Two days after capturing Arsenal defender Gael Clichy it is being reported that Manchester City are now poised to sign midfielder Samir Nasri in a £19m deal, that the Daily Mail says is "close to completion". The news is a bitter blow for Arsene Wenger, who did not want to lose the French midfielder in the first place and was adamant that he did not want him to go to another Premier League club.
But as the Mail points out City's two main rivals for Nasri's signature were Chelsea and
Manchester United, and the deal is something of a coup for Roberto Mancini, as it comes a day after the club's talisman Carlos Tevez announced that he wanted out.However, there is better news for Gunners fans in the Mirror, which says the deal is far from being done and that Arsenal will play hardball over Nasri's future. The paper says Arsenal have told his representatives that he is not for sale.
Talking of Carlos Tevez, City are digging in their heels over his exit and demanding a fee of at least £50m for the striker, who has three years left on his contract at Eastlands.
It is widely agreed that the three clubs most interested in buying him are Real Madrid, Juventus and Inter Milan. And apparently the Tevez family would be happy to set up home in any of those locations. The only problem is that none of the clubs have £50m sloshing around in their coffers.
Back at Arsenal, Wenger has more than just Nasri to worry about, and he is set for crunch talks with Cesc Fabregas over his future. According to the Independent the Gunners want £40m for Fabregas and so far Barcelona have only stumped up £27m.
But the paper says the Londoners do not see why they should be forced to sell to the Catalans if other teams are prepared to pay more for the player. And that means they could be tempted to sell Fabregas to another side, possibly even Barca's great rivals Real Madrid, if they are prepared to meet the valuation.
Wherever he ends up Arsenal have a midfield ciris. With Nasri and Fabregas heading for the exit, Villarreal chasing Denilson, Abou Diaby out injured for the start of the season and Alex Song facing a jail sentence in Cameroon over a bar brawl then Wenger may have to play Jack Wilshere on his own in the middle at the start of the season.
But according to the Metro the looming crisis has inspired Wenger to redouble his efforts to sign Eden Hazard from Lille, along with his team mate Gervinho, who is close to signing for the Gunners. Valencia forward Juan Mata is also in his sights says the paper.
Another creative midfielder being linked to the Gunners is QPR's Adel Taarabt. According to Rangers boss Neil Warnock the player is likely to leave in the summer.
He told the Evening Standard: "PSG have made an enquiry and they obviously offer him the chance to be nearer to home, although there is a Spanish club being mentioned as well... As far as his talk of wanting to go to Chelsea or Arsenal, I know he has a lot of friends at Arsenal. I'm more inclined into thinking he will be going rather than staying. He has that many advisors and they’re all pushing him to leave."
Finally, the Mirror claims that Manchester United are closing in on Inter Milan midfielder Wesley Sneijder after the Italian club admitted they were considering selling the player.
Inter's new coach Gian Piero Gasperini opened the door on a £35m switch after completing the signing of Arsenal target Ricky Alvarez from Argentine champions Velez Sarsfield for £11m.
Read more: http://www.thefirstpost.co.uk/81292,sport,football,transfer-talk-samir-nasri-set-for-19m-manchester-city-switch-as-arsenal-eye-adel-taarabt-and-eden-hazard#ixzz1RJqdn0Vy
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