Edinson Cavani to Manchester United and Arsenal; Joel Matip 'agrees Liverpool move; Ezequiel Lavezzi to Chelsea
A round-up of the latest transfer news, rumours and updates on Thursday 14 January
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Your support makes all the difference.Edinson Cavani’s future at Paris Saint-Germain has been thrown into serious doubt after his manager Laurent Blanc admitted that he leave the club for the benefit of the team, with his behaviour labelled “a problem”.
28-year-old Cavani has been linked with a move to both Manchester United and Arsenal in the past, and the Old Trafford side are believed to be considering a move for the Uruguay international in a bid to boost their attacking options after a difficult first half to the season.
Speaking earlier this week, Blanc said: “There is a problem with Cavani’s behaviour but my job is to think of the entire squad as a collective.
“We did hold a staff meeting and among the various issues we discussed were Cavani and his complaints.
“The desires of the individual can’t affect the rest of the team.”
The striker has scored 13 goals in 24 club appearances this season, but has grown disillusioned with having to play second-fiddle to Zlatan Ibrahimovic in Blanc’s pecking order.
Chelsea are being linked with a move for Cavani’s PSG team-mate Ezequiel Lavezzi, according to The Mirror, although they will need to fend of competition from Inter Milan and Barcelona if they are to land the 30-year-old Argentina international this month.
Lavezzi is out of contract at the end of the season and with Chelsea short on strike options, the Blues could look to capitalise on PSG’s fear of losing the forward for nothing in the summer with a January bid. Diego Costa is currently the only striker fit enough for selection by interim manager Guus Hiddink, with Loic Remy said struggling and Radamel Falcao said to be “weeks away” from a return.
Lavezzi’s agent, Alessandro Moggi, fuelled speculation of a move by admitting: “Inter are certainly showing the greatest interest in the player, but there are also many other clubs in Europe keen on him, including Chelsea and Barcelona.”
The Mirror also claims that Liverpool have already agreed a contract with Schalke defender Joel Matip, with the Cameroon centre-back available on a free transfer in the summer. Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp has already attempted to strengthen his defensive options, albeit temporarily, with the loan signing of Queens Park Rangers defender Steven Caulker, and he is known to be a long-time fan of 24-year-old Matip.
A deal is said to have already been signed that will see Matip move to Anfield in the summer, with clubs outside of Germany able to speak to the player from the 1 January after he entered the final six months of his contract.
Liverpool have also received a welcome boost over Mario Götze’s future at Bayern Munich, with the Bavarian club’s sporting director Matthias Sammer refusing to confirm that the World Cup winner’s future lie at the Allianz Arena. Götze played down talk of a move to Liverpool earlier this week, but Sommer has admitted that the attacking midfielder was only addressing the possibility of a move this season.
"I said it was madness when there were rumours about a transfer in January, whereas Mario was talking about the end of the season," Sammer said. "Mario's comments were an indication that we will have to sit down at some point in the coming months and discuss his situation. That is only logical.”
Finally, the battle to sign West Bromwich Albion striker Saido Berahino continues to hot up after Stoke were reported to have entered the race to land the England Under-21 international should he be allowed to leave the Hawthorns. Tottenham remain the front-runners to sign Berahino having seen a summer move blocked by West Brom chairman Jeremy Peace, although both Newcastle and Chelsea said to be interested in the 22-year-old.
However, The Times reports that Stoke have now expressed an interest in Berahino, and are confident of being able to persuade him to move to the Britannia Stadium instead of White Hart Lane in a January move. The Sun, meanwhile, say that Berahino will have to remain at the club for the rest of the season after Tottenham refused to meet West Brom’s £23m valuation of the striker.
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