The winter transfer window is now in full swing! As usual, Transfer Talk has its finger on the pulse when it comes to which rumours are picking up steam. Check out all the latest deals here.
Chelsea set to rival United for Semedo?
Toward the end of last year, Manchester United were strongly linked with a January move for Benfica defender Nelson Semedo.
The attack-minded right-back was reported to have been scouted by United when his club took on Napoli in the Champions League last month.
But Portuguese outlet A Bola reported that the 23-year-old, rated at almost £35 million, is now interesting Chelsea as well.
Meanwhile, after he was linked with both United and Paris Saint-Germain, news that Benfica’s Goncalo Guedes was dropped to the bench at the weekend can mean only one thing, according to the Sun. It means a £26 million move for the attacker is imminent and suggests Old Trafford is the likelier of the two potential destinations.
In October, it was reported that Guedes, 20, was being scouted as United weighed whether to make a move for a player described by some observers as “the next Ronaldo,” and Portuguese newspaper Record believes the decision to leave him on the bench offered proof that he could soon be on the move.
LIVE BLOG
13.19 GMT: Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has already said he does not expect to add any further to his squad this month, but according to Diario de Noticias, he could be targeting a move for Porto’s Danilo Pereira, with the Portuguese newspaper claiming the Gunners have been scouting the midfielder.
12.58 GMT: Paris Saint-Germain boss Unai Emery has said at his news conference today that Jese Rodriguez could still be set to exit the club on loan before the transfer window closes…
Emery also confirms he is doing what he can to get Jese a loan move away from PSG this month. #FCGBPSG #CdL
– Jonathan Johnson (@Jon_LeGossip) January 23, 2017
12.40 GMT: Barcelona midfielder Arda Turan has dismissed talk that he is set for a move to China, telling AS: “I have a contract until I am 33 [with Barca] and I want to see out that contract here.”
12.20 GMT: Tottenham defender Kevin Wimmer has dismissed talk that he wants to return to former side Cologne. “There was never a point when I thought about leaving the club,” he said. “I feel very comfortable here and it was just from the media.” Story here.
12.08 GMT: Dani Alves could be on his way to China, with France Football reporting that the Juventus full-back has received offers from Hebei Fortune, Tianjin Quanjin and Shanghai SIPG.
11.58 GMT: Inter Milan sporting director Piero Ausilio insists the club are not planning on making any more signings this month, saying: “We did all we had to do by signing [Roberto] Gagliardini.”
11.39 GMT: Barcelona’s Samuel Umtiti believes it won’t be long before former Lyon teammate Alexandre Lacazette departs the Ligue 1 club. “He’ll have that desire, I know his character,” he said. “He’s waiting for the right moment [to leave].” Story here.
11.26 GMT: Tottenham want to sign Inter Milan defender Andrea Ranocchia to provide cover for the injured Jan Vertonghen, the Evening Standard claims. Spurs, however, face competition from West Ham and Hull for a player valued at £5 million by his club.
11.15 GMT: Want to find out more about Borussia Dortmund’s latest signing Alexander Isak? Then why not cast your eyes over Michael Yokhin’s piece on “the heir to Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s Swedish throne.”
11.06 GMT: DONE DEAL Borussia Dortmund have confirmed the signing of Alexander Isak from AIK, beating off competition from Real Madrid for the Sweden international’s signature. Dortmund are reported to be paying around €9.5 million for the 17-year-old. Story here.
Borussia Dortmund verpflichtet Alexander Isak // Borussia Dortmund sign striker Alexander Isak #welcomeisak #bvb pic.twitter.com/TCBIqGfhOv
– Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) January 23, 2017
10.55 GMT: DONE DEAL Stade Rennes have confirmed the signing of goalkeeper Rais M’Bolhi, who has penned a one-and-a-half-year deal with the French club…
[#MercatoSRFC]
Bienvenue à Raïs #Mbolhi, international algérien et nouveau gardien #RougeEtNoir, ➡️ https://t.co/z8QcFCz1jV
��⚫️ pic.twitter.com/Y0k9FWydah– Stade Rennais F.C. (@staderennais) January 23, 2017
10.34 GMT: The Dimitri Payet saga has apparently taken another twist, with The Sun claiming that West Ham are now ready to accept £25 million from Marseille for the France international, having originally been holding out for £30m.
10.27 GMT: In case you missed it on Sunday, West Ham have signed England under-19 international Nathan Holland on a three-and-a-half-year contract from Everton. Story here.
10.07 GMT: DONE DEAL Toulouse have signed Corentin Jean on loan from Monaco for the rest of the season…
OFFICIEL – Bienvenue à l’attaquant @CorentinJean7, prêté jusqu’à la fin de la saison par l’@AS_Monaco!
→ https://t.co/pe5PBdJAgD#Mercato pic.twitter.com/n39sLifl0b– Toulouse FC Officiel (@ToulouseFC) January 23, 2017
09.54 GMT: Lyon coach Bruno Genesio is keen to add Juventus veteran Patrice Evra to his squad, saying: “He is a great player, he’s won a lot of trophies, and has a lot of experience. He’s a player that could interest us, of course.” Story here.
09.39 GMT: Foot Mercato claims that Valencia have abandoned the idea of bringing Lassana Diarra to the club this month with the Marseille player’s wage demands a problem. Diarra reportedly asked for €3 million-a-year from the La Liga club, who had advanced in negotiations with Marseille for the midfielder.
09.19 GMT: Wolfsburg are hoping to convince Real Madrid to let Borja Mayoral stay at the Bundesliga club on loan for another season, with sporting director Olaf Rebbe telling kicker: “Borja’s development here is very good. We will talk to Real and analyse his situation.”
09.01 GMT: DONE DEAL Hungary international Laszlo Kleinheisler has joined Ferencvaros on loan from Darmstadt.
08.50 GMT: Bournemouth striker Benik Afobe says Jack Wilshere remains uncertain whether he has a future at Arsenal. Story here.
08.36 GMT: Borussia Dortmund’s move for AIK’s Alexander Isak is all but official — his former teammate Dickson Etuhu has provided a picture of the youngster signing his contract with BVB sporting director Michael Zorc. A source had earlier told ESPN FC that Dortmund made a late swoop for the 17-year-old despite Real Madrid having previously led the race for his services and they will pay around €9.5 million.
BOOOM! @alex_isak und #BVB-Sportdirektor Michael #Zorc bei der Vertragsunterschrift. (Quelle: dickson_e20/Instagram) pic.twitter.com/scguBOxOBl
– Florian Groeger (@RN_Florian) January 23, 2017
08.27 GMT: DONE DEAL Bayer Leverkusen finally confirmed that Robbie Kruse will join Liaoning Whowin FC in China. The Australian is reported to have cost around €500,000.
Mach’s gut, Robbie! ��#Kruse verlässt #Bayer04 und wechselt zum chinesischen Erstligisten Liaoning FC. pic.twitter.com/4bR7rFD8Oz
– Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04fussball) January 22, 2017
08.12 GMT: Jurgen Klopp has said Liverpool are keen to reinforce the squad in the January window but have been frustrated by clubs’ refusal to do business in mid-season. Story here.
Hull look to make transfer Mark
Lazar Markovic is out of the picture at parent club Liverpool and out of favour at loan home Sporting Lisbon, but he could soon be in favour at Hull City, sources told ESPN FC.
Markovic has had a tough time in Lisbon, but that hasn’t dented Hull’s enthusiasm. The Tigers want to bring in the 22-year-old for the rest of the season.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, the Liverpool Echo said, would be fine with that — and talks are underway.
Because the loan agreement that took Markovic to Lisbon does not have a break clause, the agreement of the player, Liverpool and Sporting would be needed for it to be cut short.
The Serbia international winger cost Liverpool £20 million from Benfica in 2014 but appears to have no future at Anfield.
Deulofeu poised to wrap up Milan move
Last week, there was a bit of confusion over whether Everton winger Gerard Deulofeu had joined AC Milan on loan for the rest of the season. Yes, tweeted Milan. Not yet, said Everton.
Multiple reports said Goodison Park officials were angered by Milan’s premature announcement, with the Serie A club later deleting their tweet and CEO Adriano Galliani stressing that negotiations were still ongoing.
Everton manager Ronald Koeman has made it clear that he will not stand in Deulofeu’s way, and now Italy’s Calciomercato suggested that the player will undergo a medical in Milan on Monday, with an official announcement following later in the day.
It quoted him as saying Milan are “a great club” and adding that he would “have more to say tomorrow.”
Tap-ins
— On Saturday, sources told ESPN FC that Borussia Dortmund could beat Real Madrid in the battle for AIK teenager Alexander Isak, and the Guardian reported that talks on an £8.6 million deal to bring him to Germany are underway.
Isak, 17, had appeared set for a move to the Bernabeu earlier this month, but the Guardian said the forward and his advisers “were in Dortmund on Sunday, working on concluding the deal.”
It added that they “are likely to have looked at the struggles of another Scandinavian prospect, Martin Odegaard, who has found it difficult since joining Real as a 16-year-old” and is now on loan at Dutch club Heerenveen.
— Crystal Palace have been chasing Sunderland defender Patrick van Aanholt for what seems like most of the window so far — and they will get him in the end, the Sun reported.
It said the Eagles “could bid as much as £12 million to force the deal through,” leaving Black Cats boss David Moyes needing to seek defensive reinforcements of his own.
Sam Allardyce, though, doesn’t sound as confident as the paper, admitting Sunday that Palace have missed out on all their first-choice transfer targets.
Follow @ESPNFC on Twitter to keep up with the latest football updates.
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