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Rumour Reel: Conte’s Chelsea relentlessly chasing former frontman Lukaku

| 03.08.2016
SPORTSBOOK ODDS

Lee Gormley | August 3, 2016

Coral’s rumour reel

The new season is swiftly approaching, with the annual curtain raiser the Community Shield set to take place this coming Sunday, meaning Premier League clubs will be hoping to enjoy a flurry of transfer activity before the anticipated kick-off.

Chelsea pushing for Lukaku return

Chelsea offloaded former forward Romelu Lukaku to current club Everton in 2014 for £28m, but the Blues are now relentlessly tracking the Belgium international frontman once again, as they look to secure his high-profile return this summer.

Everton v AFC Bournemouth - Barclays Premier League - Goodison Park

Such is Antonio Conte’s desire to oversee the Toffees striker’s comeback to Stamford Bridge, the Italian coach is reportedly willing to fork out a mammoth £65m as well as including Loic Remy in the deal.

Everton are currently holding out for £75m in this transfer window for the 23-year-old, who has three years left on his current contract at Goodison Park, though Remy was a target for their director of football Steve Walsh in January while at Leicester City.

It’s believed Lukaku himself is growing increasingly frustrated over the situation surrounding his future and is looking to push through such a switch, while Chelsea forward Remy may welcome a move in the opposite direction to gain regular action.

Moyes makes Gray Sunderland target

Former Everton and Manchester United boss David Moyes is seeking his maiden acquisition at Sunderland, after replacing newly appointed England manager Sam Allardyce at the Stadium of Light, and the Scot has outlined Burnley striker Andre Gray as a target.

Rotherham v Sunderland - Pre-Season Friendly - AESSEAL New York Stadium

The new Black Cats coach is interested in snapping up the 25-year-old attacker and make him the first signing of his reign on Wearside, with Moyes hoping to bounce back from a disappointing spell with Real Sociedad in Spain.

In fact, Sunderland are still without a signing this summer due to the previous situation with Allardyce, though they have shipped out no less than eight players so far.

Moyes is hoping to land Gray to bolster his inherited squad’s attacking ranks, while reports suggest he is keen on reuniting with both Red Devils duo Marouane Fellaini and Adnan Januzaj too.

Toon offered Real starlets in Sissoko dal

Ahead of their Championship campaign, Newcastle United are expecting a bid from Spanish giants Real Madrid for their France international midfielder Moussa Sissoko, with the Toon slapping a £35m price tag on their wantaway man.

Newcastle United v Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - St James' Park

The 26-year-old enjoyed a personally impressive Euro 2016 campaign this summer and his outings have caught the eye of Los Blancos boss Zinedine Zidane, who will reportedly offer the Magpies youngsters Mariano Diaz and Marcos Llorente on season-long loans as part of any deal.

This may be an attractive offer for Rafael Benitez, with 23-year-old forward Mariano having recently netted against Chelsea during pre-season and 21-year-old former Spain youth playmaker Llorente also showing plenty of promise.

Zidane is said to hold Mariano in high regard, after he struck 30 goals in 40 B-team appearances last season, but feels a loan stint will do him good, while Newcastle could benefit greatly from his and Llorente’s qualities in the second tier.

Related

Read our extensive Premier League archive ahead of the new season.

With the summer in full swing, there’s gossip aplenty in Coral’s Rumour Reel, so check out other editions to ensure you don’t miss any tasty tabloid titbits.

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Author

Lee Gormley

Lee joined the Coral team in 2014 after studying at Leeds Trinity University, having moved across the water from Ireland, and has plenty of industry experience from his time with various news outlets in both England and Northern Ireland. After graduating with a BA Honours degree in Sports Journalism, he has since become an important member of the talented sports desk, passionately covering boxing, football and snooker, among many other sports. Lee is also a massive Manchester United and Republic of Ireland fan, but curbs any bias during his work, and outside of his job can be found regularly taking part in sport himself, such as boxing, GAA and football.