Latest Premier League News and Transfer Rumours
The Premier League 2024/25 season might have kicked off but transfer activity is still in full swing. Here is our EPL transfers and news round-up from today’s papers.
EPL Transfers
Manchester City have re-signed their former captain İlkay Gündoğan one year after he left for Barcelona. The German midfielder, who recently called time on his international football career following a failure to capture the European title on home soil chose to leave Barcelona to help the club with their financial troubles. City’s Director of Football Txiki Begiristain said about Gündoğan’s second coming: “Ilkay is one of the finest professionals I have ever worked with. To be able to bring him back here is fantastic news for everyone. He will help us in our main objective, which is to win trophies, but he will also be an inspiration to so many.” (Man City official website),
City boss Pep Guardiola has also approached Real Madrid’s Rodrygo Goes to try and convince him to sign for the Premier League champions but the Brazilian wants to remain at the Santiago Bernabeu (El Desmarque). Rodrygo is now seen as a distant fourth wheel in Real Madrid’s super attacking quartet which includes Vinicius Jr, Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappé. Many expect him to leave the LaLiga giants soon with the Premier League being the touted destination. Guardiola must have approached the winger with this in mind and to try to get ahead of other clubs who would surely be eyeing a move for the winger.
Chelsea have officially rid themselves of Romelu Lukaku, having struck a deal with Napoli to transfer the player for a €30 million fixed fee plus add-ons up to €15 million for a €45 million potential package. Lukaku will reportedly sign a three-year contract at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona and will reunite with Antonio Conte, the coach who has shown a great understanding of his playing style and has used him best in his career. This frees up space for Victor Osimhen’s move to Chelsea, which is still being discussed by both clubs (Fabrizio Romano).
Brighton and Hove Albion have loaned out young defender Valentín Barco to Sevilla for the 224/25 season in a surprising turn of events. The Seagulls signed the 20-year-old in January 2024 and he quickly settled into the team until new manager Fabian Hürzeler came in with his unique ideas. Hürzeler said, “Valentin made good progress with us last season and this is a great opportunity for him to go and get experience and minutes with one of the top clubs in Spain in a very competitive environment. We wish him well and I look forward to seeing how he progresses during the season.” (Brighton official website).
The Seagulls are also about to break their transfer record for Matt O’Riley of Glasgow Celtic by paying £30 million for the London-born Denmark international. This will also be Celtic’s record sale if the deal goes through, as it is reported to be in its advanced stages and set to be completed in the coming days (Fabrizio Romano).
Juventus have opened talks with Manchester United over Jadon Sancho. The Englishman and Erik ten Hag have moved past their issues and are looking to work together to help Manchester United this season but it is understood that the club’s new minority owners, INEOS, are willing to listen to offers for the former Manchester City youngster. Juventus want to get rid of Federico Chiesa and Sancho is their perfect replacement for the Italian. Juventus do not have the cash to secure Sancho’s permanent signing before the transfer window closes on Friday and could propose a loan with an obligation to buy. However, United want a permanent deal or at least a loan with an obligation to buy next summer to extract full value for the winger. They also want Juventus to pick up his wages, which reportedly are close to £300,000-a-week (Mirror).