Premier League transfer news: Messi to persuade world-class midfielder to not join Manchester United and sign for Barcelona instead and more – November 19, 2018

Hello and welcome to the Premier League transfer roundup for the day! Another day has gone by and we have inched closer to the January transfer window. With that, the volume of stories is also increasing.

So, without further ado, here are the best rumours of the day!

#5 Samir Nasri and Krzysztof Piatek

West Ham are reportedly close to signing Samir Nasri on a free transfer. The Frenchman is currently serving a ban due to doping convictions but it gets lifted at the end of December.

With that in mind, he could be representing West Ham in 2019 and former superstar Carlton Cole believes that the Hammers are making a good decision to sign him because he is a great player.

“I think the manager has a good relationship with him,” Carlton Cole said. “We know his class, he’s a classy player.”

Cole believes that he would add something new to the team and his experience will also be valuable for Manuel Pellegrini.

“He will bring something different to the squad and he has that experience too.

“It will be a great addition to the squad but it depends what the manager wants and what the owners want.”

Meanwhile, Krzysztof Piatek has spoken about his ambitions for the future. The Genoa star has been linked with Chelsea in the Premier League and has fueled speculations with what he said.

Piatek claimed that his dream is to play for a bigger club and compete in the Champions League. He also stated that Genoa are usually a club used as a stepping stone by players who aspire big things in the world of football.

“The dream of those who come to Genoa is that they use it as a stepping stone towards a big club. If I continue this way, I could sign for a big club. My objective is to play in the Champions League,” Piatek said.

#4 Emery stopped Ramsey extension

Out of Arsenal

At one point, it felt like Aaron Ramsey was sure to sign an extension with the Gunners. However, things took a U-turn suddenly when the club opted out of negotiations, which took even Ramsey by surprise.

And according to former Chelsea star Tony Cascarino, it must have been a move from manager Unai Emery that stopped the Welshman from getting an extension. His reasoning is that since Ramsey claimed that the new deal was all but done, pulling out at the last minute indicates Emery’s intrusion.

Cascarino believes that since Emery doesn’t consider Ramsey a starter, the Arsenal board didn’t think he would be worth the amount of money they were offering.

“That would tell me that the manager has had to have stepped in on negotiations,” Cascarino said. “The obvious conversation is the club say to him ‘where is your standing on Aaron Ramsey?’.

“‘He’s not going to play, he’s not going to be in my first team, I’ll use him as a sub’.

“They’ll then have to rethink and say ‘well if he’s just going to be a sub and coming off the bench and being in and out the team, we can’t offer him that amount of money’.”

#3 North London

Wants to leave Barca

Alright, North London. The two big clubs of North London might do some business in the January transfer window if the reports are to be believed. For Spurs, it would actually be shocking if they don’t sign anyone in the winter since they had no incoming player in the summer transfer window.

But if the source of Harry Hotspur is to be believed, then the Liliywhites might try to sign a player that would make the fans forget about their frustrating summer. According to his report, Mauricio Pochettino is targeting Christian Pulisic and has informed Daniel Levy of his desire.

Should Levy not sign him – or any similar player – to strengthen Spurs, things could get messy.

Meanwhile, in the red half of the divide, Arsenal are being linked with Barcelona’s Suarez. No, not Luis – got ya, didn’t I? – of course, but Denis. According to AS, Denis Suarez wants to move to Arsenal or club in the Premier League to rejuvenate his stagnating career.

#2 More on Pulisic

The American is in demand

So, everyone and their grandmothers are after the signature of Christian Pulisic. The Dortmund star is an incredible talent but nowhere has it been suggested that the German outfit has opened a shop with a head-sign which reads, ‘Pulisic for sale.’

And that is precisely what Dortmund’s Sporting director Michael Zorc has claimed. Well, not exactly ‘precisely’, but it is somewhere along the lines of ‘you guys can back off for now, but come back in the summer to see if our minds have changed.’

Here is what he actually said about Pulisic being linked to Chelsea and Tottenham and Liverpool and basically every other club in Europe: "We have known these rumours for many years. We plan at least until the end of the season with him. Pulisic will not leave BVB in winter."

Not good news for the folks at Chelsea and Tottenham…

#1 Manchester madness

Messi wants him at Barca

Manchester United need defenders in their team. They do have a lot of them but none could be dubbed as a quality centre-half. It is for this reason that Jose Mourinho wanted a centre-back in the summer and will look to sign one in the winter.

The Red Devils failed to sign any central defender in the summer, which makes it imperative to sign at least one in the winter. According to Daily Star, Manchester United are eying a move for Diego Godin from Atletico Madrid.

The Uruguayan’s deal with the Rojiblancos expires in the summer and United are lining up £20 million to sign him in the winter itself.

Meanwhile, the blockbuster rumour of the day comes from Don Balon, who claim that Barcelona star Lionel Messi is willing to call Adrien Rabiot and persuade him to join Barcelona while rejecting Manchester United in the process.