All posts by n8rngtd.top

Rangers have been tipped to swoop for Liverpool winger Harry Wilson this summer, who could prove to be the next Ryan Kent in Steven Gerrard’s side should he make the move to Ibrox ahead of next season.

Former Rangers defender Michael Ball has suggested in a recent interview with ThisisFutbol that Gerrard could be the man to lure the Wales international to Ibrox this summer, saying:

“Steven’s got that connection with him. He knows of him, so that personal relationship could be a bonus. The money, we’re not too sure what they have to spend, so it all depends if any players move out as well at Rangers.

“If [Alfredo] Morelos moves on, the big money that they’ll get would give Rangers the opportunity to bring Harry, and maybe a few others, in.”

Whilst Ball is suggesting that Rangers may well only be able to afford the 24-year-old winger should Alfredo Morelos be sold, he could definitely prove to be an excellent addition to Gerrard’s side.

Wilson spent the season on loan with Cardiff City in the Championship, contributing seven goals and 11 assists in 37 appearances for the Bluebirds, which helped him average an impressive 6.96 rating from WhoScored.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-rangers-news-transfer-rumours-and-more-copy-copy” title=“Latest Rangers news, transfer rumours and more from Ibrox!”]

After failing to sell the young winger last summer, it seems likely that Liverpool will seek a permanent buyer for Wilson ahead of next season, as he has managed just two appearances for the senior side during his time at Anfield.

There are certainly similarities between a potential deal for Wilson and the one that saw Ryan Kent join the Gers on a permanent deal in 2019.

Both are young wingers, who are products of the Liverpool academy and like Kent, Wilson would likely be close to a record transfer should he move to Ibrox on a permanent deal this summer, given that Transfermarkt currently values him at £14.4m.

There are similarities in their style of play too, as Wilson loves to cut inside and shoot from distance, although usually on the opposite flank to Kent, as emphasised by his fantastic hattrick in a recent win against Birmingham City.

[freshpress-quiz id=“593776″]

Therefore, if Ross Wilson and Gerrard can work together to bring Wilson, who was praised for being “hugely impressive” by his former boss Eddie Howe, to Ibrox this summer, there seems no reason why he can’t have a similar impact to Kent with the Light Blues.

And, in other news… Forget Hamer: Wilson should seal Rangers swoop for 22 y/o beast with “great vision”

Footballers might not have a reputation for intelligence, but these players proved that plenty have brains on top of their talent

• Getty Images
  

  Vincent Kompany

  Not content with lifting Premier League titles as captain, rifling in screamers at crucial stages in title races and being beloved by seemingly all who cross his path, Vincent Kompany also has a Master's in Business Administration.

  He graduated from Alliance Manchester Business School in 2017, with a keen interest in the world of football off the pitch. It was hardly surprising, then, to see him step into a managerial role at Anderlecht.

  His final dissertation project, looking at how Premier League football clubs benefit from home advantage, received a distinction grade.

Advertisement

• David Cannon/Getty
  

  Socrates

  The Brazil legend built up a mystique not only around his ability on the field, but his deep thinking off it. 

  He completed a doctorate in Medicine during his playing career, and practised medicine after his retirement from the game in 1989 before also earning a PhD.

  Known as 'Doctor Socrates', he grew up in a house that half-resembled a library, stacked with philosophical books and other works by his father.

• Getty
  

  Juan Mata

  Juan Mata became one of the world's most universally popular footballers when he announced his Common Goal initiative back in 2017, but it wasn't the first sign of his thoughtful nature.

  During his time at Valencia and Chelsea, he earned two degrees from Madrid’s Universidad Camilo Jose Cela – one in Marketing, and one in Sports Science.

  About to start his seventh season at Manchester United, Mata has suggested he will go into coaching at the end of his career but also says he is interested in the field of psychology.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Getty
  

  Iain Dowie

  Now 54, Iain Dowie made over 400 appearances across a 13-year career as a forward, winning 59 caps for the Republic of Ireland.

  As a youngster, though, his football career looked to be over before it had begun when he was released by Southampton. He went to the University of Hertfordshire, earned a Master's in Engineering and got a job at British Aerospace.

  Playing in non-league, he was spotted by Luton Town, where he decided to focus on football full-time. Now a pundit, in 2016 he was appointed the regional sales manager for Go To Surveys, a company which carries out homebuyers reports, building surveys and valuations.

Teenage talent is among the most valuable in football with clubs looking to build for their futures but which young stars have switched for big money?

• Getty
  

  10Pietro Pellegri – Genoa to Monaco – €25m / £22m

  Already labelled the 'next Messi', Pietro Pellegri is the joint-youngest player to line up in Serie A. Born in 2001, he became the most expensive 16-year-old ever despite having played just 10 senior games for Genoa.

  Pellegri also scored twice against Lazio, setting the record as the youngest player to score two goals in a game in one of Europe's top five leagues.

Advertisement

• Getty Images
  

  9Anderson – Porto to Manchester United – €30m / £20m

  When Manchester United tried to sign Anderson from Porto in 2007, they saw their work permit application turned down due to a lack of experience. United argued that at 19, it was impossible for him to have any more experience having helped Porto to back-to-back Primeira Liga titles.

  The application was successful, but Anderson's time at Old Trafford was not as good as expected, despite playing over 100 Premier League games.

• Getty Images
  

  8Gabriel Jesus – Palmeiras to Manchester City – €33m / £27m

  An Olympic champion with Brazil, Gabriel Jesus won everything possible domestically before leaving Palmeiras for Manchester City. The striker made an immediate impact in the Premier League, scoring and assisting in his first league start for Pep Guardiola's side.

  Injury curtailed his debut season, but he still ended the campaign with seven goals and four assists in 11 appearances.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Getty Images
  

  7Renato Sanches – Benfica to Bayern Munich – €35m / £27.5m

  A sensation with Benfica in his native country, midfielder Renato Sanches was bought by Bayern Munich even before he won the Young Player of the Tournament award at Euro 2016.

  Bayern had agreed to purchase him for €35m before the tournament, possibly saving themselves from a larger fee after his string of impressive performances as Portugal lifted the trophy.

The Barcelona icon tops a list based on effectiveness through the season, but Neymar is completely absent, and the Liverpool star outside the top five

The CIES Football Observatory ranks players who have played 1,800 minutes of football (1,440 for Germany), or 20 matches, on their efficiency and performance level. The rating is out of 100, and there are a fair few surprises…

(NB: Neymar only played 1,797 minutes for PSG in Ligue 1 this season, so just missed out on being ranked.)

• Getty
  

  20Ivan Rakitic | Barcelona | Rating: 88.18

Advertisement

• 19Raul Albiol | Napoli | 88.46

• Getty Images
  

  18Marek Hamsik | Napoli | 88.53

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Getty Images
  

  17Lorenzo Insigne | Napoli | 88.58

Speaking to talkSPORT, host and pundit Adrian Durham has told Tottenham Hotspur and Daniel Levy to target Inter Milan boss Antonio Conte over other linked candidates such as Graham Potter and Scott Parker.

Conte, who has just clinched a Serie A title with the Nerazzurri, possesses no shortage of silverware over his managerial career – having won eight major honours as a coach overall (Transfermarkt).

Durham tells Levy to target Conte for Spurs

This includes a Premier League crown during the 2016/2017 season with Chelsea and the FA Cup one year later, and Durham believes Levy should be trying to lure him to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium over the likes of Potter and Parker, who have little experience and silverware by comparison.

In response to Potter’s links to Spurs, Durham explained to talkSPORT:

“I call him Graham Plodder which is a little bit disrespectful. He is better than that, but there is a pedestrian way that Brighton play that some people seem to love.

“I look at the lack of goals and think it’s got to get better than that. Potter, Parker or Eddie Howe – and then I look at Antonio Conte, who’s just won the title at Inter Milan.

“That’s who Spurs should be trying to attract to their football club. If they go with any of the first three, with the greatest of respect to them, there’s no way Kane stays.”

Transfer Tavern take

It is clear that, if Tottenham were targeting Conte, he would stand out as a very illustrious candidate.

Juventus coach Andrea Pirlo waxed lyrical over the €20 million-per-year (£17.2m) boss just last year, heralding him as the ‘best coach’ he has ever worked with and a ‘demon’ who is ‘obsessed with victory (FourFourTwo).

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is another who has heaped praise on the 51-year-old, dubbing Conte a tactical ‘master’ after introducing another way to attack with five in defence (Arab News).

However, despite his plaudits, Conte being targeted is arguably very unrealistic given his reported salary, the fact he has just won a title with Inter and the rumours Tottenham are looking for a ‘young’ and ‘dynamic’ coach (Daily Mail).

In other news: Tottenham register interest in this midfield maestro, find out more here.

Former Norwich City star Jon Newsome has told The Transfer Tavern that the club will try to bring Tottenham Hotspur loanee Oliver Skipp back to the club next season.

The Canaries were the first Championship club this season to seal promotion to the Premier League, a feat that was confirmed at the weekend.

Skipp has been integral to that success, playing in all 42 of the club’s games in the second-tier this season.

A defensive midfielder, he has even chipped in with a goal and two assists as Norwich have swept all before them to confirm their return to the top-flight.

As it stands, Skipp is scheduled to return to Spurs at the end of the season but Newsome believes it is almost certain that Norwich will try to find a way to keep him at Carrow Road, so impressive has the 20-year-old been.

Speaking exclusively to TT, he said: “I would imagine as a management and recruitment team, they will be looking at him and saying, ‘well, we know he does a good job for us, we know he fits into our style of play, he’s good around the players, he’s happy here. We’ve got to try and secure him’.”

Skipp has experience of playing for Spurs, having made 23 senior appearances before his loan move.

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!

Aston Villa were recently labelled as the ‘early favourites’ to sign Sheffield United midfielder Sander Berge this summer.

The 23-year-old looks likely to seal a move away from Chris Wilder’s side, with relegation to the Championship looking inevitable for the Yorkshire outfit.

Arsenal and Tottenham keen

According to website Jeunes Footeux, via Sport Witness, Arsenal and Tottenham are both now interested in the Blades ace and are on alert over a potential transfer.

The report claims that Berge, who has been out of action since December through injury, will be allowed to leave Bramall Lane for €26m (£22.3m).

Transfer Tavern take

Securing Berge’s services could turn out to be a shrewd piece of business by Villa, but it looks as if they’ll need to make him the club’s third biggest-signing in their history at £22.3m.

The Norwegian is capable of playing as a holding or central midfielder, so could provide Dean Smith with another strong option in the middle of the park.

On the other hand, Smith already has the likes of Douglas Luiz, John McGinn, Marvelous Nakamba, Jacob Ramsey and January arrival Morgan Sanson as central options, so Smith may feel he is well-stocked in that department.

In other news: Gregg Evans believes £27k-a-week Villa ace could leave this summer, find out more here.

According to emerging reports, Sheffield Wednesday are considering a move for free-agent defender Danny Simpson…

What’s the word?

Sheffield Star journalist Joe Crann revealed on Monday evening that the Owls were contemplating a deal for the out-of-work left-back, who left local rivals Huddersfield Town at the end of last season.

The 34-year-old had been playing for his former club, Leicester City, and their u23 side in recent months in a mutually beneficial agreement that added experience to Brendan Rodgers’ setup as well as giving the Premier League winner some much-needed minutes.

It is believed that Simpson was the unnamed trialist for the Owls’ U23s on Monday afternoon, with senior boss Darren Moore in attendance.

An uninspiring solution

There are only 11 games left to save Wednesday’s Championship status, so signing a player that has not featured all campaign certainly seems like a recipe for disaster, nor is it an inspiring move.

However, it is a necessary decision to make, irrespective of the division the south Yorkshire giants find themselves in next term.

The Owls have practically been playing all year without an out-and-out left-back. In the summer, former boss Garry Monk failed to replace his first-choice option, Morgan Fox, following his departure to Stoke City.

And this was something that chairman Dejphon Chansiri and the club’s recruitment team neglected to rectify during the January transfer window.

Given Simpson’s experience – he has racked up 331 appearances across England’s top two divisions – and the need for a player in the role, the move makes a ton of sense.

He started 23 games for the Terriers last season, where he averaged the fifth-most tackles per game (1.5) of any regular starter for Danny Cowley – a figure that would rank him similarly in the current Owls squad.

Matt Penney, Adam Reach, Liam Palmer, Moses Odubajo and Joost van Aken have all been utilised at left-back throughout the season, only emphasising the nightmare the Owls have had in the position and only two have managed more than 1.5 tackles per outing, as per WhoScored.

As Rodgers once said to the Leicester Mercury, Simpson is a “first-class” player who “trains like a demon every day,” and whilst his better days have come and gone, he’d be a worthwhile addition to Moore’s faltering outfit.

The £450k-rated veteran can solve the Owls’ season-long problem at left-back.

AND in other news, Worse than Windass: Sheffield Wednesday ace who had 71 touches hands Moore big problem…