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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Michael Butler , Luke McLaughlin , Daniel Harris and Niall McVeigh

Transfer deadline day: Aubameyang joins Barça and more – as it happened

Newcastle (Organization) Everton Dele Alli Fabrizio Romano Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang Arsenal FC Barcelona Aaron Ramsey Jesse Lingard Liverpool
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has called time on his Arsenal career and will be unveiled at Barcelona on Tuesday morning.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has called time on his Arsenal career and will be unveiled at Barcelona on Tuesday morning. Photograph: John Walton/PA

Everton sign Dele Alli from Tottenham

The England midfielder joins on a two-and-a-half year deal, with a fee somewhere between zero and £30m. It’s a strange agreement – Alli will cost £10m after 20 appearances, but can only make 18 league appearances this season. The eventual fee could be £30m, dependent on team and individual achievements.

The bottom line, though, is he’s an Everton player, and another new recruit on the day Frank Lampard became their manager.

My colleague Andy Hunter has a late loan deal to report: full-back Neco Williams has joined Fulham from Liverpool until the end of the season.

We’re essentially just waiting on confirmation of Dele Alli to Everton, with a deal sheet in place and no issues expected. We’ll let you know when it’s official; for now, keep an eye on our transfer tracker, and catch up with all today’s stories.

Updated

Not sure about the mural, but what we do know is Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is joining Barcelona.

Jeff Hendrick has left Newcastle to join QPR’s promotion push, on loan to the end of the season. Meanwhile, Matty Longstaff has joined Mansfield on loan, having spent the first half of the season at Aberdeen.

In a deal that feels like both clubs just had too much time on their hands, Stoke and Reading have agreed to a loan swap deal, with Tom Ince heading to the Madejski and Liam Moore joining the Potters.

Updated

Here’s more from Andy Hunter on how Liverpool ran out of time to sign Fulham’s rising star, Fabio Carvalho.

Aubameyang to be unveiled tomorrow

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has completed his move to Barcelona from Arsenal on a free transfer – but the deal won’t be announced officially until 8.30am (GMT) tomorrow.

Beyond Aaron Ramsey’s arrival at Ibrox, what else has been happening in Scotland? Well, Rangers also signed Poland defender Mateusz Zukowski, but failed with a bid to bring forward the signing of Hearts’ John Souttar.

Elsewhere, Dundee have signed Partick forward Zak Rudden, and loaned in right-back Vontae Daley-Campbell from Leicester. Teenage Celtic midfielder Adam Montgomery has joined Aberdeen on loan, and Dundee United have brought in Arsenal midfielder Tim Akinola, also on loan.

Liverpool move for Carvalho off

So, the deals for Alli and Aubameyang are going through – but Liverpool’s move for Fabio Carvalho has fallen through.

Fabrizio Romano reports that, while the medical was done, the other paperwork was not ready in time – so he will stay at Fulham until the summer at least.

Updated

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is a Barcelona player – we’re just waiting on the official announcement.

Another deadline-day deal done at Hull ...

“With their new wealthy owners it’s perhaps no surprise that Newcastle got money to Burn,” honks Peter Oh.

Deal sheet in for Dele Alli

Everton have submitted a deal sheet to the Premier League which gives them until 1am to complete the paperwork on the Dele Alli deal.

Crystal Palace sign Luke Plange from Derby

The 19-year-old forward joins for £1m, but will go back on loan to Derby. There was some uncertainty about that earlier, with the Rams under a transfer embargo – but that appears to have been ironed out.

“I’m very excited to be joining a big Premier League club. I’m ready to crack on,” says Plange, perhaps confusing Selhurst Park with Love Island. “Obviously I’ll be with Derby, fighting for them in the Championship, but I will be ready to go back to Crystal Palace in the summer.”

Updated

The Premier League transfer window is closed!

On Sky, the presenter has just summarised the month’s big stories in meandering free verse. It’s that time of night. The window is closed in England, France and Spain – but not in Scotland yet, they’re going until midnight.

Updated

A busy day for Bournemouth ends with the loan signing of Todd Cantwell, who is somehow surplus to requirements at Norwich.

A #nicetouch from the Brighton admin after Dan Burn’s departure was confirmed. I’m sure the £12.5m deposited in the club account softened the blow.

Newcastle sign Dan Burn from Brighton

One that was basically in the books yesterday, but has only just been announced. Brighton defender Dan Burn, a boyhood Newcastle fan, has joined Eddie Howe’s side. The fee is £12.5m, taking the club’s January spending to more than £80m. But is it enough to keep them up?

“How does someone go from club captain to released for nothing in half a season – does he go full Costanza?” asks Dan Christmas on Aubameyang. It’s been a decent turnaround today though – he’s gone from the new Peter Odemwingie to Barcelona’s new centre-forward.

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Another arrival at Brighton! English winger Benicio Baker-Boaitey has joined on loan from Porto, and will spend a year with the Seagulls’s under-23 side.

Hull City, who are under new ownership, have made some deadline day moves. Midfielder Ryan Longman has joined permanently from Brighton after a loan spell, and Iranian forward Allahyar Sayyadmanesh arrives on loan from Fenerbahce.

Forward Marcus Forss could still join on loan from Brentford, but a move for Fulham’s Steven Sessegnon has broken down – he’s joined Plymouth instead.

11pm (GMT) also marks the end of the window in Spain and France. Not many big deals in the works, although Lyon splashed out for Brest’s Romain Faivre earlier today, and will let Islam Slimani return to Sporting for free.

Atlético Madrid have signed Mozambique full-back Reinaldo Mandava for €3m from Lille. There was already a deal in place for him to join in summer, but it’s now been brought forward.

Forty-five minutes for Premier League teams to get deals done, or reach for the dreaded deal sheet. Blows my mind that it happens every time, when they’ve had weeks to get their act together. Anyway – our transfer tracker just keeps ticking over:

Josh Maja loves a late January move – he left Sunderland for Bordeaux in January 2019, then joined Fulham on loan last deadline day. Now he’s off to Stoke on loan, joining a decent group of January signings including Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Lewis Baker and Jaden Philogene-Bidace.

Crystal Palace sign Jean-Philippe Mateta permanently

Forward Jean-Philippe Mateta has signed a four-and-a-half-year deal with Crystal Palace after the club decided to make his loan move permanent. The fee is reportedly in the region of £10m.

Winger Josh Bowler will be staying at Blackpool after Nottingham Forest were priced out of a deal for the player. Bournemouth also showed interest in the former Everton man but decided to look elsewhere.

It doesn’t look like Ousmane Dembélé is going anywhere tonight.

Bournemouth clearly don’t fancy another year in the Championship – they’ve signed winger Siriki Dembélé from Peterborough, paid Cardiff £3.5m for striker Kieffer Moore and secured loan deals for Newcastle keeper Freddie Woodman and Liverpool defender Nat Phillips. What’s more – they’re still working on a move for Norwich’s Todd Cantwell.

Liverpool agree fee for Fabio Carvalho

Liverpool have agreed a fee with Fulham for Fabio Carvalho after a complicated day of negotiations. They still have to finalise personal terms and the player needs to pass a medical before the 11pm deadline, however, so it could be close.

Here’s our story on arguably the surprise move of deadline day:

What about Crystal Palace, I hear you ask. Well, they are working on two late deals – a permanent move for on-loan forward Jean-Philippe Mateta, and a £1m move for Derby prospect Luke Plange.

A long, long Overground ride away in Stratford, it’s been a frustrating window for West Ham, with no major signings despite interest in Kalvin Phillips, Raphinha, Darwin Nuñez, Jesse Lingard etc etc.

A small piece of business at Chelsea – they’re trying to get a deal for Charlton Athletic striker Mason Burstow over the line. The 18-year-old would be a signing for the academy.

Updated

Transfer doyen Fabrizio Romano reports that Dele Alli will be announced imminently. Everton also tried to get their hands on Real Madrid striker Luka Jovic today, but to no avail.

Aaron Ramsey joins Rangers on loan

Rangers didn’t waste any time getting this one announced, and I for one am grateful. Aaron Ramsey arrives on loan from Juventus, and will be quite the signing if he can stay fit.

Ousmane Dembélé is still a Barcelona player, despite links with PSG, Chelsea, Spurs and more in the last few days. Here’s Sid Lowe on a sorry situation:

Aaron Ramsey is at Ibrox! Rangers have until midnight to get him signed up – the Scottish window is open for an extra hour.

“I’m 40 tomorrow, I really shouldn’t still be as engrossed in this merry-go-round as I am. Still hoping for a last minute surprise birthday present from Tottenham though! Mind you, this window should beat Zeki Fryers for my 30th.” Happy birthday, Nick Dent.

Nobody’s been busier than Tottenham today, with two players in, three out and Dele Alli leaving for good:

Two hours to go! We’re waiting on confirmation of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s move to Barcelona, Dele Alli joining Everton, and Dan Burn being added to Newcastle’s January basket. Plus, there’s still time for a late twist, or for someone, somewhere to sign Ousmane Dembélé. Stick around!

“It boggles the mind how Barcelona have managed to craft a financial plan that allows them to sign Aubameyang,” notes Edward Graves. “For a club that is over a billion euros in debt, how exactly are they finding the funds to pay his salary?”

Who knows – and I can’t help but feel that a forward line of Aubameyang, Adama Traoré and Ferran Torres is going to take a while to click.

Don’t forget – you can catch up with all the day’s transfers around Europe with our interactive tracker:

Dele Alli is close to being announced as an Everton player. Despite rumours of other Premier League clubs trying to hijack the deal (looking at you, Newcastle), he is going to join Big Frank’s Goodison revolution.

“I don’t suppose the Aubameyang negotiations include any discussion of downgrading his Mr 10% to a much more sensible Mr 3%?” wonders Peter Oh. I dread to think of the expenses tab that’s been run up at the airport this afternoon.

A trio of outgoings from the fringes of the Manchester City squad: Defender Sammy Robinson has joined Port Vale, winger Luke Bolton is heading for Salford, and midfielder Matt Smith has signed for MK Dons.

Arsenal sign a player! It’s one for the future, though – Colorado Rapids defender Auston Trusty, who certainly sounds reliable.

Here’s our latest take on the Aubameyang situation. It looks like the forward is leaving on a free transfer.

Updated

“Honeymoon period isn’t over yet, so if Conte wants them he gets them,” says Yash Gupta. “What he says, club follows and most fans nod in agreement unconditionally. Personally I’m excited for new signings and can’t wait to see them play.”

A fair point, but were these the players Conte wanted at the start of the window?

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang looks set to become a Barcelona player this evening, on a free transfer. Arsenal are happy to let him go with 18 months left on his contract – according to Sky’s number-crunchers, it will save them £25m in wages.

A busy day for Bournemouth, who have brought in keeper Freddie Woodman and centre-back Nat Phillips on loan – and they’ve now secured a permanent deal for Cardiff and Wales forward, Kieffer Moore.

New signing Kieffer Moore is unveiled by AFC Bournemouth.
New signing Kieffer Moore is unveiled by AFC Bournemouth. Photograph: AFC Bournemouth/Getty Images

Updated

A little more background on Brighton’s new signing, Deniz Undav, from Edward Ricketts, who I’m appointing as our Belgian league roving reporter.

“Brighton and Union Saint-Gilloise are both owned by Tony Bloom, with a host of players shuttling between the clubs in recent years. More remarkably Union, from southeast Brussels, are currently nine points clear at the top of the Belgian First Division having just been promoted – and have been wholeheartedly adopted by Brussels hipster types of late.”

Undav has played a major role in the club’s rise, scoring 35 goals in 52 games for the hipster favourites.

Two players who appear to be going nowhere tonight are Steven Bergwijn, who had been linked with a move to Ajax ... and Jesse Lingard. West Ham and Newcastle had been trying to get a move over the line, but Lingard will stay and see out his Manchester United contract.

Liverpool are still hoping to get a deal over the line tonight for Fulham’s Fabio Carvalho:

It’s being reported by the Athletic and now Sky Sports News that Barcelona have agreed a deal for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang! It’s either a six-month loan and then a permanent move, or a free transfer, depending on who you ask. Either way, it seems he’s played his last game for Arsenal.

Updated

“Curious about Spurs dealings today,” writes Shawn Grant. “Are Bentancur and Kulusevski that much of an upgrade, talent-wise, on Ndombele and Lo Celso (and I suppose throw Dele in there too), or is this Paratici and Conte dipping into a market familiar to them, hoping some fresh blood will give them a kick up the backside?” I would imagine the latter, but Serie A heads might disagree. Get in touch...

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Newcastle are expected to tie up a deal for Dan Burn tonight, but any faint hopes of signing Reims striker Hugo Ekitike have been extinguished. The Ligue 1 club and their forward “have decided by mutual agreement to continue the adventure together,” according to an official statement.

The defender left Chelsea for Monaco in 2018 and has also played for Cercle Brugge. Forest are also hoping to close a £2m deal for Stoke striker Sam Surridge.

Joan Laporta has given an update on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and he seems quietly confident. Laporta also says that “an English club” (thought to be Chelsea) are trying to sign Ousmane Dembélé. That seems like a lot of wages to negotiate with three and a half hours to go, but we’ll see.

The headlines so far

Thanks, Daniel and happy deadline day, everyone. I’ll be here until the window shuts at 11pm (GMT) and beyond. Here are today’s top stories:

Spurs have signed Juventus duo Dejan Kulusevski (on loan) and Rodrigo Bentancur, with a host of players leaving on loan.

Dele Alli is set for a permanent move to Everton, with Donny van der Beek also joining on loan as Frank Lampard checks in.

Newcastle have secured a loan deal for Matt Targett and are still wrangling with Manchester United over Jesse Lingard.

Manchester City have signed River Plate forward Julian Alvarez, who will stay in Argentina until the summer.

Wolfsburg striker Wout Weghorst has joined Burnley, and Christian Eriksen has agreed a short-term deal at Brentford.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is perusing the gift shop at Barcelona airport as talks continue over a loan move.

Updated

Anyhow, I’ll leave you with that because Niall McVeigh is here, yellow tie resplendent, to take over. Ta-ra.

Updated

The bottom of the Premier League table looks like a laugh. Burnley are well behind but have games in hand, Watford look done for, Newcastle have spent loads but who knows how they’ll integrate, Norwich are somehow out of the relegation zone, Everton should have enough but have a manager who’s never been in the scrap, Leeds should also have enough and Brentford might get sucked in. I’ve no idea how it’ll shake out.

I forgot to say, earlier in the day, Anton Ferdinand used the phrase “When I was in my pomp”. He’s lucky Roy Keane was on with him.

Donny van de Beek joins Everton on loan from Mancester United

Alli, meanwhile, is about to have his Everton medical.

On the one hand, if Alli was going to Everton to play under Lampard, then that’s not changed. But if he helps Newcastle stay up, he might reckon himself in a better spot to earn money and play in big games by staying there.

Skullduggery afoot!

Liverpool are still trying to nab Fabio Carvalho from Fulham, and their offer is apparently £5m. There’s meant to be sumer interest in him from Dortmund, but if he goes there then, the fee will be nominal. Liverpool, meanwhile, don’t want the aggravation of the tribunal that’d set his fee if goes to them in the next window.

Brighton have signed Deniz Undav from Union Saint-Gilloise

He’s a striker.

Not directly transfer-related, but Nike have suspended their relationship with Mason Greenwood: “We have suspended our relationship with Mason Greenwood,” they told BBC. “We are deeply concerned by the disturbing allegations and will continue to closely monitor the situation.”

On which point, Greater Manchester police have also put out a statement: “Detectives have been granted additional time to speak to a man in his 20s who is being held on suspicion of rape and assault of a woman. The suspect was arrested yesterday (Sunday 30 January) afternoon and remains in custody. Enquiries are ongoing and the victim is being offered specialist support.

If you’re a victim of domestic abuse, or are concerned about someone you know, please use our online reporting facility or use our LiveChat facility on our website, or call 101.

In an emergency that’s on-going or life is in danger, always dial 999.

Some victims may not feel comfortable speaking with the police, or may feel they need support to come forward and make a report. Greater Manchester Victims’ Services can provide independent emotional and practical support for anyone affected by crime.

You can contact the service by visiting the website on https://www.gmvictims.org.uk/ or calling 0161 200 1950.”

Updated

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s proposed loan from Arsenal to Barcelona still has a pulse! (And the punctuation is necessary because it is becoming one of those back-and-forth sagas so beloved on deadline day.) The deal had looked dead in the afternoon with the clubs unable to reach an agreement on how to split his £300,000-a-week wage but it is understood that conversations are continuing.

“You’d think,” says David Mooney, “that Mikel Arteta had reached the last straw with Aubameyang, and that given his druthers, PEA would be training with the U12s until his contract runs out. But if the Kroenkes don’t want to pay £175k/week for Aubameyang not to be playing for Arsenal (Barca option) they’re definitely not going to want to be paying £350k/week for him not to be playing for Arsenal (frozen out in London option). Oh to be able to listen in on the manager’s phone call from his boss at 11:01pm this evening.”

Yup, it looks like player and manager need to broker an uneasy peace.

“Bryan Gil is very raw,” says Yash Gupta. “It depends on the player, some develop quicker than most, others take longer like Felix at Atletico Madrid. Gil has promise and, dare I say, in little moments he has really excited. A loan move suits him fine if he’s going to play. I have seen some who aren’t happy he isn’t getting a loan in England, but personally I’ve no problem as long as he’s playing regularly. He can play through the middle or in inside-left channel and if he’s good he’ll force his way back in.”

I’d be interested to know the plan when he was bought; did they think he was ready?

“It’s old news about the United Board’s apathy towards footballing matters, particularly those that make no sense,” says James Kelly. “Too long a list to rhyme off. This transfer window is a perfect example of why they didn’t go Conte. He’d never put up with it. I venture they also half promised Ralf a player, maybe depending on permanent outgoings which haven’t happened, Well if you offer silly wages to fringe players and all that… That said, a few pounds have been saved with the loans. But why use that? Would make too much sense. Oh and an absolute blinder replacing the CEO, who has overseen the transfers for eight years, the day AFTER the window closes. I didn’t expect anything this window. But then again you live in hope competency will prevail.”

What I find odd about the Glazers isn’t that they aren’t fussed about winning the league – that’s a speculation for not that much extra money, and they could toss everything they’ve got at it and still finish behind City and Liverpool, who have the two best managers in the world. But not making sure to get top four every season I don’t understand on a financial level.

Check the fax machine is in good working order...

Matt Targett joins Newcastle on loan from Aston Villa

Villa’s signing of Lucas Digne presumably made the difference here.

“With the suspension of Greenwood ‘until further notice’,” email Womancraft Publishing, “surely it makes sense for Rangnick to hold on to Lingard for the rest of the season? He’d likely be first replacement for that position now.”

Perhaps, but Rangnick apparently told Lingard he could go, so I’m not sure that’s what it is – my guess is that there’s a number to which Joel Glazer would’ve said yes. As for first reserve, Anthony Elanga can play on the right and would, I imagine, be given a go ahead of Lingard as he’s as United for the long term.

Gosh, Spurs has been an enervating place since Pochettino left: Ndombele, Gil and Lo Celso out – temporarily at least. I wondered if Lo Celso might work well in the kind of box midfield Conte used at Chelsea, and he looked a really exciting buy when he first arrived in England, but injuries and constant flux aren’t helpful to any player.

Sky, meanwhile, report that Jermain Defoe is very close to a Sunderland return. They lost 6-0 to Bolton at the weekend, a result which cost Lee Johnson his job, but they’re third in League One and well-placed to make the play-offs at least.

David Ornstein of the Athletic now reports that Lingard has been told he’s staying at Manchester United. I don’t know, that seems fairly strange behaviour to me.

I wonder what Conte’s plan is for Bryan Gil. I’m surprised by how little we’ve seen of him, especially given how badly things have gone at Spurs, but on the other hand, where do you put a wispy winger in a 3-5-2 or a 3-4-3? He’ll have to do very well to earn himself a future, would be my guess.

Breaking: excellent “in and around” usage from Anton Ferdinand on Aaron Ramsey who, if he does well at Rangers, will be “a king in and around Glasgow”.

On Ramsey’s wages, Sky reckon he’s on £200,000 a week. Rangers won’t be giving him that, you’d assume, but I imagine Juventus think whatever happens, this loan means they’ll get shot of him in the summer.

Aaron Ramsey of Juventus.
Aaron Ramsey of Juventus. Photograph: Giuseppe Maffia/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock

Updated

“Though it doesn’t really make a difference,” Matt Burtz says gallantly prior to correcting me, “Dele Alli is cup tied, so he can’t play 20 games this season no matter how far advance Everton in the FA Cup. On these terms I like the deal for someone who only turns 26 in April.”

Of course! And I agree, on the face of it it’s a really good deal for Everton, but you never really know until you see what happens.

“Still no sign of a defensive midfielder for Manyoo?” asks Dean Kinsella.

Er, apparently not. It can be rationalised: the manager won’t be in charge next season so they don’t want to buy someone in case new kid doesn’t fancy him, and/or the player they want – Declan Rice – isn’t available now. Reports in Germany said this, but also said that Ralf Rangnick responded by asking to add Haidara to his squad and for Ten Hag to succeed him, as he knew they’d be a good match ... only to be rebuffed.

Thing is, if United found the right player, they’d be close to a lock four fourth place and have a very good chance of beating Atlético in Europe, so not a mindless speculation. But the owners aren’t especially fussed about footballing matters.

Sky reckon Aubameyang to Barca isn’t happening. Ultimately, Arsenal could really use him just as he could use playing instead of sitting about, so I wonder if there’ll be some kind of rapprochement.

Craig Hope of the Daily Mail says the Lingard numbers are £3m for the loan and £4m for the survival bonus, along with wages. That sounds alright for a player who can leave for free in June, who the manager isn’t into, but perhaps someone wants to gamble that £7m guaranteed isn’t worth it relative to Newcastle going down, given they’ll be top-four rivals in the near future if they don’t.

“Re Juventus are laughing,” says Ben Hayward, “For the 3v2 at negligible cost to work out then you’re assuming that Spurs end up buying Kulusevski, otherwise they are banking €29m (is there a fee for Ramsey?), that’s quite a lot of downside vs the €80m layout on Vlahovic and Zakaria … it’s not exactly money in the bank.”

No, but Spurs have to buy Kulusevski in certain circumstances and Ramsey was free so will be on colossal wages.

Newcastle have made an offer to take Jesse Lingard on loan from Manchester United. West Ham want the midfielder back at the London Stadium, but it seems United won’t deal with a rival for a top four place. Looks like Newcastle or nothing for Lingard.

Sky are now saying that Newcastle have offered a loan fee, full wages and a survival bonus for Lingard, but United haven’t responded. That deal, they now think, won’t happen.

“I guess Dele Alli will have an Everton career lasting exactly 19 games,” chortles Ian Copestake.

Everton have 18 games left this season, plus Brentford in the cup. They can probably defer it until August if they want to.

Lampard was, though, key to getting Alli to Goodison, which makes some sense. Despite what happened at Chelsea, Lampard speaks well and had to think hard about his own game, so even if still can’t build a coherent team, he should be able to coach Alli to play midfield.

Here’s today’s Fiver...

Dele Alli for free sounds pretty decent. Well, obviously it won’t actually be for free, but Spurs must’ve been pretty keen on getting shot.

Detail on Kulusevski:

Juventus are laughing. They’ve shifted three players they didn’t want – Ramsey, Kulusevski and Bentancur – and replacing them with two they do want – Vlahovic and Zakaria – at negligible cost.

On top of this, Sky’s West Ham reporter thinks Lingard is going to Newcastle or nowhere.

Phew, that little burst has exhausted energised me. A fabled double-swoop, whatever next?

More on Kulusevski: he’s signed on an 18-month loan, for a €10m fee, rising to €35m if Spurs take up their option to make the move permanent.

“Wholeheartedly disagree with you with your Hojbjerg/Skipp comment,” tweets Graeme Appleton. “PEH is far more mobile and forward-thinking than OS. I was hoping the latter would be shipped out before deadline tonight, alas.”

Fair enough. I’m certain Hojbjerg isn’t good enough for where Spurs want to go, whereas Skipp has plenty of time to improve.

Updated

Ousmane Dembele has, apparently, been told to leave Barca this month, but his mooted loan to PSG is not happening. Sky’s man just told us he’s hearing Chelsea is his most likely destination, but who knows.

It's a double-swoop! Dejan Kulusevski joins Spurs from Juventus!

Phew, what a day!

Bentancur’s contract is until 2026, by the way.

It’s been a tricky few years for Bentancur, but at 24 he’s got plenty of time to come again. I fear for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, whose place is now under threat – Oliver Skipp and an attacker look likely to play ahead of him too – but Spurs need more mobility and forward-thinking than he offers.

Rodrigo Bentancur signs for Spurs from Juventus for €19m!

More on Alli: the fee is heavily incentivised, but might rise as high as £40m if he does stuff.

“Julián Álvarez is one of the most exciting players to come out of South America in a while,” tweets @CiutadàGlobal. “He’s won everything in Argentina, including the Libertadores. The future of Argentina. Man City managed to land a gem, and as a Barça fan, I’m extremely jealous.”

On Ramsey, Sky are reporting that there’s no buy option for Rangers, which makes more sense. He may get there and love it, but I can’t imagine he’d commit to that without having checked it out first.

No more Álvarez intel as yet, but Giulio Ongaro has some thoughts on Aaron Ramsey: “The news of Ramsey’s loan to Rangers was greeted with hysterical joy by all Juve fans. He has not been contributing and often has dealt with physical issues that disappears magically a week later when he is called up by his national team, only to reappear (also magically) the moment he lands at the airport in Turin… Good riddance! He has never put in the effort we expect of Juve players.”

I’m not sure about that. I’d never want to accuse a player of shirking, especially not one like Ramsey, who’s had bad injuries. I can see that he wasn’t a good fit for Juve, and that his is a particular skillset – if he’s not scoring, he doesn’t do loads else – but he is a good player.

“I know it is tempting to United-bash at every opportunity,” says Rick Harris, “but I’m not sure that Martial is entirely their fault. At times he has looked the part only to get injured just when he was on a decent run. The other issue of course is that few European clubs can match PL wages, and that means a player will have to accept a big pay cut in order to ply his trade elsewhere so it is understandable why a player might choose to see out their contracts. Lingard could have been sold to West Ham in the summer but he chose not to go, thinking that his West Ham form would get him more starts this season. Van de Beek is the one that really takes some explaining. It will look even more baffling if he shines at Goodison.”

I’m not sure. Martial didn’t kick on after that good run during lockdown and has had enough chances – he’s a good player, but it’s been clear for two years that he wasn’t the answer – while Lingard could have been told he’d never play and that he had to leave. I guess it’s possible Solskjær didn’t trust the board to deliver on targets so thought he’d hold onto what he had, but if he’d shifted a few he might’ve had money for a midfielder.

Thinking more about Everton, I guess there’s room for Alli and Van de Beek if they play 3-5-2 – though I can’t see Demarai Grey and Andros Townsend as wing-backs. I suppose Van de Beek might be tried deeper, or Alli might become a box-to-boxer, but otherwise a struggling team will struggle to make room for both.

Nat Phillips joins Bournemouth on loan from Liverpool

Liverpool defender Nat Phillips has joined promotion-chasing Bournemouth on loan until the end of the season.

The 24-year-old has been the subject of widespread interest this month, with Liverpool receiving two permanent bids of £7m plus inquiries from Newcastle and Leicester, but the prospect of more regular first team football with Scott Parker’s side proved more attractive to Phillips and the Anfield club.

Newcastle’s offer was a loan deal with a commitment to buy if they avoided relegation. Leicester also made an approach but Liverpool believed the defender would be only a back-up option for both Premier League suitors. Burnley were keen on Phillips in the event of James Tarkowski leaving but that has not materialised.

Liverpool will receive a loan fee of £1.5m from Bournemouth plus an additional £250,000 if Parker’s team win promotion back to the Premier League.

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Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s proposed loan from Arsenal to Barcelona has broken down, with the clubs unable to reach an agreement on how to split his wage. The striker, who is out of the picture at Arsenal on disciplinary grounds, earns about £300,000 a week. Aubameyang had travelled to Barcelona in the hope of completing a loan until the end of the season. It is understood he also has family there.

Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Photograph: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC/Getty Images

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“Hope you are enjoying the transfer spectacular,” emails Matt Thomas. “Due to a quirk of fate I’ve missed a yearly spectacle that always marks the blessed end of January. Newcastle rent the parking in St James Park on match days and hundreds of us from the local hospital park there every day. For the last decade or so during the Ashley era, on this day without fail there has been a Sky Sports reporter freezing their nips off, bored out of their mind and contemplating their life choices while having roughly nothing to report on as the wind whipped into their faces off Barrack Road.

I was really hoping this year to see their happy, cheerful face, nourished by the orgy of actual stuff happening this year. But sadly my own child got sick (they are now fine) and I had to stay home and miss this heart-warming spectacle. The hospital is moving all the parking back on site later this year so I’ll only have the sad memories to look back on.”

Waiting for a glimpse of no one versus waiting for a glimpse of Dan Burn, there’s not loads in it.

Sam Surridge will have a medical at Nottingham Forest this afternoon before joining in a £2m deal from Stoke. The club are looking to do a couple more deals before the end of the day.

Any Los Millonarios fans or South American football experts reading? What can you tell us about Julián Álvarez? I don’t suppose his purchase is great news for Gabriel Jesus, who was signed to replace Sergio Agüero, couldn’t, and is still in and out now Agüero has gone.

Dan Burn has agreed personal terms with Newcastle, apparently. That’s a slightly strange one – I know they apparently went for Adam Webster first – but I’m surprised they didn’t pay what it took to get him, or find someone else.

Champo update: Nottingham Forest are talking to Stoke about loaning Sam Surridge, while Todd Cantwell has passed his medical at Bournemouth.

“Speaking of Ramsey,” says Martin Gwynn Jones, “Rodon was pretty great for Wales in the Euros (forgetting Denmark for a second). He was so highly-rated at Swansea, it’d be great to see him get a proper go somewhere.”

Tournaments aren’t always the best for judging talent, but yup, I’m surprised Rodon’s had so little football under Conte.

Wout Weghorst looks a very decent buy for Burnley – and for less than they got for Chris Wood. His first game for them will be Man United at home next Tuesday night; I daresay the visiting goalkeeper and centre-backs will be tested under the high ball and from set-pieces [hilarity ensues].

Coming to the Tony Macaroni...

The Athletic’s David Ornstein reports that Aubameyang to Barca is off, as the parties haven’t been able to reach agreement on wages. Things can, of course, change, but in the meantime Arsenal are stuck with a deposed captain who wants to be elsewhere, but whose goals they need, but whose goals have dried up.

I don’t know, I’m probably just an idiot, but Ndombele has something special. I hope he can find it on a regular.

Dele Alli will sign for Everton from Spurs!

That’s a terrific move for both parties, in theory.

“Whenever Rodon has played,” returns Yash Gupta, “he never looked out of his depth other than those two mistakes at Stamford Bridge on his debut – a game in which Spurs kept a clean sheet. It’s a shame he can’t get into the team when Tanganga makes mistakes and I mean blunders every game.”

I’m not sure Conte is much into Tanganga either, but he does know a fair bit about getting a defence right, so I guess we’ll see what happens.

Rangers visit Celtic on Wednesday; if Ramsey was available for that, what a debut. Remember, the SPL champs go straight into the Champions League this season, so winning the title means a colossal financial windfall. Two or three consecutive years of that and we might see a rebalancing of the Old Firm.

That’s a great move for Rangers – and for us if it means more shots of SSN’s reporter outside Ibrox’s magnificent main stand. Ramsey is 31, but doesn’t have too many miles on the clock, and will score a lot of goals in Scotland.

Aaron Ramsey to Rangers is on!

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More on Lingard: Sky say United have reduced their ask somewhat. Truth is, they should have ensured Lingard – and Martial, and Mata, and Van de Beek – left in the last window. It was clear then that they were never going to get the games they needed, as it was that United needed one, if not two, midfielders. Both Lingard and Martial are now likely away on loan, and will presumably move permanently for less than they’d have commanded in the summer. But there you are – that is United under the Glazers.

“So the way to get Everton to sign people,” emails Ken Houghton, “is for Palace to express interest? Well, the Eagles are ahead of them in the table, so I guess it makes some sense.”

Yes, I was wondering what made Van de Beek prefer Goodison. Perhaps he wanted to stay in the north west, or perhaps he wanted to play for Lampard, because otherwise Palace seemed like a better choice for him.

If Lampard is still at Everton when Steven Gerrard gets the Liverpool job, does Paul Scholes have to go to Tranmere?

It’d be a pretty good buzz for Aubameyang, that: breaking the rules at Arsenal and getting punished with a move to Barca. That’ll teach him. On which point, I’m a little surprised Arsenal haven’t found an alternative to him, even on loan, because they’re in the hunt for top four and might find that it’s harder to achieve that next season.

Aubameyang latest: the deal hasn’t been agreed, but the player is ready to take a pay-cut and a medical. At Arsenal, there’s surprise that he’s already in Barcelona, but it makes sense to me: he’s not got much else on, and he must be absolutely ganting on this getting done.

“If I were Dele Alli,” says Yash Gupta – for avoidance of doubt, he isn’t – “given they just missed out on VDB, I would go to Palace. Their manager looks a real deal.”

I can see that. It’s a shame what happened to Alli, who has an amazing gift of timing. I always hoped he’d become a box-to-box player, now I just hope he sorts his career out – if that’s what he wants to do.

“I don’t think City need a striker,” says Benjamin Watson. “If they do then they’re not getting Álvarez until next season anyway. They already have Cole Palmer coming through the youth setup and just seem to be laying the groundwork for the next decade. Your mentions of Mendy (injuries then criminal charges) and Aké (expensive but still a young understudy) don’t really sit with the buy and hope image Man City have. Either way, surely it’s better to prospect on young talent rather than hope to rely on fading stars?”

I’m wasn’t moralising and saying what City are doing is wrong, just that if they buy a player and it doesn’t work out, there’s little to no opportunity cos because they just buy another. As for whether they need a striker, it’s fair to say that they’re doing fine without one, but they might find that they miss one against the better European teams. And I agree that Cole Palmer looks decent, but that won’t mean people who deal in absolutes will assume he’ll be good enough and not purchase alternatives.

“Not sure how long it’s been since you were last in Newcastle,” emails Ben Blatch-Hanlon, “but the Ritzy hasn’t been called that since at least 2002 (and has been closed as a venue since 2015) and Circus Circus has been called Flares since at least the late noughties. Next you’ll be saying we’ll be attracting players with the prospect of visiting the floating Tuxedo Princess nightclub on the Tyne! (I’ll give you Tup Tup though, that’s still going strong).”

I was harking back to my youth – I don’t think I’ve been to Ritzy since 1993, when I wore a suit because that’s what I’d seen people go out in in comics – but I’ve had some good trips to Newcastle since then.

“Aaaarrggghh!” is, I imagine, roughly what Donny van de Beek will now be thinking. I don’t know, maybe Lampard will play two attacking midfielders, but it’s hard to see that working well, and Alli was there permanently, he’d presumably the first choice.

Everton are looking to sign Dele Alli from Spurs today. It will have to be a permanent transfer as, once Donny van de Beek completes his loan move from Manchester United, Everton will have used their quota of domestic loan deals.

Dele Alli.
Dele Alli. Photograph: Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images

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Oh man, it’s good to see Christian Eriksen back. Surely that’s enough to cheer up even Thomas Frank following his recent septimana mirabilis.

More Riquelme news with Andrew Clowes: “Running (ambling for a flight). Must be headed to J League!”

The first two yards were in his head.

Liverpool are still trying to get Fabio Carvalho out of Fulham. They’ve doing pretty well really – not long ago, you wondered about their forward-line ageing together, but they seem to have refreshed it very quickly. Obviously we don’t know how Luis Díaz will work, but he’s definitely a good player; I do wonder, though, is his arrival means the beginning of the end for Sadio Mané, whose position he plays.

I wonder if Rodon will get a chance. I can’t believe Conte is overjoyed with his options at centre-back, though I suppose he’d have picked Rodon by now if he thought he was the answer.

Looks like Joe Rodon will stay put at Tottenham. The 24-year-old centre-half, who has not kicked a ball under Antonio Conte in the Premier League, had been touted for a loan move this month.

“The best Merson bit I ever heard ,” returns Luke McLaughlin, “was when he was talking about Ashley Barnes and his strike partners at Burnley: “It’s like walking into a bar with David Ginola – you play off him.”

Remarkable, really. If Man United finish below West Ham, it’ll be because they’re incompetent, not because they loaned them a player they’ve no interest in using.

West Ham and Newcastle have both come back in for Jesse Lingard, who has been told he can go on loan by Ralf Rangnick. I’d be surprised if United let him go on loan to West Ham.

“It says what it says on the tin,” says Merse of Targett and Wood, who he thinks are good buys because they know the league. He’s not sure about Guimaraes, and I don’t know what it says on his tin, but I daresay it’s not “acceptable for a lower-middle to relegation-threatened side”.

“Just seen Juan Riquelme in Kuala Lumpur airport, tweets Andrew Clowes, “but he seemed to be heading east and not to Spurs. I think he would miss the deadline anyway, unless he’s having an onboard medical?”

Oh my days, imagine the bate on Antonio Conte after being presented with his running stats.

Newcastle may not, now, be signing Hugo Ekitike from Rennes – Ekitike isn’t that keen. Which I guess makes sense as, if he’s as good as he’s said to be, he’ll have better offers and soon. However, Jesse Lingard may yet make it to Ritzi’s, Circus Circus and the Tup Tup Palace and Man United’s board may, at long last, benefit from their avaricious aversion to selling players, because the Toon still want another attacker and are running out of time to find one. West Ham, though, are also in the hunt.

Hugo Ekitike playing for Reims.
Hugo Ekitike playing for Reims. Photograph: Pascal Rossignol/Reuters

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Back on SSN, Merse reckons Frank Lampard’s problem at Chelsea was tossing on attackers to try and win games that were 0-0 late on, then ending up losing.

Bully to those who reckon a lack of organisation, consistency of selection and apparent clue as to how to build a good football team were also problematic.

Huddersfield have now completed the loan signing of Chelsea’s Tino Anjorin. It will be interesting to see how the youngster gets on in the Championship.

Goodness me, Mick McCarthy back at Sunderland would be something, and the mere thought of it made me go like this.

It’s deja vu time at Sunderland where the former England striker Jermain Defoe is close to making an emotional return to his old club at the age of 39 and the ex manager Mick McCarthy appears to be on the shortlist to replace Lee Johnson.

With Johnson having been sacked on Sunday night in the wake of the supposedly automatic promotion pursuing team’s 6-0 League One hammering at Bolton on Saturday there is considerable interest in the post with the former Celtic manager Neil Lennon an early favourite alongside McCarthy and the current Everton caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson.

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I’ve not seen much of Álvarez, but City certainly need a striker. I guess the thing about their model is that is doesn’t much matter if deals don’t work out – see Claudio Bravo, Nolito, Mendy, Ake and all the rest – because they just buy someone else. But they could use Álvarez working, and if he does, the rest of the league are in trouble.

I thought I was going to open with news of Michael Buerk’s transfer from BBC News to adverts on SSN flogging Queen’s jubilee coins, but was overtaken by Álvarez. But now you know.

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Any thoughts and tips – you may, for example, have seen Niko Krancjar buying astrobelts at Happy Shopper in Aberdeen – please send them to @DanielHarris or daniel.harris.casual@theguardian.com.

You can find out more about Álvarez here – he ranked 91 in our list of the world’s best 100 footballers.

Manchester City sign the striker, Julián Álvarez, from River Plate for €17m!

More news imminently.

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Thanks Luke and hi everyone....

That’s my lot – I shall hand you over to Daniel Harris for the rest of the afternoon. Cheers, and I hope you get all the signings you wished for.

Suggestions that Aubamayeng has travelled to Barcelona under his own steam, on the off chance that Barcelona decide to sign him. Which would be amusing if true.

It wouldn’t be a transfer deadline day blog without a mention of Peter Odemwingie, would it?

Lys Mousset is off to Salernitana from Sheffield United. All that and more in our interactive guide:

As we reported this morning in the old Rumour Mill, Dele Alli is being linked with a move to Everton ... but now Crystal Palace and Patrick Vieira appear to have joined the game. Which would make sense, if Vieira wants another midfielder, given he missed out on Van de Beek from Manchester United.

The reporter on Sky Sports News said that Duncan Ferguson, who also interviewed for the Everton manager’s job along with Lampard, will remain in his assistant coaching role. No potential for a bit of tension there, then ...

Middlesbrough are interested in taking Jeff Hendrick on loan from Newcastle, while Eddie Howe could also allow Jamal Lewis, the former Norwich left back, to be borrowed by a second-tier club for the rest of the season.

Out story on Lampard’s confirmation as Everton manager:

Quotes from Lampard after his new role at Everton was confirmed: “Very excited, it’s a huge honour for me to manage a club like Everton. I always had a great feeling as a player, playing at Goodison. I felt the atmosphere, I felt the passion of the fans and yeah, very hungry to get started.

“I think there are certain clubs in England, as a young boy growing up and as a player, and now as a manager, that when you go into the stadium you can feel the passion that the fans have for their club. Very intense ... I always found it times difficult when that passion was against you ... I’m very much looking forward to representing that on their side ... the passion that they give watching their team, I’ll try and bring that as a manager.”

Lamps.
Lamps. Photograph: Tony McArdle/Everton FC/Getty Images

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Freddie Woodman is having a medical at Bournemouth ahead of a loan from Newcastle. Woodman had been due to join Bournemouth in August but instead, an injury to Martin Dubravka and the bad case of Covid-19 sustained by Karl Darlow dictated that Gareth Southgate’s Godson stayed at St James’ Park and began the season as first-choice goalkeeper. Woodman is clearly talented but, having lost his place to first Darlow and now Dubravka, he needs games and a spell in the Championship seems a good solution.

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My colleague Gregg Bakowski remarks that Everton’s Lampard announcement video looks more like a Next advert. Which is spot on.

Lampard confirmed as new Everton manager

It’s official: Lampard is back in the Premier League.

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It seems there is still a chance that Jesse Lingard could go to Newcastle on loan from Manchester United today. As things stand, the Magpies don’t want to pay the loan fee plus his full wages ... but Newcastle fans will no doubt be thinking back to the goals he knocked in while on loan at West Ham. He could be useful in a relegation scrap.

There is some noise about Yannick Carrasco, the 28-year-old Belgium international who plays his club football for Atlético Madrid. According to reports, both Newcastle and Tottenham are interested, and Spurs have already had an initial bid rejected.

“Join Tottenham? Let’s reject that,” as Mirko Vučinić once memorably said.

Latest from the transfer news machine Fabrizio Romano: Tanguy Ndombele is off to Lyon on loan until the end of the season. Could that deal free up Tottenham to bring someone else in?

Gillingham have announced the appointment of the former striker Neil Harris as their new first-team manager. The Gills, thrashed 7-2 by Oxford on Saturday in caretaker boss Steve Lovell’s final game, are second bottom in League One and 10 points from safety. The former Millwall and Cardiff boss Harris, who had a loan spell at Priestfield during the 2005-06 season, has succeeded Steve Evans.

Chairman Paul Scally told Gillingham’s official website: “It has been a difficult task over the past few weeks, interviewing and selecting the right candidate but I am delighted that with Neil’s experience, his knowledge and passion of this football club, and his desire to take the club on a new journey, that today is the start of a new tomorrow.”

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Reports that Bristol City have batted off a bid from Nottingham Forest for their in-form striker Antoine Semenyo. They are holding out for £20million for a player who’s under contract until 2023.

Benfica reject West Ham's £50m Núñez bid

Benfica have rejected West Ham’s bid for Darwin Núñez. The offer was £50m plus £10m in add-ons for the Uruguay forward – it would have been a club record for West Ham. Benfica have no intention of selling.

Benfica’s Darwin Nunez.
Benfica’s Darwin Nunez. Photograph: Patrícia de Melo Moreira/AFP/Getty Images

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Preston have signed the centre-back Bambo Diaby until the end of the season after a successful trial. The 24-year-old, formerly of Barnsley, has returned from a two-year ban after being found guilty of unintentionally breaching Football Association anti-doping regulations in November 2019.

“I’m very excited to sign with Preston because it’s been a long time,” Diaby, who has an opportunity to earn a longer contract, told pnefc.net. “It’s been the thing I’ve been waiting for. Every day I’ve been training very hard to get to this day.”

Manager Ryan Lowe has been impressed by the defender’s attitude. Lowe said: “He’s different to what we’ve got. He can play in a few different positions around the back and probably right wing back, so we’ve offered him a short-term deal until the end of the season to go and showcase what he’s got to potentially earn a longer contract. He’s had a kick in the teeth, he’s been out for two years and he’s very eager now to put that behind him and get on a streak. First and foremost [he has to] get in the squad and then get in the team and showcase what he’s about.” (PA Media)

Transfer deadline day via Teletext. Those were the days.

Brian Clough had never heard of Ian Woan, but when he saw on Teletext that Harry Redknapp was buying him, he got on the blower and hijacked the deal. Textbook move. Tele-textbook move?

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On Sky Sports News, they’re saying Donny van de Beek chose Everton instead of Crystal Palace because he didn’t want to move his family to London. Perfectly fair enough, of course, but personally I think I’d grab a chance to work with a promising young manager such as Patrick Vieira. That isn’t to say Frank Lampard isn’t a promising young manager.

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If you want to keep across all the deals that have been done across Europe’s major leagues in this transfer window, our interactive guide is your one-stop shop:

Get it bookmarked!

Christian Eriksen has issued a brief message to Brentford fans after signing with the Premier League club until the end of the season. “I’m happy to announce that I’ve signed for Brentford Football Club. I can’t wait to get started, and I’ll see you all very soon,” he said.

Here’s this morning’s story, if you missed it:

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And Fabrizio again, via the magic of Twitter: Bentancur has penned his contract with Spurs:

And another! ... Morata will not be going anywhere today:

Latest from Fabrizio Romano:

Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang has an agreement in place to join Barcelona on loan from Arsenal but the deal is expected to go through only if the Catalan club can move at least one player out.

Hertha Berlin have made an official announcement on the signing of the 19-year-old forward, Kélian Nsona, from Caen in France.

Poland have named the former Legia Warsaw coach Czeslaw Michniewicz as their new manager after parting ways with Portugal’s Paulo Sousa, the Polish Football Association announced on Monday. Sousa had asked to be relieved of his duties in December after less than a year in charge and paid his release clause so he could accept an offer to manage Brazilian club Flamengo.

Michniewicz has signed a deal until the end of 2022, with an option to extend, and will take charge of Poland’s World Cup playoffs against Russia in March.

The former Ukraine international Andriy Shevchenko was also linked to the job, however, local media reported that he was taken out of the running due to contractual obligations with Italian Serie A club Genoa, who sacked him earlier this month. (Reuters)

Will Michniewicz like the look of Matty Cash, Poland’s latest recruit? It remains to be seen.

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An update from Scotland, via PA, on the suggestion that Rangers may make another bid for the Hearts defender John Souttar:

Souttar did not train with Hearts on Monday morning but only because he was receiving treatment after going off against Motherwell on Saturday. After confirming there had been no more offers, Neilson added: “He didn’t train today - he’s got a wee ankle knock - but should be available for tomorrow. We’re just waiting to see what happens.” Hearts are assessing potential options in case Souttar leaves late on Monday but otherwise will not be signing anyone.

“We’re actively looking to see what’s out there in the market,” Neilson said. “We’ve said all along it has to be the right one that comes in. There’s no panic here because we’ve got other good defenders here but first and foremost I’d like to keep John if we can. I’m very happy with the squad. If we can keep hold of John, it will be a brilliant window.”

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They’re going to be getting it launched at Turf Moor after the arrival of Wout Weghorst, aren’t they? Now more than ever.

Updated

Bournemouth have inquired about loaning Nat Phillips from Liverpool as well as Neco Williams. Both loan deals would be until the end of the season.

This is definitely going to be a busier January transfer deadline day than last year. Ozan Kabak was the man of the moment back then, signed by Liverpool from Schalke with great fanfare to try and deal with their injury crisis in central defence. There was basically nothing else going on as clubs continued to grapple with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Far from residing in the ‘Where are they now’ file, though, Kabak is at Norwich these days.

Updated

Huddersfield have completed the signing of Jamal Blackman after the goalkeeper spent two weeks training with the squad. The 28-year-old is a former Chelsea graduate who was a free agent after leaving left Los Angeles FC at the end of last year, having previously played for Sheffield United and Rotherham. The 6ft 7ins Blackman has signed a contract, pending international clearance, until the end of the season.

“He offers great competition for Lee Nicholls and bolsters our goalkeeping department,” said the head of goalkeeping Paul Clements. “Jamal’s arrival takes the pressure off our younger goalkeepers too. Ryan Schofield can focus on recovering from the shoulder injury he suffered at Burnley, and we can continue to prioritise the development of players like Nicholas Bilokapic and Gio Bellagambi, who have been covering Lee in recent weeks.” (PA Media)

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Thanks Michael and hello everyone. What’s going on, then? I’ll obviously be delving into my little black contacts book this afternoon, but you can email hot stories here or tweet me @LukeMcLaughlin ...

Updated

My colleague Luke McLaughlin is taking over the blog now, enjoy the rest of your Monday. See ya!

Woefully out of form, but he’s going to score loads of goals in La Liga, isn’t he.

Aaron Ramsey latest, courtesy of PA Media.

Rangers could sign Aaron Ramsey in a sensational transfer-deadline swoop, according to reports in Italy.

Reports claim Juventus are prepared to accept Rangers’ offer for the out-of-favour Wales international, whose contract in Turin runs until the summer of 2023.

The likes of Wolves, Burnley and Newcastle have also been credited with interest in the 31-year-old former Arsenal midfielder.

Rangers could be busy with reports claiming the Scottish champions are close to a deal for 20-year-old Lechia Gdansk right-back Mateusz Zukowski. The Ibrox club could yet decide to go back in for pre-contract signing John Souttar following a failed bid around 10 days ago.

Bild in Germany are reporting that Kylian Mbappé have agreed a deal to join Real Madrid in the summer, on a free transfer. He’s soon to be out out of contract of course, and there are various numbers flying around regarding his potential new salary, with some reporting it could be close to €1m a week …

Kylian Mbappé gets a flick on the ear from PSG assistant Jesús Pérez.
Kylian Mbappé gets a flick on the ear from PSG assistant Jesús Pérez. Photograph: Franck Fife/AFP/Getty Images

Here’s a bit more on the comings and goings at Newcastle.

Maybe he could do a job up top for Arsenal.

Donny van de Beek has arrived at Everton’s Finch Farm training ground to complete his loan move from Manchester United. With Anwar El Ghazi also arriving on loan from Aston Villa this month, Everton will be unable to make any more domestic loan signings should the van de Beek deal go through. They could still do business abroad, however.

Today’s episode of Football Weekly has landed. Get your ears around it.

While we’re on the subject of Spurs …

Worth remembering that Spurs transfer guru Fabio Paratici convinced the club to part with more than £20m (and Eric Lamela) for Bryan Gil, who has shown almost nothing since his summer move from Sevilla.

Another Burnley target, Mislav Orsic, turned down a move to Turf Moor last week, opting to remain at Dinamo Zagreb. Whenever I’ve seen the boy play (and at 29, he’s not really a boy), I’ve been so impressed. He scored a hat-trick to knock Spurs out of the Europa League last season and the goal he scored in the Europa League last month against West Ham was outrageous. Apparently Dinamo were willing to let him go for as little as £7m this month, before the player opted to stay. I’m shocked that bigger clubs are not in for him, even at this relatively late stage in his career.

Wout Weghorst to Burnley is done!

This is a great signing for Burnley, costing around £12m. It is arguably an upgrade on Chris Wood, who was sold to Newcastle for £25m and is a year older. Weghorst has shown patchy form for Wolfsburg this season, but scored a whopping 27 goals in all competitions last season, including for Holland at the Euros. Standing at 6ft6in, he’s certainly a handful and should slot straight into the Burnley way of doing things.

Matt Targett has arrived for his medical at Newcastle

A loan deal has been agreed for the Aston Villa left back, with talks continuing over whether it could be turned into a permanent switch in the summer.

I once went to interview Jermain Defoe at his house. In his hallway, there was a lifesize painting of himself, mid-strike. He also had a soft-play ball pit in one of the bedrooms, despite not having any children. Would be an interesting signing for Sunderland! Most of the fans seem excited about it, although Oxford United are also interested. The 39-year-old is a free agent following his release from Rangers so could join outside of the transfer window, doesn’t have to be done today.

Happy 30th Birthday, Jeff!

Incoming Everton manager Frank Lampard has asked Duncan Ferguson to be part of his backroom team.

The Scot was overlooked for the permanent manager’s job on Friday and is considering his options as he looks to become a manager in his own right. One option, however, is to stay with his beloved Everton. Ferguson has been a youth team coach, a first team coach, assistant manager and caretaker manager since returning to the club under David Moyes and a step back may not appeal at this stage.

Lampard is currently putting together a backroom team that is expected to include Paul Clement, Chelsea coach Joe Edwards and former Derby and Chelsea coach Chris Jones.

An email from Fulham fan Richard Hirst:

“I will be, as the saying goes, gutted when Carvalho leaves. He’s the only Premier League quality player in the team. Others might make it to a PL squad, but not the first XI. And our recruitment record after our two previous promotions doesn’t give much ground for optimism.”

Louise mentioned Nketiah there, and it looks like he’ll be kicking his heels for the next six months or so, especially if Arsenal do bring in a striker today.

All that vitamin D absorbed during last week’s warm weather training in Jeddah seems to have energised Eddie Howe and his Newcastle board. They are now pushing their January spending over £100m with the centre half Dan Burn expected to complete his move from Brighton - for £11m or £13m depending on who you believe – shortly and a loan deal with Aston Villa in place for the left back Matt Targett. Coincidentally, Targett came very close to joining Newcastle on loan during his time at Southampton only for the clubs to run out of time.

Perhaps most excitingly a deal for the 19-year-old Reims striker Hugo Ekitike has been revived. The so called ‘new Kylian Mbappé’ is set to cost somewhere, roughly, in the region of £25m. A fee has now been agreed with the French club but it could be touch and go to complete all the deal’s formalities by 11pm tonight. Even so this seems to end Newcastle’s interest in the Arsenal forward Eddie Nketiah.

With the defensive midfielder Bruno Guimaraes having signed from Lyon on Sunday and Kieran Trippier and Chris Wood recruited earlier in the window, Howe is presiding over a wholesale revamp of his relegation threatened squad.

That squad will now be too big so, to trim it to the Premier League’s mandatory 25, Howe is going to have to move some senior players out today - or else leave them kick their heels on the sidelines, unable to play football.

Done deal: Jonas Wind joins Wolfsburg!

Another Dane on the move, this time from FC Copenhagen. He’s an international striker, standing at 6ft2in. Sporting director Marcel Schäfer: “Jonas has a very good technique, both when receiving and taking the ball, finds solutions even in the tightest of spaces, has a good header game and plays very well for the team. Although he already has a lot of experience, we are convinced that his development is not over yet and that he will take the next development step with us.”

Every Sunday League team has a someone with a left-foot ‘wand’ but that would be something else.

An email from Joe Cass: “Not exactly headline news, but Ainsley Harriot has been spotted at a fair few Frome Town FC games this season, including last Saturday apparently. Frome are Southern League Division 1 South and Ainsley lives locally.”

Our man in Poland, @MaciejSlominski, says that Lechia Gdańsk defender Mateusz Żukowski is on the brink of joining Rangers.

There’s also some speculation over whether Rangers could make a sensational bid for Aaron Ramsey, Juventus are keen to get rid of the Welshman and his gargantuan wages of around £140,000 a week. He’s apparently also been offered to Wolves on loan. I’m surprised Newcastle aren’t in for the 31-year-old, to be honest.

It’s likely to be fairly quiet at Chelsea today – we’re not expecting any incomings – but one deal that should happen is Tino Anjorin going on loan to Huddersfield. Southampton had looked at signing the young forward last week, but that’s probably one for summer now. Huddersfield already have the young Chelsea defender Levi Colwill on loan and are looking to get another youngster in. Chelsea turned down the Championship club’s offer for Harvey Vale as Thomas Tuchel could give opportunities to the midfield but Anjorin, who spent the first half of the season on loan at Lokomotiv Moscow, is set to leave today.

An email, from reader Darrien Bold. #breakingnews

“I might be a bit late to the party on this one but I’ve just spotted wily old campaigner Vinny Samways enjoying a sandwich at Lime Street Station as rumours of a switch to Everton for a cool £2 million continue to do the rounds.”

As well as trying to add Fulham’s Fabio Carvalho to the eye-catching signing of Luis Díaz, Liverpool have inquiries for several of their players to consider today.

Divock Origi is of interest to Atalanta, although the Serie A side’s move may rest on whether striker Duvan Zapata stays or goes. Leeds and Monaco were unable to entice Takumi Minamino away from Anfield last week but could have another go.

Bournemouth want Wales international Neco Williams on loan until the end of the season while both Newcastle and Leicester have inquired about centre-half Nat Phillips.

Check out our snazzy transfer interactive for all the confirmed moves in Europe’s top five leagues, which has been given a makeover to make it even snazzier.

Another Brentford update.

In other Championship news, it looks like Joe Rothwell is staying at Blackburn Rovers. The midfielder is out of contract in the summer and has been one of the best players in the second tier this season – one of the big reasons why Rovers are second in the table. Bournemouth reportedly tabled a few bids, the latest around £3m, but that has been rejected, owing to the Cherries being a direct promotion rival. Another unnamed Premier League club is understood to be interested so the possibility remains that he could either leave this month for a fee, leave in the summer for free, or gloriously sign a new contract when Rovers’ promotion* to the Premier League is confirmed.

Looks like Bournemouth have instead turned to Norwich’s Todd Cantwell, who could join on loan with an option to buy in the summer.

West Ham’s latest idea for a new striker is Benfica’s Darwin Núñez. They’re still holding on to slim hopes of signing the Uruguay forward but it sounds unlikely at the moment. Benfica won’t sell him on the cheap - it could take about £70m to get them to think about it - and it’s said there are a lot of competing interests around the player.

David Moyes also wants a centre back. Marseille’s Duje Caleta-Car is a long time target but the French club are reluctant to loan him out today.

An update to this Liverpool story, from Mr Romano.

Here’s Andy Hunter on Lampard’s in-tray at Everton. There have been no updates on the Donny van de Beek loan from Manchester United this morning, but the Dutchman is widely expected to sign on a deal until the end of the season.

Newcastle have reportedly had an offer for Hugo Ekitike accepted by Stade Reims. Eddie Howe and co have been tracking the young striker since the start of the month, with most expecting the move to be dead, following Newcastle’s signing of Chris Wood. However, it looks like we’re back on. The fee is thought to be in the region of £25m-£30m, plus add-ons.

Sid Lowe on Ousmane Dembélé and a toxic ‘blackmail’ situation that could be resolved today.

Two potential transfers from that Mill that make perfect sense. The first is the idea of Ruben Loftus-Cheek joining Everton and Frank Lampard. The young man is absurdly talented, but just can’t seem to get it going at Chelsea on a consistent basis. He needs regular football, and what with Conor Gallagher/the next big Chelsea summer signing incoming for next season, I can’t see how he’s ever going to play 30-40 games each year.

The other is Aston Villa’s Matt Targett to Newcastle, who is thoroughly dependable and probably looking for an exit after the arrival of Lucas Digne. Targett is certainly good enough for a relegation scrap, but he’s the sort of Newcastle signing you can imagine on the scraphead in a couple of years, as the club fight their way towards … the top half!

A cuppa, a crumpet and a Rumour Mill: transfer deadline day has started in earnest.

Eriksen will become the eighth Danish player at Brentford, and the second signed by Thomas Frank (a Dane) this month, after Jonas Lössl. Ever prior to the Eriksen signing, despite playing just 23 matches in the Premier League, they have used more different Danes than any other side in the competition’s history.

Preamble

Happy Transfer Deadline Day, everyone! Such is the importance to the Gregorian Calendar these days, I’m surprised you can’t buy Hallmark cards to mark the occasion. A Fabrizio Romano mug, perhaps. I’m sure there are probably some Jim White socks somewhere.

Anyway, let’s get straight down to business. Today’s news feels very Spurs-y. This is mainly due to the host of players that Tottenham have already missed out on in the past few days: Liverpool nabbed Luis Díaz from Porto before Antonio Conte got the chance, while dallied for most of January over signing Adama Traoré, only for Barcelona to beat them to it.

In a further blow, over the weekend, Spurs could not even get a bloke from the Isthmian League Premier Division to sign, as talks with Lewes’ Ollie Tanner, a 19-year-old previously of Arsenal’s academy, fell flat. A statement read:

Lewes Football Club would like to confirm that whilst the club and a Premier League club agreed a deal in principle for the transfer of Ollie Tanner, Ollie and the Premier Club were not ultimately able to agree personal terms and he remains a Lewes FC player.”

Oh! Spurs! Well there’s still time today, and it very much looks like Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur will sign on the dotted line today, as Conte raids Italy for any Juventus off-cuts.

We finish this preamble with our first significant transfer of the day! Christian Eriksen, formerly of Tottenham of course, has signed for Brentford! This is very exciting, and I think the entire footballing world will be wishing him well, as he puts his cardiac arrest behind him and attempts to force his way back into the Danish World Cup squad.

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