It’s nearly August and with it comes the start of the Premier League season. There’s just over two weeks left in the English transfer window, too. Which players are likeliest to move in the near future? David Amoyal rates the top rumours from around world football.
Miralem Pjanic to Manchester City: 30 percent
The Bosnia and Herzegovina midfielder recently switched agents and is now part of agent Fali Ramadani’s team, which could lead to either an improved contract with Juventus or a transfer to a club with deep pockets. After losing out in the race for Jorginho, Manchester City are determined to close the deal quickly should Pjanic become available and Pep Guardiola reportedly called the player himself to express his interest.
Juventus have historically let players who want to leave go as long as they receive an adequate offer; this time, they’ve set the price at €100 million, which would generate a very substantial profit and would help partly offset the enormous annual cost of acquiring Cristiano Ronaldo. Pjanic has also been linked to Barcelona and Chelsea, but City appear to be the most logical destination should he leave Turin.
Paul Pogba to Juventus: 15 percent
Could the #Pogback hashtag make an unexpected return to Twitter? While the France international has certainly had an rocky relationship with Jose Mourinho, the odds that he’ll return to Juventus are rather slim. For one, Manchester United are determined to keep him and unleash all of his potential. Secondly, it would come at an enormous cost (especially in terms of wages) for the Serie A champions to bring him back to Turin. When you consider how much Juventus have already spent this summer, it looks like an unlikely proposition.
Matias Vecino to Chelsea: 30 percent
While Maurizio Sarri typically doesn’t get involved with transfers, it makes perfect sense for Chelsea to bring in as many players familiar with his system as possible. The Uruguay international played for the former Napoli coach at Empoli during the 2014-15 season and could be available for a reasonable price when you consider that his value hasn’t increased since Inter spent €20m to acquire him last summer. Inter have also been linked to Davide Zappacosta going the other way, meaning a deal involving both players could be reached in the coming weeks.
Emil Forsberg to Roma: 35 percent
Everything seemed to be set for Malcom’s arrival in Italy’s capital on Monday evening, but a last minute offer from Barcelona changed Bordeaux’s mind and now, the Brazilian winger will be taking his talents to Spain instead. Sporting director Monchi will now have to reinvest the proceeds of the Alisson sale on another target and he’ll likely pivot to Emil Forsberg, who is represented by the same agent who brokered the deal for keeper Robin Olsen. As alternatives Roma could go after Domenico Berardi, who played for manager Eusebio Di Francesco at Sassuolo, or Ajax talent Hakim Ziyech.
Harry Maguire to Manchester United: 55 percent
United are still looking to find a reliable centre-back partner for Eric Bailly and have now zeroed in on the England international. While Leicester would like to keep Maguire for at least another year, Mourinho is intrigued by the idea of adding someone already used to the Premier League after Victor Lindelof’s inconsistent first season. A deal could be reached if a bid around £50m is made.
Harry Maguire excelled for England at the World Cup finals.
Arturo Vidal to Inter: 10 percent
The Chile international could be on his way out at Bayern Munich this summer and he has expressed a desire to return to Italy on multiple occasions. But without making a significant sale first, Inter can only offer a loan with no obligation a buy since they can’t add anymore guaranteed expenses to their current financial statement after the Radja Nainggolan deal. It’s rather unlikely that Bayern would accept such an offer since it would leave the door open for Vidal to return to the club next summer when he would have even less resale value.
Wilfried Zaha to Borussia Dortmund: 20 percent
Borussia Dortmund have set their sights on the 25-year-old, who reportedly asked to leave Crystal Palace, in a deal that could involve ex-Chelsea winger Andre Schurrle in order to try and lower Palace’s asking price of at least €70m. While a return to the Premier League for the Germany international could very well happen regardless of Zaha’s future, the idea of the former Manchester United winger leaving England appears rather unlikely.
Adrien Rabiot to Barcelona: 40 percent
There’s still uncertainty surrounding the future of Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Adrien Rabiot. The 23-year-old France international has only one year left on his contract and having received an offer from Barcelona, the chances of him leaving are slowly increasing. On the flip-side, PSG are reluctant to sell one of their promising home-grown players and will try to persuade him to sign a contract extension, although they are well aware that the Blaugrana‘s offer gives the player quite some leverage in any negotiations.
Kevin Gameiro to Valencia: 60 percent
After weeks of talks, Valencia are finally closing in on the signing of the Atletico Madrid forward for a fee that could exceed €20m. The French striker likely won’t be on the plane to Singapore, where the Colchoneros will have their preseason tour, as the deal with Peter Lim’s club could soon enter its final stages. Atletico’s interest in other strikers like Milan’s Nikola Kalinic and Chelsea’s Olivier Giroud is a further signal of Gameiro’s imminent departure.
Alphonso Davies to Bayern Munich: 70 percent
The MLS sensation seems set to take a huge leap forward in his young career. Bayern Munich are keen on bringing the Canadian winger to the Allianz Arena, hoping to work on his 17-year-old raw talent as the perfect future replacement for the aging duo of Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery. A deal between Bayern and Vancouver Whitecaps could be agreed in the next few days for a sum that could reach the €15m mark, a sum that would make Davies the most expensive transfer in the American soccer league’s history.
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