Arsenal have been linked with possible move for Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso.

Liverpool’s hoped-for signing of Aston Villa’s Gareth Barry has stalled, and their proposed sale of Xabi Alonso to Juventus has collapsed - but now Arsenal are being linked with both midfielders.

Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill revealed earlier this week that the Gunners had enquired about want-away Villa skipper Barry, and today, according to The Sun, the North London club are also showing interest in Alonso.

It remains to be seen whether there is substance to The Sun’s claim that “Arsenal are eyeing a shock raid” for Alonso, though it is clear that the Spaniard will not now be moving to Juventus.

It’s also true that with Mathieu Flamini having left the Emirates for AC Milan, and Gilberto Silva on his way to Athens to complete his transfer to Panathinaikos, Arsene Wenger is suddenly short of defensive midfielders and will presumably need to enter the market for a quality replacement.

The Sun quotes a source close to Alonso as saying: “If the decision was down to Xabi, he would make the move because Arsenal’s style is perfect for him.”

Alonso would also be able to link up with Spain international team-mate and fellow central midfielder, Cesc Fabregas, if Arsenal’s interest proves to be genuine.

Graham Lister, Goal.com

Fulham have made their fifth and sixth signings of the summer with Bobby Zamora and John Pantsil arriving from West Ham United for a joint fee of £6.3m. The 27-year-old Zamora departs Upton Park 4½ years after joining from Tottenham while Pantsil, the Ghana defender, moves west to Craven Cottage after two seasons in east London where first-team opportunities have been limited.

The acquisition of Zamora, who scored 39 goals in all competitions for West Ham, is a welcome boost for the Fulham manager, Roy Hodgson, who has been looking to strengthen his forward options, particularly in light of the departure of Brian McBride to Major League Soccer in May.

“Bobby is a talented striker who not only has a desire to score goals but always looks to involve the rest of the team with his intelligent play,” said Hodgson. “His quality has allowed us to strengthen our attacking options.”

Pantsil, 27, represented Ghana at three African Cup of Nations tournaments and played all his country’s games at the 2006 World Cup. But he made only nine starts since arriving at West Ham in 2006.

Hodgson has also signed Zoltan Gera, Mark Schwarzer and Andranik Teymourian on free transfers, as well as David Stockdale from Darlington for £600,000.

Spain have appointed the former Real Madrid coach Vicente del Bosque to replace Luis Aragonés, who quit to join Fenerbahce after leading the national team to victory at Euro 2008 last month.

Ref From Chris Barrett guardian.co.uk

Ronaldinho has expressed his joy at leaving Barcelona for Milan and can’t wait to make a fresh start in Serie A.

The Selecao star was frozen out at the Nou Camp after a troubled campaign and made it clear that he didn’t want to stay on for next season.

After a series of financial compromises, Dinho was allowed to join Milan rather than Manchester City and the joy was evident.

“Finally I am a Milan player,” he crowed. “I’m sorry if I kept you waiting but the facts show that I always wanted the Rossoneri.

“It’s not the right time to talk about Barcelona because I just want to enjoy this new chapter in my life.

“I will only say that I promise to work so hard at Milan and not just on a technical level.”

Milan’s new ace will fly to Italy’s fashion capital at 10am this morning and is due to be presented to the Press at Milanello this evening.

Ref From channel4.com