Transfer Talk: Liverpool, Man Utd, Newcastle all in for Nice’s Todibo
The January transfer window may be closed around Europe, but teams are looking ahead to the summer and there’s plenty of gossip swirling around. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings, goings and, of course, done deals!
Liverpool, Manchester United, and Newcastle United are keeping close tabs on Nice centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo, according to Fabrizio Romano.
Scouts are reported to have been present as the 24-year-old starred in Nice’s 2-1 victory over Rennes in Ligue 1 on Saturday, with Todibo establishing himself as a key player in France’s top flight this season.
Having joined Barcelona in 2019, Todibo left two years later after failing to establish his place in the first team and had to rebuild his career on loan before moving to Nice permanently in 2021. Now clubs across Europe are interested in his signature and they could be able to land him for a transfer fee of €45 million.
Both Manchester United and Newcastle were linked with him last summer, while Liverpool could also compete for his services as a potential replacement for Joel Matip — who will enter the final year of his contract in June.
Todibo was called up to the France senior national team in March for the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Netherlands and Republic of Ireland.
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19.50 BST: Arsenal are doing all they can to ensure 16-year-old midfielder Ethan Nwaneri doesn’t leave to join Manchester City in the summer, reports Football Insider.
Nwaneri became the youngest player in Premier League history earlier this season, but the Gunners would only be entitled to compensation for his training and education if the talented teenager was to depart as he can’t sign a professional contract before turning 17. Chelsea are also monitoring his situation.
19.30 BST: Chelsea are preparing to make a move for Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa if Edouard Mendy leaves Stamford Bridge in the summer, as reported by Ekrem Konur. Real Madrid, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United have also reportedly been looking at the 23-year-old Portugal international.
18.57 BST: Manchester United are keeping an eye on Everton midfielder Amadou Onana ahead of a potential move in the summer, according to Football Insider. Manager Erik ten Hag wants to add more physicality to his midfield to complement Christian Eriksen and Bruno Fernandes, and the 21-year-old has caught their attention with his performances since joining Everton in the summer.
18.26 BST: Brighton & Hove Albion are closing in on a deal to bring in Mahmoud Dahoud as a free agent, according to Fabrizio Romano. The 27-year-old midfielder’s contract with Borussia Dortmund will expire at the end of the season and the final details are now being fixed before documents for his move to Brighton are signed.
17.15 BST: Juventus will try to sign Villarreal centre-back Pau Torres if they secure a place in next season’s Champions League, reports La Gazzetta dello Sport, with I Bianconeri having seen an approach for the 26-year-old turned down last summer.
In addition, Alex Sandro‘s contract will automatically renew if he plays five more matches this season, although a new deal with a lower salary could be negotiated if the 32-year-old doesn’t reach that number.
16.21 BST: Aston Villa could sign Manuel Ugarte from Sporting CP, according to The Sun.
Ugarte, 22, has been linked with a €60m move to Liverpool but Villa’s new sporting director Mateu Alemany wants to make a big statement when he joins from Barcelona in the summer.
The Uruguay international is considered one of the best young defensive midfielders in Europe.
15.45 BST: Manchester City will make a move to sign West Ham midfielder Declan Rice, according to Football Insider.
Sources have told ESPN that West Ham are expected to demand a transfer fee of £100m from clubs interested in signing Rice this summer as they attempt to ward off interest from several Premier League rivals.
Sources said that Arsenal want to pursue a deal for Rice at the end of the season, with his contract expiring in 2024 (though with the option of another year included), while Chelsea, Manchester United, Newcastle United and Liverpool are also monitoring developments.
City have been linked with a £100m-plus move for Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham, but face a battle with Real Madrid and if they can’t land the England international then they will turn to Rice.
15.12 BST: Manchester United are still interested in signing Bayern Munich goalkeeper Yann Sommer, says Bild.
Sommer, 34, joined Bayern from Borussia Monchengladbach in December 2022 after No. 1 Manuel Neuer broke his leg in a skiing accident.
But the report claims Bayern would let Sommer leave for €8m if Neuer returns to full fitness ahead of next season. United are looking for a backup to David de Gea, though with his contract up in the summer, they could also be looking for a new No. 1.
14.56 BST: AS reports that Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Real Madrid want to sign winger Dani Olmo from RB Leipzig.
Olmo, 25, has a contract which expires in 2024 and could depart the Bundesliga club for around €40m this summer.
The former Barcelona youth team player could return to Camp Nou, but only on a free transfer in a year’s time, while Madrid are looking for a replacement for Marco Asensio if he departs.
Bayern are keeping their options open amid the uncertain futures of Sadio Mane and Thomas Muller, with the report also claiming that Spain international Olmo is “valued very highly by many clubs in the Premier League.”
14.33 BST: Arsenal are ready to join the race to sign Man City full-back Joao Cancelo, says 90min.
Cancelo, 28, completed a shock loan move to Bayern Munich in January when he was ousted from the first team by teenager Rico Lewis.
The Portugal international has no future at City and Barcelona are monitoring his situation, though neither they or Bayern want to pay the €70m fee required for a permanent transfer.
Arsenal managed to sign Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko from City in 2022 and boss Mikel Arteta could be looking to do the same with Cancelo as he looks to bolster his right-back options.
13.47 BST: Romelu Lukaku is set to hold talks with Chelsea’s new head coach to determine his future at the end of the season, sources have told ESPN.
Lukaku, 29, has spent the season on loan at Inter Milan and the Serie A side have no plans to pursue a permanent agreement.
Inter paid an initial loan fee of €8m to bring Lukaku back to San Siro last summer and sources have told ESPN that there is no option or obligation for a permanent transfer contained within the deal.
Lukaku is reportedly keen on staying in Italy but a fresh loan or transfer would have to be negotiated and before any such move, the striker is expected back at Stamford Bridge to discuss whether he has a future under the new boss, still widely expected to be Mauricio Pochettino.
Chelsea signed Lukaku from Inter almost two years ago for €115m and he is under contract until 2026.
13.13 BST: Barcelona president Joan Laporta is making progress on a deal to sign Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves even though coach Xavi Hernandez prefers other targets, sources have told ESPN.
Neves, 26, was of interest to Barca last summer and has emerged as an option once again following Sergio Busquets‘ announcement that he will leave the Catalan club when his contract expires in the summer.
However, the move is the subject of an internal debate at Camp Nou. Laporta, who maintains a close relationship with Neves’ agent Jorge Mendes, is keen to bring in the Portugal international, but Xavi is unconvinced he is a fit for his style of play.
Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi is Xavi’s first choice option but a deal has been effectively ruled out with the club wanting an offer of €70m.
12.30 BST: Lionel Messi is set to leave PSG on a free transfer this summer.
Julien Laurens explains why Lionel Messi returned from his PSG suspension early and what it means for his status with the club next season.
12.01 BST: Real Madrid plan to travel to Germany in the coming days to continue to negotiate the signing of Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund, sources have told ESPN, although Manchester City still haven’t given up on signing the player.
ESPN reported earlier this month that Madrid were feeling optimistic about their chances of beating City to the signing of the England international after encouraging conversations with the midfielder’s entourage.
Some reports in Spain claimed that an initial agreement had been reached and that City had dropped out of the race, believing it was a lost cause.
However sources told ESPN that a deal had not yet been agreed, and the Premier League club remain in the hunt for the 19-year-old as the terms of a transfer, which would total well over €100m, are yet to be confirmed with Dortmund.
11.20 BST: Chelsea have Napoli’s Victor Osimhen on their transfer shortlist, but are concerned his transfer fee is too high, says Football Insider.
Osimhen, 24, has starred for the Serie A winners with 28 goals in 35 games this season, but with Napoli looking for at least €150m from clubs looking to sign the Nigeria international, the report claims the Blues believe a deal is “too hard to do” in the summer.
With Mauricio Pochettino expected to take the vacant managerial job at Stamford Bridge, the club are reportedly looking to balance the books after spending over €600m in the previous two windows.
10.35 BST: Joao Felix wants to continue playing in the Premier League next season even if it’s not at Chelsea, according to Cope.
Felix, 23, joined Chelsea in January on loan from Atletico Madrid but has not started the last four games.
Chelsea don’t have an option to make his stay permanent but are negotiating with Atletico to keep Felix on loan for another season. The Portugal international’s priority is to play in the Champions League next season and that will not happen if he stays at 11th-placed Chelsea.
Under contract with Atletico until June 2027, Felix is aware that his future will not be resolved until the summer and is prepared to start preseason with the Rojiblancos.
09.56 BST: Inter Milan have warned potential suitors that they are not willing to transfer goalkeeper Andre Onana this summer.
Chelsea are looking to strengthen their defensive line and are among the clubs pushing to sign the Cameroon international this summer. However, Inter CEO Giuseppe Marotta said his club “has not received any offers” to sign Onana, who has a €40m release clause.
“He [Onana] is happy to stay here, and we have no intention to place him on the market,” Marotta said.
Onana, 27, has made 37 appearances for Inter this season since joining last summer as a free agent after his contract with Ajax expired. He is under contract with the Nerazzurri until June 2027.
09.04 BST: Edin Dzeko has reached an agreement to continue at Inter Milan beyond this summer, according to Tuttomercatoweb.
Dzeko, 37, had offers from MLS clubs but has opted to continue playing in Europe.
The former Manchester City and Roma striker is in his second season at Inter and has scored 14 goals, including four in the Champions League, to help the Nerazzurri reach the semifinals of the competition.
The Bosnia and Herzegovina striker becomes a free agent this summer and will sign a one-year contract extension.
08.36 BST: LaLiga president Javier Tebas believes the departure of captain Sergio Busquets from Barcelona will pave the way for Lionel Messi‘s return.
However, Tebas insists there are still many other steps Barca must take to make Messi’s return happen.
“Busquets’ departure is the beginning of the road for Messi to return, but to get to the end they still have to walk many metres,” he said.
Tebas, meanwhile, believes Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior is on the path to greatness.
“He is among the best three or four in the world and I believe he will be Ballon d’Or,” he added.
08.00 BST: Angel Di Maria says he is open to continue playing at Juventus next season.
The Argentina winger joined Juve on a one-year deal last summer after his contract with PSG expired.
“We are talking,” Di Maria said when asked about his contract renewal talks ahead of the Europa League tie with Sevilla on Thursday. “I’m happy here. There’s so much talk about my future but my focus is on the game against Sevilla.
“Now we are thinking about Sevilla and then we will see what happens. I’ve only played in the Europa League with Benfica, it’s a trophy I’m missing, and I’m focused on that. For me all trophies are important. At the beginning of the season, it was tough due to injuries, I couldn’t give 100%. Now we have to win and we want to win the final for the fans too.”
A World Cup winner with Argentina, Di Maria, 35, has scored eight goals and set up seven more in 34 appearances for Juve.
Gab & Juls react to Liverpool’s win over Brentford and discuss their top four hopes after Man United’s loss vs. West Ham.
– Napoli are considering an approach to sign Mallorca winger Lee Kang-in, writes Calciomercato. Following a successful season in LaLiga, where he has contributed to 10 goals in 32 matches, many clubs across Europe are reported to be keen on the 22-year-old. Lee has been capped 12 times by the South Korea national team.
– Barcelona are interested in signing Atletico Madrid winger Yannick Carrasco, says Sport. The 29-year-old, who has a clause in his contract that allows him to move to Camp Nou for €20m, is reportedly a priority option for manager Xavi Hernandez, who is looking to acquire a wide player this summer as uncertainty continues to surround the futures of both Ansu Fati and Raphinha. He has contributed to eight goals in 31 LaLiga matches this season.
– Brentford are set to demand a £40m fee for goalkeeper David Raya, says Sky Sports. The Bees are braced to receive offers for the 27-year-old in the summer, and have already begun looking at a number of potential successors. Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher is among them, with the 24-year-old keen to acquire regular first-team football.
– Everton are plotting a move to sign Southampton defender Mohammed Salisu, reveals Football Insider. The 24-year-old will enter the final year of his contract in the summer, and with the Saints on the brink of relegation from the Premier League, the Toffees will soon make a proposal worth £20m in an attempt to secure his signature.