DAVID DE GEA, the Manchester United goalkeeper, is said to be confident of securing his long-awaited transfer to Real Madrid before the closure of the transfer window next Tuesday.
The former Atletico Madrid goalkeeper has been ruled out of first-team contention at Old Trafford by manager Louis van Gaal until his future is resolved, but reports in Spain suggest that his agent Jorge Mendes believes a deal will be done within the coming days.
Real Madrid have still not matched the £35million asking price, but negotiations continue.
Across the city of Manchester, City are understood to be close to finalising their move for Wolfsburg midfielder Kevin de Bruyne for a club record fee of £56m.
The deal will take City’s spending for the summer through the £150m barrier with payments due to be made to the 24-year-old Belgian’s former clubs Gent and Chelsea understood to be the only sticking points.
He is believed to have been offered a contract that will earn him something in the region of £200,000-a-week.
Chelsea are also active in the market with Juventus’ Paul Pogba on their wishlist, but their move for Everton’s John Stones has stalled after their fourth offer of £37m was turned down.
The structured bid is more than the British record for a defender. Manchester City paid £32m fees for both Eliaquim Mangala last summer and fellow centre-back Nicolas Otamendi this month.
Stones handed in a transfer request at Goodison Park earlier this week and newspaper reports in England state that he has left his home in Widnes and moved into a hotel after being targeted by Everton supporters.
The saga of Saido Berahino is also rumbling on with Tottenham Hotspur angry after West Bromwich Albion chairman Jeremy Peace criticised the London club’s attempts to sign the England striker.
Peace has issued a statement making it clear that Berahino, the subject of two bids from White Hart Lane, will not be sold. He also hit out at Spurs for submitting “low” offers, looking to complete the deals through staggered payments and add-ons and showing “no consideration” for West Brom’s need to sign someone else to replace him with just a few days of the window to go.
Southampton are under pressure to bolster their squad after missing out on the group stages of the Europa League and it is widely expected that they will make their first official offer for the Celtic centre-half Virgil van Dijk within the next day or two.
At Liverpool, Lazar Markovic is close to agreeing a season-long loan move to Turkish side Fenerbahce with the Reds also likely to sell Italian striker Fabio Borini.
Meanwhile, in Scotland, Dundee United are waiting for news on their £200,000 move for Northern Irish striker Billy McKay as he attempts to negotiate a pay-off from Wigan Athletic.
Ross County and Hibernian are also keen on the 26-year-old, but United have already agreed a fee for a permanent move.
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