Chelsea complete Enzo Fernandez signing on deadline day, Man Utd confirm Marcel Sabitzer loan
Chelsea’s pursuit of Argentina World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez went down to the wire on deadline day, after Arsenal completed the signing of Blues midfielder Jorginho
Chelsea have completed the signing of Enzo Fernandez for £106m, in what is a British transfer record. The Blues met Benfica’s release clause for the Argentina midfielder shortly before Tuesday’s 11pm transfer deadline.
A statement from the Portuguese side confirmed the deal past midnight after Chelsea rushed to complete the transfer.
It came after Manchester United signed Marcel Sabitzer on loan from Bayern Munich until the end of the season. The Austria international adds to United’s midfield options after Christian Eriksen was ruled out for three months with an ankle injury.
Brighton held on to midfielder Moises Caicedo, but Arsenal turned their attention to another target and signed Jorginho from Premier League rivals Chelsea in a £13m deal.
Elsewhere, Tottenham confirmed the signing of right back Pedro Porro, with Matt Doherty joining Atletico Madrid on a free transfer after his contract with Spurs was terminated by mutual agreement.
Follow all the latest transfer news and rumours, below:
David Moyes hopes Jarrod Bowen is finding his best form again
West Ham boss David Moyes hopes striker Jarrod Bowen is recapturing the form that earned him a place in the England squad.
Bowen has ended a three-month goal drought by following up his recent double against Everton in the Premier League with another and also an assist in West Ham’s 2-0 FA Cup win at Derby.
Moyes said: “Jarrod has been a huge player for us in the last couple of years and proved it.”
Mohamed Elneny update
Arsenal have provided an update on the injury to Mohamed Elneny.
The midfielder was reportedly out of action for the rest of the season and although the club’s update doesn’t mention a timeframe for his return the Gunners have confirmed that he will be spending a lenghty time on the sidelines.
The statment reads: “Following an injury sustained in a recent training session, subsequent assessments have confirmed that Mohamed Elneny has a significant injury to his right knee.
“Mo has had successful surgery in London and will be ruled out for an extended period of time. A more detailed timescale will be established once the early stages of rehabilitation have been completed.
“Everyone at the club will be offering Mo all the support he needs and working hard with him so he can return to action as soon as possible.”
Manchester United to ‘keep transfer strategy’ as Chelsea close in on spending record
Erik ten Hag said Manchester United will stick to their strategy in the transfer market, even though Chelsea’s record spending could alter the Premier League.
United paid out over £200million for new players last summer but their only January signing so far has been the loan striker Wout Weghorst.
Meanwhile, Chelsea’s expenditure over the two windows has been around half a billion pounds, even before they tried to seal a British record deal for Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez.
But Ten Hag insisted that United have a plan to get back to the top of the game and they will not change that.
Erik ten Hag: Man Utd to ‘keep transfer strategy’ amid Chelsea spending
United’s only January signing has been loanee Wout Weghorst, while Chelsea are trying to seal a British record deal for Enzo Fernandez
Wigan bring in Rekik
Wigan Athletic’s rebuild continues at the DW Stadium as they look to avoid relegation back to League One.
The club have already brought in four new players and a new manager in Shaun Maloney this month now they have confirmed the loan signing of Arsenal defender and Tunisian international Omar Rekik for the remainder of the 2022/23 season.
Rekik becomes the Club’s fifth signing of the January Transfer Window, following the arrivals of Steven Caulker, Miguel Azeez, Christ Tiéhi and Martin Kelly.
Will Ziyech leave Chelsea?
Hakim Ziyech’s difficult spell at Chelsea could be nearing it’s end. The Moroccan star arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2020 but has failed to make any significant impact with the Blues.
The 29-year-old is now a target for a number of clubs across Europe with Paris Saint-Germain the frontrunners for his signature. Ziyech is currently in Paris negotiating with the French champions and is trying to get a move over the line before tonight’s deadline.
He could join the French side either permanently or on loan.
Merson excited by Jorginho move
Sky Sports pundit, Paul Merson, thinks that Arsenal’s move for Jorginho is great business and will only boost the club’s chances of winning the Premier League this season.
“I think outstanding. You are buying experience as well. He’s won big trophies. He is a proper holding midfield player.” Merson said on Sky Sports News.
“We were only talking about, two years ago when they won the Champions League and he won the Euros, we were saying ‘why don’t England produce one of these players?’.
“Two years on and Arsenal could be getting him. I know he’s two years older, but he’s so intelligent. He’ll protect the back four and he just keeps it simple. He will be feeding Odegaard. He will be feeding Saka and Martinelli.
“For me, he is a top signing. He knows he won’t be playing every week. But he will bring experience and calmness. I call it a cup of tea.”
Man City to benefit from Porro deal
Manchester City are set to land a tidy profit if Tottenham Hotspur manage to get their deal for Pedro Porro over the line.
City will earn a £10m windfall from Sporting when Pedro Porro completes a permanent £45m move to Tottenham. The 23-year-old will initially join Spurs on loan, having only transferred to Sporting from City for just £11m last summer.
Pep Guardiola’s forward-thinking club included a clause in the deal that took Porro from Manchester to Lisbon, entitling them to 30% of the profit made on the defender’s next move.
Erik ten Hag explains Man United’s plan for dealing with Christian Eriksen injury absence
Christian Eriksen will be out for three months with the ankle injury sustained against Reading on Saturday.
Manchester United will be without the midfielder, who was hurt in a shocking challenge by Reading striker Andy Carroll, until late April or early May.
Manager Erik ten Hag admitted United have no like-for-like replacement for the Danish playmaker but insisted his side can deal with his absence and backed Fred to step up as they have to play the majority of the rest of the campaign without Eriksen.
Ten Hag explains Man United’s plan for dealing with Eriksen injury absence
Man United do not expect to go into the transfer market to cope with the Danish playmaker being sidelined
Souttar arrives for Leicester medical
Harry Souttar has arrived in Leicester to undergo his medical ahead of his £15m move from Stoke.
The Foxes have a verbal agreement with the Championship club and have put plans in place to sign the defender though the detail of the structure of the deal is still being addressed between the two clubs.
Liverpool suffer further setback as Ibrahima Konate adds to injury problems
Liverpool have been dealt another defensive blow after centre-back Ibrahima Konate was ruled out for up to three weeks with a hamstring injury.
With Virgil van Dijk not expected to return from a similar problem for at least a fortnight, it leaves Jurgen Klopp short of options and is likely to scupper any potential deadline day move for Nat Phillips.
Konate was injured in Sunday’s FA Cup exit at Brighton and it is understood he is likely to miss upcoming matches against Wolves, Everton and Newcastle, with doubts currently over whether he will be ready for the Champions League visit of Real Madrid on February 21.
Liverpool suffer further setback as Ibrahima Konate adds to injury problems
The centre-back’s hamstring problem is likely to scupper any potential deadline day move for Nat Phillips.
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