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The summer transfer window is into its final month for the major European leagues, which means the biggest clubs are looking to make a splash in the market before the new season begins. Check out the latest gossip below, and see all official deals here.
TOP STORY: Arsenal keen to sign Bernardo Silva
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has already admitted that Bernardo Silva could leave the Etihad this summer and now The Daily Mirror reports that “Arsenal are exploring a shock move” for the midfielder “as boss Mikel Arteta looks to add more creativity to his side.”
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Arteta knows Silva after working with him while he was assistant manager at City, but the Gunners would surely be unable to match the £45m that City want. Leicester midfielder James Maddison is also on the club’s shortlist for the attacking midfielder slot but is valued at around £60m.
The Athletic also reports that Juventus and Atletico Madrid are also keen to sign the Portugal international.
– Marcotti: Breaking down how this Messi-Barca saga will play out
– Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
LIVE BLOG
21.39 BST: With Lionel Messi seemingly on his way to Paris Saint-Germain, David Beckham’s Inter Miami CF reportedly have an alternative idea for making a splash: signing Cristiano Ronaldo. According to Le10 Sport, the MLS club have made contact with the 36-year-old Juventus forward’s agent, but the Portugal captain is said to be unlikely to leave European football just yet.
20.06 BST: Sevilla are in negotiations with Schalke over the transfer of 21-year-old centre-back Ozan Kabak as a replacement for the soon-to-be Chelsea-bound Jules Kounde, according to Fabrizio Romano. The Andalusian side have had a €10m bid rejected, with the recently relegated German outfit holding out for a transfer fee of €15m for the Turkey international who spent the second half of last season on loan at Liverpool.
18.33 BST: While the rumour mill continues apace with buzz of Lionel Messi moving to Paris Saint-Germain, the Athletic reports that there may yet be two options available to the 34-year-old Argentina international in Major League Soccer: one with David Beckham’s Inter Miami CF, and the other in Las Vegas – which, it should be noted, has no MLS club at the moment, although that could change in the coming months.
The juiciest nugget of the report stems from last Sunday’s CONCACAF Gold Cup final in Sin City: “The Athletic understands that among the many formal and informal meetings that took place over the Gold Cup weekend, there were talks between [MLS commissioner Don] Garber, Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman, Messi’s father, Jorge, and the representatives of various, shall we say, interested parties.”
Watch this space.
17.00 BST: PSG sporting director Leonardo and chairman Nasser al Khelaifi are heavily involved in the discussions over signing free agent Lionel Messi, having been in contact with his father, Jorge, for some time.
PSG had been working on an offer to Messi for months, on the off-chance that a deal could happen.
On Saturday, sources told ESPN’s Julien Laurens that Messi’s lawyers arrived in Nice, France, to hold talks over the transfer and finalise the details. Messi’s father will arrive later Saturday or on Sunday.
Sources added that Messi joining PSG would increase the likelihood of Kylian Mbappe, who is out of contract next summer, signing a new long-term deal with the club. This would damage Real Madrid’s hopes of signing the 22-year-old on a free transfer next summer.
Messi’s arrival in Ligue 1 would also mean PSG end their interest in signing Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba, meaning he would run down his contract at Old Trafford before becoming a free agent next summer.
16.09 BST: Inter Milan have signed Norway defender Anja Sonstevold on a one-year deal.
Sonstevold, 29, joins from FC Fleury 91 in the French Division 1 Feminine.
15.39 BST: Fabrizio Romano reports that after Chelsea seal a €115m move for Inter striker Romelu Lukaku, they will turn their attention back to landing Sevilla defender Jules Kounde.
The two clubs have been talking about a €70m deal for the France international, but have yet to reach an agreement.
Chelsea will also then focus on new deals for midfield pair N’Golo Kante and Jorginho.
1:31
Chelsea legend Frank Leboeuf is happy for Romelu Lukaku who is reportedly closing in on a return to Stamford Bridge.
15.00 BST: Chelsea are close to agreeing a €115m deal to sign striker Romelu Lukaku from Inter Milan, says Sky Sports.
Chelsea had a €100m bid for Lukaku, believed to also include defender Marcos Alonso, rejected by Inter last week, sources told ESPN. The Champions League winners are in the market to sign a striker this summer but have been frustrated by Borussia Dortmund’s reluctance to consider parting with top target, Erling Haaland.
Chelsea have consequently explored other options and Harry Kane‘s situation at Tottenham Hotspur led the Blues to pursue a deal for Lukaku. Sources said that Lukaku is not actively seeking to leave the club, but Inter are under pressure to raise funds through departures, having been hit particularly hard financially by the COVID-19 pandemic.
14.48 BST: Barcelona midfielder Ilaix Moriba will be allowed to leave if he doesn’t agree a new contract by the end of the weekend, says Mundo Deportivo.
Moriba, 18, is highly rated at Camp Nou but reportedly wants a major increase in salary to extend his terms beyond 2022. Barcelona’s financial situation won’t allow that and they are ready to move him on in the next few weeks if he doesn’t put pen to paper.
Chelsea have made a “dizzying offer” to sign him, while Manchester City, Marseille and various clubs in the Bundesliga are keeping tabs on the situation.
12.25 BST: Derby have become Ravel Morrison‘s 12th club.
Morrison, 28, was tipped for big things when he broke through at Manchester United. But he moved to West Ham in 2012 and spent time on loan before moving to Lazio in 2015. Spells at Ostersund, Sheffield United and, most recently, ADO den Haag followed, and he has now signed for Wayne Rooney’s Derby.
14.00 BST: ICYMI – Werder Bremen striker Joshua Sargent has been pulled out of the weekend’s German Cup game against VfL Osnabruck as he is set to complete a transfer.
Sargent, 21, has scored 15 goals in 81 games since joining the club in 2017, but the United States international did not take part in the club’s final training session on Friday.
“We are about to finalize a transfer with a foreign club,” Bremen manager Frank Baumann told the club website. “As a result, Josh informed us that he would not be able to play on Saturday. We then released him from the final training session.”
Sargent has been strongly linked to English Premier League club Norwich and is set to move for a reported €10m.
1:05
Jurgen Klinsmann says USMNT’s Josh Sargent should stay at Werder Bremen despite being linked to Norwich City.
13.11 BST: Lionel Messi is set to give a news conference at Camp Nou on Sunday at 11 a.m. BST (6 a.m. ET) after leaving Barcelona.
Should be interesting…
12.54 BST: Corriere dello Sport reports that Tottenham have contacted the agent of Fiorentina striker Dusan Vlahovic.
Vlahovic, 21, scored 21 goals last season for La Viola and is highly rated, with the club only considering offers of around €60m.
The Serbia international scored seven goals in Fiorentina’s recent 11-0 friendly win over Polisportiva C4 Foligno last week.
Fiorentina want to extend his contract until 2025, adding another two years and presumably a hefty release clause for any interested clubs. But Tottenham may move quickly, especially if they have to find a replacement for Harry Kane up front.
12.48 BST: Tottenham have signed Australia international forward Kyah Simon ahead of the new Women’s Super League season.
Simon, 30 left Dutch club PSV earlier this summer and was part of the Matildas side that finished fourth at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
“I’m really excited to join Spurs, an incredible, historic club that is known around the world,” said Simon. “Playing in the WSL has always been a dream of mine and I’m so happy to be joining such a big club. It’s a fantastic opportunity and a good challenge for me. The club is making strides on and off the pitch and I’m looking forward to meeting the team and helping them achieve success next season.”
12.30 BST: Tottenham midfielder Moussa Sissoko is set to leave the club, says Football Insider.
Sissoko, 31, has a contract that runs until the summer of 2023 but will only be a squad player this season and he’s keen to move on for more regular football.
The France international will reportedly head overseas which would bring an end to his eight-year spell in the Premier League with Newcastle and Tottenham.
11.45 BST: Chelsea target Jules Kounde was all smiles as he took part in a photoshoot for LaLiga alongside his Sevilla teammates with his future still up in the air.
The France defender’s transfer to Chelsea is still being negotiated. Sevilla are waiting for Chelsea to make the next move but will only let Kounde go if an offer of around €70m comes along.
Sevilla already pocketed €25m from the exit of Bryan Gil to Tottenham and got Erik Lamela as part of the deal.
11.04 BST: Atletico Madrid are closing in on the signing of Wolves striker Rafa Mir, according to Marca.
The LaLiga champions have reportedly beaten opposition from Sevilla and several other clubs to land the Spain U23 international, who becomes a free agent next summer.
Mir, 24, impressed last season when he scored 16 goals on a season-long loan at Huesca from Wolves. His impressive form has continued this summer as he scored three goals against Ivory Coast to help Spain reach the semifinals of the Olympics.
Mir is expected to sign a four-year contract with Atletico and will join the team next week when he returns from Tokyo.
10.32 BST: Miralem Pjanic‘s future will be decided this weekend, with the Barcelona midfielder expected to return to Juventus on loan, according to Mundo Deportivo.
Barcelona take on Juventus in the Joan Gamper trophy on Sunday and executives from the two clubs are expected to sit down and finalise Pjanic’s return to Turin.
Barca are desperate to reduce their wage bill to be able to register their new players for the upcoming season and are willing to facilitate Pjanic’s departure by loaning the player to Juve for up to two seasons for free.
Pjanic, 31, spent four seasons at Juve before signing for Barca in the summer of 2020 in a €60m transfer which saw Arthur go the other way for €72m. He made 30 appearances in all competitions for the Catalan giants last season but was not a regular starter.
0:41
The ESPN FC crew all predict Lionel Messi will remain a Barcelona player when the summer transfer window closes.
10.12 BST: Contrary to reports from Beteve, Sergio Aguero does not want to leave Barcelona following Lionel Messi‘s departure, according to Mundo Deportivo.
Aguero, 33, joined Barca as a free agent last month after his contract with Manchester City expired. One of the reasons why he joined Barca was to play alongside compatriot Messi at club level and Beteve claims Aguero had instructed his representatives to look at the clauses in his contract to consider the possibility of leaving the Camp Nou this month because he feels let down by Barca.
But Aguero’s entourage has denied those reports to Mundo Deportivo.
The Argentinian forward signed a two-year contract with Barca before teaming up with Messi to win the Copa America with Argentina earlier this month.
09.55 BST: Calciomercato reports that Chelsea will offer £50m plus striker Timo Werner to land Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt.
De Ligt, 21, is viewed as the successor to veteran centre-back Thiago Silva, though sources have told ESPN that Chelsea are in talks over a €70m move for Sevilla defender Jules Kounde.
Juventus would reportedly prefer a swap deal including midfielder Jorginho, but may not want to let De Ligt leave at all just a few years after his €75m move from Ajax.
09.23 BST: Vissel Kobe have announced the signing of former Japan international Yoshinori Muto after the striker was released by Newcastle United.
Muto’s contract with the English club was cancelled by mutual consent during the week with one year remaining after a disappointing three-year spell.
The 29-year-old returns to Japan following six seasons in Europe after leaving the J-League in 2015 to sign for German side Mainz from FC Tokyo.
Muto joins a Kobe side that features former Barcelona and Spain midfielder Andres Iniesta and who are currently in third in the standings.
09.00 BST: Paris Saint-Germain are prepared to offer Lionel Messi a three-year contract to move to the French capital, sources have told ESPN’s Julien Laurens, and feel a deal is close after positive initial talks with Messi’s representatives.
Earlier on Friday, PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino confirmed that signing the 34-year-old “was a possibility,” and sources said that further negotiations with Messi’s father and agent, Jorge, are planned for Monday, or possibly sooner.
The deal could have an impact on the futures of PSG’s Kylian Mbappe and Manchester United’s Paul Pogba.
Sources told ESPN that PSG reached out to Messi on Thursday following the unexpected announcement from Barca that he would not be signing a new deal with them. PSG sporting director Leonardo and chairman Nasser al Khelaifi are heavily involved in the discussions with Messi, having been in contact with his father, Jorge, for some time.
1:43
Julien Laurens explains the likelihood Lionel Messi will join PSG after the announcement that he’s leaving Barcelona.
PAPER GOSSIP (By Danny Lewis)
– Real Madrid are awaiting a call from PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi regarding Kylian Mbappe, according to Marca. Los Blancos are prepared in case they need to move quickly, especially if Messi joins the Parisians after leaving Barcelona. They’re currently focusing on offloading players and will only make a €150m move for Mbappe if they feel it will be successful.
– Internazionale are negotiating with Chelsea regarding a move for Romelu Lukaku, but they are not willing to accept Davide Zappacosta or Marcos Alonso as part of any deal, reports Calciomercato. The Serie A champions are said to want between €115m and €120m as they look for a right-wing-back and two strikers. PSV Eindhoven’s Denzel Dumfries is their favoured option for the right flank, while the forwards they’re considering are Atalanta’s Duvan Zapata, Lazio’s Joaquin Correa, Sassuolo’s Gianluca Scamacca and Roma’s Edin Dzeko.
– West Ham United are looking to sign Fiorentina’s Nikola Milenkovic, but L’Equipe states that the Hammers have reignited their interest in Marseille centre-back Duje Caleta-Car. Their initial offer is €14m potentially rising to €17m, but the Ligue 1 outfit want a sum of around €20m.
– AC Milan are showing an interest in signing River Plate’s Julian Alvarez, as has been reported by Calciomercato. Scouts have been looking at the 21-year-old forward for some time, and they seemingly like what they see. The two clubs have opened negotiations, but Alvarez has a release clause worth €25m, while he is also on the radar of Premier League clubs, including Aston Villa.
– Newcastle United are leading the race to sign Manchester United centre-back Axel Tuanzebe on loan, as they’re most likely to give him regular game time, reports Football Insider. Villa are also interested, says the report, and willing to pay the multimillion-pound loan fee, although Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa could stand in the 23-year-old’s way.
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