Welcome to another edition of Football Transfer News, brought to you by Last Word on Football. Today, we shall take a look at the latest updates on the futures of the unsettled Anthony Martial, Manchester United-bound Alex Sandro, Real Madrid’s continued pursuit of Alisson, another keeper whose career is on the opposite end of the spectrum in Joe Hart, and Celtic finalizing a move for PSG wonderkid Edouard.
The Latest on Martial, Sandro, Alisson, Hart and Edouard
United Hold Firm Stance on Martial’s Future
Anthony Martial’s agent, Philippe Lamboley, sparked a social media storm with his claims that the Frenchman wants to leave Old Trafford. A plethora of Manchester United fans took to Twitter to voice their disapproval of the 22-year-old’s potential departure, and the club seem to agree.
After Lamboley threw his client’s future up in the air, a number of rumours began to circulate regarding his next destination. Tottenham Hotspur were one of the few teams linked to the forward, and a big money move could yet be on the cards. However, United are refusing to budge.
According to Sky Sports, Martial is in the club’s plans for the new season, and they have no plans to sell. His agent did mention United would have the ‘last word’ on his future, so he is likely to stay put.
Despite stalling on his contract extension for over a year, United appear determined to keep him. However, it may take a lot of convincing, given his lack of appearances has seen him miss out on a World Cup spot with France.
Sandro – Mourinho’s Samba Bargain?
The World Cup comes around once every four years, but it never fails to have a chaotic effect on the transfer market that follows it. Players that people haven’t heard of suddenly get thrown into the spotlight if they perform well. Players who are already worth millions get an extra bump to their lofty price tags.
The players that don’t participate, though, tend to fall under the radar a little. According to The Sun, Sandro’s value has now dropped to around £52 million – a £20m drop from the previously rumoured price tag.
Italian football expert David Amoyal told Calcioland: “It wouldn’t surprise me if Juve would be very open to accepting a €50m (£44m) bid. I think that’s the price where they would be more than happy to open a negotiation. Alex Sandro is 27, they bought him for €26m three years ago, so that’s a massive profit.”
With Mourinho desperate to bolster his full-back options, the news should come as a massive bonus.
Real To Make First Move For Alisson
Real Madrid are set to make their first approach for Roma goalkeeper Alisson, according to Sky in Italy.
Los Blancos have been desperate to sign a new goalkeeper for quite a while. Having failed in their pursuit of David de Gea, they have switched their focus to Alisson. The shot-stopper is Brazil’s no.1 at the World Cup in Russia at the moment, but Roma and Real are said to carry on with negotiations.
The report suggests that the first bid will be in the region of £43.7 million. Roma want double of that, but Real will not go above £52.4m + £8.4m in add-ons. Personal terms have already been agreed with the player, and negotiations are currently based around agreeing a price tag.
Liverpool are also keen on Alisson but are unlikely to pay a mammoth amount for the 25-year-old.
Hart’s Nice Escape Route
Nice have reportedly offered Joe Hart an escape route from Manchester City in the summer. The Citizens are believed to be willing to let him leave for a ‘cut-price’ figure, according to the Daily Mail.
Hart was informed by Guardiola that he had no future under him at the Etihad two seasons ago. The signing of Brazilian keeper Ederson all but confirmed that as well.
The City legend has spent the last two years on loan at Torino and West Ham and is now back at his parent club with his future up in the air. Despite failing to make England’s World Cup squad, the 31-year-old is far from short of suitors.
Patrick Viera was appointed as Nice boss just last week and is already getting into the thick of things with his transfer targets. If reports are to believed, Hart could very well continue his career in Europe with a switch to the French club.
Celtic Sign Wonderkid Edouard from PSG
Celtic have confirmed that they have signed Odsonne Edouard from Paris Saint-Germain on a permanent basis.
The youngster spent last season on loan at the Scottish giants, and scored an impressive 11 goals in 29 games for them. His form has prompted them to make the deal permanent, and he has now signed a four-year contract with them in what is described as the ‘biggest transfer’ in the club’s history. The fee is believed to be in excess of £8 million, according to BBC Scotland.
Speaking to Celtic’s official website, Brendan Rodgers said: “Our fans saw exactly what he is capable of last season and we look forward to working with him again as we look to build on the tremendous success we achieved last year. I am sure he will be a big player again for us this season.”
Edouard revealed his delight on sealing the move, saying: “I was desperate to make my move permanent. To see our fans so happy is the reason you play football and now we want to do everything we can to bring our great supporters even more success.”
The move could be more significant to PSG than Celtic though, who need to recuperate £52.9m by selling players before the end of June to comply with UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules.
