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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.
– Man United agree Fernandes deal up to €80m
– Tottenham land €35m Bergwijn from PSV
– Arsenal sign defender Pablo Mari on loan
– Eriksen leaves Tottenham for Inter Milan
TOP STORY: Man United, Chelsea eye striker
The Premier League window only has a day left and both Manchester United and Chelsea are short up front.
After United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s comments (see 08.00), United will be eyeing a pure goal scorer and the Daily Express says that Real Madrid’s Luka Jovic and Leicester’s Islam Slimani are being tracked for a loan move. The MEN has a different idea and says that Valencia striker Maxi Gomez and Fenerbahce’s Vedat Muriqi are keen, while Napoli veteran Dries Mertens is also linked.
However, Mertens is also on the radar of Chelsea, says Sky Sports. The 32-year-old Belgian is out of contract this summer and is also attracting attention from Inter Milan given a January move would only cost £5m.
Olivier Giroud will likely leave Stamford Bridge this window, either to Inter or possibly Tottenham, so Chelsea need a backup almost as much as United do. Stay tuned to find out who they’ll get.
LIVE BLOG
11.15 GMT: Update on Olivier Giroud to Tottenham. The Athletic says that it could happen but only if Chelsea manage to sign a striker before the deadline. If they do, they won’t block the Frenchman’s move to join up with Jose Mourinho.
11.06 GMT: Barcelona forward Carles Perez has joined Serie A side Roma in a deal worth an initial €13m, the two clubs confirmed on Wednesday.
A further €2m is potentially due in performance-related add-ons. Barca had hoped to include a buy-back option in the deal but, in the end, have had to settle for a first option should Roma agree to sell in the future.
11.01 GMT: Here’s an interesting one… Barcelona reportedly want to sell Philippe Coutinho permanently this month, even though he’s in the middle of a season-long loan spell at Bayern Munich.
Bayern have a €120m option to buy the Brazilian midfielder in the summer, but reports suggest they won’t do that.
Catalunya Radio Barcelona reports that Barca are willing to sell for less if a bid comes in now, given they need to find a replacement for the injured Luis Suarez pretty quickly.
10.46 GMT: Tottenham are also looking for a striker, but they have competition for Real Sociedad’s Willian Jose from West Ham, says AS.
Willian Jose is pushing for a move to London and has a €70m buy-out clause in his contract, but Tottenham are negotiating a much lower fee, sources have told ESPN.
10.31 GMT: Portuguese winger Daniel Podence has completed his £16.6m move to Wolves from Olympiakos.
“First of all, thank you for the several support messages I’ve been getting. I can describe myself as a fast, virtuoso and objective player,” he told the club website. “My individual goals are to play as much as possible, help the team with goals and assists and collectively, I’d like to qualify for the Champions League. That is a goal that’s within our reach, and I hope we can have a better season than last year.”
Wolves also signed 19-year-old France youth international Enzo Loiodice from Dijon on loan.
10.18 GMT: Barcelona are starting to ramp things up and have been linked with Braga winger Francisco Trincao.
The 20-year-old has been dubbed the “new Cristiano Ronaldo,” or perhaps that should now be the “new Joao Felix” given the Portuguese youngster is already the holder of that title.
Can you be “a new” anything if you’re only a few days older than the player in question? Anyway, Barca are willing to spend €20m on Trincao, says Record.
10.15 GMT: Gonzalo Villar has completed his move from Elche to AS Roma.
The 21-year-old central midfielder has signed for €4m, with performance-related clauses of up to €1m included.
10.02 GMT: Manchester City are trying to hijack Yan Couto‘s move to Barcelona with late bid, says Mundo Deportivo.
The promising 17-year-old Brazil defender has barely played for his club Coritiba but is already attracting the biggest clubs in the world. Must be some player!
09.55 GMT: Former Real Madrid and QPR midfielder Esteban Granero has rescinded his contract with Espanyol and joined third division side El Marbella. Wow. He’s only 32.
09.45 GMT: Genk midfielder Sander Berge was being linked to Liverpool and Man United but now it seems he’s set to sign for Sheffield United, says Sky Sports.
The 21-year-old could move for around £27m.
09.37 GMT: US international defender Cameron Carter-Vickers has moved from Tottenham to Luton on loan.
09.28 GMT: Arsenal are reportedly chasing Southampton’s Cedric Soares and could land the full-back for £5m, says the Daily Mirror.
They’ve already landed defender Pablo Mari on loan from Flamengo.
09.13 GMT: Valencia coach Albert Celades remains coy over Rodrigo‘s future at the club despite news that talks regarding the striker’s move to Barcelona have collapsed.
Barcelona reportedly wanted to sign the Spanish striker on loan until the end of the season while Valencia were only willing to sell Rodrigo on a permanent transfer in this transfer window.
When asked if Rodrigo will stay put, Celades told reporters after Wednesday’s Copa del Rey win on penalties at Cultural Leonesa. “I don’t know how things stand. We will wait and see once the transfer window ends and once it does, we will evaluate it. It seems that way (that Rodrigo will stay). But until the last day, the situation doesn’t change.”
08.47 GMT: Barcelona have had a €100m offer for forward Richarlison rejected by Everton, according to Sky Sports.
Richarlison has scored 24 goals for Everton since joining them in July 2018 from Watford for £40m. The 22-year-old has established himself as a Brazil international, making three appearances as the Selecao won the Copa America on home soil last summer.
Sky reports that Everton immediately rejected the offer from Barca, who have re-ignited their long-held interest in the player as their hopes of signing Rodrigo from Valencia appear to be diminishing.
08.27 GMT: Lyon have announced the signing Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimaraes from Athletico Paranaense.
The 22-year-old had been linked with Premier League side Arsenal and La Liga club Atletico Madrid, but it was Ligue 1 side Lyon who were always favourites to sign him.
📝 Bruno Guimaraes à l’OL jusqu’en 2024 !
Communiqué ➡️ https://t.co/4pVgUhqgZL pic.twitter.com/cdQcDJEEuf
— Olympique Lyonnais (@OL) January 30, 2020
08.00 GMT: Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants a new striker to join new arrival Bruno Fernandes at the club before the close of the January transfer window.
Fernandes is set to undergo a medical on Thursday after arriving in Manchester, but Solskjaer is still hopeful there could be another addition before Friday’s deadline.
“We need more goalscorers, more goals, someone who wants to break their nose or toe to score,” said Solskjaer. “We need more goals, if we get Bruno over the line we’ve got a boy who will score and create.”
With Nemanja Matic set to be suspended for Wolves’ visit to Old Trafford on Saturday after he was sent off during the 1-0 win over Manchester City on Wednesday, Fernandes could make his debut provided there are no late hitches in his move from Sporting Lisbon.
“Let’s get the contract signed and medical done, but the boy is fit and ready to play I would presume,” said Solskjaer.
PAPER TALK (by James Capps)
Spurs and Real hold shock Bale talks
The Daily Mail claims Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid have held talks over a shock move for former Spurs winger Gareth Bale, but the north Londoners are reportedly pessimistic over their chances of landing the Welshman.
Financial reasons are believed to be the major stumbling block in any potential move for the four-time Champions League winner, with Bale’s huge £600,000 weekly wage forming the crux of the negotiations.
Spurs know they are unable to get close to matching that salary, and are now trying desperately to put together a package to suit all parties, with Real keen to rid the former Southampton man from their bulging wage bill, while the player himself is keen to secure regular game time ahead of Wales’ Euro 2020 campaign in the summer.
Bale was named the PFA’s Player of the Year twice during his six years at Spurs before making his €100m move to Real Madrid in 2013, a world-record fee at the time.
Paco packs his bags ahead of Dortmund departure
Borussia Dortmund striker Paco Alcacer looks set to depart Signal Iduna Park in the January transfer window, and Spanish publication Marca claims the former Barcelona man is set for a move back to La Liga with Villareal.
The 26-year-old asked to leave the Bundesliga side after the arrival of teenage sensation Erling Haaland from Red Bull Salzburg at the turn of the year, and the Norwegian’s scintillating start to his career in Germany has accelerated the Spaniard’s exit.
Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and Valencia were also linked with a move for Alcacer, but after Barcelona failed with a move for Los Ches striker Rodrigo, Valencia are no longer in the market for a forward, leaving the door open for Villareal to make their move.
Can Dortmund get Emre from Juventus?
Serie A leaders Juventus are bracing themselves for a second bid from Borussia Dortmund for wantaway midfielder Emre Can, according to noted transfer guru Gianluca Dimarzio.
After having an initial enquiry rebuffed, Dortmund look set to return with an offer worth around €30 million for the 26-year-old, who has expressed his desire to leave Juventus after struggling to force his way into Maurizio Sarri’s first-team plans, with the former Chelsea boss preferring the likes of Blaise Matuidi, Miralem Pjanic and Rodrigo Bentancur in his midfield berths.
Despite his lack of first-team action in Turin, the defending Serie A champions look set to make a huge profit on the German, who joined The Old Lady in 2018 on a free transfer after letting his contract expire at Liverpool.
Tap Ins
– Tottenham defender Danny Rose is set for a loan deal to Newscatle, with the Guardian reporting that Steve Bruce’s side will pay Spurs a £2m loan fee for the England defender. Rose has only made three starts since Jose Mourinho took over the London side, and the move up north could have revitalise Rose’s chances of making England’s squad for Euro 2020.
– The Sun claims West Bromwich Albion defender Nathan Ferguson is having a medical at Crystal Palace, after the two clubs agreed a deal worth £10 million for the 19-year-old. The Eagles turned their attention to the youngster after failing in an attempt to sign Spurs full back Kyle Walker-Peters, who opted for a move to Southampton rather than a switch to Selhurst Park.
– Sky Italy claims AC Milan left back Ricardo Rodriguez is on the verge of sealing a move to PSV Eindhoven ahead of Friday’s transfer deadline. The 27-year-old Switzerland international has made just five Serie A appearances for the Rossoneri this season.