the Debrief

Ben and Angus are joined by French Football Insider and CBS Reporter Jonathan Johnson to talk about the future of Kylian Mbappe at PSG, plus the latest on Karim Benzema's exit from Saudi Arabia and the sale of Monaco and Marseille.

Fabrizio Romano drops in to give the latest on all of the other transfer rumours as we're just one week from the window shutting.

Clarification on Man Utd links with Araujo and Olise

I’m aware there have been some stories about Manchester United targets this evening, with Ronald Araujo and Michael Olise among the big names being linked with the Red Devils, but it’s important to clarify some things on these stories.

For both Araujo and Olise, nothing is happening in January - I have no concrete updates on either player for the moment. Araujo is expected to stay at Barcelona, and they will offer him a new contract in the next months. We will see how that conversation will go as a crucial step ahead of the summer. Apart from that, there are always links for Man United and centre-backs, it’s normal as they want to sign a CB in 2024.

Ben and Angus are joined by Scott Trotter of Football London to take a deep dive into the Chelsea project at the 18-month mark. Is is working and what does the future look like at Stamford Bridge?

As always, Fabrizio Romano joins to dish on the latest transfer rumours including fresh links between Saudi Arabia and Chelsea, including a possible Karim Benzema move to London.

Today on The Debrief, Angus and Ben talk with Chris Wheeler -- the Daily Mail's Manchester United Insider -- about what Sir Jim Ratcliffe will bring to the club and what changes are imminent at Old Trafford.

As always, Fabrizio Romano pops in to talk about the latest on the January Window including the latest on Sancho, Dragusin, Gallagher and more.

Kylian Mbappe won’t rush decision on his future

We’re now entering into important months for Kylian Mbappe’s future. There is no concrete update yet, but of course he is now free to negotiate with other clubs, so the situation is quite open.

Paris Saint-Germain are still waiting for Mbappe’s communication, and they’re still hoping for him to sign a new contract, but at the moment it is not guaranteed at all. We know Real Madrid are also working on this behind the scenes, this is no secret and has been the case for a long time.

With the window opening, Ben Jacobs and Angus Scott welcome in Fabrizio Romano, Tom Bogert and Sam Matterface to discuss the depth and breadth of prominent transfer rumours being mentioned.

They dive into the latest transfer news from Manchester United, Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal, Real Madrid and more.

It has been announced this morning that the European Court of Justice have ruled that UEFA and FIFA acted against competition law by blocking the attempted formation of a European Super League in 2021.

A statement from the European Court of Justice reads that: “there is no framework for the FIFA and UEFA rules ensuring that they are transparent, objective, non-discriminatory and proportionate. Similarly, the rules giving FIFA and UEFA exclusive control over the commercial exploitation of the rights related to those competitions are such as to restrict competition, given their importance for the media, consumers and television viewers in the European Union.”

Bernd Reichard, CEO of A22 Sports Management, who were a co-claimant on the case and are Super League promoters said: “We have won the ‘right to compete’. The UEFA-monopoly is over. Football is free. Clubs are now free from the threat of sanction and free to determine their own futures. For fans, we propose free viewing of all Super League matches. For clubs, revenues and solidarity spending will be guaranteed.”

While this does not mean that a Super League will definitely be going ahead at any point, it seems that this is at least one major obstacle out of the way of its possible formation.

There was a huge fan backlash from clubs when they tried to join the Super League just over two years ago, and one imagines there would be similar hurdles for clubs to contend with if they tried this again.

[Pictures from Sky Sports News]

An update on Victor Osimhen’s future

We know Victor Osimhen is close to signing a new contract until 2026, but I don’t think it rules out a summer exit. This new deal is probably just to protect Napoli and give them the opportunity to have more control over the negotiation. The release clause will be there, around €130-140m, and it remains the case that I don’t see him moving in January.

So, overall, the aim of this new contract is to keep Osimhen at Napoli until the end of the season, and then in the summer they will let him go on Napoli’s terms. It could be difficult for Chelsea - we know their project, we know their ideas, they always want to sign young players who fit their ideas, and it’s not easy to find that in the January transfer window.

Internal discussions are ongoing with the board and with Mauricio Pochettino, but from what I’m hearing, there is still no decision made or any advanced negotiation with Osimhen or any other player. Osimhen has always been on their list, but in January it looks impossible, and other options also don’t look easy, so let’s see how their internal discussions go before they decide on a player.

Arsenal aware of Ivan Toney’s desire to join

Ivan Toney is another player linked with Chelsea, but also with Arsenal. It’s not an easy deal because Brentford want important money or else they are more than happy to keep the player until the end of the season.

I reported yesterday that Toney would be interested in joining Arsenal. Of course Arsenal are aware of Ivan Toney’s stance. It’s not about him telling Arsenal that he wants to join them, but of course they know the player would like to join.

Ben Jacobs, Angus Scott and Fabrizio Romano give a full preview of the biggest names and clubs rumoured to be moved — or to make moves — in January.

Man Utd out of Europe plus an update on Donny van de Beek

We start today’s column with Manchester United and their defeat last night to Bayern Munich, which puts them out of the Champions League and out of Europe altogether as they finished bottom of their group.

Once again, this is not good enough for a club of this size. The Man United standard has to be different, it’s not just a normal good club - it’s Manchester United. Something different is needed on the long-term. I think in particular their offensive numbers are too poor, they need to improve in that area as soon as possible and it’s also important to note that they simply have too many injuries, with Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw now too - it’s way too much.

There’s also some important news on Donny van de Beek. He’s going to leave United, as I told you a long time ago, and now things are at an advanced stage for him to move on loan to Eintracht Frankfurt.