpool. Brendan Rodgers’ side made a £21.8m bid for the Brazilian forward last week, but the Madrid club insisted he was not for sale. Now Atletico’s sporting director Jose Luis Caminero has reiterated the club’s stance on the 24-year-old, who scored 20 goals in all competitions last season.Speaking to AS, Caminero says: “Diego Costa is a very important player for Atletico; we value him very highly and we are convinced that this year he is going to score a lot of goals with Atletico. He is an idol for the fans.”

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