Reports are emerging that would make it seem very unlikely that Chelsea will be signing Radamel Falcao this January, or even this summer. The Mirror (and many other sources) are attributing some quotes to Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo that would clearly indicate that the Blues are not going to end up with Falcao, stating that he's already bound for their cross town rivals:
"Falcao has earned the right to decide his future. Falcao has had something signed with Real Madrid for some time."
The quotes are being attributed to "Spanish TV", and I haven't yet seen any clips of Cerezo saying this. Knowing the tabloid media's penchant for running with fictional quotes without checking into the source, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if this was fake.
That said, I'd fully expect this to be refuted by ether Atletico, Falcao's representatives, or Real Madrid in the near future if this is not actually true. Atletico especially would have little reason to want their fanbase believing that their best player is leaving for a cross town rival if it's not true, so they'd surely move to squish this one as soon as possible if it's false.
I know many of you were hoping that we'd ed January by triggering the Colombian's buyout, but it's looking increasingly unlikely that we'll be seeing that happen. I can't say that I'd be too disappointed by that myself, as I really didn't think it was a particularly wise idea anyway. My fingers will be remaining crossed that there is some truth to this particular rumor.
Update: Cerezo did, in fact, deny the claims. Via Sky Sports:
"It's totally false that Falcao is linked to Real Madrid. "Falcao has a contract with Atletico Madrid and there's nothing more to say. It seems there is an attempt to destabilize Atletico."
"One thing is joking and another is talking about things that aren't true. I don't like the fact that you put words in my mouth that I haven't said. There's no need to talk about rumors or non-rumors, and the source of the rumor has to be identified so it can be put to bed."