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LIVE Transfer Talk: Bayern Munich, Manchester City interested in Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong

The summer transfer window was unlike any other; see all the major deals and check out how we graded the biggest signings. And just because the window is shut until January, that doesn't mean the rumours won't keep coming. Here is the latest gossip and speculation. 

TOP STORY: Bayern, Man City in for De Jong

Bayern Munich and Manchester City are interested in Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, according to Calciomercato. The report claims that the two respective league champions are tracking the 24-year-old, whose contract at Camp Nou runs until 2026.

Bayern were linked with a move for the midfielder last January, while City have also previously been interested. Recently City winger Raheem Sterling has been rumoured to be ready to make a switch to Barca, which could add some fuel to the fire over De Jong.

The Netherlands international joined Barca in 2019 for €75 million from Ajax Amsterdam. Since then, he has made over 100 competitive appearances, bagging nine goals and 15 assists in that time.

Ronald Koeman's side have endured a tough start to LaLiga after a turbulent few months where their financial crisis has seen them forced to move on the likes of Antoine Griezmann and fail to renew the contract of Lionel Messi.

Barca currently sit ninth in a tightly contested top half of LaLiga, after a 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid in El Clasico on Sunday. De Jong suffered an injury in that game, coming off in the 77th minute with a right hamstring strain, but there has been no timeline on his return to the side.

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LIVE BLOG

20.45 BST: AC Milan, Bayer Leverkusen and Aston Villa are interested in a move for River Plate striker Julian Alvarez, reports Calciomercato.

The 21-year-old has impressed for his club -- a double against Boca Juniors recently was just one of his standout displays -- to garner attention from European clubs. His current deal, which has a release clause of €25m, expires on Dec. 31, 2022.

20.14 BST: Leicester midfielder Youri Tielemans is of interest to Bayern Munich and Liverpool, according to Calciomercato.

The midfielder is out-of-contract in 2023 and, while there has been interest in the 24-year-old, manager Brendan Rodgers has downplayed the lack of movement on a renewal for the Belgium international.

19.42 BST: Jose Mourinho is hoping to add two midfielders, a full-back, a centre-back and a forward to his Roma team in January.

According to Gazzetta dello Sport, the Portuguese manager is hoping to bolster his squad with five new signings in the winter, though he will be forced to move players on before signing new ones.

19.00 BST: Borussia Dortmund star Jude Bellingham has starred at the club since his arrival from Birmingham City last year, but could his brother be about to join him in Germany?

According to SportBILD, the Bundesliga club are eyeing a move for Jobe Bellingham, 16, with the hope a move would convince older brother Jude to stay at the club, with Liverpool and Manchester United linked with a move for the midfielder.

18.29 BST: Chelsea have been offered Juventus centre-back Matthijs de Ligt, with the European champions set to potentially lose out-of-contract defenders next summer.

According to Goal, De Ligt's agent Mino Raiola has offered the chance to sign the 22-year-old as Juve look to reduce the wage bill. The Dutch international is said to be on £280,000-a-week, with more available via bonuses.

Among the Chelsea players who could leave Stamford Bridge is Thiago Silva, with TuttoMercatoWeb suggesting he could return to Fluminense. The 37-year-old made almost 200 appearances for the club before moving to Milan in 2009.

17.52 BST: After reports that Barcelona will have to pay another €20m for Phillipe Coutinho if he reaches 100 games for the club, Mundo Deportivo claims the clause does not exist.

The Brazilian winger, who joined Barca from Liverpool in 2018, has made 99 appearances for the Catalan club. His time at Camp Nou has not been without its problems, but this news at least represents a positive development for the LaLiga club, which is enduring a financial crisis.

17.15 BST: Arsenal could be forced to move on defender William Saliba in the summer, according to The Sun.

The report claims that a rift between the 20-year-old and the club is growing. Saliba joined the Gunners in 2019 in a £27m move, but has spent two seasons on loan. Whilst no long-term decision has been made, there are doubts over his fit in manager Mikel Arteta's philosophy.

16.25 BST: Sky Germany reports that PSG are interested in FC Salzburg striker Karim Adeyemi to replace Kylian Mbappe.

Adeyemi, 19, has attracted plenty of attention with 14 goals in 18 games this season and has been linked with a host of big clubs for around €30m.

The report was picked up by AS which makes a bit of a leap, though, as it states "Mbappe, closer to Madrid" and suggests that Mbappe's move to Real Madrid is edging closer because PSG are sniffing around possible replacements.

Mbappe, 22, can leave PSG for free in the summer and may yet command a fee of around €100m in January if Madrid don't want to wait.

15.24 BST: Newcastle need a new manager and are targeting Ajax boss Erik Ten Hag, says the Daily Mail.

Ten Hag, 51, reportedly has reservations about the move to become Steve Bruce's successor, but the salary on offer would make him the Premier League's third-highest paid manager on £11m-per-year, behind Man City's Pep Guardiola (£20m) and Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp (£15m).

The Ajax boss has already turned down the opportunity of replacing Jose Mourinho at Tottenham and has been linked with a move to Man United to take over if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is sacked.

15.00 BST: Lionel Messi's move to PSG hasn't worked out as many would have thought. But it's OK.

13.53 BST: Barcelona striker Sergio Aguero did want to link up with Lionel Messi, but now he may get his wish according to El Nacional.

Aguero, 33, moved to Camp Nou on a free transfer just as Messi was departing on his own free transfer to Paris Saint-Germain this summer.

But now PSG striker Mauro Icardi is unhappy, having clashed with Messi and fallen down the pecking order under manager Mauricio Pochettino.

So... would Barca swap Aguero for Icardi?

13.19 BST: Ousmane Dembele returned to training with his Barcelona teammates on Monday and could feature on Saturday when the club host Alaves, but questions continue over his future.

ESPN revealed on Monday that the French forward's involvement in the squad for the rest of the season will be dependent on whether he is willing to sign a contract extension, with his current terms up next summer.

Sources said the Catalan club will banish Dembele, who has drawn interest from England, to the stands if he doesn't sign a new deal, a tactic deployed with Ilaix Moriba in the summer before he left for RB Leipzig, but not one manager Ronald Koeman would confirm at a new conference.

"The most important thing is that Ousmane stays," the Dutch coach said. "He's an important player with different qualities in attack. The main objective is to renew his contract.

"It's another issue if he doesn't want to renew. We need to talk as a club about the best way to deal with that. We have still not decided what our strategy will be in the event he does not renew."

12.26 BST: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is being allowed to continue as Manchester United manager but has been told his job is still very much under threat, sources told ESPN, amid disagreements at board level over the potential hire of Antonio Conte.

Solskjaer was involved in discussions with executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward and managing director Richard Arnold on Monday, 24 hours after the humiliating 5-0 defeat to Liverpool at Old Trafford, but the day ended with the 48-year-old still in the job. However, ESPN has been told that the Solskjaer's fate is almost certain to be sealed during the forthcoming international break unless he can oversee positive results against Tottenham, Atalanta and Manchester City.

Conte has made it known he would be willing to take over but sources told ESPN that there are varying degrees of enthusiasm at board level for hiring the former Juventus, Chelsea and Inter Milan coach.

There is a feeling among some high-level figures that handing the job to Conte, a title winner in both England and Italy, would go against the club's "cultural reboot" that has heavily influenced decision-making since the departure of Jose Mourinho in December 2018.

Sources close to Solskjaer expect him to remain in charge for Saturday's trip to Tottenham but he has been given no guarantees beyond that.

11.51 BST: Bild reports that Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is keen on signing Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham.

Bellingham, 18, has impressed in Germany since making a €30m move from Birmingham in 2020 but is now valued at around €70m, with Dortmund reportedly only willing to accept offers in the region of €120m.

The England international has all of Europe's top clubs on his trail now and Dortmund are trying their best to keep hold of him, including by attempting to land his brother Jobe from Birmingham too.

11.12 BST: Former Chelsea and Inter Milan boss Antonio Conte is the frontrunner if Man United sack Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

10.32 BST: Spanish clubs have been put off a free transfer move for Antonio Rudiger, Cadena SER radio reports, after learning of his €12m-a-season net salary demands.

Defender Rudiger shone for Chelsea in their Champions League winning run last season and had been linked with both Real Madrid and Barcelona as both clubs sought to take advantage of his potential free agent status, with his contract expiring in June 2022.

"A Spanish club asked after [Rudiger] a few days ago and got that response," the station reported on Monday night, claiming a LaLiga club was unlikely to be able to reach that €12m figure.

That would leave suitors in England, France and Germany -- with Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich having been named as other possible destinations -- battling it out for the 28-year-old centre-back's signature next summer.

09.48 BST: Newcastle United have been linked with all manner of star names after their Saudi-backed takeover saw them flush with cash all of a sudden.

But, as Man City did in the first few years, the club will have to be realistic over their targets. 

Football Insider claims that Newcastle want Aston Villa and Zimbabwe midfielder Marvelous Nakamba in January and the 27-year-old is more like the profile of player we can expect them to land.

09.14 BST: An American businessman is looking to rescue English second-tier club Derby from bankruptcy protection.

Chris Kirchner, the founder of shipping and logistics firm Slync.io, has written to inform supporters of his desire to take Derby out of administration.

The team, which is managed by former England and Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney, has already been docked 12 points for entering administration and is in last place with more than two thirds of the season remaining.

The 34-year-old Kirchner is already seeking to get approval from the English Football League to be an owner of the club. "Clearly, I am at the beginning of procedures that must take place with the administrators and the EFL,'' he said in a letter to supporters. "I am respectful of these mechanisms. Nonetheless, my team and I have already been in conversation with all parties to discuss where to start.''

08.53 BST: Contract talks between Chelsea and defender Andreas Christensen have stalled, The Guardian reports.

Christensen's current deal at Stamford Bridge expires at the end of the season, meaning he is free to agree a pre-contract agreement with foreign clubs from Jan. 1. Chelsea have offered the Denmark international a new four-year contract, with the option of an extra year, but the matter has not been discussed formally at all since August.

Christensen, 25, has made 10 appearances for Chelsea so far this season, and coach Thomas Tuchel has praised the progress he has made.

"I think it is important we accept the personality of every player," Tuchel said. "Some are more loud, some aggressive, some more calm. He's a calm guy, very intelligent player, and sometimes you can get maybe a bit misled by judging him from his personality, because he is a hard defender and he is a guy who is not shy to have hard tackles and win challenges and step up in games. He found his place.

"He is very strong, very reliable and he has not reached his limits because in his age there is still room to improve. He can be a top defender for us in the next years and hopefully he will be because he comes from the academy. He knows what it takes and he has improved massively so far but it is not done yet - you have to show it over and over. There are big examples in this club of what it takes to be a legend in defence and there is still a way to go but we are very happy so far."

08.00 BST: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is fighting to save his job as Manchester United manager, with sources telling ESPN's Mark Ogden that the 48-year-old had already lost the faith of a sizable number of his squad even before Sunday's 5-0 defeat against Liverpool.

ESPN has also been told that the United hierarchy are aware that former Juventus, Chelsea and Inter Milan coach Antonio Conte is prepared to return to management at Old Trafford.

Another prominent candidate, ex-Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane, is not interested should the United job become available, sources tell ESPN's Julien Laurens.

Often tipped to be a viable candidate for the Old Trafford bench in case of the departure of Solskjaer, Zidane is not a rush to return to managing and is waiting for the right opportunity to emerge.

- Ogden: Man United mediocrity is down to the Glazers

PAPER GOSSIP (Luke Thrower)

- Real Madrid are monitoring the contract situation of Liverpool star Mohamed Salah if the player cannot reach an agreement over new terms. According to Ekrem Konur, the Egypt international is looking for a new deal worth £450,000-a-week at Anfield, while negotiations continue over a reduction in that demand.

- Bayern Munich are looking to move on winger Kingsley Coman if he doesn't sign a new contract. According to AS, the 25-year-old is demanding €16m-a-year to stay, which the club is not willing to match. His contract runs until 2023, with Bayern willing to move him on rather than losing him on a free transfer.

- Tottenham Hotspur have joined Everton and Aston Villa in the race to sign Stoke City and Australia defender Harry Souttar, according to Football Insider. The 23-year-old Socceroo centre-back has impressed in the Championship, recently putting pen to paper on a new deal in February that lasts until 2025.

- Bayern Munich, Manchester City and AS Monaco are all on the trail of Ajax winger Antony, according to Calciomercato. The 21-year-old moved to the Netherlands last year from Sao Paulo and has since gone on to make three appearances for the Brazil national side. His deal lasts until 2025.

- Wolverhampton Wanderers are interested in signing Brazil international Guilherme Arana, according to Ekrem Konur. The left-back plays for Brazilian league leaders Atletico Mineiro and the Midlands club plan to talk with them soon over a potential move.

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