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          Juventus close in on PSG's Matuidi; Bale set for pay rise from Real Madrid

          • ESPN staffAug 23, 2016, 11:45 PM

          The summer transfer window is beginning to swing shut. Transfer Talk has its finger on the pulse for the latest gossip ahead of deadline day. Follow our live blog below, and see the latest deals here.

          TOP STORY: Juventus close in on Blaise Matuidi

          Several reports in France are claiming that Juventus have stepped up their interest in Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Blaise Matuidi with the intention of him replacing Paul Pogba who departed for Manchester United in a world-record transfer deal.

          Matuidi, 29, is reported to have agreed terms on a four-year contract and the Italian champions are close to agreeing a fee of between €30-40 million with PSG for the France international.

          PSG coach Unai Emery has previously insisted he wants Matuidi to stay, but was not able to guarantee that would definitely happen and with Mino Raiola now claimed to be working on brokering the transfer it may only be a matter of time before a deal is struck.

          LIVE BLOG:

          22.34 BST: That's going to do it for Wednesday's live edition of Transfer Talk. Thanks very much for joining us, and please check back in a few short hours when we return with all the best gossip from Thursday's papers.

          21.56 BST: Mario Balotelli to the Swiss Super League?

          Sion president Christian Constantin has confirmed his club's interest in the player: "We are in talks with the Reds," he told reporters, according to Gazzetta dello Sport. "We've asked for him on loan."

          21.36 BST: Southampton are closing in on a deal worth a club-record £20m fee for Lille attacking midfielder Sofiane Boufal, according to the Mirror. The bid would top the club's previous record of £15m spent on Dani Osvaldo in 2013.

          21.18 BST: Valencia striker Paco Alcacer has requested a transfer amid rumoured interest from Barcelona, Mundo Deportivo reports.

          21.01 BST: Chelsea have already had a bid "in excess of £25m" rejected for Alessio Romagnoli, but the club are set to make an improved offer of £35m.

          Unfortunately for Antonio Conte, AC Milan's incoming owners are keen to demonstrate their ambitions and reject all offers for their 21-year-old starlet, according to the Mirror.

          20.42 BST: Make that four centre-backs rumoured to be on Arsene Wenger's radar. Arsenal are reportedly considering a shock move for Newcastle United's Chancel Mbemba, according to the Express ...

          20.20 BST: Well, we've got another centre-back to add to Arsene Wenger's wish list: Villarreal's Mateo Musacchio. The Telegraph reports that the 25-year-old is one of three players on Wenger's shortlist, along with Roma's Kostas Manolas and teammate Shkodran Mustafi.

          Musacchio was linked with a move to North London earlier this window, but the £12m offer was never lodged.

          19.58 BST: Caner Erkin could be on his way out at Inter Milan just months after signing with the Serie A club from Fenerbahce. Real Betis and Zenit St. Petersburg are interested in the left-back, according to Gianluca Di Marzio.

          19.37 BST: Jasper Cillessen looks set to be playing his final Ajax game against Rostov in the Champions League this evening ahead of his widely-expected switch to Barcelona...

          19.29 BST: Sky Sports are also claiming that Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul is heading to Amsterdam for his Ajax medical tonight.

          19.25 BST: West Ham have opened negotiations with Chelsea over Loic Remy, Sky Sports reckon...

          19.06 BST: Southampton are in talks with Lille over the signing of Sofiane Boufal, according to The Guardian. The Saints are believed to be close to agreeing a deal worth up to €25 million for the forward.

          18.50 BST: AC Milan have signed midfielder Mario Pasalic on loan from Chelsea, according to Gazzetta dello Sport, after the two parties conducted rapid transfer negotiations.

          18.31 BST: West Ham have rejected a bid from Aston Villa to sign Enner Valencia, the Daily Telegraph claims. The newspaper states that the Hammers want to bring in another striker first before they are prepared to let Valencia go.

          18.20 BST: FC Sion are the latest club to be linked with Liverpool outcast Mario Balotelli, with the Swiss side's chairman Christian Constantin saying they are in talks to sign the Italian.

          "I can confirm we're discussing about a possible loan of Balotelli," Constantin is quoted by Goal as telling Ticinonews.ch. "We're progressing but I can't say yet if the transfer will be successful or not."

          17.52 BST: Sky Sports' Jim White is claiming that Chelsea will look to bring in three more players before the transfer window closes...

          17.42 BST: Spanish radio station Cope is reporting that a deal is in place for Munir El Haddadi to join Celta Vigo on loan from Barcelona. The move is only likely to take place, however, if Paco Alcacer's switch from Valencia to Barca goes through.

          17.14 BST: DONE DEAL Charlton Athletic full-back Tareiq Holmes-Dennis has joined Huddersfield for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-year deal.

          17.00 BST: Simone Zaza's father says the Juventus forward is close to joining Napoli after a proposed move to Wolfsburg broke down.

          Antonio Zaza, who acts as his son's agent, told Il Corriere dello Sport a switch to the Premier League was now unlikely.

          16.50 BST: DONE DEAL DeAndre Yedlin is the latest new face at Newcastle, arriving from Spurs via a loan spell at Sunderland last season:

          16.40 BST: DONE DEAL James Vaughan is a fairly well-travelled striker -- and now he has travelled some more, joining League One Bury on a two-year deal:

          16.35 BST: Sunderland are in negotiations with Sevilla over a £7m move for defensive midfielder Vicente Iborra, the Mail reports.

          16.10 BST: Chelsea believe they will bring in not one but two new defenders before the end of the window -- and they could add another midfielder as well, the Telegraph reports. Priorities for boss Antonio Conte are a central defender and a full-back, it says.

          15.24 BST: DONE DEAL There's a new goalkeeper in town at Nottingham Forest:

          15.04 BST: DONE DEAL And now it's official:

          14.54 BST: DONE DEAL Another loan move for Saint-Etienne -- this time, they have brought in former Nantes midfielder Jordan Veretout from Aston Villa on a season-long deal:

          14.33 BST: The agent of Bayer Leverkusen attacking midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu has said Tottenham are interested in signing his client, telling German publication Express: "It is true that Tottenham have registered their interest with me. We are looking at it."

          However, although Bektas Demirtas said his client was keen to stay with Leverkusen, reports have suggested that the club would consider an offer in excess of €30m.

          14.12 BST: And West Ham might not be finished there, as the tweet below shows.

          14.02 BST: West Ham and Sion have agreed a £5.5m fee for the transfer of Edmilson Fernandes, the Guardian reports.

          The 20-year-old Swiss midfielder is set to fly into London for a medical on Wednesday.

          13.45 BST: Sky Sports reports that Daryl Janmaat is on the brink of wrapping up a £7m move from Newcastle to Watford after passing a medical.

          13.29 BST: DONE DEAL FC Pune City have signed former Chelsea and Barcelona striker Eidur Gudjohnsen as their marquee player for the upcoming Indian Super League season.

          Gudjohnsen, 37, scored 78 goals in 263 appearances for Chelsea between 2000 and 2006, helping the team win successive Premier League titles in 2004-05, and 2005-06. In the summer of 2006, he left Chelsea for Barcelona, and was part of the squad that won the UEFA Champions League in 2009.

          13.15 BST: Paris Saint-Germain's Italian goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu has agreed to join Sevilla on loan, according to L'Equipe.

          13.05 BST: And sticking with Newcastle, a reminder that goalkeeper Tim Krul is heading for Dutch club Ajax on loan for the season, sources have told ESPN FC.

          12.57 BST DONE DEAL Newcastle's Henri Saivet will be a Saint-Etienne player for the rest of this season:

          12.55 BST: Leipzig are interested in a deal for Dortmund's Christian Pulisic, according to Bild. But Dortmund only want to loan the U.S. international and are not keen to sell him. No quotes, but Pulisic could keep us busy until August 31.

          12.13 BST: Manchester United's Bastian Schweinsteiger has spoken about his future and dismissed talk he could leave Old Trafford for Italy, France or even Germany. But interestingly he has left the door open for an MLS move...

          12.09 BST: It may not just be Wilfried Bony on his way out at Manchester City. Sky Sports are claiming Napoli are one of a number of clubs who want to sign Eliaquim Mangala and talks have taken place.

          Meanwhile, the same source also reckons Samir Nasri could be on his way to Turkey with Besiktas. The move would be a loan initially with an option to make it permanent.

          11.47 BST: Nantes are the latest side linked with Mario Balotelli, with France Football claiming a move to Ligue 1 could be on the cards for Liverpool's forgotten man.

          Besiktas, Sassuolo and Bologna are among the sides said to have registered an interest in the former Italy international striker.

          11.32 BST: Hull, the Premier League's unexpected form team, want to add to their 13-man squad by signing Micah Richards from Aston Villa.

          The Mirror reckons Richards is lined up for a season-long loan with the Tigers and could be available to face Manchester United this weekend.

          11.16 BST: Any effort Arsenal make to sign Phil Jones from Manchester United will be rejected, the London Evening Standard claims, because Jose Mourinho does not want to do business with Arsene Wenger.

          11.01 BST: David Moyes was unequivocal about whether or not Sunderland would sell Lamine Kone to Everton, who reportedly made a £21m bid for the defender.

          "Kone will stay," Moyes said. "The offer's been rejected by me, yes. I've had that offer for a while now and I could have invested the money two weeks ago but doing that is very difficult. Given the prices, it would be very difficult to replace Lamine. Unless we could get a suitable replacement, I would never do the deal."

          10.47 BST: Atletico Madrid's interest in Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu has been confirmed by the player's agent.

          "But there is nothing concrete," Bektas Demirtas said, when asked about a possible transfer to Diego Simeone's side.

          The Turkey international, who is also a reported target for Tottenham, is under contract with Leverkusen until 2019.

          10.28 BST: L'Equipe says that Inter Milan's negotiations over the transfer of Newcastle midfielder Moussa Sissoko are going well. The Italian club are set to formalise an offer of €35m for the France international but could still face competition from Everton and Tottenham.

          10.19 BST: West Ham manager Slaven Bilic has confirmed they are looking into Manchester City's Wilfried Bony.The Hammers have been linked with a loan move for the striker after losing Andre Ayew to injury.

          09.49 BST: Manchester United are happy to wait until transfer deadline day to sign Jose Fonte from Southampton, according to the Manchester Evening News.

          United look well set for the season having added Eric Bailly, Paul Pogba, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibrahimovic to their squad this summer, but it is said Jose Mourinho would like to add more experience to his defence. And Fonte, for his part, has admitted he is flattered by their interest.

          09.27 BST: Napoli's Jonathan De Guzman is close to leaving the club and joining Chievo, his agent has confirmed.

          "We're discussing it and we had a meeting yesterday," Fabio Parisi told Radio CRC. "It's possible that we will reach a solution very quickly, which would be ideal for all involved.

          09.14 BST: Everton manager Ronald Koeman is ready to raid his former side Southampton for Cuco Martina, the Daily Mail reports.

          Martina, 26, is wanted by Koeman to provide competition for Seamus Coleman at right-back with a £1.25m bid in the offing.

          08.55 BST: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang insists that should a time come when he leaves Borussia Dortmund he will not force through a transfer.

          08.32 BST: Having seen Schalke's interest fade, Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Benjamin Stambouli is now discussing a loan move to AC Milan, according to L'Equipe.

          08.08 BST: Marseille want at least €4 million before agreeing to let Lassana Diarra join Galatasaray, according to L'Equipe.

          07.50 BST: Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala want to sign Newcastle midfielder Cheick Tiote, according to France Football. The Ivorian, 30, only has one year left on his contract at the Magpies.

          07.31 BST: Several reports in France are claiming that it is simply a matter of time before Blaise Matuidi fills the hole left by Paul Pogba at Juventus. Matuidi, 29, is said to have agreed terms on a four-year contract and the Italian champions are close to agreeing a fee of between €30-40 million with Paris Saint-Germain for the France international.

          Arsenal also in late dash for defence

          The theme surrounding the last-minute moves in the Premier League this summer could be defence, as Arsenal step up their efforts to plug the enormous gap left by the injured Per Mertesacker and Gabriel Paulista.

          The Mail suggested that the Gunners have moved on to Kostas Manolas after failing to strike a deal for Valencia's Shkodran Mustafi.

          The Giallorossi's exit from the Champions League in their playoff defeat to Porto on Tuesday could lead to a fire sale to make up for the lost revenue, and the cash-rich Gunners could be the perfect buyers if Roma can get Arsene Wenger to break out the cheque book.

          Bale set for new Real pay raise

          Meanwhile, over in Madrid, Gareth Bale's fine start to the season is set to be rewarded with a bumper new deal.

          The Welsh star bagged a brace as Real Madrid romped their way to a 3-0 win over Real Sociedad on Sunday, and the Mirror reported that Los Blancos are willing to offer Bale an eye-popping £375,000 a week to extend his contract for a further two years to keep him with the club until 2021.

          With a decision on Cristiano Ronaldo's future looming large on the horizon for Real president Florentino Perez & Co., it certainly begs the question: Has there been a changing of the guard at the Bernabeu?

          Tottenham to cut losses on Son

          Eyebrows were raised when Tottenham splashed out £22 million on Bayer Leverkusen's Son Heung-Min, and it seems they are ready to cut their losses on the South Korean international.

          Son has failed to settle in English football, and Spurs are open to selling the 24-year-old, according to the Mirror.

          Son's spell with Spurs looked promising at times, but he failed to find a permanent home in Mauricio Pochettino's side, and now a return to the Bundesliga appears to be in the cards, with Wolfsburg at the front of the queue.

          Koeman closes in on Gabbiadini

          Everton have tabled £21.4 million in a bid to lure Manolo Gabbiadini from Napoli, and the Serie A side are considering accepting it.

          Gazzetta dello Sport suggested that the Partenopei could accept the offer, should they be able to land Juventus' Simone Zaza.

          It is a transfer triangle that would suit everybody concerned: Juventus pocket a big fee for their fourth- or fifth-choice striker Zaza, who will enjoy regular game time. Napoli make a big profit on Gabbiadini, despite his move from Sampdoria not fully working out. Everton acquire much-needed support for Romelu Lukaku at a modest fee for a striker in the current market.

          Tap-ins

          - It would not be the most hurtful of departures that Saints have experienced in recent years, but to sell to former boss Ronald Koeman would be a bitter pill to swallow.

          The Mail reported that Everton will bid a mere £1.25 million for Curacao international Cuco Martina, who shot to fame after his wonder goal against Arsenal.

          - Crystal Palace could line up with an explosive front two after landing Christian Benteke for £27 million and Loic Remy being tipped to follow the big Belgian to Selhurst Park.

          French site Le 10 Sport reported that the Eagles have agreed on a loan, with an option to purchase the Frenchman for £10.3 million at the end of the season.

          - German club 1860 Munich have expressed interest in signing Chelsea defender Matt Miazga on loan, though a deal is unlikely, a source close to the player confirmed to ESPN FC.

          Speculation has been rife all summer that Miazga would be loaned out to gain more playing experience, and Bild earlier reported the second-tier club's approach.