Chelsea close on Lavia and Olise signings

The Daily Mail reports that Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia is set to join Chelsea.

The paper writes: “Chelsea have agreed a £58m deal with Southampton for 19-year-old midfielder Romeo Lavia.

“The Saints star has been the subject of an intense transfer battle between the Blues and Liverpool but will make the move to Stamford Bridge to link-up with Mauricio Pochettino’s squad.

“Lavia looked set to move to Anfield as Jurgen Klopp targeted the former Manchester City academy product in a bid to reinforce his midfield options, before snubbing the Reds.

“The deal includes an additional £5million in add-ons with Chelsea’s spending under American owner Todd Boehly now on the brink of breaking the £1billion barrier.”

As well as Lavia, the Mirror claims that Chelsea are not far from landing Crystal Palace winger Michael Olise.

They write: “Crystal Palace are reportedly unhappy with Chelsea over their pursuit of Michael Olise after activating a release clause in the winger’s contract.

“Chelsea are closing in on the signing of the 21-year-old, who laid on 11 Premier League assists last season. Palace have already lost Wilfried Zaha this summer, and now another of their star men could be on the move.

“Reports earlier on Tuesday indicated an official bid has been lodged for the playmaker, with the £35m sum enough to meet a release clause described as “complex” by The Mail. The same publication reports that Palace have let Chelsea know of their dissatisfaction at how things have turned out, believing their London rivals have ‘crossed the line’ in terms of transfer etiquette.

“If the move for Olise goes through, it would take Chelsea’s summer spending north of £300m. It might not be the last deal they complete, either, with talks ongoing over a move for Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia.”

The Sun suggests that Premier League new boys Luton will secure the arrival of goalkeeper Tim Krul.

“Tim Krul is set for a stunning return to the Premier League at the age of 35,” they claim.

“The Dutch goalkeeper previously played in the top flight for Newcastle and Norwich, who he is now expected to depart.

“According to [BBC Norfolk reporter] Chris Reeve, Luton are close to completing a deal to sign Krul from Norwich. An agreement has been reached between both clubs along with personal terms.

“The report adds that Krul will undergo a medical with the Hatters on Tuesday and that the deal is expected to be completed within 24 hours.”

Neymar will receive more than a quarter of a billion pounds to play for Al-Hlal, according to The Telegraph.

The paper states: “Neymar has been unveiled as the Saudi Pro League’s latest big-money signing, after Paris St-Germain agreed a final fee of £77m plus add-ons with Al-Hilal.

“‘I’m here in Saudi Arabia – I am Al HILAL,’ said the 31-year-old, who is believed to be in line to receive around £275 million over the course of his two-year contract.

“Neymar’s representatives were understood to be immediately receptive to a big money offer from the same club that had been spurned by Kylian Mbappe last month.

“While Mbappe has now returned to first-team training in Paris, Neymar was unveiled as an Al-Hilal player by the club after he passed his medical on Monday.”

TNT Sports is available across all major TV platforms, offering a line-up of up to four TV channels (TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports 2, TNT Sports 3, TNT Sports 4), and up to six digital or red-button channels (TNT Sports 5 to 10), and TNT Sports Ultimate plus TNT Sports Box Office HD.

Man City v Newcastle will be live on TNT Sports 1 from 19.00 UK time on Saturday, 19 August.

You can subscribe to TNT Sports through discovery+, BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.

TNT Sports presents the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Heineken Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing and WWE. The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination. You can also watch TNT Sports through BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media