Football transfer news

Athletic Bilbao striker Fernando Llorente has reaffirmed his desire to move to the Premier League when his contract expires at the end of the season.

Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham have all been linked with the Basque target man in the past, and will be buoyed by Llorente’s preference to move to England.

The Spanish forward, who has scored just one goal in La Liga this year, can begin negotiating with clubs outside Spain from the start of January.

“It is true that we are approaching the date when I can sign for other clubs,” Llorente told Revista de La Liga.

“I really like the Premier League and I’ve mentioned on more than one occasion that it’s a league which appeals to me a lot.

“You never know. It’s one good option in terms of my future but we’ll have to wait until the end of the season to see what happens.”

Llorente rejected claims that a deal was already in place with Juventus, and stated that his current focus is solely on current club Athletic Bilbao.

“No. That’s totally untrue,” Llorente continued.

“I think it’s normal that people talk about these things, but ultimately you have to respect the rules.

“I am an Athletic player and, until January 1, I cannot sign with any other team.

“I’m trying to keep it so that it is something which is managed by my brother and my representatives. That leaves me to focus in my football and help my team, Athletic, and nothing else, maintain focus.”

Hans-Joachim Watzke has stated his belief that clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool would be a step down for Borussia Dortmund star Mario Gotze.

The Germany international is continually being linked with a move abroad, but the CEO of the Bundesliga holders is adamant the midfielder would have more chance of winning silverware at his current club than at one of the Premier League sides.

“Mario has said that he has no intention of leaving the club in the foreseeable future and his representatives have said the same. And we will not let go of him,” Watzke told Sport Bild.

“How many teams are there really that would be a step up for him? Liverpool or Arsenal? I’m sorry, but when will they win a title again? Not anytime soon…”

Watzke then went onto discuss BVB’s chances of Champions League success and was under no illusions as to the strength of the competition that they will face in the knockout stages.

“There are at least five or six teams that have a better chance of winning the competition. However, the gap with the top five in Europe is not too big,” the supremo concluded.

The draw for the Champions League round of 16 takes place in Nyon on December 20.

Stoke City keeper Asmir Begovic has admitted that he is flattered by the interest shown in him by Premier League rivals Manchester United and Liverpool.

The former Portsmouth man has been linked with moves to both Old Trafford and Anfield although, as exclusively revealed by Goal.com, Liverpool are also eyeing Jack Butland, with Arsenal preparing to move for Pepe Reina.

The Bosnia-Herzegovina No.1 has impressed with his performances at the Britannia Stadium as Tony Pulis’ side have kept more clean sheets than any other team this season, but he insists he has no immediate plans to leave.

“It’s very flattering,” Begovic told Sky Sports News. “It’s positive feedback from other teams that people are looking at you and mentioning you with those teams.

“It’s no secret that everyone has their own ambitions and they want to be playing at the highest level possible.

“But right now I’m just focused on taking Stoke forward and I think the club here has a lot of ambitions; the chairman, the manager and everyone else included.

“So we just want to keep pushing this club forwards and see how far we can take it.”

With Spain in economic decline, many clubs and players face uncertain futures as next summer approaches.

So while teams in the lower leagues are fighting just to stay in business, many footballers will also be concerned as their contracts run down at the end of the season.

Every club in the Primera Division look set to release a few first-team performers come the end of June. Real Madrid will be happy to shift Ricardo Carvalho from their wage bill, with the Portuguese virtually unused in 2012-13, but Barcelona will renew both Carles Puyol and Cristian Tello before their terms expire. The Catalan giants must also decide on the future of full-back Eric Abidal, who is still recovering from a liver transplant and sees his current deal run out in the summer. Meanwhile, goalkeeper Jose Pinto could yet leave Camp Nou on a free transfer.

But the biggest star to leave this summer will be Athletic Bilbao striker Fernando Llorente, who has already announced his intention to depart at the end of the current campaign, alerting a host of interested suitors chasing his signature for next season.

Espanyol’s Joan Verdu, Sevilla’s Andres Palop and Malaga’s Joaquin are three more of the many players in La Liga who will see their contracts expire in the summer, and it remains to be seen whether they can agree new deals or will end up moving on to pastures new.

Below, Goal.com gives you a club-by-club guide on all of the Liga players who could become free agents come June 30.

*Set to sign new deals in the coming weeks 

With the winter transfer window opening in less than three weeks’ time, Serie A’s clubs are running the risk of losing those players whose deals run out in the summer, and Walter Samuel and Christian Abbiati head the list of footballers who have the ability to sign pre-contract agreements with a new side without their present employers’ say-so once 2013 arrives.

The Inter centre-back has the option of an extra year on his deal at Appiano Gentile, which would allow him to extend his current contract until the summer of 2014, but as things stand the Argentine could open talks with another club come January 1.

Meanwhile, AC Milan club captain Massimo Ambrosini could mark his 15-year anniversary with the club by waving goodbye in the New Year. He is also approaching the final six months of his deal, a similar scenario to goalkeeper Abbiati, who has largely remained as the Rossoneri‘s first-choice shot-stopper for the past five seasons. The two 35-year-olds have not come to any agreement over new terms with the Diavolo, and, with the club having decided in recent seasons to wait until late in the campaign to discuss new deals, there is room for the players in question to manoeuvre.

Elsewhere, names such as Vincenzo Iaquinta, Andrea Consigli, Fabrizio Miccoli and Rolando Bianchi stand out among those who are available on free transfers across Serie A, while Javier Zanetti’s contract at Inter is also up for renewal come next June, but the chances of him appearing in another club’s shirt are remote at the very least.

Champions Juventus are one of four clubs who have just two players left to negotiate with or run the risk of losing, while Chievo and Siena are the two outfits facing a busy 2013 in the transfer market, with 14 of their squad members still uncertain of their whereabouts come September 1 next year.

Below, Goal.com gives you a club-by-club guide on all of the Serie A players who could become free agents come June 30.

*Current contract includes a club option to extend until 2014*Current contract includes a club option to extend until 2015