Man United to offer £15m and Vidic for Benzema

Barcelona just won't let it lie. Having been humiliated in the Champions League by ten-man Inter, the club who like to call themselves 'Spanish Giants' are once again tapping up Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas.

According to a report in Spanish rag Sport, the conniving Catalans will redouble their efforts to steal Fabregas (above) from the Emirates as soon as their domestic season peters out next week.

Apparently Barcelona will offer the Gunners £40m for Fabregas, a derisory offer for which the Arsenal board is unlikely to get out of bed. They've let it be known in the past that £50m is the starting point for any negotiations for the sale of Fabregas - and so Sport is saying Barcelona might also offer Yaya Toure.

But would Arsenal be interested in the 27-year-old defensive midfielder, particularly as his brother, Kolo, so shamelessly walked out on the Gunners last year for Manchester City and life in the glamorous Europa League?

Talking of shameless, the Mail carries a hilarious report saying German outfit St Pauli are about to offer Arsenal talisman Sol Campbell a future in Germany. The Hamburg-based club, who have just won promotion to the Bundesliga, have somehow got it into their heads that Campbell might be willing to accept a lucrative one-year contract.

But with Campbell still having nightmares about his Notts County experience last year, the big man is unlikely to join another team of willing but limited enthusiasts. Campbell has yet to extend his contract at the Emirates but teammate Robin Van Persie today added his voice to the growing chorus of Arsenal players who want Campbell to sign on for another season: "Sol is one of those characters you need in your squad," said the Dutchman.

"If someone is easing off he tells them straight away. He says: 'This is not the way to do it, sharpen up otherwise it's not going to work.' We need that and I am very glad he is here. Of course he has his qualities (on the pitch) as you look at the way he came here and then the way he has been playing the last couple of months. He has been fantastic."

One defender who is set to quit his club is Manchester United's Patrice Evra. The Sun says that the Frenchman has had his head turned by Real Madrid and Inter Milan with both clubs apparently willing to hand £18m to the Red Devils in return for the 28-year-old full-back.

Evra joined United over four years ago from Monaco and is rated one of the world's best in his position, and the Sun says it was former United teammate Cristiano Ronaldo who advised Real to snap up the Frenchman. Evra has one year left on his contract which might tempt United to sell him now and reap the reward.

Possibly keeping Evra company on the plane to Madrid is Serbian hardman, Nemanja Vidic, who looks set to be the makeweight in a United bid to lure disappointing French striker Karim Benzema to Old Trafford.

According to the Sun, the Glazer family believe a marquee signing such as that of Benzema is just the thing to put an end to the ever intensifying fan’s revolt against their stewardship.

He will, however, not come cheaply. Having sampled the highlife at the Bernabeu, Benzema is looking for a tear-inducing pay packet of almost £200,000 per week – on top of the £25m Madrid are asking for him.

Real’s other frontman, the cheaper yet more effective Gonzalo Higuain, is also set to ply his wares in the Premier League, but this time in London. According to Spanish publication Marca, the player’s dad, Jorge, has already held preliminary talks with Chelsea and a summer move to the Bridge looks on the cards.

The 22-year-old Higuain, set to be a star for Argentina in next month’s World Cup, might well have played his last game for Madrid on Sunday against Athletic Bilbao. Afterward he gave what sounded like a valedictory address, saying: "I am proud of the applause from the fans who've known me these three and half years since I've been here. I have given everything for this club."

Finally, as predicted by The First Post several weeks ago, Manchester City will announce this week the capture of versatile German defender Jerome Boateng from Hamburg. The 21-year-old helped the German club to the semi-finals of the Europa League, where he and his teammates were unable to withstand the Fulham onslaught, and now it seems Boateng will be gracing the same competition next season in the Sky Blue of City.

"We are quite close to signing him," admitted City boss Roberto Mancini, adding: "Boateng is a good player, a young player and strong... He can play central defender, right defender, or in the middle, three different positions." ·