Two high-end wantaway stars; two clubs vexed by what to do with them, so here’s a wheeze: why don’t they swap clubs? That’s the possible option touted by Paris Saint-Germain for Neymar and Paul Pogba, who, according to the Independent, have approached Manchester United about a possible deal. One snag is that United may balk at Neymar’s wage costs and that United vice-chairman Ed Woodward has a stubborn predilection for keeping the France midfielder, despite his less than subtle hint-dropping about wanting to move elsewhere.
If that hint-dropping does pay off, United will be sniffing eagerly aroundJadon Sancho, the Sun reports, but Borussia Dortmund will demand at least £100m, which may deter the English club given that Ole Gunnar Solskjær is looking to make at least five major additions as he seeks to shake up a jaded squad. Less expensive targets on Solskjær’s radar are Newcastle’s Sean Longstaff and the Stoke central defender Nathan Collins.
Dortmund also face a battle to keep their highly-rated young defender Dan-Axel Zagadou, upon whom Arsenal are keen, the Gunners’ eyes having been caught by the 20-year-old’s performances for France in the U20 World Cup in Poland. Arsenal continue to circle coyly around Dalian Yifang’s Yannick Carasco, but are still waiting for the moment to make their move. They will face competition from Bayern Munich, who are also keen. The Belgium winger is keen to move back to Europe having left some bridges smouldering by describing the Chinese club’s attitude to him as “incomprehensible”. Dalian’s manager, Cui Kangxi, hit back, saying: “Since his return from international duty, Carrasco’s attitude in training is very negative. He is destroying the unity of the squad.”
Tottenham want to strengthen their midfield with Real Madrid’s Dani Ceballos but the Spanish club won’t take less than €50m (£47m), according to AS. A likelier target for Mauricio Pochettino might be the 19-year-old Danish winger Andreas Skov Olsen, whose club, FC Nordsjælland, value him at £15m, the Mirror reports. Heading through the Spurs exit door could beKieran Trippier, over whom Juventus and Napoli are tussling. Napoli’s Carlo Ancelotti has already made an approach, but Maurizio Sarri has now decided he fancies the England right-back as a statement early signing at Juve. The Mirror says Spurs are willing to sell at the right price, with £25m as your starter.
Aston Villa and Leicester are still competing over the Luton full-back James Justin, who has played an instrumental role in the Hatters’ two consecutive promotions, and Luton’s head of recruitment, Mick Harford, said they would be prepared to let the 21-year-old leave if the deal “benefits” the club, so says the Birmingham Mail.
