The summer transfer window is approaching, and there’s plenty of gossip swirling about who’s moving where. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings and goings and, of course, done deals!
TOP STORY: Ten Hag to sanction Ronaldo’s exit from Man United
Ajax manager Erik ten Hag is widely tipped to take over as the next Manchester United manager, and now it transpires that Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t form part of his plans, reports the Daily Star.
Sources have told ESPN that the Dutch manager has agreed a deal in principle to become the next boss at Old Trafford, and one of his first decisions has been to sanction the departure of United fan favourite and icon Ronaldo, who Ten Hag doesn’t feel fits into his playing structure.
The 37-year-old Portugal star returned to United last summer after making a stunning return from Juventus in a €15 million deal. And yet while he has scored 18 goals on his comeback, he has struggled to lead the side back into trophy contention.
In fact, Ronaldo has scored just four goals in his past 13 games and is said to be increasingly disillusioned with life back in Manchester, though he has the option to extend his stay by one year. However, that decision could be taken out of his hands as Ten Hag plots a makeover in his first summer in the hotseat.
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13.09 BST: Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann has been speaking about Robert Lewandowski’s future.
Lewandowski, 33, has 47 goals in 41 games this season but his contract expires in 2023 and there have been suggestions that he is keen to move on for a new challenge.
“I never got the impression that he wants to leave,” he said. “In our conversations, he always seems to me as if he would like to stay. I would of course like to have him in my team and hopefully the near future will tell.”
12.44 BST: The Manchester United hierarchy were not rushed into agreeing a deal with Erik ten Hag to become the club’s next manager by reported interest from RB Leipzig, sources told ESPN’s Rob Dawson, despite some within Old Trafford believing links with the German side were designed as a negotiating tactic.
Ten Hag is set to be appointed as the new permanent boss with an announcement due before the end of the season and possibly even later this month. United’s pursuit of the new manager has been led by football director John Murtough and technical director Darren Fletcher, who have reported to chief executive Richard Arnold, with joint-chairman Joel Glazer having the final decision on the appointment.
The framework of an agreement with the Dutchman was agreed amid reports RB Leipzig could look to scupper the deal. But sources close to Leipzig insist they were baffled by the links while stressing their support for boss Domenico Tedesco.
12.06 BST: Real Madrid are optimistic about signing Kylian Mbappe this summer, sources told ESPN’s Alex Kirkland and Rodri Faez, although the club are aware that Paris Saint-Germain are trying to convince their star forward to extend his contract.
Mbappe has long been Madrid’s primary transfer target and after they failed with a late bid to sign him from PSG last August, the LaLiga giants have been favourites to land him on a free transfer this year when his deal expires in June. The France international has been coming under ever-increasing pressure from PSG to renew, though, and admitted earlier this month that he had “new elements” to consider, insisting that he was yet to take a decision on his future.
Sources told ESPN that despite those comments, Real Madrid remain cautiously optimistic that their long-term pursuit of Mbappe — which began when he went on trial at the club in 2012, meeting boyhood idols Zinedine Zidane and Cristiano Ronaldo, and again when he left Monaco for PSG in 2017 — will finally end with his signing this…
Read More: Cristiano Ronaldo to leave Man United after Erik ten Hag’s appointment