Three clubs monitoring Delap - Friday's gossip

What the report says

BBC Sport Football’s Friday gossip round-up says three Premier League sides are tracking Chelsea forward Liam Delap, while Manchester City are reported to be making progress in talks for Lille midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi. The item, published as a transfer-rumour digest, attributes the Delap interest to The i, which says Everton, Leeds United and Nottingham Forest are monitoring the 23-year-old English attacker. Chelsea are said to value him at up to £40m.

The round-up also cites Talksport reporting that Manchester City are in advanced discussions with Lille over Bouaddi, an 18-year-old Morocco midfielder. BBC Sport notes that Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Bayern Munich have also been linked with interest in the player, underlining the wider competition around a young prospect from Ligue 1.

Other reported moves include L’Equipe’s claim that Mamadou Sangare, the 24-year-old Mali midfielder at Lens, is close to joining Brentford after leaving the club’s pre-season tour in Italy. The Athletic is cited as saying Fulham have agreed combined £43m deals with Real Madrid for Spain forward Gonzalo Garcia, 22, and midfielder Cesar Palacios, 21.

Further items in the BBC roundup include Manchester City looking at Marseille and Argentina goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli as a potential James Trafford replacement, Manchester United preparing a move for Newcastle defender Lewis Hall, and Coventry City nearing an agreement with Brighton for goalkeeper Carl Rushworth. As a gossip column, the report compiles claims from other outlets, and none of the listed transfers should be treated as completed unless confirmed by the clubs involved.