Bruno Guimaraes to Arsenal among five inevitable transfers this summer | OneFootball

Long gone are the days of finding out your club has signed a new player when they hold up the shirt at the stadium; transfer sagas are big business for social media influencers (and us)

It is the never-ending source of nourishment that keeps Fabrizio Romano alive as details such as what sock a player put on first are tracked and analysed, all to generate clicks and farm engagement.

This summer is no different and even with a World Cup going on, there have been plenty of transfers already and more to come.

So, as players call their agents, here’s the five biggest transfer sagas of the summer and where we reckon the player will be come the ‘slamming’ of the window.

Julian Alvarez

With Argentina pretty much through to the knockouts, Alvarez thought he would use the spotlight of a World Cup to tell the world of the plight he is stuck in: a club that is paying him €240k a week is refusing to sell him to a direct rival.

Alvarez wants to “fulfil his dream” by moving to Barcelona, who have been trying to unsettle him for months now. Atletico say he is going nowhere.

Real Madrid have played their part by submitting a €150m bid they knew would never be accepted and so Atletico can tell Barcelona to match that or forget it.

This saga has had everything from player strops to Atletico going frankly nuts on social media. Even now, Lamine Yamal has said Alvarez would fit Barca’s style, which is a page straight out of the playbook of Xavi, who used to endlessly talk about the ‘Barca DNA’ of transfer targets.

What makes this saga different than most is that Atletico seem to be taking a moral stand. Having watched many of their best players go to Barcelona and elsewhere, they seem to be drawing a line in the sand with Alvarez.

Barcelona won’t go to the €150m Atletico are asking, but unfortunately for the Madrid club, player power rules and so it is hard to see how the Argentine does not end up at the Camp Nou eventually.

Prediction: Deadline day transfer to Barcelona. Many, many angry Atletico Madrid social media posts.

Bruno Guimaraes

Newcastle fans are currently going through the equivalent of your partner leaving you for someone else.

Losing Tonali wasn’t great but it feels like a stubbed toe compared to the dagger in the heart that would be Guimaraes leaving Newcastle.

They thought he was one of their own, an adopted son of the city, but if David Ornstein’s reporting is correct, he too has become the latest footballer to say one thing then do another.

If we are taking emotion out of it, we can see why Guimaraes would want to go. When he joined the club in 2022, he was promised a club on the rise, one with financial backing and one ready to crack into the Premier League elite.

But PSR has shackled Newcastle, leaving them saying goodbye to plenty of their stars and in need of a summer rebuild. Does Bruno want to be part of that? He’s 28 now and may feel it’s now or never to compete for titles.

According to Ornstein, Guimaraes has asked to go to Arsenal and while he will reportedly not throw an Alexander Isak-style tantrum to force a move, these are the kind of deals that tend to get done.

Arsenal’s reported opening bid is around £60m, which seems far too low for Newcastle to consider. In reality, they would want a fee equal if not greater than the price it took to buy Tonali. Which was too much.

Arsenal have the cash, it’s just whether they want to stump it up…but it does seem to be heading that way.

Prediction: Moves to Arsenal. Newcastle fans have moral crisis over whether to boo him or not.

Morgan Rogers

Rogers is reportedly top of Arsenal’s shopping list and even though Villa’s owners have the cash, they have committed the unforgivable crime of not being a Big Six club.

Villa – and Newcastle – have had their place in the Premier League order food chain confirmed with reports Rogers has agreed terms with the north London side, which tends to be the first step towards only one outcome.

If Rogers is going, it would be in Villa’s best interest to get it done quickly so they can bring in their own players as pre-season begins, but it is another reminder of the ceiling on any ambitious club.

Prediction: Joins Arsenal. Villa fans wear out the letters P S and R on their keyboards.

MORE FEATURES ON F365

Eli Junior Kroupi

Kroupi’s impressive debut season in the Premier League has drawn the attention of every big club in Europe.

The 19-year-old has been linked with Barcelona, Arsenal, PSG, Bayern and both Manchester clubs with Tottenham now joining the long list of potential suitors.

Reportedly top of the player’s wishlist is PSG but Bournemouth are asking for around €100m for their young forward, which has turned the Parisians – who already have a stacked forward line – right off.

One club not afraid to splash the cash is Tottenham, who are undergoing a massive summer rebuild. Their midfield has already been reinforced by Mateus Fernandes and Tonali but Spurs are lacking up front with Dominic Solanke and Richarlison the current options.

Signing Kroupi then makes a lot of sense and with the promise of first-team football, that could persuade the player to move to the English capital rather than the French one.

Prediction: Joins Tottenham. Bournemouth replace him with an unknown wonderkid that is somehow better and cost £2m.

Marcus Rashford

Rashford has just gone through the equivalent of an internship only to find there is no permanent job waiting on the other side.

In his dream world, Rashford would join Barcelona having spent last season on loan there but a £69.3m spend on Antony Gordon has likely put an end to that fantasy.

What then of the player? Manchester United have made it clear they don’t see him in their plans, even if Ruben Amorim has gone, but he has another two years on his £300k-a-week salary.

On those wages, very few European clubs are going to want to go near him and so it reeks of a move to another Premier League club…one not quite at the very top end.

And if Gordon took his spot at Barcelona, maybe Rashford can take Gordon’s at Newcastle.