All posts by z3u9t.icu

Giovani Lo Celso was snubbed from Tottenham Hotspur’s starting XI once again at the weekend.

It would have been hardly a surprise considering that the Argentina midfielder only returned to this country a day before the trip to St James’ Park to face Newcastle United, but fellow countryman Cristian Romero started, as did Brazil international Emerson Royal.

All three had been on national team duties during the break and played as recently as Thursday and into the early hours of Friday, but it is rather telling that Nuno Santo trusted the latter two to start but not the attacking maestro.

Lo Celso has started just one of his four Premier League appearances, and in that game against Chelsea, he struggled to last much past the hour mark, whilst he did not even come off the bench on Sunday, thus highlighting his struggles under Nuno thus far.

His chances of earning a regular spot in the top-flight appear to be getting slimmer and slimmer, particularly after Tanguy Ndombele’s fine performance up in the northeast.

As explained by The Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick, the French midfielder ‘thrived’ in the 3-1 victory and earned the joint-highest rating in his post-game column.

‘Scored a sumptuous strike to drag Spurs back into the game and looked like a proper No.10. Full of nice touches, flicks and skills, including in the build-up to Son’s goal, and was livelier than usual out of possession,’ the reporter wrote.

This spells trouble for Lo Celso as he will now find it even harder to break into the side. That’s a worry for a £55m signing, one who has seen his value plummet since arriving from Real Betis in summer 2019.

Transfermarkt now value him at £19.8m, a shocking 64% decrease in the space of just two-and-a-half seasons. He’s just 25, so that fee should be ever-increasing as he heads towards the peak years of his career.

It’s even more disappointing when you consider the kind of praise he has received during his time in north London.

Harry Winks described him to The Guardian as a “technically gifted player” who is “not afraid to get stuck in”, whilst his former Spurs manager Jose Mourinho dubbed him “phenomenal.”

One figure who must be fuming with the situation is chairman Daniel Levy, as the signing is a mark of his credentials. Usually known as a tough negotiator, the Spurs supremo splashed out a joint club-record fee on a player who has failed to impress much at all in N17.

Indeed, the Argentina international has only contributed eight goals and five assists across 73 appearances, via Transfermarkt.

Levy has endured a nightmare so far with the signing of Lo Celso – the only positive is that the Argentine still has plenty of time to turn around his Spurs career, but whether or not he can very much remains to be seen.

AND in other news, Alasdair Gold drops exciting Spurs transfer claim ahead of January…

An update has emerged on Newcastle United and their interest in central defender Josko Gvardiol… 

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, the Magpies are set to consider a swoop for the Croatia international at the end of the season, although they are set to face stiff competition for him as a number of sides are keeping an eye on the defender.

RB Leipzig reportedly signed him for £13.5m (€16m) but it remains to be seen how much they would demand for his services this summer.

Van Dijk 2.0

Eddie Howe can find his own Virgil van Dijk by securing a deal to sign Gvardiol this summer as the young defender has the potential to become as good as the Premier League giant, according to someone who has watched him in his home country.

Germania Sport journalist Izak Ante Sucic recently told BBC Sport that he is “built like a tank” and went on to liken him to the Dutch Liverpool star.

He said: “In Croatia we like to compare him to Virgil van Dijk, because he’s built that way (6 foot 1). He’s one of his role models in football and he’s also mentioned Thiago Silva and Sergio Ramos – Ramos because he’s also one of those players who likes to score as many goals as he can.

“In my opinion, I think he can be as good as Virgil one day. When you see how he behaves on the field and off the field, he’s one of those guys where you’d say ‘he’s going to succeed’.”

His statistics in the Bundesliga back up these claims. He has averaged an excellent SofaScore rating of 7.12 across 25 appearances, making 3.3 tackles and interceptions per game whilst also completing 84% of his attempted passes for Leipzig – as per SofaScore.

Couple this with the fact that he only turned 20 in January and it shows that he has the potential to make his way right to the top. He is already performing to a high standard on a consistent basis in the German top-flight at such a young age and Sucic believes that he can get to van Dijk’s level.

This is why PIF must do everything in their power to ensure they can strike an agreement with Leipzig for Gvardiol this summer. Howe would then have the opportunity to work with the Croatian to help him fulfil his potential and compete amongst the best centre-backs in Europe.

AND in other news, Howe can unearth a new “outstanding” £20m gem in NUFC’s rarely-seen Darsley Park star…

Wayne Rooney’s Derby County side could be handed yet more transfer sanctions by the EFL.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to Alan Nixon’s report for The Sun, in which the journalist revealed that Derby could be handed a two-year transfer ban by the EFL – if the Rams do not settle their outstanding transfer debts.

Nixon continued by stating that these reported unpaid transfer fees are now late for a second time, with the governing body giving Mel Morris until the end of September in a final chance for the owner to settle the debts, or else the Championship club could be restricted from signing players until the summer of 2023.

Fans will be fuming

With Rooney already having to operate under strict EFL transfer guidelines this summer, with the 35-year-old having brought in five free agents on restricted wages, the news that the former England captain may now not be able to bring in any further new signings over the next two years is sure to have left fans of the club fuming.

Indeed, while the Rams boss has done an impressive job so far this season considering the testing off-field circumstances – with Derby picking up six points over their opening five fixtures of the Championship campaign, suffering defeat just once – should the club indeed be forbidden from bringing any fresh faces in over the next two seasons, the chances of Rooney’s side remaining in the second tier of English football by the end of the potential transfer ban would appear to be slim to none.

As such, the 35-year-old manager and fans of the club alike will undoubtedly be hoping that Morris can resolve the situation prior to the EFL’s deadline, or else the owner could well be consigning the club to relegation to the third tier come the end of the season.

In other news: £180k-rated Derby County flop who lost possession 22x let Rooney down badly vs Blades

Tottenham Hotspur have opened informal talks to sign Lyon midfielder Houssem Aouar as their recruitment drive continues [Sky Sports].

The Lowdown: Spurs start off 2021/22 in strong fashion under Nuno

Starting off 2021/22 with two consecutive Premier League wins, Spurs manager Nuno Espirito Santo will be positive about the chances of his side rising to the challenge of domestic and European competition this campaign.

New signings will be important to prospective success, with new arrivals Bryan Gil, Pierluigi Gollini and Cristian Romero already undertaking their debut bows for the Lilywhites.

Now, could Tottenham be set to welcome another exciting new recruit following recent reports?

The Latest: Tottenham open talks with Aouar’s representatives; Arsenal also keen

As per Sky Sports, Spurs are interested in 5 foot 9 maestro Aouar and have opened informal discussions with his representatives.

His preference however is to play UEFA Champions League football, but he is in no rush to make a final decision with two years on his deal at Lyon, perhaps leaving the door open for Spurs to bring him in if they qualify for the top four this time around.

Arsenal have also been linked with a move for the France international on a loan basis [METRO].

The Verdict: Aouar would be an astute piece of business by Spurs this summer

Providing creative intuition and still having considerable room to develop at the age of 23, Aouar would be a sensible piece of business by Tottenham Hotspur this summer.

In 2020/21, the Lyon-born man enjoyed a productive year, registering twelve goal contributions from 33 appearances; 8 goals and 4 assists [Transfermarkt].

Furthermore, his proficiency within his passing ability cannot be ignored. In Ligue 1 last term, Aouar managed to record a pass accuracy of 86% across the piece while creating over one chance per game [WhoScored].

Once labelled as ‘incredible’ by Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, Tottenham could do a lot worse than to sanction a deal to bring the playmaker to North London before the closure of the transfer window [Sky Sports].

In other news, Tottenham Hotspur are eyeing a move for a La Liga star. Find out who here.

An update has emerged on Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce, regarding his future at St. James’ Park…

What’s the talk?

Daily Mail journalist Craig Hope has dropped a fresh update on the future of the 60-year-old following PIF’s recent takeover of the club.

“Amanda Staveley says NUFC owners have [the] ambition to match superpowers like Man City & PSG.

“Also: Bruce set to be replaced, with owners ready to settle £8m payoff, Rodgers among names mentioned. Shearer/Keegan contacted with view to ambassadorial roles.” he tweeted.

Hope’s report claims that the new owners, who have taken over from Mike Ashley, are poised to relieve Bruce of his duties and pay him the £8m required to end his contract early, which would be an exceptional return from Your Bonus Code.

Delight

This development from Hope will surely leave Newcastle fans feeling delighted for more than one reason.

Firstly, it means that Bruce is set to leave Tyneside after a difficult spell in charge of the club, with the ex-Sunderland and Villa coach far from loved in some sections of the fanbase.

A recent survey by the Newcastle United Supporters Trust found that 94.3% of the fans wanted Bruce to resign as manager, with 95.3% of fans believing that the club will be relegated this season.

The latter statistic may change following the takeover and the potential change of manager, although NUST will need to produce another survey to accurately realise that prediction.

This suggests that fans will be delighted, in the main, that Bruce is on the verge of being sacked.

The owners are showing an immediate intent to make changes at St. James’ Park and their willingness to part ways with £8m within days of arriving to sack the 60-year-old is a signal of intent from a footballing and financial standpoint.

Supporters could also be buzzing with this news because of what it means post-Bruce.

Once his exit is confirmed, should this report prove to be accurate, then Newcastle will be in the market for a new head coach under an ambitious new regime and that could be an exciting prospect for fans to look forward to in the coming weeks.

Irrespective of who they get in to replace Bruce, the decision to let him go appears to be a shrewd one on paper. Newcastle are currently 19th in the Premier League and winless after seven matches, with Norwich – who have lost six of their seven games – the only team with fewer points than the Magpies.

No team has conceded more goals than Newcastle and this dreadful start to the campaign has shown no signs of getting better in recent matches. This, along with the feeling amongst the fanbase towards Bruce, is why this decision by PIF could be an excellent one.

AND in other news, “An early casualty”: Reliable journo drops NUFC takeover claim, fans will be ecstatic…

Steve Howey reckons striker Dwight Gayle has a massive opportunity to impress at Newcastle this season.

Gayle has been with Newcastle for five years since joining from Crystal Palace in 2016, but has scored just 34 goals in all competitions, with 23 of those coming in their Championship title-winning campaign in his debut season.

With Callum Wilson signing last summer, the 31-year-old was restricted to just four Premier League starts, with his only goal coming in his first league outing of the season against West Brom.

But with Andy Carroll now gone and Joelinton still struggling to justify the £40m price tag that Newcastle paid for him two years ago, Gayle could be given the chance to step up and fight for a regular starting place.

Gayle, who recently signed a three-year deal, was given plenty of game-time in pre-season and will be hoping his brace in Newcastle’s final friendly will have given Steve Bruce food for thought, despite missing out on the opening day defeat to West Ham.

Howey exclusively told Football FanCast:

“It’s a massive opportunity for Gayle. In the Championship he scores goals, and he did struggle last season, but there were the injuries and a lack of opportunities.

“When he did get the chance last season, he got the odd goal.”

Wesley Hoedt ‘probably would fit the bill’ as a Connor Goldson replacement at Rangers. 

That’s according to freelance journalist Pete O’Rourke, who was speaking to Give Me Sport.

The lowdown

Goldson is out of contract at the end of this season and Football Insider reported at the start of this month that, as per an Ibrox source, he had rejected the offer of a new deal in Glasgow. The former Brighton defender is apparently intent on testing himself in the Premier League once more.

Meanwhile, Hoedt permanently left Southampton in the summer to join Belgian outfit Anderlecht, having had loan spells at Celta Vigo, Royal Antwerp and Lazio. The 27-year-old penned a four-year contract and is valued at £3.6m by Transfermarkt.

The Dutchman has been named as a target for the Gers by the Daily Record (as relayed by Ibrox News) ahead of the winter transfer window.

The latest

O’Rourke has claimed that the Gers will be putting together a shortlist of centre-backs who they could pursue if Goldson leaves, and Hoedt may be among those lined up.

The journalist told Give Me Sport: “I’m sure they are drawing up potential replacements for Goldson, and I think Hoedt probably would fit the bill.”

The verdict

Hoedt has experience of some of Europe’s top leagues, having made 65 Serie A appearances and played 41 times in the Premier League during his career. He has also been capped six times by Netherlands, although his last international outing was in March 2017.

While Southampton ultimately decided to offload him, he won some plaudits for his displays in England. For example, Liverpool’s hugely successful manager Jurgen Klopp hailed him as a ‘really, really good player’.

For a reasonable fee at the age of 27, he could be a smart pick-up by Rangers, especially if Goldson flies the coop next year.

In other news, some Rangers fans ripped into this player against St Mirren

Newcastle United are expected to have an explosive transfer window this summer, with new owners committed to improving the club’s Premier League form, and now it is reported that they have wasted no time in making a bid for a new player this summer.

What’s the word?

According to French news outlet Foot Mercato, Newcastle have made their first move by bidding around €60m (£50m) to sign hot prospect Darwin Nunez.

The North-East club are competing with a number of Premier League sides for the signature of the Benfica star, with Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool all also reportedly plotting moves for the 22-year-old.

Huge coup for Newcastle

Following their bid, if Newcastle United were able to secure the signing of the star striker over their competitors it would be a huge coup for the club going into next season.

The centre-forward – who is believed to be valued at £83m and has been hailed a “diamond” by Steve McManaman – has been drawing attention to himself this season, scoring 32 goals in all competitions – with 24 goals in 24 games in the league and six huge Champions League goals that guided Benfica to giant killings in the prestigious European competition.

Nunez scored two goals against Barcelona in the group stages, with Benfica taking four points from both games that ultimately led to the LaLiga giants falling into the Europa League, with the striker also bagging against Bayern Munich in the group.

The 22-year-old’s fourth goal in the competition knocked Ajax out in the second leg of their round of 16 clash, however, despite netting two impressive goals against Liverpool over the two legs in the quarter-finals, it wasn’t enough to progress the Portuguese side further – who crashed out of the Champions League at Anfield this week.

A goal-scorer of this calibre exactly fits the profile of what Newcastle need to take them to the next level in 2022/23, with Callum Wilson unable to fulfil the striker role successfully following a series of injuries since he joined the club in 2020, so the signing of Nunez would be an incredible upgrade.

Howe will have a lot of work to do this summer to identify players that can make a difference in the team to ensure they don’t find themselves in another relegation battle next season, and with the backing from the new owners, there’s no doubt that Newcastle will be able to attract a number of great prospects for the team going forward.

AND In other news: NUFC handed big injury boost as major Darsley Park update emerges, Howe surely buzzing

A fresh update has emerged on Villarreal boss Unai Emery, regarding a potential move to Newcastle this week.

What’s the talk?

talkSPORT journalist Alex Crook has claimed that the Spanish club are now confident of the ex-Arsenal man staying in Spain amidst the speculation over his future. He has, however, added that there are more twists to come in the story.

He wrote: “Villarreal now confident Emery will turn down NUFC few more twists in this one…”

Intrigue

This update from Crook will initially leave fans feeling confused about the whole situation in Tyneside.

Daily Mail journalist Craig Hope claimed that Emery told Newcastle he wanted the job on Tuesday before Guillem Balague then reported that he was now set to reject the club after his team’s 2-0 win over Young Boys in the Champions League last night.

However, Crook now states that Villarreal believe Emery will remain with the La Liga club, but with more twists to come, it suggests that a deal is not dead yet. With that in mind, supporters will undoubtedly be intrigued with the glimmer of hope that’s still left in any potential move for the Spanish coach.

With the Magpies already six points adrift of safety after ten games, with zero wins and six losses in the top-flight as it stands. Graeme Jones has been the caretaker manager for two games since Steve Bruce’s departure and picked up one point, from a 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace, in that time.

As a result, there is a lack of cohesion and belief on the pitch and that appears to be the case off the field as well as Newcastle struggle to get a deal for Emery over the line. However, with his continental pedigree and experience of spending big with PSG in mind, eventually hiring him would no doubt have supporters over the moon.

Hopefully, PIF are able to strike a balance and work things out, whether that be convincing Emery to make the switch or by securing another top manager to come in and steady the ship. They then have the January transfer window to flex their financial muscle to bolster the playing squad in order to help them avoid relegation. At the moment, this is a particularly intriguing set of events. How it ends is anyone’s guess but the Toon Army will surely be lusting after Emery.

Disclaimer: Since time of publishing, Emery has since confirmed he will be remaining at Villarreal.

AND in other news, “Emery will..” – Journalist delivers crushing Newcastle update that’ll worry fans…

Tottenham Hotspur ‘insider’ John Wenham expects the club to ‘get rid’ of Matt Doherty during the summer transfer window. 

The lowdown

Spurs paid £15.1million to sign Doherty from Wolverhampton Wanderers ahead of the 2020/21 season.

The wing-back penned a four-year, £65,400-per-week contract on his arrival in North London.

Doherty was enjoying an extended run in the side under Antonio Conte, starting seven consecutive Premier League matches before sustaining a season-ending knee injury earlier this month.

The Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick said the 30-year-old had been in ‘resurgent’ form, The Athletic’s Charlie Eccleshare called the injury a ‘big’ blow, and Conte himself confessed it is ‘really bad news’.

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The latest

Speaking to Football Insider, Wenham predicted that Spurs will sell Doherty, whom he believes is ‘out of his depth’.

“I would still get rid of him and I think we will,” he said.

“I’m basing this on the game against Man United. He was in a run of good form and as soon as he came up against someone at a decent level he couldn’t handle it.

“We want to go back to the Champions League next season, that’s the level we need to be at.

“He wasn’t good enough for that, he was out of his depth. I think he will be moved on.

“Hopefully this run of form has done well to increase his price. There is an argument for him staying as backup but I just don’t think he’s good enough for where this club wants to be.”

The verdict

It’s true that Doherty did play in some kinder fixtures prior to his injury.

Spurs’ run included games against Leeds United, Everton, Newcastle United and Aston Villa, all of whom currently sit in the league’s bottom seven.

But is Wenham’s assessment of Doherty’s performance in the 3-2 defeat against Manchester United fair?

Well, on the one hand, he won a respectable four out of seven duels and completed 31 of the 36 passes he attempted (via SofaScore).

But on the other, it’s fair to say his offensive impact was limited, given that the Irishman failed to create a chance or find a team-mate with any of his three crosses.

In other news, an Italian transfer report raises the prospect of an Antonio Conte reunion at THFC.