Arsenal join Man Utd in ‘unexpected’ move for ex-Chelsea star as Man City look to right a Spurs wrong

Arsenal will battle Manchester United for a former Chelsea centre-back, while Man City chase Tottenham’s FA Cup hero and PSG’s interest in the Newcastle talisman is ‘genuine’.

ARSENAL TARGET TOMORI

Mikel Arteta has quite the January wishlist at Arsenal as he looks to maintain a title challenge after his side failed to keep pace with Manchester City last season.

He’s keen on a striker, with Ivan Toney heavily linked, a new midfielder – Amadou Onana perhaps? – and apparently also wants a couple of full-backs.

And, according to FootballTransfers, they’re after a new centre-back having ‘expressed an interest’ in AC Milan star Fikayo Tomori.

Tomori moved to Milan on loan from Chelsea in January 2021 before that move was made permanent for around £28m in the summer of that year.

A report last month claimed Tomori’s time in Italy ‘could come to an abrupt and rather unexpected end’ as Manchester United were looking to bring the 25-year-old back to the Premier League.

United were said to be ‘pressing’ to complete the signing and ‘could make their move in the near future’.

And now Arsenal are monitoring the future of the England international, whose current deal expires in 2027, and has become a key part of the Milan team and played a key role in their run to the Champions League semi-final last season.

The Gunners could hold a bargaining chip given Milan’s interest in Jakub Kiwior, though it’s been claimed Arteta’s side have snubbed the Rossoneri’s request for ‘information’ on the Polish defender, insisting there is ‘no chance’ of a January transfer.

Interest in Tomori could change their outlook.

PEDRO PORRO-PETERS

Manchester City will likely have to spend big to re-sign a player two years after they sold him to Sporting Lisbon for just £7m.

Tottenham News claim City want to sign Pedro Porro in the summer as a long-term replacement for Kyle Walker.

Porro has started 19 of Spurs’ 20 Premier League games this season, registering seven assists, and scored an absolute howitzer to get them past Burnley in the FA Cup on Friday.

His displays have caught the eyes of both Real Madrid and Barcelona, but ‘a recruitment source with close links to Spurs has now revealed to Tottenham News that Manchester City are interested in replacing Walker with Porro this summer’.

It’s further claimed that ‘Porro and Pep Guardiola’s Spanish link could make a move even more attractive for the pair, with sources describing a transfer as “terribly hard” to turn down for the defender’.

It’ll be fine. We’ve probably got a Pedro Porro-Peters somewhere in the youth setup https://t.co/dxtOV4jDcw

— Adam – Above Average FPL (@aboveaveragefpl) January 5, 2024

‘GENUINE’ BRUNO INTEREST

Paris Saint-Germain are keeping a very close eye on Bruno Guimaraes, and amid reports that the French giants could an ‘historic £99m offer’ for Newcastle’s ‘crown jewel’, a north east journalist has confirmed their interest is ‘genuine’.

talkSPORT claimed earlier this month that the Magpies may need to follow the example of Aston Villa – who sold Jack Grealish for big money – in order to rebuild their squad, with FFP rules currently preventing the club with the richest owners in the world from spending their money freely.

Guimaraes was handed a fresh deal at the end of last year to ward off interest from Barcelona and Liverpool, with the release clause said to be over £100m.

It’s claimed there’s a secret Barcelona clause in that contract, allowing him to join the Catalans for a reduced fee, though the La Liga side are too cash-strapped to take advantage of it.

But PSG have plenty of money to spend, and could be set for a further windfall if Kylian Mbappe makes his long-expected move to Real Madrid.

And journalist Joe Bland has confirmed reports of interest in Guimaraes are ‘genuine’ but has revealed Newcastle won’t allow him to leave in January.

He wrote on X: ‘Understand reports are genuine from Brazil, and PSG have enquired about Bruno Guimarães. However, told #NUFC will not allow the player to leave in January, far too important to the club and the rest of the season. Also, a prominent figurehead in the 2024 marketing campaign.’