Juventus are again being linked with Giuseppe Rossi, as they have reportedly decided NOT to move for Kun Aguero.
However, Juventus are going to need to up their bid, and do so quickly, to have any chance of success. According to AS, they have decided to offer Villarreal "€20 million plus players" and Villarreal has already said they want an all-cash deal. Sr. Roig set a cash price of €30 million at the start of the summer which Barcelona didn't meet; since then, he's said the price will get higher the closer we are to the start of the preseason, which begins Monday.
Juventus will be improved from last year, but they cannot offer European football to Rossi, nor has Giuseppe been particularly concerned with moving to Italy of late. I would not expect much serious discussion to happen here unless Juve suddenly decide to up their cash bid to the €30-35 million range, and I think Sr. Roig will probably want to dismiss the whole thing quickly so it doesn't become a distraction when training starts.
Meanwhile, Malaga appears to have accepted that neither Borja Valero nor Santi Cazorla are interested in moving and are instead considering an offer for Wesley Sneijder. Inter Milan had a disappointing year, and the €35-40 million Malaga might pay would certainly be plenty to invest in new talent. Meanwhile, Málaga has turned the head of Valencia youngster Isco Alarcon (or possibly that of his agent) and have agreed to pay his €6m buyout clause.
Granada are perhaps interested in Jozy Altidore, and maybe in Joan Oriol; recall Altidore's name came up in the Zapata discussions but Villarreal wants to loan him within La Liga, not sell him. Last week it looked as though Altidore was on his way to AZ Alkmaar, but it hasn't happened yet. Salary was reportedly an issue, but it's believed AZ have a three-year deal on the table and Jozy would take a salary cut as part of it.
Instead, the transfer fee may be the bigger problem. As detailed here, AZ have sold their young Icelandic striker and have some funds available, but while Villarreal are willing to sell Jozy for less than the €7m they paid for him, AZ probably doesn't have the €4-5 m required. So, negotiations are continuing.
One rumor has us interested in Blackburn Rovers' midfielder Steven N'Zonzi. He is a 22-year old defensive midfielder and was the Rovers fans' 2009-10 player of the year. Not sure how significant our interest is, and Borussia Dortmund might be competing for him as well, but we'll see.
Finally, Marca suggests Joan Capdevila may well remain in yellow for now, especially since a Canella deal with Sporting may be scuppered by Jose Angel's move to Roma, another drawn-out saga probably nearing a conclusion. There was a team or two in Turkey interested in him, but that league is so obscure in terms of media coverage (and is now in the midst of a large match-fixing scandal besides) that if Joan went there he would likely begin to fall off the national team radar.
His international career may not run much longer, but Juan would love to make it to the 2012 Euro Championship. And at least he's had some rest this summer, as opposed to last year; I expect this may be his last season with Villarreal, though, since his contract only runs through 2013.
When at the USA-Spain game last month I found that many Spanish fans have a soft spot for modest, self-deprecating Joan, and I know Villarreal fans do as well. This appreciation of Joan is well-written and timely; I don't know anything about the author, but it's well done! (Though I don't know if Joan could have stopped Hulk in Porto any more than Catalá). A health to our loveable tuercebotas!