Litmanen prepares to leave Liverpool

Jari Litmanen is planning a quick exit from Liverpool. The unhappy Finn, who cleared out his locker at the training ground yesterday, is wanted by Galatasaray and could sign for the Turkish club before the transfer deadline at the weekend. Litmanen is officially away from Anfield on "family business". However, Galatasaray officials believe he has decided to join them and will go to Istanbul in the next 48 hours.

Galatasaray are also close to beating Bolton to the signing of Bordeaux's Brazilian striker, Christian, after agreeing a one-year loan deal with a £1.5m signing at the end of it.

Blackburn Rovers are winning the tussle with Everton over Moreno Torricelli. Their manager, Graeme Souness, was in more talks with the Fiorentina and former Juventus defender last night and hopes to conclude a deal today. Torricelli, 32, had a medical at Blackburn after looking round the ground on the day he was due to start training with Everton.

Michael Reiziger, the Barcelona defender, said he would fight to stay despite rumours linking him with a swap deal for Chelsea's Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. "I'm in a difficult position because my colleagues are playing well, but I am not going to throw in the towel. Neither Chelsea nor Barcelona have said anything to me," he said.

Sunderland's manager, Peter Reid, re-opened talks with Ajax's Swedish striker, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, in an attempt to sign a forward before the deadline. Reid is now willing to match the Dutch club's £8m valuation of the young prospect but faces a tough job convincing the Swede, who played as a substitute at the World Cup. He feels he should be playing for a leading Italian or Spanish club. Reid's second choice would be the Nantes striker, Pierre Yves André.

Aston Villa's manager, Graham Taylor, is close to admitting defeat in his attempt to sign Ipswich's captain, Matt Holland, despite offering the Republic of Ireland international a pay rise.

Taylor wanted to link Holland with his countryman, Mark Kinsella, in the centre of midfield but is resigned to looking elsewhere because Holland is unwilling to uproot his family from East Anglia. Taylor said: "It is looking less likely to happen now. We have offered him more than he's on Ipswich, but he has a very good quality of life there."