Manchester City will sell Rodri to Barcelona in a deal worth up to £65m after finally accepting the advances of the Spanish champions. It means City will now accelerate their pursuit of Ayyoub Bouaddi, the 18-year-old Moroccan wonderkid, as they enter talks to finalise a fee with Lille for the midfielder. And City could yet go back for Enzo Fernandez, despite missing Chelsea’s deadline for offers.
Arsenal could turn their attention to Brighton’s £51m-rated midfielder Jack Hinshelwood as they continue talks with Bayer Leverkusen over signing England international Jarell Quansah. The Premier League champions have been keen to sign a defender following the injury to William Saliba and the 23-year-old Quansah, formerly of Liverpool, would be able to cover both centre-back and right back positions.
Tottenham have agreed personal terms with Liverpool forward Cody Gakpo, according to reports in the Netherlands, while Spurs are also close to signing Manchester City winger Savinho and have joined Manchester United and Arsenal in expressing interest in Galatasaray forward Victor Osimhen. Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli has rejected the chance to join the Turkish club as part of a deal.
In other news, Tottenham captain Cristian Romero has completed his transfer to Atletico Madrid, while Paris Saint-Germain have confirmed the signing of Ferran Torres, the scorer of the winning goal in the World Cup final, from Barcelona.
Follow all of the latest news, rumours and done deals below
Juventus walk away from Martinez deal
Multiple reports coming out this evening suggest Emiliano Martinez will not be leaving joining Juventus this summer after the Serie A club walked away from talks.
The two clubs were a long way apart on their valuation of Argentina’s No 1, and a finger injury also raised doubts around his long-term fitness.
Villa are still pressing ahead to sign Japan international Zion Suzuki from Japan, who is expected to be their first-choice goalkeeper in the Premier League this season – leaving doubt over Martinez’s future.
City set to sign Bouaddi after selling Rodri to Barcelona
Manchester City have finally accepted Barcelona’s advances for Rodri, agreeing a package worth up to £65m, according to The Athletic.
The Ballon d’Or winner will move to Barca after a sensational summer leading Spain to World Cup glory.
The news means City will now move to compete a deal for Ayyoub Bouaddi, the 18-year-old Moroccan wonderkid, as they enter talks to finalise a fee with Lille for the midfielder – reports Fabrizio Romano:
Why Arsenal’s Community Shield victory over Man City is so ominous for title rivals
Less than five months have passed since Manchester City comprehensively beat Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley, a performance that laid out a gulf in quality between the two clubs, that promised to launch City to the title, that landed a damaging psychological blow to brittle Arsenal minds.
Enzo Fernandez set to stay at Chelsea
Enzo Fernandez is set to stay at Chelsea after the club’s 5pm Friday deadline passed without any acceptable bids being received.
The club laid down terms on Thursday that they expected either to receive a written bid matching their £120m valuation of the player or they would consider the matter of his future closed, and would not entertain any subsequent offers.
It is understood that the verbal terms and conditions that were made available to Fernandez’s representatives for potential suitors at end of May are now off the table, and the club expects him to stay.
Manchester City are the last remaining club with a known interest in signing the World Cup winner, after Real Madrid publicly stated in July that they would not be pursuing Fernandez.
The 25-year-old worked with City boss Enzo Maresca during their 18 months together at Stamford Bridge and the Italian is known to admire the player.
It was thought that, with a £52m deal having been agreed to sell Tijjani Reijnders to Saudi Pro-League outfit Al-Qadsiah, funds would be freed up for City to take Fernandez to the Etihad Stadium as a like-for-like replacement for Rodri, who looks set to join Barcelona.
However, unless Chelsea can be persuaded into a U-turn and be brought to the negotiating table, Fernandez will still be at Stamford Bridge when the transfer window closes on 1 September.
Mikel Arteta on Arsenal’s transfer window
“It’s a very exciting part of the season. When a lot of things happen, it creates excitement,” Mikel Arteta said when asked if the Gunners will do any further transfers
“There’s an opportunity to evolve and understand how every player is feeling. We are trying the maximum within 13 or 14 days to compete for every possible position.
“It’s always the case. There’s an opportunity for players to go both ways and see how the market responds.
“I’m not going to talk about individuals. The ambition of the club is big. We want to improve and evolve the squad. We have detected the areas that can be strengthened.”
Michael Carrick urges Manchester United to strengthen
Michael Carrick has admitted Manchester United still need to strengthen this summer but they will not be splashing the cash on the level of their Premier League rivals.
United have so far spent around £85million on Andrey Santos, Youri Tielemans and Karl Darlow, but after another big summer of spending elsewhere they are the only one of the Premier League’s ‘big six’ still never to have broken the £100m mark on a player.
United need to build depth ahead of a return to the Champions League, and their midfield reinforcements come after Casemiro’s exit.
“I think we’ve done really good business and we’ve got really some top, top, top players,” Carrick said at United’s pre-season training camp in the Republic of Ireland.
“We’re delighted with that. We always want to improve. We want more, we need more, we keep looking for how we can do that. That never stops.”
Mac Allister to replace Rodri?
Manchester City have shortlisted Liverpool’s Alexis Mac Allister as a potential replacement for the outgoing Rodri, according to talkSPORT.
Rodri looks on his way to Barcelona with City already nearing the signing of another midfielder in Ayoubb Bouaddi.
However, City are now looking at a move for Mac Allister, who is seen as an affordable option when compared to other targets Enzo Fernandez and Adam Wharton.
But surely Liverpool would not let him go to one of their Premier League rivals, would they?
Villa agree deal for Suzuki
An update on the big story from Aston Villa earlier… the club have agreed a £29.9m deal with Parma for keeper Zion Suzuki, according to Sky Italy.
That comes as Juventus have made a formal £8.5m bid for Villa and Argentina keeper Emi Martinez – £6m with the remainder in add-ons. Watch this space…
Savinho and Reijnders absent from Man City’s Community Shield squad
Savinho and Tijjani Reijnders were both left out of Enzo Maresca’s squad to face Arsenal in the Community Shield, as both near moves away from the Etihad.
Reijnders is on the verge of heading to Saudi Arabia to join Al Qadsiah, for around £55m, while Tottenham are rumoured to be interested in Savinho, who has found opportunities limited.
City have lost the Community Shield 3-0 to Arsenal in a dispiriting opener to the season for Maresca’s side.
Tijjani Reijnders’s Manchester City exit is a parable of modern football
Tijjani Reijnders’s fleeting time at Manchester City is almost over. The Dutch international is on the verge of joining Saudi Arabian club Al Qadsiah in a transfer worth around £55m. Will he lift the “Pride of the Eastern Province” to Saudi Pro League glory? Who knows? Also: who cares?
Amid the summer transfer churn, perhaps it is not a particularly eye-catching or noteworthy deal. City will make a small profit on a player they bought for £45m last summer. City fans won’t shed many tears. Reijnders is far from the first Premier League player to accept Saudi Arabian riches, and he won’t be the last.
But there is something jarring and a little bleak about the road from AC Milan’s marauding midfielder to Al Qadsiah’s flagship signing in little over a year.
