Chelsea have reportedly submitted a £26m offer to sign a Chelsea star in the summer transfer window, as personally requested by Xabi Alonso.
The Blues will be looking to back their new manager after he took over earlier this year.
It’s been a difficult period for Chelsea, who won’t be competing in the Champions League next season, and they did superbly to attract a manager of Alonso’s calibre.
The club now needs to back him with new additions in order to suit his style, while the squad also needs a refresh after their disappointing campaign.
According to a report from journalist Luca Cerchione, Chelsea have submitted a £26m bid to sign Sunderland midfielder Granit Xhaka in the summer transfer window.
The potential signing is believed to have been personally requested by Alonso, who managed Xhaka during his time at Bayer Leverkusen.
It feels unlikely that Sunderland would be willing to accept a bid of just £26 million for Xhaka, considering he was their ‘best‘ player last campaign and won their player of the season award.
Alonso knows the midfielder well, and it shouldn’t be a surprise that they are targeting that profile of signing.
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Chelsea Need to Add Experience
Chelsea have heavily focused their recruitment on bringing in young talent from around the world over the last few years.
Although it could be an effective method in the long term, they do lack experience in all positions.
The Blues are one of the most ill-disciplined sides in the Premier League, getting more red cards last season than any other team.
The signing of someone like Xhaka won’t only offer experience in himself. He’s also the type of leader who can help get the best out of other players.
Sunderland managed to qualify for European football last season, despite only being promoted the previous campaign, and Xhaka was a key reason behind that.
Cody Gakpo’s girlfriend, Noa van der Bij, has posted an emotional statement to confirm that their son has passed away during pregnancy.
The Liverpool star and his partner announced in May that they were expecting another boy. They already have one son, Samuel, who was born in 2024.
Gakpo is currently representing the Netherlands at the 2026 World Cup, while Van der Bij is in the United States of America to support him from the stands. The latter took to Instagram to share the news that their baby, who they named Elijah Raphael Gakpo, had passed.
Cody Gakpo and Noa van der Bij Lose Son
Jay Biggerstaff (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters)
Van der Bij posted to her Instagram story on Saturday afternoon, saying: “With broken hearts, we share the devastating news that our baby boy passed away during pregnancy. Thank you for your love and support. Elijah Raphael Gakpo Forever loved. Forever our son.”
She then shared a heartbreaking story of how the couple and their son, Samuel, went to light a candle at church and came across another little boy called Elijah. Her next post stated:
“We went to church to light a candle. Afterwards, we walked to the church playground with our son Samuel. There was only one other child there. His name was Elijah.
“There could not have been a more beautiful sign from God He reminded us that our little boy is never far away.”
A billionaire tennis player has chosen not to share a hotel with her Wimbledon competitors, previously claiming that she needs better facilities to help her recover efficiently and effectively.
Staying at the official Wimbledon hotel is the default expected choice for many of the tournament participants. It serves as a financial necessity for many lower-ranked players, juniors, and doubles specialists who rely on the tournament’s organisers to cover the expensive costs of hotels during their time competing.
This does rule out those that can afford to prepare for the tournament while prioritising comfort over free accommodation.
World’s Richest Tennis Player Chooses Her Own Hotels
Andrew Couldridge via Reuters
From Monday, as the tournament gets underway, the widely considered world’s richest tennis star will be staying in a premium, independent hotel of her own choosing, and will be looking to improve on her best-ever run to the quarter-finals in 2023.
She will enter the prestigious tournament as fourth seed, but has still yet to reach a major championship, with her run to the US Open final in 2024 being the closest she has ever come.
She believes that choosing her own hotel room, away from the other players, could lead to success, explaining that as she has become older, the small details matter, like having a better pillow and a quiet space to relax, with both being vital for recovery.
Why She Chooses Her Own Hotels
“We’re either on the court or we’re in the hotel room,” she said. “It’s such a big part of our lives, and as I’ve gotten older, a good hotel has become more of a priority.
“When you’re 20, and you’re just starting to travel, you’re not complaining that much: you’re more out there grinding and embracing life on tour. Once you hit 30 and kind of need a better pillow, that stuff honestly becomes really important.”
During last year’s French Open, Jessica Pegula, the daughter of the NFL Buffalo Bills owner, Terry Pegula, first decided to take this approach before realising how mentally draining it had become to share her space with her direct rivals.
“Oh my gosh, being away from everyone else is a massive thing for me,” Pegula admitted. “I think that’s what maybe sparked this, as well. I just felt like, ‘I can’t do [player hotels] anymore.’
Szymon Gorski via Reuters
“When you’re staying at a tournament hotel, I feel like it’s so mentally draining. It’s not like anyone is a problem.”
The American star is scheduled to come up against unseeded Czech Darja Vidmanova at 11am on Monday.
The 32-year-old has amassed over $2 million worth of prize money so far in her career and has really highlighted the importance of her recent decision.
“If you were going to work with someone, you would necessarily want to eat breakfast with them, practice with them, have lunch, go to the locker room, and the physio room with them, and see them in the elevators and the hallways.
“I don’t think people realise that shouldn’t happen, not with the people you’re working and competing with every single week. We play pretty much every week together, and so, all of that together, you’re ready to lose it.”
Manchester United held talks with intermediaries representing Ramos earlier in the transfer window, and he was firmly on the radar of the Premier League club.
United didn’t make a formal offer for Ramos, who has been described as ‘elite’, and he is now set to join AC Milan for a fee in the region of £60m, eclipsing their previous record when they signed Rafael Leao for around £43m.
United were among a number of Premier League clubs to have held talks with Ramos, but it’s no surprise that PSG have accepted such a big offer from AC Milan.
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Man Utd in Market for New Striker
Manchester United do appear to be in the market for a new striker in the summer transfer window.
The Red Devils are looking to bring in an experienced forward to help develop and provide cover and competition for Benjamin Sesko.
United need to ensure that they do not ruin the pathway of development for Sesko. They also need to ensure he has strong competition and cover, especially as they prepare to compete in the Champions League.
