Rafael Leao has just issued a come and get me plea to the Premier League, with Manchester United given a clear green light to go and complete the Portuguese’s transfer.

Leao has long been linked with a move to England and it looks like now is the right time, with his seven-year spell at AC Milan set to come to an end.

United have been linked with Leao before, but never managed to get a deal done and with the Red Devils in the market for a left winger this summer – as well as two central midfielders – now could be the perfect time to bring Leao in.

Rafael Leao reveals he will leave AC Milan this summer

Speaking on Portuguese TV, Leao was asked about the rumours swirling around his future at the San Siro.

He said: “I’m proud as I made history at AC Milan but now I want a new chapter. I’m looking forward to playing in another league.

“I did my best for Milan, the club gave me everything, but I’m feeling ready for a new team, new league and new challenge.”

The 26-year-old has already played in Portugal, France and Italy, with the Bundesliga or La Liga the only real competition for Premier League sides if he does want to experience a new league.

There was a suggestion that Milan would demand in the region of £60million for him this summer, but that price tag has dropped slightly, with Leao having just two years left to run on his current contract in Italy.

Milan are now understood to be willing to trade at around £43million, with United already making moves to sign him this summer.

Recent reports in the the print version of Corriere dello Sport, via Sport Witness, claimed that United have already initiated contact with super agent Jorge Mendes over a potential summer move for the winger.

It has always been a “dream” of Leao’s to play in the Premier League and he may well get his wish this summer.

United will not have it all their own way when it comes to negotiating a transfer, however, with a number of other club interested in signing Leao – namely Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham. Chelsea could also make a move given their desire to sign another left winger this summer.

Rafael Leao has not had the best of seasons with AC Milan

Former AC Milan boss Stefano Pioli once described Leao as an “artist”. He said: “Rafa is an artist. Artists are geniuses, they must be guided but they also need a bit of freedom. He is a player who can decide any game at any moment, but he knows he still has steps to take to become truly unstoppable.”

Leao has had his troubles at Milan, falling out of favour with Paulo Fonseca and with the Milanese fans, booed off by his own fans during a game with Atalanta earlier in the season.

Despite his troubles he still managed 10 goals and three assists in 31 games as the Serie A giants finished a disappointing fifth. Those stats are well down on the 25 goal contributions he made in 2024/25 and the 29 he made in 2023/24, suggesting his time at the San Siro has naturally run its course.

Tottenham Hotspur might just have been forced to move a bit quicker in the transfer market after what happened at Liverpool on Saturday.

There was an element of surprise when Liverpool announced that Arne Slot had been relieved of his duties as manager at Anfield.

The Dutchman had guided the Reds to the Premier League title in his first season in charge, but followed it up this year with a disappointing fifth-place finish.

Liverpool make approach to bring in Andoni Iraola

And despite reports suggesting he had the backing of owners Fenway Sports Group ahead of the 2026/27 season, he was sacked, with the club citing that “change is necessary in order for the club to keep moving forward” in a long statement on his departure.

Slot is expected to be replaced at Anfield by outgoing Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola, with the former Cherries manager the overwhelming favourite to take over in the Anfield dugout.

GIVEMESPORT understands that Liverpool have already made an approach to Iraola, who is the standout candidate to replace Slot and talks are expected to move quickly.

And that move to bring in Iraola could lead Spurs to hasten one transfer move.

Tottenham have had an agreement in principle in place to sign Marcos Senesi, following he conclusion of his contract at the Vitality Stadium, for some time, with journalist Rudy Galetti even stating earlier this week that it was a “done deal”.

However, a deal to take him to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has not yet been confirmed by Spurs and there may be some nervousness in the fanbase now about getting the transfer over the line.

Konate exit could force Liverpool into the transfer market

Liverpool were one of the clubs linked with potentially hijacking the transfer this summer, given question marks over Ibrahima Konate’s future at the club. It has since been confirmed that he will be leaving, meaning the Reds will be in the market for another centre-back in this window.

And if Iraola is inserted as the new manager of Liverpool in the coming days, as expected, given their previous working relationship, the Reds may yet try to make a late move to hijack the Tottenham deal for Senesi.

Senesi is a free agent after leaving Bournemouth and can put pen-to-paper anywhere now, with his agent playing a key role in the 29-year-old’s future.

It has looked, for some time, like a straight shootout between the two Manchester clubs for Elliot Anderson’s signature in the summer transfer window.

But Manchester United‘s transfer dealings so far – with the window not actually open for another two weeks yet – may point to their rivals City getting a free run at the Nottingham Forest midfielder after all.

It seems highly unlikely that we will hear anything with regard to the 23-year-old’s future for another month, with the midfielder enjoying a short break before meeting up with his England teammates for the World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico next week.

Manchester City take lead in Anderson transfer race

There had been a growing feeling that City were the frontrunners to sign Anderson, with the bookmakers having them at 4/11 to sign him, with United at 4/1.

City have long been confident of getting a deal over the line, but GIVEMESPORT have always reported that Anderson was United’s number one priority in the transfer window this summer.

United are in the market for two new central midfielders, with Casemiro leaving the club and the Red Devils open to selling Manuel Ugarte, but it now does not look like Anderson will be one of them.

United have reached an agreement with Atalanta to sign Brazilian midfielder Ederson this summer in a deal worth just under £39million. He will be midfielder number one joining and there are strong reports that Sandro Tonali could be the second.

Manchester United interest in Carlos Baleba has cooled, but while it looked like United had been put off by the price tag for Tonali and the lack of value in the deal, they could now get a transfer over the line.

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano claimed last week that United delegates jetting out to Italy for talks over the Ederson deal would have met up with Tonali’s representatives too to discuss terms.

Manchester United could sign Tonali and Fernandes

A separate report from Italy last week claimed that United were actually close to an agreement to sign the ‘elite’ Tonali, with another saying new permanent manager Michael Carrick instructed club chiefs to sign the Italian international ahead of Ederson as part of their major midfield rebuild.

There are also links with Mateus Fernandes, who could now be available on a cut-price deal following West Ham’s relegation to the Championship.

GIVEMESPORT reported on suggestions that Manchester United had pulled out of a move to sign Anderson earlier this week and it may now be coming true, with rivals City getting the green light to conclude a £100m deal with Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis.