Schurrle: Chelsea have had an offer in excess of £16 million for Germany forward Andre Schurrle rejected by Bayer Leverkusen. The 21-year-old has established himself as one of Germany’s most exciting young talents since joining Bayer Leverkusen from Mainz last year. Leverkusen chief Wolfgang Holzhauser yesterday said: “We were presented with a very concrete offer from Chelsea for Andre but we ultimately chose to retain the player.”
Torino: Serie A newcomers Torino have confirmed the signing of Marco Migliorini from Division Three club Chieti. Migliorini, 20, also played for Chievo and Brno in the earlier days of his career. He plays in central defence.
Bridge: Brighton have signed Manchester City defender Wayne Bridge on a season-long loan deal. The 31-year-old, who has won 36 caps for England, spent the second half of last season on loan at Sunderland, making 10 appearances. Bridge moved to Manchester City from Chelsea in January 2009 for a fee of around £10 million.
Chamakh: Italian club Fiorentina have made a move for unsettled Arsenal striker Marouane Chamakh. The Moroccan is being strongly linked with a departure this summer after struggling to make an impact in the Premier League. Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger said: “They have asked for information about Marouane’s availability and the day after they enquired, they returned with a very advantageous offer.”
Paulinho: Corinthians midfielder Paulinho is being linked with a move to Inter in the Serie A. Reports yesterday said officials from the San Siro outfit were in Brazil over the last few days and an agreement for the 23-year-old has already been sealed. It is under-stood that the Brazilian inter-national, whose contract at Corinthians expires in 2015, will cost around €8 million.
Xhaka: Borussia M’gladbach midfielder Granit Xhaka has been withdrawn from the Switzerland squad for the Olympic Games after talks between his new club and national association. The 19-year-old, who joins the Foals from Basel this summer, was initially nominated in the Switzerland squad. However, Gladbach have requested he be re-leased to allow him to focus on affairs at his new club ahead of the 2012/13 season.