Liverpool aim to wrap up £18m deal for Keane
Saturday July 19 2008
LIVERPOOL hope to finalise a deal worth up to £18m for Robbie Keane over the weekend, with the forward among a clutch of players expected to leave Tottenham Hotspur.
Keane is waiting to return from Tottenham's training camp in Spain.
Tottenham expect to lose at least one of Keane's fellow forwards, with Manchester United likely to raise their £20m offer for Dimitar Berbatov and Sunderland considering improving their offer for Darren Bent.
Sunderland's ambitious attempt to sign four Tottenham players for a combined fee of £23m floundered when Younes Kaboul's agent said the defender would not move to Wearside "even if there was an earthquake".
Sunderland were given permission to talk to Kaboul, Steed Malbranque, Pascal Chimbonda and Teemu Tainio after their initial offer was accepted.
Kaboul is holding out for a transfer to Harry Redknapp's Portsmouth, while Chimbonda, a fellow defender, would prefer a move to Everton.
However, Roy Keane, the Sunderland manager, hopes to persuade Tainio to join the club when he holds talks with the Finland midfield player on Wearside today.
