Arsenal ‘replace Campbell with £10m Mertesacker’

All the papers report that Sol Campbell is on his way to Newcastle  having passed a medical yesterday and agreed terms with the newly-promoted Magpies. The 35-year-old Campbell, who this time last year was on Notts County's books, later returned for a successful six-month spell at former club Arsenal.

The Guardian says that Campbell wanted a two-year deal with Arsenal but that was asking too much of Gunners' boss Arsene Wenger, particularly as Campbell turns 36 in September. Wenger has a policy of offering only 12-month contracts to all players in their 30s and he wasn't going to change that no matter how much he values Campbell's qualities as a central defender. The Guardian claims that Campbell will take home £35,000 a week while at St James's Park.

The Sun says that with Campbell on his way north Arsenal now have a defensive crisis and will solve it by signing Per Mertesacker, something The First Post predicted earlier in the week. Apparently the 25-year-old Werder Bremen centre-half will shortly will be on his way to the Emirates in a £10m deal with Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis finalising the move this week.

Meanwhile there was good news for the Gunners as far as Cesc Fabregas was concerned with the revelation that Barcelona, the club who has been trying to steal him from Arsenal, are in debt to the tune of £369m. It had been claimed by the former club president, Joan Laporta, that Barca owed only £9.2m, but a new audit found Laporta's sums weren't all they should be. The Catalan club made a loss of £65m last season and with those sort of debts it's impossible to see how they can justify forking out another £40m or so for the Arsenal captain.

Yet that hasn't prevented Spanish rag Mundo Deportivo from claiming Fabregas and Barcelona have reached a "secret agreement" with Arsenal that will see the 23-year-old unveiled as a Barca player next week. The paper says that the most important parts of the deal have been finalised and the Spaniards will give Arsenal £40m in return for Fabregas.

Carlos Tevez has told Liverpool's unsettled Spanish striker Fernando Torres that life is good at Manchester City, a further indication as to the lengths the Sky Blues are prepared to go in their quest to sign the World Cup winner for a reported £50m. City manager Roberto Mancini has confessed he wants to add Torres to his list of summer acquisitions and now Argentine frontman Tevez has thrown his weight behind the Sky Blues 'Free Fernando' campaign. "Torres would definitely make us better," he tells the Sun.  "He's one of the top strikers in the world and I would love to have him as a team-mate... I know I've never regretted coming to City. It's the best decision I ever made."

But Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson appears convinced that the 26-year-old Torres is coming back to Anfield next week, telling reporters: "He's told us he's looking forward to Monday. Looking forward to getting back to work and looking forward to playing for Liverpool next season. He's enjoying a well-deserved holiday, his first in three years."

The Daily Express reports that Benfica have told Chelsea that by all means they can have their highly-rated defender David Luiz – for £33m. The Portuguese club are determined to milk Luiz's talent for all its worth and they reckon that's in excess of £30m, a sum they justify by pointing out that the 23-year-old Luiz has just received his first call-up to Brazil's national squad. The Express claims that recession-proof Manchester City are taking an interest in Luiz, as are Real Madrid, but Chelsea are believed to be the most serious contenders to sign the player. ·