Manchester United make contact over a £26 million guy as Liverpool make important transfer decision

A roundup of the most recent Premier League transfer rumors, including updates from Manchester United, Liverpool, and more.

It’s difficult to keep up with all of the transfer reports swirling around at this time of year, so we’ve returned with our newest roundup of the biggest fresh Premier League transfer speculations, beginning with a Manchester United story.

According to Caught Offside, the Red Devils are one of two teams to have had “preliminary contact” with Lyon midfielder Corentin Tolisso and his representation ahead of a potential move, with the 2018 World Cup winner being considered as United look to reinforce a clearly poor midfield for next season.

The second team alleged to have been on the phone is Atlético Madrid, but it does not appear that either has made a formal bid to debt-ridden Lyon, who appear to be undergoing a financially mandated sale this summer. Eintracht Frankfurt, OGC Nice, and Lille are believed to be interested as well.

Tolisso “does not intend to pressure Lyon for a transfer,” but given the French club’s financial predicament, a price of €25-30 million (up to £26 million) could be enough to get a midfielder who is regarded as a key player.

The 3AM Verdict: Given that Tolisso will be 31 when the new season begins, we doubt that many clubs would pay what Lyon is reportedly asking for – we’ve reached a point where dozens of different midfielders are being linked with a move to Old Trafford, and this just feels like more speculation. If a more affordable deal was proposed, we’d be more inclined to believe it.

Liverpool makes major choice on Luis Díaz.

Liverpool have rejected a transfer bid from Bayern Munich for winger Luis Díaz, despite the Colombian’s evident desire to depart and refusal to sign a contract extension, according to The Athletic.

Bayern Munich made a €67.5 million (£58.6 million) bid for Díaz, but the Reds consider him a vital component of their plans for the upcoming season and will not let him depart.

They allegedly slapped a €100 million price tag on the 28-year-old, who was signed from Porto for half of that amount, but it’s thought that a somewhat smaller approach of around £80 million would be “much harder to ignore” than an initial bid that was promptly rejected.

The 3AM Verdict: Liverpool appear to be sticking to their guns unless they receive an offer that is simply too good to pass up, which makes sense given Diogo Jota’s devastating death has made retaining their strikers at the club even more crucial. Bayern are considerably bigger spenders than they used to be, so it will be fascinating to see whether they respond with a new offer.

Nottingham Forest makes Aston Villa star a ‘priority aim’

According to a fresh report from The Daily Telegraph, Nottingham Forest intend to make Aston Villa midfielder Jacob Ramsey “a primary summer target” and feel he could play across the front line as they compete in continental competition for the first time in decades next season.

Forest’s interest in Ramsey is said to be “long-standing,” and a fee could be in the region of £30 million, according to the article, though it acknowledges that the figure is based on prior media links rather than any new inside information – and there’s no word on whether Aston Villa are tempted to sell or not.

Everton and West Ham United are also interested in the 24-year-old, which might spark a bidding war down the line, while Aston Villa’s recent PSR issues may entice them to move on a player whose sale would be pure profit.

The 3AM Verdict: Ramsey has been linked to a lot of teams on multiple occasions, which makes it difficult to believe specific rumors, especially when there are few facts, as there are here. That being said, Ramsey’s departure from Villa makes sense for both the player, who is merely a rotational option under Unai Emery, and his club, which might benefit from a modest balance sheet adjustment.

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Why Manchester United are failing to sign a striker amid the wait for a transfer breakthrough

Man United require a new striker following a -1 goal difference in 2023-24 and -10 in 2024-25, but the wait is set to continue.

If you look at the first team part of Manchester United’s website, you’ll notice that their biggest difficulties are at the bottom of the list.

Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho, both without squad numbers, are the final two players on the list. Antony and Alejandro Garnacho are located above them.

There are 33 players on that page. We can leave out the aforementioned quartet and Tyrell Malacia from the senior team. Dan Gore and Ethan Wheatley cannot be regarded first-teamers, and it is premature to designate Tyler Fredricson such position, despite his recent squad number increase.

Diego Leon’s profile has been added to the first-team page, but the 18-year-old’s debut season is likely to be similar to Sekou Kone’s. One of acclimatisation, with few possibilities at the senior level.

So the roster is reduced to a lean 24 players, an excellent size for a season with no European nights on the schedule. But sellable assets cannot simply be written off.

Rashford, Antony, Sancho, and Garnacho jointly earn £825,000 each week. They are all still on United’s roster, and it is likely that they will remain so until August.

It is unlikely that United will sell all four. Garnacho has suitors, and Sancho cannot command such a big fee after four erratic years with a year left on his contract. Antony has established a market, but his profitability and sustainability-calculated value (£32.58 million) is unlikely to be purchased by a buying club.

Wilcox identified a striker signing but Liam Delap chose Chelsea

Antony may have to take out a season-long loan with a fixed fee to be paid at the end, barring a Sancho-style loophole. Rashford’s wage, the three years remaining on his contract, and his preference for a change of scenery make a loan inevitable.

Rashford spent four hours in the gym on Monday morning. Almost all of his Instagram posts this summer have been exercise videos. He has also led solo sessions at Carrington. He is attempting to attract attention.

It’s likely that United will continue to foot some of the tab for two prominent forwards next season. Then there are two strikers in whom they have invested £108.5 million, a high-profile teenage striker who was promoted to the first team about six months ago, and five players capable of playing as a No.10. They’re more stocked than an Ikea warehouse.

Any idea that United will quickly sign a striker is absurd given their bloated and expensive attacking squad. Liam Delap was a convenient option because he had a cheap release clause and played for a demoted club that was more interested in promoting Ed Sheeran concerts than staying in the Premier League.

Hojlund and Zirkzee cost £108.5m

According to sources, Jason Wilcox, United’s new director of football, is well loved and respected by the club’s staff. According to Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Wilcox has the “best eyes in football”. He didn’t have to seek far for Delap, a player he had seen at Manchester City’s academy while serving as director.

United are still reeling from the £72 million deal they struck with Atalanta for Rasmus Hojlund, who was purchased for £64 million up front two years ago. While United were in talks with Atalanta, one of the coaching staff said they would be unable to invest £60 million on another striker the next summer.

When United needed another striker last year, they had to make a compromise and pay a release clause for Joshua Zirkzee, who cost around half as much as Hojlund at £36.5 million. It was subsequently revealed that Zirkzee is not a specialist striker.

United had been linked with Viktor Gyokeres and Hugo Ekitike, but nothing was confirmed. Both players appear to be on their way to Premier League clubs Arsenal and Newcastle United, both of which have qualified for Champions League. United notified Christopher Nkunku’s advisors that they are not quite as interested as his parent club, Chelsea, stated.

Expect Google search interest in Benjamin Sesko to increase this week, since he is the only high-profile and attainable striker waiting in the wings. Sesko turned down United in 2022 to sign with RB Leipzig, but his agency has since paid several visits to Old Trafford and Carrington.

Hojlund joined United in 2023

Sesko, who is under contract until 2029, would fetch at least twice as much as United was willing to pay for Delap. United has eight senior out-and-out forwards, with the majority earning six-figure weekly salaries. The statistics do not add up for a team that admitted to a supporters’ organization that it is struggling to comply with PSR.

Guaranteed sales are much more important now that the price of a No. 9 has increased. Reinventing Matheus Cunha or Bryan Mbeumo (if he ever arrives) as a true striker would be a complete sham.

Sesko was of interest to United in 2022

Persevering with Hojlund would require blind confidence. Senior figures at United criticized Hojlund last season, predicting his exit this summer. Inter Milan inquired about the Dane in June.

The quest for a striker is expected to continue until the September 1 transfer deadline. United’s priority purchases are frequently among the last to arrive (Manuel Ugarte in 2024, Hojlund in 2023, Casemiro in 2022, and Harry Maguire in 2019).

United finished the previous two seasons with a negative goal differential. It was literally tenfold worse in 2024-25 than the prior campaign. The nock of the arrow has to be sharpened.

However, there are issues at the bottom of the pile that need to be addressed first.