B/R Gossip Roundup: Alexandre Lacazette and Robert Lewandowski on the Move?
Will Olympique Lyonnais entertain bids for star striker Alexandre Lacazette, and will Bayern Munich really allow Robert Lewandowski to depart after just one season?
These are just two of this week's rumours that we'll cover in the following pages of the B/R Gossip Roundup, where you'll also find the latest on Aston Villa's Christian Benteke, Chelsea's Filipe Luis and—of course—the Edinson Cavani and Angel Di Maria swap deal story that refuses to go away.
Read on to see what we think of the latest summer speculation.
Robert Lewandowski: On His Way to Manchester United?
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Robert Lewandowski is being tipped to follow in the footsteps of Bastian Schweinsteiger and swap Bayern Munich for Manchester United.
Schweinsteiger signed a three-year contract with the Old Trafford club last week, and now Lewandowski appears to be topping Louis van Gaal's summer wish list.
As Mark Ogden reported in the Telegraph, "Further moves are anticipated for a centre-half and striker, with Van Gaal placing Bayern forward Robert Lewandowski at the top of his wanted list, despite an acceptance that the Germans would be unlikely to sell a second leading playing to United this summer."
Elsewhere, the Independent's Jack De Menezes claimed:
"Robert Lewandowski's agent has told Manchester United that it will cost them more than the £35m being touted if they wanted to sign the Bayern Munich striker this summer.
However, he did offer United hope over a move by admitting that his next club will be located in England…or Spain.
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The 26-year-old striker signed for Bayern last summer, following months of speculation about a proposed move from Borussia Dortmund.
A lethal finisher, Lewandowski scored 25 goals (in all competitions) in 49 games for Pep Guardiola's side in 2014/15. He has four years remaining on his deal at Allianz Arena.
Believability Meter: Low
Robert Lewandowski's move from Dortmund to Bayern was an almighty saga that stretched on for far too long, and his name is one we are used to seeing in the rumour mill.
The current chatter surrounding the Poland international can be found in a variety of media outlets, but don't let that fool you into thinking it might happen. It won't.
The German champions allowed Schweinsteiger to leave, but the exit of a soon-to-be-31-year-old who spent large portions of last season out injured is completely different than letting Lewandowski go. The latter still has a lot to win with his new club, whereas Schweinsteiger had won it all. Why would Lewandowski want to leave while still in the infancy of his Bayern career?
The bottom line is simple: Bayern would not want to lose one of Europe's best strikers, especially one who they pursued so tenaciously while he was at Dortmund.
Tottenham Hotspur Chasing Marseille's Michy Batshuayi
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Tottenham Hotspur want to sign Olympique de Marseille striker Michy Batshuayi, according the Mirror's Darren Lewis.
After being priced out of a move for Aston Villa's Christian Benteke, it seems that Mauricio Pochettino sees the £9 million player as a potential striking partner for Harry Kane for the 2015/16 season.
As Lewis writes:
"Highly-rated 21-year-old Batshuayi would become the second Belgian player to join the north Londoners this summer—after £11m Atletico Madrid defender Toby Alderweireld—and the fifth from his country in the club's first-team squad. ...
Pochettino has made new strikers a priority as Tottenham have been let down by £26million buy Roberto Soldado and big-earning Emmanuel Adebayor over the past two years.
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Batshuayi signed for Marseille from Standard Liege in July 2014. In his only season at Stade Velodrome, the Brussels-born forward made 28 appearances—just eight of them starts—scoring 10 goals for Marcelo Bielsa's side in all competitions.
Fellow Belgians at White Hart Lane include Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, Mousa Dembele and Nacer Chadli.
Believability Meter: Medium
So far, we don't have much to go on in this particular story. It is being reported by a number of British tabloids, but there is little indication that Batshuayi is for sale or ready to leave Marseille after just one season.
Perhaps—with a good number of Belgians at White Hart Lane—he's a convenient choice for easy rumour-mill fodder. Last summer's supposed U-turn, where an Arsenal-linked Batshuayi ended up joining Marseille (per Nick Lustig in the Daily Star), will also help sell a story to those who think he may be easily swayed into a move.
Or maybe there is some truth to the rumours. Spurs need another striker and the youngster certainly has plenty of promise.
Until we get some quotes, more details or anything that indicates that either party is realistically interested, our believability meter hovers somewhere around medium.
Angel Di Maria and Edinson Cavani: Trading Places?
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In the Guardian this week, Jamie Jackson reported on rumours concerning a swap deal between Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain for Angel Di Maria and Edinson Cavani.
On Monday, Jackson wrote:
"Edinson Cavani is Louis van Gaal's No1 choice to fill the vacancy left by Robin van Persie, who will complete his move from Manchester United to Fenerbahce on Monday. Any prospective deal for Paris Saint-Germain's Cavani may involve Angel Di Maria going the other way as the French club want the Argentinian and Van Gaal is considering allowing him to go.
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By Wednesday, the story was beginning to build up steam, with Jackson writing:
"Di Maria has become unsettled in Manchester and the Argentinian has informed Van Gaal that he and his wife are minded to leave. The manager, although reluctant to allow that, is targeting PSG's Edinson Cavani, following the departure of Robin van Persie to Fenerbahce, so Di Maria's situation could provide leverage.
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The Argentina international had previously indicated that he would remain at Old Trafford next season, as reported recently by Simon Bajkowski in the Manchester Evening News. However, he now appears to be open to an exit, after PSG made their interest known.
Elsewhere, the Telegraph's Jason Burt has reported that the Ligue 1 club "believe that Angel Di Maria wants to join them—but they will not sell Edinson Cavani to Manchester United as part of any deal."
Di Maria has four years remaining on his current contract, whereas Cavani has three at Parc des Princes.
Believability Meter: Low
Last time we covered this story in the B/R Gossip Roundup, we found it hard to believe. And despite rumours gathering pace by the day, we are sticking to our guns.
However, we do admit that Di Maria now looks like he could potentially leave Old Trafford this summer. As Jackson reported, Van Gaal "has no wish to keep any unhappy player," and the 27-year-old looked far from content on occasion in 2014/15.
Cavani is one of many strikers being linked with United, and this is where the story falls down for us. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is entering the twilight of his career and is likely to be departing PSG before long, which would make the Uruguayan the main man in Laurent Blanc's side.
Di Maria to PSG? Quite possibly. Cavani to Manchester United? We think not.
Alexandre Lacazette: From Ligue 1 to the Premier League?
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Lyon striker Alexandre Lacazette has been linked with a move to the Premier League, with both Arsenal and Liverpool said to be keen.
As reported in the Daily Mail by Alex Sharp, club president Jean-Michel Aulas is confident that the Lyon-born player will stay at Stade de Gerland, though he admitted that a bid upward of £35 million could prove tempting:
"Aulas will not let star striker Alexandre Lacazette leave cheaply but admits an offer of £35m would have to be considered if big spending clubs came calling.
The 24-year-old has been linked with a move to Arsenal and Liverpool this summer but Aulas insists he is 'not worried' over the future of Lacazette.
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And as Aulas told L'Equipe (h/t Sharp's Daily Mail article), "Of course, if a €50-60m (£35-42m) bid was tabled, I will no doubt have to prepare for his exit and wish him good luck. I really feel like he wants to stay."
The France international has spent his entire career to date with Lyon, where his current contract runs until 2018.
Last season, Lacazette was Ligue 1's top scorer with 27 goals. Marseille's Andre-Pierre Gignac was in second place with 21, while Paris Saint-Germain's Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani came in third and fourth, with 19 and 18 strikes, respectively.
Believability Meter: Low
With a contract extension in the offing and talks said to be ongoing, Lacazette's agent, David Venditelli, told Lyon daily Le Progres (h/t ESPN FC) less than one month ago, "The offers we've had from abroad are very significant in terms of finances, but they don't give all the guarantees Alexandre will flourish with just a year to go till the Euros."
We're inclined to believe that this is still the case. Lacazette's goals in 2014/15 guaranteed that we would see him linked with big moves this summer. However, born and bred in Lyon and a product of the club's youth academy, the future looks bright for him and Hubert Fournier's side.
Les Gones finished second in Ligue 1 last term, qualified for this season's Champions League and they will have a new 59,000-seat stadium in January. We just can't see why Lacazette would want to go right now.
Chelsea's Filipe Luis Returning to Atletico Madrid
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Filipe Luis could be on his way back to Atletico Madrid, just one year after signing for Chelsea.
The left-back put pen to paper with the Blues last July, signing a three-year contract for £15.8 million.
However, in that time, the Brazilian has made just 15 Premier League appearances for Jose Mourinho's side, with a total of 26 outings in all competitions.
Now, as reported by the Mirror’s Darren Lewis, Luis "is closing in on a return to Atletico Madrid, with Chelsea confident of landing speedy Abdul Baba Rahman as his replacement."
On BBC Sport, the story goes a little deeper, and Atleti president Enrique Cerezo is quoted as saying:
"There are negotiations in place but I don't know how fruitful they will be.
We would be delighted if he comes back and I think that in the end, we will find a solution.
As always, the financial aspect takes precedence over the sentimental aspect but I believe a deal can be reached.
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In 2014/15, Luis won the Premier League and League Cup with Chelsea. Prior to his move to Stamford Bridge, the defender made 180 appearances with the Rojiblancos.
Believability Meter: High
Unable to usurp Cesar Azpilicueta's spot in the Chelsea back line, it's easy to see why the 29-year-old might be keen on a move back to the Vicente Calderon.
If rumours linking the Blues with FC Augsburg's Abdul Baba Rahman are true, this would further strengthen the case for a Luis departure.
Atleti have made their feelings clear. It's only a matter of time before he is back in La Liga. Expect this one to happen within the next week.
Liverpool: Nearing Move for Christian Benteke
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According to James Nursey of the Mirror, Liverpool are on the brink of signing Christian Benteke from Aston Villa.
Brendan Rodgers' side are understood to be willing to meet the £32.5 million buy-out clause in the Belgian's contract.
Nursey wrote:
"The 24-year-old is unlikely to play in Villa's friendly against Sporting Braga in Albufeira on Friday, ahead of becoming the second most expensive signing in Liverpool’s history.
Reds boss Brendan Rodgers has been chasing Benteke all summer, but the Villans stood firm over his valuation.
And following the £49m sale of Raheem Sterling to Manchester City earlier in the week, Liverpool have decided to cough up for the [6'3"] frontman.
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Elsewhere, the Independent's Simon Rice has hinted that Manchester United could also be a potential destination for Benteke.
The Reds have already welcomed six new players to Merseyside this summer: Roberto Firmino (Hoffenheim), Nathaniel Clyne (Southampton), Joe Gomez (Charlton Athletic), Danny Ings (Burnley), Adam Bogdan (Bolton Wanderers) and James Milner (Manchester City).
Believability Meter: High
We think that Benteke will swap Villa Park for Anfield in the next few days. Rodgers is obviously keen on getting his man, and the financial side of things appears to be fairly straightforward.
So far, any talk linking the striker with Manchester United lacks real substance, and Liverpool are flush with cash from the recent sale of you-know-who to Manchester City. It looks like a case of goodbye Raheem Sterling, hello Christian Benteke.
Arsenal in for Karim Benzema?
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Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema could be on his way to Arsenal, according to the Daily Mail's Matt Barlow, who reports that Gunners manager Arsene Wenger will not rule out a move for an "exceptional player."
This came after reports originating in Spain (h/t Dan King of the Sun) suggested that Arsenal were readying a £40 million bid for his services.
As Barlow writes:
"'I don't know where this comes from but it's not happening at the moment, no,' [Wenger] said, when asked directly about Benzema.
There was a subtle shift in his language on transfers as he addressed a press conference in Singapore ahead of tomorrow's game against Everton in the Barclays Asia Trophy. ...
'If I find an exceptional player to strengthen, I will do it,' said Wenger. 'It depends what's on the market.
'It's not easy, there are a lot of teams out there in Europe competing for the same player. We don't rule it out and we don't guarantee we will sign.’
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Benzema has clocked up 281 appearances for Los Blancos in all competitions, scoring 134 goals and registering 86 assists since his move from Olympique Lyonnais in 2009.
Believability Meter: Low
Certainly no stranger to speculation linking him to the Premier League, current Benzema gossip is built on the flimsiest of foundations.
Yes, Wenger doesn't "rule out a move" but he appears far from actually making one.
Madrid have a new manager in Rafa Benitez. They also have an out-and-out, world-class striker in Benzema. Even if Cristiano Ronaldo is going to be used as the side's No. 1 frontman next term, Benitez would be foolish to let the Frenchman go.
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