Torres and Carroll dominate deadline headlines

Fernando Torres and Andy Carroll were looking increasingly as though they would be making big-money moves to Chelsea and Liverpool on one of the most exciting transfer deadline days since the January window began.

Torres edged closer towards a record-breaking switch – reportedly worth £50m – to Stamford Bridge after it emerged the Reds were actively trying to sign a replacement for the forward.

That replacement appeared set to be Carroll, despite Newcastle rejecting a £30m bid for the 22-year-old this morning.

This afternoon saw the Magpies cancel their press conference for Wednesday night’s Barclays Premier League game at Fulham, fuelling speculation they were preparing for their star striker’s departure.

Liverpool’s Carroll bid appeared to suggest a player-plus-cash deal for Torres was not an option, amid rumours Chelsea had offered them both Daniel Sturridge and Nicolas Anelka as makeweights in a £50m package.

The Blues last week had a £35m cash offer rejected, a move which prompted Torres to submit a written transfer request on Friday, which was also turned down.

But it now looks certain that if Liverpool could sign Carroll before the 11pm deadline, they would be prepared to do business with Chelsea for a price that would smash the transfer record between British clubs.

Reports today suggested they had an offer for Bayern Munich hotshot Mario Gomez rebuffed yesterday as they began to plan for life without their star striker.

The Reds have already all-but completed the signing of Uruguay forward Luis Suarez, whose £23m move from Ajax was set to be rubber-stamped today.

They were also at the centre of the first major piece of transfer business this morning when the end of Paul Konchesky’s unhappy spell at Anfield was heralded by a loan move to Nottingham Forest.

Fellow defender Daniel Ayala was also on the brink of completing a loan to Forest’s east midlands rivals Derby.

As well as trying to sign a striker, Liverpool have this month seen bids turned down for Blackpool midfielder Charlie Adam, who like Torres has also submitted a transfer request.

Seasiders manager Ian Holloway has been adamant that Adam will not leave Bloomfield Road for a fee which falls below his unspecified valuation, with Birmingham and Aston Villa having also seen offers snubbed.

But Adam would almost certainly opt to join Liverpool if an agreement between the clubs could be reached.

While Chelsea may land Torres, they look set to miss out on Benfica defender David Luiz, who they had been chasing for more than a month until negotiations over a reported £26m deal broke off last week.

Reports today suggested Sturridge could be allowed to join Bolton on loan and that the Blues were eyeing St Etienne forward Dimitri Payet.

Harry Redknapp insisted this morning it was highly unlikely Tottenham would be doing business before the deadline.

But that was before reports emerged they had lodged a bid for Atletico Madrid’s former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan.

Spurs pulled a rabbit out of the hat on the last transfer deadline day by snapping up Rafael van der Vaart, and they arguably need a forward having last night let Robbie Keane join West Ham on loan with a view to a permanent deal.

The most unlikely move of the day revolved around Birmingham’s Sebastian Larsson, one of several wingers Manchester City were eyeing in the wake of Adam Johnson’s injury.

Sunderland have been busy on the transfer front in recent days and this morning saw out-of-favour defender Paulo Da Silva complete his move to Real Zaragoza for an undisclosed fee.

Winger Andy Reid was also on the brink of joining Blackpool, perhaps as a replacement for the wantaway Adam.

The only other confirmed move saw Wolves sign former Bristol City goalkeeper Adriano Basso on a short-term contract until the end of the season.

Newcastle looked set to wrap up a loan deal for Aston Villa midfielder Stephen Ireland, who yesterday underwent a medical in the north east.

Villa were today set to confirm the signing of United States international Michael Bradley on loan from Borussia Monchengladbach.

Birmingham were hopeful of landing former Newcastle striker Obafemi Martins, who now plays for Rubin Kazan, while boss Alex McLeish has also confirmed Racing Santander have enquired about re-signing Nikola Zigic.

Stoke have received an offer from Wolfsburg, managed by Steve McClaren, for Turkish forward Tuncay.

McClaren previously worked with Tuncay at Middlesbrough but is not certain to land his man, with Stoke manager Tony Pulis confirming he is keen to keep the 29-year-old at the Britannia Stadium.

But the Potters are prepared to let Abdoulaye Faye join Celtic, who have confirmed their interest in the defender.