Football transfer rumours: Ander Herrera back to Manchester United?
Leo Messi’s dreams of lining up in the same Paris Saint-Germain team as Ander Herrera, Mauro Icardi and Idrissa Gueye could be dashed, following reports from Spain that the trio are among up to 10 players the French side are hoping to offload in a bid to trim their ludicrously large wage bill after their low-key signing of the Argentinian free agent.
Quite who they hope will buy them is anyone’s guess, given the manner in which they’ve completely distorted the European market by offering absurdly bloated salaries – even by the standards of football – that few if any European clubs will be able to match.
For what it’s worth, the striker Icardi has recently been linked with a move to Roma as a potential replacement for Internazionale-bound Edin Dzeko, while a possible return to Manchester United for the popular Herrera doesn’t seem beyond the realms of possibility. Sensible chap that he is, Gueye has already turned up his nose at the prospect of a loan move to Newcastle.
Tammy Abraham is another striker being linked with Roma, a state of affairs that hasn’t precluded Thomas Tuchel from including the 23-yearold in Chelsea’s squad for Wednesday night’s Uefa Super Cup ding-dong with Villarreal. The player himself is reported to be eager to stay in the Premier League and has already agreed personal terms with Arsenal. Speaking before the match at Belfast’s Windsor Park, Tuchel refused to give any clues on what the short-term future holds for Abraham but did confirm he understood the player’s dissatisfaction with life at Stamford Bridge.
“He has reason not to be happy after the lack of game time last season but it’s maybe also my fault for not trusting him as much as other players,” said the German. “He wants more minutes so the decision will be does he want to fight his way back into the team here or does he want to change to be a regular starter elsewhere?
“That’s completely up to him and I understand, it’s quite a normal situ
ation. But right now he’s with us and available for the team tomorrow.”
With Jonny Evans and Wesley Fofana sidelined indefinitely, Leicester are in the market for a central defender and have identified Southampton’s Jannik Vestergaard as just the man to fill the gaping hole in their back four. Valued at between £15m and £20m with only two years left on his current deal, the 29-year-old Dane has also been getting the glad eye from West Ham boss David Moyes and is believed to be keen on a move away from the south coast.
Leicester are also believed to be interested in Bologna’s Takehiro Tomiyasu but will have to outbid Tottenham if they are to secure the Japanese 22-year-old’s scrawl.
And finally, the Royal Antwerp right-back Aurélio Buta is wanted by Celtic, whose hopes of luring him to Glasgow have been dealt what can only be described as “a blow” by reported interest from Everton. The Angola-born former Portugal youth international is reported to be available for less than £5m and is apparently viewed by Everton scouts as an upgrade on Jonjoe Kenny, who is currently first in line to Seamus Coleman’s right-back throne.