All posts by z3u9t.icu

[ad_pod ]

According to reliable journalist Alan Nixon on his official Twitter account on Thursday, Southampton want £10m if they are going to sell Charlie Austin before the transfer window slams shut at 11pm.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Saints manager Ralph Hasenhuttl once confirmed in his Burnley pre-match press conference on Thursday that while the club don’t necessarily want to get rid of the player, they are willing to do so if a deal can be found that suits all parties.

In quotes, as reported by The Daily Echo, the Austrian said: “We don’t want to send him away.

“If there is an option that he can make a good step and we get someone else in then it can be that this works.”

Nixon believes that the south coast outfit are asking for £10m for the 29-year-old having turned down four loan approaches from Premier League clubs, as per Sky Sports, with the player having less than 18 months remaining on his contract.

Will he go?

It seems unlikely unless Southampton are willing to drop the reported asking price.

While Austin has proven in the past that he can get goals at this level, the injury issues that he has suffered from in recent years, as well as the fact that he isn’t the most mobile striker around, mean that they are being overly ambitious with their demands this late in the window.

Given they are still interested in signing Che Adams, as per Sky Sports, who is more suited to fitting into Hasenhuttl’s style than the experienced centre-forward, it is strange that they aren’t willing to sell the 29-year-old for a smaller fee so they can get the in-form Birmingham City man.

It all stinks of the Saints hierarchy losing the plot, and it could mean that they are left with a player who won’t be of much help to them for the remainder of he campaign.

Check out the video below for Emma Conybeare’s rundown of which clubs need what in the January transfer window…

Ange Postecoglou has dropped a promising injury update concerning Celtic left-back Greg Taylor.

What’s the latest?

In recent comments cited by The Herald, the 56-year-old Bhoys boss revealed that, despite being brought off with a knock in Celtic’s 2-1 victory over Rangers last weekend, the defender does not look to have sustained a serious injury – with his withdrawal coming as a result of cramp.

Speaking about the condition of the 24-year-old, the Greek-Australian manager said: “Greg was just cramp.”

Supporters will be buzzing

Considering how important a part of the Celtic side Taylor has become under the management of Postecoglou, the news that the left-back has not picked up a long-term injury is sure to have left the Parkhead faithful buzzing.

Indeed, over his 18 Premiership appearances this season, the £1.58m-rated defender has highly impressed on the left of the Hoops backline, helping his side keep seven clean sheets, registering one assist and creating two big chances for his teammates.

The Scotland international has also impressed in metrics more typical of his position, making an average of 1.2 key passes, one interception, 1.6 tackles, 1.1 clearances and winning 4.3 duels per fixture, with these returns seeing the £15.5k-per-week full-back average a SofaScore match rating of 6.92.

And, while last weekend’s Old Firm victory has afforded Celtic some breathing room at the top of the Premiership table, Postecoglou will be well aware that his side cannot afford to let themselves believe the job is already done in their bid to reclaim their Scottish crown this season.

As such, the news that the club’s first-choice left-back does not look as if he will miss any of the club’s upcoming fixtures is undoubtedly a major boost for the 56-year-old and his side, as well as being relieving for the Bhoys supporters.

AND in other news: Sources: Celtic now in talks over “important” Lennoxtown deal, Ange will be buzzing

Former Scotland defender Alan Hutton has suggested that Celtic may already have opened new contract talks with midfielder Tom Rogic, as per Football Insider. 

The lowdown: Deal talks on hold

This comes after Hoops boss Ange Postecoglou told reporters back in February that a new deal for Rogic was the ‘last thing’ on his mind as the pursuit for the Scottish Premiership title went on.

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

Fast approaching the final year of a deal at Parkhead, the club are in danger of losing the 29-year-old on a free next summer or needing to cash in during the upcoming transfer window.

However, Hutton believes that Postecoglou may already have a successor lined up for his compatriot in David Turnbull, while also claiming there are likely ongoing negotiations ‘in the background’.

The latest: Lesson learned?

Speaking to FI, the BBC 5 Live pundit claimed that Celtic would be best served to keep Rogic in the long term, hinting at discussions behind the scenes.

“You’d hope Celtic have learned their lesson. You don’t really want any of your kind of top assets to be walking away for next to nothing or running down contracts.

“He’s been a good servant and I think he’s come back into form since the new manager’s come in. He obviously trusts him.

“You’ve also got other players within the squad to come back, the likes of Turnbull and these sort of guys. They’re in a good place right now but again, moving forward, you never want to lose a top player.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if there were talks going on in the background to try and tie him down to a longer deal. I’m kind of interested to see where it goes and what Celtic’s thinking is.

“Do they stick with the likes of Rogic? Or do they have somebody else in mind to really transform that midfield? It’ll be interesting to see how it plays out. Ultimately, I still think you need someone like that in your squad.”

The verdict: Too good to go

Whilst there can be little doubting Turnbull’s long term future as a Celtic mainstay in attacking midfield, Rogic has matched the output of the 22-year-old so far this season.

When using Transfermarkt to compare the two, the Australian has also provided 16 direct goal contributions – albeit the 51-cap Australia ace has made seven more appearances across all competitions.

Losing a key player for nothing simply isn’t a viable option for the club and as the Bhoys prepare for a possible jaunt into the UEFA Champions League group stages next term, where keeping the experience of the likes of Rogic will be pivotal.

Wolves are in Premier League action again tonight as Bruno Lage’s side travel to St James’ Park to take on Newcastle United.

The Old Gold opened up a significant points gap on their Midlands rivals Aston Villa last time out after beating them 2-1 at Molineux last weekend.

Heading into their latest away clash, it seems that Wolves have been handed a big fitness boost to one of their key figures.

What’s the news?

According to a recent tweet from journalist Tim Spiers, Lage said in his latest press conference that Nelson Semedo, who has been out injured for the past few weeks, had a good full week of training leading up to tonight’s showdown.

Having been fit enough to make the bench for the Villa game, it could be safe to assume that the wing-back has now regained his full fitness after being out of action since February with a hamstring injury.

Prior to suffering this injury during Wolves’ defeat at Arsenal, the Portuguese defender had played in all but two of the club’s Premier League games, showing just how pivotal he has been for Lage.

Great news for Lage

To highlight how significant the 28-year-old is for his team, the wing-back has racked up a total of 27 live-passes which have led to a shot at goal, the fifth-highest of any player currently at the club.

From a defensive point of view, only Ruben Neves (41) and Joao Moutinho (48) have won more tackles than Semedo (38), showing how capable he is in terms of his defensive duties as well as going forward.

Taking all this into account, it will surely be great news for Lage to have the former Barcelona ace back available tonight with a full week of training behind him.

Even though he got on the scoresheet against Steven Gerrard’s side on Saturday, Jonny Otto may now see his place in the team called into question after he gave the ball away 14 times at the weekend, in addition to committing three fouls.

If Semedo is ready to get back on the pitch in terms of his fitness, then he should definitely be in Lage’s thoughts when the 45-year-old is putting his starting XI together in a few hours’ time.

In other news – Forget Trincao: Lage must now finally unleash Wolves’ “wonderful” £39k-p/w “superstar”

Tottenham could battle Aston Villa in the race to sign German defender Matthias Ginter this summer, according to Lyall Thomas.

The Lowdown: Defensive reinforcements needed?

Steven Gerrard could be a busy man this summer ahead of his first full season in charge at Villa Park.

Reports have suggested that eight players could be moved on from the Midlands, with Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa’s futures under scrutiny.

Should the pair depart, Villa would be left with just two senior centre-backs and then surely need to dip into the market, where it looks as if Ginter could be the first major deal.

The Latest: Thomas’ post

Sky Sports reporter Thomas took to Twitter on Tuesday afternoon to provide an update on Ginter. He confirmed that Villa are ‘interested’ in Ginter on a free transfer, with Premier League rivals Tottenham and West Ham also watching the World Cup winner this season.

“Aston Villa among the clubs interested in Matthias Ginter on a free transfer, acc. to Sky Germany. Separately, I’m aware he has been watched by a lot of top clubs this season including Juventus, Tottenham and West Ham.”

The Verdict: Sign

Gerrard is looking to take Villa to the next level, and bringing in an experienced centre-back on a free transfer could be an ideal move.

Ginter, who can also play as a full-back and in midfield, is valued at £21.6m and has bundles of top-flight experience in Germany as well as in European competitions and for his country. [Transfermarkt]

He appears to be a man in demand, so securing his services for nothing over the coming months could prove to be a coup and shouldn’t impact the club’s big £150m summer spending plans.

In other news: Gerrard and Lange now eyeing another free transfer for ‘superstar’ attacker. 

Now that Southampton are under new ownership after Sport Republic, backed by Serbian media mogul Dragan Solak, recently bought Gao Jisheng’s 80% stake in the club, this could pave the way for some potential January spending to take place in the coming weeks.

With that in mind, one potential deal that the Saints could look to complete this month would be to sign Rangers midfielder Joe Aribo, who the club have been linked with in recent weeks.

Aribo, who is currently valued at £9m according to Transfermarkt, joined Rangers on a free transfer from Charlton Athletic back in the 2019 summer transfer window.

Since then, the 25-year-old has gone on to make a total of 123 appearances for the Scottish champions across all competitions in which he has managed to score 23 goals and provide 20 assists along the way, showing how much of a bargain he has been for them.

During his time at Charlton, Aribo was likened to former Barcelona and Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure by his former Charlton teammate and current Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa, who also described Aribo’s “languid style” on the pitch as “unique.”

Judging by that, this could be a great first piece of transfer business under their new owners to bring in a midfield operator that can score and assist goals, which is something that Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side could do with having.

For context, they’ve only managed to score 20 times in 19 league games this season, fewer than the likes of Watford, Brentford and Leeds United.

Given how Saints captain James Ward-Prowse has five goals and one assist under his belt in 17 league appearances this season, it could be incredibly exciting for Southampton to have him and Aribo in the same team that can score and create in equal measure from midfield.

However, with Aribo having appeared in all but one of Rangers’ games across all competitions so far this season, racking up six goals with five assists, the Ibrox club could be quite reluctant to let him go halfway through the season given how important he is for them.

Despite that, Southampton should still make an approach to Rangers to see if they would be willing to negotiate a deal for the player and see if he would be willing to make a move to the Premier League.

In other news: Solak could blow Saints fans away with swoop for “magnificent” £4.5m-rated sensation – opinion

Aston Villa journalist Ashley Preece spotted manager Steven Gerrard turning away in ‘disgust’ after a Leon Bailey mistake against Leicester City. 

The lowdown

Gerrard named Bailey in his Premier League starting line-up for just the second time in 2022 ahead of the clash with the Foxes.

He played the full 90 minutes against Wolves at the start of the month, but aside from that he’d been limited to six substitute appearances since returning from a thigh injury.

The £28.8million, £85,000-per-week summer signing from Bayer Leverkusen slotted in alongside Philippe Coutinho and behind Ollie Watkins in the 4-3-2-1 formation.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/aston-villa-latest-developments/” title=”Aston Villa latest developments!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The latest

Preece noted shortly before half time at The King Power Stadium that Gerrard was left fuming after Bailey conceded a ‘daft’ free-kick 25 yards from the Villa goal.

It was ‘so sloppy’ from the Jamaican, he remarked, leading to the manager’s ‘disgust’.

Meanwhile, The Athletic’s Gregg Evans tweeted that Bailey was ‘really struggling’ in the first 45 minutes.

The verdict

The 24-year-old was unable to make any real impact in the first half against Brendan Rodgers’ side.

He finished the period with a meagre tally of 14 touches and four passes, having only attempted eight overall (via SofaScore).

Bailey won only one of the three ground duels he contested, and so it was no surprise to see Gerrard’s frustration mount.

Indeed, Preece also spotted the 41-year-old going ‘on at Bailey’ as he gathered his team near the touchline during a break in play.

It was something of a shock, then, to see him emerge for the second half. The manager might well have considered a change at the interval.

In other news, Villa are now in advanced talks over this signing.

Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly amongst a handful of clubs interested in signing Derby County captain Tom Lawrence as the January transfer window approaches its final week.

What’s the latest?

According to TEAMTalk, Bruno Lage’s side are keen on bringing the Welsh winger to Molineux before the window slams shut, with the likes of Brighton, Burnley, Newcastle and Fulham also interested.

Despite all of Derby County’s off-field struggles this season, the Rams skipper has had an impressive campaign so far, netting eight goals and contributing three assists in 24 Championship appearances.

Wayne Rooney’s side look destined for relegation to League One this season, which could prove a factor in the 28-year-old’s potential departure.

Valued at £4.5m by Transfermarkt, the Welshman could prove to be a bargain for Wolves, as well as provide Derby with some much-needed funds.

Wolves should swoop for Lawrence

With winger Adama Traore looking increasingly more likely to swap Wolves for Tottenham this window, Lage could certainly do with an extra option on the flank.

Predominantly a left-sided winger, Lawrence hasn’t played in the English top-flight since the 2014/15 season when with Leicester City but has bags of experience in the Championship, playing 230 second-tier matches since 2015, including a play-off final with Derby in 2019.

Moreover, the 28-year-old has already surpassed his appearance tally from last season this campaign and has almost tripled his goals tally; he has certainly stepped up to the challenge this term and led by example.

Labelled as “bright” by former Derby correspondent for The Athletic Ryan Conway, the Welshman certainly has quality that Wolves could certainly do with.

According to SofaScore, Lawrence currently averages 2.8 shots per game whilst maintaining an 83% passing accuracy. The Welshman’s defensive contribution has been decent too, making a tackle per game as well as 0.6 interceptions and clearances.

Wolves haven’t been blessed with goals from out wide this season, with the potentially departing Traore the West Midlands outfit’s only winger who has scored in the Premier League this term.

Daniel Podence has been prolific in cup competitions, scoring four goals across the EFL Cup and FA Cup, whilst Francisco Trincao’s only goal in amber and gold came in the League Cup against Nottingham Forest.

Granted, Lage does still have Pedro Neto to welcome back from a long-term injury as well as the recently acquired Portuguese youngster Chiquinho.

However, Lawrence could prove to be a shrewd acquisition for a low fee that gives Lage another option, until the end of the campaign at least.

In other news: Lage offers update on the future of 25-y/o gem, Wolves fans will be delighted

With Aston Villa having already secured deals for Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Digne during the current January transfer window, it seems as though the Midlands club could be set to welcome another new face to Villa Park that also has some Premier League experience under his belt.

What’s the news?

According to journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano in a recent Twitter post, AS Roma goalkeeper Robin Olsen is set to undergo a medical at Villa today before the announcement of a loan deal for the shot-stopper until the end of the season.

He said: “Robin Olsen will undergo his medical with Aston Villa on Tuesday. He’s set to join Villa from AS Roma on loan until end of the season. Sheffield United will let him leave immediately – and so Olsen will join Aston Villa.”

Working wonders

Having been linked with a transfer move for West Ham United goalkeeper Darren Randolph earlier in the month, only for Hammers manager David Moyes to step in and block the move, it seems as though Johan Lange has moved swiftly in making sure that Villa bring in another shot-stopper this month, demonstrating the wonderful work he’s put in to make the squad as strong as possible this winter.

Since joining Roma back in the 2018 summer transfer window, the 32-year-old has had loan spells at Cagliari, Everton, where he made 11 appearances with seven coming in the Premier League, and most recently with Sheffield United for the first half of the current campaign.

Given how current Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez has played in all but one of their Premier League games so far this season, it’s safe to say that he is seen as Steven Gerrard’s first-choice goalkeeper, suggesting that regular game time may not be on the cards for Olsen straight away.

However, to have an experienced goalkeeper in their squad that is familiar with English football as a result of his spells with Everton and Sheffield United, would still be a positive thing for Villa to be able to rely on if anything were to happen to Martinez.

One other factor that could be taken into account is what the next step is for Villa’s current backup goalkeeper Jed Steer, who managed to concede three goals in his only Premier League appearance this season.

If Olsen’s arrival means that Steer will be pushed down the pecking order, it could be worth him moving to another club where he’d be able to get regular playing time.

In other news: Gerrard could strike gold for Villa with “insane” £19k-p/w ace, he’d be a big upgrade – opinion

West Bromwich Albion have been handed a boost in their bid to bring Marcus Forss to The Hawthorns in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Sky Sports News (via Football League World), who claim that Brentford manager Thomas Frank has given the centre-forward the green light to leave the Premier League side on a temporary basis this month.

Football League World then go on to claim that a host of Championship clubs, including Valerien Ismael’s West Brom side, were keeping a very close eye on the situation of the Finland international ahead of the January transfer window – with the latest update regarding the 22-year-old’s availability now looking to have opened the door for a move.

Ismael can axe Hugill with Forss

While it is true that, following the £7m January signing of Daryl Dike, Ismael now has two out and out centre-forwards in his first-team squad, with the Frenchman recently suggesting that season-long loanee Jordan Hugill could be set to return to Norwich City this month, a move for Forss could still very much be on the cards for the Baggies.

Indeed, Hugill has failed to impress over his 20 Championship appearances for Albion in the current campaign, with the £1.62m-rated man scoring just one goal, failing to provide his teammates with a single assist and missing nine big chances for his side.

These returns have seen the £36k-per-week striker average a SofaScore match rating of 6.56, ranking him as Ismael’s fifth-worst performer in the second tier.

In comparison, over Forss’ 39 Championship outings for Brentford last season – only nine of which came as starts – the £4.05m-rated centre-forward scored seven goals, registered one assist and created three big chances for his teammates – with the 22-year-old finding the back of the net once every 162 minutes of second-tier football played.

Furthermore, Forss undoubtedly has a much higher ceiling than the 29-year-old Hugill, with Frank stating of the striker upon his signing of a new deal with the Bees: “He is a very talented striker who has added extra levels to his game in the last year. He can link up play, is good at arriving in the box, and has made big strides in terms of leading our press. He is also one of the best finishers I have seen. He has a bright future ahead of him.”

As such, with the Finn now looking to be available this month, it would appear highly advisable for Ismael to finally call time on Hugill’s temporary stay at Albion, and subsequently reinvest the significant outlay on the Englishman’s hefty wages into a loan move for the much cheaper £4.9k-per-week Brentford striker.

In other news: Val has just repeated a worrying 3-year transfer mistake at WBA, fans surely fuming