All posts by n8rngtd.top

West Bromwich Albion have been dealt a blow in their bid to bring Jack Hendry to The Hawthorns this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by TEAMtalk, who claimed that Club Brugge, Anderlecht and Royal Antwerp have all made a move for the KV Oostende centre-back, while Aston Villa are also thought to have joined the race for the 26-year-old’s signature.

A host of Championship clubs, including West Brom, Sheffield United and Fulham, were previously reported to be keen on a move for the former Celtic defender in the summer transfer window, although the relegated trio could now be gazumped by teams offering the prospect of top-flight or even European football.

Ismael will be gutted

With Ismael typically operating with a system which utilised three centre-backs during his time at Barnsley, it would seem highly likely that the Frenchman will implement this setup at The Hawthorns next season.

With the 45-year-old not having a great deal of choice in that position at Albion, the heart of defence would very much appear to be an area where the Baggies manager will look to strengthen in the summer transfer window, with Hendry appearing to be an excellent candidate for the role.

Indeed, over his 30 Jupiler Pro League appearances for Oostende last season, the £3.15m-rated man helped his team to keep six clean sheets, along with averaging 0.6 interceptions, one tackle and 4.1 clearances and winning 4.8 duels per game.

The £8,000-per-week defender also impressed in an attacking capacity, scoring two goals and providing one assist, as well as averaging 0.2 key passes per league game.

These returns saw the man Alex McLeish dubbed a “confident” player earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.01, ranking him as Alexander Blessin’s third-best performer in the Belgian top flight.

As such, it would very much appear that the signing of Hendry would have been a perfect fit for Ismael. However, with a number of clubs interested in the centre-back who boast considerably greater pull than the Baggies, it would seem as if a deal for the Scotland international does not look overly likely at present, an outcome which will surely leave their manager gutted.

In other news: Get it done: Major update emerges on “fantastic” £8m West Brom target, Ismael must act

Rangers have officially missed out on signing Rafael Santos Borre after Eintracht Frankfurt announced his signing, which is a blow for Steven Gerrard as he could’ve been a stellar addition to his squad at Ibrox.

The Bundesliga side announced his signing on a four-year deal from River Plate on a free transfer on Monday, which brings an end to Rangers’ reported hopes of bringing him in.

Would he have improved Gerrard’s squad?

Whilst Gerrard can boast a plethora of attacking talent in his squad for next season, the £15.3m-rated Santos Borre could have added some real Champions League quality ahead of Rangers’ return to Europe’s elite competition next season.

During his time at River Plate, the Colombia international would contribute an impressive 56 goals and 18 assists in 149 appearances, including eight goals in just 13 Copa de Liga appearances last season.

A player of Santos Borre’s quality would surely have found the net regularly with Rangers when you consider that they managed 92 goals in just 38 league appearances last season, so it is a shame for Gerrard that he is moving to Germany this summer.

Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone praised Borre’s development since his move to Argentina after struggling during his time in Spain, saying:

“The truth is that we have not talked about the issue of Borre. He is breaking it there in River, I am happy for him.

“He came very young (to Atletico) and the truth is that his growth has been tremendous – phenomenal.”

Could he have replaced Morelos?

Alfredo Morelos has been regularly linked with a move away from Ibrox in recent seasons, with Porto seemingly the main contenders to sign El Bufalo this summer.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-rangers-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=”Read the latest Rangers transfer rumours and news!”]

The 24-year-old has been superb for Rangers since joining the club from HJK Helsinki in 2017, contributing 94 goals and 43 assists in 194 appearances for the Teddy Bears in his four seasons at Ibrox.

He is also Rangers’ record goalscorer in Europe, which suggests that if he were to leave ahead of the 21/22 campaign, a proven goalscorer would have to be signed as his replacement if Gerrard’s side want to succeed in European competition.

[freshpress-quiz id=“593776″]

It is hard to ignore the similarities between Santos Borre and Morelos given that they are the same age and nationality, but if the Rangers star does depart this summer, Rangers will have to look elsewhere for a replacement for El Bufalo.

And, in other news… Rangers handed huge boost with Ibrox “warrior”, Gerrard surely delighted

Aston Villa’s valuation of Jack Grealish may be higher than £100m, that is according to Express & Star journalist Luke Hatfield.

The Villa captain is currently the subject of heavy interest from Manchester City and is likely to cost the Premier League champions a lot of money this summer if his boyhood club do decide to sell him.

According to talkSPORT, City could be looking at £100m as they close in on a deal for Grealish.

A deal may not be that far down the line, however, with other reports claiming that the 25-year-old could yet sign a new contract at Villa, while Hatfield has suggested £100m may not even be enough to get him out of Villa Park in the first place.

“£100m is obviously a lot to turn down, but I think Villa do rate him that highly if not a little bit higher than that,” the Aston Villa journalist told FFC.

“He’s only just signed a new deal, he’s blossoming for England and every good performance he puts in for the Three Lions now probably ups his price tag.

“Villa are doing their utmost to keep hold of him.”

£100m is a lot of money, but it is not hard to see why Villa value Grealish so highly.

Without European football, it is probably going to be hard to attract an adequate replacement for the England international, who provided the most Premier League assists in his side last season.

Celtic are reportedly closing in on the signing of an out-of-contract attacker… 

What’s the talk?

According to Football Insider, Celtic are discussing personal terms with out-of-contract forward Kyle Edwards as they attempt to bolster their attacking options this summer.

The report claims that the Hoops are poised to make him a contract offer following his release from West Brom, whilst they will still need to pay a compensation fee to the Baggies for their part in developing him.

Fans will be buzzing

Celtic fans will be buzzing by this news as this appears to be a deal that is not a million miles away from getting over the line. He would arrive as a player with a decent amount of pedigree with Premier League and Championship experience under his belt in England, helping the Baggies secure promotion from the second tier and then playing a bit-part role as they were relegated the following campaign.

Edwards is an exciting young winger who could get supporters off their seats during games. WhoScored lists his biggest strength as dribbling, with a career average of 1.4 dribbles completed per game – although that is skewed by the fact the majority of his appearances have been as a substitute.

This shows that his style of play could lend itself to being loved by supporters, as long as he is able to pull it off effectively and add quality end product to score and create goals for the club.

One of his West Brom teammates, Romaine Sawyers, said last year that Edwards is an “unbelievable” talent and said that his old academy manager, Mark Harrison, compared him to Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi.

He told The Athletic: “I remember Kyle when he was proper, proper small — he was an unbelievable player even then.

“Mark Harrison, our old academy manager, told my age group, ‘We’ve got this kid who is 10 years old and this is Messi'”. 

The 23-year-old gem also has plenty of room for development. He will not be arriving at Parkhead as the finished article and this means that he could be a project for Ange Postecoglou to work on in the short and long term for Celtic.

Therefore, he could be a smart addition next season – given his experience in the Premier League and his dazzling dribbling skills.

AND in other news, Ange must avoid Celtic blunder with “inspirational” £15m beast, fans would be livid…

Crystal Palace look set to secure the signature of Chelsea defender Marc Guehi over the coming days.

What’s the story?

According to well-respected journalist and transfer expert David Ornstein, the Eagles are close to completing a deal for the 21-year-old as they continue to rebuild their first-team squad.

He tweeted: “Exclusive: Crystal Palace close to completing permanent signing of Chelsea defender Marc Guehi. 21yo having medical today ahead of penning 5yr deal. #CFC have sell-on clause + matching rights on future move.”

Fans will be buzzing

Palace were in the transfer market for a young centre-back this summer following the departures of Scott Dann, Mamadou Sakho and Gary Cahill, with their sporting director Dougie Freedman reportedly leading the charge for Guehi.

The highly-rated youngster caught the eye during an 18-month loan spell at Championship outfit Swansea City in recent seasons, attracting admiring glances from several sides in England and abroad.

Chelsea were believed to have placed a price tag between £15 million and £20m on Guehi’s head amid significant interest in his services, but most admirers favoured a loan with an option to buy, whereas Palace were seemingly prepared to pay his asking price, emerging as the best option for both the Blues and the player.

His arrival in south London will make him the club’s third signing of the current window following the purchases of former Reading midfielder Michael Olise and goalkeeper Remi Matthews, indicating that new manager Patrick Vieira will be significantly backed in the transfer market.

And news of Guehi’s imminent arrival will surely leave the Palace supporters buzzing. A major squad rebuild is needed at Selhurst Park over the coming month, and the Englishman’s acquisition should be seen as a significant coup.

The Eagles had the oldest squad in the Premier League last term, and James Tomkins is currently the only recognised centre-back on the books, meaning Guehi’s arrival addresses two major weaknesses in the current setup.

Several more signings will likely be needed ahead of the upcoming campaign in order for Vieira to achieve success in south London, but bringing in Olise and Guehi is a fabulous start to the summer for Palace.

And, in other news…Crystal Palace update emerges about “fearless” speed demon, fans will be gutted 

Newcastle United are reportedly in talks to sign Mario Lemina in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Lemina impresses

Despite Fulham getting relegated from the Premier League down to the EFL Championship at the end of the 2020/21 season, Lemina had a fine individual campaign while on loan there from Southampton.

The Gabon international won no fewer than 4.5 of his duels per game in the top flight, and also averaged 2.2 tackles and 1.1 interceptions a match (Sofascore).

The Latest: Lemina talks

As per The Daily Mail, the St. James’ Park faithful have revived talks with the Saints over signing Lemina in a deal worth in the region of £4m, and hope to reach an agreement later on this week.

The North East club tried to sign him last month, offering players in exchange, but Ralph Hasenhuttl’s team were keen to cash in on a player with just a year left on his current deal at St. Mary’s.

The Verdict: Sign

Lemina has plenty of experience of playing in the Premier League, and at 27 years of age, is about to enter his prime years as a footballer.

While his £64,000-per-week wages may prove to be a stumbling block, to sign him for just a £4m fee could certainly prove to be a bargain, given that he is currently valued at £9m by Transfermarkt.

Nonetheless, he would be a welcome addition as another handy option for Steve Bruce in the centre of midfield, where his options will be looking very thin if a deal for loan favourite Joe Willock cannot be completed.

In other news, find out what promising takeover claim Steve Wraith has issued here!

Celtic and Crystal Palace have both approached free agent Diego Costa, according to French football website Homme du Match.

The Lowdown: Costa’s downfall

The Spanish striker, who has scored 191 goals for club and country during his career, left Atletico Madrid midway through the previous campaign.

The La Liga side terminated his deal, with Costa scoring twice in seven appearances during the 2020/21 season. Costa, valued at £54m back in 2018 by Transfermarkt, is now valued at £5.4m by the site and is still without a club.

He netted just twice in 16 league fixtures in 2018/19 and five in 23 games in 2019/20.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/celtic-updates-10/” title=”Celtic updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Latest: Celtic approach

According to Homme du Match, both the Hoops and Crystal Palace, now led by Patrick Vieira, have approached the striker.

The report, shared on Friday evening, claims the 6 foot 1 striker could still render some services before calling time on his career.

The Verdict: Surely not…

Celtic may well be after a forward this summer, with Odsonne Edouard still searching for a Parkhead exit.

However, surely a move for Costa wouldn’t materialise. He has been on upwards of £150,000-a-week since 2015, with Celtic’s highest earner Callum McGregor on £20,000-a-week.

It would be good fun to see Costa line up in a Glasgow Derby, but unfortunately, we can’t see this one gathering pace due to his previous salary demands.

In other news: Reporter reveals Celtic ‘talks’ for 6ft ace on Thursday evening; he wants Parkhead move. 

Watford have reportedly seen another bid for Blackburn Rovers striker Adam Armstrong rejected, which is a blow to Xisco Munoz’s hopes of bringing him to Vicarage Road.

What’s the word?

According to The Sun, the Hornets have seen a fresh £15m bid turned down for the former Newcastle United marksman, who hit 28 goals in the Championship for Tony Mowbray’s side last season.

The report claims that Watford also offered Andre Gray as part of the deal, but Blackburn are holding out for £25m for their star striker, as Newcastle will claim 40% of the fee due to a sell-on clause.

It is certainly a big risk by the Lancashire club to demand so much for Armstrong, as his contract at Ewood Park is set to expire at the end of the coming season, so he could be available on a free transfer next summer should they fail to tie him down to a new deal.

A huge transfer blow for Munoz?

Whilst Watford have added strikers Emmanuel Dennis and Ashley Fletcher to their squad already this summer, neither have been particularly profilic in their careers thus far, and it seems clear that Munoz wants to add a clinical goalscorer to his side ahead of their opening Premier League game against Aston Villa next month.

Armstrong struggled for regular game-time at Newcastle when he was younger but made a name for himself in an impressive loan spell at Coventry City before joining Blackburn on a permanent basis in 2018 after a loan spell at Ewood Park.

Since then, he has gone on to make 160 appearances for the club, contributing an impressive 64 goals and 19 assists, which included 29 goals in all competitions during the 2020/21 campaign.

If he could continue that form with Watford, he could prove to be the difference between them staying up and being relegated back to the Championship, but it seems unlikely that the Hornets would splash as much as £25m on a player with just one year left on his current contract.

Therefore, unless Blackburn drastically rethink their asking price for the “explosive” forward, in Mowbray’s own words, it seems unlikely that Armstrong will be moving to Vicarage Road, which will likely disappoint Watford fans.

In other news… Munoz should seal Watford swoop for prolific winger loved by Aubameyang

Express & Star journalist Luke Hatfield believes that David Button will be West Bromwich Albion’s number one should Sam Johnstone depart the club this summer. 

Button started the Baggies pre-season match against Watford and kept a clean sheet, with the game finishing goalless.

There is much speculation about Sam Johnstone’s future at the Hawthorns, with Gabby Agbonlahor suggesting to Football Insider that West Brom will accept an £11m bid from West Ham for their number one goalkeeper.

If Johnstone does depart the Hawthorns this summer, Hatfield believes that David Button will become the new number one, telling Transfer Tavern: “We’ve seen reports of that being the case before with their pre-season game against Watford and I think it was pretty telling that Button started that game and then played the entire game, too. 

“We’ve seen the young player Alex Palmer come in between the sticks before, but that wasn’t the case at Watford, he was on the bench, he was an unused substitute, so I think that’s a sign from Valerien Ismael saying that Button is going to be our number one should Sam Johnstone leave.”

32-year-old Button has played plenty of football throughout his career, having played for the likes of Premier League new boys Brentford, Fulham, Brighton and Hove Albion and Plymouth to name a few, so would be a safe pair of hands to call upon for West Brom.

The Baggies have already been active in the transfer market, bringing in Alex Mowatt from Barnsley and also capturing the loan signing of Matt Clarke from one of Button’s former clubs Brighton and Hove Albion.

Celtic have had a wretched start to the season and it won’t get any easier when they face their next competitive fixture on Thursday evening.

The Hoops have already been dumped out of Europe’s premier competition but now Ange Postecoglou has a second bite of the cherry as they enter Europa League qualifying.

On the chalkboard

One of the biggest problems for Celtic in the early stages of this campaign, and indeed over the last 12 months, has been their defence.

They let in 16 more goals than Rangers in the league last term and conceded a whopping 19 times in the Europa League group stage.

Continental action hasn’t been kind to the Bhoys in recent years as they were completely embarrassed in this competition last season.

That came after another incredibly disappointing Champions League exit, that time at the hands of Hungarian opposition Ferencvaros.

Tonight, they’ve headed to the Czech Republic where they’ll face Jablonec in the first leg of the third round of qualifying, bolstered by the addition of Joe Hart who could make his debut.

One man who should be nowhere near the starting XI is Nir Bitton. Described as a “walking joke” by Bhoys Analytics, he continues to let his teammates down.

The Israeli was a liability at times last season and has begun the new campaign in abject form. He was shown a red card against Midtjylland a few weeks ago and was caught out against Hearts last weekend.

John Souttar beat Bitton to the ball in the air which led to the Edinburgh side’s winner late in the clash.

The solution

Carl Starfelt took to the field against Hearts to earn his debut but the Swede won’t have been left enthralled by Celtic’s ability to defend.

He looks a composed ball-playing centre-half but he must be paired with Stephen Welsh when the Hoops kick off on Thursday evening.

It was particularly strange that the 21-year-old wasn’t trusted at Tynecastle last weekend when he’d started both of their Champions League qualifying matches.

Welsh proved last season just how promising he is, establishing a fine partnership with Kristoffer Ajer at the back.

He is a young defender but looks wise beyond his years and hasn’t made a howler to the degree of Bitton just yet.

The Scot is far more reliable than their £14k-per-week disaster and simply has to play against Jablonec.

AND in other news, Celtic could sign their new Henrik Larsson in “outstanding” 24-cap “animal”…