Rumour Mill

Football transfer rumours: Salomon Rondón to Manchester United?

Today’s fluff has just got its homework in on time

With deadline day upon us, the future whereabouts of Olivier Giroud remain a source of intrigue, the dashing Frenchman having been linked with no end of clubs including Tottenham Hotspur, Crystal Palace and Inter among others. Lazio are the latest outfit to express interest in the Chelsea striker, while Sky Italia have suggested he may stay away from training today in the hope of forcing a move away from Stamford Bridge. With Tammy Abraham injured, Frank Lampard is reluctant to let Giroud leave without signing another veteran centre-forward in his place and as the clock ticks down to 11pm, he will ramp up his efforts to bring in Napoli’s Dries Mertens or Paris Saint-Germain’s Edinson Cavani before releasing Giroud back into the wild. In bad news for both Frank and Olivier, the French sports daily L’Equipe say Cavani will not be leaving PSG today.

In other news pertaining to Chelsea, Lampard is reported to have been shocked by the decision of 19-year-old defender Tariq Lamptey to turn down the offer of a new contract in order to sign for Brighton. Meanwhile in Germany, starved of game time at RB Leipzig, Chelsea’s Welsh defender Ethan Ampadu could be on the verge of a return to English football after Bristol City expressed an interest in taking him on loan.

Sheffield United midfielder John Fleck has reassured Blades fans that there is “no chance” of him leaving the club in this window, dampening speculation linking him with a starring role in the Mikel Arteta revolution at Arsenal. In stark contrast, Southampton full-back Cedric Soares is on the verge of completing a loan deal that would take him to the Emirates and enable him to see out the remaining five months of his contract, at which point the Portuguese 28-year-old will become a free agent. Also in the market for a full-back, West Ham are hopeful of signing Rasmus Kristensen from Red Bull Salzburg.

Just six months after his move to Shanghai SIPG, petulant striker Marko Arnautovic has been angling for a return to West Ham, but the grounding of planes out of China due to the coronavirus have put paid to his fiendish plan. Also in China, former West Brom and Newcastle striker Salomón Rondón is the subject of interest from Manchester United and West Ham, but is also likely to have any potential moves scuppered for similar reasons.

With Marcus Rashford sidelined, Manchester United also tried to sign their former youth team player Josh King from Bournemouth but are reported to have had their overtures rejected by the relegation-threatened club. At nearby Wigan Athletic, American defender Antonee Robinson has turned heads at Milan and is on the verge of a £10m move.

Without a minute of Premier League action to his name this season, Aston Villa defender James Chester is about to sign a deadline day deal with Stoke City, while Bristol City skipper Josh Brownhill has gone to Burnley in a move reported to be worth £9m. Meanwhile in Scotland, Celtic are mulling over an £8m move for Tottenham midfielder Victor Wanyama, who left the Scottish champions for Southampton back in 2013.

And finally, Newcastle striker Dwight Gayle is wanted by Nottingham Forest, to help in their push for promotion from the Championship. In surprise news, his team-mate Matty Longstaff could find himself the subject of an unlikely tug-of-love between Inter and Milan.