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LIVE Transfer Talk: Chelsea join Man Utd, Real Madrid in Upamecano chase

The transfer window opened in early January, and speculation is heating up about potential deals. Check out the latest gossip below, and see all official deals here.

TOP STORY: Chelsea enter Upamecano race

Chelsea are ready to enter the race to sign RB Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano, the Daily Mail reports.

The Blues will be joining a whole host of top European clubs including Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Bayern Munich in the pursuit for Upamecano's signature, with Frank Lampard being eager to activate his reported €42 million release clause, which can be triggered at the end of the 2020-21 season.

The 22-year-old had previously signed a new Leipzig deal last year that includes the aforementioned release fee, but Chelsea will face stiff competition as ESPN reported back in August that Man United had made the Frenchman a top defensive target.

LIVE BLOG

22.01 GMT: That's it for our live Transfer Talk blog today, but we'll be back shortly with Monday's paper round. Thanks as always for checking in!

21.02 GMT: Arsenal are set to pursue Emiliano Buendia, reports The Mirror. The story says Norwich City "are desperate to hold onto the Argentinian and could demand as much as £40 million" for him, while manager Mikel Arteta sees him as a perfect addition to their midfield.

20.11 GMT: The Mirror reports that Aston Villa are interested in signing Championship duo David Brooks and Michael Olise this month.

Bournemouth's Brooks and Reading's Olise have enjoyed impressive campaigns with both clubs in the hunt to achieve promotion to the Premier League.

The report claims that Villa boss Dean Smith wants to add more young and hungry players to his existing squad.

19.03 GMT: Nice are open to signing William Saliba on a permanent deal in the summer, according to the club's president Jean-Pierre Rivere.

Arsenal's Saliba is yet to make a senior appearance following his £27m move from Saint-Etienne in July 2019 when Mikel Arteta's predecessor Unai Emery was in charge.

The defender joined the Ligue 1 club on loan last week and could be set to remain in France.

"Let's let him rediscover enjoying being on the pitch, playing," Rivere is quoted as saying in the Metro.

"At the end of the 6 months, we'll see -- today he's owned by a club called Arsenal. Everyone in June will come together and decide.

"A door is always open in life. When you have a situation where parties can talk, the doors are open. We are not there yet."

17.52 GMT: Chelsea look set to allow Fikayo Tomori to leave on loan in January.

Manager Frank Lampard has preferred Thiago Silva and Kurt Zouma as his first-choice centre-backs, but Tomori came off the bench to play 10 minutes in Chelsea's win over Morecambe in the FA Cup on Sunday.

"The situation with Fikayo is open at the moment," Lampard told a news conference after the game. "There is a possibility he could be going on loan to get games somewhere else. So that would have to be the solution for him and the club. That was part of my thinking of not starting him today.

"I gave him some minutes at the end but while we were looking at that I wanted to make sure it was the right thing for the club and for him and individually. So that's why he didn't start. But his attitude, even though he hasn't played much recently, has been fantastic in training and in how he is."

17.00 GMT: Eden Hazard's €100m move to Real Madrid looks more like a mistake every time he plays...

16.03 GMT: See if you can follow this little midfield merry-go-round as reported by RMC Sport.

Inter Milan want to sign Leandro Paredes from PSG. >

PSG will take Tottenham's Dele Alli as his replacement. >

And to close the loop, Tottenham will re-sign Christian Eriksen from Inter.

Unlikely, but we do love it when things come together so neatly...

15.38 GMT: Liverpool are in the middle of a defensive crisis but are ready to let defender Sepp van den Berg go out on loan, according to Goal.

Van den Berg, 19, made a £1.3m move from PEC Zwolle in the summer of 2019 and he has four senior appearances for Jurgen Klopp's side in domestic cup competitions. 

The report states: "Discussions have already taken place with clubs in Belgium, Germany and Switzerland [one Belgian Pro League club, one 2.Bundesliga outfit and one Swiss Super League side], and sources have told Goal a deal is likely to be agreed this week."

Blackburn are also named as a possible destination should he choose to stay in England.

15.01 GMT: Fiorentina right-back Pol Lirola is set to join Marseille on loan, says Fabrizio Romano.

Lirola, 23, will sign on a temporary basis after completing a medical on Monday, but there will be a purchase option for around €12m in the summer if the Spaniard impresses.

14.27 GMT: With his contract expiring this summer, Sergio Ramos and Real Madrid are heading for the same crossroads as Lionel Messi and Barcelona. Will the defender stay at the Bernabeu? Sid Lowe examines.

On July 1, Sergio Ramos -- club captain Sergio Ramos, the man who has played 666 games and won 22 trophies with Real Madrid -- can go wherever he wants, for free. For the past week, he has been allowed to talk to whomever he wants.

The thing is, the person he really, really wants to talk to isn't in a hurry to talk to him. Not on his terms, anyway. Not yet. Conversations are instead carried out in public, but by proxy. There is a lot of pride, and a lot of politics, too. Sides are taken and stories told, but no solution found. A line has been crossed. Ramos is in his 16th season at the club; now he has just six months remaining on his contract at Real Madrid.

He also has no offer to continue, or so it goes.

In the end, this may be nothing, and the smart money says it probably will be. For some watching this play out -- and "play" does sometimes seem like the right word -- there's a certain fatigue, a sense of deja vu, a "so what?" They've heard some of these slightly tawdry tales before. And even now, even this late in Ramos' contract, it feels likely that for all the talk, he will end up renewing and staying at Madrid.

But this quite isn't like previous times, not least legally, and for it to have even reached this point is quite something.

13.50 GMT: PSG picked up their first win under new boss Mauricio Pochettino, but how will they take shape?

12.45 GMT: Brest midfielder Romain Faivre only joined the club last summer for €500,000 from Monaco, but now he's being linked with PSG and Manchester United.

Faivre, 22, has four goals and three assists in 17 league matches and Le10 Sport claims that the France U21 international is attracting interest from England and the French champions.

Despite only being at the club for six months, the midfielder was handed a contract extension until 2025 in late December. Wonder if it has a buyout clause...

12.08 GMT: Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah probably isn't getting the gametime he wants, but the club aren't keen to let him go in January.

Nketiah, 21, has five goals in 21 games this season but isn't first-choice and could be interested in a loan move. West Ham have been linked as they seek a replacement for Sebastien Haller, but Fabrizio Romano says the Gunners won't enter negotiations.

11.36 GMT: PSG will present Neymar with a formal contract offer, according to TF1.

Neymar, 28, has a contract which expires in June 2022 and PSG are keen to get him to renew alongside star forward Kylian Mbappe.

The club are reportedly interested in keeping both players, despite plenty of interest from other clubs.

11.21 GMT: Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland is so good he can take his time and pick his next club.

10.35 GMT: Lyon sporting director Juninho has confirmed his club are in advanced talks with Atletico Madrid over a loan for striker Moussa Dembele.

Atletico are looking to strengthen their attacking line in the January transfer window following the departure of Diego Costa. Dembele, 24,was a key player for Lyon the previous two campaigns but has struggled to make an impact this season, scoring one goal in 16 league appearances.

"Moussa Dembele came to see me," Juninho said after Saturday's 2-2 draw at Rennes. "He told me that he believes it's the right time to change clubs. He has lost a bit of motivation. We are in negotiations with Atletico. Nothing has been done yet but the player has already agreed terms with Atletico Madrid. It wouldn't be right to stop a player from leaving when he doesn't want to experience the next five months with us intensely."

Dembele is currently out of action with a fractured arm. Atletico are willing to acquire the Frenchman, who is tied to Lyon until June 2023, on loan until the end of the season and include a purchase option in the deal. However, Lyon want the purchase to be an obligation and not an option.

10.15 GMT: Real Madrid striker Mariano Diaz is out of favour at the club and West Ham are keen, reports the Daily Mail.

Diaz, 27, has only made six appearances for Madrid this season and could move on loan, with the Hammers eyeing a replacement for Sebastien Haller, who moved to Ajax a few days ago for €22.5m.

Real Madrid are also trying to move on €60m striker Luka Jovic.

09.31 GMT: The list of players being linked to PSG now new boss Mauricio Pochettino is in charge is crazy.

Barcelona's Lionel Messi, Juventus' Paulo Dybala and Man City striker Sergio Aguero, to name but three recent ones, and now it's Man United midfielder Paul Pogba.

The Daily Star says "the ex-Tottenham manager, who assumed the reins in Paris last week, believes Pogba is the perfect player to rebuild a new team around."

The French midfielder has, of course, been linked with Real Madrid and his former club Juventus. He has a contract with United until 2022 but his agent Mino Raiola has invited bids for the 27-year-old in January and next summer.

Pogba's preference is to join Madrid but sources have told ESPN that United do not believe the Spanish champions can afford a significant transfer fee and the midfielder's hefty wages of around £290,000-a-week.

Because of lack of funds available for transfers, sources said that United are expecting to receive cash plus swap offers but they will not consider players not already on the recruitment department's list of targets.

09.00 GMT: Manchester United's Donny van de Beek finally got his chance in the FA Cup after his £40m move from Ajax this summer, writes Rob Dawson.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer urged Donny van de Beek to take his "opportunity" against Watford in the FA Cup and the Dutch midfielder, enduring a difficult first season at Manchester United, can be satisfied he took it. It is more than a month since Van de Beek started a game at Old Trafford but in helping United reach the fourth round with a 1-0 win against the Championship side, sent his manager a reminder that he did not move from Ajax in the summer to sit on the bench.

He did not score or register an assist -- captain for the night Scott McTominay headed in Alex Telles' corner after five minutes for the only goal -- but he didn't need to. Rather, it was his quickness of thought, smooth movement and calm under pressure, particularly during an impressive first-half performance, which set him apart from almost everyone else on the pitch.

PAPER TALK (by Harry Kettle)

Rice not interested in Man Utd

The Mirror is reporting West Ham United's Declan Rice has told those close to him that he doesn't want to join Manchester United.

Rice, who is considered to be the glue that holds West Ham together by fans and pundits alike, has informed his friends that he would rather stay in London as opposed to heading north to sign for the Red Devils.

That would open the door for Chelsea to pounce with a move at around £80m. 

Sobowale to leave Man City for MLS?

Manchester City youngster Timi Sobowale could be set to leave the club in favour of a move to Major League Soccer, the Daily Mail reports.

The 19-year-old starlet, who seemingly can't break his way into the starting XI at the Etihad, had previously been linked with a move down to the Championship.

However, MLS franchise Real Salt Lake have now entered the conversation, with initial discussions being held. As per the report, Sobowale is interested by the idea and is open to the move. 

Tap-ins

- Newcastle United, West Ham and Napoli are all interested in trying to sign Spezia's M'Bala Nzola, Calciomercato reports. The striker is considered to be a power forward that has the potential to transform a team's attack, which is something all three of the aforementioned clubs sorely need this season. 

- Fabrizio Romano is reporting that Marseille are on the verge of signing Pol Lirola from Fiorentina. The defender has been heavily linked with a move to the French club over the course of the last few days with the belief being that the deal will be an initial loan alongside a future option to buy.

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