Wenger eyes Edinson Cavani and Wilfried Zaha

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has revealed that Napoli striker Edinson Cavani and Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha are on his transfer wish list.

The Frenchman has focused much of his attention over recent months on transfer negotiations with Theo Walcott but, with those talks believed to be nearing a positive conclusion, he has now started to look elsewhere.



Wenger is renowned for his reluctance to spend big on new recruits, with balancing the books as important to the Emirates boss as generating results on the field.



He is, however, aware of the need to strengthen during the winter window, helping to appease a disgruntled fan base, and has admitted that Cavani and Zaha are among those currently under consideration.



Wenger said: "Cavani is a player that I like.



"Will he cost a lot of money? That's for sure. Nobody would deny that. Our banker lives just next to me at the moment and he is ready if we find the right player."



On Zaha, who is also a target for Manchester United, he added: "We are looking at him, but at the moment we have not made any bid for him.



"I don't know if Manchester United are in for him. Anyway, if you call any club for any player, they will tell you Man United, Milan, Real Madrid are as well in for him, but it is always difficult to know if it is true or not."



On Zaha, he said: "We are looking at him, but at the moment we have not made any bid for him.



"I don't know if Manchester United are in for him. Anyway, if you call any club for any player, they will tell you Man Utd, Milan, Real Madrid are as well in for him, but it is always difficult to know if it is true or not."



Wenger is prepared to be patient in his pursuit of fresh faces, with it is opinion that it is often best to wait until the end of the window before making a move.



He said: "The prices always go up at the start of the transfer market and go down in the last week.



"Sometimes as well they go up in the last week, but it depends. Most of the time they go down in the last week and you know as well that 90 per cent of transfer activity happens in the last week, if not in the last 48 hours."

read more...

Napoli retain Balotelli hope

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis would prefer to see Mario Balotelli partner Edinson Cavani at the San Paolo than consider selling his star striker to Manchester City.



The Uruguayan forward fired Napoli back into third place in the Serie A table courtesy of a fine hat-trick in a 4-1 win over Roma, furthering his reputation as the envy of a host of top European clubs by bringing up his 20th goal of the season.



De Laurentiis has admitted rejecting a 55million euro (£45million) offer for Cavani from an unnamed club in the summer but revealed the 25-year-old does have a 63million euro (£51million) release clause in his contract.



City striker Balotelli has been mentioned as a potential makeweight should the Barclays Premier League champions look to bolster their forward line with Cavani, but De Laurentiis has other ideas.



He told Gazzetta.it: "City are considering letting Balotelli go so they can move for Cavani? I would prefer to see Balotelli playing with Cavani here at Napoli.



"Teams tend to hold onto their best players in January. You take a big risk making big investments now.



"There is still time for us to bring in new faces but we must be cautious. On January 31 you will see what moves Napoli have made."



Napoli's comfortable victory over Roma, in which Christian Maggio rounded off the scoring following Pablo Osvaldo's late response, sees the Campanian outfit return to the title race after suffering an uncomfortable end to 2012.



Four straight defeats in all competitions and a two-point deduction for alleged involvement in match-fixing saw Walter Mazzarri's men drift 10 points shy of league leaders Juventus.



Sunday night's win, coupled with Juve's surprise home defeat to Sampdoria, sees Napoli close to within two points of second-placed Lazio.



De Laurentiis added: "Are Napoli back on track? I say we have 39 points, 10 more than we had this time last year, because I'm not counting the two they took off us as a punishment.



"I think we'll get those points back and hopefully we'll get another 10 points on the pitch soon. Other teams have had a bad round and we can think about taking advantage.



"Napoli will definitely fight right until the end."



Meanwhile, European hopefuls Roma were left empty-handed and shell-shocked after being undone by Cavani inside 70 minutes.



General manager Franco Baldini told Gazzetta.it: "Cavani was the difference, he won the game, not only with his goals but because he both defended and attacked.



"He's not a candidate for the Ballon d'Or, because he is a no-frills player, but he should be among them. He's truly world class in this league."

read more...

Napoli Close in On Armero Signing

Udinese have confirmed that they are in advanced talks with Napoli over the sale of Colombian international Pablo Armero.



The 26-year-old was a target of Juventus over the summer, but it appears as though their Azzurri rivals have beat them to the signing.



“The deal is close to being defined,” Udinese President Franco Soldati told Radio Kiss Kiss.



“There are just a few details to iron out before it can be made official. Napoli sporting director Riccardo Bigon is in Udine to sort a few things out with the player’s agent.



“Pablo would do well to change scenery. He’s been on the edge of the side in recent weeks and hasn’t shined so far this season.”



“He’ll be able to express himself better in Naples and he’ll be able to give a lot to the Azzurri cause.”



Initial reports state that Armero will leave in a co-owership deal for €4 million before signing a four and half year contract with the Partenopei.



Armero, a 26-year-old left-sided player, will replace Andrea Dossena in the Napoli squad as the latter is set to join Palermo.



The 31-year-old Italian will only be allowed to leave the Azzurri once Armero’s signings is made official.

read more...

Cavani going nowhere

Napoli striker Edinson Cavani has pledged his future to the Italians in the face of reported interest from Premier League clubs.



With the start of the new season just a few weeks away, the rumour mill has been in full flow with the Uruguay international hit-man linked to both Chelsea and Premier League champions Manchester City.



Both clubs have the financial power to pull off any deal but the former Palermo star, who is currently representing his country at the London Olympics, made it clear where his loyalties lie, while refusing to rule out a move to England in the future.



"The big English clubs want me? I answer: Forza Napoli (Power Napoli)," he said.



"But it is said that English football is art, why not think about it one day if there is that possibility?"

City have yet to show their hand in the transfer market this summer, with boss Roberto Mancini revealing on Saturday that he expects at least two new players to join the club before the start of the defence of their title.



Chelsea have already brought in a few new players but appear to be in the mood to add another star or two to their ranks to try and get back in the top four next term.

read more...

Napoli sign Fiorentina duo

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has confirmed the double signing of Alessandro Gamberini and Valon Behrami from Fiorentina.



The two players passed medicals in Rome on Monday before sealing moves to the San Paolo.



"I want to make official the signing of Gamberini and Behrami," De Laurentiis told Radio Marte.



"We are in Rome, where the two players have completed their medicals.



"We were pursuing the two deals for two months. Gamberini and Behrami are two players that I believe the Neapolitans can identify with, also for their human values.



"The two boys have made an extraordinary impression on me, having already begun to get to know them in recent weeks. They are two good guys and have great human qualities.



"This is an important factor, even before the technical side of things. They are all part of a series of assessments that we have done that make us particularly happy with the two new signings."



Gamberini, who has been capped eight times by Italy, has been at Fiorentina since 2005, while Switzerland international Behrami only arrived at the Artemio Franchi from West Ham in January 2011.



It is believed that Napoli, who won the Coppa Italia last season, are also on the verge of signing Andrea Poli from Sampdoria after the midfielder' proposed move to Inter collapsed.

read more...

Milan ponder Dossena move

Milan have held initial talks with Napoli over full-back Andrea Dossena, according to the player’s representative.



The Rossoneri are in the market for a new left-back and the former Liverpool defender is one of their targets.



Dossena has fallen behind Juan Zuniga in the pecking order at San Paolo and he is now pondering summer exit.



The player’s representative has added fuel to the transfer talk by revealing that Milan and Napoli have spoken about his client.



“I spoke to Napoli, and they have had a chat with Milan, but Dossena’s contract lasts until 2014 so it is up to them,” agent Roberto La Florio said to Sky Sport 24.



“If Napoli decide against keeping him then a new scenario will open, especially considering we are talking about an experienced player who plays in the delicate position of left-back – and players of his type are difficult to find in this market.”



With Djamel Mesbah nearing a switch to Torino, Milan could stay with Luca Antonini as the only left-back in the squad and it is no wonder the Rossoneri are pondering a move for Andrea Dossena.



The 30-year-old managed to resurrect his career at San Paolo following a disappointing spell with Liverpool, but he is no longer considered a first team regular by Walter Mazzarri.

read more...

Cavani committed to Napoli

Edinson Cavani wants to remain at Napoli despite continued speculation linking him with a move to Juventus this summer.



The Uruguay international has attracted the attention of top European clubs including Manchester City after another excellent campaign with Napoli.



Reports in Italy claim scudetto winners Juventus have made a tempting offer to Napoli to buy the 25-year-old forward.



"I know nothing about Juventus," Cavani said to Corriere dello Sport. "I want to stay at Napoli."



Cavani was instrumental in Napoli's fifth-placed finish this season, scoring 23 goals in 35 league appearances.



Moreover, he helped the azzurri outfit win the Coppa Italia last month - Napoli's first silverware in 22 years.



Napoli slapped a 100million euros price tag on Cavani last year and the South American is under contract with the club until June 2015.

read more...