Gossip: Arsenal line up £45m move for former Liverpool target

Ian Watson

ARSENAL EYE FORMER LIVERPOOL MIDFIELD TARGET
Arsenal have other things on their mind this Friday morning but when Mikel Arteta gets back to work, one of the jobs on his to-do list is apparently to sign Thomas Partey.

The Telegraph reckons the Atletico Madrid midfielder is high among Arteta’s summer targets and his £45million release clause makes the 26-year-old an attractive proposition ahead of what is sure to be a weird summer.

Mundo Deportivo reckons Partey could have been playing for Liverpool on Wednesday night rather than knocking them out of the Champions League. The story goes that the Reds had a deal in place to sign the Ghanian in the summer of 2018 but then Loris Karius dropped a couple of bollocks in the Champions League final against Real Madrid and forced Jurgen Klopp to spend the money on a new keeper instead.

 

JUVE JOIN NORTH LONDON RIVALS IN WILLIAN RACE
Chelsea too have more pressing matters to attend to, but the matter of Willian’s future will need addressing sooner rather than later.

The winger is out of contract in the summer and Frank Lampard wants the club to get the Brazilian tied down.

But Chelsea’s policy of offering only one-year deals to veterans has led to a rift between Lampard and the club’s director Marina Granovskaia, according to The Sun.

No club likes a freebie more than Juventus and the Old Lady is sniffing around Willian, says Tuttosport. But the 30-year-old is said to prefer not to leave London, which puts Arsenal and Tottenham firmly in the frame.

 

 

EVERTON HAVE ITALIAN COMPETITION FOR DUO
Juve and Arsenal are also battling over Gabriel.

The Lille defender has been chased by Everton for some time but the centre-back’s performances have attracted attention from across the continent, with Sport Mediaset claiming that Juve are now among the frontrunners for his signature.

Everton themselves could have business in Italy. Calciomercato says the Toffees are chasing Torino striker Andrea Belotti – but they aren’t alone. Both Milan clubs, Roma and Napoli are also said to be hot on the 26-year-old centre-forward.

 

AND THE REST
Paulo Dybala is set to sign a new contract at Juventus… Vitesse Arnhem are keen on Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher…
LTA performance director Simon Timson is to join Manchester City in a similar capacity… Hakim Ziyech wants to persuade Chelsea to sign Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana.
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