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: Barca plotting move for Leicester’s Tielemans
Barcelona are looking at Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans, as has been reported by Mundo Deportivo.
The Catalan giants have been closely monitoring him for some time, as they like his physical and technical characteristics at the age of 24.
They feel that he can be a powerful presence in midfield, be aggressive when needed but also show good judgement on the ball and utilise his shooting from range — which helped the Foxes to FA Cup glory last term.
Something else that has earned their intrigue is the Belgian’s contract situation, as his current deal comes to an end in 2023, but the midfielder has been reluctant to sign an extension so far.
This all means that while Tielemans remains an interesting prospect for the Spanish outfit, he is not currently a priority target.
They had previously gone for Georginio Wijnaldum before the former Liverpool man completed his move to Paris Saint-Germain, but turned down the opportunity to bring in Saul Niguez as part of the Antoine Griezmann deal.
The departure of Ilaix Moriba is said to have made the requirement for somebody to fill that position even greater. Tielemans has also reportedly received interest from other big-name clubs such as Real Madrid, Manchester United and Liverpool.
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PAPER GOSSIP
– Bayern Munich sporting director Hasan Salihamidizic admitted to Sky90 that they are looking at Bayer Leverkusen starlet Florian Wirtz “all the time,” before hesitating to say anything else about their interest: “He plays for Bayer Leverkusen, but the boy is really good.” Wirtz has certainly had an encouraging start to the Bundesliga campaign, scoring two goals and providing three assists in just 124 minutes across three games.
– There have been plenty of reports about Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham, linking him to the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool. And Sport Bild have suggested that the England international doesn’t have a release clause in his contract, adding that it will take more than €100 million to sign him.
– Bordeaux could utilise a law that allows French clubs to sign one available player from within France after the deadline in order to bring in Rennes attacker M’Baye Niang, according to Foot Mercato. Following his loan at Al-Ahli, Rennes are willing to do whatever it takes for Niang to leave, so are happy to let him depart for free while negotiating to get a percentage of the fee if he moves on again.
– Now that things are looking good regarding Lautaro Martinez‘s contract renewal at Internazionale, the Serie A outfit will look to work on deals for midfield duo Nicolo Barella and Marcelo Brozovic, reports Sky Sports Italia. The Croatian’s deal runs until 2022, but things are relaxed despite the prospect of him leaving for free in the summer, while the Italian has a contract until 2024, with Inter wanting to make a readjustment in order to recognise the contributions he has made.
– Paulo Dybala is leaving his agents to negotiate with Juventus regarding a contract extension so the Argentine can concentrate on ensuring things are right on the pitch, according to Calaciomercato. The 27-year-old only has one year remaining on his current deal, but the approach seems to have been a relaxed one so far. The attacking midfielder wants to be the Serie A club’s’ highest-paid player, something he feels comes with the responsibility he is ready to take on.
– Former Inter, Galatasaray and Marseille defender Yuto Nagatomo has returned to FC Tokyo, as has been confirmed by the club. The 35-year-old previously represented them between 2008 and 2010.