BBC
Paris St-Germain forward Neymar, 26, held secret talks with Real Madrid officials in March. The Brazilian is said to be desperate to leave the French capital. (AS, via Express)
Arsenal have narrowed down their shortlist of candidates to succeed Arsene Wenger, with Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri and former Gunners captains Mikel Arteta and Patrick Vieira among the select group under serious consideration. (Telegraph)
Wayne Rooney has told Everton he wants to join MLS side DC United, with a £12.5m deal now close to being agreed for the former England captain. (Mail)
The 32-year-old's £300,000-a-week salary at DC United will be paid by three clubs. (Sun)
US reports say DC United are cautiously optimistic they can convince England's all-time leading goalscorer to join them. (Washington Post)
But some English press have Premier League newcomers Wolves are among the favourites to sign the Everton forward this summer. (Birmingham Mail)
And Rooney will not make a decision over whether to stay at Goodison Park until manager Sam Allardyce's future is resolved. (Star)
Everton players are already talking about former Watford manager Marco Silva becoming their new boss, with Sam Allardyce set to be sacked. (Sun)
Stoke City are prepared to lose money on £18m signing Kevin Wimmer, as the club begins rebuilding for the Championship. The Austrian defender, 25, will be sold after one season at the Potters, with a number of Bundesliga clubs interested. (Telegraph)
Arsenal have offered midfielder Jack Wilshere, 26, a new three-year contract with the option of a further 12 months, keeping the Englishman at the Emirates until 2022. (Mirror)
The Gunners have started talks to sign Bayer Leverkusen's German goalkeeper Bernd Leno, 26, as a replacement for veteran Petr Cech. (Bild, via Express)
PSG will rival Tottenham for the signature of 17-year-old Fulham full-back Ryan Sessegnon, with the England Under-21 international set to cost up to £50m. (Mirror)
Southampton plan to open negotiations next week with manager Mark Hughes over a contract of up to three years, with the Saints on the verge of Premier League survival. (Telegraph)
Roma are set to beat a host of Premier League clubs to sign Ajax's 19-year-old Dutch forward Justin Kluivert. (Vl.nl, via Talksport)
Tottenham target Matthijs de Ligt, 18, wants to leave Ajax, with the Netherlands defender also linked with Bayern Munich and Barcelona. (De Telegraaf, via Talksport)
Leicester, Newcastle and Watford want Hannover's 25-year-old German striker Niclas Fullkrug. (Leicester Mercury)
Liverpool are leading the race to sign Porto's Diogo Leite this summer, with the 19-year-old Portuguese defender also wanted by Manchester City and Arsenal. (Guardian)
Newcastle and Celtic are keen on West Brom's 28-year-old defender Craig Dawson, with the Englishman valued at £15m. (Mail)
Norwich City and England Under-21 midfielder James Maddison's hopes of a Premier League move have been boosted by the news his knee injury is not as serious as first thought - Manchester City, Tottenham, Arsenal and Everton are among those interested in the 21-year-old. (Mirror)
Cardiff have set their sights on Crystal Palace's Scottish midfielder James McArthur, 30. (Mail)
QPR have earmarked former England boss Steve McClaren as a possible successor to current manager Ian Holloway. (Times)
Chelsea plan to cancel Charly Musonda's 18-month loan at Celtic and send the 21-year-old Belgian midfielder out elsewhere next season. (ESPN)
Stoke need to look for 'Glenn Whelans' in the transfer market after being relegated from the Premier League. (Stoke Sentinel)
An Arsenal fan has turned down a £1,000 offer for the tie outgoing Gunners manager Arsene Wenger gave his seven-year-old son. (Sun)
Guardian Rumour Mill
Rob Smyth
Thing is, what nobody knows is that a young Neymar had a dream. “One day,” he told his imaginary friend, Cecil, “I’ll play for every single one of the G-14 superclubs.” If today’s rags are to be believed, he will move one step closer by acting in a sufficiently brattish manner to make Paris Saint-Germain wearily decide that life’s too short and sell him to Real Madrid.
If Neymar goes, PSG will endeavour to replace him with absolutely everybody, including Ryan Sessegnon. The Fulham sensation is also wanted by most of Her Majesty’s finest, including Spurs, Man Utd, Man City and Arsenal.
PSG’s interest in Sessegnon could have an impact on the great property tree that is the transfer market. United, Arsenal and Chelsea are desirous of PSG’s current left-back Layvin Kurzawa. And who knows what that might also mean for Danny Rose’s employment status?
Neymar, meanwhile, will be thrilled to hear that comically overrated galoot Edinson Cavani wants to follow him to Madrid – but he’ll be going to Atlético to replace Antoine Griezmann. For his part, Griezmann is wanted by, among others, Barcelona – who will sell weathered genius Luis Suárez if they get Madrid’s favourite Head and Shoulders shill.
One of Europe’s brightest talents, Ajax forward Justin Kluivert, is bound for Roma. As usual, Ajax will be pillaged this summer: the talented young defender Matthijs de Ligt could join Spurs or Man City or Bayern or Barcelona. The choice is his, or his agent’s. Another teenage defender, Porto’s Diogo Leite, is wanted by Liverpool, Man City, Arsenal and – breaking news! – millions of Football Manager junkies.
Arsenal are also keen to sign Bayer Leverkusen goalkeeper Bernd ‘Poor’ Leno to replace the ageing Petr Cech and the peak-age-but-not-entirely-fit-for-purpose David Ospina. Wayne Rooney is still bound for America, just as he was 24 hours ago, though Wolves may attempt to change his flight plans.
Rooney’s current club, Everton, have already decided to thank Sam Allardyce for his 11/10 services and replace him with Marco Silva. If that happens, there will be no Pep/Big Sam dilemma for Norwich’s James Maddison. He is being monitored by Spurs, Arsenal, Everton and Man City.
Jack Wilshere will sign a new three-year contract with Arsenal, citing his desperation to play for whoever the next manager will be. Reports suggests it will be one of five men: Massimiliano Allegri, Patrick Vieira, Mikel Arteta, Joachim Löw or
Tubes from Soccer A.M. Luis Enrique.
Guardian
Bullish David Moyes invites West Ham to show they can match his ambition
• Manager due to hold talks this month over new deal
• Moyes ‘needs to see’ that club can challenge for European place
Jacob Steinberg
David Moyes will seek assurances West Ham can match his ambition before deciding on his future and has said that he stayed with the east London club after receiving an offer from another Premier League club.
The Scot is not certain to be West Ham’s manager next season despite securing their Premier League safety with two games to go, and both parties have doubts about whether he should continue.
Moyes is due to hold talks over a new deal this month, having replaced Slaven Bilic on a six-month contract, and David Sullivan and David Gold, the owners, are aware many supporters believe the 55-year-old’s approach is too negative. West Ham’s efforts when they host Manchester United on Thursday night and Everton on Sunday will be a factor in the final judgment.
A positive end would strengthen Moyes but he struck a bullish tone when asked about his plans. He has already risked angering Sullivan and Gold by complaining about West Ham’s culture of leaks and pulled no punches before the visit of United, saying he wants to be at a club capable of challenging for European qualification.
“I’ve been right for a few clubs and I think I’d be right for many clubs,” Moyes said. “Probably apart from two or three managers there’s nobody who’s got a better win-ratio.
“I have to make sure I’ve got what I want to do. For most of my seasons, apart from one last year, I’ve been competing at the top six or eight. I need to see if West Ham are going to get there. I want to be a manager pushing the top six or eight. You need the tools for that. I want to make sure I can give the supporters what they crave.”
Moyes said he remained loyal when one of West Ham’s relegation rivals, believed to be Stoke City, approached him and he does not expect to be short of offers if he leaves. “I could have joined a Premier League club during the season here when I was West Ham manager,” he said. “I chose not to. But I’ve got other things if it’s not renewed. It’s not a problem.”
Moyes, who said Joe Hart was not guaranteed to start against United after missing Saturday’s 2-0 victory at Leicester City because of illness, believes West Ham need a better infrastructure. “There’s a lot to be done on the pitch and a lot to be done off the pitch as well,” he added.
“There are a lot of things we could address, like around the training ground. My experience has allowed me to see what good really looks like off the pitch, whether it be facilities, a board of directors, the people who work round football clubs, the roles people should have.”
C&H
Rafa could cost Hammers over £30m
West Ham would need to invest heavily to land Rafa Benitez as their new manager for next season should they opt not to renew David Moyes contract. Insiders say the Spaniard earns £6.5m in his current contract at Newcastle and the former Liverpool manager is demanding Mike Ashley pay him £8m per year to extend his stay at St James Part beyond next summer when his contract ends.
The Hammers would need to pay Newcastle at least £6.5m in compensation and offer the Spaniard up to £24m over three years to make the switch to London Stadium meaning an investment of over £30m.
Sam Allardyce used to earn a package of around £3m per year at West Ham although he is said to be paid £6m per year at Everton. Slaven Bilic was also said to be on a £3m per year package with the Hammers including bonuses. David Moyes was said to be on just £15,000 per week costing the Hammers around £400,000 for six months plus a bonus of £1.25m and £2.1m for Premier League survival and final league position.
TBR
Should David Moyes finally get his man with Leroy Fer swoop?
The West Ham boss tried to sign Fer when he was Everton manager.
By Mathew Coull
Swansea City are staring at relegation in the face. Huddersfield Town’s guaranteed safety now leaves them needing a miracle on the final weekend of the season to retain their Premier League status. For a while, it seemed Carlos Carvalhal would be able to keep Swansea in the top-flight. But their form has dipped dramatically in recent weeks. Injuries have not helped, including the Achilles tendon tear suffered by Dutch international Leroy Fer in February.
His absence was keenly felt by Swansea and now, this summer, they surely face a battle to keep the player at the Liberty Stadium.
So, could this be a chance for West Ham manager David Moyes to finally get his hands on the Dutchman?
In January 2013 the Scot was still manager at Everton and had his eyes on the then FC Twente midfielder. In fact, as reported by the BBC, an £8.6 million deal was agreed with the Dutch club and Fer was on his way.
Moyes was clearly excited, as he made clear to The Independent at the time:
“He’s a really good player. He’s someone who we’ve liked for a long time. He’s young and he’s certainly an up-and-coming prospect.”
Fer was seemingly Everton-bound. But the deal broke down. The medical team at Everton discovered a problem with Fer’s knee in the medical and, with just days left before the end of the transfer window, the deal collapsed.
That summer, before Moyes could consider a renewed bid for Fer, he had left Everton for Manchester United – where bigger targets were in his crosshairs.
Since then Fer has established himself as a highly competent Premier League midfielder with QPR, Norwich City and Swansea. As for knee problems, he has only suffered a medial ligament injury once in the five years since. It cost him a move to Sunderland back in 2015 but overall, Fer has proven to be fighting fit. In his four-and-a-half Premier League seasons, he has played 137 games, scoring 19 goals – fine figures for an apparently injury-prone player.
West Ham could surely get the 28-year-old on the cheap and he would be a brilliant addition to their squad. The irony, of course, is his current injury, although not related to his apparently dodgy knee.
Fer will likely return to training in July and with the transfer window open for another month or so, West Ham would have time to assess the risk of making a move.
This summer might be the perfect opportunity for Moyes to finally sign ‘The Bouncer’ and bring some midfield depth to West Ham.
Sport Witness
After West Ham make enquiry president flies to London for transfer talks
According to a claim in the Turkish media Besiktas president Fikret Orman last night flew to London with the club’s head of transfers Umut Guner.
Fotomac claim the Besiktas president is in London to talk with English clubs regarding the sale of Anderson Talisca. The attacker has been linked with a move to West Ham United in recent days.
The player is currently on loan with Besiktas from Benfica, but the Turkish club are struggling to pay the redemption fee.
However, it’s been previously reported in the Turkish press that Besiktas may consider paying the €21m redemption clause to Benfica, and then sell the Brazilian on for a profit.
It’s also reported Orman will meet with Talisca’s representatives, and it’s expected the Benfica owned player’s future will become much more clear.
Earlier this week we covered reports from the Turkish media that West Ham are showing an interest in Talisca ahead of the summer transfer window.
West Ham have reportedly made an enquiry with his parent club Benfica but there have been no claims that an offer has been made by the Hammers.
HITC
West Ham and Everton make offers to sign Leonardo Bittencourt
Danny Owen
Premier League rivals Everton and West Ham have been linked with the Cologne player.
Cologne might have been relegated from the Bundesliga one year after they qualified for Europe for the first time in two decades, but no one could point the finger at Leonardo Bittencourt.
The 24-year-old winger has been one of the few players to do himself proud this season and appeared to be almost single-handedly attempting to keep Cologne in the top flight. He has scored four goals in his last three games.
But according to German outlet Express, the Billy Goats are likely to be bidding farewell to Bittencourt this summer.
It is understood that Premier League duo West Ham United and Everton have now made formal offers to sign the former Borussia Dortmund winger, who was once rated very highly by Jurgen Klopp at the Signal Iduna Park.
This comes just a week after Bild stated that Tottenham Hotspur had made an approach to sign Bittencourt. It is understood that he has a £7 million release clause in his contract, which appears to have come into effect now Cologne’s relegation is confirmed.
And while Jonas Hector and Timo Horn have admirably committed their future to the now second division outfit, Bittencourt could be tempted by a move to the Premier League.
Although it remains to be seen where he ends up – Everton, West Ham United or somewhere else entirely.
