All posts by z3u9t.icu

Journalist Alan Nixon has made a claim on Leeds United’s interest in Rangers winger Ryan Kent that should delight the Ibrox faithful. He seems confident that the former Liverpool man will remain a part of Steven Gerrard’s squad this summer.

The journalist responded to a fan on Twitter enquiring about Leeds United’s interest in the 24-year-old, which has been widely reported both last summer and this.

However, Nixon suggested that there is ‘no encouragement’ on Leeds’ part that a deal for Kent will be done this summer, which suggests that Gerrard is desperate to keep him in his squad as they prepare to defend their Premiership title next season.

The English winger has established himself as a key player at Ibrox during his time with the club, contributing an impressive 27 goals and 28 assists in 128 appearances for the club.

Last season saw Kent enjoy his best season thus far as a Rangers player, as he managed 10 goals and 11 assists in 37 league appearances, missing just one game for the Teddy Bears on their way to an unbeaten league season, so it is no surprise that Leeds are back in for him this summer.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-rangers-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=”Read the latest Rangers transfer rumours and news!”]

Gerrard is a huge fan of Kent, as he sang his praises last summer when Leeds saw a bid for him rejected, saying:

“They have also got to respect and understand that he is one of our main players. He is a fantastic player.

“We have spent two years trying to build something here that is competitive and he is a big part of that jigsaw.

“So he is someone that we want to fight to keep.”

It seems as if this remains to be the case this summer, and unless Leeds can match Rangers’ valuation for the tricky winger, it seems very unlikely that he will depart Ibrox ahead of next season.

[freshpress-quiz id=“593776″]

Certainly, if Nixon’s news is true and Leeds don’t feel they have any chance of signing him, then it will delight the majority of Rangers fans, who will surely be excited to see Kent back in action when they return to Ibrox for the start of the 2021/22 campaign.

And, in other news… Wilson should seal Rangers swoop for “fantastic” gem who outscored Morelos

Leicester City midfielder James Maddison is reportedly a transfer target for both Arsenal and Chelsea.

What’s the story?

The 24-year-old had a stop-start campaign last term, with his poor end-of-season form ultimately costing him a place in Gareth Southgate’s England squad.

However, according to Arsenal transfer expert TheAFCBell and confirmed by Football.London reporter Chris Wheatley, Maddison is the subject of interest from the Gunners as well as from Chelsea.

Rodgers will be gutted

Despite suffering from multiple minor injuries and failing to score or assist in his final eight league games of 2020/21, the creative talent still recorded impressive numbers last season.

In 42 appearances across all competitions, Maddison bagged 11 goals and laid on a further 10 assists for his teammates, highlighting his importance to the Midlands outfit.

It’s no surprise, therefore, that the England international is attracting attention from some of English football’s most successful sides, and news of their interest will surely leave Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers feeling gutted.

The former Celtic and Liverpool boss has built a brilliant team at the King Power Stadium during his two-and-a-half-year reign, achieving consecutive fifth-place finishes as well as lifting the club’s maiden FA Cup crown.

Rodgers will be hoping to keep hold of his best assets this summer as he plans another assault on the Premier League’s top-four, but with rumours circulating surrounding Youri Tielemans and now Maddison, the Northern Irish tactician may be beginning to worry.

Arsenal’s interest in the England international is described as “indisputable” as Mikel Arteta plans an overhaul of his first-team squad, while Chelsea will reportedly make a swoop for him if Hakim Ziyech departs Stamford Bridge.

Although the Foxes have largely built their recent success off the back of selling one of their prized assets each summer for an astronomical fee and then wisely reinvesting the funds, Maddison’s exit would be a huge blow to their plans and ambitions.

Leicester have sold the likes of Harry Maguire, Riyad Mahrez, Ben Chilwell and N’Golo Kante to their domestic rivals in recent years, but if they want to compete at the upper echelons of the top-flight table on a regular basis, then they will have to stop letting their direct competition cherry-pick their top talents.

If Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhanaprabha decides to cash in on Maddison, something which is not beyond the realms of possibility given Leicester’s recent history of player sales, then it could be a huge blow to Rodgers, who will need to go into the market to find a replacement, something which will not be easy given the impact that Maddison has had on his side.

And, in other news…Huge LCFC transfer update emerges on “extraordinary” £30m beast, fans will be buzzing 

Former Rangers star Graham Roberts insists he has never heard of new Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou and believes that it is a strange appointment from the Gers’ Old Firm rivals.

Celtic have appointed the 55-year-old as Neil Lennon’s replacement after the resignation of the Northern Irishman.

Postecoglou is not exactly well known on these shores, given that he has spent the majority of his career in Asia.

Indeed, his playing career saw him feature for South Melbourne and Western Suburbs and he has managed the former club, Australia’s U17 and U20 sides, along with the senior squad, Panachaiki, Whittlesea Zebras, Brisbane Roar, Melbourne Victory, and Yokohama F Marinos.

It is his first foray into western football, and Ball believes that Postecoglou is a bizarre hire for a club that has struggled so deeply in 2020/21.

Indeed, Celtic ended the season 25 points behind Rangers, who won the title after a remarkable unbeaten campaign under the management of Steven Gerrard.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, he said: “I don’t know what he’s like. I’ve never heard of the fella. Just for me, it’s strange because the Scottish league’s very tough but I’ve been told he likes to attack and he’d rather win a game 6-5 instead of 1-0 so, okay, we’ll wait and see.”

After a string of poor performances on the pitch and controversial actions off the pitch, it seems like Oli McBurnie’s time and reputation at Sheffield United is damaged beyond repair and he should look for a move away, according to Sheffield United legend Brian Deane.

£20m man McBurnie has been linked with a sensational move across the border to play for Steven Gerrard at Rangers for a cut-price fee of £15 million, and this is all despite failing to register one goal in the Premier League this season.

Rangers will know that they need to be active in the transfer market this summer if they are to maintain their advantage over Celtic for next season and someone like McBurnie, who would have a point to prove, could be a smart signing.

McBurnie has struggled to gain any kind of momentum at Bramall Lane this season as well as being caught up in an altercation with Blades fans in the street earlier this year.

Asked about the Rangers rumours, Deane believes it is best for both parties to go their separate ways as he told The Transfer Tavern:

“I think he’s got past that stage now where he could pull it back at Sheffield United because he’s been there two years now and he’s had injury problems but we’ve not really seen the best of him.

“I think that he probably wants to move on as well. So, I think it would be a good opportunity for him to move on for both him and the club to cut their losses, and perhaps the Premier League was just a little bit too much of a hurdle for him.”

The Blades will be looking to cut down some of their wage bill and offload some of their high earners after splashing the cash relatively poorly during their two seasons in the Premier League, and will be hopeful of an immediate return to the top flight under Slavisa Jokanovic.

It was a quite horrendous season for Sheffield United as they finished rock bottom and had to wait until January for their first league win as they beat Newcastle United 1-0, managing another six victories after that.

With the news of Fabio Paratici set to be unveiled as Tottenham Hotspur’s new General Manager, Get Italian Football News’ editor in chief Conor Clancy has claimed that the former Juventus man was part of the strange Cristiano Ronaldo signing.

Paratici is set to be unveiled as the newest member of Spurs’ hierarchy and that will also see Daniel Levy take up a new role at the club as he steps back and allows Paratici to oversee all football matters.

Levy has received a lot of abuse and criticism for his lack of footballing nous and more recently, his failure to find a replacement for Jose Mourinho despite several candidates coming by before eventually disappearing off into the distance with other clubs or just turning Spurs down.

Paratici was given a farewell press conference by Juventus, however, some of his signings have left the Old Lady in a difficult position financially with the likes of Aaron Ramsey and Ronaldo earning big money and Clancy spoke exclusively to Transfer Tavern about the latter:

“He was there when they signed Cristiano Ronaldo and that is probably one of the most bizarre transfers ever to take place in football.

“It was so against everything that Juventus were supposed to be about.”

Tottenham need someone who is familiar with the transfer market and knows what players are worth and that is something Paratici could bring as he did sign the likes of Paul Pogba and Arturo Vidal before they were household names in European football.

Spurs fans have seen their club waste money on a whole host of players such as Roberto Soldado, Matt Doherty, Steven Bergwijn and Erik Lamela so they must sort out their recruitment if they are to be regular top-four challengers.

Plenty of Aston Villa fans have been giving their thoughts on right-back Frederic Guilbert on social media regarding his future at Villa Park.

The 26-year-old spent the second half of the 2020/21 season on loan at Ligue 1 side Strasbourg. Guilbert made 14 appearances for the French side, scoring once and registering four assists.

He’s now set to return to Villa, where he has just over two years remaining on his current contract, worth £40,000-a-week.

The right-back took to Instagram to thank the Strasbourg supporters, with Birmingham Live relaying his post in a story.

They suggested that Guilbert is expected to return to Bodymoor Heath and challenge Matty Cash for the 2021/22 campaign, with Ahmed Elmohamady set to leave on a free transfer.

Villa fans react

@AVFC_News shared Guilbert’s social media activity in a story on Tuesday evening, asking fans if they feel the full-back has a future in the Midlands.

The responses seemed to be split, with a selection of replies available to view below.

“No. Smith doesn’t like him”Credit: @Harry34740948″He really should have a future at VP did nothing wrong was let down by the management way better than Elmo. Should come back and fight it out with Cash next season.”Credit: @DavidWinter81″No, it’s time to sell Guilbert”Credit: @Trev_villaboy”Definitely. We need someone to compete with Cash and Fred was coming along nicely until we sidelined him. And we know that Cash is a bit injury prone and not a stranger to a yellow card, so we need a good alternative.”Credit: @stevesanderstax”Defensively he’s shocking.”Credit: @will_avfc”Yes 100%. I think he was let down truthfully, Elmo needs to go and he needs to come.”Credit: @escapeinpixels

In other news: Many AVFC fans buzz at Emiliano Buendia latest, find out more here. 

In an exclusive interview with The Transfer Tavern, Dean Windass, who made 402 appearances during his career, has claimed that Wolves could be an appealing option for Xherdan Shaqiri, who is set to leave Liverpool this summer.

Shaqiri joined Liverpool when Stoke City were relegated in 2018 and since he signed the Reds have won the Champions League and Premier League, the latter for the first time in the club’s history.

The Switzerland international has never been a regular at Anfield as he has failed to prove his worth ahead of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota so as a result, he has made just 44 league appearances.

Speaking on why Shaqiri could be a good player for Wolves and how he may see Wolves as an ideal club for him to join, Windass exclusively told The Transfer Tavern:

“He’s a Wolves type of player as he is technically very good but he has found it very difficult at Liverpool to get a regular spot, but don’t get me wrong he’s a quality footballer so I could see him fitting in well at Wolves.

“Nuno would be a big pull for him as he would put his arm over his shoulder and tell him he will start every week. I think they’ll invest next year and that could be quite a good signing for them.”

The 29-year old has played for some of Europe’s top clubs such as Bayern Munich and Inter Milan before he joined Mark Hughes at Stoke in 2015.

Wolves will be looking to improve their attacking force next season with the injury to Pedro Neto ruling him out for several months, and the hole left by Jota still visible.

Rangers can take another huge step towards achieving an invincible league season on Wednesday night as Steven Gerrard’s side travel to Almondvale Stadium to take on Livingston.

The Ibrox outfit are now just two matches away from finishing the league season unbeaten as they face David Martindale’s side in midweek before the final game against Aberdeen on Saturday afternoon.

Gerrard’s side only just scraped past the Lions in their last meeting, with Alfredo Morelos’ late winner earning the Gers a 1-0 win which edged them closer to the Premiership title, so it certainly won’t be an easy encounter for the Light Blues on Wednesday.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects Gerrard to line up his team, with two changes from the side which started in the 4-1 Old Firm derby win last time out…

Allan McGregor keeps his place in goal as Rangers look to continue their superb defensive record with another clean sheet at Almondvale.

[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!”]

There is one change in defence, as the injury suffered by Borna Barisic in the Old Firm derby win rules him out, whilst Calvin Bassey is still suspended. That could see 19-year-old left-back James Maxwell make his Rangers debut, having returned to Ibrox after a successful loan at Queen of the South.

Glen Kamara and Steven Davis continue their partnership in midfield, with Kemar Roofe supporting Alfredo Morelos in an attacking-midfield position after his brace against Celtic.

[freshpress-quiz id=“593776″]

Finally, Ryan Kent keeps his place on the left wing, whilst Ianis Hagi comes in for Joe Aribo on the right-hand side, in the hope that their trickery and pace can unlock the Livingston defence on Wednesday night.

In other news… Forget Wright: Gerrard can sign his true Kent heir in £3.42m-rated wizard

Jon Newsome thinks that Matheus Pereira would snap up the chance to sign for Leeds and play under Marcelo Bielsa.

Despite being unable to save West Brom from relegation, the Brazilian attacker was involved in almost half of the Baggies’ 35 Premier League goals this season, scoring 11 times, whilst racking up six assists.

That’s more goals than both Raheem Sterling and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, with two coming in the shock 5-2 victory at Chelsea in April when Pereira also contributed two assists in a devastating performance against the European champions.

But Pereira’s outstanding form means that a move away from West Brom this summer is on the cards.

And the 25-year-old is not short of interest, with Leeds and Aston Villa both admirers of the talented playmaker, who can play anywhere across the front-three.

Pereira only made his switch to West Brom permanent 12 months ago, but Newsome would be shocked to see him turn his nose up at the opportunity to play for Bielsa.

He told The Transfer Tavern:

“We’ve seen in fits of burst this year what he’s about. He’s a quality player, but you’d have to get fit to play under Bielsa.

“For me, I don’t see any player not wanting to go to Leeds at this moment in time. The way they play, the style they play and you’re going to work with one of the best coaches in the world, who will make you a better footballer. Who wouldn’t want that?”

Leeds have been handed a major boost in their chase to sign AZ Alkmaar captain Teun Koopmeiners this summer.

What’s the story?

In a list of options suggested by The Athletic’s Phil Hay as potential cover for Kalvin Phillips, the Dutchman’s name came into the discussion, with the news that he could be set for an exit from Alkmaar when the transfer window opens.

Spanish publication AS have claimed that, as well as fellow Premier League side Liverpool being interested in Koopmeiners, AZ could be willing to let him go for a fee of around £14.5m.

Better bargain than Meslier

Given just how cheaply Leeds bought Illan Meslier on a permanent deal last summer (£5.85m, according to Transfermarkt), that deal is surely up there with being one of Victor Orta’s biggest masterclasses at Elland Road.

In the 1.83m-tall (6 foot) Koopmeiners, the Whites could arguably secure an even better bargain. The valuation on the Dutchman is a major boost for Leeds given what Hay had previously suggested about the midfielder:

“The indications from Holland are that the 23-year-old, who won his first Holland cap in October, is ready for a move and his agent, Bart Baving, told Italian media last month that ‘the time has come for the next move’. However, he will not be cheap and several Italian clubs are monitoring him.”

Described as a “leader” by his former coach Koen Stam, Koopmeiners is AZ’s captain; and as well as being a talented footballer, would be another important voice in the Leeds dressing room if he comes to Yorkshire.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=”Latest Leeds transfer rumours and news”]

In some player analysis done by The Athletic, it was suggested: “Koopmeiners has more of an attacking profile than Phillips (something that might fit with Bielsa’s standards of versatility) and there is a lot to like about him. He stands out as a very good all-rounder in top-flight terms: an extremely strong tackler who mirrors Phillips in his constant attempts to look for forward passes rather than lateral balls.

“While the match with Phillips is not perfect, it is close enough to suggest that Koopmeiners is an asset Bielsa could refine with coaching.”

Given the position he plays, and that he appears to be coming in at a much cheaper price than perhaps initially would have been expected, this has all the potential of being another Orta masterclass if Leeds can pull it off.

Meanwhile, Leeds are eyeing this 6 foot 3 powerhouse…