All posts by z3u9t.icu

It is no secret that Celtic were interested in the signing of Siriki Dembele this summer, with numerous reports suggesting that the Bhoys wanted to reunite the centre-forward with his younger brother, Karamoko, at Parkhead.

However, upon the closure of the transfer window, the 25-year-old remained on the books at Peterborough United, with talk of the striker being offered a new deal at the Weston Homes Stadium, as his current deal is due to expire at the end of the season.

Although, according to recent comments made by Peterborough chairman Darragh McAnthony (as cited by the Daily Record), the Championship side look to be allowing the forward to run his contract down, as well as suggesting that Posh could cash in on the player this January – should they receive a significant offer.

Speaking about the future of the former Grimsby Town man, McAnthony said: “Siriki is a top-end Championship talent. He’s not in the shop window. We are not actively looking to sell him in January so any clubs who think it’s ‘bargain city’ as he only has six months left on his contract can think again.

“Now, if a club offered us a premium price of say, £7m with add-ons, we would have a decision to make, but if he did go we have plans B and C in place to cope.”

Major coup

While £7m is undoubtedly an extremely hefty price for a player who Celtic could potentially land for free just six months later, it would nevertheless be difficult to argue that the signing of Dembele would not be a major coup for Ange Postecoglou and his side, as the 25-year-old is certainly a player who boasts a significant amount of potential.

Indeed, over his 42 League One appearances for Peterborough last season, the £1.08m-rated man scored 11 goals, registered ten assists and created a whopping 17 big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.8 shots and making 1.5 key passes per game.

These returns saw Dembele earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.06, ranking him as the club’s joint seventh-best performer in the third tier of English football.

The centre-forward has continued this fine form into his 14 Championship appearances this season, with the £2.6k-per-week man scoring four goals, providing two assists and creating one big chance for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.1 shots and making 0.9 key passes per fixture.

These metrics have seen the player who Darren Ferguson dubbed an “outstanding” talent average a SofaScore match rating of 6.86, ranking him as Posh’s joint third-best performer in the league.

As such, considering his obvious ability in front of goal, in addition to the fact that the likes of Rangers, Fulham and West Bromwich Albion are also reported to be interested in his services, should Celtic manage to land the 25-year-old either in January or a free next summer, he would certainly represent something of a significant coup for the club.

Indeed, if the striker were to be able to continue the form he has demonstrated for Peterborough over the last two seasons after a move to Parkhead, he could well go on to return similar numbers to his namesake Moussa Dembele in the green and white of Celtic.

A similarly boisterous character in the penalty box, the Frenchman combined speed with exquisite finishing, bullying defenders. That’s precisely the type of displays we could see from the Celtic-linked forward. He’d be a great signing at Parkhead.

In other news: “Absolutely not”: Journo drops claim on wanted 12 G/A ace, Celtic fans would be fuming

According to a report by AS, sharing more news on Antonio Conte’s plans for Tottenham, it appears Steven Bergwijn is now on the chopping block.

The Lowdown: Conte era begins…

As the new Spurs boss comes through the doors at N17, taking charge of the Lilywhites, much has been made of who will both come in and depart the club.

Tottenham have been linked with a host of Serie A stars already, including the likes of Federico Chiesa, Stefan de Vrij, Dusan Vlahovic, Alessio Romagnoli and Matthijs de Ligt (Calciomercato.it).

Meanwhile, there have been rumours that Tanguy Ndombele could now depart in January as Spurs eye an overhaul for Conte.

As well as Ndombele, AS have now shared who else manager Conte is personally plotting to sell.

The Latest: Bergwijn up for sale…

According to their information, as Conte eyes his preferred transfer targets, there are four names he is personally planning to discard from Spurs.

Dele Alli, Lucas Moura, Giovani Lo Celso and Bergwijn are all said to be on the chopping block with the latter man coming as a particularly surprising name given his form at times under former boss Nuno Espirito Santo this season.

The Verdict: Go time?

The Dutchman attracted praise from the ex-Lilywhites boss for being a ‘unique’ and a ‘very talented’ member of the squad and was a fixture on Nuno’s team sheet when fit and available.

Conte has been widely tipped to use a three-at-the-back formation on a consistent basis for Spurs, most likely a 3-4-1-2, and it is debatable where Bergwijn fits into that system as a natural winger.

The same goes for Lucas, who has impressed for Spurs as well whilst completing more dribbles per 90 than any Lilywhites player in the Premier League (WhoScored).

Both men now find themselves in a completely different situation under Conte than Nuno and it remains to be seen whether Bergwijn can work his way into the Italian’s permanent team sheet and off his transfer exit list.

In other news: Conte now has one eye on ‘incredible’ player who Klinsmann likened to Kante, find out more here.

With just 12 goals conceded in their opening 11 Premier League games of the season, Southampton boast a better defensive record than a number of clubs currently above them in the league table such as West Ham United, Arsenal and Manchester United among others.

Taking this into account, one player, in particular, that we feel has significantly contributed to Southampton’s fairly sturdy defence this season is Mohammed Salisu.

The 22-year-old has played the full 90 minutes in all but one of Southampton league games so far this season, highlighting just how important he has been for Ralph Hasenhuttl, especially in the absence of fellow Saints defender Jack Stephens who picked up a serious knee injury during their 0-0 draw against Manchester City back in September.

Southampton signed the defender back in August 2020 from Spanish club Real Valladolid in a deal worth a reported fee of £10.9m.

During his time on the pitch this season in the Premier League, Salisu, who has been described as “nasty” in terms of his defensive tenacity by Hasenhuttl, has made 24 tackles overall, with an average of 2.5 interceptions per game and 3.8 clearances per game, highlighting how active he has been at the back for the Saints as Hasenhuttl’s secret weapon with Stephens out on the sidelines.

In addition to his defensive contributions, Salisu’s overall performances in the league have earned him an overall season rating of 7.1/10, making him Southampton’s highest-rated player according to WhoScored, higher than club captain James Ward-Prowse, who has two goals under his belt this season.

Looking at this season compared to the previous one that saw Salisu struggle with injuries and started just eight out of the 12 league games he appeared in, it’s safe to say this season has been a much better one for the 22-year-old than the last one was, which should be very encouraging for everyone at St. Mary’s.

Moving forward, if Salisu can keep this impressive form up for as long as he can throughout the remainder of the season, he could well push them to a top-half finish if the players ahead of him on the pitch can do their bit in front of goal on a regular basis.

In other news: Ralph must seal dream Saints swoop for “important” 23 y/o gem, he’s Walcott’s heir – opinion

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel says the club have no intention to recall Conor Gallagher from his loan at Crystal Palace in January. 

The lowdown

Gallagher has arguably been Palace’s standout player since he made the temporary move across London during the summer transfer window.

In 10 appearances, he’s scored a joint-team high four goals and provided two assists.

His average WhoScored rating of 7.5/10 is comfortably the highest in the Eagles’ ranks, with Christian Benteke the next best at 6.96.

His form hasn’t gone unnoticed at international level, with Gareth Southgate handing him a senior England debut in the 10-0 midweek rout of San Marino.

Pundits, like former Palace striker Ian Wright, have already begun to ponder his future at Stamford Bridge.

He says Chelsea simply ‘can’t ignore him’ on the back of his ‘unbelievable’ displays, while Joe Cole insists the Blues won’t make the ‘silly’ mistake of selling him.

The latest

Addressing the press ahead of Chelsea’s trip to Leicester City, Tuchel explained that remaining at Palace until the end of the season was best for Gallagher’s development.

And he also revealed that they’ll sit down with Gallagher in the summer to discuss his ‘goals’.

“I have not thought about bringing him back earlier, because it’s also important for him to be happy where he is, to stay in the moment and not change the next things,” he said, as quoted by The Independent.

“It’s important to be calm in his stage of the career. And I feel him happy there and I think everybody is happy and it’s good he has this kind of impact at Palace and now it’s about consistency.

“He had a game with the national team and we have to process all these things. Right now if you asked me today I don’t think it’s necessary to change everything for him again in the winter.

“And it’s too early to talk about next season and way too early to talk about it in public, and before we talk about it with Conor himself, what he wants and what his goals are.

“That will happen in the summer, because we all agreed to the decision that he wanted to join Crystal Palace and Patrick Vieira’s team.”

The verdict

If Gallagher keeps up this form, Palace will surely dream of keeping him beyond the end of the current season?

But will Chelsea agree to part with their £13.5million-rated asset? It seems increasingly unlikely, but the player himself is apparently having reservations over whether he will actually get a chance at Stamford Bridge.

With that in mind, the Eagles would surely be wise to at least test the Blues resolve with a bid. Either way, the fact Tuchel has no plans to recall the midfield maestro should be music to Vieira’s ears as far as this campaign is concerned.

In other news, fans react to these surprising transfer links.

Everton put in a very poor display against Manchester City on Sunday afternoon, losing 3-0 without any sign or attempt of getting back into the game throughout.

Rafa Benitez’s side has been riddled with injuries over the last three months of the season, with many key players missing from the action all over the pitch from defence to attack, Demarai Gray joined the long list of injuries 16 minutes into the Man City game.

Going into the City game at the Etihad, Everton weren’t favourites after losing four out of their last five games, but the reluctance to be direct and build play cost the side massively as well as a very shoddy defensive display from the backline.

Everton only had 22% possession on Sunday, with just 4 shots compared to Manchester City’s 17 attempts.

In fairness, Manchester City put in two moments of magic on goal with an outstanding assist from Joao Cancelo that led to a Raheem Sterling goal and a long-range masterpiece from Rodri, that Pickford was never getting a glove to.

The only glimmer of hope came from 30-year-old Andros Townsend, who played an energetic and committed variation of a ten role and centre midfield in today’s game against the Premier League champions.

No player in the team made more key passes than Townsend today (2) and managed more successful dribbles than any other teammate completing four, as recorded by WhoScored.

Townsend has proven himself to be a fantastic utility player for the club, where he signed on a free transfer securing a two year deal with the Toffees in the summer after his contract expired with Crystal Palace.

The Premier League veteran has played for a number of teams at the highest level, which has given him the experience and ability to read games and tactics, something that his less experienced teammates clearly struggled to do in today’s match.

The attacker was, by far, the best Everton player on the pitch today, this reflected in his SofaScore rating of 7.3/10, which was the highest rating in the team.

Rafa Benitez will be hoping that key players can return from injury as soon as possible, as the side has a number of difficult fixtures coming up and they need to start establishing form to get back inside the top half of the table, especially after Tottenham won their game with Leeds, which pushes Everton further adrift.

In other news: Gordon could develop an attacking partnership with Townsend

Leeds United grabbed a vital three points in their aim to steer clear of the relegation zone with an injury-time penalty from Raphinha to beat Crystal Palace.

Marcelo Bielsa’s team had to be patient in the end as they dominated possession and shots at Elland Road, as Raphinha eventually got them out of jail to secure a 1-0 win. While the three points are what matters most, some players may not have been too pleased with their own individual performances, as The Transfer Tavern use statistical experts SofaScore to analyse who the three worst performers (to have played at least 45 minutes) were for the home side:

Raphinha

It certainly seems strange that the match-winner was ranked as the third-worst player for the Whites, and Raphinha’s 6.5 rating from SofaScore is actually the same rating as second place, but has been put in third for his goal contribution.

Aside from the late penalty, it was a frustrating night at times for the Brazilian, who lost out on 10 of his duels, the most out of his teammates, while he also ranked the highest in terms of unsuccessful dribble attempts (five).

Raphinha was also inaccurate with seven of his crosses, and lost the ball on no fewer than on 31 separate occasions in the game, by far the most out of any player on the pitch.

Mateusz Klich

Klich only played the first half, but ranks in second with a 6.5 overall rating given by SofaScore.

The central midfield player lost two duels, and failed to record a single shot on goal, blocked shot, tackle, key pass, cross or accurate long ball.

His mere 16 touches was the lowest recorded out of a starting player, while he was guilty of losing possession six times.

Rodrigo

Again, considering he only played in one half, Rodrigo’s 6.3 rating from SofaScore may be deemed a little harsh, but he was the lowest rated out of his teammates.

The Spaniard also lost two of his duels, while failing to hit a shot on target or make a successful dribble, and losing the ball on seven occasions in total.

In other news, find out what position Phil Hay wants LUFC to sign here!

West Ham United’s poor form continued in the Premier League on Tuesday night as they were held to a 1-1 draw with Brighton and Hove Albion at the London Stadium.

Several of David Moyes’ first-team stars badly disappointed with the side winless in three outings, including leading goalscorer Michail Antonio, who has now scored just one goal in his last nine games across all competitions and has looked completely knackered up top.

That is largely not his fault, however, as the Irons have gone two years without signing a backup or alternative after Sebastien Haller swapped east London for Amsterdam in January 2020.

One Hammers star who failed his manager yet again was Said Benrahma. He has endured a similar run of poor form, providing just the one assist in nine league games, having opened the season with a pair of goals and assists, per Transfermarkt.

Before he was hooked in the 76th minute, the £22.5m-rated lightweight made just 13 passes at an accuracy rate of 57%, the worst of any West Ham player on the night.

And he also failed to provide Antonio with a single accurate cross whilst he was on the pitch.

[snack-amp-story url = “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/west-ham-news-transfer-updates-rumours-gossip-david-moyes-gsb-premier-league” title=”Read the latest West Ham news, transfer updates and much, much more!”]

Elsewhere, Benrahma lost possession a whopping 17 times from 44 touches, meaning he lost the ball once every 2.5 touches, proving to be rather wasteful, per SofaScore.

The Algerian wide man was also rather weak in his battles, winning only 50% of his duels as his disappointing run of form continued at the London Stadium.

Moyes continues to put his faith in Benrahma but it could well be time for a shake-up in the attack as it’s now three successive matches without a victory and the Hammers have looked futile in the final third in all of them.

In the last two games, in particular, Manuel Lanzini has come off the bench to spark some sort of reaction and he hasn’t been afraid to take on his man. He ought to be selected over the 26-year-old this weekend, when the Irons face local rivals, Chelsea.

Forget Antonio, it’s time to get players around him that can help support him, as evident above.

AND in other news, “A definite target”: Ex drops big West Ham transfer update, fans will be buzzing…

Tottenham Hotspur are in the race to sign Renato Sanches…

What’s the word?

According to Spanish outlet AS, Spurs will have to battle fierce rivals Arsenal for the 24-year-old’s signature this January, with LaLiga outfit Barcelona also mooted with interest. The two north London clubs are said to be ‘immersed’ in a bid to secure him.

It remains to be seen what sort of fee, if any, would tempt Lille into a sale, especially halfway through the season as they appear to be putting up a futile Ligue 1 title defence as they sit in 11th position, though Transfermarkt value the 32-cap Portugal international at £27m.

Shades of Dembele

Lilywhites chairman Daniel Levy has a history in dealing with Gestifute, the agency run by renowned super-agent Jorge Mendes, having signed or appointed the likes of Matt Doherty, Jose Mourinho and Nuno Espirito Santo, and been linked to many more.

However, the arrival of Sanches would top the lot as the young midfielder has emerged as an elite breakthrough talent after questionable spells at Bayern Munich and Swansea City.

Last season, the box-to-box beast played an integral role towards their Ligue 1 triumph and that continued into the summer with Portugal at Euro 2020, when he featured in three group games and their Round of 16 defeat to Belgium.

[snack-amp-story url = “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/tottenham-hotspur-latest-team-injury-team-news-updates-transfers-gossip-rumours-antonio-conte-thfc” title=”Read the latest Spurs news, transfer updates and much, much more!”]

An average of 4.6 total dribbles, 2.6 attempted tackles, 1.7 shots, 1.3 key passes and 1.1 interceptions per 90 minutes (via WhoScored) across the course of his short career to date suggests that Sanches is very much capable of influencing a game at either end of the pitch, and that kind of defensive intelligence and ability to drive the ball forward could have some similarities to that of Mousa Dembele during his time in N17.

Meanwhile, the official Euro 2020 website went onto laud him as one of Portugal’s biggest positives at the tournament, some five years on from picking up the Golden Boy trophy and earning some pretty lofty comparisons to Xabi Alonso.

Indeed, Bundesliga.com once likened him to Clarence Seedorf, who very much was cut from the same cloth – ‘A box-to-box midfielder with the strength of a WWE heavyweight and the nimble feet of a ballet dancer,’ they wrote.

Elsewhere, Les Dogues president Oliver Letang believes that the midfielder is a “complete athlete” due to his strength, stamina and speed, and his ability with the ball at his feet.

“Top-class roaming playmaker. The Real Renato is back!” claimed scout Jacek Kulig in the summer, too.

On the above evidence, sporting director Fabio Paratici could well discover a new Dembele for Spurs in Sanches, who would be a mighty fine and solid addition to Antonio Conte’s midfield.

AND in other news, Spurs source drops major behind-the-scenes update at Hotspur Way, Conte will be fuming…

With Bruno Lage’s Wolverhampton Wanderers side heading into Wednesday evening’s Premier League clash in something of a slump in form, having won just one of their last four league outings and scoring just one goal over these fixtures, the 45-year-old manager would have undoubtedly been hoping for a much-improved result from Wolves’ trip to Brighton & Hove Albion.

And, while it was by no means an all-out attack display from the visitors, Romain Saiss’ superb first-half strike following a delicious Ruben Neves through ball was enough for Wolves to take all three points back to Molineux, with the game ending 1-0.

However, while it is true that both Saiss and Neves were two of Lage’s better performers on the night, it was undoubtedly 26-year-old Daniel Podence who really stole the show against Brighton.

Won 62% duels

Being handed just his third start of the Premier League season, Lage somewhat surprisingly decided to unleash the Portugal international in a central attacking role against the Seagulls, taking the place of the suspended Raul Jimenez at the tip of Wolves’ attack.

And, over the course of his 90 minutes on the pitch at the American Express Community Stadium, the £22.5m-rated man highly impressed in an unfamiliar role, hitting the target with two shots, completing five dribbles, making two interceptions and winning eight of his 13 attempted duels – a success rate of 62%.

These returns saw the man who Pedro Neto dubbed a “mini-Hazard” receive a SofaScore match rating of 7.3, the second-highest of any player to feature in the match, while Birmingham Live also awarded the £60k-per-week forward an eight in their own player ratings, stating of the 26-year-old’s performance:

“Podence played as a false nine in Wolves’ fluid front three and popped up all over the pitch in an all-action display. There were lots of delightful flicks and tricks, especially one reverse pass to Marcal. Podence was a huge threat throughout.”

As such, considering how little game time Podence has been given by Lage so far this season, if the fixture against Brighton was the Portuguese dynamo’s big test, there is absolutely no doubt that the former Sporting CP winger passed with flying colours.

In other news: Tim Spiers drops 8-word Wolves injury update that will leave Bruno Lage buzzing

An update has emerged on Newcastle United target Kieran Trippier, regarding Atletico’s stance on his future…

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, the Magpies target will be allowed to depart the Spanish giants if a bid in the region of £15m comes in for him.

The report claims that they are wary of losing him on a free transfer next summer and will sanction a cut-price deal if they are able to source a replacement of their own.

Instant masterclass

Newcastle have hired Nick Hammond as a short-term transfer consultant to guide them through the January window and he could seal an instant masterclass by helping to secure a move for Trippier.

The former Reading chief could make an immediate impact by helping PIF and Eddie Howe to finalise a deal for the right-back as he could be a superb addition to the squad.

Howe’s team have struggled badly at the back this season, with the most goals conceded in the division, and signing Trippier could be the first step on the road to recovery.

He has proven himself at the top level for club and country and would arrive at St. James’ Park with pedigree and, potentially, a degree of expectation. The 31-year-old averaged an impressive WhoScored rating of 7.20 in La Liga for Atletico last term, producing six assists from full-back, showing that he remained consistently excellent throughout the campaign.

England boss Gareth Southgate was previously full of praise for the defender, saying:

“What Kieran has, firstly, is hugely underestimated. People are still seeing the lad that was at Spurs a couple of years ago and not the defensive animal that has grown at Atlético Madrid, trusted by one of the best and most successful coaches in the world.

“He gets his distances right on cover, he’s good one-v-one to stop crosses and his talking is really good. There was always going to be changes to our back four and we felt that communication and organisation was an important part.”

Also hailed as “outstanding” by the Three Lions manager, there is clearly plenty to like about the full-back.

Trippier has also proven his quality in the Premier League, for Tottenham. In his last season for Spurs, he averaged a WhoScored rating of 7.10 and made 3.4 tackles and interceptions per game whilst also providing one goal and three assists, highlighting his ability to make a difference at both ends of the pitch.

Therefore, Hammond could pull off an instant masterclass by signing the defender as his experience and quality could aid Howe in his efforts to steer the club clear of relegation by improving their fragile defence.

AND in other news, PIF eyeing NUFC deal for “extraordinary” 363-goal gem, he’d be “world-class” for Howe…