Football news: Manchester United in 'pole position' to sign Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund

ByAlexander Netherton

Updated 25/08/2021 at 07:07 GMT

Saul Niguez is wanted by Manchester United and Chelsea but they may not be able to find room for him in their squad, while West Ham are keen to sign both Jonathan Bamba from Lille and Kurt Zouma from Chelsea, while Real Madrid have finally put in a serious offer for Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappe, and United are lining up a massive deal...

United in 'pole position' for Haaland

Kylian Mbappe and Cristiano Ronaldo dominated the headlines last night but Erling Haaland is splashed across the German papers this morning with Bild reporting that it's Manchester United who are now leading the chase to sign the Borussia Dortmund striker next summer.

Paper Round's view: Reuniting Haaland with Jadon Sancho is an awesome prospect but Real Madrid are also big players in this market and rumours around last night's Mbappe news suggested they will also move for the Norwegian next summer. Madrid probably have the edge.

Transfers

Messi could become co-owner of Inter Miami with Beckham – Paper Round

06/04/2024 at 07:10

United reticent to move for Saul

Manchester United and Chelsea are both struggling to find room for Saul Niguez, according to the Daily Mail. The 26-year-old Spain international has been linked with a loan-to-permanent move away from Atletico Madrid but with the midfielder on £300,000-a-week wages, both Premier League sides need to offload players before Saul could be afforded.

Paper Round’s view: While Spanish sides are almost all desperate to sell in order to raise funds and mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, Premier League sides need to get players off their books while the rest of Europe can't afford huge wages either. If United need to move players on then they will struggle to do so because they offered such huge wages to average players.

Read the full stoy

'We need a striker' despite being top of La Liga - Simeone

West Ham consider Bamba move

The Sun reports that West Ham are considering other options if they cannot land Jesse Lingard from Manchester United before the transfer window shuts. While West Ham would prefer to land Lingard, they are interested in 25-year-old Lille winger Jonathan Bamba, with the Ligue 1 side ready to consider offers of around €25 million in order to let the player go this summer.

Paper Round’s view: Lingard has been a decent player for West Ham over the last few months but the fact remains he is a player who can only rarely perform consistently. For Manchester United he has shown so little over the last few years that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is obviously happy to get rid, and realistically West Ham should be aiming for any other player.

Read the full story

West Ham confident of Zouma move

The Telegraph believes that Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma is close to a move to fellow London Premier League side West Ham. The 26-year-old spent last season at Stamford Bridge, but has spent loan spells at Everton, Stoke City and Saint Etienne beforehand. However it appears that a move to West Ham would allow Chelsea to secure a deal for Sevilla’s Jules Kounde.

Paper Round’s view: Kounde is a promising player who could soon become a first-team player for the French national squad. If he fulfils his potential then Chelsea will have a player to hold down a place for the next decade. Zouma meanwhile is not a bad player but he has held back by injury, so swapping to West Ham might give him the chance to get a decent run of games.

Read the full story

Real Madrid make offer for Mbappe

Spanish newspaper Marca claim that Real Madrid have made an offer for Paris Saint-Germain striker Kylian Mbappe. The 22-year-old France international striker is subject of a 160 million euro bid by Florentino Perez, and the player wants to leave after refusing a contract offer from the French club. He wishes to play for Real Madrid next.

Paper Round’s view: Mbappe has reportedly been upset by the arrival of Lionel Messi from Barcelona, and has always been keen on a switch to Real Madrid. Now a bid should force the hands of PSG who can't really afford to let Mbappe go for nothing when such a huge bid is now on the table. It will be a shame if we never get to see Mbappe-Neymar-Messi up front.

Read the full story

Football

'The moment I feel I am no longer able to perform' - Messi hints at retirement plans

27/03/2024 at 13:24

Olympic Games Paris 2024

France boss Henry warns of 'long journey' as groups drawn for Olympic football

20/03/2024 at 23:16

Transfers

Man City's Savio deal faces Premier League 'fair value' scrutiny - Paper Round

06/02/2024 at 22:17