Transfer gossip: Man Utd, City stars on Tonali replacement list as Klopp finds ‘perfect’ defender | OneFootball

Kalvin Phillips and Sandro Tonali during a Euro 2024 qualifier between Italy and England.

Three midfielders have been linked with Newcastle United with Sandro Tonali suspended until next season. Also: Jurgen Klopp has found the ‘perfect’ signing to bolster his defence.

MAGPIES WANT TONALI REPLACEMENT Newcastle have found themselves in a sticky situation with their £60m summer signing, Sandro Tonali, unavailable for 10 months. The signing of a midfielder in January was not a priority but it now looks like Eddie Howe will desperately search for a replacement with the club likely to struggle due to FFP.

Kalvin Phillips, Scott McTominay and Ruben Neves have all been linked with the Magpies in recent months and the signing of McTominay looked pretty nailed on for a while. Manchester United’s Scottish international stayed at Old Trafford and has fought his way back into Erik ten Hag’s starting XI.

The same cannot be said about Phillips, who remains a peripheral figure under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.

90min say Newcastle will try to sign a midfield player on loan when the transfer window reopens and Phillips is a ‘strong candidate’. The England midfielder will be available on loan, which suits the Geordies down to the ground.

McTominay is an alternative option, it is claimed. However, the Scot ‘is in no hurry to leave Old Trafford’. The report adds that Neves ‘could emerge as an option’ and over at the Sun, it is said the ex-Wolves midfielder is ‘under consideration’.

This move would stink a bit considering Al-Hilal bought Neves in the summer and are owned by PIF, who are also in charge of the St James’ Park club. Paying big money for Neves, only to loan him out to Newcastle, who are trying their best to navigate through FFP obstacles, would be nice and convenient, wouldn’t it?

ARTETA WANTS A NEW MIDFIELDER Arsenal might have splashed out an initial £100m on Declan Rice, but they are still being strongly linked with a host of midfield players. Perhaps this indicates that Thomas Partey will be sold and/or Jorginho will not sign a new contract. Who the hell knows?

The latest name to be brought up is a big one in Aurelien Tchouameni, who has also tickled the fancy of Liverpool in the past. This is according to Football Transfers, so we will take it with a pinch of salt. It’s a big name being linked with a big Premier League club, though, so we have been hooked in.

It is claimed that Mikel Arteta prefers Rice in the No. 8 role so is in the market for a deep-lying midfielder. Tchouameni would be a superb addition and he is the player Arteta craves.

Arsenal apparently asked about the French international in the summer but were told where to go. He was ‘not for sale’ then but Arteta is expected to return at the end of the campaign.

An alternative to Tchouameni is Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi, who has also caught the eye of Manchester United. The Spaniard reportedly has a £51m release clause.

KLOPP IDENTIFIES ‘PERFECT’ SIGNING Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was reportedly interested in signing a young central defender in the summer but that acquisition did not come to fruition, so that could be one to watch in January.

Ibrahima Konate is fantastic, but far too injury-prone. Virgil van Dijk and Joel Matip are aging. And Joe Gomez remains out of favour. Enter Goncalo Inacio.

The Sporting Lisbon centre-back has been linked with a host of Premier League clubs in recent seasons and German outlet Bild – reporting on a Portuguese player joining an English club – say ‘several teams’ in the top flight have been ‘watching’ the player ‘for months’.

Klopp believes Inacio is the ‘perfect candidate’ and has a £42.6m release clause, which is pretty tasty, to be fair. What’s more, Inacio is left footed, which makes him instantly worth the money!