Newcastle United have reportedly come to a decision over whether they will pursue a deal for free agent Adrien Rabiot this summer.
The France international is one of the most high-profile unattached players on the market, having failed to come to an agreement with Juventus over a contract extension.
Long linked with a move to the Premier League, Rabiot is believed to be on the radar of Manchester United - who tried and failed to sign him in 2022 - as well as Eddie Howe's Newcastle.
However, Football Insider claims that the Magpies are not expected to pursue Rabiot's signature this summer, as they have other priorities to take care of in the transfer market, namely a deal for Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi.
Man United could still face competition from Liverpool to sign the former Paris Saint-Germain midfielder, whose hefty wages and signing-on fee could also prove problematic.
Rabiot left Juventus with a record of 22 goals and 15 assists in 212 matches for the Turin giants, and he played five times for France at Euro 2024 as Les Bleus reached the semi-finals.
Bayern Munich loan 22-year-old to La Liga club
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Over in Germany, Bayern Munich attacker Bryan Zaragoza has been allowed to return to Spain on a temporary basis, having joined Osasuna on a season-long loan.
The 22-year-old spent the second half of the 2023-24 campaign on loan with the German giants from Granada, before making his move permanent for £11.2m that same summer.
Zaragoza made just seven appearances for Bayern in the second half of last term, though, and he has now been bumped further down the pecking order by Michael Olise's arrival from Crystal Palace.
In search of regular game time, the Spanish winger has returned to his homeland with Osasuna, but Bayern chief Christoph Freund has stressed that his long-term future remains at the Allianz Arena.
"Bryan's focus remains on the clear objective of taking on an important role at FC Bayern. He has all the qualities for that. We're convinced that this season in his native Spain will bring him on. He now needs a lot of games at a high, competitive level, and CA Osasuna is a very good place for him to get that," Freund told the Bayern website.
Zaragoza's contract with Bayern runs for another five years, and he played in three of the club's pre-season friendlies, including their 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in South Korea.
Atalanta BC 'agree £17.2m deal' for young right-back
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Sticking with the theme of talented Spanish youngsters, 21-year-old Almeria right-back Marc Pubill is supposedly set for a big-money move to Italian giants Atalanta BC.
The 6ft 3in defender now has an Olympic gold medal around his neck, having appeared in five of Spain's six games at the Paris 2024 tournament, scoring in their opening win against Uzbekistan.
Pubill played 73 minutes of La Roja's 5-3 win over France in the gold medal match and will soon return to Almeria, where his contract is not due to expire until the summer of 2029.
However, journalist Fabrizio Romano claims that Atalanta have agreed a €20m (£17.2m) deal to sign Pubill, who was unable to halt Almeria's slide to the second tier of Spanish football last season.
Almeria will also retain a sell-on clause, and the defender is expected to undergo his medical before penning a long-term contract in the coming days.
Pubill will leave Almeria with a record of one goal and three assists from 23 appearances, having only joined the club from Levante in the summer of 2023.
Manchester United teenager to sign new long-term deal?
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Another fledgling defender set to make a critical career decision, Manchester United protege Sonny Aljofree is apparently set to sign a new long-term deal with the Red Devils.
The 19-year-old is still waiting to make his first-team debut for the 20-time English champions, but he wore the captain's armband for the Under-21s in their last five Premier League 2 matches last season.
Regarded as a centre-back with high potential, a separate update from Romano claims that Aljofree has agreed a new three-year deal with Man United until 2027, and talks are now at their final stages.
With Raphael Varane and Willy Kambwala leaving, as well as uncertainty over the futures of Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof, Aljofree could potentially make his first-team breakthrough under Erik ten Hag in 2024-25.
The Plymouth-born starlet played in the Red Devils' friendly loss to Rosenborg earlier this summer and is the son of former defender Hasney Aljofree, who played in the Premier League for Bolton Wanderers and represented England at Under-18 level.
Ben Knapton
