Barcelona & Real Madrid presidents Florentino Perez & Joan Laporta have reportedly resigned from Spanish FA's board of directors.
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Jose Mourinho has explained why "you don't coach" Cristiano Ronaldo, who often drew him into touchline arguments at Real Madrid.
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Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel has given his team some time off to clear their heads after losing three games in a row.
Christian Pulisic got an important assist for Olivier Giroud to give AC Milan a chance of getting back into their Serie A clash against Monza.
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West Bromwich Albion had a pretty disappointing Championship campaign as the Baggies failed to get in with a shout of winning promotion back to the Premier League.
One man at The Hawthorns who had a fairly uninspiring season from an individual point of view is club captain Jake Livermore.
Over 37 league appearances, the midfielder ended up earning himself a rather underwhelming overall performance rating of 6.53/10 from WhoScored. This makes him one of the lowest-rated outfield Baggies players currently at the club to start more than one league game.
As the club captain, for whom the Baggies paid £10m to sign in 2017, it’s safe to suggest that he didn’t do a great job of leading by example in 2021/22.
Livermore’s current contract at The Hawthorns is set to expire in the summer of 2023, meaning that the upcoming transfer window could give Albion a good opportunity to potentially cash in on the midfielder should they feel the need to get rid.
With Steve Bruce previously speaking about a potential overhaul at the club this summer, moving Livermore out could well be in the 61-year-old’s plans.
In terms of who the Baggies could look to bring in as a potential replacement for the 32-year-old, Blackburn Rovers stalwart Joe Rothwell could be the right fit for Bruce and West Brom.
With West Brom having been linked with a move for the 27-year-old – who will be a free agent in July once his current contract at Ewood Park runs out – over the past few weeks, it could be a good financial move for the Midlands club to bring him in.
From a footballing perspective, meanwhile, Rothwell ended the recent season with 141 crosses to his name, which is at least 50 more than any of his Blackburn team-mates managed, and a whopping 135 more than Livermore made.
Along with his useful attacking prowess which saw him score three goals and provide 10 assists in this 2021/22 campaign, the midfielder is also a very capable defensive figure, having made 48 interceptions and 26 tackles in 41 league games.
Praised by Rovers journalist Jaquob Crooke for his “mesmerising” ability on the ball, Rothwell could be just what West Brom need if they are to be a bit more dynamic in their attack and give themselves a better chance of promotion in 2023.
In other news: Joe Masi drops behind-the-scenes transfer update, it’s great news for WBA supporters
Leeds United’s ownership could change hands this summer, according to Rory Smith…
The New York Times journalist was recently speaking on the BBC Five Live Football Daily Podcast alongside pundit and former Manchester City defender Micah Richards, where he revealed that the 49ers Enterprises will likely buy out chairman Andrea Radrizzani.
“How much money do Leeds actually have to spend?” asked the Sky Sports regular, to which the reliable reporter responded:
“Not a vast amount, that’s another problem, but I think that will change this summer as I suspect they’ll be bought out by the San Francisco 49ers, they already own 40 something per cent of the club and I think they will increase to become majority shareholders over the summer.”
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This comes on the day that the Yorkshire giants officially announced the signing of Brenden Aaronson from RB Salzburg as the American links up with his former boss in a £25m deal.
Clearly, the Whites have – or had – money, so news that the 49ers are likely to complete a full takeover is certainly very encouraging and it’ll complete something of an American trifecta at Elland Road.
First came Marsch, then Aaronson and likely the NFL franchise taking full control.
We know that Radrizzani cannot afford to keep the club in the Premier League. His lack of spending, particularly during the most recent winter transfer window, saw Leeds flirt with relegation, having to stay up on the final day of the season.
Marsch and his predecessor Marcelo Bielsa have been crying out for additions, especially up front, where 2020/21 top scorer Patrick Bamford was only able to play nine league games this season due to a variety of lingering injuries.
There is also the prospect of seeing the likes of Raphinha and Kalvin Phillips depart and they will need viable replacements; that won’t be cheap.
After survival and the arrival of Aaronson, those around west Yorkshire will surely be absolutely buzzing by this claim from Smith.
AND in other news, Orta now plotting Leeds offer for “exquisite” £12.5m target, imagine him & Aaronson…
Newcastle United are still trying to sign Lille defender Sven Botman this summer after failing to do so in the January window, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.
During the winter, the Magpies were reported with a keen interest in the 22-year-old.
According to the Daily Mail, the Tyneside club had offers around the £32m mark rejected by the Ligue 1 side in January.
It was also claimed that the player preferred to assess his options at the end of the season, rather than making the move midway through the campaign.
O’Rourke believes that Botman remains very high up on Newcastle’s wish list and that PIF are continuing to negotiate for the defender.
Speaking with GiveMeSport, he claimed: “They tried really hard in January to get him but just couldn’t get that deal done. I don’t think the interest has gone away, it’s still a position Eddie Howe wants to improve on this summer and bring in a new centre-back. So if they can land a Sven Botman who has been very high up their list of targets, it would be a great signing for Newcastle.
“There’s fierce competition from the likes of Milan for the Dutchman as well, so it’s going to be a hard one to do, but Newcastle are in there and still trying to do it. They will be hoping to lure him to St James’ Park.”
Journalist Jacque Talbot believes that any potential deal involving the Netherlands under-21 international will be difficult for Newcastle to pull off, describing the Lille defender as “probably one of the most exciting centre-backs in European football at the moment”.
Nonetheless, the Tynesiders will surely be doing all they can to try and lure the youngster to St James’ Park this summer. Standing at 6 foot 5 in height, Botman is an imposing centre-back who could strike a formidable partnership at the back alongside 6 foot 6 Dan Burn.
Therefore, whilst this deal may be difficult to secure, the Magpies should pull out all the stops to try and get it done.
In other news: Craig Hope drops exciting Moussa Diaby transfer update
Manchester United will seemingly be looking to get rid of two of their defenders during the upcoming summer transfer window.
Journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano shared on Twitter that there has been a “decision made” regarding the future of Eric Bailly and Axel Tuanzebe, with both players “set to leave” Old Trafford this summer.
Signed from Villarreal six years ago this week in a deal worth a reported £30m, Bailly has gone on to make 113 appearances for the Red Devils. However, with a worrying injury record and only seven appearances in all competitions this season, it’s easy to see why the club are looking to offload the Ivorian this summer.
The 28-year-old has largely failed to convince in a United shirt, being branded “rash” by Trevor Sinclair after a hapless own goal in the Manchester derby last November.
As for Tuanzebe, despite playing for two different clubs on loan this season, the 24-year-old failed to make an impact with either, as he made just two appearances for Napoli after he left Aston Villa in January.
After the first of those, Italian journalist Umberto Chiariello criticised the Old Trafford academy graduate for committing “mistakes that a defender should never make”.
Taking all this into account, it’s easy to see why the club are looking to move the defensive duo out of the club and off their books permanently.
This should be music to the ears of United fans everywhere and give them hope that the club are looking to move some deadwood out of Old Trafford and potentially bring in some new players to replace them.
Taking into account how the likes of Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Edinson Cavani and Juan Mata will not be at the club next season, this already suggests that the Red Devils will need to be rather busy to ensure that their squad is strong enough before the next campaign kicks off in two months’ time.
It’s safe to suggest that both Bailly and Tuanzebe won’t be greatly missed at the club based on what they’ve offered on the pitch, but should the pair find themselves waving goodbye to Old Trafford once and for all this summer, the pressure will then be on the club’s hierarchy to ensure that they find suitable replacements so that Erik ten Hag isn’t left short of central defensive cover over the next few months.
In other news: Bid made: Man Utd now in talks for “spectacular” signing, supporters will be buzzing
Aston Villa might already boast one of the top young right-backs in the Premier League in Matty Cash, but Steven Gerrard may soon have competition for the Poland international in Kaine Kesler-Hayden.
The 19-year-old earned rave reviews on loan with Swindon Town and MK Dons last season and looks to have a big future at Villa, so fans might not have to wait too long until they see him starting in the first-team.
The academy graduate did feature in the infamous 4-1 FA Cup defeat against Liverpool in January 2021, when the pandemic forced the Villans to play an academy side, but the right-back may soon find himself lining up alongside the likes of Philippe Coutinho.
Last season saw him sent to Swindon in League Two for the first half of the campaign, where he made 21 appearances, contributing one goal and two assists, before those at Villa decided he needed to test himself at a higher level.
He was sent to League One promotion hopefuls MK Dons, helping Liam Manning’s side to a playoff spot with one goal and one assist in 17 appearances.
During his time with the Robins, local reporter Johnny Leighfield sang his praises, saying:
“He’s just a cut above. He’s got a brilliant turn of pace and a player who likes to do his damage up the other end of the pitch.
“He’s got everything about him to play either Championship or Premier League football regularly.”
It would not be a surprise to see the teenage defender earn a Championship loan next season, although Gerrard might be keen to assess the youngster in pre-season to see if he could compete with Cash for a starting spot first.
Kesler-Hayden may struggle to usurp the Polish full-back, however, as he was one of the standout performers for Villa last season, averaging a strong 6.91 rating from WhoScored after appearing in every Premier League fixture, contributing four goals and five assists.
The former Nottingham Forest man may only be 24, but Villa fans can be safe in the knowledge that they have Kesler-Hayden coming through as a potential replacement for Cash in the future.
Leeds United are ‘tracking’ West Ham forward Sonny Perkins on international duty in a tournament in Croatia.
The Whites have already added to their first-team ranks with moves for Brenden Aaronson and Rasmus Kristensen ahead of Jesse Marsch’s first full season in charge.
However, Victor Orta still has his eye on academy additions, with Phil Hay revealing earlier this month that Leeds were lining up deals for both Perkins and Birmingham City’s George Hall.
Perkins, described as a ‘stand out’ player for the Hammers youth side, contributed to 16 goals in 24 appearances in Premier League 2 and the U18s Premier League last season.
Leeds journalist Joe Donnohue took to Twitter on Monday afternoon, name-checking both Perkins and Hall, who have been representing England in a youth tournament over in Croatia.
He claimed the Whites are still ‘tracking’ the pair, who helped England win the four-team tournament.
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The Whites broke a Premier League record last season by handing eight teenagers their top-flight debuts, so Perkins and Hall could be the next to move to Elland Road and break through in the coming years.
Perkins has an impressive record at youth level, and with Joe Gelhardt and Sam Greenwood establishing themselves in Marsch’s first-team squad last season, the West Ham man could become the Whites’ new U23 star in attack.
A new senior striker is also on the agenda, so it could well be a busy few months for Ortta and co in the transfer market.
In other news: Next step now taken on Kalvin Phillips leaving Leeds in big development.