Tag Futebol

Aston Villa have been given the price they will need to pay in order to land Unai Emery’s top target…

What’s the latest?

As per 90min, Villarreal are reportedly braced to lose their star man Pau Torres.

The Spanish club are noted as willing to sell, and despite seeming unlikely to demand his full release clause of £55m, will want upwards of £40m.

This news will prick the ears of Johan Lange, who will have to battle with a whole host of top clubs to attain him. The report namedrops Tottenham, Chelsea, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Everton, Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan all as interested parties.

Perhaps the connection the manager holds with him could give the Villans a boost in the chase for Torres.

A huge statement of intent

Under Steven Gerrard, it was widely believed that his summer acquisition of Diego Carlos would be the big turning point in his tenure.

Having spent £26m on the Brazilian, to see him struck down inside two games was arguably the catalyst for the 42-year-old’s downfall.

Now, the new manager could make a similar move by bringing in his own defensive reinforcements to revolutionise the clear weak spot in the team.

The £125k-per-week centre-back is a fine defender and has been for some time for the Yellow Submarine. He has an instrumental part of a defence that last season conceded just 37 goals in 38 La Liga games.

However, it is his ability with the ball at his feet that makes him such a sought-after commodity in world football.

He ranks in the top 5% of defenders in Europe’s top five leagues for dribbles competed, and the top 13% for progressive passes. There are few defenders in the game that boast such impressive statistics, that are integral to the way the modern game is often played.

His inclusion in Spain’s World Cup squad is a further testament to his importance to not only his club side but the national team too.

Luis Enrique, who will lead his country to Qatar this winter, has been full of praise for the 25-year-old: “I like everything about Pau, I like players who have the ball out. I like his tactical sense, he’s tall, handsome, a good boy.”

With his talents now renowned across Europe, there was expected to be a host of competition for his signature.

Thus, should Villa be the club to land him, it would mark a huge statement of intent from Emery and boost his already impressive start to life in the Midlands.

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is interested in signing highly-rated Inter Milan centre-back Alessandro Bastoni, according to a new transfer rumour.

The Lowdown: Bastoni shining at Inter

The 23-year-old has emerged as arguably one of the best Italian defenders of his generation, already becoming a key figure for a strong Inter side.

Bastoni has 130 appearances to his name for the Nerazzurri, playing eight times in Serie A so far this season and also winning 16 caps for European champions Italy.

With United possibly looking at further defensive reinforcements given the lack of quality depth behind Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez, an exciting update has emerged.

The Latest: Man Utd eyeing up move

According to reports in Europe [via Sport Witness], Ten Hag personally wants to acquire Bastoni’s signature, while the player himself ‘gives the feeling of needing a club with higher aspirations’.

The United manager reportedly has a ‘great obsession’ with the Italian and has asked ‘for an effort’ from the club to sign him.

The Verdict: Outstanding potential signing

Bastoni looks like a superb talent with a massive future ahead of him, so he could be an exceptional signing for United if they could get a deal over the line.

With Varane and Harry Maguire turning 30 next year, and the latter completely out of sorts, the Inter man could come in as a long-term partner for Lisandro Martinez.

According to BBC writer Premier League Panel on Twitter, Bastoni is developing into one of the ‘world’s best’ in his position. He also boasts an 88.6% pass completion rate in the league this season, which suggests he would suit Ten Hag’s progressive style of play.

Journalist Dean Jones has shared some news on Tottenham Hotspur and the future of summer signing Djed Spence.

The Lowdown: Spence joins Tottenham…

The Lilywhites right-back was among a contingent of new players brought in to back Antonio Conte and make Spurs a force to be reckoned with this season.

Ahead of the 2022/23 Premier League campaign, Spurs signed the former Nottingham Forest loanee along with sealing Ivan Perisic, Fraser Forster, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison, Clement Lenglet, Destiny Udogie and a permanent deal for Cristian Romero.

However, it hasn’t exactly been a dream start to life in north London for the defender, with Conte only calling on Spence for two league minutes in total despite his ability.

The 22-year-old enjoyed a brilliant campaign at Forest last season, with some members of the media calling him an ‘incredible’ player.

The Latest: Jones shares Spence update…

However, speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones has now claimed that Spurs are set for internal exit talks over Spence’s future at the club, with a potential loan move away deemed a possiblity.

He explained: “I have said for a while that it would not surprise me if Djed Spence was made available for loan in January.

“I think it will depend on the depth of options Spurs have by that stage but, certainly, it is something that is going to be discussed.”

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The Verdict: He needs minutes…

Spence going out on loan for the second half of this season could be best for all parties.

Tipped to be a ‘great signing’ by some pundits within the media, the 22-year-old needs regular minutes to continue developing and potentially one day become a real mainstay in the Tottenham squad.

The fact that he hasn’t even had a look-in despite Emerson Royal’s current suspension does not bode particularly well for him in N17 right now.

Newcastle United’s recent 4-1 triumph over newly-promoted Fulham saw the Magpies come up against a familiar face in the form of defender Kevin Mbabu, with the Switzerland nternational having left St James’ Park five years ago.

While it proved a difficult afternoon for the 27-year-old at Craven Cottage as his side were simply put to the sword by Eddie Howe’s rampant outfit, the Tynesiders have largely been left to rue his departure from the club in recent times.

The dynamic full-back had originally been signed from Servette as a teenager back in January 2013 following a successful trial at the club, eventually going on to make his first-team bow at the start of the 2015/16 season under Steve McClaren.

The then-youngster had been handed a tough assignment on his Premier League debut having lined up as a makeshift left-back against Chelsea, with his display seeing him dubbed “excellent” by McClaren.

The departure of the former England boss and the subsequent arrival of Rafa Benitez ultimately saw that early momentum halted as the right-back swiftly found himself cast out by the Spaniard, eventually making just five appearances in all competitions for the club.

The 6-foot machine has since pointed to one game, in particular, that sparked his desire to leave the northeast side after being oddly overlooked by Benitez against Crystal Palace back in April 2016, stating: “I knew it wasn’t going to work with the new manager (Rafa Benitez).

“When I really understood it was going to be difficult for me was when Vurnon Anita got injured (against Crystal Palace in April 2016) and I was the only full-back on the bench. An assistant said, ‘He’s injured, you’re coming on’. Then Benitez said, ‘No’. Instead, Jonjo Shelvey came on and Moussa Sissoko played right-back.

“That really hurt me. I felt really sad and disappointed. If the coach decides, then you have to accept it but, as a young player, it was tough to take.”

Mbabu was subsequently loaned out to BSC Young Boys in the summer of 2016, before joining the club the following year on a permanent deal, with Benitez sanctioning his departure for a reported fee of just £108k, as per Transfermarkt.

That decision has gone on to appear a real dismal piece of business for Newcastle since then, with the player going on to rack up 21 goal contributions in 106 games during his time at Young Boys, before adding a further nine goal involvements in 82 games at Bundesliga side Wolfsburg.

The 22-cap gem’s form in Germany subsequently led to his recent return to England to join Marco Silva’s side, with the Cottagers forking out a fee of around £6.4m for his signature – a huge increase of 5825% on what he was initially sold for in 2017.

Such an asking price has been warranted for his form over the past year as he has showcased his attacking quality in contrast to those in his position across Europe’s top five leagues, notably ranking in the top 1% for dribbles completed, with current Newcastle hero Kieran Trippier ranking in just the bottom 7% in the same metric, for instance.

A player who could clearly have been an asset to Howe at present, particularly with Emil Krafth on the treatment table, it looks as if Mbabu – who has one assist in five league games already this season – truly was one that got away for the club.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is facing one of the trickier periods of his seven-year Anfield tenure.

His first few years on Merseyside were all about building a team to compete with Manchester City and challenge for trophies, so the setbacks which occurred were expected and managed well.

Since he has led the club to Champions League and Premier League glory, amongst a host of other trophies, expectations have risen exponentially.

With only two points from their opening three league matches until Saturday’s 9-0 romp against Bournemouth, Klopp might well be about to perform a transfer U-turn and delve back into the market for a midfielder.

This marks a contrast from him recently claiming that Liverpool don’t need to make any more signings this summer, but with his midfield uncharacteristically moribund and overrun against Manchester United, it could be a decision which alters the Reds’ season.

With the problems in midfield and injuries to the likes of Thiago, Naby Keita and Curtis Jones, Liverpool are definitely light on options in the middle of the park.

Jurgen is a Red! Show how happy you are about it with this awesome t-shirt! Click here to buy…

Klopp is reportedly keen on Paris Saint-Germain’s Leandro Paredes, who could be available for just €20m (£17m); and with the transfer window to close on Thursday, Reds owners FSG need to act quickly.

The 28-year-old made 15 Ligue 1 appearances last season, and although mainly deployed in a defensive midfield position, the Argentine has a range of attacking attributes which would make him an excellent fit in the Liverpool engine room.

He averaged 68.1 touches per game while having an incredible 96% pass success rate, proving his importance in the PSG team, frequently circling the ball and constantly getting himself involved in the action.

Defensively, he made 1.5 tackles, won back possession 0.5 times and won 61% of his duels per game, providing adequate protection for the back four when required.

Considering the sheer volume of injuries at Anfield, Paredes could form a solid duo in the middle of the park alongside Fabinho, and this could be crucial to enabling Liverpool to control matches again following three poor performances to start their season.

Former PSG player Fabrice Pancrate described Paredes as “perfect” in an interview, and the 28-year-old’s performances last season back up this high praise.

It’s a tense time for Liverpool supporters as the clock ticks down on the summer transfer window, which shuts on Thursday, but Klopp could solve his midfield problem with a late swoop for the Argentine.

Liverpool have been verging on a midfield injury crisis since the season began, and now a reliable source has put even more stress on the problems in the centre of the pitch with a Naby Keita contract update.

What’s the latest?

According to Sky Sports journalist Florian Plettenberg, a new contract for midfielder Keita is seemingly not on the table at the moment.

Plettenberg tweeted on Sunday morning:

“Update Keita: Very important game against Man Utd regarding his plans in this transfer window.

“Nothing has changed. LFC wants to extend, Klopp wants him to stay. But talks have stopped, an agreement is not in sight at this stage. He wants to play regularly.”

It’s a blow for Liverpool

At this moment Liverpool are in no position to be allowing more exits from Anfield with nine players already making the move away from the Merseyside giants, especially in the midfield positions that have been considerably weakened with ongoing fitness issues. As a result, the continued doubts surrounding Keita’s future is certainly a blow for Klopp, particularly as he wants him to remain in Merseyside.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Curtis Jones and Thiago Alcantara are all currently sidelined for the foreseeable future, so unless Liverpool are going to make a last-minute swoop for a midfielder this summer, there is no way they can afford to let go of Keita.

Despite his constant injury problems that have hindered his opportunities to become a consistent feature in the Reds’ midfield three, Keita is a reliable player in the team when fit and replacing that experience in the centre of the pitch will be a struggle over the remaining ten days of the transfer window.

Keita ranks in the top 10% of his positional peers in the top five European leagues over the last year for progressive carries, progressive passes, touches, pressures and tackles, proving that he is comfortably fluent in working to a high standard in Klopp’s pressing machine at Liverpool.

However, the £120k-per-week Guinea international has one flaw in his game and that is availability. Keita has been unavailable on 16 separate occasions ranging in absence lengths between five and 60 days, amounting to 62 fixtures missed so far.

If the powers at Anfield do manage to come to an agreement to extend the midfielder’s contract at the club they will need to take the risk on his inconsistent availability, or commit to making multiple signings in the midfield to ensure they are fully stocked with high-quality players.

With that being said, the contract extension is up for debate as to whether Liverpool really need to extend beyond June 2023, but what isn’t debatable is the fact the club must convince Keita to remain for the last season of his contract unless they find a replacement in the next few days.

There is ‘serious interest’ in Liverpool defender Sepp van den Berg ahead of a potential loan move this summer, according to reliable journalist James Pearce.

The Lowdown: Injury crisis

The Dutchman is back at Anfield after impressing on loan at Preston last season, where he started 43 of his side’s 46 Championship matches.

Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip, Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez are all ahead of Van den Berg in the pecking order, but the Reds have been hit hard by pre and early season injuries.

Indeed, the likes of Konate, Diogo Jota and Thiago Alcantara feature on a lengthy list of concerns for Jurgen Klopp and Julian Ward, but it appears they are still happy to allow one piece of depth depart.

The Latest: Pearce makes fresh claim

Taking to Twitter on Monday, The Athletic‘s Pearce claims that there is lots of interest in Van den Berg ahead of a potential temporary exit, namely from Burnley:

“Burnley want Sepp van den Berg on loan but there’s also serious interest from Germany. Player weighing up his options.”

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The Verdict: Right move for everyone

This makes complete sense for everyone concerned, allowing Van den Berg a chance to continue his development and enjoy regular playing time away from Liverpool.

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With Nat Phillips now expected to stay put after Konate’s recent injury, Klopp will of course be praying no more issues force him to keep the young Dutchman around in a similar fashion.

Van den Berg can still be a future squad player for Liverpool, given his age, so he should be considered a long-term prospect who needs regular playing time to fulfil his potential, though perhaps Klopp and Ward should consider a recall clause for January in case the injuries really mount up.

Transfer insider Dean Jones has made a claim on Leeds United winger Jack Harrison amid rumours of interest from Newcastle United.

The Lowdown: Newcastle linked with Harrison

The Whites have already cashed in on two star players this summer in Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha, pocketing just over £96m following their respective moves to Manchester City and Barcelona.

Harrison could well be the next high-profile player to leave, with Newcastle manager Eddie Howe an admirer of the winger. Leeds want around £35m for the 25-year-old, who was coy when quizzed on his Elland Road future following the pre-season friendly against Aston Villa last weekend.

The Latest: Jones’ comments

Talking to The Transfer Tavern, Jones said the ’message’ he got last week from those at Leeds was that Harrison ‘wasn’t going to be made available’ this summer.

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The journalist outlined:

“Last week checking up on this story, the message was quite clear that Jack Harrison wasn’t going to be made available in the transfer window.

“So at the moment, I’m going to have to go with that.”

The Verdict: Keep him

Harrison impressed for large parts of last season and ended the campaign with 10 goals and two assists in all competitions, with the highlight being his hat-trick in a 3-2 win at West Ham in January.

He has been crucial for the club over the last four years, making 166 appearances and missing just two games through injury, and you could argue that, turning 26 in November, he is approaching the prime years of his career.

Therefore, it may well be a gamble if Leeds were to sell Harrison just after parting ways with Raphinha, but it looks as if the former Manchester City man is firmly in the Whites’ plans heading into Jesse Marsch’s first full season in charge.

Tottenham Hotspur remain interested in Anthony Gordon…

What’s the word?

That’s according to The Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick, who claims that Spurs are still keen on the England U21 international despite Everton rebuffing their offer in recent weeks.

Only last week, Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas suggested that the Toffees had “indicated they did not want to sell him” this transfer window.

Now the north London outfit face stiff competition from Premier League rivals Newcastle United, who have now launched their own offensive over a potential £35m deal, as per the Telegraph’s Mike McGrath.

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Bye-bye Moura

If Everton now change their stance on the English talent, then it could open the door for Spurs to reignite their interest and ultimately, it’s something they should do.

And in doing so, it could force another winger to lose his place in Antonio Conte’s pecking order.

Steven Bergwijn is on the verge of completing a move to Ajax, so that leaves Lucas Moura on the periphery behind the likes of Richarlison, Dejan Kulusevski and now potentially Gordon.

Described as a “nightmare” to train against by teammate Eric Dier, the Brazilian wide man has struggled to make his mark at the club, witnessing his form dip ever since that euphoric night in Amsterdam.

The £18m-rated star, who earns a reported £80k-per-week at Hotspur Way, could be someone who garners back some money considering what the club have already spent this off-season.

He has managed only 19 goals from 137 appearances in the English top-flight and has averaged a goal contribution once every three matches in a Spurs shirt, as per Transfermarkt.

Last season, though, this regressed to one in every four games as he was limited to just two goals and six assists across 34 matches.

Gordon, meanwhile, is a far younger prospect and is still very much in the early days of his playing career at just 21 years of age.

“He would be the perfect fit for Spurs,” recently claimed former shot-stopper Paul Robinson to Football Insider.  “He is the type of player that Daniel loves signing for Tottenham. A young, talented English player.”

Whilst BBC Sport pundit Alan Shearer claimed the £18m-rated dynamo had a “fearless attitude” as he’s “not afraid to get stuck in” and can get forward to deliver crosses.

So, with Spurs said to be “very keen” on signing Gordon, as per Sky Sports reporter Michael Bridge, it would make sense for sporting director Fabio Paratici and co to launch another attempt to seal his signature before the September 1st deadline.

In doing so, Conte could finally replace one of Spurs’ average long-standing with a long-term upgrade.

AND in other news, Spurs could land the “new Erling Haaland” as Paratici plots swoop for 19 y/o speedster…

Manchester United are about to hijack Lyon’s move for Feyenoord defender Tyrell Malacia, Sky Sports report.

The Lowdown: Malacia profiled

Malacia is primarily a left-back but has shown impressive versatility so far, turning out as a left midfielder and right-back during his career after progressing through the academy with Feyenoord.

The 22-year-old is valued at a career-high £15.3m by Transfermarkt and has made 136 senior appearances for the Dutch side. He’s contributed to 14 goals for his current employers and is a full Netherlands international.

The Latest: Sky Sports update

Sky Sports, who earlier on Tuesday claimed that United are close to agreeing a fee with Barcelona for Frenkie de Jong, shared more transfer news from Old Trafford.

Reporter Michael Bridge said it has been a ‘busy day’ that could be ‘good news for supporters’, with the club ‘accelerating’ their interest in Malacia. He added that United believe they can sign the left-back for £13m, with Erik ten Hag a ‘big fan’.

Fabrizio Romano has also been on the ball regarding a move for Malacia, revealing that personal terms are being discussed after an agreement was reached with Feyenoord.

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The Verdict: Where would that leave Shaw, Telles and Williams?

Ten Hag currently has Luke Shaw, Alex Telles and Brandon Williams as senior left-back options, so a move for Malacia could cause concern for two of them.

Shaw is now entering the final 12 months of his Old Trafford contract, whereas Telles and Williams still have two years left to run on their deals.

Should Malacia sign, then you’d expect that Ten Hag would be open to moving at least one of them on, perhaps cashing in on Shaw or Telles and sending Williams out on another loan move.