Welcome to our daily transfer rumours round-up where Manchester United are making the headlines after they have all but completed a stunning £35million transfer. Elsewhere there is a new defensive target for Arsenal after their shambolic pursuit of Shkodran Mustafi.
Meanwhile, Liverpool have once again turned down a £30million bid for their Belgian flop. On that note, here are the most popular transfer news and rumours doing the rounds on August 16th.
Trending
Serie A
- Napoli goalkeeper Pepe Raina has offered himself to Barcelona as Claudio Bravo nears a £21million transfer to Manchester City. Reina, 33 is confident of being Barcelona’s number one choice despite an assured Champions League involvement with Napoli this season.
- AS Roma have completed the signing of Torino right back Bruno Peres. The Brazilian arrived today for his medical, ready to complete a transfer on loan with an obligation to buy for a grand total of €14.5m plus €1.5m bonuses and 20 per cent sell-on fee.
- Besiktas midfielder Jose Ernesto Sosa will complete a €7.5m move to Milan and will fly in for a medical tonight, according to Sky Sports Italia. The 31-year-old midfielder is expected to sign a two-year deal and wll be unveiled in next 24 hours.
Bundesliga
- Chelsea have joined Liverpool in the race to sign Jonas Hector this summer and have made an enquiry about a potential £20m deal for the FC Koln right-back, according to the Mirror. Despite a concrete interest from The Reds, Hector signed a new 5-year deal with Koln and is determined to stay in Bundesliga.
- According to Sports Bild, Southampton have received renewed hopes of signing Bas Dost after Wolfsburg have lined up Simone Zaza as a potential replacement. Zaza is in Germany as we speak and will complete his transfer later this week.
- Bundesliga side Schalke have made a formal offer for striker Diego Rolan, according to L’Équipe. The Uruguayan international has already agreed personal terms over a three-year contract. Rolan is expected to be unveiled in next 24-48 hours.
Premier League
- Liverpool have rejected a new £30million bid for Christian Benteke frommCrystal Palace and stress that they want £32million for the Belgian striker. According to Telegraph, Liverpool want £32m upfront while Palace are keen to offer £23m up front and £7m in add-ons.
- Manchester United have beaten Juventus and Inter Milan to sign the £35million rated Brazilian striker Gabriel Barbosa, according to reports from Daily Mirror. Gabigol has been linked with several top teams in Europe this season but United have offered him a lucrative contract and are expected to sign him in January 2017.
- Arsenal have enquired about the availability of Southampton’s central defender Jose Fonte. Gunners have all but failed in their pursuit of Shkodran Mustafi and are keen to bring a new defender at Emirates this summer. Man United are also linked with Fonte, who is valued at £11million.
La Liga
- Manchester City are close to reaching a deal to bring Chilean goalkeeper Claudio Bravo to the Etihad Stadium, according to Mundo Deportivo. Spanish journals claim that Bravo will fly to Manchester after playing the second round of Spanish Super Cup vs Sevilla to sign a multi-year contract with Citizens.
- Real Madrid could make a shocking move for Chelsea outcast Cesc Fabregas, according to The Mirror. Fabregas was left out of Chelsea’s opening game of the season which did not go well with the Spaniard. Fabregas is desperate to quit Stamford Bridge and sees Real Madrid as one of the potential destinations.
- Javier Mascherano admits he “thought of leaving Barcelona” this summer. Juventus were linked with the Argentine international which had got the Argentine defender dwelling on his Camp Nou future. Speaking in an interview earlier today, Mascherano said: “I thought of leaving Barcelona, I always felt valued, I’ve had a lot of opportunities to play but after such a long time you wonder if you can keep going at a certain level.
Rest of Europe
- According to The Scottish Sun, Rangers are linked with a move for Aston Villa defender Joleon Lescott. The Englishman caused outrage amongst Villa supporters last season with his ‘pocket tweet’ and has never truly connected with the fan base since. He is expected to quit Villa Park this summer.
- West London Sport understands Championship side Fulham are in discussions with Sporting Lisbon over the loan signing of midfielder Wallyson Mallman. He has been told by the Primeira Liga outfit that he is free to leave the club as first-team opportunities will be limited this season.
To keep a track of all the transfers that has happened across Europe so far, click here.
