Bayern & Milan Fight For Frey

Bayern Munich and AC Milan are locked in a battle to sign Fiorentina goalkeeper Sebastien Frey, according to the Gazzetta dello Sport.

Frey has established himself as one of the best shot-stoppers in Serie A, and he has produced a string of stunning performances this season.

The Frenchman has long been linked with a move to Milan, who are expected to sign a new number one in the summer, following their troubles with Nelson Dida.

However, according to the Gazzetta, Bayern are now set to rival the Rossoneri for the 28-year-old’s signature.

The Bavarian-giants, who are well clear at the top of the Bundesliga, are looking for a new goalkeeper in order to replace retiring legend Oliver Kahn, who will hang up his gloves in June.

Frey has been recommended to Bayern by Luca Toni, who signed for the club from Fiorentina last summer.

Ironically Toni and Bayern could face Frey in the final of this season’s UEFA Cup. Fiorentina play Glasgow Rangers in their semi-final, while the German-outfit are up against Zenith St Petersburg.

Van Der Vaart To Replace Ronaldinho At Barça

Barcelona have held preliminary talks with Rafael Van der Vaart's agent as they hope to sign the Holland international when Ronaldinho's move to AC Milan is finally made official.

The Blaugrana have asked the Rossoneri not to make any statement regarding the move for the Brazilian until after the Catalan outfit have played their final Champions League game of the season.

If Frank Rijkaard's team are eliminated by Manchester United at the semi final stage then Milan will be given the green light to announce Ronaldinho's imminent arrival, but if Barça progress they will be asked to wait until after the final.

With Ronaldinho set to sign a five-year deal at the San Siro that will see his wages rise from the €8m-per-year he earned at Barcelona to €12m-a-year, the Blaugrana will have more finances to play with.

Having been linked to several players in recent weeks to play down the left, Txiki Begiristain and Rijkaard are already talking to Van der Vaart agent, Bayram Tutumlu, about the player's interest in a move to the club.

The Hamburg star has Spanish heritage and has often been linked with a move to Real Madrid, but their interest cooled last summer and now Barça are set to offer him the chance to shine in la Primera.

Russian champions bar Reds’ path to final

Zenit St. Petersburg rate as the aspiring giants of Russian football. The club which numbers President-elect Dmitry Medvedev among its supporters are the reigning Russian champions and recently added the domestic Supercup to their collection, although they have only won the league title on two occasions in total.

However, four games into the new Russian season, the team coached by former Monchengladbach boss Dick Advocaat lie a disappointing ninth in the 16-team top flight with five points from four matches, although Zenit’s strength and ability has just proved too much for Bayern’s league rivals Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the UEFA Cup quarter-finals.

Starring role for Arshavin

The Russians travelled to the Rhineland for the first leg and ruthlessly punished the home team on the break to register a 4-1 triumph. The best man on the park was Andrei Arshavin, Zenit’s biggest name and 2006 Russian Player of the Year.

Bayer recovered some of their pride and won Thursday’s return in St. Petersburg by the only goal of the game, but the Bayern observers at the Petrovsky Stadium will not have failed to note the home side’s menace in attack. The brains and creativity in the team are supplied by Ukraine playmaker and club captain Anatoliy Tymoschuk. “He could easily have played in Italy or Spain,“ Leverkusen Director of Sport Rudi Völler commented before the quarter-final second leg.

Record books offer hope

Founded in 1925 and making an eighth foray into the UEFA Cup, the men from St. Petersburg have generally come off worse against German teams until the recent Leverkusen tie. In December 2004, Zenit managed no better than a 2-2 draw with second division Alemannia Aachen at the group stage and were eliminated, while Dynamo Dresden put paid to the Russians’ hopes back in 1981-2. Bayern represent the fourth and on paper most challenging German opponents so far.