Yorke staying as Cats launch Guiza bid

Jun 30 2008 by Mark Douglas, The Journal

DWIGHT Yorke will end speculation over his Sunderland future by signing a new one-year contract this week – and he could yet be followed to the Stadium of Light by Real Mallorca striker Daniel Guiza.

Two months after manager Roy Keane offered him the short-term deal that will ensure he ends his career in the Stadium of Light, Yorke has opted to sign it – but only after failing to secure a move to Australian A-League side Central Coast Mariners, who could not afford his wages.

And, with the re-signing of Yorke all but secured, Keane could take another huge step forward in his pre-season planning this week by officially lodging a £10m bid for Spanish international Guiza, who was joint top scorer in La Liga last season with 27 goals from 37 appearances.

That ambitious move would certainly represent the transfer coup that Keane craves and while The Journal understands informal talks have taken place between Guiza’s representatives and the club, Sunderland will

face plenty of competition in the battle to sign the 27-year-old striker, who still has three years left on his contract at the Estadio San Moix – and enhanced his reputation after appearing as a substitute in Spain’s Euro 2008 final win over Germany last night.

His club are believed to be prepared to sell for the right price, and Keane has been given the green light to offer the striker a lucrative deal to beat Spurs, Manchester City and a host of Serie A clubs to his signature. But with Barcelona also monitoring developments, Sunderland will be wary of declaring their hand until they are sure Guiza is serious about joining them. The fear is that the player and his representatives could use Sunderland’s substantial offer to smoke out any other interested parties.

While Keane is eager to bring in new faces, he will also be pleased to have resolved the Yorke contract issue.

A breakdown in negotiations with Central Coast Mariners has paved the way for Yorke to bring down the curtain on a decorated career at the Stadium of Light next season. He will fly back from Australia tomorrow and is expected in the North East later this week to sign the contract. Although Yorke was not short on options – he also had the offer of two-year deals from Championship clubs in England – his decision was effectively sealed when the Mariners told him they could not afford his pay demands last week.

In a move that is unlikely to endear himself to supporters, Yorke suggested that re-signing for Sunderland was his second option in an interview with an Australian journalist at the weekend – but he has subsequently distanced himself from those comments in a TV interview.

“That would have been my ambition, to come back (to Sydney),” he said. “I felt this year would have been the year to come back and stamp my authority in terms of playing football and getting the football buzzing around Sydney again.” Whether the player would have signed for the Mariners if they had been able to match his wage demands is now a moot point, though, with Yorke insisting he is capable of making an impact in what is almost certain to be his final season in professional football.

“Sunderland has offered me a contract because they know I can still produce it,” he said.

While Keane cannot offer Yorke guaranteed first-team football, there was talk of a coaching role being included as another inducement for him to sign. With Kenwyne Jones likely to be sidelined for the first six months of the season with a knee ligament injury, Sunderland have added a target man to their summer transfer wish-list.

Reading’s Kevin Doyle continues to be linked with Keane and Celtic’s Giorgios Samaras is also in the frame.