Paper Talk: Liverpool eye Udinese ace; Spurs face striker snub

Piotr Zielinski: Transfer saga takes new twist

Piotr Zielinski: Transfer saga takes new twist

Liverpool are hoping to sign Udinese midfielder Piotr Zielinski, Spurs look set to miss out to Monaco over Moussa Dembele, while Arsenal are closing in on a Nigerian teenage prospect, according to Friday’s newspaper gossip.

LIVERPOOL TARGET ZIELINSKI

Liverpool are monitoring midfielder Piotr Zielinski, who is on loan at Empoli from Udinese, with a view to a possible summer deal, reports the Guardian, Daily Mirror and Daily Mail.

The 21-year-old has 11 Poland caps and is hoping to be selected for Euro 2016. He made one appearance during the qualifying campaign, as a substitute against Gibraltar, but was involved in the match-day squad on other occasions.

Zielinski scored in a 2-2 draw against Milan in his most recent game for Empoli, who have borrowed him for a second straight season from Udinese.

He was given his breakthrough at Udinese by Francesco Guidolin, who this month was appointed as Swansea City’s head coach.

The Mail also claims Reds boss Jurgen Klopp is planning a summer move for Schalke defender Joel Matip – linked with the Reds since the German’s appointment in October – and reported Arsenal target Ben Chilwell.

 

MONACO TO BEAT SPURS TO STRIKER

Moussa Dembele: Attracting the attention of Everton and Tottenham

Tottenham are ready to concede defeat in their attempts to land Fulham teenager Moussa Dembele.

The striker looks set to complete a deal to join Monaco, reports both the Daily Mirror and Daily Mail, with the French club willing to offer the forward a much more lucrative contract than Spurs.

Tottenham and Fulham had been locked in talks for weeks over a switch for the 19-year-old, who was the subject of our weekly Scout feature last month.

Spurs were even prepared to use one of their fringe players as part of the deal.

But Dembele is set to sign a pre-contract agreement with the Ligue 1 side with his current contract due to expire in the summer.

 

ARSENAL DEAL FOR NIGERIAN PROSPECT CLOSE

Arsene Wenger: Tipped to sign young Nigerian

Nigerian midfielder Kelechi Nwakali is flying to London to complete a move to Arsenal.

The Nigeria Under-17 captain has been strongly linked with the Gunners in recent days, amid talk a deal has been agreed.

And now Nigerian outlet Tribune reports that Nwakali is flying to London with his agent to complete a move to the Emirates Stadium.

They managed to grab a word with him before his flew out, and the player says he is happy to be moving to the club.

“I am going to Arsenal to work and try to be the best I can,” he said.

“With God anything is possible, to work hard to justify my claim for first team football.”

Nwakali’s Nigeria team mate Samuel Chukwueze is expected to follow him by moving to Arsenal in the next month or so.

 

AND THE REST

  • Leicester City have offered £14m for Moscow CSKA striker Ahmed Musa in attempt to boost their attack as they compete for the Premier League title (The Times)
  • Chelsea want to keep hold of John Terry beyond the end of his playing career (The Times)
  • Liverpool should build their team around Roberto Firmino, says Ronaldinho (Daily Mirror)
  • Norwich are waiting for an answer over their bid to sign Chelsea rising star Patrick Bamford (Daily Mirror)
  • Newcastle will give West Brom until the weekend to relax their stance on Saido Berahino – and will move for Loic Remy if the Baggies continue to refuse to sell (Daily Mirror)
  • Charles N’Zogbia is digging his heels in at Aston Villa and threatening to stall new boss Remi Garde’s shake-up (Daily Mirror)
  • Barcelona superstar Neymar has admitted he would ‘love’ to play under Pep Guardiola but insists he is happy in Spain (Daily Mirror)
  • Reece Oxford’s loan move to Charlton is off – because boss Jose Riga did not know who the West Ham wonderkid was (The Sun)
  • Chelsea’s bid to land their No 1 target Max Allegri as their new manager has been given a huge boost as Juventus are already hunting for his replacement (The Sun)
  • Manchester United could make a move for Chelsea’s Domingos Quina, while Louis van Gaal’s side are also in talks to sign Palermo attacking midfielder Franco Vazquez (The Sun)
  • Real Madrid defender Dani Carvajal has emerged as a top transfer target for Chelsea (The Sun)
  • Liverpool are weighing up a shock bid for Bayern Munich hitman Robert Lewandowski (Daily Star)
  • Watford have made a formal offer for Liverpool forward Jerome Sinclair (Daily Mail)
  • Chelsea are keen on Italy boss Antonio Conte with Guus Hiddink stepping down in the summer (Daily Mail)
  • West Ham United and Norwich City want to secure the services of Inter Milan defender Davide Santon (Daily Mail)
  • Leicester have rejected a new bid from Arsenal for highly-rated young defender Ben Chilwell (Daily Express)
  • Chelsea are still considering a January move for Valencia defender Aymen Abdennour (Daily Express)
  • Italy boss Antonio Conte is the leading candidate for the Chelsea manager’s job (Daily Express)
  • Manchester United want CSKA Moscow’s Nigerian forward Ahmed Musa who is a big target for Leicester (Daily Express)
  • Real Madrid have tried three times in the last five years to sign Barcelona’s Lionel Messi (The Guardian)
  • Chelsea have added Claudio Ranieri, Mark Hughes and Eddie Howe to their managerial short-list but Mauricio Pochettino and Antonio Conte remain strong candidates (The Independent)
  • Chelsea forward Loic Remy will be firmly on Newcastle’s radar if they cannot get Saido Berahino (Daily Telegraph)