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It’s go time as the January transfer window is open. Find out when it closes across Europe, view the latest transfers as they happen and keep up to date with the newest gossip below.
TOP STORY: Man United eye Atletico’s Llorente on loan
Sources have told ESPN that Manchester United are closing to signing Sporting Lisbon’s Bruno Fernandes, but the MEN claims that the club are also looking at bringing in Atletico Madrid midfielder Marcos Llorente on loan.
Llorente, 24, is on United’s radar having fallen down the pecking order at Atletico behind Saul Niguez, Thomas Partey, Koke and Hector Herrera. The Spaniard joined from Real Madrid for £35m in the summer but has struggled for playing time and could be set for a move to Old Trafford where “the club is focusing on the European market, rather than British options.”
Where does that leave Man United midfielder Jesse Lingard, we hear you ask? The answer is: out of luck. Having landed himself a new agent, in Mino Raiola, Lingard looks set to depart for Serie A, with Napoli, Roma, AC Milan and Inter Milan all interested in him, reports the Daily Star.
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15.21 GMT: Portuguese newspaper O Jogo reports that Newcastle want Braga winger Ricardo Horta.
Horta, 25, has done well this season with 13 goals in 29 appearances, but also has a €30m release clause, which Newcastle are reportedly only willing to pay up to half of.
14.54 GMT: Ajax midfielder Donny van de Beek has reportedly agreed to join Real Madrid next summer for €55m.
De Telegraaf reports (via Marca) that the 22-year-old will move to the Bernabeu at the end of the season, having turned down interest from Manchester United.
14.32 GMT: Napoli have completed the €25m signing of Slovakian midfielder Stanislav Lobotka from Celta Vigo.
Lobotka, 25, has signed a deal until June 2024, having previously been linked with Arsenal and West Ham.
14.17 GMT: Would midfielder Christian Eriksen and manager Antonio Conte get along if the Tottenham star moved to Inter Milan? Let the Serie Awesome podcast crew explain…
13.51 GMT: Italian outlet Corriere Dello Sport claims both Arsenal and West Ham want AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie.
Kessie, 23, has impressed in front of the back four and is valued at around €25m, which could tempt Premier League clubs into a move for the powerful Ivorian.
13.16 GMT: Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud is on the verge on joining Inter Milan, sources have told ESPN, with a total package approaching £7m close to being agreed.
Once the transfer of Matteo Politano from Inter to Roma is made official then Giroud’s move will be confirmed, with negotiations between Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia and Inter sporting director Beppe Marotta going smoothly.
12.54 GMT: Could Thomas Lemar be about to swap Atletico Madrid for Wolves?
Find out why that deal has a 40% chance in the new edition of Rumour Rater.
12.38 GMT: AC Milan beat off plenty of clubs to land Lucas Biglia in the summer, but the midfielder has barely featured and is now looking for a way out.
Norwich City, Newcastle United and Celta Vigo are keen on the 33-year-old Argentine, says Calcicomercato.
12.10 GMT: Benfica are becoming more used to selling players than buying them, but they are ready to bid €20m for striker Mariano Diaz, given he has played just two matches for Real Madrid this season.
Mariano, 26, signed from Lyon in 2018 for €23m but hasn’t impressed and Portuguese newspaper O Jogo reports that Benfica are looking to give him an exit option.
11.34 GMT: Further to the above news about Sporting Lisbon’s Bruno Fernandes joining Man United, Correio da Manha claims United are expected to make a €60m offer plus €10m in add-ons today.
Fernandes has reportedly been offered a five-year contract and will earn €6m per season, €2m more than what he gets at Sporting. However, according to the Lisbon-based newspaper, Frederico Varandas is happy to have Fernandes’ transfer to United delayed as he wants to have the player available when Sporting host Benfica in Friday’s league derby at the Jose Alvalade stadium.
Correio da Manha claims United want to close the deal as soon as possible as they are keen to have Fernandes available for Sunday’s game at Liverpool. But, in order for that to happen, the Portuguese star would have to be registered by 12.00 GMT on Friday.
11.18 GMT: Everton director of football Marcel Brands has basically said the club can’t afford to sign expensive players like Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha.
“Look at last summer, from the start there was a lot of rumours and news that we would like to take Zaha,” said Brands, speaking at Everton’s general meeting.
“And if you see our numbers then you know it is not realistic for Everton to buy a player for £60m, £70m, £80m. So that kind of expectation is sometimes a different kind of expectation for fans and it is not realistic and we have to manage that.”
11.03 GMT: West Ham have a new goalkeeper; same as their old goalkeeper. Darren Randolph has returned from Middlesbrough.
We are pleased to confirm the return of Republic of Ireland international goalkeeper Darren Randolph to the Club. pic.twitter.com/gxp3lJfPM5
— West Ham United (@WestHam) January 15, 2020
11.01 GMT: The MEN reports that Arsenal won’t get anywhere if they want to sign Man City defender John Stones.
The FC TV guys think he’d be a good signing for the Gunners though.
10.38 GMT: You know what it’s like … all you want to do is go to Disneyland Paris via Eurostar and suddenly everyone thinks you’re on the way to make a new signing.
Man United chief Ed Woodward has been spotted travelling to France and there’s been plenty of gossip about the possible arrival of Lille midfielder Boubakary Soumare as a result. We can only hope that a trip to Disneyland comes as part of the deal.
10.17 GMT: Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has been speaking about striker Moussa Dembele to RMC Sport.
Man United and Chelsea have been linked with a €40m move in January, but Lyon are not interested in selling.
“Our minds have not changed — this issue was made clear back in August,” Aulas said. “Moussa is an excellent player, a player we need. We are deliberately avoiding bringing in somebody new who could compete with him for his role. Moussa’s future is not a question of money — he is staying with us.”
Aulas also admitted the club are interested in a South Korea international. “There is long-term interest in Hwang Hee-Chan, but FC Salzburg have already lost two of their best-performing attacking players [Erling Haaland and Takumi Minamino],” he added. “They have indicated that they will not be letting the player go.”
10.06 GMT: Inter Milan and AS Roma are set to confirm a deal that would see Matteo Politano and Leonardo Spinazzola swap clubs, sources have told ESPN.
The deal looks like it’ll be a loan agreement with obligation to buy. It sees winger Politano return to Roma, where he started his career, and Spinazzola moving to Inter having joined Roma in the summer for €29m from Atalanta.
09.56 GMT: Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin has moved on loan to Real Oviedo for the rest of the season.
Madrid had previously brought to an end Lunin’s loan spell at Real Valladolid. The Ukraine international made just two Copa del Rey appearances for Valladolid since joining the La Liga side on a season-long loan from Madrid in the summer, with Jordi Masip the preferred starter.
Lunin, 20, already endured a disappointing loan spell at Leganes last season where he made just seven appearances. At Oviedo, Lunin is expected to start ahead of Nereo Champagne, who has made 19 starts for the club this campaign.
Oviedo are 17th in the standings, one point clear of the relegation zone. The club has the second worst defensive line in the competition with 33 goals conceded in 22 games.
Lunin, who won the 2019 U20 World Cup and was awarded the Golden Glove in the tournament, is expected to back up Thibaut Courtois next season at Madrid once Alphonse Areola returns to PSG.
09.53 GMT: Palmeiras and Barcelona are close to striking an agreement for midfielder Matheus Fernandes to join the Spanish champions, sources have told ESPN Brasil.
Nothing has been signed yet but the two clubs are in advanced negotiations about a €7m transfer, with another €4m then potentially due in appearance-based add-ons. Botafogo, Fernandes’ former club, are due 25% of any fee.
Fernandes, 21, has only made a handful of appearances since joining Palmeiras last season. It’s not clear if the Brazil U20 international would go straight into the first team at Barca or if he would start with the B team in the Spanish third division.
09.27 GMT: RB Leipzig are bracing for Dayot Upamecano‘s exit in the summer amid links with Premier League side Arsenal.
The 21-year-old defender is under contract until 2021, and the Bundesliga leaders would be “surprised if no other club came knocking” for “one of the league’s best defenders,” sporting director Markus Krosche told Sport Bild.
The France international reportedly has a €60m release clause in his contract and Krosche said: “He is certainly a very tempting players for the big European clubs, but he still has a few steps to make and could develop here.”
Upamecano is one of several players who could leave Bundesliga leaders RB Leipzig in the summer. Germany attacker Timo Werner also has a €60m release clause in his contract and, while Bayern Munich sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic has said that his playing style does not suit the Bavarians, clubs like Liverpool have been consistently linked with one of Germany’s most prolific strikers.
Germany full-back Lukas Klostermann, 23, meanwhile, also has entered the final 18 months of his contract. He has been linked with Bayern and Borussia Dortmund, although kicker earlier this week said he did not play a role in BVB’s summer transfer plans.
09.05 GMT: Tottenham have signed Benfica midfielder Gedson Fernandes on an 18-month loan deal, to become Jose Mourinho’s first signing as manager.
A club statement read: “We are delighted to announce that we have reached agreement for the 18-month loan of Gedson Fernandes from Benfica with an option to make the transfer permanent.
“The midfielder will wear the number 30 shirt for the remainder of this season.
Fernandes, 21, reportedly chose to join Mourinho at Spurs ahead of London rivals West Ham, while Manchester United and Chelsea were also linked.
Capped twice by Portugal, Fernandes helped Benfica win the Portuguese Primeira Liga last season and leaves with them top this campaign.
🇵🇹 #BemVindoGedson 🇵🇹 pic.twitter.com/ZibMjeBCJG
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) January 15, 2020
08.32 GMT: Tottenham Hotspur are in negotiations with FC Porto to acquire striker Ze Luis on loan, according to Record.
According to the Portuguese outlet, Portuguese agent Jorge Mendes is mediating between the clubs for the Cape Verde international to arrive to London this month.
Ze Luis has scored seven goals in 12 league appearances for Porto and is tied to the Portuguese giants until June 2023.
The biggest hurdle is that the 28-year-old does not hold a European passport and would need to apply for a work permit.
08.00 GMT: Manchester City will not let defender John Stones follow Mikel Arteta to Arsenal in the January transfer window, the Manchester Evening News reports.
Stones had been linked earlier this week with interest from Arsenal, who are now managed by former City assistant manager Arteta.
The Sun claimed that City boss Pep Guardiola has lost faith in Stones, while the Daily Mirror reported that the England centre-back had been promised he would immediately slot into the first team should he join the Gunners.
However, it now appears that a move out of the Etihad for the 25-year-old is not on the cards, until the summer at least.
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PSG moving for Inter target Eriksen
Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Christian Eriksen has given the green light to a transfer to Inter Milan this month, with talks already underway over a deal that would see the Denmark international head to the San Siro before the closure of the January transfer window.
Sky Italy journalist Fabrizio Romano claims the Nerazzurri have made an opening bid of €10m for the 27-year-old, whose contract in north London expires at the end of the season, meaning he could leave Spurs for nothing in the summer.
However, reports in The Mirror claim Paris Saint-Germain are plotting a late swoop for Eriksen, with the French champions rumoured to be plotting a €15m move. PSG have been monitoring talks between Spurs and Inter, and are now poised to make their move, and the Parisians’ bid comes closer to Spurs’ €20m valuation.
Eriksen surprisingly played the full 90 minutes in Spurs’ FA Cup replay win over Boro and Jose Mourinho said after the match: “He played very well. Very professional which is what I expect from him. If his decision is to leave I think he has to leave with his head up.”
That certainly has an air of farewell to it, doesn’t it?
Atletico and PSG set for crunch Cavani talks
Atletico Madrid have stepped up their pursuit of PSG striker Edinson Cavani, but fears have emerged that the Uruguayan’s salary demands could scupper a move, according to reports at AS.
The 32-year-old has been in and out the PSG team since the loan arrival of Mauro Icardi from Inter Milan at the start of the season, and Atleti manager Diego Simeone has identified Cavani as a priority signing for the January transfer window.
However, despite reports that the player wants to make the move, major obstacles remain over his salary, which goes beyond the internal wage cap at the club. Meanwhile, the French champions also have their own reservations over the prospect of selling their all-time leading goal scorer to a potential opponent in the latter stages of the Champions League.
– When does the transfer window reopen?
– All major completed transfer deals
Milan clubs offered Rami deal
Inter and AC Milan have been offered the chance to sign former Rossoneri defender Adil Rami, according to reports at Calciomercato.
The 34-year-old spent a year in the red half of Milan in 2014 before leaving for Sevilla, but the Frenchman’s agent has offered his former club the chance to re-sign the player, while also leaving the door ajar for Milan’s arch rivals Inter to make a surprise swoop.
Rami is currently plying his trade at Turkish side Fenerbahce, having joined the club at the start of the season on an initial one-year deal. However, the France international has struggled to settle in Istanbul, and has instructed his agent to find him a new club as he looks to secure a place in the France squad for Euro 2020.
Tap ins
– Real Madrid striker Mariano Diaz has been told he can leave the club, and Marca claims Portuguese giants Benfica are lining up a move for the 26-year-old, who has failed to make a single appearance for Los Blancos in La Liga this season.
– AC Milan defender Ricardo Rodriguez looks set for a move to PSV Eindhoven before the end of the January transfer window, according to Calciomercato. The Rossoneri expect to receive around €6m for the Swiss international, who has made just five Serie A appearances this season.
– The Sun says Arsenal may have inadvertently confirmed youngster Eddie Nketiah’s next loan move after placing Bristol City’s logo next to the player’s photo on the Squad Profiles section of the Gunners’ official website. The Robins are one of many Championship clubs chasing the 20-year-old.