Liverpool ready to offload Spanish defender Arbeloa in £3.5m Real deal

23 July 2009 13:27
Real Madrid hope to clinch a cut-price deal for Liverpool right-back Alvaro Arbeloa. The 26-year-old has been told he can leave following the arrival of England international Glen Johnson from Portsmouth. Arbeloa has just a year on his contract and has been expected to make the switch to the Bernabeu all summer. But Madrid's attempts to also sign Xabi Alonso have slowed negotiations and the clubs have also been some distance apart in their valuations of the former Deportivo La Coruna player. Liverpool had hoped to recoup £8million, but Madrid now expect to land Arbeloa for just £3.5million. Madrid sporting director Miguel Pardeza confirmed he hoped to sign Arbeloa but admitted there was still some work to do. "With Arbeloa there was an option which, at the moment, has come to nothing," said Pardeza. "Liverpool haven't had much intention of letting him go, even though he has one year left on his contract, and we are still in this situation. "There is more than a month of the transfer market left and this could change. I'm not going to deny that we'd like to have Arbeloa."

Source: Daily_Mail