Today's Gist: Di Maria Set For Spain Return; Reds To Seal Deal For £35m Winger

An Arsenal star looks set to disappoint Liverpool and extend his stay in London, while a Real Madrid midfielder has chosen where he wants to play his football next season, according to Monday’s newspapers.

Di Maria To Join Messi At Barca?

Barcelona are interested in signing Angel Di Maria from Paris Saint-Germain as a replacement for Arda Turan, according to Mundo Deportivo.

It has been widely reported that Turan will depart the Camp Nou this summer after failing to break into the Barca side on a regular basis. But news that former Real Madrid man Di Maria could replace him comes as a surprise, with Mundo also claiming Lionel Messi is keen to link up with his fellow Argentina international.

Meanwhile, Sport adds that Rafinha Alcantara, a reported target for Liverpool, Arsenal, Juventus and Roma, wants assurances over his playing time at the club and could be allowed to leave.

Although Barca are willing to sell they will consider only offers of €30 million for the 24-year-old.

Salah Deal Close, Ox Slips

There's good and bad news for Liverpool as Jurgen Klopp seeks to add numbers to his squad ahead of their Champions League return.

A £35million deal for Roma winger Mohamed Salah appears close to completion with sources telling ESPN FC more talks between the two clubs are scheduled to take place about a move that will earn the 24-year-old £100,000 a week.

However, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is not willing to make the same move to Merseyside and will reject their advances in order to sign a new contract with Arsenal worth more than £100,000 a week, a second report in the Mirror claims.

The 23-year-old England international is entering the final year of his contract at Arsenal but is ready to commit his long-term future to the club.

Leicester have approached Swansea about signing Gylfi Sigurdsson, the Mail reports, and will rival Everton's efforts to sign the Iceland international.

Sigurdsson, 27, is rated at £30m, and is in demand after scoring nine Premier League goals and setting up 13 more for Swansea despite their struggles last season. Leicester view him as a potential replacement for Riyad Mahrez, who is also on Everton's wanted list having expressed a desire to leave Leicester.

In a further development, The Express reckons Everton could turn to Jamie Vardy if Romelu Lukaku leaves this summer. Vardy turned down Arsenal and signed a new long-term contract with Leicester last summer but could head to Goodison Park to be reunited with Steve Walsh, the man responsible for bringing him to the Foxes in the first place.

Liverpool ‘Boost Financial Package’ To Give Van Dijk A Headache

Virgil van Dijk’s proposed move to Manchester City looks far from certain amid reports Liverpool are prepared to stump up the funds required to lure the Dutchman to Anfield.

The Reds are among three clubs, alongside City and Chelsea, who have targeted a summer swoop for the towering Southampton defender, with a fee of around £50million being mooted.

But on Sunday it was claimed that while Van Dijk was ‘impressed by Liverpool’, the player was prepared to accept a move to Manchester City after they trumped the Reds with a £200,000 a week package to the Dutchman.

According to the Liverpool Echo, however, such talk is ‘premature’, and Jurgen Klopp’s side are still in with a chance of landing the 25-year-old.

The paper, however, does have a cautious outlook: They claim a U-turn is by no means certain and that the Reds still face ‘a real battle to convince the defender’ to move to Anfield.

But it offers a glimmer of hope for Liverpool, who were previously thought to be unable to match Manchester City in the financial stakes.

Van Dijk could of course not move to the north-west at all, with Premier League champions Chelsea also establishing themselves as contenders for his signature.

Liverpool ‘still believe money will not be the decisive factor’, and it is merely stated that they have offered the defender ‘a similar financial package’, not necessarily that they have offered the same £200,000 a week as City.

The decision is now down to Van Dijk, who has three strong offers on the table

Real Forward Favours Move To London

Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata has reportedly opted for a move to Chelsea this summer.

The Blues want Morata as a replacement for Diego Costa, who has been strongly tipped to quit Stamford Bridge, while Manchester United are hoping that the Spain international could be part of a swap deal that sees David de Gea head to the Bernabeu.

Morata, 24, has struggled for regular first-team action at the back-to-back Champions League winners and has also been tipped to head back to Italy and join AC Milan.

However, according to Spanish outlet Dairio Gol, the Spain international has asked Real president Florentino Perez to engineer a switch to Premier League champions Chelsea.

The report claims that Morata has no interest in a move to Milan and would prefer life in London.

The news will also come as a blow to United boss Jose Mourinho as he looks for a replacement for injured Swedish legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who looks to have played his last game for the club.

Others

Hector Bellerin could be swapped for Barcelona midfielder Arda Turan after the midfielder ‘agreed’ to join Arsene Wenger’s men (The Sun)

Paris St-Germain have joined Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho in the £43.75m race for Monaco star Fabinho (The Sun)

AC Milan have made contact with Celtic over 20-year-old striker Moussa Dembele (The Sun)

Auxerre midfielder Abdoulaye Sissako is a target for Aston Villa (The Sun)

Gareth Bale has dealt a blow to Manchester United by insisting he has no intention of leaving Real Madrid (Daily Mirror)

Birmingham are set to compete with Everton for French starlet Junior Sambia (The Sun)

Roma winger Mohamed Salah is closing in on a £35m switch to Liverpool (Daily Mirror)

Manchester City forward Patrick Roberts is closing in on a permanent deal at Celtic after his successful loan spell (Daily Mirror)

Olivier Giroud has viwed to stay and fight for his place at Arsenal and insists he has titles to win (Daily Mirror)

Arsenal have handed Arsene Wenger £150m to turn the Gunners into a title-challenging side next season (Daily Star)

Newcastle, Burnley and West Brom are all interested in 27-year-old Manchester City midfielder Fabian Delph (Daily Star)

Bolton are eyeing a double deal for Liverpool starlets Lloyd Jones and Cameron Brannagan (Daily Star)

Southampton’s interest in Manchester City midfielder Aaron Mooy could affect Virgil van Dijk’s future (Daily Star)

Barcelona are readying a £44m offer for Hector Bellerin after Ernesto Valverde authorised the swoop (Daily Star)

Arsenal think they could be in with a chance of landing Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Daily Star)

Real Madrid could turn their attention to Chelsea star Thibaut Courtois if their David De Gea talks stall (Daily Star)

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has told fans to expect no more than three signings this summer (Independent)

Arsenal and Chelsea are reportedly interested in Wolves ace Helder Costa (Daily Express)

Yaya Sanogo has revealed he will leave Arsenal this summer (Daily Express)

Marco Silva will return to former club Hull to prize away Kamil Grosicki, Omar Elabdellaoui and Eldin Jakupovic (Daily Mail)

Hull City defender Andrew Robertson is in no rush to decide his future, with the 23-year-old said to be a target for Liverpool (Hull Daily Mail)