
OneFootball
Padraig Whelan·16 August 2023
🤑 Transfer gossip: Another star set for Saudi Arabia? De Gea holds talks

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Padraig Whelan·16 August 2023
Welcome to Wednesday’s round-up of all of the latest news and rumours from across the world of transfers.
Another Premier League star looks set to swap England’s top flight for Saudi Arabia.
According to multiple reports, Manchester City have accepted an undisclosed offer from Al-Nassr to sign Aymeric Laporte.
The Spaniard fell down the pecking order last season and competition for places has intensified further this year with the arrival of Joško Gvardiol.
The treble winners have already lost Riyad Mahrez to the Saudi Professional League this summer.
According to Foot Mercato, West Ham are attempting to hijack Man City’s deal for Jérémy Doku and have submitted a verbal offer for his services despite the Premier League champions apparently agreeing personal terms with the 21-year-old.
A bold claim has emerged from El Chiringuito which states that a meeting was held between Atlético de Madrid CEO Miguel Ángel Gil Marín and agent Jorge Mendes about the possibility of bringing Barcelona youngster Ansu Fati to the Spanish capital, although SPORT suggest that both he and Ferran Torres have informed the club they have no desire to leave this summer.
Sky Sport Italia report that Roma are again looking to Chelsea to solve their striking problems and are enquiring about a loan deal for Armando Broja to help them cope with Tammy Abraham’s injury.
Fresh from signing Neymar, Al-Hilal have now reached an agreement to sign Sevilla goalkeeper Bono in a €21m deal with personal terms being discussed ahead of a three-year deal, per Fabrizio Romano.
The same source also claims that Nottingham Forest have submitted an offer to sign Arsenal defender Nuno Tavares on a permanent basis.
Roma have completed the double signing of two PSG midfielders, with Leandro Paredes and Renato Sanches both arriving from the Parc des Princes.
Lovro Majer has also finalised his move from Rennes to Wolfsburg, where he becomes their second most expensive signing ever.
Bayern Munich’s hierarchy have held discussions with David de Gea over a move to Bavaria, Sky Germany state, and although he has given the green light to the move, the priority remains Manchester City’s Stefan Ortega as they continue their goalkeeper hunt.
The Evening Standard report that after two moves fell through within the past six months, Hakim Ziyech is finally close to a Chelsea exit as he nears a move to Galatasaray, where he will replace Aston Villa-bound Nicolò Zaniolo.
And per the same outlet, Fulham received an improved £46m offer from Al-Hilal for Aleksandar Mitrović, who is keen on the move which would see him triple his wages.
Celta starlet Gabri Veiga is set to seal a move to Italian champions Napoli within the next 48 hours, per multiple outlets in Spain.
Lazar Samardžić’s move to Inter from Udinese has fallen through after an agreement couldn’t be reached with the player’s camp, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Neymar has offered an interesting reason for his move from PSG to Al-Hilal.
“I have achieved a lot in Europe and enjoyed special times,” he explained. “But I have always wanted to be a global player and test myself with new challenges and opportunities in new places.
“This is the biggest club in Asia so it feels like the right move for me.”
Indeed.
Neymar became the most expensive player of all time in accumulative fees when he smashed through the £300m mark with his move to Al-Hilal from PSG.
David Raya made the move to Arsenal from Brentford on an initial loan deal but it remains only a formality before his switch becomes permanent.
Union Berlin also completed the signing of Robin Gosens following a disappointing 18-month stint at Inter.
And exciting Chelsea starlet Cesare Casadei has returned to the Championship on loan after last year’s spell at Reading, this time joining compatriot Enzo Maresca at Leicester.