Bayern Munich defenders Matthijs and Noussair are in Manchester today. Bayern have received an offer on behalf of centre-half De Ligt and fullback Mazraoui. They are now scheduled for their medicals in Manchester and will sign United contracts this afternoon. Matthijs and Noussair will join the Red Devils for a combined fee of £60m.
Manchester United are deciding a move this month for Brighton striker Evan Ferguson. The Red Devils had had a long-term interest in the Irish national and could sign him this month. The new United technical director Dan Ashworth signed Ferguson from Bohemians when he was in charge of transfer at Brighton. According to the Daily Star, Ashworth could now want to reunite with Ashworth in the coming weeks. United believe they can draft Evan Ferguson for £50m before the summer market ends.
Girona are finalising a deal for Barcelona midfielder Oriol Romeu. Just a year after he left Girona for Barca, Romeu is set to re-sign with the Catalans. Barca have announced that Romeu has been released from their US tour squad to finalise the transfer. Mundo Deportivo reports that he will join Girona on-loan for the new season. His contract with Barca runs to 2026.
Manchester United have booked a medical for Bayern Munich defender Noussair Mazraoui. The Red Devils and Bayern have concluded terms over the right-back, who has been granted permission to visit England for a medical. Foot Mercato’s Santi Aouna is reporting: “IT’S ALMOST A DONE DEAL. Noussair Mazraoui will join Manchester United. “Bayern Munich authorized Mazraoui to join MU. The Moroccan right back will take private flight in the next days “If nothing changes, a medical test is booked on Tuesday. “Contract valid until June 2029 + one year in option “Erik Ten Hag wants Mazraoui for the the Community Shield.”
Borussia Dortmund chief Sebastian Kehl has admitted that the future of Niclas Füllkrug will be determined this weekend. Dortmund has reportedly accepted an offer from West Ham for Füllkrug. Kehl said, “The events of the last few days have been a bit out of control. To be honest, it was not our intention to bring up the Niclas Füllkrug issue again.” “That,” explains Kehl, “has developed very quickly in the last two days, also through many discussions that we of course had with the player.” Now we will see “what happens today and tomorrow”.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said he was happy after the team’s preseason friendly defeat of AC Milan. Madrid lost 1-0 in Chicago with Samuel Chukwueze the matchwinner for Milan. Carlo said, “We fought and did good things. It’s the first match of the pre-season, there are a lot of young people. The important thing was to compete and we did it throughout the match. “The evaluation is positive. It’s a great chance for young players to play this type of match. In the first half, with more seniors like Rudiger and Modric, we did better, but at the moment these players cannot play more than 45 minutes. “Now let’s get ready for the next game. Tomorrow Vinicius and Militao return and today Rodrygo returns. Let’s see if they can play a part of the match. Those who started on the 15th, like Lucas, Fran, Brahim or Ceballos, are already showing good condition. “Palacios’ change? He has a knee problem and is not well. We have to evaluate him tomorrow and it’s a shame that a young player was injured in the first pre-season match. I hope it’s nothing serious. Brahim? He played well. We made good plays offensively. Arda is also in good shape. “The objective until the 7th is to try to have the players who have already started in the best possible physical condition. At the moment we only do tactical work for the young people, but when they return we will try to work for everyone too. There aren’t many things to do because the team is more or less the same as last year. The strategies are quite clear. We have to adapt to new things, but we will do it little by little. We can’t adapt Mbappé or Endrick in five days.”
Manchester United are serious about acquiring Bayern Munich’s Matthijs de Ligt this summer. This is after their deal with Yoro fell apart. The Red Devils have been licking their wounds after learning that their new signee Leny Yoro is out for several months with a foot injury. As a replacement, they want to sign De Ligt from Bayern to play next to Lisandro Martinez when the season begins. According to The Mirror, United are ready to take their interest in De Ligt to the next level this week. Manchester are hoping to get a deal concluded, to lessen the devastating effect of Yoro being absent. Bayern is also looking to sell De Ligt. De Ligt, who was a substitute for Netherlands at Euro 2024, wants to make the move.
Brandon Austin said his conversations with Tottenham coach Ange Postecoglou played a significant role in his future with the Spurs. Austin has been working hard behind the scenes for years, ranked highly as a shot stopper within the team but without making a competitive appearance. He played first team football on loan in Denmark at Viborg and in the USA at Orlando City and has continued to improve over time. He is now ready to appear in recent seasons from the bench after Hugo Lloris and Fraser Forster were injured, but he was never called upon. Therefore with Austin’s contract ending this summer, there were some questions on whether he would leave the Spurs to try his luck as number one somewhere else or sign a short-term extension with them. In the end, the team reinforced their faith in him with a brand new five-year contract. So was it difficult to dedicate five years of his career to a club where he had served for nine years without ever appearing in a competitive game? “I think a career for a goalkeeper is different,” he told football.london. “For a goalkeeper, I’m still fairly young and I think with what we’re building here at the club, conversations with the manager and what we do on a daily basis at the training ground is really exciting and really positive and something that I wanted to be a part of. I really see myself that I can fit in here and help to bring something really positive and bring success at the club. “Obviously it’s a nice feeling to be offered that contract and to get that sorted. I’m really pleased with that and looking forward to the next few years ahead.” Forster is still absent after fracturing his foot in training back in February. The veteran former England goalkeeper was initially expected to be out for two months but has not yet returned for almost six months. With the long contract in place for Austin, it suggests that he will finally be an official number two to Vicario. However, he says that he cannot confirm this yet. “I think we just have to see what the manager chooses to do. We’re still in pre-season now and with injuries, I don’t think it’s necessarily clear about what things will be. All I can do is focus on myself and work hard in training and take any opportunities that I do get,” said the stopper.
Former AC Milan star Olivier Giroud has officially arrived in Los Angeles, bringing him closer to his LAFC debut, potentially as soon as the Leagues Cup knockout stages. “Hi guys. Happy to be in LA and I can’t wait to see you,” Giroud told supporters in a club video. Giroud signed with LAFC on May 14, reuniting him with his longtime France teammate Hugo Lloris. He signed a Designated Player contract through 2025 with an option for 2026, joining as a free agent from Italian Serie A side AC Milan. At club level, Giroud has 286 goals in 718 games spanning Milan, Arsenal, Chelsea and more. He has won 13 trophies, highlighted by the 2018 FIFA World Cup and the 2021 UEFA Champions League. Olivier is the all-time leading scorer for France with 57 goals and has played 137 times for Les Blues, trailing only Lilian Thuram and Lloris in the record books. Now, all eyes are on when manager Steve Cherundolo can formally introduce him. He will play alongside Denis Bouanga and Mateusz Bogusz in the final third, in an attempt to bring LAFC to a third straight MLS Cup appearance.
Newcastle United could not get the £20 million compensation fee they wanted for Dan Ashworth. The Magpies allowed their former sporting director to join Manchester United. Although the club insisted on being paid for Ashworth, Chronicle Live reports that the eventual fee Newcastle got was meagre. Former Manchester City financial advisor Stefan Borson when speaking to Football Insider said: “There is quite a lot of rumour and counter rumour about how much Newcastle settled for in the end on Ashworth. “I did hear one source say to me the fee was as low as £3m. I’ve heard that it was well below £10m and nowhere near some of the numbers that have been rumoured. “At the end of the day, Newcastle were over a barrel as they admitted last week. “The CEO Darren Eales admitted that it was very close at the last minute in terms of Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR). “I don’t think they were in a very good negotiating position at the death. I suspect Man United did a decent deal.”
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