Manchester City could join the race to sign AC Milan’s Theo Hernández, while Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Matheus Cunha is eyeing a summer move after being linked to Arsenal in January. Join us for the latest transfer news, rumors and gossip from around the globe.
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TOP STORIES
– City must omit new signing for UCL knockouts
– Transfer desperation ranking: Man City top after mega-spend
– Galatasaray keen to sign Newcastle’s Trippier – source
– Manna: Garnacho demands were too much for Napoli
TRENDING RUMORS
– Manchester City could rival Real Madrid in the race to sign AC Milan left-back Theo Hernández this summer, reports TeamTalk. While Pep Guardiola’s first-choice transfer target remains Juventus’ Andrea Cambiaso, the club have also added Hernández to their left-back shortlist — should they miss out on the Italian. Madrid are regarded as the 27-year-old’s most “serious” suitor, although Milan still hold out hope that Hernández will stay at San Siro by signing a two-year contract extension.
– Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Matheus Cunha is eager to join a “bigger club” despite recently signing a new deal, Football Insider reports. The Brazilian had been the subject of interest from Arsenal, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest in January, all of whom are expected to be vying for his signature again in the summer. The inclusion of a release clause was reportedly “demanded” by the 25-year-old, who is eyeing a transfer once it becomes active in June.
– Chelsea are already planning for Christopher Nkunku‘s exit this summer, Football Insider have reported. The 27-year-old was heavily linked with Bayern Munich and Manchester United last month, but a move failed to materialize before the transfer window closed on Feb. 3. However, with Nkunku expected to remain a back-up option at Stamford Bridge under Enzo Maresca, the forward is said to be assessing his future.
– Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo were linked with moves away from Manchester United in January, and the Guardian reports that a summer transfer could still be on the cards. Garnacho was wanted by Napoli and Chelsea, while the west London club were also said to be considering a move for Mainoo. United need to create more headroom to allow Ruben Amorim to rebuild the squad, and finding new clubs for the two academy graduates would provide pure profit for PSR calculations — giving the new boss more funds to reinvest.
– Harry Kane has a release clause in his Bayern Munich contract, Bild reports, but it would take a huge offer to activate it. The England captain had one clause that could have been triggered in January with an offer of €80m, but that’s now expired. The clause will now fall to €65m, but there is no suggestion that Kane, 31, is looking to the leave the Bundesliga club.
CONFIRMED TRANSFERS
– Defender Lloyd Kelly has joined Juventus from Newcastle United in a €17.2m deal.
– AS Roma have signed FC Twente left-back Anass Salah-Eddine for €8m.
– Ajax have signed Real Valladolid right-back Lucas Rosa for €3m.
– Orlando City have acquired winger Marco Pašalić from HNK Rijeka for an undisclosed fee.
EXPERT TAKE
ESPN’s Dale Johnson on the numbers behind Matheus Cunha’s rise in the Premier League.
Matheus Cunha was something of an enigma when arriving at Wolves two years ago.
The Brazil international was signed from Atlético Madrid on loan, with an obligation to make the move permanent after certain clauses were met for a fee which could rise to £35m.
It’s fair to say Cunha didn’t exactly suggest he would be value for money when he was on loan, scoring only two goals and providing zero assists in 17 Premier League appearances.
He then started last season slowly, but over the last 14 months has been one of the most productive players in the Premier League, scoring 21 goals and setting up another nine. He’s netted 11 times already in this campaign, one behind his tally for 2023-24.
So on those numbers alone, it’s easy to see why the bigger clubs have begun to sit up and take notice, and why Wolves sealed a contract extension in January.
And he’s become more clinical, too. The 12 goals in the last campaign came from an xG of 9.55, while this season he has 11 goals from an xG of just 5.22. His minutes per goal is down from 204.4 to 170.5.
OTHER RUMORS
– USA midfielder Johnny Cardoso has extended his contract with Real Betis until June 2030. However, Tottenham Hotspur still hold a priority option to sign the 23-year-old. (Real Betis)
– Samuel Chukwueze is expected to remain at AC Milan until the end of the season after his proposed Fulham transfer collapsed. The two clubs ran out of time on deadline day to complete the €30m deal because of issues surrounding an obligatory purchase option. (Revelo)
– AC Milan made an approach to sign Ferran Torres from Barcelona, along with Napoli, Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal, but the Catalan club decided to keep him. (Marca)
– Alphonso Davies’ agent has revealed that Real Madrid was “a serious option” for the player before he decided to sign a new contract with Bayern Munich. (Marca)
– West Ham United made a late attempt to sign Endrick on loan from Real Madrid for the rest of the season. (Marca)
– Dinamo Zagreb midfielder Petar Sucic is expected to undergo a medical at Internazionale on Friday ahead of his summer transfer. The €16m deal will see Sucic join up with his new teammates in June — just in time for him to feature at this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup. (Nicolo Schira)
– Chelsea explored options to sign a new goalkeeper to replace Robert Sanchez in January, but could not identify a suitable target who would have been available. (Football Insider)
– Centre-back Murillo was also a target for Chelsea, but Nottingham Forest rejected an offer which would have broken their transfer record early in the window and insisted he was not up for transfer. (Daily Telegraph)
– Tottenham Hotspur have agreed a deal worth £1.6m plus add-ons for St Patrick’s Athletic striker Mason Melia, but he cannot complete the move until next January. Cetlic, Everton, Club Brugge and Eintracht Frankfurt all wanted the Republic of Ireland youth international, who does not turn 18 until September. (The Sun)
– Arsenal discussed making a move for Alvaro Morata in January as their potential striker options reduced. The Spain international eventually moved on loan to Galatasaray from Juventus. (The Athletic)
– Galatasaray are pushing to sign Empoli defender Saba Goglichidze this month. (Gianluca Di Marzio)
– Manchester United are considering a move for Flamengo wonderkid Wesley França. (Goal)
– Brighton & Hove Albion have secured a deal to sign 19-year-old Brøndby midfielder Clement Bischoff. (The Athletic)
– FC Dallas have approached former Napoli left-back Mário Rui after his contract with the Serie A club was mutually terminated. (Fabrizio Romano)
– Former Wolverhampton Wanderers captain Mario Lemina is expected to undergo a medical at Galatasaray on Thursday. (Nicolo Schira)
– Başakşehir FK striker Krzysztof Piatek is attracting interest from several MLS clubs. (Ekrem Konur)
– Andrey Santos is set to become a “key player” for Enzo Maresca at Chelsea next season, having impressed on loan at Strasbourg. (Fabrizio Romano)
– Galatasaray have entered into negotiations to sign 19-year-old Anderlecht defender Jan-Carlo Simić. (Di Marzio)
– Valencia centre-back Yarek Gasiorowski has closed the door to a potential Galatasaray transfer this month. (Relevo)
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