Newcastle United were credited with an interest in Bristol City’s Adam Webster earlier this month (as per TEAMtalk). However, according to Bristol Live, Newcastle will have to pay £30 million if they want to secure the services of the Englishman this summer. 

He was brought to Ashton Gate last summer from Ipswich (BBC), but in his 12 months at Ashton Gate, it looks like he’s done enough to convince a number of top-flight clubs of his credentials. Webster was statistically rated as the seventh best player in the Championship last campaign by football analytics site WhoScored.com (as per Bristol Live), so the Magpies’ interest doesn’t come as too much of a surprise.

According to the Bristol Live report, Lee Johnson’s side don’t want to let Webster leave this summer and have slapped the £30m price tag on him for that reason. Of course, he’s clearly a quality player as mentioned above, but at that kind of price it doesn’t make sense for Ashley to splash a large amount of his budget on a player who is yet to experience top-flight football. After all, signing Jacob Murphy from Norwich City back in 2017 for £12 million hasn’t exactly worked out as he’s produced just one goal and three assists in 41 appearances.

It was reported earlier in June by The Chronicle that Rafa Benitez would have just £60 million to spend this summer. Obviously, Benitez has now gone, but that figure may still stand, and should Webster be signed it would see the Geordies splash half of their budget on bolstering a position that they already have five players in.

The Guardian reported in May that one of the sticking points surrounding Rafa getting a new deal was the transfer policy, as Mike Ashley was reportedly unwilling to pay Salomon Rondon’s £16.5m release clause. Therefore, it would come as some surprise if he ends up paying £30 million for Webster after reportedly refusing to pay just over half of Webster’s price tag to sign Newcastle’s 2018-19 Player of the Season.

Mike Ashley broke Newcastle’s transfer record back in January to sign Miguel Almiron for £20m, BBC, after the previous record had stood since 2005. Almiron has struggled to settle since making the move having failed to register a single goal or assist in 10 Premier League appearances, so perhaps it would make sense for the Magpies to play it safe this window rather than spending big on another player from outside of the English top-flight.

Newcastle fans, do you believe the Webster rumours? Let us know!

Liverpool have reignited their interest in Iranian striker Sardar Zamoun.

Russian publication SovSport report that Liverpool scouts were in attendance for the Russian Super Cup to watch Azmoun play for Zenit Saint Petersburg, who scored twice in a 3-2 defeat against Lokomotiv Moscow.

The 24-year-old striker, once dubbed as ‘The Iranian Messi’ by the Metro in 2016 following rumours about a move to Everton, was crucial to Zenit’s Russian Premier League title win last season as the former Rostov attacker hit 13 goals and assisted another six in the league.

Azmoun is a player that is no stranger to Liverpool. Indeed, speaking to the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar via Four Four Two in 2017 the attacker admitted that he was in talks with the Merseyside club that January, however, he turned down a move to the Premier League giants due to a lack of first-team opportunities.

The attacker said: “There were talks of Liverpool having expressed an interest in me during the past winter transfer window. However, I did not feel the time to move was right. I would have ended up playing a few games and then spent a great deal of time on the bench as Liverpool were only looking to fill a void for a particular part of their season.”

It proved to be the right decision from Azmoun, as a couple of years later the striker earned a move to Zenit for a reported £10.5 million (as per Reuters) to play regularly (made 12 league appearances following his winter transfer) and win the Russian league title. Indeed, when you compare the Iranian with Daniel Sturridge and Divock Origi from last season from stats from WhoScored, it is understandable as to why he might be of interest.

Azmoun averaged more shots per game at 3.3 than both Sturridge and Origi, who managed only 1 and 1.1 in the league. The Zenit striker also averaged more dribbles per game at 0.7 to the Merseyside duo’s 0.3 and 0.5.

With Jurgen Klopp eyeing quality on the bench as per Goal this summer, Azmoun would be an improvement over the German’s options last season when it comes to testing the goalkeeper, and given the club’s previous links with the player, it is seemingly a deal that could really help the Reds.

Liverpool fans, would Azmoun be a good signing? Let us know!

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Tottenham Hotspur fans have told Christian Eriksen to leave the club.

Marca report that the Denmark international’s agent is set to meet with Real Madrid as he looks to discover whether or not the club will table a bid for the Denmark international.

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The report states that Paul Pogba, the Manchester United midfielder, remains Real’s top target this summer.

But Spurs are said to be happy to negotiate the possible exit of Eriksen this summer.

Marca claim that Los Blancos will wait for United’s decision on Pogba before pursuing a move, but the Spurs star is said to have already decided against renewing his contract in north London.

The 27-year-old’s current deal expires next summer, meaning he could potentially leave on a free then if no transfer is agreed this summer.

And fans have now urged the Dane to leave as Spurs look to refresh a squad that finished fourth in the Premier League and reached the Champions League final in 2018/19.

Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

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Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Moussa Sissoko has been quoted in The South China Morning Post claiming that his side deserved to win the 2019 Champions League final instead of Liverpool.

Neither Spurs nor Liverpool performed at their best in the final last month, but Jurgen Klopp’s side triumphed courtesy of goals from Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi.

Sissoko, though, has insisted that the Reds were fortunate to lift the trophy.

As expected, the midfielder’s words have brought a fairly strong reaction from the Liverpool fans on social media.

Indeed, after catching wind of the comments, a number of the club’s supporters responded to a Tottenham fan account poking fun at the capital outfit.

And it’s difficult to blame the Liverpool fans in this situation as the bragging rights are firmly in their grasp.

Sissoko should have known he was asking for trouble…

Check out James Milner’s, Olivier Grioud’s and Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s hilarious attempts at the bottle cap challenge in the video below…

A selection of the Twitter reaction from the Liverpool supporters, who have plenty to be happy about at the moment, can be seen below:

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Wolves’ pre-season preparations began in earnest on Wednesday lunchtime as they started where they left off in 2018/19.

The Midlands club were sensational last term after being promoted from the Championship, finishing in a Europa League place and they stated their intentions ahead of the new campaign with a 4-0 win over Newcastle in the Premier League Asia Trophy.

Nuno Santo’s men were essentially at full-strength besides the absent Matt Doherty and Raul Jimenez.

But throughout the match, the Wolves boss may have just solved a huge dilemma involving the latter already.

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On the chalkboard

It’s hard to look too much into pre-season matches but when you’re facing another Premier League outfit, it gives a better indication of what might play out in the top-flight over the next ten months.

Wolves’ start to pre-season will have come as a great comfort to their manager, especially with their first European qualifier looming next week.

It’s a quick turnaround for the black and gold but in Morgan Gibbs-White, they’ve solved a considerable dilemma after just one game.

Heading into the new season, loan enquiries had been made for the teenager but they were swiftly knocked with the notion that he’d be in the first-team picture again.

The 19-year-old struggled to make much of an impact last term, being subjected to just five league starts, claiming a solitary assist.

But with Jimenez not a part of the squad after his exploits in the Gold Cup for Mexico, Gibbs-White was afforded the opportunity to start in a more advanced role behind Diogo Jota.

Jimenez is unlikely to be able to play as big a part next season given the arduous campaign he endured in 2018/19, and there might have been fears over where the goals would come from aside from him and Jota.

In the video below, find out which former Chelsea star could be set to challenge Raul Jimenez as top dog at Wolves…

Indeed the Portuguese scored twice against Newcastle but Gibbs-White has now proven what he could do too, which may well just end the dilemma of whether Nuno can afford to rest Jimenez.

When the Mexican didn’t play last term, Wolves struggled, which was particularly evident in a 2-0 defeat against Burnley in March when the Mexico international started on the bench.

However, this was a Wolves side that didn’t look as though they missed their 17-goal forward, particularly because of how comfortable Jota and Gibbs-White looked going forward.

Although the club are just one game into pre-season, this should be seen as a major plus point.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…

Arthur Masuaku has signed a new contract at West Ham United.

The Hammers left-back has committed himself to another five years at the London Stadium after a season in which he emerged as the club’s go-to left-back.

He was not ever-present in the Premier League but he made a total of 23 appearances in the top-flight and played every minute of the club’s final five games; the Irons lost just one of those outings.

Masuaku is 25 and is approaching his peak, having enjoyed a superb season in 2018/19.

In his 23 outings, per WhoScored, Masuaku averaged 2.5 tackles per game. That’s exceptional for a player who has to combine attacking thrust with defensive assiduity.

Add to that his 1.6 interceptions per game and the picture looks a little clearer; the left-back is equally at home in possession as he is out of it.

Indeed, his 0.6 key passes per game does not appear all that impressive on the face of it but it suggests that he will be creating a goalscoring opportunity at least once every two games; no mean feat for a defender. His 1.6 dribbles per game is exceptional, too, as he routinely looks to carry the ball up the left flank.

Masuaku also averaged 38.3 passes per game at an accuracy of 83.3%, with 2.2 long balls included.

The DR Congo international makes 2.4 clearances per game and, while he could be better at winning the ball back – he is dribbled past 1.1 times in each match – this is a supremely talented defender.

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Indeed, sources at West Ham have confirmed that Manuel Pellegrini believes that Masuaku has all the talent required to be the club’s first-choice full-back for the next few seasons and is delighted he has penned new terms.

Having signed a new deal, one feels that Masuaku will only improve as his playing time continues to grow.

In 2019/20, he is likely to be placed ahead of Aaron Cresswell in the club’s pecking order and it makes sense; he was excellent last season and can surely pick up where he left off next term.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

Leicester are reportedly closing in on a £40m deal to bring back Youri Tielemans to the King Power according to The Telegraph.

What’s the word?

Up until now, Leicester’s transfer window had been fairly quiet, but they’ve now sparked into life.

Last week they added defender James Justin to their ranks whilst they’re also reportedly set to sign Ayoze Perez from Newcastle.

However, they could be on the verge of bringing back one of their star men from the second half of 2018/19.

The Telegraph suggest that Brendan Rodgers is finally closing in on a deal to bring 23-cap Tielemans to the King Power with a £40m fee potentially being paid to Monaco in order to land the young Monaco man.

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Game-changing for Leicester

Leicester haven’t been near the top-six since they remarkably won the league in 2015/16. However, by bringing back Tielemans, they could well find themselves challenging for European football once again.

When the Belgian arrived last term, he helped to revitalise the football club alongside Rodgers.

In ten games he played under the Northern Irishman, he lost just three times with one of those defeats coming against the might of Manchester City.

When Claude Puel was in charge, Leicester had struggled and sat 12th on 32 points after a 4-1 defeat against Crystal Palace.

Yet, under their new manager, they rallied and picked up another 20 points, finishing ninth and five points behind Wolves.

The latter would ultimately go onto claim a spot in Europe but by landing Tielemans, a player who was easily one of the best creative outlets in the league when he arrived, he could help them launch an assault on the top seven.

Could Daniel Sturridge be set to reunite with Brendan Rodgers? Check out the video below to find out…

This is a player who scored three goals and claimed four assists in just 13 appearances for the Foxes, appearing to be one of the few missing pieces of the jigsaw.

Leicester had capable scorers and creative outlets in Jamie Vardy and James Maddison who contributed to goals 36 between them.

But they were missing someone who could really drive the team forward from deep.

Their midfield was one dimensional with Wilfred Ndidi and Nampalys Mendy but Tielemans offered a different option that took the Foxes to the next level. He ended the season as their fourth-best player in terms of goal involvements despite only being there for half the season.

If he can sustain the same consistency as he showed during his loan spell, he could well lead a charge towards European football for Leicester if he signs permanently.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Southampton left it extremely late, but they did get a fourth arrival through the door on deadline day in the form of Augsburg centre-back Kevin Danso, even if it was only officially announced on Friday morning.

But how did their window rate as a whole?

Saints were quick off the blocks with the arrivals of Moussa Djenepo and Che Adams for £14m and £15m respectively before we had even entered July, and the duo look to be exactly what the south coast outfit needed after last season.

They are two powerful and pacy players that fit perfectly into the style Ralph Hasenhuttl likes to implement, pressing from the front.

With Nathan Redmond, Sofiane Boufal, Shane Long and Michael Obafemi also present, this team could be ones to watch on the counter attack especially in 2019/20.

While we may not see much of Djenepo straight away because of his exploits for Mali at the African Cup of Nations this summer, Adams has been on fire in pre-season – scoring all three of his goals from the starting XI before the 10-minute mark.

Danny Ings’ season-long loan move also became a permanent one on July 1, and it looked to have left plenty of time for Southampton to strengthen other areas of their squad, with The Telegraph reporting prior to Adams’ arrival that centre-back and wing-back were two positions they wanted to bolster.

They also managed to offload two individuals that never looked likely to make the grade under Hasenhuttl in Matt Targett and Sam Gallagher for decent money, too.

However, they also needed to offload more bodies before they could bring anyone else in at that stage, and The Telegraph reported that they were willing to listen to offers for the likes of Charlie Austin and Mario Lemina – both of whom were frozen out of the first-team schedule – as well as Guido Carrillo, Cedric Soares, Fraser Forster and Wesley Hoedt.

Amazingly, only Austin has departed from that list of names so far, and it wasn’t exactly met with many sad responses if these GIF reactions from fans were anything to go by. That deadline day exit left the south coast club scrambling around to get centre-back Danso through the door on a season-long loan with an exclusive option to buy – very shrewd indeed.

The 6 foot 3 20-year-old will add some much-needed speed to a backline that conceded 65 goals in 38 Premier League matches last term.

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Patience will be required too though, as he isn’t hugely experienced and almost certainly still has a lot to learn following his spell with the Bundesliga side.

Hasenhuttl has previously said that he would like to work with a squad of 22 players – including academy graduates coming through – and that total is far higher now even though the English transfer window has slammed shut.

In Cedric and Jake Vokins the Austrian appears to have decent full-back cover, but you have to think that the summer would have been even better if the club brought in some stiff competition for Oriol Romeu, in the form of a more mobile defensive midfielder.

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Nevertheless, Southampton look to have done what they needed to in the main part, but things could still get even better.

The signing of Danso looks to have pushed Hoedt down to sixth-choice centre-back, and it would be no surprise if he – along with Lemina, Carrillo and potentially Moi Elyounoussi – all left before the different European transfer windows close at the end of August or beginning of September.

Saints will hope that is the case anyway, and if they are permanent deals then that would be even better.

So, the window is a solid 7/10 as things stand for the south coast club, but that could potentially rise if they can offload some more of the players they don’t want in the next few weeks.

RATING: 7/10

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…

Aston Villa’s summer has got off to a pretty convincing start. Having signed Wesley from Club Brugge for a fee of £22m they’ve shown they’re not afraid to spend big this summer.

The Brazilian is still largely an unknown quantity at the highest level having played the majority of his career in Belgium to date, scoring 17 times in all competitions last season.

Having added Anwar El Ghazi to their ranks on a permanent basis and also bringing Jota to the club, improving in attacking areas seems to be a huge priority.

And with the club also pursuing Egyptian winger, Trezeguet, there is yet more evidence.

Last week, The Sun reported that they were ready to pay £8m for the 24-year-old but the BBC have since claimed that’s risen to £10m.

They reported that Dean Smith and Jesus Garcia Pitarch have been in Cairo to see him during the Africa Cup of Nations as they eye up a deal.

In the Turkish Super Lig last term, he was in phenomenal form, scoring nine times whilst also picking up the same number of assists.

Trezeguet is a potent goal threat and regularly finds himself in positions from which to shoot from, averaging four shots a game for Kasimpasa in 2018/19.

It’s an area, therefore, that he could prove devastating in if the club sign him this summer.

Of course the Turkish league is far below the standard of the Premier League but it’s still a particularly impressive return.

In one game last season, he had an incredible ten shots per game whilst he had a further seven in two matches.

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Considering the number of shots he does have per game he ought to be scoring more goals but the positives are that he’s getting into shooting positions in the first place.

His tally of four per game amounts to more than anyone in the Villa side last season from their promotion-winning Championship campaign.

Tammy Abraham had 2.9 per outing whilst John McGinn sat second on 2.5. Therefore, there is a considerable difference between Trezeguet and those who were playing for the Midlands outfit last season.

The Egyptian played on the left flank for his club last term, an area where Anwar El Ghazi averaged just 1.9 shots per game in comparison.

If he arrives this summer, the Dutchman could well find him a direct competitor for a place in the side.

أشاد الاتحاد الإفريقي لكرة القدم “كاف”، بأداء الأهلي في مباراة الأمس أمام بايرن ميونخ، في بطولة كأس العالم للأندية.

وتلاقى الفريقان في إطار منافسات نصف نهائي البطولة المُقامة حاليًا في قطر.

وفاز بايرن ميونخ بهدفين دون رد، حيث حصل على بطاقة التأهل إلى نهائي البطولة لمواجهة تيجريس أونال المكسيكي. أهداف مباراة الأهلي وبايرن ميونخ

وكتب الكاف عبر حسابه الرسمي بموقع “فيس بوك”: “أداء رائع من الأهلي ممثل القارة الإفريقية ضد بايرن ميونخ”.

وأضاف: “لقد جعلنا جميعًا فخورين، إلى المباراة التالية”.

A great performance from Africa’s #ClubWC representatives Al Ahly against Bayern. 👏 Made us all proud. On to the next game. 👊 Posted by Total CAF Champions League & Confederation Cup on Monday, February 8, 2021

يُذكر أن الأهلي سيواجه بالميراس البرازيلي الخميس المقبل، في مباراة تحديد المركز الثالث والرابع.