the Daily Briefing: Sunday 4th September - Tielemans, Luiz, Zakaria, Lavia, and more
My exclusive transfer round-up, featuring missed midfield targets for Arsenal and Chelsea.
Good morning guys and welcome to my Daily Briefing! As ever, here’s your exclusive ad-free round-up straight to your inbox :-)
Today’s top stories:
Ajax
Jurrien Timber speaks out on rumours from earlier this summer: “It was fake that was Louis van Gaal who told me not to go to Manchester United this summer. Van Gaal actually said I would make minutes there, so that story was not true.”
How close were Chelsea to signing Edson Alvarez? Click here to find out.
AC Milan
AC Milan manager Stefano Pioli has spoken out on Rafael Leao’s future after being asked about Chelsea links: “The club wants to offer Leao a new deal soon. They will take care of it - he's working at the best level. He's not creating any problem, he's just working hard as top professional.”
Arsenal
Why didn’t Arsenal sign Youri Tielemans or Douglas Luiz? Click here for all you need to know about the Gunners’ midfield search this summer.
Pedro Neto was a top target for Arsenal out wide - click here to find out why the deal didn’t happen.
Barcelona
Julian Araujo was a target for Barcelona. The youngster from LA Galaxy was their preferred option, but it was impossible to get the deal done on time, so they decided to opt for Hector Bellerin on a free transfer.
Chelsea
Chelsea had two big-name midfield targets before deciding late on to sign Denis Zakaria on loan - click here to find out more.
Chelsea made a late bid of £50m for Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia. The 18-year-old only joined Southampton from Man City earlier this summer - click here for more exclusive information on this surprise Deadline Day saga.
📰 In other news, Chelsea also expressed an interest in signing Sander Berge from Sheffield United on Deadline Day (Sheffield Star)
Galatasaray
Galatasaray are still in the market for a striker and a centre-back - click here to find out more.
Inter Milan
Inter Milan CEO Marotta on Milan Skriniar and interest from PSG: “Our owners have been very clear: they’ve rejected all the proposals for Skriniar. They have been strong again on the position: Skriniar was untouchable”.
Manchester United
Sergino Dest was the only real option for Manchester United at right-back, but here’s what complicated the deal.
Jurrien Timber denies being told he wouldn’t play at Manchester United: “It was fake that was Louis van Gaal who told me not to go to Manchester United this summer. Van Gaal actually said I would make minutes there, so that story was not true.”
📰 In other news, Manchester United offered Christian Eriksen a deal worth £43m to fight off interest from Tottenham when they moved for him this summer (Football Insider)
Olympiacos
Real Madrid legend Marcelo has agreed to join Olympiacos. He’s accepted a one-year contract offer, with the option of a second year. It will be official soon.
PSG
Rafinha has left PSG on a free transfer to join Al Arabi Qatar. I’ve been told it’s permanent move on a two-year contract. He’s completed his medical, with the deal completed yesterday.
Southampton
Southampton have no plans to sell Romeo Lavia despite interest from Chelsea, while Manchester City have a buy-back clause in his contract.
Tottenham
Tottenham were interested in a loan deal for Ruslan Malinovskyi. The player's dream was to join Spurs but Atalanta president Antonio Percassi decided not to sell him. The situation remains open for the next year.
Wolves
Could Wolves be about to swoop for a free agent outside of the transfer window? Click here for more exclusive information.
Wolves will offer Ruben Neves a new contract, Bruno Lage confirms: “We need time to sort Ruben a new contract.”
There was never an approach from Liverpool on Deadline Day as they only wanted a loan deal.
How did Wolves end up keeping Pedro Neto despite interest from Arsenal? Click here to find out.