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A round-up of the latest Premier League transfer rumours - with news from Manchester United, Liverpool, Newcastle and Spurs.
Another busy day of rumour and gossip has passed, and that means that it’s time for our regular morning round-up of some of the biggest (and wildest) Premier League transfer stories of the day – starting with a report involving all of Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.
According to Sport Witness (via Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport), those are the three sides who are “in the mix” to sign AS Roma defender Evan Ndicka this summer, who “could be on his way out” of Rome this summer.
Apparently “enquiries have been pouring in,” with United, Liverpool and Spurs all among the sides asking after the 26-year-old Ivory Coast international. Bayern Munich and Besiktas have also been touch, it seems, with Roma under pressure to sell due to financial fair play constraints.
It’s suggested that a transfer fee “exceeding €40m” – just under £35m – would be enough to secure his signature, with Roma unlikely to have much of a choice in the matter. It’s not made clear which clubs are most likely to launch a formal bid, or what Ndicka’s own preferences may be.
The 3AM Verdict: Roma’s financial problems mean that a big sale is likely this summer, and Ndicka has been linked with Premier League sides on a number of occasions, so it’s not difficult to imagine that there would be continued interest from teams like United and Liverpool. With a seemingly reasonable price tag, we wouldn’t be at all shocked to see Ndicka in England next season, although we wouldn’t care to place a bet on which club he might end up at.
Newcastle ‘plotting’ move for Ligue 1 star
Over to Football Insider now, who allege that Newcastle are “plotting a move” for 23-year-old French forward Matthis Abline this summer, a player they supposedly tried to sign towards the end of last summer as well.
Newcastle have “continued to keep tabs” on Abline since then, and have apparently been sufficiently impressed by his work with Nantes to consider a fresh bid. The former France Under-21 international has scored seven times in 27 matches so far this season for a team who are in serious danger of relegation.
Abline “could be sold for the right price,” apparently, although what that price may be remains unclear. With relegation a very real possibility and just two years left on his contract, however, we suspect that he could end up being very cheap if Newcastle do want to make a move.
The 3AM Verdict: A resurrection of an old story, but no less plausible for that. Abline will surely be on the move soon, especially if Nantes are relegated, but we would expect competition from continental sides should that come about. Newcastle may well be in the mix, but they won’t be the only team monitoring proceedings over the coming months.
Real Madrid could make shock move for Liverpool star
Let’s circle right back to Liverpool for today’s final story, which comes courtesy of TeamTalk – they reckon that striker Hugo Ekitiké has “surged onto the radar” of Real Madrid, who are said to be “tracking” the Frenchman’s development less than a year after he moved to Anfield.
Apparently the 23-year-old has “climbed sharply” on Real’s shortlist in recent weeks, although it may not be a move which happens any time soon. The Spanish giants are “not actively planning” a bid, but rather considering him as a long-term target alongside Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.
That makes a 2027 deal rather more likely, according to this report, with Real continuing to keep an eye on Ekitiké until they decide to move for a new centre-forward. There’s no word on Liverpool’s stance about Ekitiké’s future, not that it sounds like they’ll be asked to make a decision imminently.
The 3AM Verdict: An interesting one for the long term, perhaps, but it doesn’t sound like any questions will be asked this summer. Ekitiké has had a very decent debut season with Liverpool, but we can’t see Real being in the market for a new striker just yet.A new midfielder and centre-back is their immediate priority for the summer.
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