Barcelona Players Welcome Fabregas via Twitter

Cesc Fabregas' prolonged move from Arsenal now looks set to reach a conclusion on Monday after Barcelona told him to delay his flight. The Gunners captain had been scheduled to board the first plane available after saying goodbye to his team-mates, but the Catalans have instead instructed him to stay in London until after their Spanish Super Cup game against Real Madrid on Sunday. Barca are desperate to make sure the deal isn't jeopardised at this late stage of negotiations after waiting so long to secure his signature. With that in mind, Pepe Guardiola has since advised Fabregas to hang fire with Arsenal still haggling over the finer details of his transfer, following the European champions' announcement at lunchtime that everything had been more or less agreed on a £35m switch. Fabregas is widely tipped to sign a five-year contract on Monday and confirmation of the move will bring an end to over a season worth of speculation about the midfielder's future. He will play no part in the Gunners' season opener at Newcastle tomorrow either. Barcelona stars Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol pre-empted an official announcement by posting on Twitter to welcome Fabregas back to the Camp Nou, where he started his career in the youth team. "Booooyyyy!!! Welcome home!!! Happy to have you here," said Barca captain Puyol while Pique added: "He's finally here!!".

Arsene Wenger ‘set to steal Downing from Liverpool’

With Arsenal's top players seemingly in open revolt, manager Arsene Wenger is hoping to pull off a coup of his own by pinching England international Stewart Downing from under the nose of Kenny Dalglish.
Downing, who joined Aston Villa after Middlesbrough's relegation two years ago, has become an established feature on the national scene, notching up 27 caps for England since his debut in 2005.
The midfielder has been pursued by Liverpool in recent weeks – but according to the Mail on Sunday Arsenal hope to "hijack" him before any deal is signed with the Reds.Wenger is having a torrid summer, with the youthful team he has carefully cultivated over recent seasons suddenly disintegrating before his eyes.
Gael Clichy has left for Manchester City and is expected to be joined at Eastlands by fellow Frenchman Samir Nasri any minute now.Cesc Fabregas, Arsenal captain and perennial Barcelona target, is widely tipped to be returning home to Spain after the Arsenal board made it apparent they'd be wiling to sell the 24-year-old.The cloud does have a silver lining, however: Wenger is expected to make around £70 million from the three deals – money that can be spent rebuilding the squad.
As well bidding for Downing - believed to be priced at around £15m – Wenger has reportedly offered double-figure sums for Lyon's Gervinho, Bolton's Gary Cahill and Everton's Phil Jagielka.
Arsenal fans will take heart at the news. Their manager has been notoriously unwilling to spend big in previous transfer windows, preferring instead to invest in youngsters, resulting in a silverware draught stretching back to 2005.
Yet Wenger's apparent determination to reinvest any money from summer sales, combined with his willingness to take on rivals Liverpool in the battle for 26-year-old Downing, suggests the Frenchman still hopes Arsenal can seriously compete for the Premier League title next season.
His transfer movements also suggest a wider change in approach.
In Downing, Jagielka, and Cahill, Wenger has chosen the best of England's next generation to replace the departing Europeans. Downing especially has a preference for getting to the byline and crossing that is markedly different to Arsenal's traditional obsession with keeping the ball on the ground through the middle.
The potential transfers suggest that Wenger is changing his policy in a bid to finally return winning ways to north London.

Real Mardrid Bid £45m for Fabregas

Real Madrid have contacted Arsenal about the availability of captain Cesc Fabregas and are ready to pay the Gunners £45m for the Spaniard, according to reports.Sky Sports News reporter and Spanish correspondent Graham Hunter believes Madrid have contacted the Gunners and enquired about Fabregas, with the La Liga giants ready to outbid rivals Barcelona.Fabregas has been linked with a move back ‘home’ to Barca for several years now and it has been highly expected that the move would finally go through this summer. However, the major stumbling block has always been Barca’s valuation of the player with them refusing to pay beyond £30m, which is well short of Arsenal valuation.However, Real are understood to be ready to submit a bid of £45m which may force Barcelona to up their offer. Arsenal would of course prefer to sell to the highest bidder but it’s unlikely Fabregas would consider a move to any other side except his boyhood team (Barcelona).

Arsenal Reject £27m Fabregas Bid From Barcelona

Arsenal have rejected a £27 million bid from Barcelona for skipper Cesc Fabregas, according to reports in the Guardian, Daily Mail, and The Sun.Fabregas this week revealed his admiration for the Catalan club, and their manager Pep Guardiola, but this latest development in the ongoing saga over the midfielder's future could spell the end of further speculation.Barca president Sando Rosell has made it clear the club will not spend more than £35 million on Fabregas due to the 24-year-old's recurring hamstring injuries.Rosell said recently: "If last year we offered 40 million Euros [£35.5 million], it is clear that this year his value is less. Since then there has been wear and tear and he is worth less."Guardiola knows the values of players and Cesc's is less than 40 million Euros. Barcelona will offer less and, if they don't accept, then he won't come."It is understood the most recent offer was made verbally by Barca's vice president Josep Maria Bartomeu during his visit to London this week, but was rejected immediately by Gunners chief executive Ivan Gazidis. Barcelona are expected to make one final play to snare Fabregas, however with both clubs evidently differing on their value of the player, it appears the stand-off may be a permanent one.

BARCELONA PLOT NEW £40M CESC FABREGAS SWOOP

BARCELONA will make another attempt to sign Cesc Fabregas for £40m after lifting the European Cup.Champions League winners Barcelona have been trying to land Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas for two years but Gunners boss Arsene Wenger has repeatedly made it clear he has no desire to sell his captain.But the Spanish champs just refuse to go away and have agreed to up their bid by £10m in an attempt to prise him from Arsenal’s grasp.After beating Manchester United at Wembley coach Pep Guardiola has held fresh talks with club president Sandro Rossell about Fabregas.And the 24-year-old remains their No.1 target.A source close to Barca said last night: “They still have not spoken formally to Arsenal about him. “They had wanted to do it while they were in London for the Champions League Final but it never happened. But they will not give up.”

Last summer Fabregas went public with his desire to leave and join Barcelona after lengthy talks with Wenger.This time he is expected to remain silent while negotiations carry on behind the scenes.As well as the improved cash offer for Fabregas, Barca would also allow Arsenal to choose one of their young players as part of any deal.Guardiola wants Fabregas as back-up to Xavi and Andres Iniesta so he can rotate players more.

Arsenal want Wigan’s £15m-rated midfielder James McCarthy.Wigan boss Roberto Martinez will hold talks in a desperate attempt to keep the 20-year-old.The Republic of Ireland international is also being tracked by Liverpool and Chelsea.

Manchester City Bid £58m for Fabregas

Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas has been offered £58 million to move to Manchester City in the summer, reports People.co.uk.City are prepared to make some big purchases in the summer as they look to build a title winning squad, and Roberto Mancini reportedly sees Fabregas as perfect for the Eastland Club's line up.City are willing to offer a record breaking fee for the Spaniard’s sercives, with Mancini aware that Arsene Wenger is desperate to keep his captain at Arsenal over the summer.While speculation was growing that Fabregas would finally get his wish to head back to former club Barcelona, with Barcelona players claiming the Arsenal star had been open about wanting to make the cross country move, Mancini and City believe that if they offer enough money for Fabregas, he might change his mind about going back to Spain after all.Barcelona had already reportedly had a £30 million offer turned down for Fabregas this year, and Mancini believes that an offer that smashes Fernando Torres’ English record transfer fee in will be too good for Wenger to refuse.

City are also reportedly interested in poaching Tottenham’s Luka Modric, and while the club have insisted they will not be making many signings this summer, with the backing of billionaire owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, signings won’t be reliant on any kind of realistic budget that clubs such as Arsenal or Tottenham have to keep their players.

Arsenal 1 Liverpool 1

Arsenal saw their Barclays Premier League title hopes all but extinguished after Dirk Kuyt secured a point for Liverpool with a last-gasp penalty just moments after Robin van Persie's own spot-kick had looked enough for victory.

The Gunners - now six point points behind leaders Manchester United having played the same number of games - had plenty of possession and hit the bar in the first half through Laurent Koscielny, but were unable to make their dominance count until deep into eight minutes of stoppage time when van Persie crashed home a spot-kick.

However, Liverpool - who had earlier seen captain Jamie Carragher carried off following a nasty clash of heads - snatched a point with the final kick of the match after Emmanuel Eboue had pushed Lucas Leiva.

While the match ended in high drama, before kick-off there was a minute's silence in memory of late Arsenal director Danny Fiszman, who passed away following a battle against cancer and also remembering the 96 Liverpool supporters who died 22 years ago this week in the Hillsborough tragedy.

The sale of Fiszman's holding in the Gunners' parent company led to American Stan Kroenke crossing the takeover threshold, but it remains to be seen whether the Denver-based entrepreneur will be able to complete his proposed £730millon buyout.

When the action got under way, Arsenal - unbeaten in 14 matches and yet to lose in 2011 - started well, with Abou Diaby glancing a header wide from Samir Nasri's curling free-kick.

Arsenal were careless in possession far too often, with Liverpool quick to capitalise on the break.

The hosts sparked into life, though, after 12 minutes when Theo Walcott stung Pepe Reina with a fierce 25-yard drive which the Reds keeper spilled and van Persie hooked the loose ball back across an open goal, which was headed behind.

From van Persie's right-wing corner, Laurent Koscielny got up above the Liverpool defence and in front of Reina to crash a header against the bar.

Liverpool were forced into a change on 21 minutes when full-back Fabio Aurelio limped off with a recurrence of his hamstring problem, replaced by 17-year-old Jack Robinson for a second senior appearance.

Luis Suarez's slip allowed van Persie and Cesc Fabregas to open up the Liverpool defence, but the Arsenal skipper drilled his 20-yard shot wide.

Liverpool were being pegged back, with Walcott firing a low ball in from the right which was booted behind.

It continued to be one-way traffic with Liverpool defending deep, but Arsenal could not find a telling pass in the final third.

In first-half stoppage time, Eboue's angled drive at the near post was deflected across the face of goal and away.

It was again a bright opening by Liverpool after the restart. Suarez created space for himself at the edge of the Arsenal penalty area, but dragged his shot wide.

There was a scare for the visitors when Andy Carroll went down after twisting his knee and ankle when challenging for a loose ball in the box. After some treatment, though, the £35million England man was back in the action.

Reds skipper Carragher then appeared to have been knocked unconscious after a clash of heads with John Flanagan, sparking more anxious scenes on the visitors bench as the medical staff from both teams attended.

The former England defender was eventually carried off on a stretcher, his neck in a brace and given oxygen. Sotirios Kyrgiakos came on as a substitute.

With 20 minutes left, Carroll was replaced by Jonjo Shelvey before Arsenal made a double change when Jack Wilshere and Walcott were replaced by Nicklas Bendtner and Andrey Arshavin, the Russian making his 100th appearance for the Gunners.

Wojciech Szczesny got down well to beat away an angled shot from Suarez as Liverpool looked to snatch all three points.

Reina made a decent block when van Persie was played into the left side of the Liverpool area, before at the other end, Suarez spooned his shot high and wide in space at the near post.

Because of the injury to Carragher, there were some eight minutes of stoppage time, and just when that seemed to be running out, Fabregas went tumbling over Jay Spearing's leg and this time, the referee pointed to the spot.

Van Persie stepped up to send Reina the wrong way and seemingly keep Arsenal in the title hunt.

However, there was more late drama after Alex Song tripped Lucas right on the edge of the area.

Suarez's free-kick went into the wall, but Eboue then pushed over Lucas to conceded another stoppage-time spot-kick which Kuyt dispatched.

It proved the last action of an amazing end to the game, which leaves Arsenal all but out of the title race and left a dejected Arsene Wenger confronting the officials - and opposite number Kenny Dalglish as they walked off.