Juventus are keeping tabs on Fulham forward Aleksandar Mitrovic, according to reports this afternoon.
Football League World claim that the Italian giants have lined up the Serbian striker, who has already 21 goals in the Championship this season, as an alternative should they fail to secure the services of his compatriot Dusan Vlahovic from Fiorentina. The Bianconeri are eager to add their attacking options in January after a disappointing start to the Serie A season, which sees them sitting in eighth place after thirteen games.
Mitrovic, who signed a five-year contract at Craven Cottage in August, was linked with a move to Villarreal in the Spanish press yesterday. Fulham are understood to be ready to resist any offers for their in-form frontman – just as they did over the summer – as Marco Silva sees them as a crucial part of his plans for the Premier League should the Whites go on to win promotion this season.
Reports from Spain suggest Unai Emery is interested in signing Fulham forward Aleksandar Mitrovic for Villarreal.
The Serbian striker scored his 21st goal of the Championship season in Saturday’s 4-1 thrashing of Barnsley on Saturday and headed the winner for Serbia as they qualified for the World Cup finals at the expense of Portugal last weekend. The 27 year-old has scored 74 goals in 149 appearances for the Whites and put pen to paper on a new five year contract in August.
Emery is eager to add to Villarreal’s attacking arsenal in January with his side sitting in twelfth in La Liga having scored just fifteen goals in thirteen games. But Fulham, who turned down several offers for Mitrovic in the summer, would fiercely resist any approach for their in-form striker and Fichajes.net’s suggestion that he would be available for just €16m seems particularly fanciful.
Fulham have turned down a £22.5m bid from Villarreal for Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, according to a report from Sky Sports.
The Spanish side were eager to turn Anguissa’s successful loan spell at Estadio de la Cerámica into a permanent deal, but they have not been able to match Fulham’s valuation – believed to be around £25m – for their Cameroon international midfielder. Fulham director of football Tony Khan told the Times earlier this month that he was hoping for Anguissa, who joined the Whites for £23m from Marseille in 2018, to return to pre-season training at Motspur Park and possibly feature as Scott Parker’s side returned to the Premier League.
Anguissa, who endured a tough season as Fulham were relegated from the top flight, enjoyed an excellent campaign in Spain, making 36 appearances in La Liga and scoring two goals, as Villarreal qualified for the Europa League by finishing fifth in the table. It remains to be seen whether Villarreal will return with an improved offer for Anguissa or switch their attention to other possible targets.
The Cameroon international was a £22m deadline-day signing for Fulham last August from Marseilles, but struggled to adapt to English football. His first season at Craven Cottage was a frustrating one, as he made just 25 first-team appearances as the Whites were relegated. Anguissa’s performances did improve towards the end of the campaign once Scott Parker replaced Claudio Ranieri in the Fulham dug out, but the 23 year-old has opted to move on rather than play in the Championship this season.
Villarreal will have the option of making the loan move permanent at the end of the season. Anguissa’s departure means Parker’s squad looks light on options in the key defensive midfield position, with only Scottish veteran Kevin McDonald and Guinea international Ibrahima Cisse accomplished at filling in the role amongst the first-team squad.
Fulham could be about to lose Cameroonian international Andre Frank Zambo Anguissa on the eve of the Championship season with reports from Spain suggesting that the midfielder is poised to join Villarreal.
The former Marseille midfielder endured a difficult first season at Craven Cottage, having made a reported €25m move on transfer deadline day. Anguissa struggled to acclimatise to both the pace and the physicality of the Premier League and was found wanting as a lone holding midfielder in Fulham’s system – a role he hadn’t previously played. The 23 year-old made 23 appearances as the Whites were relegated from the top flight, although his performances did improve towards the end of the season when former Fulham captain Scott Parker was appointed as a caretaker manager.
Anguissa, who was part of the Cameroon squad that reached the second round of the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt this summer, had been pinpointed as a potential key player as Fulham plotted a promotion push from the Championship under Parker this term. It is believed that the player himself was keen to assess all of his options this summer and would be open to a potential move to Spain. Villarreal are considered to be in prime position to complete a deal in the next couple of days having been in negotiations with Fulham over the past few weeks and the move could be a loan with an option to buy.
Anguissa’s departure would leave Parker’s squad worryingly light on options to fill the holding midfield role. Veteran Scottish international Kevin McDonald starred as a deep-lying midfielder when the Whites won promotion via the Championship play-offs in 2018, but was a bit-part player upon their return to the top flight. Youth team player Jayden Harris has been handed a couple of appearances during pre-season, whilst Fulham also have Ibrahima Cisse still on their books, although he has struggled to make an impression on the first team in recent seasons.
