Football transfer news

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Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew has issued a plea to the club’s owner Mike Ashley to provide him with some spending money for January’s transfer window in order for the club to remain in the Premier League next season.

The Magpies are currently just two points above the relegation zone and are set to lose top scorer Demba Ba to Chelsea, and Pardew says the Senegal international must be replaced.

“Mike Ashley has been very supportive. And he has to be even more supportive in this window and he has to find the extra money for the striker,” he told the Telegraph.

“We’re not going to buy a striker for the money we’ve received for Demba.

“We try to get the best possible deal for the club, but we do have to take into account where we are. We are in a battle to secure our Premier League status and make no bones about that.”

While Pardew is keen to strengthen his squad he does admit that buying in the January transfer window can be tough.

“You have less options in this window, but it doesn’t mean to say it’s more difficult. There’s always a player who can enhance a team,” he added.

“We have a couple of strikers [on our list] who can play out wide, which would push [Yohan] Cabaye forward to play in a loose No 10 role for us, which is a role he’s done very well for us in the past. And we have a couple who would link up well with Papiss [Cisse] through the middle.

“It’s not just a striker that’s needed, but that’s going to depend a lot on how much the striker costs us.

“That’s something I think we’ll come to later in the window.

“The return to fitness of Steven Taylor and getting [Mathieu] Debuchy has helped us massively in defence, but I still think perhaps another one is what we need.”

The Newcastle boss has also move to assure fans that there will be no repeats of the Ba situation, with the striker’s release clause triggered by Chelsea.

“There was so much concern over Demba and it’s difficult for the players because they’re in the dark a little bit and I was,” Pardew concluded.

“But I look round the team now and we haven’t got that situation with any of the others, they’re all on long-term contracts and I don’t see any of them leaving in this window.”

EXCLUSIVE
By Greg Stobart

Tottenham have renewed their attempts to sign Porto midfielder Joao Moutinho as they look to bolster their squad ahead of a push for a top-four finish this season.

Andre Villas-Boas is desperate to add more creativity to his Spurs side and has made Moutinho his top priority for the January transfer window after a proposed £22 million (€27m) move for the playmaker collapsed on the final day of the summer window.

Moutinho had indicated that he had cooled on the idea of a move to White Hart Lane amid interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Zenit Saint Petersburg – but Tottenham have held fresh talks with Porto after receiving encouragement from the player’s representatives.

The north London club are also battling with Liverpool and Arsenal to land Lewis Holtby from Schalke as he enters the last six months of his contract – but a move for the German midfielder is considered separate to their pursuit of Moutinho.

Villas-Boas was left frustrated with the failure to land his top target last summer but, with the team currently sitting third in the Premier League, chairman Daniel Levy will attempt to back his manager and resurrect a deal for the Portugal international.

Tottenham’s chances of landing the €31m-rated 26-year-old are uncertain given Porto’s presence in the last 16 of the Champions League, with the Portuguese champions notoriously tough negotiators and in little need of cash after selling Hulk to Zenit for €39.5m in September.

Moutinho would also demand wages in excess of £100,000-a-week (€123,000) while the relationship between the clubs is frosty after Spurs were angered by Porto’s conduct in the summer as they ran out of time to complete a transfer before the deadline.

The Londoners have once again made Moutinho their No.1 target after Villas-Boas – who made a personal scouting trip to Porto’s Champions League clash with PSG last month – convinced Levy to make a fresh approach despite previously claiming a January bid for the former Sporting Lisbon man would be ‘highly unlikely’.

Spurs are considering alternatives to Moutinho who could improve their chances of a top-four finish and a place in next season’s Champions League.

In addition to talks over Holtby, an enquiry has been made to Ajax for their €18m-rated playmaker Christian Eriksen although the Dane expects to stay at the Dutch club until the end of the season, while Shakhtar Donetsk star Willian appears out of reach.

Villas-Boas is also keen to sign a striker and a winger but will only have the budget for one big-money signing in January, with Spurs wary of the need to look after their finances as they attempt to fund their new £400m stadium.

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