- WILL THE GUNNERS GO FOR MORE AMMUNITION
- ARSENAL HAVE PUT THEIR NEW ACQUISITIONS TO THE TEST
- TUCHEL STILL LOOKING TO BUY AND SELL AGAINST BARCA
- MAN UNITED STIIL HOLDING ON TO RONALDO AND LOOKING TO BUY MORE
Football transfer gossip this summer season has entered its last 30 days. The Summer 2022 Transfer Window for Premier League opened on 10 June 2022 and will close at 23:00 BST on 1 September 2022. This is in line with other European leagues.
Edu and Arteta have been busy in the market. Image by The Guardian
FRENKIE DE JONG CIRCUS STILL ON
Manchester United are willing to make a big effort to sign Frenkie de Jong. The Dutchman dos not want to play at Old Trafford, in the Europa league, but United keep pressing because coach Erik ten Hag wants his services. They’ve never hidden he’s their top priority and they will sit down with De Jong’s people to try and convince them. There’s no problem with Barcelona, who have agreed an 85m euro deal with United. The toughest partg is luring the player.
Apparently, the Red Devils think they can make another, definitive, offer to get De Jong. It is said that they would make him the best paid player at the club on 450k a week. They would also pay him the 17m euros that Barcelona owe him in differed salary. A few weeks ago they said they would not pay this debt.
If De Jong decides not leave Barcelona he will have to take a significant pay cut. Apparantely, Christiano Ronaldo still wants to leave Man United . One way this problem could be solved is if Cristiano Ronaldo‘s contract at United was terminated. He would then become a free agent and United wouldn’t have to keep on paying him up the massive £500,000-a-week that they’re paying him and he would be able to go and find a Champions League club.
Timo Werner in yellow, wants to leave the blues.
The reality is that , Ronaldo is contracted to Manchester United and therefore United hold his registration. Unless United agree to release him and until they do, other clubs are expected to steer clear. He cannot play anywhere else and as the likes of Rooney, Martial, Pogba and De Gea will attest, the Glazers have never been keen on releasing their prize assets whilst they are still on contract and again, Ronaldo attracted hundreds of millions in commercial revenues for United and their sponsors last season.
As such, Ronaldo never announced his departure but rather stated a desire to leave if possible. All in all, the only issue would be from a financial point of view because it wouldn’t make sense for United. They invested a transfer fee when they signed him last summer from Juventus , up to about 20 million euros. The big question is, how many clubs are able to afford his wages and also tolerate his ego?
CHELSEA LOOKING TO GAZUMP UNITED ON FRENKIE DE JONG DEAL
At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea have woken up and confirmed they will move for De Jong and that they will present an immediate offer. The arrival of the London club could convince the player, with the ball in his court. The owner of Chelsea,Todd Boehly, was in Barcelona in early July to meet Joan Laporta. Chelsea confirmed they would sell to Barcelona Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso if there was an agreement that suited them, and they also asked about De Jong. Chelsea have been busy on other deals and are now coming back to De Jong, knowing Barcelona had a deal for 80m euros with Man United.
The Dutchman is reluctant to leave, but the Blues are in the Champions League so that could help lure him. However, it’s hard for them to agree to match De Jong’s wages at Barcelona.
It is now official that Jules Koundé is a Barça player. The club announced the signing of the defender four days ago, who they bought from Sevilla. The French defender signed his new contract for the next five seasons, and so will remain tied to FC Barcelona until June 30, 2027.
It has also been revealed that Barça will finally pay 50 million euros to Sevilla and 12.5 in variables, which would be 2.5 million per season if he plays 60% of the matches. The defender will most likely end up costing 62.5 million euros. He will earn 9.5 million euros as wages in the first season and 12 million for the remaining four, apart from a signing bonus of 2 million euros. Along with the appearances , there’s one clause for titles adding a further one million euros to the sum.
Real Madrid have received a proposal to signChelsea forward Timo Werner , as the west London club are offering his services to suitors. It comes with Thomas Tuchel‘s side looking to move Werner on after he made it clear that he wanted to leave, and Real Madrid‘s lack of options in attack has made them one club that Chelsea have reached out to.
If the deal were to go ahead, then Real Madrid would have to pay 35 million euros for the German’s services. There could also be the option to agree an initial loan which includes a trigger to make the switch permanent for that same price, though it would likely include a loan fee. The 26-year-old forward reportedly wants to play more first-team football after only starting 24 games for Chelsea last season.
Kepa Arrizabalaga looks like he’s headed to Napoli with Chelsea willing to pay 75 per cent of his wages to make that loan move happen. Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso are wanted by Barcelona, but their relations with Chelsea re not perfect at the moment. The players themselves do want to move though. Going to Real Madrid would likely mean serving as a backup to Karim Benzema, rather than being first choice so that is not an option for now.
NEWCASTLE UNITED TRYING TO FLEX MUSCLES
In the Premier League, Newcastle United are keen on trying to persuade Timo Werner to remain in England and see him as a statement signing to please their new owners. He has also been linked with a return to RB Leipzig, the club where he scored 93 goals in 158 games before moving to Chelsea .Newcastle are refusing to give up on their pursuit of Leicester’s James Maddison as they attempts to add attacking options to the squad.
James Maddison is wanted at Newcastle
The Magpies are understood to have tabled a second, improved bid for the 25-year-old England international having seen their first flatly rejected with Foxes boss Brendan Rodgers adamant he is not for sale. Maddison is one of a series of potential targets currently under consideration, with Chelsea striker Timo Werner and Burnley’s Maxwel Cornet also in the Magpies’ sights, although the need to stay within spending guidelines and the desire not to shatter the club’s wage structure despite the wealth of their Saudi-backed owners remains key.
Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino has expressed his desire to ‘stay’ at Anfield after the Reds beat Manchester City 3-1 in the Community Shield. Firmino has insisted he wants to ‘stay’ at Liverpool after speculation of a move to Juventus during the summer transfer window. The forward has just one year left on his contract at Anfield.
Firminho to remain at Anfield. Image by Bangkok Post
Liverpool however , have no appetite to sell Firmino , who has reportedly attracted a £19.5 million bid from the Serie A club. Firmino is a much-loved member of the Liverpool squad and fans have expressed their desire for him to be offered a new contract to extend his seven year stay on Merseyside.
ARSENAL MEAN BUSINESS AT LAST
Arsenal have agreed to sell goalkeeper Bernd Leno to Fulham. A deal between the two clubs seemed unlikely a few weeks ago but the Gunners have now opted to sell the German as part of a deal reportedly worth £8 million. Leno still needs to pass a medical and agree personal terms before the move is completed. The 30-year-old made just seven first-team appearances for Arsenal last season with Aaron Ramsdale now Mikel Arteta’s first choice.
Arsenal bosses have reportedly been all thumbs on sanctioning a move for 25-year-old Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans, who has just one year remaining on his Foxes contract and is not willing to extend. Although Man United are now entering the race , the player wants Arsenal.Leicester paid £39.2 million (€46m / $49.5m) to AS Monaco for him in 2019 and his required fee will be around £25 million (€29.4m / $31.6m), a steal for a midfielder of his quality and prime age.
Arsenal are also reportedly weighing up a shock move for Chelsea flop Timo Werner. Chelsea are willing to part ways with Werner before the end of the transfer window and the Gunners are interested in poaching the forward from their London rivals.Werner has endured an underwhelming two-years with the Blues – scoring just 10 goals in 56 Premier League games though where he would fit in at Arsenal after Jesus’ arrival still remains to be seen.
The gunners went into the Transfer market quite early and made some significant gains in capturing a couple of seasoned players. Their form in pre-season has been terrific and it remains to be seen if they will go for more ammunition. It will also be interesting to see if they will maintain the same killer mentality when the season kicks off because they have a not soo good history of starting on a high and ending on a down low same as Man United.
Arsenal have received a boost in their pursuit of the Brazil international , Lucas Pacueta with claims that Lyon have slashed £21m off their original £55m valuation of the player. The Ligue 1 outfit are now understood to be prepared to accept a £34m fee for the player.
LAMPARD HAS A PLAN AS WELL
Everton are looking to finalise a permanent deal to bring Idrissa Gana Gueye back to the club as Frank Lampard targets midfield reinforcements. Talks are continuing with Paris Saint-Germain, who signed the Senegal international from Everton for £30 million in the summer of 2019. Gueye, 32, has one year remaining on his contract but is now surplus to requirements for the French champions. Lampard has prioritised the signing of a midfielder, having seen Fabian Delph leave on a free transfer in the summer.
Sanchez is a free agent wanted by Marseille. Image Sky Sport
Football transfer gossip in Serie A is rife with former Manchester United and Arsenal Striker Alexis Sanchez terminating his Inter Milan contract to become a free agent and Marseille interested in signing him. It is understood that the Serie A side have reached an agreement with Sanchez over severance pay on his deal which was originally due to expire next summer, and he will now be free to join a new club.
The 33-year-old joined Inter permanently on a free transfer from Manchester United in 2020, after a successful season-long loan spell the previous season. He however failed to nail down a starting place and was used predominantly as a substitute by Antonio Conte and Simone Inzaghi. The Chilean won Inter the Italian Super Cup in January with a last-second extra-time goal to beat rivals Juventus 2-1, while also clinching lifting Serie A and the Coppa Italia.
However, Romelu Lukaku’s return to the club paved the way for Sanchez to be left out of Inzaghi’s squad. Sanchez’s hefty salary proved to be a stumbling block for potential incomings like Paulo Dybala, who eventually joined Roma