Forlan snubs Keane

8:42am Friday 27th June 2008

DIEGO FORLAN has told Sunderland that he has no intention of moving back to the Premier League - unless it's for a club in the Champions League.

It was suggested this month that Roy Keane had made a renewed attempt to lure his former Manchester United team-mate to the North-East.

But Forlan, who has admitted that he would like to prove himself in the English league again, has no intention of heading for the Stadium of Light.

Atletico Madrid are determined to retain the Uruguayan's services this summer and that wipes one of Keane's targets out of his summer recruitment plans.

An Atletico source, close to the player, said: "There have been calls into the club from England but Diego isn't interested.

He wants to stay and play in the Champions League."

With Kenwyne Jones almost certainly out of Keane's plans until the back end of January at the earliest, the Irishman is working on his striker options in the transfer market.

It was suggested yesterday that a £10m move for Andy Johnson had been made, although Everton are not willing to sell him ahead of the new season.

Johnson, a former Crystal Palace man, would also not be prepared to move to Wearside. If he were to leave Goodison Park it would be for a club further south.

With Jones suffering from serious knee ligament damage, Keane feels that two new strikers are a priority during the close-season.

But it now looks unlikely that the Irishman will make a breakthrough in his search for at least one top-class striker before the start of pre-season training on July 7.

Other strikers under consideration are Sheffield United's James Beattie, Reading's Kevin Doyle and Liverpool's Peter Crouch. Nothing, however, appears to be imminent.

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