Armenia midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan has joined Manchester United from Borussia Dortmund, the German club said on Saturday. The 27-year-old became the Premier League team's third high-profile signing since the appointment of Jose Mourinho as manager in May, following defender Eric Bailly and striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Old Trafford.
The Welshman has a contract until 2022 and was set to make a lucrative move to the Chinese Super League last year before the transfer was scuttled when Real made a last-minute decision to insist on a transfer fee rather than terminate his contract.
Manchester City withdrew from the battle to secure the services of Arsenal's Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez, leaving Jose Mourinho's Manchester United as the most likely destination for the 29-year-old.
Rediff.com makes an assessment of the biggest gambles made by the leading Premier League teams this summer.
Manchester City tightened their stranglehold at the top of the Premier League on Wednesday by trouncing bottom club West Bromwich Albion 3-0 as nearest rivals Manchester United suffered a chastening 2-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur.
Chelsea re-signed David Luiz and Premier League champions Leicester City broke their transfer record for striker Islam Slimani as English clubs exceeded the one billion pounds barrier when the curtain fell on transfer deadline day.
Frank Lampard's loan spell at Manchester City is due to end in January but the Premier League champions might want to delay his departure across the Atlantic to enhance their chances of fighting his old club for the title.
January transfer window failed to materialise as Europe's top clubs largely kept their powder dry.
Manchester City's new-look side continued their impressive start to the season when they preserved their 100 per cent record with a 1-0 win at Portsmouth in the Premier League on Sunday.
There was the usual frenzy of last-minute deals as the English Premier League brought the curtain down on another bumper European transfer window in which Manchester City again flexed their financial muscle as the continent's top spenders.
Manchester City have signed England centre back John Stones from Everton as new manager Pep Guardiola continues to reshape his side for the start of the English Premier League season.
Spanish playmaker Mata, 31, joined United in 2014 for a then club record transfer fee of 37.1 million pounds ($46.86 million) from league rivals Chelsea.
Southampton's 15 million pound ($19.19 million) purchase of Lazio centre back Wesley Hoedt brought the overall spend by England's 20 elite clubs to a record 1.184.9 billion pounds.
Chelsea manager Frank Lampard believes his side are a long way short of the levels of Premier League Champions Liverpool and Manchester City, who have set the benchmark in terms of consistency. Lampard's Chelsea, currently third in the league, visit title winners Liverpool on Wednesday, chasing the three points they need to secure Champions League football next season.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan will prove his worth at Manchester United once he adapts to the rigours of English football, according to his manager Jose Mourinho.
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan promised on Tuesday that he and his Abu Dhabi United Group were at Manchester City for the long term after completing the negotiations for their takeover of the Premier League club.
Manchester United signed Chile forward Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal in a swap deal with midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan after a protracted transfer saga finally ended on Monday.
Aguero is expected to be the first of a number of arrivals at the Camp Nou this summer
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday.
The year was 1986 and with just three league wins to their name by the first weekend of November, Manchester United dismissed Ron Atkinson as manager and appointed Alex Ferguson.
A round-up of Tuesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
Champions Chelsea have not enjoyed the best of starts at home this season and face their biggest test yet on Saturday with the visit of free-scoring leaders Manchester City.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Holders Manchester City will take on RB Leipzig, Red Star Belgrade and Young Boys in Group G.
England manager Roy Hodgson has told his squad to forget about potential club transfers and focus on their Euro 2016 campaign. With Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy the subject of a bid from Arsenal, according to British media, Hodgson has reportedly banned agents from the team hotel in Chantilly, though he is more concerned with players concentrating on the job at hand. England open their Group B campaign against Russia on Saturday before facing Wales and Slovakia. "Whether they (agents) come to the hotel or not is a moot point," he was quoted as saying on The Independent website. "They will be talking to the players face to face, on the phone or via Skype or Facebook, who the hell knows? "But one thing this group of players know and have accepted is that when you are on England duty, you are on England duty. Hodgson added that if a player decided to move clubs while on England duty he would not be allowed to leave to undertake a medical. "It is not a question of you sorting out your future, or diving off for medicals," he said.
Images from the English Premier League matches played over the weekend.
Manchester United defender Cameron Borthwick-Jackson has joined Wolves on a season-long loan, the Premier League club confirmed on Twitter.
A Sergio Aguero hat-trick helped Manchester City get back to winning ways in the Premier League with a 3-1 victory over Newcastle United, as they stayed 12 points ahead of Manchester United who had to dig deep to secure a 1-0 win at Burnley.
British media reported the transfer was worth around 1.5 million pounds ($1.98 million). Grant will be a back-up to first-choice goalkeeper David de Gea.
Chelsea have completed the transfer of defender Wesley Fofana from Leicester City, both Premier League sides said on Wednesday, with the Frenchman signing a seven-year contract with the west London club.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
The 30-year-old leaves Anfield after 269 appearances, having scored 120 goals in all competitions, a stellar return that helped the club to the Champions League title in 2018-19 and the Premier League crown a season later.
Former Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney urged Cristiano Ronaldo to remain patient and make the most of the opportunities that come his way as the Portugal international looks to work his way back into the Premier League club's first team.
Images from EPL matches played on Saturday.
As the Premier League resumes following the international break all eyes will be on Cristiano Ronaldo's homecoming party at Old Trafford on Saturday, with the Portuguese international set to resume his Manchester United career after 12 years away.
West Ham United have bolstered their defensive options with the signing of England fullback Carl Jenkinson from Arsenal on a season-long loan, the Premier League club said on Thursday.
A 2018 World Cup finalist, Perisic, who also played for Borussia Dortmund and VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga between 2011 and 2015, will play for Bayern starting on Friday.
Manchester City boosted their defensive options by signing Argentine centre back Martin Demichelis from Atletico Madrid on Sunday.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed but local media reported that Monaco paid Sevilla about 40 million euros ($44.71 million) to activate 29-year-old France international Ben Yedder's release clause.
When asked about Barcelona's youth and talent in midfield especially, Gundogan said he had a lot to offer the team with his experience.
