Marco Silva says Erik ten Hag was correct to stand behind Bruno Fernandes after Fulham mocked the Manchester United star on a TikTok video.
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Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard wants to win the growing Premier League battle for Rangers defender Calvin Bassey.
Gerrard signed the 22-year-old from Leicester City whilst he was in charge at the Scottish outfit back in 2020.
The left-sided centre-back went on to play 28 times under the Englishman, before the manager made the move to Villa in late 2021.
Bassey has since gone on to establish himself as one of Rangers’ most crucial players, having amassed 64 appearances for the club to date – 17 of which have come in the UEFA Europa League.
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According to a late-night report from the Daily Record, following a stunning display in Wednesday’s final, Gerrard wants to reunite with Bassey at Aston Villa.
The Villans boss wants to strengthen the left side of his defence and has identified the Nigeria international as the man to do so.
Gerrard even sent a number of Villa officials to the Scottish Cup final to watch the defender face off against Hearts.
However, the former Ibrox man knows that he faces tough competition in the race for the youngster’s signature, with five Premier League teams, including Fulham, Wolves and Brentford, and a further two Serie A sides, all interested in signing the defender.
Former Hibs and Hearts midfielder Michael Stewart lauded Bassey following his display against Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday, when his side cruelly lost the tie on penalties. Taking to Twitter, Stewart claimed that the 22-year-old is “absolutely unbelievable”, and that Rangers “must do everything to keep a hold of him”.
Rangers are currently grasping on to Bassey as he is still under contract until the summer of 2024. However, if a club-record bid does come in for the centre-back, then it is unlikely that the club rejects the offer, especially now with no automatic pass into the Champions League.
Therefore, news of Gerrard’s renewed interest will come as a huge blow for Rangers fans.
In other news: Rangers: Paddy Kenny issues summer transfer warning
Liverpool are believed to be ready to make a move to sign Barcelona wonderkid Gavi this summer, according to a report from Spanish outlet Sport (via Sport Witness).
The 17-year-old midfielder has taken a rapid rise to prominence in Spain having joined the famous La Masia academy in 2015 from Real Betis.
Despite his tender years, Gavi has already amassed 46 appearances for the Catalan giants’ first team and has become a fully-fledged senior Spain international.
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Out of contract in 2023 (Transfermarkt), Barcelona have been desperately attempting to secure the future of the latest top talent in a long production line, but currently to no avail.
As per Sport, translated by SW, Liverpool are believed to pose a ‘big threat’ to Barcelona’s plans to offer the teenage sensation a renewal.
It’s claimed that Anfield chiefs FSG are now ‘willing’ to match the €50million (£42.5m) release clause currently in the six-cap starlet’s contract and can offer a deal that is ‘very superior’ to the one on the table at the Camp Nou.
The report also states however that Gavi – who was heralded as ‘spectacular’ by manager Xavi following a 3-2 La Liga victory over Elche in December – is ‘happy’ in Barcelona.
As Jurgen Klopp attempts to put the heartbreak of losing out to Real Madrid in the Champions Final behind him, both he and new Sporting Director Julian Ward will soon be setting their minds to work on the summer transfer targets.
Recently, the Reds’ recruitment has shown a penchant for snapping up the hottest young talent in Europe, adding the likes of Ibrahima Konate, Harvey Elliott, Kaide Gordon and Fabio Carvalho to the squad.
Signing Gavi, who scored twice and provided six assists during a breakout 2021/22 campaign, would be another signal of intent by the club as the Reds look to refresh an ageing midfield department in the here and now whilst also protecting the future.
Albeit undoubtedly a potential capture with a nod towards the next generation, boasting similar stylistic traits to Manchester City star Bernardo Silva, RB Leipzig ace Konrad Laimer and the much talked about Borussia Dortmund revelation Jude Bellingham (Fbref), the talented Spaniard would add immediate strength in depth to the Liverpool midfield.
In other news, one Liverpool player has hinted at a summer exit. Find out who it is here.
Sky Sports journalist Michael Bridge has now shared a ‘hopeful’ Tottenham Hotspur transfer update for supporters.
Already bringing in Croatia footballing legend Ivan Perisic on a Bosman deal, Spurs are showing real statements of intent so far as they aim to back manager Antonio Conte.
The Lilywhites’ recently announced a £150 million equity increase which, according to reliable reports, will be used to reinforce the Italian’s options ahead of his first full Premier League season in charge.
Inter Milan star Alessandro Bastoni, Brentford big name Christian Eriksen and Man City striker Gabriel Jesus are just some of the names on Conte and transfer chief Fabio Paratici’s radar.
In what could be a real summer of change, Bridge of Sky Sports has now shared a ‘hopeful’ update after Spurs completed a deal for Perisic.
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Writing on Twitter in the last 48 hours, in reply to a supporter who asked if a right-wing-back and centre-half were next through the door, he explained:
“What I can say now is the club wouldn’t target anyone they thought wouldn’t join the club. That’s why I’m hopeful. I’ve just had to remind myself it’s May 31st.”
That statement is following on from a previous message where he claimed Tottenham want two more additions over the ‘next few weeks’.
Tottenham, based off these messages from Bridge, appear to be getting a fair bit of their business done early and are aiming to fulfil Conte’s desires.
That alone is very promising as the club steer away from chairman Daniel Levy’s age-old tactic of doing deals late in the window to pressure clubs into quick-fire cheap sales.
Indeed, it’s safe to say this summer could be the most exciting one at Spurs for some time, given how long supporters have grown frustrated by Levy’s tactics.
In other news: £50 million Tottenham target drops teasing four-word transfer hint for Conte…find out more here.
Manchester United are now the leading contenders to sign Villarreal defender Pau Torres, according to reports in Spain (via Sport Witness).
Coming through the ranks at Villarreal, Torres spent time on loan at Malaga before becoming an established member of the first team with his hometown club.
The 25-year-old has now made 134 senior outings for the La Liga side and was an integral part of the run to Europa League final glory as Unai Emery’s charges overcame Manchester United on penalties.
He was then impactful in Europe again this season as the Yellow Submarine made a surprise breakthrough into the semi-finals of the Champions League, as Torres registered the most clearances of any of his teammates in that competition.
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Despite being heavily linked to Tottenham and Chelsea, the Red Devils are now emerging as frontrunners to sign the Spain international…
As per La Razon, translated by SW, United are now the ‘great favourite’ to land Torres this summer ahead of their domestic rivals.
It’s claimed that the Old Trafford club are ‘willing to put’ a €50million (£42.5million) offer on the table to bring the man recently hailed for an ‘outstanding’ performance against Bayern Munich in that famous UCL run.
The report also makes mention of the interest from Tottenham, with Giovani Lo Celso potentially being used as a makeweight in any deal.
The defensive department is well stocked in terms of numbers with Eric Bailly, Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and Raphael Varane in situ as senior options. However, a combination of poor form and injuries last season saw the various central defensive partnerships leave a lot to be desired.
Torres meanwhile, dubbed ‘sensational’ by Luis Enrique, continued to flourish in Spain this year, earning an impressive 7.09 Sofascore rating whilst winning 4.0 duels, making 3.1 clearances and making 51.4 accurate passes on average per game in the Spanish top flight.
In that time the 19-cap ace also scored six and provided one assist in 47 appearances across all competitions, highlighting the threat that the imposing 6 foot 2 star can provide in both penalty areas.
At the mooted price this is a deal that makes an abundance of sense as Erik ten Hag desperately attempts to strengthen the entire squad in Manchester.
In other news, Erik ten Hag could be key in luring this star to Old Trafford
Leeds United are acting early to ensure that a relegation dogfight isn’t repeated in 2022/23 and it appears they are close to sealing yet another signing at Elland Road…
The Yorkshire giants have already secured a move for RB Salzburg duo, midfielder Brenden Aaronson (£25m) and right-back Rasmus Kristensen (£10m), and now are honing in on a third arrival.
That’s according to Yorkshire Evening Post reporter Graham Smyth, who delivered a short and snappy five-word update to Twitter, where he said:
“One deal being worked on.”
In an accompanying article, it’s claimed that the Whites are working to complete another signing by the ‘end of next week.’
Leeds narrowly avoided relegation to the Championship on the final day of the season, thanks to their 2-1 win over Brentford and some fortune as Burnley were defeated. It would have been a gutting twist in their history, having taken 16 years to get back to the big time in 2020.
Evidently, the wretched campaign left a sour taste on those high up in the hierarchy as they have already sanctioned two big-money deals, despite the transfer window only reopening on Friday.
Aaronson is a hugely promising attacking midfielder that fits Jesse Marsch’s system like a glove, whilst Kristensen is another player that has been coached by the American and will offer more threat down that right flank.
The third signing is unknown at this stage but could quite easily emerge to be Bayern Munich’s bit-part midfielder Marc Roca, who is thought to be attracting £10m interest from the Premier League side in a deal that could be a bargain.
Torino wing-back Ola Aina, NYCFC striker Valentin Castellanos, Liverpool’s Takumi Minamino, and long-time target, Huddersfield Town midfielder Lewis O’Brien have all been linked in recent days, too.
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The fact that Victor Orta and co are already lining up another move is certainly thrilling for the Elland Road faithful, any one of those names would add something to Marsch’s squad, on top of the Salzburg duo.
It’s going to make for an exciting summer and one that could see Leeds’ fortunes change drastically heading into the new season.
AND in other news, David Lynch drops Takumi Minamino transfer update…
Manchester United have a ‘genuine interest’ in Ajax winger Antony, according to Fabrizio Romano.
Antony is primarily a right-winger who can also operate from the left and is valued at a career-high £31.5m by Transfermarkt.
The 22-year-old has been with Ajax since 2020 and has made 79 appearances for the Dutch giants, contributing to 42 goals during that time.
The Brazilian was a regular under Erik ten Hag in the 2020/21 campaign, helping Ajax to a league and cup double and once again played his part in lifting the Eredivisie title last season.
Romano took to Twitter on Monday afternoon to provide an update on United and Antony.
He revealed that the Red Devils have a ‘genuine interest’ in the winger and have held ‘internal discussions’ over a possible move. United are yet to launch a formal bid for the attacker, though, who remains under contract until 2025.
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Ten Hag actually doesn’t have a senior right-winger to choose from at Old Trafford, so a reunion with Antony could be a smart move.
Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Elanga are all primarily left-wingers, so the Ajax star could slot perfectly into Ten Hag’s plans in England.
The Dutchman was the man who brought Antony to Ajax and got the best out of him, and still just 22 years of age, you’d like to think he still has plenty of time to improve on his already impressive game.
In other news: ‘We’ve been told…’ – Sky Sports now drop major live TV update on Man Utd’s pursuit of De Jong.
Leeds United have enjoyed a productive transfer window so far with the Whites sealing the signings of three new faces. However, there is plenty of work left to do for Victor Orta and co.
According to Spanish publication Marca, via TEAMtalk, Leeds are one of the sides interested in signing Manchester United centre-back Phil Jones.
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They suggest that the £110k-per-week earner has also taken the fancy of Southampton and newly-promoted Fulham.
Jones is still under contract by United and is valued at just £2.7m by Transfermarkt.
Leeds United need to add far greater depth and quality to their squad ahead of the upcoming campaign as they aim to have a much smoother run of things after their worrying relegation battle.
In Jones, however, Marsch may be on the verge of making his first transfer mistake since taking over at Elland Road.
He has recruited smartly so far in the shape of Brenden Aaronson, Marc Roca and Rasmus Kristensen but the signing of the Red Devils defender would be a puzzling one.
Sir Alex Ferguson once suggested that he could be one of the greatest ever players to don the famous red jersey at Old Trafford but a quite horrendous streak of injuries has led to a rather disappointing and frustrating playing career for a man who is now 30 years of age.
That is still a great age for a centre-back but the fact of the matter is that he’s now incredibly unreliable from a fitness point of view.
Jones has played just four times in the last two years, which comes down to both a lack of quality and his injury record.
The former England international has had 22 separate issues since signing for United which means he’s missed a whopping 1239 days of action. That also amounts to a rather incredible 205 matches.
All of that suggests he could be Leeds’ next Jonathan Woodgate. The former defender turned manager played 137 times for the Yorkshire club, the most appearances he made for any side.
He came through the academy of Leeds but after leaving, saw his career plagued by injuries, just like Jones.
Such was his frustration that he turned to desperate measures such as botox and boiled grass in a bid to end his ‘injury hell’ when he was at Real Madrid.
Both defenders have endured sorry careers, spending more time on the treatment table than out on the pitch. That once led Rio Ferdinand to dub Jones a “waste of time” in a rather harsh assessment of the player’s time at Man United.
However, what that should tell the hierarchy at Leeds is that he’s a player not worth investing in this summer.
A new transfer update has claimed that Liverpool are interested in making a move for exciting Porto winger Otavio in the summer window and have discovered how much they will need to spend in order to sign him.
In recent days, the 27-year-old has been linked with a summer move to Anfield, as Jurgen Klopp looks at possibly making more attacking reinforcements.
The Liverpool manager knows Otavio well after coming up against him numerous times in the Champions League against Porto since 2018, with the winger losing on all five occasions that he has faced the Reds.
A new update has now emerged from Portugal which suggests that this transfer story could have legs to it.
According to O Jogo, a previous report claiming Otavio’s agent was in England to talk to Liverpool is false, but the Reds are still interested in signing him.
It is stated that they ‘admire’ the Porto attacker, who registered 12 assists in all competitions last season and has been noted for his rapid pace, not to mention having 86 goal contributions (24 goals and 62 assists) in 237 appearances for the club overall.
The report added that the Portuguese champions will give short shrift to any offers of less than €40m (£34.4m), giving Liverpool a base line from which to work.
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It remains to be seen how genuine Liverpool’s interest is, with Klopp already well-stocked in attack following the arrival of Darwin Nunez from Porto’s rivals Benfica earlier this summer.
Then again, Sadio Mane and Divock Origi have departed, while Takumi Minamino also looks set to leave, so the Reds’ options in the final third may end up being slightly threadbare unless further reinforcements are brought in.
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If Otavio is happy to come in and be a backup to Mohamed Salah on the right flank, it is a move which could make complete sense. If he isn’t content to play second fiddle to last season’s joint-top Premier League scorer, it is hard to see any such transfer happening.
Greek journalist Georgios Sideridis has now revealed some encouraging transfer news for Glasgow Rangers on Antonio Colak.
Sky Sports reported on Wednesday that the Gers have agreed a £1.8m fee with Greek side PAOK for Colak, who is keen on a move to Ibrox this summer.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst is also keen for the deal to go ahead, and Colak has already agreed personal terms with the Light Blues, so it looks like a go-er.
Taking to Twitter, Sideridis has now revealed that PAOK already have a target in mind to replace Colak:
“The rumoured agreement between PAOK and Rangers has not been confirmed yet by any side, both sides don’t want to rush the situation till the Greek side find Colak’s replacement.
“Although, I’ve been told that #PAOK have already a target who will be known by the end of next week.”
The fact that PAOK are already lining up a potential replacement for Colak should bring a lot of encouragement to the Ibrox faithful – it implies the deal is as good as done.
His record for them is unimpressive, with just four goals and two assists in 39 games in total over all competitions across the last two seasons (Transfermarkt).
However, while on loan at Swedish side Malmo, the Croatia international managed a much better 19 strikes and three assists in 40 matches (Transfermarkt).
It was with the Swedish top flight outfit that RFC saw what he is capable of, scoring twice at Ibrox to send Malmo through in their UEFA Champions League qualifier last term, and so signing the 28-year-old could turn out to be a shrewd piece of business if can rediscover his Malmo form in Glasgow.