Man Utd ‘keen’ on Juventus star as Arsenal, Liverpool ‘contact’ agents over 2024 free transfer
Adrien Rabiot is reportedly attracting interest from a host of Premier League clubs, including Arsenal and Manchester United, as he nears the end of his Juventus contract.
Rabiot has been linked with a move to England for an eternity but is yet to play in Our League.
The French international has been at Juventus since joining the Italian giants on a free transfer in 2019.
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The Red Devils reportedly came close to landing the Juventus midfielder in the summer of 2022 but were put off by his wage demands.
There were lots of rumours until Rabiot agreed a new one-year contract in June 2023, a few days before becoming a free agent.
Signing a deal until 2024 means we are going to be blessed with more Rabiot transfer rumours in the upcoming months. Yay. Lucky us.
Despite turning 29 in April and being expected to demand a massive salary as a free agent, several top clubs in England are being linked with the former Paris Saint-Germain player.
According to HITC, there is interest coming from five different English clubs, including United and Arsenal.
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It is claimed that the Red Devils, Gunners, Newcastle United, Tottenham and Liverpool ‘are all keen on securing the services of Rabiot in the summer transfer window’.
Every club, except for United, have been in ‘contact’ with the 28-year-old’s representatives ‘in recent months’ and are eager to remain informed of his situation in Italy.
German giants Bayern Munich are also in the running, the report adds.
Juventus want to keep hold of Rabiot, though, and are ‘working hard to try to convince’ him to pen a new contract.
The Old Lady are also looking to extend the contracts of Federico Chiesa and Dusan Vlahovic, who have also been linked with a move to the Premier League.
Vlahovic’s form has been excellent this year, scoring seven goals in six Serie A appearances, including braces against Sassuolo and Lecce.
Arsenal tried to sign the Serbian international before he left Fiorentina for Juve in January 2022, and there has been talk of Mikel Arteta’s side reigniting their interest as they search for a new striker.
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Where are they now? Jesse Marsch’s 12 largely disastrous signings as Leeds United manager
Leeds United made 12 signings over the course of Jesse Marsch’s 12-month stint as manager, but few of those proved to be successful at Elland Road.
The American coach helped steer Leeds to survival when he was appointed as Marcelo Bielsa’s successor in February 2022, but he was dismissed a year later with the club sitting just above the relegation zone.
We’ve taken a look back at the 12 players Leeds brought in during Marsch’s tenure and checked in on where they are today.
Brenden Aaronson
The midfielder was originally linked with Leeds during Marcelo Bielsa’s final transfer window, which in hindsight can be read as the Red Bull/American direction the club was headed in. He eventually arrived in the summer, joining his compatriot and former boss at Red Bull Salzburg.
The £25million fee raised eyebrows, and while there were some promising signs early on he struggled to justify that outlay and looked less suited to the physical demands as his underwhelming debut season went on.
“I have a body type that’s not, I guess, a Prem-type player,” Aaronson responded in an interview with The Athletic.
”I’m not the biggest, I’m not the most physical. But I disagree that I think that it makes the biggest difference. If you look at the best players in the world, (Andres) Iniesta, Xavi, (Luka) Modric, they’re strong guys, but they’re not like Virgil van Dijk.
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“I think since that last year I’ve gotten stronger because I’ve been in the weight room a lot more. I work on it every day. I try to get stronger every single day. But I think that I learned a lot more because I’ve always been the smallest one. So I’ve always had to be between the lines and be smart.
“Also, during parts of the season last year, I was trying to draw fouls around the box and people thought, ‘Oh, he’s going down too easy’. But that was just me trying to get fouls. So it’s a little bit of both. But I think I can definitely get stronger.”
The 23-year-old hasn’t fared any better out on loan at Union Berlin, where he’s made just five Bundesliga starts this season.
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Luis Sinisterra
The Colombia international registered better numbers than Antony in his final season in the Eredivisie, yet caught a fraction of the fee that Manchester United spent on the Brazilian.
Given that, and some electric moments, there was hope that he could step into Raphinha’s shoes to become Leeds’ new talismanic wing wizard. But he ultimately wasn’t fit and available enough and he was almost entirely absent during the pivotal relegation run-in.
Sinisterra ended up forcing a move to Bournemouth on deadline day, and while he’s not set the world alight for the Cherries – five league starts, two goals, two assists – they’ve evidently seen enough to make his loan permanent. Leeds have reportedly recouped their original outlay on his signature, which has to represent decent business.
Tyler Adams
One to be filed alongside Sinisterra as a ‘what if?’ that hangs over Leeds’ relegation, the US international was probably the club’s player of the season – in part due to their form falling off a cliff when he suffered a season-ending hamstring injury.
Bournemouth triggered Adams’ £20million release clause in late August, but he mustered 20 minutes of League Cup football before suffering a recurrence of that hamstring problem.
Rasmus Kristensen
Another one that played under Marsch at Salzburg, the Denmark international struggled in his one and only season at Elland Road and can be seen as the poster boy for the Red Bull-influenced direct, narrow and frantic Red Bull style failing to get going.
Kristensen has since been loaned out to Roma, where he’s come under severe criticism. Another loanee you wouldn’t expect to see back at his parent club.
Marc Roca
The Spanish midfielder evidently had his qualities, but his patient passing style always felt incongruous in Marsch’s chaotic gameplan that never seemed fussed about recycling possession.
Roca looked particularly lost following the injury to midfield partner Adams, and he’s since been sent out on loan to Real Betis – the La Liga club look a more natural fit, and he’s confirmed that he’d like to stay.
“There is a clause like this year,” said the midfielder, via El Desmarque
“If Leeds is not in the Premier League, I can go out on loan again. Let’s see. It depends on whether they go up or not.
“They are things out of my control. I sincerely hope they go up, because of all the teams I wish them the best. I am grateful to them, I wish them the best, it has been my home, and from there we will see.”
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Darko Gyabi
Highly regarded as a promising youngster, Gyabi arrived at Leeds as part of the deal that saw Kalvin Phillips move to Manchester City.
But he never made it beyond the fringes of the first-team squad and clocked up considerably more minutes for the Under-21s. In January, the 19-year-old joined Plymouth Argyle on loan until the end of the season.
Sonny Perkins
It was considered quite the coup when Leeds signed Perkins, who West Ham were reportedly not too happy about losing after a tribunal.
The young forward continued his development in the club’s youth ranks and hinted at making the first-team step-up when he scored a late equaliser against Cardiff in the FA Cup in January 2023.
But he never really kicked on from there and a half-season loan to Oxford United failed to ignite his career. Unable to play for a third club in 2023-24, Perkins returned to Leeds but looks extremely unlikely to play any part for Daniel Farke’s promotion-chasers.
Wilfried Gnonto
A deadline-day capture from FC Zurich, Gnonto quickly made himself look indispensable with some electric early performances under Marsch.
But the Italian’s form fizzled out in Leeds’ miserable relegation drop, and it looked like he might have burned his bridges when he put in a transfer request and reportedly refused to play amid interest from Everton last summer.
Gnonto ended up staying put, kept his head down, and has been patient for further opportunities while being kept out of the XI by an in-form Dan James. But he’s taken his chance to impress, with four goals in his last four starts – and rumours that a contract renewal is imminent. Some turnaround.
Joel Robles
A much-needed experienced back-up to Illan Meslier, Robles spent most of the 2022-23 campaign as a bench-warmer – but he was eventually brought in for a run of games by Sam Allardyce when Meslier’s confidence looked shot.
Robles was unable to make much of a difference and quietly departed on a free at the end of last season. He’s currently turning out for Saudi second-tier outfit Al-Qadsiah.
Weston McKennie
The Juventus loanee made just one appearance under his American compatriot, a dismal 1-0 away defeat to relegation rivals Nottingham Forest, before Marsch was sacked. Things never really picked up from there, and McKennie himself admits he wasn’t at his best during his forgettable half-season stint.
“I didn’t have the best performances,” McKennie reflected in an interview with Sky Sports Italy.
”I felt I let certain people down. But at the end of the day, when I came back, I think it was important for me in general to have an experience like that, to have that happen to me at this moment of my career, because when I came back it felt like I was coming back here for the first time again.”
McKennie has bounced back – no pun intended – from the Leeds’ fans chants of “you fat b*stard” with an uptick in form for Juventus this season, although their title charge has fallen away in recent weeks.
Max Wober
Yet another player that came and went before being loaned out, Wober was a popular figure upon his arrival in January 2023, helping to shore up the defence albeit not enough to keep Leeds up.
The Austrian then exercised the clause in his contract that allowed him to go out on loan rather than play for the club in the Championship. By all accounts he’s doing pretty well for Borussia Monchengladbach, raising the possibility of a permanent move to the Bundesliga and Leeds recouping the £11million on their investment.
Georginio Rutter
Leeds’ record signing at £36million, Rutter’s first six months in Yorkshire were a total head-scratcher. He played 99 minutes under Marsch, 203 minutes under Java Gracia and just 30 minutes under Sam Allardyce. The French forward never made any kind of impact in the relegation battles and you had the feeling that three successive managers didn’t know what to do with him.
Rutter might not have been what Marsch’s Leeds needed at that moment, but he’s been a revelation in their bid to return to the top flight. He’s been a chance creation machine and notched six goals and 11 assists in the Championship this season. Most importantly of all, he’s brought the fun factor back to Elland Road.
There was never any suggestion that Rutter wanted to jump ship after relegation, unlike so many of his team-mates, even amid interest from the likes of Borussia Dortmund. For that, and being a born entertainer, he’s becoming a proper fan favourite this season.
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Yorke names two players Man Utd need to sign this summer, including Tottenham star
Dwight Yorke thinks Man Utd need to sign Tottenham forward Son Heung-min and Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong in the summer transfer window.
The Red Devils had a brilliant first season under Erik ten Hag last term with the Dutchman guiding them to an FA Cup final, League Cup silverware and a top-four finish in the Premier League.
However, recent results and performances have given Man Utd fans renewed hope that they can finish in the top four and end the season in style.
Their 2-1 victory over Luton Town on Sunday was their sixth win in seven matches in all competitions with the Red Devils’ good form coinciding with Rasmus Hojlund’s hot scoring streak.
And looking ahead to the summer transfer window and next season, Yorke reckons Man Utd need to bring in “more Premier League experience” with a signing like Son from Tottenham.
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“I think we need a number nine, somebody up there with a little bit more Premier League experience and a good player like Son for me would be brilliant,” Yorke told Gambling Zone.
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“He’s not like Harry Kane but he’s still got energy and brings so many goals, so someone like him would attract me very much to go and get.
“These clubs are all competing and to get those kinds of players will be difficult, especially if United don’t get the Champions League next season.”
There are strong rumours that Barcelona could force De Jong out of the Camp Nou in the summer if he refuses to sign a new contract on reduced terms with reports claiming Man Utd would be interested again.
And Yorke thinks the Netherlands international would be a good “mentor” to Kobbie Mainoo and give Man Utd an “X-factor”.
Yorke added: “I think getting De Jong to mentor Mainoo would be a good combination as he’s suited to Man United’s midfield. If he were to come, it’d be a nice youthful balance there.
“I’m not sure how old De Jong is but I think he’d give us that X-factor that we need in midfield and a little bit of creativity, which he’s capable of doing, as well as adding legs in midfield.
“He ticks all the boxes and I think the combination of him and Mainoo would be a fabulous one to look forward to next season.”
Liverpool’s latest young star is a midfield freak – & they snatched him from Man Utd
An injury crisis at the business end of Jurgen Klopp’s final season in charge of Liverpool feels strangely fitting. But if you can look beyond the sinking feeling, there’s an air of optimism in the form of yet another under-18 starlet.
Liverpool have never been afraid to rely on youth, but with their hands tied more than ever in recent years, Klopp has quietly worked miracles to turn the club into a talent factory for young ballers to emerge and stake their claim.
The most worrying part is that we no longer envy them, due to the nauseatingly high level they’re operating at within the cauldron of pressure that is senior football in 2024. If you can’t handle it, you’re quickly found out.
Klopp has found a way to ensure his brightest young stars don’t fall to that fate through the years and is doing the same again, establishing a young spine for the future without him – and for now, while their regular faces fight for a spare bed in the treatment room.
Curtis Jones has been a revelation this season but has succumbed to injuries, leaving Liverpool light in midfield with fellow academy graduate and hybrid full-back-turned-midfielder Trent Alexander-Arnold also out of action.
Conor Bradley and Jarell Quansah have managed to plug the gaps thus far and the Reds have a young Irish star ready to bolster their front line in Lewis Koumas, but there’s still a hole in midfield – which Kieran Morrison is more than ready to fill.
Yet another teenage Irishman blossoming in Liverpool’s under-18s, Morrison represents Northern Ireland at youth level and joined Liverpool’s academy at under-14.
A creative midfielder with tricky feet and a surprisingly deadly eye for goal, Morrison has made a habit out of punching above his weight, thus a first-team fast-track isn’t entirely unrealistic.
With seven goals and three assists from 12 under-18 Premier League games this season, he’s wasted no time in forcing his name into headlines and – crucially – conversations around Liverpool about what he might bring to Klopp’s squad in the event of an injury crisis.
The 17-year-old – born in 2006 (!) – can operate from the middle of the park or off the right-hand side, making him a moldable asset with an exciting set of traits and already a killer instinct that allows him to punish teams.
That all sounds great, but we’ve not touched on the best bit yet.
The icing on the cake to Morrison’s lofty ascent at Liverpool? He used to be on the books at Manchester United. It’s now become his mission to flip them the bird and force his way into senior football with their most bitter rivals – a serious kick in the teeth for the Red Devils.
Having shouldered the pressure that comes with moving across to a rival side and continually punching above his weight with various age groups, there is already a resilience within Morrison that nicely compliments a brewing technical ability.
Recent performances have also seen him trusted with the under-18 captain’s armband – an indicator of his lofty potential.
Football is a funny game. Typically, a player of Morrison’s calibre ought to be looking at kicking down the door to the under-21 side and perhaps making use of a loan to find a way into the senior setup, but with injuries, there might just be a path straight to Klopp’s first-team.
One thing is for certain; his potential cannot be denied and he’s doing everything in his power to deliver on it.
In the wake of an injury crisis, trusting in a young gun like Morrison can never hurt. He’s more than deserving of a shot.
By Mitch Wilks
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