Combien?!?

It appears that Newcastle have had two bids turned down for Jean-Alain Boumsong of Rangers. The first, reported to be a player plus cash deal allegedly involving Aaron Hughes was made informally by Souness, and the second took the form of a faxed bid for £7.5 million cash.

Whether Freddie is prepared to up his offer, with reports suggesting Rangers want £10 million, or whether we have now moved our sights elsewhere we shall have to wait and see. It strikes me as a lot of money for a defender who wasn't exactly setting the world alight last night as Rangers crashed out of the UEFA Cup. That said, he has attracted a fair amount of praise and at 24 is a good age to bring into the side.

Given our somewhat mixed results with French footballers in recent years I always feel slightly worried by our pursuit of Gallic players, but if he turns out to be the steadying influence and authoritative voice at the back we need (and he doesn't prove to be as injury prone as someone I could mention) he could be a bargain.