Transfer news LIVE: Neymar's £172m Man Utd snub, Dybala to Tottenham, Liverpool scout star

Transfer news live - All the latest rumours and gossip coming out of Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Posted Friday, September 06, 2019 by Express.co.uk

Wan-Bissaka surprise

Manchester United legend Denis Irwin is surprised by how impressive Aaron Wan-Bissaka has been in the early days of his Old Trafford career.

Wan-Bissaka has been an everpresent at right-back for the Red Devils so far this season.

And Irwin told Sky Sports: "His positional sense looks really, really good.

"That's a huge surprise for someone that's been a winger for years.

"He's got a lot to learn obviously but he's been a huge plus this year.

"We need to start keeping clean sheets again but I think we've started making steps in the right direction in helping in our defensive work, I really do."

Transfer news LIVE: Neymar's £172m Man Utd snub, Dybala to Tottenham, Liverpool scout star (Image: GETTY)

Lenglet glad Neymar saga over

Barcelona can work "easier" now the transfer window has closed, says Clement Lenglet.

The transfer window closed this week leaving Neymar in Spain despite Barca's attempts to sign him from Paris Saint-Germain.

"Neymar? There were many rumours," Lenglet told Canal+.

"It was a very hectic period for the club.

"Finally it's over. This way we can work a little easier."

Transfer news LIVE: Neymar's £172m Man Utd snub, Dybala to Tottenham, Liverpool scout star (Image: GETTY)

Neymar's Man Utd snub

Neymar to Barcelona was the transfer saga that spanned the entire summer window.

But things could have been very different, per Spanish transfer insider Guillem Balague.

And that's because Manchester United wanted to sign the Brazilian a few years ago, before he left for Paris Saint-Germain in an £198million deal.

"No Premier League club made an approach [this summer], although Manchester United had asked about the player when he was at Barcelona with a buyout clause of 190m euros (£172m),” Balague wrote in his column for BBC Sport.

"Neymar decided against the move.”

Transfer news LIVE: Neymar's £172m Man Utd snub, Dybala to Tottenham, Liverpool scout star
Transfer news LIVE: Neymar's Man Utd snub, Dybala to Tottenham, Liverpool scout star (Image: GETTY)

Vinicius to Arsenal

Arsenal enquired about signing Vinicius Junior from Real Madrid during the summer transfer window.

The teenager joined Los Blancos in 2018 for £38.7m from Flamengo, after he had scored seven goals and created 13 assists in 37 appearances for the Brazilian side.

However, life at Real hasn’t been a smooth transition for the 19-year-old, as last season an injury limited his involvement to only 18 La Liga appearances.

This summer Arsenal boss Unai Emery had been looking to strengthen his side and to help him in this endeavour the Gunners hierarchy decided to appoint the club’s first technical director, Edu.

And according to Brazilian publication UOL, Edu had contacted Real about the prospect of signing Vinicius but the report claims Arsenal’s approach was rejected.

Real are not looking to sell the youngster, who was also being monitored by Paris Saint-Germain, as they are looking to develop him into one of Europe's best attacking talents.

Transfer news LIVE: Neymar's £172m Man Utd snub, Dybala to Tottenham, Liverpool scout star
Transfer news LIVE: Neymar's Man Utd snub, Dybala to Tottenham, Liverpool scout star (Image: GETTY)

Man City stance

Pep Guardiola wants to sign a centre-back in January after learning the severity of Aymeric Laporte's knee injury.

The Spanish defender faces four months out and the Manchester City boss is planning to bring in fresh reinforcements in the winter.

City have just two senior centre-backs without Laporte in Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones, who has had injury problems this year.

Spurs' second Dybala chance

Tottenham could yet get a second chance to sign Paulo Dybala this season.

The Daily Star claim Juventus will offer the Argentine to Spurs for £65million in January.

Spurs were on the verge of landing Dybala late in the summer window but a deal could not be complicated due to issues relating to the player's image rights.

PSG reportedly failed with a last-minute effort to sign Dybala on loan.

And with Dybala yet to start a game for Juve in the current campaign, he could be tempted by a move to north London.

Transfer news LIVE: Neymar's £172m Man Utd snub, Dybala to Tottenham, Liverpool scout star
Transfer news LIVE: Messi's Neymar message, Man Utd triple swoop, Liverpool scout forward (Image: GETTY)

West Ham eye Mandzukic

West Ham are considering a January move for Juventus outcast Mario Mandzukic.

The Mirror claim the Hammers are considering a mid-season deal for the 33-year-old, who was linked to Manchester United this summer.

The Croatian has been left out of Juve's Champions League squad and has not featured for the Italian giants this season.

Manuel Pellegrini has only Sebastian Haller and Albian Ajeti, who both joined the club in the summer, with Michail Antonio injured.

Neymar 'did everything' to return

Luis Suarez thinks Neymar did all he could to return to Barcelona.

The Brazilian wanted to rejoin the Catalan giants from Paris Saint-Germain this summer but has had to stay in France.

But Suarez told Fox Sports Radio in Argentina: "We [me and Lionel Messi] talked about it [Neymar coming back] at the time.

"We told him that there would be no place better than at Barcelona. But it's his decision and he chose that.

"Now, he did everything possible to return."

Real Madrid's last-minute effort

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez reportedly tried to sign Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain after Barcelona gave up hope of a transfer, reports say.

The transfer window ended with Neymar having to stay in France after Barcelona gave up hope of signing him.

Talk of the player moving on went quiet late in the window but Catalan newspaper Sport say Real tried signing the 27-year-old at the very last minute.

It is claimed that Real told Neymar they were willing to pay him the same blockbuster wages he earns at PSG.

The 27-year-old earns an eyewatering £35million a year at the Parc des Princes.

But Neymar said no and, instead, communicated that he would only leave PSG for Barcelona.

Man Utd's Van Dijk miss

Jose Mourinho refused to sanction a move for Virgil van Dijk before the defender moved to Liverpool, according to reports.

The Merseyside club paid Southampton £75million for Van Dijk in January 2018 and the Dutchman has been a revelation ever since.

But according to The Independent, he could have signed for United, before Mourinho said no to a deal.

A source told the paper that United’s scouting department has been bringing back reports on a host of players, but have been largely ignored.

"They’ve got reports on so many players, but they mostly go ignored,” the source claimed.

"Some of the players they’d spend fortunes on, they’re not as good as better players who they’ve got reports on, but mostly go ignored.”

According to the report, Mourinho didn’t feel it necessary to sign another central defender, having already forked out a combined £75m for Eric Bailly and Victor Lindelof.

However, he changed his mind months later, when he lobbied director Ed Woodward to fork out for Harry Maguire only to miss out on the Englishman.

The Red Devils signed Maguire this summer, however, spending £80m on bringing him in from Leicester.

Lionel Messi's Neymar message

Lionel Messi told the Barcelona hierarchy that Neymar can take his crown in a few years.

That's according to Guillem Balague, writing for BBC Sport.

Messi turned 32 in the summer and will slowly but surely see his powers start to wane in the seasons to come.

Barca were keen to engineer a return for Neymar to lessen the load on the Argentine but could not agree a deal with Paris Saint-Germain.

And Balague claims Messi had told Barca chiefs that Neymar could become the centre of the club's universe in only a couple of years.

Barca could well return for the Brazilian in January or next summer.

Man Utd triple swoop

Juventus are considering making a swoop for Manchester United stars David de Gea, Eric Bailly and Nemanja Matic in January, according to reports in Italy.

All three players are currently set to be out of contract next summer and Gazzetta Dello Sport claim the Serie A club are considering offering contracts to the trio in January.

That is because they three would be free to discuss terms with clubs outside of the Premier League.

Juve snapped up Aaron Ramsey from Arsenal and Adrien Rabiot from Paris Saint-Germain on free transfers this summer.

United will hope to tie De Gea down to a new deal with the Spaniard having been undisputed No 1 at Old Trafford for seven years.

Liverpool scout ace

Liverpool are reportedly impressed by Villarreal star Samuel Chukwueze, who is being scouted by a number of clubs and is a player Arsenal have come close to signing in the past.

According to Goal, his form with the La Liga club and for Nigeria has impressed a handful of top clubs across Europe who have jetted in scouts and Liverpool are one of the clubs alerted by his progress.

Chukwueze scored eight goals in 37 appearances in all competitions last season with Villarreal.

The 20-year-old was scouted by Arsenal, who were reportedly close to signing him, earlier in his career.

That was when Chukwueze was departing the Diamond Football Academy in his homeland of Umuahia for Europe.

He visited Porto, Sporting, Paris Saint-Germain and RB Salzburg before choosing Villarreal.

Azpilicueta off?

Real Sociedad and Athletic Bilbao are both ready to offer Chelsea skipper Cesar Azpilicueta a route back to Spain if he is axed by manager Frank Lampard.

The 30-year-old Spanish defender has come in for criticism at the start of this season for some under par displays as Chelsea’s defence have leaked goals.

The former Osasuna and Marseille full-back, who has been at Stamford Bridge for seven years, is set to be under pressure from highly-rated youngster Reece James.

James, 19, is yet another of the talented youngsters at Stamford Bridge that Lampard is set on promoting to the first team, like Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Fikayo Tomori, and is poised to be pushed into the team as soon as he recovers from ankle surgery.

Athletic have had a good start to the season and are currently lying second in La Liga after three games, while their fellow Basque club Sociedad are lying 13th.

Sociedad, just before the transfer window closed on Monday, signed Nacho Monreal from Arsenal.

Azpilicueta has two years left on his current Stamford Bridge contract.

Christian Eriksen January swoop

Inter Milan are understood to be weighing up a January move for Christian Eriksen.

The Tottenham playmaker has refused to sign a new contract in north London and agitated for an exit throughout the summer.

Eriksen's deal runs out in less than 12 months, meaning he could leave for free next summer.

And Inter are keeping tabs on his situation ahead of the January transfer window and could launch a raid to prise him away if his future is not resolved.

Inter manager Antonio Conte is understood to be a big fan of Eriksen, who has been one of the Premier League's stand-out No 10s during his time in the Premier League.