Aurelien Tchouameni’s future at Monaco appears to have been decided after a report revealed the reasons behind his decision.
The 22-year-old Frenchman is currently one of the continent’s hottest properties. Tchouameni is a holding midfielder who has earned a reputation for being an attacking team’s worst nightmare.
Tchouameni had made at least 13 more tackles and interceptions combined (131) than any other player in Ligue 1 this season previous to this weekend’s games (via WhoScored).
It is because of his defensive prowess that the regular in Didier Deschamps’ France team has caught the attention of England’s top teams.
The all-action midfielder has been linked with Liverpool, Manchester United, and Chelsea.
He was designated as a major summer target for Julian Ward, who will succeed Michael Edwards as Liverpool’s chief transfer operator in the summer.
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel is said to have tasked Marina Granovskaia with thwarting the move.
Man United, meanwhile, are anticipated to seek center midfield in the summer transfer window, and the Frenchman – who is rated at approximately £67 million – would cost substantially less than Declan Rice, who is also a target.
Tchouameni and Monaco have reached an agreement.
The trio, though, are expected to go home empty-handed, according to Goal (via French outlet Le 10 Sport).
That’s because Tchouameni is rumored to have determined that staying in Monaco for at least another six months beyond the current season is his best option.
His motivation for doing so originates from his World Cup goals. Since his senior debut in 2021, Tchouameni has earned seven caps for Les Bleus. He does not want to jeopardize his position by transferring to a club where his minutes are not guaranteed, especially with the World Cup coming up later this year in Qatar.
Tchouameni is competing with the likes of N’Golo Kante for a holding berth in the engine room. Given that extremely high level of competition, his reasoning is understandable.
As such, and given his outlook, Goal state Monaco ‘won’t consider’ selling their prized asset this summer.
But once the winter World Cup has passed, speculation heading into the January window is likely to swirl – especially if he excels on the biggest stage.
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Man Utd plotting Liverpool transfer hijack
Meanwhile, Manchester United are looking to get one over Liverpool and gazump Jurgen Klopp’s side to the signing of Fabio Carvalho this summer.
The Reds had reached an agreement in principle to sign the 19-year-old attacker in January. However, despite a medical being completed, Liverpool were unable to apply the finishing touches before window slammed shut.
Regardless, the widely held belief is Liverpool will actively continue to pursue Carvalho. Indeed, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano reported further talks with Carvalho have been pencilled in for the back end of February.
However, the Daily Star Sunday reports that Manchester United are ready to launch a late move to hijack the deal.
They recently sent scouts to check on the 19-year-old in the FA Cup tie against Manchester City. And despite a 4-1 thumping, Carvalho caught the eye, scoring the Cottagers’ only goal that day.
Since then, the paper claims United scouts have watched Carvalho twice more over. And they are now planning a huge charm offensive to persuade the England U18s winger to move to Old Trafford.
However, the paper claims luring Carvalho away from the clutches of those at Anfield is far from easy. As well as already negotiating a fee, the paper claims Liverpool also have a special clause in place for Carvalho. That states that, in the likely event of promotion, Liverpool will allow Carvalho to return to Craven Cottage on a season’s loan.
The Red Devils would likely need to match the clause – put in place at Klopp’s insistence – if they are to gazump them for Carvalho.
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