Patrick Kluivert hopes Barcelona will retain his compatriot Frenkie de Jong, amid reported interest from Manchester United.

Despite his own reported intentions to stay in LaLiga, De Jong has been linked to a reunion with Erik ten Hag - his former boss at Ajax – with Barcelona attempting to break even on an €85million package.

The 25-year-old has struggled to find a role that best suits him since arriving at Camp Nou in 2019, with Sergio Busquets still starting as Barcelona's deepest midfielder.

Kluivert believes De Jong would flourish in Busquets' role but it would be hard to supplant the veteran, but despite this and Barcelona's recent financial troubles, they should try to keep him.

"I hope that they will keep him," Kluivert told Cadena Ser. "If they sell him it is clear that the club would receive a lot of money, but it is a long season and Frenkie is not just any player. I wouldn't sell him.

"Busquets is there, who has had an impressive year and it is difficult to remove him but Frenkie can play in various positions. For me, the best is the 6, but Busi's there."

The 45-year-old scored 91 times in 192 LaLiga appearances for Barcelona, while he remains an ambassador for the club and his son Shane plays in the youth setup.

Kluivert added that with the likes of Ansu Fati, Pedri and Gavi, Barcelona's future can be bright under Xavi, who he believes needs time after replacing Ronald Koeman during last season.

"They are fantastic, I know them very well, they have grown up in the club and they know the values," he said. "Ansu is a pity, for injuries this year but he scores important goals for the club. If he is at 100 per cent we are going to enjoy him at Barça. Pedri has not grown in the club but he is a player of another level.

"Xavi, he is the ideal, but you have to give him a little time. Entering how he has entered in a difficult situation, he did very well.

"I don't know if they were fair to Koeman, but they are situations that happen, and I don't know everything that happened, I can't comment. I didn't speak to Koeman when he came out."

While criticising Joan Laporta's management, Ronald Koeman has claimed Barcelona are caught up in their own history as football evolves beyond their identity on the pitch.

The former Barcelona head coach claims Laporta placed unnecessary pressure on him before his dismissal in October last year.

Xavi taking over from the 59-year-old formed part of a narrative that the financially embattled club would return to their roots both on and off the pitch, as part of Laporta's second stint as club president.

In an interview with Esport3, Koeman suggested such a sentiment is ultimately impractical and ignorant of football's evolution, while defending his own tactical choices in charge of the Blaugrana.

"I am in favour of dominating the game," he said. "If you play with three central defenders, you cannot say that it is a defensive system. With this system for three or four months, we played the best games in recent years.

"The clearest example was the [2021 Copa del Rey] final against Athletic. Barcelona lives in the past, from 4-3-3, to Tiki-taka. Football has changed. Now it's faster, more physical.

"You can't live in the past. If you have Xavi, Iniesta... and Messi, who by the way, they took from me. This was a very hard one to take."

Koeman also hinted to the weight lifted off his shoulders after his dismissal, especially within the context of leaving the Netherlands national team to take Barcelona over during a period of significant financial and political upheaval at the club.

Laporta was elected as Barcelona president three months after Koeman's replacement of Quique Setien in 2020.

Set to take over the Netherlands from Louis van Gaal after this year's World Cup, Koeman insists life has become less complicated since leaving, but harbours no regrets about his return to the club he won a Champions League with as a player.

"Leaving was a bit of a liberation," he said. "It was a difficult time for the club, without a president, with Laporta's doubts about the coach.

"You want to be a coach and you know that if you don't win you have problems. I made an effort, I left the national team and if it happened again, I would do it again. I don't regret it.

"As president, you can always have doubts but if you say them to the public, everyone doubts. It was a big mistake on his part."

Barcelona are studying the possibility of taking legal action against Roma after the Italian club announced they will no longer take part in the Joan Gamper Trophy. 

The two clubs were set to meet at Camp Nou on August 6, with their respective women's sides also facing off, in a fixture that acts as an annual curtain-raiser for Barca's season.

However, just 12 days after the friendly was announced, Roma confirmed on Monday that they have withdrawn from the match.

Roma said in a statement the decision was taken as a result of modifying their pre-season plans to best suit both their men's and women's sides.

In a strong statement of their own released shortly thereafter, Barcelona hit out at the Europa Conference League winners, who are managed by their former coach Jose Mourinho.

"Roma have decided to unilaterally, without reason, withdraw from the agreed contract for both parties for the Joan Gamper Trophy," the statement read.

"The club is working on a finding a new opponent for this year's edition. In the next 24 hours the return of money already spent on tickets will begin.

"The club wants to make it clear that the suspension of the games has been due to circumstances outside the control of FC Barcelona, the express wish of AS Roma. 

"The club's legal department is studying possible action against the Italian club for damages caused to Barcelona and its fans due to this unexpected and unjustified decision."

Barcelona are scheduled to face UE Olot, Inter Miami, Real Madrid, Juventus, New York Red Bulls and Manchester City ahead of the start of the 2022-23 LaLiga season.

LaLiga president Javier Tebas says he hopes Barcelona are able to complete the signing of wantaway Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski.

With just one year remaining on his contract with the Bundesliga champions, Lewandowski has repeatedly expressed his desire to join Barca, saying "something has died" within him and insisting his time in Munich is "over".

While Bayern remain steadfast in their desire to keep the striker, who scored 50 goals and added six assists in all competitions last season, Barcelona have made no secret of their interest in the 33-year-old.

Their attempts to sign him, however, appear to be subject to raising funds from player sales and salary cuts, with Tebas saying last month the Blaugrana must part with prized assets to complete the deal, declaring "they know what they have to do: sell assets".

Barca president Joan Laporta reacted angrily to that suggestion, accusing Tebas of wishing to harm the club's interests, but LaLiga's chief now appears more open to the prospect of the Poland international moving to Camp Nou.

Speaking at an event in Madrid, Tebas said: "I hope Lewandowski plays for Barcelona and has a good campaign.

"I hope that the [economic] levers Laporta has activated will allow the player to make it to Barcelona, because he is a legend of Bayern Munich and European football.

"If they execute what they approved in the assemblies, he will be able to play for Barcelona.

"There is interest and if they execute those levers then they will be able to sign him."

Among players in the top five European leagues, only Kylian Mbappe (60) and Karim Benzema (59) recorded more direct goal involvements than Lewandowski (56) last term, while no player to score at least 15 goals averaged fewer minutes per strike than the the Pole's 80.1 minutes.

Andreas Christensen admits he struggled when making the 'tough' decision to leave Chelsea, with the Denmark international expected to join Barcelona on a free transfer.

Chelsea confirmed earlier this month that Christensen was to leave Stamford Bridge at the end of his contract, having contributed to 14 clean sheets in 34 appearances for Thomas Tuchel's men in the 2021-22 season.

The writing had looked to be on the wall for Christensen when Tuchel revealed the defender opted out of featuring in last month's FA Cup final defeat to Liverpool for "private" reasons, with Barca strongly linked with a move for the 26-year-old. 

Christensen joined the London club as a youth player when leaving Brondby in 2012, going on to win the Champions League, Europa League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup with the Blues.

He has now opened up on the difficulties he faced in deciding to seek pastures new, writing on Instagram: "I had a tough decision to make at the age of 16 to leave Denmark. There was only ever one choice for me and that was Chelsea. From the moment I arrived they made me feel at home.

"Some of my proudest moments at the club were when we won FA Youth Cup and UEFA Youth League. Those were a special group of young players that I was proud to have as team-mates.

"Last year was my proudest achievement as a player and team when we lifted the Champions League in Porto.

"I was a young boy at Chelsea with all the hopes and fears of a player starting his career, I'm grateful to the whole club for making my dream come true.

"Having spent 10 amazing years at this club, I felt now was the right time for a new beginning for me and my family. Mentally the last few months have been tough as it's not been an easy decision to leave this club and the fans.

"I'm not the most talkative person so sometimes people don't understand how much the club and the fans mean to me. I will miss the players, staff and everyone here. I wish the best for the club and the fans in the future."

Christensen made 93 Premier League appearances for Chelsea and spent two seasons on loan at Bundesliga outfit Borussia Monchengladbach between 2015 and 2017.

Liverpool have reportedly placed a £60million price tag on star Mohamed Salah after it became clear he is unlikely to remain with the club when his contract expires at the end of the upcoming season.

Salah arrived at Anfield in 2017 in a £36.5m move from Roma and during his time with the Reds he has become one of the best players in the world.

In his five Premier League seasons, Salah has tallied 118 goals and 50 assists in 180 games, been named PFA Players' Player of the Year twice, collected three Premier League Golden Boots and won the Puskas Award in 2018.

TOP STORY – LIVERPOOL LOOK TO CASH IN BEFORE SALAH WALKS FOR NOTHING

Liverpool have long since been in contract talks with the Egypt superstar, but recent developments have caused the club to investigate what they could get in return for him entering the final year of his deal.

The Mirror is reporting Liverpool have decided that £60m is the number they would be comfortable with, but it remains to be seen if there is interest from rival clubs given he could leave Anfield for nothing next year.

Meanwhile, The Sun claims Liverpool are confident they can land Borussia Dortmund's England midfielder Jude Bellingham at the end of next season.

Liverpool have already seen Sadio Mane depart for Bayern Munich.

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– According to Sky Sports, West Ham are exploring a potential move for Villarreal winger Arnaut Danjuma, who is said to have a £40m release clause in his contract.

– Sky Sports also claim  West Ham are interested in signing Southampton midfielder James Ward-Prowse .

– Manchester United are hoping to sell young defender Brandon Williams for £10m, according to the Daily Mail, while The Sun claims the club have made around £100m available for Erik ten Hag to rebuild the team.

– United have declined Barcelona 's request for the Red Devils to include Harry Maguire in their bid for Netherlands midfielder Frenkie de Jong, according to The Sun.

– The Athletic say  Crystal Palace are confident they will land 22-year-old Lens midfielder Cheick Doucoure .

Although Cristiano Ronaldo's affection for Manchester United is without doubt, his return to Old Trafford has not gone as he might have planned.

Following Erik ten Hag's arrival, Ronaldo's reported concern over United's apparent lack of transfer activity has made other clubs explore possibilities to sign him.

Reports suggest that a couple of clubs have already made their interest indirectly known.

TOP STORY – CHELSEA, ROMA CIRCLING FOR RONALDO

Chelsea and Roma have expressed their interest in signing Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United, according to reports.

The Athletic has reported Chelsea, with Todd Boehly installing himself as interim sporting director after his consortium's takeover of the club, met with Ronaldo's agent Jorge Mendes to discuss the possibility of his transfer.

Ronaldo has a year left on his contract, and the possibility of him leaving after only one season has grown with Erik ten Hag's arrival.

Meanwhile, Retesport are reporting the Giallorossi are keen to sign the 37-year-old, with the Friedkin group looking to reunite him with former boss Jose Mourinho and build on the team's Conference League triumph.

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– In the background, United are increasingly confident they will be able to land Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong for a fee of £69million (€80.2m), Goal reports.

– Also, Blues boss Thomas Tuchel has made contact with Manchester City and England forward Raheem Sterling, according to the Telegraph.

– Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain have opened talks over a deal for Neymar amid Chelsea's interest, per AS.

– Leeds United are preparing a £26million (€30.2m) bid for Club Brugge's Charles de Ketelaere, the Daily Mail reports.

Gabriel Jesus could be set for a move to Arsenal after the club came to a £45million agreement with Manchester City to pry away the 25-year-old striker, according to reports.

It had previously been claimed the Gunners were offering £30m – well short of City's £50m asking price – but were given some added motivation when Tottenham apparently entered the race.

The Brazil international ended the season in fine form at City, scoring four times in the 5-1 win against Watford in April, but could he be on his way to the Emirates Stadium?

TOP STORY – ARSENAL RAISE OFFER AND AGREE TO JESUS FEE

According to The Athletic, Gabriel Jesus is on the verge of a big money move to Arsenal.

The striker's relationship with Gunners boss Mikel Arteta dates back to the Spaniard's days as assistant coach to Pep Guardiola at City, giving him a unique insight into Jesus' progression since arriving in the Premier League.

The Athletic's report includes that the arrivals of both Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez to City in this transfer period would have significantly hindered Jesus' playing time if he were to stay.

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– Sky Sports report that Chelsea have offered Timo Werner to Juventus as part of negotiations for Dutch centre-back Matthijs de Ligt, with the Blues unwilling to meet his release clause, said to be set at €120m.

– Christian Eriksen is deciding between staying at Brentford or accepting a larger contract offer to move to Manchester United, with Sky Sports reporting he may be unwilling to move from the Bees for family reasons.

– Everton, Wolves and West Ham are keeping a close eye on former Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum as the 31-year-old has been told he can leave Paris Saint-Germain this transfer period, according to 90min.

– Spanish publication Sport say Leeds United winger Raphinha has shunned other Premier League clubs in an effort to push his way to Barcelona.

Having finishing 15 points behind champions Real Madrid in LaLiga season, Atletico Madrid are in a bit of a rebuilding process.

While Hector Herrera, Luis Suarez and Sime Vrsaljko head for the exit, Saul Niguez and Alvaro Morata return from loans, with Belgium midfielder Axel Witsel potentially also signing on a free transfer.

Reports suggest that Atleti are also particularly keen on keeping one of Witsel's international team-mates.

TOP STORY – ATLETI TO WARD OFF CARRASCO INTEREST

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone is unwilling to let go of Yannick Carrasco amid growing interest from Premier League clubs, according to Diario AS.

Although Carrasco's contract expires in 2024, his reported release clause of €60million reportedly makes him an attractive prospect to the likes of Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United.

Simeone has apparently ordered the club to not field any offers for the 28-year-old, who he considers fundamental to his future plans.

Though the player is reportedly happy at the Wanda Metropolitano, offers from elsewhere could potentially play a role in any contract negotiations.

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– Cristiano Ronaldo is considering a departure from Manchester United in response to a lack of recent transfer activity under Erik ten Hag, Record reports.

– Barcelona have finally made a bid for Robert Lewandowski, with an opening offer to Bayern Munich of €40m, according to the Telegraph.

– The same publication is also reporting that, with one year remaining on his contract, France international Adrien Rabiot has requested a transfer from Juventus to the Premier League.

– Milan are considering making an offer for Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz, per TuttomercatoWeb.

Robert Lewandowski's strained relationship with Bayern Munich can be fixed, according to sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic. 

With just one year remaining on his contract, Lewandowski has made clear his desire to leave Bayern ahead of the 2022-23 season. 

The prolific striker said "something has died" within him at the Bavarian giants, who are reportedly expected to turn down an offer worth €40million for the 33-year-old from Barcelona. 

Salihamidzic told Sky he had "a very good conversation" with Lewandowski and his agent Pini Zahavi last week in Mallorca, with Bayern CEO Oliver Kahn also in attendance. 

The meeting left Salihamidzic optimistic that the relationship between the club and player can be repaired. 

"I'm convinced [it can be fixed]. He's a professional and has big objectives in his career. That's why it's fixable," said Salihamidzic. 

"Up to now it's 100 per cent [that he'll stay]. July 12 is his first day in training, so I'm expecting him. But I'm not dealing with it now because he had other things to do. It's become a little bit quieter. We still have a lot to do. 

"I never deal with things that are in the air at the time. I can only repeat: he has a contract until 2023. He is welcome in Munich on July 12 and will be there for the first training session – I'm expecting him, at least. 

"We had a very good conversation [in Mallorca] ... We talked and each side explained their position, but we also didn't want to talk about the details. But it was a good conversation." 

Winger Serge Gnabry will also be out of contract at the Allianz Arena next year but Salihamidzic is hopeful an extension to his deal can be agreed in the coming weeks. 

"He's a great boy. We really want to keep him. We'd love for him to stay. I think we showed him the necessary appreciation. I hope he decides to stay with Bayern," he said. 

"We'll start to intensify the talks over the next few weeks. But if a player doesn't want to choose the club, then it's only fair to tell us, so a solution can be found that makes everyone involved happy." 

Real Madrid begin the defence of their LaLiga title on the road against Almeria, with the fixtures for the 2022-23 season confirmed on Thursday.

Xavi's first full season in charge of Barcelona begins at the Nou Camp against Rayo Vallecano, while Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid kick off their campaign away from home against Getafe.

Elsewhere on the opening matchday, Sevilla travel to Osasuna, Athletic Bilbao host Mallorca and play-off winners Girona face Valencia.

The LaLiga season begins on August 12 and will run until a mid-season break for the World Cup in Qatar, with the campaign pausing on November 13 and resuming on December 29.

England defender Lucy Bronze says the choice to move to Barcelona was a "no-brainer" and that she always draws confidence from the interest of big teams.

The Lionesses full-back has made the switch to Spain from Manchester City, electing to stay in Europe despite speculation she was set to head to the United States for the next step in her career.

Having previously played for Lyon, where she was a three-time Champions League winner, it marks another move to the continent for the 87-cap veteran.

"I had offers from Lyon and Barca, the two best teams in the world. It wasn't bad to be able to pick from that and make my decision," Bronze stated.

"It gives me loads of confidence as a player knowing these big teams who are so successful want to sign me."

"I knew I wanted to play abroad again. My experience at Lyon was the best time and best moments in my career," she added.

"Going out and pushing myself into a different culture, a different experience, playing with the world's best players - to have the chance to do that again was a no-brainer.

"Maybe I can't hype doing the same experience again with Barca but I would love to. I've not had that experience in England quite the same as in Lyon.

"Hopefully, I can do it again."

It is fair to say that Paul Pogba's time at Manchester United has been somewhat polarising.

The France midfielder ultimately struggled to consistently provide the football that made him such a sought-after player in Italy with Juventus, before his big-money move back to United in 2016.

Reports suggest with his contract at Old Trafford expiring at the end of the month, Pogba will be heading back to the Serie A giants to try and revive his reputation.

TOP STORY – POGBA SET FOR JUVENTUS RETURN

Paul Pogba is set have his wish granted and will return to Juventus, according to Fabrizio Romano.

With his contract expiring at Manchester United, his wage demands could only realistically be met by a select number of clubs in Europe.

Pogba had reportedly only wanted to return to Italy with the Bianconeri, where he left a four-time Serie A and two-time Coppa Italia winner in 2016.

The 29-year-old's agent will meet with Juve representatives on Thursday, with a medical to be completed at the beginning of July when his contract at Old Trafford officially ends.

ROUND-UP

– Ajax are set to make another offer for Steven Bergwijn meanwhile, with Tottenham not accepting offers below £25million (€29m), per Sky Sports.

– Barcelona boss Xavi is hopeful Ousmane Dembele will sign a new contract to ward off Chelsea interest, Goal reports.

– Goal also report that winger Antony is determined to join Manchester United from Ajax.

– Leeds United have valued Brazil international Raphinha at £65m (€75.3m) amid interest from Tottenham, Chelsea and Barcelona, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Bayern Munich sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic has shut down suggestions that Robert Lewandowski will be leaving the club after they signed Sadio Mane.

The Poland international has entered the final year of his contract with the Bundesliga champions and has made it clear he is keen for a move, with Barcelona his preferred destination.

Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain have also been attributed with an interest in the 33-year-old but, despite any desire Lewandowski may have for a new venture, Bayern's stance seems clear.

Queried by Sport Bild regarding suggestions that Barcelona are preparing a bid for the forward, he replied: "I don't care about that. I'm expecting to see Robert in training at Sabener Strasse on July 12."

Salihamidzic was then asked if Lewandowski's future had been secured with the signing of Mane but batted away the question once again, adding: "I understand your question, but our position is clear: Robert has a contract until the summer of 2023."

Bayern's capture of Mane from Liverpool on Wednesday stands as one of the headline transfers across Europe so far but the Bayern chief made it clear the signing was not to cover for a potential loss of Lewandowski.

He explained: "We signed Sadio to increase the competition in our team.

"We weren’t happy with our Champions League exit against Villarreal. We want to strengthen the fight for spots in our team.

"The signing of Mane will reshuffle the cards for every attacking player. We have never thought about having to let a player go when we signed Sadio."

Bayern begin the new season with a DFL Supercup clash against RB Leipzig, before commencing the defence of their Bundesliga crown on the road against Europa League winners Eintracht Frankfurt.

Mohamed Salah's Liverpool future could hinge on Barcelona's attempts to sign Robert Lewandowski, according to former Reds star John Barnes, with the forward linked with a move to Camp Nou next year.

Salah scored 31 goals and added 15 assists across all competitions for Liverpool last season as Jurgen Klopp's team won the EFL and FA Cups but fell just short of the Premier League and Champions League titles.

But the Egypt star's future has been debated for some time, with his contract due to expire in 2023 and no agreement on fresh terms appearing imminent. 

Salah has most recently been linked with a free transfer to Barcelona at the end of his current deal, though the Catalan giants, who have financial difficulties, are also attempting to attract wantaway Bayern Munich striker Lewandowski.

The Poland star is one of just four players in the big five European leagues to register more goal involvements (56) than Salah (46) in all competitions last term (also Kylian Mbappe with 60, Karim Benzema with 59 and Christopher Nkunku with 51).

Lewandowski hit 50 goals and recorded six assists for Bayern last season, and Barnes believes Barca's attempts to acquire him will have repercussions for Salah. 

"Of course you're looking at the money that Barcelona can spend - I can see him at Liverpool for another year, and then maybe going on a free transfer at the end of the season," Barnes told Stats Perform.

"I don't know what the situation is, but at the moment he's at Liverpool. So I don't know. If he stays, he'll still play with the right attitude and commitment. 

"Where can you see him? Who knows in football - have Barcelona got the finances to actually do that? Because of course, there's still talk about Lewandowski going there. 

"I think that at the end of the year, we'll see. I think it really has a lot to do with where Lewandowski goes."  

Liverpool's attack has already undergone a significant shake-up after the club added Benfica striker Darwin Nunez to their ranks and sold Sadio Mane to Bayern Munich this month, having already been boosted by Luis Diaz joining from Porto in January. 

The future of the final member of Klopp's former first-choice front three, Roberto Firmino, is also in doubt with the Brazilian's contract due to expire at the same time as Salah's.

But Barnes believes tying the number nine to fresh terms is not a priority for Liverpool, insisting Firmino is under-rated but noting he has dropped down the pecking order recently.

"Well, it's not necessarily a priority," he said of Firmino's contract situation. "This is football. Bobby's a fantastic player.

"In fact, of the front three, he's been my favourite player of the period because of what he brings to the team, in terms of his hold-up play, his build-up play, his work-rate for the team.

"The reason why Salah and Mane scored those goals is because of Firmino, if we had Lewandowski in the team, Salah and Mane would not have scored that many goals because of course, they would have been creating for him.

"He's very undervalued. I don't necessarily think is a priority because now we've got Nunez, we've got [Diogo] Jota, Salah is still there, you have Diaz, so at his particular age he may not be a priority but I'd love to see him stay. 

"He has to decide whether he's quite happy to come and be a part of the squad rather than playing regularly. But I would love to see him stay, definitely."