Having been mentioned in jest on yesterday’s award-winning Guardian podcast Football Weekly Extra, a move for Peter Crouch from Stoke City to Chelsea now looks like it might actually happen. The Premier League champions had been linked with Andy Carroll, but the West Ham totem’s state of perma-knack means that particular switch – like the player himself – is not currently a runner. An ankle injury means the unfortunate Carroll faces another extended period on the sidelines and if Stoke aren’t prepared to sell Crouchie, Chelsea will move for Brian Deane, John Carew or Jan Koller. The Roma striker Edin Dzeko is another one of several big men with a goodish touch who is is being reported to be on Antonio Conte’s radar, but it’s understood they have a more pressing need for a homegrown player to meet their Premier League squad quota. Dzeko’s team-mate, the Roma left-back Emerson Palmieri and his Juventus counterpart Alex Sandro also feature prominently on the Chelsea shopping list.
Manchester City are prepared to try to hijack any move Juve make for Liverpool midfielder Emre Can, who may not go anywhere now that his current employers have been unsuccessful in their bid to sign Schalke’s Leon Goretzka, who has joined Bayern Munich. In similar party-pooping mode, Tottenham Hotspur might try to scupper Manchester United’s well-documented attempts to sign Paris Saint-Germain outcast Lucas Moura. Italian pink paper La Gazzetta Dello Sport reports that United are also interested in taking Juve’s Argentinian striker Paulo Dybala, but say the 24-year-old will have to submit a transfer request before any bids are considered.
Now that Theo Walcott is an Everton player, Aaron Lennon’s future at the Merseyside club is shrouded in uncertainty, a state of affairs that has got antennae twitching at Newcastle, who might try to sign the winger on loan for the rest of the season. The Magpies are also being linked with a loan move for Leicester’s Islam Slimani, but will have to duke it out with Besiktas in the battle to secure his services. Reports from the South Coast suggest goal-shy Brighton are on the verge of signing 24-year-old PSV striker Jürgen Locadia, while further north West Brom are interested in Basel right-back Michael Lang.
And finally, assorted long-running transfer sagas could finally conclude by stumps today, with the news that Manchester United are expected to wrap up their deal to sign Arsenal playmaker Alexis Sánchez, sending Henrikh Mkhitaryan down to that there Big London as part of the well-documented deal. Should United conclude their business by noon, Sanchez could feature in their match against Burnley this weekend.