Arsenal are prepared to lower their asking price for Eddie Nketiah according to reports with the striker set to leave the Emirates this summer. 

French side Marseille have been in talks with the Gunners over a move for Nketiah but weren’t prepared to meet their asking price of €35m.

The Ligue 1 outfit had an offer of €27m rejected and aren’t prepared to go any higher than that for the Arsenal academy graduate.

Arsenal prepared to lower Nketiah asking price

Nketiah struggled last season as the Gunners got pipped to the Premier League title by Manchester City and he started just 10 Premier League games, finding the back of the net six times in 37 appearances in all competitions.

The 25-year-old is reportedly keen for a new challenge and Arsenal are opening to selling, but have so far been unwilling to budge on their asking price.

However, Foot Mercato have reported the Gunners are prepared to lower their asking price in order to help Nketiah secure a move to Marseille.

It remains to be seen if Marseille are still interested in the Englishman as they have agreed a deal to sign Borussia Dortmund striker Youssoufa Moukoko, whilst they have also reportedly expressed an interest in Lens striker Elye Wahi.

Nketiah is thought to have agreed personal terms with the French side, but it’s unclear if a change in price will see Marseille return to the table.

Marseille are now managed by former Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi and they have been busy in the market signing a number of players, including former Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood.

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The England international is under contract at the Emirates until 2027 and has scored 38 goals in 168 games for his boyhood club.

If Nketiah does leave north London he would become the next academy graudate to leave the club after Emile Smith Rowe joined Fulham.

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Crystal Palace have completed the signing of Ismaila Sarr from Marseille for a fee in the region of £12.6m.

Sarr returns to England after just one season in France and has penned a five year contract at Selhurst Park, which sees him become Oliver Glasner’s third signing of the window.

The 26-year-old will help bolster the attacking ranks at Palace following the departure of Michael Olise, and he’s the second attacking reinforcement after Daichi Kamada’s arrival on a free transfer from Lazio.

Palace complete Sarr signing

It’s been reported that Palace have been long term admirers of Sarr, who spent four years at Watford and they have now finally landed their man.

Sarr is predominantly a right winger, but he can also play on the left and through the middle, with that versatility likely to appeal to Glasner as he looks to rebuild the Palace attack following Olise’s move to Bayern Munich.

The Senegal international said he was delighted to be at the club and that he’s going to work hard on and off the pitch for the team and the fans.

“I am very happy to be here because Crystal Palace is a great club,” he told Crystal Palace’s website.

“Thanks to the coach and the Sporting Director they told me about their project, and I accepted because it is a good project.

“I am going to work hard on the pitch and off the pitch for the team and for the fans as well.”

Glasner added that he’s pleased Sarr will join the group and highlighted that at every club he’s been at he’s proven he can score goals.

“We’re happy that Ismaïla has decided to join Crystal Palace because he knows the Premier League when he played at Watford, he knows living in England, and he also had many games with Marseille last season,” he added.

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“In every year, in every club where he was, he’s showed that he can score goals. He showed it as well in the national team for Senegal, so we are really pleased that he will join our group.”

Glasner made a huge impact last season as he guided the Eagles to a top ten finish after he replaced Roy Hodgson, and with a few more quality signings  they could very much be a team to watch next season.

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Crystal Palace have been handed a boost in their pursuit of Marseille winger Ismaila Sarr with the French club open to a sale in order to fund a move for Arsenal’s Eddie Nketiah according to reports.

Marseille have been targeting the Premier League in an attempt to strengthen their squad and have already signed Mason Greenwood from Manchester United and Pierre Emile Hojbjerg from Tottenham.

Palace are in the market for attacking reinforcements having lost Michael Olise to Bayern Munich and have identified Sarr as a prime target.

Palace handed boost in pursuit of Sarr

The Eagles had somewhat of a resurgence under Oliver Glasner over the second half of the season and the Austrian guided Palace to a top ten finish with some brilliant results along the way, including a 4-0 thrashing of Manchester United at Selhurst Park.

Sarr only joined Marseille last summer but it appears he could be on the move back to England after just one season in Ligue 1.

The 26-year-old didn’t make the biggest impact at Marseille as he scored five goals and provided six assists in 35 appearances in all competitions.

Fabrizio Romano has reported that Palace have offered €14m for the winger with €1m in add ons, and Sarr is thought to be close to agreeing a five year contract.

Mail Sport add that Palace could be handed a boost in their pursuit with Marseille believed to be open to a sale so they can fund a move for Arsenal forward Nketiah.

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Sarr is no stranger to the English game having spent four years at Watford and he could be the latest addition to the Palace attack from the arrival of Daichi Kamada on a free transfer.

Palace are also interested in signing Emile Smith Rowe with Arsenal said to be open to selling the 23-year-old, and Glasner is keen to add to his attacking options, whilst the Eagles will be desperate to keep hold of England international Eberechi Eze.

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Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur wants to help Uruguay end its Copa America tournament on a positive note as they face Canada in the third-place match.

However, Canada responded with a goal of their own in the 22nd minute as former Watford and now current Olympique de Marseille standout Ismaël Koné scored an impressive bicycle kick-style goal off a corner kick set piece.

After giving up the first goal of the match, the Canadians aren’t going down without a fight as they look to secure third place in this tournament.

pic.twitter.com/O8oUieTb4K

— starsballsvb (@starsballsvb) July 14, 2024

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Former Watford standout Ismaël Koné has sent Canada into the semifinal of the 2024 Copa America. After the Canadians took the 1-0 lead in the first half, Venezuela responded in the second half to level the scoring 1-1.

Neither team could find the game-winning goal in the remaining time, so the matchup went to a penalty kick shootout. Venezuela missed three shots, while Canada failed twice. As a result, Koné had the chance to win it for Canada, and the current Marseille player scored; now Jesse Marsch and his team will get a second crack at facing Argentina.

??? CANADA ARE THROUGH TO THE SEMI-FINALS OF THE COPA AMERICA!pic.twitter.com/NNi4DEbugV

— Tekkers Foot (@tekkersfoot) July 6, 2024

The post Video: Ex-Watford star propels Canada to Copa America semifinals with decisive penalty shootout goal appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Leeds United want in excess of £20m for goalkeeper Illan Meslier this summer according to reports.

The Whites face the prospect of having to sell some of their key players in the window having missed out on promotion to the Premier League last season.

Meslier falls into that category as do Crysencio Summerville and Archie Gray who are attracting interest from the Premier League.

Leeds set Meslier asking price

The 24-year-old made 49 appearances for Leeds in all competitions last season as Daniel Farke’s side lost to Southampton in the play-off final at Wembley.

The Daily Mail report that Marseille, who have recently appointed former Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi as their new manager are interested in the Frenchman, with Leeds wanting more than £20m for the goalkeeper.

The report adds that Leeds have Fulham goalkeeper Marek Rodak on their list of replacements should Meslier leave, but an approach isn’t a certainty at this stage.

Meslier joined Leeds from French side Lorient back in 2020 and has made 175 appearances for the Elland Road outfit to date.

The Frenchman isn’t the only Leeds player attracting interest, and alongside Gray and Summerville the likes of Willy Gnonto and Georginio Rutter are also believed to have a good chance of leaving the club this summer.

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Meslier played a key role for Leeds when they were last in the Premier League as he put in a series of impressive performances and showed he was more than capable of playing out from the back which seems to be a requirement for the modern day goalkeeper.

Losing the goalkeeper would be a huge blow for Leeds, and they will need to hope they can hold onto as many of their key players as possible and recruit smartly if they are going to stand a chance of going up.

The post Leeds slap new price tag on Illan Meslier amid interest from clubs in Europe appeared first on CaughtOffside.

The optimism is back at Manchester United having secured a star signing in Brazilian midfielder Casemiro before defeating Liverpool 2-1 on Monday night. With just nine days remaining in the transfer window however, the Red Devils must forge ahead to get any other business sealed.

That includes exits. According to Fabrizio Romano, Eric Bailly will leave the club in the coming hours to join French giants Olympique Marseille. A deal between the two clubs has been agreed for a loan this season. Marseille will then be obligated to purchase Bailly if they qualify for the Champions League this season.

Eric Bailly deal, completed and here we go confirmed. Been told Bailly will be @ Carrington later today to say goodbye to his teammates – then he will fly to Marseille within 24h in order to join OM. ?? #MUFC #OM

Loan with mandatory buy clause if OM will qualify to next UCL. pic.twitter.com/26jh9LvCBz

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 23, 2022

Bailly arrived at Old Trafford six summers ago as a promising young defender from Villarreal, but has never managed to find continuity since. Making 113 appearances in total, Bailly played more Premier League games in his first season (25) than in any other since.

Erik ten Hag has obviously sanctioned the move and United are unlikely to miss him too much. The Ivorian international did not cross the 500-minute mark last season and in Phil Jones, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez, United still have four senior central defenders on their books.

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Newcastle United continue to be linked with an array of stars this summer as the Magpies await major moves beyond the likes of Sven Botman and Nick Pope. The latest targets should provide plenty of excitement on the North-East coast though.

According to 90min, Newcastle are considering a move for another Lyon midfielder in Lucas Paqueta following the success of Bruno Guimaraes. Pauqeta, who already has 33 caps for Brazil, has been one of the more coveted talents in Europe, but a £50m asking price had put Newcastle off. However Lyon have lowered their demands and would be willing to accept a £33m offer for the offensive midfielder, which has once again piqued Newcastle’s interest.

Alexis Sánchez will undergo medical tests on Wednesday morning then sign the contract as new Olympique Marseille player, as expected. Here we go confirmed. ??? #OM

Alexis joins on a free move after contract terminated with Inter.

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 9, 2022

The same report claims that they are already in talks for Bamba Dieng. The 22-year-old wide player joined Marseille from Senegalese football last summer and managed to make an impact despite limited minutes last season. Contributing 8 goals and 3 assists, Dieng is not in favour with new manager Igor Tudor and Marseille are looking to do a deal.

Both players represent more talents on the up and suit Newcastle’s recruitment policy so far. In particular, the partnership between Guimaraes and Paqueta could develop into a midfield that could compete in the Premier League for years to come.

The post Newcastle United return to Ligue 1 for attacking duo appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Despite costing Arsenal £27m, William Saliba has never played a senior match for Arsenal. Away from North London however, Saliba has been an ever-present this season and may well end up as a runner-up in Ligue 1.

After agreeing a deal to go to Arsenal back in 2019, Saliba has spent most of his time in France since. For the first six months of last season Saliba was left unregistered for six months before agreeing a loan deal to OGC Nice. This season he joined Olympique Marseilles at the beginning of the season, where he has been delivering on the potential that tempted Arsenal into spending that money on him.

Under Jorge Sampaoli, Saliba has played every minute of the Ligue 1 season aside from one game, forming part of a regular defensive pairing. Only three teams in the league have better defences than Marseille this season, which is impressive given Sampaoli’s always adventurous approach.

That has led Saliba to be nominated for the ‘Meilleur Espoir’ award for the best young player, alongside Castello Kuleba, Nuno Mendes and Khephren Thuram, as reported by Arseblog. According to the same article, Saliba has been clear that he will not accept a bit-part role at Arsenal next season should he return after his loan.

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Aston Villa are on the hunt for a new midfielder. After being linked with Geoffrey Kondogbia last week, manager Steven Gerrard has continued his pursuit of some steal in the spine of his team.

With the prospect of prising Kondogbia away from Atletico Madrid likely too pricey, Gerrard has turned his attentions elsewhere. According to Sport Witness, Gerrard was in France at the weekend to watch Boubacar Kamara in the hope that he can plug the gap.

Olympique Marseille beat Reims 1-0 on Sunday away from home, with Kamara playing 78 minutes before being taken off. At 22 years old and available on a free, Kamara is likely to be one of the hottest properties on the market this summer. His contract expires at the end of the season and both Atletico Madrid and Barcelona have been linked with the holding midfielder, meaning any deal for him will probably include a significant payday.

Even if a deal for Kamara is difficult, the profile and type of midfielder Gerrard wants – strong, defensively solid and good progressive passers from deep – is becoming more clear.

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