TRANSFER GOSSIP

BAYERN JOIN UNITED IN MANE RACE
First to the Daily Telegraph, whose reporter Jeremy Wilson believes that Bayern Munich have joined the race for Sadio Mane. They join Manchester United in holding a serious interest in the Southampton winger.
Wilson writes that serious injuries to Arjen Robben this year mean that Mane is on Bayern’s wanted list. It’s worth pointing out that both Robben and Ribery are nearing full fitness, and Bayern do also have Kingsley Coman and Douglas Costa in those areas. Both were bought this year.
One thing is for sure; if Mane is to leave Southampton, it will take a whacking great fee. His contract does not expire until 2018, and has performed brilliantly since midway through last season. We’re talking £30m plus.

CHELSEA WANT ZLATAN
Well thank goodness for that, because it’s been a week or so since Zlatan Ibrahimovic was linked with a move to the Premier League. Arsenal, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City have all been mentioned before. As have Chelsea, to be honest.
The story comes from ESPN Deportes (nope, us neither) via the Metro, who claim that Ibrahimovic will sign a pre-contract agreement at Chelsea in January, with a view to moving on a free transfer next summer when his contract expires at Paris St Germain.
Ibrahimovic having played for Jose Mourinho before is basically the only evidence for the move, so it’s worth pointing out that he’s played for quite a few coaches.
Still, the striker did say this in March: “’We worked together for one year at Inter. The feeling was great between us and my only regret is that we were together for only one year.”
Ibrahimovic turns 35 next year.

ARSENAL TURN TO CARVALHO. AGAIN?
It’s like seeing an old friend’s train enter the station while you wait for them on the platform, itching to catch up and find out how they’ve been. ‘William Carvalho to Arsenal,’ it’s been too long. Come and give us a hug.
This one is actually a Daily Telegraph ‘exclusive’ from Jeremy Wilson; somebody has been busy
‘Arsenal are again interested in Portugal international William Carvalho as they try to solve their central midfield injury crisis but the difficulty of making a major signing in January means they are also focussed on the available loan options,’ the piece reads. Hmmm, which bit is the exclusive here, the loan players or Carvalho?
The Telegraph also say that Carvalho could be available for a fee of around £25m, but that Sporting would be reluctant to sell. If that’s the case, they don’t really have to. Carvalho has a minimum fee release clause of £35m.
To be honest, Ruben Neves feels like a more likely option. Carvalho is set to become the next Leandro Damaio, in that he doesn’t really exist.
BAYERN JOIN UNITED IN MANE RACE
First to the Daily Telegraph, whose reporter Jeremy Wilson believes that Bayern Munich have joined the race for Sadio Mane. They join Manchester United in holding a serious interest in the Southampton winger.
Wilson writes that serious injuries to Arjen Robben this year mean that Mane is on Bayern’s wanted list. It’s worth pointing out that both Robben and Ribery are nearing full fitness, and Bayern do also have Kingsley Coman and Douglas Costa in those areas. Both were bought this year.
One thing is for sure; if Mane is to leave Southampton, it will take a whacking great fee. His contract does not expire until 2018, and has performed brilliantly since midway through last season. We’re talking £30m plus.

CHELSEA WANT ZLATAN
Well thank goodness for that, because it’s been a week or so since Zlatan Ibrahimovic was linked with a move to the Premier League. Arsenal, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City have all been mentioned before. As have Chelsea, to be honest.
The story comes from ESPN Deportes (nope, us neither) via the Metro, who claim that Ibrahimovic will sign a pre-contract agreement at Chelsea in January, with a view to moving on a free transfer next summer when his contract expires at Paris St Germain.
Ibrahimovic having played for Jose Mourinho before is basically the only evidence for the move, so it’s worth pointing out that he’s played for quite a few coaches.
Still, the striker did say this in March: “’We worked together for one year at Inter. The feeling was great between us and my only regret is that we were together for only one year.”
Ibrahimovic turns 35 next year.

ARSENAL TURN TO CARVALHO. AGAIN?
It’s like seeing an old friend’s train enter the station while you wait for them on the platform, itching to catch up and find out how they’ve been. ‘William Carvalho to Arsenal,’ it’s been too long. Come and give us a hug.
This one is actually a Daily Telegraph ‘exclusive’ from Jeremy Wilson; somebody has been busy
‘Arsenal are again interested in Portugal international William Carvalho as they try to solve their central midfield injury crisis but the difficulty of making a major signing in January means they are also focussed on the available loan options,’ the piece reads. Hmmm, which bit is the exclusive here, the loan players or Carvalho?
The Telegraph also say that Carvalho could be available for a fee of around £25m, but that Sporting would be reluctant to sell. If that’s the case, they don’t really have to. Carvalho has a minimum fee release clause of £35m.
To be honest, Ruben Neves feels like a more likely option. Carvalho is set to become the next Leandro Damaio, in that he doesn’t really exist.

MORENO FANCIES MADRID…
…or to be more exact, Alberto Moreno’s agent says that his player would quite fancy a move to Real Madrid. Wouldn’t we all, squire.
Last week, Marca linked Real with a move for the Liverpool left-back in January, and Moreno’s agent Javier Moya was hardly going to pour cold water on those rumours. We’ve all got Christmas to pay off.
Speaking to Spanish radio station Radio 4G:

“If Real Madrid were to make an offer that would make him really happy, but Liverpool would have to take the first step.
“If a team as important as Real Madrid were to speak with us and Liverpool were satisfied with the operation, we would talk. Inquiring about an important player is logical, that is normal. Important teams from Spain and other places are asking. It’s difficult.
“Everyone knows the importance of Real Madrid but Liverpool have five European Cups.”

And Real Madrid have ten, if we’re counting.

MANCHESTER UNITED ENTER AUBAMEYANG RACE
Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is European football’s hot property. Bayern Munich might be taking the p**s again in the Bundesliga, but the Gabon international has scored 17 goals in 14 league games. Chuck in seven Europa League goals and you have Europe’s top scorer.
The Daily Mirror claim that Manchester United have watched Aubameyang several times this season, which we suspect goes for every big club in Europe with money to spend.
They also mention Aubameyang’s price tag of £42m, which seems about right given his record and age (26). Dortmund paid £9m for him in July 2013.
Yet his AC Milan who should be feeling the most dim. They loaned him out four times before selling him for £1.2m to St Etienne in January 2012. He never even played a game for them.

ARSENAL WANT JAMES McARTHUR
Yeah, we’re not buying this one. Here In The City (us neither) make the claim that Arsenal will look to sign Crystal Palace midfielder James McArthur in order to solve their defensive midfield issues. Stop laughing.
Even they describe any potential move as a ‘shock’. Given that Wenger has recently only spent big money on statement signings, it’s be more than a shock.
It must be said that McArthur has been in fine form this season for Palace, but he’s already 28. Is this really the answer to Arsenal’s problems?

AND THE REST
Liverpool to open contract talks with Simon Mignolet… Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic is in the last year of his deal and Inter want to sign him… Newcastle United want to sign 1860 Munich striker Rubin Okotie in January… Gary Neville’s odds of becoming the next Fulham manager have dropped dramatically… Jack Grealish, 20, stayed behind for extra training on Tuesday in a desperate bid to win over new Aston Villa manager Remi Garde… Porto and Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas, 34, has said he is open to a move to Major League Soccer.
emember that EXCLUSIVE that The Sun’s Neil Custis provided us with just over a fortnight ago, where he claimed Ronaldo was heading to Manchester United? Or Sunday’s similar claims from the Mirror’s Simon Mullock? Well, forget it all, because Antony Kastrinakis has just put his balls on the table.
The man in the know claims that Ronaldo will entertain joining Paris Saint-Germain, and ONLY Paris Saint-Germain, if he leaves Real Madrid in the future. In claims directly opposing that of his colleague Custis, Kastrinakis attributes sources close to the Portuguese star as confirming a return to United is not being entertained.
PSG’s style of play, the way of living in Paris and, in particular, manager Laurent Blanc are all given as reasons for Ronaldo’s decision, and Kastrinakis saves his best line until the end:

‘That, right on queue, the French champs began talks with Blanc over extending his contract says it all really.’

Great stuff.

‘ARRY’S BACK
We’d like to say we’ve missed Harry Redknapp, but football’s white noise has been louder than ever since his last managerial spell with QPR ended in February. Still, Harry the pundit is a different beast to ‘Arry the gaffer. We could be about to see the return of the latter.
That’s according to the Daily Mirror, who claim Redknapp ‘is in the frame’ to replace Steve McClaren if he is sacked by Newcastle. Brendan Rodgers remains the favourite for the post, but Darren Lewis reports that Redknapp ‘is also tipped to be the man to sort out the shambles’ at St James’ Park. Just like he sorted out the shambles at QPR.
For what it’s worth, pretty much every other national newspaper reports that McClaren is in no danger of losing his job at Newcastle, as things stand. That, coupled with Redknapp’s intermittently dodgy knees, Newcastle’s quota of foreigns and the amount of traveling involved means we can file this in the ‘unlikely’ folder.

UNITED, SAINTS AND BARCA HIGHLIGHT BREEL
Time to go a bit continental now, with Swiss newspaper Blick reporting that Manchester United, Southampton and Barcelona are interested in FC Basel striker Breel Embolo.
All three sides sent scouts to watch the 18-year-old in action for the Swiss side against Fiorentina in the Europa League in midweek, with Viola midfielder Borja Valero also a subject of interest. Embolo and Valero played the full 90 minutes on Thursday, with the two sides playing out a 2-2 draw.
Embolo is remarkably highly rated, having scored 24 goals in 67 games for Basel already, earning seven caps and one goal for Switzerland. He only turns 19 in February. Blick add that Embolo was valued at at least £16million in the summer, a price which may well have increased further since.

HERRERA WANTS SHOWDOWN TALKS
Poor Ander Herrera. The Spaniard is currently injured, but he was enduring a difficult time to persuade Louis van Gaal to hand him a regular starting place beforehand. Herrera has played fewer Premier League minutes than Ashley Young and Memphis Depay this season, and only 54 more than Luke Shaw, who has been out since September.
The midfielder has discussed his relationship with his “very demanding” manager previously, but the Daily Star think Herrera is after another talk with Van Gaal. ‘Showdown talks’, no less.
In their EXCLUSIVE, they claim Herrera ‘reckons his career has stalled’ under Van Gaal’s leadership, with a source adding: “Ander is worried about his lack of progress at Manchester United under Louis van Gaal. He feels like he’s lost his identity as a player and doesn’t know what his role is anymore. His situation appears to be getting worse and he’s worried his career is going backwards, so there will have to be a chat with the manager.”
A chat is rather different to ‘showdown talks’, but we digress. Herrera has made 41 appearances for United since signing in the summer of 2014, and is firmly behind Bastian Schweinsteiger, Morgan Schneiderlin and Michael Carrick in a reserved role, with Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata ahead of him in the pecking order for the No 10 role. Wanting a ‘chat’ is understandable.

CHELSEA CORNER MULLER
Two lines now from the Daily Mirror. They claim, along with most of the British press on Tuesday morning, that Diego Costa will not be punished for his bib-related petulance on Sunday, but that Chelsea are stepping up their hunt for a new striker. The latest man linked is Thomas Muller.
Muller, who was recently crowned the world’s happiest footballer, has scored 20 goals in 21 appearances for Bayern Munich so far this season, and is behind only Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Robert Lewandowski in the Bundesliga scoring charts. He’s quite good, basically, and Chelsea have noticed.
A few points, however:

• Because Muller is quite good, Bayern will want to keep him and have no inclination to sell.
• It will take a lot to tempt Muller to leave his boyhood club where he plays lots of games, scores lots of goals and wins lots of trophies.
• FFP is still a thing (is FFP still a thing?) and Chelsea will need to fund a move for a player who Manchester United reportedly had a £75million bid rejected for in the summer.

It probably won’t happen.

ARSENAL IN FOR NEVES
Will Arsene Wenger replace his broken Coq in January? It’s the question on everyone’s lips, with Francis Coquelin ruled out for three months and Arsenal struggling without him. Wenger has been typically evasive with regards to whether he will sign a replacement, but The Sun have the inside scoop.
Their man Daniel Cutts has a sexy exclusive, which is that the Gunners are interested in Porto midfielder Ruben Neves. The club captain has been scouted by Chelsea, Liverpool, West Ham and Real Madrid so far this season, is only 18 and is really rather good.
According to Cutts, Arsenal believe a bid of £22million, with £12million offered up front, will prove sufficient. It won’t; he’s worth far more.

AND THE REST
Tottenham are reportedly willing to offer Harry Kane a new contract, and double his wages to £70,000 a week, to ward off interest from Manchester United and Chelsea…Cristiano Ronaldo’s mum Dolores wants her son to join Manchester United over Paris Saint-Germain if he leaves Real Madrid…Jamie Vardy has all-but ended Manchester United and Chelsea’s hopes of signing him in January by saying he wants to stay at Leicester…Southampton want to sign Brighton wonderkid Solly March…West Ham will step up their interest in Ivory Coast star Gohi Bi Cyriac with fears growing over Diafra Sakho’s long-term fitness…Aston Villa rejected an approach from Birmingham to loan Libor Kozak…Chelsea will not be able to send Radamel Falcao back to Monaco, who are reluctant to accept him back…Tottenham’s Andros Townsend is set for a January exit with Aston Villa, West Brom, Newcastle, Leicester and Swansea interested…Emmanuel Adebayor is set to return to England to find a club, with Chelsea and Watford options.

GUARDIOLA TO UNITED
It’s like a warped version of Groundhog Day, where every day we read that Pep Guardiola is coming to a different Premier League club. In the last week we have read links to Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea. The Sunday Telegraph bring up the Manchester United angle.
New signing Sam Wallace has the big claim, reporting that Pep ‘is understood to see Manchester United as his preferred move’.
Crucially, Wallace only says ‘potentially’ next summer. The obvious thing would be for Guardiola to slum it for another year in Munich, before taking over when Louis van Gaal’s contract ends.

RONALDO READY TO RETURN. YAWN
Fair play to Simon Mullock, who has the 359th different inside track on Cristiano Ronaldo. Despite the Mirror actually having a correspondent living full-time in Madrid, it’s Stammers who has got the big news that Ronaldo ‘is ready’ to return to Manchester United.
That’s despite Ronaldo himself saying that he will stay at Real Madrid for the foreseeable future, and his agent Jorge Mendes saying that he will stay there for the rest of his career.
Mullock really has got all the juicy lines, straight from the horse’s mouth. He says that Ronaldo loves United and the Premier League, and accepts that moving to Paris St Germain will do nothing for his reputation.

ARSENAL IN FOR STONES
Admit it, you were impressed by Simon Mullock’s info in the last section weren’t you? Well he’s not the only on in the Sunday Mirror.
‘Arsenal are set to enter the race for John Stones,’ is Steve Stammers’ line. ‘Set to enter’ is an odd abstract concept to use. Surely the moment you decide you want a player then you’ve effectively ‘entered the race’, given that such a race doesn’t exist. For Stammers to find out that Arsenal want him, the starting gun must already have been sounded? We digress.
The following line did at least make us chuckle: ‘Stones’s emergence as one of the most promising central defenders in the country has been noted at Arsenal’. My my, what a keen eye they have.
Anyway, Stammers says that Arsene Wenger could ‘spend big’ on Stones, who even he accepts Everton don’t want to sell. Not gonna happen, is it?

LIVERPOOL AND EVERTON WANT BUTLAND
Jack Butland’s reputation continues to grow, with the Stoke goalkeeper now firmly established as England’s No. 2. The next step along the road is to move to a big club, and the People (newspaper, rather than England’s entire population) report that Liverpool and Everton are both eyeing a move for him.
A move to Liverpool does make a good deal of sense, with Simon Mignolet still feels like a temporary option at Anfield. Can’t see Everton paying £17m for him though, which is the touted figure.

AND THE REST
Everton, Tottenham, Aston Villa, Swansea and Bournemouth all scouted Bordeaux winger Henri Saivet… Tottenham are willing to use Andros Townsend as part of their deal for West Brom striker Saido Berahino… Fulham are keen on Rangers boss Mark Warburton to become their new manager… Arsenal are favourites to sign Germany midfielder Lars Bender from Bayer Leverkusen… West Ham are reviving their interest in Inter Milan full-back Danilo D’Ambrosio