All posts by z3u9t.icu

Glasgow Rangers have been dealt a fresh setback in their bid to bring John Souttar to Ibrox in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by the Daily Record, which relayed a claim made by Hearts manager Robbie Neilson stating that it would take a “crazy bid” for his club to part ways with the centre-back this month.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side recently won the race to sign the 25-year-old on a pre-contract deal, beating the likes of Sheffield United and Blackburn to the defender’s signature for a free transfer at the end of the season, although it is reported that Ross Wilson is now weighing up an offer to bring the Scotland international to Glasgow in the current window.

However, in a recent statement, Hearts backed up their manager’s claim that they are firmly against letting Souttar leave Tynecastle in January, with the club announcing: “The club reiterates that John is an important member of the squad and will remain so until the end of the season unless a significant and satisfactory offer is made during the January transfer window.”

Van Bronckhorst will be fuming

Considering just how impressive Souttar has been for Hearts so far this season, in addition to the fact that Van Bronckhorst is currently experiencing issues in the heart of his defence – with Leon Balogun and Filip Helander out injured and Connor Goldson being free to discuss a move away from the club – the news that the Jam Tarts look set to play hardball over sanctioning the 25-year-old’s departure this month with have left the Dutchman fuming.

Indeed, over his 18 Premiership appearances in the current campaign, the £900k-rated defender has been in remarkable form, helping his side to keep five clean sheets, scoring three goals and creating three big chances for his teammates, as well as taking 1.1 shots and making 0.5 key passes per game.

The £3.1k-per-week centre-back has also impressed in metrics more typical of his position, making 1.5 interceptions, 0.8 tackles, 4.4 clearances and 44.9 passes and winning 71% of his duels per match.

These returns have seen the Scotland defender average an astonishing SofaScore match rating of 7.43, not only ranking him as Neilson’s best performer in the league, but also as the fifth-best player in the entire division.

As such, it is clear to see that bringing Souttar to Ibrox this month would undoubtedly provide Rangers’ chances of going on to secure a second Premiership title in two years with a considerable boost.

However, following the latest update from Tynecastle, it would appear as if Wilson has a lot of work to do if he is to get a deal over the line for the 25-year-old in the current window, while missing out on the centre-back in January would certainly come as a blow to Van Bronckhorst and his side.

In other news – Negotiations ongoing: Report delivers huge update on Rangers dud which will delight fans

Many Wolves fans have been blasting the performance of Romain Saiss in their 2-0 loss at Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday.

The defender was guilty of not pushing up for the first goal that they conceded, keeping Wilfried Zaha onside, and Conor Gallagher later added a second with just over 10 minutes to go to pile on his misery.

Saiss lost out on five of his duels and failed to block any shots, while he was also guilty of losing possession of the ball on 14 different occasions at Selhurst Park, the joint-third most of anyone in the visitors’ line-up (SofaScore).

Furthermore, the Morocco international will be wary that Willy Boly is now breathing down his neck for a starting place, returning to the bench for the last two games after a training ground injury in October.

Wolves fans on Saiss’ display

These Wolves fans on Twitter blasted Saiss’ performance against Palace, with one supporter even going as far as to claim that the Moroccan was a ‘liability’:

“Sell Coady and Saiss”

Credit: @fatchav

“Go back to attacking football, bin Coady and Saiss, bring back Boly to play with Kilman in a back four, and put another attacking midfield option in to play in a free role behind Raul”

Credit: @HUGEWolf

“Saiss. Go. Please. Just go”

Credit: @JoeJose84

“Coady and Saiss literally keeping Zaha onside but not marking anyone, so Coady and Saiss’ positioning were useless”

Credit: @Wolvoryan04

“Sorry, but Saiss is a liability at times. We’ve got to up the quality in these defensive positions”

Credit: @inlandtaipan1

“Coady and Saiss, dumb and dumber at it again man”

Credit: @P0DENCE

In other news, find out whose display against Palace was also slammed by numerous Wolves fans

Simon Zekaria has dropped a controversial reveal involving beIN Sports and the potential takeover of Newcastle United.

The Lowdown: CAT revelations

The Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) hearing between the Tyneside club and the Premier League over the stalled takeover deal with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) group finally got underway on Wednesday morning.

As cited by The Daily Telegraph, the St James’ Park club were quite astonishingly threatened with expulsion from the top flight, and their separate arbitration case against the division will now take place on 3 January 2022.

The Latest: Zekaria on beIN

Journalist Zekaria has now revealed that St James Holdings Ltd (SJHL), the company owned by Mike Ashley who bought the CAT claim, have alleged that beIN Sports pressurised the Premier League to block the proposed takeover on Tyneside while discussing a three-year broadcasting rights deal to 2025.

He said: “I have learnt that SJHL’s competition claim alleges that beIN Sports pressurised the PL to block the sale of @NUFC while negotiating a three-year broadcasting rights deal to 2025.”

The Verdict: Controversial

Given that the KSA’s issue with piracy and the illegal streaming of games in the Premier League was reportedly suggested to be key in the delay of the takeover, it is not a surprise to hear that Qatari broadcaster beIN allegedly pressurised the top flight to block the sale.

However, it does not make it any less controversial, as decisions on the takeover should not be influenced by outside parties.

It will no doubt be interesting to see what the arbitration proceedings bring in terms of the direction of where the takeover bid is now heading.

In other news, one Newcastle player’s performance against Wolves has come in for criticism

Following on from their narrow 1-0 win over Wolves in their latest Premier League outing, Liverpool are back in Champions League action this evening with their away group clash against AC Milan.

On the chalkboard

With Liverpool having already qualified to the next stage of the tournament after their 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid back in early November, Reds manager Jurgen Klopp has the opportunity to rest and rotate some of his players on this occasion as he did by playing the likes of Neco Williams and Tyler Morton in their previous Champions League match against FC Porto.

On this occasion, one player that had a short but rather important cameo appearance in the recent win at Molineux that should be in the starting XI in midweek is Divock Origi.

With 22 minutes of the clash left to play against Bruno Lage’s side at the weekend, Klopp rolled the dice and put the Belgian on who then managed to fully repay the faith put in him by Klopp by scoring the winner.

The Belgian has previously shown his knack for bagging from the bench when he netted a consolation goal in their 3-2 defeat against West Ham United earlier in the season.

With this in mind, it would be a nice move by Klopp to give Origi the chance to shine from the start of the match against their Italian opponents tonight ahead of Diogo Jota, who should be rested ahead of Liverpool’s next league game against Aston Villa at the weekend.

Labelled as an “outstanding player” with “incredible” finishing abilities by Klopp after the Wolves game, the 26-year-old, who is currently earning a weekly wage of £82k-per-week according to Salary Sport, has scored 39 goals and provided 16 assists in 166 appearances across all competitions.

Looking ahead to the match in Milan, this match could be a great opportunity for Origi to show that he is more than just an impact player from the substitutes bench and has what it takes to put in a solid performance from the start.

If he does start this evening and manages to deliver an impressive display, there’s every chance that he could give himself a shot of starting their game against Villa as well.

In other news: Edwards must seal LFC swoop for £43m gem who Klopp dubbed “one of the biggest talents” – opinion

Rangers are one of the teams keen on signing Wigan Athletic wonderkid Kyle Joseph, according to reports.

What’s the word?

Joseph, 19, is highly rated south of the border and has caught the attention of several unnamed clubs across Europe, including Premier League giants Arsenal.

According to The Mirror, Rangers are keeping a watchful eye on the youngster, who made his first-team debut in the English League One last year.

And Steven Gerrard is believed to have expressed an interest in signing him this summer, with Celtic also closely monitoring the situation.

His current deal is set to expire at the end of this season, meaning he could walk away for free when the transfer market re-opens in the summer. However, the Premiership rivals face a transfer battle with Arsenal also registering an interest according to the report.

Rangers sporting director Ross Wilson, therefore, has a big decision to make. Wait too long, and an excellent opportunity may pass him by.

Act too quickly, however, and he could accidentally trigger a bidding war that Rangers almost have no hope of winning against the financial might of Arsenal.

Ross Wilson must act now

While Rangers fans may have initially scoffed at the idea that such a talented and promising teenager could be linked with a move to Ibrox, the ball is very much in Wilson’s court.

If – and that’s a big if – Wilson can persuade Joseph that his best interests lie in Ibrox, it would be similar to the coup that saw Ianis Hagi join Rangers for £4m from Belgian club Genk on a permanent basis in the summer.

Rangers could land themselves a striker for years to come if they are able to bring him to Ibrox and he can hit the ground running. The stats show he should be able to do this, as the former Scotland U19 international has already fired home five goals and a further assist in 14 League One appearances this season thus far.

Whether or not he would adapt to the rigours of Scottish football remains to be seen, given his recent injury record, but it’s certainly a risk worth taking for one of Europe’s hottest prospects.

It will be interesting to see how this transfer saga unfolds, that’s for sure.

AND in other news, Alfredo Morelos transfer value skyrockets as Rangers chalk up another Ross Wilson victory…

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Tottenham captain Gary Mabbutt has backed his old side to overcome the challenge of Dinamo Zagreb before securing a positive result against Arsenal in the north London derby.

Jose Mourinho’s side take on the Croatian outfit in the first leg of their last-16 Europa League tie then follow that up with a trip to the Emirates to face their rivals in a big week for the club.

And Mabbutt, who rates the squad Mourinho has at disposal very highly, is confident they can pick up some good results.

Discussing the upcoming fixtures in an exclusive interview with FFC, Mabbutt said:

“Don’t even look at the form book at the moment.

“I would look at his players and the group of players and the way those players are playing as individuals and as a team, the confidence within the squad, the camaraderie within the squad, and I think we have all of those. So, you know, I’d be going into these games with confidence that we can get two positive results.”

Indeed, the north London club have certainly been performing of late after a difficult period, with Gareth Bale being one player who has really stepped up during this resurgence.

The Welshman was on fire in that recent 4-1 victory against Crystal Palace, managing to grab two goals for himself. And he was joined by a usual suspect in Harry Kane, who was also able to find the back of the net on two occasions.

If both players can carry this sort of form into the games against Dinamo Zagreb and Arsenal, then there is a good chance that Mourinho will get the results he wants from these two important fixtures.

Roberto Firmino may consider leaving Liverpool this summer due to Sadio Mane’s shift into the middle, says former top flight manager Alex McLeish.

The Lowdown: Firmino down the pecking order

The Brazilian has become an undisputed Reds legend since joining from Hoffenheim back in 2015, winning the Premier League and Champions League, not to mention leading the line superbly.

Firmino finds himself down the attacking pecking order these days, however, with Mohamed Salah, Mane, Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota all arguably seen as stronger options by Jurgen Klopp, especially since Mane moved to a central role after Diaz’s arrival in January.

The 30-year-old’s current Liverpool deal runs out at the end of next season and the idea of him leaving this summer hasn’t been completely ruled out.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-29/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Latest: Pundit casts doubt over future

Speaking to Football Insider, McLeish admitted that he could see Firmino moving on due to the shift Klopp has made in recent weeks with Mane, moving Firmino further down the striker pecking order.

Ultimately, he says, the decision will be up to the player himself:

“I think he’s still making an impact. You see him in games coming on and getting a couple of goals and assists. He’s still, I think, very integral to their success this season.

“Like everybody else, he will want to maybe play more football at the end. Who knows, maybe it suits him, the way it is just now. One thing’s for sure, Liverpool are a great club and will do the right thing by their players.

“They will do whatever Firmino wants to do, I would think. Maybe keep him on and keep doing his cameo. Or does the guy want to play more football? I think that would be in Firmino’s hands.”

The Verdict: Don’t leave, Bobby

While it would be understandable if Firmino decided to enjoy a fresh challenge this summer, the hope with the vast majority of Liverpool fans is that he stays put.

At 30, he still has a huge amount to offer, even if his best days are behind him, and he is a perfect foil for different styles of players around him in attack. If he is content being a squad player, the matter should be settled immediately.

Firmino isn’t a player who is reliant on pace, which further highlights why he can be a force for years to come, and the idea of such a popular player leaving doesn’t bear thinking about.

In other news, an exciting Liverpool transfer update has emerged. Read more here.

Sam Allardyce’s job at West Brom isn’t getting any easier after they were given a Christmas thrashing at the hands of their old foes.

The Baggies were hit for five without reply by Leeds United at the Hawthorns on Tuesday evening, a defeat which condemned them to five points adrift of safety.

Romaine Sawyers ensured Albion got off to a diabolical start as his back pass embarrassingly went into Sam Johnstone’s net, and it was simply floodgates from there.

Gjanni Alioski, Jack Harrison and Rodrigo all bagged before half-time before Raphinha’s strike some 20 minutes from time sealed the demolition of the Midlands outfit.

There were simply no positives from the match whatsoever – you could not pick out a player worth even an ounce of praise.

Although one man utterly betrayed his new manager with his performance.

In Jake Livermore’s absence, the captaincy has been handed to the long-serving Matty Phillips, but by going on his display this week, he’ll be lucky to be named on the bench let alone be gifted the chance to lead the side out again.

The 29-year-old was hooked at half-time and it’s no surprise to see why.

Per SofaScore, Phillips lost 100% of his six duels both aerially and on the ground, enjoyed fewer touches (19) and passes (seven) playing in attacking midfield than the goalkeeper, and failed to register a single key pass, accurate cross, shot or dribble.

Ineffective. Lightweight. Anonymous.

Those aren’t characteristics Big Sam will want to see from a player he trusted with the armband, so ultimately he was let down tenfold.

BirminghamLive reporter Joseph Chapman graded his performance a joint-low two out of ten, he added:

“Having shown seeds of promise in a central role at Anfield, Phillips was played around here. His passing was inaccurate in attack and Leeds had far too much joy heading in the opposite direction. Hooked at the break.”

It is now three consecutive matches that West Brom have lost at home by a three-goal margin and with just eight points for the season, the 66-year-old ‘firefighter’ has it all to do to turn around this sinking Albion ship.

Performances like that will do him no favours whatsoever.

AND in other news, Exclusive: 29 y/o backed to spearhead Sam Allardyce’s survival bid…

Former Rangers star Michael Ball has told Football FanCast that it is no surprise that Premier League clubs, including Leeds United, are considering a move for Ryan Kent this summer.

The 24-year-old has played primarily as a left winger under manager Steven Gerrard, with Rangers winning the Scottish Premiership title at a canter.

They are currently 20 points clear of second-placed Celtic and have yet to lose in the league, with three games of the campaign remaining.

Kent has scored 12 goals in all competitions and has also registered 13 assists, and he has been linked with a move away from the club in recent weeks.

The Sun have reported that Leeds are interested in a deal to bring Kent to the Premier League, with a bid of around £15m mooted.

Leeds made a bid for the player last summer, of £11m, per the report, and Marcelo Bielsa is said to remain keen on a move for the former England U20 international.

Asked about the prospect of him moving to Elland Road, Ball told FFC: “It’s no surprise that big clubs in the Premier League are looking at him but Rangers will want a big fee, he’s a key player for them, they won’t let him walk away cheaply.”

Former Tottenham captain Graham Roberts has exclusively told Football FanCast that the club are likely to appoint a new manager after the season finishes.

Jose Mourinho was sacked last month with Spurs at risk of missing out on qualifying for the Champions League for the second consecutive season.

But Daniel Levy has since missed out on appointing any of his top three targets.

Julian Nagelsmann left Leipzig, only to become the new Bayern Munich boss, Brendon Rodgers confirmed that he’ll be staying at Leicester, whilst Ajax boss Erik ten Hag ended speculation by penning a new contract in the Dutch capital.

Ryan Mason was placed in interim charge for the remaining six Premier League matches and has made a bright start with victories over Southampton and Sheffield United sandwiching the Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City.

The likes of Graham Potter, Scott Parker and Nuno Espirito Santo have also been mentioned as potential replacements for Mourinho, but Roberts doesn’t expect an announcement until the end of the campaign.

He told Football FanCast:

“Ryan Mason has been told he’s got it until the end of the season, so I’m not expecting anything before then. If we win our last four games, you got a chance of the Champions League, but you need to win all four.

“The aim is either to finish in the Champions League or Europa. They threw the last cup final away and have got four more.”