Paper Talk: Man Utd in £70m striker hunt; Liverpool want ‘German Alli’

Max Meyer: German wonderkid wanted by PL duo

Liverpool are to rival Tottenham for a young Schalke star, while Manchester United will battle Chelsea to sign Romelu Lukaku, according to Thursday’s papers.

LIVERPOOL KEEN ON DEAL FOR MAX MEYER

Liverpool are reportedly ready to join the battle for the services of young Bundesliga midfielder Max Meyer.

The Schalke star, dubbed the ‘German Dele Alli’, was recently linked with Tottenham after the player admitted he was “50-50” on quitting the Bundesliga club, and saying the Premier League was his preferred destination.

The Daily Mirror claims Meyer caught Jurgen Klopp’s attention when the Reds boss was running the rule over another Schalke star, Leon Goretzka and has since been back to watch him again.

Meyer’s contract is now into its final 15 months and reports in his home country suggest Schalke would now listen to offers of around £17million for the attacking midfielder – who they rated at £45m when Spurs made an official approach last summer.

 

MANCHESTER UNITED ENTER LUKAKU BATTLE

Jose Mourinho is gearing up a for a £70m battle with former club Chelsea for Everton striker Romelu Lukaku, according to reports on Thursday.

The Daily Express claims Mourinho is keen to bring the powerful Belgian to Manchester United this summer, despite Zlatan Ibrahimovic strongly hinting he is ready to extend his stay at the club for another year.

Mourinho sold Lukaku to Everton during his second spell as Chelsea boss but is keen to link him up with long-term target Antoine Griezmann and Ibrahimovic in a new-look attack next season.

Lukaku recently rejected a new deal at Everton saying he wants to test himself at a higher level, with Chelsea immediately installed as favourites to re-sign him.

However, claims in Thursday’s Sun suggest Chelsea are torn over whether to sign Lukaku or Real Madrid and Spain’s 24-year-old forward Alvaro Morata.

If they do opt for Morata, that will leave Manchester United to battle with PSG and Juventus for the Belgium striker, with United possibly emerging as favourites to land him.

 

AND THE REST

Uruguayan defender Jose Gimenez could be on his way out of Atletico Madrid as Jose Mourinho is eyeing up a potential offer (The Sun)

German midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud has reportedly decided to join Borussia Dortmund, rejecting a move to Liverpool (Daily Express)

Hector Bellerin: Could be sold this summer

Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin has held talks with Barcelona sporting director Robert Fernandez in London before the international break (Daily Express)

Bellerin is also a target for Serie A giants Juventus (Daily Mirror)

Barcelona have reportedly delayed contract negotiations with Lionel Messi (Daily Express)

Bournemouth will go all-out to entice Jermain Defoe back to the south coast next term – to keep him on track for the World Cup (The Sun)

England striker Defoe can leave Sunderland on a free transfer if they are relegated from the Premier League due to a clause in his contract (Daily Mail)

Chelsea face losing a £70m fight with Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Marco Verratti (The Sun)

Monaco have told Real Madrid it will cost them a staggering £112million to sign teenage sensation Kylian Mbappe (The Sun)

Eden Hazard has dropped a hint that he could be staying with Chelsea after declaring his children are happy in London (The Sun)

Everton manager Ronald Koeman has said star striker Romelu Lukaku will still be an Everton player when the summer transfer window closes… if the decision is up to him, anyway (Daily Mirror)

Manchester United are stepping up their efforts to sign Monaco’s £40m-rated midfielder and Chelsea target Tiemoue Bakayoko (Daily Mirror)

Wayne Rooney has been told he could be a flop in America if he joins Major League Soccer by Houston Dynamo president Chris Canetti (Daily Star)

Arsenal’s Sunday showdown with Manchester City is set to decide Arsene Wenger’s fate (Daily Star)
Danish left-back Riza Durmisi says he’s flattered by Liverpool’s interest in him – but he’s happy at Real Betis (Daily Star)

Real Madrid ace James Rodriguez has his heart set on a summer move to Bayern Munich despite Liverpool’s £52m plot (Daily Star)

Arsene Wenger has told Arsenal he wants to sign new two-year contract (Daily Mail)

Rafa Benitez has no intention of quitting Newcastle United for West Ham (Daily Mail)

Chelsea are set to send Ruben Loftus-Cheek on loan next season with Premier League clubs circling (Daily Mail)

Mesut Ozil has refused to rule out a return to the Bundesliga as his contract talks with Arsenal are put on hold (Daily Mail)

Manchester United have started investigating alternative goalkeeping options like Inter’s Samir Handanovic and Milan’s Gianluigi Donnarumma, amid growing worries that David de Gea could leave for Real Madrid in the summer (The Independent)

Liverpool have re-opened contract talks with defender Dejan Lovren (Daily Telegraph)

Huddersfield Town manager David Wagner has emerged as a potential candidate for the West Ham job if the owners decide in the summer that Slaven Bilic is not the man to take the club forward in the long term (Daily Telegraph)

Martin O’Neill will seek talks with Everton manager Ronald Koeman after stating that James McCarthy did nothing wrong in declaring himself fit to play for the Republic of Ireland against Wales last week (Daily Telegraph)