Soccer transfer talk - Latest
Who? - Players - Speculation Where is he? - Anywhere Who is he linked with? - Manchester United
Rumour suggests that Sir Alex Ferguson will be handed 40million to improve his Manchester United squad in the summer. United spent 54million on Owen Hargreaves, Nani and Anderson at the end of last season. But despite being on the brink of a Premier League and Champions League double, Ferguson will dabble in the market once more this summer. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Karim Benzema, Micah Richards, Jose Bosingwa and Dean Ashton are thought to be targets. "One of Sir Alex's key strength is that he is always looking to improve the squad," said chief executive David Gill. "He doesn't say 'That's good enough' and 'Let's keep with what we have got'. If there are areas he wants to improve, areas he feels we need more cover for, then we will see what we can do."
Who? - Players - Speculation Where is he? - Anywhere Who is he linked with? - West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion midfielder Jonathan Greening has called on the club's chairman Jeremy Peace to back manager Tony Mowbray in the summer. The Baggies sealed promotion to the Premier League on Sunday by beating Queens Park Rangers 2-0 at Loftus Road, and they are expected to strengthen during the close-season period. Says Greening: "The squad that came up before to the Premier League in 2004, I wasn't part of because I signed in that summer from Middlesbrough. But I think we are maybe a bit better prepared for the Premier League with the way we play. It will probably suit our style more playing in the Premier League than the Championship. You saw in the FA Cup semi-final against Portsmouth how really well [we played] on the day. We know we can do really well against teams in the Premier League. I think the gaffer has probably got his ideas on where he wants to strengthen in the summer and who he wants to bring in but I am sure the nucleus of the squad will be staying the same because the gaffer likes the way we play. He will have in his mind who he wants to bring in. I am sure he will have a few foreign players he is after that maybe people aren't aware of. He has done well in that market already. I think he will probably go for a few experienced players as well. It will be an interesting summer. It will be interesting to see if the chairman backs the gaffer to the full. We hope he does that. Getting to the Premier League, there is only one league to play in. I've had two years of Championship football and it will be nice to get back in the top division and stay there for a few years."
