All posts by z3u9t.icu

Many Sunderland fans have been left buzzing over some transfer news that has emerged on Jermain Defoe.

As per The Chronicle journalist James Hunter, Lee Johnson has ‘not ruled out’ a move for the striker in the January transfer window.

They are ‘aware’ of his situation, after Defoe departed Glasgow Rangers earlier this week, but ‘a million and one things’ would have to happen for a move to go through.

Nonetheless, what an exciting deal it would be. Yes, Defoe is 39 years of age now, but Black Cats have fond memories of him during his previous spell at the Stadium of Light, especially the memorable goal that he scored against rivals Newcastle United in the Premier League back in 2015 to give them a 1-0 win.

Defoe scored a total of 37 times in 93 games in all competitions over three seasons (Transfermarkt), and so bringing back as a squad option would be a dream.

Sunderland fans on Defoe transfer news

These SAFC supporters buzzed as the transfer news was shared on Twitter:

“So there’s a chance”

Credit: @kieranwiIson

“Don’t tease me”

Credit: @flaptingss

“So we’re trying, omds”

Credit: @SunlunnWill

“Bring him home”

Credit: @danstewart1234

“Please @LeeJohnsonCoach I’m on my knees”

Credit: @conorsafc_

“Offer him £1,000,001 a week”

Credit: @WearsideRoar

In other news, find out what other transfer update has Black Cats fuming here!

Former Leeds United goalkeeper Paul Robinson has bemoaned Patrick Bamford’s injury absence for the Whites, following a worrying update on his progress.

The Lowdown: Bamford out for significant period

Bamford enjoyed a brilliant 2020/21 season, scoring 17 times in the Premier League and helping his side seal an impressive ninth-place finish.

Unfortunately, injury has robbed Leeds of one of their most important players, with the 28-year-old not playing since the 1-1 draw away to Newcastle United in mid-September.

According to expert Ben Dinnery, the striker won’t be back until the end of November, as he continues to battle an ankle issue.

[freshpress-quiz id=“375277″]

The Latest: Pundit rues ‘huge’ absence

Reacting to the update, Robinson bemoaned the ‘huge miss’ to MOT Leeds News , given the influence Bamford has on Marcelo Bielsa’s team:

“They’ve kept that quiet. We’ve not really heard much about Bamford’s injury and how long he’s going to be out. Until recently, we didn’t know he was going to be out for such a long time.

“He’s a massive player because nobody else can play as an out-and-out number nine. Rodrigo has done well and he’s got a lot better in that position. I think his best performance was away at Norwich. He capped it with a goal but I think his all-around performance in that position was a lot better.

“They haven’t got anybody else. Even [Joe] Gelhardt when he plays, he’s not a number nine, he’s a different kind of player. I love the way he plays, he’s very exciting and there’s a lot more to him.

“But the system Bielsa plays and the way they set up, it demands a player like Bamford. And they haven’t got that when he’s not there, he’s a huge miss for them.

“Two players Leeds almost can’t play without are Kalvin Phillips and Patrick Bamford.”

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-united-news-23/” title=”Latest Leeds United news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Verdict: Key to Leeds’ struggles

Bamford’s absence has clearly played a big part in Leeds’ woes so far this season, with just two league wins coming their way in 10 attempts.

Not only are his goals a big miss, but he also chipped in with seven league assists last term and his hold-up play helps bring teammates into the game.

Without Bamford around, Leeds’ entire system feels like it has collapsed, as Robinson alludes to, and it is vital that he returns to the side sooner rather than later.

In other news, Phil Hay has been discussing one player’s future at Leeds. Read more here.

Rangers will be looking to bounce back from their 1-0 defeat to Sparta Prague in the Europa League on Thursday night as they face Hibernian in the Scottish Premiership today.

Steven Gerrard’s side host third-placed Hibernian at Ibrox as they attempt to reclaim their spot at the top of the Premiership table, having fallen behind Hearts on Saturday.

The Gers’ loss to Sparta was their first in four matches, with Rangers now having lost both of their group stage matches in Europe this term.

How many changes will Gerrard make to his side from the defeat? Here is our predicted XI…

We are predicting that he will make four changes to his team, with Connor Goldson, Jon McLaughlin, Ianis Hagi and Alfredo Morelos all coming into the XI.

Starting between the sticks, we believe that McLaughlin will play ahead of Allan McGregor. The pair have been rotating throughout the campaign, with the former of four Premiership appearances and the latter on two. McGregor also started the last match, against Sparta Prague, which indicates that McLaughlin will now come in for him for this match given their rotation so far this season.

Connor Goldson missed the defeat to Sparta with a knock and could make his return at centre-back against Hibernian. He is in contention to feature and his availability would allow Gerrard to axe Calvin Bassey, who played out of position as a central defender, to the bench and start Goldson alongside Balogun in the defence.

In midfield, Juninho Bacuna is an injury doubt and could be forced out of the XI. This means that Joe Aribo could slot back into his favoured central midfield position alongside Steven Davis and Glen Kamara, opening the door for another player to enter the front three.

We are predicting that Ianis Hagi will be recalled to the team to take up a position in the front three. This could be as an advanced midfielder behind Morelos and Roofe, but we have predicted that it will be as part of an attacking trident. Hagi managed seven goals and 11 assists in 33 Premiership appearances last term, showing that he does have the quality required to make a positive impact at this level.

Finally, we published an article explaining why Alfredo Morelos should be unleashed upon Hibs. The striker has the quality to be a match-winner for the club and Sakala could drop out of the team in order for the Colombian to lead the line this afternoon.

AND in other news, Gerrard masterclass: Rangers beast has seen his value soar 33.3% in less than 2 years…

Everton owner Farhad Moshiri insists under-fire manager Rafa Benitez will not be sacked by the Premier League outfit as he ‘needs more time’ to turn their poor form around.

What’s the story?

The British-Iranian businessman responded to talkSPORT host Jim White’s text message asking for an update on the 61-year-old tactician’s future following their 4-1 thrashing in the Merseyside Derby on Tuesday night.

“This was my message to Farhad”, said White live on air. “‘Can you text me a message to the fans? Do you still back Rafa?’

“He replied: ‘Yes. Football is about crisis one day and glory the following day. Rafa is a good manager and underperformance is largely due to the injuries.

“’Next two weeks, we will get to a full squad and, in the meantime, results will improve. Rafa needs time to have his mark on the squad. He will be supported to add depth to the squad. Managers need time. I have no doubt that we will have a strong second-half to the season’.”

The Athletic’s Everton reporter Patrick Boyland then relayed the update online, tweeting: “Farhad Moshiri tells Talksport that Rafa Benitez “needs more time” and will not be sacked”.

Everton fans will be gutted

News that Benitez is set to stay in the Everton dugout for the foreseeable future may leave large sections of the Everton fanbase feeling gutted, given his recent struggles.

The Blues are currently enduring an eight-game winless run, have scored just one goal in their last four fixtures and are now hovering only five points above the relegation zone.

Benitez was already an unpopular choice with the club’s supporters upon his arrival due to his previous connections with fierce rivals Liverpool, and his inability to produce quality results has failed to endear him further.

With key players such as Yerry Mina and Dominic Calvert-Lewin expected to return to action soon, the next few weeks could be crucial in Benitez’s Everton tenure. For now, however, he feels like the wrong man for the job.

And, in other news…Everton line up “leader of the year” to succeed Benitez, Toffees fans will be ecstatic

Carlo Ancelotti should look to rotate his squad and unleash Alex Iwobi on West Bromwich Albion on Thursday night, with Everton in action three times in the space of eight days.

The Toffees hosted and beat Southampton 1-0 on Monday but return to the field at the Hawthorns, before travelling to Stamford Bridge for a clash with top-four rivals Chelsea next Monday.

Taking points in south west London may prove crucial to the Blues’ hopes of qualifying for the Champions League, with Thomas Tuchel’s club currently above Everton by a single point ahead of their midweek visit to Liverpool later on Thursday following the Baggies affair.

Sam Allardyce’s Hawthorns natives will not be expected to present as much of a threat to Everton as Chelsea will, with the relegation-threatened side claiming only their third win in 26 games with a 1-0 victory over fellow strugglers Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.

West Brom were winless in their previous seven home Premier League fixtures, while Ancelotti’s Blues are one of the top-flight’s best travelling sides with only Manchester City, Leicester and Manchester United claiming more points on the road this season.

Ancelotti will look to keep Everton’s record going on Thursday but should have an eye toward Monday’s trip to the capital, and look to rest and rotate his options.

The Italian has not named an identical starting line-up in any of the Toffees’ last 22 Premier League games, with the last fixture to feature an unchanged side being Everton’s 2-1 win at Crystal Palace on September 26th.

Iwobi has played a minimal role in the Blues’ recent top-flight ties, with the 24-year-old only featuring for a mere seven minutes over two substitute outings against Liverpool and Southampton.

The £23m-rated winger had opened last month’s 3-1 loss to Manchester City for his fourth and most recent start of the calendar year, having only opened three of the previous six available games after sitting out New Year’s Day’s defeat to West Ham United through injury.

Iwobi had been a regular of Ancelotti’s plans before the Irons visit to Goodison Park, starting the Toffees’ prior eight matches across all competitions, and should now be afforded what has become a rare opportunity for the versatile dynamo to feature.

Ancelotti will be loath to lose one of his favoured trio, Richarlison, Dominic Calvert-Lewin or James Rodriguez, for Everton’s trip to Chelsea, but he can take confidence in the displays Iwobi produced prior to the turn of the year.

The former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss described Iwobi’s efforts at the tail end of 2020 as being among his best performance during his tenure, after providing a real grit to his displays.

“It’s his best moment since I arrived. He is showing confidence, is really good in one-versus-one situations and is working hard. The key is to work hard – the team is working hard,” Ancelotti said, via quotes by Royal Blue Mersey.

Iwobi is yet to build on his sole goal or two assists registered in the Premier League this season since striking the back of the net against Wolverhampton Wanderers in January, but has provided a key pass in each of his last two starts.

He also displayed his intent to drive Everton up the field during his brief cameo at home to Southampton on Monday, with Iwobi attempting a game-high six dribbles – more than double his average 2.5 per top-flight outing.

Fitness should not be a concern given his lack of recent action, either, so Ancelotti should have no reason to not start Iwobi at West Brom on Thursday night.

AND in other news, Everton are tracking a prolific 15-goal winger backed to reach another level…

Former Glasgow Rangers manager Alex McLeish believes Steven Gerrard could be banned from the touchline when the Gers officially clinch the Premiership title, and he has called upon the authorities to do the right thing.

Gerrard could be banned

At half-time during the Gers’ 1-0 victory over Livingston on Wednesday, Gerrard received two bookings in the space of a minute after confronting referee John Beaton. The official had given Alfredo Morelos a yellow card for diving during the first 45 minutes even though it was clear the 24-year-old had been brought down, and this frustrated the manager.

Speaking to Ibrox News, McLeish believes Gerrard may not be present when the Gers confirm their status as champions, and he has called upon the authorities to do the right thing. He said:

“I get that, but if they feel like it’s justifiable or too strong a decision, they can do the human thing.

“They can bring Steven Gerrard back from the touchline area. They can’t single out different actions for different managers in situations.

“I would think that if it was over the top, then sure, they have to do the right thing.”

Massive shame

Gerrard has done a fantastic job with the Gers this campaign. With just seven games left in the Premiership, the Ibrox outfit are 18 points clear of Celtic in second (BBC) and are within touching distance of picking up their first major trophy in 10 years. They have lost just one game in all competitions as they remain in the Scottish Cup and the Europa League (Sky Sports).

Without the former Liverpool captain at the helm, it is hard to imagine the Gers being so successful. If he were to miss out on the celebrations, it would be a massive shame. While Gerrard was clearly agitated, he didn’t appear to say anything that would warrant being sent off. Hopefully, the authorities will realise Beaton made a mistake and will therefore choose not to punish Gerrard further.

In other news, Rangers fans slam this journalist.

Celtic have reportedly had a bid rejected for Caen striker Alexandre Mendy, according to a reputable French outlet L’Equipe. 

The lowdown: Career so far

The 28-year-old has spent his entire career in France so far, becoming somewhat of an eternal loanee, racking up 54 senior goals in 207 appearances across numerous spells out on loan as well as permanent stints at Bordeaux, Nice and Guingamp.

Mendy arrived at his current club Caen from Bordeaux in 2020 on a free transfer and has since shone for the Normandy based Ligue 2 outfit.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/key-latest-celtic-updates-4/” title=”Key latest Celtic updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Now the Guinea-Bissau international could be set to leave for domestic action elsewhere for the first time…

The latest: Bid made

As per reputable French source L’Equipe, Celtic have seen an initial offer of €3million (£1.5million) rejected by Caen.

The report claims that a number of other clubs are vying for the seven-cap ace’s signature but it’s the Hoops who have made the first move ahead of the summer transfer window.

It’s stated that the side currently sitting eighth in the French second tier would negotiate ‘in the event of a higher offer’ for their talismanic frontman, who was hailed as ‘very strong’ by former Bordeaux manager Jocelynn Gourvennec.

The verdict: Ange not messing around

This season, Mendy, who can also operate as an attacking midfielder and out wide, has scored 16 times and provided one assist in 30 Ligue 2 outings, all while earning an impressive 7.04 average rating and winning an outstanding 4.7 aerial duels on average per game (Sofascore). To put that in perspective, that’s more goals and headers won than Giorgos Giakoumakis.

However, unproven outside of the lower reaches of French football and already 28, upping the current offer would enter the realm of taking a risk with a portion of Ange Postecoglou’s summer budget.

Whilst the Bhoys must find suitable recognised centre-forward backup for Giakoumakis and Kyogo Furuhashi, the Greek-Australian boss has already proven to be a shrewd operator in the transfer market, so upping the bid on a player with plenty of unknowns could be a questionable decision.

Either way, to see the boss and club chiefs acting so decisively with summer targets is a positive, giving supporters hope that whatever the result of these talks, plans for the transfer window are already in action.

In other news, Frank McAvennie is in awe of one Celtic player’s development. Find out who it is here.

Christmas is upon us and what a year it’s been for everyone.

Tottenham Hotspur are firmly in the title race and have every chance of picking up silverware in the cup competitions having advanced into the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup and the knockout stages of the Europa League.

It’s also been 12 months that signalled Jose Mourinho’s one-year anniversary of being in charge of Spurs. He took the reins from Mauricio Pochettino in November 2019.

The north Londoners endured a rough start to 2020, seeing the likes of Harry Kane and Heung-min Son fall to injury problems, whilst they crashed out of the Champions League without a whimper.

Although things are finally looking up in N17 despite a bumpy ride involving all sorts of highs and lows – it was only last month that Spurs were sitting top of the tree in the Premier League, now they’re outside the top four looking in.

Everything is still to play for, so why not sit back and test your knowledge today? Can you remember these events that unfolded throughout the year?

We bet you cannot even get 60% right – go on, give it a go…

AND in other Spurs news, Spurs Exclusive: Gary Mabbutt drops huge claim over Arsenal misfit…

Daniel Pinder, the editor-in-chief of Get German Football News, has exclusively told Football FanCast that Erling Haaland would be the perfect Sergio Aguero replacement for Manchester City this summer.

The Argentine has already announced that he’ll be leaving the Etihad at the end of the season, with the Borussia Dortmund striker reportedly top of Pep Guardiola’s wish list.

Haaland has already proved himself as one of Europe’s most feared frontmen by scoring 53 times in 56 appearances for the Bundesliga giants following his move from Salzburg last January, whilst laying on 16 assists for his teammates.

City face competition from rivals Manchester United for Haaland’s signature, whilst Guardiola has previously said it’s impossible for the Premier League champions-elect to sign another striker this window due to financial difficulties.

Despite those comments, Pinder believes that should the Norwegian swap the Bundesliga for the Premier League, he’d be a great addition for City to continue their domination of English football.

He told Football FanCast:

“I think if Man City were to go after him then he would be the man to replace Sergio Aguero – leading the line, being that threat in the box.

“He’s obviously shown he can play at the highest level and Man City, they challenge on all fronts, Premier League, Champions League and all the cups, it will be a big task to replace Aguero, but I think Haaland would be that player.”

Celtic rejected a bid from a German club back in January 2020 for midfielder Ryan Christie, it has been revealed, via the Scotsman.

The Lowdown: Christie’s contract

Christie has been a regular for the Hoops this season, however, he could well end up leaving the club for nothing in less than 12 months’ time.

That’s because his contract, which Transfermarkt has down to expire in May 2022, actually runs out in January 2022.

That’s according to the Daily Mail, cited by the Daily Record, who revealed the Scotland international could use this summer’s European Championship’s as a shop window opportunity.

Should his situation remain the same, Christie can speak to club’s outside of Scotland in the summer and pen a pre-contract agreement for a free transfer in January 2022.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/celtic-updates-2/” title=”Celtic updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Latest: Celtic rejected Christie bid

The Scotsman recently ran a story on the midfielder and dropped a claim that the Hoops actually turned down a bid from a German suitor back in January 2020.

It is thought that, at the time, a move to Germany appealed to Christie, and it seems as if Celtic may live to regret that decision.

The news comes as a shock, as, at the time, a bid from Europe for the £7,700-a-week midfielder never came out from the club or in the media.

The Verdict: Peter Lawwell made a huge mistake

In our opinion, looking back, Peter Lawwell made a big transfer blunder.

Since the bid came in, Celtic only had a few months remaining of the 2019/20 season before the national lockdown, and they haven’t exactly thrived with Christie in the side this season.

He’s been criticised regularly by some Hoops fans for his displays, so accepting the bid last year could have been the better move in hindsight.

Unfortunately, now, it looks as if there is a real chance the Hoops may end up receiving nothing for Christie’s services and may have to work out what to do with him during the first half of the 2021/22 season, should he pen a pre-contract agreement elsewhere.

In other news: Alan Nixon shares what’s holding up Eddie Howe deal, find out more here.