The transfer window is back and we will be here with all the freshest rumours, tittle-tattle and nonsense invented to appease agents. Anyway … it turns out Manchester United once again want to sign Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, but there is a difference this time: he actually wants to join the club. The Dutchman spent the summer avoiding a move to Old Trafford but he may have finally given in to Erik ten Hag. Let’s hope they can drag out this saga for another month.
Another Dutchman interesting Ten Hag is Denzel Dumfries, but he could face competition from Chelsea for the Netherlands and Internazionale right-back. United also need to decide whether to replace departing on-loan goalkeeper Martin Dubravka, who has been recalled by Newcastle.
United do not have much money to splash in January owing to the club being up for sale, but that does not stop them being linked with everyone under the sun. Supposedly, they could solve their striker issue by bringing in Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Marcus Thuram. They may even ship out some players, with Everton keen on Anthony Elanga. The Sweden winger may struggle for playing time with the emergence of Alejandro Garnacho, so a loan move could suit all parties.
Arsenal are keen on bolstering their squad while they look to maintain their lead at the top of the table. One potential target is Leicester’s Youri Tielemans, who is out of contract in the summer, and could be available at a decent price. Alternatively, Morocco’s World Cup hero Azzedine Ounahi could be brought in from Angers.
Mikel Arteta could add another forward with João Félix available, but Atlético Madrid are supposedly seeking a €15m loan fee on top of his €6m wages for the remainder of the season. Folarin Balogun, the Arsenal striker, is doing so well out on loan at Reims in Ligue 1, scoring 10 in 16 matches, that Milan are sniffing around.
There could be some transfer fun at the clubs fighting relegation. Leeds have an eye on Southampton’s Ché Adams, while Nathan Jones would not mind snapping up Lorient’s Terem Moffi. Leeds are also close to completing a move to sign defender Max Wöber from Salzburg. The Austria international previously played under Jesse Marsch in his homeland after spells at Ajax and Sevilla.
A new winger is top priority for Unai Emery at Aston Villa. His two key targets at the moment are Watford’s Ismaïla Sarr and Gerard Deulofeu, currently at Udinese. Spurs and Everton, however, may join the Sarr party to complicate matters for Villa.
Manchester City may not be planning any moves of note in January but they look set to sign the Argentinian teenager Máximo Perrone from Vélez Sarsfield for £6.5m. It seems to have worked out with Julián Álvarez, so it is worth a punt.
