Jose Mourinho has tasked his agent Jorge Mendes to secure a pair of big-money signings for Tottenham, while Man Utd are ready to try their luck with an opening £65m bid for a top striker target, according to Wednesday’s newspapers.
NEW BRUNO FERNANDES DEAL WON’T HALT MOURINHO PLAN
Jose Mourinho wants Portuguese duo Bruno Fernandes and Ruben Dias to become his first signings as Tottenham manager, according to a report.
The new Spurs manager is reported to have contacted his close friend and agent Jorge Mendes to help broker deals for the central defender and midfielder, as per the Daily Mail. The duo were rumoured to on his shopping list while in charge of Manchester United, though neither deal ever came to fruition.
Dias is of interest with both Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen out of contract at the end of the season and is rated at around the £60m mark by his club Benfica.
And Spurs are expected to renew their efforts to land summer target Fernandes, with the Sporting Lisbon midfielder a strong option to replace Christian Eriksen, who now looks poised to secure a move to a surprise Italian suitor in 2020.
Efforts to sign Fernandes, however, have been complicated by the fact the midfielder has just signed a new deal with Sporting which extends his exit clause to £85m from it’s previous £60m.
Fernandes told Sporting’s website : “It’s a pride for me and a recognition of my work; it’s a sign that I’m doing things well.
“I have been trying my best to do what is best for the club. It is for what I did on the pitch, but also showed that I liked Sporting CP and took pride in representing the club I represent.
“For me it is, and always will be, a privilege to be here and be able to wear the Sporting CP jersey.
“You can expect more and better. I promise the same delivery and dedication so we can have more moments of glory as we had last season.”
However, it’s claimed Mourinho remains undeterred and will charge his close associate Mendes with pushing forwards with a deal in the belief that the Portuguese giants could still cash in if the price is right.
AND THE REST
Manchester United are expected to launch an opening £65m bid to sign Erling Braut Haaland when the transfer window reopens in January (The Times)
Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo has emerged as the leading candidate to be Arsenal’s next manager (Daily Mail)
Harry Kane has become the fastest player in the history of the Champions League to reach 20 goals (Daily Mail)
Wayne Rooney is due to attend his first Derby game since signing for the club when they take on Queens Park Rangers on Saturday – and he could be alongside boss Phillip Cocu in the dugout (Daily Mail)
A University cancelled a planned managerial ‘masterclass’ with Unai Emery because of the negative comments aimed at the Arsenal boss when the event was first publicised (Daily Mail)
Jesse Lingard has revealed he turned down Liverpool, Manchester City and Everton to join boyhood club Manchester United as a youngster (Daily Mirror)
Rangers have ruled out selling Colombia striker Alfredo Morelos, 23, in the January transfer window amid interest from Leicester City (Daily Star)
Barcelona and Real Madrid would both consider a move for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang if he decides to quit Arsenal (Daily Star)
FC Astana have been besieged with more than 300,000 ticket requests for their Europa League dead rubber with Manchester United (Daily Star)
Manchester United believe they remain the frontrunners to sign Jadon Sancho next year, despite interest from a host of Europe’s top clubs in the Borussia Dortmund and England winger (Daily Telegraph)
Everton could look to replace manager Marco Silva with Flamengo boss Jorge Jesus, who led the Brazilian club to Copa Libertadores victory (Daily Telegraph)
West Ham are ready to challenge Everton for David Moyes as the managerial sack race hots up (The Sun)
Manchester United are set to trigger 21-year-old Dutch defender Timothy Fosu-Mensah’s one-year contract extension (The Sun)
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer expects Paul Pogba to return and play a full part in Manchester United’s fixture mayhem next month (The Sun)
Covert cameras at Tottenham caught the final hours of Mauricio Pochettino’s reign and the shock appointment of Jose Mourinho (The Sun)
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