We’re already in the middle of June, and though the signings haven’t been coming hard and fast just yet, that doesn’t mean that there’s a shortage of action thus far in the summer transfer window.

In this morning’s transfer news and rumors roundup, we’ve got tidbits from England, Spain, Italy, Germany, France, and Greece, with many big names and big clubs looking to spend, spend, spend. Some of the rumors are pretty concrete, while there is at least one in the bunch that, like Manchester United being linked with a move for Fernando Torres, are a little head-scratching, to say the least.

There are also a couple of signings to report, and remember, to keep up with all of the latest confirmed signings, check out our summer 2009 transfer lists.

England

Manchester United After Valencia Stars

There has been a great deal of speculation over the last few days about what Manchester United are going to do with the money they get from selling Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid, and it could be that a sizable chunk of those funds go towards signing Valencia stars David Villa and David Silva.

United are reportedly set to make a £45m bid for Villa (The Mirror). The competition could wide open between United, Barcelona (Sky Sports), and Chelsea for Villa, as his potential move to Real Madrid appears to have broken down (Daily Mail).

Meanwhile. Rafa Benitez might not like hearing about United making a concerted effort to land Silva, as the winger has been a target for Benitez for a while now but could be the subject of a £25m bid from United. (The Mirror)

Analysis: £25m looks to certainly be enough to land Silva, but even though they could outbid Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Chelsea for Villa, they could be out of luck if Villa prefers the chance to stay in Spain. Of course, if Barcelona land Villa, that’d all but free up the opportunity for a United move for Samuel Eto’o.

United and Boro In Downing Swap Deal?

Middlesbrough are heavily interested in Manchester United duo Paul Scholes and Gary Neville, and there are reports that they could offer Stewart Downing to United to try to make a deal happen. (The Mirror)

Analysis: Both Scholes and Neville could be reluctant for such a move, but even so, it’d seem like United would come out a lot better in this deal, especially if they didn’t have to spend much of that sizable transfer kitty on purchasing Downing.

Costa On Shortlist To Replace Ronaldo?

Along with the moves mentioned above, United could be set to swoop for Gremio starlet Douglas Costa. (Sky Sports)

Analysis: Brazil’s becoming more and more of a hotspot for United, and signing a prospect of Costa’s ability and potential would be worth the fee United may have to stump up. He’s only 18, so he’s more one for the future and wouldn’t be expected to step in and star right away. But as Ronaldo did when he arrived at United, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him earn first-team opportunities immediately.

Bolton Lead Race For Veloso?

Bolton are back in for Sporting Lisbon midfielder Miguel Veloso, and after refusing to overbid for Veloso in January, could be in with a £10.2m offer for the 23-year-old, who’s also been linked with Arsenal. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: £10.2m is still a little lower than Sporting might like to get for Veloso, but it could be a sign that Bolton are willing to fork out a little more in order to land him.

Bentley And Huddlestone To Sign For Villa?

It could only be a matter of time before Aston Villa seal the deal on a couple of new signings, as there are reports that they are close on Tottenham pair David Bentley (Goal.com) and Tom Huddlestone (Birmingham Mail).

Analysis: Considering their interest in Bentley, Huddlestone, and Jermaine Jenas, I’m surprised they haven’t been strongly linked with Darren Bent or Roman Pavlyuchenko, considering a forward should also be on their summer wishlist.

Several Sides Interested In Newcastle’s Martins

Arsenal, Aston Villa, and Everton are all interested in Newcastle striker Obafemi Martins (Tribal Football), but they could face competition from a mystery Bundesliga club (Tribal Football).

Analysis: Everton would be a great fit, considering the familiar faces that would await, but wages would likely be a stumbling block, and that could also be the case with Aston Villa. No telling what the situation could be with the Bundesliga club, but Arsenal may well be the best match financially – but that could all hinge on whether or not they sell Emmanuel Adebayor.

Fulham And West Ham Interested In Acquafresca

It’s a London battle for young Italian striker Robert Acquafresca, as Fulham and West Ham are both interested in the 21-year-old. Acquafresca was supposed to go to Genoa as part of the deal that brought Diego Milito and Thiago Motta to Inter, but he could yet move elsewhere, with even Juventus being linked with a move. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: I don’t have any doubts that Acquafresca could succeed in the Premier League, but if Juventus come in for him, that might be an opportunity that’s too hard to pass up.

Sunderland Bid For Cattermole

Sunderland have made a £7m bid for Wigan midfielder Lee Cattermole. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: Well they sure aren’t sitting on their money, are they? That’s certainly a tempting offer for Wigan, considering it’s double what they paid for Cattermole just last summer. I don’t know if Wigan will offload him right now though, unless he’s just that eager to be reunited with Steve Bruce. If someone’s willing to pay 7m for him right now, they could be in line to get a lot more if he continues to develop well over the next season or two. Besides, the sale of Antonio Valencia will net a nice amount of transfer funds for Roberto Martinez.

Wolves Sign Milijas

Wolves have completed the signing of Red Star Belgrade midfielder Nenad Milijas. (The Guardian)

Analysis: For a little while, the deal looked to be in some doubt, but in the end, Wolves fought off some pretty good competition to land the free-scoring midfielder.

Birmingham Bid For Gomez

Birmingham have made a £1.5m offer to Espanyol for midfielder Jordi Gomez, who starred on loan for Swansea last season. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: With Roberto Martinez set to complete his move from Swansea to Wigan anytime now, Birmingham could face some competition from Wigan for Gomez, so it might be in Birmingham’s best interests to try to get him signed, sealed, and delivered as soon as possible.

Spain

Real Madrid Offer Sneijder For Inter’s Maicon

Real Madrid could be set to offer Inter Milan €20m plus attacker Wesley Sneijder in a bid for right back Maicon. (Goal.com)

Analysis: Sounds like a reasonable deal. Sneijder’s someone that has been linked with Inter, and €20m + Sneijder would meet the €40m asking price that Inter have for Maicon.

Italy

AC Milan Sign Cissokho

AC Milan have completed the signing of Porto defender Aly Cissokho for €15m. (Sky Sports)

Analysis: This time last summer, Cissokho had just made the jump from France’s Ligue 2 to Portugal, joining Vitoria du Setubal, and now, he’s signed for AC Milan. Talk about a quick rise!

Inter Closing In On Double Swoop

Jose Mourinho could be close to being reunited with Deco and Ricardo Carvalho, as Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti spoke hopefully about being able to agree a deal with Chelsea for the duo. (Daily Mail)

Analysis: Seems to be only a formality, really.

Juventus To Swap Trezeguet For Rossi?

Juventus are prepared to offer striker David Trezeguet as part of a swap deal for Villarreal star Giuseppe Rossi. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: £15m + Trezeguet would fall a little short of Rossi’s buyout clause of £40m, but it could get Villarreal to bite, or at least think seriously about the offer. Trezeguet might turn down the chance though, considering the interest that he’s had from the likes of Inter, Real Madrid, and others.

Lazio In Talks For Barnetta

Lazio are in talks with Bayer Leverkusen over a move for Swiss midfielder Tranquillo Barnetta. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: Barnetta’s valuation is reportedly €10m, but even though Lazio don’t exactly have the room to break the bank on summer purchases, it shouldn’t be a problem to spend the right amount on a player who’s certainly worth it.

Germany

Wolfsburg Want Berbatov?

In one of the more interesting transfer rumors of the day, Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov is being linked with a loan move to VfL Wolfsburg. (Sofia Echo)

Analysis: Though things didn’t exactly go completely swimmingly at United last season, Berbatov’s not going anywhere.

Stuttgart Interested In Tottenham Striker

VfB Stuttgart could be targeting Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko. According to Stuttgart general manager Horst Heldt, the Russian striker has come up in discussions within the club. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: After selling Mario Gomez to Bayern Munich for €30m, Stuttgart have money to spend and a big void to fill up front. Replicating Gomez’s 33-goal output from this past season might be a little much to ask, but Pavlyuchenko does have the quality to succeed in the Bundesliga, even though his struggles at Tottenham last season might convince some otherwise.

France

Shevchenko Offered To French Trio

Chelsea have offered striker Andriy Shevchenko to Lyon, Marseille, and Monaco. Lyon have turned down the opportunity to sign the Ukrainian, but Marseille and Monaco are still considering the chance to snap him up. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: Safe to say then that Sheva doesn’t have a future at Chelsea, eh?

Coupet To Sign For PSG

Former Lyon goalkeeper Gregory Coupet could be set for a quick return to Ligue 1, as he has agreed personal terms over a move to Paris Saint-Germain. Coupet moved from Lyon to Atletico Madrid last summer, but after seeing little time last season, will be back on familiar soil if a fee can be agreed. (Goal.com)

Analysis: With current #1 Mickael Landreau looking to leave, PSG needed to swoop for a quality replacement, and Coupet, with his long history of success with Lyon, certainly fits the bill.

Greece

Panathinaikos Close On Drenthe?

Panathinaikos are going all out in their efforts to sign Real Madrid’s Royston Drenthe, as they could offer £11m in order to land the versatile Dutchman. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: That’s about the same amount Real spent to sign Drenthe from Feyenoord in the summer of 2007, so I don’t see them turning down an offer of that amount. Drenthe hasn’t exactly blossomed at Real, and he wouldn’t appear to have much of a future there, so the only holdup might be whether or not he wants to move to Greece or to a more elite league.

“Transfer Rumors (15 June 09): Man United after Valencia stars Villa and Silva, Aston Villa close on Tottenham duo, Berbatov and Pavlyuchenko linked with Bundesliga moves, and more” was originally published at footballlens.com – football news.

Carlos Tevez is out, Dimitar Berbatov is out, Park Ji-Sung and Ryan Giggs are in. The paper claims it’s a real ”insult” to Tevez to be left out, but we’re not sure why as no-one has expected him to play from the start with all the focus on his future.

John O’Shea keeps his place at right-back and Cristiano Ronaldo continues his not-going-to-give-the-ball-away-as-much effort as a lone striker. So it’s pretty much exactly the same team as against Arsenal in the semi. Except Darren Fletcher of course.

Transfer gossip now, and there are some pretty interesting deals going on if you believe the media. Chelsea, for some reason, are being linked with a new right-back. We all thought Jose Bosingwa had done rather well this season, but the Blues are apparently tracking Inter Milan’s Brazilian defender Maicon for £22m.

The Daily Star reckon that when Carlo Ancelotti takes over in the summer, he’d just love to take him along for the ride. Probably wouldn’t please Jose much, but he has given his backing to the Italian for the Stamford Bridge post.

Arsene Wenger, meanwhile, is looking to Fulham for his defensive stability next season. Brede Hangeland has done a good job at the heart of the Cottagers defence, and his extra height and power has caught the eye of the Frenchman, according to the Sun. But would he really spend £15m on him?

The Sun also have the news that ‘Arry Redknapp is keen to raid his old club once again for full-back Glen Johnson. Liverpool are believed to be in the prime position to sign the England defender as they need a player to shout back at Jamie Carragher when he gets in a mood; but Tottenham may swoop for their fourth right-back in the past year.

Once an England player, Dean Ashton gets the treatment (and he’s used to that) in the Daily Mirror. The paper thinks he’d be offloaded to Newcastle or Aston Villa in the summer, but someone would have to take a big chance to take the injury-prone striker anywhere.

However, Newcastle won’t be signing anyone decent if they go down and Sebastian Bassong could be the first to leave, says the Times.

Another team struggling for top flight status, Sunderland, could turn to Hamburg manager Martin Jol next season, according to the Daily Star. Quite why the Dutchman would want to trade a chance at the Bundesliga title and possible qualification for Europe for the drudgery of another relegation battle is beyond understanding. So he’ll probably just stay put.

And finally, Chelsea have cancelled their plans for an FA Cup parade. Not because they haven’t won it yet. Not because it’s a mere consolation prize given they really wanted to claim the Champions League. But because of the CREDIT CRUNCH! We know Roman Abramovich has been cutting costs, but if one of the world’s richest men can’t even get a open bus tour together, we know it’s bad.

Shakhtar Donetsk v. Werder Bremen
Stadium: Sukru Saracoglu Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey
Competition: UEFA Cup Final
Date: 20 May 2009
Kickoff: 18:45 GMT, 14:45 EST

Shakhtar Donetsk and Werder Bremen will fight for the right to lift the UEFA Cup! footballlens will be bringing you the action live! Log on to the site 15 minutes before kickoff for the live-blog! In the meantime, feel free to leave comments or make predictions below!

Match Preview:

It’s the final year of the UEFA Cup, and the two squads that will compete for the prestigious and tradition-laden trophy have never lifted it before. Shakhtar Donetsk and Werder Bremen both want to win this trophy and would love nothing better than to close out this competition in style.

Werder Bremen have the bigger names and, according to the oddsmakers, are slight favorites. They have German internationals like Torsten Frings, Per Mertesacker, and Clemens Fritz. They have a dynamic play-making midfielder in Diego. They have former Chelsea hitman Claudio Pizarro and Portuguese international Hugo Almeida scoring the goals up front. However, Werder have been wildly inconsistent this season. They’re languishing in tenth place in the Bundesliga, where they’ve won 12 matches and lost 12 (pending next weekend’s final league match against leaders Wolfsburg). Despite their mediocre league form, they could win a Cup Double as they’re also in the finals of the DFB Pokal. Football really is a funny sport sometimes.

In the semifinals, Werder prevailed over their domestic rivals, Hamburg SV, with the help of one of the most fortuitous occurrences in recent football history. After losing the first leg by a score of 1-0 at home, Werder were leading the second leg by a score of 2-1 when a Hamburg backpass took a bad bounce off a plastic cup and went out for a corner. Frank Baumann then converted the gift corner for the crucial third away goal which propelled Werder to the Final. They’ll hope that they didn’t use up all their luck in the Semis, especially since they won’t have the aforementioned Diego. The Juventus-bound midfielder who compared himself to Zinedine Zidane is suspended for the match. Almeida is also out due to yellow card accumulation, while Claudio Pizarro and Markus Rosenberg missed Saturday’s 3-1 loss to last-place Karlsruhe with injuries. Mertesacker is likely gone for the rest of the season after having ankle surgery following the Semifinal victory over Hamburg.

As for Shakhtar, they might not have the big names, but they’ve excelled by playing excellent defense while getting timely scoring up front from their Brazilian contingent. They may not be as celebrated as some of their countrymen, but Fernandinho, Jadson, Ilsinho, and Luiz Adriano have been getting the job done as Shakhtar have knocked off several of Europe’s best and most famous clubs en route to the Finals. Tottenham Hotspur, CSKA Moscow, Olympique Marseille, and domestic rivals Dynamo Kyiv have all fallen victim to Shakhtar’s brand of efficient football. Since entering the UEFA Cup from the Champions League, Shakhtar have only conceded four goals and have scored twelve.

Shakhtar will also come into this match in better domestic form as they’ve won their last six league matches in a row. They won’t have as many injury or suspension issues as Werder, as only midfielder Tomas Huebschman is suspended. If they defend they way that they’ve been doing, then it’s extremely likely that they’ll become the first Ukrainian team to hoist the UEFA Cup, and the final team ever to do so.

Who will go down in history as the final UEFA Cup Champions? Tune in and find out!

“Shakhtar Donetsk v. Werder Bremen – Live Blog – UEFA Cup Final – 20 May 2009” was originally published at footballlens.com – football news.

Cottbus 0-1 Moenchengladbach

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Bielefeld 0-2 Hoffenheim

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Frankfurt 0-5 Bremen

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It’s a new week, and we’ve got a fresh batch of transfer news and rumors from around Europe. We’ve got tidbits from England, Italy, and Germany in today’s roundup, with names big, medium, and small all being linked with moves from here to there.

England

Tottenham Enter Race for Tevez

Tottenham have joined the queue of teams looking to sign Carlos Tevez, as Spurs are being linked with a 25m offer for the Argentine hit-man. (Daily Mail)

Analysis: If he can combine effort and goal-scoring more often, he’s easily worth the 25m and then some, but if he did combine those two things more, he wouldn’t be on the market right now.

Cisse Reveals Summer Spurs Switch

On-loan Sunderland striker Djibril Cisse reacted to being left out of the starting XI for the club’s weekend match at Bolton by telling his teammates that he’s off to Tottenham in the summer. (Daily Mail)

Analysis: Well, that’s a good way to assure that you won’t be in the starting lineup for the last two games, eh Djibril? There’s no telling whether or not this is actually true, or if he was saying it just for devilment, but given his little outburst, I might be considering if my name was Harry Redknapp.

Arsenal After Zenit Striker Pogrebnyak

After striking gold with Andrei Arshavin, Arsenal are going digging in St. Petersburg again, this time lining up Arshavin’s former Zenit teammate Pavel Pogrebnyak as a replacement for the itching-to-leave Emmanuel Adebayor. (The Mirror)

Analysis: He’d certainly be one of the less expensive options on the market, and Zenit won’t have much room to do what they did with Arshavin, considering that Pogrebnyak is out of contract in six months.

Aston Villa Like Ajax’s Vermaelen

Aston Villa could be in the market for a new center back in the summer, and one of the names at the top of their list is Ajax defender Thomas Vermaelen, who Martin O’Neill went to personally scout over the weekend. (Sky Sports)

Analysis: Even if Laursen is able to overcome his injury problems, Villa do need to bolster their defense, and adding a player who’s young and has experience at a high level for club and country can only improve their back line.

Fulham In for Stockport Striker Johnson

Roy Hodgson is looking to the lower leagues to bolster his front line, targeting 21-year-old Stockport County striker Oli Johnson. (The Mirror)

Analysis: Given Stockport’s current financial straits, Fulham should be able to get him on the cheap. He looks to be more for the future than the present, but to make the move up from non-league to League One to the Premier League in less than a year is certainly something to be proud of either way.

Portsmouth’s Davis Wanted by Several

Portsmouth midfielder Sean Davis is a serious target for newly-promoted Birmingham, but Alex McLeish could face competition from Wigan, Bolton, and fellow promoted side Wolves for the 29-year-old. (The Mirror)

Analysis: Davis will be out of contract this summer, so it might all come down to who’s going to fork out the best wages. Birmingham seem to be willing to fork out a sizable amount to add his experience to their ranks, so they’ve got a chance.

Italy

Juventus Set for Talks for Valencia’s Silva

Valencia winger David Silva confirmed yesterday that the club has given his agent the go-ahead to negotiate with Juventus. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: Silva may not want to leave Valencia, but selling him would certainly be a much-needed boost for the club financially (and so will Champions League qualification), and I think you can expect a few more clubs, including one or two (or more) from the Premier League, to enter the race with this bit of news.

Inter After Fiorentina Star Melo

Jose Mourinho is reportedly eyeing Fiorentina midfielder Felipe Melo as a potential replacement for Patrick Vieira. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: Fiorentina signed Melo just last summer from Almeria for 13m, and he’s already discussing an extension to his current contract, but Inter would have no problem paying the 12m buyout clause, so this one can‘t be ruled out yet.

Shevchenko Wants to Stay at AC Milan

His second spell at the club has been nowhere near as successful as his first, but on-loan AC Milan striker Andriy Shevchenko says he would like to finish his career at the San Siro. (Sky Sports)

Analysis: So, does that mean he’s going to retire after this season? In all seriousness, it doesn’t seem too likely at present that his stay in Milan will be extended, and his future at Chelsea seems to be grim, so he may just have to hope that Milan have enough faith in his abilities to keep him past this season.

Germany

Bayern Confirm Interest In Barcelona’s Hleb

Bayern Munich are hoping to beat out Juventus for Werder Bremen star Diego, but if they miss out on the Brazilian, Alexander Hleb is next on their wish list. (Tribal Football)

Analysis: This is like someone telling you, “Yeah, I like you, but I’ll only date you if the guy I like more turns me down.” As is though, he could be their guy in the end, because I don’t see Werder selling to Bayern, especially if Juventus offer what they’ve been holding out for.

Daily Links

Fletcher to Miss UEFA Champions League Final

Manchester United midfielder Darren Fletcher will not play in the Champions League final against Barcelona, as UEFA unsurprisingly upheld his red card against Arsenal.

Mexico Withdraws from CONMEBOL Tournaments

Mexico’s football federation has withdrawn its teams from participation in CONMEBOL tournaments after the South American football federation’s decision to force two Mexican sides to play their Copa Libertadores home legs in Colombia.

“Transfer Rumors (11 May 09): Spurs enter race for Manchester United’s Tevez, Arsenal want Russian striker Pogrebnyak, Valencia’s Silva in Juventus negotiations, and more” was originally published at footballlens.com – football news.