Stoke City have reportedly had a bid of $20 million accepted by Inter Milan for Swiss winger Xherdan Shaqiri. According to Sky Italia the two clubs have agreed a fee for the 23-year-old wide-man.
Shaqiri burst onto the scene with FC Basel in 2009 before joining Bayern Munich in 2012 but he failed to become a regular with the Bavarian outfit despite scoring 17 goals in 81 appearances. On the international stage, Shaqiri impressed at the 2014 World Cup as he scored a hat trick in Switzerland’s 3-0 win over Honduras, and his pace, power and tricky wing-play would be perfect for Stoke who seem to have lost out on the permanent signing of former loan winger Victor Moses from Chelsea. Shaqiri only joined current club Inter in January from Bayern, as Stoke just missed out on him then, but is seems like the Potters’ persistence is about to pay off.
The agent of Turkish international midfielder Arda Turan has claimed his client will decide his new club by Friday. Turan, 28, currently has a $45 million release clause in his contract at Atletico Madrid and his agent has previously stated that clubs from England, Italy and France are interested in Turan. Manchester United and Chelsea are said to be the front-runners for Turan’s signature, with the attacking midfielder able to play anywhere across the midfield. The Daily Star claims that Turan has decided to snub United and will instead join Jose Mourinho and Chelsea at Stamford Bridge..
Yohan Cabaye‘s potential move to Crystal Palace from Paris Saint-Germain is being discussed. Cabaye, 29, has failed to settle at PSG and wants a return to the Premier League where he flourished under current Palace boss Alan Pardew. The Guardian claims that the two clubs are in dialogue over Cabaye but Palace are offering $15 million with the French champions wanting closer to the $30 million they paid Newcastle for Cabaye in 2014.
The classy central midfielder, who is also a dead-ball specialist, is attracting interest from Southampton who may see him as a perfect replacement for Morgan Schneiderlin. Tottenham are also said to be monitoring the former Lilli midfielder. Cabaye started just 13 Ligue 1 games for PSG in 2014-15 and as he looks to seal a spot in Didier Deschamps’ national team squad for the 2016 European Championships he knows he needs regular minutes wherever he ends up.
Rickie Lambert, 33, is interesting West Bromwich Albion, QPR and Bournemouth. The Liverpool forward scored just three times in his debut season at Anfield and has subsequently lost his place in the English national team after failing to get regular minutes for his hometown team. The Liverpool Echo reports that West Brom’s interest in Lambert is legit and Liverpool is ready to sell the striker after the arrival of Danny Ings, Divock Origi and Roberto Firmino this summer. Lambert turned down a move to Aston Villa in January but may now feel it is the best time to move on.
