The Stars Who Could Still Move Before Europe's Remaining Transfer Deadlines
The transfer deadline for Premier League clubs to sign new players may have passed three weeks ago on Aug. 8, but windows for teams in Spain, Italy, Germany and France to bring in new faces still remain open for another few days until Sept. 2.
Several European giants are still in the market for players and so there could be at least a few major transfers in the remaining time between now and the deadline.
Here’s a look at seven European deals that could yet happen, including a sensational reunion that has been in the works for weeks.
Shkodran Mustafi
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Arsenal coach Unai Emery has already publicly urged Shkodran Mustafi to leave the club while the chance is still there, as the German World Cup winner is not going to be part of the plans at the Emirates Stadium this season.
Mustafi has generally underwhelmed since arriving in north London for £35m in 2016 and needs a transfer to reignite his career. He has been linked with Roma.
Marc Roca
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Bayern Munich have been linked with the signing of Espanyol midfielder Marc Roca before the deadline strikes in Germany, with the 22-year-old Spaniard considered a relatively inexpensive addition to the squad at €40m – the value of his buyout clause.
Roca has been a first team regular at Espanyol for two seasons and was an Under-21 European Championship winner with Spain over the summer.
Christian Eriksen
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Christian Eriksen is out of contract at the end of the season and Tottenham face losing him to a free transfer next summer if don’t sell him in the next few days. The earliest he could start negotiating a pre-contract agreement with a new club is Jan. 1.
Manchester United were linked before the Premier League transfer window closed, but the Dane is thought to prefer a move abroad. Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Juventus have all been linked – Real could make a late swoop before Sept. 2 after missing out on Paul Pogba.
Mauro Icardi
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Inter’s captain and talisman this time last year, Mauro Icardi has seen his shirt number given to new signing Romelu Lukaku and was left out of the opening Serie A game against Lecce. That is surely a sign of things to come if he doesn’t walk away imminently.
Napoli have been most heavily linked, but the Argentine has so far resisted a transfer in the hope things might improve. It remains to be seen whether he will back down and move on, while Juventus had even been mooted as a destination in an ambitious swap with Paulo Dybala.
Ousmane Dembele
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Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele sparked transfer speculation when he removed ‘Barcelona’ as a location from his Instagram bio. The French winger has had a difficult couple of years in Catalonia and his name has been a major part of the ongoing Neymar saga.
Playing any part in that deal would see Dembele heading to Paris Saint-Germain and a return to his homeland after leaving Rennes for Borussia Dortmund back in 2016.
Alexis Sanchez
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Alexis Sanchez is on the verge of joining Inter from Manchester United on a season-long loan, after what seems like months of negotiations. The Serie A giants seem to have played a blinder - paying the smaller part of the Chilean's wages with no obligation to buy later down the line.
A deal is expected to be completed, and it would see Sanchez would reunite with former United teammate Romelu Lukaku.
Neymar
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Two years after becoming the most expensive player in history for €222m, Neymar wants to leave Paris Saint-Germain. Barcelona have been heavily linked with a move for their former player all summer, but Real Madrid are also now part of the discussion.
Barcelona are struggling to put together an attractive offer for PSG, while Real are believed to have opened communications by sending an emissary to Paris. Los Blancos have tried to sign Neymar many times before, starting by inviting him to visit when he was still just 13 years of age.
