Atletico Madrid President Enrique Cerezo confirmed they are interested in Napoli target James Rodriguez, but “we’re not in contact with Real Madrid.”

The Colombia international returns to base after his two-year loan at Bayern Munich and is not part of Zinedine Zidane’s plans.

Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis is adamant he will only take the player on loan with option to buy, refusing to pay the €42m upfront.

Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis complained “why can Bayern Munich take James Rodriguez on loan and we can’t? We could get Nicolas Pepe or someone else.”

The Colombia international was eager to join Napoli and reunite with Carlo Ancelotti, but Real Madrid will only let him leave on a permanent basis for €42m.

Neither Juventus nor Napoli will be signing Kieran Trippier as it is claimed the Tottenham Hotspur right-back is joining Atletico Madrid.

Trippier had been linked with Napoli and Juve, but the Evening Standard and The Telegraph both report he is on his way to Spain for a medical with Atleti.

A fee in the region of £20-25m (€22-27m) has been quoted.

Napoli have since brought in right-back Giovanni Di Lorenzo from Empoli, while Joao Cancelo remains a Juve player.

Marko Rog is reportedly close to a €20m move to Eintracht Frankfurt, which would free up Napoli to purchase Eljif Elmas from Fenerbahce.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Croatia international midfielder Rog is on the verge of a transfer to German club Eintracht for approximately €20m, including bonuses.

Today, the Partenopei also agreed a deal with Parma to loan striker Roberto Inglese, with obligation to buy, for a total of €20m plus €2m in bonuses.

Multiple reports now suggest James Rodriguez and Real Madrid are leaning towards Atletico Madrid, as Napoli won’t buy him outright.

President Aurelio De Laurentiis stated openly that he has no intention of purchasing James in one cash sum, preferring to take the Colombia international on loan with option to buy.

This irritated Real Madrid, who had until then been eager to sell abroad rather than reinforce their direct Liga and city rivals.

Piotr Zielinski welcomes Kostas Manolas and James Rodriguez to Napoli, but admits he must learn from the defender to show more “grit.”

The Partenopei have been the only real contenders amid the Juventus hegemony over the last few years and hope the departure of Max Allegri, replaced by former Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri, will give them the chance to break that domination.

“I want to show all my potential and can assure everyone I am at 100 per cent,” the Polish midfielder told Radio Kiss Kiss.

James Rodriguez is frustrated by Napoli refusal to pay Real Madrid and now wants to join Atletico Madrid instead, claim Marca.

President Aurelio De Laurentiis and Coach Carlo Ancelotti both stated this weekend that negotiations will not be resolved soon, while they could lean towards other targets.

Napoli and Atletico Madrid are in advanced negotiations for Elseid Hysaj, claim Spanish and Italian sources, with a deal worth €15m plus bonuses.

According to both AS and La Gazzetta dello Sport, the original €25m asking price has dropped to €20m, including add-ons.

The Albania international full-back was purchased from Empoli for just €5m in 2015 and would nonetheless represent a strong profit margin.

Paris Saint-Germain are ready to take advantage after Napoli refused to pay €42m for James Rodriguez, as his ex-wife warns it depends on Real Madrid.

The Colombia international wants to reunite with Carlo Ancelotti at the Stadio San Paolo, having worked with him in Madrid and at Bayern Munich.

Juventus and Roma are the Italian representatives in the top 10 biggest spending European clubs since 2014-15, with Barcelona shelling out €1.08bn.

Voetbal International calculated the transfer activity from the last five years, including so far this summer, and found Barcelona had spent €1.08bn.

Manchester City were second in the list on €996m, with Manchester United spending €890m and Chelsea €875m.