Transfer Talk: Barcelona eye Dortmund's Moukoko as Real Madrid near Endrick deal
With just a month remaining before the opening of the January transfer window, there’s plenty of gossip swirling about who’s moving where. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings, goings and, of course, done deals!
TOP STORY: Barcelona eye Moukoko after Endrick snub
Barcelona could move for Borussia Dortmund striker Youssoufa Moukoko after missing out on talented Brazilian youngster Endrick, according to Diario Sport.
Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain were also vying to sign the 16-year-old Endrick but, as sources told ESPN, Real Madrid have agreed on a deal for the Palmeiras striker to sign a five-year contract that will start in July 2024. The deal is expected to be worth €72 million (including €60m for the release clause) but he will only be able to join Los Blancos after he has turned 18.
Barcelona backed out of the deal when they found out the finances that would be required, considering the move too much of a high risk at an economically difficult time for the club.
Moukoko, on the other hand, will be a free agent when his Dortmund contract expires at the end of this season. At 18, he’s already a key figure for the Bundesliga side and was part of Germany‘s World Cup squad in Qatar.
The Blaugrana have been told that Moukoko wants to either renew his contract to stay with Dortmund or head to Camp Nou — as long as there are guarantees of playing time. Chelsea are among the clubs interested in him as well. However, Barcelona could look to sign a more senior forward due to the number of young players already in their squad.
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20.33 GMT: Everton are looking to make a £35m move for Watford winger Ismaila Sarr, according to the Mirror. The Senegal international would be the third player to move from the Hornets to the Toffees since 2018 after Richarlison and Abdoulaye Doucoure did the same.
20.00 GMT: Kicker reports that RB Leipzig sporting director Max Eberl has suggested that contract talks with attacker Dani Olmo are ongoing. The 24-year-old Spain international’s contract ends in 18 months’ time, and Eberl said that completing a new deal would “send a big signal.”
19.27 GMT: With 31-year-old midfielder Diego Demme wanting to leave Napoli due to a lack of game time, the Serie A side is working with Salernitana on a loan agreement with the right to make it a permanent move, reports Calciomercato. However, there has still been no agreement on the transfer fee if the option is taken up.
18.54 GMT: Manchester City‘s academy will unveil the signing of U15 prodigy Kylian Midwood from Sheffield United in the coming days, reports Fabrizio Romano. The contract will soon be signed after City beat out the likes of Chelsea, Liverpool, Leeds United and Newcastle United.
18.21 GMT: AC Milan will not move for Houssem Aouar in January despite the Lyon midfielder’s agents offering him to the defending Serie A champions, reports Calciomercato. They have told the 24-year-old once-capped France international as much, feeling they don’t need a player with his characteristics as they already have Charles De Ketelaere, Brahim Diaz and Yacine Adli.
17.43 GMT: Sky Sport Deutschland’s Florian Plettenberg has suggested that there is no chance of midfielder Konrad Laimer staying with RB Leipzig following comments from the club’s new sporting director Max Eberl. The 25-year-old Austria international is on the verge of joining Bayern Munich as a free agent in the summer, with a verbal agreement having been reached ahead of signing a contract that would last until at least 2027.
17.00 GMT: Now is not the time for a decision to be made on the future of England midfielder Jude Bellingham, according to Fabrizio Romano. Borussia Dortmund are set to hold talks with interested parties in 2023, with it suggested that Bellingham’s father, Mark, is the only agent looking after negotiations.
16.13 GMT: Wayne Rooney’s D.C. United are in “advanced talks” to sign Leeds United midfielder Mateusz Klich, according to MLSsoccer.com. The 32-year-old Poland international would be the latest player with Premier League pedigree to join the American capital club, following the likes of Christian Benteke and Ravel Morrison crossing the Atlantic last summer.
15.26 GMT: Valencia are confident that Yunus Musah wants to continue his progression at the club, despite the United States international being a target of several clubs, AS reports.
Inter Milan are reportedly keen to sign Musah following his strong performances for Valencia this season and for his national team at the World Cup.
With Musah, 20, being under contract until June 2026 and having a €100m release clause, Valencia are not too concerned that the player will leave any time soon. More importantly, the midfielder is eager to remain at Valencia where he is having a more prominent role in Gennaro Gattuso’s side.
Musah, who joined Valencia in the summer of 2019 from Arsenal, played 36 games for Los Che las season and is a regular starter under Gattuso.
14.35 GMT: Portugal international Joao Felix has said he would only think about his club future after the World Cup following reports he could leave Atletico Madrid in January.
“I’ve already said I’m focused 100% on the national squad,” he told a news conference ahead of Saturday’s World cup quarterfinal against Morocco.
“I’m only concerned with giving a good performance to help this team and Portugal and the Portuguese people. Atletico Madrid is something I have to look at when the World Cup ends because I’m 100% focused here.”
13.41 GMT: Real Madrid’s proposed deal to sign Palmeiras teenager Endrick “makes [Erling] Haaland more complicated” for the European champions, according to AS, with the two young forwards unlikely to want to compete for a place in the LaLiga giants’ starting XI.
Sources have told ESPN Brazil that the transfer of Endrick is worth €72m, although the 16-year-old will only be able to move to Madrid in 2024, when he turns 18. The deal will begin when the transfer window opens in July 2024, with the player signing a five-year contract.
AS reports that the Brazilian youngster’s agents “were very interested in how Endrick would fit into Madrid’s sporting project” from 2024 and while Manchester City striker Haaland hadn’t been mentioned by name, it was made clear that Endrick wouldn’t want to see his first-team minutes limited by a rival No. 9 like the Norwegian.
12.49 GMT: Manchester United are working on a deal to sign Switzerland goalkeeper Yann Sommer on a free transfer next summer, sources have told ESPN’s Rob Dawson.
Sommer is set to leave Borussia Monchengladbach when his contract expires at the end of the season. United are already looking at the possibility of adding the 33-year-old to Erik ten Hag’s squad and will be able to make contact with his representatives from Jan. 1.
Ten Hag is looking to refresh the goalkeeping department ahead of next season. Martin Dubravka, signed on loan in the last summer window, is expected to return to Newcastle at the end of the campaign having made just one first team appearance at Old Trafford.
Meanwhile, Dean Henderson, who is spending the season on loan at Nottingham Forest, is due back at United in the summer after the club refused to include a buy clause in his temporary move to the City Ground.
Interest in Sommer, who was part of the Switzerland squad that reached the round of 16 at the World Cup in Qatar, will raise further doubts about David De Gea‘s long-term future.
De Gea has been first-choice goalkeeper under Ten Hag this season but sources have told ESPN that United are yet to open talks over a new contract. The Spaniard’s contract runs until the end of the season and the club have an option to extend it by another 12 months until the summer of 2024.
11.55 GMT: AC Milan have given forward Rafael Leao the ultimatum of either signing a new contract by the end of January or be transferred, according to Calciomercato.
Leao was Serie A’s player of the year last season as the Rossoneri claimed their first league title in 11 years. This term, he had scored seven goals before coming to the Qatar World Cup, where he has scored twice as a late substitute for Portugal.
The 23-year-old has a contract at San Siro until 2024, but Milan do not want to risk losing him on a free transfer at the end of next season as they have done in recent years with key players such as Gianluigi Donnarumma, Hakan Calhanoglu and Franck Kessie.
Chelsea are among a host of top European clubs who hold an interest in Leao, who provided 11 goals and 10 assists in 35 Serie A games during last season’s Scudetto-winning campaign.
Therefore, the club aims to have final talks with Leao’s representatives next month in order to settle their young star’s future, one way or another.
– Karlsen: Why every club wants to sign Leao
11.04 GMT: Real Madrid’s move to sign Palmeiras’ teenage forward Endrick is being held up by an issue registering the deal with FIFA’s Transfer Matching System (TMS), Marca reports.
According to the newspaper, there was “a setback” when the parties tried to introduce the details into TMS — the online system where an international transfer has to be registered for a player to receive international clearance — which must now be resolved before the rest of the formalities can be dealt with.
Marca reports that FIFA are “analysing the situation” as they pay particular attention to transfers involving minors. Endrick is not due to move until he turns 18 in 2024 in a deal which sources have told ESPN Brazil is worth €72m.
10.18 GMT: Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said he will assess the full extent of Gabriel Jesus‘ injury before deciding whether to dip into the transfer market in January.
Jesus, 25, has been a key player for the Gunners since signing from Manchester City in the summer. He has scored five Premier League goals to help send Arsenal to the top of the Premier League table, with a five-point cushion on City.
But the striker suffered a knee injury on World Cup duty with Brazil, which reportedly could rule him out for three months and potential derail the club’s title bid.
“What it affects is who we are as a team because he gives us so much,” Arteta said after Arsenal’s 3-0 friendly win over Lyon on Thursday. “So what we can do after that, when we know the timescale [of his recovery] and when we can have him back, we will look at the options and try to make the right decision.”
09.30 GMT: Marca reports that Real Madrid won’t be signing any players in January, despite being linked with AC Milan’s Rafael Leao, Cody Gakpo of PSV Eindhoven and Manchester United teenager Alejandro Garnacho.
Super agent Jorge Mendes has offered Leao to Los Blancos on several occasions, while a deal for Garnacho has been proposed too. Both those exciting young players are out of contract in the summer, meaning a cut-priced deal could possibly be arranged in January.
Gakpo has a deal until 2026, but his stock is on the rise after superb performances for Netherlands at the World Cup.
08.43 GMT: Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser al-Khelaifi has said he is confident Lionel Messi will stay at the club and expressed his interest in signing Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford on a free transfer.
Messi’s contract at PSG runs out next June and reports have linked the Argentina captain with a move to Major League Soccer side Inter Miami, although sources told ESPN last month that he had not agreed a deal to join them.
The 35-year-old could trigger a one-year extension at PSG as part of his present deal, and al-Khelaifi said the forward was “happy” at the Parc des Princes and “definitely” wanted to stay for longer.
08.00 GMT: AC Milan are ready to make an opening offer to Chelsea for forward Hakim Ziyech, reports Gazzetta Dello Sport.
Ziyech, 29, has impressed for Morocco at the World Cup, helping the North Africans reach the quarterfinals for the first time in their history.
However, he is out of favour at Chelsea and the Premier League club could be ready to take advantage of his impressive displays when the transfer market reopens in January.
Milan hope to be able to sign Ziyech on loan with an option for a permanent deal worth €15m at the end of the season, though the player would have to take a sizeable cut in his wages for the deal to happen.
PAPER GOSSIP
— Borussia Monchengladbach see Lorient goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo as a replacement for Yann Sommer if he leaves in the summer, according to Sky Sports Deutschland. Sources told ESPN that Manchester United are keen to sign Sommer on a free transfer when his contract expires. United are expected to make contact with the Switzerland international’s representatives on Jan. 1, when talks can open over a precontract agreement.
– Lille, Torino and Fiorentina are all showing interest in Angers‘ Azzedine Ounahi, according to Calciomercato. The Morocco midfielder has been one of the biggest revelations of the World Cup, having only moved to Ligue 1 from the third tier of French football in July 2021, with clubs now monitoring his situation.
– Internazionale and Juventus are interested in signing Chris Smalling, with the centre-back’s AS Roma contract set to end in the summer of 2023, reports Sky Sports Italia. Roma want the Englishman to stay but will not get caught up in a financial battle to make it happen, with their offer being a two-year deal on less than the €3.5m per season he is currently receiving.
– English clubs are among those looking at St. Mirren midfielder Keanu Baccus after his impressive performances for Australia during the World Cup, according to Fabrizio Romano. There is a chance the 24-year-old could leave the Scottish side in 2023 with various clubs keeping an eye on him.
– Celtic and Wolfsburg are interested in Ferencvaros midfielder Aissa Laidouni following his eye-catching displays for Tunisia at the World Cup, reports Foot Mercato. The Hungarian side are willing to let Laidouni leave for €4m, with the player himself hoping for a move to the Premier League or the Bundesliga.
