Transfer News – September 18th, 2020

Judging by the state of football in the first half of the year, one could’ve rightly expected the 2020 transfer season to be boring. After all, a global pandemic reduced football to virtual sports and reruns on TV, leaving clubs with massive gaping holes in their budgets. Still, the news about transfers keep pouring – the teams are clearly bent on making the most of the delayed summer transfer window.

Uroš Račić to Manchester United

Serbian central midfielder Uroš Račić has only played one league game for Valencia’s first team. The 22-year-old spent the last two years on loan at Valencia B, Tenerife, and Famalicão, where he accumulated quite a lot of playtime.

Račić has made quite the impression, with several teams reported to be interested in him. According to The Sun, Manchester United is preparing to sign the Serbian youngster for a transfer fee far below his buyout clause – apparently, Valencia is willing to let him go at a discounted rate because its finances have suffered due to the pandemic.

Thiago Alcântara to Liverpool

It was an open secret that Thiago’s time at Bayern Munich is coming to an end. Since the start of the (delayed) summer transfer window, he has been linked to several major clubs – the one with the most rumours and reports was Manchester United – but the deal fell through, even though everything was in place.

But Thiago will leave Bayern Munich for England – the 29-year-old Spanish central midfielder will join Premier League champion Liverpool in a transfer worth £25 million. Thiago is Liverpool’s second signing in this transfer season: last month, the club signed Olympiakos wunderkind Kostas Tsimikas.

Emiliano Martínez to Aston Villa

Aston Villa has already signed two new players this season: 23-year-old right-back Matty Cash from Nottingham Forest, and 24-year-old centre-forward Ollie Watkins. And now, the team adds a third player to its lineup: 28-year-old goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez.

Martínez started playing football with the Argentine club Independiente in 2008, then joined Arsenal’s youth side in 2010. Two years later, he made his debut in the senior team but spent most of his time either on the bench or on loan. During his eight seasons with the Gunners, he only played 15 league games – but he had loan spells with Oxford, Sheffield, Rotherham, Wolverhampton, Reading, and Getafe.

Martínez made his Premier League debut this June, coming on to replace Bernd Leno who has been injured in a match against Brighton. His performance was convincing enough for him to become the first-choice goalkeeper for the remainder of the season, and starting in the team’s FA Cup Final against Chelsea and their Community Shield clash against Liverpool.

Now, the young goalkeeper has joined Aston Villa in a transfer worth £20 million, signing a four-year deal with the club.