Tottenham and RB Leipzig are interested in France forward Randal Kolo Muani, who will be allowed to leave Paris St-Germain in January, while Liverpool have gathered information on the 26-year-old and Manchester United are monitoring the player's situation. (Sky Sports Germany)
England forward Marcus Rashford is a target for PSG but the French club will not pay Manchester United's £50m-£60m asking price because of the 27-year-old's wages, which are believed to be in excess of £300,000-a-week. (Teamtalk)
Manchester United are set to step up their interest in Atalanta midfielder Ederson but the Italian side will not sell the 25-year-old in January and will want at least €60m (£50m) for the Brazil international. (Tuttomercatoweb - in Italian)
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has said the club want to keep France forward Christopher Nkunku at the club, despite the 27-year-old being linked with a move to get more first-team football. (Talksport)
West Ham want to sign a striker in the January transfer window but will have to raise funds by selling players if they want to sign anyone. (Mail)
Germany international Jonathan Tah, 28, has decided to join Barcelona on a free transfer when his contract at Bayer Leverkusen runs out in the summer. (Mundo Deportivo - in Spanish)
Liverpool coach John Heitinga is a leading candidate to become the new boss at West Bromwich Albion following Carlos Corberan leaving the post to become head coach at Valencia. (Football Insider)
Netherlands centre-back Virgil van Dijk believes he "can play for another three, four years at least at the highest level" amid talks about extending his contract at Liverpool. The 33-year-old's current deal runs out in the summer. (Times - subscription required)
The Athletic
West Ham Transfer DealSheet: What to expect in the January window
By Roshane Thomas
West Ham United will have to sell before they can buy any new players in this January transfer window.
The pressure on Julen Lopetegui has eased slightly in recent weeks thanks to his side being unbeaten in their last three games, but it is unlikely his squad will be augmented with lots of additions next month.
What is more likely is that fringe players will depart, with several members of West Ham’s squad struggling for minutes in the first half of the season.
Which players do they want?
The club are monitoring Freiburg goalkeeper Noah Atubolu. This season, the 22-year-old has conceded 21 goals and kept four clean sheets in 13 league appearances. The goalkeeper had an underwhelming display against West Ham in March, having conceded five goals in the second leg of their Europa League round of 16 tie.
Atubolu spoke about his future to Sky Deutschland: “I heard that, but I’m putting it to one side,” he said. “We’re having a great season so far. Sure, it’s nice and certainly a kind of reward for my performances, but in the end, it doesn’t change my personal value. What’s important is what I show on the pitch.”
Alphonse Areola and Lukasz Fabianski are the recognised goalkeepers. The latter is entering the final months of his deal, although West Ham have the option to extend by a further year.
Who will they be looking to sell?
West Ham are set to prematurely recall Maxwel Cornet from his season-long loan at Southampton. The 28-year-old winger is available for sale, having only played four matches, totalling 187 minutes, for the newly promoted side. He has not been in Southampton’s match-day squad in nine of their previous 11 league games.
Cornet, whose contract expires in 2027, joined for £17.5million ($22m) from Burnley in August 2022.
Vladimir Coufal is entering the final months of his contract, which does not include a one-year option. The 32-year-old right-back is yet to enter talks over a possible extension, having lost his place in the starting XI to summer signing Aaron Wan-Bissaka. West Ham remain adamant Mohammed Kudus is not for sale. The Ghana international has registered three goals and two assists across 14 appearances. Kudus, 24, has an £85million release clause — applicable to other Premier League clubs — which expired on July 10 and will not be active again until the end of the 2024-25 season.
Nayef Aguerd is on a season-long loan at Real Sociedad but is unsure where his future lies. Aguerd struggled alongside Kurt Zouma, the former captain, last season.
“I still have two years left on my contract with West Ham, but now I’m only thinking about helping La Real go as far as possible in the three competitions and then there will be time to think about the future,” the centre-back told Spanish publication Marca. “I don’t know if I’ll have to go back, I don’t know if I’ll stay here, I don’t know if I’ll go anywhere else, it’s not in my hands.”
Andy Irving could leave in January. The midfielder has interest from Celtic and has only played 60 minutes across six fixtures. Danny Ings has also struggled for game time since Lopetegui’s arrival as head coach. The forward scored a late equaliser in the 1-1 draw against Fulham in September but has only started one league fixture (against Leicester City) since then. Ings, however, intends to see out the rest of the season.
West Ham Under-21s defender Luizao is also available for sale. The 22-year-old is yet to play for the first team since joining from Sao Paulo in January 2023.
Will anyone move out on loan?
As it stands, there are no plans for Luis Guilherme to go out on loan, despite the £25million summer signing from Palmeiras having only played 11 minutes under Lopetegui so far this season. Kaelan Casey had interest from Championship and League One teams in the summer, but Lopetegui wanted the centre-back to remain with the squad. Casey could leave on loan for much-needed game time. Oliver Scarles made his Premier League debut in the 1-1 draw against Bournemouth and Lopetegui intends to give the left-back more opportunities during the second half of the season.
What sort of budget do they have?
Internally, West Ham have conceded they are unlikely to spend in January. Potential arrivals are contingent on fringe players departing. Having spent more than £120million in the summer, club insiders say they are right up against the wages/turnover cap.
What is the manager’s priority?
Ahead of the 1-1 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion, Lopetegui refused to disclose which position he intends to prioritise.
“Very simple, my answer, I have no interest in the January transfer window,” he said. “The window I am interested in is my players. I am not thinking about January and our upcoming matches. This is the only thing in my mind. I don’t talk about January. When it arrives, we will think about (targets), but now I am not thinking about losing or signing any players. Right now we want to take advantage of the players we have here.”