Radamel Falcao signs Chelsea deal and will join up with club on pre-season tour

  

 Striker’s family tells Guardian that striker has signed his Chelsea contract 
• Deal believed to be one-year loan with option to make move permanent

Radamel Falcao has completed the formalities of his move to Chelsea and will link up with his new club on their pre-season tour of North America, according to the Colombian striker’s family.

Falcao’s uncle and father both confirmed on Tuesday night that a deal had been signed with the London club, believed to be a one-year loan from his French club, AS Monaco, with an option to make the move permanent next summer, to ensure the 29-year-old will remain in the Premier League next term following last year’s similar spell at Manchester United.

Chelsea are yet to officially announce the signing but had held almost three weeks of talks with Falcao’s representative, Jorge Mendes, and Monaco in a bid to reach a compromise over the player’s £265,000-a-week pay package and loan fee. Agreement was eventually reached late last month, with the champions expected to pay the striker nearer £180,000-a-week with a loan fee negotiated at around £4m for his services.

José Mourinho, another Mendes client, has previously admitted to wanting to “help Falcao get back to his level” following the serious knee ligament injury suffered in January 2014, which ruled him out of last summer’s World Cup, while the forward had stated he was keen to extend his stay in the Premier League after United opted against making his move permanent for £43.2m. He scored only four goals in 29 appearances for Louis van Gaal’s side last term.

The player’s father, Radamel Garcia, who was himself a professional footballer, confirmed a deal had been completed in an interview with Caracol TV on Tuesday. He suggested Falcao would report to Chelsea’s pre-season base in Montreal, Canada on 19 or 20 July having been granted extra time off after the Copa América.

Falcao’s uncle, Herbert King, who is currently with the striker on holiday in Colombia, also confirmed to The Guardian that a contract had been signed.

Once one of the most feared strikers in the world, Falcao has endured a wretched time since rupturing his cruciate ligament in a French Cup tie 19 months ago. His spell at United ended with a solitary shot on target in his final 12 Premier League appearances, and an appearance for the club’s development side against Tottenham Hotspur as Van Gaal desperately sought to repair the player’s shattered confidence.

After the option to make the move permanent was passed up, Falcao was handed the captain’s armband by the Colombia manager José Pekerman during this summer’s Copa America in an attempt to inject confidence back into the struggling star. But, after failing to make his mark in the opening three games of Colombia’s campaign, El Tigre was dropped to the bench as Los Cafeteros crashed out of the tournament on penalties to Argentina in the quarter-finals. Falcao appeared as a second half substitute and converted his spot-kick, but finished the Copa América having attempted just one shot in open play.

Falcao will spend the next few days with his family in Colombia before joining Chelsea on their pre-season tour of North America, where they will play Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and New York Red Bulls in the International Champions Cup later this month.

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Liverpool have agreed a deal for Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke, Anfield insider tells talkSPORT

Liverpool are on the verge of completing the signing of Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke, according to talkSPORT’s man on Merseyside.

The Reds have been heavily linked with a move for the powerful Belgium international in recent weeks and our Anfield insider Graham Beecroft claims a deal is now imminent.

Speaking on the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast, he said: "My understanding is Christian Benteke, who has been on their radar for some time, is very close indeed to signing for Liverpool.

"I expect him to sign if not today then certainly in the not too distant future. Liverpool have done their work and have sealed a deal [with Aston Villa]."

Brendan Rodgers has already made five signings this summer - James Milner, Danny Ings, Adam Bogdan, Joe Gomez and Roberto Firmino - while a deal for Southampton full-back Nathaniel Clyne is also imminent.

But Beecroft insists Rodgers' summer shopping spree will not stop with Benteke, as he also has his sights on a new left-back.

"They are also interested in Ludwig Augustinsson, who played last night for Sweden Under-21s against Portugal," he said.

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Arda Turan announcement expected on Friday: Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United possible destinations

Arda Turan's next club will be revealed on Friday, withManchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal among those considered possible destinations.

The Atletico Madrid midfielder has indicated to his current club that he will move this summer and his agent recently revealed that the Turkey international was in talks with three Premier League sides.

A decision on which one of them he will join - or whether he opts for a club on the continent - will soon be made according to his representative Ahmet Bulut.

“A lot of things about his transfer are being published but not everything they say is true,” Bulut told NTVSpor. “We want to clarify that at this time there is a lot of pressure about this situation but we don’t want to make a formal statement about his destination before he signs. That being said, in the next four days Arda will decide which team he’ll play for next season.”

Chelsea are thought to be his most likely destination with some reports suggesting the 28-year-old has his heart set on a move to Stamford Bridge. However, Manchester United are also desperate to add to their ranks with Ryan Giggs saying last week that the club must improve the 'spine' of the side, something the arrival of Turan would certainly do.

“Our decision really surprised Atletico Madrid,” Bulut added. “They don’t want Arda to leave and were persistent but in the end, they respected and accepted our decision. But of course, nothing is completely done until he signs. However, we made sure the message was clear that we wanted to leave Atletico.”