TRANSFER ROUNDUP: Pjanic Joins Juventus, Ranieri Provides Update On Vardy’s Move To Arsenal, And More
Manchester City Suffer Huge Blow In Aymeric Laporte Chase
Manchester City have suffered a huge blow in their pursuit of Aymeric Laporte, who has now extended his contract with current club Athletic Bilbao.
Laporte made his senior debut for Bilbao in 2012, and has since went on to make 109 appearances for the club, establishing himself as one of the most promising centre backs in European football in the process. His performances attracted the interest of numerous managers, one of them being Pep Guardiola – the new incoming manager of Manchester City. As per reports, Guardiola was largely interested in bringing the 22-year-old to Manchester.
However, the Spaniard suffered a huge blow in his pursuit for the French international, as Laporte decided to ignore the interest from the two-time UEFA Champions League winning manager and extend his stay at his current club. The young defender’s new contract extension will keep him at Athletic Bilbao until the summer of 2020. It also has a release clause added into it, which would be worth €65 million (£51.6m) during the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, and then rise up to €70 million (£55.6m) for the two seasons after.
But despite missing out on Laporte, Manchester City are quite “relaxed”, as per Sky Sports’ sources, due to the center back’s high transfer fee and his current injury that made him miss the Euros.
Manchester United To Make An Offer For Marco Verratti
Manchester United are set to make a €100 million offer for PSG star mar Marco Verratti, as per Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport.
According to the report, Manchester United’s brand new manager Jose Mourinho is a big fan of the Italian international, and is willing to do what it takes to secure the midfielder’s services. And if rumours are to be believed, the Special One has even communicated with the 23-year-old via text messages, so as to convince him to become a Red Devil.
Verratti could become the second Paris Saint Germain player to join Manchester United in this summer transfer window, alongside Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who is all but set to join the Old Trafford club. And losing two of their best players in the same window could indeed be a huge shock for the French champions, unless they have a pair of equally good replacements – if not better – lined up.
UFFICIALE – @Miralem_Pjanic è bianconero! https://t.co/8Ht3Wdv7Mo pic.twitter.com/N2kbm4trj6
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) June 13, 2016
Miralem Pjanic Completes £25.4 Million Move To Juventus
Juventus have officially completed the signing of Miralem Pjanic from Roma for a fee of £25.4 million.
Miralem Pjanic joined Roma from French club Lyon in 2011 for €11 million, and has since managed to establish himself as one of the best players in the Serie A. And after spending 5 seasons at the club, the Bosnia-Herzegovina star decided it was time to move on, and officially handed in a transfer request on Saturday. The 26-year-old activated the release clause in his contract, which allowed him to leave for the pre-agreed amount. He paid 20% of the release clause fee himself, with Juventus contributing the remaining 80%.
Pjanic scored 10 goals and bagged 12 assists in 33 league games last season, and his high level performances saw him get linked with potential transfers to clubs like Chelsea, Manchester United, and Bayern Munich, to name a few. However, the midfielder chose to join the reigning Italian champions instead, on a five-year contract.
The statement on Juventus’ official website said: “Juventus Football Club can today confirm that Miralem Pjanic has completed a permanent switch from Roma for a fee of €32m. The 26-year-old has signed a five-year contract with the club.”
Barcelona Set To Make Samuel Umtiti Their First Major Summer Signing
FC Barcelona are all set to sign Lyon defender Samuel Umtiti, as per the French website LeDauphine.com.
Umtiti has been linked with potential transfers to Arsenal, Chelsea and AS Roma, but Barcelona are now set to swoop in and sign the 22-year-old for a fee of €30 million, according to the report. And not only that, but the defender, who can play at both center back and left back, is believed to have already agreed personal terms with the Spanish champions.
The youngster has been included in France’s Euro 2016 squad by manager Didier Deschamps, and is yet to make his debut on a full international level. However, the Catalan giants still believe the Frenchman to be an ideal candidate to strengthen Barcelona’s defence, which has been weakened by the departure of Dani Alves to Juventus, and could worsen even further with the probable departure of Javier Mascherano looming large.
Claudio Ranieri Gives Further Update On Vardy’s Move To Arsenal
Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri has given an update on Jamie Vardy’s move to Arsenal in a recent interview with Sky Italia.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has been looking to bolster his attack for quite a while now, as injuries and poor form have continued to ill-affect the Gunners’ firepower in front of goal. Therefore, the Frenchman seems to have identified Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy as the ideal transfer target. Wenger has reportedly activated the 29-year-old’s release clause by submitting a bid worth £22 million, and has offered the England international a four-year contract.
Vardy became the first player to score in 11 consecutive Premier League games last season, and his tally of 24 goals played a major part in helping Leicester City win the Premier League title. So if he were to leave the English Champions and join Arsenal, it will certainly be a major, major loss for the Foxes.
However, new rumours have recently emerged suggesting that Vardy has rejected the offer from Arsenal. But Ranieri has dismissed those rumours by giving the latest update on the transfer saga, suggesting that anything is possible. Speaking to Sky Italia, the Premier League winner revealed: “Arsenal told us that they want to pay the clause, but he [Vardy] has not yet decided.”
Pjanic is a good player , good signing for Juventus