Liverpool are planning to hijack an Arsenal move for an in-form Brazilian striker, Fabrizio Romano has revealed Chelsea have an ‘agreement’ in place for Graham Potter’s immediate replacement, while Thursday’s Transfer Gossip claims Crystal Palace hope to land an ex-Tottenham midfielder.
LIVERPOOL TO LEAVE ARSENAL STUNNED IN STRIKER CHASE
Liverpool have joined Arsenal, Barcelona and Tottenham in the race for breakout Brazilian star Vitor Roque, according to a report.
Roque is only 18 years old but is already highly thought of by European scouts. He was in good form during his first full season in senior football in 2021-22, bagging 14 goals in 52 matches.
The teenage hotshot then earned a call-up to the Brazil U20 side, and he flourished with them. Six goals in eight games came his way as Brazil U20s won the South American championship.
Roque is now a full Brazil international, having made his debut for the senior team in their game against Morocco in March.
He has since returned to domestic action with Athletico Paranaense, where he has notched an impressive scoring record of four goals in six matches so far. However, the Brazilian outfit will struggle to keep him beyond this summer.
Roque has been chased by Arsenal and Barca for some time now, while Spurs joined the pursuit for his services on Tuesday.
On March 29, Spanish outlet Sport revealed that Arsenal had moved ahead of Barca and made themselves frontrunners to capture Roque.
However, there is now the real possibility of him going to Liverpool instead. As per Brazilian source Globo Esporte, Jurgen Klopp’s side will provide serious competition for the attacker.
Vitor Roque agent has already spoken with Liverpool, Arsenal
Roque’s camp travelled to London recently to hold transfer talks with Liverpool, Arsenal and Spurs chiefs. They also went to Barca to discuss a potential move to the Nou Camp.
Liverpool were given serious hope of winning the race for the exciting youngster and are now planning a bid. The report does not reveal exactly how much it will be worth, although Roque’s Athletico Paranaense contract does include a £53million release clause.
Roque’s current side will do all they can to receive that sum in full. But with Roque’s representatives already working on an exit, Athletico Paranaense may have to accept a reduced price.
Klopp already has good options at centre-forward, including Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota. Roberto Firmino is also in the squad but will be leaving Anfield in the summer.
Liverpool’s main central striker going forward will likely be Nunez, which means Liverpool do not necessarily need Roque to join right now.
Vitor Roque
However, club chiefs will probably be looking to the future when trying to sign Roque. He has established himself as one of the best young players in South America and he could emerge into a world-class goalscorer in the future.
Liverpool are looking to follow Real Madrid’s lead. They agreed a deal for Vinicius Junior when he was just 16 to get the jump on his other suitors. And now Real are benefitting hugely from that transfer.
Roque going to Liverpool rather than Arsenal would leave Mikel Arteta furious. The Gunners have put in a lot of work to overtake Barca and put themselves in pole position, but now a big threat has emerged in the form of Liverpool.
TRUSTED SOURCE PROVIDES BIG UPDATE ON NEXT CHELSEA BOSS
Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Chelsea have ‘agreement in principle’ to bring in Frank Lampard as Graham Potter’s replacement.
Potter was sacked on Sunday following the Blues’ 2-0 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa. The west London outfit were immediately tipped to land Julian Nagelsmann, who is a free agent after his release by Bayern Munich.
Sky Sport Germany reported that Chelsea had convinced Nagelsmann to join straight away, even though other sources stated that he wants to wait until the summer before returning to management.
It seems Chelsea will have to wait a bit longer before landing Nagelsmann or another top European coach.
As per Romano, they have reached an ‘agreement in principle’ with club legend Frank Lampard to take charge until the end of the season.
Lampard is set to become Chelsea’s caretaker manager while Todd Boehly and the rest of the club’s hierarchy search for the right long-term coach.
The former midfielder, who scored 211 goals in 648 matches for Chelsea, will try to help his beloved team move up the league table. They are currently languishing in 11th place.
Lampard must also prepare the squad for a Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid. The first leg of that clash will take place on Wednesday April 12.
Lampard is a very interesting appointment from Chelsea. He was their permanent manager between July 2019 and January 2021. He was sacked as the club sat ninth in the top flight, with Thomas Tuchel then arriving as his replacement.
Lampard spent a year at Everton after his Chelsea departure. He managed to keep the Toffees in the Prem last season as they finished on 39 points and in 16th place.
However, his team failed to live up to expectations this campaign and he was resultantly sacked in January. Sean Dyche replaced Lampard by penning a two-and-a-half-year contract at Goodison Park.
Lampard will be hoping to right some of the wrongs of his first Chelsea spell as manager, using his status as a club legend to get the fans back on board.
PALACE WANT FORMER TOTTENHAM PLAYER
Crystal Palace have been interested in Gedson Fernandes for some time now and are planning to submit an offer for him this summer, according to a report.
The central midfielder spent a year at Tottenham between January 2020 and January 2021. While on loan at Spurs from Benfica, Fernandes made 14 appearances without managing to score a goal.
He did not do enough to prompt Spurs officials into spending money and signing him on a permanent basis.
Fernandes was then loaned out to Turkish clubs Galatasaray and Caykur Rizespor. Benfica sold him in July last year when Besiktas paid €6m for his services.
Despite the Portuguese’s first spell in England not being successful, he could soon return to the Prem. Turkish outlet Star state that Palace have been tracking Fernandes for a while.
The Eagles are drawing up plans to try and sign the 24-year-old. However, they will have to spend a decent amount of money on him as he has revitalised his career with some top performances at Besiktas.
Palace will also face competition from Italian side Lazio. They have sent scouts to watch Fernandes in action, and those scouts have returned glowing reports.
Despite Besiktas hoping to keep Fernandes and Lazio attempting to take him to Italy, there is one big reason why the player will likely return to England later this year.
The report reveals that he is hoping to come back to the Prem and show Spurs what he is now capable of. Due to this stance, Fernandes could hand in a transfer request to try and push through a Palace move.
Fernandes’ Besiktas contract runs until June 2026, while transfermarkt put his value at €9m (£7.8m).
