Chelsea & Arsenal consider shock move for England star as Liverpool pursue £88m ‘Salah successor’placeholder image
Chelsea & Arsenal consider shock move for England star as Liverpool pursue £88m ‘Salah successor’ | Getty Images
The lowdown on the latest Premier League transfer rumours - with news from Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United and more.
With the January transfer window inching closer, the rumour mill is really starting to warm up – and we’re here with our regular round-up of the biggest new Premier League transfer rumours to help you stay up-to-date with all the latest stories.
Let’s start today’s digest with a story from Caught Offside, which claims that both Arsenal and Chelsea are “keeping tabs” on none other than Marcus Rashford ahead of a potential surprise move for the England man when his loan spell at Barcelona comes to an end next summer.
Barcelona want to keep Rashford and the Manchester United man wants to stay in Catalonia, but it’s suggested that the Spanish side’s financial issues mean that it’s far from guaranteed that they activate his €30m (£26m) purchase option – and that could leave an opening for other teams.
As well as Arsenal and Chelsea, it’s also mentioned that Tottenham Hotspur have “expressed an interest” and that PSG have made Rashford “one of their top offensive targets” – and would be prepared to pay up to €50m (£43.5m) to secure his services.
The 3AM Verdict: There’s no real detail on any of the three Premier League teams’ plans here, which makes us gently sceptical about the likelihood that any of them will make a move, but it’s not impossible that Barcelona find themselves in a position where they can’t get a deal over the line – and PSG have been interested for a while. There may be a few twists and turns in Rashford’s story yet.
Liverpool interest in potential ‘Salah successor’
Over to a story from TeamTalk now, who allege that Liverpool’s scouts are pushing the idea of signing RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomande – and that they see him as a potential “Salah successor” with the Egyptian club legend struggling to find his best form this season.
Diomande only moved from Leganes this summer but has made an impressive start to his Bundesliga career, scoring three goals in 12 league games at the age of only 19. Liverpool, apparently enthused by the youngster’s work in Germany are “actively looking into a potential deal.”
One problem the Reds may face is that it seems as though half of Europe’s top teams have a similar idea. Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle and Spurs are all credited with some degree of interest, along with a lot of the other usual suspects – but Liverpool are apparently “the most prominent” of the teenager’s suitors as it stands.
The 3AM Verdict: This report corroborates aGiveMeSport story from Thursday which suggested that Liverpool were keen on Diomande, but that Leipzig had slapped a massive €100m (£88m) price tag on him – a bit rich, and more of a warning not to bother than a serious valuation, we’d imagine. We don’t doubt that a few teams, including Liverpool, are keen, but we can’t see him moving in January to say the least.
Aston Villa consider letting star striker leave for cut-price fee
Let’s finish things off with a report from Football Insider which claims that Aston Villa could be ready to let striker Ollie Watkins leave in January – for a mere £35m, less than the offer they rejected from Arsenal nearly a year ago.
Villa are supposedly interested in striking a deal for either Chelsea striker Liam Delap or their former forward Nicolas Jackson, despite the two players only recently having moved themselves. If they can line up a deal for a younger forward, it’s claimed, then Watkins will be free to leave after a difficult start to the 2025/26 season.
Samu Aghehowa is another striker that’s discussed as a possible transfer target, but there’s no suggestion that a bid has been made for any of the players they are alleged to be interested in – or that any sides have made a move for Watkins. The 29-year-old’s opinion on the matter are not mentioned.
The 3AM Verdict: While Watkins’ price probably has dropped after an unproductive spell, it’s hard to imagine Villa letting him leave so cheaply halfway through a season in which they are once again challenging for a top four spot – even if they did sign another striker (and their PSR headroom is limited this season) then we doubt they’d sell Watkins. We’re very sceptical about this one, quite frankly.
Continue Reading