Good morning guys, I hope you enjoy my latest Daily Briefing, my exclusive transfer news in one round-up, straight to your inbox five mornings a week!
Aston Villa
It’s official – former Arsenal manager Unai Emery has left Villarreal to become the new manager of Aston Villa, replacing Steven Gerrard. Villa paid Emery’s €6m release clause and have agreed a salary of €7m a year.
I think it’s an excellent move for Aston Villa. Emery is a great coach and appointing him in October was really difficult… long-term project and future investments convinced Unai.
This is different kind of job compared to Arsenal and I’m sure he will have more time, less pressure and great support. Of course it wasn’t easy for him at Arsenal, but I’m intrigued to see him back in the Premier League again – he’s shown time and time again what he can achieve with the right club and the right project.
Barcelona
Ousmane Dembele is having a terrific impact at Barcelona after deciding to stay at the club this summer. Xavi changed the situation in few months: “I wanted him to stay and sign a new contract because he can play at this top level.”
His current deal expires in June 2024, so it will be key topic again soon for Barcelona.
Bayern Munich
Bayern director Hasan Salihamidzic on January signings: “No, we’ve done a lot this summer. We will not be active in the transfer market in winter.”
Benfica
I’ve seen some reports of Liverpool and Manchester United looking at him. For sure, top clubs are following him but it’s important to say that there’s still nothing serious or concrete, as of now. He is still developing as a player, but let’s see where he is in a few years, the future looks bright for him.
Borussia Dortmund
Pep Guardiola on Jude Bellingham: “It’s not just quality… he has a special mentality. He’s already one of the captains, at 19 is quite impressive. It’s not just about the goals, the whole package is top. He’s already playing for England at 19. We know the quality he has.”
Brighton
Official: Alexis Mac Allister has signed a new long-term contract with Brighton. His new deal runs until 2025, and includes the option of an extra year.
Chelsea
Chelsea held talks over signing Edson Alvarez late on in the summer, so could they come back in for him again in the near future?
He’s always been on Chelsea’s list, but Ajax will try to keep him at least until the end of the season. There are no negotiations ongoing now, also no decision will be made by Chelsea on new midfielder in October; it will take some time. Not an easy one, for sure.
It’s looking possible that N’Golo Kante will not be signing a new contract, making him a free agent in the summer. If so, Chelsea will need a replacement, but there’s no decision yet on who that will be.
Fulham
Fulham have seen an opening verbal proposal for Brazilian talent Pablo Maia turned down by Sao Paulo. Negotiations will continue for a player rated highly by Fulham and other European clubs.
Manchester City
Pep Guardiola on Jude Bellingham: “It’s not just quality… he has a special mentality. He’s already one of the captains, at 19 is quite impressive. It’s not just about the goals, the whole package is top. He’s already playing for England at 19. We know the quality he has.”
As I’ve written recently, Man City are alongside the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea and Real Madrid as being very keen on signing Bellingham.
Manchester United
Manchester United are one of a number of clubs keeping a close eye on the form of Bayer Leverkusen youngster Jeremie Frimpong. The Red Devils have scouted the 21-year-old right-back a few times and I’m sure he’ll continue to have suitors. His current contract expires in 2025.
As I said yesterday, there’s been no major change to Cristiano Ronaldo’s situation. Despite reports, I don’t see moves to Napoli or Newcastle as likely, and I’m not convinced by rumours about MLS clubs either, as I expect his preference will still be to stay in Europe. He turned down a big-money offer from a club from Saudi Arabia in the summer.
Newcastle United
There’s plenty of Cristiano Ronaldo speculation doing the rounds, and one story stated that Newcastle have decided against signing him. Newcastle always wanted to go down a different path with a focus on young players. No news on Ronaldo, as things stand.
One of the young players Newcastle like is Andrey Santos. They’ve scouted the Vasco da Gama wonderkid a few times, and have even had some conversations about the player. Still, there is no deal for the moment as his club want more than €30m for the 18-year-old. It won’t be an easy negotiation for this player with huge potential.
I want to say I really like Newcastle’s strategy – when the takeover first happened we saw them linked with some big names, but ageing players. They’ve gone down a different route and have made smart signings like Bruno Guimaraes and Sven Botman – players for the present and the future, so I think they deserve credit for some good recruitment.
Napoli
I’ve seen reports that Napoli are now the most likely destination for Cristiano Ronaldo, but that’s not my current understanding of the situation.
Napoli have Osimhen, Simeone and Raspadori as strikers, so I don’t see them joining the race for Ronaldo in January – at least, nothing ongoing as of today.
Palmeiras
Endrick is an absolute beast and a big player to watch for the future. He’s going to be an important name on the market soon because every top team in Europe wants to sign him. Still, he recently signed a new contract and has a release clause of €60m. I can’t name specific names at the moment, but soon there will be more details on him.
PSG
Paris Saint-Germain have denied stories in the French press about Kylian Mbappe’s contract being worth €630m gross in three years.
A club statement read: “PSG confirms story is completely wrong with not a single detail being correct.”
I’ve also been told that Paris Saint-Germain are now considering legal action.
Real Madrid
Former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane: “I will be back soon. Wait, wait a little bit. Soon, soon. I’m not far from coaching again.”
Tottenham
I’m aware that not everyone is a huge fan of Tottenham’s tactics at times, but I think Antonio Conte is absolutely right for the club, and he’s doing the best he can with the squad he has at the moment.
Dejan Kulusevski and Richarlison being injured means they don’t have many players to rotate and it’s not easy; he said they need 2-3 transfer windows to reach top level and I agree, I think it’s pretty normal.
Teams like Man City are on different level as of now. Tottenham won’t catch them overnight.
Toulouse
Toulouse midfielder Branco van den Boomen is one to watch on the market – his contract expires in June 2023 and clubs from Italy, Spain, Germany and France are already tracking him.
Villarreal
Quique Setien, one step away from being appointed as Villarreal’s new manager to replace the departing Unai Emery. The former Barcelona coach is attracted by the Villarreal project after speaking with club president Fernando Roig.
Fabrizio Romano’s World Cup Dream Team
It’s almost time for the World Cup, and that means I’m continuing to build my Dream XI of players at the tournament.
Yesterday I selected Real Madrid and Belgium star Thibaut Courtois as my goalkeeper. Today, I’m naming my two centre-backs…
I think Ruben Dias and Virgil van Dijk would be a great duo at the back – both have quality, leadership and international experience. Two top players who will surely be crucial for their national teams in Qatar.