According to Nice-Matin, OGC Nice has bid €60 million for centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo, who has been linked with Liverpool and Manchester United. According to Telefoot, the Frenchman might become Nice’s all-time sales leader by the conclusion of the season.
The Ligue 1 club made this step to prevent any significant movements from possible suitors before the conclusion of current window. Aside from Manchester United and Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, and Napoli have all made contact with the player’s entourage.
Luke Entwistle of GFFN contacted Nice director Florent Ghisolfi about Todibo and fellow in-demand Frenchman Khephren Thuram last week. He responded:
“As we’ve stated from the start, we’re concentrating on stability, and stability means maintaining your top players. JC (Jean-Clair Todibo) and (Khephren) Thuram are both players and leaders, as they serve as vice captains. We definitely want to keep them.
“I hope they will quickly come back from suspension and injury and quickly bring their freshness, leadership and enthusiasm.”
Todibo had a somewhat disappointing period at Barcelona and on loan to Benfica before a good loan stint at Nice. He joined there permanently for €8.5 million in 2021 and has steadily improved his quality and height since.
He now leads Nice’s defense, which is second in the Ligue 1 league. In the 14 games he has played, they have maintained nine clean sheets, with the Frenchman leading the league’s finest defense.
All things considered, Todibo would be a fantastic asset to any of the elite clubs in the Premier League. In the long run, given his youth of 24, he would also provide depth and strong defense.
Concerning Thiago's dramatized departure from Liverpool, Fabrizio Romano responds firmly
Italian reporter Fabrizio Romano has softened his stance on reports that Spanish player Thiago Alcantara is considering leaving Anfield.
According to reports, Thiago, whose father is Brazilian, Mazinho, was interested in joining Flamengo in January. But as can be seen below, Romano quickly refuted every rumor in his X post:
🚨⛔️ Understand there’s nothing at all into rumours of Thiago Alcantara joining Flamengo in January. No talks, no board trip to England to negotiate. Zero.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 21, 2024
🔴⚫️ Flamengo were focused on their next signing, Matías Viña. Almost done. pic.twitter.com/pUKhW6NP2d
Thiago has had a lot of injury problems throughout his time at Liverpool. Due to a recurrent hip ailment, he has been out of action since April 2023. Meanwhile, he has also missed extended amounts of time due to additional problems with his hamstring, thigh, and calf.
Since moving to Anfield from Bayern Munich in 2020, Thiago has missed around 100 games for Liverpool, which is very concerning for the team. It seems certain, however, that he will not be relocating to Flamengo during this window.