The Spanish playmaker becomes the latest impressive addition to the London club’s squad this summer following the signings of Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud.
Just in case you spent all of January living in a giant transfer-repellent bubble, Kevin Coleman brings you the lowdown on the top ten moves of an utterly unpredictable transfer window.
INTERNATIONAL EXILE Stephen Ireland looks set to be confirmed as an Aston Villa player later today, with the former Ireland international midfielder moving to Villa Park as part-exchange for the signing of James Milner.
Oliver Kay of the London Times has reported on Twitter that Villa have given Milner permission to travel to Eastlands to undergo a medical exam prior to his signing a multi-year deal with City.
With City having already shelled out £22.5m (€27.3m) for Italian midfielder Mario Balotelli, the Blues baulked at Villa’s £25m valuation of Milner and instead opted to offer Ireland as a part-exchange to finalise the deal.
Kay tweeted that the fee for Milner had been agreed at £18m, including potential add-ons based on City’s performance over the coming years, with Ireland to move in the opposite direction.
Milner’s departure, while a good financial move for Villa with the midlands club having signed the player for just £12m from Newcastle last summer, means the Villans have now lost both their manager and best player in the space of a week.
City have also seen Craig Bellamy leave the club this morning, with the Welsh striker moving to Cardiff on a season-long loan, while Balotelli has agreed to swap shirt numbers with Irish international defender Greg Cunningham.
Cunningham had worn the number 45 shirt coveted by Balotelli, who wore that number at Inter Milan, and has agreed to take the number 22 shirt formerly held by Richard Dunne, who himself moved from City to Villa last year after a nine-year tenure.
FORMER ENGLAND SKIPPER and LA Galaxy star David Beckham could be on his way home to England.
Beckham is set to return from an Achilles injury in the coming weeks, before coming back to Europe in January.
Co-owner of West Ham David Gold told The Sun: “We had some discussions with David’s agents a few months ago and it was a possibility. “He’s preoccupied with a number of projects at the moment but he’s promised he will give every consideration to the possibility of joining us.”
The star was born in East London and is apparently keen to return to the UK.
Elsewhere, Liverpool are set to make a bid for Aston Villa midfielder Stiliyan Petrov in an offer said to be over £7m according to The Mirror.
Raul went on a free transfer having broken ties with Real Madrid.
Raul has spent his entire career in the Bernabeu becoming a legendary figure there.
Born Raul González Blanco, but known simply as Raul. The Spanish hero is a three time winner of the Champion’s League and an all-time goal scorer for the competition.
He’s scored 323 goals for Real in 740 appearances. Raúl is also the all-time goal scorer with the Spanish national team. Having formerly captained the team, the star struggled to make the Spanish team since coach Manuel Pellegrini’s arrived in 2009.
Earlier this summer the striker revealed that he had offers from Germany and England to consider.
Schalke’s coach Felix Magath said he was delighted with his signing.”This is great news for Schalke,” Magath told the club’s website. I am pleased that we have succeeded in signing such an exceptional footballer and world-class striker.
“His qualities will help us. His commitment will be crucial in our efforts to strengthen the squad for future success.
THIERRY HENRY is leaving Barcelona – for New York. The 32-year-old French striker has signed with the New York Red Bulls in a multi-year deal, despite having one year left on his contract with the Spanish side. Man United’s Ryan Giggs has ruled out a similar move, saying he won’t be finishing his career in the US. Giggs holds the club record for his 838 appearances.
