Liverpool and Tottenham to battle for Charlie Adam; Pepe to sign new Real deal

Liverpool and Tottenham to battle for Charlie Adam

Liverpool and Tottenham are set to reignite their interest in Charlie Adam, The Mirror reports.

Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish believes the Blackpool midfielder could be a great solution for the lack of creativity in the squad.

King Kenny visited Ewood Park on Sunday to see Adam score a brace against Blackburn and he is already preparing a summer bid for the 25-year-old after having a £9 million bid rejected on transfer deadline day.

However, the Reds could face stiff competition from Tottenham, who missed out on Adam by just two minutes in January.

Spurs chief scout Ian Bloomfield also watched the game at Ewood Park, thus proving Tottenham are still interested.

Harry Redknapp is short on cover in central midfield and he believes Charlie Adam would be a good signing for Spurs.

Considering that Adam continues to impress in the Premiership, it is highly unlikely that Blackpool will be able to keep hold on him in the summer.

Pepe to sign new Real deal

Portuguese defender Pepe has finally agreed to sign a new deal with Real Madrid, according to Marca.

Pepe is set to put pen to paper on a new four-year deal worth €4 million per season, which will make him the 6th highest paid defender in the world.

The player’s current deal is set to expire in June 2012, but Real Madrid managed to persuade him into signing a new long-term contract.

Just few weeks ago it seemed that the two parties wouldn’t be able to reach an agreement even though Jose Mourinho repeatedly stated that Pepe was integral to his plans.

The Portuguese defender had originally requested €5 million per season before lowering the demands to €4 million, although Real wouldn’t offer him more than €3.5 million.

However, having realized that they could lose a great defender on a free, los Merengues finally agreed to meet Pepe’s demands.

This will come as great news to all Real Madrid fans before los Merengues embark on decisive battles of the season.

Bayer Leverkusen to replace Heynckes with Dutt

Bayer Leverkusen have announced coach Jupp Heynckes will leave the club at the end of the season, amidst speculations linking him to Bayern.

Bayer and Jupp Heynckes are set to part ways at the end of the season, the Bundesliga outfit have confirmed.

“Mr. Heynckes told us that he will not be available for an additional year,“ Bayer director Wolfgang Holzhäuser was quoted as saying on club’s official website.

Jupp Heynckes is being lined up by Bayern as Louis van Gaal’s replacement, which is the main reason why he decided to leave Leverkusen.

“Bayer 04 Leverkusen are a well led club with a great team. It was hard for me to make this decision. I will put all of my power into securing the second rank and qualifying for the Champions League directly,” the experienced coach said.

The club have already found him a replacement as Freiburg coach Robert Dutt is set to take over next summer.

“We are glad that Robin Dutt will take over the team as a coach on 1 July 2011. We had very good and trustful talks with SC Freiburg,” Holzhauser explained.

The Freiburg coach says he is looking forward to a new challenge.

“I’m very much looking forward to my new challenge in Leverkusen. I will work with a team that has been coached outstandingly by Jupp Heynckes. I agree with the football philosophy shared by Wolfgang Holzhäuser and Rudi Völler.“

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