Transfer roundup: Juventus sign Bayern Munich ace, Dani Alves gets a new club

Bianconeri sign Costa from Bayern with an option to buy

Juventus has signed Douglas Costa on loan from Bayern Munich with an option to buy the Brazil winger at the end of next season. The Italian club said Wednesday that it will pay 6 million euros ($6.9 million) for the initial loan. After that, Juventus can secure "the definitive acquisition of the player at a price of 40 million euros ($45.7 million) to be paid in two financial years."

Costa joined Bayern for a reported fee of 30 million euros from Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in 2015. He enjoyed an impressive first season but was unable to maintain the momentum. In 77 competitive games for the Bundesliga side, he scored 14 goals and set up 27 more, winning two league titles and the German Cup.

"We had serious and constructive talks with Juventus' representatives," Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said. "All of Bayern's financial demands have been met." Costa has made 21 appearances for Brazil.

Atletico Madrid ink deal for Sevilla’s Vitolo despite transfer ban

Atletico Madrid said Wednesday they had signed Spanish international Victor Machin Perez, know as 'Vitolo', from Sevilla but immediately loaned him to Las Palmas to comply with a FIFA recruitment ban.

"Atletico de Madrid has reached an agreement with Victor Machin Perez, Vitolo, for the next five years after the football player rescinded his contract with Sevilla," Atletico said on their website.

The 27-year-old winner of three Europa Leagues and 11 international caps will initially join Las Palmas on loan until January 1, 2018, when Atletico's recruitment ban expires. The ban was imposed after the club had broken strict rules on the recruitment of youth players.

Sevilla president Jose Castro had said on Monday he had offered the player a new five-year deal at the club as the struggle for the gifted midfielder's services heated up.

But Spanish sports daily Marca reported that Atletico has now met the Sevilla release clause for Vitolo of 37.5 million euros ($43 million) and that the player passed his medical on Wednesday.

Free agent Dani Alves ditches Pep Guardiola’s Man City for PSG

Brazil right back Dani Alves has signed for Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer after leaving Juventus.

PSG announced the signing of Alves on Wednesday on a two-year deal. He spent a season at Juventus, helping the team reach the Champions League final, after eight years at Barcelona.

The 34-year-old defender had been heavily linked with a move to Manchester City, where he would have linked up with his former coach at Barca, Pep Guardiola. Alves will be the 30th Brazilian to play for PSG.

Crystal Palace snap up Chelsea talent 

England Under-21 midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek on Wednesday became the new Crystal Palace manager Frank de Boer's first signing since taking over at the Premier League side last month. The 21-year-old joins Palace on a season long loan from champions Chelsea.

"I had the option of coming to Palace and I thought that it would be great for me," Loftus-Cheek told Palace's official site.

"I live not too far away, I was born in Lewisham and Palace is a good club so I thought it's a good chance to play here and be a part of the team.

"They have a very strong team and I'd like to be a part of that this season." Loftus-Cheek featured six times in Chelsea's title-winning campaign last season. He has made 32 appearances for the Blues across the last three seasons, scoring twice.

In addition to his club career, the midfielder has been capped by England at youth levels and has won 17 caps for the under-21 side since 2015.

Newly-promoted Brighton sign Austrian international Suttner

Austrian international full-back Markus Suttner became Premier League debutants Brighton's third signing of the close season on Thursday after joining from German outfit Ingolstadt. 

The 30-year-old spent the majority of his career at Austria Vienna before moving to Germany and has signed a three-year contract with Brighton for an undisclosed fee.

Brighton manager Chris Hughton -- in Austria preparing the team for their Premier League campaign -- said Suttner had been a player he had fancied for a while.  

"Markus is someone we have been aware of for some time, and I am pleased we have managed to complete the transfer at this stage, and he is now able to join us for the second half of the week," Hughton told the club website.

"He has a great level of experience internationally, and in the top divisions in both his native Austria and Germany, where he has played the last two seasons with Ingolstadt, and that experience will serve us well.

"He will add competition at the back on the left side of the defence, and I'm now looking forward to working with him." Suttner played in both the Champions League and Europa League for Austria Vienna before joining Ingolstadt when they were promoted to the Bundesliga in 2015. He scored four times in 31 appearances for the German club last term which ended with them being relegated.

Cologne let Modeste depart to cash-rich China

French striker Anthony Modeste made the first major move of the Chinese transfer window when he joined Tianjin Quanjian from Cologne in a deal that could be worth 35 million euros. The forward, third-highest scorer in the German Bundesliga last season with 25 goals, moved on a reported loan with an option to buy, just before the mid-season Chinese transfer window closes on Friday.

There was no immediate comment from Tianjin, who are coached by Italy's 2006 World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro and were previously strongly linked with Chelsea's unsettled Spanish striker Diego Costa. Cologne did not disclose terms of the deal, but German daily Bild reported that Modeste moved on a two-year loan deal for six million euros with an option to buy him for 29 million euros.

"The 29-year-old will continue his career in the Chinese Super League with Tianjin Quanjian," said a Cologne statement.  "All relevant parties have reached an agreement. FC Cologne would like to thank Tony for his performances in the FC jersey whilst wishing him all the best for the future."

Modeste's 25-goal haul in the Bundesliga last season was bettered only by Borussia Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (31) and Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski (30) as Cologne finished fifth in the table.

Tianjin Quanjian, who already have Brazilian forward Alexandre Pato and Belgian international Axel Witsel, have been chasing a star forward for months and were also linked with Aubameyang. But they settled on Modeste, who started in French football and had an unhappy spell in England at Blackburn Rovers before moving to Germany.

Leverkusen sign Bender from Dortmund 

Bayer Leverkusen is signing Sven Bender from Bundesliga rival Borussia Dortmund, reuniting the German midfielder with his twin brother Lars, who captains the club. Leverkusen says the 28-year-old Bender will sign a contract through June 2021 after undergoing a medical examination.

Bender played 158 Bundesliga games for Dortmund after joining from 1860 Munich - where his brother also played - in 2009. He won the Bundesliga with Dortmund in 2011 and 2012, as well as the German Cup in 2012 and 2017. Bender says he requested to leave in order to get more games. He made only eight appearances last season due to injury and competition for places.

Leverkusen did not give financial details. But Kicker magazine reports Leverkusen will pay around 15 million euros ($17 million) for the player, who has made seven appearances for Germany.