Football transfer rumours: Liverpool to spend £100m on PSG's Bradley Barcola?
It is a wingers special for today's tittle-tattle. Starting with Liverpool's willingness to splash £100m on Paris Saint-Germain's Bradley Barcola. Arne Slot has already signed Jeremie Frimpong and is set to add creativity in the form of Florian Wirtz. Naturally, there is not a bottomless pit of cash at Anfield, so they would be open to selling Luis Díaz, Diogo Jota and Darwin Núñez to fund the spending.
After it was confirmed that Jadon Sancho will not be joining Chelsea permanently, his next move is a hot topic of conversation. Manchester United will be quite eager to earn some cash in exchange for the winger, so the prospect of Aston Villa, Newcastle and Tottenham are considering a potential move for the 25-year-old.
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Related: Men's transfer window summer 2025: all deals from Europe's top five leagues
Another wideman needing pastures new is Jack Grealish, who was left out of Manchester City's Club World Cup squad. On the upside, he does get a few extra weeks off compared to his current teammates, giving him time to send his CV out to clubs. Newcastle and Everton could offer Grealish a route away from the City bench.
Nico Williams is another who likes to get chalk on his boots. Clubs queueing up to sign him. Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Chelsea are all eager but Athletic Club want to tie the Spain international down to a new deal to keep him at San Mamés. Bayern seem to be the most eager and the European champion might have given his representatives a nudge and a wink to have a chat with the recently-crowned Bundesliga winners.
Supposedly plenty of teams are interested the Sporting striker Viktor Gyökeres but no one is yet to make an offer for him, according to club president Frederico Varandas. 'I can guarantee that Viktor Gyökeres will not leave for €60m plus €10m because I never promised that,' Varandas said. 'To this day Sporting has not had an offer for Gyökeres – neither today nor last season.'
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It looks like Manchester City have stolen a march of European rivals to sign Rosenborg teenager Sverre Nypan. The Norwegian was a target for any major club with a pulse, Arsenal and Aston Villa among those batting their eyelids in his direction. Nypan, however, has plumped for the Etihad Stadium as the location to progress his career alongside compatriot Erling Haaland.
Trevoh Chalobah is on Napoli's shopping list. The Chelsea defender started last season on loan at Crystal Palace before being called back by Enzo Maresca to boost his centre-back options. Despite starting the triumphant Conference League final and being called up to Thomas Tuchel's latest England squad, Chalobah's future at Stamford Bridge is less than certain and a move to the Serie A champions might be tempting.
Djordje Petrovic was not keen on a Club World Cup sojourn to play backup in the Chelsea goalkeeping department, so instead asked to be left out to allow him to work out for what the future holds for him. Leeds could be the answer swirling around the crystal ball.
If anyone wants an experienced full-back, then Vladimir Coufal is looking for a new club after his West Ham contract expired. Everton, Wolves and Fulham are those pondering offering him a new home.
Sunderland are waiting for offers for midfielder Nectarios Triantis. The Premier League newcomers want around £1.5m in exchange for his services after an impressive season on loan at Hibernian. Fortuna Düsseldorf and MLS clubs are keen on the player who is currently debating where his international future lies, with Australia and Greece vying for his qualities.
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But with Frank, who is unashamedly more pragmatic than the Australian, Spurs may not be quite so front-footed. Van de Ven may have to be more precise and patient with his defensive decisions. While patience isn't always Cristian Romero's strong suit, his ability to defend the box aerially and progress the ball with incisive line-splitting passes will be valued under Frank as he adapts his tactics to suit a club of Spurs' talent. He may not be relied on to progress the ball as much as he was under Postecoglou, but it would be remiss of Frank not to use Romero's unique passing ability from central defence. Advertisement Given that Spurs hope to compete well in the Champions League and Premier League next season, there should be plenty of opportunities for Kevin Danso to play a significant number of minutes. 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One of the big winners of Frank's appointment could be Archie Gray, a player Frank was desperate to sign at Brentford before the 19-year-old left Leeds United for Tottenham last summer. Gray was considered a 'generational talent' in defensive midfield by Brentford's recruitment department before the transfer, so it would make sense for Frank to emphasise his development in that position. While it may be a big ask to expect him to star in that role immediately next season, given how highly Frank's previous club rated him, his long-term development could be geared towards settling as a No 6. Advertisement Frank constructed his midfield trio at Brentford similarly to Postecoglou: one destructive defensive midfielder, an energetic box-to-box No 8 and an advanced playmaker. Currently, the box-to-box role is most likely to be occupied by Rodrigo Bentancur, Yves Bissouma, Pape Matar Sarr or Lucas Bergvall, though they are all capable of playing deeper or more advanced. Vitaly Janelt's industry in midfield was an essential part of Brentford's success under Frank, and he shares similar characteristics to Sarr, who demonstrated his energy and quality in the Europa League final win against Manchester United. Frank, who started his career in Denmark's youth teams, is a developer of young talent, and he will surely see Sarr, 22, as a project with the potential to become an elite player in his position. The same can be said for Bergvall, who was arguably Tottenham's outstanding player of 2025 before suffering an ankle injury ahead of the Europa League semi-final. Frank may see Bergvall's development as an attacking midfielder, but his physical capabilities and quality are ideal for the No 8 position as the incoming coach looks to develop his style with more technically gifted players. Bissouma's energy should also suit this position nicely, though he has a year left on his contract with an uncertain future. Bentancur, Bissouma's midfield partner in the latter stages of the Europa League, appears a safe bet to start the season's opening weeks in defensive midfield or at No 8 as Frank will look to lean on experienced heads, subject to transfer activity. While Frank has placed significant emphasis on structure in developing Brentford into a stable top-flight outfit, he has made concessions for outstanding creative talents. This season, he has gifted Mikkel Damsgaard the freedom to roam from his position and create opportunities for attackers, leading to comfortably his best season since signing for the west London club in 2022. Should he offer the same privileges to James Maddison, the 28-year-old has the talent to be a constant match-winner for Spurs from that position and produce the level of performance he did in the early months of Postecoglou's reign. Still, while Maddison has the quality to be the best player on a Premier League pitch on any given weekend, his form at Spurs and Leicester City previously has been streaky. But Frank, who dropped Toney towards the end of the 2023-24 season for poor form, is unafraid to bench underperforming stars. Dejan Kulusevski, who starred in place of Maddison in attacking midfield before the turn of the year, will provide tough competition for the England international in that spot. The Sweden international can play on the right wing, but given Frank's previous affection for Brennan Johnson and the development of Bryan Mbeumo into a goalscoring forward from that position, we may be more likely to see him as a No 10 moving forward. Frank has an impressive track record in improving wingers at Brentford, with Said Benrahma, Yoane Wissa, Kevin Schade, and Mbeumo all reaching new levels under the Dane. Tottenham have an exciting young core of wide attackers, and under Frank's guidance, Wilson Odobert, Mikey Moore and Mathys Tel, who is contracted to Bayern Munich but could move permanently to Tottenham this summer, could all make significant strides towards reaching their potential. Advertisement Brennan Johnson could be another player who kicks on under Frank after a strong season in north London, where he finished as the club's top scorer and grabbed the winner in the Europa League final. Frank courted Johnson heavily over several transfer windows, though he saw the Welsh forward as more of a 1v1 winger, as opposed to the goalscorer-type winger he developed into under Postecoglou. Mbeumo followed a similar arc, so Frank may continue developing him as a goalscorer rather than the traditional winger he previously envisioned. Club captain Son Heung-min is arguably the most interesting player in the group, with his long-term future uncertain. Son has one year left on his contract and, after an indifferent season in north London last term, there is speculation that he may be on the move this summer. If he stays in north London, it will be interesting to see if he retains the armband handed to him by Postecoglou, particularly if his on-the-pitch role is diminished. At Brentford, Christian Norgaard and Pontus Jansson wore the armband under Frank, traditional heart-on-the-sleeve 'leader' types. Son, however, is more mild-mannered and leads by example. Still, as well as developing young talents, Frank has improved more senior players at Brentford. Should Son remain in north London, his new coach will look to station him in goalscoring positions where he can maximise his world-class finishing ability. The South Korean may not have the blistering pace he had three or four years ago, but given his experience and quality in the box, there could still be a prominent role for him. Dominic Solanke will enter his second season as Tottenham's primary striker, and fans should be encouraged about his potential fit under Frank. Solanke profiles as a combination of England team-mates Ivan Toney and Ollie Watkins, who both improved considerably as centre-forwards under their previous Brentford coach. Like Toney, Solanke is a perfect outlet for the long balls Frank likes his goalkeeper to play. The 27-year-old is not just physically capable of competing with centre-backs on duels, but he has the technical quality to keep the ball and bring team-mates into play. Similarly to Watkins, Solanke can also run the channels and occupy defenders with his energy and incessant running. Given his proven track record at improving strikers, Solanke could be the biggest winner of all from Frank's appointment. While he has not reached his potential consistently in north London, Richarlison has many of the same qualities out of possession. He ended the 2024-25 season well, scoring two goals from his final six league appearances (one start) and could be in line for a breakout season as Spurs look to compete in the Premier League and Europe. Like Solanke, Frank may advise Richarlison to be more selfish and concentrate on getting into the box and letting others create. Top photo:
