Man United could make landmark move for £100m Man City star as West Ham settle on striker target

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Our round-up of the latest Premier League transfer rumours includes stories from Manchester United, Manchester City, West Ham and more.

The January transfer window is finally starting to gather some serious momentum, and as always we’re here to help you keep track of the comings and goings by rounding up some of the biggest and boldest Premier League transfer rumours – and telling you whether they’re actually likely to happen.

We’ll start today’s digest with a bombshell story from The Daily Mirror, who suggest that Manchester United are among six clubs exploring the possibility of signing Jack Grealish from cross-city rivals Manchester City. Grealish, who cost City a cool £100m when he signed from Aston Villa, has slid down the pecking order under Pep Guardiola and now United are “keeping tabs” on his situation.

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The Mirror claims that Grealish is “considering a fresh start” after young wingers Savinho and Jeremy Doku supplanted him in the starting line-up, although the tabloid isn’t sure whether United could “persuade” Grealish to make what would be a controversial move, but should the England winger want to leave then he may also be able to head back to Villa or go to Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United, Borussia Dortmund or Inter Milan, who are also named as potential suitors.

The 3AM Verdict: We tend to take The Mirror’s stories with a healthy pinch of salt, and there’s not much detail here – no asking price, no claims that the clubs have been in contact, and no word on when a deal might even take place. That said, the notion of Grealish leaving doesn’t seem too far-fetched, although we struggle to imagine he’d be in Dortmund’s price range. We suspect that nothing will happen until the summer at the earliest, and would be amazed if United were his destination. Stranger things have happened, of course…

West Ham eye ‘permanent’ striker deal

Having had a £57m bid for Aston Villa’s Jhon Durán turned down, West Ham United are seemingly turning their attention to other targets to solve their striker crisis – and according to TeamTalk, they’re now exploring a permanent deal for Brighton’s Evan Ferguson.

The Irishman had already been linked with a loan move to the London Stadium but Graham Potter wants him for good, while Brighton are “yet to make a final decision” over Ferguson’s future after persistent injuries derailed his career over the past year or so.

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The Hammers will have competition, however – Bournemouth and Everton are also potential destinations, while Arsenal have “long term interest” and even Championship side Leeds United are mentioned. Ferguson wants to remain in the top flight, however.

The 3AM Verdict: We can probably narrow a decision down to West Ham and Bournemouth, if it comes to it, but the trickiest choice belongs to Brighton, who must decide whether to cash in on a fragile but deeply talented forward. There’s no word on how much money they would want, should they decide to sell, or on how long a decision may take. Let’s file this under plausible but perhaps not probable until we get more details.

City in for former Villa star

Let’s circle right back round to the start for today’s final rumour – with Manchester City trying to sign a player who used to play for Aston Villa. Rather than Aston Villa trying to sign a Manchester City player who used to play for Aston Villa. Something like that.

If The Daily Telegraph (paywalled) have their facts straight, then Guardiola is looking to add a midfielder before the end of the January transfer window and with first-choice target Éderson from Atalanta looking to be out of reach for the time being, they’re turning their attention to Douglas Luiz, one of the players who propelled Villa towards the Champions League last season.

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Luiz was signed by Juventus for a reported £42m over the summer but hasn’t settled in Turin, and now Guardiola and his transfer team are debating a potential loan move. He is, according to the Telegraph, “thought to be available”, although Juve favour either a permanent deal or a loan with an obligation to buy. The Brazilian, who was on City’s books for two years between 2017 and 2019, isn’t “necessarily City’s first option”, however, and it is “not certain” that they will sign a midfielder this month.

The 3AM Verdict: This seems like an eminently plausible story from top to bottom, although whether other clubs come in remains unclear and the financial details of the deal aren’t included in the article. We wouldn’t be at all surprised to see this one get over the line, however.

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