EPL Transfer Rumors: Van Persie and 9 Big Name Forwards Who Could Be on the Move

Robin van Persie is only one of the many forwards names that have recently been rumored to be on a move in the English Premier League come this summer.

As the season winds down, we come ever closer to the opening of the summer transfer window. Teams will be looking to improve on their standings from the previous season by adding quality up front and those that put in career numbers will want a new deal that honors such feats.

Here is a list of ten of the biggest forwards currently in the EPL who we will be talking about this summer.

Robin Van Persie

Any Arsenal fan will tell you that van Persie is beyond a class act.

A career wrought with injuries, has finally come together through a full healthy season where he has been nothing short of exceptional.

His 25 goals in the league has him all but a lock for the golden boot and everything he brings to Arsenal has him undoubtedly expected to be named the EPL player of the year.

Van Persie may be looking to cash in on such a season by making a jump to mega-rich Manchester City.

The Daily Mirror reports:

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Manchester City are ready to make Robin van Persie the highest-paid player in the Premier League with a mega £210,000-a-week contract in the offing for the Arsenal hitman.

The deal, worth £10.9million a year, has been agreed by the Holland international, according to sources as reported in The Sunday Times.

"

Though the move seems unlikely given what van Persie brings to the Gunners both in terms of talent and leadership, if anyone has the money to change that it would be the Citizens.

Didier Drogba

The Chelsea legend scored his 100^th Premier League goal on Saturday, nabbing the game winner against Stoke, but it may be one of his last in a Chelsea uniform.

The Ivorian, who just turned 34, has been rumored to be on the move as long ago as this summer as former Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas was expected to weed out the veterans on the squad.

Drogba, who’s contract expires at the end of the season, has asked for a two-year deal, but the club is reluctant to give him any more than a one year extension, which has helped lead to rumors that he will be gone in the summer.

Right now, it currently looks like he could be joining Nicolas Anelka at Shanghai Shenhua. The Chinese club is willing to make him one of the game’s highest paid players with a lucrative deal that gives him £270,000 per week.

The move would also be supported by Drogba’s long time friend and former teammate, Anelka:

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It’s difficult for me (Anelka) to say much at this time, but I speak with him on a regular basis and I expect him to come to Shanghai. When I left Chelsea, I told him we’d play together again soon.

"

Clint Dempsey

The American has been one of the staples of the Fulham attack since he arrived in 2007.

Every season he has improved on his goal total, all the way to this campaign where he has had a breakout year with 18 total goals in all competitions.

The winger, who can also play up top, is happy at Fulham, but would like to have some Champions League play before his career is over.

Arsenal are the current front-runners for the American's services.

He seems to fit ideally into the Arsenal game plan: quick, talented and innovative playmaker that can be bought for cheap.

Contract talks are on-going at Craven Cottage as they look to hold on to their biggest offensive threat. But in the end, they cannot offer the European glory he seeks.

Carlos Tevez

The much maligned Tevez has been rumored to be on the move ever since this past summer’s side line blow-up with manager Roberto Mancini who had him exiled from the team.

However, no club was willing to meet the price for last season’s golden boot winner.

With another transfer window only months away, City will attempt to unload the dead weight again.

The Mirror has recently suggested AC Milan as a possible destination for the Argentinean.

The Italian club is expecting to lose Alexandre Pato this summer, and could be looking to replace him with Tevez.

City though, may look to hang on to him in the end as they have begun to notice how difficult it can be to keep up the scoring they did at the beginning of the season. Scoring only three goals in their last three games has seen them drop out of first place in the league.

Mancini has made the bold decision to include Tevez back in the game plan,as City face off against Chelsea on March 21^st.

How he performs in that match could be telling of his future.

Emmanuel Adebayor

Adebayor has regained the form he once had in North London, albeit at White Hart Lane.

The Spurs striker leads his side in league goals with 11, and pairs that with an additional 11 assists, helping Tottenham to what will be their best finish in years.

However, Adebayor is not the property of the club. He is only on loan from Manchester City, making his future uncertain.

Spurs have taken the initiative attempting to secure his services in a rumored £8 million bid for the striker.

The bid may be too small as Liverpool was interested in him this winter for £15 million.

Ultimately, it could come down to whether or not City feel that they would need him more in their attack than the comparably small fee he would bring in.

Luis Suarez

Suarez has been in the news this season for all the wrong reasons.

His repeated spats with Manchester United full-back Patrice Evra over racial slurs have made him a villain in the game. He may be looking for an escape from the madness this summer.

There is little doubt to his footballing ability. A down year by his standards, he has still managed 16 points in 25 starts, despite everything that is going on around him.

Suarez seems to be the main perpetrator of a potential move.

He recently came out and expressed his own desire to play elsewhere, most notably at PSG, hooking up with fellow countrymen Diego Lugano:

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There are many big clubs with such a reputation that want to build a top team and Paris is one of those teams that is recruiting to strengthen. I would love if (me and Lugano) could play together.

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Juventus have also been reported to make a £30 million bid for the striker.

At this point a move away from England may be the best thing for him and the club.

Dimitar Berbatov

It is not often that you have two golden boot winners that don’t play the following season, but that is exactly what happened as Berbatov also found himself shutout of his team.

Not as maliciously as Mancini did to Tevez, Alex Ferguson has not utilized the Bulgarian striker nearly at all this year.

Three quarters of the way through the season, Berbatov has only featured in 19 games, but has still managed nine goals.

Bayern Munich has been rumored to be after the forward as he would add more depth in a weak center forward position. The price has been reported as being around £8 million.

However, United seem intent of keeping him as they are reportedly ready to activate a clause in his contract that would keep him at Old Trafford through June 2013.

Demba Ba

Ba has single handedly made Newcastle relevant this season.

His 16 goals in all competitions is four times more than the next highest man on the team, and at age 26 he still has room to improve.

He was most recently rumored to be on the move this past January as both Tottenham and Arsenal were looking to procure his services for roughly £18 million.

Lately, Liverpool has also come on the scene in a potential swap deal that would send Andy Carroll back to the Toon for Ba.

However, Ba himself has silenced any rumors by suggesting he wants to “write his name in Tynside folklore." Ba said:

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I knew all about it (Newcastle) and that is why I made the decision to move here. As a football player you want to play on the biggest stage. Newcastle have some of the craziest, most fanatical fans in Europe considering we have not won anything for ages, and that makes you very aware of where you are and what it means in this city.

"

Fernando Torres

Torres has continued his epic failure at Stamford Bridge into the new year and beyond. Chelsea must now look past his potential, and realistically at what they can salvage for him.

The Daily Star is reporting Torres used as part of payment in a £50 million bid that would send him back to Atletico Madrid for Radamel Falcao.

He could also see a move to the San Siro if AC Milan were to renew the interest they had shown in the winter.

Ultimately, his days in blue may be nearing an end as he continues to struggle beyond words.

The writing may have already been on the wall back in January as former Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti, now in charge of PSG, stated that he had been offered the striker.

Who Do You Think Will Be on the Move?

This is nothing more than a short list that I compiled of some of the latest rumors around big name strikers.

I am not a insider with connections to agents and club executives.

Like all rumors, some of these hold weight and some are complete farces. It is up to you to decide what to believe.

So what big names forwards do you think will be on the move this summer?

As always, please leave your comments below and thanks for reading!

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