Atletico Madrid set sights on Premier League midfielder to replace Conor Gallagher | OneFootball

Atletico Madrid will be busy over the coming weeks, as they seek to add to Diego Simeone’s squad during the winter transfer window. They need replacements for Conor Gallagher, who has joined Tottenham Hotspur in a deal worth €40m, and Giacomo Raspadori, who is about to leave for Atalanta, and targets have already been identified.

Gallagher’s departure has left Atleti with Pablo Barrios, Koke Resurreccion, Johnny Cardoso and Marcos Llorente as central midfield options, but with the latter preferred as a right-back, it is clear that a new addition is needed. The money will be there for director of football Mateu Alemany to spend, and some of it could be spent on Joao Gomes.

As per Marca, Atleti are interested in Gomes, who is also wanted by Manchester United and Napoli. The 24-year-old, who has featured 10 times for Brazil, is expected to leave Wolves in 2026, given that relegation from the Premier League is seen as an absolutely certainty to happen.

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A sale this month would allow Wolves to bring in a bigger transfer fee for Gomes, especially given the strong interest being shown in his services. This wouldn’t be overly ideal for Atleti, who would prefer not to get into a bidding war for one of their leading targets.

Midfielder signing is Atleti’s primary objective

The impending departure of Raspadori means that Atleti will need a new attacker, but midfield is the absolute priority right now. The plan is for a deal to be done as soon as possible, which is why numerous targets are being looked at – with one of them being Gomes.

It will be interesting to see who Atleti end up going for. They have many options at their disposal, but finding the right one to compete with Barrios, Koke and Cardoso will be crucial.