Have Manchester City tabled an offer for James Milner? I've seen a headline that suggests they have and I've read in a forum somewhere that it was reported earlier that they have also.
If they have, we won't find out until an offer is accepted and the player has travelled to Manchester for a medical (a bit difficult at the moment seeing as he is in Austria with the England team), but honestly, do not be surprised, if an offer is made one day, that he leaves.
You see, nothing happens in football any longer the way it is supposed to happen and clubs don't waste time making offers unless they know the player will join them.
If it is a case that Manchester City are making an offer, they will know Milner wants out and it is very much a case of them making an offer, because Martin O'Neill will not give them a price to begin with and Martin O'Neill, I suspect, can be a stubborn git.
He will then reject whatever offer comes in then Manchester City will ask for a valuation. Martin O'Neill will make it quite a bit higher than the offer he has refused but it won't be an impossible figure - it will be the price Martin O'Neill will accept for James Milner. Every player has a price.
Then it comes down to Manchester City and how much they really want James Milner.
James Milner
And if James Milner leaves it won't be nice but it also won't be the end of the world. As long as we got a fair amount of money for him, it could possibly turn out to be good business. Yes, he is a decent player and yes, I'd like him to stay, but if his heart isn't in Aston Villa and Manchester City are interested, he will leave.
But, it could all be just press speculation. It could all be Daily Star and with neither club saying anything - it probably is.
Nigel Reo-Coker
Our mate Nige on the other hand is loving it at Villa and doesn't want to leave. Well, he will if the offer is right for him, but he doesn't want to according to a top secret source of a local newspaper, who are also telling us today that Blackburn Rovers are interested in the player and are poised to table an offer.
Express & Star top-secret inside source
Nigel loves playing at the club and enjoys being at Villa. At the moment he is planning to return for pre-season, but anything can happen in football. It has become obvious that he is available for transfer, but it is too early for that and any move would have to suit Nigel and be right for the player. He likes the club and wants to stay. He had the chance to go to Blackburn on loan but it wasn’t right for him so he didn’t go. He has a good relationship with the fans at Villa and is prepared to challenge for his place.
I love how the top-secret source, when talking about something they know so much about, also refer to Nigel as 'the player'. This has all the hallmarks of a Daily Star.
Club Site
I usually like to have a laugh at the expense of the media department at the club because they are usually the last to find out about a transfer or an offer (or the slowest to react) but this time, it really is a case of waiting until we see something on the club site or the other clubs site.
These two bits of nothing today could very well be all Daily Star.