Surf's Up: Summer 2015 Transfer Rumors

AgentOrange

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PedroSpecialK said:
Lots of smoke behind Vidal to Bayern...
This is the first time of all the Vidal rumors the past two seasons where the most reliable Italian sources are on board.
 

soxfan121

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And where the destination makes sense - from first place to first place and up the club stature ladder is always the logical move.
 

Morgan's Magic Snowplow

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Selling Vidal makes sense for Juventus. He is 28-years-old, his playing style may not be conducive to aging well, and they now have a lot of other options for the CAM role he has been playing, including Pogba, Dybala, Pereyra, and maybe Zaza.
 
Bayern clearly doesn't want to be caught short of attacking players again, like the Barcelona tie.  Vidal is a much more offensive player than Schweinsteiger and they also have added Douglas Costa.  Guardiola tinkers so much with his formations and teams that its hard to peg anybody in any one slot but they now have eight pretty great attacking players (Lewandowski, Muller, Robben, Ribery, Gotze, Costa, Vidal, Thiago) that, depending on tactics, will likely be fighting for four or five places on the team sheet each week.
 
There have been rumors about Gotze leaving for a while.  I still don't completely believe that Bayern would sell him but if he was discontent with his playing time last year then its hard to see that improving this year.
 

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A Birmingham paper is claiming United will bid on Benteke.  I don't know how reliable they are but I don't know if anyone will come in while United is on tour.  I wouldn't mind Benteke though...
 

soxfan121

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Schneiderlin & Sterling: A Tale of Two Transfers
 
Really, though, beyond the positions they play, Schneiderlin, a defensive midfielder, and Sterling, an attacker, aren’t all that different. They’re two extremely talented players who forced extremely lucrative moves from clubs in the Europa League to ones in the Champions League. And both of their resulting transfers represented where in the current hierarchy their former teams stand. For Southampton, Schneiderlin’s move just reinforced what everybody knew anyway: They can’t afford to keep their top talent. While that might be equally true at Liverpool, it wasn’t always that way. And it’s a heck of a lot easier to blame Raheem Sterling than it is to confront what his sale confirms about the team’s place in the world.
 
 

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Morgan's Magic Snowplow said:
Bayern clearly doesn't want to be caught short of attacking players again, like the Barcelona tie.  Vidal is a much more offensive player than Schweinsteiger and they also have added Douglas Costa.  Guardiola tinkers so much with his formations and teams that its hard to peg anybody in any one slot but they now have eight pretty great attacking players (Lewandowski, Muller, Robben, Ribery, Gotze, Costa, Vidal, Thiago) that, depending on tactics, will likely be fighting for four or five places on the team sheet each week.
 
There have been rumors about Gotze leaving for a while.  I still don't completely believe that Bayern would sell him but if he was discontent with his playing time last year then its hard to see that improving this year.
1) This could be true. And worst case, there will be no Vidal (nothing done, yet), one of Robben and Ribery seems to be out most of the time and Douglas Costa is somehow unproven, at least in the Bundesliga, he is a step-back compared to guys like Ribery/Robben (at least now), but improves depth of course and could become a dominant guy on the wings.
 
2) Götze should take a step forward again, in my opinion. He played many matches last season (should be in Top5 in Bundesliga matches last season behind Bernat, Müller and Neuer), the problem is, i would guess, he rarely plays 90 minutes and rarely sits completely. So he also participates as a roster player, which is of course nice, but it would also help him, if he would play like five matches for 80-90 minutes and then rest two out of 7 games completely, instead of playing all seven games like 60 minutes on avg. (i could be totally wrong, but that´s what i would think happened, combined with the short break after the WC and then you have a bad season for a guy who started last season after just turning 22yo while at the WC). I think everyone (besides some friends from Dortmund) will tell him to stay - Jogi, his advisors, Bayern - to bust his a** and get a better, more consistent and more dominant player like maybe Ribery or Robben, who also had more troubles when they were younger.
 

Zomp

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DiMarzio, who I thought was very unreliable until this summer, has been spot on with pretty much everything he's reported over the past few months.
 

AgentOrange

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sachmoney said:
What are the reliable Italian sources?
 
I pretty much ignore any Italian source besides Di Marzio, SKY, and Gazetta Dello Sport.  

Edit: I forgot to note Romeo Agresti from Goal Italia. Very reliable, but Juventus-specific news only.
 

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Zomp said:
A Birmingham paper is claiming United will bid on Benteke.  I don't know how reliable they are but I don't know if anyone will come in while United is on tour.  I wouldn't mind Benteke though...
Sounds like Villa might have made a phone call trying to get Liverpool to hurry the fuck up and pay the release clause. <teddy>They don't have Liverpool's massive media conspiracy to rely on so they have to do what they can </teddy>
 

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He's going to be EXPENSIVE AS FUCK in the Bundesliga...and my dream of hyperlinking him and Sanchez just went out the window.  However if they make Alaba a CB then I might be tempted...wait what were we talking about?
 

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Zomp said:
DiMarzio, who I thought was very unreliable until this summer, has been spot on with pretty much everything he's reported over the past few months.
 
Di Marzio has been wrong before, as transfers fall apart all of the time, but I never got the impression that he was trafficking in weak speculation or outright click-generating fabrications, which is 90% of  transfer "news" IMO.  There's at least something to everything he reports, which pretty much makes him the gold standard in Italy.  
 

sachmoney

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AgentOrange said:
 
I pretty much ignore any Italian source besides Di Marzio, SKY, and Gazetta Dello Sport.  

Edit: I forgot to note Romeo Agresti from Goal Italia. Very reliable, but Juventus-specific news only.
Thanks for the recommendation.
 
To continue on the "reliable sources" theme, what are some of the reliable sources in other countries? England, Germany, Spain, Holland etc.
 

PedroSpecialK

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In England, in order I'd go BBC (basically means it's official), The Guardian, local paper (i.e. Echo, Manchester Evening News, Birmingham Evening News, etc), Times, Telegraph in that order. Some guys like Tony Barrett for Liverpool/Ornstein for Arsenal are near the top.
 
In Germany I'd go with Bild primarily, Spain is a crapshoot (maybe Marca sometimes?), not sure on Holland.
 
Also, increasing levels of smoke around Pedro to Liverpool. At what point do you have too many wingers?
 
Everton's also close on signing Jonny Evans for £8m, lending more credence to Ramos being a possibility for Man United
 

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Real Madrid have finalized a move for Casilla, the keeper from Espanyol. As I typed this message, an alert came across my phone from AS that indicates Real Madrid paid 5M euros. 
 
So, with this move, does Real Madrid sell Keylor Navas, the very good Costa Rican keeper, or does Real Madrid not pursue De Gea?
 

PedroSpecialK

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Wow - days after affirming he'd stay at Villa, Delph arrived at City for his medical this AM.

Theories he'd been promised that Benteke would not be sold, but not much Villa can do about a release clause...
 

ehaz

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Some rumors going around that Arda Turan might be loaned out for half of a season to a non-Champions League club because he technically cannot play until January due to the transfer ban.  Not sure if this is even allowed (how do you loan a player you haven't technically signed yet?) but it could make sense for clubs like Milan, Dortmund, Liverpool, Spurs.
 

PedroSpecialK

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They've signed him so they have his rights, they just can't register him for any of their squads until January.
 
That kind of 6 month loan may do the receiving club more harm than good, especially for clubs like Liverpool and Milan that have a lot of new signings this summer. Those signings will be trying to mesh into a cohesive first team for the first 3-4 months, and having someone who's only there temporarily - and is obviously first team quality - may throw a wrench into the squad's alignment once he's gone in January.
 
Not dissimilar to the Nuri Şahin loan for Liverpool
 
edit: also of note, it appears Atlético are in talks with Chelsea to bring back Felipe Luis according to BBC
 

PedroSpecialK

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...and it appears the Delph saga is coming to a close
 
https://twitter.com/BenSmithBBC/status/622035778886086656
 
 
Ben Smith
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Fabian Delph undergoing a medical with Manchester City ahead of his £8m move. Quite the u-turn ... #MCFC
 
 
Makes a lot more sense with a £8m release clause. Here's the story from July 11 on AVFC's website:
 
 

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bosox4283 said:
Real Madrid have finalized a move for Casilla, the keeper from Espanyol. As I typed this message, an alert came across my phone from AS that indicates Real Madrid paid 5M euros. 
 
So, with this move, does Real Madrid sell Keylor Navas, the very good Costa Rican keeper, or does Real Madrid not pursue De Gea?
Rumor is that Real is content to just wait til next year and get De Gea on a free.
 

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PedroSpecialK said:
They've signed him so they have his rights, they just can't register him for any of their squads until January.
 
That kind of 6 month loan may do the receiving club more harm than good, especially for clubs like Liverpool and Milan that have a lot of new signings this summer. Those signings will be trying to mesh into a cohesive first team for the first 3-4 months, and having someone who's only there temporarily - and is obviously first team quality - may throw a wrench into the squad's alignment once he's gone in January.
 
Not dissimilar to the Nuri Şahin loan for Liverpool
 
edit: also of note, it appears Atlético are in talks with Chelsea to bring back Felipe Luis according to BBC
 
I agree with this. Plus, Barca's tactics require a lot of getting used to and for Turan to have a productive 2016, he should train with the team and play in friendlies.
 
Felipe back to Atleti would make me irrationally happy.
 

PedroSpecialK

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Filipe Luis back to Atlético - 2 year loan with an option to buy, but I'm guessing it ends up being a right of first refusal in the final 6 months of the contract, as he only has two years remaining on the 3 year deal he signed at Chelsea.
 
https://twitter.com/DiMarzio/status/623152526070841344
 

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PedroSpecialK said:
Filipe Luis back to Atlético - 2 year loan with an option to buy, but I'm guessing it ends up being a right of first refusal in the final 6 months of the contract, as he only has two years remaining on the 3 year deal he signed at Chelsea.
 
https://twitter.com/DiMarzio/status/623152526070841344
 
Diego Godin approves this signing.
 

bosox4283

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Zososoxfan said:
 
Diego Godin approves this signing.
 
I like this signing, too! Siqueira clearly did not impress Simeone, nor convinced him he was the right fit for the team. Moving Siqueira becomes a challenge, of course, but maybe someone will take him for cheap. He's not a bad player -- he simply was not at the level Atletico needed. Oh well. Not the best use of 10M euros.
 

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bosox4283 said:
 
I like this signing, too! Siqueira clearly did not impress Simeone, nor convinced him he was the right fit for the team. Moving Siqueira becomes a challenge, of course, but maybe someone will take him for cheap. He's not a bad player -- he simply was not at the level Atletico needed. Oh well. Not the best use of 10M euros.
 
Did Atleti get a fee for the Chelsea move? If so, how did they end up after the loan back?
 
jkempa said:
 
I still can't believe Vidal or Juve would make this move. Can someone please explain this to me.
 

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Zososoxfan said:
 
Did Atleti get a fee for the Chelsea move? If so, how did they end up after the loan back?
 
 
I still can't believe Vidal or Juve would make this move. Can someone please explain this to me.
 
Bayern can offer Vidal a higher salary than Juventus. Doubt Juve want to lose him, but if a player wants to leave there is very little a team can do. Also, 37 million euros is pretty hefty fee for a 28 year old.
 

soxfan121

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Zososoxfan said:
I still can't believe Vidal or Juve would make this move. Can someone please explain this to me.
 
Bayern is higher up the pyramid than Juve. Plus, the money. But playing midfield for Pep at Bayern is the top of the mountain, no? Real play an unfavorable system for his talents and Barca is transfer banned. This was the only move he could make.
 

PedroSpecialK

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DiMarzio also reports Juventus are interested in Kevin de Bruyne, but that Wolfsburg's 60m price tag is off-putting.

Selfishly I'm hoping he stays for one more year just so I don't look like a jackass with my Bas Dost kit after a 10 goal campaign
 

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soxfan121 said:
 
Bayern is higher up the pyramid than Juve. Plus, the money. But playing midfield for Pep at Bayern is the top of the mountain, no? Real play an unfavorable system for his talents and Barca is transfer banned. This was the only move he could make.
 
From a prestige point of view, they are fairly close. Bayern have 5 UCL titles to Juve's 2, and Bayern has 2 since 2000 to Juve's 0. This past year though, both teams won their leagues, but Juve also won the Coppa Italia and made it farther in UCL (finals vs. semis). So, while I'll concede this point, I wouldn't do so by a wide margin - Juve are giants and no slouches.
 
The money seems like it should be pretty close. Bayern is top 5 in spending and Juve is top 10, but yeah, if he's getting a lot more money, that makes sense. http://sportslistoftheday.com/2014/04/15/the-20-highest-sports-team-payrolls-in-the-world/
 
While I'd probably give a very slight edge to Bayern's squad, it is also reliant on some older players, at least before Vidal joined. I don't know that there's a midfield I prefer to Juve's Vidal, Pogba, Marchisio, Sturaro, and Khedira is a shrewd pickup to replace Pirlo. It doesn't get better than Barzagli, Bonnucci, and Chiellini in the back. Mandzukic should fit in well with Morata even though Tevez is now gone. TL;DR - he had a great situation in Turin and it's a bit sad to see that midfield torn to pieces, they were exciting to watch.
 
This is undeniably a huge get for Bayern. I'm a huge fan of Vidal and I would basically build the midfield around his workrate and creativity. Fit in the typically awesome Bayern pieces - Muller, Robben, Lahm, Thiago, et al - around him and voila, a superclub.
 

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Har har.

The big question is... How long can Vidal be who he is? He's 28 and built around his motor. He had a down (by his standards) season last year (post knee injury) and is coming off another hard summer tournament. I think Juvé are just cashing in the chips before their value slides.

Marchisio is the Pirlo replacement. He's been slotted in that role several times and excelled. He'll never have Pirlo's vision or trickery, but his accuracy isn't far off and his defensive work rate is obviously far above. The free kick taking is a huge question.

Juvé are now set up to have a pretty decent midfield rotation. The overall work rate should remain high. There is some commentary they are more able to retain Pogba with this deal- I'm okay with that.
 

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Some rumors tonight have Di Maria going to PSG for 45 million pounds and Pedro to United for 20 million or so.  I'd hate to give up on Di Maria after one season but he seems to want to go to PSG.  Pedro would be a nice addition to the front 3 rotation though.
 

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I don't think so.  DiMarzio is the reliable Italian journalist...I think Palmeri throws shit against the wall hoping to see what sticks.
 

PedroSpecialK

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Zomp said:
Some rumors tonight have Di Maria going to PSG for 45 million pounds and Pedro to United for 20 million or so.  I'd hate to give up on Di Maria after one season but he seems to want to go to PSG.  Pedro would be a nice addition to the front 3 rotation though.
Sounded like they had a 65m deal yesterday but talks broke down. Gotta believe that they'd move on from Pedro if both of Di Maria and Chicharito stay
 

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Man City reportedly upped their offer for Kevin de Bruyne to 72mil €.
Wolfsburg changed their opinion from "he won´t leave" to "if the transfer sum is right, he might leave".
 
I don´t know if he will leave this summer, although i think it would help him to play another season at Wolfsburg with CL football. At Man City, he could also sit on the bench in many matches. In Wolfsburg, he gets every chance he wants/needs and can then go to the Euro without any trouble.
The chicken-egg-problem is then: do you wanna go to your new club after a long season with an additional Euro after the club season and possibly being tired through the season?
 
(For example several german U21 players stayed at home this summer to prepare for their new club RB Leipzig, instead of going to the U21 Euro..sad, but true!)
 

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Manchester United will meet with representatives of both Barcelona and winger Pedro in the United States over the weekend, with deal hopeful by the middle of next week, according to ESPNFC.
 

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This Is Anfield had a rundown of which journalists had the scoop on Liverpool's summer signings:

http://www.thisisanfield.com/2015/07/liverpools-summer-signings-first-reported/

Given the talk in here about (dis)reputable sources, I thought it would be interesting to more than just those following the LFC conversation. Mods, if you don't think it belongs here, feel free to eat a bowl of dicks.