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Chelsea remain desperate to sell Romelu Lukaku. If a deal isn’t reached with Juventus, or any other European club in August, Chelsea will insist Lukaku accepts an offer from a Saudi in September.

Chelsea want around €45m, but could come down slightly on price should the right opportunity present itself. Al-Hilal were the side pushing for Lukaku but they have just added Aleksandar Mitrovic from Fulham and currently have filled their foreign-player quota.

But with these high-profile Saudi deals, especially the PIF-led ones, the club is often allocated last. The Saudi top-flight window doesn’t close until September 7 and if Lukaku enters into that month without a new club then Saudi could end up being his only viable option.

Chelsea believe the Lukaku issue is as much on the player as them. He hasn’t engaged significantly with Mauricio Pochettino this summer. It’s not just Chelsea who want to sell. Lukaku also doesn’t view the club as an option.

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With Christopher Nkunku sidelined and Armando Broja returning from an ACL injury, Chelsea would ideally like another striker, but it’s about finding the right profile, and whether that’s a traditional No.9 or just a creative-minded attacker. If the former, Broja is going to feel pushed down the pecking order.

Brennan Johnson and Bradley Barcola are two to watch, and there’s still an outside chance of Mohammed Kudus, who West Ham have failed to date to agree a deal for.

Arsenal’s Folarin Balogun is another name who has been discussed, but it’s Monaco who are currently more advanced. Balogun would be open to a move to Chelsea, though. Inter would also love Balogun, but Arsenal would need to drop their £45-50m asking price by about £10m. There is no reason for them to do so in the current market and with plenty of late window interest.

Arsenal are still deciding whether to bring in a replacement for the injured Jurrien Timber. Although Arsenal have not yet revealed how long the Dutch defender will be out for, sources indicate he’s unlikely to be back before late March.

The advantage of Timber is he can play centre-back or right-back and if Arsenal do move in the market they will want someone equally as versatile.

Despite links with Ivan Fresneda – a player Arsenal pursued in January – I am told there is nothing advanced, whereas Sporting are closing in on a deal.

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Benjamin Pavard has been considered by Edu, but Inter have pretty much completed that transfer. And this is the challenge at this stage of the window, especially when doing unplanned business. A lot of targets just aren’t attainable, and we know Arsenal hate to scramble. They are usually very considered in their approach, even late in windows.

It will be interesting to see if Arsenal ‘revisit’ a player like Timothy Castagne, who wants to leave Leicester. He was discussed internally a few months ago. He may not be allowed to leave, and it’s Fulham who are the most active Premier League club at the moment. But that type of player – one who adds depth and doesn’t break the bank – is the kind of profile Arsenal may look at.