One Liverpool player is looking to sign for La Liga giants Barcelona, while ex-Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel is prepared to snub Tottenham…
LIVERPOOL ATTACKER EYES BARCELONA SWITCH
Reds attacker Roberto Firmino will walk away from the Premier League club when his contract expires in the summer.
His agent – Roger Wittmann – has claimed that the forward does not currently have a transfer preference, Yet OneFootball are reporting that he has ‘offered himself to Barcelona’.
They reckon Firmino has indicated that he will “fight until the last moment” for Liverpool. But he is ‘looking for new teams’ and he appears to prefer a move to Spanish giants Barcelona.
Xavi’s side would no doubt welcome this signing, especially with it being a free transfer. They are in the market for a backup to Robert Lewandowski and a ‘low-cost’ option would be ideal.
Barcelona are a financial mess at the moment so they are being forced to ‘keep a close eye on players reaching the end of their contracts, as they did with Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen’.
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ‘CONDITION’ SET BY EX-CHELSEA BOSS
Antonio Conte is out of contract at the end of this season and considering Tottenham’s current trajectory, it comes as no surprise that his departure in the summer is ‘inevitable’.
Spurs are naturally being linked with potential replacements for Conte, but Football Insider are reporting that former Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel ‘won’t consider’ joining the North London club ‘unless one key condition is met’.
Tuchel is said to be insisting that Spurs need to finish in the top four to ‘lure him back to London’ this summer.
Earlier this week, The Athletic reported that Daniel Levy has tasked managing director Fabio Paratici ‘with the job of producing a list of suitable possibilities for the role’ for when Conte moves on.
Former Barcelona and Spain boss Luis Enrique is ‘likely to top’ this list, but Paratici is also considering Eintracht Frankfurt’s Oliver Glasner, Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim and Napoli’s Luciano Spalletti.
While Tuchel is not fully sold on the Tottenham job, The Times are reporting that he is ‘learning Spanish’ with the view to him eventually replacing Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid.
READ MORE: Spurs next manager… Pochettino drops out as candidates to replace Conte are named and ranked
ERIK TEN HAG ‘INTENT’ ON SIGNING HARRY KANE
And we finish with an update on Manchester United’s search for a new striker.
Kane is out of contract in 2024 and he has a major decision to make heading into this summer’s transfer window. Spurs will demand around £100m for the Englishman if he decides against committing his future to the London club.
Now Manchester Evening News are reporting that Kane has been ‘earmarked by Erik ten Hag as Manchester United’s prime striker target’.
The Dutchman is said to be ‘intent’ on signing Kane as the Red Devils look to identify their long-term replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo.
Man Utd are ‘realistically’ the only Premier League club Kane can sign for this summer ‘ as they are likely to have qualified for the Champions League and their priority is to sign a high-quality centre forward’.
Bayern Munich are ‘another option’ for Kane, but it is expected that he will opt to remain in the Premier League so he can eventually break Alan Shearer’s goalscoring record.
