Transfer news RECAP: Kylian Mbappe's move to Real Madrid far from guaranteed despite reports with the Spanish side expected to turn to Erling Haaland if they can't sign French superstar

Jordan Henderson would face a £7million tax hit if he returned to the Premier League as he intends.

The former Liverpool captain is agitating for a move back to England after struggling to settle at Steven Gerrard's Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia, Mail Sport reported on Sunday.

Henderson told his team-mates he is considering his options and it is understood that backlash from the LGBTQ+ community, a different lifestyle and conditions, and Al-Ettifaq's uninspiring season are factors in his discontent.

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Thomas Muller's links with Manchester United are of little surprise.

The 34-year-old Bayern Munich forward has long been admired by the shifting powers at Old Trafford.

Indeed, the German international went so far as to hold talks with United boss Erik ten Hag last year.

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Tottenham are continuing negotiations with Genoa to sign Romanian defender Radu Dragusin this week.

There has been rival interest shown by Napoli and Bayern Munich to a lesser degree but discussions with Spurs are still on track.

Genoa want around £26million for Dragusin, with Spurs understood to have made a verbal proposal of around £21m.

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Pochettino's stance will be music to the ears of Conor Gallagher, who is happy to remain at Chelsea this winter even if the Blues are looking to offload him to raise funds.

Last week, Pochettino admitted he could not guarantee Gallagher would remain at Stamford Bridge past the end of the month and Tottenham are circling.

You can read more below.

Do Chelsea have to sell before they buy ths month? Not according to Mauricio Pochettino, who believes Todd Boehly will happily sanction a spending spree regardless of any outgoings.

'No it is not like this,' Pochettino said as he faced the press ahead of tomorrow's first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Middlesbrough.

'Look, you know there are too many rumours about things going around the clubs. It is not what they translate to me. It is not necessary to sell if we want to buy some player.'

Real Madrid are eyeing Everton's 21-year-old Jarrad Branthwaite, Manchester United's shock link to a Bayern star is actually of little surprise... and FOUR clubs want one wonderkid.

All of that and more is inside the latest Transfer Confidential, where Mail Sport's transfer expert Simon Jones shares the latest gossip and analyses the rumours swirling around.

Today's edition is here and, given it's 2pm, makes for the perfect lunchtime reading.

It would be fair to say 2024 hasn't got off to the best of starts for Joao Felix, who has been labelled a 'generational talent with mentality problems'.

The former Chelsea flop had his salary being multiplied tenfold to more than £3.4million after joining Barcelona on loan from Atletico Madrid now that the Catalans have more financial wiggle room.

Though one suspects that with this kind of financial decisions, any wriggle room may disappear swiftly.

You can read more here.

Earlier this morning, we reported Real Madrid's deal for Kylian Mbappe may not be as straightforward as reports in France suggested last night.

But fear not, Madrid have apparently a contigency plan lined up should they fail to land the PSG superstar.

According to AS, said contingency plan goes by the name of Erling Haaland. The Norwegian goal machine is under contract until 2027, but his £172m release clause only applies to Premier League clubs with foreign suitors having to pay half the price.

A bargain if there ever was one.

You can read more about it here.

Fabian Schasr has penned a new deal with Newcastle, extending his stay at St. James' Park until 2025.

'Fabian has been excellent for us. Since I've come to the football club, he's been a model of consistency and a big part of our success,' Eddie Howe said in a statement.

'He's defended very well but he's hugely talented with the ball as well, so we're delighted that he's extended his time here."

Birmingham have appointed Tony Mowbray as their new manager, just a week after Wayne Rooney's disastrous reign ended with two wins in 15 matches.

Mowbray is well-versed when it comes to Midlands football, having previously taken charge of West Brom and Coventry,

The 54-year-old was sacked by Sunderland in December. Whether the #MowbrayMonday hashtag catches on, remains to be seen.

rom.

After two years of back and forth, the saga surrounding Kylia Mbappe's future is finally over, right?

Well, not quite. Real Madrid ’s seven-year pursuit of Kylian Mbappe is still some way from concluding despite reports that the player has agreed to join the Spanish club.

The biggest sticking point is Madrid’s flat-out refusal to smash their current wage structure to accommodate the Frenchman who earns €25million net in Paris.

Madrid’s top earners going into next season will be Vinicius and Jude Bellingham on deals that see them clear closer to €10m and it is inconceivable that the club hand Mbappe a contract that sees him earn more than double the current leaders of Carlo Ancelotti ’s team.

You can read Pete Jenson's full story below.

It looks as though Jordan Henderson may have already had enough of his Saudi Arabian adventure. And who can blame him? Why play in the stifling heat for £700,000-a-week when you can do that in freezing temperatures for a - admittingly still rich - lower salary?

As Mail Sport reported today, the former Liverpool captain is agitating for a move back to England after struggling to settle at Steven Gerrard's Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia.

Henderson's possible return to the Premier League would certainly please HMRC, who stand to receive £7m in taxes if he moved back to England.

You can read more here.

Brentford striker Ivan Toney has revealed that he is 'hungry to return to the pitch' as he nears the completion of an eight-month ban from football.

The 27-year-old is the target of several big clubs around the Premier League, with Arsenal and Chelsea reportedly leading the race.

Brentford manager Thomas Frank, however, is adamant Toney will not leave the Gtech Community Stadium this winter.

You can read more from Toney here.

Things are starting to pick up pace in the January transfer window as clubs start to pin down their key targets.

And it's been an eventful weekend to say the least. Away from all the FA Cup action, clubs have been plotting their January moves, with Tottenham landing a shock move to sign former Chelsea forward Timo Werner on loan from Red Bull Leipzig.

In case you've missed any news overnight, you can catch up on our Transfer Gossip column below.

Hello and welcome to Mail Sport's live transfer blog for Monday.

We'll have all the latest and breaking transfer news and gossip as we get it, so stick with us throughout the day.

Borussia Dortmund are still looking to finalise a deal to bring Jadon Sancho back to the Bundesliga, while Arsenal look to solve their attacking issues and Manchester United and Newcastle have both been linked with a former Chelsea defender.

In other words, there should be no shortage of rumours to get stuck in,