This article was originally published on Fabrizio Romano’s Daily Briefing, a subscription service. If you would like to receive Fabrizio Romano’s exclusive transfer news via email ahead of publication on caughtoffside.com, please sign-up for the service here: thedailybriefing.io
A look ahead to City-Arsenal, plus latest on Gyokeres and Paqueta transfer links
I’m really looking forward to today’s big game between Manchester City and Arsenal. These two fantastic teams look sure to be among the main title contenders this season, and it’s going to be fascinating to see who can come out on top at the Etihad Stadium later this afternoon.
Personally, I’ve always seen City as favourites for the title, but I’m sure Arsenal and Liverpool will fight until the end, it’s not over in any case. The key of the game in my opinion will be how Arsenal will be able to limit the creativity of Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden, they always make the difference in big games; Liverpool have been able to do that, now it’s up to the Gunners to show they can do the same.
Staying with Arsenal, we’re again seeing rumours about interest in signing Viktor Gyokeres. My understanding remains that Arsenal have not opened concrete talks for any striker, but as I said many times Gyokeres for sure is one of the options in the list as they have spent months in attendance with their scouts in Portugal to follow the Sweden international’s progress.
Still, at the moment, there are no talks or concrete negotiations as Arsenal want to take their time before deciding who’s the player they will sign up front.
As for City, there are fresh links with West Ham star Lucas Paqueta, and it’s true he remains appreciated by City. He was first linked last summer and he’s always been super appreciated by City. But at the moment there is nothing new in terms of contacts or talks, as City never start talks so early and also they want to understand what’s going to happen with some players at the club like De Bruyne, his future will be discussed in the summer. But for sure, City’s appreciation for Paqueta remains.
What did Luis Enrique mean with his surprise Kylian Mbappe comments?
Luis Enrique has spoken in recent hours about Kylian Mbappe, suggesting that the French superstar could still change his mind about leaving Paris Saint-Germain at the end of his contract this summer.
PSG play Marseille in Le Classique tonight, and Enrique questioned if it would definitely be Mbappe’s last appearance in this famous fixture, pointing out that the player has still not announced anything, so why couldn’t he change his mind?
We’ve seen some fans reacting to this and getting the feeling that Mbappe has once again changed his mind about his future, and that he could now stay at PSG like he did in 2022, when he was also one step away from becoming a Real Madrid player.
There is one crucial difference this time, however, as on that occasion Mbappe never communicated to PSG that he was going to leave the club. At that time, Mbappe decided to keep all his options open, but as I’ve reported multiple times, on this occasion it’s different as he has communicated his decision with the PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi, as well as his teammates and other staff.
Despite Enrique’s comments, I’m told that nothing has changed. From what I understand, Mbappe, nor anyone from his camp, has called PSG to inform them of a change of decision. There is no change there, and so PSG are continuing to work on their project for the future without Mbappe, while Mbappe keeps advancing negotiations with Real Madrid – no changes.
Of course, the reality is still that Mbappe has still not signed the Real Madrid contract, so it’s not a done deal yet. Everything is going in the right direction, as I’ve kept on saying, it’s all going extremely well. The salary will be in line with what Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham earn, while the signing-on fee will be more than €100m, to be paid over the five years of his contract.
So, everything is more than advanced and everything is being prepared for Mbappe to sign for Real Madrid. Still, for him to announce in public that he’s joining Real Madrid would mean he has to sign the official contract, and that’s still not done. This might be why Enrique felt he could make those comments, but the truth is that there are no substantial changes at this point.
To repeat – Mbappe has not communicated anything new to PSG, there are still no changes to report. Everything is still on track with Real Madrid, we’re just waiting for the contract to be signed to conclude this incredible saga.
Alphonso Davies’ Bayern situation is tense
Another story for Real Madrid fans to follow is with Alphonso Davies, who is wanted by the Spanish giants, but only at the right price. As previously mentioned on here, personal terms shouldn’t be an issue, but an agreement with Bayern could prove trickier.
The situation with Bayern is tense, Davies doesn’t want to decide now and he wants to know who’ll be the new manager while Bayern want him to reply to their proposal as soon as possible.
It’s difficult for Bayern and Davies to agree on new deal, according to my sources; but it’s not over yet as there’s no formal communication. Real Madrid are just there waiting, but they won’t pay rumoured €60-70m for a player who’s under contract for one more year. It has to be a fair price.
Erik ten Hag speculation is normal, but there’s no decision yet
It was another difficult result for Manchester United yesterday, so what does this mean for Erik ten Hag’s future as we continue to see new managers linked with the job at Old Trafford?
It’s something normal when you have new (co) owners to discuss the manager position internally. Conversations between INEOS and Ten Hag have always been good and positive in the recent months; but results in the final two months will be important to make a decision on Ten Hag. Also, Man United want to finalise their board structure before making any final decision on the manager.
As I said last week, there have also not been any talks between United and Gareth Southgate, despite rumours. Let’s see how the season ends for Ten Hag, with nothing being decided now.
Massimiliano Allegri reaches landmark 500th game
Last night was Massimiliano Allegri’s 500th match in Serie A as Juventus were beaten 1-0 by Lazio. It’s quite a milestone for the experienced Italian tactician, but is he a ‘legendary’ manager?
Legendary manager is a big word, especially in Italy where we had incredible managers. For sure he’s done an excellent job at AC Milan and on his first spell at Juventus, but it’s also true that he had the chance to manage fantastic teams with top players.
In the recent years, his second spell at Juventus, it’s been not exciting at all for the club and the fans so the feeling is different. But in general, obviously, he remains a very good coach.
There we go