The summer transfer window is here, and there’s plenty of gossip swirling about who’s moving where. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings and goings and, of course, done deals!
TOP STORY: Suarez an option at Dortmund?
Luis Suarez has been linked with Borussia Dortmund as the former Atletico Madrid man looks for a new club ahead of the 2022 World Cup.
According to Sky Sports Deutschland, Dortmund bosses are weighing up whether or not it would make sense to sign the 35-year-old Uruguay star.
The development comes after new arrival Sebastien Haller was diagnosed with a testicular tumour earlier this week, which will keep him out for an indefinite period.
Haller had joined Dortmund earlier this summer for €36 million after recording 34 goals and nine assists in 42 matches across all competitions for Ajax last term.
As for Suarez, the ex-Barcelona and Liverpool playmaker had been linked with several clubs in South America and had recently said he had offers from Major League Soccer.
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LIVE BLOG
16.01 BST: Chelsea are continuing to search for defenders and The Sun claims they have made RB Leipzig star Josko Gvardiol a top target.
Gvardiol, 20, can play centre-back or right-back and could replace Cesar Azpilicueta, who is set to move to Barcelona.
The Croatia international helped Leipzig win the DFB Pokal and qualify for the Champions League last season, and is highly rated.
15.07 BST: Man City have been offered a chance to sign Benfica left-back Alejandro Grimaldo, says iNews.
Grimaldo, 26, began his career at Barcelona and could be a tempting proposition for City boss Pep Guardiola if he can’t tempt Brighton to lower their £50m asking price to sign Marc Cucurella.
14.30 BST: What does the future hold for Cristiano Ronaldo?
2:31
Gab Marcotti and Craig Burley explain why Erik ten Hag will have a hard time fitting Cristiano Ronaldo into his squad.
13.55 BST: Arsenal left-back Nuno Tavares could join Brighton on a season-long loan this summer, according to O Jogo.
Tavares, 22, joined the club from Benfica last year but struggled at times in the Premier League.
The Gunners are set to spend £30m to sign Man City defender Oleksandr Zinchenko and look likely to loan out Tavares to gain more experience.
Just to complete the loop, Brighton left-back Marc Cucurella is a target for Man City, but his club want over £50m.
13.26 BST: Dani Alves is in advanced talks to complete a move to Pumas, according to ESPN Mexico.
Alves, 39, is currently a free agent after leaving Barcelona and is set to sign a one-year deal with the Mexican side.
The Brazil international has dropped several hints on social media about his potential arrival in Liga MX.
12.43 BST: Porto have launched a €10m offer to sign Brazil starlet Gabriel Veron from Palmeiras, according to ESPN Brazil.
Palmeiras currently own 60% of Veron’s economic rights and are planning to keep 10% if they let him move to the Portuguese giants.
The 19-year-old forward scored twice and laid on six assists in 35 games last season.
12.24 BST: Barcelona will make another offer for Sevilla defender Jules Kounde, according to Sport, although other reports suggest the defender is closing in on a move to Chelsea.
Sports claims Chelsea’s offer is worth €65m to Sevilla, with Kounde set to earn around €12m if he moves to London. However, they say Barca retain some hope of convincing Kounde to remain in Spain with an 11th hour bid — although they cannot match Chelsea’s offer to the club or the player.
The report claims the Catalan club are relying on Kounde’s preference to move to Barca in the same way they did with Leeds winger Raphinha, who opted to join the Blaugrana over Chelsea earlier this month.
Barca’s offensive may come too late, though, with Estadio Deportivo suggesting a move to Chelsea could be official as soon as today. Kounde is training apart from his teammates as he awaits a resolution to his future.
After completing deals for Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski worth over €100m last week, Barca president Joan Laporta confirmed the club are now working on strengthening their defence. In addition to Kounde, they are also in talks to sign Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta.
12.00 BST: Robet Lewandowski‘s €45m move from Bayern to Barcelona was a bit of a shock.
2:04
Gab Marcotti lists his top five most surprising transfers of the 2022 summer window.
11.05 BST: Arsenal forward Marcelo Flores will continue his development in Spain after agreeing a loan move to second division side Real Oviedo.
Flores, 18, is the second Mexican player to join the club this summer as they have also signed Daniel Aceves from Tuzos.
The agreement comes after Grupo Pachuca bought 51% of Oviedo’s shares earlier this month.
10.38 BST: Atletico Madrid have agreed new contracts with Jan Oblak and Thomas Lemar, Marca reports, with both players’ previous deals due to expire next summer.
Oblak, 29 — rated among the world’s best goalkeepers, and one of Atletico’s captains — will sign an extension until 2028, according to the newspaper, while midfielder Lemar has agreed to renew until 2027.
Tying up a deal for Oblak, who has frequently been linked with a move to the Premier League, had been one of the club’s priorities this summer, and an announcement is expected next week.
10.16 BST: Atletico Madrid’s Marcos Llorente has denied that the club’s links with Cristiano Ronaldo — who is looking to leave Manchester United this summer — have been the subject of discussion in the dressing room.
Atletico have been named as one of Ronaldo’s possible destinations offering Champions League football and the chance to compete for trophies, with agent Jorge Mendes enjoying a close relationship with the club’s director general Miguel Angel Gil.
“People talk about so many names that don’t end up arriving,” Llorente told Cadena SER radio on Wednesday. “If he comes, there’ll be time to talk about it… I try to ignore it because people talk too much.
“In other summers, similar things have happened with players of that level. It’s all ‘smoke.’ Until it’s certain, we won’t talk about players who aren’t at our club… We all know how he plays and what he’s achieved, but it’s the coaching staff and the club who should decide.”
Meanwhile, Marca reports that Real Madrid have ruled out a potential return for the club’s record goal scorer.
The newspaper says there have been “no meetings” between Ronaldo and club president Florentino Perez, despite the forward’s recent visit to the Spanish capital, and Madrid are waiting to see which players depart before deciding if they’ll return to the market, with Ronaldo off the agenda.
Cadena SER agrees that Madrid will only look to bring in a forward if both Marco Asensio and Borja Mayoral leave the club.
According to the radio station, such a player would be a “good, attractive, cheap option” who could act as back-up for Karim Benzema. However the club have rejected interest from the Inter Milan forward Edin Dzeko, now 36, who SER says was offered to them in recent days.
09.42 BST: Udinese right-back Nahuel Molina will be Atletico Madrid’s third signing this summer, sources have confirmed to ESPN.
A breakthrough came in talks between the two clubs in the last 24 hours, and an official announcement is now expected in the next few days.
The 24-year-old defender was a priority for manager Diego Simeone, who wanted a specialist in the position to cover the absence of Kieran Trippier, who left for Newcastle United in January.
Molina follows midfielder Axel Witsel and winger Samuel Lino in joining Atletico as they look to strengthen for the 2022-23 LaLiga season.
08.51 BST: FC Salzburg forward Benjamin Sesko is on the radar of Newcastle, says The Daily Mail.
Sesko, 19, scored 11 times from 37 appearances last season and is rated highly. The Slovenia international, who is 6-foot-4, has attracted interest from Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund as well.
Newcastle are looking to bolster their forward line but have found moves for Real Sociedad striker Alexander Isak and Bayer Leverkusen winger Moussa Diaby too expensive.
08.27 BST: Manchester City remain keen to sign Brighton’s Marc Cucurella this summer, despite the two clubs being £20m apart in their valuation of the full-back, sources have told ESPN.
With Oleksandr Zinchenko close to completing a £32m switch to Arsenal, City manager Pep Guardiola has just one recognised left-back in his senior squad — Joao Cancelo — going into the new season.
While centre-backs Aymeric Laporte and Nathan Ake are able to play as emergency left-backs, Guardiola has tasked director of football Txiki Begiristain with finding a designated full-back. And Cucurella, who joined Brighton in a £15m move from Getafe last August, has been identified as City’s best potential option.
But sources have told ESPN that City have no intention of meeting Brighton’s £50m valuation of the 23-year-old, who has played just one season in the Premier League.
08.00 BST: Football clubs are used to their preseason preparations being disrupted when players switch teams in the transfer market, but Halifax Town are having to cope with an unusual departure — their forward leaving to join the cast of the dating reality show “Love Island.”
Jamie Allen, who plays internationally for Montserrat, is heading to Spain to join the cast of the British show for the final days of the latest series.
Allen, who recently signed a contract extension with the National League (fifth tier) club, was announced on Wednesday as one of four new “bombshells” to join the show.
His club seemed less impressed, however. “The matter will be reviewed on his return,” the Yorkshire club said in a statement on Twitter.
1:00
Don Hutchison explains why Kalidou Koulibaly is an incredible signing for Chelsea.
PAPER GOSSIP (by Danny Lewis)
– Chelsea and West Ham are still in direct negotiations regarding a £30m deal for striker Armando Broja, according to Fabrizio Romano, with the Blues wanting to keep him after his loan spell with Southampton. Thomas Tuchel is reportedly a fan of the Albania international and while the Hammers are still pushing for a move, Chelsea have said a loan deal won’t be on the table.
– The Guardian reports that Jesse Lingard is in advanced talks with Nottingham Forest as the attacking midfielder decides on his future. Sources had previously told ESPN that West Ham United, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur had also been options for the ex-Manchester United player. Lingard, 29, has ruled out an MLS move and has an offer on the table from a club in Saudi Arabia.
– The Evening Standard have stated that Tottenham are now focusing on offloading players after completing the signing of Djed Spence. All off Japhet Tanganga, Bryan Gil, Tanguy Ndombele, Giovani Lo Celso, Sergio Reguilon and Harry Winks are out of Antonio Conte’s plans and could therefore leave, while Matt Doherty or Emerson Royal could also depart with Spence and Lucas Moura providing competition.
– Napoli have reached an agreement with Bodo/Glimt striker Ola Solbakken, according to Calciomercato, which adds that they will now decide whether to sign him now or in December when his contract ends. The Norwegian player had been previously linked with AS Roma.
– L’Equipe are linking Real Mallorca Lille keeper Leo Jardim after having having looked at Stade de Reims‘ Predrag Rajkovic. There hasn’t been any direct contacts with Lille as of yet, and Mallorca don’t expect the Brazilian to leave with his contract running until 2024.