All posts by h716a5.icu

West Brom have been handed a fresh update in their pursuit of Celta Vigo midfielder Okay Yokuslu.

Last week, the Daily Mail reported that the 28-time Turkey international was one of Sam Allardyce’s main targets this transfer window. However, reports in Spain suggest the La Liga outfit will only consider a permanent move.

That’s according to Faro de Vigo, who refer to the Daily Mail’s story, but go on to claim that Los Celestes boss Eduardo Coudet would only sanction a sale rather than any temporary loan switch.

This hardly comes as a surprise as the 26-year-old has featured 13 times for Celta Vigo on their way to a respectable ninth-place in the Spanish top-flight, and whilst it remains to be seen what sort of fee Yokusui would command, it could be worth Albion’s time to stump up the funds.

Valued at €10m (£9m) by CIES, the versatile midfielder would be an almost instant upgrade to Big Sam’s current midfield, particularly on Romaine Sawyers, who you’d imagine would be most at risk over any central addition.

He’s struggled to adapt to the considerable step-up in quality since their promotion last term – of regulars in the starting XI (ten or more appearances), only club captain Jake Livermore has managed a worse average rating than Sawyers’ 6.29, per WhoScored.

In terms of central midfield options, the 29-year-old sits last for tackles per game (1.6) and similarly for key passes per game (0.4) – even the rarely-seen Lee Peltier and Filip Krovinovic have managed more than the Baggies academy graduate.

On Tuesday night, he was again pretty anonymous, grading the worst midfielder per SofaScore ratings with a 6.6. Sawyers won only two of his five ground duels, failing to combat the impressive Declan Rice, who pretty much ran the show with 75 touches (20 more than the Baggies man) at the London Stadium.

Sawyers was also dribbled past on two occasions, a recurring theme this campaign as he’s ghosted past an average of 1.5x per match.

A swoop for Yokuslu solves this nightmare. The 6 foot 3 brute is an imposing figure at the base of midfield, and that’s seen him manage an average of three aerial duels won per game over the course of his career.

In addition to that, his mean number of tackles throughout the same timespan is 2.2, which would not just rank him above Sawyers, but also put him second behind Connor Gallagher in the current Albion squad.

As Turkish Football outlined in a scouting report of Yokuslu, he’s a ‘fine physical specimen’ and is a ‘swashbuckling midfielder who likes to get stuck in.’

That seems right up Allardyce’s street, so perhaps it’s no surprise to see him linked with the Turkish titan. If there’s any player that he should push sporting director Luke Dowling to sign, then it’s the Celta Vigo man.

Given the Midlands outfit have leaked the most goals in the top-flight this season, his presence in front of the backline could be everything they need and to make matters even better, he’s capable of playing at centre-back too – it’s a win-win, no matter the cost.

AND in other news, “Big and strong” 11-goal powerhouse could bring shades of Salomon Rondon to the Hawthorns

Crystal Palace have been linked to Ozan Tufan throughout the whole of the transfer window and the latest transfer reports suggest they have made a new deal which involves a player-swap.

The latest on Tufan

According to FotoMac, the Eagles have made a late deadline day bid to sign the player, offering around €10 million (£8.8 million) along with Christian Benteke.

Would this be a good move

The 25-year-old Turkey international, who is valued at £9m, is versatile and has shown his quality for both club and country this season. He has managed, on average, 1.6 tackles and 1.2 interceptions per game. Offensively, he has managed 1.5 shots and 1.1 key passes per game. He has also scored four goals and picked up four assists during this campaign. (WhoScored).

Tufan is at a good age, and has a lot of experience at a very high level, both on the international stage and in Europe (Transfermarkt). He has 30 goals for both club and country and he would definitely add some great depth to the Palace squad.

Palace manager Roy Hodgson has praised Benteke this season following his brace against West Brom, saying: ‘We’ve always known that Christian Benteke is a quality centre-forward with an awful lot of strings to his bow. It was great last Saturday that he was able to show the world that.’

He has scored three goals in 14 Premier League games. However, across the 2018/19 and the 2019/20 seasons, Benteke only managed three goals in 44 appearances (Transfermarkt).

With the club also announcing the arrival of Jean-Phillip Mateta, it could be a good idea for the club to increase their quality in midfield and allow Benteke to depart.

In other Palace news, have a read of a bizarre statistic about the club which fans aren’t happy with here!

Everton chief Farhad Moshiri must see that Marcel Brands puts pen to paper on a new contract at Goodison Park so that the Dutchman can implement stage two of his vision for the club.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, Brands is close to signing new terms to end speculation over his future as the Toffees’ Director of Football.

The 58-year-old is currently out of contract at the end of May when his £2m-a-season deal expires, but Carlo Ancelotti has welcomed the former PSV Eindhoven chief extending his stay on Merseyside.

Brands is noted as having faced criticism from supporters for his early transactions at Goodison Park with former boss Marco Silva, though has enjoyed a positive shift in the past 12-months by clearing out fringe players and making positive signings with Ancelotti.

It had been speculated that Blues majority owner Farhad Moshiri could wait until Brands’ existing deal expired before making a decision on his future, yet the Dutchman – who sits on the Everton board – wants to stay.

Progress appears to have been made since, and a deal for the chief Ancelotti believes has “important” qualities as a recruitment-expert appears to be near to completion.

Should Everton retain Brands?

Brands is often credited with playing an instrumental role in the arrivals of players at Everton since his appointment in 2018, including Niels Nkounkou last summer and for resurrecting Lucas Digne’s career from the FC Barcelona sidelines.

He has also spent the past two-and-a-half years trying to shift the deadwood left behind by his predecessor Steve Walsh, with new homes found for Morgan Schneiderlin, Sandro Ramirez, Nikola Vlasic, Henry Onyekuru and Kevin Mirallas, as well as a handful of loans for Yannick Bolasie to get his £75,000-per-week contract off the books.

But Bolasie’s deal and that belonging to Muhamed Besic will expire at the end of the season and the fringe players Ancelotti has no use or want for will decrease with it, allowing the summer to be arguably Brands’ first window where a majority of his focus can be spent strengthening the squad rather than trying to reduce a bloated wage bill.

He has already worked wonders when one hand was tied between his back in bringing Digne to Merseyside, as well as the arrivals of Andre Gomes and more recently Ben Godfrey, who is seen more as a signing by Brands and his scouting team than Ancelotti who can take credit for James Rodriguez.

And if a partnership of Brands and Ancelotti can return signings like Rodriguez and Godfrey, who knows where it could take Everton with the allure of European football with the Blues in contention to secure a UEFA berth for next term.

A new contract would be a dream deal for Everton’s long-term vision, as the Toffees put the groundwork in place for a bright future in the Bramley-Moore Dock, so Moshiri must get it done sooner rather than later.

AND in other news, Carlo Ancelotti is willing Everton to pay £26.5m for a £176k-p/w gem…

As Tottenham Hotspur gear up to face West Ham United in the Premier League on Sunday, manager Jose Mourinho has dropped an enticing claim surrounding star front man Harry Kane – with the Portuguese believing he will be ‘OK and ready’ for the match. 

Kane missed Tottenham’s 4-1 victory away to Wolfsberger, with the likes of Son Heung-min and Lucas Moura putting in noteworthy performances, and there was brief worries surrounding his fitness and another potential injury.

Reliable Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold then relayed ‘positive news for Spurs fans’ by sharing that Kane didn’t pick up a fresh injury – with Mourinho since claiming his absence was a precautionary measure.

Jose Mourinho drops enticing Tottenham claim

The Englishman opted out of the Europa League trip in order to not take a risk after coming back from his latest knock, and the Spurs boss has since dropped an enticing claim that he should be fit to take on the Hammers.

“His feelings were that to play this game could be a risk with the accumulation of minutes and the accumulation of minutes after the injury that he had,” he explained to the press (via football.london).

“Of course myself and the medical department, we agreed with him in giving him this opportunity to take care of his condition, but I believe on Sunday he will be OK and ready.”

Transfer Tavern take

Given Kane’s importance to this Tottenham team, this could come as a huge sigh of relief given he wasn’t left out due to another injury.

The precautionary measure could be a smart move as Mourinho will not want to take risks involving his star striker, and the notion he is likely to be available for West Ham is undoubtedly good news.

In other news: Tottenham are eyeing this £17.4 million-rated star, find out more here.

Phil Hay has provided a very interesting update surrounding Leeds United’s stance heading into the summer transfer window. The Athletic reporter claims that the Whites would be looking to recruit five new players once the market opens once again for business. Not only is this a hugely promising idea in terms of squad depth, but it hints that Marcelo Bielsa is due to pen a new deal with the club soon.

The Argentinian took over at Elland Road in 2018, but did not sign a long-term contract. Bielsa likes to manage his time accordingly and therefore is known for signing short, one or two year deals with clubs. His current contract with Leeds is set to expire in the summer, with no news of an extension emerging as of yet.

However, Hay’s update could hint that the boss has big plans for Leeds moving forwards and he wants to stick around to see this team re-establish themselves in the Premier League. He enjoyed a fruitful summer window in 2020, aiding in the recruitment of the likes of Illan Meslier, Robin Koch and Raphinha. With the Whites currently in tenth place in the table, they are far from any danger of slipping back into the Championship.

There’s no question that this Leeds side is a very exciting project right now. After earning their promotion and Championship title, they have re-emerged on the scene of the Premier League with a bang. They’ve managed to secure positive results against the likes of Manchester City, Arsenal and Leicester. It’s been a solid start for the Whites, but there’s always room for improvement.

Naturally, new targets are being monitored ahead of the summer and potential outgoings also loom. But the man the club would miss the most if he was to leave is Bielsa.

After driving them to their long-awaited return back to England’s top flight, the Argentine has written his name in the club’s history. Whilst the may not have signed on the dotted line just yet, the big plans in the pipeline could may well spell that the good news is just around the corner.

In other news, Leeds must move for Phillips 2.0 in Boubakary Soumare…

Celtic are no longer champions. For large periods of this season, the writing has been on the wall and now it’s been confirmed.

John Kennedy’s men needed a victory on Sunday to ensure Rangers had to wait another week to win the SPFL but they slipped up by drawing 0-0 with Dundee United.

They were met with an inspirational performance from Benjamin Siegrist who made as many as 12 saves on Sunday afternoon.

Celtic tried their best to take the title to another week but not even one of their best first-half performances of the term could stop Rangers from winning the league.

In the first half, the Hoops managed 17 shots at Siegrist’s goal, the most they’ve had in the opening 45 minutes of a game in the entire season.

They lacked ruthlessness, much as they have throughout the 2020/21 campaign. Clearly, they were already out for the count when they travelled to Tannadice.

However, when your best player is out of sorts, you don’t have much hope. Odsonne Edouard has been magnificent lately but his performance on Sunday was incredibly frustrating.

The Frenchman has scored nine goals in his last ten outings and this was undoubtedly his worst performance during that run of games. Edouard was constantly running into defenders and wasn’t his cutthroat self inside the penalty area.

One moment typified Celtic’s season. The striker plucked a long ball out of the air with relative ease but after advancing towards the area, he got his feet in a tangle which allowed the defender to make an excellent recovering block.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-celtic-manager-hunt-stories-wagner-marsch-martinez-lennon-news” title=”The last stories on Celtic’s hunt for a new manager!”]

That was probably Edouard’s best chance of the game and he spurned it. He was isolated up front and made just one more touch (41) than goalkeeper Scott Bain.

The forward only managed 18 passes in the entire match and lost a considerable 75% of the duels he competed in. He had two shots saved by Siegrist but neither were too taxing for the Dundee United goalkeeper.

There seemed to be a lack of interest to his play but who can blame him? This is probably Edouard’s final campaign at Parkhead.

In the last week alone, he has been linked with moves to both Arsenal and Leicester City. This is the first time Celtic haven’t won the league with Edouard leading the line; it would be a timely and sad way for the two to part ways.

That being said, the time undoubtedly feels right. The Bhoys need a fresh start.

AND in other news, Imagine him & Edouard: Celtic must swoop for £7.2m-rated beast with 8 G/A this term…

Celtic have no manager at present but that doesn’t seem to matter to the club’s hierarchy, who are busy tying up some pre-contract deals.

Liam Shaw has already agreed a move with the Hoops while they’re also targeting Kyle Joseph from Wigan Athletic.

What’s the word?

It appears that the Bhoys are making an effort to bring plenty of young talent to Glasgow over the summer. That’s because fresh reports state that they’re targeting another teenager embedded within the English Football League.

GIVEMESPORT reported that Rochdale’s flying winger Kwadwo Baah is a target for Celtic ahead of the next window. The 18-year-old’s contract expires this summer and thus, the Hoops will be able to sign him on a free transfer.

However, they face competition from both Manchester City and West Ham to secure his signature.

Timely move

With Cameron Harper now back in America and Karamoko Dembele set to wind down his contract (via reports relayed by The Scottish Sun), securing some more young talent is a timely statement from the Hoops.

Dembele has long been the darling of the Celtic academy but, after finding first team opportunities hard to come by, he is seemingly on the hunt for chances elsewhere.

It will be a shame, especially given his glowing qualities. The teenager made his debut as a 16-year-old but hasn’t really built on what was a very early glimpse of his qualities.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-celtic-manager-hunt-stories-wagner-marsch-martinez-lennon-news” title=”The last stories on Celtic’s hunt for a new manager!”]

Signing Baah would therefore seem an excellent addition in order to replace him. The two players possess similar characteristics, too.

In League One this term, the Rochdale forward has scored three times and provided two assists, but one of the most eye-catching aspects of his game is the ability to take on and beat a defender.

Like Dembele, Baah loves to leave full-backs in a tangle, something his 1.6 dribbles per match signifies.

Judging by their ages – Dembele is also just 18 – they are at a similar stage of development, too. That being said, the Celtic target has far more senior experience and exposure to his name.

While the Hoops prospect has made just five senior appearances, Baah has featured on 37 occasions for Rochdale, being praised highly in the process. Speaking in December, Dale manager Brian Barry-Murphy said: “He’s a very special talent, he’s going to attract the headlines – and rightly so because he’s a very dangerous player.”

Barry-Murphy clearly rates him highly, commenting after Baah signed a new deal a year ago: “His talent is exceptional and he’s someone we’re very excited about for the future. He’s made a huge impact on the squad already.”

In terms of the impact made at senior level, Baah is already ahead of Dembele. That should be music to the ears of Hoops supporters.

AND in other news, 108 aerials won: Celtic could replace Edouard with “special” 6 ft 7 colossus…

Liverpool finally got back on the winning trail in the Premier League with a slender 1-0 success against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday evening.

Diogo Jota proved to be the match-winner against his former club, his strike just seconds from half-time was enough to claim three points in the West-Midlands.

Despite the Portuguese ace turning in another supremely impressive performance in the continued absence of Roberto Firmino, it was actually a man at the other end of the field who deserves a lot of credit. That player was on-loan Schalke 04 centre-back Ozan Kabak.

Deployed alongside Nathaniel Phillips once again at the heart of the Reds’ defence, Kabak was the most junior of the back four but he turned in what was statistically his best performance of the campaign since joining the club on a temporary deal in January.

Awarded a WhoScored rating of 7.83, his best score of the season so far in all competitions, he continually snuffed out a number of attacks from the home side.

The £22.5m-rated Turkish international produced a huge six clearances, with only fellow centre-back Phillips contributing as many.

Kabak’s defensive interventions did not end there though as he also produced a further three interceptions, three victorious aerial duels and two tackles.

One of his tackles was especially key in the match as he crucially got a toe in front of Morgan Gibbs-White as he was seemingly put through on goal by Fabio Silva with just five minutes of normal time remaining.

The Turk’s competence on the ball also came in handy for Liverpool throughout the game. He completed an impressive 86.8 per cent of his passes, only Georginio Wijnaldum of the Reds’ starting XI bettered that number.

In all then, it was a hugely impressive performance from Kabak and a display that bodes extremely well for the campaign amidst Liverpool’s continued injury crisis in defence. It won’t have done his hopes of earning a permanent move to Anfield in the upcoming transfer window any harm either.

AND in more news, have a look at which fringe player Liverpool should bin this summer…

Steve Bruce must strive to better utilise Jacob Murphy after the Newcastle winger’s influential cameo performance against Aston Villa in Friday night’s 1-1 draw.

Murphy had started the match on the bench as he continues to serve a bit-part role for the Magpies, having not started a Premier League game since January’s 2-1 loss to Leeds United.

The Whites’ visit to St. James’ Park marks Murphy’s only start across all competitions this calendar year, and was followed by the 26-year-old being omitted from three squads and being left an unused substitute on two of five possible occasions.

Bruce only gave Murphy the final 11 minutes of normal time against Aston Villa to prove that he deserves a greater share of the action on Tyneside, but was made to look naïve for overlooking his services so often.

With the deadlock yet to be broken, Bruce introduced Murphy in place of Ryan Fraser and soon saw the £3.15m-rated dynamo rattle the crossbar when his shot curled onto the woodwork after twisting smartly to shrug off Douglas Luiz.

Villa took the lead shortly afterwards through Ollie Watkins, who steered his header past Martin Dubravka via a cruel deflection off Ciaran Clark, but Murphy refused to let the fortuitous goal break Newcastle’s spirit and went on to set up Jamaal Lascelles’ stoppage-time equaliser.

Aston Villa gave Murphy all the time in the world to pick out where to cross the ball from the left-hand corner and he found Lascelles on the edge of the six-yard box to powerfully head home and snatch what could be a vital point in Newcastle’s fight for Premier League survival.

Murphy had come close to having his assist moments earlier when the winger easily ran past Matt Target and into Emiliano Martinez’s area, but Dwight Gayle could only flick his cutback into the Argentine’s hand before the Villans scrambled clear the danger.

Bruce should not have been surprised to see Murphy offer a creative touch in the dying stages, as the summer free agent almost set Joelinton up to win it against Wolverhampton Wanderers last month, only for Romain Saiss to bundle the Brazilian’s effort over the bar.

Like against Targett on Friday, Murphy made a great run before cutting the ball back into the area to meet a wide-open Joelinton on the penalty spot, only for Saiss to save Wolves a point as the Newcastle striker was unable to convert a glaring opportunity to score.

Despite his creativity, Murphy – who Noel Whelan has lauded as “a fantastic player” – was left an unused substitute for last Sunday’s goalless draw with West Bromwich Albion and in the dugout for much of Friday’s meeting with Aston Villa.

However, Bruce’s decision to leave Murphy out of the starting line-up against Dean Smith’s Villans was made to appear foolish, as he earned SofaScore’s highest match rating at 8.2 out of 10 thanks to creating each of his side’s two big chances to score.

He further won each of his three ground duels and two attempted dribbles, more than Gayle (2 duels won, zero dribbles) achieved throughout the full 90 minutes having started the game on the left wing before a move into the centre for the second half, per SofaScore.

Bruce must now look to unleash Murphy from the off when United visit fellow strugglers Brighton and Hove Albion next weekend in what will be a crucial six-pointer for both teams’ hopes of staying in the Premier League.

In other news, Newcastle eye summer swoop for £16k-p/w maestro once lauded for being “the most gifted” player…

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, Peterborough’s director of football Barry Fry has urged West Ham to keep hold of manager David Moyes beyond this season, believing he can make the Hammers London’s “leading club”.

Moyes, who joined the club at the end of 2019 for a second spell in east London, is out of contract in the summer and has yet to put pen to paper on a new deal.

It is a situation that may come as a surprise to some given how well the 57-year-old and West Ham have done in the Premier League this term. Under Moyes’ guidance, the Hammers have ascended all the way to fifth in the table and remain just two points behind London rivals Chelsea, who currently occupy that last Champions League spot.

Overall, Moyes has done a good job in the London Stadium dugout, and Fry believes David Gold and David Sullivan must do all they can to tie the Scotsman down to a new long-term contract.

In an exclusive interview with FFC, Fry said:

“The signings haven’t always come off, but if you’re the owner and you give the manager the money what he wants, it’s probably not your fault. So if they believe in David Moyes, which I think they do, then they should back him and West Ham will be the leading club in London, which will be a feat and a half if that happens.”

Under Moyes’ leadership, West Ham look like a stable side and one capable of challenging for European football.

After making such good progress under the former Manchester United and Everton manager, to lose him now would surely be counterproductive for the club.