the Daily Briefing - Man Utd to hold more Ronaldo talks today, major Chelsea deal is ready, smart Arsenal business + more

Today's Daily Briefing, featuring the latest on Cristiano Ronaldo, Christopher Nkunku, Rafael Leao, Eden Hazard, Tammy Abraham, and more!

Good morning guys and welcome to my latest Daily Briefing - exclusive, ad-free, and straight to your inbox as always. Enjoy! :-)

Today’s top stories:

• Man Utd to hold further talks over Ronaldo today - what could be his punishment?

• Could Chelsea bring the Nkunku signing forward to January?

• How did Arsenal pull off the smart signing of Martin Odegaard?

• Plus more from Liverpool, Barcelona, and Real Madrid

AC Milan

There are negotiations ongoing between AC Milan and Rafael Leao, his agents and his family. I’m aware there’s been some speculation about talks stalling, and while it's not an easy deal, discussions are still ongoing. Paolo Maldini is on it and will try to find a solution as soon as possible. I don't see a transfer happening in January, honestly as Milan will try to keep him for sure; we've to see what happens in the summer.

Arsenal

What a season Martin Odegaard is having for Arsenal. He’s responded so well to the pressure of being made club captain, and he looks like he’ll be crucial to keeping their title challenge alive.

I think that was a perfect, smart signing. Edu always wanted Odegaard in 2021 over other candidates for that position, and it was a smart move. It was only Arsenal in the race at the time because Martin only wanted Arsenal. The real issue was to convince Real Madrid but Arsenal decided to wait and it was the best strategy to sign Martin in August.

Are there any regrets from Real Madrid’s end? I can’t say for sure but I don't think Real Madrid will think about re-signing Odegaard; he's happy at Arsenal.

💬 Can Martin Odegaard reach the level of players like Kevin De Bruyne? How impressive a signing do YOU think he has been? Let me know in the comments!

Barcelona

We know Barcelona want free agents again next summer as it’s a strategy that worked well for them last year, so we’re inevitably seeing a lot of names linked with the club!

Barcelona have been linked with Ilkay Gundogan, Youri Tielemans, N’Golo Kante, Jorginho and several other free agents... it's normal, they keep close eye on top free agents and they will explore that market again.