Crystal Palace were busy on Tuesday, agreeing personal terms with Patrick van Aanholt, trying to conclude a deal for Yann M’Vila and inviting Christopher Samba for a trial
5.52pm GMT
And what a way to finish this transfer blog. Maybe we shouldn’t be surprised but I still am. Big Sam, Big Chris and Crystal Palace - a match made in heaven? Thanks for reading and see you all tomorrow. Good night
Related: Crystal Palace take Christopher Samba on trial with view to free transfer
5.45pm GMT
It’s not been a good week for Granit Xhaka…
Related: Granit Xhaka questioned by police over allegation of racial abuse at Heathrow
5.40pm GMT
News from Germany and that fantastic publication Kicker. Werder Bremen have said that their Greek midfielder Thanos Petsos is considering leaving the club after all. Several clubs are interested, apparently, with the Werder sporting director Frank Baumann saying: “I can confirm that Fulham is one of the clubs.”
5.20pm GMT
Done deal! Would you believe it. Luis Hernández has completed his £1.6m move from Leicester City to Málaga. Arrived last year but only made four Premier League appearances for the Foxes.
BREAKING: Luis Hernández has completed a permanent transfer from #lcfc to @MalagaCF_en - https://t.co/UAAzgqJj54 pic.twitter.com/TgiiIbQtv4
5.16pm GMT
Quiz time! (and then click on the interactive to see, club-by-club, every transfer in the top five leagues in Europe in January so far). Pescara have been busy ...
5.11pm GMT
Could Sebastian Giovinco be the latest star to join the Chinese Super League? Well, his agent, Andrea D’Amico, has said that there is interest from China in the Toronto player – but that it would be tricky to tempt him to leave his current club. “The Chinese seem very interested but think it will be difficult to move him away from Toronto. They have made a substantial offer and we are talking to the club to see, together with Sebastian, about what to do.”
4.38pm GMT
Meanwhile somewhere in Spain...
☀️ pic.twitter.com/ox1pKnX7hK
4.36pm GMT
Tjaronn Chery might already be on his way to China but Yaya Touré definitely isn’’t going to be joining him anytime soon. Having rejected the chance to earn lots of dough at the infamous “unnamed Chinese Super League club”, the Manchester City midfielder has been speaking about how he came to his decision.
Yaya: "I always say that if I went to China I would end up feeling angry there. You play ⚽️ for love, or because you want to make money?"
4.31pm GMT
Lazar Markovic has a point to prove. And he’s pretty keen on showing Liverpool in particular what he can do after completing his move to Hull on loan. The Serbian international also happens to bear a striking resemblance to Hollywood actor Joaquin Phoenix so at least if it doesn’t quite work out he could find an alternative career as a celebrity lookalike...
| “I hope that my actions will speak louder than words and I can prove myself to the club and to everyone in English football.” @LMarkec50 pic.twitter.com/S08MTUozSE
4.24pm GMT
An update on the status of former Manchester United defender Patrice Evra now, who has been in talks with Crystal Palace, among others. According to reports in France, the 35-year-old is now most likely to move to Marseille this month...
La piste @CPFC un temps évoquée s'est refroidie. Le club le mieux placé pour enrôler Patrice #Evra aujourd'hui c'est l'@OM_Officiel #TeamOM
4.19pm GMT
Hull’s attempt to sign Leon Bailey is definitely a surprise: the Jamaican-born winger has been linked to some of the biggest clubs in Europe and featured as one of our top transfer targets from last month. He also has rather an interesting back story...
Related: Ten January window transfer targets – from Lindelof to Upamecano
4.17pm GMT
Another story hot off the press from Louise Taylor, who is doing her best to impression of Andy ‘three phones’ Burton, formerly of Sky Sports News. And it’s an interesting one...
The Marco Silva revolution at Hull now involves the pursuit of Leon Bailey, Genk’s Jamaican winger who is 19 and would cost around £10m. Meanwhile Middlesbrough are reluctantly prepared to let their playmaker Gaston Ramirez, apparently unsettled at the club, to leave - if only for the right price - and are contemplating the prospect of having to loan rather than sell Jordan Rhodes as Championship clubs balking at paying his wages and high transfer fee. Aitor Karanka, who brushing off rumours he’d been sacked last night, took training yesterday is still desperate to sign Robert Snodgrass from Hull and also wants Stoke’s Bojan. Karanka is expected to use Thursday’s weekly press conference to apologise to fans for claiming the atmosphere was “awful” during last Saturday’s 3-1 home defeat to West Ham and accusing supporters of demanding the sort of long ball game that makes him shudder. It seems their chants of “Attack, attack,” got lost in translation.
4.14pm GMT
Remember Hugo Rodallega, the former Wigan and Fulham striker? Well he’s just signed for Turkish side Trabzonspor after a couple of seasons at lesser-known Akhisar Belediyespor.
Hayırlı olur inşallah , forma yakışmış :) Hugo Rodallega #trabzonspor #rodallega pic.twitter.com/BMJUeLdLs6
4.04pm GMT
Here’s more from Louise, who says Sunderland signing Joleon Lescott will feel right at home in his new surroundings
On a day in which the realities of Sunderland Ladies going part time were emphasised by the defection of Beth Mead, their start striker, to Arsenal, the men’s side has been, augmented by the arrival of Joleon Lescott on a short term deal. Lescott was a free agent, AEK Athens having terminated the former Everton and Aston Villa defender’s contract in November. Lescott will be reunited with his old Goodison Park pals Steven Pienaar, Jack Rodwell and Victor Anichebe on Wearside - although David Moyes is anxiously awaiting the results of a scan on Anichebe’s knee. In the worst case scenario, the striker - a key player - could be out until well into March. Lescott may find himself playing at left back should Patrick van Aanholt’s £12m - yes you are reading that correctly - move to Crystal Palace goes through but if Wearsiders harbour mixed feelings about PVA they will be distinctly miffed should the excellent Yann M’Vila ends up swapping Rubin Kazan for Palace.
3.36pm GMT
Newcastle fans are out in force on Andros Townsend watch and we have an update from Louise Taylor
Newcastle are displaying serious interest in taking Modou Barrow, the Banjul born, Swedish bred winger on loan until the end of the season. The Gambian/Scandi has struggled to establish himself in south Wales and Newcastle fans would be infinitely keener on Robert Snodgrass or Andros Townsend. A mooted move for the latter has hit an impasse but only time will tell if Barrow is merely a red herring in a possible game of bluff designed to ensure Townsend ends up back on Tyneside - or a player genuinely coveted by Rafa Benitez......And, remember, Mike Ashley doesn’t really want to spend this month but Benitez feels investment is necessary so much hinges on whether the owner or manager wins that particular battle of wills......
3.28pm GMT
Lots of you (probably) remember the move that took French teenager Ousmane Dembélé from Rennes to Borussia Dortmund last May but you may not be aware of some of what went behind the scenes. Here’s my story on how he ended up in Germany despite interest from Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City, among others
Related: A very modern transfer: Ousmane Dembélé and the missing release clause
3.20pm GMT
Returning to the theme of player nicknames, South African football provides a very rich seam of them. Here’s a link to some of the best, with my own particular favourites being Thomas ‘Who’s Fooling Who’ Hlongwane and Andrew ‘Jesus Christ’ Karajinsky
3.13pm GMT
“Tjaronn approached me a few weeks ago and told me he wanted to leave. When he heard of the interest from Guizhou, he made it clear that was a move he wanted to pursue. Whilst it’s disappointing to lose a player of Tjaronn’s ability, I only want players at QPR who want to be here. As a manager, when a player tells you he wants to leave with 18 months left to run on their contract, it’s in the club’s best interests to part ways and bring in players who want to play for the club.”
3.12pm GMT
Here’s one we missed from earlier: confirmation that Dutchman Tjaronn Chery has completed his move to Chinese Super League side Guizhou Hengfeng Zhicheng for an undisclosed fee believed to be around £4m. According to Ian Holloway, it was all down to the player wanting to leave...
3.05pm GMT
I’m handing over to Ed Aarons now, have a good afternoon everyone....
Thanks Michael and I’ll start by recapping some of the news we’ve had so far today. Southampton’s €16m bid for Napoli striker Manolo Gabbiadini has got some tongues wagging but unfortunately it’s not the man who famously replaced Ian Wright at Selhurst Park in the summer of 1991. A quick internet search tells me he has just celebrated his 49th birthday so a return to the top-flight appears unlikely....
"Southampton submit €16m bid for Napoli striker MANOLO Gabbiadini" - I thought it was MARCO for a second... well Lescott has another gig in the Premier League.....
2.44pm GMT
As things stand, Swansea are looking at bringing in only one more player in this transfer window and that would be a central defender. They’ve identified their target but a deal is not thought to be imminent – and it’s not Phil Jagielka at Everton. After signing Luciano Narsingh, Martin Olsson and Tom Carroll already this month, Swansea’s focus is now on moving players on, not least because they need to trim their squad in line with the Premier League’s 25-man limit. Newcastle remain in talks about signing Modou Barrow, who has not featured since Paul Clement was appointed head coach, and it seems certain that either Neil Taylor or Stephen Kingsley will leave now that Olsson is first-choice left-back. Crucially, Swansea are confident they will hold onto Gylfi Sigurdsson and Fernando Llorente, who both scored in the shock 3-2 win at Anfield.
2.42pm GMT
Once tipped as the next big thing to come through at PSG, Henri Ongenda has joined Dutch side PEC Zwolle on a three-and-a-half-year contract. And he seems ruddy delighted about it:
PEC Zwolle neemt (vleugel)aanvaller Hervin Ongenda over van @PSG_inside, voor 3,5 jaar: https://t.co/a7jPILPm5S. #welkom #PECZwolle pic.twitter.com/wVH2YZYJvO
I knew from the moment the club acquired Hachim Mastour on loan from AC Milan that I wanted in the Premier League with PEC Zwolle – it is a competition in which I want to take the next step.
Related: Hachim Mastour: Milan's 15-year-old wonderkid with the world at his feet | Marcus Christenson
2.33pm GMT
Arsenal Ladies have signed England U23 striker Beth Mead from Sunderland. Mead won the PFA’s Young Player of the Year award in 2016, after being voted as the WSL 1 Players’ Player of the Year in 2015.
2.20pm GMT
Thanks to Marcus for covering my lunch break. If you want to get in touch with any thoughts or fantastic nicknames, you can email michael.butler@theguardian.com or tweet @michaelbutler18.
“There are some great South African nicknames, like Vusi ‘Computer’ Lamola [for his vision and fast thinking],” emails Chris Hodge. “But the best of the bunch must be Jabu ‘Shuffle the Pack’ Mahlangu.”
2.09pm GMT
I’m not sure enough has been said about Gerard Deulofeu’s outfit…
2.01pm GMT
More Palace news! And yes, it is another Sunderland link, this time Allardyce is considering a move for Yann M’Vila.
Crystal Palace could decide to make a move for former Sunderland midfielder Yann M’Vila, with Sam Allardyce keen to strengthen his options in midfield ahead of next week’s deadline. The France international, 26, had been due to re-join Sunderland this month having spent last season at the Stadium of Light but instead chose to sign a new contract with his current club, Russians Rubin Kazan. However, it is understood the new contract contains a clause which would allow the player to join a Premier League club for £11m and that could persuade potential suitors to make a move. The Russian transfer window is due to open on Wednesday but Palace will have to act quickly given the complications experienced by Sunderland when they originally signed him on loan last season.
1.50pm GMT
So many good young players in this piece ...
Related: The 50 best young footballers in Italy
1.46pm GMT
Remember Andrea Ranocchia? The Inter centre-half – who I thought would be a regular for club and country for a long, long time – can’t get into Stefano Piolo’s team at the moment and is, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport, allowed to leave the club in this transfer window. I think he would be a good signing for a host of clubs. Reports in Italy say that clubs such as Hull City, West Ham United, Hamburg and Wolfsburg are all interested.
1.29pm GMT
Patrick van Aanholt update! This is the latest on what seems like quite an expensive acquisition (if you ask me).
Crystal Palace have agreed personal terms with Patrick van Aanholt over his proposed move to Selhurst Park for an initial £9m, with the Dutchman now set for a medical. Sam Allardyce has been keen to recruit a new left-back and held discussions with former Manchester United defender Patrice Evra as well as making a £7m bid for Leeds’ Charlie Taylor. But having worked with Van Aanholt at Sunderland, Allardyce has now settled on the 26-year-old former Chelsea player, who has made 20 appearances this season, scoring three goals. The move, which could eventually rise to £12m with bonuses, could be complicated by the fact he was withdrawn from Sunderland’s starting XI just 15 minutes before kick-off against Tottenham in September due to a heart scare, despite the fact he was later cleared by extra tests.
1.25pm GMT
Also, you can receive Facebook/Messenger notifications on your favourite club in the top five European leagues throughout the January window, whether it is Málaga, Torino or Manchester United or, indeed, Angers
Related: Transfer window watch: Keep up with the latest moves with our chatbot
1.20pm GMT
So ... about Alexander Isak. Well, I am delighted that he chose Borussia Dortmund rather than Real Madrid. Dortmund are obviously on a mission to sign up the best young players in Europe – such as Christian Pulisic, Emre Mor, Ousmane Dembélé and Julian Weigl – and the prospects of getting anywhere near the first team is obviously greater in Dortmund than in Madrid. Is Isak already good enough to play in the Bundesliga? I think he is. Just such a natural goalscorer and full of confidence.
1.10pm GMT
Thanks Michael. Well, who isn’t excited about Alexander Isak? But first, some news from Italy where our Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reports that Southampton have just submitted another bid - this time for €16m – for the Napoli striker Manolo Gabbiadini – but the Serie A club are currently holding out for nearer €18m.
12.58pm GMT
I’m off for some lunch, so I leave you in the capable hands of Marcus Christenson, who yesterday was very, very excited at Alexander Isak’s move from AIK to Borussia Dortmund.
Related: Borussia Dortmund beat Real Madrid to €10m signing of Swedish wonderkid Alexander Isak
12.54pm GMT
Lunchtime assignments:
Read this …
Related: The forgotten story of ... Dario Dubois, Argentina’s face-painted footballer | Simon Burnton
Hours were spent on Championship Manager 97/98
Check out Juventus' team! pic.twitter.com/dGjgYH89bF
12.48pm GMT
Reports that Liverpool are looking to wrap up a deal for long-time Rumour Mill fave William Carvalho from Sporting Lisbon are thought to be wide of the mark.
Portuguese media outlet A Bola had claimed that Liverpool club suits were in Portugal negotiating a £25m figure for the Euro 2016 winner – which is hefty chunk of change cheaper than some figures that have been quoted in the past – but this is thought to be poppycock. As you were.
12.33pm GMT
Not a new transfer, but definitely one that passed me by: former Portsmouth midfielder Sully Muntari joined Serie A side Pescara last week on a free transfer, after leaving Saudi Arabian side Al Ittihad last year. He’s not fit enough to play, with Pescara manager Massimo Oddo announcing on Sunday that “Muntari needs at least a week to be at his best.”
All this a good excuse to remind ourselves of the time he scored a game-winning penalty against Manchester United’s Rio Ferdinand in Portsmouth’s 2007-08 FA Cup quarter-final victory at Old Trafford.
12.19pm GMT
Newcastle’s goalkeeper reminds me of this wonderful song.
12.12pm GMT
Sky are reporting that Newcastle are keen on signing Mo Barrow from Swansea. Again, a strange one, Barrow impressed me at the start of the season – one of the only attacking players at Swansea with genuine pace – but he’s evidently fallen out of favour under Paul Clement and has recently been demoted to the club’s U23 side.
From a Newcastle perspective, i'd like to see Townsend back at the club, ideally on loan with the option to buy for circa £10m in the summer.
Not sure about this Barrow chap at Swansea we have been linked with. If he couldn't get in that utterly dreadful Swansea team it is hard to see how he would be an improvement on what we have.
Related: Asmir Begovic move to Bournemouth hinges on Chelsea finding replacement
11.56am GMT
Milan manager Vincenzo Montella has been talking about his new signing Gerard Deulofeu, who finally completed his loan move from Everton yesterday.
He’s a player I know very well, because I’ve been following him for some time. He has all the talent in the world, but hasn’t expressed it fully. One of my tasks will be to see why, because he’s a very strong player. We signed him to play him. We’ll see how he is physically, but he’s keen to make his mark. Will he be in the squad? We’ll see, but I think we’ll take him with us.
11.51am GMT
@guardian_sport @michaelbutler18 Fave nickname of that ilk would be Adriano: "The Emperor".
@michaelbutler18 How about 'The Galloping Major' Ferenc Puskas?
11.49am GMT
It is understood that Liverpool have opened contract talks with Philippe Coutinho over a new deal. With reported interest from Barcelona, Liverpool are keen to tie the Brazilian to a contract beyond 2020, when his current deal expires. It is also understood that Liverpool won’t be including a buy-out clause, which is nice for Jürgen Klopp and co.
11.47am GMT
The Greatest of All Time
11.38am GMT
After having his contract with Greek side AEK Athens terminated by mutual consent in November, Lescott has been training with David Moyes’s side and has done enough to earn a short-term deal. For any Sunderland fans thinking of getting his name on the back of their shirts, he will wear the No15. Should slot in nicely at left-back once Patrick van Aanholt’s move to Palace goes through …
#SAFC have signed @JoleonLescott on a short-term deal - https://t.co/Xpqt5GCenY pic.twitter.com/M1wn9Hqnkh
11.18am GMT
Done deal! Michael Olunga, the man who asked Arsenal for a move whilst he was still playing in his native Kenya …
10.51am GMT
Transfer-heads, take a break from idle speculation and actually read something of substance, like a Philip Roth novel or this cartoon from David Squires.
Related: David Squires on … football in the age of President Trump
10.43am GMT
Gedion Zelalem, the Arsenal midfielder, is set to join the Dutch club, VVV-Venlo, on loan until the end of the season. Zelalem, who turns 20 on Thursday, has been a target for Borussia Dortmund but VVV have convinced him that the next phase of his development would be best served with them. Zelalem enjoyed prodigy status when he first emerged at Arsenal but he has not made the strides that were expected of him. I’m reliably informed that Zelalem’s contract at Arsenal has two-and-a-half years to run. VVV are seven points clear at the top of the Dutch second division.
10.43am GMT
Bruno Henrique has joined Santos from Wolfsburg for a fee believed to be around £3.4m. The Brazilian only moved to Europe this time last year but has only started one match this season, a 5-1 defeat to Dortmund, in which he was pulled off at half-time.
I watched Bruno Henrique play last season in Wolfsburg’s 2-0 Champions League quarter-final first leg win over Real Madrid, where he was given a shock start, and he was probably the best player on the pitch that day, tearing Marcelo to pieces and setting up Max Arnold for Wolfburg’s second. The guy is rapido, disappointing to see he didn’t make the grade.
Bruno #Henrique returns to Brazil - transfer to @SantosFC. All the best, Bruno ➡️ https://t.co/9CzB50NSK3 pic.twitter.com/jtmAAJlJxk
10.25am GMT
Baba Rahman looks set to return to Chelsea from his loan spell at Schalke, after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee whilst playing for Ghana in the Africa Cup of Nations. The 22-year-old will be out for a minimum of six months, and with his loan deal expiring at Schalke in the summer, Rahman is expected to return to Chelsea for his rehab. Rahman has already returned to London for tests, and reportedly needs surgery to repair the damage.
10.13am GMT
Leicester defender Luis Hernández has completed his medical at Málaga. He’s only been at Leicester since June and made four league appearances, losing every game. Expect that one to be confirmed very shortly.
10.03am GMT
Yep, the comments section is open for business. Let’s keep things, er, respectful and insightful, shall we?
I'm looking forward to some respectful and insightful debate between fans of different clubs.
Ah, who am I kidding? I want to see that bloke from City spouting nonsense all over the place and the occasional breakdown from a Liverpool fan.
Gaitan to Man Utd, war chests, bargains, mercenaries and our favourite, net spend.
9.52am GMT
Delofeu’s arrival on loan at Milan from Everton means that Vincenzo Montella is keen to offload M’Baye Niang, who had a promising start to the season but has recently struggled for minutes (and hasn’t scored since mid-October). Gazzetta dello Sport are reporting that Milan could do a straight loan swap for Lucas Ocampos, who is on loan from Marseille to Genoa. Apparently the only thing holding this one up is the personal terms for the two players.
Don’t know an awful lot about Ocampos although I do remember this bicycle kick he scored for Monaco a couple of years ago. Woof.
Related: Brentford turn down £12.5m from West Ham United for striker Scott Hogan
9.39am GMT
Personally, I can’t quite get my head around this one:
Related: Crystal Palace close to signing Patrick van Aanholt for fee rising to £12m
9.21am GMT
West Ham have rejected a third bid from Marseille, thought to be £22.5m, and are rapidly running out of patience with the Ligue 1 club. Payet’s family have already returned to France, and their unhappiness in London is one of the reasons why the 29-year-old has become so unsettled recently. West Ham still value the midfielder at £30m, and whilst Marseille are set to make a fourth bid, it is not expected to be at that level. Another sticking point is the bumper £125,000-a-week five-year contract Payet signed last February - it remains unclear whether Marseille are capable or willing to match that figure.
7.26am GMT
Hello! The long slow march towards the end of the month has begun. Just seven more sleeps until the close of the transfer window. For those of you still persevering with Dry January, you have my eternal respect. I don’t know how you are doing it.
Here are some rumours to get things started. Gorge yourselves.
Related: Football transfer rumours: PSG to beat Manchester United to Gonçalo Guedes?
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