The summer transfer window is into its final week for the major European leagues, which means the biggest clubs are looking to make a splash in the market while they still can. Check out the latest gossip below, and see all official deals here.
TOP STORY: Mbappe rejects PSG contract, door open for Real Madrid?
Reports that Kylian Mbappe has rejected another contract renewal offer from Paris Saint-Germain have sparked yet more speculation in the Spanish media about a possible move to Real Madrid.
France’s RMC Sport had claimed on Monday that the star forward had turned down PSG’s offer of a new five-year deal, with the option of a sixth — with just seven days left before the transfer window closes.
“PSG now open the door to Mbappe” is Marca’s front-page headline on Tuesday, saying that a €150 million transfer is “more possible than ever” although there’s still a mood of “maximum caution” at the Bernabeu.
Diario AS, meanwhile, argues that “both the player and PSG themselves are now aware that the best solution for both parties is accepting a transfer.” The newspaper goes a step further on its front page, claiming “the key for Mbappe” could be Cristiano Ronaldo leaving Juventus and joining PSG to replace him.
Spanish radio show El Larguero took a more pessimistic view on Monday night. The programme’s well-connected host Manu Carreno said that the situation hadn’t changed, PSG did not want to let him go now, and the most likely scenario remained that Mbappe would join Real Madrid for free next summer.
Sources told ESPN last week that Man United would also be interested in bringing Mbappe in when his contract expires.
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LIVE BLOG
15.42 BST: West Ham have agreed a £25m fee with Chelsea to sign Kurt Zouma, according to TF1, with the centre-back’s medical set to take place in Paris on Wednesday.
As a result, Chelsea will now make a formal offer to Sevilla for defender Jules Kounde.
Sources told ESPN back in July that talks have been ongoing over the France international’s move to Stamford Bridge this summer. The deal could be worth around €70m — €10m less than Kounde’s buyout clause.
15.14 BST: Chelsea are in talks with Atletico Madrid over the signing of Saul Niguez on a season-long loan with an option to sign him permanently, sources have told ESPN’s Alex Kirkland and Rodrigo Faez.
Manchester United also asked about the midfielder earlier this month and remain interested, sources said, but have not yet been able to reach an agreement with Atletico over a fee.
Saul, 26, has started both of Atletico’s league games so far this season but has lost his status as a key player for coach Diego Simeone over the last year.
The LaLiga club are not planning to move for a midfielder to replace him, and their final signing of the transfer window is expected to be the imminent €30m arrival of Brazil forward Matheus Cunha from Hertha Berlin.
14.50 BST: USWNT star Carli Lloyd did it her own way, retiring with a complicated and dominant legacy, writes Caitlin Murray.
Anyone who’s been to a U.S. national team game before has probably seen it: The team has dispersed and the field is empty, except for one player. Carli Lloyd, by her lonesome, is still out there, doing push-ups or running sprints. But pretty soon, that ritual will be gone and the field will stay empty. Carli Lloyd, at age 39, is retiring and will appear in her final U.S. national team matches this fall.
Lloyd walks away as undoubtedly one of the most important players in the history of American soccer. With 312 appearances — second only to Kristine Lilly — and 128 goals, the fourth-most in U.S. national team history, chances are that if the U.S played a game in the last decade-and-a-half, Lloyd was a key part of it, leaving behind a legacy that is more complex than it seems at first glance.
It’s almost surprising to see Lloyd call it quits — it’s not something she’s ever done, so much so that such tenacity has become her personal brand. She loves sharing inspirational quotes about hard work on her social media accounts, and she has seemed to relish in defying people’s expectations just so she could say “I told you so.” There is perhaps no better example of it than the 2015 World Cup, the tournament that made her a household name and earned her the title as FIFA’s Player of the Year.
14.18 BST: Liverpool defender Andy Robertson has signed a new long-term contract extension at Anfield, the club announced on Tuesday.
The Scotland international is yet to appear for Liverpool this season as he looks to recover from an ankle injury he sustained during preseason.
Robertson is the latest Liverpool player to sign a new long-term extension, with goalkeeper Alisson Becker, defenders Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold and midfielder Fabinho all inking new deals in the past month.
“Obviously when the negotiations started and it looked as if my future was going to be here longer term than what it was, then I think it’s no secret that I’m happy at this club,” Robertson said in a statement. I want to stay at this club for as long as possible and to extend my stay, it’s always a happy time for me, for my family. We’re settled here, we love everything about this football club and I’m glad that the journey is continuing.”
13.20 BST: Should Arsenal be looking for a new manager?
0:54
Craig Burley discusses the pressure on Mikel Arteta after Arsenal’s two losses to open the Premier League season.
12.59 BST: Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde has signed a new six-year contract, keeping him at the club until 2027.
12.45 BST: Arsenal have confirmed that Granit Xhaka has signed a new contract and will stay until 2024.
“I’m very happy, I’m still here,” he said. “I’ve signed a new contract of course and I want to give back, first of all to our staff, and then after to our fans, and they know I will give everything — in every game and every training session. So yeah, I think we have to show that as a team soon.”
12.29 BST: Barcelona may not be able to add to their squad in the final week of the transfer window due to financial problems, but Ansu Fati is set to return to action after the September international break.
Ansu, 18, has not played since injuring his knee against Real Betis last November. However, following a string of operations over the last nine months, he finally returned to training on Tuesday. The Spain international did not complete the full session but did take part in the first part alongside his Barca teammates.
Ronald Koeman’s side travel to Sevilla on Sept. 11, but sources told ESPN that game may come too soon for Ansu. The home fixture against Granada has instead been pencilled in for a possible return a week later.
Ansu was Barca’s top scorer with five goals in 10 games when his season was cruelly ended 290 days ago. In the previous campaign, his first with the first team, he scored eight goals, becoming the youngest player to ever score in the Champions League.
Barca will hope, along with Memphis Depay, that Ansu can provide the spark in attack to help them adjust to the post-Lionel Messi years.
12.03 BST: Philippe Coutinho‘s agent says it would have been very difficult for the Brazilian to move to a Premier League club other than Liverpool.
Coutinho, 29, enjoyed five years at Anfield before moving to Barcelona for a club record €160m in 2018. However, he’s been frequently linked with a return to the Premier League since, with Arsenal the latest club to be credited with an interest in him this month.
“I think Liverpool lies very, very deeply in his heart; he was a big fan of them throughout the campaign [last season],” agent Kia Joorabchian told Sky Sports. “He was wishing for them to win the title and he has a very strong affinity there, so I think it will be very difficult for him to go to a direct competitor of Liverpool from a personal standpoint.”
Sources told ESPN earlier this summer that Barca are planning for Coutinho to stay following Lionel Messi’s exit. Coach Ronald Koeman confirmed last week the playmaker is an important part of his plans.
11.34 BST: Everton are among the clubs looking to sign Sheffield United striker Daniel Jebbison, according to TEAMtalk.
Jebbison, 18, has already seen loan bids turned down from Hull, Sunderland, Burton and Doncaster but Everton made a £5m permanent move which was also rejected.
The Championship side are reportedly ready to offload the Canada-born England U18 international, with Leeds, Aston Villa and Brentford also watching him.
11.15 BST: The Sun says Arsenal have reignited their interest in Atletico Madrid full-back Kieran Trippier but aren’t keen to spend the €40m in his release clause to sign him.
The report states that “[Mikel] Arteta would be open to a part-exchange deal but knows Atletico would only be interested in Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang — and he does not have a replacement striker lined up.”
11.00 BST: Southampton have signed highly rated Everton full-back Thierry Small on a free transfer.
Small, 17, became the club’s youngest-ever senior player earlier this year, making his debut in an FA Cup tie against Sheffield Wednesday at the age of 16 years and 176 days.
The England under-19 international could not agree a new contract at Goodison Park and has instead moved to the club that was responsible for the emergence of such talent as Gareth Bale and Theo Walcott.
Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl said: “I am very pleased we have been able to bring in another talented young player, especially when there were again a number of clubs who were interested. I think our philosophy of how we develop these young players and give them their opportunities has been an important factor in this, and we are looking forward to working with Thierry and helping him make the most of his potential.”
10.52 BST: Manchester City still want to sign Tottenham striker Harry Kane, so why is it taking so long?
1:04
Don Hutchison delves into what Manchester City needs to do to get a deal for Harry Kane over the line.
10.03 BST: Chelsea have a number of fringe players still to move on this transfer window, but the Daily Telegraph reports they are looking to complete a loan move for Atletico Madrid midfielder Saul Niguez.
Saul, 26, want to leave LaLiga’s champions and the Blues can offer him a place in the squad if they axe the likes of Ross Barkley, Danny Drinkwater and Tiemoue Bakayoko.
Chelsea have also reportedly offered new contracts to defenders Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger as they have entered the final year of their deals.
09.29 BST: Manchester United are still interested in Rennes midfielder Eduardo Camavinga although a move to Old Trafford is viewed as “unlikely,” sources have told ESPN’s Rob Dawson.
Reports in France over the weekend suggested Camavinga has played his last game for Rennes, with the Ligue 1 club keen to cash in on the midfielder before the end of his contract.
Camavinga, capped three times by France, has a year left on his deal and will be available on a free transfer in 2022.
United are interested in the 18-year-old, although the feeling at Old Trafford is that he would prefer to stay in France with Paris Saint-Germain or move to Spain. However, PSG’s move for Lionel Messi combined with a lack of money available for transfers in LaLiga has meant Camavinga’s future is still up in the air with the transfer window set to shut on Aug. 31.
09.00 BST: ICYMI – Manchester City winger Morgan Rogers has joined Bournemouth on a season-long loan.
Rogers, 19, had been touted as a possible part of City’s £100m move for Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish, but the England under-18 international has signed a new contract until 2024 and moved on loan.
Bournemouth have an option to make the move permanent, and chief executive Neill Blake said: “Morgan has all the attributes to become an outstanding player. We are absolutely delighted to have secured his services and he can only add to what is a young, talented and exciting squad of players. We very much look forward to working with him.”
08.32 BST: ICYMI, Xherdan Shaqiri left Liverpool on Monday to join French club Lyon in a deal worth up to €11m.
Shaqiri, 29, has signed a three-year contract at the Ligue 1 side, ending his three-year stint at Anfield. The Switzerland international moved to Merseyside from Stoke City in the summer of 2018 and made 63 appearances for Liverpool, scoring eight goals in the process.
He will join a Lyon side looking to improve on their fourth-placed finish in Ligue 1 last season after they missed out on Champions League qualification on the final day.
08.00 BST: Corinthians are in talks to sign Arsenal winger Willian, sources have told ESPN’s James Olley.
The 33-year-old has two years remaining on his contract at Emirates Stadium but is keen to leave after a disappointing first season, having joined the Gunners from Chelsea on a free transfer last summer.
Arsenal are seeking to reduce their wage bill and trim their squad after committing more than £130m on new signings in the current window and sources claim talks have taken place over a deal which may not involve Corinthians paying a fee.
Willian earns a basic £100,000-a-week salary, but has found opportunities hard to come by under Mikel Arteta. The Brazilian missed Arsenal’s opening two Premier League defeats to Brentford and Chelsea after testing positive for COVID-19.
No agreement has yet been reached between the two clubs, with Willian thought to ideally want to stay in Europe, but the move is under serious consideration given how badly his career has stalled in North London.
1:39
Kay Murray and Shaka Hislop discuss the prospect of Kylian Mbappe potentially joining Man United next summer.
PAPER GOSSIP (by Adam Brown)
– Manchester United are set to intensify their pursuit of West Ham United‘s Declan Rice, with The Mirror suggesting that the club are prepared to offer cash plus a swap of Jesse Lingard to get a deal over the line. Lingard has remained a target for the Hammers this summer after he enjoyed a standout season on loan at the London Stadium, while the club rate Rice at around £100m. However, the 22-year-old is reportedly seeking a new challenge after rejecting contract offers from the club.
– The Telegraph reports that Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is prepared to reject further offers for Harry Kane. Manchester City have been chasing the forward throughout the summer, but it is now believed that Levy would be prepared to reject a £150m offer to keep the star in North London. Kane featured in the recent Premier League clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers at the weekend where he received a positive reception from the travelling Spurs fans.
– Negotiations between Tottenham Hotspur and Juventus have begun over U.S. international Weston McKennie, says Calciomercato. The Premier League club have enquired about the midfielder with regards to a potential loan move until the end of the season. It is reported that while Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri would be prepared to let McKennie go, the Turin club would prefer a permanent deal.
– Fiorentina are looking to reinforce their defensive line, with the Italian club keen on Zeki Celik. That’s according to Le10 Sport which says that the Serie A club have moved to try to recruit the Turkey international right-back. The 24-year-old played a key part in Lille‘s Ligue 1 title success last season, contributing to five goals in 28 starts from defence.
– Another name has been added to the shortlist of Internazionale as they continue their search to replace Romelu Lukaku. Calciomercato writes that Andrea Belotti is being monitored closely as the club try to bolster their squad before the transfer window closes. The report claims that the Nerazurri turned their attention to the Torino forward after talks for Joaquin Correa slowed over Lazio‘s asking price of €30m. Belotti contributed directly to 19 goals last season from 33 starts in Serie A.
– Gianluca Di Marzio writes that Lazio are close to agreeing on a deal with Croatia midfielder Toma Basic. The Ligue 1 star is set to join the Italian club on a move worth €7m plus bonuses if Lazio are able to qualify for the Champions League next season. The 24-year-old plays from the centre of midfield and has been a key starter for Bordeaux since arriving at the club, including 34 league appearances last season.