This article was originally published on Fabrizio Romano’s Daily Briefing, a subscription service. If you would like to receive Fabrizio Romano’s exclusive transfer news via email ahead of publication on caughtoffside.com, please sign-up for the service here: thedailybriefing.io
Kobbie Mainoo shows he’s the future of Man United and England
What a win for England last night as Ollie Watkins scored a dramatic late goal against the Netherlands to set up a final clash against Spain! I know some fans haven’t always been satisfied with the style of the performances by England at these Euros, but against the Netherlands it was really convincing, and a deserved result, in my opinion.
Now no one wants to talk about Gareth Southgate’s future, of course sources are quiet and only hoping to win the final all together. But for sure, for England it’s already a massive achievement. Cole Palmer has been perfect in the final minutes, same for Watkins of course.
But again, what a player Kobbie Mainoo is – he really stood out for me. He’s an incredible talent. He’s going to be the future for Man United and England – a special player.
Dani Olmo release clause to be extended amid Chelsea links
I want to start with an important update on the situation of Dani Olmo. From what I’m told, there is an important detail on Olmo’s €60m release clause. The plan was for the clause to run until Monday 15th July, but if the Spanish national team were to reach the final of the Euros, it would then run for five more days.
Now we know that Spain have reached the final of Euro 2024, where they will face England, his release clause at RB Leipzig will be valid until the 20th of July. This means the agents of the player have more time to hold more meetings to find a solution for him.
I’ve been asked about reports in England linking Olmo with Chelsea, but at the moment I’m told they are not negotiating for him. Chelsea already have Cole Palmer, Noni Madueke and then Kendry Paez and Estevao Willian to come later, so it’s not something concrete for Chelsea at this stage. But he can be an option for many other clubs.
Chelsea are not short of talented left footed attackers, but they are looking for a right footed winger, and also for a striker – these are the two positions that are a priority. So what’s going on with Olmo? I’m told that there are meetings expected with Premier League clubs, while Bayern also appreciate this opportunity, but it could be really complicated to negotiate with Leipzig if they’re not fast and the date of his release clause being valid passes. It would take a lot more than €60m to sign Olmo after the 20th of July.
Man United still discussing Matthijs de Ligt and Manuel Ugarte
As I’ve previously reported, Matthijs de Ligt wants to join Manchester United and talks are ongoing between United and Bayern Munich. Now that De Ligt is free after the Netherlands’ exit from the Euros, it’s the perfect moment to accelerate talks and get the deal done.
United and Bayern still need to agree on the fee, and on the structure of the fee, so negotiations are still ongoing between the clubs, but there are no issues between De Ligt and Man United on personal terms as he wants to move to Old Trafford.
As soon as De Ligt leaves Bayern, they are very confident of closing a deal with Bayer Leverkusen for Jonathan Tah. Bayern have presented their proposal, and Tah only wants to join Bayern, despite some links with other top clubs earlier this summer.
United also remain in constant conversations with Paris Saint-Germain over Manuel Ugarte. There is a very good relationship between the two clubs, so now it’s about Man United deciding how much they want to invest on a new midfielder, and if Ugarte is worth the money. There will be an internal discussion at United before coming to a decision, similar to what happened with Joshua Zirkzee – it took them nearly a month to review this internally, think about opportunities, consider all the different aspects of the deal, and then deciding together to go for Zirkzee.
Now Ugarte is in this kind of review process internally at United, with talks already taking place with PSG, even though there has been no official bid from United yet. It’s a direct club-to-club negotiation, but I’m told it’s not a traditional kind of negotiation with official bids at the moment.
Chelsea exploring Samu Omorodion alternatives, plus more updates
Chelsea have already had a bid rejected for Samu Omorodion. But if later in the window Atletico Madrid change their mind and open the door for Omorodion to leave for the right price, then Chelsea will be there. For now, though, Chelsea will also explore other options, as we have to respect that Atletico Madrid have always been very clear – they want to keep Omorodion and he is very happy at the club.
In other news at Chelsea – Renato Veiga has completed the second part of his Chelsea medical – everything is going to plan for this one. I also think one to watch will be David Datro Fofana – I expect him to leave Chelsea this summer, and there are many clubs interested in him.
Important days ahead for Xavi Simons
We are entering into really important days for the future of Xavi Simons. Of course he scored a wonderful goal for the Dutch national team last night, but they’re now out of the Euros, so now it’s time for him to decide his future together with his agents.
Simons has already been clear with Paris Saint-Germain – he will not play for them next season. In the coming days, he will take his time to decide what club he wants to join on loan. It won’t be a permanent transfer, this is the current situation but I will let you know if it changes.
At the moment it looks like Simons has two main possibilities – one of those is Bayern, who have been very strong in recent weeks because of director Max Eberl, who is the same man who signed him on loan for RB Leipzig last season. Eberl was able to convince Simons to join Leipzig when he was director there, and he has a very good relationship with the player and his agents. Bayern are pushing, with Eberl now the director there.
Staying at Leipzig for one more season is also an option for Simons, and they are pushing as well. They have this dream of keeping Simons for longer, after also managing to extend the contract of star striker Benjamin Sesko, and of manager Marco Rose. So, Bayern and Leipzig have positioned themselves to sign Simons, but let’s see if some other clubs will try to enter the race.
Juventus like Jadon Sancho, plus updates on Teun Koopmeiners and Jean-Clair Todibo
Juventus like Jadon Sancho, but at the moment they would have to sell Federico Chiesa to be able to afford the signing of Sancho. They are waiting to find a solution to the Chiesa situation, and then we’ll see if they take the opportunity to attack the situation with Sancho.
Other Juventus targets are Teun Koopmeiners, he remains their top midfield target after a deal was completed for Khephren Thuram. In defence, they really like Jean-Clair Todibo, who was 99% a Manchester United player before everything collapsed because UEFA rules wouldn’t allow any player to move to a club under the same ownership while they’re playing in the same competition.
So, now United have left the race, there is no chance for it to happen. Meanwhile, West Ham had a bid rejected for Todibo, worth €35m, and they have since signed Max Kilman in defence, though they keep monitoring Todibo. Juventus, meanwhile, have a strong interest in Todibo, let’s see what Juve decide to do, but he’s one of the names on the list of director Cristiano Giuntoli, who knows him well as he tried to sign him when he was at Toulouse earlier in his career.
Youssouf Fofana to AC Milan, plus surprise Carney Chukwuemeka links
AC Milan have agreed terms with Monaco midfielder Youssouf Fofana, and now talks are ongoing between the clubs to reach an agreement. I’m aware there have been some reports and rumours about Arsenal, but I’ve never been aware of any talks, in all honesty.
Of course, Arsenal, like all clubs, like to monitor opportunities on the market, and Fofana looks like an opportunity. Still, they never sent any proposal, and now things are happening with Milan and I can see him being a really good fit for Serie A, so it’s a smart signing by Milan if they manage to complete it.
Chelsea midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka has also been linked as a loan target for Milan, but I’m not aware of this story either. Chelsea don’t want to loan him out, so the situation is quiet and in any case he has a £40m release clause in his contract.
Arsenal could still look for striker opportunities
There has been some suggestion that Arsenal will no longer necessarily be making a striker a top priority target after missing out on Benjamin Sesko, but I’d keep this situation open.
No decision has been made yet, it will also depend on the opportunities. Sesko was an opportunity, but then he decided to stay at Leipzig. Let’s see how Arsenal decide to move on the market in the next days and weeks.
There are other big names up front that we’ve heard a lot about this summer, but at the moment there is still nothing close or concrete for Victor Osimhen or Viktor Gyokeres. One striker who could be on the move, however, is Alvaro Morata, who is expected to decide soon whether he wants to stay at Atletico Madrid or try a new chapter with AC Milan.
Could Liverpool still be one to watch for Leny Yoro?
I’m sure Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain are still attentive to the situation of Leny Yoro, but at the moment the only club to go to Lille with an official bid is Manchester United. So far, United have been very aggressive on this deal, while Liverpool and PSG are there but have still not made a bid – obviously if Yoro decides he is prepared not to go to Real Madrid, then all the possibilities will be open.
This Omorodion that Chelsea want to sign is a potential world class striker. I don’t know why my own Arteta doesn’t go for quality signings. He only goes for everything that uses left foot. The bedrock of Arsenal are still players he either inherited, like Saka, Martinelli, Saliba or those he refused there entrant like Partey.
Even players like Nketiah, Nelson and Smith Rowe are all quality players but Arteta’s love for excessive left footers on the pitch is dangerously affecting there games. We can see how poor we performed in Champions league against Porto and half baked Bayern.
Recent purchases of Lokonga, Vieira, Kiwior, and even Trossard, Jorginho and Gabriel Jesus are not the type of players Arsenal need to conquer high level encounters.