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LIVE Transfer Talk: Man City's Leroy Sane back on Bayern's radar

The Premier League transfer window has closed, but the rest of Europe remains open for business until Monday. Plus, it's never too late to look forward to January! Click here to view the latest transfers and keep up to date with the latest gossip below.

All the major completed transfers | European transfer review

TOP STORY: Bayern back in for Sane

Manchester City's Leroy Sane was a target for Bayern Munich during the summer transfer window, and The Sun reports that the German giants could renew their interest in January.

Sane is sidelined until the New Year with a knee injury, but that will not stop the Bundesliga champions making another move to sign the 23-year-old if City will lower their £145m valuation of the player.

Germany international Sane has scored 39 goals for City since joining them from Schalke three years ago, and was named the PFA's Young Player of the Year for the 2017-18 season. However, last term he gradually became less of a regular starter for City, and manager Pep Guardiola left him on the bench for several key games toward the end of the campaign.

If Bayern can get close to City's asking price, and if the Premier League champions can find a replacement, then perhaps a deal can be done.

LIVE BLOG

22.30 BST: That will do it for the latest edition of our LIVE Transfer Talk blog. We hoped you enjoyed following along with us and remind you to check back shortly for the latest transfer rumours, reports and completed deals. Goodnight!

22.10 BST: Juventus are known for tendency to sign top players once their contracts expire, midfielders Aaron Ramsey and Adrien Rabiot the latest examples.

Italian publication Gazetto dello Sport reports that Juve are planning a triple swoop next summer for three soon-to-be Man United free agents: David De Gea, Nemanja Matic and Eric Bailly. Matic and Bailly have fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford while De Gea has struggled at United early this season and is yet to sign a contract extension to stay at Old Trafford.

Juve are the free transfer kings... could Man United be their next victim? Stay tuned this summer.

21.29 BST: We have a coaching hire to announce and it involves a very familiar name: Maradona.

Diego Maradona has returned to the sidelines, the Argentine legend having been announced as the new boss of Argentine Primera Division club Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata.

The 58-year-old takes over at the last-placed club in Argentina, after having last managed in Mexico's second division with Dorados de Sinaloa last season. With Dorados, Maradona led the side to the promotion fina

20.43 BST: Barcelona didn't get Neymar and it could have hurt them in more ways than one.

ESPN FC's Sid Lowe looks at what went down this summer and the less obvious reasons that the Neymar distraction ended up really damaging the club both in the short-term and potentially the long-term:.

20.00 BST: How did Liverpool fare in their summer transfer dealings?

While the club only bought four players, two youngsters for the future and two unattached goalkeepers, it saw quite a few names go out the exit door. The club have recouped £54 million for Daniel Sturridge, Simon Mignolet, Danny Ings, Ryan Kent and others and another £5m in loan fees for Harry Wilson, Marko Grujic and Taiwo Awoniyi. Add in the weekly wages of Sturridge, Mignolet and Moreno and the Reds save another £12 million.

That amounts to £71m savings... a big number for an already stacked club who may need one or two final pieces in January to push for a first Premier League title. We'll revisit this come January.

19.18 BST: Olivier Giroud to MLS?

The Chelsea and France frontman seems to keen to give a god according to reports. Giroud, 32, told RMC Sport: "MLS, for my family, my children who speak English, it is interesting. In a year? Two years? I don't know when. But of course, I will be opened to a new challenge."

The World Cup winner will be out of contract next June and the former Arsenal star won't close other doors either and will look at all the options and offers -- including staying at Chelsea, where he is happy. Giroud is not the only former Arsenal man linked with a move to the United States with Mesut Ozil also reportedly considering joining the league come January.

18.40 BST: French outlet L'Equipe claims that AS Monaco made a major push to sign Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard

The French publication reports that Monaco stepped up talks with Edouard in June in an attempt to sign the French striker for the 2019-20 season. The former PSG man reportedly agreed to terms with Monaco but ultimately no deal was done.

Monaco wound up signing Wissam Ben Yedder from Sevilla, as well Jean-Kevin Augustin (RB Leipzig) and Islam Slimani (Leicester) on loan, while Edouard remains in Scotland for the time being.

17.59 BST: Charlton have also completed a deal on Thursday, signing Wales right-back Adam Matthews.

The 27-year-old was a free agent after being released by Sunderland at the end of last season and has been on trial with the club. Matthews, who has 14 caps for Wales, has also played with Cardiff, Celtic and Bristol City.

17.11 BST: The English transfer window has been closed for nearly a month now but we have a done deal to report. Chelsea have agreed to sell Michael Hector to Fulham on a permanent basis once the transfer window re-opens in January. 

Hector, 27, joined Chelsea in 2015 from Reading but never made a first-team appearance for the Blues. The well travelled centre-back has been a part of 16 different clubs and amazingly has been loaned out 15 times in 10 seasons!

Although the Jamaica international cannot play in games for Fulham until January, he will train with the club until then and has already joined up with his teammates at Moptspur Park. Hector, who last season impressed at Sheffield Wednesday, was close to joining Fulham on deadline day in September before a deal fell through at the final hour. 

16.25 BST: Liga MX side Tigres have signed striker Nicolas Lopez on a five-year contract from Brazilian side Sport Club Internacional.

The 25-year-old Uraguayan striker began his career at Nacional, before going on to have spells at Roma, Udinese and Girona.

Lopez joined Internacional in 2016, where he scored 34 goals in 99 games in all competitions.

15.45: BST: Former Spain manager Vicente del Bosque has said he would not have brought Neymar back to La Liga had he been coach of Barcelona or Real Madrid.

"I think it would have been good for the Spanish league if he had come back but if I was a coach of a club I wouldn't have brought him back," Del Bosque told Spanish television network Estudio Estadio.

"Whilst I'll say he is a brilliant player, I don't think very highly of him for other reasons."

Del Bosque, who won the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 as Spain coach plus two Champions League titles as coach of Real, also criticised Neymar for the manner in which he left Barcelona in 2017.

"With Barcelona he did not behave well, in fact he behaved badly, very badly," he added.

"If you surveyed Barcelona fans I'm sure that more than half of them wouldn't want him back. There's a reason for that."

15.09 BST: In case you missed it....

Colombia international Radamel Falcao signed for Turkish champions Galatasaray in the final days of the European transfer window. He seems to be enjoying it!

13.34 BST: Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane is delighted with Gareth Bale's change of attitude and believes the Wales international could, along with Eden Hazard, become a key player of his new Real Madrid project, sources have told ESPN FC.

However, the sources added Zidane is still showing some regret for the failed signing of Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba.

During a news conference on July 21, Zidane said Bale's exit from Madrid would "be best for everyone" but, following a failed move to China, sources have told ESPN FC the 30-year-old forward has forced his way back into the reckoning by working harder than ever in training.

During Madrid's first three games of the La Liga campaign Bale has scored two goals and set up one more.

Bale, and teammate James Rodriguez, have become like new signings for Zidane, but sources close to the Madrid boss added that he was frustrated by the failed signing of Pogba.

12.50 BST: Liverpool are preparing to make a move for Trabzonspor goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir next summer, according to Turkish outlet Aksam.

The European champions have reportedly been scouting the 23-year-old recently as they seek a long-term understudy to No. 1 Alisson. Adrian, who has been deputising this season since the Brazilian became sidelined with a calf injury, turns 33 in January.

According to Aksam, Trabzonspor value Cakir at €15m.

12.01 BST: Paris Saint-Germain right-back Thomas Meunier, who was a target for some of the Premier League's biggest clubs during the summer transfer window, says he came close to leaving the French champions but now hopes to extend his stay with them.

Sources told ESPN in June that Manchester United and Arsenal were both interested in signing the Belgium international and that PSG were open to a sale. PSG wanted around €30m for a player who was entering the final 12 months of his contract amid a strained relationship with the club's fans and a lack of playing time.

However, United ended up signing Aaron Wan-Bissaka, while Arsenal have fielded Ainsley Maitland-Niles at right-back in every Premier League game so far this season.

Meunier told RTBF that, while an exit from the Parc des Princes was a real possibility, he is now hopeful that he can sign a new contract with the Ligue 1 champions.

"It was an intense period, there was lots of interest and discussions," he said. "I could have left but that did not happen as there were discrepancies between the club's position and mine. Everything was not 100% along the same lines for it to work.

"I always said I wanted to stay in Paris. I still have one year of contract left. I was hoping, moreover, I still hope, to extend that. However, the situation has become a little more complicated as I am no longer the priority in my position. I am staying professional, though. I feel good with PSG and we will see what happens during the season."

11.32 BST: Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren has revealed that manager Jurgen Klopp would not sanction a loan move to Italy during the summer transfer window.

Croatia international defender Lovren is now the club's fourth-choice centre-back behind Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez, and was linked with moves to Serie A sides AC Milan and Roma right up until the European transfer deadline on Sept. 2.

The 30-year-old told Sportske Novotsti: "I feel relief the transfer window is closed. I got tired of reading and listening every day about me leaving or staying in Liverpool.

"Everyone wrote 'Dejan is here, Dejan is there,' and knew nothing. It annoyed me. But yes, I did consider moving. I wanted to leave, but it didn't happen, I was told Liverpool needs me and I accepted that.

"I am not the kind of player that likes to be benched and earn money. Some people around me advised me 'what do you care? You are in a big club, shut up, take the money' -- but I am not happy on the bench.

"I feel very happy because all the time I felt Liverpool was by me. I respect that a lot. Klopp told me 'you are a top-class player. We will not let you go on loan. We need you.'"

10.30 BST: The transfer window for Europe's major leagues is closed again for the rest of the year, but how did your team do? Did they leave any gaps?

Our correspondents assess how the top clubs failed to address their weaknesses this summer. Read their verdicts here.

10:09 BST: Here is some Real Madrid transfer news -- of sorts. Los Blancos had been worried they would not be allowed to register Rodrygo for the first-team squad this season despite signing the young forward from Santos this summer in a deal worth €54m.

The problem was that they already had all three of their places for non-EU players taken up by Uruguayan Federico Valverde and Brazilian duo Vinicius Jr. and Eder Militao.

However, Spanish broadcaster La Sexta reports that Valverde managed to obtain a Spanish passport before the Sept. 2 deadline, opening up a space for young Brazilian forward Rodrygo in the senior squad and avoiding him being consigned to a season with the club's B team.

09.34 BST: Borussia Dortmund captain Marco Reus has promised to do all he can in 2020 when Bundesliga's biggest talent, Kai Havertz, might leave Bayer Leverkusen.

This summer, Reus persuaded Leverkusen's Julian Brandt that the Borussia Dortmund project was one with a big future. He maybe even played a key role as BVB beat several competitors in Germany and abroad.

"I will give it my best, just like I did with Julian," Reus told Sport 1.

However, Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc reminded his star man to concentrate on more pressing matters, following last weekend's 3-1 defeat at Union Berlin.

"Everyone involved ought to focus on the ongoing season," Zorc told kicker.

Leverkusen have in the past stated that Havertz could become the first German player to break the €100m barrier. Dortmund's record transfer currently stands at €31m, the fee paid for Mats Hummels' return from Bayern Munich.

09.05 BST: Shinji Okazaki has already found himself another club following his exit from Malaga this week after just 34 days.

The Japan international's contract was cancelled by mutual consent, with neither Malaga nor the player revealing the reason for parting ways. However, Malaga were unable to register the Japan international as it would have exceeded the team's salary cap.

The former Leicester City striker has joined another Spanish club, Huesca.

08.27 BST: Inter Milan are already looking ahead to the future as they continue talks with Flamengo over on-loan star Gabriel Barbosa, Calciomercato reports.

The man popularly known as "Gabigol" was said to be up for grabs for a fee of around €18 million, and while that may be an eye-catching figure that most pundits are focusing on, it would seem as if there's more to this than meets the eye.

One of the sticking points in the deal revolves around the forward's high wages, with the Brazilian side wanting to lower it in order for a deal to be struck.

Both parties are optimistic that some kind of agreement will be arranged to see "Gabigol" join Flamengo permanently, but for the time being they remain at an impasse.

08.00 BST: Chelsea are no longer concerned that forward Callum Hudson-Odoi will leave the club and expect him to sign a new contract when he returns from injury, according to football.london.

Hudson-Odoi had been close to a move to Bayern Munich last season as his contract situation at Stamford Bridge remained unresolved and he found first-team opportunities under ex-coach Maurizio Sarri hard to come by.

However, the 18-year-old suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon in April, ruling him out for the remainder of the season and any potential summer move.

The England international is now back in full training, and football.london reports that an announcement of a new contract at Chelsea could be timed around his return to action.

PAPER TALK (by Harry Kettle): Azpilicueta destined to leave Chelsea?

The Daily Express is reporting that two La Liga clubs are looking into the possibility of signing Chelsea defender Cesar Azpilicueta.

The Blues have endured a questionable start to the new Premier League campaign to say the least, with the Spanish veteran taking a big portion of the blame from fans in recent weeks.

- UCL draw: Madrid get PSG; Barca, BVB, Inter together
- Ogden: Draw good for English clubs; tricky for Spain
- Champions League group stage: Day-by-day fixtures

Azpilicueta will face a battle to maintain his place in the starting XI once youngster Reece James returns to full fitness, which will begin the debate as to which of the two will start. If James gets the nod, both Real Sociedad and one other club are willing to offer Azpilicueta a route out of Stamford Bridge.

Pep could spend in January after Laporte blow

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola will consider the possibility of bringing in a brand new defender in during the January transfer window, The Sun reports.

The comes after Aymeric Laporte's knee injury, which left the France international needing surgery. He's expected to be out for a minimum of four months, and given the nature of City's schedule between now and then, Pep will be begging for the winter market to open up once again.

Guardiola clearly didn't feel the need to bring in too many new faces in the summer after securing the domestic Treble, but his hand may well be forced.

Tap-ins

- Emre Can has issued a statement via Instagram in the wake of great speculation over his future with Italian champions Juventus. The midfielder noted that while he will always be grateful to the club and that out of respect for his fellow teammates, he said he was shocked in the wake of being left out of Sarri's Champions League squad.

- AC Milan target Angel Correa did not take part in Atletico Madrid's evening training on Wednesday, Marca reports. The 24-year-old was said to be on the verge of making the switch over to the San Siro during the summer transfer window but it never quite came to fruition. The belief is that despite Correa seemingly being unsettled, the reason behind him missing the session was purely because Diego Simeone did not want to overwork the Argentine -- although the speculation will undoubtedly continue to mount.

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