The World Cup may be in full flow, but there's no rest for The Devils' Advocate team as they turn their attention to the 2026-27 campaign. On the latest podcast, BBC Manchester's Gaz Drinkwater and Joe McGrath disagreed on who they believe needs to be a priority during the summer transfer window for Michael Carrick's side. Mazraoui featured in 21 games in all competitions for the Red Devils during the 2025-26 season.
"Losing Sandro Tonali would be a major blow," believes former Newcastle United defender Steve Howey. The 26-year-old is drawing plenty of rumours early on in the summer transfer window, with The Telegraph reporting that Arsenal, Manchester City and Tottenham are all interested in signing the £100m-rated midfielder. "I reckon Sandro Tonali would ideally fancy going back to AC Milan but there are Tottenham links there," Howey told BBC Radio Newcastle.
The moment Youri Tielemans's opener burst the net in Aston Villa's Europa League triumph against Freiburg, each of Unai Emery's substitutes took a turn to embrace the man responsible for orchestrating another set-piece goal. Goalkeeper Emi Martinez chose not to celebrate with his outfield team-mates, instead racing over to the dugout to also show his appreciation to Scottish coach Austin MacPhee. Villa fans were heard chanting the name of the 46-year-old as their heroes on the pitch closed in on a 3-0 victory in Istanbul.
Tottenham Hotspur have agreed a £52m deal with Brighton for Dutch defender Jan Paul van Hecke. Scotland defender Andy Robertson has already signed from Liverpool, with Argentinian centre-half Marcos Senesi agreeing a move from Bournemouth. The arrivals of Van Hecke and Senesi will leave Roberto de Zerbi with a wealth of central defensive options.
Brighton have no immediate plans to make a fresh offer for Tottenham defender Luka Vuskovic. The revelation Brighton have agreed a £52m deal with Tottenham for Jan Paul van Hecke to move to north London sparked suggestions of a renewed attempt to sign Vuskovic, the 19-year-old who will be part of Croatia's squad to face England on Wednesday. Vuskovic is viewed as one of the most highly rated young players in Europe and Brighton have already had a £30m offer rejected for him.
It was just under two years ago when Curtis Jones spoke during Liverpool's pre-season tour in the United States about how working with Arne Slot was probably the happiest he had been in terms of a style of play. Liverpool certainly do not want to lose the only Scouser in their first team, but if Jones wants out and a suitable offer in the range of £35m is made, the understanding is they will not stand in his way.
