Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko on Villarreal's
radar
By Dominic Fifield
Roman Pavlyuchenko signed for Tottenham after
impressing for Russia at Euro 2008 but he has struggled to adapt
to the Premier League. Photograph: Glyn Kirk / AFP
/ Getty Images
Villarreal have expressed an interest in signing
the Tottenham Hotspur striker Roman Pavlyuchenko but the club's valuations
are some way apart and the Spanish club's alternative offer to take the
Russia international on a season-long loan is unlikely to prove attractive
to the hierarchy at White Hart Lane.
Spurs remain in negotiations with Sunderland over the potential sale of
their forward Darren Bent but had been prepared to allow Pavlyuchenko
to leave as well after an inconsistent first campaign in the Premier League
following his £13.8m arrival from Spartak Moscow. The 27-year-old
scored 14 times, though he was most prolific in the Carling Cup. He found
himself out of Harry Redknapp's starting 11 towards the end of the season,
with Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe rejoining the club during the January
transfer window.
Villarreal's general secretary, Jose Manuel Llaneza, was in London last
week and is understood to have opened preliminary talks with Tottenham
officials over Pavlyuchenko as the Spanish club seek attacking reinforcements
after the loss of Nihat and Matias Fernandez to Besiktas and Sporting
Lisbon respectively. Villarreal would be prepared to pay £8.5m for
the Russian, rising to around £10m, though Spurs are seeking to
recoup as much of the fee paid to Spartak as possible.
The Spanish side's back-up offer is a loan deal, with a fee, though Redknapp
is keen to bolster his own transfer funds. The Spurs manager could yet
revive his long-standing interest in Craig Bellamy, potentially falling
down the pecking order at Manchester City given the signing of Roque Santa
Cruz and the expected arrival of Carlos Tevez, should he succeed in moving
Bent on as Tottenham look to build on finishing eighth last season.
