Gossip: Man Utd 'launch £50m Maguire bid', Chelsea 'target Bonucci', Liverpool 'rule out' signing new keeper
After the summer Harry Maguire has had, you couldn’t blame the England defender for getting slightly big-headed – especially given that his head was already roughly the size of a small Croatian village.
But today there is even more ammunition to fuel the continued growth of football’s largest bonce – the Mail is linking Maguire with a £50m move to Manchester United.
The Red Devils are tipped to make a “huge offer” for the centre-back this month and are reportedly willing to bid triple the £17m Leicester City paid for him just a year ago.
The Foxes’ “rich Thai owners” (are there any other type of owners?) will fight to keep the 25-year-old, but United manager Jose Mourinho is seemingly determined to get his man after being “impressed” with Maguire’s World Cup displays and his “mental toughness”.
READ MORE: Mahrez tells Maguire ‘you deserve bigger and better than Leicester’
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Probably the only thing that can stop the transfer happening now is if Phil Jones, who already lost his England place to the Yorkshireman, sabotages the deal somehow – for instance by framing Maguire for an unsolved murder or lobbying for new FIFA legislation restricting the cranial mass of professional footballers.
Eden Hazard and Willian could leave Chelsea
It’s all happening at Chelsea, who as well as sacking one manager and appointing a new one are also reportedly on the verge of signing a defender and flogging a couple of playmakers.
Corriere dello Sport says incoming Blues boss Maurizio Sarri will battle Paris Saint-Germain for the AC Milan centre-back Leonardo Bonucci, who Antonio Conte also spent most of last year trying to buy.
Chelsea have also received a second offer from Barcelona for Willian worth £60m (Mail), and are bracing themselves for a £150m bid from Real Madrid for Eden Hazard (Mail). Sell those two and presumably it will be left to Olivier Giroud to provide the creativity in the Blues attack.
Alleged Blues and Man Utd target Gareth Bale is trying to work out if he still wants to leave Real Madrid following the departure of his two mortal enemies Zinedine Zidane and Cristiano Ronaldo. Sky Sports says the Welshman is set for “face-to-face talks” with new coach Julen Lopetegui next week, after which his Bernabeu future “will become clearer”.
Danny Ward to be Liverpool’s number one
Meanwhile, the man whose summer Bale ruined, the Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius, has received some much-needed good news. The Mirror says Reds manager Jurgen Klopp has “ruled out” a move for a new goalie this summer after being quoted exorbitant fees for the likes of Roma’s Alisson.
READ MORE: Chelsea finally sack Conte, set to appoint Napoli’s Sarri
Less encouraging for Karius is that Klopp is now reportedly set to make Anfield reserve keeper Danny Ward his new number one – or as the Mirror poetically puts it, “offer him the keys to the Anfield kingdom”. How magical for him.
Elsewhere, Everton are set to make a “stunning double swoop” for Barcelona’s defensive duo Lucas Digne and Yerry Mina (Mirror), Leicester have identified Torino’s 28-year-old Spanish winger Iago Falque – formerly of Spurs – as a replacement for Riyad Mahrez (Tutosport) and West Ham target Felipe Anderson has flown to London to complete a £50m move from Lazio (Sun). Swear that transfer fee gets higher every day.
