^ ^ Arsenal and Chelsea blow as Inter Milan confirm interest in £20m transfer target

Inter Milan are keeping close tabs on Aleksandar Stankovic’s progress, says Giuseppe Marotta (Picture: Getty)

Inter Milan chairman Giuseppe Marotta has dropped an almighty hint that the club plan on triggering their buy-back option for Aleksandar Stankovic in the summer transfer window.

Stankovic, the son of Inter Milan legend Dejan, is enjoying an outstanding debut season with Club Brugge on the back of a €10million (£8.7m) move from the San Siro last July.

The 20-year-old central midfielder has made 39 appearances in all competitions for the Belgian outfit, chipping in with seven goals and four assists.

Though he was widely tipped for future stardom in Inter’s academy ranks, Stankovic made the tough decision to leave his boyhood team in pursuit of guaranteed game-time last summer following a season-long loan with Luzern in Switzerland.

But just six months on, there is mounting speculation that Stankovic could be on the move again, with his performances catching the attention of some of Europe’s top teams.

Last week, Belgian newspaper HLN claimed Arsenal, Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund were all in regular contact with both Club Brugge and Roc Nation, the agency that represents Stankovic.

The report suggested the two Premier League sides viewed Stankovic as a ‘very interesting prospect’ and a player to keep an eye on for the future.

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Stankovic is enjoying an eye-catching debut season in Belgium (Picture: Getty)

The Serbian has scored seven goals in all competitions for Club Brugge this season (Picture: Getty)

However, Inter inserted a buy-back clause in their deal with Club Brugge for Stankovic, meaning they can re-sign the Serbia international for a fee of €23million (£20m) in the first two weeks on June.

‘He is from a fine football family, he’s a son of the club and he is doing very well,’ Inter chief Marotta said of Stankovic.

‘We have the option to buy him back and we didn’t put that in the deal for no reason.’

Stankovic is the youngest son of Inter legend Dejan (Picture: Getty)

While he has been mightily impressed with Stankovic’s form domestically and in Europe, Marotta refused to add any further fuel to speculation the youngster could soon be playing in black and blue again.

‘It is premature to talk about it now so we will see what happens,’ he added.

‘He is our player and is having a wonderful experience in the Belgian league and Champions League.’

The midfielder has been capped four times by the Serbian national team (Picture: Getty)

Speaking after Club Brugge’s recent win over Standard Liege, Stankovic’s father, Dejan, said his son deserved the attention he was receiving due to the ‘transformation’ he had undergone in Belgian football this season.

‘I think it’s right that we talk about him. And I’ve already said, at his age he’s already a better player than I was,’ Stankovic – who won an historic treble with Inter in 2010 – said.

‘What advice could I give him? Time will tell, but the most important thing is consistency.

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‘He made excellent decisions, between Luzern and Bruges. He left home, suffered, learned, worked. 

‘His transformation has been incredible. He’s improving game after game, but now the pressure is coming.’

He added: ‘If Aleksandar continues at this pace, he’ll be playing top-level football.

‘I can’t tell you where yet, but that’s how it will be.’

Meanwhile, the player himself has made no secret of the fact he ‘dreams’ of one day returning to Inter having failed to make the step up from the academy to the first-team.

‘People often say that I was born in an Inter shirt,’ the Club Brugge youngster explained.

‘I’ve always said that imagined playing at the San Siro as a kid and that remains a dream that I’m pursuing.’

Stankovic’s current deal with Club Brugge runs through to June 2029.

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^ ^ ‘A load of rubbish’ – England star shuts down £95m Liverpool and Arsenal transfer links

Liverpool and Arsenal have been credited with an interest in Newcastle ace Anthony Gordon (Picture: Getty)

Anthony Gordon says he remains ‘focussed’ on enjoying a successful end to the season with Newcastle, dismissing rumours over his future as ‘a load of rubbish’.

The 24-year-old winger has already achieved his best-ever season in front of goal for the Magpies this term, netting 14 times in all competitions.

He has also chipped in with a total of five assists in those 36 games, with Eddie Howe’s side battling it out on three fronts in the Premier League, the FA Cup and the Champions League approaching the business end of the season.

Four goals of Gordon’s impressive tally came on Wednesday evening as the Toon put one foot in the Champions League last 16 with a rampant 6-1 victory over play-off rivals Qarabag.

The England international will no doubt be looking to pick up where he left off when Newcastle return to Premier League action away to title-chasing Manchester City on Saturday.

But while Gordon has been firing on all cylinders on the pitch, there has been incessant speculation off it that this season may well be his last at St James’ Park.

Liverpool have been credited with a strong interest in Gordon for some time and recent reports have linked both Arsenal and Manchester City with the forward ahead of the summer transfer window.

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The England forward scored four in Newcastle’s first leg against Qarabag (Picture: Getty)

‘A load of rubbish’ – Gordon is ignoring speculation over his future (Picture: Getty)

However, when pressed on these rumours in the immediate aftermath of Newcastle’s big first-leg win over Qarabag, Gordon told Chronicle Live: ‘About me? I haven’t seen them. What are they saying?’

When informed that Liverpool and Arsenal were supposedly exploring moves, Gordon replied: ‘It’s the same old, same old. I think they just pick names out of a hat. They do.

‘I haven’t heard anything; they might want to tell me before they tell you [the media].’

The Magpies have reportedly slapped a £95m price tag on Gordon (Picture: Getty)

Gordon is keen to avoid any outside distractions which could affect his performances over the coming weeks and months, especially with an England World Cup campaign on the horizon.

Asked if he was focused on becoming a Newcastle legend, the ex-Everton man replied: ‘Of course. I have gone through enough transfer stuff now to know that it is all a load of rubbish.

‘I am focused on me and focused on the team, I am focused on right now.

‘You look too far in the future and you start to underperform. And believe me, I have done that and I am not going to do that now.’

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Despite coming away from Qarabag with both the match ball and the man-of-the-match award, Gordon said he was ‘not fully happy’ with his display and should have scored more than four.

‘Yeah, I should have scored more – I should have had six goals. I missed two chances that I should score,’ he explained.

‘I don’t want to call them easy but they were chances that I should score. I am always looking for more.

‘I scored four but I am that type of person, I am not fully happy with what I have achieved, it should have been six, maybe next time.’

Gordon appears a shoo-in for England’s World Cup squad this summer (Picture: Getty)

On the seemingly simple task that awaits Newcastle in the second leg at St James’ Park, Gordon continued: ‘A tie is never dead – even at 6-1. We have all watched football enough, anything can happen.

‘They are a great team, they have a lot of quality, I actually think we just defended really well. We didn’t give them many opportunities.

‘But we have our mentality and we look forward to the next leg.’

In response to the reported interest surrounding Gordon from the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal, Newcastle are said to have slapped a £95million price tag on the attacker.

Gordon’s current contract in the north east, which he signed in October 2024, is believed to run through to 2029.

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^ ^ ‘Special player’ – Arsenal and Man Utd transfer target likened to Andrea Pirlo

Arsenal and Manchester United are both understood to be tracking Sandro Tonali (Picture: Getty)

Shay Given says he hopes to see Sandro Tonali ignore interest from Arsenal and Manchester United by committing his future to Newcastle, comparing the ‘special’ midfielder to Italian icon Andrea Pirlo.

Tonali is enjoying his third – and arguably his best – season at St James’ Park under Eddie Howe, pulling the strings at the base of a midfield three alongside Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton.

The trio are widely considered to be among the most complete midfield combinations in the Premier League, but there is mounting speculation that they could get broken up at the end of the campaign.

Arsenal explored a possible move for Tonali towards the end of January following an injury to Mikel Merino and are expected to revive their interest in the 25-year-old in the summer transfer window.

Manchester United are also believed to be keeping tabs on Tonali’s situation, adding the Italy international to their sizeable shortlist of midfield targets, which also includes the likes of Adam Wharton, Elliot Anderson and Carlos Baleba.

Further afield, Juventus are known to be long-term admirers of Tonali’s talents, with the player’s agent refusing to rule out the possibility that his client could return to Serie A for next season.

In response, Newcastle have reportedly slapped an eye-watering £100million price tag on their prized possession.

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Newcastle are reportedly demanding a fee of £100m for Tonali (Picture: Getty)

The Italy midfielder is enjoying his third season at St James’ Park (Picture: Getty)

Considering Tonali’s undoubted quality, Given is not surprised to see the midfielder attracting the attentions of many of the most high-profile clubs in European football.

However, the former Newcastle goalkeeper is hoping Tonali is able to shut out the incessant ‘noise’ as he is a player the Magpies could look to ‘build the team around’ in the long-term.

‘He really stepped up with his two goals at Villa Park at the weekend. Look, he’s a special player, he’s a really talented player,’ Given said on TNT Sports ahead of Newcastle’s Champions League win over Qarabag on Wednesday.

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‘There has been a lot of talk from his agent in the last couple of weeks, a lot of noise around him as well about is he there for the long-term.

‘I hope he is [there for the long-term] because, I might say a big statement here, but he reminds me of Pirlo. He makes things look simple.’

According to Given, Tonali has proven he has more to his game that sets him apart from other, more conventional, holding midfielders.

‘He’s a holding midfielder, he always seems to have time on the ball, he’s always scanning, he’s always just comfortable,’ the ex-Republic of Ireland shot-stopper added.

Tonali is a ‘special’ talent, according to ex-Newcastle goalkeeper Given (Picture: Getty)

‘He has to break things up as a number six, he does that well. But he does the other side of it as he showed the other day at Aston Villa.

‘He always seems to be relaxed, calm, and he reads the game ever so well, so he does all that side of it.’

Given continued: ‘The fans have taken to him, they love him up at Newcastle.

‘You could build your team around someone like Sandro.’

The United and Arsenal target reminds Given of Italian legend Pirlo (Picture: Getty)

Tonali is tied into a contract with the Toon until 2028 (Picture: Getty)

In the wake of the rumours linking him with Arsenal, Tonali appeared to reaffirm his commitment to Newcastle with an animated goal celebration in the side’s FA Cup win over Aston Villa at the weekend.

Tonali, who scored twice in a 3-1 victory at Villa Park, later explained: ‘The first one, this celebration was, I think, seven months without scoring; if you don’t score for seven months, after the first goal, you celebrate for 10 or 11 goals – like Bruno [Guimaraes]!

‘But after the second goal, I came to Eddie [Howe] because in the past few weeks, people spoke about our relationship, but I work every day with the gaffer, the gaffer works every day with me, and our relationship is perfect. It’s not broken and I think this is perfect for the team.

‘We try to do the best for this team, every game, because we play a lot of games – every three days, we play, and we have to be concentrated every time in the training ground to do the best for our team.’

Tonali won the Carabao Cup with Newcastle last season (Picture: Getty)

Tonali has made 96 appearances in all competitions across his three-year spell with Newcastle and played a key role last term as Howe’s men lifted the Carabao Cup.

A ten-month ban – after Tonali was found to have breached Italian betting regulations – meant the midfielder played just eight league games in the debut season at St James’ Park.

Tonali’s current contract with the Toon runs through to June 2028, with the option of a further 12 months.

The Newcastle star began his career with Brescia (Picture: Getty)

In a recent interview with Tuttosport, Tonali’s agent, Giuseppe Riso insisted the Italy international was yet to make a decision regarding his future beyond the end of the season.

Asked whether a return to Italy could be on the cards for Tonali this summer, Riso replied: ‘There’s no preference right now.

‘It’s still early. What we’re saying today won’t apply tomorrow.

‘Newcastle couldn’t part with him now and it wasn’t worth moving, especially since Sandro is very attached to the club.

‘We’ll evaluate things in the summer and decide what to do.’

Riso added: ‘Newcastle is having a hard time letting go of Sandro, and he wants to lead the club into the Champions League,’

‘These transfer discussions will take place later.’

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