NEWCASTLE
It has widely been assumed that Karl Darlow will be leaving Newcastle this summer, but with a number of his former suitors having ended their interest in the shot-stopper, Rafael Benitez now claims the 26-year-old could remain with his current employers.
Darlow was the subject of an unsuccessful bid from Middlesbrough earlier this summer, but the Teessiders switched their attention elsewhere to sign Darren Randolph and will not be returning to the table.
Similarly, Reading’s interest in signing Darlow ended once they completed a £2m deal to sign Vito Mannone from Sunderland.
That leaves Darlow in a state of limbo, and having given the former Nottingham Forest goalkeeper a run-out in Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Preston, Benitez has floated the possibility of him remaining on Newcastle’s books next season.
When asked whether Darlow could still be a Magpies player beyond the end of the transfer window, he said: “I hope so”. Tim Krul, however, does not have a long-term future on Tyneside, and is not currently part of Newcastle’s senior squad.
Benitez wants to trim his squad, and the likes of Chancel Mbemba, Grant Hanley, Henri Saivet and Emmanuel Riviere are available for sale.
There is still a desire to make further signings, although Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is adamant he will not be loaning Sheyi Ojo to Newcastle. Klopp wants Ojo to get as much game time as possible next season, and wants to loan Ojo to a Championship club, with Middlesbrough, Derby and Fulham all having registered an interest.
MIDDLESBROUGH
Middlesbrough are interested in Birmingham defender Ryan Shotton – but not at anything like the price they have been quoted by the Blues.
Boro officials made contact with their counterparts at St Andrew’s to inquire about Shotton’s position, with Birmingham keen to sell the 28-year-old, who has slipped down the pecking order following the Blues’ £5m purchase of Marc Roberts.
However, they were quoted a price they feel is completely unrealistic, and will not be returning to the table unless Birmingham dramatically drop their demands.
Boro have also been linked with West Ham’s Ashley Fletcher, with the Hammers set to make the striker available for loan once they complete their planned £16m purchase of former Manchester United striker Javier Hernandez.
Boro have been adamant they do not want to lose Ben Gibson all summer, and their stance has not changed despite increased interest from West Brom.
West Brom have indicated a willingness to pay around £21m for Gibson, who broke his nose in Saturday’s friendly defeat to Rochdale, but they have been told Boro do not want to do business.
SUNDERLAND
Sunderland boss Simon Grayson has been open about the club’s transfer business all summer, and the Black Cats boss has admitted it will be hard to complete any more permanent deals unless players head through the exit door at the Stadium of Light.
“It will make it easier if players went out, because there’ll be money to spend in terms of outlay on transfer fees,” said Grayson. “It doesn’t stop us bringing in players on loan.”
Lamine Kone, Wahbi Khazri and Jeremain Lens are available if an acceptable deal can be struck, and any revenue raised will help Grayson as he looks to make further additions to his squad.
For the time being, though, loan deals are likely to be the order of the day, and Grayson would like to take Ross McCormack from Aston Villa on a season-long loan.
Villa boss Steve Bruce is keen to move McCormack on, and the striker was left out of the squad for his side’s pre-season tour of Germany.
However, having spent £12m to sign McCormack from Fulham, the Villa hierarchy would rather recoup some of their money by selling the striker rather than setting up a loan arrangement.
Grayson is set to offer Robbin Ruiter a permanent contract, having been impressed with the Dutch trialist during Saturday’s win at Bradford, and is also interested in Blackburn goalkeeper Jason Steele.
Newton Aycliffe-born Steele, who started his career with Middlesbrough, is likely to be available for around £500,000 following Blackburn’s relegation to League One.
OTHER CLUBS
One of the summer's longest transfer sagas looks like coming to an end, as Neymar is set to stay at Barcelona.
The Brazilian has been continually linked with a move to Paris St Germain but news website Sport claims that he has told team-mates Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez that he will remain at the Nou Camp.
Liverpool will not continue their pursuit of RB Leipzig midfielder Naby Keita this summer, reports the Daily Telegraph.
The Reds had a £66m bid rejected for Keita late last week but will revisit a potential deal next year.
French newspaper Le Parisien is claiming that Alexis Sanchez’s protracted move to PSG is over.
The Arsenal man has been another long-term target for the Ligue 1 club, but negotiations with the player are said to have broken down.
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