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Arsenal’s interest in Real Madrid and Brazil star Vinicius Jr tells a story.

The club’s progress in recent years, subsequent elevation in status and last season’s success has put the Gunners in a position where they can now compete for the signatures of the game’s biggest stars.

The ambition and hunger for silverware has been there for a while now but as Josh Kroenke stood on the open-top bus with Mikel Arteta and his players, watching on as over a million people took to the streets to celebrate the Premier League title win – you got the sense those scenes would only inspire the club’s co-chair to push for more.

It has been a long, arduous journey to the summit of the Premier League for Arteta’s side but having claimed the title for the first time since 2004 last season, every bump in the road, every setback and every struggle felt totally worth it. 

There was, however, one narrative that, despite their success, the Gunners found very hard to shake.

Boring, boring Arsenal

They faced much criticism and many questions over their style of play with Arteta often labelled a “negative” or “boring” coach.

The Arsenal project had reached a stage where nothing less than winning was acceptable and given his Premier League experience both as a player and manager, he decided that the prioritisation of efficiency over flair gave his side the best chance of making history.

His deep understanding of tactics in the English top flight in particular and ability to identify trends before formulating elaborate plans to overcome the obstacles Arsenal faced gave his side a huge advantage.

When all was said and done, the end justified the means.

The task for Arteta and Arsenal now is no longer to reach the summit but instead to remain there and build on the solid foundations they have laid.

‘We’re one of the big boys again’

Excellence runs through the club nowadays from top to bottom; the mentality behind the scenes is totally different to what it was when he first arrived in 2019.

He not only deserves credit for the transformation he has masterminded on the pitch but his infectious enthusiasm and ability to engage others around him has led to restructures off it, far greater investment and the result is clear for all to see.

Nothing screams “we’re one of the big boys again” more than Arsenal’s pursuit of Vinicius, a player who has starred for the biggest club in the world for years now and is regarded by many as the best left winger in the game.

The Gunners are, of course, seeking to take advantage of his current contract situation at Real Madrid but they are deadly serious about landing the 26-year-old and are, by all accounts, willing to break the bank in order to do so.

In response to the links, many have questioned how a superstar like Vinicius would fit into a side that has been built on structure, hard work and unity first and foremost, but the way I see it, he is exactly the type of player Arsenal are missing.

An output monster

The culture at Colney is strong and it is highly unlikely any individual, no matter how big a star, would be able to negatively affect that.

Often, you become a product of your environment and a player of his quality surrounded by accountability, selflessness and the structure that would further platform his talents is only going to thrive.

He has scored 128 goals and provided 100 assists in 375 games for Los Blancos and so if the Gunners were to strike a deal, they would be bringing in an output monster as well as a global superstar.

The recruitment of Christos Tzolis along with the interest in the Brazilian gives you an idea of what the priority was for Arteta going into this summer.

It feels like acknowledgement that his forwards were not as effective as they needed to be at times last season, and while set-piece goals, for example, proved key, that approach doesn’t feel sustainable.

Rivals on high alert

A significant increase in open-play attacking output is a must.

No transfer in football is a sure thing; every deal carries an element of risk, some of course more than others, but there is unanimous agreement that Vinicius’ arrival would be transformational.

Reports of Arsenal’s interest alone has sent shockwaves through the Premier League with the rest of the division suddenly coming to the realisation that the Gunners don’t plan on stopping here – the goal is to build a dynasty in the coming years and who would bet against them doing so?

His salary demands mean Arsenal would have to break their current wage structure to land their man and so understandably, there is lots of focus around the finances of any potential deal.

I prefer to leave the numbers to the accountants and concentrate on what the club’s willingness to explore a transfer such as this one says about their ambition and desire to succeed again and again.

Read more

• Latest: Liverpool’s five attacking transfer targets – with one clear favourite
• Explained: Newcastle’s asking price for Bruno Guimaraes – and the truth about Arsenal ‘talks’

Last campaign had so much riding on it; failure to win the title would have led to questions regarding the Arteta project.

Would another near miss have signified the end?

Instead, having tasted glory and with renewed enthusiasm driven by the ecstasy and jubilation felt by all involved – this feels like just the start.

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Although Yan Diomande’s move to Real Madrid is only expected to be sealed this week, Liverpool have known for some time that they would miss out on the in-demand winger this summer.

Prior to the Spanish giants making a firm move for his signature, the Ivorian had already intimated to his Premier League suitors that they were behind Paris Saint-Germain in his preference.

In response, the Reds withdrew from the chase to consider their next move as they looked to replace the hole in their attack created by Mohamed Salah’s departure.

So, who are the Diomande alternatives Andoni Iraola will look to amid a shortage of options in attack?

Bradley Barcola

The clear favourite to arrive at Anfield this summer is Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola.

Not only have the Reds long admired the 23-year-old, but he is also understood to be just as sold on the idea of a move to Merseyside.

That is because of frustrations with his role at PSG, who will also have reduced leverage in any negotiations because he has two years remaining on his deal.

With the European champions looking to add to attacking options that already include Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue, Barcola’s path toward an exit is opening up.

And, once he is given the green light to depart the French capital, Liverpool will be right at the front of the queue.

Maghnes Akliouche

Akliouche gives Monaco the lead in Paris, and the tie is now level on aggregate

@tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/TUQHzvzlls

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) February 25, 2026

Liverpool’s desperate need for forwards this summer means they have made tentative enquiries with the representatives of several wide players expected to be on the market.

And France and Monaco forward Maghnes Akliouche is understood to be among them.

However, the 24-year-old currently prefers to stay in France and active talks with PSG are in progress over a move.

It would take the collapse of those negotiations and for Liverpool to miss out on other targets further up their list for anything to come of their cautious interest.

Matias Fernandez-Pardo

Liverpool have also been keeping a close eye on Lille’s Matias Fernandez-Pardo as a potential option.

The 21-year-old earned a place in Belgium’s World Cup squad with eight goals in 29 Ligue 1 appearances last season, and comes with the added bonus of being capable of playing centre-forward.

That could be particularly useful for a squad that is set to be without the injured Hugo Ekitike for a few months yet.

Still, Fernandez-Pardo doesn’t quite possess the track record of production at an elite level offered by, for example, Barcola, and that is likely to count against him.

Said El Mala

After a breakout season that saw him score 13 goals in 34 appearances for relegation-threatened Koln, Said El Mala is on the radar of a number of top clubs.

But it is understood that Borussia Dortmund are currently leading the chase, and you suspect Liverpool would prefer any young player they are interested in to prove they can do it at a stepping-stone club before coming to Anfield.

It is possible the 19-year-old will come back onto the Reds’ radar in a few years’ time after succeeding in Dortmund.

Yankuba Minteh

One potential target that comes with no fears over his ability to adapt to the Premier League is Yankuba Minteh.

Liverpool were among the clubs that considered swooping for the Gambian when he was put up for sale by Newcastle in 2024 as the Tyneside outfit looked to solve their PSR issues.

He has since thrived at Brighton, and the fact he is a left-footed right winger means he represents a plug-and-play solution to the Salah question.

In terms of drawbacks, the Seagulls drive a notoriously hard bargain and Minteh has three years left on his contract, so it won’t be easy to prise him away for a reasonable fee.

And it is also worth noting that Minteh scored just three goals in 34 league outings last season, though the Reds might well believe he can do better with a higher class of teammate at Anfield.

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The half-time entertainment at Villa Park is simple. A few fans kick a ball towards the halfway line and hope it stays within a circle offering out all manner of prizes.

Chelsea want to pinch that game, “Prize Where It Lies”. They are also in talks with one of Aston Villa’s pitchside presenters after triggering her release clause, and who knows, by next week maybe the catering staff will have swapped Bodymoor Heath for Cobham as well.

This is all in jest, a new social media gag for Villa fans to mask the pain given Chelsea are not finished with them yet after signing Morgan Rogers for a British record £117m.

49 – In the last three Premier League seasons, only Arsenal (64) have scored more set piece goals (excluding penalties) than Aston Villa (49).

MacPhee. pic.twitter.com/BDRNJk787Z

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 27, 2026

Now the Blues are coming for Austin MacPhee, the set-piece coach who was instrumental in Villa trailing only Arsenal for such goals in the past three Premier League campaigns.

MacPhee, also seen on the sidelines for Portugal at the World Cup, is in talks with Chelsea, while his parting gift to Villa was a vital role in the Europa League final – his corner routine leading to their opener against Freiburg.

Orchestrated by MacPhee, crossed in by Rogers and volleyed home by Youri Tielemans. Suddenly the recent past reads like ancient history for Villa, with Tielemans having also left for Manchester United.

Tielemans and Rogers are the calibre of player Villa would have loved to build around heading into a second Champions League campaign in three years.

Instead, they face a bigger rebuild than initially foreseen, pushed a couple of steps back while Chelsea get another summer to try and get it right again with a new manager by chucking another £214m – and counting – at the problem ahead of a second season in four without European football.

It is why Villa fans have turned to self-deprecation, because by now they know that no level of banging against a closed door will ever make it open. Financial restraints meant a record fee for Rogers was too good to turn down – there was simply no way of keeping the England international and spending anything close to £100m.

They couldn’t have both and in this regard Villa are not alone. This summer Elliot Anderson has left Nottingham Forest for Manchester City, while Tottenham Hotspur have bought Sandro Tonali from Newcastle United, Mateus Fernandes from West Ham and Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton.

Newcastle also face a fight to keep captain Bruno Guimaraes amid interest from Arsenal, meaning their Premier League 2030 vision is getting blurrier by the year.

A system that rewards the clubs who entered the elite before the drawbridge was pulled up – and now generate enough revenue to keep spending big – means there is now a ceiling for aspiration, and that is emulating Villa, who themselves know after finishing fourth then sixth then fourth that the more probable direction is down.

To avoid that, Villa must keep faith in a recruitment strategy that has recently bore fruit. Tielemans was a free agent, Rogers bought for an initial £8m. Middlesbrough take a 20 per cent cut of that Rogers fee, but for Villa it is a healthy profit.

Develop, improve, sell, repeat. It is a dangerous game because competition is fierce and moulding players into British records is rare. There have to be risks, and already Villa’s summer highlights that.

The arrival of midfielder Joao Gomes from Wolverhampton Wanderers for £38m appears to be shrewd business. The 25-year-old is four years younger than Tielemans and the reality is that Villa have a Premier League-ready player whose value could at least double in a few years’ time.

Beating Newcastle to Johan Manzambi also offers Villa hope of replacing Rogers, and at 20 they will pray the club-record £59.5m deal one-day reads a bargain. It is no £8m, certainly, but appears to be a coup.

Then there is arguably the greatest gamble of the Unai Emery era in Alejandro Garnacho.

The Argentine has joined from Chelsea on loan with a vague obligation to buy clause, the terms unknown and which may only become clearer if Emery suddenly stops playing the winger – as was the case with Harvey Elliott.

Emery at least wanted Garnacho, although this move has earned Villa little sympathy from those questioning whether a player who recorded five league goals and assists last season is the wisest way of a frustrated club spending, potentially, some of their Rogers money.

Read more

• Michael Hincks: Tottenham’s spending is an insult to Aston Villa and Newcastle

• Daniel Storey: 101 things I learned by driving 7,835 miles across Trump’s America

At 22, Garnacho arrives with his prime years ahead of him, like Manzambi and Gomes, meaning Villa are once again tasked with restabilising a player whose star has faded.

It worked for Marcus Rashford, it might do again, and that puts Villa in the spotlight as the standard-bearer for non-Big Six sides – the club outperforming Chelsea and yet powerless to match them financially.

The jokes will continue to land so long as Villa overachieve and cleverly reinvest, but that is no easy task – just ask Leicester City – and they could feel far less funny in 12 months’ time.

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Go up, spend £155m, defy predictions, and then defy them some more by finishing seventh to become just the fifth promoted side in the Premier League era to play European football the following season.

That was the Sunderland way, a route many clubs would love to follow, more so because promotion success stories have become scarce, with the Black Cats and Leeds United the first promoted teams to avoid relegation since the 2022-23 season.

But Sunderland’s blueprint will not be replicated by Coventry City, who are back in the Premier League after 25 years away.

The Midlands club are determined to do it “the Cov way”, and while parts of that identity are in place, they are still a work in progress going into their trial by fire.

Three transfers, more to follow

Arsenal and Manchester City away, with a home game against Hull City in between, chucks Coventry in at the deep end.

Facing World Cup and Ballon d’Or winners is simultaneously daunting and the exact reason why you want to be in this league, and while Coventry may view these matches as free shots, they will also be aware of how important first impressions are.

Assembling a squad capable of challenging and surviving is therefore the obvious mission.

Coventry have signed Switzerland defender Aurele Amenda for around £17m from Eintracht Frankfurt, winger Loum Tchaouna from Burnley, while midfielder Frank Onyeka has made his move from Brentford permanent.

Coventry’s pursuit of Carl Rushworth is no secret either. The goalkeeper spent the 2025-26 season on loan there, but Brighton are playing hardball having rejected a £20m bid.

And with Coventry boss Frank Lampard active in transfer talks – along with sporting director Dean Austin and head of recruitment Jamie Johnson – the former Chelsea player and manager is reportedly eyeing a couple of reunions.

AC Milan defender Fikayo Tomori worked under Lampard at Derby County and Chelsea, while reports in Italy also claim ex-Blues midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek is another target. Both would bring a wealth of experience were Coventry able to get these deals over the line.

Brentford an inspiration, not Sunderland

Coventry are nowhere near finished this transfer window, one club source told The i Paper, with the World Cup having slowed down activity across the leagues.

The club are happy to have got three deals finalised given the distractions, but going forward they will not go as far as Sunderland’s £155m outlay last summer.

Coventry have spent around £21m so far and have already stressed there are alternative ways of approaching a Premier League return.

Coventry chairman Doug King described Sunderland’s summer as “radical” in March and spoke against “total wholesale changes”.

King’s desire to do it “the Cov way” is a recognition that every club’s needs are different, but there is also an admiration for Brentford, who have become a model of sustainability and how to punch above one’s weight as they prepare for a sixth successive Premier League campaign.

Buying low and selling high requires strong recruitment, arguably some gambles, and 22-year-olds Amenda and Tchaouna fit this “Moneyball” approach Coventry hope leads to success on the pitch and eventually, huge profits.

There is even a belief at Coventry that their foundations are stronger than Brentford’s.

“Coventry is in a fantastic position in the country,” King told The Coventry Telegraph in April.

“There’s a lot of history, a much larger fanbase, much more pedigree in its historical achievements. So I think it has different sort of, I would say, ceiling than a Brentford.

“What they’re achieving… that tells us what can be done in football.”

Putting Cov on the map

Away from the pitch, Coventry have long been working out how to be a sustainable Premier League club.

King appointed Nicola Ibbetson for the freshly-created chief business officer role last year, with Ibbetson leaving Paris Saint-Germain having also previously worked at Aston Villa, Chelsea and Manchester United.

Read more

• Daniel Storey: Coventry City’s promotion is a monumental victory for resilience

• Transfers: Why Manchester United don’t want to sell Marcus Rashford to Tottenham

Ibbetson, who was PSG’s global partnerships director, played a key role in Coventry opening a new two-storey club shop this month, which they believe is “the best store in the Premier League” and includes an F1 racing simulator.

It is all about generating more income and the timing is pertinent because returning to the Premier League means Coventry are back on the map.

A city proud of its club and vice versa, they want that feeling to last.

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GATESHEAD — Friday could well be the most important day of Newcastle United’s season.

July 31: ring it in your black and white calendars.

That is when captain Bruno Guimaraes is slated to return to pre-season training before flying out to La Manga for a week-long camp that they can’t afford to become a circus to rival last year’s tour of the Far East.

Back then, Alexander Isak was engineering the longest and bitterest of goodbyes as Newcastle struggled to contain the narrative from the other side of the globe.

In truth, neither player nor club has ever really recovered.

It is why all eyes are on the returning Guimaraes, who has let it be known he would like to move to Arsenal.

Unlike with Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali, however, there will be no quick deal.

Barcelona and Tottenham Hotspur met  – and in the case of Tonali surpassed – Newcastle’s valuation of those two players but Arsenal’s offer is, in the words of one source, “at least” £10m shy of theirs.

What they don’t know, though, is how Guimaraes is going to play it.

Privately he was unhappy with Isak’s conduct last summer but football moves quickly and he wants to compete for Champions League and Premier League titles.

Newcastle seem to be heading into a transition phase and for a player who turns 29 this year, Arsenal’s appeal is understandable.

Could he go on strike? Or at least muddy the waters by returning with focus or fitness issues that prevent him from going to Spain with the rest of the squad?

If either of those things happen, alarm bells will go off at St James’ Park.

Arsenal would smell blood in the water and feel three weeks of innuendo surrounding Guimaraes’ future – without a formal bid at the time of writing – had been justified.

For Newcastle, there would be a decision to make.

Draw a line in the sand and refuse to be pushed around unless Arsenal meet their valuation, or cut their losses and talk turkey with the Gunners.

As appealing as the first option might sound, and goodness only knows supporters are looking for the Magpies to bear their teeth after a sobering 12 months, it also comes with the risk of the saga consuming the club like Isak-gate did.

The perfect scenario for Newcastle, and one insiders still believe, perhaps optimistically, will come to pass, is that Guimaraes returns, respects the club, lets the transfer play out and gets his head down.

“There is nothing to say that Bruno won’t be back training with us,” Eddie Howe said on Saturday after watching his team start pre-season with a 1-1 draw at Gateshead.

He described Guimaraes as “fantastic”, a “great player” and a “great person”.

Howe added they have spoken several times during the summer, including after a World Cup in which Guimaraes’ penalty miss contributed to Brazil’s shock exit to Norway.

He, though, was hedging his bets, saying he “doesn’t know what will happen with Bruno” but also emphasising the club want to keep him.

It all felt a bit messy, in truth.

You could say the same about the state Newcastle are in right now.

There were more than 7,000 fans at Gateshead on Saturday but plenty of empty seats, too.

For all that the Magpies are hoovering up promising talent in the transfer market, it is difficult not to feel anxious about the club’s direction given they have missed out on two players who would have gone straight into their starting XI and signed four who need time to develop and might not start when the serious stuff gets underway against Liverpool next month.

You can see what they are trying to do in the face of suffocating financial rules and Sean Steur, the 18-year-old midfielder signed from Ajax earlier this month, looked tidy against National League opponents.

He models his game on Kevin De Bruyne and it was a balm to hear him speak in glowing terms afterwards about Newcastle, its pull and the club’s vision.

Read more

• Transfers: Why Newcastle signed Aladji Bamba – plus three other deals in the works
• Explained: Newcastle’s asking price for Bruno Guimaraes – and the truth about Arsenal ‘talks’

A reminder, perhaps, that this is a big club that 16 months ago felt on a very different journey from the one it is now on.

“Another challenging summer” was how Howe described it and he is not wrong.

They could really do with Guimaraes playing ball to wrestle some of that momentum back.

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Leicester City are the runaway favourites to win League One before a ball has been kicked. No one at the club needs reminding how little that means.

Last season the Foxes started with Marti Cifuentes in the dugout and hopes of an immediate return to the Premier League. They ended it with Gary Rowett as manager and relegation to the third tier.

A six-point deduction proved crucial given they finished five points off safety, and after breaching financial rules, this summer has been one of upheaval – and more importantly, goodbyes.

Clearout: every expensive player must go

Rowett is gone. He was only appointed on a short-term basis and the club have instead turned to Russell Martin, Leicester’s seventh permanent manager since Brendan Rodgers left in 2023.

Martin guided Southampton to the Premier League in 2024 before an ill-fated 123-day spell at Rangers last season, and Leicester have overlooked that tumultuous reign and put faith in the 40-year-old overseeing a vital rebuild.

Crucial to this overhaul has been a vast number of departures, players signed when Leicester City were a Premier League side with lofty ambitions.

That made for the biggest wage bill in the Championship last season, and has resulted in Harry Winks being sold to Italian side Cagliari, while captain Ricardo Pereira, Jordan Ayew, Patson Daka and Jamaal Lascelles were all released.

Leicester then terminated Jannik Vestergaard’s contract by mutual agreement last week.

Winks, Pereira, Daka, Lascelles and Vestergaard were five of Leicester’s six biggest earners last season, per Capology, with Boubakary Soumare the sixth on that list before leaving for Qatari side Al-Duhail in January.

Combined, their salaries along with Ayew’s makes for £24.2m in yearly wages – more than 50 per cent of Leicester’s overall bill last term. The Foxes have also sold teenager Jeremy Monga to Manchester City for an initial £10m, offloading promising talent in return for greater stability.

And: reset.

Leicester’s search for a bargain continues

After being stuck with players on top-tier wages in the Championship, now Leicester are after players with second-tier experience for their go in League One.

No surprises either that their two signings so far have been free agents. Former Ipswich Town forward Conor Chaplin joined, with goalkeeper Alex McCarthy following suit last week after being released by Southampton.

Further incomings are expected soon, but Danny Ings’ move is reportedly off. Leicester’s need for forwards is evident after Ayew, Daka and Monga all left, and their Ings pursuit suggests another bargain will be sought out.

Change higher up at Leicester?

The biggest change this season could come away from the pitch for Leicester.

Leicester’s Thai owners are exploring a possible sale of the club, The Financial Times reported on Wednesday, with King Power International Group having held the keys since 2010.

In that time Leicester achieved the fairy tale Premier League win in 2016, as well as FA Cup glory in 2021 and three European campaigns, but fans turned on the club’s hierarchy as they slipped down the football ladder and financial problems piled up.

Read more

• Michael Hincks: Leicester City face a fate worse than relegation

• Where are they now? Leicester’s Premier League-winning XI 10 years on

Leicester were deducted six points for breaches in February, while supporters feared for the team’s future and repeatedly protested against their owners last season, calling for chief football officer Jon Rudkin to leave and owner Khun Aiyawatt “Top” Srivaddhanaprabha to sell the club.

Khun Top’s interest has drifted, visibly in terms of his scarce appearances at King Power Stadium. “Maybe it’s my fault, I used to talk to the fans and the media, but I have responsibilities here in Thailand a lot,” he acknowledged last November.

Now in the shop window as a club, a strong start and promise of a swift Championship return would surely entice potential buyers.

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It already looked like this would be a summer of profound change at Liverpool, with chief executive Michael Edwards leaving Fenway Sports Group and director of football Richard Hughes to join Al-Hilal in September.

Some industry observers have speculated that this could mark the beginning of a “long goodbye” for FSG.

The group’s willingness to discuss selling a significant stake is seen by some as an acknowledgement that, with the club valued at nearly £4.5bn, it may be an opportune moment to gauge interest.

FSG insists the discussions are aimed at injecting more capital rather than walking away and says it is not discussing a full sale at this stage.

But the emergence of Jeff Bezos as a potential partner in a consortium led by Amit Bhatia, the former Queens Park Rangers owner and son-in-law of billionaire steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, suggests there is a heavyweight feel to potential takeover talks.

Bezos is the headline grabber, the Amazon founder with an estimated worth of £191bn.

He is yet to get involved in sports and has never professed a love for football but sources believe he – like many of the other so-called “tech bros” – is taking an active interest in the Premier League because of its global popularity.

“This would be a soft launch into that space,” one source told The i Paper. “The size of the investment would be peanuts but he can test the water for something bigger so I can see why this structure of a deal would appeal to him.”

What is in it for Bezos?

Ego. When you have all the money in the world, it is hard to keep it under control. The richer you get, the more it gets naturally inflated. And it starts to make decisions for you.

“When spending time with these wealthy guys, you learn that a lot of the decisions that they make are not 100 per cent financially related,” Andre Da Costa, advisor to English clubs looking to attract American owners and co-host of The Soccer Business podcast, tells The i Paper.

“They are what we call post-economic. They already made billions, so they’re not looking just for a financial return. I was in the UK three weeks ago. I met with an American owner and we’re having a conversation about what he was trying to do. He says ‘my peer group were challenging me to be successful in European football. That’s the real game.

“It’s easy to do in the US. It was an ego play in the healthiest way possible of him challenging himself. There is an element that we forget about the personal fulfilment in these moves, the ego of being able to show people that you can do it. You can do better than the next guy. Liverpool have much to prove right now – they are perfect for massaging egos.”

Perhaps what is most startling about Bezos’ potential involvement in this deal is he is not a sports fan, and has never invested in any team before, in the US or overseas.

But that has not stopped the myriad of other American investors spending their millions on English clubs at all levels. 

While football teams on the whole don’t make any money, the chance to have influence on such a global obsession is just too hard to resist for the rich and powerful.

“When you look across the pond, there is an asymmetric upside,” Da Costa adds. “These clubs have these rabid fan bases. They are credible, historical institutions. There is nothing close to English football in terms of global interest.

“But the hardest thing for American investors to wrap their heads around is how these clubs, with all that attention and eyeballs, can lose an outstanding amount of money on a year-to-year basis.

“The only way to influence that is to take control. The more American capital that we get into English football, the more we’re going to see new regulations and different types of financial control. And we’re seeing that with SCR [squad cost ratio] being implemented in both the Premier League and the Championship.

“And it will go beyond that. I was speaking to a very prominent EFL club owner and he was like ‘these hydration breaks are great. I want them to come to the EFL. We need to be able to generate more revenue for our broadcasting partners because we need more money for our media rights. And they’re in negotiations.” 

What is the potential impact on Liverpool?

Anyone thinking it will make a huge impact on the pitch is probably barking up the wrong tree.

Bezos and Bhatia would be able to draw from vast reserves of wealth, of course, but Uefa and Premier League regulations – which Liverpool have enthusiastically supported – limit how much you can spend.

Equity injections on off-the-field projects are allowed but throwing money at transfers isn’t.

And there has been little to suggest that American investors want that model anyway.

“It wouldn’t be about dropping a load of money into the first team and buying new players,” Professor Rob Wilson, a football finance expert and programme director at the University Campus of Football Business, says.

“It would be about business continuity. You can’t do a Roman Abramovich these days. How do you establish a major business enterprise that can generate vast swathes of revenue and grow the size of the entity we’ve purchased?”

The addition of Bezos – and the doors it potentially unlocks to the Amazon empire – could boost Liverpool’s revenues. There could be link ups on video on demand, merchandise and data sharing, known as “verticals”.

“Amazon are a huge user and receiver of data so there’d be some neat activations they could do to increase product flow, merchandising and access to new markets – the buzz words boards look to achieve,” Wilson says.

“It’d be a win-win from that perspective.”

What does it mean for FSG?

Plenty of questions. The high-profile departures behind the scenes have created a sense of flux at Anfield and Hughes’ imminent departure – as reported by The i Paper back in May – means there will be an overhaul at executive level.

Edwards left because FSG’s interest in buying clubs and establishing multi-club model dwindled. That was further food for thought. So far they have had a low-key transfer window, although insiders insist there is scope to make big additions and Bournemouth’s Rayan is on their long-term hitlist.

FSG regards much of this talk as “noise” and have been consistent on the need for outside investment but given the valuation of the club is now £4.5bn, finding those investors and partners is not easy.

“The valuation of Premier League clubs means we’ve whittled down the potential pool of owners down to the mega-rich individuals like Jeff Bezos, private equity companies or sovereign wealth funds,” Wilson says.

“That kind of wealth also means timelines for return of investment are much longer, too.”

If a deal did go through, the structure of the club would be fascinating. Would Bezos really be happy to take a backseat? And would Bhatia want to spend more than a billion to have no say on what goes on at Anfield?

There are more questions than answers about possible investment.

What are fans thinking?

There is mixed emotions among Liverpool fans, according to Redmen TV’s Dan Clubbe.

While some see the pound signs, others fret about what change in ownership structure might mean in the long-term.

For all that they have made missteps, FSG has tended to listen to supporters and performed U-turns if things have gone down badly.

“It does feel like the beginning of the end for FSG at Liverpool because of the sheer wealth involved,” Clubbe says.

“I’ve had a hunch for a while they’re getting itchy feet and wondered what an exit might look like given the way prices are going up in the transfer market. That’s in no small part down to Liverpool, we’ve played our part in that, but I don’t think it’s a place they’re particular comfortable in and there may be movement towards selling a stake with maybe a view to something bigger.

“It’s a minority stake but it’s a significant stake.”

On Bezos’ involvement, Clubbe admits there will be some who look at his track record in business and wonder if it is a good fit for a club that retains strong socialist roots and has reacted strongly to possible Middle Eastern interest recently.

But he also acknowledges that the money involved in the top flight now means the perfect owner might not exist.

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“Football sold its soul many years ago and the days of having local businessmen with the best interests of the club at its heart are gone,” he says.

“I’d love to have the owner of Liverpool hail from West Derby or Huyton but it’s not realistic. There’s no perfect owner – FSG has made massive missteps, and then rowed them back.

“The [Jeff] Bezos thing is intriguing. It adds an extra element of star power because the riches are so rich and there’s controversy around how he’s operated his businesses. A lot of fans will look purely at the numbers involved and will go ‘It means we can do what we want in the market’ while other fans in a city with socialist roots will not like it.

“Football ownership is the sphere of the mega-rich now so you sort of have to swallow it and move on, provided they’re not absolutely horrendous.”

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