Manchester United's £34m next transfer set to accelerate rapidly as Villa vie for Euro 2024 star

Welcome to Friday’s daily digest of the biggest Premier League transfer rumours currently doing the media rounds, and we’ll start at Old Trafford, where Manchester United’s first big summer signing is getting a few steps closer to completion.

They have been working for the past few weeks on a deal for Bologna forward Joshua Zirkzee, who scored 12 goals in 37 games as the Serie A side qualified for the Champions League. While United’s bid for the former Bayern Munich man is hardly fresh knowledge, it sounds as though things might be about to step up a notch.

According to a breaking news story from Sky Sports News, the deal for Zirkzee is “expected to accelerate” after the Netherlands were knocked out of Euro 2024 by England in the semi-finals. They also report that there is an “agreement between the two clubs in principal” and on personal terms, with the structure of the deal the only remaining point of negotiation - and according to Fabrizio Romano, who has given the move his trademark “here we go”, United will actually pay more than his €40m (£34m) release clause in order to secure better terms. Elsewhere, Sky Sports Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg has claimed that Bayern centre-back Matthijs de Ligt has decided he wants to join United this summer, although a deal has yet to be agreed.

The 3AM Verdict: Zirkzee, who is expected to sign a five-year deal with an option for a sixth, is a crafty and creative player who would add a lot of guile to United’s rather ineffective attacking line, but he doesn’t fit neatly into the front four that United used last season – he’s more of a support striker who shadows a number nine than a winger or central striker, and one would expect Bruno Fernandes to continue as the ten. So will this be another Mason Mount situation where a talented player is shoehorned into an unfamiliar role, or does Erik ten Hag have a cunning plan up his sleeve? We’ll have to wait until August to find out, but the quality is unquestionably there.

Chelsea and Liverpool set for £25m transfer tussle

News now for fans of two more Premier League big boys – according to a report which originates from Spain and which has since been picked up by ESPN and Caught Offside, among others, both Chelsea and Liverpool are interested in Borussia Dortmund winger Karim Adeyemi, who could apparently be available for a fee in the region of €30m (£25m).

The 22-year-old was hugely impressive in the 2022/23 season but suffered a bit of a downturn last campaign, scoring just five goals in all competitions and finding minutes harder to come by than he might have expected. Nevertheless, his “great potential” means that “half the league” want to sign him, and Liverpool are said to be the most interested in pursuing a deal as they look for long-term replacements for players like Mohamed Salah.

The 3AM Verdict: It would make some sense for big Premier League sides to keep tabs on him – at his best, he has been electric, with plenty of pace, trickery and goal threat in his game, but he needs to rediscover his form to be able to compete for a team with designs on the top four. Time will tell as to whether this report has an substance to it, however, as we have some cause to be sceptical of the original source.

Villa and Forest among suitors for Euros star

Last up for today, a tidbit for many fans in the midlands – according to Sport Witness, both Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest are interested in making a move for Udinese’s Slovenian defender Jaka Bijol, who impressed during his country’s run to the last 16 of Euro 2024.

Apparently Udinese have set an asking price in the region of €16-17m (around £13.5m) for the 6’3” centre-half, who is an old-fashioned defender noted more for his towering presence and strong tackling than for his ball-playing ability. A long list of clubs including Bologna, Atalanta, VfL Wolfsburg and VfB Stuttgart are also interested, so there could be a lot of negotiations ahead for the 25-year-old.

The 3AM Verdict: Bijol looked very solid in Germany and has a good track record in Serie A both as a straightforward defender and as a threat from set pieces, and the price point sounds about right. Villa have tended to look for more technical players since Unai Emery took the helm and Forest’s interest may depend on whether Murillo ends up leaving the City Ground, but it sounds as though Bijol will certainly be going somewhere very soon.