Pogba promised move, Barcelona want Liverpool full back & more: Weekly Transfer Roundup, September 10-16, 2018

The last week has been dominated by the international break, which has given us the first chance to look at how teams have adapted since the end of the World Cup. In Europe, we saw the opening games in the new UEFA Nations League, which has made international football more competitive in the time between major tournaments, even if we don’t fully understand how it works.

The transfer rumours have continued though. These are the most interesting rumours of the last week.

Sarri targets AC Milan defender

It was no secret that Maurizio Sarri was hoping to improve the Chelsea defence during the summer. His main target was Juventus’ Daniele Rugani, but that move didn’t go through, and he was forced to spend the first half of the season with what he already had.

It looks like he wants to make amends to that in January, and according to the Mail Online, has set his eyes on AC Milan’s Alessio Romagnoli and Mattia Caldara. The pair have both been linked with a move to Chelsea in the past, and as AC Milan look to comply with Financial Fair Play regulations, the Italians may be willing to sell.

Ajax reject de Jong offers

Frenkie de Jong was one of the more talked about names during the transfer window. The Ajax midfielder was regularly linked with a move to Barcelona, but for whatever reason, that never materialised. Spanish news outlet Mundo Deportivo has reported that both Barcelona and Tottenham have now made offers for de Jong, but they have been rebuffed by the Dutch giants. It looks likely that both those sides will now come in with bids for the 21-year-old in January.

Fenerbahce plan Ozil swoop

Ozil is one of the most discussed players in the Premier League

Mesut Ozil has regularly been in the news over the past few months. Firstly, he was part of Germany’s disastrous World Cup squad, then he retired from international duty, accusing the German Football Association of racism. He has had a tough start to the season, and he has been linked with a move away from Arsenal recently.

One club that have regularly been linked with a possible move for Ozil is Fenerbahce, and Turkish site Fotomac reported that the 29-year-old is their number one target.

Barcelona target Premier League left backs

According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona have identified the left-back position as one that needs improvement, and have chosen two Spanish Premier League full-backs to fix that. One of those is 32-year-old Arsenal left-back Nacho Monreal. The other is Liverpool’s Alberto Moreno, which would come as a surprise, because he is a long way off the Liverpool team at the moment, and has never really impressed in the Premier League.

Pogba “promised” move to LaLiga

We couldn’t have one of these without mentioning Paul Pogba, could we? The Mirror have reported that Pogba’s agent, Mino Raiola, has promised the Frenchman a move to either Real Madrid or Barcelona at the end of the season. Real were linked with a move for the midfielder before he returned to Manchester United in 2016, while Barcelona had a bid rejected for him this summer.

Chelsea risk losing Fabregas on a free

Fabregas' contract is up at the end of the season

AC Milan and Inter Milan are set to enter a battle to sign Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas on a free transfer, report the Express. The Spaniard’s contract at Stamford Bridge is up next summer, and as it stands, he will be able to discuss a move abroad as soon as December.

Fabregas hasn’t appeared too many times under Maurizio Sarri this season and may fancy a new challenge in Serie A come the end of the season.

Real Madrid’s £300 million war chest

It has been a turbulent summer at the Bernabeu this summer. Firstly, Zinedine Zidane resigned just days after winning the Champions League and was later replaced by Julen Lopetegui in controversial fashion.

They then sold Cristiano Ronaldo, but never really bought in a replacement. However, AS, via the Sun, claim that Real have £330 million available to them to spend, and their main targets are PSG’s Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, both of whom they were linked with in the summer.

Mourinho eyes Icardi

You can’t seem to keep Jose Mourinho out of the news at the moment, but usually, it’s because of players leaving Old Trafford. On this occasions, it’s about someone coming in, as Le10 Sport claim that Mourinho is hoping to bring Mauro Icardi to the club from Inter Milan. The Argentine striker has an excellent goal record in Italy, having scored an impressive 100 Serie A goals in just 162 games for Inter. Mourinho already has a reliable striker in Romelu Lukaku, but he may feel that Icardi could be an upgrade.

Beckham wants Messi at Inter Miami

Last week David Beckham announced that his new MLS side would be called Inter Miami, and confirmed that the side would enter the MLS in 2020. Questions have been asked about which big-name players he may attract with his new side, and the Daily Mail claims that Beckham wants to bring Lionel Messi to America.

The Barcelona man’s contract is up at the end of the 2020/21 season, and Beckham hopes he will be able to convince the Argentinian superstar to swap Spain for the States.