Transfer news LIVE! Arsenal get £77m boost; Man Utd launch second Mbeumo bid – London Evening Standard

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Transfer news LIVE!
Arsenal are continuing their pursuit of a striker, but could opt to move on from Benjamin Sesko as they grow frustrated over his wage demands. Viktor Gyokeres is still pushing to make the move the north London. The Gunners are said to have made an approach for PSG star Bradley Barcola, while Rodrygo has also been linked and Leicester midfielder Bilal El Khannouss is on the radar too.
Chelsea are closing in on the signing of Jamie Gittens, while Joao Pedro, Mohammed Kudus and Malick Fofana are on the shortlist too. The Blues are weighing up whether to go back in for Mike Maignan and have interest in Ousmane Diomande and Murillo as they bid to boost their defence. A shock swap deal with Manchester United could be on the cards involving Christopher Nkunku and Alejandro Garnacho. United, meanwhile, have submitted an improved bid of more than £60m for Bryan Mbeumo and have received encouragement in their pursuit of Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa.
Liverpool have finally announced Florian Wirtz, have booked a medical for Milos Kerkez and are now plotting a move for Marc Guehi. Tottenham are targeting Eberechi Eze as a major signing to kickstart the Thomas Frank era. Follow the latest transfer news, rumours and gossip live below!
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Arsenal will this week sign goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga from Chelsea.
BBC Sport report that the Gunners will trigger Kepa’s £5m release clause, who will compete with compatriot David Raya for the starting spot.
Kepa remains the world’s most expensive goalkeeper since joining Chelsea in 2018 for £72m. He spent last season on loan at Bournemouth.
Seven-time French champions Lyon have been relegated to Ligue 2 due to ongoing financial difficulties.
French football’s financial watchdog (DNCG) confirmed the decision on Tuesday following an audit of the club, who failed to convince authorities that their economic woes were resolved.
Lyon were hit with a provisional relegation back in November after racking up massive debts, and although they have since sold a number of first-team players, DNCG upheld the relegation following meetings on Tuesday.
Read more here!
Manchester United are said to have little interest in pursuing a move for Christopher Nkunku.
Recent reports have suggested that United and Chelsea could consider a swap deal involving Nkunku and Alejandro Garnacho.
However, the Manchester Evening News report that United have no desire to bring Nkunku to the club and are pursuing other targets instead.
Chelsea, though, are said to remain keen on Garnacho.
Manchester United have reportedly held talks with the representatives of Club Brugge midfielder Ardon Jashari.
However, reports claim the Red Devils will have to act fast to get a deal wrapped up.
This is because AC Milan have apparently taken the more direct approach by tabling a €30million (£25.6million) bid.
Of course, the Serie A giants have recently received a nice cash injection after selling midfielder Tijjani Reijnders to Manchester City.
Jurgen Klopp has revealed just how close Liverpool were to not signing Alisson Becker.
The Brazilian arrived on Merseyside in the summer of 2018 from Italian club AS Roma for a reported £65m transfer fee. He has since established himself as one of the best goalkeepers in the world whilst playing a huge role in the Reds’ success.
Liverpool’s need for an upgrade in between the sticks became apparent in the Champions League final loss to Real Madrid that season as Loris Karius made two costly errors which ultimately signalled the end of his career with the club.
However, the Reds only received the green light to sign Alisson after a deal for then-Lyon attacking midfielder Nabil Fekir collapsed.
To this day it is still unclear as to why Liverpool pulled out of a reported £52m deal for Fekir, but Klopp has revealed the finances involved means the club were only able to afford one.
Read more here!
The big news tonight is that Lyon have been relegated to Ligue 2 due to financial issues.
The club can still appeal this decision. In fact, they are expected to do so.
One can only imagine if that appeal is rejected they will have to offload even more players.
It just so happens that Malick Fofana has been linked to both Chelsea and Liverpool.
Interesting news coming out of Spain today regarding Rodrygo’s future at Real Madrid.
According to Cadena SER, the Brazilian is likely to be on his way out of the Santiago Bernabeu this summer and Arsenal are one of the sides interested in him.
It is understood that Real Madrid want €90m (£77m) to let the 24-year-old depart as they plan to use that money to rebuild their midfield for manager Xabi Alonso.
Whilst Los Blancos have not yet offered the Rodrygo out, the report states they will not stand in his way should he wish to leave and will even help make a deal with Arsenal happen.
Arsenal have reportedly held exploratory talks with West Ham United over the potential signing of Mohammed Kudus.
The Gunners continue to be linked with reinforcements ahead of the new season and the Ghana international appears to be of huge interest to Mikel Arteta.
Reports claim Arsenal have held talks with the Hammers.
Kudus has a €100million (£85m) release clause for Premier League clubs inserted into his contract, which is active for the first 10 days of July.
QPR have announced manager Marti Cifuentes has left the club by mutual consent following a period of garden leave.
The Spanish coach, who joined Rangers in 2023, guided them to Sky Bet Championship survival last season despite a torrid start to the campaign with his injury-stricken side.
The news comes after an eight-week spell of garden leave with Cifuentes drawing interest from other clubs.
Cifuentes wrote in a statement on the club’s X feed: “Today I say goodbye to Queens Park Rangers with a heart full of gratitude.
“I am proud to have been a part of this club and to have contributed, alongside a fantastic team of players and coaching staff, to ensuring the club’s continued presence in the Championship over the last few seasons.
“We had some amazing nights under the lights of Loftus Road – remembering Stan Bowles being one that sticks with me.”
Incoming Chelsea winger Estevao Willian has said he is finding it difficult to see out his career with Palmeiras.
Estevao is preparing to join the club this summer after a transfer was sealed last June for an initial fee of around £29million that could rise to as much as £55m with future add-ons.
The Brazilian will officially join the Blues on July 1, 2025. But before that he has at least one more Club World Cup fixture to fulfil for Palmeiras.
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