The number of disgruntled footballers pining for affection elsewhere has increased by one, with Lazio striker Keita Baldé having chucked his toys out of the pram after being left out of the Lazio team that saw off Juventus in last night’s Suppercoppa Italiana. Born in Spain and a graduate of Barcelona’s La Masia academy, Baldé plays his international football for Senegal. The 22-year-old striker was not even numbered among Simone Inzaghi’s 12 substitutes for an epic match won 3-2 by Lazio courtesy of Alessandro Murgia’s late winner.
Reports in England suggest Tottenham Hotspur may move for Baldé, who has just one year left on his contract and is refusing to ink a new deal. Juventus are also understood to be interested in the player, who scored 18 goals in 34 Serie A appearances last season, with eight of those coming in a late flurry in Lazio’s final six matches of the campaign.
Having lost the opening match of their Premier League title defence to Burnley on Saturday, Chelsea are ready to move for the similarly unsettled Virgil van Dijk, who missed Southampton’s first game of the season with “a virus”. Double VD (his nickname, not the name of his illness) has been agitating for a move all summer, but his protracted on-again off-again move to Liverpool could be torpedoed by the champions if Antonio Conte gets his way. The Mirror reports that Chelsea are preparing a formal offer for the Dutch defender and are ready to spend £50m to acquire his services. Liverpool and Manchester City are on red and blue alert respectively.
Chelsea are also reported to be sniffing around long-time Manchester United target Ivan Perisic, although reports in yesterday’s papers suggested José Mourinho is ready to make a last-ditch effort to bring the Inter winger to Old Trafford. Eager to throw a spanner in the works of both Premier League clubs, Perisic’s current manager, Luciano Spalletti, says the winger does not want to go anywhere. “He is determined to remain,” said Spalletti. “He has spoken as a footballer who wants to do well based on his professionalism.”
With Philippe Coutinho looking increasingly likely to leave Liverpool for Barcelona, Jürgen Klopp is eyeing the Napoli playmaker Lorenzo Insigne as a potential replacement. Napoli have insisted the 26-year-old from Frattamaggiore is not for sale and if Liverpool are to lure Insigne away from his hometown club, they will need to bid well over £50m for his services. The Schalke midfielder Max Meyer is being touted as another potential replacement for Coutinho, but Liverpool will have to fight off interest from Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur if they are to secure the 21-year-old’s scrawl.
The Paris Saint-Germain winger Jesé Rodriguez has rejected a loan move to Florence, having decided the comparatively picturesque cityscape of Stoke is more to his liking. The former Real Madrid man had provisionally agreed a two-year deal with Fiorentina, but has had his head turned by a more lucrative offer from the Potters.
Jack Wilshere could be off to Newcastle United, although Crystal Palace, West Ham, Bournemouth and assorted Serie A sides are also believed to be scrambling to get the Arsenal midfielder on board. Meanwhile at The Hawthorns, Nacer Chadli is wanted by Swansea City, who will stump up around double the £13m West Brom paid for the winger a year ago to replace the Everton-bound Gylfi Sigurdsson. “It’s been publicised that Swansea are interested in Nacer – if they are, we’ll deal with Swansea,” said West Brom manager Tony Pulis. “Let’s just get our players in first. I’m excited at the opportunity of trying to get some of these players in. We’ve got targets, we’ll get them in the next two weeks, and we need to.”
And finally, Manchester United will bid for Sergi Roberto if the midfielder agitates for a move from Camp Nou and are also close to wrapping up the signing of the teenage striker Bruno Amorim from Portuguese side Oliveirense.