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: Roma hope to win race for Dybala
Paulo Dybala remains a free agent after leaving Juventus at the expiry of his contract at the start of the month, but AS Roma are hoping to beat Serie A rivals Inter Milan and Napoli to his signature.
Dybala, 28, was expected to sign for Inter, but talks over a contract failed to come to an agreement. Now Roma boss Jose Mourinho believes he can persuade the midfielder to move to Rome -- even though he cannot offer Champions League football.
Corriere dello Sport reports that Roma will put a contract offer on the table in the next 24 hours after Mourinho personally spoke to the Argentina international on the phone on Saturday to sell the project to him. The club are growing increasingly confident that they can get him to join them.
However, Roma are not prepared to wait around for an answer and will switch targets to free agent Jesse Lingard or Atalanta's Mario Pasalic if they are left hanging.
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21.57 BST: Sky Sport Germany's Florian Plettenberg writes that Ajax are now in pole position to sign RB Leipzig forward Brian Brobbey less than 18 months after the former Netherlands youth international swapped Amsterdam for the Bundesliga. Manchester United also are said to be interested in the 20-year-old, but Ajax and Leipzig reportedly are expected to finalise a deal in the coming days.
21.30 BST: Dries Mertens' Napoli contract expired on June 30, and has been negotiating for a new contract to remain with the club, but manager Luciano Spaletti is already talking about the forward like he's followed the likes of Kalidou Koulibaly and Lorenzo Insigne out the door.
"Some players have left and take things with them," Spaletti is quoted as saying by Calciomercato, "people like [David] Ospina, [Faouzi] Ghoulam, Koulibaly, Mertens and Insigne bring a lot of things with them."
21.03 BST: Marseille have agreed personal terms on a four-year contract with Chelsea midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko, but will need to convince coach Igor Tudor - who was appointed to the role just two weeks ago - before negotiating a transfer fee with the Stamford Bridge hierarchy, reports Foot Mercato. Valencia manager Gennaro Gattuso is also interested in bringing the 27-year-old to LaLiga.
20.36 BST: With Kalidou Koulibaly now at Chelsea, Napoli are in the market for a new centre-back, and have begun a charm offensive to convince Abdou Diallo of Paris Saint-Germain to move to Naples, according to Sky Sport Italia. Diallo and Koulibaly both represent Senegal at international level, and Napoli's now-departed stalwart has allegedly advised his countryman to take his place in the Napoli defence.
20.09 BST: Burnley have rejected a proposal from Everton that would see attacker Maxwel Cornet move to Goodison Park on loan with an option to make the transfer permanent, the Sun writes. The recently relegated Clarets instead want a permanent deal from the outset, and will sanction the former Lyon starlet's departure for a transfer fee of £18m.
19.42 BST: Foot Mercato reports that Bayern Munich see 17-year-old Stade Rennais striker Mathys Tel as the potential heir to the Bavarians' No. 9 shirt, but it will cost them. The Ligue 1 outfit are demanding a transfer fee of €30m France youth international who has played just 79 minutes of senior first-team football.
19.15 BST: Newcastle United are keen to add winger Jack Harrison to their ranks this summer, but Leeds United won't let him go easily, according to the Mail. Jesse Marsch & Co. will demand a transfer fee of £35m to sanction the exit of the 25-year-old former New York City FC prodigy.
The Magpies are also looking at 18-year-old Aston Villa midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka, but will face stiff competition for his signature from Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund. Eddie Howe wants to add a young forward to his squad, having missed out on Hugo Ekitike to PSG, and have made contact with Bordeaux over a deal for 19-year-old Sekou Mara.
18.48 BST: The latest on Juventus' pursuit of AS Roma attacker Nicolo Zaniolo comes from Tuttosport, which writes that the Bianconeri will look to offer the Italian capital club a transfer fee of €40m in addition to midfielder Arthur. Jose Mourinho reportedly is aware of Zaniolo's desire to move to Turin, and is happy to add the former Barcelona man to his midfield, and now expects the operation to conclude quickly.
18.21 BST: Bayern Munich have joined Borussia Dortmund, West Ham United and Newcastle United in the race for TSG Hoffenheim left-back David Raum, Kicker reports. And with so many well-funded clubs interested, Hoffenheim are holding out for a transfer fee of between €30m and €40m to facilitate the 24-year-old's exit.
Bayern, though, are hoping to get him for considerably less, and will look to do so by offering centre-back Chris Richards in exchange. The 22-year-old centre-back has spent the past 18 months on loan at Hoffenheim, who are keen on signing the United States international on a permanent basis, potentially paving the way for a player-plus-cash deal that appeases all parties.
17.54 BST: With Bayern Munich continuing negotiations over a transfer for Matthijs de Ligt, Juventus are beginning to identify a replacement, according to Gazzetta dello Sport. Bremer is high up the Bianconeri's list, but he's looking increasingly destined for Inter Milan, which has led Juve to Pau Torres of Villarreal.
That operation won't be cheap, however, with the Spanish club seeking a transfer fee of €50m to sanction the departure of the 25-year-old centre-back. Arsenal's Gabriel is also being considered, but a deal for the Brazilian would be similarly expensive.
17.27 BST: Fabrizio Romano has the latest on Chelsea's quest for another centre-back, and the ramifications of that search.
Let's start with Presnel Kimpembe. Paris Saint-Germain are said to want a €60m transfer fee for the 26-year-old France international, while the Blues will instead offer a fee of around €50m to complete a deal.
Should Kimpembe end up at Stamford Bridge, PSG will need a replacement in the heart of their defence, and have identified 20-year-old Goncalo Inacio of Sporting CP as the man to pick up the slack in Paris.
Finally, Chelsea have restarted negotiations with Sevilla in hopes of bringing Jules Kounde to west London. They'll have to work quickly, though, because Barcelona are also keen on securing the signature of the 23-year-old Frenchman.
17.00 BST: Round and round we go with the Frenkie De Jong to Manchester United saga. The latest comes from Sport, which insists the player has no desire to move to Old Trafford, and in fact the only club he would leave Barcelona for is Bayern Munich.
De Jong, 25, has been chased by United all summer, with the Red Devils prepared to wait until deadline day on Sept. 1 to get their man if necessary. While publicly Barca have said they will not look for a new club for the Netherlands international, his departure would certainly help the club's financial situation. De Jong has been included in Barcelona's preaseason tour to the United States.
There has been no suggestion that Bayern are at all interested in De Jong and are actually prioritising his former Ajax teammate, centre-back Matthijs de Ligt of Juvents.
16.21 BST: TMW adds further fuel to the fire that Alvaro Morata could still head back to Juventus for next season.
Morata, 29, spent the last two seasons on loan at Juve from Atletico Madrid, but the Serie A outfit chose not to activate the €35m option to make the deal a permanent one.
However, Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri is still eager to keep the forward in his squad, and the latest report suggests another loan deal could be in the offing -- this time with a binding obligation to keep the player.
Atletico want the striker off their wage bill but are struggling to find another other club who are interested, so this could be the best option.
That said, there are conflicting reports in Spain. AS says it is 99% sure that Morata will stay at Atletico with his children now enrolled at a school in Madrid.
15.37 BST: Sport is reporting that Tottenham Hotspur have made a move to sign Memphis Depay from Barcelona.
Depay, 28, joined Barca on a free transfer from Lyon 12 months ago but is now deemed surplus to requirements following the arrival of several attacking players in 2022.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Ferran Torres and Raphinha have already arrived, and will soon be joined by Robert Lewandowski after Barca agreed terms with Bayern Munich.
It means Depay will struggle to get first-team minutes this season, while Barca would also like to get him off the wage bill. However, the player is said to not favour a return to the Premier League after a disappointing spell at Manchester United.
The report says that Spurs are in talks over a deal worth €17m, though Barca are looking for €20m. The Netherlands international has one year remaining on his contract.
15.00 BST: Big news just in! Manchester United have agreed a deal to sign Lisandro Martinez from Eredivisie champions Ajax.
Subject to a medical and agreeing personal terms, Martinez will sign a five-year contract at Old Trafford to reunite with former manager Erik ten Hag.
Ajax have announced the transfer fee to be €57.37m with a further €10m in potential add-ons.
ESPN previously reported the 24-year-old was keen on a move to Premier League with United his favoured destination. Sources told ESPN that a breakthrough had been made and that Martinez rejected interest from Arsenal.
An agreement has been reached for the transfer of Lisandro Martinez 🔴🇦🇷#MUFC || @LisandrMartinez
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) July 17, 2022
14.22 BST: AC Milan are set to make a third transfer offer for Club Brugge forward Charles De Ketelaere.
De Ketelaere, 21, is also wanted by Leeds United, who have made higher offer than Milan, but the Belgium international favours a move to Serie A.
The latest Milan offer is set to be €30m plus €5m in add-ons, which will still be slightly below the proposal from Leeds.
Calciomercato reports that personal terms have already been agreed with the player over a five-year deal worth around €2.5m a season.
13.41 BST: Real Sociedad are on the verge of signing Take Kubo from Real Madrid, according to local reports. The Basque outfit will reportedly pay a transfer fee of €6m to Madrid to acquire 50% of Kubo's sporting rights. Madrid will include a buy-back clause in the contract.
Kubo, 21, is expected to sign a contract with the San Sebastian-based club until June 2027.
Since joining Madrid in July 2019 from FC Tokyo, the winger has played on loan at Real Mallorca, Villarreal and Getafe. Kubo made 27 league appearances in his second loan spell at Mallorca last season. He is under contract with Madrid until June 2024.
13.20 BST: Portugal midfielder Franscisco Conceicao is on the verge of joining Ajax from FC Porto, Record reports. Ajax will trigger the 19-year-old's €5m release clause.
Francisco is the son of FC Porto coach Sergio Conceicao and made 39 league appearances since gaining promotion to the first team in February 2021. FC Porto wanted Francisco, who is under contract with Porto for another season, to stay but the player has reportedly decided to leave the Dragao to continue his career without being in his father's shadow.
13.02 BST: Manchester United are ready to join the chase for Brentford striker Ivan Toney, reports the Sunday Mirror.
Toney, 26, scored 12 goals last season in his debut Premier League campaign, having netted 31 times in the Championship in 2020-21 to fire the Bees into the top flight.
Leeds United, Newcastle United and West Ham United have already been linked, but now Erik ten Hag is said to be monitoring the situation for the Red Devils.
The report says that Man United will only take their interest further should either Cristiano Ronaldo or Anthony Martial leave the club.
Toney started his career at Newcastle before making his name at Peterborough United.
12.20 BST: Barcelona are not looking to slow down in the transfer market and have now turned their focus on signing Sevilla's Jules Kounde, El Mundo Deportivo reports.
On Saturday, Barca reached agreement to sign Robert Lewandowski from Bayern Munich to bolster their attack and are now prepared to strengthen their defensive line with the arrival of Kounde.
Barca coach Xavi is a big admirer of the former Bordeaux star. The French centre-back is expected to leave Sevilla this summer and is a target of top European clubs including Chelsea and Tottenham.
Kounde, 23, is in California recovering from a groin operation he underwent last month. He is under contract with Sevilla through June 2024.
11.38 BST: Remember Phil Jones? The Sun on Sunday reports that the Manchester United defender, who remarkably still has another year to run on his contract, is wanted by Wayne Rooney at D.C. United.
Rooney was appointed as the new coach of the MLS side on Tuesday, and is looking to bring in new players before the transfer window closes in a few weeks.
He tried to sign Jones on loan when he was manager of Derby County last season, before the club hit financial troubles.
United are eager to get Jones' £100,000-a-week wage off their books, but he may have to take a significant pay cut to move to D.C. United.
11.00 BST: Arsenal are confident of landing left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko from Manchester City for £30m. On Friday, ESPN sources revealed that the two clubs were in talks, and now the The Sun says that the Gunners are close to landing their fifth signing of the summer having agreed the fee.
Technical director Edu Gaspar is now working to finalise the deal, which hinges on being able to agree personal terms with the 25-year-old. Zinchenko isn't willing to play as backup to Kieran Tierney, and instead he's keen to find out exactly what role he'll have to play at the Emirates if he moves to north London.
To that end, Arteta is considering using Zinchenko in a central midfield role, which is an area of the pitch that has been causing him issues not only last season, but throughout preseason too.
Arsenal have already signed Gabriel Jesus, Fabio Vieira, Marquinhos and Matt Turner.
10.12 BST: Bayern Munich have once again distanced themselves from a move for Manchester United striker Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo has made an official request to leave United this summer so he can continue to play Champions League football, sources have confirmed to ESPN.
Bayern were thought to be one of the few clubs in the Champions League that could afford the 37-year-old, but they have no intention of making an offer.
"I love Cristiano Ronaldo, a fantastic player, but each club has a philosophy and I am not sure if it would be the right signal for Bayern and the Bundesliga to send if we were to sign him now," Bayern CEO Oliver Kahn said.
Sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic added: "I have a lot of respect for Cristiano Ronaldo, but we are not interested in him."
And coach Julian Nagelsmann joined the band of officials to deny the reports, saying: "I saw all of the rumours about my interest in signing Cristiano Ronaldo, but it is not true."
On Saturday, Bayern confirmed Robert Lewandowski will join Barcelona after the clubs reached a verbal agreement for his transfer on Saturday.
09.30 BST: ICYMI last night, Paris Saint-Germain completed the signing of striker Hugo Ekitike on loan from Stade de Reims.
Ekitike, 20, turned down a move to Newcastle United in favour of the switch to PSG, who he joins on a season-long loan with the option to make the switch permanent.
Paris Saint-Germain is pleased to announce the arrival of Hugo Ekitiké from Stade de Reims. ✍️
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) July 16, 2022
The French striker is on loan, with an option to buy, until the end of the season. 🔴🔵#WelcomeHugohttps://t.co/SSOzpWUXpq
PAPER GOSSIP
- Barcelona have expressed an interest in Carney Chukwuemeka, and now Aston Villa seem willing to part with a player who won the European Under-19 Championship with England. Fabrizio Romano reports that Villa are looking for a transfer fee of around £20m, but Barca face stiff competition from a number of other clubs. Chukwuemeka is entering the final year of his contract, which means Aston Villa face the prospect of losing him for nothing next summer if they don't tie him to a new deal.
- Inter Milan are pushing to finalise a deal for Torino centre-back Bremer, according to Alfredo Pedulla. Personal terms with the 25-year-old were agreed in January, and now his representatives will meet with Torino in an effort to get the move sorted as early as Monday as Simone Inzaghi looks to complete his squad additions. Bremer has also interested Juventus and a number of English clubs, including Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.
- Nicolo Zaniolo has been in good goal-scoring form for AS Roma during preseason and Juventus are said to be monitoring the midfielder's contract discussions. Calciomercato reports that, while the 23-year-old's existing contract is due to end in 2024, he's keen to renew, but only with an increase in salary. Juve could be able to tempt him to Turin for a fee of around €40-45m, with a percentage of any resale heading back to the Italian capital.