La Liga &#8211; CaughtOffside

22-year-old Leeds player to undergo medical at his new club today

Former Premier League title winner hits back at user trolling him for now working on a building site

Arsenal’s “strong” transfer interest in La Liga star confirmed by Fabrizio Romano

Merino transfer: What we’ve been told

CaughtOffside have also received some information on Merino’s situation, with Manchester United also understood to be showing an interest, as per our sources with a close understanding of the potential deal.

Mikel Merino to Arsenal?

Arsenal now intend to move forward with talks over Merino as he’s emerging as their top target for that defensive midfield role, with Mikel Arteta surely in need of an upgrade on the ageing and injury-prone Thomas Partey in that area of his squad.

It will be interesting to see if AFC can now move in for this potential signing ahead of other top clubs, but it seems there is cause for Gooners to be optimistic on this one.

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Video: “Players that get coaches sacked” – Steve Nicol warns Emery over £50m capture

Jason Pettigrove — Tue, 23 Jul 2024 10:45:28 +0000

Former professional player, Steve Nicol, certainly hasn’t held back with regards to his thoughts on Joao Felix, as rumours continue that Unai Emery would like to sign him for Aston Villa.

There’s little doubt that when he’s in the mood, the Portuguese is up there with the very top talents in Europe.

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He’s shown as much in flashes for Atletico Madrid, Chelsea and Barcelona, but there’s the rub.

A player of his evident quality should be showing that game in and game out and Felix, even now, just drifts in and out of games.

That’s perhaps why Nicol has said he’s one of those “players that get coaches sacked.”

Emery can’t say he hasn’t been warned.

Pictures from ESPN

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Sensational La Liga ace being eyed by Unai Emery for Aston Villa

Jason Pettigrove — Tue, 23 Jul 2024 10:17:21 +0000

With a Champions League campaign to look forward to in 2024/25, Aston Villa manager, Unai Emery, knows that he’ll need a deep enough squad to cope with those European commitments on top of a domestic season.

He only needs to remind himself of what happened to Newcastle United last season once injuries started to bite, ostensibly as a result of those extra games.

Player fitness and health will have to be micro-managed throughout the campaign, and even if it means that certain stars miss high-profile games, if it’s for the greater good, they need to accept Emery’s decision.

Aston Villa want to sign Joao Felix

Longevity right across the campaign and not just the first half is key for Villa, and it’s perhaps with that in mind that the manager is looking to execute a stunning transfer deal.

According to The Guardian (subscription required), now that a deal has been agreed to take Moussa Diaby to the Saudi Pro League, Emery is weighing up the chances of trying to land Atletico Madrid’s Joao Felix.

Joao Felix could be joining Aston Villa

Felix, 24, had been expected to head back to Barcelona next season, though the Catalan club’s pursuit of Nico Williams would seem to rule any move for Felix out.

Atletico Madrid are believed not to want him either, so unless there are any more favourable offers, it could potentially leave the way clear for the Villains.

With Champions League football coming to Villa Park next season, and Emery building an excellent squad, there’s no reason why Joao Felix wouldn’t be tempted by the possibilities.

Though the player can blow hot and cold and is often termed an ‘enigma’ for that reason, when he’s on his game, there are few better players.

Villa have enough work horses in the team to allow for a bit of inventiveness and flair, and it will surely be one of the signings of the summer if it happens.

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Exclusive: European Championship hero remains at the top of Arsenal’s wanted list

Jason Pettigrove — Tue, 23 Jul 2024 07:23:31 +0000

Although it would appear that Riccardo Calafiori will be the next name through the door at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal are still working hard to strengthen elsewhere, and one Spanish European Championship hero remains top of their wanted list.

CaughtOffside sources with knowledge of the Gunners transfer plans have indicated that the North London outfit now want to move forward in negotiations to sign Real Sociedad’s brilliant 28-year-old Spanish player Mikel Merino.

Mikel Merino top of Arsenal’s wish list

It’s understood that the Gunners have received information about the player’s situation by meeting with the agents of the player, and they plan to make an opening offer of around the €30m mark soon.

Sources also note that Manchester United are continuing to monitor Merino’s situation, but the Red Devils don’t intend to prioritise his transfer at this stage of the summer window.

Spain’s midfielder Mikel Merino is top of Arsenal’s wish list

Atletico Madrid and Barcelona are also continuing their negotiations with Merino’s camp, and it’s said that both La Liga giants are ready and willing to make an offer of between €25m-€30m to Real Sociedad.

From La Real’s point of view, they’re left with little option other than to sell a player that they rate incredibly highly.

He has turned down their offer of a contract extension twice, and in the absence of an improved offer, the player will therefore listen to what other clubs have to say.

Merino is at the top of Mikel Arteta’s shortlist this summer, though it isn’t clear at this point whether the player wishes to try a new experience in the Premier League, or will continue to ply his trade in La Liga.

Given Arteta’s own career, which took in a period at Real Sociedad as well as with the Spanish national team (up to U21 level), there’s a good chance that he could persuade his countryman to move to North London, and clearly the next few weeks are going to be crucial in terms of any negotiations.

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Arsenal getting closer to transfer deal for Euro 2024 winner

Mark Brus — Tue, 23 Jul 2024 05:00:51 +0000

Arsenal are reportedly “getting closer” to a transfer deal for Real Sociedad and Spain midfielder Mikel Merino, according to journalist Kike Marin.

Merino impressed at the Euros this summer even though he wasn’t always able to get off the bench and onto the pitch for the eventual winners of the tournament, and this follows some strong form in La Liga last season as well.

The 28-year-old has been strongly linked with the Gunners by the Daily Mirror, who have claimed that Sociedad are resigned to losing the player due to the fact that he has just one year left on his contract and doesn’t seem set to sign a new one.

See below as Kike Marin now has another update, saying Merino and Arsenal look to be getting closer…

Cada vez más cerca del #Arsenal Mikel Arteta y Mikel Merino. https://t.co/uK6dGcWz0V

— Kike Marin** (@Kike_Marin_) July 22, 2024

The journalist is a little vague about what this means for the moment, but he’s previously posted about Arsenal’s interest, and how it could be a good move to get Merino linking up with Martin Odegaard again, with the Gunners captain having had a successful loan spell with Sociedad in the past.

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Merino transfer looks important for Arsenal

Arsenal could do with strengthening in midfield, so Merino makes sense as an upgrade on the ageing and injury-prone Thomas Partey, while Jorginho is also surely now at the stage where he can’t be expected to play 90 minutes on a regular basis.

Mikel Merino won Euro 2024 with Spain this summer

It could also be good for AFC to bring in someone who’s recently won something, as that success in going all the way in a major tournament could be useful experience for a club looking to do better in this year’s title race after two near-misses in a row.

It will be interesting to see how this saga develops and if anyone else joins the race for Merino, who looks a tempting option due to his contract situation, as Sociedad surely have to sell for below market value now or else lose him on a free next summer.

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More disappointment for Chelsea as world class ace set for Barca switch

Jason Pettigrove — Tue, 23 Jul 2024 04:42:17 +0000

Unusually for Chelsea of late, they’re not having things all their own way in the transfer market.

The Blues under Todd Boehly have become an organisation that has set the pace in the summer windows, whether on incomings or outgoings.

So far this summer, they’ve seen long-term target, Victor Osimhen, potentially slip through their fingers, and though the Nigerian hit-man hasn’t yet put pen to paper on a deal with Paris Saint-Germain, he’s nearer to doing exactly that with the French giants than he is with the West London outfit.

If the American was confident of making a splash with the signing of Spain’s brilliant Nico Williams too, it looks as though that deal is destined to fail as well.

?? Barcelona are increasingly confident to get final green light from Nico Williams to contract terms.

Club now confident about having convinced Nico about the project, with La Liga approval for Finacial Fair Play as key step.

More contacts to follow this week. pic.twitter.com/sUVIjpSXY5

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 22, 2024

According to transfer expert and CaughtOffside columnist, Fabrizio Romano, the Athletic Club flyer could well be signing for Barcelona.

He notes that the Catalan giants are increasingly confident of landing one of the players of Euro 2024, and his signing could really help Barca claw themselves back towards the top table of Spanish and European football.

Barca closing in on Chelsea target Williams

There’s still the small matter of Financial Fair Play for Barca to get around, though that would appear to be a formality if the narrative coming out of Catalonia is that the club are getting close.

They surely wouldn’t advance the same unless they felt that there was a genuine chance that the player had given the ‘thumbs up’ to any deal.

What that does do of course is show Boehly that just because he has the funds to throw around, it doesn’t necessarily mean that players who are best-in-class in their position are going to want to move to Stamford Bridge.

As storied an English outfit as they are, there’s been a real churn of players over the past couple of seasons and that type of modus operandi might not suit players looking for some career stability.

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La Liga club open talks with Tottenham as unwanted star close to exit

Darren Looney — Mon, 22 Jul 2024 20:10:58 +0000

Tottenham winger Bryan Gil is expected to leave the Premier League club this summer and the Spaniard’s exit from the North London outfit is getting closer.

The 23-year-old has been with Tottenham since 2021 but has failed to establish himself in the Spurs starting 11 since then. The winger spent time on loan with Valencia and Sevilla during this period, but none of these experiences helped his chances in the Premier League.

Ange Postecoglou allowed Gil to stick around last season but the Spanish star only received 233 minutes of action across 12 appearances.

The former Sevilla talent was expected to leave Spurs before the current transfer window opened up and that looks like it is closer to becoming a reality as Girona have shown an interest in the Tottenham player.

According to Fabrizio Romano, the La Liga club have opened talks with Tottenham to get a deal for Gil done. Initial discussions have already taken place over a permanent deal and it remains to be seen how the transfer progresses from here or if any other clubs join the race.

Girona are interested in Tottenham star Bryan Gil

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Arsenal’s “strong” transfer interest in La Liga star confirmed by Fabrizio Romano

The 2024/25 campaign is huge for Ange Postecoglou and Tottenham

Selling players such as Gil is important for Tottenham as it helps raise funds to bring in new additions to Postecoglou’s squad. The Australian coach has cleared out some of his fringe players ahead of the new campaign with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg another star close to an exit.

Spurs have only signed Archie Gray from Leeds United this summer but more talent is expected to follow. The Premier League outfit are in need of a striker as they never replaced Harry Kane following his move to Bayern Munich last summer. It remains to be seen who the English team move for with Brentford’s Ivan Toney one man linked to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Last season saw the North London club improve under Postecoglou and the Australian coach’s team will hope to make more progress during the upcoming campaign as Champions League football has to be the goal.

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Exclusive: Nothing concrete between Liverpool and 23-year-old talent with €60m release clause

Darren Looney — Mon, 22 Jul 2024 19:35:29 +0000

Liverpool are not expected to make a move for Real Sociedad star Takefusa Kubo in the coming weeks despite recent reports linking the Premier League giants to the Japanese talent.

Japanese outlet Sports Nippon claimed that Liverpool had agreed a deal to sign the 23-year-old for a fee in the region of £50m, but that is not believed to be the case according to transfer expert Matteo Moretto.

The Merseyside club were linked to Kubo back in January but Moretto states that this latest story is just an old one being dug up again.

The transfer journalist is not aware of anything imminent between the Merseyside club and the Real Sociedad winger and nothing should be expected between the parties throughout the rest of the transfer window as things stand.

Kubo has been with the La Liga club since 2022 and has impressed many during his time in San Sebastián.

With Mohamed Salah having turned 32 this summer, Liverpool will be on the lookout for his replacement in the future and that may lead them to Kubo. However, the Japanese star is likely to be playing his football with Sociedad this season, where he has a contract until 2029.

Liverpool are not expected to make a move for Real Sociedad star Takefusa Kubo

More Stories / Latest News

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Arsenal’s “strong” transfer interest in La Liga star confirmed by Fabrizio Romano

Nothing concrete between Liverpool and Real Sociedad’s Takefusa Kubo

Writing in his latest exclusive column for CaughtOffside’s The Daily Briefing, Moretto addressed the latest links between the Merseyside club and the Japanese international, playing down the Premier League club’s links to the winger.

“Real Sociedad star Takefusa Kubo was linked with Liverpool during the winter transfer window, and this week fresh reports have emerged about Liverpool potentially activating his €60m release clause,” the transfer expert said.

“My information on this is that there is nothing concrete in the works, and I’m not aware of any talks with him over a move either.

“It’s an old topic that has come up again, and from what I’ve been told, in recent hours, and in recent days, we should not expect anything imminent for Kubo.”

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Chelsea approach La Liga club to address goalkeeper issue, player keen on move to Stamford Bridge

Darren Looney — Mon, 22 Jul 2024 18:49:29 +0000

Chelsea have approached Villarreal’s Filip Jorgensen as Enzo Maresca looks to address the Blues goalkeeper issues before the 2024/25 campaign gets underway next month.

The West London club signed two shot-stoppers last summer in the form of Robert Sanchez and Djordje Petrovic, but both have not been deemed satisfactory by the new Chelsea coach.

The signing of the Spaniard was an unusual one given he was the number two at Brighton and following an injury, Petrovic would step up and play the entire second half of the season. The Serbian did well in the Blues’ net, but Maresca would like an upgrade in the position at Stamford Bridge.

According to Fabrizio Romano, Chelsea have now approached Villarreal’s Filip Jorgensen to get a deal done with talks having started with the player. The Swedish shot-stopper is believed to be keen on the move but nothing is close as of now.

The transfer journalist states that Mads Hermansen is also on the London club’s list as Maresca worked with the 24-year-old at Leicester City last season.

Both goalkeepers are very young for the position as the Premier League club’s board continues to try and build a young squad at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea have approached Villarreal’s Filip Jorgensen

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22-year-old Leeds player to undergo medical at his new club today

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Who is Chelsea target Filip Jorgensen?

Jorgenson is a 22-year-old talent who became the starting goalkeeper for Villarreal last season having come through the La Liga club’s youth academy and making his debut during the campaign before.

The Swedish shot-stopper featured in 37 games for the yellow submarine, keeping just six clean sheets in what was a tricky campaign for the club.

Jorgenson has caught the attention of a lot of clubs as he is a very modern goalkeeper with the 22-year-old being exceptional with his feet. This will be one of the biggest attractions for Chelsea, but it is still a big risk handing the number one jersey of a Premier League club as big as the Blues to someone so young.

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Club resigned to losing £25m Arsenal transfer target this summer as he won’t sign new deal

Mark Brus — Mon, 22 Jul 2024 13:47:33 +0000

Real Sociedad are reportedly resigned to losing Mikel Merino this summer as he attracts interest from big clubs like Arsenal, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.

This is according to a report from the Daily Mirror, who state that the Gunners could therefore be in with a chance of signing Merino on the cheap, possibly for as little as £25million.

The Spain international looks like he could be a good fit for Arsenal after impressing in La Liga and also showing his quality despite not being an automatic starter for Spain as they won Euro 2024 this summer.

Arsenal are a little short of midfield options at the moment, with Mikel Arteta surely in need of an upgrade on the ageing and injury-prone Thomas Partey, while Jorginho is also not getting any younger and surely won’t be expected to be a regular starter for the north London giants in the season to come.

Mikel Merino celebrates a goal for Real Sociedad

Merino could, therefore, fit the bill in terms of the profile of player Arsenal are looking for, without costing a fortune as well due to the fact that the Mirror suggest he won’t be signing a new deal with Sociedad.

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