Real Madrid are looking at AFC Bournemouth‘s Dean Huijsen, while there could be an incredible swap deal involving Manchester United‘s Marcus Rashford and Napoli‘s Victor Osimhen. Join us for the latest transfer news, rumors, and gossip from around the globe.
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TOP STORIES
– What we’re hearing in the transfer window: Liverpool, Man United, Olmo latest
– Arteta: Signings alone not enough in title race
– Sources: PSG downplay interest in Rashford
– Alexander-Arnold “committed” despite Madrid interest – Slot
TRENDING RUMORS
– AFC Bournemouth are aware of Real Madrid’s interest in Dean Huijsen, reports The Sun, adding that any departure for the centre-back would be more likely in the summer than January. This comes with Los Blancos scouts having tracked the 19-year-old for some time and been left impressed by his swift rise in the Premier League. According to reports in Spain, Bournemouth have quoted a transfer fee of at least £49 million. Huijsen only joined Bournemouth in July, signed from Juventus for an initial fee of €15.2m. Though born in Amsterdam and having played for Netherlands at youth level, he is more recently a Spain under-21 international having moved to country at the age of five and coming through the youth ranks at Málaga.
– Manchester United will try to agree a deal which will see Marcus Rashford and Napoli striker Victor Osimhen swap clubs, reports The Sun. Osimhen is on loan at Galatasaray after a permanent exit from Napoli couldn’t be agreed last summer. Meanwhile, the Daily Mail reports that Rashford has rejected three huge offers from clubs in Saudi Arabia worth £35m-a-year. The 27-year-old will be allowed to leave Old Trafford in January if the right offer comes along but the report states that he will only go to a competitive club. Osminhen has a £62m release clause, but a swap with Rashford could be agreeable.
– Celtic have made contact with Arsenal defender Kieran Tierney over a possible return to the club, sources have told ESPN’s James Olley. The 27-year-old’s deal expires at the end of the season and has been deemed surplus to requirements. Talks are centred on a precontract agreement ahead of a summer move but Tierney is keen on pushing for a transfer this month. Tierney signed for Arsenal from Celtic for £25m in 2019 but has fallen out of favour with Jurriën Timber, Riccardo Calafiori, academy graduate Myles Lewis-Skelly and Oleksandr Zinchenko among those selected ahead of him. The left-back’s sole start this season came in last month’s Carabao Cup quarter-final win over Crystal Palace.
– Having taken over at AC Milan, new manager Sérgio Conceição could look to his Portuguese roots, according to Gazzetta dello Sport. They are linking I Rossoneri with Sporting CP‘s Francisco Trincão, Porto winger Pepê and Mallorca‘s Samú Costa. Genoa‘s Morten Frendrup, Hellas Verona‘s Reda Belahyane and Monza‘s Warren Bondo are also being considered for the midfield position.
– Real Madrid believe that “time is on their side” in their pursuit of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Marca reported on Thursday. The newspaper says there will be “more movements” in the saga after Liverpool rejected an initial approach earlier this week, and claims Madrid would be willing to pay a €25m fee to agree a deal for the right-back in January.
CONFIRMED TRANSFERS
Chelsea have recalled Aaron Anselmino from his loan at Boca Juniors and he will now be part of the first team. The 19-year-old centre-back was signed by the west London club in the summer for £16m, but loaned straight back to Boca to continue his development. He made 18 appearances over the course of the loan and became a regular in the XI.
Aaron Anselmino has been recalled from his loan spell at Boca Juniors. 🇦🇷🔵
Welcome back to Chelsea, Aaron!
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 3, 2025
EXPERT TAKE
ESPN’s Alex Kirkland takes a look at Real Madrid’s interest in Dean Huijsen.
Centre-back has been a problem position for Real Madrid this season.
The club opted not to replace departing captain Nacho Fernandez last summer when they missed out on Leny Yoro. With David Alaba out long term with an ACL tear — he’s belatedly returned to training this week after 12 months out — that left Madrid with just two senior, top-quality options in the role: Antonio Rudiger and Eder Militao. Cue Militao’s own ACL tear, in November. That left Madrid partnering Rudiger with either youngster Raul Asencio, who’s done well under the circumstances, or an out-of-position Aurelien Tchouameni.
Coach Carlo Ancelotti had already wanted the club to bring in a central defender in the summer, and that desire has only increased with Militao’s absence, although Alaba’s return should help. And the age of those defenders — Rudiger is 31, Alaba is 32 and Militao is 26 — means an elite young prospect was always going to be the likely target. The pursuit of Yoro, 19, showed that.
A number of names fitting that profile, from around Europe, have been linked with Madrid in recent months, including RB Leipzig’s Castello Lukeba and Ajax’s Jorrel Hato, as well as Palmeiras’ Vitor Reis. Huijsen, 19, is the latest on that list. Huijsen may have only made his Premier League debut with Bournemouth this season, but he’s been on the radar in Spain for a long time: he lived in Málaga as a boy and played for Málaga’s academy, catching the eye of scouts from top clubs — including Madrid — before opting to sign for Juventus in May 2021.
He also played four times for Spain’s under-21s in 2024, having previously represented the Netherlands at youth level. So this is a player Madrid know well, and presumably they’ve liked what they’ve seen of his progress at Bournemouth, playing regularly at the highest level. But it remains to be seen what kind of fee could convince the Premier League club to part with a player they brought in just six months ago, on a long-term deal until 2030.
OTHER RUMORS
– Manchester City have added Lens centre-back Abdukodir Khusanov to their list of potential signings in January and are well-informed on his situation. There is still an open race to sign the 20-year-old, with various other top clubs interested in the Uzbekistan international. (Fabrizio Romano)
– Bayer Leverkusen, Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur are tracking Udinese defender Thomas Kristensen. The 22-year-old Denmark international could be available for £16.5m. (Football Insider)
– Napoli want to sign Juventus defender Danilo and Liverpool winger Federico Chiesa. Danilo is increasingly likely to leave Juventus while Chiesa has struggled for game time, having made his own departure from I Bianconeri last summer, although Napoli will face competition from Atalanta for the latter. (Tuttosport)
– AC Milan are continuing to monitor Samuele Ricci despite the midfielder signing a new deal that could keep him at Torino until 2028. The contract was an act of recognition for Torino and there is a verbal agreement that the 23-year-old can leave for €25m or more. (Calciomercato)
– Juventus’ negotiations with AC Milan regarding Fikayo Tomori are on standby after Sérgio Conceição took charge. If they don’t get the 27-year-old, Juve could focus on alternative options of Benfica’s António Silva and Feyenoord’s Dávid Hancko. (Calciomercato)
– Flamengo have turned down a €15m offer from Aston Villa for Wesley. The 21-year-old was voted the best right-back in the Brazilian league last season and Flamengo are only willing to listen to offers in the region of €25m. (GloboEsporte)
– Nigerian striker Umar Sadiq is set to join Valencia on loan from Real Sociedad. Sadiq is keen to prove his worth having had limited playing time with the Basque outfit this season. He has yet to score after 11 appearances. (Diario AS)
– Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique has not closed the door on the arrival of new players but insists he is happy with his squad. PSG are 10 points clear of Marseille at the top of Ligue 1 but 25th in the Champions League standings. (Marca)
– Kyle Walker remains a target for clubs in Saudi Arabia this month. The 34-year-old still has 18 months left on his Manchester City contract, and a move is more likely in the summer due to the club’s injury crisis. (The Sun)
– Miguel Almiron is set for a £16m move from Newcastle United to MLS side Charlotte FC. (The Sun)
