Real to tempt De Gea with golden handshake
David De Gea will be handed a staggering £12m signing-on fee by Real Madrid if he sits out the final year of his contract.
The Spanish giants are desperate to sign the Manchester United keeper during this window - but there is a massive financial incentive for De Gea to go on a free next year.
It could leave United as big losers because they would miss out on a huge fee for De Gea if they continue to play hardball over his move.
Madrid want to pay around £25m this summer but United are asking for a much bigger price in excess of £35m.
Song open to Everton move
Alex Song will consider a switch to Everton if West Ham do not sign him.
The midfielder was set to complete a permanent move from Barcelona before an injury led to the Hammers only offering a one-year deal.
Everton are monitoring talks with a view to a bid.
Spurs closing in on Berahino
Tony Pulis has given Spurs the green light to complete a deal for £25million Saido Berahino.
The West Brom boss, whose side drew at Watford on Saturday, said: “We expect to do a lot of business over the next two weeks - in and out.”
West Brom will stick to their valuation for the 22-year-old striker who missed a gilt-edged opportunity to sink Watford on Saturday.
But Spurs believe they could get him for £20million after landing £12million Clinton N’Jie from Lyon last week.
Brentford to offer Gray a new deal
Brentford are planning to offer a new deal to star striker Andre Gray.
The Bees have already rejected three bids from Championship rivals Hull City for the £7million-rated hotshot, as revealed by MirrorSport.
Derby and Bristol City are also interested in the 24-year-old, who scored 18 goals last season following a £500,000 switch from Luton Town.
Gray still has two years remaining on his contract at Griffin Park but Brentford chiefs will offer him improved terms in a bid to tie down his long-term future.
Mourinho on Chelsea move for Rahman
Speaking after Chelsea’s loss to Man City, Jose Mourinho confirmed the Blues will confirm the deal for Baba Rahman soon.
The left-back is joining the Stamford Bridge side from Augsburg in a deal worth around £21m.
“I know we were working on that,” said Mourinho.
“I know we were very close. I know we did a medical already. I don’t have an okay that it’s done.”
Man City weigh up £25m move for Otamendi
Manchester City are weighing up a £25million move for Valencia defender Nicolas Otamendi.
City boss Manuel Pellegrini remained tight-lipped when asked about Otamendi following his side’s 3-0 win over Chelsea.
“No, I cannot confirm nothing,” said Pellegrini. “I do not talk about it.”
Despite Pellegrini’s refusal to comment, City sources have refused to rule out a move for the Argentina World Cup star.
Otamendi, linked with a move to Manchester United earlier in the summer, is said to have bid an emotional farewell to his Valencia team-mates.
The 27-year-old has been desperate to leave Valencia this summer, with reports from Spain claiming City defender Eliaquim Mangala could go the other way on loan as part of the deal.
More on Rahman
Augsburg general manager Stefan Reuter claimed the deal is now done after a meeting between officials from both clubs today.
And Ghanaian defender Baba Rahman, 21, is expected to become a Chelsea player in the next few days once he has received a work permit.
Reuter said: “The contracts between Augsburg and Chelsea have been signed. Baba is now player of Chelsea.
“He has always behaved very correctly during all the transfer negotiations. He has a remarkable character.”
Rahman, who is set to be handed the no.17 shirt, said: “I’m very pleased to join Chelsea. I’m leaving Augusburg but will never forget.”
Breaking: Chelsea sign Baba Rahman
Chelsea have signed Augsburg left-back Baba Rahman.
We reported on Monday that Chelsea aimed to complete the £17million signing of Ausburg left-back Abdul Baba Rahman this week.
Mirror Sport revealed two months ago that the 21-year-old had been targeted by Blues boss Jose Mourinho to replace Filipe Luis.
Luis was sold back to Atletico Madrid two weeks ago after playing just 26 times for the Premier League champions.
Baba Rahman initially had reservations about moving to Stamford Bridge as his friend and Ghana international team-mate Christian Atsu, has yet to play for Chelsea since joining them two years go.
But he has been given assurances that he will be part of Mourinho’s plans for the coming season after setting up a five-year deal worth £21.7m.
Gift of the Gabb
Danny Gabbidon has rejected a swansong in the MLS to call time on his playing career at 36.
Ex-West Ham and Crystal Palace defender Gabbidon was interesting American side Chicago Fire and a host of Football League clubs were also keen for the Welshman to play on for another year.
But the 49-times capped Wales international has opted to hang up his boots to complete his coaching badges.
Gabbidon spent a month in co-caretaker charge of old club Cardiff last season and wants a crack at management.
That Otamendi-City story has some legs, it seems. This from Tom Hopkinson in today’s Sunday People:
Manuel Pellegrini is also considering Valencia defender Nicolas Otamendi – but the Spaniards have given City just 48 hours to come up with the £32m asking price.
The La Liga club have demanded that the Argentina ace sorts out his future before their Champions League qualifier against Monaco on Wednesday.
City’s mega-money moves come with Chelsea chief Jose Mourinho insisting that the Blues’ title triumph has forced all of their rivals to lavish millions on new signings to try to catch them.
Deal nearly done.
City on the 'mendi?
Those earlier Sky Italia reports about Nicolas Otamendi moving to Manchester City are now being echoed around Europe.
Several Spanish papers - most notably those around Valencia - are now claiming a deal is done.
Back in Otamendi’s homeland, Argentine sports daily Olé are also saying that he will move to the Etihad.
Make of that what you will.
At the Etihad, Man City are currently goalless against Chelsea - follow it live here.
No United bid for Biglia
Manchester United have not made an offer for Lucas Biglia, and are not understood to be interested in the Lazio midfielder.
Reports in Italy had claimed that the Old Trafford club are in the mix for Argentina international Biglia, but MirrorFootball has been informed that there is no bid for the playmaker.
Real Madrid had also been linked with a move for the 29-year-old, who started last summer’s World Cup final.
But Rafa Benitez appears to have turned his attention to Inter Milan’s Mateo Kovacic, while sources close to United claim there was never an interest in the player.
Lazio face a Champions League play-off against Bayer Leverkusen this week and could be forced to sell some of their best players should they fail to make it to the group stages.
Roma raid?
Roma have launched a £25million bid for Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma – who joined the Blues for just £12m in 2012, writes Steve Goodman in the Sunday People.
The France centre-back, 20, is third choice at Stamford Bridge – with boss Jose Mourinho also seeking to land Everton prodigy John Stones.
Roma’s French coach Rudi Garcia has put Zouma top of his wishlist to replace Alessio Romagnoli, who has joined AC Milan for £22m.
And the Serie A club will offer a lucrative loan deal if a permanent signing cannot be agreed.
Zouma made 26 appearances for Chelsea last season, scoring twice.
Arsenal don't need Benzema
Olivier Giroud has told Arsenal that he is the right man to lead them to glory - and they do not need Karim Benzema.
The Frenchman has seen his position in the Arsenal team come under threat with interest being shown in Benzema, who many believe would turn the Gunners into serious title contenders.
But Giroud still believes that he can lead the line for the Gunners after netting 19 times last season - despite spending three months out with a broken leg.
Giroud said: “I showed great mental strength last year and I had good stats.
“I always try to improve myself and I feel with the team, so yes, I am sure I can bring something more to the team and to my team-mates.”
Cole war
Ashley Cole has had his Roma contract terminated a year early.
The 107-cap England international struggled to establish himself in the first team at the Serie A club, making just 11 appearances in the league last term.
He was not included in a 26-man squad which was presented to fans at the Stadio Olimpico on Friday, and has now been put out his misery.
At 34, Cole could still do a job for a Premier League club - but where will he end up?
Our man James Whaling gives the Chelsea legend some options...
Will City Nic Otamendi?
Sky Italia are reporting that the deal to take Nicolas Otamendi to Manchester City is done. Reportedly it will be €25million + Eliaquim Mangala - which sounds utterly ludicrous and implausible.
That said, football transfers often are so, y’know, don’t rule it out.
West Ham hoping for two more
Twitter personality and son-of-the-owner, Jack Sullivan, has revealed that West Ham United are not yet done in the transfer window.
As you can probably see below without me having to spell it out for you, Sullivan says that the ‘Ammers are to sign a striker - hopefully - and a midfielder.
Hammers fans will be hoping that’s a wide man, but it seems more likely to be a central midfielder.
More on Kovacic
It looks like this one could be done.
An intriguing signing, but not really the holding midfielder that Real Madrid needed.
For someone like Rafa Benitez - who is naturally a cautious manager - this is a bold, attacking move. With Lucas Silva on the way out, there are virtually no defensive-minded players left in midfield at Madrid, with Casemiro the only one who would instinctively play that role.
But would he be risked in a big Champions League game?
Kovacic could turn into one hell of a player with his age and skillset but have the Bernabeu club left themselves far too open for when they come up against the top teams in Europe (not to mention a couple of pretty decent ones in Spain)?
Time will tell....
Breaking: Real Madrid 'sign Mateo Kovacic'
Real Madrid have signed Mateo Kovacic, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
The report states that the Spanish giants have beaten off competition from Liverpool for the midfielder - although the Reds have denied all summer that they had any interest in signing the Croatian playmaker.
The fee is some €30million (£21million) and would represent a bargain for a young player with bucketloads of talent.
God knows where he’s going to play!
Real Madrid want TWO signings
Rafael Benitez has told Real Madrid he wants TWO new faces before the window closes.
The Spanish giants can already count on a remarkable squad, but having had a pre-season to assess his squad, Benitez has his sights set on a new holding midfielder and a striker who is content as a back-up option to the raft of elite forwards already at the Bernabeu.
With Asier Illarramendi available for transfer and Lucas Silva likely to go on loan, a tough-tackling midfielder is seen as a necessity despite Casemiro’s return from Porto this summer.
Lazio’s Lucas Biglia is a name that has been reported as interesting the former Liverpool boss, but the asking price of €40million is way too high for what the club consider to be a secondary concern for now.
With Chicharito having returned to Manchester United and Benitez forced to use players out of position in pre-season, the new boss would like a back-up forward to plug a hole in his squad.
Fernando Llorente is available, and despite being close to an agreement with Sevilla the former Athletic Club and Spain centre-forward is dragging his heels as he waits for Madrid to firm up their interest.
City deny De Bruyne bid
Kevin De Bruyne is still in limbo over his future after Manchester City insisted that they have not launched a £50million bid for the Belgian playmaker.
It was claimed in both Germany and Belgium that City had hit Wolfsburg with an increased offer for the 24-year-old after having an initial approach of £47m rejected.
But senior officials at the Etihad last night told Sunday Mirror Sport that they were baffled by the claims and that no fresh offer for De Bruyne has been submitted.
It is understood that City have been made aware that Wolfsburg value the player at nearer £60m.
And that is currently deemed too rich given that the German club only paid £18million for De Bruyne when they signed him from Chelsea last year.
Hammers closing on Huddlestone
West Ham are closing in on Hull midfielder Tom Huddlestone.
The Hammers backed out of a deal to sign Joey Barton in midweek and are still not agreed on terms with Alex Song.
It has led them to consider fresh options in the centre of the park and a bid is now being lodged for 28-year-old Huddlestone, who joined Hull in 2013 from Spurs.
Huddlestone made 67 Premier League appearances for the Tigers after his £5m move from White Hart Lane but is one of the club’s higher earners.
The departure would leave Hull short of options in midfield after losing Jake Livermore to suspension following a positive drugs test, though the 25-year-old may be back sooner than originally expected.
The Hammers are also set to offer midfielder Cheik Kouyate a new deal. The powerful Senegal international had an impressive first season at Upton Park following his £5.25million move from Anderlecht last summer.
He arrived with compatriot Diafra Sakho who was rewarded for his impact with a new contract before the end of last season. Now Kouyate is ready to extend his stay at West Ham and double his £15,000-a-week wages.
Carra tells it straight
Jamie Carragher has given his damning assessment on full-backs Jose Enrique and Rafael blaming their respective managers for falling out of favour at Liverpool and Manchester United.
Rafael has recently left Old Trafford for Lyon, and took a swipe at Louis van Gaal as he was pushed out of the exit door, suggesting he was victimising Brazilians.
Enrique remains on the books at Liverpool, despite having played just 12 times in the Premier League in the last two seasons.
He has said a move back to Spain would be difficult due to ‘economic conditions’, suggesting he would be unwilling to take a wage cut.
De Gea latest
David De Gea has returned to first-team training after being banished to the reserves, report the Mail on Sunday.
De Gea is not expected to play until the Real Madrid transfer saga is over, after the goalkeeper admitted that he was not in the right frame of mind to play at the start of the season.
It is still expected that De Gea will at least hold talks with Real, should the two clubs agree a fee in the region of £30million.
But for the moment, he has returned to training with the first-team, after taking part in activities alongside fellow keepers Anders Lindegaard, Sam Johnstone and Sergio Romero.
Giroud insists he has what it takes to lead Arsenal to glory
Striker Olivier Giroud reckons Arsenal don’t need to sign Karim Benzema - because he can lead the Gunners to glory himself.
“I showed great mental strength last year and I had good stats,” said Giroud, whose injury-time strike settled a 4-0 FA Cup final victory over Aston Villa at Wembley.
“I always try to improve myself and I feel with the team, so yes, I am sure I can bring something more to the team and to my team-mates.”
The 28-year-old accepts things must improve if they are to get a positive result at Crystal Palace on Sunday.
“In pre-season, we all worked well together. We won the Community Shield so there is a lot of expectation for this first game,” he said.
“Unfortunately we have made mistakes we will learn from them and try not to do it again.
“We can succeed to play our game, we want to bounce back on Sunday.”
The Muller to Manchester United story refuses to die
Manchester United’s interest in Thomas Muller could be revived before the end of the transfer window.
According to reports, the Germany World Cup star – who was linked with a move to Old Trafford earlier in the summer – has now decided that he wants to join Louis van Gaal’s side.
United were believed to have had two bids for Muller rejected by Bundesliga giantsBayern Munich, seemingly putting paid to any hope of a deal being done.
Hmmm. Not sure if this one is really a goer, but we will keep a watchful eye.
Read more on Muller right here.
Balotelli posts cryptic message
Mario Balotelli has posted a cryptic message on his Twitter profile regarding a potential summer move.
He wrote: “Patience and result will arrive soon Belive [sic] me or not!”
Balotelli is widely expected to leave Liverpool this summer with Serie A sides interested, but his big wages are proving to be a stumbling block in the move.
Balotelli, perhaps, could have been hinting at an Anfield stay.
Reds to use Borini or Balotelli in swap deal?
Liverpool could offer Lazio either Fabio Borini or Mario Balotelli as part of a deal for Keita Balde Diao, according to Il Tempo.
Lazio are not keen on selling their highly-rated youngster, but Liverpool want to wrap up a deal in the region of around €15million.
The Reds are looking to offload both Balotelli and Borini this summer and could send them towards Italy.
N'Jie - I was never going to join Arsenal
Tottenham new boy Clinton N’Jie says Arsenal did contact his agent - but insists he never spoke to the Gunners directly, and was also sure he was heading for Spurs.
In an interview with L’Equipe, N’Jie said: “I’ve never been afraid that my transfer to Tottenham would not materialise. I never had the leaders of Arsenal on the phone, they only contacted my agent. My choice was made, I was determined to join Tottenham.”
Asked why he picked Spurs he said: “Here I will evolve under the orders of Mauricio Pochettino, a coach who plays youngsters and progresses. Thursday, after my arrival in London and medical tests, he greeted me with the president, Daniel Levy, to tell me he hoped I would be available as soon as possible.When I arrived in Europe, it was a goal and a dream of playing in the Premier League one day.”
Read more on what Tottenham are getting for their money in our player profile here.