Alex Sandro
Current club: Juventus • Could join: Chelsea
We're not sure what Marcos Alonso has to do to convince Antonio Conte he doesn’t need to be improved upon, but Chelsea are still very clearly in the market for a new left-sided full-back.
Juventus have held firm for this long over their Brazil international and show no intention of agreeing to a sale, but Conte’s dissatisfaction and his employer’s eagerness to retain the Italian’s services may intensify the interest before the window closes.
Kasper Dolberg
Current club: Ajax • Could join: Monaco
Given what manager Leonardo Jardim has achieved with young players in the past, there probably isn’t a more perfect destination for Dolberg than Monaco. They need a forward, Ligue 1 isn’t too much of a step up from the Eredivisie, and a move would catapult him into the Champions League.
Ajax have already lost Davinson Sanchez this summer and won't want last year’s squad break up so quickly, but - should Kylian Mbappe be sold - Monaco are likely to be very aggressive. It’s the kind of deal which will depend on the player’s attitude: if Dolberg has the appetite for a move, Ajax could find it extremely difficult to keep him. They've turned down a €50m bid this week, according to reports.
Jean Michel Seri
Current club: Nice • Could join: Barcelona, Arsenal, Liverpool
Nice are now out of the Champions League, eliminated 4-0 on aggregate by Napoli in the play-off. Given that’s the case, Seri will almost certainly be off – though it's believed his €40m release clause has now expired, meaning a prospective buyer will probably have to shell out even more.
On Thursday, it came to light that PSG had manufactured their interest in the player to deter Barcelona from pursuing him (not quite over that Champions League elimination, are they?) Brilliantly petty, but encouraging for Arsenal and Liverpool, both of whom would be improved by placing Seri at the base of their midfield.
Alexis Sanchez
Current club: Arsenal • Could join: Manchester City
It’s looking less and less likely. Sanchez is set to be included in Arsenal’s squad to play Liverpool on Sunday and will, shortly after, fly to South America to join up with the Chilean national team.
Manchester City retain an interest, but any transfer is starting to look like a logistical nightmare - particularly as Arsenal seem content to allow him to see out the rest of his contract.
Danny Rose
Current club: Tottenham • Could join: Manchester United
Rose is currently injured and unavailable for selection, but it remains to be seen whether Mauricio Pochettino considers him to be in his long-term plans.
The player has certainly betrayed the club’s trust and treated his manager and team-mates fairly shoddily, so it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that he leaves Tottenham before the end of the window. And Manchester United do need - or at least want - a new full-back.
Ross Barkley
Current club: Everton • Could join: Tottenham, Chelsea
And on… and on… and on. But now with a complication: Barkley has sustained an injury which means that he’s unlikely to play again before November at least.
Tenuously, that probably makes Chelsea the new favourite to sign him. Tottenham are unlikely to meet Everton’s asking price for a player who can’t be selected for the foreseeable future (and who will be available for free next summer) and so will presumably defer their interest.
By contrast, Chelsea have the playing squad to compensate for the injury, would happily provide Barkley with time to recover, and could then work him into their line-up (or onto their bench) over the long-term. They’re also far more likely to meet his wage demands, rumoured to be in the £150,000-per-week range.
Diego Costa
Current club: Chelsea • Could join: Atletico Madrid
Yes, this again. The back-and-forth between Costa and Antonio Conte makes a reconciliation near impossible, so either Chelsea agree to a sale now or they continue paying (and probably litigating against) a player of no use.
Diego is certainly enjoying his time off, so hopefully Atletico have a intensive fitness program ready and waiting for the striker if he arrives.
Shkodran Mustafi
Current club: Arsenal • Could move to: Inter
As recently as last week, this was dismissed out of hand as a baseless rumour. Now? Maybe not. Some well-connected journalists are convinced that there’s some substance here - and with Mustafi not an automatic first choice and the defender not having enjoyed the best first season in England, it no longer seems quite so out of the question.
It would certainly seem to suggest that Calum Chambers still has a future at the Emirates.
Jonny Evans
Current club: West Brom • Could join: Manchester City
Maybe 'Could join' should be 'Will sign for' - City want Evans and now it seems only a matter of time before they reach an agreement with West Brom.
While a story which baffled many when it appeared, it actually makes a lot of sense. Pep Guardiola wants to deploy a back three this season and Evans is the left-footed centre-half capable of adding the necessary symmetry. Evans’s Manchester United history makes it complicated, but probably not prohibitive.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Current club: Arsenal • Could join: Chelsea
This makes a lot of sense. Oxlade-Chamberlain has seemingly been growing discontented for some time, and it doesn't take much imagination to appreciate that, with a stable position and regular selection, he could well be an upgrade on Victor Moses at Stamford Bridge. He’s a quicker player, has the greater range of abilities, and is probably also more of a goal threat.
Any transfer between Arsenal and Chelsea always seems unlikely, but they’re not actually averse to doing business (Ashley Cole, William Gallas, Petr Cech) and a reasonable fee could make it happen. Ironically, while Conte has the stronger squad, Oxlade-Chamberlain’s chances of first-team football seem greater with him than they do under Arsene Wenger.
