A round-up of some of the biggest new Premier League transfer rumours, including stories from Manchester United, Chelsea, Everton and more.
It’s time, once again, for 3 Added Minutes’ daily round-up of the juiciest and often strangest new Premier League transfer rumours – and we’ll kick things off today with a tale concerning Manchester United and Chelsea and which would prove to be a pretty seismic story if it’s true.
Caught Offside report on a claim by noted Chelsea reporter Si Phillips, who reckons that Manchester United are among the clubs with “fairly serious interest” in striker Nicolas Jackson, whose future at Stamford Bridge is in serious doubt. The Senegalese striker, who has bagged 30 goals in two seasons with Chelsea, could be on his way out due to the expected signing of Liam Delap and the potential purchase of another striker, perhaps Hugo Ekitike of Eintracht Frankfurt.
Phillips apparently stresses that Chelsea are “not actively seeking to force Jackson out” and the player himself isn’t pushing for a move, but he “could be available for the right price.” The size of said price isn’t stated, but Aston Villa, Atlético Madrid and Inter Milan are all said to be keeping tabs, too.
The 3AM Verdict: Jackson has had astrange couple of years at Chelsea – unplayable on his day and pretty productive overall, his habit of going missing for long spells means that quite a few fans would be content to see him go. Given that United were also keen on Delap, a striker with a similar playing profile, this actually isn’t quite as implausible as it may sound at first blush. The price tag will be key, however, and without that we can’t offer a full assessment.
Everton and Brighton eye ambitious bid for new Germany international
23-year-old forward Nick Woltemade has had a quite a year. Fresh from bagging 17 goals in 33 games in his first season at VfB Stuttgart, Woltemade is set to make his debut for Germany this week – and now he could be off to Everton!
Perhaps that last point will sound a bit more exciting when he takes a look at the shiny new stadium and gets the sales pitch from the owners, but Sport Witness allege that the Toffees are indeed interested a player who can operate as a central striker or a number ten and who could be available, albeit for “at least” €40m (£33.6m).
Brighton are interested, too, but with his international bow in prospect (indeed, it may have happened against Portugal by the time you read this), the Premier League sides are concerned about being “swamped” by more starry sides like Bayern Munich and Atlético, who are also keeping tabs. The player is apparently in “no rush” to make any decisions with the Under-21 European Championships also on the horizon.
The 3AM Verdict: If Woltemade has a good summer – and form suggests he might well do – then his price tag will go up and the big boys will get more interested. We suspect this will be a slow burner if he does move over the coming months, and Everton and Brighton will do very well indeed to get a deal done. Don’t hold your breath, Toffees or Seagulls. Sorry.
West Ham to battle AC Milan over midfielder
Apparently, West Ham have “been in touch” with Belgian outfit Club Brugge over a potential deal for Raphael Onyedika, a 24-year-old midfielder with 16 Nigeria caps to his name.
It’s not clear how much Onyedika, who has two years left on his contract in the Benelux, might cost, but it sounds as though Serie A side Milan are interested in bagging him as a replacement for Tijjani Reijnders, who is on his way to Manchester City. The player is “keen” on a move, perhaps unsurprisingly, but it isn’t clear whether he’d prefer to play in Italy or England.
The 3AM Verdict: The Premier League has plenty of clout, and West Ham may well be able to offer higher wages, but let’s see if they can outgun AC Milan in a straight shootout for a player. Not that Milan are reported to have actually made a bid, yet – perhaps the Hammers won’t have as much competition as many be feared.
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