Kluivert's Agent in SJP Talks? + Beattie Latest

By Martyn Osmond
July 16 2004

The local press were today reporting that Patrick Kluivert's agent Paul Foortse was in talks with United yesterday. Rumour has it that Foortse spoke with Toon representatives while Freddy Sheperd was in constant touch.

Foortse claims that Newcastle are Kluivert's first (or should that be only?) choice and that claims that Kluivert is asking for £80,000 per week are "absoloutely not true" (more like £78,000 perhaps).

Meanwhile, any Newcastle deal for James Beattie could hinge on Southampton signing Marseille striker Mido, and any Southampton deal for Mido could hinge on Chelsea NOT signing Marseille striker Didier Drogba, according to Mido's agent Christophe Henrotay. If Chelsea seal the alleged £27 million deal for Drogba, who scored twice against Newcastle in the UEFA cup semi-final last season, then Marseille will be unwilling to let Mido join the Saints, according to Henrotay.

If Saints fail to seal the loan signing of Mido, then they would surely be unwilling to let top scorer Beattie leave, which would leave them with a somewhat lacklustre strike-force of Rodney Trotter...sorry, Peter Crouch and the s.m.b. Sewpa Kevin Phillips.

Yet more evidence of Chelski making the transfer market difficult for everyone else, methinks.