Man Utd want to sign Teun Koopmeiners and Morten Hjulmand this summer
Manchester United plan to sign two brilliant midfielders and will let three leave to fund the move, Real Madrid will sign Erling Haaland for €150m subject to one condition, while Arsenal want to raid the Spanish giants for a classy star with Mikel Arteta to pair him up in a new-look formation next season.
TWO MIDFIELDERS IN, THREE OUT AS MAN UTD MAKE AMBITIONS CLEAR
Manchester United are ready to make the signing of Teun Koopmeiners a top summer priority and could go as high as €70m to land the Atalanta man, it has been claimed.
But the Dutch star, who is also on Liverpool’s summer radar, will not be their only midfield arrival of what is sure to be a busy summer of comings and goings, it has been reported.
The Red Devils endured an indifferent 2023/24 campaign, winning the FA Cup to qualify for the Europa League, but showing why vast improvements are still very much needed after a woeful Champions League campaign combined with an unacceptable Premier League finish of eighth – their lowest-ever in the history of the competition.
And with Sir Jim Ratcliffe seeing midfield as a major area of improvement, it’s reported Manchester United now have big plans to bring in at two new names there as part of a huge €150m (£127m) double deal.
Indeed, their interest in Koopmeiners was first mentioned at the back end of last week and now Calciomercato claims United are ready to step up that interest by making a firm offer for the Dutchman.
United have good relations with his side Atalanta having signed Rasmus Hojlund last summer in a deal worth £72m.
Now the Red Devils are ready to meet the €70m (£59.6m) fee required to bring in Netherlands international Koopmeiners, who enjoyed a stellar season for the Europa League winners.
United’s offer will simply blow his other suitors, Juventus, out of the water, with the Bianconeri only able to go as high as €40m. As a result, Juve have now switched their focus towards Aston Villa’s Douglas Luiz.
Koopmeiners scored 15 goals and added seven assists for Atalanta this season, a brilliant tally for a No 8.
Man Utd also keen on Hjulmand deal as trio prepare to leave
United are big favourites to sign Sporting Lisbon midfielder Morten Hjulmand this summer, with a worried Ruben Amorim now warning the Red Devils over his price.
The Dane has enjoyed an excellent season under Amorim as Sporting CP won the Portuguese Primeira Liga title, with his form attracting attention from both Barcelona and Tottenham.
However, it is United who are out in front in the race for his signature per reports on Monday morning, with a concerned Amorim making clear the player will not be allowed to leave for a penny less than his exit clause.
That is currently set at €80m (£67.7m), which while quite pricey is relatively modest compared to what Chelsea paid for Enzo Fernandez (€120m) following his move to the Premier League from Benfica, which is the same fee they are now also quoting for another United target in Joao Neves.
Clearly United cannot just simply spend big money without their being any repercussions and they are also likely to let a number of big-name stars leave to help balance the books.
As a result, Ratcliffe wants to clear the decks for the double €150m deal for Koopmeiners and Hjulmand by letting three from four midfielders leave this summer.
Casemiro is the obvious candidate to leave with the Brazilian struggling to justify his huge £250,000 a week wages last season and proving a shadow of his former self. He will be allowed to leave for a fee of around €25m with Saudi Arabia side Al-Nassr among those keen.
United will also let Sofyan Amrabat to depart after deciding not to take up the €20m option on his signature. While he did perform better in the closing weeks of the season, it won’t be enough to make his move permanent and he will return to parent club Fiorentina.
The Red Devils also plan to let one of either Scott McTominay or Christian Eriksen depart too. The Scotland international has never quite convinced Erik ten Hag he is worthy of keeping and a sizeable offer will tempt United to cash in.
Eriksen, meanwhile, has a year left on his deal and will be allowed to move on after falling down the pecking order last season.
JUVENTUS CONFIDENT OF SIGNING ARSENAL TARGET DOUGLAS LUIZ
Juventus remain confident they can beat Arsenal to the signing of Douglas Luiz by offering the €30m-rated Weston McKennie to Aston Villa as part of a high-profile swap deal. (Gazzetta dello Sport)
West Ham are on pole position to win the race to sign classy Girona midfielder Aleix Garcia in a bargain €20m deal after outbidding Barcelona by €4m. The Hammers have offered the Spain international a deal worth €4m a year (£65,000 a week). (Mundo Deportivo)
Aston Villa have been given the green light to make an offer for Denzel Dumfries this summer with president of football operations, Monchi, set to fly over to Italy and open talks for the Inter Milan star, who is rated at €30m and has just a year left on his deal. (Calciomercato)
Real Sociedad are in talks with Manchester City over a move for left-back Sergio Gomez after deciding the Spaniard is the ideal candidate to replace Arsenal’s Kieran Tierney at left-back. (AS)
Leeds are battling Watford to sign AC Reggiana’s attacking midfielder Natan Girma with the Swiss star free to leave the Serie B side for around €5m. (Quotidiano Sportivo)
Real Betis are in ‘non-stop dialogue’ with Tottenham over a deal to re-sign midfielder Giovani Lo Celso in a cut-price deal after the player green-lighted the move having been told he is free to leave north London this summer. (ABC Sevilla)
Sevilla striker Youssef En-Nesyri is ready to disappoint Manchester United after making a hugely-lucrative move to Saudi Arabia his No 1 priority this summer. (Matteo Moretto)
Arsenal remain favourites to sign RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko this summer in a €65m deal but have placed Bournemouth’s Dominic Solanke on their list of Plan B options. (various)
REAL MADRID WANT €150M HAALAND ALONGSIDE MBAPPE
Real Madrid are intent of triggering the release clause – believed to be set at €150m – to sign Erling Haaland in summer 2025 and partnering him with Kylian Mbappe and Vini Jnr in what would be a dream attack – but only if another new signing Endrick does not hit the ground running. (Sport)
Manchester United and Arsenal cannot yet be discounted from the race to sign Joshua Zirkzee this summer despite growing claims the Bologna striker is nearing a €40m move to AC Milan. (Sky Italia)
Juventus have emerged as favourites to sign unwanted Barcelona striker Vitor Roque with Deco clearing the path for the Brazilian to depart the Nou Camp after just six months. (Gazzetta dello Sport)
Leeds defender Diego Llorente remains in transfer limbo with Roma now stalling on a permanent deal amid claims they would prefer to bring back Marash Kumbulla, who spent last season on loan at Sassuolo, instead. (Corriere dello Sport)
Nicolo Zaniolo is stalling on a possible move to Villarreal as he awaits developments from both Juventus and Fiorentina, who now seemingly want to sign the unwanted Galatasaray midfielder. (Sportitalia)
Real Sociedad midfielder Mikel Merino is stalling on talks over a new deal amid claims Barcelona are ready to launch a bid to sign the former Newcastle man. (Matteo Moretto)
Atleticio Madrid midfielder Saul Niguez is keen to make a move to Saudi Arabia after seeing all major transfer avenues close on him in Europe and with Diego Simeone making it clear he is free to leave the Wanda Metropolitano. (Marca)
Chelsea are close to finalising a deal to sign Brazilian right-back Pedro Lima from Sport Recife, while claims that Christopher Nkunku could leave after just one season have been put to bed. (Fabrizio Romano)
ARSENAL WANT REAL MADRID STAR AND WILL ALTER FORMATION
Arsenal are plotting a huge move to bring Real Madrid playmaker Brahim Diaz to Emirates Stadium this summer with Mikel Arteta wanting to pair him with Martin Odegaard in a new 4-1-4-1 formation. The Gunners can fund the move for the former Manchester City man by allowing Fabio Vieira to return to former club Porto. (various)
Brahim Diaz is wanted by Arsenal this summer
Tottenham full-back Emerson Royal remains on AC Milan’s radar but the Serie A side are making it clear they will walk away if Spurs do not accept an offer in the region of €15m to €18m (£12.7m to £15.2m) for the Brazilian. (Gazzetta dello Sport)
Former Barcelona coach Xavi has a clear plan to manage next in the Premier League and would be open to a move to a big club there following his recent departure at the Nou Camp. (Sport)
Real Madrid plan to keep Dani Ceballos this summer and have warned his suitors AC Milan and Atletico Madrid that it would take a significant offer to convince them to sell the midfielder. (Matteo Moretto)
Veteran Barcelona star Sergi Roberto is stalling on a move to Girona as he awaits an approach from MLS and following Deco and Hansi Flick’s decision to let him depart. (Mundo Deportivo)
Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr are in talks to sign former Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny as a summer move away from Juventus edges closer. (Fabrizio Romano)
Federico Chiesa is desperate to leave Juventus this summer after Napoli joined Roma in the race to sign the unhappy Italy winger. (Matteo Moretto)
