Summer is in full flow, a time when flies come into our houses and set up camp. They buzz around not being able to find a way out – much like Cristiano Ronaldo in this transfer window. The Manchester United striker is to hold talks with new manager Erik ten Hag in the coming days after not attending their pre-season tour to Thailand and Australia due to a family issue.
It is no secret the Portugal international wants out of Old Trafford and, despite what memes may suggest, interest has hovered around the star. Ronaldo landed back in the UK on Monday and Ten Hag is reportedly wanting to change his mind about leaving the club – time will tell to see if the 37-year-old escapes or just keeps bashing into windows.
Sticking at Old Trafford, the club received a response from RB Salzburg about the potential signing of forward Benjamin Sesko. One potential obstacle is could be that the Austrian club are demanding “300 million + Bruno” for the Slovenian teenager.
The relationship between Barcelona and Chelsea is reminiscent of playground pigtail pulling, with the latest development seeing the Spanish club pulling another punch. The Blues could have another signing snatched from their grasp as hopes of securing Sevilla centre-back Jules Koundé seem to be up in flames, with Barça confident they can get a deal over the line.
This will be bringing back nightmares for Thomas Tuchel as it was thought he was interested in Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski before the Polish striker signed for Xavi’s side. The Spanish club are signing players willy nilly this summer despite their crippling debt and the Blues may be left empty-handed once more. Tuchel could hit back though: if the Catalans secure Koundé he is reportedly going to block them from signing Marcos Alonso.
If Chelsea do lose out, there is a whole host of defenders they are still interested in. Internazionale’s Milan Skriniar, RB Leipzig’s Josko Gvardiol and Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upamecano and Benjamin Pavard are among those on their list.
Circling back to the Camp Nou, Xavi has told Netherlands international Memphis Depay to find another club as he isn’t needed with the introductions of Lewandowski and Raphinha.
West Ham are close to securing Sassuolo striker Gianluca Scamacca. He is due to undergo a medical on Tuesday and will sign a five-year deal with the option for another year. The club have also rejected Fulham’s offer to sign Issa Diop – the nepromoted side had bid €17.5m (£14.8m) for the France international.
Nottingham Forest have agreed in principle to sign Stuttgart’s Belgium international midfielder Orel Mangala.
And I’ll leave you with this from Leicester chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha: “You may see that the reinforcement is quite slow, this is because the market is changing quite quickly. You have to wait until the end of August. I think there is still time.” Ronaldo’s looking for a club if interested?
