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          Transfer Talk: Cristiano Ronaldo's links to Juventus heating up

          • ESPN
          Jul 3, 2018, 12:22 AM

          The transfer window is open, and Transfer Talk has the latest rumours making the rounds. Follow along with our daily blog throughout the summer.

          Real Madrid could accept Juventus offer for Ronaldo

          Real Madrid are set to accept a €100 million offer from Juventus for Cristiano Ronaldo, according to Spanish TV show "Jugones."

          The show, broadcast on Spanish station La Sexta, claimed the Portugal forward, 33, will be allowed to leave after nine years at the Bernabeu.

          Earlier this summer, Ronaldo threw his future into doubt by talking about Real Madrid in the past tense after they had beaten Liverpool in the Champions League final, and talks over a new contract have stalled.

          Reports linking him to Juventus have intensified this week, with Marca reporting on its front page on Tuesday that transfer negotiations had begun and a deal would go through barring a last-minute hitch. Portuguese newspaper A Bola also led with a report that talks are under way.

          The reported club-record offer from Juventus is expected to make Ronaldo the highest-paid player in their history, with Marca earlier reporting that figure to be €30m a year.

          UPDATE: Sources have confirmed to ESPN FC that Juventus have put an offer in, and this could free up funds for Real Madrid to pursue long-term target Neymar.

          LIVE BLOG

          23.00 BST: That'll do if for another day of Transfer Talk live. We hope you enjoyed all the exciting World Cup action and the news we have share here in the blog. Check back in a few hours for the latest on Cristiano Ronaldo and all the other transfer rumours, links and completed deals from around the world of football. Goodnight!

          22.40 BST: Player swaps are much less common in football than they are in other sports but a recently rumoured one might just make sense for both clubs.

          Chelsea's Alvaro Morata and Juventus' Gonzalo Higuain are both very good strikers but both could also do with a change of scenery after disappointing seasons at their respective clubs.

          Italian outlet La Gazzetta dello Sport indicate that the two could be swapped, citing that if Chelsea hire Maurizio Sarri, he would be keen on a reunion with Higuain, who he coached at Napoli in 2016 during Higuain's record-breaking season.

          On the other side, Juve would be interested in buying low on the younger Morata, who had success with them on loan and is one year removed from a season in which he scored 15 league goals in 26 games (14 starts!) for Real Madrid.

          Like we said, these types of moves are rare, especially with higher-quality players but maybe, just maybe this one makes sense for both parties.

          22.10 BST: Liverpool to sign Colombian World Cup star?

          Colombia centre-back Yerry Mina looks to be on the outs from Barcelona after a disappointing few months at the Camp Nou and Liverpool are the latest club to be linked with the towering centre-back.

          The 23-year-old scored three goals at the World Cup, showcasing his strength and ability in the air from set pieces. Liverpool could use one more centre-back to pair alongside Virgil van Dijk and Mina would be an interesting one due to his age and ability in both boxes.

          21.29 BST: American youngsters Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie have made headlines over the past few season in the Bundesliga. Could another young American be the next to shine in Germany?

          Sources tell MLSoccer.com on Tuesday that FC Dallas youngster Chris Richards, 18, is set to go on loan at six-time defending Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.

          The US Under-20 international joined the FC Dallas academy in 2017 and is likely to go on loan through the remainder of 2018.

          21.06 BST: Has Jack Wilshere finally found a new home?

          Turkish television station aspor claim that Turkish giants Fenerbahce have agreed to terms with the longtime Arsenal man.

          Arsenal announce they were releasing Wilshere last week after 10 years and it looks as if the oft-injured but extremely talented midfielder is set for a fresh start in Turkey.

          Robin van Persie enjoyed a spell at Fenerbahce after leaving Arsenal and a move away from the always watchful eye of the English media might be just what the doctor ordered for Wilshere.

          We will surely be keeping a close eye on this one.

          20.30 BST: Sporting Lisbon's Gelson Martins is one of a handful of Sporting players who have terminated their contracts with the club over fan violence directed at players and tension with club president Bruno Carvalho.

          The pacy Portuguese winger has been linked with move to Liverpool and Arsenal but a new club has reportedly entered the fray.

          Spanish outlet AS claim Atletico Madrid are interested in the player, especially due to his free transfer status. Atletico have been busy this summer resigning Antoine Griezmann and Jose Gimenez and acquiring Thomas Lemar from Monaco.

          The 23-year-old contributed 13 goals and 13 assists last season over all competitions for Sporting.

          19.57 BST: With Switzerland now eliminated from the World Cup, Liverpool fans are speculating that Xherdan Shaqiri is soon on his way to Anfield.

          The club have been heavily linked with the Stoke City ace but the thought was that Shaqiri would not make any decisions until the World Cup was over.

          the 25-year-old has a relatively affordable £12 million release clause after Stoke were relegated and would be another dangerous attacking option for Jurgen Klopp.

          Last season, The ex-Bayern and Inter man scored eight goals and produced seven assists for the Potters.

          19.37 BST: -- DONE DEAL -- Here's one out of left field. UAE giants Al Nasr have signed former France international Yohan Cabaye from Crystal Palace.

          The 32-year-old playmaker has played the last three seasons at Selhurst Park, producing nine goals and six assists for the Eagles.

          19.09 BST: -- DONE DEAL -- The Goalkeeper merry-go-round continues! After selling Lee Grant to Man United, Stoke have signed Australian shot-stopper Adam Federici.

          The 33-year-old arrives at the bet365 Stadium from Bournemouth and has been in England uninterrupted since signing for Wolves back in 2003.

          18.43 BST: -- DONE DEAL -- An hour after losing a goalkeeper in Sam Johnstone, Manchester United have moved quickly to bring in a replacement.

          The Red Devils have announced signed veteran goalkeeper Lee Grant from Stoke City.

          The 35-year-old has spent most of the last two seasons at Stoke and has had previous spells with Derby, Burnley and Sheffield Wednesday.

          18.13 BST: -- DONE DEAL -- We told you this one was close earlier but West Brom have made the signing of ex-Man United goalkeeper Sam Johnstone official.

          The 25-year-old keeper has been loaned out 10 times and calls the permanent switch a "relief".

          The keeper has signed a four-year deal at The Hawthorns for an original £6.5 million that could rise up to £10m when including add-ons.

          17.29 BST: Arsenal have been busy this summer, having already signed Stephan Lichtsteiner, Bernd Leno and Sokratis Papastathopoulos and reportedly closing in on Uruguay and Sampdoria central midfielder Lucas Torreira.

          Unai Emery's next target, sources have told ESPN FC, is out-of-favour Barcelona midfielder Andre Gomes.

          The 24-year-old Portuguese played sparingly last season at the Camp Nou after signing a year earlier for £35 million from Valencia.

          One advantage Arsenal could have over others? New head of football relations Raul Sanllehi previously spent 14 years working at the Catalan club.

          16.55 BST: Fresh from his World Cup heroics with Belgium, Nacer Chadli has been linked to Galatasaray by Takvim.

          16.45 BST: Southampton are interested in signing Borussia Monchengladbach defender Jannick Vestergaard, according to Sky Sports.

          16.35 BST: Liverpool Echo journalist James Pearce has an update regarding Liverpool's links to Barcelona goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen...

          16.25 BST: Gianluca Di Marzio writes that Frankfurt midfielder Kevin-Price Boateng is in Italy to finalise a move to Sassuolo.

          16.15 BST: You might want to read this twice. Fekir signs a new deal at Lyon...

          Yessin Fekir that is.

          15.40 BST: Sky Italia report that Real Betis midfielder Fabian Ruiz is having a medical at Napoli, with Jorginho expected to leave for Manchester City this week.

          15.25 BST: Turkish outlet A Spor say that Fenerbache have made an approach for Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma.

          15.20 BST: Get ready for some "is this the real signing of the summer?" takes.

          Record report that Everton are closing in on Bruno Mendes, a performance analyst who oversaw the "Benfica Lab" starting in 2006.

          15.10 BST: PA Sport say that Papy Djilobodji and Didier Ndong failed to report for preseason training at Sunderland, with both keen on moves away.

          15.05 BST: Marca are also reporting that Cristiano Ronaldo is set to move to Juventus.

          Blimey.

          14.55 BST: Lazio have signed midfielder Valon Berisha from Austrian champions Salzburg on a five-year contract, the Italian Serie A club said on Tuesday.

          The 25-year-old, capped 20 times by Norway and 10 times by Kosovo, joined the Austrian club in 2012 from Norwegian side Viking FK.

          Berisha made 167 league appearances in six years at Salzburg, scoring 31 goals.

          Lazio qualified for next season's Europa League after Inter Milan edged them out of fourth place, the last Champions League slot for Serie A, in the last game of the season.

          14.50 BST: The Daily Record report that Kieran Tierney is nearing a move to Everton.

          14.20 BST: Sources have told ESPN FC that, contrary to reports, a deal is still short of being agreed between Manchester City and Leicester for Riyad Mahrez.

          13.55 BST: After we covered reports from Di Marzio earlier, The Independent now also believe that Arsenal are seriously pursuing Barcelona's Andre Gomes.

          13.45 BST: Sevilla's Clement Lenglet will complete a £35 million move to Barcelona this week, The Independent write.

          13.40 BST: AS are covering claims from Italian newspaper Il Messaggero that Atletico Madrid have made an offer for AC Milan striker Nikola Kalinic.

          13.20 BST: The mother of Russia star Aleksandr Golovin has revealed that a transfer is being discussed for her son, the Metro report.

          Chelsea have been heavily linked with a move, while there is interest from Barcelona and Juventus for the CSKA Moscow midfielder.

          13.15 BST: Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio writes that Arsenal and Tottenham are battling for Barcelona midfielder Andre Gomes.

          13.00 BST: Sources have told ESPN FC that Manchester United are open to selling Daley Blind and Matteo Darmian, but will not sell for cheap.

          Sam Johnstone is expected to complete a transfer to West Brom shortly, while Matty Willock will leave on loan.

          12.50 BST: Sky Sports News are joining in on the news that Chelsea and Barcelona remain in talks over the potential transfer of Willian.

          12.40 BST: Former Juventus sporting director Luciano Moggi has laughed off reports that the Turin club would be able to afford Cristiano Ronaldo, according to SportItalia.

          12.25 BST: Chelsea's Thibaut Courtois says that his children are his most important consideration when it comes to a transfer.

          The Belgium goalkeeper has been linked with a move to Real Madrod -- and his kids live in the Spanish capital.

          12.20 BST: A former Premier League champion -- to use the term loosely -- has left the Premier League.

          Nottingham Forest have signed Costel Pantilimon from Watford...

          12.15 BST: The Telegraph report that Fulham are closing in on a £20 million deal for Newcastle striker Aleksandar Mitrovic.

          12.10 BST: Roma are running out of time to agree a deal with Ajax for Hakim Ziyech, Corriere dello Sport say, as per Calciomercato.

          They have agreed personal terms with the Morocco midfielder but will have to sell some of their current players to raise funds for the transfer.

          12.00 BST: Barely six months after joining Southampton, Guido Carrillo looks set to leave on loan to Leganes, according to Sky Sports News.

          11.55 BST: There has been an update on West Ham's pursuit of Lazio forward Felipe Anderson.

          Il Tempo write that they have agreed personal terms, but there is still some way to go between the clubs agreeing a fee. Can West Ham get it over the line?

          11.50 BST: A transfer trend?

          11.35 BST: Newcastle Chronicle are running quotes from the agent of Stefano Sturaro, who says that the Magpies, Southampton and Wolves are all interested in his client.

          11.30 BST: Barcelona midfielder Andre Gomes has been linked to Tottenham and Wolves by Mundo Deportivo.

          11.10 BST: Turkish outlet Fotomac, via Football.London, believe Crystal Palace, Fulham and West Brom are fighting for Fenerbache midfielder Ozan Tufan.

          11.00 BST: Jose Mourinho is in the market for a number of Serie A defenders, according to Corriere dello Sport.

          They report that a €65 million bid for Inter Milan defender Milan Skriniar has been rejected, while Manchetser United could also make moves for city-rivals AC Milan pair Leonardo Bonucci and Alessio Romagnoli.

          10.50 BST: After completing the signing of Sokratis Papastathopoulos from Borussia Dortrmund yesterday, Arsenal have tied down Calum Chambers to a new long-term deal...

          10.30 BST: In other news at Barcelona, AS report that Philippe Coutinho hopes to receive his Portuguese passport at the start of 2019, freeing up a non-EU space on the club's squad list.

          They currently have Paulinho, Yerry Mina and Coutinho, but one spot should go to make space for Arthur Melo.

          As reported earlier on Transfer Talk, Paulinho has been linked to Chelsea as part of an exchange for Willian.

          10.20 BST: Catalan news outlet Sport say that Barcelona have lowered their asking price for goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen from his €60 million release clause to €30m.

          Liverpool, Chelsea and Napoli have been linked, while Arsenal and Milan are no longer reported to be interested.

          10.15 BST: Inter Milan chief executive Alessandro Antonello has told radio station Rai Gr Parlamento, as per the Daily Mail, that Mauro Icardi will not be sold.

          The Argentina forward has been linked with a move to Chelsea.

          10.05 BST: ESPN in Mexico believe that Barcelona are tracking Mexico and Porto midfielder Hector Herrera.

          10.00 BST: Looks like Jorginho could finally be making his move to Manchester City, after he was left out of Napoli's preseason squad.

          09.50 BST: Sky Sports News have an update on who is leading the race to sign Nice forward Alassane Plea...

          09.45 BST: France under-21 international Tanguy Ndombele is attracting a number of suitors after impressing with Lyon last season.

          This week's edition of France Football magazine claims that Chelsea have considered moving for him, but Tottenham hold the strongest interest in him.

          09.35 BST: TuttoMercatoWeb write that, although a number of top European teams are on the hunt for Real Madrid's Mateo Kovacic, it is in fact West Ham who are pressing hardest to sign him.

          09.25 BST: Here are the covers from Marca and Sport, who lead with Cristiano Ronaldo's link to Juventus and Clement Lenglet heading to Barcelona respectively...

          09.15 BST: Lee Grant underwent a medical at Manchester United and is set to sign a two-year deal at Old Trafford, sources have told ESPN FC.

          09.10 BST: The Spanish press continue to insist that Barcelona want Willian, and Mundo Deportivo write that an offer for the Chelsea forward could include a player.

          Andre Gomes, Rafinha Alcantara and Paulinho are the names touted for a potential part exchange.

          09.00 BST: Mario Balotelli will decide where he will play his football next season in the coming 48 hours, according to L'Equipe. The Italy striker missed the start of Nice's preseason training on Monday, and is still being linked to his current club's Ligue 1 rivals, Marseille.

          City close in on Mahrez move

          Manchester City's drawn-out pursuit of Leicester playmaker Riyad Mahrez could be days from a conclusion, according to the Mirror.

          City had seemed set to sign Mahrez in the winter only for a deal to founder because they were reportedly unwilling to meet a price tag of around £80 million for the Algeria international.

          Mahrez is absent from preseason training until next week after playing in international friendlies last month, and the Mirror says that "increases the likelihood of him never pulling on the Foxes' colours again" as the clubs "inch towards a deal."

          Meanwhile, the Manchester Evening News reports that City "will sign former Paris Saint-Germain midfield starlet Claudio Gomes later this month."

          They cannot conclude a move until July 23, when France under-18 international Gomes will be 18.

          Schmeichel on Chelsea, Roma radars

          He was so close to being Denmark's hero as their World Cup dreams were ended by Croatia, and now Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel is in the sights of Roma and Chelsea, Sky Sports reports.

          With Chelsea's Thibaut Courtois and Roma's Alisson linked with Real Madrid, Schmeichel has emerged as a potential replacement should either depart.

          Alisson has also been linked with Liverpool, although reports suggest Madrid are favourites to sign him despite retaining an interest in Belgium international Courtois.

          Spurs and Arsenal face frustration in Malcom chase

          Tottenham and Arsenal could be thwarted in their attempts to sign Bordeaux star Malcom, according to the Mirror.

          Malcom was strongly linked with the North London rivals in the winter, but Serie A side Inter Milan "now lead the race."

          The Mirror says Inter have tabled an offer of close to £9m for a one-year loan deal and would be willing to pay more than £26m to make that switch permanent.

          But Ligue 1 Bordeaux may want more -- and that could "attract fresh Premier League interest" in the Brazilian.

          Huddersfield boss targets double deal

          Huddersfield manager David Wagner is after Germany international defender Marvin Plattenhardt and Nigeria forward Ahmed Musa as he looks to augment his squad.

          The Mirror reports that Musa "is in demand following his goals for Nigeria at the World Cup, with Leicester ready to cash in," while Hertha Berlin's Plattenhardt is a target after a deal for Erik Durm of Borussia Dortmund fell through.

          Plattenhardt is also of interest to both Bournemouth and Everton, while newly-promoted Fulham could provide competition for Musa's signature.

          Tap-ins

          -- Bundesliga club RB Leipzig could thwart Manchester United's hopes of signing England youth international Matthew Bondswell from Championship Nottingham Forest, the Mail reports.

          It says that although United opened talks about a move for the 16-year-old defender in May, Leipzig "have been busy trying to recruit some of the UK's best young talent and are now leading the chase."

          -- Stoke want Bournemouth goalkeeper Adam Federici and are in negotiations about a permanent transfer, according to Sky Sports.

          Federici has a year left on his contract with the Cherries, for whom he has been third choice, but did not make an appearance for them last season.