Chelsea have turned their attention to Christian Benteke as their search for a new attacker goes on. The Blues have been looking to sign a tall forward with Premier League experience this winter, but they have not been able to get a deal over the line. Andy Carroll, Edin Dzeko, and Peter Crouch are some of the big names they have considered bringing in this month, but they are now focused on trying to get Benteke. Edin Dzeko’s agent reportedly told the Blues that his client was happy to remain in Rome, while Stoke City rejected a temporary move for Crouch. Chelsea are looking for six months deal for an attacker as they anticipate that Antonio Conte would not be their manager come next season. Crystal Palace are not interested in selling Benteke this month, and would not even consider a temporary move at all. However, if the Blues make a huge bid for a permanent move, they could listen to the offer. He joined the Eagles for £27 million in August 2016 and has been one of their most important players, but his wage of over £100,000 a week is heavy on their wage bill and they would look to take that off their finances if a good offer comes along.

Manchester City are set to tie Kevin De Bruyne to a new long-term contract as they continue securing the future of their star men. The Cityzens have been working on new deals for their players over the past couple of weeks, with Fernandinho and Nicolas Otamendi the latest stars to sign contract extensions. According to Mail Sport, Belgian superstar, Kevin de Bruyne is the next in line for a new deal. Per the reports, the Belgian is set to sign a new deal worth £260,000 per week for six years at the Etihad. He would earn £200,000 in basic income, while £60,000 would come in the form of image rights. De Bruyne has been the most outstanding player in City’s squad this season, and his performances for them has attracted the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona. Manchester City missed out on signing Alexis Sanchez to Manchester United this month, but Pep Guardiola has confirmed that they would not be signing another attacker in this window. Guardiola reckons that he has enough players who can play there in the absence of Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero, with the likes Raheem Sterling capable of holding their own up front.

Liverpool are in no hurry to let Daniel Sturridge leave Anfield and they would only allow him to leave when they receive the right offer. The Red’s attacker is desperate for first team action after falling down the pecking order under Jurgen Klopp this season. The last time he played for Liverpool was an 18 minutes cameo appearance against Spartak Moscow on December 18th. Several top sides have been looking to sign him, but they all want temporary deals. According to Daily Mail, Sevilla became the latest side to try to take him on loan this month. The Spaniards proposed a six months loan deal and agreed to pay all his wage bill of £150,000 per week, but Liverpool rejected the offer. The Reds are ready to sell Sturridge this month, but their asking price is £30 million. Daniel Sturridge wants to play for England in this year’s World Cup in Russia, but a lack of first-team involvement could see him overlooked by Gareth Southgate. Inter Milan also want to take Sturridge on-loan, but they have been given the same response as Sevilla. He has scored 3 goals in 14 games for Liverpool this season, but over 70% of his appearances have been off the bench.

Juventus are prepared to sign Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen after this season. The Bianconerri are looking to add more quality to their midfield so they can maintain their dominance of the Italian game. Eriksen is one of many Spurs players to have caught the eyes of top European sides, and while he maintains that he is happy at White Hart Lane, without winning any trophy it would be hard to stay that positive for a long time. The Italians are also in talks with summer free agents Emre Can and Mesut Ozil. Juve are facing the prospect of losing Sami Khedira to the MLS after this season, and they want to replace the 30 years old with a younger midfielder. They thought the signing of Emre Can would come very simply for them, however, the German has kept his options open and does not want to be rushed into making any decision on his future. Ozil could well join the Old ladies, but they would have to cough up a significant figure for his signing on fee and weekly wage to tempt him away from north London. Max Alegri’s side hopes to sign Eriksen and any of Can and Ozil for a combined total value of £62 million.

Real Madrid are planning a stunning swoop on Tottenham star Harry Kane next summer. The England attacker is officially the most prolific striker in Europe for the year 2017 and has already scored 28 goals in 28 competitive games this season. Los Blancos are struggling to defend their La Liga title and are currently 19 points behind Barcelona on the league table. Their major problem seems to be a lack of goals and they have been linked with some of Europe’s best attackers this season. Reports in Spain are claiming that Florentino Perez wants to make Kane the next Galactico. Perez understands it would be difficult to sign Kane from Spurs, but he has a good relationship with the Lilywhites following the transfer of Gareth Bale in 2013. The report further claims that Mauricio Pochettino is being lined up as a replacement for Zinedine Zidane. Zidane started his Real Madrid’s managerial career by winning two consecutive Champions League trophies, but his team are at risk of not qualifying for next season’s competition except they can win it again this season. Pochettino has refused to rule out taking over at the Bernabeu, claiming that he would go where football leads him as far as his career is concerned.