All posts by z3u9t.icu

Rangers travel to the Czech Republic on Thursday as they come up against Sparta Prague in the Europa League group stages.

Steven Gerrard’s side are currently on zero points in their group after they lost 2-0 to Lyon at Ibrox in their opening match.

With the Gers attempting to win their first match in the group, Gerrard could make some changes to his XI to freshen the side up and give his team the best chance of winning.

One player who he must unleash on Sparta Prague is summer signing Fashion Sakala, who was on the bench against Dundee FC at the weekend.

Gerrard must select Sakala from the start and change the formation from the win over Dundee. Ianis Hagi started behind Alfredo Morelos and Kemar Roofe, but bringing Sakala in could allow Rangers to go with a 4-3-3 and play him and Roofe either side of Morelos in an attacking trident.

Hagi struggled against Dundee, with a 6.6 SofaScore rating, and Sakala coming in for him could be a shrewd call from the manager. Sakala has the potential to be a game-changer for the Gers, whilst his versatility also means that he can be used in a variety of ways.

Gers chief Ross Wilson hailed the beast as a determined player, citing his pace and power as two of his biggest strengths. He said:

“Fashion has had an excellent season in Belgium and we believe he will develop further still working with all of our staff at the training ground. Fashion is a determined, humble and positive guy and we are sure he will fit the group here.

“We wanted to add more pace and power to the group across January and the summer and I am pleased that we have done that, firstly with Scott Wright and now with Fashion Sakala. I know Steven and the coaches are excited to work with Fashion and I am sure that he will further enhance his growing reputation here with Rangers.“

He scored 16 goals for Oostende in Belgium last term and has scored once in two Scottish Premiership starts for Rangers. This shows that he has the quality to score goals on a regular basis, which means that he has the ability to be a game-changer for the Gers.

If he starts against Sparta, he could make a telling contribution in front of goal to win Rangers the game or earn them a point. That is why Gerrard must unleash him from the start against the Czech side, to give him the opportunity to prove his worth.

AND in other news, Wilson must secure Rangers January deal for “natural goalscorer”, fans would love it…

Celtic could actually pocket up to £20m in the deal that took Odsonne Edouard to Crystal Palace on deadline day, according to Football Insider.

The Lowdown: Sky Sports claim

Edouard finally sealed a Parkhead exit he has been working on since April with hours remaining of the window, signing a four-year deal at Selhurst Park.

The Hoops brought in a striker of their own in Georgios Giakoumakis from VVV-Venlo.

Sky Sports claimed that a transfer for Edouard cost Patrick Vieira’s side an initial £14m that could rise to £18.5m. However, it seems as if it could be more than that, which is good news for Dominic McKay and Ange Postecoglou.

The Latest: Source shares Wednesday update

Football Insider shared a story on Wednesday after being informed by a Celtic source.

They suggested that a move for Edouard has actually cost Palace £15m which could end up totalling £20m with various add-ons.

The report adds that Celtic will now have to hand Paris Saint-Germain 30% of profits made on Edouard.

The Verdict: A good window

Celtic have brought in 12 summer signings and have come out with a profit, as per Transfermarkt.

The site suggests that the Hoops have forked out just over £20m on incomings and have received £31.59m in departures over recent months.

It seems as if that figure could well rise in the future with add-ons for Edouard, so overall, it appears to have been a productive window for McKay and co, rebuilding a squad in desperate need of a freshen-up with money to spare.

In other news: Deadline day activity away from Celtic means two of McKay’s signings cost effectively nothing.

Tottenham Hotspur are set to compete with Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain for the prospective free transfer of AC Milan’s Franck Kessie in January, according to Gazzetta dello Sport (via Tuttomercatoweb), and the trio of suitors may have been given some encouragement following recent developments. 

The Lowdown: Contract problems 

Since his permanent move to AC Milan in 2019 following a two-year loan spell, Kessie has been linked with a move to top clubs across Europe. 

The 24-year-old, who has made 44 appearances for the Ivory Coast national team, hasn’t appeared for the Serie A side since his brace earned all three points at the end of May against Atalanta.  He is yet to feature for Stefano Pioli’s side this season after helping his nation to the quarter-finals of the Olympic Games in Tokyo during the summer. 

With his contract running out next summer, the interest in Kessie is set to increase during the upcoming 12 months. 

The Latest: Contract roadblock

According to Gazzetta dello Sport (via Tuttomercatoweb), Kessie has rejected a contract extension from Milan worth €6.5m (£5.57m) a year. 

The Italian newspaper reported that the midfielder wants €8m (£6.86m) a year plus €2m (£1.7m) in bonuses, and Spurs are said to be keen on the midfielder, who scored 13 goals in 37 league appearances for the Rossoneri last season. 

Milan will be fearful of losing one of their key players for nothing like they did with Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG) and Hakan Calhanoglu (Inter). 

Kessie claimed in July that he wanted to stay at Milan ‘forever’ but has now rejected a new deal with the club.

The Verdict: Perfect Box-to-Box 

Kessie’s quality has been clear to see since he arrived at the San Siro. Last season he carried an 89% pass completion per match whilst making 2.07 blocks per game. 

Spurs currently have a couple of gifted centre-midfielders in Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Oliver Skipp, but with doubts having circulated over Tanguy Ndombele’s future, the arrival of Kessie would be an added bonus to Nuno Espirito Santo’s squad. 

Former Milan striker Antonio Cassano even lauded the midfielder as “intelligent” and “devastating” earlier in the year during one of the best seasons of his career, and we will have to see whether the Lilywhites can beat the pulling power of PSG or Liverpool next summer. 

In other news: Many Spurs fans have been raving about one of their summer signings – find out more here.

Sunderland have completed a deal for Tottenham Hotspur left-back Dennis Cirkin on a three-year contract.

Enjoying a productive 2020/21 campaign, the Dublin-born left-back registered two assists in 14 appearances for the Spurs Under-23’s set up [Transfermarkt].

Now, he has made a surprise move to the North-East following recent developments.

Regarded as a coup for Lee Johnson’s men, highly-rated Cirkin joins Sunderland for an undisclosed fee and is rumoured to be ready to be involved in the Black Cats’ trip to Milton Keynes Dons this coming Saturday [Shields Gazette].

Positional counterpart Denver Hume’s future at Sunderland is now said to be unclear, owing to the move.

In light of this new signing, no wonder loads of Sunderland fans took to social media to voice their delight.

Sunderland AFC fans react:

Replying to the official Sunderland AFC Twitter account, here is how some supporters reacted to the transfer:

“THANK GOD”

Credit: @KINGMAGUIRE_

“singing of the summer”

Credit: @jpsleightholme1

“Sensible transfer recruitment this summer, things you love to see”

Credit: @Charlie9129″Get in, from reading spurs fans opinions on this lad we’ve got a cracking left back here. Welcome to Sunderland”Credit: @artlowy8″Sounds like a very promising signing! Welcome to the mad house”Credit: @mattymule”Welcome to Sunderland. All the best for the season ahead.”Credit: @sparkymarc23In other news, Sunderland fans rage over a ticketing update.

A prediction has been made by Noel Whelan regarding when he thinks the Newcastle United takeover process may be concluded.

The Lowdown: Arbitration adjourned

As shared by the official website of the St. James’ Park faithful, the arbitration hearing between themselves and the Premier League has now been adjourned until early 2022 because of issues with the disclosure of evidence.

The hearing was expected to take place this month, but now further delays have been implemented, leaving things in limbo for the foreseeable future.

The Latest: Whelan on takeover process

Whelan, a pundit who played as a striker for the likes of Leeds United and Coventry City, has since given his thoughts on the takeover process to Football Insider, claiming that he cannot see it being concluded even next year, leaving a question over just how long it will take:

“I think it’s been a farce ever since it first started, to be quite honest with you.

“This doesn’t surprise me that they don’t want to disclose any kind of findings. They’re going to drag it on as much as they possibly can.

“It’s not good for Newcastle because they want this takeover done. They want the takeover done because it’s going to improve and bring more money into the football club.

“It’ll strengthen their squad and position in the Premier League.

“You can never see this one settling very quickly because there’s two strong personalities at either end of this: Mike Ashley and the Premier League.

“The Premier League will need to make sure they’ve got all their documents in order, as will Mike Ashley.

“The process is going to drag on. I probably can’t see it getting concluded in 2022 either.”

The Verdict: Worrying

These are certainly worrying times for the Toon Army, as they go into yet another season with uncertainty surrounding the North East club.

Even though the arbitration hearing is now set to take place next year, there is a chance that it could be delayed even further as it has done already.

If Whelan’s prediction that the process may not even be concluded before 2022 is right, then a serious question has to be asked over how long the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium will be willing to wait and ultimately, whether a takeover on Tyneside will ever be completed.

In other news, find out which £50,000-per-week target is attracted to a Magpies move here!

An update has emerged on Juventus midfielder Aaron Ramsey, regarding Newcastle’s interest in his services.

What’s the talk?

According to Goal, Newcastle have made an enquiry about Juventus central midfielder Aaron Ramsey, although talks remain informal at this stage.

The report claims that there are several clubs in the Premier League who are also interested in signing him, with his time in Italy seemingly coming to an end.

Upgrade on Almiron

Newcastle must push ahead and secure a deal for Ramsey as he could be a superb addition to the squad. Steve Bruce will surely want to improve his starting XI before the end of the window and this potential signing could do that.

Miguel Almiron started 16 Premier League games as either a central midfielder or attacking midfielder and managed two goals and zero assists whilst averaging a WhoScored rating of 6.61 in 12 of those starts in central midfield. This comes after he scored four and assisted two goals in his first 44 starts for the club in the league.

Ramsey, meanwhile, averaged a WhoScored rating of 6.87 in seven starts as a central midfielder and 7.00 as an attacking midfielder in four games for Juventus in the Serie A – scoring twice and assisting four goals in the league overall.

Whilst it is hard to compare the difference in quality between the Serie A and Premier League, Ramsey has also played in the latter. In his final two seasons for Arsenal, The Welshman provided 11 goals and 14 assists whilst averaging a WhoScored rating of 7.27 in 2017/18 and 6.70 in 2018/19 respectively.

Arsenal legend Martin Keown once lavished praise on the “outstanding technician” and highlighted his importance for the Gunners at the time. 

He said:

“Playing in a deeper role, as he did under Arsene Wenger – I think that’s the best role for him. If you want Ozil and him in the same team. He’s so important to everything they do. It’s the energy – the box-to-box energy. He’s become an outstanding technician.”

This, along with the aforementioned statistics, suggest that the £187k-per-week maestro could be a better option than Almiron if Bruce wants to persist with a three-man midfield. Ramsey has shown that he can perform consistently to a higher standard than Almiron.

Therefore, Mike Ashley should work hard to get this deal over the line. Ramsey’s late runs into the box to score goals could add another weapon to Bruce’s spide and increase the chances of Newcastle avoiding a relegation battle next season.

AND in other news, Imagine him and Wilson: NUFC could complete attack with deal for “real goalscorer”…

Leicester City have been linked with a move for Barcelona youngster Ilaix Moriba, with the La Liga giants fearing he could leave on a free transfer next summer.

What’s the story?

The highly-rated 18-year-old has entered the final year of his current contract with his boyhood club and has so far been unable to reach an agreement over fresh terms.

As a result, Barca are thought to be open to Moriba’s departure after being forced to train with the reserves, and several Premier League clubs are believed to have been in contact with the player’s representatives, according to 90min.

The report claims that England’s traditional ‘Big Six’ have been offered the teenager’s services, along with Leicester, West Ham United, Everton and Wolves.

Leicester City fans will be buzzing

The £22.5m-rated Moriba burst onto the scene for Barca last season, scoring one goal and providing three assists in 18 appearances for Ronald Koeman’s charges.

As per WhoScored, he recorded an average of 0.9 shots per league game in 2020/21, 0.5 key passes and 1.2 dribbles, highlighting his considerable contribution to Barca’s play.

It was hoped that the 6ft maestro would become a pivotal part of the Catalan club’s new era, but his imminent exit is now looking inevitable.

The news of Moriba’s availability will surely have a large section of Leicester fans buzzing. The Midlands outfit have largely built their recent success off the back of buying promising youngsters for low fees before developing them and selling them on for astronomical profit.

Stars such as N’Golo Kante, Riyad Mahrez and Harry Maguire have all come and gone after gracing the King Power Stadium with their considerable talent, allowing the club to reinvest the proceeds of their sales into the playing squad and a new training ground.

And bringing in Moriba would fit perfectly with that management style. The Spain Under-18 international has established himself as one of the most promising central midfielders in the European game and looks destined for a glittering career.

Whether Leicester act on his attainability only time will tell, but manager Brendan Rodgers would surely be delighted at the opportunity to work with such a talented young player. The Leicester boss must act now.

And, in other news…Bye-bye Maddison: Leicester must get “phenomenal” £27m-rated gem with “magical powers” 

Newcastle United’s progress on incomings has ‘slowed further’, according to The Athletic’s Chris Waugh.

The lowdown

Newcastle, who managed to finish 12th in last season’s Premier League after previously flirting with relegation, want to bring in ‘four or five players’ this summer.

Bringing Joe Willock back to St James’ Park following his successful loan spell is said to be their priority, and another midfielder could also be on the list, along with a centre-back and a back-up for Callum Wilson (The Athletic).

However, Steve Bruce is working within an ‘extremely limited’ budget and will be forced to take a ‘box-clever approach’.

With less than a month to go until the new season starts, Newcastle have yet to sign a senior player. They reportedly considered a move for West Bromwich Albion’s Kyle Bartley, who was valued at £3m, before pulling the plug.

The latest

Waugh noted on Twitter that there’s ‘no (incoming) transfer progress’ to report at St James’ Park.

While Newcastle’s business is normally conducted at a ‘glacial pace’, communication from the club has grown ‘ever more conspicuous by its absence’ with the club struggling to make headway. (The Athletic)

The verdict

It should be stressed that, while the start of the season is creeping closer, the transfer window runs until 31 August. Newcastle still have time to get their transfer affairs in order and you’d like to think they’ll pick up the pace at some point.

However, in the circumstances, the additions are unlikely to be transformative. The realistic goal for 2021/22 will be not to drop further down the table, this time keeping a healthy distance between themselves and relegation trouble.

Still, you’d imagine that another loan agreement for Willock – which they’re ‘confident’ of reaching – would significantly improve the mood on Tyneside in the short term, especially amid continuing uncertainty regarding the proposed takeover.

In other news, could this defender be a realistic option for Newcastle?

Leeds United are closing in on a deal to bring Nahitan Nandez to Elland Road this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Italian publication Corriere dello Sport (via Sport Witness), who claim that Marcelo Bielsa’s side are very close to completing a deal for the Cagliari Calcio central midfielder, with the Whites having only a few details to sort out before the 25-year-old makes a move to the Premier League club.

The report goes on to state that, despite both Inter Milan and ACF Fiorentina believed to be keen on the Uruguay international, neither side have made a concrete offer for Nandez, leaving Leeds with something of a clear run at the £19.8m-rated man, who is thought to have a €36m (£31m) release clause in his Cagliari contract.

Bielsa will be buzzing

Considering just how impressive Nandez was for Cagliari last season, in addition to how important the midfielder has been for Uruguay at this summer’s Copa America, the news that Leeds appear close to getting a deal over the line for the 25-year-old is sure to have left Bielsa buzzing.

Indeed, over his 32 Serie A appearances for Leonardo Semplici’s side last term, the industrious midfielder made an average of 0.7 interceptions, 1.8 tackles, 1.5 clearances and won 6.1 duels per game.

The £42k-per-week man also impressed for his side in an attacking capacity, scoring two goals, registering two assists and creating four big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of one key pass per league fixture.

These returns saw Nandez earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.80, ranking him as Cagliari’s 11th-best performer in the Italian top flight, playing a huge role in ensuring the Sardinian side retained their status as a Serie A team.

The 25-year-old has also featured in every game for Oscar Tabarez’s Uruguay side at the Copa America this summer, making an average of 1.7 tackles and winning an average of 5.7 duels over his three appearances in the competition, averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.77, helping his side progress to the knockout stages with one group game to spare.

Aside from his impressive displays for club and country, another reason as to why Nandez would be a smart signing for Leeds is the fact that Bielsa currently has no real backup for Kalvin Phillips in the middle of the park, an issue which must be addressed this summer if the Whites wish to push on from their impressive ninth-place finish last season.

As such, if Leeds are indeed close to getting a deal over the line for the man whom Serie A expert Conor Clancy dubbed a “powerful” midfielder and a “machine” this summer, he would appear to be a brilliant first signing of the window for Victor Orta to bring into the club.

In other news: Leeds could strike gold with powerful £17m-rated beast tipped to be “one of the best”

Noel Whelan has given his reaction to Everton reportedly holding talks over a move for Ben White in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: White talks

As per The Daily Mail, the Goodison Park faithful have held talks with Brighton and Hove Albion over a deal worth up to £55m for White.

The proposal reportedly trumps the £46m offer made by Arsenal, Graham Potter’s team are looking to hold out for £50m+ to sell the central defender.

The Latest: Whelan reacts

Whelan, a pundit and former Leeds United striker who watched White play at Elland Road when he was on loan there in the 2019/20 season, has since given his reaction to the news to Football Insider, claiming that White would be a great signing for the Merseyside club:

“Yeah, absolutely huge.

“He’s one of those natural, modern-day centre-halves that covers everything. He’s got pace, he’s good in the air, he’s great on the ball and with the ball at his feet.

“He can play into that defensive midfield role as well. We keep saying adapting to different roles and that’s why Gareth Southgate has him. It’s not just as a centre-half.

“It doesn’t surprise me. Everton know how important it is to have these British players as well in their side. Definitely, Rafa Benitez will.

“Whoever gets him is getting an absolutely amazing, long-term centre-half. I’m sure he’ll be in the England setup for many, many years.”

The Verdict: Sign now!

With the Gunners still lurking, the Toffees must act now if they are serious about securing White’s signature.

A player that is so versatile, the central defender is equally as comfortable playing at right-back in addition to the defensive-midfield position, which is such a good quality to have with another long season ahead.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/everton-updates-4/” title=”Everton updates! (4)” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

His call-up to the England squad for Euro 2020 by Gareth Southgate shows just how much progression he has made and what an impressive campaign he has just had, and at just 23 years of age, White could be the starting centre-back at the Blues for years to come.

In other news, find out what Fabrizio Romano transfer update has Evertonians fuming here!