Transfer news live: Arsenal plan Gyokeres medical, Ekitike flies in to join Liverpool, Man United reignite Sesko interest

Transfer news LIVE

• Arsenal plan to fly Viktor Gyokeres to Singapore for medical ahead of £63.8m move
• What is really going on inside the confusing Alexander Isak transfer saga?
• Why Man United could be in pole position for Benjamin Sesko
• Marcus Rashford heading to Barcelona on loan
• Chelsea and Arsenal battle for Leipzig midfielder Xavi Simons
• Erik ten Hag wants to keep Granit Xhaka despite Sunderland links

Newcastle keen on Wissa

Newcastle are set to make another approach for Brentford forward Yoane Wissa, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Bees previously rejected Newcastle’s £25m bid, though the Magpies are keen on the Congo international and will return with another offer.

Wissa is said to be “keen on [the] project and Champions League chance” that Newcastle offer.

Spurs held an interest in Wissa during the January window too (Getty Images)

Chelsea set Veiga asking price with trio of clubs battling for Portugal international's signature

Atletico Madrid want to sign Renato Veiga but no an agreement with Chelsea will be tough to find.

The Portuguese international will struggle to find regular gametime at Stamford Bridge, with the 21-year-old spending last season on loan at Juventus.

Atletico also face competition from Bayern Munich and an unnamed Premier League with Marca reporting that the Spaniards are willing to go to €35m to sign him, but the Blues remain unmoved on a €40m price tag.

Rodrygo to Liverpool noise continues

Take this one with a pinch of salt, or a large dollop, but Foot Mercato in France are reporting that Liverpool have opened talks with Real Madrid winger Rodrygo.

The 24-year-old winger is out of favour under Xabi Alonso and could seek a move this summer.

Quite whether the Reds would want to spend big again, following Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz’s arrivals to bolster the front line, is unclear.

While Rodrygo’s wages will likely make him one of the highest earners at Anfield, which could prove problematic.

L’Equipe also detailed how Rodrygo would “without a doubt” replace Luis Diaz, should the Colombian international leave this summer. Watch this space, I suppose.

Arsenal plan to fly Viktor Gyokeres to Singapore for medical ahead of £63.8m move

Sources tell The Independent that plans are in place for the Swedish striker to finalise his move on the Gunners’ pre-season tour.

Mikel Arteta’s side face AC Milan on Wednesday, which will come too soon for Gyokeres to feature, with the next friendly on Sunday against Newcastle.

Marcus Rashford finally has his Barcelona move but Man United have paid a heavy price for saga

There is a history of Manchester United turnarounds at the Nou Camp. Now there may be another. A player who, six months ago, was not even granted a place on the bench for the team who went on to finish 15th in the Premier League, is now being unveiled as Barcelona’s new signing. For Marcus Rashford, it feels quite a comeback.

He may go from Ruben Amorim’s bomb squad to Hansi Flick’s bench. He might only be plan C after Nico Williams performed a U-turn to stay at Athletic Bilbao and Liverpool rebuffed an approach for Luis Diaz. As Flick’s forward line consists of Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Lamine Yamal, Rashford could yet spend much of his time watching on.

Ten Hag wants to keep Xhaka

More from ten Hag here:

"The agent can say anything. But this club has already lost three important players," Ten Hag told German media on Tuesday.

"We won't let any more players go, that's not possible. That would neglect the structure and also the culture of the squad.

"It's clear Granit is a leader, he has signed here for five years and has three years left on his contract. He's too important for us to let him go."

Granit Xhaka won two FA Cups during his seven-year stay at Arsenal (Adam Davy/PA) (PA Archive)

Ten Hag wants to keep Xhaka

Granit Xhaka is a key figure for Bayer Leverkusen and the Bundesliga side cannot afford to let the Swiss midfielder leave, said manager Erik ten Hag according to Reuters.

Leverkusen have already lost playmaker Florian Wirtz and defender Jeremie Frimpong to Premier League champions Liverpool, while centre back Jonathan Tah has moved to Bayern Munich.

Former Arsenal man Xhaka has been linked with a move to Sunderland, with his agent telling German media the 32-year-old Switzerland skipper has an agreement in principle with the newly-promoted Premier League club.

Xhaka helped Leverkusen secure the double in the 2023-24 season as they lifted their first Bundesliga title without losing a game, won the German Cup and reached the Europa League final.

He has made 99 appearances for Leverkusen, scoring six goals and registering nine assists.

Chelsea and Arsenal battle for Simons

Xavi Simons has made his thoughts clear that he wants to leave RB Leipzig this summer.

Sky Sports say that there is some interest in the midfielder from Premier League clubs and that the player would be open to the move.

Arsenal and Chelsea were the two clubs named but both have been busy scouting out other targets this summer.

Bayern Munich are also said to be interested in Simons but won’t make any moves until later in the transfer window.

Simons’ fee could cost anywhere between €50-65m.

Marcus Rashford heading to Barcelona

Marcus Rashford is seemingly on the move to La Liga both figuratively and literally.

Rashford posted a photo of himself on a private plane with the caption: ‘Downtime’ as rumours abound over an exit from Manchester United.

The forward has interest from Barcelona and looks set to complete a year-long loan move with the Spanish giants who will have an option to buy included in the contract.

Barcelona have allegedly agreed to cover all of Rashford’s £375,000 per week wages and, though United prefer a permanent move, they have agreed to this deal.

Man United sign Mbeumo from Brentford

Manchester United have completed the long-awaited signing of Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo for a fee rising to £71million.

Nearly seven weeks after seeing their first offer rebuffed, the Red Devils finally have their man and the 25-year-old has signed a deal until 2030 with the option of a further year.

Mbeumo leaves Brentford for an initial £65m fee that could rise by a further £6m should certain add-on clauses related to team and player be achieved.

Bryan Mbeumo has finally completed his move to Manchester United (Bradley Collyer/PA) (PA Wire)

Liverpool reach £79m agreement to sign Hugo Ekitike from Frankfurt

The fee could rise to £79m if add-ons are triggered and the French forward is set to become their fourth summer signing.

Ekitike will travel to Merseyside for a medical and will sign a six-year deal, with personal terms not expected to be a problem.

Liverpool hope the 23-year-old will be able to fly to Asia to link up with his new teammates on their pre-season tour. Sporting director Richard Hughes has remained behind in England to complete the deal, along with some of Liverpool’s medical staff.

Liverpool entered into advanced talks with Frankfurt last week after making an inquiry with Newcastle for Alexander Isak, who United do not want to sell.

(Getty)

Why Man United could be in pole position for Sesko

Fabrizio Romano has pointed to a key reason why Manchester United could be in pole position to sign Benjamin Sekso, and it is down to their head of scouting, Christopher Vivell.

Vivell is a former part of the Red Bull Group and knows Sesko, who plays for RB Leipzig.

United have made no official contact with Leipzig yet, but there is interest.

(Getty Images)

What is really going on inside the confusing Alexander Isak transfer saga?

Newcastle United may be insistent that Alexander Isak is not for sale, and Eddie Howe may be cautiously asserting his confidence that the Swede will “be here at the start of the season”, but there is a lot more uncertainty within the club. Many are worried. A feeling is growing that Isak’s head has been turned, with that accentuated by the club’s frustrations in the transfer market. The 25-year-old is coming into his prime, and just qualifying for the Champions League is no longer enough.

No matter what else Howe says, it is hardly encouraging that the manager admits he has “to send him home” from a pre-season friendly “due to the speculation around him”. That is a strange and conspicuous decision in such circumstances. Some teammates won’t even be drawn on his future. There were still other alarm-bell lines from Howe, even as he maintained Isak is “happy at Newcastle”. Among them were “I respect a player’s career and how short it is”.

Breakthrough! Arsenal set to seal Gyokeres

We start with some of yesterday’s biggest news...

Arsenal have made a major breakthrough in their negotiations for Viktor Gyokeres, finally agreeing a fee with Sporting CP, who fought hard for what they considered a fair price.

Arsenal have agreed to a package worth up to £63m for the Swedish forward. Their long search for a No9 is nearly over.

Good morning

Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s live transfer news blog.

We’ll bring you all the latest updates, rumours and breaking transfer news, with several clubs including Liverpool and Arsenal on the verge of sealing huge deals and the rumour mill in full flow for several Premier League and European teams.