Los Che Give Up On Van Der Vaart
No "dream come true" ending for Rafael. Rafa van der Vaart, the want-away Hamburger SV captain, will be staying in Germany for the forseeable future after Los Che ended their interest in the player amidst fervent opposition from the HSV hierarchy. Valencia, though, aim to strengthen more before the window closes...
Hamburg SV have won their battle to keep hold of captain Rafael van der Vaart - for now.
Valencia, who had official bids rejected last week, have turned tail and given up on their attempt to land the unsettled midfielder, meaning that the Dutchman is set to remain at HSV and captain the side until the New Year at least.
Los Che's final bid was supposedly in the region of 20 million euros, yet this was not enough to persuade Hamburg to part with their prized asset.
Valencia sport director Miguel Angel Ruiz said of the deal, "The problem is, he was an intransferible player, and HSV did not even wish to negotiate.
"Hamburg had no wish to sell - but if there was a release clause in German contracts, things might have been different."
However, with over a week left before the transfer window closes, Ruiz insists that money - never an issue for the van der Vaart switch, he was quick to emphasise - is still available and could well be used before the end of the month.
"We're going to change our strategy. We're not going to carry out three week negotiations like those with [Kim] Kallstrom or ten days like this one [van der Vaart].
"We'll hope to find a player suitable for our level. Today [Tuesday] opened up some possibilities for us," he claimed.
But for all his optimism, there is urgency.
Valencia did well to strengthen their defence this summer, with Ivan Helguera coming in from Real Madrid, and landed Nikola Zigic and Javier Arizmendi to add to an already-burgeoning front line.
But central midfield was a priority - and one that's yet to be met.
PSV's Ibrahim Affelay is unlikely to join as the coach deems him one young player too many; in any case, the Dutch club - supposedly about to lose Arouna Kone to Sevilla - may have been reluctant to sell.
Javier Casquero was a stand-out for Getafe last season and could yet be the signing coach Quique Flores is looking for. He's no superstar, and not a van der Vaart figure, but could definitely offer options in midfield.
If this move goes ahead, he'll be Valencia's second Geta signing of the transfer window, after young defender Alexis Delgado.
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