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Two days in, and we have our first piece of Mohamed Salah transfer jabber. Reports in Italy suggest Liverpool’s unsettled forward could be Roma-bound. According to La Repubblica, the Giallorossi are keen to bring Salah back to the club he played for in 2015-17 but are unlikely to move for him until the summer. If he does hang around at Anfield for any length of time, Salah could have a new teammate in the form of the Club Brugge central defender Joel Ordóñez. The Mirror suggests Liverpool are set to shell out an initial £35m rising to £43m for the Ecuador international. The Premier League champions have a clearer run at a deal too now that Chelsea have withdrawn their interest.
The furiously energetic Conor Gallagher has been kicking his heels of late, having started only four league games for Atlético Madrid this season, and is thus attracting interest from Premier League clubs looking to rev up their midfields. Manchester United were linked with him in the summer and are thought to be still sniffing around, though Tottenham are also said to be keen. Atlético will want at least £26m for the English midfielder, who’s under contract until 2029.
And talking of Manchester United, there are whispers that team stalwart Bruno Fernandes could be offloaded to fund another rebuild. With Fernandes previously revealing United were prepared to sell him last summer, gossip around the Portugal midfielder is set to crank up again. Two targets for United are reported to be Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta and the Rennes defender Jérémy Jacquet.
Meanwhile there is talk of Arsenal planning a cheeky raid for Real Madrid’s Turkish starlet Arda Güler. The English league leaders are reportedly sizing up an initial loan deal for the 20-year-old with a view to a full signing in the summer. A permanent deal won’t come cheap though, with Madrid valuing him at £78m.
West Ham’s scrabble for attacking reinforcements is poised to begin with the recruitment of Gil Vicente’s Pablo, and could be further supplemented with a move for the perennially out-of-favour Raheem Sterling. The winger, out in the cold at Chelsea after his loan to Arsenal last season didn’t quite work out, is understood to be on Nuno Espírito Santo’s radar as the Hammers seek reinforcements for their battle against the drop.
Lower mid-table Mill regular Jørgen Strand Larsen is again prominent in the gossip columns, with Nottingham Forest currently heading the list of suitors for the Wolves forward. Sean Dyche is looking for more attacking resources with Chris Wood out injured, and inquiries have reportedly been made about the Norwegian, who Wolves value at £40m. Forest will face competition from Crystal Palace for him, though.
Elsewhere, Paris FC’s Algerian midfielder Ilan Kebbal may find himself choosing between London and the north-east, with Fulham, Palace and Sunderland vying for his services, while Newcastle are planning to approach Toulouse about their 19-year-old defender Dayann Methalie.
