Kylian Mbappé left for Real Madrid, Julián Álvarez for Atlético Madrid, Dani Olmo for Barça, Matthijs de Ligt for Manchester United. There were also many other difficult transfers in the summer. But not all of them happened, which were much talked about and written about. Let’s talk about the loudest ones.
How top clubs strengthened in the summer:
Classification
Premier League offers: Real Madrid or PSG new arrivals? Top club’s best transfer campaign this summer
Martin Subimendi: from Real Sociedad to Liverpool
Martin Subimendi
Photo: Alex Caparros/Getty Images
Back in the spring, the Catalan sports world was already spreading a rumour: Xavi was supposedly willing to stay at Barça if they bought several top players, including Subimendi. It didn’t work out. Then Martin won the European Championship with the Spanish national team and Liverpool came after him. There, the interest turned out to be much more serious: according to journalist Matteo Moretto, the British were willing to pay compensation for the midfielder. But he himself suddenly rejected the move.
“I have said many times that our team is really good, so it is not easy to find players who can strengthen it. Subimendi was one of our options but he decided not to come here, so we are moving on with what we have,” Liverpool manager Arne Slot was quoted as saying by the Liverpool Echo.
It is ironic, by the way, that by turning down the Merseysiders, Martin allowed Sociedad member Mikel Merino to move to Arsenal. As Basque source Noticias de Gipuzkoa wrote, the club categorically did not want to loan out both midfielders. There was no need to go to extreme measures. 90min, however, claims that Liverpool will return for Subimendi next summer. Unless they back out again, that is.
Victor Osimhen to PSG/Chelsea
Victor Osimhen
Photo: galatasaray.org
We described the situation with the Nigerian in detail in a separate article.
Here it is:
The biggest loser of the summer transfer market
So here it is, briefly. In December 2023, Osimhen extended his contract with Napoli on better terms. Which he probably later regretted, because a compensation clause of 130 million euros appeared to terminate him. It was not possible to reach an agreement even with PSG, although the Parisians lost Mbappé. The impressive amount frightened other giants, including Manchester United and Liverpool. The former Serie A champions did not want to reduce it.
When the transfer deadline came, there were two options left: Al Ahly and Chelsea. The Saudis agreed on the purchase with Napoli and offered Victor an annual salary of 40 million euros, but suddenly the Neapolitans demanded more money for the transfer: the other side did not appreciate the manipulation and abandoned the negotiations.
The Londoners, at the same time, were not generous and asked the striker to reduce his salary by one and a half times in order to move to the Premier League. And now he is at Galatasaray at least until January, because he refused to be demoted and had a big fight with Napoli. In winter he will be able to sign for 75 million euros thanks to a renewed contract. A real saga of greed and wasted time.
Nico Williams: from Athletic to Barcelona
Nico Williams
Photo: Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images
Oh, news about this transition appeared almost every day of the summer. And the story began in April. To summarise the highlights, in July Catalan manager Joan Laporta told Mundo Deportivo that everything was fine: “Obviously I like Williams, a lot. But we must let those in charge do the job. I hope we get good news. Is there money for this transfer? Today there is.”
Then Fútbol España revealed the details: Niko was supposedly looking for a house in the area where many Barça players live. The high probability of an upcoming deal was confirmed by both league director Javier Tebas and the world’s leading insider Fabrizio Romano. However, Athletic’s management and even the winger’s brother Iñaki convinced him to stay for another season. And he found no reason to refuse, having received the number 10.
At the end of August, Barcelona sporting director Deco made the final statement: “I want Williams to move, but he himself doesn’t want this.” Pedri’s public statements with Lamin Yamal about his desire to play with Niko not only in the national team did not help either. “My heart is Athletic and I plan to stay here. However, nobody knows what will happen in the future,” is the final statement from the dark-skinned Basque.
Jonathan Ta: from Bayer to Bayern
Jonathan Ta
Photo: Christof Koepsel/Getty Images
Where would we be without a high-profile transfer to Bayern from a rival club? It was very close, but it didn’t happen. The reason, unbeknownst to him, was Bayer CEO Fernando Carro. But more on that later.
Ta had just one year left on his contract and agreed to move to Munich. The German champions tried to get 40 million euros when Ta was worth 30 million euros and he still gave in, agreeing to 25+5 million euros. However, the Munich team also started to argue, so the dialogue between the two was interrupted. The clubs took a break. But it didn’t end. The German Kicker wrote about this. And at a meeting with the fans, Carro spoke unflatteringly of Bayern’s sporting director Max Eberle: “I don’t think about him, absolutely not! And I wouldn’t negotiate with him.”
As the defender’s agent, Max Bielefeld, later said, it was the words of the Bayern coach that were the final straw: “Fernando’s public statement turned the situation into a personal matter. The discussions were poisoned. Everyone, including Jonathan, would like Fernando to behave more professionally.” Ta is reportedly set to join Bayern for free next summer. He has already confirmed that he has no intention of renewing the deal.
Bayer’s great streak recently ended:
The impossible has happened. Charming series from “Bayer”: everything
Mohamed Salah: from Liverpool to Saudi Arabia
Salah was lured to Saudi Arabia in 2023. The Athletic wrote that Liverpool were offered a whopping £150 million. The Reds managed to retain him, however, already this summer, Mo’s teammate Wataru Endo told Japanese television about the upcoming departure: “The search for a replacement for Mohamed has begun. Liverpool will need to fill a gap in his position. I think none other than Takefusa Kubo could replace Salah.”
Endo was wrong: Salah is still in England. It is true that his contract will end in 2025. And the Egyptian himself, after a recent match with Manchester United, did not rule out that his story at Liverpool will soon come to an end: “As you know, this is my last year at the club. I just want to enjoy it and not think about leaving. I feel like I can play football freely. Let’s see what happens next. I went into today’s game thinking that it could be my last here. Nobody at the club has yet spoken to me about a new deal, so I will play this season as my last and then we will see.”
The match against Manchester United took place just one day before the Saudi transfer window closed. Apparently, the option to move there remained until the last moment. At the same time, the Caught Offside portal recently reported that next summer not only Salah, but also Alison and Virgil van Dijk will settle in Saudi Arabia. Is there a major rebuilding ahead for Liverpool?
Alphonso Davies: from Bayern to Real Madrid
Alfonso Davis
Photo: Sebastián Widmann/Getty Images
Davis was named a transfer target for Real Madrid even before the winter transfer window. The reason is his difficult negotiations with Bayern over a contract extension, which ends in June 2025. In roughly the same situation, Madrid got Toni Kroos for just 25 million euros 10 years ago. And David Alaba was taken from Munich completely for free.
All about Kroos’ arrival at Real Madrid:
“This is the robbery of the century.” How Real Madrid snatched the legendary Kroos from Bayern
At the moment, everything points to Davis following the Austrian’s lead. Bayern bosses, not without reason German, are extremely pragmatic and reluctant to accept requests for a significant pay rise. In addition, they do not want to lose useful assets before their time. At the end of March, AS reported that Real Madrid had reached an agreement with Alfonso. All that was left to do was to reach an agreement with the Munich team: for an offer of 25-30 million euros, they set a price of 50 million euros. You already know the result.
“Will I play at the Bernabéu? My agent is currently negotiating with Bayern. Whatever the case, I am very grateful to Bayern,” Davis said in May, according to Bayern&Football. “A move to Real Madrid? We will see what happens when the Copa América is over,” he told Marca, just in June.
In July, Bayern’s honorary president Uli Hoenes spoke out: “We told him very clearly that we would let the contract expire if he did not renew it. Davis will not receive any more money.” And the final chord: According to AS, Alfonso will become a free agent and immediately switch from Munich to Madrid. Following in the footsteps of Alaba.
Joshua Kimmich: from Bayern to PSG/Barcelona
Joshua Kimmich
Photo: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images
Kimmich’s situation is similar: his contract with Bayern also expires in July 2025. While Davies’ future is solely at Real Madrid, various media outlets have sent Yozua in many directions. Including Madrid, as Bild and AS wrote in May, this is supposedly the priority option to replace Kroos.
There were also rumours about Barcelona – it was not for nothing that they were headed by Hansi Flick. But the topic quickly died down due to the financial demands of the Germans – now the players make concessions if they want to become blue-garnets. Thanks to Sport.es for the information. And Sport Bild added that Barça is supposedly not averse to waiting for Kimmich’s contract to expire. Clasico. And then PSG appeared on the horizon.
Fabrizio Romano wrote that the Parisians are planning to get both Jozua and João Neves. Precisely both, and neither of them. In fact, they bought the latter from Benfica for 60 million euros, but it didn’t work out for the German. Journalist Santi Auna reported: PSG actually threw the bait to Bayern. And it was rejected. Despite the Munich team’s desire to sell Kimmich, as well-known insider Florian Plettenberg reports.
“We had a very good and positive conversation. There will be further communication. Joshua has been a key player for Bayern for many years and is expected to remain so in the future,” Max Eberl said in August. So will Kimmich still be in the Bundesliga next year?
Xavi Simons: from PSG to Bayern
Javi Simon
Photo: Pau Barrena/Getty Images
There is a lot of “Bavaria” in this text, don’t you think? But what can be done if the Munich management really has a lot of questions about transfers? Simons spent last season on loan at Leipzig from PSG. It is logical that the German club with the most titles has set its sights on him. Plettenberg wrote: Eberl is personally interested in the transfer and the Parisians will agree to let him go for 60-70 million euros.
At the same time, Leipzig dreamed of keeping Xavi. But Sport.es clarified that PSG would not loan him out for another loan. In this situation, Bayern had the upper hand. The Munich team also asked for prices for a rental, but with a mandatory purchase. Plettenberg said the same in July: the midfielder had agreed on the terms of the contract with them, but there was no certainty about the future beforehand. In August it came: Simons chose Leipzig and PSG did not argue.
“I got everything I wanted from moving here: I joined a great team and felt everyone’s trust and faith in me. I was able to develop both as a player and as a person. RB Leipzig is the perfect place for that. They value me very much here and have made it clear to me over the past few months that they would not like me to leave. We want to fight for first place in the Bundesliga again and stay in the Champions League for as long as possible. I feel at home and I am very happy to be able to play for this club and this fan base for another year. I am ready to make history!” — Javi summed up the decision.
