The transfer window may not open again until January 1, 2018 but that hasn’t put an end to plenty of speculation throughout Europe.
Here, we take a look at three big stories dominating the headlines on Thursday.
Will any of the following deals happen?
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MANCHESTER RIVALS TO DO BATTLE OVER GRIEZMANN
Sport is reporting that Manchester United have been joined by Manchester City in the chase for Antoine Griezmann. The Atletico Madrid striker has been a long-time target for United and is also wanted by Barcelona but Pep Guardiola‘s side may look to gazump both.
RATING: 5/10
SPORT360 VERDICT:
It would be hard to turn down City at the moment, even when the other options are United and Barcelona. If anything, the bigger question is how committed City would be to a move for Griezmann, given how much the club and Guardiola specifically have invested in the development of Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane. Of course, if you have the chance to upgrade on either with a player of Griezmann’s calibre – and let’s not forget, Alexis Sanchez is probably on his way, too – it would be hard to turn it down.
United’s long-standing interest might win out, however. They more or less had a deal in place for a summer move before Griezmann decided to show his loyalty to Atletico by not leaving them while they were under a transfer ban which meant they couldn’t replace him, and United will be quick to push this move through once it’s back on the table. Plus, for as much as these things count, Griezmann is good friends with Paul Pogba – and “Agent Pogba” has a history of recruiting his talented friends to his club.
Antoine Griezmann could be the subject of a Manchester tug-of-war.
AC MILAN WANT WILLIAN
Chelsea winger Willian is a target for AC Milan, according to Calciomercato. The Serie A outfit are still in the midst of a rebuild backed by their new Chinese owners and the Brazilian winger is the latest player to have caught their eye.
RATING: 6/10
SPORT360 VERDICT:
Willian has been in and out of Antonio Conte‘s starting line-up at Stamford Bridge, with the Italian often preferring Pedro to the 29-year-old. He’d almost certainly be guaranteed a place in the AC Milan XI, so it won’t be a surprise if Willian is at least considering the move.
The Brazilian has already previously been linked with a move away from Chelsea, with Jose Mourinho reportedly having wanted to take his former charge with him to Manchester United, although that never went beyond the rumour stage. But he hasn’t been at his best for Chelsea this season, and he’s fallen down the pecking order. At 29, this may be the perfect time to move.
Willian has fallen down Antonio Conte’s pecking order.
NEYMAR WANTED TO UNDO PSG MOVE
A report in Marca claims Neymar wanted to cancel his record-breaking transfer from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain after he’d signed the paperwork, but before the move was made official. It was up to Neymar’s father and his agent to complete the move, supposedly against the player’s wishes. The Brazilian is said to be unhappy at PSG and desperate for a return.
RATING: 3/10
SPORT360 VERDICT:
One does wonder why there are suddenly rumours linking Neymar with a move away from PSG. During the international break there’s been talk of a stunning move to Real Madrid, and now this.
There’s no doubt that Neymar agonised over his transfer, and it’s even believable that the finality of signing the paperwork would have caused him to wonder what he’d done, and possibly have a change of heart. Let’s not forget, however, that his friends and team-mates at Barcelona had been trying to convince him to stay for long before that, with no success.
Then there’s the small matter of his having burned bridges with the Barcelona board. Quite a few players at the club don’t like the current board, but none of them are involved in a legal battle with the board, unlike Neymar.
More to the point – at this moment in time, Neymar is in Paris to stay. Yes, he’s had his teething issues at PSG, frustrating and fighting with his team-mates and manager and apparently not liking the drop down in the level of play from La Liga to Ligue 1, but he signed up for the task of raising the image of the French league and taking PSG to Champions League glory. Running away from that after a short time would be admitting to the world that he couldn’t handle that pressure, or that he wasn’t as good as he thought he was. That doesn’t sound like Neymar.
Apparently, Neymar wasn’t actually this happy about joining PSG.
