UNSURE ON ELM

The AZ Alkmaar technical director Ernest Stewart has confirmed that the star midfielder Rasmus Elm is yet to make a decision about his future – he has been linked to Liverpool according to the famous Anfield Roar fanzine.

Ernest Stewart has said that it is something that the club wants to be sorted out soon in order to focus on bringing in replacement for the midfielder, who has been linked with a move to Premier league club Liverpool quite strongly in the last few weeks. The arrival of the new manager Brendan Rodgers has placed it an emphasis on players with high technical ability and Rasmus Elm certainly fits into that bill according to Stewart.

The 24-year-old was heavily linked with the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal, but it is thought that Liverpool are now in the race to secure his signature. The 24-year-old Sweden international is one of the sought-after players from the Dutch football, which are regularly provides a lot of good quality players for the Premier league. The player said prior to the start of the Euro 2012 that he would make a decision about his future after the end of the competition. Now, he has only 12 months left on his current contract and the Dutch club want a swift decision to be taken regarding his future.

“We have talked with Elm and his agent and hope to know what Rasmus wants soon. After that we’ll know what we can do,” said Stewart in response to the questions regarding the future of their star midfielder. Stewart has also made it quite clear that the club will not be keeping the player if he decides to not extend his current contract. Stewart has said that the club would be more than willing to negotiate a transfer fee rather than lose the player for nothing in the coming summer.

BERGHUIS JOINS

AZ Alkmaar’s latest signing is the young midfielder Steven Berghuis according to the technical director Earnest Stewart, who has said that the acquisition will prove to be a major factor in helping AZ Alkmaar towards the title this season. Earnest Stewart has not revealed the transfer fee that the club has paid for FC Twente in order to secure the services of Steven Berghuis. The 20-year-old midfielder is expected to go straight into the first-team as a replacement for Brett Holman. FC Twente have taken the decision to sell the star asset rather than risk him to losing him for nothing after two seasons because he only had two years left on his current contract.

It is thought that Steven Berghuis has signed a five-year contract with the club, which will see him be at the club until 2017. He has been playing professional football only in the last two seasons. He has been spending time on loan at various clubs during his two seasons, but has impressed at every single loan spell. Earnest Stewart has expressed his delight at being able to capture a player of the quality of Steven Berghuis. He has also identified Steven Berghuis as the ideal replacement for Brett Holman.

“During my holidays in Portugal, I came to know from my agent Louis Laros that FC Twente are negotiating with AZ over my transfer this summer. I had no problems striking a deal with the Alkmaar outfit, and signed a five-year deal with one ambition: To develop myself as a better footballer and human being,” said the player. “Steven has very good technique. He has been in our plans for quite some time, and we have offered him a long contract to show our confidence in his abilities. He will surely fit in perfectly in our plans,” said Stewart.

AZ SIGN ELM

Dutch club AZ Alkmaar have confirmed that they have signed 26-year-old Viktor Elm on a free transfer. The club missed out on the opportunity to play in the Champions League next season after finishing only in the fourth position, while they remained on course to lift the title only a few months ago.

Despite this alarming dip in form, they have not been viewed unfavourably in the eyes of the players. The 26-year-old Viktor Elm has revealed that he has joined AZ Alkmaar despite having a number of offers from top European clubs, including Everton. The former Heerenveen player has now signed a four-year deal with AZ Alkmaar.

Viktor Elm has the ability to play both in midfield and up top. His versatility will be a major boon for AZ Alkmaar. He is a box to box midfielder, who has scored 15 goals in 109 appearances for Heerenveen before deciding to join AZ Alkmaar this summer. He joined the club back in 2009 and has been an instrumental part of their success in these three years. He was offered a contract extension by Heerenveen, but it is thought that Viktor Elm was looking for a new challenge after three years at the Abe Lenstra Stadion.

“AZ gave me and my family the right feeling. I had several offers to play in other countries and was close to joining Newcastle United, but we are all happy in the Netherlands. We speak the language and know what life is about here. It looks like Sweden in many ways and having the right feeling played a major role for us. Will I try to persuade Rasmus to stay longer at AZ? I will try. It would be great if he did. We have played together in midfield before, Rasmus as a playmaking midfielder and myself as a box-to-box player,” said Viktor Elm.