Transfer News: Chelsea & Man Utd Dealt Playmaker Blow – Italian Eyes Anfield Move

With the January transfer window now open for business clubs will be working hard to try and strengthen their squad for the second half of the season, so we’ll keep you up-to-date with all the latest news, gossip and rumours. Today, Ivan Rakitic has dealt a blow to a number of Premier League clubs while Liverpool are linked with a young Italian defender.

Rakitic Blow

First up and the Mirror are reporting that Ivan Rakitic has dealt a blow to Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United’s hopes of luring him to the Premiership by hinting he is set to sign a new deal at Sevilla.

The Croatian playmaker has just 18 months left to run on his current deal and has so far been stalling on committing his long-term future to the La Liga outfit, leading to speculation he could be set for a move.

The Mirror claim that Chelsea, Liverpool and United have all been monitoring the 25-year-old’s situation in the hope of luring him to England.

However, Rakitic has now dropped his biggest hint yet that he’s finally ready to sign a new deal and remain at the Ramón Sánchez Stadium. He said:

“We are going to sit down, we’ll talk and then we’ll see what we can do,” he said.

“Everyone knows that I always come with great desire to train and to play, I walk around the city, and even the people that don’t know me very well know that I am enjoying it here and that the most beautiful thing is to be part of [this team].

“It has been a very good year, but I want to improve and keep growing with this team.” Rakitic is quoted as saying by the Mirror.

Rakitic is currently Sevilla’s captain and with the club currently going well in La Liga, it seems the player is not yet ready to try his luck in England so the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea and United may have to look elsewhere if they want to add a playmaker to their squad.

Anastasio eyes Liverpool move

Next up and the Mirror are also reporting that Liverpool could be set to snap up Napoli’s highly-rated defender Armando Anastasio.

The 17-year-old has recently broken into the first team set-up at the Stadio San Paolo and has impressed in Rafa Benitez’s side during his 11 appearances so far this season.

However, he is yet to sign professional terms with the Serie A outfit and the Mirror claim that while Queens Park Rangers are interested in signing him, Liverpool are believed to be the players preferred destination after the Reds also expressed their interest in bringing him to England.

The newspaper suggests that Brendan Rodgers has had Anastasio watched this season and will offer him a bumper deal to make the switch to Anfield, as the Merseysiders could get him on the cheap due to the fact he’s still on youth terms at Napoli.

Anastasio’s versatility is sure to have attracted Rodgers with the youngster able to play anywhere across the back-line, so he would provide the Northern Irishman with plenty of options if he does end up making the move to Liverpool.

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So there’s your latest dose of transfer news. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.