All posts by n8rngtd.top

According to a report by journalist Kevin Palmer, sharing his Sunday World piece on Twitter, Liverpool are closing in on a double swoop for both Ibrahima Konate and Ozan Kabak, prompting many Reds supporters to react excitedly as this news emerges.

The Reds have been publicly working on a deal for Konate for quite some time, with CaughtOffside reporter Leah Smith breaking the news that Liverpool have reached an agreement for the RB Leipzig defender (Twitter).

Fabrizio Romano also backed that claim (Twitter), but Sunday World reporter Palmer has now dropped a rather enticing development on the story. He claimed that, as well as Konate, Liverpool are also lining up a swoop for on-loan defender Kabak, with German sources expecting him to put pen to paper on an £18m deal.

Flocking to this news, many Reds supporters weren’t short of opinions,with one calling it ‘fantastic news’ given how well the Turkish defender is starting to adapt to the English top flight.

Find some of their verdicts on this transfer news below.

Liverpool fans buzz over Konate and Kabak claim

“Wow! Didn’t think we’d do both. Kabak at the price he is makes so much sense.”

Credit: @TheOnlyBrianG

“Love this, can we bag a striker too though”

Credit: @MrTazofficial

“GET IN + #FSGOUT”

Credit: @Daniel04139099

“Finally some good news”

Credit: @MoAshoor25

“Nice good start now onto a creative midfield and another forward”

Credit: @yeraya100

“Yay”

Credit: @LFC_JimBean

“Fantastic news. Kabak gets better with every game!”

Credit: @TheAnfieldTalk

In other news: Many Liverpool fans blasted this star after his Newcastle outing, find out more here.

According to a recent report, Tottenham Hotspur are interested in the signing of VfB Stuttgart centre-forward, Sasa Kalajdzic, as a replacement for Spurs’ loanee striker, Carlos Vinicius, this summer.

The report by the Daily Mail claims that, upon the expiry of his season-long loan at Tottenham, Vinicius is set to make a return to Benfica, as Daniel Levy is unwilling to pay the £36 million option to buy clause in the 26-year-old’s contract.

As a result of Vinicius’ impending departure from north London, it is then claimed that Jose Mourinho is searching for replacements for the Brazilian, with Kalajdzic believed to be one of the 58-year-old’s targets.

Last month, a report by Kicker (via Sport Witness) claimed that West Ham United are also interested in the 6 foot 5 Stuttgart forward, for whom the Bundesliga side are thought to be demanding a fee of between €20-25 million (£17.4-21.75 million) to part with this summer.

Transfer Tavern Take

With Vinicius starting just three Premier League fixtures during his loan spell at Spurs so far, with the striker only managing one goal over his total of nine top-flight appearances, it is hardly surprising that the club are unwilling to pay a substantial amount of money for the Brazilian this summer.

And, with Kalajdzic having scored 14 goals and provided four assists over his 27 Bundesliga appearances for Stuttgart this season, as well as the fact the 23-year-old is reportedly available for much less than it would cost to sign Vinicius, it is easy to see why Tottenham may feel that the Austria international would be much better value for money.

In other news: ‘It may be’ – Spurs target drops huge hint on transfer; Mourinho fascinated by ‘remarkable’ star – find out more here!

According to a report by Claret & Hugh, West Ham United are now committed to bringing defender Craig Dawson onto the payroll permanently, with David Moyes deciding some time back that he wanted a permanent deal regardless of his obligation-to-buy clause.

West Ham committed to Dawson signing

Indeed, as per the Irons insiders, West Ham had already made the call over Dawson becoming a permanent player, with the 30-year-old having been a revelation since coming to the London Stadium on loan.

The defender, who has started 14 Premier League games this season (WhoScored), took a while to work his way into the side but has managed to usurp the likes of Fabian Balbuena and Issa Diop over the course of the campaign.

He is currently a mainstay in Moyes’ backline, and the manager has apparently already made up his mind on a permanent deal for Dawson, with the club set to sign him for around £3m.

Transfer Tavern take

Claret & Hugh added that GSB are committed to this transfer regardless of whether Dawson hits the number of games needed to trigger his obligation-to-buy clause, which seems inevitable judging by Moyes’ recent admission that it was ‘very close’.

Given his form over this season, it seems obvious why Moyes made up his mind about the 30-year-old a while ago.

Bringing Dawson to east London permanently for just £3m has been described as a potentially ‘staggering’ deal by pundit Noel Whelan (Football Insider), and it’s hard to argue with his assessment.

In other news: West Ham have been dealt a potential Jesse Lingard blow, find out more here.

Many Everton fans have been left delighted at a potential position change for Ben Godfrey ahead of their FA Cup tie at home to Manchester City.
The Liverpool Echo have suggested that the former Norwich City man can play in midfield if needed, as Carlo Ancelotti admitted that he needs to be more creative following the long-term injury to Abdoulaye Doucoure, and he could well experiment with Godfrey in midfield against Pep Guardiola’s men.The 23-year-old has played in either a defensive or central midfield role for a combined total 0f 59 games over the course of his whole club career so far, and so is certainly more than capable of playing there if Ancelotti wanted to use that option.Whether Godfrey ends up playing in midfield against MCFC is another question – he hasn’t played there since arriving on Merseyside so it would certainly be a surprise – but it is seemingly a move that should not be ruled out.

Everton fan reaction to Godfrey in midfield

These Toffees supporters lauded the idea of Godfrey playing in midfield on Twitter:

“I like this solution do it”

Credit: @PhYozza72
“100%”

Credit: @heskeyefc
“No brainer. Play him and Allan in the centre of a four, with Richarlison on the right and James/Bernard on the left. With King and DCL up front in a two”

Credit: @ChrisPitchy
“I like that idea, Mina and Keane behind him Allan and Davies.”

Credit: @howardjamiee
“100% try this what do we have to lose!”

Credit: @TabbyEfc1991

“Said this the other day, it’s the only logical solution to fill the gap left by Doucoure”

Credit: @Owens_EFC
In other news, find out what early team news before City has left Blues fuming here!

Several Crystal Palace fans have been having their say on James Ward-Prowse after the Southampton midfielder commented on a 2019 clash with Wilfried Zaha.

The Saints star went past 300 appearances for the club earlier this season and was shown some of his best bits in a video shared on the club’s official YouTube account.

Numerous goals and free-kicks were on show, but one heated moment included was between Ward-Prowse and Zaha in January 2019 during a 1-1 draw – a game in which both players were on the scoresheet.

Zaha was sent off after two quick yellow cards following an altercation with Ward-Prowse, who celebrated with the Saints fans after the Palace star was dismissed.

Ward-Prowse simply said ‘oops, second yellow’ when he watched the footage back, which seems to have irritated plenty of Eagles supporters.

The clip was shared on Twitter by Southampton fan @JoshW_SFC on Tuesday evening and has been viewed over 29,000 times as of Wednesday lunchtime.

This is what these Palace fans had to say, with many hitting out at the England international…

“Same club who lost 9-0 twice, irrelevant and always in Pompey’s shadow”

Credit: @joe_cpfc_01

“Never seen a club milk something so much, really weird behaviour”

Credit: @paIaceawayy

“This is incredibly embarrassing omg”

Credit: @cpfcpaddy0

“This is up there with the very most embarrassing things I’ve ever seen…”

Credit: @unknownbald

“Please tell me this is fake, he’s reacted to a moment in a meaningless 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace?”

Credit: @CiaranCPFC

“Celebrating a 1-1 home draw against a Roy Hodgson managed side tells you all you need to know. Wilfried Zaha is gargantuan and lives in their heads rent free.”

Credit: @SomePalaceGuy

“Memorable game, you drew 1-1 at home to ten man Roy Hodgson palace. We are massive”

Credit: @TalkCPFC 

Lee Johnson has guided this Sunderland side to fourth in League One and the good times should carry on this weekend.

The Mackems are getting ready to face a Rochdale side who occupy a relegation place in the division. They have only won one of their last 15 outings, so it should be an uphill struggle for The Dale at the Stadium of Light.

That being said, the Black Cats did need a rescue act last weekend against Crewe in order to salvage a point.

It’s also hard to look past a number of injuries with which Johnson is having to contend. With a succession of players still on the sidelines, how could their XI look on Saturday afternoon?

The Mackems are likely to be without Grant Leadbitter this weekend as he recovers from a dislocated shoulder.

Tom Flanagan is looking stronger in his bid to return to fitness but will miss out this weekend. The same goes for Ross Stewart and Denver Hume. Bailey Wright will unfortunately also be absent on Saturday afternoon.

As a result, the makeshift pairing of Dion Sanderon and Luke O’Nien occupy the central roles in the defence.

With Sunderland taking on weaker opposition, it could give the manager a chance to go more attacking, something he did in the second half of their clashes with Crewe and Swindon.

That sees two changes made from Tuesday night, with Chris Maguire and Aiden O’Brien coming into the side. Maguire replaces Lynden Gooch in the number 10 role.

Gooch starred against Swindon but went off with a minor calf problem. Johnson wasn’t too worried at full-time but, given the number of injury problems they have, they can’t afford to take risks. That means the £5,000-per-week winger is dropped from the XI.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-sunderland-news-and-gossip” title=” Latest Sunderland news and gossip!”]

The other change is on the left, where Jordan Jones comes out of the team for O’Brien, someone who has been an influential member of the team since Johnson was given the job.

The winger started on the bench in midweek but scored 11 days ago against Fleetwood. With his importance in mind, it’s not beyond the realms of fantasy to suggest he could start again.

After all, Jones still appears to be struggling for match fitness; he was hooked after just an hour on Tuesday night.

AND in other news, Sunderland must unleash “top player” who Johnson once dubbed “Championship-class”…

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer faces a difficult decision over how he deals with Manchester United defender Phil Jones in the coming weeks and months – with the Red Devils reportedly open to selling him this summer.

What’s the word?

According to ESPN, United could look to sell Jones on one condition, with Solskjaer seeking to bolster his defensive options before the start of the new season.

Jones has long been linked with the Old Trafford exit, and several clubs have looked at him closely, including Premier League strugglers West Brom, who wanted him to shore up their leaky defence during the winter window.

The former England international is just the latest player tipped to be on the move in the next summer market as Solskjaer has already started to clear out the deadwood by selling Timothy Fosu-Mensah to Bayer Leverkusen for a mere £1.8m fee.

Time’s up

With the emergence of academy graduate Axel Tuanzebe, Jones has been relegated to fourth choice this season.

The 28-year-old, who is currently valued at £5m via Transfermarkt, has not played for United since January 2020 after a string of injuries and has spent the entire time up until now working his way back to fitness.

He had attracted interest from several clubs across the country in the hope of a possible move in January earlier this year, but in the end, nothing materialised, and on £75k-per-week, it might be hard to offload him without forcing him to take a drastic pay cut.

However, fitness issues aside, it’s become increasingly apparent that Jones simply isn’t up to the standards required at Old Trafford.

Whilst it could be argued that injuries have meant he has never been able to reach his full potential, having been tipped for greatness by Sir Alex Ferguson himself.

In his last season alone, the versatile defender, who has played in the centre, in the midfield and on the right in his career so far, averaged just one tackle and one interception per 90 in the Premier League, via WhoScored.

By comparison, Tuanzebe is averaging 1.2 tackles per game in six top-flight appearances this season, suggesting that he is already a  significant upgrade on his injured teammate.

Solskjaer will also be well aware that Jones needs to be playing regularly to attract any potential suitors in the summer, which could prove to be a stumbling block unless he can make a full recovery from injury.

Should he recover from injury, there will be a dilemma over giving him any game time at all and whether that’s a good idea right now still remains to be seen with the Red Devils in hot pursuit of both domestic and European success.

There’s nothing to suggest that the unseen Englishman could bolster their current defensive issues.

AND in other news, Manchester United face stiff competition in pursuit of Fiorentina defender Nikola Milenkovic…

According to reports in Spain, West Brom failed in a late attempt to secure a La Liga striker during the January transfer window, though they can count their lucky stars that a deal didn’t come to fruition.

Mundo Deportivo claim that the Baggies were keen to secure former Middlesbrough frontman, Martin Braithwaite, in a loan-to-buy deal which would have included a €15m (£14m) option.

It’s thought that the 29-year-old rejected the opportunity as he had no desire to swap the Nou Camp for the Hawthorns, which is obviously understandable.

But what isn’t understandable is Albion’s interest in the 5 foot 10 forward as he’s failed in England before.

Somehow, the former Boro flop has found himself playing alongside Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann, albeit in a bit-part role at the Spanish giants.

During his time in the Championship with the north-east outfit, the 46-time Denmark international only managed to score eight goals in 36 appearances for the club, via Transfermarkt.

By comparison, even Charlie Austin and Hal Robson-Kanu both hit ten apiece last term with neither starting 24 or more matches, which speaks volumes as the former is no longer at the club, and the latter is merely a bench option right now.

Braithwaite also caused a bit of controversy that had former Baggies boss Tony Pulis reeling. After speaking to the Danish press about his future at the Riverside, the then-Boro manager launched a scathing attack on the striker.

He said, via GazetteLive:

“The biggest disappointment for me is he’s the highest-paid player I’ve ever worked with in the Championship,” before adding: “To show the disrespect he’s shown to this club by saying he’s not coming back, to Steve Gibson, who’s made him a multi-millionaire, let’s make no bones about it, the wages and what he’s earning are astonishing. I’ve dealt with players all my life, some can make your hair curl – not mine. But for him to come out and say that, it just puts him up there as such an ungrateful person.”

Pulis is probably the last person the Hawthorns faithful want to hear from, but these comments, along with Braithwaite’s disappointing record in England, make for appalling reading.

Albion are among the lowest scorers in the Premier League, and Braithwaite would not have been the answer to their issues. He’d have only been another big-money striker signing to fail in the Midlands, like Brown Ideye, who was signed for a then club-record £10m in 2014, he only delivered four Premier League goals before being shipped away after just one campaign.

Kenneth Zohore, Oliver Burke, Yuning Zhang, Stephane Sessegnon, Rickie Lambert are others to name just a few.

Luke Dowling and co may have just dodged an almighty £14m bullet this January.

AND in other news, West Brom just made a foolish mistake over £50k-per-week FLOP…

Liverpool have been linked with a move for Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma this month by Duncan Castles on The Transfer Window Podcast, and the Mali international’s stats suggest that he would be a great addition to Jurgen Klopp’s squad.

Since joining the Seagulls from LOSC Lille in 2018, the 24-year-old has gone on to make 76 appearances, in which he has contributed four goals and one assist.

This season has seen the midfielder average a solid 6.83 rating for his performances in the Premier League, whilst he has demonstrated his long-range shooting quality with superb goals against Everton and Blackpool so far this campaign.

With Fabinho having played centre-back for much of the season, Liverpool have arguably lacked some bite in midfield at times this campaign, which Bissouma could add if he were to make the move to Anfield.

The Brazilian has averaged 2.1 tackles per game, which is the most of any Reds player. Bissouma, meanwhile, has averaged 2.9 tackles per game in the top-flight, which suggests he would fit well into Klopp’s midfield.

The 24-year-old also scores highly with his pass accuracy rate (86.2%) and dribbles per game (1.6), which again suggests that he could adapt to Liverpool’s style of play, as we have often seen the likes of Georginio Wijnaldum and Thiago use their dribbling qualities in order to make space for the front three.

Bissouma may well be likely to depart Brighton in the near future given he is attracting interest from sides across the Premier League, with manager Graham Potter also full of praise for him earlier this season, saying:

“He’s got that quality (to play in the Champions League), he’s got those attributes that you need at that level.”

With Wijnaldum looking likely to join Barcelona at the end of the season, Bissouma could prove to be the ideal replacement if Michael Edwards is able to bring the £11.7 million-rated midfielder to Anfield during the summer.

And, in other news… “I think they’ll try and get it done this window” – Exclusive: Pundit tips LFC to target “perfect” 28 y/o

Glasgow Rangers fans have been reacting to the news that Michael Gardyne has finally been hit with a notice of complaint from the SFA after alleged comments made to Alfredo Morelos.

On December 6th last year, the Gers defeated Ross County 4-0. During the match, Gardyne allegedly made some insulting comments to Morelos, which manager Steven Gerrard bemoaned after the match. However, it took the SFA over three weeks to make a decision, with them sending the notice of complaint on December 31st.

This has attracted plenty of attention from the Gers supporters, and it seems they are a little unhappy. The time delay did not go down well, but they have also questioned why Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard has not received a similar punishment following his poor tackle against Dundee United during a 3-0 victory.

The supporters took to Twitter to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the SFA decision below

“Hold on , Morelos gets suspended straight away and this comes to weeks later !!! Aye nae bother”

Credit: @d4nny_80

“Corruption at its worst.”

Credit: @billyni99933742

“FINALLY”

Credit: @_andrew_tait_

“Sporting integrity eh Peter ??”

Credit: @Blabber08756401

“Wait hold on!! If that’s the case then we’re Ross county lying!?!! Or did the manager try cover it up and that’s why he’s away?? This stinks”

Credit: @Gazzacusgxo

“Joke of an organisation”

Credit: @Tour8sbyproxy

In other news, Rangers have been tipped to move for this Premier League man.