With Copa America and Euro 2020 over , the summer transfer window is wide open, activity from Europe’s elite clubs is rife with big teams ready to oil the market.
Manchester City are looking to make a £75 million move to sign talisman Jack Grealish from Aston Villa who are adamant that their £100m valuation must be met, meaning that there is a £25m difference in City’s offer. Manchester City’s offer will include add-ons, but Villa want their star man to stay and it is suggested that City will need to increase their bid for the Premier League side to even consider it. Aston Villa will also offer Grealish a new contract worth £150,000 a week in an attempt to convince him to stay, despite only seeing him sign a five year deal in September.
Aston Villa’s reservations have not put City off at all, though, as City manager Pep Guardiola is hopeful that a deal for the 25-year-old will be finalized. It is also believed that the reigning Premier League champions are still hunting down Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane, who could cost as much as £150m as indicated by book makers. Man City have already recouped back £30m from releasing fringe players and also getting some salaries off the books from massive wage earners like Sergio Aguero and Eric Garcia who left for Barcelona on free transfers and midfielder Bernado Silva likely to depart hence make more funds available for new recruitments.
In other transfer news, renown sports Journalist Fabrizio Romano reported yesterday that Chelsea are pushing to sign €80m-rated defender Jules Kounde from Sevilla. However, the fee is high so now the Blues are looking to add Kurt Zouma to the deal. Sevilla are looking for a replacement and are keen on Schalke centre back Ozan Kabak.
Elsewhere, Manchester United’s Eric Bailly will seek clarification over his future at Manchester United after they reached a deal with Real Madrid for Raphael Varane. With the addition of the French defender, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will have seven centre backs in his senior squad and Bailly, in particular, is concerned his first team opportunities will be severely limited. Playing time formed a central part of contract negotiations with the club which eventually saw the Ivory Coast international signing a new long term deal in April. After agreeing fresh terms, Bailly is contracted to United until 2024 with the option of another year. While in good form, Bailly is a force to reckon with. Bailly has had his share of injuries that sidelined him for long periods of time but a new contract indicates that United have faith in him.
Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba could wait until 2022 to decide his future. The Frenchman’s contract comes to an end at that time, and despite Paris Saint Germain being ready to offer the Red Devils around £45m, Pogba wants to keep his options open for now partly because the 28 year old harbors a dream of playing for Real Madrid, and he knows committing to another club could dent his chances of ever joining Real Madrid.
Atletico Madrid are said to still be considering a move for Arsenal striker Alexander Lacazette whose contract expires in 2022, so he is widely expected to leave this summer. Atletico’s offer that could be as low as £12 million would at least prevent the Gunners losing him for free next summer, and in turn could help them fund a move for Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham. Atletico were interested in signing Lacazette in 2017 when he joined Arsenal from Lyon, but the move failed to materialize because of the Spanish club’s transfer ban back then. Four years later, Atletico boss Diego Simeone is hoping to land his target in an attempt to bolster his strike force.
