Portsmouth manager thanks supporters after 'smashing' fundraising goal

Portsmouth manager Andy Awford joined talkSPORT to thank fans for their part in a fundraising scheme that raised over a quarter of a million pounds for the club’s new city-based training ground.

Pompey underlined a target of £250,000 to raise before the start of the new season, with quirky incentives such as a meal with club captain Johnny Ertl on offer for supporters, and the club’s loyal fan base certainly delivered.

“The supporters have astounded us all,” Awford told the Transfer Tavern.

“The generosity they’ve shown, they’ve got behind the club again for such a vital cause, we’ve not had our own training ground for years.

“They’ve raised enough money for a load of new pitches that are vital for us at the training ground, to allow the academy to train and to play matches at the weekend, so that’s really important for the club.

“We set a target of £250,000 and they smashed it, raising a total of £260,755 - it’s amazing what they’ve managed to do.”

Arsenal new boy Chambers: ‘I don’t know my best position’

Arsenal summer signing Calum Chambers has admitted to talkSPORT he is still unsure about his preferred position on the pitch.

The former Southampton star, 19, came through the ranks at St Mary’s and spent most of the last campaign at right-back, but since his £16million arrival at the Emirates he has now twice played at centre-half.

During the Gunners’ 3-0 victory over Manchester City in the Community Shield he was barely troubled alongside Laurent Koscielny and Nacho Monreal in the middle of the backline.

And after the match, when asked what his best position was, Chambers replied: “I don’t know.

“I’m really enjoying playing at centre-half and it could be my position this year, I don’t know, but I feel confident there and I’m just hoping to play as many games as possible.”

Play our FREE Premier League Predictor game and you could WI

Captain Brunt signs new three-year deal at West Brom

West Brom captain Chris Brunt has penned a new three-year contract with the Premier League side.

Earlier this summer, the Baggies had activated a 12-month option on the 29-year-old Northern Ireland international’s previous contract, but he has now agreed improved terms until 2017.

Albion head coach Alan Irvine said: "I'm delighted we have extended Chris' contract by a further two years.

He's our captain, has great quality and experience and is clearly a very, very important player for us.

"Chris is an influential figure both on and off the pitch. He has the respect of all the players and staff and is a top class professional."

Brunt, who moved to the Hawthorns in August 2007, is one match away from his 250th competitive appearance for the club.

He took over the captaincy during the 2010/11 season, and earlier this week Irvine had confirmed he would retain it for the coming season, meaning he had served as skipper for four different managers - Roy Hodgson, Steve Clarke, Pepe Mel and Irvine.

Brunt joins England goalkeeper Ben Foster in signing a new deal after a busy summer which has already seen Craig Gardner, Joleon Lescott, Chris Baird, Brown Ideye, Cristian Gamboa, Jason Davidson, Sebastien Pocognoli and Andre Wisdom join the Baggies.

Fulham goalkeeper joins Monaco on loan

Fulham goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg has joined Monaco in a season-long loan deal.

The 31-year-old Dutch stopper had a disappointing season at Craven Cottage last term after arriving from Roma and was unable to prevent the London club's relegation from the Premier League.

He will compete with Croatia goalkeeper Danijel Subasic for the number one spot at the Ligue 1 side.

Stekelenburg, who missed out on selection for the Netherlands’ 2014 World Cup squad, told the club’s official website: "I am happy to be a part of the project of the club.

"I am fully going to give myself for my new colours. I am a 'technical' goalkeeper. I like playing far from my goals and helping the team."

Monaco vice-president Vadim Vasilyev was pleased to have bolstered his club's goalkeeping options, having been heavily linked with Victor Valdes earlier this summer only to withdraw their interest in the former Barcelona man over medical concerns.

He said: "We are happy to have another goalkeeper with such an international experience, having played in the final of the 2010 World Cup with the Netherlands."

Vermaelen completes £15m move from Arsenal to Barcelona

Thomas Vermaelen has finalised his switch from Arsenal to Spanish giants Barcelona.

The Belgian defender signed a five-year deal with the Catalan club on Sunday after the two clubs announced they had agreed a £15million deal.

Barcelona said in a statement on their website: "Thomas Vermaelen is now officially an FC Barcelona player.

"A few minutes past 11:15am, the player signed a contract with the Catalan club. It is an agreement that binds him with the club for the next five seasons, until 2018/19."

Vermaelen, 28, made a total of 150 appearances for the Gunners in all competitions after joining from Ajax in June 2009.

Despite being Arsenal's captain, he struggled for a regular starting spot in recent seasons, with Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny ahead of him in the pecking order.

He is the second central defender to sign for Barcelona this summer, after Valencia's Jeremy Mathieu.

Vermaelen was also wanted by Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal, but it is understood that Arsenal proposed a swap deal which the Red Devils were not prepared to do.

Transfer rumours and paper review – Sunday, August 10

Here's the top transfer-related stories in Sunday's newspapers..

Manchester United are poised to make a £30m bid for Borussia Dortmund centre-back Mats Hummels. Should they not land Hummels, then £17m Ajax utility man Daley Blind is their back-up option. (Star on Sunday)

United face a battle with Arsenal to land Hummels, however, with the Gunners keen to land a new centre-back after selling Thomas Vermaelen to Barcelona. (Mail on Sunday)

Manchester United are increasingly confident that they will sign Juventus star Arturo Vidal with Javier Hernandez heading in the opposite direction. (Sunday Express)

Manchester United have been given until Friday to make a firm offer for Juan Cuadrado, the Fiorentina winger, after the Italian club’s president admitted that they would not be able to refuse an offer meeting the Colombian’s £25 million asking price. (Sunday Times)

Chelsea and Manchester United are set to battle it out for Roma defender Mehdi Benatia. (Sunday Express)

Brendan Rodgers wants his Liverpool bosses to push the boat out and land Wilfried Bony. Bony is keen on making a move to Merseyside but the major obstacle is that the Anfield giants' ‘transfer committee’ are worried the 25-year-old is not worth his £19million price-tag. (Sunday People)

Daniel Agger’s future is being monitored by THREE London clubs after making it clear to Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers that he wants to leave. West Ham, Arsenal and Tottenham are all considering a move. (Sunday Mirror)

Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva is hopeful of being reunited with former Reds boss Rafael Benitez at Napoli. (Independent on Sunday)

Kolo Toure could be on his way out of Liverpool after agreeing terms with Turkish side Trabzonspor. (Metro)

Cardiff manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is keen to sign troubled West Ham midfielder Ravel Morrison, 21. (Independent on Sunday)

QPR are launching a bid to sign Lassana Diarra from Lokomotiv Moscow. Diarra, 29, blossomed under manager Harry Redknapp while at Portsmouth and was part of the 2008 FA Cup-winning side. (Mail on Sunday)

Exclusive – Arsenal must sign a defensive midfielder, says Robson

Stewart Robson has told Arsene Wenger to sign a defensive midfielder or risk having an unbalanced midfield this season.

It’s likely the Gunners will move for a new defender in the coming days following the sale of Thomas Vermaelen to Barcelona.

But Robson believes if Arsenal are to challenge at the top of the Premier League they must add a player with defensive attributes to complement their style.

“Arsenal’s best two midfielders are Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere in terms of what they can do with or without the ball and I would play Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in one of the wide areas.

“I see too much of Santi Cazorla only playing with the ball. I see too much of Mesut Ozil only playing when Arsenal have got the ball and Tomas Rosicky is exactly the same.

“Ramsey, certainly Wilshere and Oxlade-Chamberlain are the future of Arsenal but they need a holding midfielder to come in and complement their attributes.”

Aston Villa announce Cissokho deal

Aston Villa have signed French defender Aly Cissokho from Valencia, subject to international clearance, the Premier League outfit have announced.

The 26-year-old arrives at Villa Park in a reported £2.4million deal, siging a five-year contract with Paul Lambert’s side.

Cissokho, who has one cap for France, spent last season on loan at Liverpool but failed to make a real impression at Anfield, making just 15 appearances for the top flight runners-up before returning to Spain.

Villa announced the move on their official Twitter account, saying: "Aly Cissokho has joined us on a four-year deal from Valencia, subject to international clearance."

Cissokho joins the likes of Kieran Richardson, Joe Cole and Philippe Senderos as new arrivals at Villa Park this summer.

Perez: Vermaelen is a 'plan B signing' for Barcelona

A move for Arsenal centre-back Thomas Vermaelen would be a ‘plan B signing’ for Barcelona, according to talkSPORT’s Spanish football expert Begona Perez.

The Gunners skipper is wanted by the Catalan side as well as Premier League rivals Manchester United, though Barca have reportedly won the race and are set to finalise a £15million deal this weekend.

Their interest in the Belgiun international has raised more than a few eyebrows in both England and Spain, but Perez believes new boss Luis Enrique is desperate to strengthen his defence by any means following the club’s first trophyless season in six years.

“Barcelona are in desperate need of defensive players, last season there was a time where only Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano were available,” Perez told Kick Off.

“They have already signed Jeremy Mathieu from Valencia and now they are close to signing Vermaelen, he will travel to Barcelona this weekend for a medical.

“But he is definitely a plan B signing for Barca. Their first choice was Marquinhos from Paris Saint-Germain, but the French club didn’t want to know.

“Some are raising question marks over how Vermaelen will perform with Barcelona because he only started 13 games last season, his poor injury record is well known and it’s unclear if he’ll be first-team material at the Nou Camp.”

Reports: Southampton closing in on £10m deal for England goalkeeper

There may finally be some good news for Southampton in the summer transfer window, with reports on Friday suggesting the club are closing in on a deal for Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster.

The 26-year-old England international has already travelled to St Mary's, where he is expected to sign a four-year deal.

Forster has been long linked with a switch to the south coast, with the Scottish club having rejected what they described as a 'derisory' bid for the goalkeeper earlier in the window.

It was thought Celtic’s Champions League reprieve would have made a swoop for the highly-rated stopper, who has enjoyed impressive form in Europe over the past few seasons, even more unlikely for the Saints.

But it seems the Bhoys have instead allowed the star to leave, with rumours suggesting they have accepted an improved offer in the region of £10million from Southampton.

Forster is already in the south coast for a medical, with Southampton hoping to finalise the deal over the weekend.