Arsenal & Aston Villa ‘monitoring’ £50m Bundesliga star as Chelsea eye Sweden midfielder

Another day of gossip has been and gone, and that means that it’s time for 3 Added Minutes’ regular morning round-up of all the biggest (and sometimes strangest) new Premier League transfer rumours – starting with a story which involves Arsenal, Aston Villa, and several other top-flight sides.

According to Caught Offside (who are covering a paywalled original story from The Daily Briefing), both Arsenal and Villa are among the sides who are “leading the race” to sign rising Eintracht Frankfurt star Can Uzun, an attacking midfielder who has started the 2026/27 season in impressive form with four goals in his first six domestic games.

Apparently Arsenal have already “sounded out” the 20-year-old’s representatives – who its observed also represent another possible transfer target, Nicolò Tresoldi – while Villa are simply said to be “monitoring” Uzun’s progress, along with Brighton & Hove Albion and Everton, as well as top teams from Germany and Italy.

Caught Offside claim that their own sources suggest that Uzun, who was a member of Turkey’s World Cup squad, could now be worth as much as €60m (£50m) after his fine start to the season. They also hint that this is more likely to be a move that takes place next summer rather than in January.

The 3AM Verdict: We picked Uzun out as one of the most exciting young players to watch at the World Cup before the tournament got underway and his reputation is growing at pace since the summer. We do suspect that a move is unlikely this winter – Frankfurt have him tied down until 2029 and have no real financial incentives to sell unless an absurd offer arrives – but we’re not shocked to see that he’s being watched by several Premier League sides. One to watch.

Chelsea ‘in the hunt’ for Brighton star

It won’t surprise anybody to learn that there’s a new rumour going around which suggests that Chelsea are trying to sign a Brighton player – and in this case, it’s Yasin Ayari that they’ve taken a shine to, according to TEAMtalk.

Apparently the Blues have joined Turkish outfit Galatasaray “in the hunt” for the 23-year-old, with both sides seemingly encouraged in their interest by the fact that negotiations over a new deal have stalled. As it stands, Ayari’s contract expires at the end of the season, although Brighton hold an option to extend it for one more year.

It’s suggested that “a number” of Premier League sides are keeping an eye on the situation alongside Chelsea, but it’s their name that’s become public. There’s no word on how much Ayari might cost if he doesn’t sign a new contract, or when he might leave Brighton.

The 3AM Verdict: This feels like a very speculative article with no evidence for Chelsea’s interest provided. We don’t doubt that many teams are monitoring developments in case a chance to sign Ayari crops up, but we’ve seen nothing to suggest that Chelsea are particularly close to the front of the queue.

Manchester United send scouts to watch Porto wonderkid

Let’s wrap things up with a story from Sport Witness, who cite a recent print edition of Portuguese newspaper A Bola in claiming that Manchester United have sent scouts to watch Porto on a couple of recent occasions – with the subject of their interest believed to be teenage winger Oskar Pietuszewski.

United were one of a few top-flight clubs linked with the 18-year-old Poland international back in the spring, not long after he joined Porto, and it seems as though they continue to monitor his progress.

It doesn’t sound as though any discussions have taken place and details are scant. There is no known asking price and no hint of if or when United might make their move – indeed, this seems to be no more than routine scouting for now, although the fact that multiple visits have taken place certain implies that Pietuszewski is a player of genuine interest.

The 3AM Verdict: The report acknowledges that it’s impossible to even be certain that Pietuszewski is the player that United are watching, although it’s certainly a good guess given the available information. It’s far too early to know whether that interested will ever crystallise into a bid, anyway, and we doubt that it’s a likely January deal. One for the future.