Manchester United are poised to sign Brazil striker Gabriel Barbosa for £30million, while Chelsea are plotting a move for Liverpool target Jonas Hector, according to Tuesday morning’s papers.
Man Utd To Win Race For Barbosa
Jose Mourinho is ready to beat a host of rivals with a £30m move for Brazilian prodigy Gabriel Barbosa.
Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester thought they had won the race to sign the 19-year-old Santos Striker, who has emerged as one of the hottest young properties in football after setting the Rio Olympics alight.
The Foxes were convinced they had beaten off Italian giants Inter Milan and Juventus, as well as Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid, after the teenage striker told them he had his heart set on playing in the Premier League.
However, The Sun claims Manchester United are now in pole position to land the Samba superkid, with United set to push through a whopping £30million Deal within the next 48 hours to outmuscle the reigning champions.
The Old Trafford giants need another striker to back up Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Mourinho made it clear Barbosa is the perfect fit for his Reds revolution.
United have reportedly agreed to pay Santos £26million for the player – plus a £4million commission fee to his agent.
The news will come as a kick in the teeth to Ranieri, who was ready to smash Leicester’s record transfer fee again to land Barbosa – who has been dubbed the new Neymar in his homeland.
Chelsea Consider Move For Liverpool Target Hector
Chelsea are weighing up a move for Germany left-back Jonas Hector before the transfer window closes, according to reports in the Daily Mirror.
The 26 year-old extended his Cologne deal just last week but that has not put off the Blues who are considering Hector in their search for a new left-back.
The player has also been widely tracked by Liverpool this summer, who could yet renew their interest after Alberto Moreno’s performance came in for criticism on Sunday.
Chelsea boss Antonio Conte is short on options in the position after letting Baba Rahman join Schalke on loan for the season and have made an enquiry for £20million-rated Hector.
Cesar Azpilicueta has been Chelsea’s first-choice left back for the last two seasons after seeing off Ashley Cole and then Filipe Luis who lasted just a year at Stamford Bridge.
Promising youngster Ola Aina can also play on the left side of defence though both he and Azpilicueta are naturally right-footed.
Arsenal Stall Over Mustafi As They Still Want Striker
Arsenal have stalled over a deal for Valencia defender Shkodran Mustafi as they still wish to sign a striker.
The Gunners have been linked with Mustafi throughout the summer, with the club embroiled in an injury crisis as their Premier League campaign starts.
With Laurent Koscielny unfit, captain Per Mertesacker injured and Gabriel ill, Arsene Wenger opted to use the inexperienced pair of Calum Chambers and Rob Holding in central defence against Liverpool.
Arsenal lost that game 4-3, with said defence struggling to cope with Liverpool’s attacking threat.
Wenger has previously discussed a move for Mustafi, who Arsenal reportedly bid £15m earlier this month.
Valencia are thought to want closer to £30m for the German international, and Arsenal are now considering their options.
Confusion reigned with regards to the deal last week, when it was reported that a man claiming to be the 24-year-old’s agent had announced that a deal had been made. Within the hour, those quotes were denied.
According to BBC journalist and trusted source at the Emirates, David Ornstein, Omer Toprak of Bayer Leverkusen and Simon Kjaer of Fenerbahce are other Arsenal targets.
According to BBC journalist and trusted source at the Emirates, David Ornstein, Omer Toprak of Bayer Leverkusen and Simon Kjaer of Fenerbahce are other Arsenal targets.
Arsenal yet to agree fee for Mustafi. #AFC considering Omer Toprak & Simon Kjaer as alternatives but Mustafi remains priority & keen to join— David Ornstein (@bbcsport_david) August 15, 2016
Price the issue. Arsenal want to hold back funds for possible striker signing. #AFC transfer budget factors in fee, salary, agent commission— David Ornstein (@bbcsport_david) August 15, 2016
Others
Liverpool’s £25m bid for Mahmoud Dahoud has been snubbed by German side Borussia Monchengladbach (The Sun)
Danny Drinkwater has rejected a new and improved £80,000-a-week Leicester deal amid interest from Tottenham (The Sun)
Arsenal are still haggling with Valencia over Shkodran Mustafi and fear a deal will not be in place before Saturday’s trip to Leicester (The Sun)
Barcelona have accepted a £21.7m offer for Claudio Bravo from Manchester City plunging Joe Hart’s future into doubt and amid claims Everton want to sign him on an initial loan deal (The Sun)
Ronald Koeman is also plotting to bring Southampton striker Charlie Austin to Everton (The Sun)
Manchester United and Manchester City target Reece Oxford is to stay at West Ham after impressing boss Slaven Bilic (The Sun)
Chelsea are considering switching targets from Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly to Nikola Maksimovic at Torino (The Sun)
West Brom have made a revised £21m offer for Sporting Lisbon striker Islam Slimani (The Sun)
Lyon have asked about taking Loic Remy on loan from Chelsea as they consider their options should a late offer come in for Alexandre Lacazette (The Sun)
Hull City are in discussions with former Crystal Palace defender Adrian Mariappa (The Sun)
Norwich have held talks over a £2.8m transfer for talented French defender Jerome Onguene (The Sun)
Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure insists he’s going nowhere despite being left out of Pep Guardiola’s Champions League squad (Daily Star)
Arsenal target Alexandre Lacazette admits a big money move could tempt him away from Lyon after netting a hat-trick at the weekend (Daily Mirror)
Manchester United are set to hand Paul Pogba his second debut against Southampton on Friday (Daily Express)
Watford have agreed a £13m deal to sign 25-year-old Juventus midfielder Roberto Pereyra (Sky Sports)
Cesc Fabregas’ representatives have made contact with Real Madrid over a possible move away from Chelsea this summer (Daily Express)
Crystal Palace are set to target Newcastle’s Moussa Sissoko with money from Yannick Bolasie sale (Daily Express)
Sunderland midfielder Liam Bridcutt, 27 is set to join Leeds United (Northern Echo)
West Ham have abandoned their move for 29-year-old AC Milan forward Carlos Bacca because they cannot find a buyer for Diafra Sakho, 26 (The Sun)
Watford defensive midfielder Mario Suarez, 29, has agreed terms with Valencia (Plaza Deportivo)
Daley Blind, who was widely expected to be on his way out of Manchester United, has been told by Jose Mourinho that he has an important part to play at Old Trafford this season (The Times)
Crystal Palace are set to renew their attempts to sign Christian Benteke from Liverpool after selling Yannick Bolasie to Everton for £25m (The Times)
England manager Sam Allardyce plans to select Southampton goalkeeper Fraser Forster, 28, for next month’s World Cup qualifier against Slovakia, instead of Manchester City’s Joe Hart, 29 (Daily Telegraph)
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