TRANSFER MARKET
Mbappe ‘refuses to talk’ to Al-Hilal over 300-million-euro move
Paris Saint-Germain striker Kylian Mbappe has refused to meet officials from Al-Hilal, dealing a potentially fatal blow to the Saudis’ ambitious hopes of completing a world record 300-million-euro ($333 million) swoop.
The French star has refused “any discussion with the representatives of the Al-Hilal club, present in Paris this Wednesday,” reported L’Equipe sports daily.
According to the report, a delegation from the Saudi club came to Paris to finalise the transfer of Brazilian Malcom from Zenit Saint Petersburg.
They also wanted to present their project to Mbappe while in the French capital.
“This approach will not succeed,” added L’Equipe because the entourage of the 24-year-old player “refused any discussions with the representatives of the Saudi club”.
“The captain of Les Bleus has never considered this option,” the report added.
Riyadh-based Al-Hilal had been given permission to open talks with Mbappe despite him never having expressed an interest in moving to the fast-growing Saudi league.
Mbappe has one year left on his contract with PSG, who want him to leave now rather than for nothing next summer.
But Mbappe is refusing to sign a new contract and the French champions believe he has already struck a deal to move to Real Madrid next year.
-AFP
A source close to Wydad Casablanca told Reuters on Wednesday that the Moroccan club is not in talks to sign Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo from Al-Nassr.
Spanish outlet Marca reported that Wydad were hoping to sign five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo to lead their attack at the Club World Cup, which will be held in the United States and starts next month.
“It was just a friendly talk between Wydad’s president and an agent close to Ronaldo, without going beyond informal discussions,” a source told Reuters.
Ronaldo, 40, is the top scorer in the Saudi Pro League with 24 goals this season.
Wydad, the last African Champions in 2022, will face Manchester City on June 18 before taking on Juventus and Al-Ain in Group G of the Club World Cup.
-Reuters
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There are strong indications that Super Eagles and AC Milan winger, Samuel Chukwueze, could exit the Guiseppe Meazza this summer following interest from Turkish Super Lïg side, Besiktas JK.
The 25-year-old joined the Rossonerri from Villarreal in the summer of 2023 but has never really settled in at Milan as he’s largely been a bit part player at the San Siro.
The AFCON 2023 silver medal winner with Nigeria has played paltry 82 minutes since the new manager, Sergio Conceicao, took over as Milan’s head coach, worsening his story with the seven-time UEFA Champions League winners.
According to Europa Calcio, Chukwueze’s future seems increasingly distant from Milan. The player’s agents have suggested him to Ole Gunnar Solksjaer’s side, Besiktas, who have immediately started contacts to bring him to the Turkish Süper Lig.
The 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup winner was linked with a move to Alex Iwobi’s Fulham in January, but time disparity in the transfer market didn’t allow the move to materialize.
Additionally, Milan’s technical director, Geoffrey Moncada, revealed his side were delighted the Super Eagles winger didn’t make a deadline-day transfer to Fulham.
The former Manchester United boss has given the green light to the deal, as he considers Chukwueze to be a valuable reinforcement in the attacking department.
The Turkish club are currently working on a loan-with-obligation-to-buy proposal, and are hopeful their strategy will convince Milan, who intend on recuperating the fees to secure Chukwueze from Villareal two years ago.
Chukwueze on the other hand, is seriously considering a move to Besiktas as he’s aware that he is not part of Milan’s long-term plans. With few opportunities under Sergio Conceicao, the former Villarreal player could accept the Turkish destination to re-establish himself.
Additionally, one of Chukwueze’s best friends, Victor Osimhen, has had nothing but good things to say about the Turkish Super Lig as he enjoys his loan spell with Galatasaray.
In conclusion, a move away from Milan would be a win-win situation for all parties, allowing the Rossoneri to free up space in the squad and for the player to regain the form which saw the Italian side snap him up initially.
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TRANSFER MARKET
Man Utd sign two and lose 10 players as disastrous window for Ruben Amorim slams shut
In spite of their awful season, Manchester United have offloaded 10 players, including Marcus Rashford, on loan while making just two new signings as the winter transfer market closed on Monday night.
The once-great team now sits 13th on the log of the Premier League table and the graph tends to slope downward rather than looking upward as the season progresses.
Any thought of European football next season is more of a mirage. Some more signings would potentially have gone a long way to getting them back on track.
Attacking recruits in particular would have been very useful given United’s goalscoring troubles this season. But it is in defence where United chiefs have chosen to strengthen this time around.
They have signed Lecce defender, Patrick Dorgu who significantly is the first signing since Amorim’s arrival. Manchester United have paid £29.2million for his signature and he has signed a contract until 2030.
The Danish left-back was also joined by another young defender Ayden Heaven, who moved in from Premier League rivals, Arsenal.
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