Manchester United have reached an agreement with Chelsea to sign midfielder Andrey Santos, according to David Ornstein.
The Red Devils have been in the market to bolster their midfield options this summer, but missed out on deals to sign their top targets Elliot Anderson and Matheus Fernandes, after they moved to Man City and Tottenham Hotspur for £116m and £85m respectively.
But INEOS have now secured their second midfield signing of the summer after agreeing a fee with Premier League rivals Chelsea for the Brazil international.
Man Utd Agree £50m Deal to Sign Andrey Santos
Santos, who has been described as ‘world-class’, has been a long-term target for INEOS, and a deal has now been struck worth a fixed fee of £48m, plus a further £2m in easily achievable add-ons for the 22-year-old.
Personal terms are already in place, and permission has now been given to the midfielder to undergo a medical before putting pen to paper on a long-term contract at Old Trafford. Chelsea have also secured a 10% sell-on clause as part of the deal.
For neutrals watching at home, Argentina’s 3-2 comeback win against Egypt had everything a World Cup fan could dream of: a missed penalty, a controversially ruled-out goal, and a stunning comeback victory. However, most Egyptian supporters won’t feel that way.
The game started so well for Hossam Hassan’s side, as Yasser Ibrahim put them in front before Lionel Messi missed from 12 yards. Mostafa Ziko then made it 2-0, although that only came after Egyptian had had a goal controversially ruled out.
From that position of dominance, Mohamed Salah and his teammates fell to pieces as Cristian Romero pulled one back, before Messi levelled just four minutes later. Enzo Fernandes then headed in to complete the stunning comeback in the 93rd minute.
After the game, there have been cries of corruption and conspiracy, but former Premier League referee Graham Scott has rubbished the claims.
“They want Argentina and Messi to stay in the World Cup for marketing. If they wanted Argentina to win, why invite other teams to participate? This match was clearly rigged, and the whole world witnessed it.
“We were better than Argentina, and football is unfair. We had a clear penalty that the referee didn’t award, and Ziko’s goal at the start of the second half was disallowed, even though it was perfectly legitimate.”
Writing an article for The Athletic, in which he claimed “talk of a ‘conspiracy’ is nonsense”, former Premier League referee Scott has explained why one moment from the game proves that French referee Francois Letexier did not favour Argentina blindly. He noted that the official showed ‘common sense’ to not book Egyptian player Ziko in one instance, even though rules meant he should have:
“There was another refereeing error that would have gone unnoticed by most, as Ziko should have received a yellow card for removing his shirt, even though the goal was later disallowed.
“Referee Letexier showed common sense in the circumstances by letting the incident pass and would have been criticised had he stuck to the law. It’s another example of how people in football say they want consistency — until they see what it looks like.”
He added: “There are plenty who, wrongly, believed that FIFA had ordained an Argentina victory, and that there is a conspiracy to have Lionel Messi end his illustrious career by lifting the World Cup again on July 19. I am certain that the World Cup officials at their Florida training camp are beyond reproach.”
Scott then summed up his feelings, noting: “Refs make mistakes and sometimes these benefit the big clubs or powerful countries. When this happens, conspiracy theorists spread their poison. Such arguments fall away when the underdog benefits. At this World Cup, the beneficiaries of refereeing errors or highly dubious calls have included Scotland (against Brazil), Senegal (against France) and Paraguay (against Germany).”
Arsenal already know their top two targets as they look to strengthen out wide this summer. The Gunners have two clear priorities during this window in terms of positions, with a left-winger and a number 8 on the shopping list for Andrea Berta and Mikel Arteta.
The Gunners need to find clear upgrades this summer as they look to take the next step in Europe as well as staying ahead of their Premier League rivals. Arsenal are expected to spend big again this summer after huge spending over the last couple of years, and their primary target alone could cost them well over £100million, with a British-record transfer being mooted.
Romano explains order of Arsenal’s main winger targets
Caean Couto (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters)
Speaking on his YouTube show, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano said: “(Bradley) Barcola is also appreciated by Arsenal, but he’s not position number one. Position number one is Morgan Rogers, position number two is Barcola, and there are more options in terms of wingers, so that’s the situation at Arsenal, then it’s important to mention for Paris Saint-Germain [he] is not untouchable because the new contract talks are completely, completely on standby, standby for long time. So Barcola and PSG, at the moment, there is no agreement over new deal, and also it is important to say PSG would ask important money, so who’s going to sign Barcola?”
Rogers is likely to cost well over £100million this summer, and there are reports he could cost a British-record £130million. Aston Villa are very reluctant to sell, and there is every chance Arsenal could turn to Barcola.
Barcola a cheaper option than Rogers
Action Images
The latest report is that Barcola can leave PSG for around £77million, which would make him a much cheaper signing than Rogers, even if the wages are likely to be very big.
The Frenchman has been an important player for PSG, scoring 13 times last season, but Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has kept him out of his best position on the left. Kvaratskhelia is likely the best left winger in the world currently, so Barcola is unlikely to see any change in Luis Enrique’s plans any time soon.
Barcola is still only 23 years of age, so he could be a player whose value could yet rise if he continues his current trajectory. Meanwhile, Rogers’ cost means Arsenal will likely never make their money back, but the young England talent is a proven Premier League commodity who arguably has a bigger ceiling.
Newcastle United captain Bruno Guimaraes has told the club he wishes to leave this summer to join Arsenal, according to David Ornstein.
The Magpies have already sold Anthony Gordon to Barcelona for £70m, while Sandro Tonali completed a £100m move to Tottenham Hotspur this week, with Eddie Howe looking to rebuild his squad.
But they have now been rocked by the wishes of the Brazil international, with the Gunners ready to make a mega bid to take him to north London.
Bruno Guimaraes Tells Newcastle He Wants to Join Arsenal
via Reuters
Guimaraes has just finished representing Brazil at the World Cup, where he enjoyed an excellent tournament but couldn’t help the five-time winners past the Round of 16, where they were eliminated by Erling Haaland’s Norway side.
But he has now informed Newcastle bosses that he wishes to leave this summer after the club failed to qualify for Europe, and he wants to join Arsenal in the summer window.
The Gunners have made it clear they would be willing to pay up to £60m for the 28-year-old, and are now preparing to make a formal offer. No club-to-club contact has been made yet, although Arsenal did have a verbal enquiry worth around £55m rejected by the Magpies earlier this month.
