Ferguson rules out van der Vaart move and Tony Pulis plays down Crouch interest
Manchester united manager, Sir Alex Ferguson has said that he is not going to make any more summer signings in this window. The United manager also specified that the speculation of Real Madrid midfielder, Rafael van der Vaart coming to Old Trafford has no truth to it.
Van der Vaart had long been linked with a move out of Real Madrid ever since Jose Mourinho took over the club. Mourinho has signed number of midfielders since taking over; Meust Ozil and Sami Khedira are the 2 midfielders that are believed to be at the forefront of Mourinho’s plans in the new season.
Van der Vaart had said that he does want to stay at Madrid, but the club needs to clarify his position and assure him that he will be getting first team football. The Dutch midfielder had expressed his concerns and said that he is at a stage of his career where he cannot afford to be a fringe player and should be in a team where he is guaranteed first team football.
Since then he had been linked with a move to Old Trafford, and with United also in need of a left sided midfieler the move did look likely. However after the clear denial by United boss, Sir Alex Ferguson, the future of van der Vaart still remains unclear.
Ferguson said that he has covered all positions in his team, and is not looking to add to his squad this summer. Robert Geerling, the agent of van der Vaart, has said that his client is not planning to stay at Bernabeu and fight for his place.
Robert said that despite the speculations and rumours that Rafael will not be selected by Mourinho, there have been no suggestions from the board or the manager that he should leave. He added that Rafael is a capable player and can make his way in Mourinho’s team.
Meanwhile Tony Pulis, the manager for Stoke City has said that Tottenham’s striker Peter Crouch is not heading to Britannia stadium. There were reports in British media that Pulis was pursuing the former Liverpool striker to add to his attacking options.
The 6 foot 7 inch England striker has been the topic of debate at White Hart Lane, as he is believed not to be at the centre of Redknapp’s plans, this season. However, the Tottenham boss, Redknapp has said that he does not plan to off load Crouch and will use him when needed.
Pulis said that even though he admires Crouch, and knows that he will be a great addition to his squad but the price tag on the front man is beyond the reach of Stoke City.
Pulis is still looking in the market for a striker, as he is short handed by a long term injury to his front man Mamady Sidibe. Pulis is believed to be interested in singing the Cardiff attacker, Jay Bothroyd but has not made any confirmations yet. Bothroyd is believed to be unsure of his place in the Cardiff team following the loan signing of Manchester City striker, Craig Bellamy.
The Stoke manager also said that, before the transfer window ends there will be some players leaving the club. When asked about the Turkish midfielder Tuncay’s future, Pulis said that nothing has been finalized about his future for now.
Pulis said that when the transfer window opened he was looking to sign around 4 players, but with injury to Mamady Sidibe and some players leaving the club the last week will be busy for the club.
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