The summer window is shut but Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham and others are already looking ahead to January.
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Arsenal → shut → January
The Gunners missed out on Vinicius Jr, but it has now emerged that his Real Madrid team-mates expected him to leave.
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him → miss → Jr
That ship may now have sailed, with Eli Junior Kroupi, who is currently sidelined with an injury, the new key target.
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who → sail → injury
Other young forwards, such as Endrick and Rio Ngumoha are also of interest, while Julian Alvarez could switch agents to force a move away from Atletico Madrid.
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Alvarez → switch → Madrid
Man Utd also failed to land their top target of Lewis Hall, and are now said to have moved on to Tyrick Mitchell as a target for left-back after his remarkable start to the season.
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Utd → fail → season
Liverpool are also credited with interest.
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Liverpool → credit → interest
Lens teenager Mezian Mesloub is also of interest as JJ Gabriel heads for the exit door, with Real Madrid and Barcelona leading the chase, but Chelsea also in the mix.
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Madrid → head → mix
The Blues have plenty of targets for January, including Alex Scott, Adam Wharton, Lamine Camara and Rayan.
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Blues → have → Scott
Liverpool are monitoring Mitchell, along with Bayer Leverkusen defender Givairo Read, who also has admirers at Arsenal.
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who → monitor → Arsenal
Tottenham want to reignite their interest in Morgan Gibbs-White, who is valued to £125m, while Richarlison looks out of options after UAE side Shabab Al Ahli failed to agree a fee with Spurs for the outcast striker.
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Ahli → want → striker
Latest transfer news and rumours
Live updates
Real Madrid team-mates expected Vinicius to join Arsenal
Vinicius Junior came so close to leaving Real Madrid for Arsenal this summer that several players believed the Brazil forward would move to the Premier League.
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forward → expect → League
That is according to Cadena SER, who underlines just how crucial the contract talks with Real Madrid become during the final weeks of the window.
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talks → accord → window
Arsenal viewed the 26-year-old as a major signing with global appeal, but Vinicius ultimately remained in Madrid and agreed a new contract until 2032.
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Vinicius → view → 2032
The report comes as Vinicius faces criticism over his early-season form, including a subdued display in the 2-1 defeat by Atletico Madrid.
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Vinicius → come → Madrid
Arsenal transfer rumours
The transfer window may have closed three weeks ago, but Arsenal are reportedly looking ahead to January.
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Arsenal → close → January
Arsenal got plenty of business done during the summer, and continue to do so even though the deadline has long passed as they recently confirmed the signing of striker Vincent Joseph as part of a renewed focus on youth recruitment.
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they → get → recruitment
Defeat to Brighton at the weekend did expose one or two flaws with the Gunners’ recruitment, particularly in the forward positions and the likes of Eli Junior Kroupi, Rio Ngumoha and Maximilian Beier have been linked with moves to the Emirates Stadium.
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likes → expose → Stadium
The latest news, however, is that of a major agreement is in place to secure the services of a key figure, while links to Julian Alvarez simply refuse to go away after a failed summer move.
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links → secure → move
Chelsea are rarely ever too far away when it comes to transfer rumour-mill.
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it → come → mill
Despite a busy summer in which 11 senior players were signed on permanent deals, the Blues are being tipped to be just as active when the winter window opens.
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window → sign → deals
That said, the latest talk is that Xabi Alonso’s side are targeting a new striker - even though Joao Pedro has publicly declared his love for the club - while a scouting mission in South America is reportedly on the radar.
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mission → say → radar
Manchester United enjoyed a largely productive summer transfer window, though the start to the season suggests they did not get enough business done.
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business → enjoy → season
The focus for Man United after a strong finish to the 2025-26 campaign, thus securing Champions League qualification, was a midfield overhaul and Michael Carrick got his wish with three new signings.
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Carrick → secure → signings
Youri Tielemans has already established himself as a regular alongside Kobbie Mainoo, while it remains to be seen if Carlos Baleba will force his way into Carrick’s plans after recovering from injury or have to wait in reserve like Andrey Santos.
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Baleba → establish → Santos
With a midfield rebuild effectively done, attentions are set to turn to the defence in 2027, though there is also the concerning situation surrounding JJ Gabriel as United face a battle to keep hold of the talented youngster.
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United → do → youngster
Next five Arsenal deals 'revealed'
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deals → reveal → ?
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has reportedly agreed to sign an improved contract, and his backroom staff are also in the process of renewing their deals.
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staff → agree → deals
The Spaniard’s current contract is due to expire at the end of this season, though it has been widely reported that he will pen a new long-term extension to keep him at the club until at least 2029.
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he → expire → 2029
According to the Athletic, Arteta's backroom staff are also in the process of renewing their deals following last season’s Premier League title win.
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staff → accord → win
The Arsenal manager has developed a core coaching group during his time at the club, which includes assistants Albert Stuivenberg and Gabriel Heinze, first-team coach Miguel Molina, goalkeeping coach Inaki Cana and set-piece specialist Nicolas Jover.
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which → develop → Stuivenberg
Joao Pedro explains Chelsea decision
Joao Pedro has taken a rather unusual step to explain why he chose to extend his Chelsea contract.
The Brazilian was a shining light for Chelsea throughout the 2025-26 campaign, scoring 20 goals across all competitions after joining from Brighton in a deal worth £60million.
As such, he has been rewarded with the Chelsea No9 shirt and a contract extension, keeping him at the club until 2034.
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he → explain → 2034
Joao Pedro says he is excited about the future with the Blues, but has done so by posting on his LinkedIn page, instead of the usual social media platforms such as Instagram or X, formerly Twitter.
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he → say → Instagram
Liverpool set to appoint sporting director for second spell as key signings revealed
Julian Ward is reportedly expected to be appointed Liverpool’s new sporting director, succeeding Richard Hughes.
Hughes stepped down from his role earlier in the month, soon after the summer transfer window had closed with Bradley Barcola the headline signing.
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Barcola → appoint → month
In a statement, Liverpool confirmed: “The process of appointing a successor is under way and the outcome will be confirmed in due course.”
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outcome → confirm → course
Now, according to the Athletic, the ownership-led process is advancing towards its conclusion with Ward set to return to the club for a second spell as sporting director, having previously held the position during the 2022-23 season.
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Ward → accord → season
'Rashford will leave Man Utd for free'
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Rashford → leave → Utd
Former Man United defender Phil Bardsley shares his transfer prediction
He said: "Marcus Rashford obviously had a good year last year at Barca, and obviously it was a bit up in the air over the summer what the outcome was going to be.
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outcome → share → what
He's obviously still got twelve months left on his contract.
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He → get → contract
"I'll probably see him running that contract down and maybe moving on at the end of the season.
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him → see → season
But, you know, if we're being honest, he's probably been one of our better players in the opening four or five games."
Man Utd scout second JJ Gabriel replacement
Back to the topic of Manchester United seeking a potential replacement for JJ Gabriel, they are reportedly tracking another wonderkid in addition to Mezian Mesloub.
As per the Sun, Man United are also eyeing 15-year-old Valerenga ace Gabriel Rajkovic, and has scouts present in Oslo last Sunday.
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scouts → know → Oslo
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
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