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Football transfer rumours: Ousmane Dembélé to Manchester United?

<span>Photograph: TF-Images/Getty Images</span>
Photograph: TF-Images/Getty Images

Still hopeful of persuading Borussia Dortmund to change their minds and part company with Jadon Sancho, Manchester United are rumoured to have sounded out Barcelona over the possibility of bringing Ousmane Dembélé to Old Trafford as an alternative. Barcelona are prepared to listen to offers for the 23-year-old, who has struggled to find form and fitness at the Camp Nou since joining from Dortmund. United have also earmarked Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman, Schalke’s Rabbi Matondo and Vélez Sarsfield’s Thiago Almada as potential recruits should they fail to land their main target. The Mirror reports that Sancho is eager to join United and has handed in a transfer request in the hope of forcing a move.

Related: Men's transfer window summer 2020 – all deals from Europe's top five leagues

Manchester City have decided they would benefit from the presence of Bayern Munich midfielder Thiago Alcântara in their squad, a state of affairs that will displease the Liverpool fans who were rather hoping their club would sign the 29-year-old. The player is reported to be keen on a move to Anfield but various reports say City have thrown a spanner in the works by outbidding the Premier League champions.

Chelsea are eager to offload Tiémoué Bakayoko and have reduced their asking price in the hope Milan will take the defensive midfielder off their hands. Bakayoko spent the season before last on loan at the Italian side before being farmed out to his former club Monaco last August. Chelsea are also trying to get Italian left-back Emerson Palmieri off their books and may have found a buyer in Internazionale.

In time-honoured Bullseye tradition, disappointed Newcastle fans have discovered what they could have won if the Saudi takeover bid for their club had been successful. European Golden Shoe winner Ciro Immobile has revealed that his representative was approached regarding a potential move to Tyneside before the PIF offer to buy Newcastle was withdrawn.

“During the period in which there was talk of the possible purchase of Newcastle by the Sheikh’s fund they called my agent, Alessandro Moggi,” Immobile told Corriere Dello Sport. “Then the Premier League did not approve that proposal, or the fund withdrew, I don’t remember well. I know they were also looking for an Italian coach, [Massimiliano] Allegri or [Luciano] Spalletti.”

Good news for Steve Bruce, then. And while it looks like Newcastle will have to settle for signing the former Burnley midfielder Jeff Hendrick on a free transfer instead, Immobile has announced he will be staying in Rome. “I intend to tie myself to Lazio for ever,” he said. “The renewal will be for three years, so the contract will expire in 2025 when I turn 35.”

And finally, having tied up a deal to sign Blaise Matuidi from Juventus, David Beckham’s start-up MLS franchise Inter Miami are hoping to secure another big name in the form of Mario Götze. But the German midfielder, out of contract after leaving Borussia Dortmund, is reported to have rejected the American club’s advances as he would prefer to continue his career in Europe.