The January transfer window may seem like a distant memory, but that doesn’t mean the rumour mill has shut down! Speculation over summer moves is heating up so check out the latest gossip below, and see all official deals here.
TOP STORY: Pochettino plots De Gea move in the summer
Paris Saint-Germain boss Mauricio Pochettino is plotting a spectacular raid for Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea, reports the Sun.
The PSG boss is looking for a new goalkeeper to replace Keylor Navas this summer, and though Pochettino has been linked with Tottenham Hotspur‘s Hugo Lloris, it appears as if De Gea is at the top of his list.
De Gea, 30, has two years left on his United contract but, despite being one of the greatest keepers of the Premier League era, the Spain international could be available now that United have Dean Henderson as a credible alternative for the No. 1 jersey.
PSG are certainly one of the few clubs who could afford his £375,000-a-week wage and they could also afford to offer United a fee on top, too.
It has already been suggested that United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could be prepared to let one of two goalkeepers go at the end of the season and it appears that it might be De Gea, and not Henderson, heading for the exit door.
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17.03 GMT: Roma are keen on Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard but the £20 million asking price could prove a key stumbling block.
Celtic, AC Milan and Roma are all interested in the 23-year-old, but due to their current financial struggles, Roma would like to pay for Edouard in installments, according to the Sunday Post. This could give Leicester and Milan an edge, as naturally, Celtic would prefer to receive the £20m in one lump sum.
Leicester could have the inside track for Edouard, as current manager Brendan Rodgers managed the player at Celtic between 2017-19. In all, the Frenchman has scored 81 times in 161 appearances for the Hoops since arriving — initially on loan — from PSG in 2017.
16.22 GMT: Brentford are hoping to land £30 million for star striker Ivan Toney.
TEAMTalk understands that the London club is using Ollie Watkins’ move to Aston Villa last summer as a starting point, with Arsenal, Leeds, Leicester and Wolves all interested in Toney. The 24-year-old has scored 25 goals over all competitions this season for the fourth-place Bees.
Brentford have yet to hold any official transfer talks regarding Toney, and have said they will reward the forward with a new deal if they earn promotion to the Premier League.
15.37 GMT: Bayern Munich have built a team of winners.
1:34
Jurgen Klinsmann praises the mentality of Bayern Munich after they stormed back from two goals down to beat Dortmund.
14.55 GMT: The Daily Mail reports that Real Madrid will look to offload centre-back Raphael Varane this summer if he doesn’t sign a new contract.
Varane, 27, is one of the best defenders in the world and Madrid will be loathe to lose him while Sergio Ramos hasn’t committed his future to the club and could depart for nothing in the summer.
However, Varane’s contract expires in 2022 and Madrid won’t want him to walk away on a free transfer, so may accept offers of around €65m to sign him, with Manchester United leading Europe’s top teams in keeping tabs on the France World Cup winner.
14.04 GMT: The Daily Telegraph reports that Chelsea want to renew Andreas Christensen‘s contract after the defender was linked with AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain.
Christensen, 24, has impressed in the centre of defence in recent weeks after Thiago Silva suffered an injury against Tottenham. However, his contract expires in 2022 and the Blues want to avoid losing him on a free transfer.
13.35 GMT: Bayern Munich head coach Hansi Flick has refused to rule out a move for Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland in the future and said “a lot is possible.”
Haaland, 20, scored a quickfire double against Bayern on Saturday before the Bundesliga champions turned things around to secure a 4-2 win in the Klassiker thanks to a hat trick from striker Robert Lewandowski.
Speaking after the match, Flick said that Bayern would be one of the club’s interested in signing Haaland if he decided to leave Dortmund in the future.
“A lot is possible in life,” he said. “I can’t rule that out. He has a long-term contract with BVB, but he is a player who is the focus of many top teams. If this were to ever materialise, of course it would be another case of a top Dortmund talent leaving to go to Bayern, but it will inevitably be up to Haaland where he goes next.”
12.49 GMT: Chelsea have a decision to make over two of their biggest players.
0:56
Mark Ogden believes Thomas Tuchel will give Kai Havertz another season to prove himself at Chelsea.
12.15 GMT: Toni Kroos has reiterated that he wants to retire at Real Madrid after seven years at the club.
Kroos, 31, has made 309 appearances since arriving from Bayern Munich for around €30m in 2014 and has won three Champions League trophies and two La Liga titles. The midfielder also surpassed Uli Stielike’s record of 308 for the total number of games played for Madrid as a German.
“I try to give my best in every game and every pass I make that doesn’t reach my team-mate annoys me,” he told Real Madrid TV. “I try to strive for perfection in this sense, although you can never be perfect. I practice it and I’ve been working on it continuously for many years.
“As I’ve always said, my idea is to retire here and that’s what I’m going to try to do.”
11.38 GMT: Raphinha has impressed since joining Leeds United from Rennes for around €20m in the summer, and now the 24-year-old Brazilian winger is being linked with Manchester United, says UOL.
With five goals in 21 games to date, Raphinha could be set to join one of his best friends, ex-Sporting CP teammate Bruno Fernandes, as well as fellow countrymen left-back Alex Telles and midfielder Fred at Old Trafford.
Liverpool have also shown an interest in adding Raphinha in the summer, but the player insists he is enjoying life at Leeds under manager Marcelo Bielsa.
“It’s really important to have a manager who allows you to do what you know, what you’ve already demonstrated you can do in the past. I believe that when a team signs you, you’ve been brought in to do what you were doing at your previous club,” he told Sky Sports recently.
“Having a manager and team-mates that give you the freedom do your best, play your own game and show what you’re capable of is really important for the natural development of the player.”
10.32 GMT: Manchester United are playing a massive game later, but should they be worried about their transfer leadership?
1:35
Craig Burley cannot wrap his head around why finishing second is deemed acceptable by Manchester United.
09.44 GMT: Who is in the race to sign Borussia Dortmund sensation Erling Haaland? ESPN Insider Notebook breaks it down.
– CHELSEA: Sources told ESPN that Chelsea feel there are several elements in their favour, not least an attractive financial package, but also the prospect of Haaland becoming the centre-piece of a young, expensively assembled team.
– MAN UNITED: They have featured heavily in reports linking Haaland with a Dortmund exit and securing him would bring an end to a long pursuit that manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer thought he had won in January 2020. Solskjaer had met Haaland and a deal looked on, before he moved to Dortmund with a release clause between €75-100 million, according to ESPN sources, inserted into his contract which will become active next summer.
– MAN CITY: City are keen to sign a striker this summer and are one of the few clubs who could afford Haaland. They also have the link with his family after father Alf-Inge Haaland played for City between 2000 and 2003. Haaland was pictured in a City shirt as a youngster and attended a Wembley cup final as a fan with his dad. City are also still interested in Lionel Messi if he decides to leave Barcelona, but a move for him is unlikely to affect their other transfer plans.
– REAL MADRID: Haaland wasn’t previously top of the list at the Bernabeu but sources told ESPN his performances this campaign have caught the eye and he would represent a more affordable option than long-term target Kylian Mbappe, who would likely cost more than double the amount required to meet the Dortmund striker’s release clause.
– PSG: Considering the great relationship between Paris Saint-Germain sporting director Leonardo and Raiola, the Ligue 1 champions are also in the conversation. But the only way they could make a move is if Mbappe decides to leave Paris. In that case, and especially if Messi was also not an option, Haaland could become a target. Money would not be an issue as Mbappe’s sale would more than cover the cost for Haaland.
09.00 GMT: Barcelona’s presidential elections are later today. Barcelona correspondent Sam Marsden brings us a Q&A — Everything you need to know about Lionel Messi’s future, who’s running, new signings and financial plans.
It’s no secret that Barcelona are in desperate need of renovation on and off the pitch. It was evident in the 4-1 Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain this month, just as it was in the 8-2 humiliation against Bayern Munich last August, that they can no longer compete with Europe’s best sides. For that reason, Lionel Messi wanted out last summer and, for that reason, he could walk away for free when his contract expires on June 30.
The club’s accounts don’t read any better than the scorelines in those defeats. Gross debt, accelerating daue to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, has risen to €1.2 billion, with players forced to accept pay deferments. Sources have told ESPN that reports of bankruptcy are premature, pointing out the club still has a lot of assets, including stadiums, facilities and players, but the situation is bleaker than at any other top European club.
After a first trophy-less campaign in over a decade, Messi tried to leave the club last year because of dwindling performances and lies told to him by the former board. Barca are a shadow of the side that won the Champions League under Pep Guardiola in 2009 and 2011 or under Luis Enrique in 2015 and Messi, 34 in June, wants the final years of his career to be successful.
Leadership is desperately needed. Barca have been rudderless since October when Josep Maria Bartomeu stepped down before he could face a vote of no confidence from the club’s members. By the time a new president is finally elected on March 7, 131 days will have passed since Bartomeu’s resignation. Club statues state an election should have been called within 90 days, but coronavirus restrictions in Catalonia meant they had to be pushed back from the original date of Jan. 24.
Meanwhile, with each passing day, the number of issues the incoming president will have to deal with are mounting.
One of the first tasks is not an easy one: convincing Messi to stay. Even if they manage that, though, with Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City pushing to sign him, at some point during their six-year tenure they will have to oversee the most painful playing transition of the modern era. What — or who — comes next?
1:06
Sid Lowe believes winning another Champions League title is an important goal for Lionel Messi before he retires.
PAPER TALK (by Nick Judd)
Klopp, Mourinho both tracking Konsa
Liverpool and Tottenham are monitoring Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa, while Danny Ings is talking up his chances of an Anfield return, according to the Mirror.
Konsa’s impressive form has forced Villa chiefs into contemplating offering him improved contract terms. The 23-year-old still has two years left to run on his existing deal, but Spurs and Liverpool lead a number of Premier League clubs impressed by his form.
And Villa boss Dean Smith is so determined to keep Konsa that he’s reported to be already discussing terms to match his status as a first-team starter in the squad. The former Brentford defender will be offered similar wages to some of the other top earners at Villa Park.
Meanwhile, Southampton striker Ings has hinted that he would like to play Champions League football again and he has stalled signing a new contract at St Mary’s.
Ings left Liverpool to join Southampton in 2019 but appears keen to have another bite at top-level club football.
Manchester City want Rabiot
Tuttosport is reporting that Manchester City are interested in trying to sign Juventus‘ Adrien Rabiot.
Rabiot, 25, is a target for both Manchester clubs this summer according to the player’s agent Vincenzo Morabito, though he also admits that Juventus chief Fabio Paratici has already said “no” to City sporting director Txiki Begiristain.
Rabiot got off to a slow start to life in Serie A, but is now one of the first names on Juve coach Andrea Pirlo’s team sheet.
And it’s for that reason that a move for the France international could prove tricky. City are in the market for a deep-lying midfielder, and so if they’re unsuccessful in landing Rabiot, they could turn their attentions to Sassuolo‘s Manuel Locatelli.
City are also believed to be eyeing up Borussia Monchengladbach‘s Denis Zakaria as a second alternative.
Tap-ins
– West Ham United, RB Leipzig and AS Roma are monitoring Stuttgart striker Sasa Kalajdzic, according to the Daily Mail. Hammers boss David Moyes is in the market for a versatile striker and the 23-year-old, who could be available for as little as £15m, could fit the bill.
– Sheffield United midfielder John Lundstram is a free agent this summer and there are seven clubs interested in his services, according to the Mirror. Burnley and Crystal Palace appear to be front runners, with the Eagles in particular identifying the 27-year-old as a key part of a major overhaul to the squad at Selhurst Park at the end of the season.
