Paper Talk: Man Utd talks with Algerian attacker

Manchester United have held talks to sign a Porto star also wanted by Arsenal and Everton, while Chelsea could sell three more top stars, but bring in a big-name striker, according to Saturday’s newspapers.

 

MAN UTD AND ARSENAL ON BRAHIMI TRAIL

Manchester United are reportedly inching ahead of Arsenal and Everton in the race to sign Yacine Brahimi.

The Porto winger will be out of contract at the end of the season and is now free to negotiate a free transfer summer move – and it seems a switch to the Premier League looks to be the cards.

According to the Daily Mirror, all three Premier League clubs have already held talks with the 28-year-old’s representatives – but of the trio, it’s thought a move to Old Trafford is favoured most by the Paris-born Algeria international.

Inter Milan are also said to be keen, but they will only move if Ivan Perisic departs the San Siro.

While Brahimi could move this month in a cut-price deal, it is thought a summer move looks most likely with the player set to agree a pre-contract agreement before the month is out.

 

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AND THE REST

Barcelona are the latest team to join the race for Chelsea flop Alvaro Morata as they look to provide cover for striker Luis Suarez (The Sun)

Barcelona are also considering making a second bid for Chelsea and Brazil winger Willian, after their first bid for the 30-year-old was rejected on Thursday (Evening Standard)

Thierry Henry is set to offer Michy Batshuayi an escape route out of Chelsea as he is desperate for January reinforcements to help his side secure Monaco’s Ligue 1 status (The Sun)

Chelsea’s top transfer priority this month is to wrap up a six-month loan deal for Gonzalo Higuain (The Sun)

Watford have approached Lyon over a potential transfer of winger Maxwel Cornet and are currently in discussions over a £20m deal (The Sun)

Thierry Henry approached Laurent Koscielny last month to convince him about moving to Monaco, but the defender chose to remain at Arsenal (The Sun)

Leicester want to sign Hull winger Jarrod Brown, with Tottenham and Everton also tracking the 22-year-old (The Sun)

Arsenal have hit a roadblock in the negotiations for the transfer of Yannick Ferreira-Carrasco, as the Dalian Yifang player’s wage demands are too high (Daily Star)

Liverpool defender Alberto Moreno has told Jurgen Klopp he will not renew his contract ahead of a potential move back to former club Sevilla (Daily Star)

Manchester United and Real Madrid have been told they must pay £68m if they want to sign Porto defender Eder Militao (Daily Star)

Everton are interested in signing Southampton and Portugal defender Cedric Soares, 27, with the Saints reportedly willing to sell (Daily Star)

Gareth Bale tried to convince Wales team-mate Aaron Ramsey to join Real Madrid before the Arsenal midfielder reportedly agreed a deal to join Juventus in the summer (Daily Mirror)

Manchester United will have the chance to sign Philippe Coutinho, providing they offer Barcelona a substantial amount, with the Catalan club willing to listen to bids as they pursue Neymar (Daily Mirror)

 

Juventus are plotting to make a summer move for Real Madrid outcast Isco, who has a £630m release clause (Daily Mail)

Liverpool have told Divock Origi they want him to stay until the end of the season despite interest from Fulham, Wolves and West Ham (Daily Mail)

QPR have put a £10m price tag on highly-rated midfielder Eberechi Eze as Tottenham, Bournemouth, Brighton and Crystal Palace continue to monitor the 20-year-old (Daily Mail)

Cardiff have not given up on their hopes to sign Emiliano Sala from Nantes and have revived their bid which stood at £18m plus add-ons before the January window opened (Daily Mail)

Huddersfield have had an opening bid for Leicester striker Shinji Okazaki rejected, with the Japanese forward out of contract in the summer (Daily Mail)

West Ham are exploring a possible move for Newcastle midfielder Jonjo Shelvey (Daily Mail)

David Luiz is planning to leave Chelsea and rejoin his former club Benfica when his contract at Stamford Bridge expires in the summer (Daily Express)

Chelsea triggered Jan Oblak’s £90m release clause six months ago but could not secure a deal with the goalkeeper, who refused to speak to interested clubs in order to remain faithful to Atletico Madrid (Daily Express)

AC Milan manager Gennaro Gattuso has said talks are ongoing with 31-year-old striker Gonzalo Higuain’s representatives amid speculation over a move to Chelsea (Daily Express)

Chelsea could be about to complete their first January signing as they have agreed in principle deals with Leandro Paredes and Nicola Barella, but have decided to stall completing transfers while they decide what to do next (Daily Telegraph)

Roman Abramovich pumped another £69.1m into Chelsea last season, meaning the size of the club’s debt towards the Russian businessman has risen to around £1.13billion (The Times)

Chelsea’s negotiations with Bayern Munich over the potential sale of Callum Hudson-Odoi are being complicated by their demand for a buy-back clause (The Times)