Newcastle & Aston Villa ‘join chase’ for £43m wing-back with Leeds among five sides scouting Argentina star

Once again, we’ve trawled through the gossip columns and sifted through the stories to bring you a round-up of some of the biggest (and wildest) new Premier League transfer rumours which you might have missed over the past 24 hours – and today, we start with a tale which involves each of Newcastle, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur.

According to Sport Witness, Newcastle and Villa have “joined the chase” for Sporting left wing-back Maxi Araújo, a player who was already the subject of alleged interest from both Chelsea and Spurs – who are said to have “made initial contact” with the Uruguay international a month ago.

The 26-year-old, who can also operate as an out-and-out winger, is also being followed by both Manchester sides, the report claims, while GiveMeSport have also suggested that Arsenal are interested in him, a more surprising suggestion given that the Gunners aren’t exactly lacking for options at left-back.

Araújo has an €80m (£69m) minimum fee release clause in his contract, which runs until 2029, but should be available for rather less than that – Sporting want “not less than” €45-50m (up to £43m) to part ways with one of their stars. It’s said that it’s “unclear” whether either Newcastle or Villa, the latest entrants in the bidding, are prepared to pay that much.

The 3AM Verdict: Whenever such a wide range of teams are said to be looking at the same player, there’s a good chance that an agent is trying to ratchet up the hype a little bit, and we’re certainly not convinced that Arsenal are serious suitors – but Newcastle, Aston Villa, Chelsea and perhaps Spurs (if they survive) make more sense as potential landing spots and the alleged asking price should be within their reach. We’ll be interested to see which names are still connected with Araújo once the summer window gets underway, and whether there really are a number of interested parties or whether this story is getting a little overblown.

Leeds & Brighton among sides chasing Liverpool star’s brother

Over to a story from TEAMtalk now – they reckon that five English sides are showing “growing interest” in Kevin Mac Allister, brother of Liverpool’s Alexis, with soon-to-be promoted Coventry City joining Leeds, Brighton & Hove Albion, Brentford and Fulham in the hunt.

The 28-year-old centre-back, who plays for Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise and made his Argentina debut last year, has apparently been scouted “regularly” by his suitors, with his diminutive stature – Mac Allister is only 5’8” – not apparently counting against him.

There’s no word on how much Union SG might demand for Mac Allister, who is set to enter the final year of his contract in Belgium, a fact which suggests that the price tag is unlikely to be especially steep.

The 3AM Verdict: As his height suggests, Mac Allister is very much a ball-playing defender and not a player who would suit sides who want tall centre-backs who can dominate in the air – a fact which makes some of the suggested suitors more plausible than others. We would expect him to be fairly cheap, however, which should drive up interest from the Premier League and elsewhere.

Saudi sides show surprise interest in Sunderland star

Let’s wrap up with a story that Sunderland fans probably won’t enjoy reading from Sports Boom, who allege that Saudi Pro League sides – particularly Neom SC – have “monitored” midfielder Granit Xhaka with an eye on a lucrative summer deal.

Apparently the Swiss veteran “didn’t even consider” overtures from Saudi Arabia last summer before he joined the Black Cats, but the “interest is real” and Neom and their peers could bring their financial might to bear in the hope of twisting Xhaka’s arm.

Sunderland would supposedly demand a fee in the region of £16m to sanction the sale of the 33-year-old, a reasonably hefty fee for a player in his age bracket. There’s no suggestion (yet) that Xhaka is looking to leave the Stadium of Light, but he wouldn’t be the first to have his head turned by Saudi wealth.

The 3AM Verdict: It’s always hard to know how seriously to take stories about Saudi Pro League sides being interested in any given player, as they’re the kind of rumours that get tossed around very freely whenever a transfer window hoves into view. We’d guess that he likely stays, as Sunderland have no reason to want to sell a player who has been essential to their successes over the last year – and Xhaka is probably paid well enough to want to stay put.