Paper Round: Maurizio Sarri ready to sell Alvaro Morata and Olivier Giroud to sign Gonzalo Higuain

Chelsea to sell Alvaro Morata and Olivier Giroud to sign Kalidou Koulibaly and Gonzalo Higuain, Luke Shaw will run down his contract and Gareth Bale waits. 

Sarri ready to sacrifice to sign Higuain 

New Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri is ready to implement major changes at Stamford Bridge to get the players he wants. Sarri is reportedly ready to offer Alvaro Morata to Napoli as part of the deal that would see Gonzalo Higuain go to the other way. Juventus might be ready to sell following their outlay on Cristiano Ronaldo. Another casualty could be Olivier Giroud, who could leave to raise funds for other deals. 

Chelsea must spend big for Koulibaly 

Another big transfer move for Chelsea could be for Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly. The 27-year-old defender has had a £80m price tag put on his head in the wake of interest from the London club, as Napoli do not want to be seen as a selling club following the exit of both Sarri and Jorginho. The Senegal defender’s price could rise even higher, with the club wanting add-ons to that initial fee. 

Shaw turns down Everton transfer 

Luke Shaw has turned down the chance to move to Premier League side Everton. Everton’s new boss Marco Silva wants to bring down the age profile of his squad, but was rejected by Shaw. Shaw has one year left before he can leave on a free transfer in 2019, which is currently his preferred option despite being made available for transfer by Jose Mourinho. Manchester United want to replace him with Alex Sandro but are yet to agree a fee with Juventus. 

Bale faces decision on future 

Gareth Bale is set for talks at Real Madrid over his future in Spain. Julen Lopetegui is the manager after replacing Zinedine Zidane, who lost faith in the 28-year-old Welsh forward. Bale must contend with Marco Asensio, Isco and Karim Benzema, and the rumoured arrival of Chelsea winger Eden Hazard. Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure may have opened up space for him in the side for now, but Manchester United are waiting should he want to leave. 

Eurosport