ARSENAL TALK: Barca set to up the stakes to land Adebayor

3:59pm Friday 4th July 2008

BARCELONA are preparing to up their bid for Arsenal striker Emmaunel Adebayor to a mouth-watering £30million.

The Gunners have already knocked back an offer of £25million for the Togolese hitman, but the Catalan giants will test Arsene Wenger's resolve by improving their bid.

Adebayor has been emitting mixed messages about his future at the Emirates, fuelling speculation that a move to either Barcelona or AC Milan could be on the cards.

It was recently reported that he had demanded a huge 400 per cent hike in his wages in order for him to remain at Ashburton Grove.

But the Arsenal board are unlikely to yield to such extortionate demands after just one prolific season in the Premier League.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta is keen to bring in some big-name signings ahead of the club's vote of no confidence, where he must avoid 65 per cent of votes to retain his position.

As a result Laporta has been attempting to make huge strides in the transfer market to win over members, and with Sevilla's highly-rated full-back Dani Alves already arriving for around £23million, he believes the acquisition of Adebayor will be enough to see him hold on to his role at the club.

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