Wirtz

Barcelona rule out Alvarez signing from Atletico Madrid, Liverpool will not allow Wirtz departure, and Chelsea target English midfield duo.

Barcelona have ruled out signing Argentina forward Julian Alvarez from Atletico Madrid in January, with the 24-year-old waiting to see whether Paris St-Germain or Arsenal make a bid for him, or whether he should stay put. (Fichajes – in Spanish), external

Liverpool will not countenance selling Germany midfielder Florian Wirtz, 23, to Bayern Munich in the January transfer window, while the German giants would only consider making a move next summer if France winger Michael Olise, 24, turns down a new deal. (Christian Falk – Bayern Insider/Bild), external

Bournemouth‘s Alex Scott, 23, and Crystal Palace and England’s Adam Wharton, 22, are Chelsea‘s primary midfield targets, with the West London club no longer interested in Monaco and Senegal’s Lamine Camara, 22. (CaughtOffside, external)

Aston Villa are keen to tie Argentina midfielder Emi Buendia, 29, to a new contract as a reward for his outstanding form (Mail), external

England left-back Luke Shaw, 31, could leave Manchester United when his present deal expires with the club next summer. (Teamtalk), external

Udinese are set to sign Austria defender David Alaba, 34, who left Real Madrid in the summer. (Fabrizio Romano), external

Manchester United and Liverpool keen on Crystal Palace defender Tyrick Mitchell, Aston Villa loan attacker Alejandro Garnacho on the radar of clubs in La Liga, while Bayern Munich fancy Morgan Gibbs-White.

Crystal Palace‘s English left-back Tyrick Mitchell, 27, is attracting growing interest from Manchester United and Liverpool. (Teamtalk), external

Aston Villa attacking midfielder Alejandro Garnacho is being monitored by clubs in La Liga after struggling to make an impression at Villa Park following his summer loan switch from Chelsea. (Mail plus – subscription required), external

Julian Ward is set to be reappointed as Liverpool‘s sporting director. The 45-year-old will switch from his current role as Fenway Sports Group’s technical director to replace Richard Hughes in a position he previously held during the 2022-23 season. (The Athletic), external

Bayern Munich are interested in Nottingham Forest‘s England midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White, 26. (Talksport), external

Arsenal will use the September international break to finalise details over a new long-term contract for England midfielder Declan Rice, 27. (Football Transfers), external

The Gunners have the option to extend Rice’s current deal by 12 months but would like to tie him to a long-term deal in keeping with the club policy towards players seen as key by Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. (Guardian), external

Liverpool remain firmly committed to bringing the best out of Germany attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz, 23, despite the player’s representatives being sounded out by Bayern Munich. (Teamtalk), external

Chelsea are tracking highly rated Gambian 15-year-old midfielder Adama Jeng with Bayern Munich, Benfica, Sporting and Paris FC also interested in the Samger FC youngster. (Mail plus – subscription required), external

AC Milan and Roma are keen on a loan deal for Real Madrid’s 20-year-old forward Endrick if Bernabeu president Florentino Perez is willing to let the Brazilian leave. (Calciomercato – in Italian), external

Barcelona have scouted Athletico Paranaense’s 19-year-old Brazilian Arthur Dias who was the subject of previous strong interest from Tottenham. (ESPN Brasil – in Portuguese), external

Arsenal came so close to signing Brazil forward Vinicius Jr from Real Madrid in the summer that the 26-year-old’s team-mates thought it was a foregone conclusion he would join the Gunners. (Cadena SER – in Spanish), external