Brighton have turned down an approach from Nottingham Forest for 34-year-old England defender Lewis Dunk. (Sky Sports), external
Chelsea consider playmaker Cole Palmer, 23, "untouchable" amid links with Manchester United and regard the England international, who is contracted until 2033, a key player in the club's future. (Sky Sports), external
But Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling is expected to leave before the winter transfer window closes, with both parties in talks about securing an exit for the 31-year-old former England international. (Fabrizio Romano), external
West Ham are looking at loan deals for Tottenham's Czech keeper Antonin Kinsky, 22, and Chelsea's French defender Axel Disasi, 27, but the Hammers will have to send Brazilian defender Igor Julio, 27, back to Brighton to help make both deals happens. (Guardian), external
The representatives of 29-year-old Manchester United keeper Andre Onana, who is on loan at Trabzonspor, have held talks about the Cameroon international returning to former club Inter Milan in the summer. (Mail), external
Wolves are in talks to sign 25-year-old England midfielder Angel Gomes on loan from French club Marseille. (Talksport), external
Auxerre striker Lassine Sinayoko is another target for Wolves, with Championship clubs Coventry City and Middlesbrough also interested in the 26-year-old Mali international. (Football Insider), external
Burnley are in talks with West Ham over signing 31-year-old English midfielder James Ward-Prowse on loan. (Telegraph), external
Sunderland have played down reports 20-year-old Spanish forward Eliezer Mayenda could be allowed to move to Paris FC. (The I paper - subscription required)
Derby County are keen on a deal for Ipswich Town and Republic of Ireland forward Sammie Szmodics, 30, who has struggled for game time at Portman Road this season. (Mike McGrath, Telegraph), external
Bristol City have offered League Of Ireland side Bray Wanderers £400,000 for 17-year-old attacker Billy O'Neill, who has 23 goal contributions in 42 games, and 18-year-old midfielder Reece Knight, younger brother of Robins club captain Jason. (Irish Examiner), external
Celtic are set to rival Norwich City in a move for 25-year-old Bodo/Glimt forward Kasper Hogh, who could leave the Norwegian side after Wednesday's Champions League game against Atletico Madrid. (Anthony Joseph, Sky Sports), external
Sheffield Wednesday are keen on a loan deal for Manchester City's 17-year-old defender Stephen Mfuni, who made his Citizens debut in the FA Cup rout against Exeter City earlier this month. (Sheffield Star), external
Sheffield United face competition from three unnamed clubs for Rangers midfielder Joe Rothwell, 31, who is set to leave Ibrox in this window. (Rangers Review - subscription required), external
Watford remain in the market for a defender with five days of the transfer window remaining, but may allow veteran midfielder Moussa Sissoko to leave Vicarage Road. (Watford Observer), external
Rotherham United boss Matt Hamshaw has said striker Sam Nombe is staying put after League One rivals Bolton Wanderers submitted a £2m bid earlier this week. (Yorkshire Post), external
Gillingham look set to complete the £250,000 signing of Northern Ireland international striker Ronan Hale from Ross County after having two bids knocked back earlier in the window. (Kent Online)
Sky Paper Talk
PREMIER LEAGUE
Andre Onana could be handed the opportunity to return to Inter Milan from Manchester United this summer after his agents held talks with the Serie A club - Daily Mail
Oleksandr Zinchenko is set to have his loan deal with Nottingham Forest cancelled within the next 24 hours - Daily Mail
Youri Tielemans has undergone a second assessment on the ankle injury that has forced Aston Villa to revive their interest in former midfielder Douglas Luiz - Daily Mail
Manchester United can expect to bank over £175 million from a 10-year sponsorship deal on the new Old Trafford, according to fresh industry research - The Sun
EUROPEAN FOOTBALL
Real Madrid have secured the future of wonderkid Enzo Alves after he signed his first professional contract - The Sun
Barcelona have confirmed the departure of talented young midfielder Dro Fernández to Paris Saint-Germain with the club president, Joan Laporta, describing the situation around his move as "unpleasant" - The Guardian
US national team defender Alex Freeman is set to move from Orlando City to Villarreal in Spain's La Liga - The Athletic
SCOTTISH FOOTBALL
Rangers have rejected a £23m transfer windfall for Djeidi Gassama and Youssef Chermiti - Scottish Sun
Celtic have been told they'll need to stump up close to £7m to land striker Kasper Hog - Daily Record
WORLD CUP
Pubs will be allowed to stay open as late as 2am during the World Cup, the Government has confirmed - The Sun
Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal are heading to Mexico's party capital for the World Cup. That is despite Portugal having no matches in the country - The Sun
WOMEN'S FOOTBALL
Players aged under 23 in Women's Super League 2 are not guaranteed to be paid the equivalent of the national living wage for a typical full-time worker annually - The Guardian
RUGBY UNION
Rugby Football Union officials are looking to use undercover police on matchdays in a bid to increase their chances of being allowed to host concerts involving the likes of Beyonce in order to fund their stadium upgrades - Daily Mail
Everton have been offered the chance to host England's Nations Championship game against Fiji in July at the Hill Dickinson Stadium in what would be their first match in England held away from Twickenham since 2019 - The Guardian
Guardian Rumour mill
Tom Davies
Only five days remain of what has felt like a mercifully underheated winter window, but Manchester United could be about to fire it up a bit with an audacious bid for Cole Palmer. Teamtalk claims that a move for the Chelsea and England star is “building up a serious head of steam”. The departure from Stamford Bridge of Enzo Maresca, with whom Palmer was close, has apparently made Palmer susceptible to the idea of returning to his home city. He’s under contract until 2033 though, such is the Chelsea way, and would cost a British record £150m.
Meanwhile, the interim United manager, Michael Carrick, could face an internal battle with club bosses over Harry Maguire, whom Carrick wants to keep despite the desire of others in the Old Trafford hierarchy to give younger players such as Leny Yoro and Ayden Heaven more of a chance.
In the Season Of The Set Piece, the dead-ball specialist James Ward-Prowse has somehow become something of a forgotten man. Burnley might be on the brink of rectifying that with a loan move for the midfielder, according to the Telegraph.
The sometime England international Angel Gomes is on Wolves’ radar. The midfielder has found game time at Marseille limited recently and could be tempted back to England to roll up his sleeves for Rob Edwards’s side as they seek an escape from the Premier League relegation zone.
Wolves are also keen on the Mali and Auxerre forward Lassine Sinayoko, whose performances at the Africa Cup of Nations pricked interest from several clubs. Sinayoko recently extended his contract to 2027 but could apparently be available for about £8m this month. He could, however, be tempted by a Championship promotion campaign rather than an uphill Premier League relegation battle: Coventry and Middlesbrough have also been linked with the striker.
Another Ligue 1 talent who could be plucked by the Premier League’s wad-waving vultures is the Rennes defender Jérémy Jacquet, over whom Liverpool and Chelsea are reportedly tussling. Chelsea appear to be Jacquet’s preferred destination but Liverpool have stepped up their interest, with Bayern Munich also making eyes, though the summer window could be a likelier time for a move; Rennes are determined to hang on to him for now.
Real Madrid want to bring back their academy graduate Victor Muñoz from Osasuna. The 22-year-old winger has impressed since his move last year but Madrid have an €8m buy-back clause that they are now keen to activate, the Spanish outlet Fichajes reports. The plan is apparently “to regain full control of his contract with a clear financial strategy in mind”, because that’s just how modern football works, the plan being to sell him on again at a profit.
In the Women’s Super League, the relentlessly ambitious London City Lionesses have been linked with an eye-catching move for the former Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas. The Spain and Barcelona playmaker was spotted in deepest Bromley last weekend watching London City go down 1-2 to Manchester City, while Talksport have been reporting that Michele Kang’s club are planning one more “landmark signing” this winter. We shall see.
The Athletic
West Ham complete Adama Traore signing, James Ward-Prowse to leave for Burnley
By Roshane Thomas, David Ornstein and more
West Ham United have completed the signing of Adama Traore on a permanent deal from Fulham.
The 30-year-old winger is reunited with head coach Nuno Espirito Santo, who coached Traore between 2018-21 at Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The attacker, who has made 15 appearances for Fulham this season, has become West Ham’s fourth addition this month following the €20million (£17.4m, $23.4m) arrival of Pablo Felipe from Gil Vicente, Taty Catellanos from Lazio and loanee Keiber Lamadrid from Venezuelan side Deportivo La Guaira.
“I love the challenges,” Traore said upon his arrival. “I think, of course, we have to go game by game. And this is what we’re going to do, trying to do our best.
“I think everything comes from belief. And I believe we’re going to achieve what we’re looking for.”
Nuno said of the winger’s arrival: “He will give us a different option in attacking areas. He is also very motivated to fight for us and ready to bring energy, commitment and determination to our challenge.”
Traore has spent much of his career in the Premier League, making 262 appearances in the competition, scoring 14 goals and providing 27 assists.
Elsewhere, James Ward-Prowse has been given permission to undergo a medical ahead of completing a loan move to Burnley.
The deal for the former England international, which will see him move to Turf Moor for the remainder of the season, won’t include an option to buy.
The 31-year-old’s departure was sanctioned by Nuno after making just five Premier League appearances all season and none since September.
Igor Julio’s season-long loan from Brighton & Hove Albion is also set to be ended early, with the 27-year-old returning to the south coast club as cover on the left side of defence.
The Brazilian was signed by former manager Graham Potter, who Nuno succeeded in late September. Igor only made four league appearances, totalling 103 minutes. He was not named in the matchday squad for last Saturday’s 3-1 home victory against Sunderland.
With Julio returning, Brighton central defender Diego Coppola is set to join Paris FC on loan for the rest of the season.
Regular game time with the Ligue 1 club will improve Coppola’s chances of featuring for Italy in this summer’s World Cup if they qualify via the European play-offs in March.
Brighton planned to send Coppola out on loan after signing the 22-year-old from Hellas Verona last summer. Those plans were shelved when Adam Webster suffered knee ligament damage during the club’s pre-season camp in Spain in July.
Coppola has been limited to two Premier League starts and nine appearances in all competitions in total. He is fourth in the pecking order in the centre of defence behind Lewis Dunk, Jan Paul van Hecke and Olivier Boscagli.
West Ham confident of loan deal for Tottenham’s Antonin Kinsky
Justin Setterfield / Getty Images
By Roshane Thomas and more
West Ham United are confident of signing goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky in a straight loan deal from Tottenham Hotspur this month.
Spurs are aware of West Ham’s interest in the 22-year-old Czech but there are still a number of outstanding steps before a deal is reached between the clubs.
The situation is expected to progress after Tottenham’s final Champions League initial phase game against Eintracht Frankfurt in Germany on Wednesday night.
West Ham expect Mads Hermansen, who is currently understudy to No 1 goalkeeper Alphonse Areola, to leave before the February 2 transfer deadline, despite the Dane only joining from Leicester City in the summer.
Top League Content
Hermansen started the season as first choice under former head coach Graham Potter but was dropped after conceding 14 goals in four league games, culminating in a 3-0 home defeat to Spurs.
Kinsky joined Tottenham last January for €16million (£13.3m; $16.5m) from Slavia Prague and has featured 12 times for the north London club, keeping four clean sheets.
He has mainly served as a backup to Guglielmo Vicario, but made a run of eight consecutive starts in the 2024-25 season while the Italian was out with injury.
Kinsky has only made two starts this season, both coming in the Carabao Cup in a 3-0 win against Doncaster Rovers and a 2-0 defeat against Newcastle United.
C&H
“Complete Rubbish” Top West Ham Insider on Fiorentina Transfer Links
Sean Whetstone
A top West Ham source has revealed this morning the truth behind reports of a damaging double Serie A raid that would have severely weakened the squad.
Fiorentina were yesterday claimed to be interested in West Ham United duo Kyle Walker-Peters and Soungoutou Magassa as part of a supposed double swoop.
West Ham have already seen Andy Irving and Guido Rodríguez depart, with Lucas Paquetá and James Ward-Prowse also expected to follow.
West Ham Move Quickly to Calm Nerves
So when Magassa and Walker-Peters were suddenly linked with exits from the London Stadium, there was understandable panic that Nuno Espírito Santo could be left with a threadbare squad.
However, that fear has been firmly put to bed today. When asked directly about the speculation, a top West Ham source responded simply:
“Not true.”
That denial will be music to the ears of West Ham supporters, who will now be hoping the balance of business swings firmly towards arrivals rather than further departures as the transfer window enters its final stretch.