Transfer News: Brentford break club-record fee for Sangaré, Newcastle await Arsenal Guimaraes bid
Mamadou Sangare joins Brentford on a five-year deal. Pic: Franck Fife/Getty
Bournemouth have announced the signing of Antonio Silva from Benfica for a fee believed to be in the region of £25 m.
The 22-year-old defender becomes new boss Marco Rose’s second signing of the summer following the arrival of Alvaro Rodriguez earlier this week.
Silva made 235 senior appearances for Benfica and collected six major honours during his time in Portugal.
Silva told the official club website: “I am very happy to be here. It’s a pleasure to play for Bournemouth and in the Premier League.
“I can’t wait to start the season with my teammates and I’m excited to be here.
“The mentality is always to win. I will try my best, and I will play for the fans. We have everything here that helps us perform on the pitch, and I can’t wait to get started.”
Brentford have signed Mali midfielder Mamadou Sangare from Lens for an undisclosed club-record fee, reported to be around £38.5m.
The 24-year-old, who helped Lens finish second in Ligue 1 and win the Coupe de France last season, has agreed a five-year contract, with a club option for a further year.
Bees boss Keith Andrews told the club’s official website: “He fits everything we want from a Brentford player, on and off the pitch. He’ll be a player that I think will become very, very popular with the fans.”
Brentford agreed to terminate Jordan Henderson’s contract last month and the England midfielder looks set to join Chelsea.
Sangare joined Lens from Rapid Vienna last summer and made 29 Ligue 1 appearances, while he helped Mali reach the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and has won 16 senior caps for his country.
Brighton striker Danny Welbeck has completed a move to Chelsea after signing a two-year deal.
The 35-year-old, who has been capped 42 times by England, will head straight for Hong Kong to join up with head coach Xabi Alonso and his new team-mates on their pre-season tour.
Welbeck, who began his career at Manchester United and also enjoyed a five-year spell with Arsenal, told the Blues’ official website: “When you hear of the interest from Chelsea, it’s something that fills you with such immense pride.
Welbeck arrives at Stamford Bridge with 400 Premier League appearances, Champions League experience and two World Cup campaigns to his name.
Emerging from the ranks at Old Trafford – where he won the league, two League Cups and the Club World Cup – under Sir Alex Ferguson, he added the FA Cup to his list of honours during his spell with the Gunners before moving to Watford and then Brighton.
He made more than 200 appearances for the Seagulls and scored 26 Premier League goals in his last two campaigns.
Newcastle are still awaiting a formal bid from Arsenal for skipper Bruno Guimaraes.
A report on Saturday evening claimed the Magpies had accepted a bid of £80m from the Gunners for their captain and a medical had been arranged for Monday, although sources on Tyneside were mystified by the suggestion.
Indeed, they insist there has still been no direct contact between the clubs over the 28-year-old Brazil international, who has indicated he wants to leave St James’ Park for the Emirates Stadium this summer.
Arsenal’s desire to add Guimaraes to the squad which lifted the Premier League title for the first time since 2004 last season is long-standing and well-known, although the Magpies have grown increasingly irritated by the speculation without action which has surrounded their player for weeks now.
Inter Milan are willing to pay Liverpool £30m for midfielder Curtis Jones, the Daily Mail reports. The Serie A champions have already brought John Stones to the club this summer and are keen to add another England international, having already had one £21.75m bid rejected.
Real Madrid are open to selling winger Vinicius Junior if they cannot agree a new deal with the Brazil international, according to ESPN. Los Blancos have no plans to increase their latest offer to Vinicius with the likes of Arsenal interested in his signature, but there has not been any contact from the English champions yet.
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