"The Championship is not an option" - I Love Football off-season and transfer speculation thread 2012

Emery, who has already accepted an offer to coach Spartak Moscow next season

Ooh you are awful... but I like you

― Charles Kennedy Jumped Up, He Called 'Oh No'. (Tom D.), Monday, 28 May 2012 11:54 (49 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

haha

van gaal dof is going to be a big fat fuckin car crash just you wait

what happened to martinez? thought that was a done deal, having ice cream and all.

also it looks like gylfi is staying at swansea? that makes me happy

http://www.goal.com/en/news/596/exclusive/2012/05/28/3131748/sevilla-in-hunt-for-reo-coker-agent

uh huh

The press still says Martinez to be confirmed tomorrow. I just happened to notice he was no longer favourite and thought it odd. I don't actually know if anyone knows anything tbh, it may all just be Dave Whelan shooting his mouth off.

Just give Van Gaal the manager's job if the alternative is Martinez imo

did not know that bobby martinez has released an autobiography. will have to get myself a copy.

apparently no one wants to sign you Eden because you waited too long. sorry about that Eden you'll have to stay at Lille. Awkward!

http://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/2O3oy.jpg

http://www.footballfancast.com/2012/05/championship/return-of-pride-will-stop-hammers-going-for-barton

i know picking on random bloggers is fish in a barrel stuff but oh how i lol'd long and hard at this

content tbh

valuable content

oh well

Eden hazard ‏@hazardeden10
I'm signing for the champion's league winner.

Hazard heading to Manchester

Lille star Eden Hazard has confirmed he will be playing in Manchester next season, but refused to say whether it will be at City or United.

Last Updated: 14/05/12 at 21:18

Hazard's future has been the subject of intense speculation for some time with a host of clubs across Europe chasing his signature.

The Belgian international revealed over the weekend he would be quitting Lille at the end of the season after six years at the club.

City and United have both been strongly linked with Hazard having watched him on several occasions this season with reports suggesting City are in pole position to land the playmaker.

The 21-year-old has now confirmed he will be moving to the Premier League and will be plying his trade in Manchester next season after being named Ligue 1's Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.

"To Manchester, I've already said," Hazard replied when asked about his likely destination at the end of the current season when speaking at the awards gala.

"The decision will be taken soon."

expect a follow up tweet along the lines of "...the 2013 Champions League winner. Now that I've signed for them."

he sounds like a scummy little cunt

hate this arsehole.

chelsea are just so utterly repugnant, if he had any sort of choice (and it must be supposed he did) then fuck him

cuz yes notionally he has less competition, but the whole club is so badly run that he could experience a similar fate to torres, or to lukaku, or to duff, or to veron, or to cole, or to mutu, or to crespo or even robben or however many other promising/established attacking players were poorly managed there

another wanker on the pile, good to have them all in one place at least

oh the pile spilleth elsewhere tbfttl

Eden Hazard on Liverpool (2010): "I've heard about interest from them & its nice to be linked with the best teams in the world." (Not exact)

Eden Hazard (2011): "My dream is to play for Arsenal or Real Madrid."

Eden Hazard (2011): "Inter & AC made me offers. Every league has its merits, all the big clubs make me dream.

Eden Hazard (2012): "Maybe I'll join Tottenham, they are a great English club with very good players."

Eden Hazard (2012): "Spain is perhaps more my style of game but if I move it must be to either Barcelona or Real Madrid."

Eden Hazard (2012): "Arsenal will always be an option, they have Thomas [Vermaelen] there and they play wonderful style of Football."

Eden Hazard (2012): "The two Manchester clubs are great, I won't which colour I prefer though."

Eden Hazard (2012): "I will play in England next year."

Eden Hazard (2012): "Chelsea winning the Champions League has made things interesting."

Eden Hazard (2012): "It will either United, City or Chelsea."

Eden Hazard (2012): "I don't know I'll join."

After all the shenanigans i'm not too bothered about it. Hopefully a deal for Kagawa gets wrapped up soonish though

i suppose we should expect hulk to end up there this summer too? good luck with that nando

also sturridge will be available now surely

id rather kagawa cuz it woul signify a likely shift to a more advanced possession oriented tactical scheme that might actually pose a threat in europe and vs the big english sides

hazard is just a winger with airs and graces, after all

Phil McNulty ‏@philmcnulty
So is Eden Hazard unable to just say he is joining "Chelsea" rather than "Champions League winner"?

patience will have snapped

Stuart Holden ‏@stuholden
Breaking News: Eden Hazard caught up in long discussions with Lebron James about possible late move to Miami Heat

controversial felid structure the sphinx has long baffled scholars and tourists alike with its riddles

lol stuey

It's come to something when nult bewails obfuscation. Hazard needs to join Steaua or Red Star now, it's the only way to make amends.

this guy is the worst

a hazard, you could argue

i dunno guys, this is WWE-level heeldom already, i'm amused

yeah except he is just trying to be a twitter tart rather than a dioufian antihero

he is playing la salope according to old-school French wrestling custom iirc

look forward to him laying out one of Stoke's CBs with a metal chair to the head next season

hes roman arkadyevich's bitch now

£32m! No wonder Arsenal haven't been mentioned for months.

Not the right move imo - he should've gone to Utd.

i dunno guys, this is WWE-level heeldom already, i'm amused

― Cyders from Mars (Noodle Vague), Monday, 28 May 2012 22:53 (13 minutes ago)

eden hazard is drew mcintyre getting the intercontinental championship because he would rant about "the kids" using their "twitter and facebook", only for no-one to give a shit and for him to end up in tna next year. (p certain i already got excited about one overpriced winger from lille before, can live without seeing another one disappoint next season).

we need more balotelli and barton heels. in football and in wrestling.

xp they've got the best wee amc in the league tho

when tony blair joins the qpr consortium i'm done with it all

mata?

Hazard's pedigree is a little bit more impressive than Gervinho's tbf

'they' referred to utd

Chelsea have beaten off competition from Manchester City — who had been clear favourites to sign the exciting Belgium international but grew frustrated at the negotiations — Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur after becoming the only club who would go close to meeting the forward’s demands.

City are thought to have walked away from the deal last week with Spurs giving up some time ago. Hazard, currently on international duty and preparing to face England in a friendly this weekend, indicated to Chelsea on Saturday that he was set to accept their offer and yesterday took to the social media site Twitter to announce that he had “made up my mind”, adding last night: “I’m signing for the Champions League winner.”

Chelsea will pay a fee of around €40 million (£35.3 million) to Lille, with Hazard having demanded wages of £4.6 million a year net of tax, so around £9  million a year for his new employer. That averages out at £170,000 a week.

In addition his agent, John Bico, who has conducted an aggressive auction has made it clear that he wants a fee of £6 million. If all the demands are met and with Hazard expected to agree a five-year deal, it means the overall cost of the signing, fees and contract will amount to around £78 million which, even by Chelsea standards, is a substantial investment.

Chelsea hijacked City’s deal after receiving a call from Bico on the eve of the Champions League final with the agent telling them that he could persuade Hazard to join them if his demands were met.

so much for abramovich losing interest eh

Ah but Battersea's the big test, and they're way out of the running for that apparently.

swansea in for dos santos, more good stuff from brendan

That would be great.

Spurs have apparently released Saha.

otm, otm