Euro Paper Talk: January hopes alive after Mourinho ‘missed top target by three days’

Jose Mourinho

Tottenham missed out on their top summer target after making their bid ‘too late’, while Manchester United were left disappointed by an Italy forward, according to Thursday’s Euro Paper Talk.

 

SKRINIAR DEAL IN JANUARY A STRONG POSSIBILITY

Tottenham have been given fresh hope that a deal for Milan Skriniar can be resurrected in January.

The Inter Milan centre-back has been Jose Mourinho’s top centre-back target for the majority of the summer.

Initially, the two clubs were some way apart in their valuation of the Slovakia defender.

Inter value the 25-year-old at around £50million, while Spurs chairman Daniel Levy was only willing to part with £30m.

However, Spurs made their play and reportedly made an increased bid with just time in the window ticking away.

As per FCInterNews, Spurs were willing to pay an initial €2m to sign Skriniar on an initial loan. The deal would have seen Tottenham then pay €40m to make the deal permanent next summer. A further €5m would have been paid in performance-related add-ons.

It’s claimed that deal would have been acceptable to Inter had the bid come a few days earlier. However, two factors prevented it happening when the bid arrived.

 

Firstly, the timing would have not given Inter enough time to secure a suitable replacement.

Secondly, Spurs’ hopes took a serious nosedive on Sunday when Skriniar was named in Inter’s side to play Lazio.

It’s said it was at that point that Mourinho and Spurs knew their hopes, for now, would be over.

However, with the transfer window due to open in just 85 days, it’s claimed Spurs could soon be back in for the player. And were Conte to find a replacement for Skriniar, the defender could yet make the move to north London.

 

MAN UTD REJECTED BY FEDERICHO CHIESA

Chiesa Belotti Insigne Italia

Manchester United failed with a move for Federicho Chiesa on deadline day with the Fiorentina star only having eyes for Juventus. (Tuttosport)

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta blocked a move to Barcelona for Ainsley Maitland-Niles following an enquiry from the LaLiga giants. (Fabrizio Romano)

Ousmane Dembele is already in talks over a potential move to Juventus in 2021 after snubbing Man Utd this week. (Radio Catalunya)

The agent for Arsenal defender Pablo Mari has denied the defender will re-join Flamengo on loan to help return to fitness. (Jorge Nicola)

Atletico Madrid are considering a move to sign Valencia midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia as a long-term replacement for Thomas Partey. (Cadena Ser)

 

MESLIER COOLS FRANCE CALL-UP CLAIMS

Illan Meslier

Leeds keeper Illan Meslier is playing down his prospects of a senior France call-up despite a clamour in the French media. (L’Equipe)

Maurizio Sarri aims to return to a Serie A dug-out ‘before Christmas’ after holding talks with Juventus over terminating his contract. The former Chelsea boss remains on the pay-roll at the club, despite being replaced by Andrea Pirlo. (Tuttosport)

Bernard’s agent says they ‘tried to convince Everton to let him go’ to Roma this summer. A deal though could be resurrected again in January worth €7m. (LaRoma24)

Manchester United had identified Chelsea’s Emerson Palmieri as a last-minute plan B if their bid for Alex Telles failed on deadline day. (Fabrizio Romano)

PSG right-back Colin Dagba turned down an approach from Bayern Munich during this transfer window. (RMC Sport)

 

NIANG SET FOR ST ETIENNE

Mbaye Niang TEAMtalk

Senegalese attacker M’Baye Niang is on the verge of completing a loan move from Rennes to St Etienne after rejecting West Brom. (L’Equipe)

Sandro Tonali’s partnership with Ismael Bennacer has been tipped to lead AC Milan back to greatness by former defender Gianluca Zambrotta. (Gazzetta dello Sport)

Liverpool are ready to rival Manchester United for Dayot Upamecano after it emerged he can leave RB Leipzig for a bargain fee next summer. (SportBild)

Lorient rejected a €10m bid from Marseille for 22-year-old right-back Houboulang Mendes. (Ouest France)

Karim Benzema admits he was forced to change his style of play whilst playing alongside Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid. (AS)

Jean-Clair Todibo has penned an open letter to Barcelona fans after leaving the club to join Benfica on a two-year long loan deal. (various)

 

AND MORE FROM EURO PAPER TALK

Arkadiusz Milik TEAMtalk

Carlo Ancelotti turned down the chance to sign Arkadiusz Milik for Everton this summer, despite a plea from the Napoli striker. (Ciro Venerato)

Hatem Ben Arfa will sign an initial one-year contract with Bordeaux this week subject to a successful medical. (RMC Sport)

Felipe Anderson says he is “fulfilling his dream” of playing Champions League football with a season-long move at Porto (Record)

Luka Modric is determined to stay at Real Madrid and would accept a pay cut to remain with the LaLiga giants. (Marca)