Nico Williams and Mikel Merino Draw Arsenal Interest

Nico Williams of Athletic Bilbao and Mikel Merino of Real Sociedad have attracted Arsenal’s interest. Barcelona is also competing for both Spanish internationals. Arsenal’s primary target is Nico Williams, who has shown great potential at Athletic Bilbao. Borussia Dortmund, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain are pursuing Manchester United forward Jadon Sancho, 24. However, they cannot meet Manchester United’s £40 million valuation.

On another front, Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold, 25, remains committed to the Reds despite Real Madrid’s interest. Similarly, Manchester City is in talks to sell Brazilian right-back Yan Couto, 22, to Borussia Dortmund for approximately £25 million. Conversely, Manchester United has made an offer of around €40 million (£33.6 million) for Netherlands center-back Matthijs de Ligt. Nevertheless, Bayern Munich is holding out for at least €50 million (£42.2 million) plus add-ons.

In other news, Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah, 25, is surprised by his exclusion from the club’s pre-season tour and feels the club is pushing him out. Additionally, Kieran Trippier, 33, is attracting interest from Saudi Arabian clubs and is likely to leave Newcastle United with one year remaining on his contract. Meanwhile, Brazil midfielder Joelinton, 27, is content at Newcastle and believes Bruno Guimaraes, 26, will stay despite ongoing transfer speculation.

Furthermore, Brentford’s Ivan Toney, 28, might let his contract run down if he does not secure a significant move. Manchester United must first sell right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka, 26, before they can pursue Bayern Munich’s Noussair Mazraoui, 26. Everton is close to finalizing a deal for a season-long loan of Napoli’s Jesper Lindstrom, 24, with an £18.5 million purchase option.

Additionally, Ipswich Town is preparing to make an offer for Sunderland’s Jack Clarke, with Tottenham set to receive a significant portion of the fee due to a sell-on clause. Bologna is negotiating with free-agent Mats Hummels, 35, to replace Riccardo Calafiori, who is likely to join Arsenal. Getafe will earn over £5 million from Mason Greenwood’s move to Marseille, thanks to a sell-on clause.

Lastly, Scottish striker Oli McBurnie, 28, is set to join Las Palmas as a free agent while Rangers captain James Tavernier, 32, is in talks with Trabzonspor. Finally, Chelsea has approached Villarreal about Danish goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen, 22. Meanwhile, Derby County will sign Swedish goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom, 26, from Djurgardens IF.