Fabrizio Romano gives us an exclusive round-up of the latest biggest transfer news stories following Manchester City’s move for Erling Haaland, with a look at how it could impact the futures of the likes of Harry Kane and Gabriel Jesus this summer.
Kane to Man City has “collapsed” following Haaland transfer
Manchester City’s interest in Harry Kane has clearly collapsed following the arrival of Erling Haaland. Harry’s priority is to reach a Champions League football spot with Tottenham and then have a direct discussion with the club at the end of the current season.
Kane has an excellent relationship with Antonio Conte, the Italian manager will demand confirmation of Harry among the many conditions to remain Spurs manager next season as well. Many clubs are interested but it will not be an easy deal despite the rumours about Manchester United: Daniel Levy intends to offer Kane a new deal, so it will be up to Harry.
Tottenham have not decided any price for Kane as of today. It was the same last summer, they simply didn’t want to sell him, so the situation will be similar this season – it will be up to Harry.
As I said in my column last week, Man United will 100% sign a new central striker this summer, and with Cristiano Ronaldo’s blessing. They need to replace Edinson Cavani, who is out of contract, and Marcus Rashford has been unsettled for some time, so will look to discuss his future with Erik ten Hag, but a move for Kane is not more certain just because of City signing Haaland.
How Kane’s future could affect Conte’s plans
There is an important detail to clarify: the rumours about Antonio Conte and Paris Saint-Germain do not come from Antonio’s camp.
Certainly Leonardo knows him very well, but there is no negotiation underway now between Conte and Paris, still too early. His priority is to get Champions League football with Tottenham and then reunite with Daniel Levy to decide his future.
Conte wants at least three or four high-level signings in the summer and then definitive clarity on the Spurs project, including keeping Harry Kane at the club. This is his priority to remain Tottenham manager, but the decision will be made in a meeting at the end of the current season.
Gabriel Jesus to Arsenal could be on, but City want to keep Raheem Sterling
Gabriel Jesus will leave Manchester City this summer. The plan is clear and the decision has been made, also because his contract expires in June 2023 and Gabriel wants to feel important in another club.
Arsenal have had direct contact with their agent and the project has been appreciated, but there is still no negotiation between the two clubs because Man City will only discuss it at the end of the month.
There are also other clubs in Ligue 1, Serie A and La Liga that have inquired about Gabriel.
For Raheem Sterling everything will depend on the contract: Manchester City would like to extend it as soon as possible, Pep Guardiola wants Sterling to stay – but the negotiations are still not easy. There will be a new direct contact this month.
From my perspective, it makes sense that City could sell Jesus but keep Sterling. Haaland is surely coming in to be the first choice centre-forward for Pep, and that will limit Jesus’ playing time. He’s too good to keep warming the bench for City and I think he could be a fantastic signing for Arsenal.
Liverpool transfer targets won’t change because of City’s Haaland swoop
Liverpool will not make any deals that could break their salary structure. The decision is very clear, there will be smart deals as has happened for Luis Diaz and Ibrahima Konate in recent months and this will not change due to the fact that Man City have signed Haaland.
The priority is to clarify the situation for Mo Salah’s contract, which is still on stand-by; certainly there is the intention to sign a new important midfielder, Aurelien Tchouameni is one of the names on the Reds’ list but there is great competition from other top clubs. There has already been direct contact with his agent.
By the way, the first signing will be Fabio Carvalho: the official announcement is coming in the next few days, Fulham will receive £5m plus £2.7m add-ons. Liverpool want to keep him in the first team, a loan is not planned as of now.
What to expect from Man Utd’s goalkeepers under Ten Hag
Goalkeeper is not Manchester United’s priority on the transfer market this summer. Erik ten Hag knows he has to reinforce the team in many other positions: centre-back, full-back, midfielder, striker – these are all urgently needed, and the goalkeeper is not considered a huge problem.
As of now Ralf Rangnick, recommends David de Gea to the board as an excellent goalkeeper. The club will have other priorities and then clarify the situation of the Spanish goalkeeper, who has had another outstanding season, even if it’s been one to forget at Old Trafford as a whole.
Of course, Dean Henderson wants to have regular game time so a decision will have to be made with Erik ten Hag about his future. He’s been on the Newcastle list for a long time but they have three goalkeepers in the list. His priority is to have a discussion with Ten Hag.
It didn’t quite work out for him in his run in the first-team last season, but he’s a quality player who is thought of highly by United, and remember that he was also wanted by Ajax last year, so we can assume Ten Hag likes him. Of course, being number one for Ajax and number one for Manchester United are very different things, but we’ll see how their talks go this summer.