The last of transfers from this transfer window…
Latest updates: Thursday 1 September

From Tottenham Hotspur: Striker PETER CROUCH to Stoke City for a fee of £10 million. The England international has signed a four year contract. He is the third Spurs player to have joined Stoke in this transfer window (the other two being Jonathan Woodgate and Wilson Palacios).

From Tottenham Hotspur: Right back ALAN HUTTON to Aston Villa on a four year contract.

From Birmingham City: Striker CAMERON JEROME to Stoke City on a four year deal.

From Liverpool: Midfielder RAUL MEIRELES to Chelsea for a fee of £12 million. The Portuguese international has signed a four year contract.

From Everton: Midfielder MIKEL ARTETA to Arsenal for a fee of £10 million.

From Manchester City: Midfielder CRAIG BELLAMY to Liverpool on a free transfer. The Wales international has signed a two year contract with the club he previously spent the 2006/07 season.

From West Ham United: Midfielder SCOTT PARKER to Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of £5.5 million. In the deal David Bentley will also go on a season long loan from Tottenham to West Ham.

From Birmingham City: Centre back SCOTT DANN to Blackburn Rovers for a fee of £6 million.

From Manchester United: Midfielder OWEN HARGREAVES to Manchester City on a free transfer. The injury plagued, former England international, has signed a one year deal.

From Palermo: Midfielder ANTONIO NOCERINO to AC Milan on a five year deal.

From Borussia Mönchengladbach: Midfielder MICHAEL BRADLEY to Chievo Verona on a two year deal.

From Sunderland: Centre back ANTON FERDINAND to Queens Park Rangers for a fee of £4 million.

From River Plate: Right back MAXIMILIANO PEREYRA to Udinese on a five year deal.

From Celtic: Winger SHAUN MALONEY to Wigan Athletic for a fee of £1 million.

From Liverpool: Striker DAVID NGOG to Bolton Wanderers after having spent three years at Anfield.

From SV Ried: Midfielder DANIEL ROYER to Hannover 96 on a four year deal.

From Manchester City: Winger SHAUN WRIGHT-PHILLIPS to Queens Park Rangers for a fee of £3 million.

From Fenerbache: Centre back DIEGO LUGANO to Paris Saint-Germain on a three year contract.

From Hamburger SV: Winger ELJERO ELIA to Juventus on a four year deal.

From FC Twente: Striker BRYAN RUIZ to Fulham for a fee of £10.6 million.

From Nacional: Centre back SEBASTIAN COATES to Liverpool for an undisclosed fee.

From Atletico Madrid: Midfielder ELIAS to Sporting Clube de Portugal for a fee of €8.8 million. The Brazilian has signed a five year contract.

From Auxerre: Striker IRENEUSZ JELEN to Lille on a free transfer.

From Internazionale: Full back DAVIDE SANTON to Newcastle United on a five year deal.

From Sevilla: Right back MOUHAMADOU DABO to Olympique Lyonnais on a four year contract.

From Napoli: Centre back VICTOR RUIZ to Valencia on a five year deal.

From Almeria: Winger ALBERT CRUSAT to Wigan Athletic for a fee of around £2 million.

From AS Monaco: Striker PARK CHU-YOUNG to Arsenal for a fee of around £3 million.

From Red Bull Salzburg: Goalkeeper GERHARD TREMMEL to Swansea City on a free transfer.

From AEK Athens: Midfielder PAPA BOUBA DIOP to West Ham United on a free transfer.

From Werder Bremen: Centre back PER MERTESACKER to Arsenal for a fee of €9 million.

From Fenerbache: Left back ANDRE SANTOS to Arsenal in a £6.2 million deal.

From Atlético Madrid: Striker DIEGO FORLAN to Internazionale on a two year deal. The Uruguayan veteran has been brought in to fill the gap after Eto’o left the club.

From Tottenham Hotspur: Midfielder WILSON PALACIOS to Stoke City for a fee of £6 million.

From AS Monaco: Defender CEDRIC MONGONGU to Evian on a four year deal.

From Newcastle United: Midfielder JOEY BARTON to Queens Park Rangers on a free transfer. The 29 year old has signed a four year contract.

From Aston Villa: Right back LUKE YOUNG to Queens Park Rangers on a three year deal.

From Liverpool: Left back EMILIANO INSUA to Sporting Clube de Portugal on a five year deal.

From Cesena: Forward EMANUELE GIACCHERINI to Juventus for a fee of €3 million.

From Espanyol: Striker PABLO OSVALDO to AS Roma for a fee of €17.5 million.

It only took 20 minutes for Robbie Keane to deliver his first goal for LA Galaxy. Keane was played through by David Beckham and showed off his confident experience rounding the goalkeeper before putting the ball into the net. Keane, who is Ireland’s all-time greatest goal scorer, followed up by showing off his famous cartwheel celebration in front of the sold-out 27,000-capacity stadium.
Keane’s wife Claudine cheered on from the stands with other family members as he played 70 minutes of the match, which LA Galaxy won 2-0 against San Jose Earthquakes. Manager Bruce Arena said they’re elated with Robbie at the club. Keane has still got in in him and could be a great goal scorer in the Major Soccer League.

Tags: ireland, la galaxy

Former England manager Sven-Göran Eriksson is the man who shall lead Leicester City back to the top tier of English football. He is to do what Ian Holloway, Nigel Pearson and Paulo Suosa failed to achieve. In fact there has been a long string of managers since Martin O’Neill left the club in June 2000. O’Neill took the club to the Premiership in 1996, followed by four successive top ten finishes. Under O’Neill the club won the League Cup in 1997 & 2000 and were runners-up in 1999. They were relegated after the 2001/02 season but went straight back up the next season, however the 2003/04 season is so far their last in the Premier League.

In 2002, soon after having moved into their new stadium, Leicester went into administration with debts of more than £30 million. A consortium led by former great Gary Lineker managed to get the club back on its feet. In 2008 they hit further lows as they were relegated to League One, the only time in Leicester’s long history outside the top two tiers of English football. That was the end of Ian Holloway and he was replaced by Nigel Pearson. They were promotoed back to the Championship after only one season, as League One champions. The following season the reached they play-offs for promotion to the Premier League but failed to take the step up. Pearson was then replaced by Suosa ahead of last season but they had a disastrous start to the season and he was sacked in October. Under newly appointed Sven-Göran Eriksson the club recovered to a 10th place finish.

Sven-Göran Eriksson has a solid track record and the Foxes faithfuls hope he can bring them a new O’Neill era of success. In his native Sweden he lifted IFK Göteborg to European prominence by winning the UEFA Cup in 1982. That led him to Portuguese giants Benfica, where he won several titles, followed by more titles won with Italian clubs AS Roma, Sampdoria and Lazio. After having been Lazio’s most successful ever manager, Eriksson went on to manage Manchester City and the national teams of England, Mexico and Côte d’Ivoire before his move to Leicester City.

Eriksson has had the financial backing from the Thai-based Asia Football Investments consortium who now owns the club. He has been very active in the transfer market and complemented the squad with several strong signings. He had already in January brought in Souleymane Bamba, a 26 year old Ivory Coast defender, who he knew from his recent spell as coach for the Côte d’Ivoire national side. Japan international defensive midfielder Yuki Abe had arrived at the club ahead of last season.

In this transfer window Eriksson has captured:
Goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel from Leeds United, a 24 year old Denmark international.
Right back Lee Peltier from Huddersfield Town, a 24 year old who can also play as a midfielder.
Right back John Paintsil from Fulham, a 30 year old Ghanaian international.
Left back Paul Konchesky from Liverpool, a 30 year old former England international.
Centre back Matt Mills from Reading, a 25 year old former England U19, named new captain by Eriksson.
Centre back Sean St Ledger from Preston North End, a 26 year old Ireland international.
Midfielder Neil Danns from Crystal Palace, a 28 year old who previously played in the EPL for Birmingham.
Striker David Nugent from Portsmouth, a 26 year old with one England cap.

He has also signed midfielder Michael Johnson on a season long loan from Manchester City and Gelson Fernandes, a Swiss international on loan from St Etienne, which could become permanent.

The squad already boasted the young midfielder Andy King, a Wales international who will turn 23 in a couple of months time. There is also plenty of experience to draw from the likes of midfielder Richie Wellens, a 31 year old and the club’s 2011 Player of the Year, midfielder Matt Oakley, a 33 year old former U21 player for England, the 33 year old former Switzerland international, Bruno Berner who plays both in midfield and defense. There is also winger Lloyd Dyer who has wowed to stay on and fight for his place, while the injury prone centre back Aleksandar Tunchev, a 30 year old Bulgarian international, has been sent on a one month loan to Crystal Palace.

Leicester played their season opener away to Coventry. They took home all three points after Lee Peltier nodded home a perfect cross from Richie Wellens. The first step of a long 2011/12 season.

Tags: championship

Regular updates with all the transfer news as they happen through this transfer window..
Latest updates: Thursday 25 August

From Arsenal: Midfielder SAMIR NASRI to Manchester City for a fee of £25 million. The France international has signed a four year deal and claims he likes the City fans better than Arsenal’s.

From Chelsea: Centre back SLOBODAN RAJKOVIC to Hamburger SV on a four year contract.

From Sporting Clube de Portugal: Midfielder SIMON VUKCEVIC to Blackburn Rovers for £2 million. The Montenegro international has signed a three year contract.

From Internazionale: Striker SAMUEL ETO’O to Anzhi Makhachkala on a three year deal. The Cameroon international will be the world’s highest paid footballer during his time at the Russian club.

From Paniani: Striker MOHAMED CHALALI has made the move from Greece to Scottish club Aberdeen.

From Liverpool: Centre back SOTIRIOS KYRGIAKOS to Wolfsburg on a two year deal.

From AZ Alkmaar: Goalkeeper SERGIO ROMERO to Sampdoria for a fee of €3.5 million.

From Southampton: Left back JOSEPH MILLS to Reading on a one year contract.

From Manchester City: Winger VLADIMIR WEISS to Dynamo Kiev for a fee of £4 million. The Slovakia international has spent most of his time in Britain out on loan, first with Bolton Wanderers and later with Rangers.

From Valencia: Winger JUAN MATA to Chelsea for a fee of £23.5 million.

From Liverpool: Striker NABIL EL ZHAR to Levante on a free transfer. The Moroccan international has signed a two year deal with the Spanish club. He spent last season on loan with Greek club PAOK F.C.

From Porto: Striker RADAMEL FALCAO to Atlético Madrid for a fee of €40 million.

From Saint-Étienne: Defender CARLOS BOCANEGRA to Rangers. The USA international has signed a three year deal.

From Örebro: Midfielder ALEJANDRO BEDOYA to Rangers. The USA international has signed a three year deal.

From West Ham United: Midfielder THOMAS HITZLSPERGER to Wolfsburg on a free transfer. The 29 year old Germany international has signed a three year deal.

From Tottenham Hotspur: Striker ROBBIE KEANE to LA Galaxy for a fee of £3.5 million. The all time top scorer for his national side Ireland is also 9th on the all time top scorer list for Spurs.

From West Bromwich Albion: Striker ISHMAEL MILLER to Notthingham Forest for a fee of £1.2 million. The 24 year old has signed a three year contract.

From Standard Liège: Defender ELIAQUIM MANGALA to FC Porto on a five year deal.

From Standard Liège: Midfielder STEVEN DEFOUR to FC Porto for a fee of €6 million. The Belgium international has signed a five year contract.

From Hércules CF: Striker HAEDO VALDEZ to Rubin Kazan on a four year deal.

From Liverpool: Centre back DANIEL AYALA to Norwich City for a fee of £800,000.

From Arsenal: Midfielder CESC FABREGAS to Barcelona in a deal believed to be worth around £35 million. The 25 year-old has finally returned to the club he first joined as a ten year old. Fabregas has signed a five year contract.

From Gremio Prudente: Right back BRUNO RIBEIRO to Blackburn Rovers on a three year contract. The Brazilian 28 year old has spent pre-season with Premier League club and has been issued with a UK work permit.

From Tombense: Defender BRUNO PERONE to Queens Park Rangers. The Brazilian 24 year old has signed a one year deal.

From Newcastle United: Left back JOSE ENRIQUE to Liverpool for a fee of £6 million.

From Reading: Striker SHANE LONG to West Bromwich Albion for a fee of £4.5 million. The Ireland international has signed a three year deal.

From West Ham United: Defender MATTHEW UPSON to Stoke City on a free transfer.

From FK Partizan: Midfielder RADOSAV PETROVIC to Blackburn Rovers for a fee of £3 million.

From Manchester United: Winger GABRIEL OBERTAN to Newcastle United on a five year deal.

From Southampton: Winger ALEX OXLADE-CHAMBERLAIN to Arsenal in what could be a potential £10 million deal.

From Anderlecht: Striker ROMELU LUKAKU to Chelsea. The 18-year-old Belgium international has been linked with the Blues throughout this transfer window. The move is now subject to the player passing a medical and agreeing personal terms.

From Chelsea: Midfielder YURI ZHIRKOV to Anzhi Makhachkala on a four year deal.

From FC Utrecht: Goalkeeper MICHEL VORM to Swansea City for a fee of £1.5 million.

From Ipswich Town: Goalkeeper MARTIN FULOP to West Bromwich Albion on a one year deal.

From Aston Villa: Striker JOHN CAREW on a free transfer to West Ham United.

From Liverpool: Winger MILAN JOVANOVIC to Anderlecht. The Serbia international has signed a two year deal with the Belgian side, only one year after he arrived at Liverpool from Standard Liège.

From Politehnica Timisoara: Goalkeeper COSTEL PANTILIMON to Manchester City. The 24 year old Romania international is to provide back-up to Joe Hart following Shay Given’s move to Aston Villa.

From Barcelona: Midfielder ORIOL ROMEU to Chelsea on a four year contract.

From Blackpool: Striker DJ CAMPBELL to Queens Park Rangers on a two year deal.

From Hibernian: Striker RICARDO VAZ TE to Barnsley on a one year contract.

From Dundee United: Striker DAVID GOODWILLIE to Blackburn Rovers on a four year deal.

From Burnley: Right back GRAHAM ALEXANDER to Preston North End on a one year deal.

From Sunderland: Midfielder STEED MALBRANQUE to St Etienne on a two year deal.

From Benfica: Goalkeeper ROBERTO GAGO to Real Zaragoza on a five year deal.

From Ajax: Goalkeeper MAARTEN STEKELENBURG to AS Roma for a €6.3 million fee.

From Palermo: Midfielder JAVIER PASTORE to Paris Saint Germain for a fee of €43 million. The highly sought after Argentina international has signed a five year deal.

From VfB Stuttgart: Winger CIPRIAN MARICA to Schalke 04 on a free transfer. The Romania international has signed a two year contract.

From Newcastle United: Winger WAYNE ROUTLEDGE to Swansea City for a fee of £1.8 million.

From Fiorentina: Goalkeeper SEBASTIEN FREY to Genoa on a five year deal.

From Middlesbrough: Striker LEROY LITA to Swansea City for a fee of £1.75 million.

From Burnley: Winger CHRIS EAGLES to Bolton Wanderers on a three year contract.

From Burnley: Right back TYRONE MEARS to Bolton Wanderers on a three year contract.

From Juventus: Midfielder MOHAMED SISSOKO to Paris Saint Germain for a fee of €7 million.

From Palermo: Goalkeeper SALVATORE SIRIGU to Paris Saint Germain on a four year contract.

From Atlético Madrid: Striker SERGIO AGÜERO to Manchester City on a £38 million deal. The Argentina international has signed a five year contract.

From Villarreal: Midfielder SANTIAGO CAZORLA to Málaga for €19 million.

From Aston Villa: Midfielder NIGEL REO-COKER to Bolton Wanderers on a free transfer.

I watched Uruguay beat Paraguay 3-0 with more than 3000 fans on a giant television screen set up in Montevideo’s central avenue. It turned into one amazing big party, with more people taking to the streets. Many with their faces painted sky blue, wrapped in Uruguayan flags, singing and chanting between drums and trumpets and car horns. This was a celebration of Uruguayan pride and the success of Óscar Tabárez’ Los Charrúas team, winning a record 15th Copa América. One more than this year’s hosts Argentina.
This team has followed up a strong World Cup campaign last year with some solid and skilled football. Luis Suárez was named player of the tournament, Sebastian Coates best young player and Uruguay also got the Fair Play Trophy. Suárez scored the first goal in the final, his fourth in the tournament. Diego Forlán scored the other two and became historic in several ways. Like his father and grand-father he is now a Copa América winner, he has equaled legendary Héctor Scarone as the country’s top scorer with 31 goals and during the tournament Forlán is now also the most capped player with 82 appearances. In this Copa América Álvaro Pereira also scored two and Diego Pérez one for Uruguay.
When the players returned to Montevideo in the early hours of Monday morning some 60 000 fans greeted them in the historic Centenario stadium. Thousands more crowded the team bus as they drove in from the airport. Everyone had partied all night and were delirious when the team finally turned up at the stadium.

 

Uruguay has been the success story at this Copa América, cementing their place as one of the best teams in the world. Argentina and Brazil, the giants of South America, both have a lot lacking from their game. Despite having more stars to pick and choose between they have plenty of work to do before the 2014 World Cup kicks off in Brazil. Uruguay will also be looking towards the World Cup qualifiers when they have sobered up from the Copa celebrations. Uruguayan football looks in good shape, with the U-17 team reaching the final in their world cup earlier in the month and their U-20 team amongst the favourites in their world cup starting next week.

Honourable mentions to Paraguay, reaching the final in this Copa but falling well short against a strong Uruguayan side. In the play-offs for third place Peru convincingly beat Venezuela 4-1, after a hattrick from Paolo Guerrero. This also earnt the Hamburger SV striker the top scorer title with five goals in the tournament.

Team of the tournament (3-4-2-1): Justo Villar (PAR); Darío Verón (PAR), Diego Lugano (URU), Oswaldo Vizcarrondo (VEN); Maicon (BRA), Carlos Sánchez (COL), Tomás Rincón (VEN), Alvaro Pereira (URU); Alexis Sánchez (CHL), Luis Suárez (URU); Paolo Guerrero (PER)

The next Copa América will take place in Brazil in 2015, the year after they host the World Cup.