Premier League transfer news: Barcelona put €70 million price tag on Liverpool target and more

Hello and welcome to the Premier League transfer roundup for the day! What a day we have had in the rumour mill as all the top clubs have been – like every day – been heavily involved with the happenings in the mill.

And we shall – without any further ado whatsoever – get to all the stories in three, two, one…

#5 Bonucci spills the beans

Manchester United wanted to sign at least one defender in the past summer window. This is basically the most known fact about the Red Devils’ summer transfer window. However, in the end, they couldn’t entice anyone to come to the Theatre of Dreams.

And if it wasn’t clear enough already, former Milan defender Leonardo Bonucci has openly claimed that he could have joined Manchester United this past summer. Jose Mourinho was linked with a plethora of defenders and the Italian was a common name among them.

And now, according to the player himself, there was a possibility of joining either one of Manchester United or Manchester City, who approached him in 2016.

'Basically, there have been some possibilities both with Manchester City and with Manchester United,' Bonucci explained.

'With Manchester City when I received that offer (in 2016) I actually talked to the club, I talked to Juventus and we decided that it was good for me to stay and to keep on winning with Juventus.’

He then added that the moment he got a chance to go back ‘home’ in Turin, he grabbed it with both hands and came to Juventus while rejecting all other offers.

'And this year when I was told there was a possibility to go back home, to come back to Juventus I just stopped listening to any other offers and I decided to come back here.'

#4 Mourinho refuses to speak about Madrid

Manchester United Training and Press Conference

Both Julen Lopetegui and Jose Mourinho fell in a quagmire at the same time and while the latter has been able to get himself partially out of it, Julen Lopetegui is just falling deeper in the abyss with each passing game.

As a result, there are stories of Florentino Perez sacking his newly-appointed manager and hiring his former manager Jose Mourinho. However, the Portuguese has denied those stories as he claimed that he is happy to see out his contract with the Red Devils while also stating that he is no mood to answer questions concerning Real Madrid.

“No, my future is here [at United]. I want to stay here until the final day of my contract and I would like to stay after my contract runs out as well.”

“I don't like this press conference,” he said. “I don't want to speak about Pogba, I don't want to speak about individuals, I don't want to speak to the Spanish journalists because they are only interested in Real Madrid and Ronaldo.”

#3 Chelsea

After a bad season with Antonio Conte, the Londoners have found a new lease of life under Maurizio Sarri as the former Napoli coach have not only moulded them to a unit that has found back its winning ways but are also doing it in style.

As a result, the Italian coach’s stock is seemingly on the rise and it won’t be shocking to see some of the best European clubs vying for his signature. In fact, AS have already gone down that way and have named him as one of the potential candidates to replace former Spain and current Real Madrid manager Julen Lopetegui.

Meanwhile, the Blues’ biggest problem – a proper scoring striker – might haunt them somewhere down the line this season. As a means to counteract that, it seems as though the Londoners are planning to sign either one of Krzysztof Piatek or Mauro Icardi, according to this report from Daily Mail.

#2 Manchester madness ft. Crystal Palace

Wait, what? That is clearly not a proper association, isn’t it? If a data analyst ran an associate rule learning on these sliders, the common clubs to be in this slider would almost be the two giants from Manchester.

However, there is always room for an exception at times and today, Crystal Palace make it alongside the Red Devils. Speaking of the Old Trafford outfit, their quest for world-class defenders will only end once they lay their hands on one.

And if this report from the Don Balon is to be believed, then Jose Mourinho has targeted Real Madrid’s Raphael Varane.

Meanwhile, this report from Sports Witness, who quote UOL Esporte, claims that Palace are interested in bringing former Brazil prodigy Gabriel Barbosa to the club. The Brazilian, who is still owned by Inter, has raised hell at Santos after moving there on loan and Palace want to sign him on a temporary basis in January.

#1 Liverpool

Liverpool are the clear stars of the rumour mill. This was a club that signed players like Andy Carroll and Stewart Downing for over £50 million combined back in the day when such an amount was a big deal.

Now, however, they are linked with some of the finest players in the world of football and today is no different. According to Calcio Mercato, the Reds are targeting a move for Napoli star Lorenzo Insigne as a means to further bolster their attack.

The report further adds that the Merseyside outfit will soon make an approach for the forward.

Meanwhile, in what could be further good news, Barcelona have slapped a price tag on a player that has been linked to the Reds quite recently. According to Don Balon, the Catalans want to sell Ousmane Dembele and are willing to part ways with the Frenchman for as little as €70 million.

While PSG are the ones named in the report, it must be noted that Klopp openly admitted being interested in him if he is on the market.