Euro Paper Talk: Ratcliffe wants €40m defender, teenage winger as first two Man Utd signings; Real Madrid to break bank to seal Tottenham transfer
Jayden Addai and Jean-Clair Todibo are Man Utd targets
Sir Jim Ratcliffe appears to have found Man Utd replacements for Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho with talks underway over two January deals, Real Madrid want a Tottenham star at all costs, while Man City are readying a huge approach for an elite Bayern Munich star.
RATCLIFFE WANTS JEAN-CLAIR TODIBO AS FIRST MAN UTD SIGNING
Sir Jim Ratcliffe will reportedly push through the signing of Jean-Clair Todibo to Manchester United as his first official piece of transfer business at Old Trafford.
The British billionaire business will soon see his 25% purchase of United go through, with the £1.4bn purchase of some of the Glazers’ shares seen as just the start of a bright new era at Manchester United.
As part of his investment, Ratcliffe will reportedly oversee all transfer incomings and outgoings at Old Trafford, having previously expressed his anger at what he perceives as the millions wasted on a string of failed signings.
Conveniently, his first signing in that new United remit will reportedly be for Nice defender Todibo, whom the Red Devils held talks for over the summer.
At the time, Todibo decided to stay with the Ligue 1 club, while United’s failure to sell Harry Maguire also put paid to their hopes.
Fast forward a few months later, though, and the situation has all changed at Old Trafford. Not only has Maguire re-established himself as first-choice defender, but it now seems that Raphael Varane looks set to move on, amid claims of a lucrative switch to Saudi Arabia.
With Varane’s move set to go through, reports in France claim United have turned their focus back towards Todibo, who is rated in the €40m (£34.9m) bracket.
With Ratcliffe also the owner of Nice, finalising the terms on the deal are not expected to be complicated.
And while Todibo has always expressed his loyalty to Nice, Ratcliffe will reportedly convince the player that the time is right to make the move and he can forge a solid partnership alongside Maguire at the heart of the defence.
Man Utd also keen on AZ Alkmaar winger to replace Sancho
United are on the trail of 18-year-old AZ Alkmaar winger Jayden Addai, according to Football Transfers.
The right-winger is yet to make his senior debut for the Eredivisie club, but has been spied as a player with huge potential after a series of impressive displays for their Under-21s.
And with 10 goals and four assists from just 13 outings this season, United belief that Addai has all the ingredients required to be a major star of the future.
Now they are ready to open talks over a possible deal after witnessing the player score one and create two more in a recent UEFA Youth League win over Molde.
And while Addai is not seen as first-team ready just yet, they reportedly believe it won’t be long before he’s knocking on the door for a first-team place.
More over, United want to bring in another winger with Jadon Sancho likely to leave in January. Talks over a move to Juventus are starting to gather pace and they currently look like the most likely suitors for the England winger.
With Sancho leaving, a move away from the club for Antony – who has proved a major disappointment since his move – has been shelved for now.
REAL MADRID READY HUGE BID FOR CRISTIAN ROMERO
Real Madrid are ready to launch a huge deal to prise Cristian Romero from Tottenham in 2024 – and are ready to pay any steep asking price that Daniel Levy will put on his head. (various)
Girona are hopeful of keeping their on-loan Troyes forward Savinho for many years to come despite links to Manchester City. (Mundo Deportivo)
Bologna are pushing to sign Tottenham striker Alejo Veliz on loan in January after the Argentine found game-time hard to come by since a €15m move to the Premier League. (Corriere dello Sport)
Nico Williams has made it clear to suitors, Liverpool, Arsenal, Aston Villa and Juventus that he wants to continue his career with Athletic Bilbao and plans to sign a new deal with the club. (Sport)
Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha remains open over his future after seeing a deadline day transfer to Bayern Munich collapse. (O Jogo)
Getafe are ready to present an offer to Manchester United over an extension to Mason Greenwood’s loan deal into a second season – keeping him at the LaLiga club until summer 2025. (AS)
LIVERPOOL BOSS JURGEN KLOPP TIPPED FOR SURPRISE JOB
Diego Simeone has named Jurgen Klopp, Mauricio Pochettino or Carlo Ancelotti as contenders to one day succeed him as Atletico Madrid coach. (Cadena Ser)
Barcelona sporting director Deco has ruled out a January move to sign a new holding midfielder to replace Oriol Romeu – but will try all he can to bring striker Vitor Roque’s move from Athletico Paranaense forward. (Sport)
Portuguese coach Paulo Fonseca claims he held talks with former Leeds director of football Victor Orta about succeeding Marcelo Bielsa at Elland Road, before the Whites opted for Jesse Marsch. (Record)
Real Madrid are keen on possible transfer moves for Bayer Leverkusen trio Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong and Victor Boniface. (various)
Barcelona are open to the sale of former Leeds winger Raphinha in 2024 and hope Premier League suitors Newcastle and Chelsea could launch fresh moves. (various)
Sevilla and Villarreal are plotting moves for Rayo Vallecano goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski, with the Macedonian’s deal due to expire next summer. (Fabrizio Romano)
MAN CITY READY HUGE PUSH TO SIGN ALPHONSO DAVIES
Manchester City are ready to make a huge push to sign Bayern wing-back Alphonso Davies in 2024 with conversations with his agent Nedal Huoseh already underway. (AS)
Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer, however, insists his side have no interest in selling the Canada left-back, with Real Madrid also reportedly keen. (Abendzeitung)
Tottenham plan to sign one of the following four centre-halves to bolster their ranks: Edmond Tapsoba, Lloyd Kelly, Marc Guehi or Perr Schurrs. (various)
Eder Militao looks set to become the next Real Madrid star to sign a new deal with talks underway over an extension to summer 2028. (Mundo Deportivo)
Barcelona sporting director Deco has confirmed his plans to turn Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix’s loans into permanent moves, describing the pair as “very important to the squad”. (Marca)
Former Marseille manager Igor Tudor is favourite to replace Rudi Garcia as Napoli boss, while World Cup winning Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro is also in the frame. (Fabrizio Romano)
