According to reports in the Belgian press today (La Dernière Heure), the Anderlecht management team is still smiling about the rumours saying that two of their senior players, Lucas Biglia and Matias Suarez, are targets for Real Madrid and Bayern Munich respectively.
Both of the Argentines are good players but they’ve not done enough to warrant the interest of those two clubs. Certainly both players want to move away from Brussels and it would appear that their agents are working away in the background to create sufficient interest to achieve that aim. Both cases are different though and are worthy of closer examination.
Anderlecht captain Biglia has long been one of the best, if not the best, players in the Jupiler League. Joining Anderlecht in 2006, he had his best season in 2009-2010 when his club won the title and had some good wins in Europe. Since then he’s suffered from injuries, most notably having a shoulder operation. The injuries delayed his transfer but he’s now decided it’s time to move on. Recently Biglia went on the radio in his home country and said he (or his people) had been talking to Real Madrid and Arsenal. This seems unlikely and the only firm interest seems to come from Serie A clubs, but those discussions seem to have been dragging on for years. It’s a pity as Biglia would appear to be the kind of player that could develop further in more exalted company.
Matias Suarez is a different kettle of fish. He joined Anderlecht in 2008 but only won a place in the team last season. Undoubtedly talented, Suarez is not a naturally confident player and he needs nurturing if he is to perform to his best. He won a place in the team thinks to the departure of Mbark Boussoufa and had an excellent few months in the autumn of 2011. Remarkably that was enough to win him the Golden Boot – awarded on the basis of a calendar year – as his main rivals (Axel Witsel and Thibaut Courtois) had jumped ship in the winter. Regardless, the award led to masses of attention and strong rumours that Suarez had signed a pre-contract with Arsenal. These rumours have quietened down, most notably as Suarez would not qualify for a UK work permit as he has never played for his country and is a tad old (24) to be a promising youngster. Last week, Bayern Munich were reported to have bid €15 million for his services but these stories can be dismissed. According to press reports, only the Ukrainian outfit Dnipropetrovsk have made a bid (€12 million) but Mrs. Suarez has ruled that out – a wise decision.
Both players would like to play in Spain but Anderlecht are reluctant to sell anyone to that country, unless it’s to Barcelona or Real Madrid, as the club has had its fingers burned several times with bank guarantees not coming to fruition. Currently it looks like Biglia will move to a Serie A club; he’d like to join AC Milan but might have to settle for Fiorentina, while Suarez may just decide there is no place like home.