Arsenal are facing competition from AC Milan to land a Real Madrid target, while Newcastle’s bid to land two top targets could be back on, according to Thursday’s papers.
Chelsea To Offer Batshuayi As Bait For Lemar
Chelsea are looking to tempt Monaco into selling Thomas Lemar by offering Michy Batshuayi as a makeweight, reports the Telegraph.
The Belgian striker is out of favour under Antonio Conte, who left him on the bench for Tuesday's 3-1 win over Huddersfield despite Alvaro Morata missing the game through injury.
The former Marseille hit man has failed to integrate into Conte's system and the Blues would be willing to allow him to move back to Ligue 1 on loan.
Chelsea could offer £80m for Arsenal target Lemar with a view to utilising Eden Hazard more regularly as a false nine when without Morata.
Another Blue who could be heading for the exit next month is academy prospect Kyle Scott, with the Sun reporting contract negotiations have stalled.
The 19-year-old has just 18 months to run on his Deal and now feels he needs to be playing regularly with Leicester and Huddersfield ready to pounce.
Newcastle Ready For January Spree
Newcastle appear to be on the verge of a takeover but that won't affect plans to spend big next month in order to beat the drop.
The Star believe Rafa Benitez will have plenty of cash to spend, with moves for Liverpool's forgotten striker Danny Ings and Manchester United's injury-hit left-back Luke Shaw.
The Toon boss has been handed an initial £20m in order to ensure they avoid relegation with just one point separating them from the drop zone.
Barca Set Backup Plan If Coutinho Move Fails
Barcelona will move for Mesut Ozil and Gremio starlet Arthur next month if they are unable to find progress in a deal for Philippe Coutinho, according to Catalan newspapers Mundo Deportivo and Sport.
The Brazilian was a prime target last summer but Liverpool rebuffed all their attempts, though Ernesto Valverde still craves help in midfield.
Arsenal appear unlikely to persuade their Germany international to remain beyond his current contract, which ends next summer, meaning Barca will move for the 29-year-old if a deal is not finalised for Coutinho by the end of this month.
Brazilian starlet Arthur recently won the Copa Libertadores with the Imortal Tricolor, and they are demanding the 21-year-old's full £45m release clause.
Arsenal are facing competition from AC Milan to land a Real Madrid target, while Newcastle’s bid to land two top targets could be back on, according to Thursday’s papers.
Arsenal To Battle Milan For Real Star
AC Milan have reportedly joined Arsenal in the race to sign Real Madrid youngster Dani Ceballos, according to reports in Italy.
Calciomercato claims that the Italian giants a ready to launch a bid for the midfielder, who has played just 186 minutes in La Liga so far this term.
The Gunners were linked with a move for the 21-year-old earlier this week after it emerged that the former Real Betis star was looking for a move away in a bid to secure regular first-team football, according to the report in the Daily Mirror.
Ceballos has struggled to impress Real boss Zinedine Zidane since making the move to The Bernabeu over the summer.
Arsenal chief is searching for new midfield talent as he prepares for the possibility that Mesut Ozil will leave the club in the New Year.
Ozil is out of contract in the summer has been strongly linked with Manchester United and Barcelona, although Wenger stated earlier in the week that talks over a new deal for the German were ongoing.
Others
Liverpool are reportedly facing strong competition for Napoli in their bid to sign £22m-rated Atletico Madrid star Sime Vrsaljko (Daily Mirror)
Jose Mourinho is lining up Inter Milan’s Portuguese midfielder Joao Mario, 24, as a replacement for Henrikh Mkhitaryan at Manchester United (Daily Mirror)
Real Madrid have agreed a £22m deal for Athletic Bilbao keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga – and that could mean Thibaut Courtois and David de Gea are now off their hit list (Daily Mirror)
Andres Iniesta says he’s not worried about the prospect of former Barcelona team-mate Neymar joining Real Madrid, but he would be “annoyed” if it happened (Daily Mirror)
Malaga have launched a bid to re-sign striker Sandro Ramirez, who has made little impact since his summer move to Everton (Daily Mirror)
Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo is confident loan stars Leo Bonatini and Diogo Jota will agree to join the club on permanent deals (Daily Mirror)
Bournemouth are demanding £15million for striker Benik Afobe (The Sun)
Leicester and Huddersfield are monitoring young Chelsea midfielder Kyle Scott’s situation after he hit a stalemate with the club in talks over a new deal (The Sun)
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho says Eric Bailly may need surgery as he struggles to recover from an ankle problem (Daily Express)
Rafa Benitez’s moves for Danny Ings and Luke Shaw could be back on thanks to Newcastle’s impending takeover (Daily Express)
Zinedine Zidane is desperate for Real Madrid to sign Chelsea star Eden Hazard, according to reports (Daily Star)
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