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Joe Hart to join Tottenham

Former Burnley and Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart is set to join Tottenham on a free transfer.

The 33-year-old left Burnley when his contract expired on 30 June.

Hart, then England keeper, fell from favour after Pep Guardiola arrived at City in 2016, with loans to Torino and West Ham before a 2018 move to Burnley.

But he lost his place to Tom Heaton midway through the first season of a two-year contract and then spent the 2019-20 on the bench behind Nick Pope.

He is due to have a medical and will compete with Paulo Gazzaniga to be Hugo Lloris’ deputy at Spurs.

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Hojberg set to join Spurs

Southampton midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg will have a medical at Tottenham on Monday.

The clubs agreed a deal last week, with the 25-year-old Denmark international choosing Spurs ahead of Everton.

Meanwhile, Tottenham’s English defender Kyle Walker-Peters, 23, is set to sign for the Saints, after a loan spell at St Mary’s last season.

The fees are undisclosed but BBC Sport understands Spurs will pay Southampton at least £3m more for Hojbjerg.

Hojbjerg joined the Saints from Bayern Munich in 2016 but was set to enter the final year of his contract at St Mary’s.

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Liverpool go for Olympiacos Left back

Liverpool could turn their attention to Olympiakos left-back Kostas Tsimikas after their initial attempt to sign Norwich’s Jamal Lewis failed.

The Reds had a £10m bid for 22-year-old Lewis, which included a substantial sell-on clause, rejected.

It is understood they were prepared to go to £12m but the Canaries wanted significantly more.

Liverpool, seeking cover for Scotland captain Andy Robertson, have also been monitoring Tsimikas, 24.

The Greece international played for Olympiakos in a 1-0 defeat by Wolves in the second leg of their last-16 Europa League tie this week as his side went out 2-1 on aggregate.

He also played for them in their six Champions League group games earlier on in the campaign as they finished third behind Bayern Munich and Tottenham.

After Olympiakos dropped down into the Europa League, he put in an impressive performance as his side won 2-1 at Arsenal and knocked the Gunners out of the competition at the last-32 stage.

Real Madrid left-back Sergio Reguilon, 23, was also an option looked at by Liverpool.

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MANCHESTER UNITED READY TO WELCOME OFFERS FOR JESSE LINGARD

Manchester United are ready to listen to offers for Jesse Lingard with the England international deemed surplus to requirements at Old Trafford despite his recent goal-scoring form.

The 27-year-old has struggled for game time under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer this season, making nine Premier League starts but only one since the turn of the year.

The arrival of Bruno Fernandes in January and the emergence of Mason Greenwood as a first team starter have seen Lingard slip further down the pecking order and his chances of starting big games are now very slim.

The England World Cup star has taken his chances to shine in recent weeks. coming off the bench to score in the final Premier League game of the season against Leicester and then netting against LASK in the Europa League earlier this week.

Two goals in two games has not been enough to keep the United hierarchy that he should stay, though, and he is available for transfer this summer, according to the Guardian.

A price has not been mentioned, but with United looking to do a deal and many clubs struggling economically due to the coronavirus crisis, it will almost certainly be below the £30m mark.

Lingard has one year left on his contract at Old Trafford, although the club have the option to extend it by another year, which they may do if a deal cannot be struck and they do not want to risk losing him on a free next summer.

The midfielder had hinted at a United stay, or at least that he wanted to remain at Old Trafford in an Instagram post last month.

‘Im starting with the man in the mirror im asking him to change his ways,’ wrote Lingard.

‘This season has been difficult for so many reasons. I lost who I was as a player and person, but I never wanted to give up, I knew who I really was on and off the pitch and knew that having been there before I could get there again.

‘This meant working harder than I’d ever done before and trusting in those around me that they knew how to best help me achieve that. I know the fans have been frustrated but in all this time my love for this club and everyone connected to it has never left me.

This team, this club is my family and I will continue to keep working harder than ever to help this team achieve its goals.

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CONTE’S INTER FUTURE TO BE DECIDED AFTER EUROPA LEAGUE

Inter Milan will not make any decision on Antonio Conte’s future as head coach until the end of their Europa League campaign.

Conte spoke with the club’s president Steven Zhang via video conference on Monday, a call that has been described as “cordial” by Sky in Italy.

The former Chelsea manager’s future had come into question on Saturday when he was critical of the club’s leadership following their 2-0 Serie A win over Atalanta.

The Inter boss had said his team had not been recognised for their positive performances, which culminated in them finishing second behind Juventus.

Conte told the newsmen on Monday that he fully intends to respect his contract.

He said: “I am committed to a three-year project with Inter and, as I always have done in my life, I will work hard and fight with all my strength and everything in my power to make it a winning project.”

Inter face Spanish side Getafe in a one-off game in Gelsenkirchen on Wednesday for a place in the Europa League quarter-finals.

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CHELSEA RECONSIDERING LEICESTER’S BEN CHILWELL AS LEFT BACK OPTION.

Chelsea will have to pay a world record price for a defender if they’re to sign Leicester City ace Ben Chilwell this summer. Frank Lampard is keen to continue his overhaul at Stamford Bridge by signing the England international, who the Blues have tracked for the last two years.

Leicester finished just a point behind Chelsea this term but the Foxes are resigned to losing Chilwell and are already making contingency plans for his exit.

However, the Midlands club are under no pressure to sell and they’ve grown accustomed to cashing in on one player each summer, selling the likes of Harry Maguire, Riyad Mahrez, N’Golo Kante and Danny Drinkwater in recent years.

Leicester demanded £80m for Maguire from Manchester United last summer and despite over two months of negotiations, the Foxes received their asking price as United eventually caved in the final week of the window.

United’s deal for Maguire eclipsed the £75m that Liverpool paid for Virgil van Dijk, making the England centre-back the most expensive defender of all-time. However, according to the Mirror, Leicester want more than the £80m they received for Maguire as the Foxes are in a stronger position this time around.

It means Chelsea will have to pay a world record fee to land the left-back and the Blues will have to give the deal serious consideration, given they’re already pursuing a £80m deal for Kai Havertz. The Blues have spent £90m already this summer on Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech.

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MANCHESTER UNITED, INTER MILAN NEAR AGREEMENT ON SANCHEZ TRANSFER DEAL.

Manchester United seem to be getting their transfer business done quick in the summer, as the premier League giant are near an agreement with Inter Milan for the final transfer of Alexis Sanchez.

Aside from any deals for new players, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer knows that he has to ship a few current members of his squad out.

Alexis Sanchez has spent the past season on-loan at Inter Milan.

In news that will surely be music to the ears of United fans, the Italian giants have reached total agreement with the Red Devils on a permanent deal for Sanchez.

According to an Italian sports journalist, Fabrizio Romano, who broke the news via his twitter handle.

Romano notes that Inter won’t pay a transfer fee for the Chilean, but they will instead take over his full salary and pay him €7m per season.

Summary of reports from UK media says his spell at Old Trafford, Sanchez only scored five goals and made 45 appearances in total across all competitions over the two seasons he was contracted at the club.

Once it goes through, it’s a move that will surely benefit all parties and allow Solskjaer to refocus his efforts.

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Vertoghen leaves spurs on a free

Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen has left the club after eight years.

Vertonghen, 33, made 315 appearances for Tottenham, but leaves after seeing his playing time limited under new manager Jose Mourinho this season.

The Belgian, who departs as a free agent, helped Spurs reach finals in the Champions League and League Cup.

“So my time at the club comes to an end, a sad day for many reasons,” Vertonghen wrote in a post on Instagram.

“I will miss the friends I’ve made here, the staff that make the club run, playing at the amazing new stadium and of course you fans,” he added.

“Thank you for all the support over the years. You’ve been amazing. We had many unbelievable memories but for now, it’s goodbye.”

Vertonghen, who joined Tottenham from Ajax in 2012, did not feature in his side’s last Premier League game of the season, a 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace.

His team-mate, England striker Harry Kane, was among those to pay tribute to Vertonghen and goalkeeper Michel Vorm, who is also leaving.

“It’s been a pleasure sharing a dressing room with them,” Kane said in a caption, alongside a squad picture.

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Chelsea want Oblak

After a couple of years of stagnation, Chelsea are in the mood to compete for the Premier League title once again next season.

The Blues, who tightened their grip on a top-four spot with a 1-0 home victory over Norwich City on Tuesday evening, have already completed deals for Ajax star Hakim Ziyech and RB Leipzig striker Timo Werner, as head coach Frank Lampard looks to add flashes of quality to his attacking ranks.

Despite having concluded deals for both Ziyech and Werner, Lampard is not yet satisfied with the attacking options he already has, with the Blues continuing to be heavily linked with a move for Bayer Leverkusen star Kai Havertz, as well as Brentford winger Said Benrahma.

Doubts have been cast about the quality of club-record signing Kepa Arrizabalaga, with Lampard looking into the prospect of landing a new goalkeeper.

And one name that is being closely linked with a move to the Premier League is Atletico Madrid shot-stopper Jan Oblak. The Slovenian international is considered by many as one of the very best goalkeepers in world football and would most certainly not look out of place in Chelsea colours.

The Blues have identified Oblak as their top transfer target ahead of the summer window officially opening for business later this month, the Mirror reports.

After signing a new deal at the Wanda Metropolitano last year, a £120million buy-out clause was inserted in the goalkeeper’s contract. However, Chelsea are prepared to go in with an offer of less than £100million and offer Arrizabalaga to sweeten the deal.

Atletico do not want to sell the Slovenian No.1, but they may be forced to because of the financial impact the coronavirus pandemic has brought.

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England set transfer window date

The Premier League and English Football League summer transfer windows will be open for 10 weeks between 27 July and 5 October, subject to Fifa approval.

In addition, the Premier League and EFL say there will be a domestic-only window between 5-16 October.

“During this window, clubs will only be able to trade with EFL clubs (either loans or permanent registrations),” said a Premier League statement.

“No transfers can take place between Premier League clubs in this period.”

The EFL also said any new signings by its clubs could not play until the start of the 2020-21 season.

“This is applicable to clubs involved in the Championship play-offs,” it explained in a statement.

The EFL added: “The window for international registrations closes at 23:00 BST on Monday, 5 October, with an agreement in place with the Premier League for an extended two-week domestic-only window, which will close at 17:00 on Friday, 16 October.”

There has not yet been any announcement on a start date for the 2020-21 season.

Launching the new season on 12 September remains the most likely option, but that comes immediately after September’s round of international games.

The Football Association and EFL are concerned the reduced number of match dates will have an impact on their respective cup competitions