Arsenal could receive a significant boost in their pursuit of Bradley Barcola, with Liverpool reportedly ready to abandon negotiations for the Paris Saint-Germain winger amid a stalemate over his valuation.
According to reports, PSG have set an asking price of around £145million for the France international, a fee Liverpool are unwilling to match. The two clubs have held talks for some time without reaching common ground, and while Barcola himself is said to be keen on a move to Anfield to increase his playing time, Liverpool's patience appears to be running thin. The Reds are still searching for a replacement for Mohamed Salah, who left as a free agent to join Trabzonspor last week, leaving the door open for Arsenal to potentially step in for the winger.
Elsewhere in north London, Arsenal's summer business has grown complicated after missing out on Vinicius Jr, who chose to remain at Real Madrid. The Gunners had also seen interest in Anthony Gordon fade once he joined Barcelona, while Morgan Rogers slipped away to Chelsea after Arsenal balked at Aston Villa's valuation. With Yan Diomande also moving to Real Madrid and Junior Kroupi sidelined for months with a foot injury, Arsenal's list of viable attacking targets has narrowed considerably.
Meanwhile, defender Myles Lewis-Skelly has reportedly been offered to both Chelsea and Manchester United following Bruno Guimaraes's switch to Arsenal, casting doubt over his long-term future at the Emirates. United, for their part, are prioritizing a left-back and have been credited with interest in Lewis Hall, David Raum, Antonee Robinson and Jorge Salinas in addition to Lewis-Skelly.
At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea are expected to confirm the arrival of Pep Chavarria, while also monitoring reported interest from Manchester City in midfielder Enzo Fernandez. New head coach Xabi Alonso could hand debuts to several of his summer signings this weekend, including Morgan Rogers, who joined from Aston Villa for £117million. Rogers has yet to feature for his new club due to a mandatory post-World Cup break following England's third-place finish against France on July 18, but has since returned to training at Cobham ahead of Chelsea's home clash with Real Sociedad.
In other news, Tottenham have opened talks with Monaco over a move for striker Folarin Balogun, who is valued at around €60million (£51.2m) following an impressive World Cup campaign with the United States. Spurs may face competition from Newcastle and several Spanish clubs for his signature.
Crystal Palace have reportedly agreed a deal to send 19-year-old defender Mofe Jemide to Portuguese side Alverca for a nominal fee, with the youngster set to sign a three-year contract at the newly-promoted club.
Away from transfer business, former Liverpool boss Arne Slot has confirmed his next role will be in club management, ending speculation linking him with the vacant Netherlands national team job. Slot had reportedly held discussions with the KNVB but issued a statement clarifying his future direction after reports of a breakdown in contract talks with the Dutch federation. He has been out of work since leaving Liverpool at the end of May.
Across the Premier League's traditional powers, summer business remains busy. Tottenham have completed a host of deals, bringing in Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi, Jan Paul van Hecke, Martin Dubravka, Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali, while moving on several fringe players. Manchester United have added Karl Darlow, Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans, and offloaded Andre Onana, Rasmus Hojlund, Casemiro and Jadon Sancho among others. Manchester City, meanwhile, have brought in Elliot Anderson for £116million while sanctioning exits including Bernardo Silva, John Stones and James Trafford.
Based on reporting from London Standard.