Transfer news live - Liverpool handed £200m Salah boost, Pepe quits Arsenal

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Newcastle had Tonali alternative

Newcastle were reportedly interested in signing Nicolo Barella as an alternative to Sandro Tonali.

The Magpies sealed the big-money signing of the former AC Milan star this summer but he wasn't the only option under consideration.

According to Corriere dello Sport, they were interested in Barella. However, he wasn't interested in a switch and Inter were also not keen to sell.

Valverde reveals Arsenal trial

Real Madrid star Fede Valverde has revealed that he once had a trial with Arsenal.

Speaking to reporters on international duty, he said: "When I went to train at Arsenal, Alexis was there and he was one of the few who came up to help me. I will always be grateful to him because, being a nobody, I was well-received by him. He was there to help me when I was a kid. As a footballer, he is an incredible player."

Salah's Saudi move still possible

Saudi Pro League director of football Michael Emenalo – the man who has to approve all the league’s transfers – has hinted that efforts to sign Mo Salah will be renewed at the first opportunity.

“First and foremost, Salah is one of the best players on the planet. I've said before, privately and publicly that we welcome anybody that wants to come to the SPL. That includes Salah,” Emenalo told Sky Sports when asked if Saudi clubs would try again to sign him.

Read the full story here

Man Utd deadline day live updates as Sabitzer completes loan move

Madrid eye Haaland

Real Madrid are interested in signing Erling Haaland should they fail to sign Kylian Mbappe.

According to Defensa Central, president Florentino Perez wants to sign a new Galactico next summer. Mbappe is their priority but should they fail to sign Mbappe then Haaland is an option.

It is suggested that Real could potentially be force to pay up to £171m to sign him.

Southgate makes Henderson protest claim

Gareth Southgate believes England fans will back Jordan Henderson despite calls for a protest against him.

Former Liverpool captain Henderson has gone from LGBTQ campaigner to public enemy No1 with his move to Saudi Arabia where it is illegal to be gay. England fans from the LGBTQ community have warned they will turn their backs on him during games in response for what they see as him doing the same to them.

But England boss Southgate said: “I think Jordan expressed himself this week that he’d be sad if that’s how they felt. His feeling towards that community hasn’t changed.

“I think as a team, I am sure all of our fans are going to get behind the team when the game starts. I understand some of the comments that have been, and I respect the comments that have been made. But I think what’s also been said is that they’re going to get behind the team when we play, and I am sure they’ll get behind Jordan when the game starts as well.”

Todibo issues Man Utd transfer message

Former Manchester United transfer target Jean-Clair Todibo has insisted that he is "happy" with his decision to turn down the Red Devils in favour of staying with Nice.

He said: “I’m very happy to have stayed honestly. Staying in Nice was one of the options, and I’m very happy here. The club has brought me a lot.

“I had opportunities elsewhere, I listened to them like any human being would have done, it was very good opportunities. But staying in Nice suits me, wonderfully, it’s great for me, I feel good here.”

Bale makes Man Utd admission

Gareth Bale has admitted that he turned down Manchester United in 2007 in favour of moving to Spurs.

He said: “I rejected Manchester United and went to Tottenham. At the time, United were the biggest team in the Premier League, winning trophies, with the best players and the best coach.

“The easy decision would have been to go to United, the biggest club in England when I played for Southampton. You always want to be at the biggest clubs, but I made the decision to play football. At that age, many players would look for money and want to go to a bigger club.

“It was important for my development to keep playing football, that’s why I chose Tottenham.”

Carroll opens up on France switch

Andy Carroll has opened up on the reasons he decided to move to Amiens.

He said: “I had many options from many countries, including in England. When I spoke with John, I came here straight away and cast my eye over the city and the club. I knew it was the place I wanted to play.

“It was by speaking to John and my team-mates that I made the decision to come here. It’s a good club, a family club, with great facilities."

Coutinho seals Villa exit

Former Liverpool and Barcelona star Philippe Coutinho is on the move once more having sealed a move to Al-Duhail.

The Brazilian midfielder has joined the Qatari side on a season-long loan from Aston Villa.

Saha hails Man Utd

Louis Saha has praised former club Man United for deciding to sign Rasmus Holjund instead of Evan Ferguson.

Speaking to Paddy Power, he said: "Rasmus Hojlund was the right target for Manchester United over Evan Ferguson. Both players are tremendous with exciting potential but whenever you make a decision, there needs to be no regrets.

"Ferguson scored a hat trick on the weekend, and Hojlund played in his debut, it doesn’t make sense to make those comparisons because they have two different careers."

McTominay sent transfer advice

Scotland boss Steve Clarke has told Scott McTominay to keep working hard at Man United despite having failed to seal a move away.

Speaking to reporters, he said: "I've had one or two conversations with Scott already about how the season might pan out. It's similar to Kieran [Tierney] last year. It's important when they're at a club and not playing regularly that they train very hard and work very hard and, when they do get the minutes, do everything they can to be successful.

"Everybody is different. Scott will deal with it differently to Kieran, and to Billy, but as long as they keep on turning up for Scotland doing what they do, we should be happy with that."

Balogun hails Monaco move

One man who is happy with the decision he made this summer is Folarin Balogun.

The striker quit Arsenal for Monaco and appears to have little regret. "In the end when Monaco were interested it was, really, an easy decision for me," he told Offside With Taylor Twellman.

"I told my agent: 'This is the only place I wanted to go.' And luckily for me, he made it happen."

Wrexham sign ex-Prem ace

Wrexham have finally found a stand-in for Paul Mullin in the form of a former Premier League ace after a move for their top target dramatically collapsed.

The Red Dragons saw the transfer of Harrogate Town's Luke Armstrong fall through on transfer deadline day after the EFL refused his registration. However, it seems chairmen Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have been eager to put this right and have found a solution in ex-Wolves striker Steven Fletcher.

Find out more on the move here

Tielemans hits out

Aston Villa midfielder Youri Tielemans has already hit out at his lack of playing time since his arrival from Leicester in the summer.

Speaking whilst on international duty, he said: “The situation is not pleasant. I told the manager that I came to Villa to play. He understands me, but at the moment, he prefers to play with the two midfielders from last season. He told me that soon, there will be a succession of games and I’ll get more playing time.

“I know that answer doesn’t get me anywhere, but what should I do? As soon as I get the opportunity, I want to take it. So far, I’ve started once, in the Conference League.”

Carroll opens up on surprise move

Andy Carroll has spoken about his decision to leave English football and join French side Amiens.

“I had many options from many countries, including in England," the former Newcastle and Liverpool striker said, (via Get French Football News).

"When I spoke with John (sporting director John Williams), I came here straight away and cast my eye over the city and the club. I knew it was the place I wanted to play."

Jota left im limbo

Former Celtic star Jota runs the risk of being left in limbo due to Saudi Pro League rules on foreign players.

The Portuguese joined Al-Ittihad early in the window, but the club have since made further big additions.

Jota, 24, could find himself cut from the squad after the likes of Fabinho and Luiz Felipe followed him to Jeddah, Sky Sports reports.

Pepe moves to Turkey

Nicolas Pepe has joined Turkish side Trabzonspor on a free transfer - just four years after being Arsenal’s record signing.

Ivory Coast winger Pepe, 28, cost a staggering £72m when he moved to the Emirates in 2019 but has never lived up to expectation.

Arsenal were keen to get him off the books this summer and cut their losses as Pepe had just one year left on his contract with the Gunners. But they needed to find a financial compromise on his wages before allowing to go.

They have now sorted a deal with Trabzonspor because the Turkish transfer window is still open which means he has been able to make the switch.

Pepe won the FA Cup in 2020 and scored 27 goals in 112 games for the Gunners but was not in Mikel Arteta’s plans for this season and has not played for Arsenal since May 2022.

Former Nice winger Pepe remained Arsenal’s biggest buy until they signed Declan Rice for £105m this summer.

Nicolas Pepe (PA)

ICYMI: Liverpool's Nunez swap plans

The undoubted highlight of Liverpool's season so far has been the sight of Darwin Nunez wheeling away in celebration at St. James' Park after his brace secured an incredible smash-and-grab 2-1 win.

However, if some of the key figures within the Anfield hierarchy had got their way, it wouldn't have happened at all, as new reports surface suggesting Liverpool weighed up the idea of parting ways with Nunez as part of a swap deal for Atletico Madrid's Joao Felix.

Read the full story here

Giggs responds to Sancho situation

Ryan Giggs has told Jadon Sancho not to sulk if he wants to change Erik ten Hag's opinion of him and win back his Manchester United place.

Sancho was left out of United's squad for last Sunday's 3-1 defeat at Arsenal, with Ten Hag claiming afterwards the 23-year-old had been omitted because of poor performances in training.

Read the full story here

Record-breaking Saudi window in focus

The Saudi Pro League transfer window is finally shut, with clubs from the country spending a whopping £784.2million over the summer.

That is a figure only beaten by the Premier League in terms of outlay by divisions around the world. Remarkably, 87 per cent of those fees were paid by just four clubs Al-Hilal, Al-Ahli, Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad, all of whom will be challenging for the title.

Read the full story here

Which free agents could still move

While many transfer windows have shut, Premier League clubs are still able to snap up free agents outside the window.

Those who could yet make a move include former Manchester United pair David de Gea and Jesse Lingard, with the latter having trained with West Ham over the summer.

Eden Hazard is also available on a free after leaving Real Madrid, though the Belgian has hinted he may be ready to retire.

Appleton takes over at Charlton

Charlton Athletic have confirmed Michael Appleton as their new manager.

The former Blackpool boss has taken the reins after a slow start to the season saw predecessor Dean Holden sacked.

I will give everything to deliver success for Charlton Athletic Football Club," Appleton said following his appointment.

"To do this, we will all need to work together; the players, staff and supporters, we all have a part to play."

Star names who turned down Saudi move

At last, Premier League managers can relax.

The Saudi Pro League's window shut on Thursday, giving European clubs nearly four months of peace before the transfer chaos starts again. Several players have moved to the Middle East, including Neymar, Ruben Neves, Sadio Mane and Karim Benzema.

Yet some superstars did say no to a Saudi payday, such as Leicester legend Jamie Vardy, Tottenham captain Son Heung-min, three-time Champions League winner Keylor Navas and new Roma striker Romelu Lukaku. Managers have also turned down a move to the Middle East, including Jose Mourinho and Fulham boss Marco Silva.

With that in mind, here's Mirror Football's XI who turned down the chance to play in Saudi Arabia. P.S. There aren't many defenders - turns out the Saudis aren't that interested!

Read the full story here

Forest confirm new Worrall deal

Joe Worrall has signed a new contract with Nottingham Forest, the club have confirmed.

The centre-back, who has captained the side for their two campaigns back in the Premier League, has agreed terms to keep him at the City Ground until 2026.

"I’m over the moon and just so pleased to extend my time with the club," he told club media.

“You only have to look to the future and it looks very bright. Everybody knows how much we care to try and improve as a team and try and push on as a club."

Keys' Salah prediction backfires

Liverpool fans will be awaiting an apology from Richard Keys after another of the broadcaster's predictions backfired.

Keys had tipped Mohamed Salah to leave Anfield for the Saudi Pro League, with Al-Ittihad having lined up a £215million move for the attacker. They had seen a first bid of £150m rejected by the Reds on the Premier League's transfer deadline day.

Read the full story here

Neymar's Saudi Pro League assessment

Neymar has talked up the quality in the Saudi Pro League after moving to Al-Hilal over the summer.

"The ball is round, there's a goal, and if you look at the names that have gone to the Saudi league... I don't know whether it is better than the French league or not," he said (per Sky Sports).

"I want to win titles for Al Hilal, my head won't change much. Everyone said the same when I went to France (about competitiveness), and it was the place I was hit the most in my life.

"I am sure that it won't be easy to win the Saudi championship, other teams got stronger, have famous players. It will be very interesting and I am sure you will be watching."

Arsenal starlet Flores on the move

Arsenal youngster Marcelo Flores is due to join Mexican side Tigres, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Clubs in Mexico have until September 13 to wrap up any final deals.

Flores, 19, has three senior Mexico caps and spent last season on loan at Spanish club Real Oviedo.

Spain legend Raul set for first top-flight managerial job

Raul is expected to take over as manager of Villarreal, according to Cadena SER (via Football Espana).

The legendary Spanish striker has been carving out a reputation as a coach, working with Real Madrid's academy teams before taking over as their Castilla manager.

Villarreal have begun their search for a new boss, with former Barcelona manager Quique Setien making way after three defeats in the first four games of the season.

Navas 'turned down Saudi switch'

Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Keylor Navas rejected the chance to join Al-Hilal, according to Le Parisien (via Get French Football News).

The Costa Rica international had been linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League after impressing on loan at Nottingham Forest last season.

Instead, though, he has opted to stay in Paris and challenge Gigi Donnarumma for a starting spot.