Rumour reel: Baggies raid United
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Pulis lining up a double swoop
It’s all change at Arsenal this week as the big name players who seemingly couldn’t get out fast enough, now want to stay. Arsene Wenger told fans Alexis Sanchez will remain at the club, and Mesut Ozil said in midweek he wants to stay, and will discuss his future ASAP.
That will be music to the ears of Gunners fans following a miserable season, and with Alexandre Lacazette now on the books, a couple more signings could see those ‘Wenger Out’ banners stuffed in the back of the wardrobe, for now. Here’s what’s hot on the rumour reel.
West Brom after defensive pair
Tony Pulis aims to strengthen his backline with a raid on Manchester United. Red Devils boss Jose Mourinho is taking the club in a new direction, spending big and investing in youth, attempting to improve on last season’s Premier League finish and make a dent in the Champions League. The Europa League champions have already flogged Wayne Rooney to Everton and Pulis looks set to take Chris Smalling and Phil Jones off their hands. Both men won’t expect to see too much game time in the coming months, making a move to The Hawthorns all the more attractive at this time. Smalling and Jones have two years left on their contracts, but United won’t make a fuss over keeping them, or make West Brom pay over the odds.
Everton and Palace battle over Dutchman
Everton are interested in adding to their squad – there’s a surprise. We hope Toffees manager Ronald Koeman knows he can only field 11 players at any one time. The club have certainly moved on from the dark days of penny pinching. What a time to be an Everton fan, and they will surely have a massive season ahead. They are keen on Dutch defender Jairo Riedewald, a man currently on the books at Ajax. That would certainly help Klaassen fit in. Any deal for the 20-year-old looks to have been blocked by Premier League rivals Crystal Palace however, the player already promising his signature to Frank de Boer. Will Everton admit defeat on that one? Not if they can help it.
Arsenal close in on Mbappe
The most wanted man in European football this summer, 18-year-old Kylian Mbappe could have his pick of major teams at the minute, but he’s in no rush to decide where he will play his football next season. Could it be at Arsenal? Well, newspapers believe there’s every chance, some printing that he had a three-hour discussion with Wenger this week about the possibility of coming to London. If the gaffer can tie down Mbappe it would be a real signal of his intent for the season ahead, and go some way to getting a big section of the support back onside. We’ll keep you up to speed on that one.
