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LIVE Transfer Talk: PSG begin pursuit of Kessie as midfielder's Milan contract winds down

The summer transfer window is closed for the top leagues in Europe! After a summer full of international football, countless clubs waited until the last minute to pull off their transfers. See all the major deals here and check out how we graded the biggest signings. But just because the window is shut until January, that doesn't mean the rumours won't keep coming.

TOP STORY: PSG begin Kessie pursuit

Tottenham Hotspur are showing an interest in signing AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie, but according to Footmercato, the North London club could face competition from a side that has proven to be big hitters in the summer transfer market: Paris Saint-Germain.

The Parisians made great use of the free agent market, bringing in Lionel Messi, Georginio Wijnaldum, Sergio Ramos and Gianluigi Donnarumma without paying any transfer fees. And it seems as though they will be looking to use the same tactic next year, with Kessie's contract coming to an end in 2022.

Footmercato states that PSG have already started work on a deal for the 24-year-old Ivory Coast international by offering a yearly salary of €9 million -- €2.2m more than Milan's latest proposal. They have also spoken to Rossoneri technical director Paolo Maldini, just in case the Serie A side try to offload the midfielder in January in order to avoid losing him for free in the summer.

It is suggested that Kessie could merely be using PSG's interest in order to force Milan into giving him a better deal, but the intentions are very clear from the Parc des Princes.

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LIVE BLOG

21.42 BST: Barcelona will target Valencia's Jose Gaya as a replacement for Jordi Alba next summer, according to Le10 Sport. The club are reported to have been tracking Gaya for some time, and with Junior Firpo offloaded to Leeds United, Joan Laporta is keen to target a player who can take the place of the Blaugrana's starting left-back.

20.55 BST: Portuguese outlet A Bola writes that Benfica have rejected a €30m bid for Rafa from Zenit St. Petersburg. The Russian Premier League champions have made the Portugal international a priority in this window, but have now seen their second bid turned down by As Aguias. The 28-year-old is seen as an important part of the Benfica squad, having contributed to 10 goals in 27 starts last season in Liga NOS.

20.08 BST: Fenerbahce are interested in signing Marcelo from Real Madrid, according to Le10 Sport. The Turkish Super Lig club will look to get a deal done before the transfer window expires, but with just one year remaining on the Brazil star's contract, the Istanbul club could wait if they are unable to get over the stumbling block of matching the 33-year-old's £266,000-a-week wages.

19.21 BST: Samu Castillejo looks set to stay with AC Milan despite reports of an approach from CSKA Moscow. That's according to Calciomercato, who writes that the two clubs could not agree on terms that would see the winger move to the Russian Premier League club, despite negotiating for a number of days. The 26-year-old has been the subject of interest from multiple clubs over the transfer window, but it looks as though Milan are in no rush to move on the versatile star who made 28 league appearances last season.

18.34 BST: Jesse Lingard's future at Manchester United has been cast into doubt, with ESPN's Rob Dawson reporting that the 28-year-old has rejected a new deal.

The attacking midfielder will become a free agent next summer with just one year remaining on his contract, and wants to be assured of regular first-team appearances before agreeing new terms at Old Trafford. The England international enjoyed a breakout campaign last season while on loan at West Ham United, which saw him contribute to 13 goals in 16 league games.

Read the full story.

17.47 BST: Borussia Monchengladbach are keen to lockdown Matthias Ginter to new terms as they begin contract talks with the defender, according to Ekrem Konur. It is reported that the Bundesliga club plan to reward the 27-year-old with a three-year extension to his deal.

17.00 BST: Defensa Central reports that PSG are fearful that Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba will spurn them for a move to Real Madrid.

Pogba, 28, has a contract which expires in 2022 and looks set to depart United on a free transfer.

PSG were pursuing a move for Pogba in the summer transfer window before they landed Lionel Messi, but are still keen to add the France international to their squad.

Pogba is permitted to hold talks with foreign clubs from Jan. 1, but is reported to favour a move to Madrid.

15.30 BST: Liverpool are approaching a contract cliff-edge, writes Gab Marcotti.

The next six months are going to be critical for Liverpool, and they neatly illustrate the importance of getting the age balance right in your squad.

Having negotiated contract extensions with Virgil Van Dijk (through 2025, when he'll be on the verge of his 34th birthday) and Jordan Henderson (also 2025, when he'll be 35), they have some big decisions to make over their attacking trio of Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino. All three are 29 and all three are in the final two years of their contract. In normal circumstances, the rule is that ideally you extend a player you want to keep before he enters the last two years of his contract or, if you can't get the deal done, you find him a new club.

Obviously, the past two years have been anything but normal circumstances for Liverpool (who are hamstrung in other ways, as this thread by the excellent Swiss Ramble illustrates) but that doesn't make their decisions any more straightforward.

There's only so much cash to go around. Committing yourself for multiple years to too many highly-paid players beyond their 31st birthday is risky. They are difficult to sell (because they're older and make more money), and performances often tend to decline when a player hits his 30s. Plus, it means there are less resources available to strengthen other areas.

This is going to be one of the last big decisions Michael Edwards -- their widely respected sporting director and, along with Jurgen Klopp, the architect of this team -- makes before he moves on at the end of the season. It may not grab the headlines, but it's critical Liverpool get it right.

14.42 BST: Look who is back...

14.30 BST: Manchester United are still keen on signing Dortmund striker Erling Haaland next summer.

13.32 BST: Fabrizio Romano reports that Atlanta United will return to sign Velez Sarsfield forward Thiago Almada in January after talks collapsed last July.

Almada, 20, is one of Argentina's brightest young stars and has been linked with a move to French side Marseille. However, MLS team Atlanta were also close to signing him before Visa issues complicated the transfer.

Rumours that Inter Milan have been tracked the forward are apparently wide of the mark.

12.45 BST: Manchester City and PSG are keen to sign AC Milan left-back Theo Hernandez, says Calciomercato.

Hernandez, 23, has played 83 times for Milan over the past three seasons -- scoring 15 goals -- after leaving Real Madrid for around €20m

The France U20 international has impressed in Serie A and now has City and PSG on his trail.

12.05 BST: It's Turkish Deadline Day on Wednesday but Arsenal midfielder Mohamed Elneny won't be moving to Besiktas or Galatasaray, says TalkSPORT.

Elneny, 29, spent the 2019-20 season on loan with Besiktas but the Egypt international reportedly wants around €2.5m a year over a four-year contract to sign permanently.

Neither Turkish club are willing to pay that and will wait to reignite their interest once his contract expires in 2022.

11.34 BST: Gerard Pique said his relationship with former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola changed after he started dating the Colombian singer Shakira.

Pique re-joined Barca from Manchester United in 2008 and was part of the team that won three LaLiga titles and had two Champions League successes in the next four years under Guardiola. However, by the final year of Guardiola's time on the Camp Nou bench, Pique said several factors had taken their toll on the relationship between the manager and his players.

"We reached a moment of tension with him, not just me but the dressing room in general," Pique told La Sotana on Monday. "The rivalry with Jose Mourinho [at Real Madrid] wore us down a lot. Pep wanted absolute control over everything that was happening.

"I started dating Shakira and our relationship changed. Now, the relationship is perfect. But there was a lot of pressure on me then. I felt like I had to do everything in training perfectly. If there was a moment I thought about leaving Barca, it was that [2011-12] season. I struggled in that last season with Guardiola."

11.00 BST: Mario Mandzukic was some player.

10.20 BST: Liverpool, Barcelona and Bayern Munich are all interested in FC Salzburg forward Karim Adeyemi, says Bild.

Adeyemi, 19, scored on his debut for Germany in the 6-0 win over Armenia on Sunday and has 17 goals in 59 games for the club since arriving in 2019.

The forward played at Bayern during his youth career but has now attracted attention from some other top European sides.

09.26 BST: Barcelona president Joan Laporta has revealed he tried to bring back Neymar to Camp Nou this summer.

The Brazilian star left Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2017 for a world-record €222m fee. Since then, Neymar has been constantly linked with a return to Barcelona.

"We tried to sign Neymar," Laporta said. "We found out that he was crazy about coming. We interpreted the [financial] fair play differently, had we known then that we could not register [Lionel] Messi, we would not have tried to."

Laporta, meanwhile, denied that his team received a €100m bid from a European club for teenage sensation Ansu Fati. Manchester United were among the clubs reportedly keen to sign the Spain international.

"We've never tried to transfer Ansu Fati," Laporta said. "We try to keep the players that have a presented and good future at the club. Another thing is the rumours. I heard that there was a €100m offer, it came out in the papers. But at no time did we receive that [offer]."

08.41 BST: Donny van de Beek says he trusts Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that he remains in the Manchester United manager's plans, but says "I have to play more."

Van de Beek has started just four Premier League games since arriving at Old Trafford from Ajax a year ago in a £35m transfer.

"I need to trust him," Van de Beek told Rio Ferdinand on the Vibe with Five podcast. "If he doesn't need me I think he will let me go. I think he has plans for me, I just need to work hard and I hope one day I can show the people what I can do.

"You can never promise a player if he will play or not but I agree that I have to play more. You can train hard every day but in the end you need game time to show you're best shape. If you play once in a month you can't show your best."

The Netherlands international was speaking after his agent revealed there had been talks with Everton during the summer transfer window.

Guido Albers told Ziggo Sport: "We had conversations with Solskjaer and the board. We took the initiative to find a club and our search ended up at Everton. We opened talks with Marcel Brands and Farhad Moshiri.

"On Monday night [prior to deadline day] we received a call from Solskjaer and the club who told us that a transfer was out of the question and that he had to report himself to training the next morning."

08.00 BST: Manchester United remain keen on West Ham United's Declan Rice despite deciding against investing in a midfielder this summer, sources have told ESPN's Rob Dawson.

Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward were aware of the clamour among supporters to sign a new midfielder during the transfer window, but sources have told ESPN that a winger and centre-back were identified as the club's primary targets.

The summer budget was spent on winger Jadon Sancho and defender Raphael Varane, while a deal for forward Cristiano Ronaldo was financed with funds from outside the transfer pot.

Sources have told ESPN that a striker and a midfielder are on the list ahead of next summer with England international Rice among a number of options that will be narrowed down over the course of the next 12 months.

It is likely West Ham would have to lower their valuation of the 22-year-old -- who is under contract until 2024 -- which has stood at more than £80m.

PAPER GOSSIP (by Danny Lewis)

- Real Madrid may have been unable to sign Kylian Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain this summer, but this has not dimmed their ambitions ahead of entering the new Estadio Santiago Bernabeu. Marca reports that Los Blancos still want Mbappe, while aiming for him to also be joined by Borussia Dortmund's Erling Haaland and Manchester United's Paul Pogba. Marcelo, Isco and Gareth Bale are all out of contract at the end of the season and are expected to leave the club on free transfers, clearing significant space on the club's wage bill.

- Calciomercato has laid out a list of French players that Juventus are interested in, with Marseille's Boubacar Kamara the latest to catch their eye -- especially as the 21-year-old midfielder's contract comes to an end in the summer. He is far from alone, though, as The Old Lady are also said to be considering Lyon pair Houssem Aouar and Rayan Cherki, as well as AS Monaco duo Aurelien Tchouameni and Benoit Badiashile.

- With Aleksandar Kolarov and Ivan Perisic's contracts both expiring at the end of the season, Internazionale are looking for players who could come in on the left side next season, reports Calciomercato. It is suggested that they could return to former targets and look at Chelsea's Marcos Alonso, Eintracht Frankfurt's Filip Kostic and VfB Stuttgart's Borna Sosa.

- Bayern Munich are set to sign 16-year-old Croatian wunderkind Lovro Zvonarek for an initial €1.8m, which could rise to around €5m, as has been reported by Sport Bild. The attacking midfielder already plays in the Croatian top flight for Slaven Belupo Koprivnica, where he will stay for now, as the youngster will join Bayern's academy in January 2022 at the earliest.

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