More France Transfer News and Rumors” Henry, Trezeguet, Anelka, Malouda

When everybody finally signs a contract, transfer season will at last be over and you will be able to breathe again. Nope, sorry, we’re not there yet. But we’re getting closer.

First, in case you’ve been living under a rock for the past few days, yes, Thierry Henry signed for Barcelona, passed the physical and posed for the requisite photos in the new jersey. Brace yourself before you click on the link; I’d convinced myself I didn’t really care where he played, but seeing this was a jolt. Kind of like walking in on your grandpa as he’s cross-dressing. Shock and revulsion must come before acceptance.

But moving on. Good news! We no longer have to read any more about David Trezeguet’s indecision and multiple daily changes of heart. He’s staying at Juventus. Yes, it’s true. I’m not making this up. The gesture has been forgotten and all of the pouting has ended. For now. (And yes, it was only two weeks ago that he said there was “no possibility” that he would stay.) Juve upped their offer to the truly obscene amount of €4.5 million a year in a contract that runs through 2011, when I believe David will be 33 or 34.

That will cover a lot of blackmail costs, David!

And my favorite not-so-bad boy Nicolas Anelka is being ever-more-strongly linked to Arsenal. Rumor is that Arsene wants him badly, but the rest of the Arsenal world (including everybody else in Arsenal management) is not convinced. The two main sticking points are his age (he’s 28) and his previous attitude. (Remember when he threatened to go on strike if Arsenal didn’t sell him to Real Madrid? Yeah, everybody at Arsenal has totally forgotten it too. Just read the ferocious anti-Anelka diatribes on your average Arsenal message board for verification.) So what will the end result be? Your guess is as good as mine. It might depend on how badly the Arsenal powers-that-be want to retain Arsene after his contract expires this year. (P.S. I still would really, really like to see this one happen.)

And last but not least, we have Florent Malouda. As you’ll remember, previous rumors were all screaming “Malouda to Chelsea!!” But wait a second. Not so fast. There’s a chance that Arsenal, its coffers swollen by the Henry transfer fee, may also make a move. Would this make anybody else break out in blissful sighs? No? Just me?

Okay, never mind.

There are a bunch more rumors floating around, this being the silly season and all, but that’s all I feel like writing about today. So tune in later this week for more updates.