Gossip: Arsenal blow over £50m target, Grealish confusion
Ben White to Arsenal isn’t the done deal it has been claimed to be, while Villa are telling targets that Grealish is staying…
CONFUSION OVER GREALISH DEAL
We’ve reached the point in the window where contradiction is rife and we’re all left to craw our own conclusions…
It’s already time to read between the lines over Jack Grealish. The Athletic claims Aston Villa are confident of keeping their talisman this summer, and potential Villa targets are being told the England star will be sticking around, despite growing interest from Manchester City.
One of those targets is Emile Smith Rowe and it is claimed Villa will go back to Arsenal with a second offer after their opening bid of £25million was laughed off by the Gunners.
Back to Grealish. The Sun, however, reports that his agents believe they have been given the green light by Villa to negotiate his next move, with City set to pile in with a £100million bid after the Euros.
Another line from Villa Park: the Express and Star says the Villans have no interest in anything Liverpool may have to offer to lure John McGinn away this summer.
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WHITE REPORTS ‘SIMPLY NOT TRUE’
Like Grealish, the situation around Ben White may not be as clear as it was being made out…
Widespread reports on Thursday claimed that Arsenal had made a £50million offer for the England defender which Brighton had accepted.
‘Simply not true’, says The Argus which has quoted a well-placed source.
It seems Brighton are happy to bide their time over White in the expectation that Arsenal won’t be the only bidders at the table.
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CLUBS ACROSS EUROPE EYE SALIBA
Should Arsenal sign White, or any other centre-back, then William Saliba will again be surplus to requirements.
Handily for the French defender, he has options. Plenty of them.
Footmercato reckons Nice will have him back for another loan spell, while Newcastle and Southampton have joined a queue that includes Rennes, Marseille, Lille, Bayer Leverkusen and two unnamed clubs in Italy.
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TOON KEEN ON LEMINA DEAL
Newcastle and Saints could close a deal with each other that will see Mario Lemina make the trek north…
Lemina was on loan at Fulham last season when the Chronicle claim he was watched by the Magpies towards the end of the campaign.
The Gabon international remains out of the picture at St Mary’s but Newcastle are willing to give him another crack at the Premier League.
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HAMMERS WAIT OVER LINGARD AND MILENKOVIC
West Ham are playing a waiting game with two of their top targets this summer.
Their move for Jesse Lingard could hinge on Manchester United’s pursuit of Jadon Sancho. The Evening Standard reckons Lingard’s first preference would be to remain at Old Trafford but should United finally land Sancho, then Lingard will take the hint and explore a permanent move elsewhere.
The Hammers are also keen on Fiorentina centre-back Nikola Milenkovic. But they are a long way from agreeing a deal…
Calciomercato claims West Ham have tabled a bid worth £17million but Fiorentina have told them to try harder. A lot harder.
Milenkovic has been linked with United and Liverpool in recent windows but he is now entering the final year of his contract. And Fiorentina are well aware that 10 per cent of whatever they make on the 23-year-old will go straight to Partizan Belgrade.
