Transfers and gossip up to August 18th

We catch up with some of the transfers and gossip up to August 18th, with the help of reputable sources.

Following the media’s many transfers and gossip stories can be tiresome. The majority either fall through or have been tactically planted by one of the parties involved. Yet those that do come to fruition can have a huge effect on Fantasy Premier League or UCL Fantasy.

Here are a few of the more interesting rumours from the last few days.

Transfers and gossip

Lewis Hall (from Chelsea to Newcastle, loan with £28m obligation)

To balance their books and keep within Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules, Chelsea have decided to sell their next great youth prospect to top-four rivals Newcastle.

It’s initially a loan deal but with an obligatory purchase costing an initial £28m. This may seem steep for an 18-year-old with only eight league starts but big things are expected of him.

The versatile Hall will mainly be used as a left-back for Eddie Howe’s side. With strong crossing, dribbling and passing abilities, FPL could have a £4.5m version of new team-mate Kieran Tripper once fixtures improve from around Gameweek 5.

Wataru Endo (Stuttgart to Liverpool, £16m)

This need for incoming money was largely because Chelsea beat Liverpool to two big-money central midfielders – Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia.

Months earlier, Liverpool stepped aside in the Jude Bellingham chase, so Jurgen Klopp has had to find a short-term fix. In comes Japanese international Wataru Endo from Stuttgart, a 30-year-old “monster”, says Klopp.

“I’m really happy. Wataru is a really good player. He is very experienced and loves to work extremely hard. He’s a late bloomer, he was definitely underestimated but he has improved every year.

“When he came to Stuttgart he got an opportunity and never gave it away. When I saw him there’s no chance I thought he was 30. He has been on my radar for a while. I’m personally really happy and now let’s start working.” – Jurgen Klopp

Whilst Endo himself is unlikely to be on anyone’s FPL radar, it enables Alexis Mac Allister’s return to a more advanced midfield position.

Mohammed Kudus (Ajax to West Ham)

Two weeks ago, Brighton were about to pull off a coup in luring attacking midfielder Kudus from Ajax. However, reports say he insisted on a release clause being included in his contract, which the Seagulls refused.

So now he’s been linked with West Ham. Should Lucas Paqueta’s move to Man City be resurrected, it will add even more money to the Hammers’ pile alongside the hefty Declan Rice fee.

Kudus scored 18 times over all of last season’s competitions. Able to be used as a false nine, winger or in midfield, he’d add quality to the recent James Ward-Prowse and Edson Alvarez signings. The latter of whom has just signed from Ajax, of course.

Brennan Johnson (Nottingham Forest to Chelsea)

Meanwhile, Chelsea’s bad Thurday was comprised of Hall’s sale, Reece James’ injury and the surprise collapse of the Michael Olise transfer. The France under-21 star had a change of heart and decided to sign a new deal with Crystal palace.

Therefore Mauricio Pochettino’s next attacking target is Nottingham Forest’s Brennan Johnson. A £50m asking price is expected after adjusting well to Premier League life over the second half of last season.

If the deal goes through, we’ll suddenly have a £6.0m FPL attacking midfielder from one of the top sides.