|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Jean-Alain Boumsong |
|
The French media are reporting that Fulham and Juventus are in
negotiations over a move for Jean-Alain Boumsong.
New Craven Cottage boss Roy Hodgson is desperate
to bolster his defense during the transfer window, and believes that the unsettled
Juventus centre-back – who is also a target of Olympiakos, Stuttgart and Lazio,
could play a significant role in helping his team avoid relegation despite his bitter
Premiership experience with Newcastle.
Although the former Swiss manager refused to be drawn out as to names of players
he is targeting, he did drop some hints in a recent statement to
Fulham's official
website.
"We've got to be wise in the transfer window," he said.
"I wouldn't like to
be bringing players in on a short-term basis. They've got to make us better, not
just in the last months of the season to keep us in the league but also next season
when we're trying to build an even stronger team.
"That's a tough task. The type of players that are being flagged up are not
the type of players that have definite pedigree that you can be 100 percent certain
that they are top quality Premiership players who will make us better today and
we can build on tomorrow.
"I'm not ruling out signing players, absolutely not. I, the team and the staff,
we want to do well and, if there are players out there who will make us a lot better,
then please bring them on.
"What we don't want to do is to be panicked into buying players that won't help
us do any better and just make our list of players longer."
Boumsong certainly isn’t guaranteed Premiership pedigree, as Newcastle infamously
paid 12m euro to buy him from Rangers in 2006, despite the fact that the Scottish
giants had landed him on a free-transfer just months before. The burly centre-back
had an absolute nightmare of things at St. James’ Park, and he was widely held as
exemplifying Newcastle United's extravagance in paying inflated transfer fees for
players of limited quality.