Manchester United fans’ 48-hour reprieve from a historically miserable season came to an end last night, as news emerged that the club would listen to offers for young guns Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Højlund. Mainoo is thought to be underwhelmed by the new contract being inched across the table towards him – and Chelsea are thought to be monitoring developments closely.
United may need to clear out the drawer containing Antony, Casemiro and Marcus Rashford in order to spend in January, or add a couple of zeroes to Mainoo’s deal. Milan are in the running for Rashford, but they have been joined by Juventus and Borussia Dortmund, who fancy a Sancho-esque six-month loan revival. Dortmund are also interested in Chelsea’s Carney Chukwuemeka, who is available this month along with forgotten footballer Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
Is there any better news for Manchester United? Well, Casemiro might be off to stroll around behind Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr, while Juve are considering the inclusion of Dusan Vlahovic in what sounds like a too-good-to-be-true swap deal for Joshua Zirkzee. United are also in the market for a speedy left-back, with Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez, PSG’s Nuno Mendes and Lecce’s Danish international, Patrick Dorgu, all sprinting up the shortlist.
Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta just wants to find a player that can keep a regulation Size 5 football on target, and is interested in Nico Williams – even if the Athletic Bilbao winger is out of the club’s January price range. Liverpool have eyes on Feyenoord winger Anis Hadj-Moussa, and could cut their losses on Darwin Núñez, who is wanted by a number of Saudi sides. Another mercurial striker who could be on the move is Jhon Durán, on the radar at PSG and Barcelona. We imagine the combustible Colombian would flourish in a Dani Olmo-esque registration stand-off in Spain.
What else? Well, Brighton only sign players we’ve never heard of, and could continue that trend with a move for Palmeiras defender Vitor Reis. Palmeiras, in turn, would like to bring Andreas Pereira back to Brazil – a prospect that would become a lot more likely if James Rodríguez, freshly released by Rayo Vallecano, signs up with Fulham. Another popular South American playmaker, Miguel Almirón, is weighing up offers from Greece, Brazil and MLS, while keeper Martin Dubravka looks set to join Saudi outfit Al-Shabab, having potentially waved goodbye to Newcastle fans last night.
Crystal Palace are looking for another big January window to kick clear of relegation trouble, with Liverpool youngster Ben Doak, Sunderland star sibling Jobe Bellingham and Lyon winger Rayan Cherki on their shortlist. Just below them in the table, Everton are eyeing a loan move for Aston Villa winger Jaden Philogene while Wolves are closing in on Reims centre-back Emmanuel Agbadou and also pursuing a loan deal for Chelsea wing-back Renato Veiga.
Wolves may face competition for Veiga from Bournemouth, who also want to wrap up a loan deal for Brighton forward Evan Ferguson, with almost-namesake Evanilson out for a while after foot surgery. If they’re looking for a striker who likes the beach, perhaps they should call Neymar. The Brazilian has admitted he fancies jetting off to Inter Miami and reviving the “MSN” frontline with Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez. And who can blame him?
