Pavlyuchenko signs

Last updated : 30 August 2008 By Gareth Davies

The club have confirmed the capture of Roman Pavlyuchenko, the Russian international forward. Damien Comolli and Daniel Levy have been hard at work trying to bolster the squad before the end of the transfer window and head coach Juande Ramos will be delighted to have a proven international striker at his disposal.

The completion of the Pavlyuchenko deal, thought to be in the region of £12m, may well see a conclusion to the Berbatov to Manchester United saga. It had been reported in the national press that once Ramos had strengthened his attacking options then the sulking Bulgarian would be allowed to leave, but taking into account how wide of the mark the tabloids have been throughout the whole affair, it is just as likely that Berbatov will have to wait for his dream move until January or beyond.

What is important is that the club finally has two recognised - and perhaps more importantly, willing - strikers, although it seems that Pavlychenko has not signed soon enough to be involved at Stamford Bridge tomorrow.

Fans will hope that his arrival will be the first of several over the next two days, with the likes of Miguel Veloso, Vedran Corluka and Zaragoza pair Diego Milito and Sergio Garcia among a list of players who might make a late move to White Hart Lane. One star who looks unlikely to be heading to N17 is Andrei Arshavin, after Zenit boss Dick Advocat revealed we were unwilling to match his hefty asking price.

In other news, Didier Zokora put pen to paper on a new contract, extending his stay at the club until 2012. Whether that's good or bad news will depend on your point of view, with opinion divided as to whether he has sufficient ability to warrant a place in the starting XI.