Euro 2020 and the Copa America are over and the summer transfer window is open, leaving Europe’s biggest clubs clear to make a splash in the market. Check out the latest gossip below, and see all official deals here.
TOP STORY: Varane deal part of Real’s Mbappe plan
Raphael Varane‘s imminent deparature from Real Madrid to Manchester United could be part of a larger plan to bring Paris Saint-Germain‘s Kylian Mbappe to the Bernabeu.
Sources have told ESPN’s Rob Dawson that Madrid and United have agreed to deal for Varane’s services with a transfer fee of approximately €41 million, plus add-ons totaling €8.2m.
Marca has now stated that Los Blancos are letting Varane go in order to get their finances in a state where they are able to make a move for fellow France star Mbappe.
PSG will reportedly demand at least €180m if they listen to offers at all, despite Mbappe’s contract expiring in 2022, with the player also expecting €20m-per-year in wages.
Varane’s move to Old Trafford can help to ensure they are able to meet those figures. Madrid also shed €15m in salary after letting Sergio Ramos leave on a free transfer to join PSG.
Despite the departures of Varane and Ramos, Madrid are also not expected to sign new centre-backs. This means that Victor Chust, Mario Gila and Jesus Vallejo will be fighting for the spot behind newly arrived David Alaba, Nacho and Eder Militao in the pecking order.
It is also suggested that full-back Lucas Vazquez was kept on because his low wages make him a cheaper option than signing a new player, with Madrid not expected to make any other big signings this offseason.
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14.55 BST: Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland has been speaking to the media in preseason training.
Asked about rumours that Chelsea might be ready to offer €175m to sign him this summer, he said: “I haven’t talked to my agent [Mino Raiola] in a month. You might have the answer. I hope they are just rumors because €175m would be a lot of money for one person.”
14.16 BST: Fabrizio Romano reports that Chelsea have opened talks with Sevilla over the signing of centre-back Jules Kounde.
Kounde, 22, is reportedly keen to play Champions League football and the current holders Chelsea are looking to upgrade their defensive options.
The Frenchman has been rated at around €80m though, so negotiations won’t be simple.
13.49 BST: Man United handed their manager a new three-year deal.
1:15
Craig Burley doesn’t understand the thinking behind Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s contract extension at Man United.
13.15 BST: Real Madrid midfielder Martin Odegaard wants to sign for Arsenal, says Sport.
Odegaard, 22, impressed on loan at Arsenal last season and is now back at the Bernabeu to try and force his way into the first-team after years away from the club on various loan deals.
He has a new manager to impress in Carlo Ancelotti, but questions over his form and style of play arose in the friendly defeat to Rangers, so he’s now made it clear he wants to head to London permanently.
The problem is, that could cost upwards of €60m, which is money that Arsenal just don’t have.
12.34 BST: Eric Bailly will seek clarification over his future at Manchester United after they reached a deal with Real Madrid for Raphael Varane, sources have told ESPN’s Rob Dawson.
United have agreed to pay a base fee of £34m for Varane, plus another £7m in add-ons. The 28-year-old is set to sign a four-year contract with the option of another year after undergoing a medical.
With the addition of Varane, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will have seven centre-backs in his senior squad and sources have told ESPN that Bailly, in particular, is concerned his first team opportunities will be severely limited.
Playing time formed a central part of negotiations with the club which eventually ended in the Ivory Coast international signing a new long-term contract in April. After agreeing fresh terms, Bailly is contracted to United until 2024 with the option of another year.
Injuries and competition for places has restricted the 27-year-old, who is playing in the Olympics with alongside teammate Amad Diallo, to just 106 appearances in five years at Old Trafford following his £30m move from Villarreal in 2016. He featured 12 times in the Premier League last season.
12.02 BST: Tottenham defender Toby Alderweireld has joined Al-Duhail SC in Qatar for a fee of around £13m.
Alderweireld, 32, spent six seasons in north London after his arrival from Atletico Madrid in 2015.
He posted a goodbye message to Tottenham fans on his social media.
A message to you 🤍 pic.twitter.com/hoEjOzBXo5
— Toby Alderweireld (@AlderweireldTob) July 27, 2021
11.49 BST: Chelsea have agreed a deal to sign goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli on a free transfer, says The Daily Mail.
Bettinelli, 29, spent last season on loan at Championship side Middlesbrough but was then released by Fulham.
The goalkeeper will provide backup to Chelsea No. 1 Edouard Mendy, alongside Kepa Arrizabalaga, after turning down Aston Villa.
11.21 BST: Hertha BSC have signed former Man City striker Stevan Jovetic.
Jovetic, 31, was released by Monaco and signs on a free transfer, with a contract until 2023.
“I had really good conversations with the club, in particular with [head of sport] Fredi Bobic,” he said. “I was really interested by this chance to come to Berlin right away. I’m now looking forward to this club, the city, my new teammates and the Bundesliga.
“I can’t wait to get going and I want to help the side with my experience.”
11.00 BST: Arsenal are looking to land Brighton centre-back Ben White for around £50m.
1:40
Nicky Bandini reacts to reports that Arsenal are set to sign Ben White from Brighton & Hove Albion.
10.38 BST: Sao Paulo are confident of completing a loan deal for Dario Benedetto from Marseille ahead of next season, sources have told ESPN Brazil.
Valencia were also interested in the Argentinian forward but Sao Paulo officials believe that they are leading the race as the La Liga side have not made any progress with the 31-year-old in recent days. Sao Paulo are expected to have a meeting on Tuesday with all the parties involved to complete the deal.
10.04 BST: Barcelona are optimistic that midfielder Ilaix Moriba will soon sign a new deal to remain at the club, according to Mundo Deportivo.
Moriba’s contract expires in June 2022 and Barca remain in talks with his representatives over an improved contract through June 2024. However, with both sides so far unable to reach an agreement, the Barcelona youth product has been demoted to train with the B-team during preseason and hasn’t featured in either of Barca’s first-team friendlies over the last week.
The 18-year-old attracted the attention of several clubs in Europe after he exploded onto Barca’s first-team scene towards the end of last season, scoring or assisting in each of his first three appearances in La Liga and running out 18 times in total for Ronald Koeman’s side.
Moriba, who was born in Guinea but represents Spain internationally, revealed this week he has been a victim of racist abuse on social media as contract negotiations with the Catalan club drag on. Both parties are expected to meet on Tuesday in the hope that a deal can be reached in time for him to join the first team on Wednesday when Barca travel to Germany to continue their preseason.
09.51 BST: Netherlands forward Donyell Malen is moving closer to sealing his transfer from PSV to Borussia Dortmund.
In fact, Dortmund just tweeted: “PSV Eindhoven has given official permission for Donyell Malen to take part in BVB training. There are still details to be clarified between the player and PSV, afterwards the transfer can finally be fully announced.”
09.25 BST: Cristiano Ronaldo joined Juventus for preseason training on Monday ahead of the 2021-22 campaign with his future at the club still unclear.
The Portugal captain arrived at Juve’s Continassa sports complex at 8:30 a.m. CET and was later seen entering the club’s J-Medical centre located in Turin where flocks of fans waited to greet him ahead of undergoing the routine medical check-ups.
Ronaldo, 36, had been on holiday since Portugal’s Euro 2020 defeat to Belgium at the round of 16 on June 27. The former Real Madrid star becomes a free agent next summer and his immediate future had been the subject of speculation with sources having told ESPN that his representatives were gauging interest from some of Europe’s top clubs.
Juve vice-president Pavel Nedved said after Saturday’s preason 3-1 win over Cesena that Ronaldo would honour his contract. Ronaldo, who has not openly spoken about his future at the club, will reunite with Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri later on Monday and the two are set to sit down to discuss the upcoming season. Allegri was in charge when Ronaldo arrived from Real Madrid in 2018 and returned to Juve to replace Andrea Pirlo in May.
1:24
Juventus has a decision to make regarding Cristiano Ronaldo after his contract expires next season.
08.42 BST: Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain forward Neymar have settled a number of long-running legal disputes out of court, the Catalan club have confirmed.
Barca did not specify the details of the agreement, nor did they reveal which issues had remained unsettled prior to Monday’s agreement. Neymar’s €222m move to PSG in 2017 had led to several court cases between the two parties, with Neymar demanding Barca pay him an unpaid renewal bonus and the club responding by suing him for breach of contract.
“Barcelona have ended out of court in amicable fashion the various labour and civil litigation cases that were open with the Brazilian player Neymar,” the Blaugrana said in a statement on Monday. “As such, a transactional agreement between the club and the player has been signed to end the legal cases that were pending between the two parties.”
08.00 BST: ICYMI — Tottenham signed winger Bryan Gil from Sevilla on a five-year contract on Monday, with Erik Lamela leaving the north London club to join Sevilla on a three-year deal.
Gil enjoyed an impressive loan spell at Eibar last season and is on international duty with Spain at the Tokyo Olympics. The 20-year-old has also enjoyed success in his short career, helping the Spain Under-19 side win the 2019 European Championship.
Gil’s arrival means that Lamela ends his eight-year spell at the Premier League club after making 257 appearances and scoring 37 goals. The Argentina international will remembered for his outstanding rabona strikes against Asteras Tripolis in the Europa League (2014) and against bitter rivals Arsenal last season.
– Ranking Tottenham’s ‘Magnificent 7’ after Lamela exit
1:12
Mark Ogden explains what it will take for Manchester City to acquire Harry Kane from Tottenham this summer.
PAPER GOSSIP (by Danny Lewis)
– According to Fabrizio Romano, Tottenham Hotspur are working on a deal to sign Cristian Romero, who spent last season on loan at Atalanta from Juventus. It is stated that the Argentine centre-back is their priority, with no deal yet being agreed on a €55m fee. Their back-up is to open talks around signing Bologna‘s Takehiro Tomiyasu, Fiorentina‘s Nikola Milenkovic and Chelsea‘s Kurt Zouma for a similar combined fee.
— Benfica have been linked with Santos frontman Kaio Jorge, but Calciomercato reports that the Portuguese outfit are not alone, as Juventus and AC Milan are both showing interest in the 19-year-old, whose contract comes to an end in December of this year.
– AC Milan and Lazio are both looking to sign Borussia Dortmund midfielder Julian Brandt on loan with a right to make the deal permanent, as has been reported by Calciomercato. The San Siro side sees the German as a replacement for Hakan Calhanoglu, who is now at their rivals Internazionale.
– Inter Milan are looking at AS Monaco right-back Djibril Sidibe as an option to fill the void left by Achraf Hakimi‘s departure to PSG, according to Foot Mercato. It is suggested that the Ligue 1 outfit want €7m for him, while Inter are also looking at Manchester United’s Diogo Dalot, Arsenal‘s Hector Bellerin and AS Roma‘s Alessandro Florenzi.
– 16-year-old striker Iker Bravo has decided to leave Barcelona, as has been reported by Diario Sport. There are a whole host of clubs across Europe who are interested in the youngster, with Juventus, Roma, Bayer Leverkusen and Eintracht Frankfurt all named.