 "Football transfer roundup: Arsenal sign Kai Havertz from Chelsea, Tottenham buy James Maddison")
Arsenal on Wednesday signed German attacking midfielder Kai Havertz from Chelsea on a “long-term contract,” while rivals Tottenham Hotspur have brought in James Maddison from Leicester City. Meanwhile, Edouard Mendy has become the latest player to join the Saudi Pro League as he signed for Al-Ahli. Also, Harry Kane wants to move to Bayern Munich but Tottenham are blocking the move. In Havertz’s transfer, neither club disclosed a fee but British media said Arsenal were paying Chelsea 65 million pounds or 75 million euros. The German midfielder is Arsenal’s first signing of the summer but the British press reported the club had agreed a 105 million-pound fee for West Ham’s England midfielder Declan Rice. Manchester City, which have also targeted the West Ham midfielder, is not prepared to match that figure, according to a person with knowledge of the Premier League champion’s transfer plans. That looks to have left the path clear for Arsenal to make what could be one of the most pivotal signings in English soccer’s top division. The 24-year-old Rice has established himself as a leader on the field, with the energy to drive his team forward and the combativeness to dominate matches. He is set to leave West Ham after leading it to success in the Europa Conference League, the club’s first major trophy in more than 40 years. Havertz joined Chelsea in 2020 from Bayer Leverkusen. He made 139 appearances in three seasons, scoring 32 times, including the only goal in the 2021 UEFA Champions League final victory over Manchester City. Arsenal were runners up in the Premier League last season while Chelsea, rebuilding their squad, were 12th. “The mentality in the Arsenal squad is very high and you can feel that. That was one of the reasons why it has been so hard to play against Arsenal recently,” Havertz told the Arsenal web site.
We keep moving forward.​
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) June 28, 2023
Kai Havertz is a Gunner ❤️ pic.twitter.com/76j5BStw9e
“The aim is to win trophies and I’m going to give everything to do that.” He posted a farewell message to Chelsea on social media. He said he was writing “with a heavy heart…saying goodbye to the club that has become my second home, and to the incredible fans who have supported me throughout this amazing journey.” Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said: “Kai is a player of top quality. He has great versatility and is an intelligent player. He will bring a huge amount of extra strength to our midfield and variety to our play.” Bayern have deal with Kane but Spurs reject bid: report Bayern Munich have agreed personal terms with England captain Harry Kane, German daily Bild reported Wednesday, but an initial 70-million-euro (ÂŁ60-million, $76-million) bid was rejected by Tottenham Hotspur. The German champions are said to be intent on securing the signing of England’s record scorer, whose contract with Spurs runs out in 2024. Kane’s camp is believed to have approved the move, but Bayern need an agreement on a transfer fee with Tottenham to seal the transfer. Bayern submitted an offer of 70 million euros plus add-ons for Kane, according to Bild, while Spurs are demanding at least 100 million euros to part with their talismanic striker. Other top European clubs including Real Madrid and Manchester United are also said to covet Kane, who could look to move away from Tottenham in pursuit of silverware. Kane thought he had sealed a ÂŁ127 million move to Manchester City prior to the 2021/22 campaign only for Spurs chairman Daniel Levy to turn it down – despite the striker claiming they had a gentleman’s agreement permitting him to move on. However, with Kane turning 30 in July he sees time running out on his career to finally lift a trophy. Bayern are after a top-class striker to fill the hole left by Robert Lewandowski, who joined Spanish champions Barcelona in 2022. The German club claimed their eleventh Bundesliga title in a row last season but limped over the line at the end of a disappointing campaign. Early exits from the Champions League and the domestic cup fell short of the goals the team set themselves, with senior club execs Hasan Salihamidzic and Oliver Kahn being told to move on at the end of the season. Kane, who scored 30 goals for Spurs in the Premier League last season, is out of contract in 2024 and could be available on a free transfer thereafter. Resolving Kane’s future is at the top of the agenda for Levy and new manager Ange Postecoglou, according to Bild. Tottenham buy Maddison from relegated Leicester Tottenham Hotspur has completed the signing of creative midfielder James Maddison from relegated Leicester in a deal worth 40 million pounds (46.3m euros) plus add-ons. The 26-year-old England international signed a five-year deal. Maddison began his career with Coventry City before joining Norwich City in January, 2016. He moved to Leicester in 2018 and in five seasons made 203 appearances, scored 55 goals and helped win the FA Cup. He scored 10 goals last season as Leicester were relegated from the Premier League He has three England caps.
Welcome, @Madders10! 🎯 pic.twitter.com/Jcm3Z1HEMU
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) June 28, 2023
Maddison’s creativity will boost a Spurs squad that has lacked a player in his mould since Christian Eriksen left in 2020. He is the club’s third signing of the summer. Winger Dejan Kulusevski’s loan switch from Juventus was made permanent and goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario joined from another Italian club, Empoli. Chelsea keeper Mendy becomes latest Saudi signing Edouard Mendy joined Al-Ahli as the Senegal goalkeeper became the third player to leave Chelsea for Saudi Arabia since the end of the season. Mendy is reported to have cost Al-Ahli around ÂŁ16 million ($20 million) after he opted to leave the Premier League club having lost his place to Kepa Arrizabalaga in the second half of last term. “Welcome Mendy… best goalkeeper in the world,” Al-Ahli posted on social media accompanied by a video clip of the 31-year-old putting pen to paper on his contract. “Having started his career in the lower tiers of French football - and even spending several months without a club - Mendy rose to the pinnacle of European football with Chelsea,” a statement on Chelsea’s website said.
Édouard Mendy has completed his move from Chelsea to Al-Ahli 🇸🇦
— B/R Football (@brfootball) June 28, 2023
🏆 Champions League
🏆 UEFA Super Cup
🏆 Club World Cup
🏆 AFCON
🏆 The Best Men’s Goalkeeper
Never forget his incredible 12 months 💫 pic.twitter.com/Gkk3BVhlmz
“A hugely likeable character on and off the pitch, he will always have a place in our history for his significant contributions to our 2021 Champions League triumph. “For that, and for everything else, we are grateful. Good luck, Edou!” Mendy helped Chelsea win the Champions League in 2021, but played only once for the club after returning from the World Cup in Qatar last year. He fell out of favour following Thomas Tuchel’s sacking as Chelsea manager in September, with his successor Graham Potter and then interim boss Frank Lampard both preferring to use Kepa in goal. It was a shock fall from grace for a player named UEFA’s goalkeeper of the season and FIFA’s best male goalkeeper in 2021. Mendy joins former World Cup winner N’Golo Kante and Kalidou Koulibaly in swapping Stamford Bridge for clubs in the Saudi Professional League, with the pair having joined Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal respectively. Hakim Ziyech, another Chelsea player set to leave this summer, is also understood to be on the brink of moving to the Gulf state after a deal was struck for him to join Al-Nassr. The Blues are eager to clear as many of their unwanted players out as possible before June 30 so that the sales can be included in financial accounts for 2022/23. The recent wave of European players lured to Saudi Arabia by the promise of huge salaries was started by Cristiano Ronaldo’s move from Manchester United to Al Nassr in January. Ronaldo’s former Real Madrid teammate Karim Benzema has joined Kante at Al-Ittihad after the France striker surprisingly opted to quit the Spanish giants. Last week, Ruben Neves, the 26-year-old Portuguese international, left Wolves for Al-Hilal. With AFP inputs Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News  and Entertainment News  here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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