Buzz rounds up the latest transfer rumours ahead of the summer window, including Matt O’Riley to Everton, Alex Remiro to Aston Villa, Gabri Veiga to Porto
O’Riley moved to the Amex last summer in a record Scottish transfer of £30m from Celtic, but suffered a long-term injury on his debut against Crawley Town which sidelined him for a number of months.
On his return to full fitness, O’Riley could not nail a permanent spot down in the Brighton side under Fabian Hurzelerbut he did make two significant contributions in their final two league games of the season, scoring at Tottenham Hotspur, and assisting the winner against Liverpool.
However, the club are believed to be happy to move O’Riley on, with Sky Sports News claiming Everton are interested in the player, but they are facing stiff competition from multiple clubs across Europe for the Dane’s signature.
The report states Brighton want to make significant additions to their squad this summer, and that will only be possible if they bring in money from sales early in the window.
A price tag has not been revealed for the 24-year-old, but after the season he had at Celtic in 2023-24, anything in the £20-30m bracket could well attract a number of clubs.
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Real Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro has confirmed that interest in him from Aston Villa is concrete.
Villa will be in the market for a new number one this summer if EMI MARTINEZ moves on as expected, and it was revealed last month that manager Unai Emery has a long shortlist of options ready for that scenario.
It has emerged that Remiro is one of them, with the goalkeeper coming out himself to confirm that there has been interest from Villa, as well as Barcelona and others, when speaking to The Basque newspaper.
Talking about interest from Villa and Barcelona, Remiro revealed: “Yes, I know (they are interested), but they’re not the only ones who’ve been following or watching me.
“It’s not that difficult either because Real Sociedad have played in Europe for five years in a row, and we played at a high level in the Champions League last year.
“It’s not just these two teams either; all the clubs are keeping an eye on everything that’s happening, and I’ve had some good years, and I think that, given the goalkeeping style that’s sought after today, I can give them that.
“I’m not just talking about those teams, I’m talking about them in general. But yes, I’m aware of it, and it’s there.”
Remiro has missed just six La Liga games in the last five years for La Real, and is under contract at Anoeta for another two years at least.
Al-Ahli‘s Gabro Veiga is reportedly close to returning to European football by joining Porto.
Veiga made headlines for being one of the youngest and most promising players to make the move to the Saudi Pro League back in the hectic summer of 2023, joining Al-Ahli for €40m (£34m).
The Spanish midfielder had just come off the back of a wonderful season with Celta Vigo, that saw him named in the La Liga Team of the Season for 2022-23, but he turned down interest from many European clubs to make the move to the Middle East.
That move is what denied Veiga a spot in Spain’s Euro 2024-winning squad last summer, but at 23, there is still plenty of time for him to win his place back in Luis de la Fuente‘s squad.
Veiga has remained a Spain Under-21 international though, and after winning the AFC Champions League with Al-Ahli, he is set to return to European football with the Portuguese giants.
Ben Jacobs claims that everything has been agreed for the deal to go through, with Porto picking Veiga up for a snip at just €17m (£14.5m).
Veiga is set to sign a five-year contract at Porto, but Al-Ahli have included a 35% sell-on clause in the deal, should Porto work their magic again in future and sell the player for a huge profit.
