Gini Wijnaldum: nice guy, very handsome and not half bad at association football. But things haven’t gone well for the Dutchman since his move to PSG, where just 11 league starts under Mauricio Pochettino mean Wijnaldum is suddenly quite interested in his current manager’s old stomping ground: Tottenham Hotspur.
Antonio Conte is so desperate for signings that he recently played Matt Doherty as a right winger as some form of dirty protest. Wijnaldum is a potential option, but a lot depends on whether PSG and Tottenham can arrange some sort of elaborate swap deal, which could involve any one of Tanguy Ndombele, Dele Alli and Julian Draxler. A Rumour Mill legend, Draxler has been threatening to come to the Premier League for nearly a decade now; could this be his time? Ndombele, Spurs’ record £55m signing in 2019, is keen on a return to France and the idea of actual silverware.
Newcastle’s transfer gurus have set their sights on the outline of Brighton’s Yves Bissouma, which while expensive, would be an entirely sensible signing. The Seagulls would reportedly be willing to do business at £50m, the same fee they demanded for Ben White, which would be a club record for Newcastle. Whether Bissouma would want to swap life in the top half of the table for a relegation battle is another matter.
Speaking of club records, Arsenal are considering breaking theirs once more. Nicolas Pépé hasn’t exactly set the Premier League alight since his whopping £72m move from Lille, but with the Gunners in desperate need of a new frontman, the £75m release clause of Real Sociedad’s Alexander Isak is suddenly looking a little more appealing. This is also due to the fact that Dusan Vlahovic looks like he’s off to Juventus, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is woefully out of form and favour, and Alexandre Lacazette currently can’t hit a barn door. Aubameyang is back in London after his Afcon tribulations and posted on Instagram that “my heart is absolutely fine and I’m completely healthy” in an apparent come-and-get-me plea to anyone that is willing to listen.
Barcelona have sent a lovely hamper round to César Azpilicueta’s house in an attempt to convince the Spaniard to sign on a free transfer this summer. Azpilicueta’s contract at Chelsea is up in the summer and he has yet to tell the club of his decision. ‘Dave’ is not the only Blues defender that could make the switch to Catalonia, with Xavi also interested in Andreas Christensen.
In slightly less continental news, Tottenham will win the race to sign Lewes teenager Ollie Tanner, who has been in sensational form for the non-league side this season. A former Arsenal academy player, the 19-year-old has been scoring free-kicks for fun and looked set to sign for Brighton (and be loaned back to Lewes) before interest from Spurs developed.