Transfer news: Arsenal put off Jonny Evans by £25m fee, Chelsea target Nikola Masimovic after more frustration

The biggest transfer news and speculation on Tuesday 23 August

Jonny Evans will cost £25m if Arsenal want to sign him from Everton (Getty)

Arsenal have been dealt another blow in their hopes of signing a defender before the transfer window closes after it was revealed that West Bromwich Albion will demand £25m to let Jonny Evans leave the club.

Evans has emerged as a potential Plan B option for Arsenal after they hit a stalemate in their attempts to sign Valencia defender Shkodran Mustafi, with the 24-year-old German defender believed to be keen on a move to the Emirates. With Arsenal reluctant to offer £30m for Mustafi, with his release clause set at £42.1m, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is considering other options.

One of those appears to be former Manchester United defender Jonny Evans, but The Telegraph reports on Tuesday that West Brom will not sell 28-year-old Evans for anything less than £25m, a fee big enough to put the Gunners off any possible move.

Arsenal have also been linked with a move for Southampton defender Jose Fonte – with Manchester United also interested in the Portuguese Euro 2016 winner – but the same reports claims that the Saints will not sell Fonte and it’s now a matter of whether the 32-year-old signs a new contract or not.

Another defender the Gunners are showing interested in is believed to be Monaco’s Marcel Tisserand, despite the 23-year-old thought to be in the verge of signing for Espanyol. The Congo centre-back – who is equally adept at filling in at right-back – is in talks to move to La Liga with the Barcelona-based outfit, having struggled to cement a first-team spot at Monaco.

However, that move is now though to be on hold, according to The Mirror, after Arsenal expressed an interest in him, and it’s added that Tisserand’s representatives will attempt to delay any permanent move until they discover if Arsenal’s interest is genuine or not.

Chelsea’s search for a new defender continues without success after the Blues appeared to end their interest in Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly by informing Napoli that they will not be making another offer. According to The Telegraph, Chelsea have made an official £40m bid for the centre-back, which was rejected by the Serie A club. With Chelsea growing frustrated with Napoli’s refusal to negotiate the deal, they have now turned their attentions elsewhere, and it’s added that they could make a £25m offer for Torino defender Nikola Maksimovic.

Chelsea have ended their interest in Napoli defender Koulibaly (Getty)

However, Sky Sports claim that AC Milan have rejected a £30m bid from Chelsea for defender Alessio Romagnoli, and the club have warned Chelsea that they have no intention of selling the highly-rated Italian this summer in the belief that he can press on to become one of the great Italian defenders.

Joe Hart’s future remains unclear with Everton pulling the plug on a loan move due to the England goalkeeper’s wages, which combined with his loan fee would set back the Toffees up to £7m for a temporary move. The Daily Mail reports that Everton will no longer offer Hart a chance to remain in the Premier League, with a move away from Manchester City now expected to take the goalkeeper abroad.

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Sky Sports adds that Hart’s potential exit will be quickened by the addition of Barcelona goalkeeper Claudio Bravo on Thursday, with City already agreeing personal terms with the Chile international.

Joe Hart is free to leave Manchester City if he wants to, says Pep Guardiola (Getty)

Another player who could be on his way out of City is striker Wilfried Bony, albeit on a temporary basis after West Ham expressed an interest in signing the Ivorian on loan. Bony is not only behind Sergio Aguero in the City pecking order but also youngster Kelechi Iheanacho as well as summer signing Nolito, and reports in Italy claim that West Ham will look to end their hunt for a new striker by landing Bony on a season-long loan deal.