Chelsea's George close to permanent Everton move

Everton are close to agreeing a deal with Chelsea to sign winger Tyrique George following his loan spell.

The 20-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan on Merseyside, with an option to buy for £25m, but Everton have renegotiated an upfront fee to one with add-ons.

George made 11 appearances for Everton, starting once, but impressed manager David Moyes during his four-month spell at the club.

In May Moyes described him as “an excellent boy” with an “excellent work-rate” when asked about the possibility of a permanent move before the final match of the season.

With the deal for George close, Everton are finalising a £16m deal for Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney.

Attacking midfielder Merlin Rohl is also set to make his loan move permanent following a successful spell from SC Freiburg last season, while Idrissa Gana Gueye and Seamus Coleman have departed after their contracts expired.

George, who came through Chelsea’s academy, has been available for transfer for the past 12 months.

He held talks with RB Leipzig last summer, while a £22m move to Fulham collapsed on transfer deadline day in September 2025.

Chelsea, meanwhile, are continuing their squad rebuild under new manager Xabi Alonso.

They have signed Marco Palestra from Atalanta and retain interest in Crystal Palace’s Maxence Lacroix, Como’s Jacobo Ramon and Rayo Vallecano full-back Pep Chavarria.

However, the club are also looking to reduce the size of their squad after finishing 10th in the Premier League and failing to qualify for European competition.

That means fewer matches and reduced revenue from broadcasting and matchdays, while Chelsea remain under a Uefa settlement agreement for the next three seasons after breaching financial regulations last summer.

Player sales are therefore likely, with Real Madrid interested in Enzo Fernandez, while Como and Inter Milan are among the clubs keen on Trevoh Chalobah.

The futures of Benoit Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo and Wesley Fofana also remain uncertain, along with forwards Alejandro Garnacho and Liam Delap.

Rosenior nears management return at Paris FC

Former Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior is nearing a move to Paris FC, having been offered a two-year contract with the option of a further season.

The 41-year-old is expected to make a swift return to management after lasting less than four months at Stamford Bridge, having been appointed as Enzo Maresca’s successor in January and sacked in April.

Paris FC, owned by the Arnault family with a minority stake held by energy drinks company Red Bull, have opted to delay pre-season by a week as they finalise the appointment of a successor to Antoine Kombouare, who led the club to an 11th-place finish in Ligue 1 last season.

Rosenior previously enjoyed success in French football in an 18-month spell with Strasbourg - Chelsea’s sister club under BlueCo ownership - while also developing his French language skills.

He previously began his senior coaching career at Derby County and Hull City.

Chelsea, meanwhile, replaced Rosenior with former Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso, who is set to begin work on Wednesday, 1 July.

Alonso is the sixth permanent manager at Stamford Bridge in four years under BlueCo ownership.

They finished 10th in the Premier League last season with now-Manchester City manager Maresca having walked out of the club on New Year’s Day.

Ex-Everton defender Godfrey joins Rangers on loan from Atalanta

Ben Godfrey has played five times for Atalanta since joining from Everton two years ago

Former Everton defender Ben Godfrey is determined to help Rangers “achieve what it deserves” after signing on loan from Atalanta.

The Ibrox club will have the option to make the deal permanent for the 28-year-old next summer.

Godfrey has struggled for game time in recent seasons, spending the second half of last term making 12 appearances on loan to Brondby as they finished fourth in the Danish top flight.

However, he is driven to make the most of a new challenge in Scotland, saying it is a “massive honour” to join Rangers.

“I am buzzing, I am really happy to be here,” the former Norwich City player said. “I know the size of the club.

“I am looking forward to meeting the boys and hopefully helping this club achieve what it deserves, which is silverware and exciting times.”

Impressive form earlier in Godfrey’s career took him from Norwich to Everton in a deal worth a reported £20m in 2020.

Capable of playing centre-back and full-back, he has two England caps but has had limited minutes since moving to Atalanta in 2024.

He has played just five times for the Serie A club, and his move to Ibrox is his fourth loan in the past two years after stints at Ipswich Town, Sheffield United and Brondby.

However Rangers manager Derek McInnes is pleased to be signing a player who has “competed at a very high level throughout his career”.

He added: “He’s played in the Premier League, been involved with England, and brings a lot of experience with him.

“He’s a strong, athletic defender with good qualities both on and off the ball, and we believe he can add a lot to the squad.”

Lewandowski close to Chicago Fire switch

Former Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski is close to a move to Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire.

The 37-year-old Poland international left the La Liga club at the end of the season when his contract expired and is expected to sign a two-year deal in Chicago.

Last December, Fire said they had talks with Lewandowski over a potential move.

He has been on their ‘discovery list’, meaning no other MLS club can sign him without paying a fee to them and there has been constant dialogue between both parties.

As well as Fire, there had been interest from AC Milan and the Saudi Pro League in Poland’s record goalscorer, who is expected to become one of the highest earners in the MLS.

His arrival would be a huge boost to Chicago, which boasts one of the largest Polish communities outside of Poland.

Fire, who are currently third in the MLS Eastern Conference having made their first play-off appearance last season, return to action after the World Cup break on Friday, 17 July when they take on Vancouver.

Lewandowski spent 12 seasons in Germany’s Bundesliga with Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, winning 10 league titles and leading Bayern to the 2020 Champions League title.

He was considered the frontrunner to win the 2020 Ballon d’Or but the award was not given out that year because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He finished second in Ballon d’Or voting in 2021, and won the Best Fifa Men’s Player Award in 2020 and 2021.

After moving to Barcelona in 2022, he helped them win three La Liga titles and the 2025 Copa del Rey, scoring 120 goals in 193 games.

However, a number of injuries over the past year meant he started only 17 league games last season.

Since his departure, Barca have signed Newcastle winger Anthony Gordon on a five-year deal worth more than 80m euros (£69.3m), while they await a decision on Marcus Rashford, who spent last season on loan from Manchester United.

Reports on Monday say they are also interested in a move for England striker Harry Kane, who is in the final year of his contract with Bayern Munich.

Liverpool target Diomande would prefer to join PSG

Liverpool target Yan Diomande would prefer to join Paris St-Germain, as the French club aim to agree a deal with RB Leipzig in the coming weeks.

The Reds had an initial bid of £69m, plus £17m in add-ons, rejected this month for the 19-year-old Ivory Coast winger.

Leipzig are expected to demand about £129m for Diomande, who joined from Spanish club Leganes last summer on a five-year deal.

The club insist they are under no financial pressure to sell, and are prepared to offer Diomande an improved contract to keep him for at least another season.

PSG’s summer planning is being led by chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi, sporting adviser Luis Campos and manager Luis Enrique, with the club aiming to make one or two high-profile additions to a squad that won a second successive Champions League and another Ligue 1 title last season.

That could be balanced by departures, with striker Goncalo Ramos expected to join AC Milan in a deal worth about £63m, while further exits - including midfielder Lee Kang-in and forward Randal Kolo Muani - are also anticipated.

Liverpool are also known to admire France winger Bradley Barcola, although sources in Paris say PSG are keen to extend his contract.

The Reds signed Spain winger Victor Munoz for £34.5m from Osasuna this month, the first arrival since Andoni Iraola replaced Arne Slot as head coach.