Goal-shy Fernando Torres ‘could be sold to Italians’

HE COST Chelsea a record-breaking £50m in January, but could Fernando Torres soon be leaving Stamford Bridge for Italy? That's the extraordinary claim made by Talksport, who say the 27-year-old striker is being targeted by AC Milan, Juventus and Inter Milan despite the fact he has scored just once in 23 matches for the Blues.

Talksport say that AC Milan are leading the chase for the goal-shy Spaniard and an offer might well be made to Chelsea once January's transfer window opens.

Whether Chelsea would contemplate selling the World Cup winner remains to be seen, but with the ex-Liverpool frontman an increasingly forlorn figure at the Bridge it could be a deal that works to everyone's advantage, particularly as much is now expected from new signing Romelu Lukaku.

Torres, who failed to find the net yet again in Chelsea's 2-0 defeat of Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League yesterday, has also landed himself in hot water with boss Andre Villas-Boas after giving an interview to a Spanish website in which he allegedly made disparaging remarks about his Premier League teammates, calling them "slow and old".

From one bombshell to another... Real Madrid magician Cristiano Ronaldo used an interview with Russian website Sportsbox to hint he might be willing to consider relocating to Anzhi.

The Russian club was bought earlier this year by billionaire Suleyman Kerimov and since then they've begun turning themselves into the Manchester City of Eastern Europe, buying Brazil legend Roberto Carlos, former Chelsea defender Yuri Zhirkov and Samuel Eto'o, the latter reportedly earning £300,000-a-week as a reward for leaving Inter Milan.

Asked if there was any truth in the rumour he might sign for Anzhi, Ronaldo replied: "In football you never know what can happen in the future. So if one day I go and play in Russia, do not be surprised."

In other news, Juventus are said to be planning a raid on Eastlands in the hope of carrying off City defender Aleksander Kolarov. The Serbia full-back arrived in Manchester last summer from Lazio but has failed to adjust to the Premier League, and with Gael Clichy settling in well since moving from Arsenal it seems Kolarov is now surplus to requirements.

According to Italian rag La Gazzetta dello Sport, Juventus were chasing Kolarov last year but couldn't match City's offer at the time to Lazio. Now they hope to finally get their man in the New Year.

Tottenham and AC Milan appear to be the main contenders in the fight to sign Sporting Lisbon defender Joao Pereira. The 27-year-old has caught the eye of many of Europe's top clubs in recent months and Spurs are in need of a solid stopper since Alan Hutton moved to Aston Villa in the summer.
 
Finally, the Metro reports that Arsenal target Marvin Martin has signed a new deal with French First Division side Sochaux, but only after insisting that a clause be inserted in his contract allowing him to leave next summer should a suitable offer arrive.

The 23-year-old Martin is known to be a favourite of Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, and it's believed an approach was made to Sochaux last month about the possibility of buying the midfielder.

That was rejected, but both Arsenal and Martin remain hopeful of a deal being reached in the summer. "We had good discussion and we found an agreement," Martin explained to French sports daily L'Equipe. "The officials made a promise... to let me leave. I will remain at Sochaux until the end of the season." ·