According to reports in the press, Tottenham Hotspur will go head to head with North London rivals Arsenal in the summer for Ajax’s highly rated Belgian defender Jan Vertonghen. Arsenal want Vertonghen to be reunited with former club mate Thomas Vermaelen at the Emirates Stadium as they seek to mount a title challenge next season, but Spurs are viewing him as a possible replacement for inspirational but injury prone defender Ledley King, whose deal expires at the end of the current season

Vertonghen, who has also been linked with Newcastle United, is a versatile defender who can also double up as a defensive midfielder. The 24 year old is valued at somewhere around £10m.

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Manchester City are set to beat rivals Manchester United to the signature of Benfica’s Nicolas Gaitan in the summer by flexing their financial muscle. Argentine star Gaitan has a release clause written into his contract and City are hoping to land him in the summer by simply meeting Benfica’s asking price, reported to be around the £35m mark, instead of entering into a bidding war with United for his services.

Gaitan is set to leave Benfica in the summer and his destination could well be decided by which one of the two Manchester giants win the Premier League this season.

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French giants Paris Saint-Germain, backed by their wealthy owners, are willing to give Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez an escape route out of Anfield. Suarez has been under a cloud of controversy in recent times and was publicly condemned by Liverpool’s owners for not shaking Patrice Evra’s hands when Liverpool met Manchester United in a recent fixture.

PSG are hoping that their defender Diego Lugano, Suarez’s Uruguayan international team-mate, can help them land the services of the temperamental, but talented 24 year old striker.

Suarez has arguably been Liverpool’s player of the season so far, and the Reds have struggled to create notable chances when he is not on the field.

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Crawley Town have moved to sign goalkeeper Rene Gilmartin on loan from Watford. The 24 year old Hornets stopper has joined the League Two outfit till the end of March, but the deal can be extended till the end of the season if both parties wish to.

Manager Steve Evans swooped for Gilmartin after an injury to regular keeper Scott Shearer, who is set for a long spell on the sidelines with a knee problem.

Ireland keeper Gilmartin was on loan at Yeovil Town earlier in the season and was set for a move to another League One club before Crawley stepped in with their offer.

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Tottenham Hotspur have completed the signing of Brazilian defender Bruno Uvini from Sao Paulo. The 20 year old, who led his national team to World Cup glory last August, has agreed to join the Lilywhites on loan, with a view to a permanent move in the summer. A work permit is not expected to be a problem for Uvini as he reportedly holds an Italian passport.

If Uvini impresses coaches sufficiently at White Hart Lane during his three month stint, it is understood that Spurs will pay Sao Paulo a little over £3m to make the switch permanent.

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Bristol City have completed the signing of Middlesbrough defender Stephen McManus on loan. Centre half McManus has joined the Robins till the end of the season.

The 29 year old McManus has captained both the Scottish national team as well as domestic giants Celtic but his career at the Riverside hasn’t quite gone the way it should have. He regularly chalked up over 40 appearances a season at Celtic, but has made only 20 odd appearances this season at Boro.

Robins boss Derek McInnes, who handed McManus a league debut in their outing against Crystal Palace, was delighted to have secured the services of the non compromising defender and expressed his hope that he would bolster their backline.

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Arsenal target Eden Hazard has hinted at joining the Gunners’ great North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. We had earlier reported that Lille OSC had admitted defeat in their aim to keep Hazard at the French club, and Hazard has now confirmed that he will be leaving them at the end of the season.

Hazard, who scored in his club’s 4-5 loss to Bordeaux over the weekend, told a TV channel in his native Belgium that Spurs ” were a great English club” and had some quality players in their ranks. Apart from the two North London clubs, Hazard has also been linked with Liverpool, Chelsea and the two Manchester giants.

Hazard’s decision to join Spurs may well be influenced that the Lilywhites look the best placed of the London clubs to secure Champions League football next season.

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Leeds United chairman Ken Bates has revealed the reason for manager Simon Grayson’s sacking to be the latter’s want for an extra midfielder. Bates made the announcement in his programme notes for the Whites’ 2-1 weekend loss to Brighton and Hove Albion.

Grayson wanted to sign an extra midfielder in the recently concluded January 2012 window and Bates, put off by the fact that the proposed signing would cost the Whites around £1.5million over the length of his contract and that they already had nine medios on their books, refused. Things came to a head between the two and Bates promptly parted company with Grayson and his coaching staff after their loss to Birmingham City in the Championship.

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Chelsea have reportedly offered young Polish keeper Dominik Dyk a trial at Stamford Bridge. The 16 year old has been invited to link up with the club’s academy team with a view to a potential future transfer to London.

Dyk has also caught the eye of London neighbours Fulham. If a move for the teenage Dyk, who currently represents Polish club side Morawica Moravia, materialises, then we will see him follow in the footsteps of Wojciech Szczęsny and Łukasz Fabiański ( both Arsenal) and Jerzy Dudek ( Liverpool) in the list of talented Polish shot stoppers to have chosen a move to England to further their career.

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According to reports in the Spanish press, Real Madrid are set to spark off a bidding war for in form Arsenal striker Robin Van Persie by tabling an £30m offer for him in the summer. Van Persie, easily Arsenal’s best player this season, has sixteen months left on his current deal and is yet to commit to a new one, sparking off fears at the Emirates that he could leave if Arsenal fail to achieve their goal of Champions League football this season.

Madrid are also prepared to offer Gonzalo Higuain in exchange if Arsenal want him, although London neighbours Chelsea’s interest in the Argentine hitman is well known.

Madrid’s fierce rivals Barcelona are also said to be weighing up their options as they mull a bid for the Dutch international.

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