OFFICIAL: Caceres to Juventus on loan

Barcelona has today officially announced the transfer of Barcelona central defender and Uruguay international Martín Cáceres (22) to Juventus.

Juventus has meanwhile officially confirmed the deal.

Cáceres will join Juventus on a one-year loan, with the Italian club paying his full salary.

Juventus also has an option to buy Cáceres at the end of the season for a transfer fee of 11 million euro° plus 1 million euro in variables° depending on objectives reached.

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Still no final deal on Caceres loan

Spanish news agency EFE claims that there's still no final agreement on the transfer of Barcelona central defender and Uruguay international Martín Cáceres (22) to Juventus.

A Barcelona source would have confirmed to the news agency that both clubs are on the verge of signing a one-year loan deal, with an option for Juventus to buy Cáceres at the end of the coming season for 11 million euro plus 1 million euro in incentives.

Despite the principal agreement between the clubs and the fact that Cáceres already passed the medical tests on Friday, there would still be a problem about who should pay the solidarity rights if Juventus would in the end sign Cáceres permanently next year. FIFA rules state that 5 per cent of a transfer fee should be paid to the clubs wa playerwas formed. It is nevertheless expected that the loan deal will be officially announced tomorrow.

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Total deal on Caceres loan to Juventus
Caceres passes Juventus medical

Caceres passes Juventus medical

Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) has passed the medical tests at Italian club Juventus this morning. It is now expected that a one-year loan deal will be announced later today.

Read more:
Total deal on Caceres loan to Juventus

Caceres set for Juventus medical tests

Italian sports papers Il Corriere dello Sport and Tuttosport claim that Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) will undergo today the medical tests at Juventus prior to his transfer on loan.

The player would have arrived in Italy yesterday, where he and his agent Daniel Fonseca had a dinner with Juventus sports director Alessio Secco. The Uruguayan centre-back is quoted by Tuttosport as saying that he's excited about the move: "I want all this to be closed soon, I can't wait to be a Juventus player. I'm living a dream. I'll take Barcelona's winning spirit with me to Juventus."

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Total deal on Caceres loan to Juventus

Total deal on Caceres loan to Juventus

All Italian and Spanish media claim that all parties involved have found a deal on the transfer of Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) to Juventus.

Although some media report that Cáceres will join Juventus on a permant transfer, most media claim that it will be a one-year loan, with a buy option of (10 or) 12 million euro. Juventus player Poulsen would in the end not be part of the deal (read more here).

Italian sports paper Tuttosport claims that Cáceres will be in Turin tomorrow to undergo the medical tests. Catalan radio station RAC 1 claims that the Uruguayan centre-back and his agent Daniel Fonseca travelled already to Italy today to finalize the deal.

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This week decision on Caceres loan to Juventus
Meeting Caceres-Poulsen swap coming up

This week decision on Caceres loan to Juventus

Asked about the rumours linking Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) with a move to Juventus (read more here), the player's agent Daniel Fonseca has said in an interview with Italian fan site Calcio Mercato that a decision will be made in the coming days:

"We are working on a deal. I'm not yet in Italy though. I can confirm that the player only wants to join Juventus on loan. If he cannot go to Juventus, he'll stay with Barcelona. I think there will be news in the next two or three days. Loan or permanent move? We prefer a loan, that's the easiest option. I am optimistic, we could have interesting news soon."

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The Scapegoat in Failure, The Forgotten Man
Caceres looking forward to Juventus move

Meeting Caceres-Poulsen swap coming up

Italian sports paper Tuttosport claims that Barcelona and Juventus officials will meet later this week to discuss the transfers of Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) and Juventus midfielder and Danish international Christian Poulsen (29).

Juventus sports director Alessio Secco will probably first meet later today in Italy (somewhere between Milan and Turin) with Daniel Fonseca, the agent of Cáceres, trying to find already a personal agreement with the player, who would be earning 2 million euro at Barcelona and doesn't want to take a pay cut.

The Italian club would only be able to afford signing Cáceres if Juventus player Poulsen, who has a 3 million euro a year salary, would leave this summer. Despite the interest of several English clubs, the Danish midfielder would like to join Barcelona and Barcelona sports director Txiki Begiristain is quoted by the paper as confirming that Barcelona is interested in the player: "The Dane is one of the candidates to strengthen our midfield."

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Agent Poulsen confirms Barcelona contact
Juventus President: Caceres depends on Poulsen
Loan move to Juventus only option for Caceres

Loan move to Juventus only option for Caceres

Asked about the rumours linking him with a move to Juventus (read more here), Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) has said in an interview with Catalan sports paper Sport that he only wants to leave on loan:

"If I leave for Juventus, it's very clear to me that it has to be a loan and not a permant move since I want to return to Barcelona.

I didn't yet talk with the coach about my possible move to Juventus but my priority now is to play more because last year wasn't my best in that perspective and I need to think about my future. For me it's clear: it's Juve or nothing. I don't know when the final decision will be made, but the faster the better. I wouldn't like to travel with the group to the United States and then having to return to Europe two days later..."

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Caceres looking forward to Juventus move
Official players' pictures (part 1)
Deal between Juventus and Caceres almost done

The Scapegoat in Failure, The Forgotten Man in Success - Txiki Begiristain

The man under fire, the guy with a bull’s-eye mark on the back of his head, let me present, Txiki Begiristain.

Some called him a flop, some called him blind but that does not change the fact that he played his part in our treble winning season.

5 players came in, some excelled, some struggled and some flopped, let’s review what these players did last season.

DANI ALVES:-

If you could grade his performances last season, then he definitely gets an A+. The marauding fullback, the best right back in the world. Just one question - who brought him here? That’s right, Txiki. But does he get some credit for signing the best player in his position? No, it's simply forgotten. We all remember when Madrid, Chelsea, Milan and Man U(teams with open cheque books , barring Milan ;D) wanted him, but he went and got a personal agreement with Dani so that he doesn’t choose anyone but barca. Some would say a bit overpriced due to Txiki's bad negotiation, but let me ask one last question - would any of the clubs mentioned above signed him for less than 35m+ euro? I don’t think so.

GERARD PIQUE:

Another master stroke. Sir Alex is still weeping over the loss of one the best defensive prospects in the world. When Ferdinand spent half of last season injured there was no one to replace a defender of his calibre. There was no Pique, because he flew back to Barcelona. Sure some would say we paid a lot for our own youth product, but after seeing Pique last season, does 6 million Euros seem expensive? No.

SEYDOU KEITA:

Here's a guy who struggled to make an impact in the first stages of the season due to lack of playing time but his confidence grew with time. He scored important goals and gave Xavi & Andres to roam free because they knew that someone's got their back. He might not be a Yaya but he's good enough to fill the void if Yaya is injured. He's another good signing for a good price, and credit goes to Txiki, again.

MARTIN CACERES:

A young defender who was once dubbed as the new Sergio Ramos had a catastrophic first season with Barcelona. He never really got going because of little playing time and some disastrous mistakes, but don't all young players do that? Rafa Marquez makes the same mistakes and he's a veteran, so should we sell him? Of course not because he's the best defender in Mexican history, and like him Caceres needs to learn. He's only 22. How many people had faith in Henry after his debut season, not many, but he learned, improved and he was 29, and besides, if you're a sporting director who gets excellent scouting reports about a young player wouldn’t you have signed him for 15 mil? Of course.

ALEX HLEB:

Now here's a player who has the word flop engraved on his forehead. After amazing seasons with Arsenal, everyone thought that he would hit the ground running at barca. But the truth was cruel for Alex as he was greeted to La Liga with a tackle that ruined his career with us. The only thing I can thank him for is his pass to Henry in El Clasico and that it wasn’t someone else who got that tackle. But would you rather buy a 15 million euro flop or buy a 30 million pound Berbatov, a 40 million pound Shevchenko or a 30 million euro Quaresma? The answer is obvious...

In short, there is no sporting director without mistakes. At least Txiki's mistakes were the least costly ones. So there you have it, a guy who didn’t spend the summer chasing a Ronaldo and wasting a Robinho. A guy who did not spend 150 mill on two players. The guy who brings what the coach wants. Txiki.

Posted by hamad_ali.

Caceres looking forward to Juventus move

Asked about the rumours linking him with a loan move to Juventus (read more here), Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) has said in an interview with Italian sports paper Tuttosport that he's looking forward to join the Italian club:

"For me, it's a great honour to be in the plans of such a prestigious club like Juventus. That's why I hope the negotiations between Juventus and Barcelona will be succesful. I'm very motivated to start this new adventure.

My agent has explained me everything about Juventus, about their winning spirit and their attitude of never giving up. And I am also like that, I'm a guy that only wants to win. He also told about Juve coach Ferrara, how he was as a player, both on and off the pitch. I had so many questions, so many things I wanted to learn more about. I repeat: it's an enormous honour to be followed by Juventus, I'm looking forward to a good end to all of this."

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Official players' pictures (part 1)

Víctor Valdés

José Manuel Pinto

Albert Jorquera

Rafael Márquez

Henrique

Martín Cáceres

Eric Abidal

Maxwell

Yaya Touré

Deal between Juventus and Caceres almost done

Asked about the rumours linking Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) with a move to Juventus (read more here), the player's agent Daniel Fonseca has said in an interview with Italian television channel Sky Sport 24 that a deal between the player and the Italian club is close:

"With Juventus, we have almost reached an agreement. There are a few details left but it's basically a done deal. Now we should convince Barcelona. At the beginning, they didn't want him to leave because they paid so much for him last year, but now things are looking good. We're working on a loan move and I think we'll find the best solution very soon. My role is to make the player happy and he didn't get a chance at Barcelona so he wanted to leave."

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Guardiola about current Barca players
Juventus wants Caceres-Poulsen swap

Juventus President: Caceres depends on Poulsen

Asked about the rumours linking Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) with a move to Juventus (read more here), Juventus president Cobolli Gigli confirmed to Italian television channel Sky Sport 24 that the Italian club is interested:

"It's a player whom we're interested in, it's more than just rumours. But it is all linked to Poulsen and the fact that we have to bring some money in. Our priority is now to get cash in and then we can reinvest that money. Cáceres is only an option if we first sell Poulsen."

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Juventus confirms Caceres interest
Guardiola about current Barca players

Agent: Caceres waiting to make decision

Asked about Barcelona defender and Uruguayan international Martin Caceres (22), agent Daniel Fonseca was quoted by Italian site Tuttomercatoweb that a deal could soon be made:

"Nothing has changed since we last heard, but Juventus are optimistic about the signing. I think that in 10 days time the situation will be resolved.

Does it depend on Barcelona or Juventus? Neither of them - we are waiting for the player's answer, which should arrive in 4-5 days, and then we can finally move forward."

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Caceres very close to Juventus loan

Guardiola about current Barca players

At the press conference yesterday, Pep Guardiola informed the journalists on some of the current Barcelona players situation.




Márquez
He'll renew. He's getting over his injury, he's come a long way and he's very enthusiastic.

Messi
He wants to train and it's great for me that he's here.

Cáceres
We might put him out on loan because next season maybe he won't have that much game time.

Puyol
He'll renew. Carles isn't going anywhere. If he's thinking about moving, he can forget about it. He'll play where he's told because he’s great in all positions.

Gudjohnsen
I've spoken to him and for the moment he's staying.

Henry
His role will depend on him. If he's okay he'll play a lot. He's Henry!


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Guardiola about the incoming transfers

Juventus confirms Caceres interest

Asked about the rumours linking Barcelona central defender and Uruguay international Martín Cáceres (22) with a move to Juventus (read more here), Juventus general director Jean-Claude Blanc has yesterday confirmed to journalists that the Uruguayan is an option:

"We are looking at the possibility of signing Barcelona defender Martín Cáceres on loan. It's a great player: young, strong, firm. He would be a useful player to complete the squad."


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Barcelona tried again for Forlan last week

Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo claims that Barcelona made last week an ultimate bid for Atlético Madrid forward and Uruguay international Diego Forlán (30).

Barcelona would have offered Atlético 25 million euro plus a one-year loan of Barcelona central defender and Uruguay international Martín Cáceres (22), but Atlético held on to the buyout clause of 36 million euro.

Catalan sports paper Sport claims that Barcelona president Joan Laporta offered his Atlético counterpart Enrique Cerezo 25 million euro plus one of the three following players: Cácered, Henrique or Keirrison. Last Wednesday, Laporta would tehn have made a last offer of 36 million euro but on the condition that Atlético also accepted to sign Barcelona forward Eto'o. This last offer would also have been rejected.

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Caceres very close to Juventus loan

Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo claims that Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) could move to Juventus.

Barcelona would want Cáceres, whose contract expires in 2012, to have more playing minutes and, after having looked at an offer by Turkish club Galatasaray, a deal with Juventus on a one-year loan would now be very close.

In contrast to what had been previously mentioned (read more here), Juventus midfielder and Danish international Christian Poulsen (29) would not be part of the deal.

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Cáceres to Juventus in 10 days

Juventus wants Caceres-Poulsen swap

Italian sports paper Tuttosport claims that Juventus wants to swap Juventus midfielder and Danish international Christian Poulsen (29) for Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22).

Juventus manager Ciro Ferrara would like to add another central defender to his squad, while a transfer of Poulsen would open the way for another transfer, given the Dane's high wage.

Both players would be valued at 7 million euro°, which could result in a straight swap with no money included.

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Barcelona moving for Poulsen
Juventus and Roma interested in Caceres

Cáceres to Juventus in 10 days

A report in Catalan sports paper Sport states that Barcelona central defender and Uruguayan international Martín Cáceres (22) could be on his way to Juventus.

Daniel Fonseca, agent of Cáceres, would have told Catalan radio station RAC1 in an interview yesterday that Juventus is the only club his client would consider moving to. Fonseca would have also stated that he is 'optimistic' about the transfer and the two clubs will work out the details of the agreement in the next 10 days.

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Cáceres is an option for Juventus
Cáceres could sign Zaragoza loan deal this week