BITS AND BOBS

Last updated : 24 June 2007 By Editor

* Most papers seem to have a story linking United with Eidur Gudjohnsen now that Thierry Henry has signed for Barcelona.

* BBC:

Udinese have outbid Sampdoria in a tender to gain the rights to striker Fabio Quagliarella who has been linked with a move to Manchester United.

Both Italian sides held the rights to the 23-year-old Quagliarella's rights, who played for Sampdoria last season.

"For now I'm an Udinese player. The club has invested a lot in me, I doubt they'll let me go," said the striker.

United had been linked with a £10m move for the Italian international striker, who scored 13 league goals last season.

Neither Udinese or Sampdoria could agree on where Quagliarella should play this season, so in accordance with Italian league rules a tender was held to decide his destination.


* Palace chairman Simon Jordan says he will pursue Iain Dowie for whatever he can. Dowie has already been told to pay huge court costs for lying about leaving for Charlton last summer:

The People:

Simon Jordan last night blew the lid off his £700,000 High Court victory against Iain Dowie, vowing there was "no chance" he'd drop his claim for an extra £1million.

On Friday the High Court orderted ex-Crystal Palace and current Coventry manager Dowie to pay Jordan's £363,000 lawyers' bill plus similar costs of his own.

In November a judge will rule if Dowie must pay Palace chairman Jordan another £1million - the amount a club had to pay Palace if Dowie left while under contract.

Dowie was last week found guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation when he negotiated to leave Palace for free before joining Charlton a year ago.

Now Jordan has revealed Dowie's lawyers asked him to drop the case two weeks before the hearing, and asked him to foot their man's legal bill.

Jordan claims: "They've been destroyed and discredited and their client has been found guilty. Dowie was clobbered.

"He has racked up enormous bills and made me rack up enormous bills. But it could have been sorted out if he was up front and honest.

"He's a big boy and takes responsibility for his actions. He took decisions to make representations to me and the consequences are his to bear."

Dowie's counsel Michael McParland claimed the court costs were "cataclysmic" for his client. But Jordan snapped: "I very much doubt that statement is anything other than posturing to get sympathy, and possible sympathy in the light of damages.

"It's a case of them saying 'Jordan has money and Dowie doesn't so feel sorry for him'. The reality is if you've lost, you pay.

"There's no reason for me to stop the damages case. No chance.

"I'm the good guy and I won. I proved my case and I'm entitled to my return. If I'd lost, I'd have had to pay £1m in costs.