The Bulls ** tO-Meter: January transfer rumors

We’re already in week three of the January transfer window, and while the DONE DEAL columns aren’t filling up as quickly as we’d like, the rumor is busier than ever.

Fortunately, 90 mins just have the thing to separate the wheat from the chaff. Oh yeah, you better believe it.

The trusty BULLS ** TO-METER is back for its first release in 2021.

Come in, losers, we’ll assess the rumor.

Related clubs: Arsenal

Let’s start with a nice and easy one, where almost everything that has hit the headlines recently is more or less about the money.

Arsenal want an attacking midfielder, Norwich have an attacking midfielder. Norwich names the prize, Arsenal shunned it for centuries while they waited for Norwich to change their mind.

What we don’t see yet is when the Gunners finally realize the price isn’t going down and are paying 10% more because they’ve waited weeks to submit a bid.

But give it time.

Possibility of future transfer: certain death
Likelihood of moving in January: reasonable
BULLS ** RATING BY THE METER: 2/10

Related clubs: Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United

Oh how we spoil you, Arsenal fans.

Here we have another chord that actually looks quite plausible.

Reports here are all on the same track, with Arsenal showing the most interest in the outstanding Brighton midfielder, as Liverpool and Manchester United are keeping a close eye on things and considering a summer approach.

Slight whiff of shit from a report claiming the player has already told friends he would prefer Arsenal to ‘any other club in the Premier League’ but we can’t penalize him too heavily for that.

Graham Potter has rejected suggestions he might leave in January, okay, but Brighton is closing in on Moises Caicedo – who would be a theoretical replacement for Bissouma.

Possibility of future transfer: Very very likely
Likelihood of moving in January: slim but not impossible
BULLS ** RATING BY THE METER: 4/10

Related clubs: Arsenal, Leicester, Lyon

Yeah, this one smells a little fishy.

Celtic are struggling in Scotland and appear ready to finally hand over the title they have held for nine seasons to rivals Rangers. But that doesn’t mean they’re about to turn around and sell for cheap.

There have been links with Leicester (stemming from a very uninviting response from Brendan Rodgers who “didn’t rule out” a move), while Arsenal (other priorities) and Lyon (who literally just replaced Moussa Dembele by Islam Slimani) have made occasional headlines.

None of the links were downright ridiculous, which pretty much saves him. But it’s highly unlikely that anyone will come up with a fee this month that would cause Celtic to part ways with him – especially as his form this season has been far from appealing.

Possibility of future transfer: probable
Likelihood of moving in January: no
BULLS ** METER RATING: 6/10

Related clubs: Chelsea, Manchester United

Chelsea’s interest in the midfielder / West Ham defender / whatever it is has not been a secret, and it is widely believed that the only reason this has yet to happen is the The Irons asking price – somewhere between £ 50m and £ 250m depending on who you think.

It’s possible they could replace him again, but it likely won’t be in January – West Ham are under no pressure to sell mid-season and risk derailing their campaign halfway through.

What seems even less likely is that Manchester United, who have finally settled into a steady pace, will be ready to offer some real competition at this point – especially since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has serious issues for integrate into all his midfielders in the current state of affairs.

It’s doable if a couple of Paul Pogba, Fred or Nemanja Matic move on. But that won’t happen this month – even if they are interested. Don’t hold your breath just yet.

Possibility of future transfer: very likely
Likelihood of moving in January: very low
BULLS ** RATING BY METER: 6.5 / 10

Related clubs: Juventus, PSG, Real Madrid

We haven’t seen half the bulls ** t with Pogba over the years, but since his agent Mino Raiola started pissing off again last month, he’s gone overdrive.

He could well leave Manchester United this summer, he could well want to leaving Manchester United this summer, he may already be planning his return to Juventus. But Jesus Christ.

Everything he does is transformed into a “transfer clue”, whether sensational admit whether he wants to play football, or like a vague Instagram post from one of his friends, or manage to train alone in a car.

He’s not helping his case by letting his agent riot, okay, but the guy can’t win.

Regarding his “imminent summer move”, interest relationships between Spain and Italy have calmed down, with PSG emerging as an apparent contender.

Possibility of future transfer: probable
Likelihood of moving in January: no
BULLS ** RATING BY THE METER: 7.5 / 10

Related clubs: Barcelona

Coming back to Arsenal, it’s not just earnings that Mikel Arteta will be worried about in January.

This is because we know, you know and he knows that there is a tremendous amount of dead wood floating in the Emirates and in neighboring facilities; a category in which the German center-back, former World Cup winner Shkodran Mustafi falls well.

But the fanciful idea that he left for Barcelona, ​​the new joke club (from a financial management standpoint, anyway), is most likely quite broad and is rather the crafty masterpiece of an officer looking for an excuse to escape the work lockdown.

Possibility of future transfer: Certain death (but not at Barça)
Likelihood of move in January: not on Arteta’s stomach
BULLS ** RATING BY THE METER: 7.5 / 10

Related clubs: Ajax, Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, PSG, Manchester United, Tottenham, West Ham, Wolves… (more)

Throw enough transfer rumors on a wall and some will stick around eventually, right?

Having been left out of the photo under Antonio Conte, Eriksen looks certain to leave Inter this month. We don’t argue that much.

The list of clubs that have been linked is absolutely ridiculous, however, and therefore we can assume that 95% of what is reported here is, in fact, real ** t bulls.

Next!

Possibility of future transfer: certain death
Likelihood of moving in January: very very likely
BULLS ** RATING BY THE METER: Still a solid 8/10

Related clubs: Manchester United, Liverpool

There was once a transfer world where Sergio Ramos’ contract at Real Madrid didn’t expire, Dayot Upamecano didn’t exist as a defender – or maybe even as a person – and the only hot commodity that everyone wanted was Kalidou Koulibaly.

Apart from a small detail, but quite significant. Did anyone really want it then and does anyone really want it now? The answer to the first of these questions can perhaps be found by considering the number of offers actually filed with Napoli. None, to be precise.

The answer to the latter is likely to be found in gossip columns across the country. Koulibaly is not there, “the interest” has evaporated and the Senegalese superstar has missed his chance to jump into superstar.

So why is he on the bulls ** by the meter? Because our ex-pal and Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis couldn’t help but slap a £ 100million price tag on him in a recent interview, even though all of the above suggests he is in fact no longer relevant.

And for us, the idea that Naples could possibly get £ 100million from anyone for Koulibaly is, well, absolute bulls ** by the gold meter.