Five-way chase for Haaland
Spanish newspaper Marca reports on the five clubs who hope to sign Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund. Real Madrid and Barcelona are going head-to-head for the player, but there is also Premier League interest, with Manchester City and Chelsea also keen. Another possibility is Paris Saint-Germain, who may have to replace Kylian Mbappe should he depart this summer.
Transfers
Real Madrid and Liverpool to battle for £35m Phillips – Paper Round
YESTERDAY AT 06:36
Paper Round’s view: City are in serious need of signing a striker having seen Sergio Aguero and then Ferran Torres leave, and they also failed to land Harry Kane last summer. Haaland’s agent Mino Raiola will be delighted to see so much interest, as five major European clubs will be forced to pay up a healthy commission and signing-on bonus to secure his signature.
‘Benzema is a leader’ – Ancelotti praises forward ahead of final
Juventus cannot afford Martial
The Mirror reports that Juventus cannot afford the fee and wage demands from Manchester United to sign Anthony Martial. Director Maurizio Arrivabene said: “With the current conditions, it’s not a feasible deal for us. “Considering certain numbers, there are no advanced talks – we don’t expect any discount from Man United.” Sevilla also failed with an earlier bid.
Paper Round’s view: It seems that Martial is now willing to play for the club again after the confusion over the weekend when Ralf Rangnick had the impression he did not wish to be picked. However there are many players ahead of him in the pecking order and he has rarely impressed this year – it would be a huge surprise if he was able to offer anything useful in the next few months.
Mari and Kolasinac set to depart
Arsenal are set to see Sead Kolasinac and Pablo Mari join new clubs in the coming days. Following William Saliba and Matteo Guendouzi to Marseille is Kolasinac, with the 28-year-old set to sign an 18-month deal on the south French coast. Pablo Mari has struggled for minutes under Mikel Arteta this season and is on course to join Udinese for the rest of the season on loan.
Paper Round’s view: Kolasinac rarely caused trouble for the club but also rarely hit the required heights to hold down a regular place in the first team under Arteta, so he needed to be moved on, and Marseille are a handy outlet for Arsenal now. Mari was bought in during a hurried transfer period and it seems as if he was not ever going to be more than a stopgap.
Everton to talk to Rooney and Lampard
Duncan Ferguson is yet again Everton’s caretaker manager, and Rafael Benitez’s departure means another new permanent manager is required. The Telegraph puts forward two names who will be considered by Bill Kenwright. The first is Wayne Rooney, the former Everton player, and Frank Lampard, who also has experience with Derby County before going on to Chelsea.
Paper Round’s view: Rooney clearly has deep ties to Everton but after his spell with Derby he is hard to judge because of the huge problems he has been dealing with in his time as manager. Lampard did well at Chelsea and Everton is not too much of a step down for his next gig, but he did not display any great tactical or motivational aptitude while at Stamford Bridge.
Transfers
Haaland says Dortmund ‘pushing’ for decision on future
15/01/2022 AT 08:55
Transfers
Man City target Vinicius Jr. as Real Madrid look set to land Erling Haaland – Paper Round
15/01/2022 AT 06:44
