Transfer Talk: A New Toon for Gooch, Make Room for Mascherano, Cannavaro & Chelsea?

By: Bob | January 29th, 2007

The end is in sight. In just a couple days the transfer window will close and we can all go back to worrying about more important things, like the cellulose on our thighs. The last few days could be fast and furious or they could finish things off with a whimper. Today’s top rumors and moves are more whimperish than they are hot, but nevertheless we have tied a ribbon around them and present them to you for your reading pleasure.

Heading into this transfer period there probably weren’t too many people who would have wagered that Standard Liege and US international defender Oguchi Onyewu would be the center of endless speculation, but the one some call Gooch is a man in demand. Fulham, Real Madrid, Middlesbrough, Chelsea and Marseille all had their shot and now it is Newcastle United that are said to have Onyewu in their plans. Can’t wait to see who has him tomorrow.

Forget about waiting around for FIFA to waive that silly rule about the number of clubs a player can play for in a year. According to Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez his club might end up with Javier Mascherano regardless of the rule. The way around things would be for West Ham to tear up Macherano’s contract, which is something they wish they would have done before they signed him.

Meanwhile, West Ham really, really, really must like Charlton striker Darren Bent if the reports are true that they are offering £17 million for his services. I have a hard time believing that fee is correct.

In equally hard to believe news, Fabio Cannavaro might head to Chelsea this summer as Real Madrid unload one superstar after another. Don’t hold your breath waiting for this one.

Edgar Davids was on the MLS radar screen, but instead of cashing in the States it appears that the Tottenham and former Dutch international will instead head home to Ajax where he first made wearing protective glasses look so damn cool.

It isn’t enough that one Milan club is interested in Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard. Apparently both Inter Milan and AC Milan would like Lamps this summer. AC Milan’s general director Ariedo Braida told the Mail on Sunday: “Is this true? Lampard for £8m? If this is the case it is very interesting news.” I saw a pair of shoes on sale this weekend for $25 and I thought the same thing. Very interesting, indeed.

Nigerian striker Julius Aghahowa will no longer have to deal with the Ukrainian winter. The Shakhtar Donetsk striker is headed to Wigan after spending nearly seven years in Ukraine. He should receive a medal of honor for that.

Charlton are said to be lining up a loan swoop for Arsenal’s highly-rated French midfielder Alexandre Song who could probably benefit from a bit of playing time.

Juventus have been featured in a lot of rumors but haven’t done much this transfer window. Today it appears that Czech Republic defender Zdenek Grygera is set to join the Serie B giants from Ajax. Exciting, isn’t it?

Why should you care that Torquay might sign Saudi Arabian striker Sami Al Jaber on loan? Because players from Saudi Arabia end up playing in Europe about as frequently as I make it through a post without a grammatical error: almost never. Only two Saudis have played in England before him so Al Jaber will have his work cut out for him.