Wednesday’s transfer news: Dybala in United talks, Arsenal want Tierney on top of Pepe signing, Spurs and Chelsea latest
All the biggest transfer news, reports and done deals from Wednesday 31 July
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Your support makes all the difference.Follow the latest updates with our transfer live blog as Manchester United and Arsenal enter the final week of the summer window looking to make big moves that could send out a major statement. The Gunners are closing in on a club-record deal for Lille winger Nicolas Pepe that is expected to be announced today, but they have not yet dropped their interest in Celtic’s Kieran Tierney either.
United meanwhile have entered talks with Juventus about a swap deal involving Paulo Dybala and Romelu Lukaku, with the Argentine’s agent already in England to hold negotiations with the Premier League club. Gareth Bale meanwhile continues to be trapped at Real Madrid, with the club now claiming that he is “not fit enough to play” despite blocking his move to China last week.
Bayern Munich’s pursuit of Leroy Sane has hit a stumbling block, with club chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge admitting that he doesn’t know why manager Niko Kovac is “very confident” of signing the Manchester City winger, while Newcastle United goalkeeper Freddie Woodman is attracting interest from Arsenal and Celtic. Follow the live updates below.
The summer transfer window closes at 5pm on Wednesday 8 August for all Premier League and Championship clubs, with teams in League One, League Two and across Europe able to sign new players until 11pm on Monday 2 September.
Blackburn Rovers have announced the signing of Manchester City youngster Tosin Adarabioyo on a season-long loan.
Paulo Dybala is currently holding talks with Juventus manager Maurizio Sarri over his future, according to Sky Sports News.
It's claimed that the Argentina international trained as usual on Wednesday morning, but headed straight for talks with the new club manager to decide if he will enter transfer talks with Manchester United or not.
Bayern Munich appear to to have a problem on their hands.
Two days after head coach Niko Kovac said that he was "very confident" the club would land Manchester City winger Leroy Sane, chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has given a fresh interview to say he does not know why Kovac would say such a thing.
Speaking to German newspaper Bild, Rummenigge said that the club are not close to a deal for the 23-year-old, but it could easily be a move to appease City anger for Kovac talking openly about their player.
Reports in Italy suggest that Arsenal have made an approach to Juventus Daniele Rugani, but have been knocked back with their initial enquiry.
The Italian club are not keen to let Rugani leave, although newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport say that while they have rejected the interest in the centre-back, Arsenal could look to try force through a joint-move by taking Sami Khedira off the club's hands as well.
Arsenal may be busy with a number of incomings over the final week of the window, but one possible outgoing remains under-pressure defender Shkodran Mustafi.
The Germany international has drawn the ire of fans over the last 12 months for his performances and has been identified by the club management as an area of concern.
But he remains under contract until 2021 and his father has rejected claims that he will look to leave this summer given that there seems to be little interest in his services.
Reports in France are suggesting that Monaco could up their interest in the 27-year-old, though Arsenal are yet to receive any offers.
Former Tottenham and Barcelona midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng has landed himself yet another club after he agreed to join Italian side Fiorentina on a two-year contract.
It means the former Ghana international extends his senior career path to Hertha Berling, Spurs, Borussia Dortmund, Portsmouth, AC Milan, Schalke, AC Milan (again), Las Palmas, Frankfurt, Sassuolo, Barcelona and now Fiorentina.
Breaking: The Independent can confirm that Romelu Lukaku has agreed terms with Juventus that will see him leave Manchester United this summer - but only if Paulo Dybala's move in the other direction can be agreed.
Northern football correspondent Mark Critchley can reveal that personal terms have been agreed between Lukaku's camp and the Serie A champions, and that United have given him the green light to leave as long as they get their hands on Juventus striker Paulo Dybala.
Here's the full story:
Does Manchester United's interest in Paulo Dybala make sense so late in the transfer window?
In a word: yes. That's according to our chief football writer Miguel Delaney, who believes that the time is right to move for a player who up until two seasons ago was a target for every club going.
Premier League clubs look set to raid Serie A this summer with Paulo Dybala and Moise Kean reportedly nearing moves to England.
Dybala could leave Juventus for Manchester United, with Romelu Lukaku heading in the other direction, while Everton are apparently very keen on 19-year-old Kean, another Juve forward.
We take a look at five of the biggest names to have also made the switch from Italy to England.
Paul Pogba
The French midfielder became the most expensive import ever to English football when United shelled out 105million euros (approximately £96.2million) to bring him back to the club from Juventus in 2016. Pogba has shown brilliance at times but not the consistent excellence to justify his price tag and has been repeatedly linked with another move away from Old Trafford.
Mohamed Salah
Salah cost less than half Pogba's fee when Liverpool brought him to Anfield from Roma in 2017 but there has been no doubting the Egyptian's positive impact. He scored 44 goals in his first season and 27 in his second, earning the Premier League Golden Boot both times and playing a key role in the Reds' success under Jurgen Klopp. Liverpool raided Roma again last summer for another key recruit, bringing in goalkeeper Alisson Becker.
Thierry Henry
Thierry Henry can lay claim to being the most successful import from Serie A. The Frenchman was a winger when he moved from Juventus to Arsenal for £11million in 1999. He went on to become one of English football's most prolific strikers, scoring 228 goals in all competitions. He was a member of the Invincibles team of 2003-04 and played for the Gunners for eight seasons.
Juan Sebastian Veron
Argentina midfielder Juan Sebastian Veron became the most expensive transfer in English football when he joined Manchester United from Lazio in 2001, signing a five-year deal. But he struggled to adapt to the pace of the game in the Premier League and was widely considered a flop. He moved on to Chelsea after only two years but made just a handful of appearances.
Mario Balotelli
Balotelli may not have made the biggest impact on the pitch following his move from Inter Milan to Manchester City but he generated plenty of headlines. Brought to City by his former boss at Inter, Roberto Mancini, striker Balotelli scored 20 top flight goals in 54 appearances but his disciplinary record was poor and he was sold to AC Milan two-and-a-half years later. He subsequently spent an unsuccessful season back in England with Liverpool.
England forward Toni Duggan has signed a two-year contract with Atletico Madrid Women.
The 28-year-old, who made three appearances for England at this summer's Women's World Cup in France, had left Barcelona at the beginning of July.
Duggan said: "This is an amazing opportunity to play for one of the greatest clubs in Europe.
"I had several different offers - from all around the world - but at this stage in my career, I wanted to join a side that is consistently challenging for honours and Atletico's record is incredible."
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