Football transfer rumours: Firmino set to make Premier League return?

We have some shocking news to bring you. Apparently Roberto Firmino isn’t really enjoying the Saudi Pro League so much and might rather swap the heat of Al-Ahli for a crisp winter’s walk around Putney, west London.

Fulham are keen and a deal could be done for the former Liverpool favourite, although other Premier League teams are said to be in the mix, too. Why wouldn’t they be interested? The Brazilian is still only 32.

It is quite the situation Ivan Toney finds himself in. Returning to a Brentford side who have lost five on the bounce and are glaringly short of strikers, his stock is higher than ever despite not actually playing any football since May. Thomas Frank said on Thursday it “would need to be an unbelievable price” for the Bees to cash in, with £100m said to be the specific and scarcely believable figure in question. Can anyone think of a club silly enough to stump up that kind of dough? Even Chelsea wouldn’t be so foolish, would they? Arsenal may well look elsewhere.

In other Chelsea news, Bayer Leverkusen’s sought-after right-back Jeremie Frimpong is of interest this January, but Xabi Alonso’s side have no plans to sell. Arsenal, meanwhile, are tracking the 17-year-old Dutch wunderkind Jorrel Hato.

Newcastle’s Bruno Guimarães is Paris Saint-Germain’s “top target” for this month, but he’s another Premier League star with a £100m price tag around his neck and a release clause to that value in his Toon contract. Surely Eddie Howe’s mob cannot afford to sell their best midfielder mid-season?

And no edition of the Mill would ever be complete without a mention for Manchester United. But something alarming is happening over at Old Trafford. They’re said to be pursuing a low-key deal for the Ecuadorian hotshot midfielder Óscar Zambrano – dubbed “the next Moisés Caicedo” – while rumours of a new deal for Anthony Martial are wide of the mark. Sir Jim and Sir Dave might actually be making some sensible decisions, lads.