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TOP STORY: Destination Barcelona for Junior Firpo?
Barcelona look set to become the front-runners in the pursuit of Real Betis defender Junior Firpo, as the Spanish club submitted an improved £24 million offer, Sport reports.
The news won’t exactly be music to the ears of Manchester United or Liverpool, both of whom have been linked with the 22-year-old over the summer.
Barcelona had an initial bid of £18 million rejected, with Betis hoping their Spanish counterparts can go as high as £27m to take him off their hands. It’s thought that Firpo could come in to compete with Jordi Alba at left-back. Other options Ernesto Valverde is reportedly considering are David Alaba, Ricardo Rodriguez and Raphael Guerreiro.
However, the Dominican Republic-born Spain under-21 international is versatile enough to play on the left wing or at centre-back if required, meaning he would also be a great asset for Liverpool or United.
If Barca do not get a deal over the line, one of those Premier League rivals could yet pounce.
LIVE BLOG
08:51 BST: Boca Juniors coach Gustavo Alfaro is eager to add Daniele De Rossi‘s “experience and hierarchy” to his squad.
The veteran midfielder, a fervent Boca fan, will arrive at Buenos Aires on Thursday and undergo a medical before signing a one-year contract with the Argentinian giants.
A World Cup winner with Italy in 2006, De Rossi, 36, joins Boca as a free agent having left Roma last month following 18 years at the club.
“He will bring experience and hierarchy,” Alfaro said in a news conference when asked about De Rossi’s arrival. “We want him to provide his hunger to win. He will arrive on Thursday and we will see how he is physically. We are adding a player that has a huge career and we want him to be one more in this group, that he dreams of winning everything with Boca.”
08.24 BST: Former Barcelona captain Xavi Hernandez says he would welcome the return of Neymar to the Camp Nou.
Neymar has been strongly linked with Barca, the club he left in August 2017 to sign for Paris Saint-Germain for a world-record €222m fee. Sources this week have told ESPN FC that the Brazil striker and his entourage are confident Barcelona will soon put together a strong cash-plus-players offer to entice PSG into a deal.
Al Sadd coach Xavi, who played with Neymar for two seasons before leaving Barca in 2015 following their Champions League final victory over Juventus, told reporters: “Neymar is a hit, a great player but it’s not me that has to make the decision. But if they tell me that Neymar will return to triumph at Barca, I would sign him.
“I’ve had him as a teammate and I consider him a good guy. If they tell me he is returning to succeed, I would be the first to sign him.”
08.00 BST: Jurgen Klopp has ruled out a Liverpool return for Philippe Coutinho, telling ESPN FC he hopes the midfielder “finds his luck at Barcelona.”
The 27-year-old left Anfield for Camp Nou in a £142 million deal in January 2018, but has found it exceedingly difficult to cement a starting spot in the centre of the park for La Liga’s champions or win over their fans.
Liverpool have been an easy and obvious link given Coutinho’s four-and-a-half happy years on Merseyside before his aggressive push, which included handing in a transfer request that was rejected in the summer of 2017, to join Barcelona.
And while Klopp greatly appreciates the Brazil international as a player and person, he will not sanction a massive outlay to re-sign him.
“In general, Phil Coutinho helps each team in the world, still — 100%,” Klopp told ESPN FC during an exclusive interview in New York during Liverpool’s pre-season tour. “It’s not about that. I like Phil, I think he’s a fantastic footballer and all that stuff, but it would be a big, big, big, big, big, big, big, big-money signing and it’s not our year for that.
“It’s just not possible. As I said, having him would make each team better — us included — but I really hope that he finds his luck at Barcelona.
“Or maybe he found it there. We have contact, but not that close contact that I know exactly how he is doing, but the rest is only newspaper talk and stuff like that.
“If everything was true what newspapers write about me — wow! If it’s similar to what they write about me, I would say he’s completely happy at Barcelona and wants to sign a new six-year contract or whatever.”
PAPER TALK (by Steve Wright): Klopp rules out move for Bale
Last season’s Champions League winners won’t be signing Gareth Bale, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said, speaking to Sky Sports.
Bale is desperately searching for a new club after a recent fallout with Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane led the latter to say it would be “best for everyone” if the Welshmen left. It had been rumoured that Bale could be joining Chinese side Jiangsu Suning, but that depended on meeting his exorbitant wage demands.
Giving his thoughts on Bale’s link to Liverpool, Klopp said: “He is an outstanding player. I like him a lot, but it is not about him. You have to create a team. A team is not a collection of the best individual players. They have to work together.”
United target Longstaff staying put
Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce has warned that midfielder Sean Longstaff will not be sold, amid speculation that Manchester United are lining up a £30 million bid for the 21-year-old, The Sun reports.
Bruce, recently appointed the new boss at Newcastle following Rafael Benitez’s departure, did not mince his words, saying: “We don’t want to sell our best young players, that’s for sure. So that won’t happen. I’m very confident of that.”
Believing that Longstaff will be a key figure in Newcastle’s squad going forward, Bruce likened him to former United midfielder Michael Carrick.
— Rumour Rater: Bale to China? Alves to Man City?
— When does the transfer window close?
— All major completed transfer deals
Tap-ins
— After Atletico Madrid supposedly ended their interest in Christian Eriksen, Manchester United have asked to be kept updated on the situation regarding the Spurs playmaker, according to the Daily Mail. The Denmark international has just one year left on his contract at Tottenham and could be sold for around £70 million. No official bids have been made.
— Not about to let a transfer ban stop them from being involved in the rumour mill, Chelsea have joined West Ham and Ajax in keeping tabs on Portsmouth youngster Leon Maloney, The Sun reports. The 18-year-old, often deployed as a winger, scored an impressive 26 goals for the club’s academy last season, and Chelsea are hopeful that they can reduce their ban and snap Maloney up in January.
