Euro Paper Talk: Man Utd hijack £51m Barcelona deal for Prem midfielder with Ratcliffe to push flop signing out; Liverpool get yes over €75m double deal
Everton midfielder Amadou Onana is wanted by Sir Jim Ratcliffe at Man Utd
Manchester United plan to beat Barcelona to the signing of an Everton star to replace a disappointing summer signing, Tottenham are confident of a £34.6m defender deal, while Liverpool have the green light to sign two players from the Bundesliga for a combined €75m.
MAN UTD MOVE TO BEAT BARCELONA TO SHOCK AMADOU ONANA DEAL
Manchester United are emerging as strong candidates to sign Amadou Onana in January after reports in France claimed Sir Jim Ratcliffe is putting plans in place to make the Everton midfielder the first signing of his Old Trafford reign.
United have stumbled from crisis to crisis this season, crashing out of the Champions League and falling way off the pace in the Premier League to pile the pressure on boss Erik ten Hag.
The Dutchman has had a number of issues to contend with both on and off the pitch, and while he remains under scrutiny, it is unlikely he will lose his job at Manchester United any time soon.
As a result, incoming new investor Ratcliffe plans to give Ten Hag time to turn the tide around. And he also plans to furnish him with a statement midfield signing to lead their recovery.
And with summer signing Sofyan Amrabat failing to impress, Ratcliffe is making bold plans to send the on-loan Morocco midfielder back to Fiorentina and replace him with talented Everton midfielder Onana.
The 22-year-old has proved a revelation in the Toffees midfield since a £33m move from Lille in summer 2022, playing a leading role in the club’s recent upturn in results that have quickly seen their 10-point penalty wiped out.
However, according to Foot Mercato, Everton are looking to cash in on Onana to ease their financial difficultes, with talks now underway with several interested parties.
And they report that Barcelona had been the first to express an interest in signing the Belgium international, having held hush-hush talks with his agent over the weekend.
Now, though, it’s claimed that United are ready to hijack the deal and are willing to meet the Merseysiders’ £51.8m (€60m) valuation.
Arsenal were also linked with the nine-times capped Belgium international on Tuesday, though it’s now claimed they don’t see Onana as a firm target.
As a result, it is United who are seemingly in the driving seat to secure his signing with the price tag also seen as prohibitive to Barcelona.
TOTTENHAM CONFIDENT OF TODIBO SIGNING
Tottenham have held a further round of talks with the agent of Jean-Clair Todibo and are growing optimistic they can beat Manchester United to the Nice defender’s €40m (£34.6m) signature. (various)
AC Milan are firmly in the race to sign Stuttgart striker Serhou Guirassy and are strong contenders to beat West Ham and Man Utd to his €17m signature in January. (Gazzetta dello Sport)
Barcelona could yet hijack Fulham’s proposed €30m move to sign Andre Trindade from Fluminense in January with Deco reportedly a big fan of the 22-year-old Brazil midfielder. (Sport)
Lyon have played down claims they are looking to bring Chelsea defender Badiot Badiashile back to France with the defender falling down the pecking order under Mauricio Pochettino. (various)
West Ham are emerging as favourites to sign €30m-rated Torino defender Alessandro Buongiorno, with the Italy international also on the radars of Roma, Inter Milan, Juventus, AC Milan and Napoli. (Tuttosport)
Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders insists no decision has been made yet on Fabio Carvalho’s future amid claims he is due to be recalled from his loan spell with RB Leipzig. (various)
NEWCASTLE FAVORITES TO SIGN JONATHAN DAVID
Newcastle are emerging as the leading suitors to sign Lille striker Jonathan David in January, with Tottenham’s interest fading and AC Milan unlikely to match the Canadian’s €35m (£30m) price tag. (Tuttomercato)
Southampton are emerging as shock favourites to seal the signing of in-demand Juventus forward Matias Soule, having opened talks over a €30m move for a player who is also interesting the likes of Newcastle and Tottenham. (Calciomercato)
Clement Lenglet has given the green light to leave Aston Villa in January with a move to Napoli and Bayern Munich both under consideration. The final decision over the France defender will be left to Villa boss Unai Emery. (Corriere dello Sport)
Roma have told Chelsea they can only afford to sign Romelu Lukaku in a permanent €30m (£26m) deal if they qualify for the Champions League this season. Failure to finish in the top four of Serie A will potentially see the Blues listening to offers from Saudi Arabia for the Belgian frontman, amid claims he will receive a ‘mind-boggling offer’ to move to the Gulf State. (Gazzetta dello Sport)
Villarreal are not ruling out a move to recall Arnaut Danjuma from his loan spell with Everton after failing to establish himself in Sean Dyche’s side. (Cadena Ser)
RB Leipzig’s interest in signing Jadon Sancho from Manchester United has been confirmed – but matching the Manchester United’s winger’s wages are going to prove problematic. (BILD)
Tottenham, Aston Villa and Brighton have all made enquiries with Juventus over the January signing of Samuel Iling-Junior, though none of the trio are yet to make an official bid. (Tuttosport)
LIVERPOOL CLEARED TO SIGN JOSHUA KIMMICH, MAXCENCE LACROIX
Liverpool have been given the green light to sign Joshua Kimmich with Bayern Munich open to his €40m sale. (BILD)
The Merseysiders are also free to sign talented Wolfsburg defender Maxence Lacroix for €35m. (various)
Robert Lewandowski’s agent Pini Zahavi has met with Barcelona sporting director Deco to discuss ongoing rumours of a move to Saudi Arabia, though it seems a Jnauary move has been ruled out. (Sport)
Manchester City playmaker Bernardo Silva has played down claims he could leave for Saudi Arabia, but refused to be drawn on claims he remains a target for Barcelona. (Mundo Deportivo)
Barcelona have made it clear to Raphinha that they are willing to listen to offers for his services in January with the Brazilian struggling to replicate his form of last season and with the winger no longer a first-choice player under Xavi Hernandez. (Sport)
Danish side FC Copenhagen are ready to sell 18-year-old Swedish winger Roony Bardghji, with the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham keen ahead of the January window. (90min)
