🚨 Yamal to Premier League, Liverpool contact winger, Man United want PL striker, Jude Bellingham update & more.
Plus World Cup qualifiers Round-up and other latest updates.
Good morning everyone and welcome to the latest edition of the Daily Briefing! Thanks as always for reading, and hope you enjoy! :-)
Today’s top stories:
Man City interested in Lamine Yamal.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice for Portugal.
Updates on the future of Semenyo, Casemiro, Baleba & others.
Internationals round-up
England thrash Latvia to book World Cup place
England made easy work of Latvia as they confirmed their place at next summer’s World Cup, with Harry Kane hitting a brace.
Anthony Gordon scored a fine solo goal to give England the lead, before Kane fired in a low and powerful effort for 2-0, and then made it 3-0 from the penalty spot.
An own goal made it 4-0 and Eberechi Eze put the icing on the cake with a well-taken fifth goal to complete a very satisfying evening for Thomas Tuchel’s men.
FT Latvia 0-5 England [Pictures from ITV Sport]
World Cup qualifiers scores in full
Estonia 1-1 Macedonia
Andorra 1-3 Serbia
Italy 3-0 Israel
Latvia 0-5 England
Portugal 2-2 Hungary
Ireland 1-0 Armenia
Spain 4-0 Bulgaria
Turkey 4-1 Georgia
Arsenal
Arsenal are among the top clubs eyeing up talented young Eintracht Frankfurt star Nathaniel Brown, who could move for around €60m. (Bild)
Barcelona
Barcelona have confirmed a new contract has been agreed for Frenkie de Jong as formal act will take place tomorrow. The Dutch midfielder is signing a new contract valid until June 2029. (Fabrizio Romano)
Robert Lewandowski: “I’m not saying I’m a “victim” of my age, but… there are those who exploit that. I feel in excellent condition! I don’t expect to play 90 every match, and my view of football has changed a little, but when I’m on the field I know I can do great.”
Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, 33, has made it clear that he has no plans to leave the club despite the Germany international attracting interest from clubs including Manchester United and Newcastle United. (Diario AS)
Barcelona have reportedly received an outrageous €400M offer for Lamine Yamal from Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal. They are looking to replace Neymar with a new marquee player. (Fichajes)
Bayern Munich
Nico Schlotterbeck when asked about links with Bayern Munich: “I can’t say anything about that.”
Jerome Boateng on his plan after retirement: “I will be again at Bayern soon for an internship under Vincent Kompany. I’ve already spoken with him. I can do an internship at Bayern, and I’m really looking forward to it. We just need to find the right time.” (Bild)
Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund are interested in Barcelona’s 17-year-old Spanish midfielder Guille Fernandez who has yet to make a first-team appearance with the Catalan club. (Bild)
Bournemouth
Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo does have a release clause in his contract but the Cherries are keeping it under wraps because they want to hang on to the 25-year-old Ghana international who has been linked with Tottenham and Manchester United. (Talksport)
(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Brighton
Brighton have no plans to cash in on Cameroon midfielder Carlos Baleba in January despite the 21-year-old attracting interest from Manchester United last summer. (Talksport)
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Chelsea
Chelsea and Liverpool are among the clubs eyeing up a potential transfer move for talented young Lyon winger Malick Fofana. (CaughtOffside)
Chelsea and Barcelona are monitoring Dinamo Zagreb’s 16-year-old Portuguese forward Cardoso Varela. (Mundo Deportivo)
Chelsea have no concern over the future of Ecuador midfielder Moises Caicedo, 23, following the public axing of his agent. (Telegraph)
Alan Smith on Jamie Gittens: “Jamie Gittens hasn’t been an upgrade though, he’s just been disappearing up blind alleys, and we’ve not seen the best form from him yet. That was a strange move. It felt unusual at the time, and it looks even more out of place now. But that’s Chelsea at the moment, isn’t it?”
Liverpool
Antoine Semenyo to Liverpool transfer looks like one that is gathering serious momentum, with Richard Hughes in touch with his former club Bournemouth about signing the in-form forward. (Indy Kaila)
Liverpool and Chelsea are among the clubs eyeing up a potential transfer move for talented young Lyon winger Malick Fofana. (CaughtOffside)
Liverpool are now confident that Ibrahima Konate will sign a new contract at Anfield, and Real Madrid have even started searching for alternatives at centre-back for next summer. (Defensa Central)
“It wouldn’t surprise me…” – James Pearce shares Liverpool January transfer window prediction. More details!
Jurgen Klopp pushed for Liverpool to sign Darwin Nunez in the summer of 2022 even though Michael Edwards and other key recruitment figures pushed for Christopher Nkunku instead. (The Athletic)
Manchester City
Both Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are thought to be chasing 18-year old Lamine Yamal. They are the only two European clubs who could compete with Saudi Arabia for the signature of the Barcelona star and both would be interested in signing him. (Romain Molina)
Manchester United
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim remains keen on signing another goalkeeper even after the recent deal for Senne Lammens, with this Bundesliga star on their list - full story here!
Manchester United are keen on Jean-Philippe Mateta from Crystal Palace as they eye an old school number 9 to strengthen their attack. (Fichajes)
(Photo by Eddie Keogh/Getty Images) Manchester United are considering extending Brazil midfielder Casemiro’s contract beyond this season, but only if the 33-year-old takes a cut in wages. (Mail)
Manchester United have put Crystal Palace and England midfielder Adam Wharton, 21, above Baleba on their list of transfer targets. (The I)
Newcastle United
Newcastle are eyeing a surprise move to sign Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, whose future at the Nou Camp is in some doubt. (Fichajes)
Portugal
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice for Portugal vs Hungary, becoming the all-time top scorer in World Cup Qualifiers history with 41 goals. 🇵🇹
Ronaldo has now reached 948 career goals, including 143 for the Portuguese national team, and continues to rewrite football history.
Real Madrid
Kylian Mbappe: “Difference from PSG? The only difference is that Real Madrid is the best club in the world. Here you tell yourself: I’m at the best club in the world, I have to win, be a role model for my teammates and for people.”
Real Madrid are now “optimistic” that they will be able to strike an agreement with Vinicius Junior over a contract extension this calendar year. (Defensa Central)
Real Madrid have cooled their interest in Liverpool and Argentina midfielder Alexis Mac Allister. His reported €100M price tag have forced the La Liga side to prioritise the likes of Adam Wharton, Enzo Fernández and even AZ Alkmaar youngster Kees Smit over the 26-year old. (Defensa Central)
Jude Bellingham has attracted Premier League interest at a time in his career when his Real Madrid future is uncertain. The English midfielder may be forced to leave the Spanish capital if he doesn’t nail down a starting spot under Xabi Alonso. (Football Insider)