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Boca in Riquelme talks

Image: Riquelme: In demand

Boca Juniors have made a formal offer for Juan Roman Riquelme and are locked in talks with Villarreal.

Argentine set to leave Villarreal

Boca Juniors have made a formal offer for Juan Roman Riquelme and are locked in talks with Villarreal over a possible transfer at the end of this month. The Argentine playmaker has been frozen out at Villarreal since he had a public falling out with coach Manuel Pellegrini last season. He spent the second half of last term on loan at Boca and representatives from both clubs have now met in Buenos Aires to discuss a move. "The idea is to sign Roman from 30th November on a three-year contract," Boca vice president Pedro Pompilio was quoted as saying by the Spanish media. "It is what everyone wants and would be very good for Argentine football to have him in the league and to know he will always be nearby for the national team. "We are going to continue talking in the next few hours to try and reach an agreement. We hope to reach a conclusion, although there are still various points to sort out." A deal looks to be on the cards but Villarreal sporting director Juan Manuel Llaneza accepts that some details still need to be sorted out. He explained: "The transfer of Riquelme to Boca is possible. I will stay a few more days in Buenos Aires to try and resolve the matter."

Inter hope

Although Boca are favourites to secure Riquelme's signature they could face competition from Real Madrid, Juventus and Internazionale. Inter boss Roberto Mancini is looking for a replacement for the injured Luis Figo and defender Walter Samuel believes Riquelme would be the ideal player to bring in. "With him the ball goes so quickly," said Samuel. "He is a great playmaker and the kind of player you can rely on - I'd love to have him here at Inter."

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