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Rounding up the latest Premier League transfer rumours - with news from Newcastle, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Spurs.
Every morning, 3 Added Minutes pores over the gossip columns to bring you a round-up of the biggest (and wildest) new Premier League transfer rumours which you might have missed from the past 24 hours – and today, we start with a story involving Newcastle and Aston Villa.
According to Sports Boom, the Magpies are considering finding a replacement for struggling striker Nick Woltemade, and are “eyeing” Ollie Watkins as a potential candidate for the job.
Woltemade is said to be the subject of interest from unnamed clubs in his homeland, which would free up the funds to sign the 30-year-old Aston Villa forward in his stead. Villa, for their part, are said to be looking for their striker of the future, hinting that they could be open to a deal – although there’s no suggestion that a decision has been made, nor an asking price set.
As it stands, Newcastle’s supposed interest hasn’t moved past “internal talks,” according to the article, but they are “monitoring” Watkins while they debate their options ahead of the summer.
The 3AM Verdict: This feels rather speculative to us, and there’s nothing which suggests that any movement has actually taken place when it comes to either Woltemade or Watkins’ futures. We’re prepared to be proven wrong, but we’re raising a sceptical eyebrow at this report for now.
Liverpool show ‘interest’ in £113m Bayern Munich deal
Let’s move on to a bank-breaking rumour from Sport Witness now – they reckon that Liverpool are showing “potential interest” in a deal for Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise which could be worth “around €130m (£113m).”
Basing their story partly on article by German tabloid Bild, they reckon that Olise is a “name to keep an eye on” should the Reds qualify for the Champions League. The former Crystal Palace man is thriving in Bavaria, scoring 10 goals and providing 16 assists in his 23 Bundesliga games to date, but Bayern could still sell if the fee was high enough.
That’s because they would be keen to use the funds to sign RB Leipzig rising star Yan Diomande, himself an alleged Liverpool target. Olise doesn’t seem to be rushing to leave for his part, and is said to be “comfortable” at Bayern, but the German giants aree nevertheless alleged to be “concerned” by Liverpool’s interest.
The 3AM Verdict: Mutterings about Olise’s future are growing stronger, and we suspect that this is a move that Liverpool will explore if Mohamed Salah leaves this summer (which we believe to be very likely). As it stands, however, it’s too early for there to be any confidence that a deal might take place. Bayern have a lot of leverage.
Spurs ‘map out’ strategy for signing new goalkeeper
Let’s finish with a story for the Tottenham Hotspur fans reading which comes courtesy of Caught Offside, who allege that the club are “beginning to map out” a plan to move on from goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario – with a rising French star identified as a possible replacement.
Other names have already cropped up in the gossip columns but this is the first time we’re seeing Lens stopper Robin Risser come into the conversation. Spurs are said to be “monitoring his progress closely” as the 21-year-old enters the frame following an impressive season in Ligue 1.
Risser, the current France Under-21 goalkeeper, is under contract until 2030 but Lens only have a “modest valuation” on him, said to be around €10m (£8.7m), which is certainly affordable enough for Spurs. There’s no suggestion that any kind of talks have taken place, nor that other teams are watching him.
The 3AM Verdict: This is a new rumour for us, so we’re certainly going to wait for corroboration before we buy it, but Risser has undeniably been impressive – we do wonder if Spurs would be more likely to sign him as a back-up at first, however, rather than as a starter. Unless they get relegated, of course…
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