The transfer windows in Europe's top leagues are closed, but it's never too early to look forward to January. Click here to view the latest transfers, and keep up to date with the newest gossip below.
TOP STORY: Liverpool join race for PSG's Neymar?
The future of Paris Saint-Germain star Neymar was never going to be simple. The Brazil forward is the world's most expensive player after joining the French club from Barcelona in 2017 for €222m, but now he's looking for an exit and Liverpool are the latest to join the race, according to Le Parisien.
The paper reports that PSG want to keep Neymar, but they also have Kylian Mbappe's future to think about, and could lower their demands to consider offers in the region of €180m, which has put the likes of Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea on alert, along with Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus.
Marca reports that Neymar will stay put in the French capital in January, but that the situation will be revisited during the summer. In the last transfer window, the Brazilian -- still the 8th best forward in the world according to the ESPN FC 100 -- pushed for a move to Barcelona, but PSG saw the Spanish giants' offer as insufficient.
Jurgen Klopp ruled out a move for Mbappe in November but, while a double swoop (which has been reported in some outlets) seems massively unlikely, if the Reds could add Neymar to an already formidable attack of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino, then they would be unstoppable.
LIVE BLOG
23.30 GMT: 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!
22.51 GMT: Real Madrid are currently tied atop La Liga but could Zinedine Zidane and Co. be poised to make a major chance in January?
Spanish outlet El Desmarque writes that Real Madrid are considering swapping former Ballon d'Or winner Luka Modric for... Napoli centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly.
Modric , who scored a UCL record goal on Wednesday, has regressed a bit following Croatia's run to the 2018 World Cup final and Madrid won't want to lose the central midfielder, whose contract is up at the end of the season, for free this summer. The report suggests that Los Blancos are willing to offer Modric plus €50 million for the Senegalese defender.
Napoli are a club in turmoil at the moment and Koulibaly, who is rated among the world's top defenders, could be available. Florentino Perez reportedly is a big fan of Koulibaly's and could be willing to sacrifice Modric because of Madrid's options in midfield with Toni Kroos, Casemiro, James Rodriguez and Isco.
That would be a big one for the sometimes dull January window...
22.04 GMT: Staying in MLS for a moment...
Orlando City SC have a new manager in Oscar Pareja and could soon have a new striker. Pareja confirmed to Colombian radio show El Alargue that the club have interest in prolific Independiente Medellin hitman German Cano.
The 31-year-old Argentine, who also spent time in Liga MX with Pachuca and Leon, has been in torrid form in Colombia for Medellin. Cano bagged 31 goals in 35 games last season for El Equipo del Pueblo and has bagged 94 in 134 for the club in all. Cano has said he wants to leave the Medellin and it sounds as if his next move could be MLS, which is becoming ever-popular with South Americans, particularly Argentines.
Orlando City have never made the MLS playoffs but boast former United winger Nani and previously employed AC Milan and Brazil legend Kaka.
21.24 GMT: Toronto FC are set to re-sign midfielder and USMNT member Michael Bradley, sources tell ESPN.
The 32-year-old central midfielder's contract expired at the end of the season, but TFC have decided to extend Bradley's time north of the border. Bradley, who joined the Reds in 2014 on a $6.5 million-a-year deal, has led TFC to new heights, notably an MLS Cup triumph in 2017 and a near miss via penalty shootout in the CONCACAF Champions League final in 2018.
Bradley, who has played club football in the U.S., Holland, Germany, Italy, England and Canada, has played 201 times for TFC, scoring 13 goals and adding 16 assists.
20.51 GMT: Remember all the Thomas Lemar hype? The French winger was the trendy name back in 2017 when both Liverpool and Arsenal heavily pursued the then-Monaco man.
Lemar eventually got his move to Atletico Madrid in 2018 -- for £63 million -- but Spain has proved a bit of a rude awakening for the France international. Having contributed just three goals and six assists in 61 games for Los Rojiblancos, including zero goals and zero assists this season, Lemar finds himself outside of Diego Simeone's preferred XI. In fact, France Football goes as far as to say, that the Atletico coaches do not want to work him any longer and are hopeful off offloading the 24-year-old in January.
It's been a rough 18 months from Lemar...
20.09 GMT: Aston Villa monitoring £10 million-rated Championship winger?
The Express writes that Dean Smith has sent scouts to watch in-form Millwall ace Jed Wallace multiple times in recent weeks. The 25-year-old, who flopped at Wolves, is in the form of his life at Millwall, bagging eight goals and five assists for the mid-table Lions.
Wallace looks poised to step up a level but would a move to the Premier League be a leap too far?
19.21 GMT: Barcelona have an embarrassment of riches in midfield with Frenkie de Jong, Arthur, Sergio Busquets, Ivan Rakitic, Arturo Vidal and Sergi Roberto all part of the fray. One often forgotten about midfielder is talented youngster Carles Alena, 21.
With playing time even tough to find for experienced global stars like Rakitic and Vidal, Alena might need to leave the Camp Nou for first-team football. Mundo Deportivo reports that Alena will head out on loan in January to Real Betis. The deal has yet to be finalised but the outlet reports an agreement is close and that Alena will head to Seville.
18.46 GMT: Right-back has proved a trouble position for Tottenham with the mercurial Serge Aurier still wildly inconsistent and youngsters Juan Foyth and Kyle Walker-Peters absent in recent months.
Could new manager Jose Mourinho make addressing that position his top priority in January? If Mourinho's No. 2, Joao Sacramento, gets his way then the answer will be yes, according to reports. Turkish outlet Demiroren Haber Ajansı suggests that Sacramento has put in a word with Mourinho about signing Lille and Turkey right-back Zeki Celik.
Sacramento worked with Celik, 22, last season at Lille, when the Turkish lad registered five assists. The swashbuckling full-back would be an appealing option for Spurs, who could certainly upgrade on their current options at right-back.
18.02 GMT: Well that didn't take long....
A day after firing manager Carlo Ancelotti, Napoli have announced Gennaro Gattuso as their new boss.
#WelcomeGattuso 💙 #ForzaNapoliSempre pic.twitter.com/dzmNApimTX
— Official SSC Napoli (@sscnapoli) December 11, 2019
The long-time Milan and Italy midfielder takes over for his former coach and mentor Ancelotti, and inherits a Napoli side that sits a disappointing seventh in the Serie A table and recently staged a mutiny against the club's brass.
The 41-year-old "Rino", who managed Milan for two and a half season between 2017-19, has also had coaching spells at Pisa, OFI Crete and Palermo, while also serving as player/coach at FC Sion for a spell in 2013.
17.15 GMT: Today is clearly 'Chelsea Day' given the news they will spend £150m in January (08.00 GMT) to bolster their squad.
The Guardian reports that Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Bournemouth defender Nathan Ake could take up a large part of that outlay, given one would cost £80m and the other £40m ...
16.30 GMT: Yesterday ESPN brought you the news that Barcelona consider Lautaro Martinez the perfect heir to Luis Suarez but have been put off by Inter Milan's €100m-plus price tag.
But if the Catalans are going to spend that kind of cash, aren't they better off going for Tottenham's Harry Kane?
15.39 GMT: Mundo Deportivo reports that PSG striker Edinson Cavani will leave the club once his contract expires this summer and could join Atletico Madrid.
An injury to Diego Costa could see Atletico move for the Uruguayan in January but they would have to come to an agreement over his salary as they can't afford it currently.
15.03 GMT: Steven Gerrard is set to pen a new deal with Rangers.
"The club approached me probably a week, 10 days ago about a new deal and it's a pretty simple decision as far as I'm concerned," the former Liverpool midfielder said. "I'm happy here and I'm as hungry and determined to get the good days back here as I ever was so talks have been pretty straightforward and positive. When it's signed and announced you'll have to wait and see."
14.42 GMT: Italian outlet Tuttosport reports that Juventus want Chelsea left-back Emerson next summer.
Emerson, 25, hasn't completely settled in London since he moved in January 2018 and he is now being targeted by his former manager Maurizio Sarri as a backup for first-choice Alex Sandro in Turin.
13.57 GMT: SportBild reports on the future of Bayer Leverkusen star Kai Havertz.
Havertz, 20, is one of the most highly-rated midfielders in Europe and looks set to leave the club in the summer. Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Liverpool and "the two Manchester clubs" are keen, with United evidently very interested in the Germany international.
The fact that it would need a bid of over €100m would rule out a few clubs -- possibly even Bayern given they tend not to spend big -- but "the new Mesut Ozil" could be on the move soon. Just not to Arsenal.
12.42 GMT: Inter Milan wonderkid Sebastiano Esposito is the subject of interest from Liverpool and Man City, but he won't be leaving, says FC Inter News.
Esposito, 17, is also courting attention from Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund but, given he's a fan of Inter, doesn't look set to be departing any time soon.
12.01 GMT: Olivier Giroud looks set to quit Chelsea in January, especially given that the club are tracking other strikers (see 10.07).
Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid are keen, says Football.London and even if he doesn't depart next month, Chelsea will not be offering him a new contract in the summer when it expires.
11.22 GMT: Arsenal want a new manager; Napoli just sacked Carlo Ancelotti ... do you see where we are going with this?
10.43 GMT: Carlos Vela has an offer to join Barcelona in the January transfer window, LA Galaxy midfielder Jonathan Dos Santos has claimed.
Vela, a forward with LAFC, was a Barcelona target a year ago but the La Liga champions opted to sign Kevin Prince-Boateng instead.
"It's true that he has that offer on the table and I honestly don't know what he is going to do," Mexico international Dos Santos, a youth product of Barcelona, told Colombian radio station W Radio. "He is very happy in Los Angeles, with his team. It's a unique opportunity the fact that Barcelona wants him, it's the best team in the world. As a Mexican I hope that it can happen for him."
10.07 GMT: Chelsea's priority is to sign a striker now that their transfer ban has been lifted for January.
Tammy Abraham has done wonderfully so far this season but they want him to have some competition for the starting role and reportedly scouted Lyon's Moussa Dembele and RB Leipzig's Timo Werner in the Champions League last night, according to the Daily Mail.
Dembele has been linked to Manchester United and is valued around £40m, while Werner has attracted interest from Liverpool and Bayern, but extended his contract recently, with a fee of £52m believed to be enough to land him.
09.38 GMT: ICYMI last night -- Manchester United's head global scout watched FC Salzburg's Champions League match against Liverpool to monitor Erling Haaland, according to our Mark Ogden, who says that the Red Devils have been scouting the 19-year-old striker for 18 months, dating back to his time at Molde.
09.07 GMT: Burnley manager Sean Dyche says he accepts that midfielder Dwight McNeil will almost certainly move on to a bigger club in the future, but only when the right bid comes in.
The Sun reported last week that Manchester United were monitoring the 20-year-old, who is valued at £35m.
Speaking about the England under-21 international, who left United's youth set-up for Burnley's five years ago, Dyche said: "Look, we know Dwight is a player who will certainly go beyond us -- but in a positive way.
"We don't remotely want to lose good players. But eventually some players will outgrow the club in the sense of a bigger club coming along and buying them because of their skill set.
"Dwight is clearly a top talent. He is playing and delivering every week. If he remains grounded and keeps the hard work ethic he's got -- and I'm sure he will do that -- then his talent will continue to shine through. And we're not naïve enough to think it's going to go unnoticed."
08.32 GMT: Barcelona consider Lautaro Martinez the perfect heir to Luis Suarez but sources have told ESPN that the club are looking at more affordable alternatives after being put off by Inter Milan's €100m-plus price tag.
The Spanish champions have been searching for a long-term replacement for Suarez -- who turns 33 in January and has acknowledged the club's need for a succession plan -- for over a year.
Barca believe that, excluding Kylian Mbappe, who Paris Saint-Germain have no intention of selling, Argentina international Martinez is the ideal candidate to replace Suarez. But they have decided to look elsewhere because, according to a source at the Catalan club, Inter are asking for an "excessive" amount of money at a time when there is not a lot of cash in the Camp Nou coffers.
Martinez helped set up teammate Romelu Lukaku's opening goal against Barcelona in their crucial Champions League group-stage clash on Tuesday, but Inter were eliminated after they lost 2-1 at San Siro.
08.00 GMT: Chelsea will not go "crazy" when their transfer ban is lifted in January because the young players who have been given their chance to shine are improving all the time, coach Frank Lampard said on Tuesday.
Chelsea were cleared to sign players in the January transfer window last week after the Court of Arbitration for Sport halved a ban imposed last February for breaching rules on the international transfer and registration of players under 18.
This month the Blues have been linked with moves for many stars including Jadon Sancho, Wilfried Zaha, Ben Chilwell, Nathan Ake, Timo Werner, Fedor Chaley, Moussa Dembele and Hakim Ziyech.
"I am calm about this window, I am very calm about it," Lampard said after Chelsea secured their spot in the last 16 of the Champions League by beating Lille 2-1 at Stamford Bridge.
"We are improving. Even the little bumps of the past two weeks are just part of the process. I believe in what we've got now. I don't think we're going to be crazy just because the ban has been lifted."
PAPER TALK (by Danny Lewis)
Juventus make their opening move for Willian
Serie A giants Juventus have made initial contact with Chelsea in an attempt to secure the January signing of Willian, reports the Express.
The 31-year-old's contract with the Blues comes to an end in the summer, but Chelsea do not want to sell him. And for good reason -- the Brazilian is in good form having played every game bar one, and Frank Lampard is a big fan of the right-sided attacking midfielder.
It is suggested that Willian would rather stay with Chelsea than work under Maurizio Sarri again, due to the style of football played by the Italian. Willian is however free to talk to other clubs in January, so Sarri will need to convince the Brazilian that he is the perfect player to help push Juventus towards another Serie A title.
Spurs have an offer rejected for Edin Dzeko
Tottenham Hotspur have had an offer for Bosnia and Herzegovina talisman Edin Dzeko rejected by AS Roma, as reported by Corriere Dello Sport.
They had touted the striker as a backup option for Harry Kane, but the Serie A outfit have responded stating that their frontman is not for sale.
Dzeko, 33, has been in the Italian capital since the summer of 2016 when he joined from Manchester City for €11m. He has scored 95 goals in 198 matches and added 40 assists.
Tap-ins
- Everton have made Carlo Ancelotti their number one managerial target, with the Italian sacked by Napoli on Tuesday, but they could face competition from Arsenal, says the Telegraph. Ancelotti was relieved of his duties despite a 4-0 win -- and after securing Champions League knockout qualification -- over Genk. Ancelotti is said to fancy a return to England, but he may want to assess all offers before committing.
- It is bad news for Manchester City, as their target Caglar Soyuncu has opened talks about signing a new contract with Leicester City, according to the Mail. Soyuncu has formed a formidable partnership with Jonny Evans this season and his seamless transition into the Premier League had attracted admiring glances from Pep Guardiola. It looks as though Pep may have to cast his net a bit wider, though.
- Inter are showing an interest in signing Barcelona pair Arturo Vidal and Ivan Rakitic, says Marca, with both starting for the Catalans on Tuesday night in their 2-1 win at the San Siro. Neither player has enjoyed a great deal of playing time this season and could fancy a move to Italy, particularly if it means a title challenge and Champions League football next season. Vidal appears to be the higher priority of the two.