Having suddenly twigged that the answer to their defensive woes might not just be dependent on the state of Joël Matip’s hamstrings, Liverpool have worked out they could actually buy themselves out of bother. And while a cut-price deal for David Alaba or Dayot Upamecano would seem like a sensible thing to aim for, they look set to persist with Jordan Henderson at centre-back for a while yet. Despite all the sweet revenue from those face-cream ads lining the club coffers, neither Alaba or Upamecano are currently seen as viable, with the former out of contract this summer, while the Frenchman reportedly has a £40m release clause go live in July. Brighton’s Ben White is also a transfer target for Jürgen Klopp although, strangely, there is not expected to be a bid this month.
Another defender who could be on the move this summer is Sergio Ramos, who is out of contract at Real Madrid. Manchester United have been heavily linked although the defender’s future is thought to be heavily influenced by his wife, who works as a TV presenter in Spain and is less than keen to leave the capital for all the hidden delights within the M60.
Alex Rúnarsson had a bit of a stinker on his domestic debut for Arsenal, so much so that Mikel Arteta is apparently looking for a replacement back-up keeper. The Icelandic 25-year-old only signed for the Gunners in September but could soon be replaced as No 2 by Tom Heaton, who is currently back-up to former Arsenal stopper Emiliano Martínez at Aston Villa. Got it? Good.
Hateley, Hoddle, Waddle, Becks, Barton. Jesse Lingard could be the latest Englishman to give Ligue 1 a go, with the Manchester United midfielder potentially looking at a loan to Nice. Sounds like it could be the basis for a Metronomy album. Ole Gunnar Solskjær is not actively looking to shift Lingard despite his six-figure weekly wages, but Nice are certainly giving him the look, and although there is interest from Aston Villa, the club on the French Riviera will be hoping everything goes their way.
Nice could also be in the market for Bayern Munich teenager Leon Dajaku and are hopeful of signing him from under the noses of Milan, Union Berlin, and Cologne. The 19-year-old has only featured once this season under Hansi Flick and could be tempted to reunite with Flavius Daniliuc, who joined Nice from Bayern in June and has since gone on to establish himself as a first-team starter – Daniliuc and Dajaku were two of only four players living together on the Bayern campus during lockdown in the spring. Bayern are thought to favour a loan deal but all four suitors are pushing for a permanent move. If Milan miss out on Dajuku, they could yet land Mario Mandzukic, who is available on a free transfer.
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Newcastle could make a £14m move for Montpellier striker Andy Delort, although the gruelling takeover saga at the north-east club is not helping matters. Elsewhere, Danny Rose could join West Brom as Sam Allardyce does the familiar trick of looking for wily experience to dig him out of the latest relegation scrap.
Finally, free agent Jack Wilshere is close to eking out another contract after impressing on trial at Bournemouth, where he went on loan in 2016-17.
