Yobo set to finalise move to Goodison
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Your support makes all the difference.Everton and Marseilles have agreed a value of around £4.5m to bring the defender Joseph Yobo to Goodison Park on a permanent basis.
The two clubs have been locked in talks over the past 48 hours and the Nigerian is expected to sign a long-term contract in the next few days.
Yobo has been impressive since the Everton manager, David Moyes, signed him on a year's loan in the summer and his performances have helped the Toffees rise to third place in the Premiership. His return to fitness has coincided with the club's six League wins in a row, the past five with clean sheets.
Marseilles bought Yobo from Standard Liège for £3.4m in 2001 and he made 23 appearances for the French side before emerging as one of Nigeria's best players at the World Cup in the summer. Everton paid £1m in the summer to secure his loan services for this season and are expected to pay a further £3.5m to make the deal permanent.
Gabriel Milito has confirmed that he is ready to head for Leeds United if they and Independiente can settle a £4.5m fee. The Argentinian left-back or centre-half, who has been on Terry Venables' wanted list for a month, as first revealed in The Independent on 8 November, said: "I know Leeds have been in contact with my club and I would like to play in England."
Milito has been in contact with Leeds for months, originally when David O'Leary was in charge, and the chairman, Peter Ridsdale – who will find out today if if he is to be re-elected as a director at the club's annual meeting – is keen on the deal. Provided Ridsdale stays on the board, Venables' uncertain position should not threaten the deal.
Leeds see Milito as a shrewd investment, too, with the possibility of moving him to Italy or Spain after a couple of years at a healthy profit. But that is the snag causing the delay as Independiente want 50 per cent of any sell-on. Ridsdale and his negotiators want to buy Milito outright, but that pushes the initial price up and finding money is a problem for the Elland Road club, which is £50m in debt.
Leeds will raise some money towards the cost of the signing, with the Republic of Ireland left-back Ian Harte the most likely to go, as he would be pushed further back down their pecking order.
The Nottingham Forest manager, Paul Hart, who has been linked with a possible return to Leeds if Venables fails to arrest their recent slump, has pledged his future to the City Ground club. "Being linked with a Premiership club is flattering," he said. "Football can be fickle and you have got to have one eye on what's going on, because you're soon forgotten, but we're third in the table and I'm very happy here."
Glenn Hoddle, the Tottenham manager, has reluctantly told the striker Les Ferdinand that he can leave White Hart Lane when the transfer window opens in January if there is an acceptable offer for him. Ferdinand had criticised Hoddle on his website after the Spurs manager rejected a bid from Wolves to take the 35-year-old on loan.
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