Euro Paper Talk: Arsenal beat out Tottenham to signing of classy Bundesliga centre-back; Chelsea to move for £77m star after four years of scouting

Arsenal have seemingly beaten out north London rivals Tottenham to the signing of a highly-rated Bundesliga defender, while Friday’s Euro Paper Talk claims Chelsea have been scouting a centre-back for four years and are finally ready to make their move.

GUNNERS WIN RACE FOR FRENCH DEFENDER

Arsenal have reportedly reached an agreement to sign Tottenham centre-back target Evan Ndicka on a free transfer.

The defender is out of contract at Eintracht Frankfurt at the end of the season and it is claimed he will join the Gunners once his deal expires in June.

Gunners boss Mikel Arteta has been chasing a left-footed central defender to provide cover for Gabriel. Sadly for Pablo Mari the Spaniard has failed to convince of Arteta of his qualities and he was loaned out for the second time this term.

Ndicka has been strongly linked with Tottenham in recent months after playing against the Gunners’ north London rivals twice in the Champions League this season.

However, it appears that Arsenal have beaten off the competition, with Italian outlet Il Romanista also claiming a move to Roma appears to be off the cards.

Mourinho scuppered as Arsenal strike for Frankfurt star

The report adds that the Serie A club wanted to sign Ndicka in January but that Arsenal’s agreement to strike a deal next summer scuppered their chances.

Roma will now look at other options as they prepare for Chris Smalling’s potential exit.

As for Spurs, Ndicka was third or fourth on Antonio Conte’s list of centre-back options.

The Italian ideally wants to bring in one of Alessandro Bastoni or Josko Gvardiol, although neither of them will come cheap.

Bastoni has already admitted to talks with Tottenham, while Chelsea remain the favourites to sign Gvardiol who has had a brilliant World Cup with Croatia.

CHELSEA TO SWOOP AFTER LENGTHY SCOUTING MISSION

Chelsea have reportedly been tracking Josko Gvardiol since he was 16 and are now finally ready to make their move for a player now rated at £77m.

Arsenal are ramping up their bid to bring Yunus Musah back to the Emirates in January. The USA midfielder left the Gunners for Valencia in 2019 but has taken his game to a new level. (FcInterNews)

Barcelona are planning for contract with Ousmane talks in 2023 as current deal expires in June 2024. (Fabrizio Romano)

Real Madrid are not planning any big signings in the January transfer window. That is despite them being linked to the likes of Rafael Leao, Jude Bellingham and Cody Gakpo. (Marca)

Chelsea have joined Liverpool, Manchester United and Barcelona in the race to sign Borussia Dortmund’s rising star Youssoufa Moukoko. ( Diario Sport)

Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser al-Khelaifi has said he is confident Lionel Messi will stay at the club. (ESPN)

MORE EURO TRANSFER GOSSIP

Inter Milan and Juventus want to sign Chris Smalling. The centre-back’s Roma contract will end in the summer of 2023. (Sky Sports Italia)

Borussia Monchengladbach see Lorient goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo as a replacement for Manchester United target Yann Sommer. (Sky Sports Deutschland)

Various reports claim AC Milan want to sign winger Ferran Torres from Barcelona.

After missing out on Hector Bellerin, Roma are now looking into the possibility of recruiting Real Madrid defender Alvaro Odriozola in January instead.

Barcelona are ready to offer versatile defender Sergi Roberto a fresh Nou Camp contract. (Mundo Deportivo)

Celtic and Wolfsburg want to sign Ferencvaros midfielder Aissa Laidouni. The Tunisia star put on some eye-catching displays for Tunisia at the World Cup. (Foot Mercato)

Lille, Torino and Fiorentina are all showing interest in Angers’ Azzedine Ounahi. (Calciomercato)