The summer transfer window is here, and there’s plenty of gossip swirling about who’s moving where. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings and goings and, of course, done deals!
TOP STORY: Juventus eye Depay amid Morata talks
Juventus have held preliminary talks regarding a possible move for Barcelona‘s Memphis Depay, as has been reported by ESPN, while the club also have Chelsea‘s Timo Werner and Manchester United‘s Anthony Martial on the list of forwards they are looking at, according to Sky Italia.
The Old Lady still hold Atletico Madrid striker Alvaro Morata as their priority after his loan spell in Italy. However, after already spending €20 million on his two-year loan, Juventus turned down the opportunity to redeem a €35m clause to sign him permanently and are looking to negotiate a fee of around €15m-€20m instead.
Sky Italia claims that Depay, who has one year left on his deal at Camp Nou, is an option, though the Serie A side want to sign him on loan while Barca are hoping to move the Netherlands international on permanently.
During his first season with Barcelona after signing on a free transfer from Lyon, Depay made 37 appearances in all competitions with 10 of those coming off the bench, scoring 13 goals and providing two assists.
Chelsea are willing to let Werner depart, though his former club RB Leipzig are in pole position, while sources have told ESPN that Man United won’t let Martial leave this summer.
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15.39 BST: Calciomercato claims that Borussia Dortmund will look to sign Krzysztof Piatek of Hertha Berlin.
Dortmund will look to the transfer window again as new €31m striker Sebastien Haller will be out for several months to undergo chemotherapy for a malignant testicular tumour, the Bundesliga club said on Saturday.
Inter striker Edin Dzeko reportedly turned down an offer to join Dortmund, so the club will turn to Piatek instead.
14.54 BST: Olympiakos will meet with Barcelona on Monday to discuss the signing of defender Samuel Umtiti, a source has told ESPN.
Umtiti, 28, is one of several players Barca coach Xavi Hernandez has told to find a new club this summer.
A move to Rennes fell through earlier in the transfer window but Olympiakos could now offer Umtiti the chance to play regular football and kickstart his career.
The Greek champions will hold talks with Barca this coming week over a one-year loan deal, with the breakdown of his salary the key point up for discussion.
Umtiti’s wages, along with recent injury problems, have previously prevented him from leaving Barca, with other clubs reluctant to pay as much as he earns at Camp Nou. However, the World Cup winner signed a contract extension in January which spread his salary over more years, making his wages more affordable for interested parties.
14.11 BST: The Athletic says that Brighton have ended talks with Manchester City over left-back Marc Cucurella.
Cucurella, 24, handed in a transfer request on Friday but has a contract until 2026 and Brighton aren’t willing to negotiate for a transfer fee less than £50m.
The club believe Cucurella to have more potential than defender Ben White, who moved to Arsenal from Brighton for £50m in 2021.
13.14 BST: Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga is close to a move to Napoli, says Gianluca Di Marzio.
Kepa, 27, has fallen down the pecking order after the signing of Edouard Mendy and wants to leave to play more first-team games.
Chelsea are willing to let him depart on loan this summer, but have yet to reach an agreement over the finances of the deal.
Napoli need to replace David Ospina with a goalkeeper who can provide competition for Alex Meret.
12.35 BST: Should Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino ignore the lure of Juventus?
1:00
Steve Nicol isn’t certain that Roberto Firmino would get game time if he were to move to Juventus.
11.27 BST: Leicester City midfielder James Maddison is set to be offered a new long-term deal, according to The Daily Mail.
Maddison, 25, has two years left on his contract, but is a key player for the club and has been linked with Arsenal, Man United and a host of other top sides.
The BBC reports that Newcastle made a £40m bid to sign the England international, but that it has been rejected.
10.53 BST: Ajax have agreed a deal to sign Pisa forward Lorenzo Lucca, according to Fabrizio Romano.
Lucca, 21, scored six goals in 35 games last season as Serie B side Pisa missed out on promotion to Serie A after defeat to Monza in extra time of the playoff final.
Ajax are set to land the 6-foot-7 Italy under-21 striker for a €1m loan fee plus the option to sign him permanently for €10m.
10.23 BST: Marseille have signed left-back Nuno Tavares on a season-long loan from Arsenal.
📽 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼𝘀
🎬 𝗘𝗽𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗱𝗲 𝗩𝗜𝗜
✍️ « 𝗘𝗺𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝗺𝗺𝗲́𝗱𝗶𝗮𝘁 » #BienvenueSurMars 𝗡𝘂𝗻𝗼 𝗧𝗮𝘃𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘀 👽🛸 pic.twitter.com/V2fanTvlfg— Olympique de Marseille (@OM_Officiel) July 30, 2022
09.50 BST: Barcelona will listen to offers for Sergino Dest as they continue to pursue Chelsea defender Cesar Azpilicueta following the signing of Jules Kounde, sources have confirmed to ESPN.
ESPN revealed earlier this summer that Barca had communicated to Dest that he was part of their plans for the upcoming season.
Dest, 21, is happy at Barcelona and said earlier in July that he would “definitely” stay beyond the transfer window.
Coach Xavi Hernandez also remains in favour of Dest staying because he offers different qualities to the other full-backs in the squad, but a series of factors have forced the club to reconsider their stance on the United States international.
A failure to move on players who have been deemed surplus to requirements by Xavi means Barca must now consider letting others leave.
09.00 BST: Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski has hit out at former club Bayern Munich, accusing them of making up “bulls—” in order to appease the club’s supporters over his exit.
Lewandowski was speaking exclusively to ESPN FC’s Cristina Alexander in his first interview since moving to the Camp Nou earlier this month for an initial €45m fee.
Lewandowski was asked about reports that his desire to leave Bayern was based on their rumored pursuit of striker Erling Haaland, who subsequently left Borussia Dortmund to join Manchester City.
“No, that was nothing to do with Erling,” he said. “I am the guy who even if something’s not good for me — truth is more important. I don’t want to speak about what happened exactly. But if the question is if the decision to move was because of him, no, I didn’t see the problem if he joined Bayern Munich.
“But some kind of people doesn’t say to me the truth, say something different,” he continued. “And for me it was always important to be clear, to stay true, and maybe for a few people that was the problem. And in the end I know that something doesn’t work well with my person as well and I knew that, OK I see and I feel that maybe it’s a good time to move out of Bayern Munich and join Barcelona.
“I had a very good relationship with my teammates, with the staff, with the coach, and these are all things I’m going to miss because I spent a beautiful time there. And we were not only friends from the pitch but also something more. But in the end this chapter is over and I open a new chapter in my life and a new chapter in my career.
“So I feel that I’m in the right position, right place. So everything that’s happened in the last maybe few weeks before I left Bayern Munich, that was also of course a lot of politics. The club tried to find an argument why they can sell me to another club because before it was difficult to explain maybe to the fans. And I had to accept that even though it was a lot of bulls—, a lot of s— said about me. Not true, but in the end I knew that the fans, even in this period, still support me a lot.”
2:18
Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski hits out at Bayern, accusing them of making up lies in order to appease the club’s supporters over his exit.
PAPER GOSSIP (by Danny Lewis)
– Sky Sports Germany says that Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong will not be joining Bayern Munich this summer, whether that is on a permanent or loan deal. The Dutch international has been heavily linked with a move away from the Blaugrana with Manchester United and Chelsea among those interested, but it appears he will not be heading to Bavaria.
– Chelsea are looking to sign Internazionale midfielder Cesare Casadei, according to Gianluca Di Marzio. The Blues had mentioned the 19-year-old in the negotiations for Romelu Lukaku but Inter didn’t want to include him, with Chelsea having since come back with an opening offer between €7m and €8m. Inter would want a clause that would allow them to re-sign the teenager if he does depart.
– RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim have reached an agreement for David Raum, according to Sky Sports Deutschland, who add that the deal will be worth an initial €26m with a possible €4m in add-ons. While the contract is not yet signed, the left-back will join RB Leipzig on a contract that will keep him with them until 2027 and with bonuses included, he could earn a gross amount of up to €10m.
– Stade Rennais will sign Tottenham Hotspur centre-back on loan with the option to make the move permanent for around €20m, reports L’Equipe. Once that is sorted, the Ligue 1 side will look to strengthen in attack, with Paris Saint-Germain‘s Arnaud Kalimuendo the man wanted by their management.
– Internazionale are interested in Udinese left-back Destiny Udogie, reports Calciomercato, who add that Udinese are refusing to budge on their €20m valuation of the 19-year-old. Valentino Lazaro has left Inter but Robin Gosens and Matteo Darmian remain, meaning Inter are not likely to be able to complete the move unless there is a major outgoing.