Ranking the Week's 20 Hottest Transfer Rumours with Kane, Gundogan and Griezmann
As the end of the season approaches for most European leagues, more transfer rumours continue to circulate as media connections dredge up potential moves come the summer.
In keeping with previous weeks, we have collated the biggest ongoing rumours and ordered them by transfer fee, size of the buying club and reputation of the player himself.
This time, we've got some of Europe's top strikers perhaps being on the move—deals that could potentially run into the tens of millions if they go ahead. But would you want your club to spend the sort of fees being spoken about? Let us know in the comments section below.
20. Yakou Meite
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Paris Saint-Germain's youngsters seem to be in demand of late and the latest name set for a move is Yakou Meite.
The midfielder is wanted by Stoke City and Leicester City in the Premier League, according to RMC Sport's Mohamed Bouhafsi (h/t Pete Smith at the Stoke Sentinel), and he has not yet signed new terms with the Ligue 1 side.
Meite has the likes of Marco Verratti, Thiago Motta and Blaise Matuidi ahead of him in the first team.
19. Joleon Lescott
2 of 20
In news that will surprise precisely nobody on the planet, Aston Villa are looking to have a clear out of their first-team squad following relegation to the Championship.
The Daily Mail's Sami Mokbel reported centre-back Joleon Lescott will head the group, having courted controversy more than once after defeats this season with his comments and postings on social media.
It is reported Lescott's £35,000 per week salary may put off buyers, meaning Villa may have to pay up his contract to offload him.
18. Gedion Zelalem
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Arsenal's talented young midfielder Gedion Zelalem says he would be open to being back in Scottish football next season.
Currently on loan with Rangers, the Evening Standard's James Benge reported Zelalem said he'll head back to Arsenal for pre-season but going back to Rangers is another option.
He has not always been a starter at Rangers, who are in the second tier this season, but he featured in the weekend cup semi-final win over archrivals Celtic.
17. Kiko Casilla
4 of 20
Real Madrid's second-choice goalkeeper Kiko Casilla has barely had a look-in this season, especially since the club were disqualified from the Copa del Rey for fielding an ineligible player in Denis Cheryshev.
It has been presumed the Spanish stopper would move on and look for regular game time again having briefly made his way into the national team while playing at Espanyol last season, but Marca's Hugo Cerezo (h/t Tom Cox) reported he is set to stay at the club.
Casilla wants to use the summer and pre-season time to show Zinedine Zidane he is worthy of playing, despite the form of Keylor Navas.
16. Christian Pulisic
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Jurgen Klopp has gone back to his former club Borussia Dortmund, instructing his Liverpool scouts to take a look at young forward Christian Pulisic.
That's according to the Daily Mail's Sami Mokbel, who reported Klopp made the personal request to the scouting team at Anfield due to the American attacker's emergence this season.
The report said Liverpool may not even bid for him this summer, instead waiting another year to make a move.
15. Miguel Layun
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Reports from Moises Llorens of Spain-based newspaper AS said (in Spanish) Miguel Layun is the man Real Madrid want as left-back cover next season.
The Liga side have used Alvaro Arbeloa or Nacho as cover for Marcelo this term, having loaned out Fabio Coentrao last summer.
Layun is on loan at Porto from Watford this season, and the report in AS said they want to make the deal permanent.
14. Andre Schurrle
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Wolfsburg forward Andre Schurrle has already had one spell in the Premier League, and now Tottenham Hotspur want him to return to England.
The former Chelsea wide forward, now playing a central role back in the Bundesliga, is reported to be unsettled, per the Mirror's Adrian Kajumba. The report said he's unhappy at his current boss Dieter Hecking and the likelihood of no European football next term for Wolfsburg.
Spurs want more attacking support for Harry Kane for next year.
13. Moussa Sissoko
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A repeated rumour from last summer now, with AC Milan keen to bring in Newcastle United midfielder Moussa Sissoko in the close season.
Mundo Deportivo reported Milan are in the running for Sissoko after he instructed his agent to find a new club, as passed on by Football Italia.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, new Magpies captain Sissoko is wanted by Milan on a loan deal with a view to buy.
12. Yaya Toure
9 of 20
Manchester City are set for a summer of changes, but some of their veteran stars will have to wait until the end of the campaign to see what lies ahead for them.
Yaya Toure is one of those, and the Guardian's Jamie Jackson reported City will not decide on whether his services will be retained until the season is over.
Others such as Pablo Zabaleta, Bacary Sagna and Jesus Navas are in a similar position.
11. Marcelo Brozovic
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Arsenal are ready to make a move for Inter Milan's Marcelo Brozovic.
The Croatian playmaker is only on loan at the Serie A team, and they will not necessarily make the move permanent in the summer, leaving the way clear for Arsenal to make a bid, according to Corriere dello Sport (h/t the Daily Star's Marc Williams).
Dinamo Zagreb is the player's parent club, but Brozovic is all but certain to depart somewhere new permanently at the end of the season.
10. Andreas Christensen
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One of many Chelsea players out on loan this season, Andreas Christensen is wanted by his loan club for a permanent deal.
The Danish defender is on a two-year loan at Borussia Monchengladbach that ends in 2017, and BMG now want to ensure he stays beyond, according to talkSPORT.
It's reported BMG director Max Eberl said the club will "do everything" to keep Christensen and sign him to a long-term deal.
9. Ilkay Gundogan
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Borussia Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Gundogan is near-certain to leave the Bundesliga club in the summer, with a trio of English sides chasing him.
Former boss Jurgen Klopp wants him at Liverpool, and Arsenal are also in the hunt, but Manchester City remain favourites, and it has been reported by the Daily Mail (h/t Joe Short at the Express) that City will offer him a five-year deal to make the move happen.
A £23 million transfer is on the cards.
8. Mats Hummels
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Borussia Dortmund centre-back Mats Hummels is facing an "important decision" over whether to leave BVB this summer or not, according to his father, per BBC Sport.
BBC reported Hummels himself said he is losing sleep over the matter, with interest from inside the Bundesliga and abroad over signing the German defender.
He has one year left on his contract and is wanted by the likes of Barcelona, Bayern, Manchester United and Liverpool.
7. John Stones
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Chelsea's very public pursuit of John Stones last summer ended in failure, but the London club have not been deterred and look ready to go back in for the defender at the end of the season.
The Mirror's Darren Lewis reported Antonio Conte will make Stones one of his first signings after arriving at Stamford Bridge, despite the Everton man suffering a drop in form this season.
A £37 million offer was turned down by Everton almost a year ago and is also wanted by Manchester City.
6. Granit Xhaka
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Arsenal and Liverpool will fight it out for Granit Xhaka over the summer.
That's the latest word from Germany, where Bild have reported (h/t Mirror) the Gunners, previously the front-runners to sign the Swiss international, now have big competition from Jurgen Klopp and Co. at Anfield.
Bild suggest there is an 80 per cent chance Xhaka leaves Borussia Monchengladbach this summer.
5. Aymeric Laporte
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Athletic Bilbao look set to face their toughest challenge yet over the summer in what has been almost a career-long battle to keep talented young defender Aymeric Laporte at the club.
The Guardian's Daniel Taylor reported Pep Guardiola wants the centre-back in place at Manchester City this summer when he arrives, even though the French defender is sidelined with a broken leg.
City will have to pay a release clause of around £40 million for the Athletic man.
4. Harry Kane
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Tottenham's star striker Harry Kane has shot his way to the top of the goalscorers' charts and the forefront of the England national team with his exploits over the past 18 months or so, and that form has alerted Europe's big guns.
The Evening Standard's Tom Collomosse reported Bayern Munich and Real Madrid have both asked to be kept informed of Kane's plans, even though they accept he is likely to remain in place at White Hart Lane in the near future.
Kane still has four years to run on his contract.
3. Robert Lewandowski
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Liverpool are set to receive a "massive cash injection from Middle East investors" and will use the money to target Robert Lewandowski, according to the Daily Star (h/t the Mirror).
Jurgen Klopp managed Lewandowski at Borussia Dortmund before both moved on, but the Polish striker has since gone on to play a starring role with Bayern Munich, and it seems improbable he would up sticks for Liverpool at this point.
Then again, if Kane is interesting Bayern...
2. Romelu Lukaku
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Chelsea caused a bit of a stir when they signed Nemanja Matic back from Benfica for a lot more money than they sold him for a couple of seasons ago, and they look set to repeat the trick this summer with Romelu Lukaku.
That's according to the Daily Star's David Woods, who said the blues will fork out around £50 million for the Belgian striker they sold to Everton for £28 million two years back.
The Star article also reiterated Chelsea's ongoing interest in Lukaku's team-mate Stones.
1. Antoine Griezmann
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Antoine Griezmann isn't exactly on the "available" list this summer, being a cornerstone to Atletico Madrid's plans as they aim to end this season with a Liga and UEFA Champions League double, but that isn't stopping Chelsea taking a big interest in him.
The French forward is to be offered a big contract by the Premier League side and will make room for him by offloading failed attacking signings Alexandre Pato, Falcao and Loic Remy, according to the Mirror's Darren Lewis.
Griezmann has scored 20 in La Liga this season, the most by any player outside of Real Madrid and Barcelona.
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