Football
ESPN 2y

LIVE Transfer Talk: Dortmund see Juventus' Federico Chiesa as Erling Haaland replacement

The summer transfer window is closed for the top leagues in Europe! After a summer full of international football, countless clubs waited until the last minute to pull off their transfers. See all the major deals here and check out how we graded the biggest signings. But just because the window is shut until January, that doesn't mean the rumours won't keep coming.

TOP STORY: Dortmund eye Chiesa as Haaland replacement 

Borussia Dortmund will move for Juventus star Federico Chiesa if Erling Haaland moves on next summer, according to Calciomercato.

Chiesa was a standout performer at Euro 2020 as he helped Italy win the tournament, but Juventus could demand a club record transfer fee if they are to part ways with one of the brightest talents in world football.

The Serie A side have reportedly rejected a number of approaches for Chiesa, with Chelsea and Liverpool rumoured to be have been prepared to pay a transfer fee of around €100 million during the summer.

Haaland is reported to have a €75m release clause in his contract which can be activated next summer, and that should provide the Bundesliga club with the funds to go for Chiesa.

Every top club in Europe will begin a huge transfer battle for Haaland next year. 

- ESPN+ guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more (U.S.)
- Dortmund vs. Union Berlin: Stream LIVE 9/19 on ESPN+ (U.S.)
- Don't have ESPN? Get instant access

LIVE BLOG

21.46 BST: Barcelona are set to join Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid and Juventus in the pursuit of a free transfer for Paul Pogba if he doesn't sign a new contract with Manchester United ahead of the summer, reports Sport.

The Catalan giants are already aware that they won't be able to match the other trio in terms of their financial offers. However, the France international appreciates the club's profile, so they are hopeful that the idea of turning out for Barcelona will outdo the need for extra financial gain.

21.13 BST: Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara could be set to make his Premier League move as early as next year, according to Football Insider.

The Gers have protected the Finland international's transfer value with a new contract, but there is said to be an agreement that he will be able to leave for the right price. Arsenal were interested in re-signing the 25-year-old who was with the Gunners between 2012 and 2017, while other unnamed Premier League clubs are keeping an eye out.

20.40 BST: Bayern Munich have begun preliminary talks with Antonio Rudiger's brother and agent, Sahr Senesie, regarding a possible move, according to Goal.

The Chelsea centre-back will be a free agent in the summer if he doesn't agree fresh terms at Stamford Bridge, and has also received interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid. Bayern see the Germany international as a possible replacement for Niklas Sule, who himself is out of contract at the end of the season.

20.07 BST: Fluminense are hopeful of being able to complete a deal for free agent Dani Alves, after the right-back responded to their offer with a counterproposal and work started on finding an agreement, reports Global Esporte.

They wanted the deal to be completed by Thursday, with Friday being the deadline for registering players to take part in the Brasileirao. The 38-year-old veteran could be given a contract to keep him there until he's 40, with the hope being that this showing of faith will help improve his chances of making the Brazil squad at the 2022 World Cup.

19.34 BST: Bayern Munich have confirmed on their official channels that two of their promising youngsters have signed new deals. Twenty-one-year-old goalkeeper Christian Fruchtl has extended his contract until 2023, while 19-year-old striker Malik Tillman has signed a professional deal that runs until 2024.

19.01 BST: Having failed to sign Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius during the summer, Swiss side FC Basel are set to move for the German again, reports Sport Bild. Their previous attempt to bring in the 28-year-old is said to have been unsuccessful for a number of reasons, but they're not giving up, and will try again if Karius is still interested in joining them.

18.28 BST: Senegal forward M'Baye Niang is set to complete his move from Stade Rennais to Bordeaux within the next 24 hours, according to L'Equipe.

The 26-year-old has been pushing for this move, having come back from a loan with Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, and is expected to join for two years with the option of a third. The deal will see Rennais get a large chunk of the money from Niang's next move as well as various add-ons.

17.55 BST: AS Roma are negotiating a new contract with Nicolo Zaniolo, after Tottenham Hotspur showed interest in the 22-year-old in recent weeks, according to Calciomercato.

The Italy international's current deal runs until the summer of 2024, but the arrival of Tammy Abraham and his salary of €4.5m a season has led to Zaniolo expecting an upgrade on the €2.5m he earns. It is suggested that talks are progressing well and an agreement shouldn't be far away.

17.22 BST: Barcelona have reached an agreement with Kayserispor for the signing of Emre Demir next season, as has been confirmed on their official channels. The 17-year-old attacking midfielder will join for €2m, on a contract that will run until June 2027 and include a €400m release clause. The Turkey youth international is the youngest ever scorer in the Turkish Super Lig and is set to initially join Barca's B team.

16.49 BST: Mundo Deportivo reports that James Rodriguez has a very special clause inserted into his contract at Al Rayyan. Rodriguez left Everton on Wednesday to move to Qatari side Al Rayyan for an undisclosed fee.

The Spanish outlet says, via AS, that the contract has a specific release clause that allows him to leave if Paris Saint-Germain make an offer. 

We're calling it the "Lionel Messi clause."

16.00 BST: AS Roma coach Jose Mourinho is staying tight-lipped about any reported interest in Manchester United full-back Diogo Dalot.

Dalot, 22, signed for Man United in June 2018, one of the last players to move to the club in Mourinho's Old Trafford tenure before he was sacked later that year.

The Portugal international spent last season in Serie A on loan at AC Milan, and is reported to be surplus to requirements at United.

He has been linked with a January move to Rome, but Mourinho wouldn't be drawn on the rumours. 

"The transfer window is closed, you want to put me in the condition to talk, but I am not going to do it," Mourinho said. "I analyse situations, but I can't share all my thoughts with you. I do not enter these dynamics."

15.12 BST: The most recent transfer window was unlike any other before it as world-class players like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo moved clubs at the same time. But that got us thinking...

Drawing inspiration from David Schoenfield's look at the biggest star every MLB team has ever traded, we thought we'd look at the world of soccer -- more specifically, the top clubs in the English Premier League.

Here's a rundown of the so-called "Big Six" clubs in the Premier League and which player we deem to have been the biggest star to have been traded.

14.25 BST: The transfer record of Everton director of football Marcel Brands has come under the spotlight after James Rodriguez left for Qatari side Al Rayyan for an undisclosed fee.

A report in the Daily Mirror says Everton have spent an incredible £267m since Brands arrived at Goodison Park, with little reward for that outlay. New boss Rafael Benitez only had £2m to spend on transfers this summer after replacing Carlo Ancelotti.

Brands' list of signings includes £67m on Allan, Ben Godfrey, Abdoulaye Doucoure and Rodriguez last summer. Even more was spent in the previous season, with Alex Iwobi (£27m), Moise Kean (£25m), Andre Gomes (£22.5m) and Jean-Phillipe Gbamin (£22.m) being signed. 

Brands also signed Richarlison (£35m), Yerry Mina (£27m) and Lucas Digne (£18m) in 2018-19.

But despite a questionable transfer record it is unlikely Brands will be going anywhere, as he only signed a new contract in April.  

13.37 BST: The Daily Mirror reports that Barcelona have made the long pilgrimage to Walsall, near Birmingham, to scout a promising young goalkeeper. 

Carl Rushworth, 20, is on the books of Brighton, but has been loaned to League Two Walsall for the season. He has been catching the eye of several top clubs with some stellar displays, and on Tuesday he saved his fourth penalty of the campaign in a 2-1 defeat at Newport County. 

He has previously been on loan at non-league club Worthing, and Barca reportedly even sent scouts there too. 

12.50 BST: Janusz Michallik discusses the benefits for both Arsenal and Juventus should they decide to swap Granit Xaka and Weston McKennie.

12.02 BST: Club Brugge forward Noa Lang is a man in demand after a breakthrough campaign at Club Brugge last season. Lang, 22, scored 16 goals in 29 league appearances on loan at Brugge from Ajax, with the move automatically being made permanent in the summer for a reported transfer fee of €6m.  

The Netherlands under-21 international was linked with Leeds United over the summer, and has now attracted interest from AC Milan and Arsenal, reports the Daily Express. A transfer offer in the region of €25m could see Lang move from the Belgian club. 

11.16 BST: Could Chelsea be about to turn their attentions to Matthijs de Ligt? Calciomercato reports that Thomas Tuchel sees the Netherlands international as an alternative target if a deal cannot be struck for Sevilla centre-back Jules Kounde.

De Ligt, 22, joined Juventus from Ajax two years ago and reportedly has a £103m release clause in his contract, which will become active at the end of the season.

Chelsea tried hard to sign Kounde in the summer window but the two clubs could not agree terms, and the report says the London club have a definite interest in De Ligt.

De Ligt was on target on Wednesday night, scoring the winner as Juve came from behind for a 3-2 victory at Spezia. 

10.34 BST: Football Insider reports that Borussia Dortmund failed with a £15m move for Manchester City's 18-year-old forward Liam Delap.

The son of former Derby, Southampton and Stoke City star Rory, Liam started out in Derby's youth system before moving to Man City in 2019. An England youth international up to under-18 level, Delap has made four appearances for City's first team and scored on his debut in last season's Carabao Cup win over Bournemouth.

Boss Pep Guardiola promoted Delap to the City first team for this season and he only signed a contract extension last month, to run through to the summer of 2026. However, a pre-season injury has hampered his progress and ended any prospect of a loan move, amid much interest.

The report says that Dortmund made a move towards the end of the transfer window but it was soon knocked back.

09.46 BST: In case you missed it... Everton midfielder James Rodriguez has joined Qatari side Al Rayyan for an undisclosed fee.

Sources previously told ESPN that Rodriguez was discussing a move with the Qatari club after Everton gave him permission to leave Goodison Park. The 30-year-old was told by manager Rafa Benitez, who replaced Carlo Ancelotti this summer, that he was not in his plans.

The midfielder made an impressive start after he joined from Real Madrid in September 2020, scoring three goals in his first five games, but injury and loss of form saw his contribution diminish markedly in the second half of the season. He made a total of 26 appearances in all competitions during his time at the club.

09.00 BST: Real Madrid are looking at extending the contract of Take Kubo -- who's on loan at Real Mallorca this season, and played in their 6-1 defeat at the Bernabeu on Wednesday -- according to Cadena SER radio. The 20-year-old winger's current deal expires in 2024.

Kubo joined Madrid in 2019, after previously spending time at Barcelona's academy, but is yet to make his competitive debut for the club with loan spells at Mallorca, Villarreal, Getafe and Mallorca a second time.

SER's El Larguero programme on Wednesday night reported that a number of European clubs had enquired about signing Kubo permanently this summer, but he preferred to keep developing in LaLiga.

PAPER GOSSIP

- The race for Luka Jovic is heating up with Serie A clubs reported to be interested, according to Calciomercato. Juventus, Inter Milan and AC Milan could all look to acquire a striker in the winter window, and with reports on Wednesday claiming that Real Madrid striker Jovic could leave, a queue could begin to form for the former Eintracht Frankfurt star.

- Benfica are keen to move Gabriel on in January, according to O Jogo. The Portuguese media outlet reports that the midfielder is not in manager Jorge Jesus' plans for the future. The 28-year-old is yet to be involved this season, last featuring in a 2-0 win over Estoril in March.

- Ronald Koeman could be dismissed if Barcelona are beaten by Cadiz on Thursday, according to Mundo Deportivo. The Blaugrana manager is under pressure and some members of the board are reported to have lost patience with the manager. Koeman refused to take questions at a prematch news conference on Wednesday but did ask to be given more time to rebuild the team following a summer of upheaval at Camp Nou.

- A contract extension for Liverpool's Naby Keita may not be as close as thought, according to Bild reporter Christian Falk. Talks with the Guinea international could be delayed with his contract set to expire in the summer of 2023, as Jurgen Klopp's side continues to be linked with Borussia Dortmund youngster Jude Bellingham.

- Tottenham Hotspur will make another move for Fiorentina playmaker Dusan Vlahovic in January, reports Calciomercato. The Premier League club could face a battle against Atletico Madrid and Juventus to acquire the in-demand Serbian star, who is yet to agree to a new contract. A fee in the region of €70m-€80m is reported to be the demands of the Viola. Vlahovic was wanted by all three clubs in the summer but the 21-year-old stayed committed to Fiorentina. 

^ Back to Top ^