Fabrizio Romano Transfer News: Osimhen deal OPEN, Sancho one to WATCH, Alvarez REPLACEMENT

7 Aug 2024 10:00 BST
5 min read

Victor Osimhen, Chelsea, 2024/25 — © IMAGO

Fabrizio Romano, the football transfer news expert, has given the latest updates from the window, including information on Victor Osimhen, Jadon Sancho and Julian Alvarez.

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Chelsea still want Osimhen

Romano says there is little to report regarding Osimhen’s potential move to Chelsea, which has drawn to a standstill in recent days.

Chelsea continue to monitor the Nigeria international ace, but Napoli are still pricing him out of the market.

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Current ETV

ETV Range

€53.3M - €88.9M

Osimhen, though, will need to leave the Serie A club at some point this summer, with his huge wage untenable for Antonio Conte’s side to cope with.

The impasse, though, continues for the moment.

“With Chelsea, I expect nothing will change tomorrow or the next day either, because the situation is still very clear - Chelsea’s interest remains, they are having conversations with Napoli, but the only option for them to continue is with a loan or another kind of creative formula,” Romano writes on the Daily Briefing.

Crucially, though, he adds that “everything remains open” for a deal, particularly with Napoli’s interest in Romelu Lukaku ongoing.

Gallagher and Omorodion lead Chelsea transfer domino

Julian Alvarez’s transfer to Atletico Madrid is set to spark a transfer domino involving Conor Gallagher and Samu Omorodion, Romano told his Playback channel.

“The agreement is already done between Conor Gallagher and Atletico Madrid, but he is still not flying to Madrid from London, despite the flight being booked on Monday,” he said.

“That is because everything depends on Julian Alvarez.

“The Conor Gallagher deal and the Samu Omorodion [from Atletico Madrid to Chelsea] deal are both almost done, but they depend on what happens with Julian Alvarez.”

With an agreement primed with Alvarez after some concerns, all three deals are expected to go through.

Compared

VS

€53.2M	ETV	€12.1M
€39.9M - €66.5M	ETV Range	€9.1M - €15.1M
24 years old (06 Feb, 2000)	Age	20 years old (01 Jan, 2004)
England	Nationality	Spain

Sancho latest

Manchester United are open to the departure of Jadon Sancho this summer but Romano, like several other reports, says that there is nothing imminent on the former Borussia Dortmund winger.

PSG have been linked with a move for Sancho, but while they have held discussions with the player, there is no concrete move as yet.

Nevertheless, a move is a “possibility”.

Current ETV

ETV Range

€31.2M - €52M

Man Utd get Dumfries hope with contract message

Manchester United could land Denzel Dumfries from Inter if they cool their interest on Noussair Mazraoui, Romano reports, but the Bayern Munich man remains very much their first choice option for the moment.

Dumfries, meanwhile, has been linked with a new contract at Inter, but while this is a possibility, Romano states that no deal will be done before the end of August.

“I’m still told that Man United’s focus remains on Noussair Mazraoui as their priority target,” he says. “There’s still no agreement with Bayern but the player is also waiting for United, so the right-back story remains with full focus on Mazraoui.

“Dumfries will not sign a new contract in August, but if he’s staying at Inter beyond August it remains a possibility for him to extend.”

City line up Alvarez replacement

Julian Alvarez is poised to complete a blockbuster move to Atletico Madrid from Manchester City. With an upfront fee of €75m, it will be the biggest sale in City’s history.

Romano says that Pep Guardiola’s men may not sign a like-for-like replacement.

“It could be a striker, but I would not be surprised if they end up considering also wingers and maybe playing with a false nine when Erling Haaland will not be available. Talks are taking place internally to decide on the next move, so we will have to wait and see the outcome of those discussions,” he says.

© IMAGO - Lionel Messi and Julian Alvarez

Merino to Arsenal: No formal offer bombshell

Mikel Merino remains an active negotiation for Arsenal, Romano reports, with no agreement reached between the Gunners and Real Sociedad.

He says that the Premier League side have still not made a formal offer for the player and that talks over payment terms and structure are up for debate.

Merino has already agreed terms with Arsenal, so it is up to the clubs to reach an agreement to get the transfer done.