The Barcelona Clear-Out

[Pat Murphy]

Goal.com - Portsmouth - Pompey Eye Gudjohnsen Swoop

Redknapp admits interest in Gudy. So that's West Ham, Newcastle and Pompey interested for a rumoured £4m.

Ezquerro, a punto de fichar por el Olympiacos | SPORT | Barça

Also Ezquerro looks like he's about to join Olympiakos on a free transfer to join up with Valverde.

[lionel]

Originally Posted by Pat Murphy

Goal.com - Portsmouth - Pompey Eye Gudjohnsen Swoop

Redknapp admits interest in Gudy. So that's West Ham, Newcastle and Pompey interested for a rumoured £4m.

Ezquerro, a punto de fichar por el Olympiacos | SPORT | Barça

Also Ezquerro looks like he's about to join Olympiakos on a free transfer to join up with Valverde.

we had been hearing those rumors for 2 years!! why can't it just become official, I don't get it...

[Pat Murphy]

Pep's quote clears up a few things:

Ins and outs

The club is currently working on a new squad for next season, and, Guardiola made it clear that “in principle none of Ronaldinho, Deco or Eto’o are on our minds. We will be building a squad without them … but if they end up staying with us, I will give them a lifeline to get back to their best level”. However, he did confirm that Rafa Márquez does come into his plans.

After a striker and a wide man

Guardiola said he is after a centre forward “that is very good and who can complement Henry and Bojan”. He said he wants to find somebody of similar qualities to the strikers he already has and that “they have to be very ambitious. Whoever comes will be somebody I consider perfect, and I won't be complaining because I have a cracking squad".

Guardiola also confirmed that “we are looking into the possibility of signing a wide player, or not. One would be plenty. In principle, we will play with three up front and with midfielders that will be moving forwards”.

So Rafa Marquez is staying. He'll play a 4-3-3 primarily and won't necessarily sign a winger but he will sign a striker.

Also 7 Barca B players will come up in pre-season for trials.

[lionel]

how can he not need a LW with the squad he has and say he wants henry as a striker? I guess he is building on the barca B players to start?

I hope gai assulin gets the LW spot.

[Pat Murphy]

http://www.fcbarcelona.com/web/caste...630104772.html

Lilian Thuram, Jose Edmilson and Santi Ezquerro enter the last day of their Barcelona careers today.

All 3's contracts end today on the 30th June. Thuram and Ezquerro are yet to find a new club but Edmilson will officially be a Villarreal player tomorrow. Villarreal are top heavy with DM's so I think Edmilson will be signed to play DM and CB which was a suicide position at Barca. If Pellegrini can get Cygan to play well at CB tho then he can get Edmilson to play well there as well I guess.

[BlackNess]

Seedorf: Ronaldinho Not Needed
Clarence Seedorf has warned AC Milan that money should be spent on needed reinforcements and not on out-of-form Ronaldinho...


The Dutch veteran has been one of the main critics of AC Milan's alleged plan to sign Ronaldinho, who has fallen out of favour at Camp Nou.

While the Rossoneri owner, Silvio Berlusconi, had stated that Ronaldinho was not part of his club's plans, recent reports have suggested AC Milan to be hot on the trail of the Brazilian once again.

And Seedorf has now added that the club's summer transfer kit should be spent wisely on players AC Milan are actually in need of.

"Ronaldinho is no good for us because we have many other players for the same position," he said. "I think the team have other needs, but I am not responsible for the signings."

.

[Pat Murphy]

Dinho And Eto'o Wages Scupper Interest From Clubs - Begiristain

Barcelona director Txiki Begiristain believes both Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto’o will find it difficult to move on to other clubs because of their high wage demands.

Both players have been allowed to hold talks with other clubs but so far they have stalled. Ronaldinho was set to join either Milan and Manchester City with Eto’o attracting interest from several other clubs including the Rossoneri, Juventus and Tottenham Hotspur.

Begiristain believes that ‘Dinho and Eto’o may end up staying if they don’t find a new club as he believes their high salaries will only go against them and ruin any potential move to another team.

“I hope they get concrete offers from other clubs,” Begiristain told Sport.

“However, their demands are preventing them from reaching agreements with clubs and when they do or don't agree with other clubs we cannot get involved.

“I believe that there are not many clubs who can afford to pay the wages of both players and this is affecting their moves elsewhere.

“As for Ronaldinho’s fitness, if he doesn’t move I am sure that he will knuckle down and train hard to get back to his previous levels.”

Ronaldinho and Eto’o’s high wages will no doubt scupper any potential talks that they may be involved in when it comes to moving away from Camp Nou.

It has been reported that the Cameroon international earns £128,000 per week and ‘Dinho is believed to be earning a similar amount but such massive wages are likely to prohibit other clubs from showing a real interest in their services.

Salvatore Landolina - Goal.com

[Pat Murphy]

Eto'o And Ronnie Would Fit Back In - Guardiola

Pep Guardiola has said that if Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto'o are not sold by Barcelona then he will fit them into his squad and added that a new striker was not urgent.

The new Blaugrana coach looked ahead to the new season on the first official day back for the club's first team squad while rumours surrounding the two superstars continued.

Ronaldinho is expected to leave this week, while the Eto'o saga looks set to run with no new forward closer to joining and the Cameroon international unlikely to leave soon.

"We do not include them in the plans for the season, but if n the end they stay then they will be welcomed and we will do everything to ensure that they are at their best," Guardiola said.

"Not having signed a new striker is not a problem. I know that these things can take time, but if in the end nobody comes in then that will not be a problem. With the squad we have now we can go a long way and compete."

Guardiola was then asked if he felt that he had made a mistake by announcing that Eto'o, Ronaldinho and Deco were not part of his plans last month.

"I do not think so. Everyone knew that and the club had already said so. If it was the case then I would have been told, but that has not happened," he explained.

Leading the front line could fall to Thierry Henry and Guardiola believes that the Frenchman, supported by Bojan Krkic and Lionel Messi, will have a much better second season at the club.

“I’m expecting a lot of Henry,” he continued. “I’ve spoken to him and I known that his first year wasn’t easy, but I think he brings an awful lot to the team and I want to make the most of both him and Bojan.”

After the recent vote of confidence was brought against the board because of th club's inability to win a trophy for two years, Guardiola looked to take the heat off the directors.

“If the team doesn’t perform, that’s our fault,“ he argued. “We need to make people proud of the way we play and behave and our attitude.

"I know that I am only 37 and do not have much experience. Maybe some of the players were hoping for a bland coach, but that is their bad luck because I am not and everyone is here to work."

Lucas Brown, Goal.com

Pep says that Ronaldinho and Eto'o could yet stay and that it could be left to Henry to lead the line.

[lionel]

Gudjohnsen Not Sure To Leave Barca

Eidur Gudjohnsen’s future is still up in the air, according to his father and agent, who stressed that a Barcelona stay is still a distinct possibility.

Speaking to setantasports.com , Arnor Gudjohnsen reacted to a recent statement by club director Rafael Yuste that the Icelandic international is on the transfer-list, by claiming that coach Josep Guardiola is having second thoughts about selling him.

“The trainer isn’t so sure he wants to sell him now,” said Gudjohnsen's father.

“He will actually be in the preparations of Barcelona, something might happen but it is 50-50.

“Guardiola wants to take a good look at him now in training. He wasn’t sure about Eidur so he wants to look at him. Nothing has been decided."

While a continuation of his Barcelona career still being a bigger possibility than was thought at this time yesterday, a move back to the Premier League is still looking the most likely for the ex Chelsea star.

West Ham, Newcastle, Portsmouth and Fulham are all being touted as possible destinations, though Gudjohnsen Sr. has admitted that there have been no concrete offers from England in recent days.

“I cannot predict anything, he is concentrating just on Barcelona now. If that changes they will let him know, probably in August or something, and everything is open," he added.

“I just know that Aston Villa is a club that has been trying to get in touch with us, but he didn’t want to go there.

“Portsmouth was actually more in the winter break, but nobody has been in touch with us.”

Goal.com - Barcelona - Gudjohnsen Not Sure To Leave Barca

I feel we'll be stuck with gudjohnsen one more year... at least this time I'm confident that pep won't give him as many minutes as he got with rijkaard...