Fact or Fiction: Transfer rumour round-up

Manchester City are ready to splash out over €230m on Paul Pogba, Kevin De Bruyne, and Raheem Sterling, if the latest transfer gossip from the Sunday newspapers proves to be on the money.

Manager Manuel Pellegrini’s bid to reclaim the Premier League title from Chelsea next season could involve his club breaking the British transfer record and signing Juventus midfielder Pogba for £71m (€99.5m), according to the Sunday Mirror.

City, meanwhile, are lining up a €70m offer for Wolfsburg’s De Bruyne, claims the Sunday Telegraph, which adds that Paris Saint-Germain are also in the hunt for the former Chelsea attacking midfielder.

As for Liverpool’s Sterling, the Star said yesterday that Pellegrini is about to launch a third bid for the England striker keen to leave Anfield. Having had offers of €42m and €56 rebuffed, City are ready to up the ante to €63m in the next few days, with Sterling expected to report to Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers for pre-season training this morning.

Rodgers has already signed Roberto Firmino, Nathaniel Clyne, James Milner, and Danny Ings for the new campaign but his pursuit of Christian Benteke has hit a roadblock, according to the Mail On Sunday which reported that Liverpool are waiting on Aston Villa to give them a signal they are willing to lower their asking price for the Belgian striker below his €45m buy-out clause.

The same paper yesterday reported that Manchester United’s unsettled striker Robin van Persie is attracting the interest of La Liga side Valencia as he returns from his summer holidays this week for talks with manager Louis van Gaal, although the Star suggested the Dutch striker has already agreed a €7m move to Turkish side Fenerbahce.

Van Persie’s agent Kees Voss told Voetbal International, “If Robin had found a new club, we would have announced it. All I can say is that tomorrow Robin will be back at Manchester United to report for the first training session.”

United’s interest in Tottenham striker Harry Kane, meanwhile, has led to van Gaal stepping up his €56m bid, said the Sun on Sunday, with the Red Devils making direct contact with Spurs over a move for the England striker.

The Mail On Sunday also suggests United are involved in a bid to scupper Chelsea’s move for Stoke goalkeeper Asmir Begovic, but van Gaal has cooled on his interest in Atletico Madrid midfielder Arda Turan, leaving the way clear for Chelsea and Barcelona to battle it out for his signature. Instead, United will focus on Morgan Schneiderlin and possibly Bastian Schweinsteiger.

The People reported that new St James’ Park boss Steve McClaren is closing in on PSV Eindhoven’s Georginio Wijnaldum as his first signing for Newcastle after the midfielder rejected a move to arch-rivals Sunderland, who, says the Sun on Sunday, have signed Belgium defender Nicolas Lombaerts from Zenit St Petersburg for €7m, while the Sunday Mirror

has linked the Black Cats with a €3.5m bid for QPR forward Junior Hoilett.

There is plenty of interest in another striker on the books of the relegated Londoners with Charlie Austin set to become the subject of a club-record €20m bid from newly promoted Bournemouth, according to the Sun On Sunday, while The People claims Austin is stalling West Ham and Newcastle while he waits for Chelsea to make an offer for him.

Across London, West Ham are in talks with Glen Johnson following the right-back’s release by Liverpool, says the Sunday Express.