With Deco now at Chelsea and Ronaldinho having justed signed for AC Milan, should Eto'o follow his former teammates through the exit door? Or should he stay and fight for his place, even though being told he's not wanted by Barcelona.

For a player of Eto'o's caliber, there are many top clubs across Europe to choose from, however due to his high wage demands a move is proving difficult. The latest news on the Cameroon international is that he was offered a deal worth around 40 million euros from an Uzbekistan club, to play in the Asian Champions League for 3 to 6 months.

Eto'o has been reported to have done nothing to push himself away from the Catalan club , even after having been told by Pep Guardiola that he, Deco and Ronaldinho were no longer wanted.

I don't know what are your views are, but Eto'o is one of the best strikers in the world, and I think Barca are making a big mistake by forcing him out of the club. Suitable replacements have been mentioned, the most interesting to me is that of Dimitar Berbatov, but even though Berbatov is an excellent replacement, Eto'o is the better of the two.

So what do you think should Eto'o pack his bags?

Julio Baptista, who has been told that he is not in coach Bernd Schuster's plans, is apparently close to a Roma switch.
The club has been in the hunt for a top class striker, one who could possibly partner Francesco Totti upfront. The likes of Adrian Mutu, Vincenzo Iaquinta, Roman Pavluchenko, and Baptista were all mentioned, but it appears Baptista is the most realistic choice.
Former Roma stars Aldair and Toninho Cerezo, and the player's, agent have encouraged the move, and recent reports in the Italian press indicate that the transfer is soon to take place, as both parties want each other.
Baptista’s agent, Herminio Menendez is currently on business in China, and as soon as he returns, the transfer should take place swiftly. Reports earlier this week suggested that Roma made a bid of around 15 million euros for "The Beast".

Barcelona is still in the hunt for a new striker having told Samuel Eto'o that his services are no longer needed at the club. Eto'o has been shockingly linked to a move to a club in Uzbekistan, where they are said to offer him a huge contract, worth around 40 million euros to play for 3 to 6 months in the Asian Champions League.

Barca were originally after Adebayor, but Arsenal has become stubborn and has valued the player at about 36 million euros, a fee which the Catalan club is not prepared to meet. So with Adebayor out of the picture, it seems that Barca has set their sights on signing Dimitar Berbatov from Tottenham.

I have always been a fan of Berbatov since his move to the Premier League. He quickly emerged as one of the top strikers in England for his strength and delicate touch of the ball. I think he would be a good replacement for Eto'o, though I would hate to see the Cameroon international leave.

Berbatov is valued at around 25 million euros, a fee Barca wouldn't have any problems paying.

Though Berbatov is thought to be keen to move to Manchester United, it is believed he would welcome a move to the Nou Camp, and Juande Ramos could very well welcome the offer in order to snub his rivals.

Fresh off me having so much praise for Robinho in my last post, reports have suggested that Barcelona are ready to bring in the unsettled Madrid player.

Joan Laporta is desperate to get the fans back on his side after loosing the popular vote in the recent vote of no confidence against him and his board. Laporta and his team are now willing to spend big on a high profile player with the funds they have just received from Ronaldinho's move to Milan.

The names they have shortlisted include David Villa, Fernando Torres, Didier Drogba, Frédéric Kanouté, Carlos Tévez and Robinho. Of all these names, Barcelona seems to be most interested in Robinho as Pep Guardiola has made it know to Laporta, that if he could sign anyone right now it would be Robinho.

However they are questions as to how unsettled Robinho is, Calderon, Madrid's president, recently declared that Robinho is happy at the club and they will start giving the player the affection that he deserves. Calderon also went on to value the player well above 47.5 million pounds.

As a Barca fan I would love to see Robinho in a Barcelona jersey, but how willing would Madrid be to sell one of their stars to their direct rival. Though it has happened in the past, I find it highly unlikely.

This rumor is particularly nothing new, it has been said that Madrid are willing to include Robinho in the deal to sign Cristiano Ronaldo.
My view on this rumor, is that Real Madrid is stupid for wanting to bring Ronaldo to the La Liga in the first place. Although they can make a great deal of money from the player, Ronaldo in my opinion is not a good player. I apologize to all you Ronaldo fans out there but this guy is all lip and no action.
Ronaldo has been boastful, making stupid comments like "I'm the best", and even though he had a great season at Manchester, in which he scored a total of 31 league goals, he still fails to show up in big matches, and the Champions League semi-final and final where he missed penalties in both games is proof enough.
If Madrid were to swap Robinho for Ronaldo it would be a great lost to them. Robinho is a better player than Ronaldo, Yes! I said it. When Robinho first started playing at Madrid he was a lot like Ronaldo, selfish! He liked to keep the ball too much and not pass to open teammates which in tern hurt his team, just like Ronaldo with Portugal at Euro 2008. Robinho however changed his game using his speed and skill to find space for his teammates and of course he bangs in his chances when they come. Robinho is one of the main reasons Madrid are current La Liga champions, especially for his performances in the first half of the season.
I guess my biggest problem with Cristiano Ronaldo, is that he's not a team player, his selfishness hurts his team, and the style of play in Spain entails critical passes and technical finishing, the likes of which I haven't seen Ronaldo do. How often have you seen Ronaldo pass a ball that splits the defense in two?
Robinho wants to remain at Mardid, but he has stated that if the club wants to include him in a swap deal, he will buy out the remainder of his contract and move elsewhere, possibly Chelsea. Believe me guys Robinho would be a bigger hit at Chelsea than Ronaldo would be at Madrid, I would put money on it. So with all this said, my opinion on the matter is, Madrid should not swap Robinho for Ronaldo, as Robinho is the better player.

To the shock of many Real Zaragoza was relegated last season to the Spanish second division, despite having the likes of Diego Milito, Sergio Garcia and Pablo Aimar in their lineup. This just goes to show how competitive La Liga is and that the power balance within the league is spread quite evenly, unlike the English Premier League where you can choose a winner out of four clubs even before the season starts.
Benfica coach, Quique Flores has been tracking Aimar for sometime, and now the club is ready to recruit the Argentine international following the retirement of Rui Costa. Costa ironically is currently Benfica's sporting director and is trying to wrap up the deal.
According to reports, Aimar is to undergo a medical at the club today as Zargoza will only agree on the player's departure, after having received the transfer money from Benfica.
If the deal does go through Aimar will become Benfica's fourth signing of the summer.

Many international stars are being denied permission by their various clubs to participate at this year's Olympic games. Ronaldinho(Barcelona), Diego(Werder Bremen), Babel(Liverpool)and Kaka(AC Milan), just to name a few, have all been told by their respective clubs, that they do not have permission to play at this year's Olympics.
This just brings me back to the question of how important international football is, when a club can deny a player from playing for his country.
Obviously playing for one's country is very important for these players, as many of them are gutted when not selected, they value it highly and see it as a great honor.
However clubs in my opinion do have an argument, they invested in these players and are hardly ever compensated when a player is injured on international duty.
So what do you think? Is it wrong for clubs to deny players from playing at the Olympics for their country? Does club come first? Or does country come first? What are your thoughts?

AC Milan vice president Adriano Galliani, has claimed that he has withdrawn interest in Adebayor, and is currently focused on securing the services of the top players at Milan, beginning with Kaka.
Kaka has been targeted by Chelsea since the appointment of Luiz Felipe Scolari, and Galliani is said to be willing to make sacrifices to ensure the player stays at Milan, which means they are likely not to sign Adebayor this summer.
Ronaldinho, who is currently being disloyal to Barcelona, by insisting that he will play at this year's Olympics, is said to be almost back to his best. This according to Brazilian national team fitness coach, Paulo Paixao, who is currently supervising Ronaldinho's recovery. Speaking of Ronaldinho in an interview yesterday, he said, "He is very happy and motivated," "He has rediscovered his joy, and is once again the Ronaldinho we all knew." "He has been very cooperative in the work we are doing to improve his physical form, and take him back to his best." "Even though he has been idle for a long time, he may already be in top shape by the 22nd of July."
Ronaldinho's defiance and his desire to play at the Olympics despite Barcelona not wanting him to go, insists that the player has made up his mind and probably doesn't even consider himself a Barca player anymore. Barca has been rumored to be responsible for the player's lack of form, due to their ill treatment of the former World Player of the Year.
A transfer fee of around 15 million euros is believed to have been agreed between AC Milan and Barcelona, with Ronaldinho being paid 6.5 million euros annually.

With both Ronaldinho and Eto'o out of Pep Guadiola's plans, they were said to be destined on their way out. However due to their high wage demands many clubs have lost or are loosing interest in both these players.
Eto'o is actually in no hurry to leave the Nou Camp and is said to be keen on staying, despite being practically told to find a new club. Eto'o is still currently on holiday, and is said to sit with the officials, to see what they have to say when he returns next week for pre-season training.
Ronaldinho on the other hand has drawn much attention from AC Milan. The club is having a long transfer saga with the player, and the latest news is that owner, Silvio Berlusconi has said that Barcelona is still asking too much for the player. Apparently anything in excess of 20 million euros is too much, as Milan is still trying to sign Adebayor from Arsenal, which is said to cost them around 30 million euros. This just makes me ponder. I wonder if they are trying to sign both Ronaldinho and Adebayor but I highly doubt it, especially after Milan's vice-president Adriano Galliani ruled out a double swoop.
So what does this all mean? It just means that Barcelona fans could possibly get to see two of the best players in the team, stay at the club. I am not a fan of Pep's idea to sell Eto'o and Ronaldinho. He should and eventually will, sit with both players and see what are their ambitions. Eto'o without a doubt in my mind wants to stay, and Ronaldinho though said to be keen on a move to Milan, will only move if the right offer is made. As a fan of both these players, I'm still hopeful that at least one of them will stay. Given the chance, I'm confident that they will perform and win more titles for Barca.

The transfer that has been getting the most hype in the media for sometime now, is none other than the possible move of Emmanuel Adebayor to a new club. To the surprise of many, Adebayor has drawn the most attention this transfer season, and even though he managed to finish second in the goal scoring charts of the EPL, this comes as a shock to many.
AC Milan and Barcelona are the two main clubs who have been after the Togolese hitman since the beginning of the transfer window. But it was always thought that the player was more keen on a move to the San Siro.
Arsene Wenger, a manger who never likes to loose his stars, was insisting that the player would stay, but later dismissed these comments by stating that the club will have to sell its top players every season, in order to pay for their new stadium at the Emirates.
Adebayor is apparently keen on more money, having stated that he will play like Henry when he is payed like Henry, and Arsenal were said to be keen to give the player one more chance by doubling his current pay.
However new rumors have surfaced through the Italian press that the Rosserneri and Arsenal have agreed a fee for Adebayor, having received word from Arsenal that they are ready to sell. According to the report, Milan will pay 30 million euros for Adebayor and include France Under-21 international Yoann Gourcuff in the deal.
Gorcuff is said to have been one of the highly rated young talents throughout Europe, who joined Milan in 2006. However having failed to impress at Milan, the midfielder was loaned out to Bordeaux for next season. Wenger is said to be fond of the player and would welcome the deal.
Milan general manager, Adriano Galliani, is said to be hoping to wrap up the deal by next Wednesday, the 16th of July and although Adebayor will move immediately, it said that Arsenal won't get Yoann Gourcuff until his loan spell with Bordeaux ends in June 2009.
Adebayor will be the third player to move away from the Emirates this season if the deal does pull through, but I'm just curious, what does this all mean for Arsenal and their title hopes for next season? With Flamini already at AC Milan, Hleb said to complete a medical at Barcelona soon and now Adebayor on his way out, this can't be good for the club. And it doesn't help their stability at all. Besides scrambling to find new players, when these new players do arrive, how productive will Arsenal be. My only thought is that if Arsenal do manage to win the Premier League next season, Arsene Wenger is one hell of a manager.