Bassong: Finalising 'Spurs deal.Newcastle United centre-back, Sebastien Bassong, has been in North London having a medical for Tottenham Hotspur, as the final parts of a deal which has been mooted for some time are thrashed out. The fee is thought to be around £8-10 million, though Bassong was signed by Newcastle’s then Director of Football, Dennis Wise, for a mere £500,000 a year ago.
Despite his meagre pricetag, Bassong was voted Newcastle United’s ‘Player of the Year’ last season, though the field was hardly strong in what was a very disappointing season for the Toon to say the least.
Bassong, 23, has stated that he has “no choice” but to leave Toon, as he strives for Premiership football and a permanent place in the Cameroon first team.
Speaking on his time at Newcastle, he said:
“Playing for Newcastle was a real honour in front of the supporters at St James’s Park.
“It has been an unbelievable experience for me.
“But I have always said that I wanted to play in the Premier League and that wasn’t possible with Newcastle. (more…)
Barry MoatThe Guardian reports that the sale of Newcastle United is imminent.
Apparently Ashley is being urged to accept a bid from a consortium led by Tyneside businessman Barry Moat. It is thought that Moat, who has financial backing from investors in the United States, is Keith Harris’s preferred bidder. The Guardian speculates that if Moat gets the club he will favour Alan Shearer as manager.
Additional reports on this issue can be found in The Times, The Chronicle, The Journal and The Sun, but I would suggest remaining cautious about this news until a formal announcement is made from the club. There is no guarantee that Ashley will accept any bid recommended by Harris (assuming the stories are true in the first place).
There were reports yesterday that the club had, incredibly, offered Joe Kinnear a two-year contract. This was covered last night in an article on this site, so I don’t really need to mention it too much here except to say that there’s an article in The Times that claims the club is denying offering Kinnear a contract and insists ‘he has his wires crossed’. (more…)
Bassong fined, but leaving anyway.According to The Chronicle, Bassong has been fined two weeks wages for his failure to travel to Dundee for last weekend’s friendly. Hughton had previously stated that Bassong wouldn’t have featured in the game anyway because he’s serving a ban for the West Brom trip and Hughton wanted to field a team against Dundee that was as close as possible to the one he intends to field for our opening league game.
To be honest I can see both sides of this: Bassong is obviously frustrated by things at Newcastle – perhaps particularly in relation to any transfer he might want – but as of right now he’s contracted to Newcastle United and should behave professionally and in accordance with his manager’s wishes.
Anyway, The Mail claims that all this has moved Bassong’s exit closer and that he has a preference for Spurs over Man City. (more…)
Bassong AwayThe weekend has of course been largely given over to the sad death of Sir Bobby Robson and the rest of the news seems less important now. However I’m going to try and catch up a bit today.
In our final pre-season friendly we managed a 1-1 draw with Dundee. Our goal came from Andy Carroll and then Dundee equalised from the penalty spot late in the game. There are reports on the club site and on Sky Sports.
There seems to be a little bit of confusion about the Bassong transfer situation. According to Sky Sports, Harry Redknapp admits interest in the defender but is unaware of any bid having been made, yet the same article claims the Newcastle have rejected a £10m bid. Redknapp said (of the alleged bid):
“It is not true. Not since I have been here today.
“He is a player that I was interested in. I like Bassong, he is a young player with a good future and a good central defender.
“I don’t think we have made an offer as far as I know. I am sure the chairman has not made an offer.” (more…)
Martins gone.Newcastle managed only a goalless draw last night against Leeds United. According to the Club Site, Ryan Taylor had the best opportunities for the home team before the break, with Bassong and Coloccini having the best opportunities in the second half. The Northern Echo contains a better report.
As reported by my colleague, it appears that the transfer embargo – if there ever was one – has been lifted and Obafemi Martins has been sold to Wolfsburg for £9m. There’s a report on Sky Sports but it mentions little beyond what I’ve already told you.
I wonder if this is Ashley facing the prospect of not selling the club before the transfer window closes and deciding he needs to starting getting things done himself. Or maybe it indicates that a new owner has been found who, whilst the legalities of a takeover are completed, has authorised some transfers in the interim.
On the subject of transfers, The Mail is claiming that Spurs will beat Arsenal to the signing of Seb Bassong with an £8m offer for the defender. (more…)
