Mascherano Hopes Grondona will make his transfer easier
Reports coming out of Argentina last night suggested that Javier Mascherano will be leaving West Ham next month and that Media Sports Investment, who own the player, have been negotiating in London with both Juventus and Liverpool. The Argentina midfielder is said to prefer a move to Italy but Liverpool have made the greater offer, believed to be around £6m.
According to a well-placed source in Argentina, MSI and Mascherano are hoping that Julio Grondona, the president of the Argentina Football Association, will use his influence as vice-president of Fifa to override the rule that prevents players signing for more than two clubs in one year. Grondona will claim that Mascherano's position at West Ham is hurting the 22-year-old's career.
"The future of Mascherano will either be in England or Italy but far from West Ham" said the source.
Mascherano, who played in every match for Argentina during the World Cup, now finds his place in the national team under threat from 20-year-old Fernando Gago, the holding midfielder who signed for Real Madrid from Boca Juniors last week for £13m.
Independent