Paper Talk: Man Utd to sell £25m defender; Batshuayi’s triple link

Manchester United are ready to cash in on a defensive stalwart, while Newcastle are plotting a bid on Chelsea for one of their recent headline-makers, according to Tuesday’s papers.

 

MANCHESTER UNITED READY TO SELL CHRIS SMALLING

Jose Mourinho is set to axe England star Chris Smalling from Manchester United this summer, according to a report.

The centre-half is expected to be made available by Mourinho this summer with the club ready to do business with any side who offers £25million for the centre-half.

ESPN claims Smalling will be the player to make way this summer after Mourinho decided Phil Jones was ahead of him in the pecking order. The duo are both battling to partner Eric Bailly in the heart of defence for the Europa League final and it’s claimed Jones is set to get the nod, both tomorrow night and in the long term.

It’s further suggested that Mourinho now regards the 27-year-old as having fallen behind Jones, Bailly and the injured Marcos Rojo in the pecking order at centre-half.

The likes of Arsenal and Tottenham are both likely to be keen on signing the player, while he could yet become an ambitious target for Newcastle.

Smalling, who has made 35 appearances for the club this season, has twice been the subject of public criticism by Mourinho, though the player was keen to stress the strength of his relationship with the United boss when questioned about it earlier this month.

 

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NEWCASTLE AND WEST HAM PLOT RAID FOR CHELSEA STRIKER BATSHUAYI

Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez will make a bid to land Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi on loan, according to various reports.

The Daily Mirror claims the Toon boss wants to take the French striker on a season-long deal after a frustrating campaign for the player at Stamford Bridge.

Batshuayi was largely unused by Blues boss Antonio Conte during the campaign, though the striker made a name for himself with four goals in the club’s final three games – including the crucial winner at West Brom which confirmed Chelsea as champions.

However, it’s claimed Newcastle will face competition from Monaco and West Ham for the striker.

Furthermore, it’s claimed that while Conte doesn’t want to sell Batshuayi, he will consider a loan deal to allow the striker to further develop his game in the Premier League.

 

AND THE REST

Tottenham right-back Kyle Walker, 26, is wanted by Chelsea and Bayern Munich, who have joined Manchester City in the race to sign the England defender (The Sun)

Everton have agreed a £25m deal with Swansea for midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson, 27, but the Iceland player wants more than £120,000 a week to sign (Daily Mirror)

West Ham’s Manuel Lanzini is a shock target for champions Chelsea (The Sun)

Manchester United have made an offer that “cannot be refused” for Monaco’s 22-year-old midfielder Bernardo Silva (Daily Express)

Gael Clichy has said he will leave Manchester City next month. The former Arsenal and France left-back, 31, has been with the club for six years

Chelsea will begin negotiations this week with Monaco over France midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko, 22 (Daily Mail)

Atletico Madrid are monitoring Chelsea striker Diego Costa, despite the 28-year-old being heavily linked with a move to Chinese Super League side Tianjin Quanjian (Daily Telegraph)

Diego Maradona claims Roma legend Francesco Totti is the best player he has ever seen (The Sun)

Manchester United have been given hope of signing Renato Sanches and Douglas Costa after both players endured a tough season at Bayern Munich

Middlesbrough defender Ben Gibson could preserve his Premier League status with a move to either Leicester City or West Brom (The Sun)

Bournemouth expect to complete the free transfer signing of Jermain Defoe this week

Philippe Coutinho has told worried Liverpool fans he sees his long-term future at the club, amid persistent reports of Barcelona interest

Ross Barkley is ready to leave Everton after failing to meet the club’s deadline for clarifying his future (Daily Mirror)

Everton, meanwhile, are set to lose out to Atletico Madrid in their bid to sign Malaga forward Sandro Ramirez, 21 (The Independent)

Leicester are preparing to battle it out with Crystal Palace for Belgian side Anderlecht’s Senegal international defender Kara Mbodji (Daily Mirror)

The Foxes are also trying to snap up centre-back Harry Maguire on the cheap from relegated Hull, as he only has 12 months left on his contract (Daily Mirror)

Manchester United are interested in signing central defenders Marquinhos and Raphael Varane this summer.

Manchester United have made a bid to sign Monaco star Bernardo Silva (Daily Express)

Chelsea will prioritise trying to sign Romelu Lukaku from Everton in the summer (Daily Express)

Southampton do not expect a final decision on Claude Puel’s future until later this week but Marco Silva does not feature on their current list of possible successors (Daily Telegraph)

Liverpool will embark on a record-breaking £100m transfer spree to build on their top-four finish (Daily Telegraph)

Sam Allardyce will hold crunch talks with Crystal Palace this week seeking certain assurances before he commits his future to the club (Daily Mail)

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has flown to Abu Dhabi for end-of-season talks with Khaldoon Al Mubarak.
David Moyes will have a say on Sunderland’s next manager following his resignation from the club (Daily Mail)