Chelsea are leading Manchester United in the race to sign Frenkie de Jong, and the Blues are ready and waiting to sign both the Dutch midfielder and his Barcelona teammate Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang should they leave Spain during this transfer window.
Chelsea have got loose agreements in place over personal terms for both players and are just waiting on Barcelona to give the green light to sell them, according to Sky Sports, while Spanish outlet Sport reports Chelsea are also closing in on a deal with Barca of around £68m for De Jong. The Times adds that De Jong would prefer Chelsea to United as a destination, and that Chelsea are also ready to put forward a final bid for Leicester’s wantaway defender Wesley Fofana.
Meanwhile Manchester United continue to pursue Cody Gakpo, the PSV midfielder, but he has hinted he would stay in the Netherlands should PSV get through the Champions League qualifying phase – they play Rangers later in August. United have been heavily linked to Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot, but negotiations have stalled over the 27-year-old’s bold wage demands, according to Gazetta dello Sport.
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