Category Uncategorized

Tottenham Hotspur are in advanced talks to sign recruitment expert Jeff Vetere, according to Football Insider.

The Lowdown: Vetere’s career

Vetere has not held a senior recruitment position since being sacked as Birmingham City’s director of football in March 2018, which came at the same time as manager Steve Cotterill losing his job in a major club reshuffle.

The 56-year-old has extensive experience in Premier League recruitment, having worked for the likes of Charlton Athletic, West Ham United, Newcastle United and Fulham whilst they were all in the English top-flight.

He also has experience working as a scout for Real Madrid, aided by the fact he speaks five languages.

The Latest: Close to joining Spurs

According to a report by Football Insider, Tottenham are now in advanced talks with Vetere with the view for him to come in and oversee their Under-21s recruitment.

It is claimed he is a close ally of Spurs managing director Fabio Paratici, who has given the green-light on the appointment.

Negotiations are said to be close to completion, with Vetere ready to join the north London club immediately.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/tottenham-latest-developments-2/” title=”Tottenham latest developments!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Verdict: Academy needs a reshuffle

The Lilywhites have faced criticism in recent times having failed to bring through a number of top talents from the academy all the way to Antonio Conte’s first-team.

This criticism became all the more prominent last week when Tottenham academy graduate Marcus Edwards stunned his boyhood team whilst playing for Sporting CP as they beat Spurs 2-0 in the Champions League.

Edwards was even awarded the player of the match for his dazzling display, throwing in the question as to why the north London club allowed his departure in the first place.

Therefore, Paratici will have high hopes in Vetere’s reshuffling of the academy’s operations, because, at the moment, it is failing in its production.

Manchester City have been handed an injury boost as Pep Guardiola confirmed that Kalvin Phillips is set to return for Sunday’s Premier League clash vs Newcastle United.

The Lowdown: Phillips’ injury concern

The Sky Blues maintained their perfect start to the 2022/23 campaign after securing an emphatic 4-0 victory over newly-promoted Bournemouth at the Etihad last weekend.

The 26-year-old was deemed unfit to be involved in the match-day squad for the game against the Cherries after picking up a minor injury in training earlier that week, but the boss has now shared some positive news on the midfielder’s situation.

The Latest: Guardiola’s fitness update

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Guardiola confirmed that Phillips has returned to action and will be available for selection to face Eddie Howe’s Newcastle.

As quoted by City’s official website, the Spaniard said:

“Cole [Palmer] is back. Kalvin [Phillips] is back. Some niggles for some players but the rest are okay.”

The Verdict: Boost for City

Having Phillips back at his disposal will come as a massive boost for Guardiola and City as a whole.

The England international, labelled a ‘Rolls Royce’ by sports journalist Josh Bunting, has only made one brief appearance for the reigning champions having come off the bench in the opening day fixture vs West Ham, but offers the manager more flexibility with fellow defensive midfield specialist Rodri.

Pep will be keen to get all of his new summer signings involved and into his plans as soon as possible to ensure that they gel with the rest of the team, and Phillips is a player who’s likely to have proved impactful come the end of the season.

Manchester City playmaker Jack Grealish ‘might end up back’ at Aston Villa if his performance levels don’t improve this season. 

That’s according to former Villa striker Tony Cascarino, who was speaking to talkSPORT.

The lowdown

City paid a British record transfer fee of £100m to sign Grealish from Villa last summer, but on paper the 26-year-old didn’t set the world alight in his first season at the Etihad Stadium, notching just six goal involvements in the Premier League (three goals, three assists) and 10 overall (six goals, four assists).

For context, seven different Villa players – Ollie Watkins, Danny Ings, Jacob Ramsey, Philippe Coutinho, Emiliano Buendia, Matty Cash and John McGinn – recorded more goal contributions in last season’s top flight.

The latest

Cascarino reckons that City could run out of patience with Grealish if he fails to live up to his price tag this season.

He thinks that the England international, who has too often produced ‘six out of tens’, could find himself on the loan or transfer list come next summer, and that may present an opportunity for his former club.

Cascarino said of Grealish: “At the end of the season, if he doesn’t pick up his standards, what we know he’s capable of and why they paid £100m for him, he’ll probably be loaned out or he might end up back at Villa.

“He’s not playing well enough consistently for Man City. I’m not talking about being OK, six out of tens. He should be eight or nine. He’s got so much quality.”

The verdict

There may be some Villa supporters who dream about the prospect of Grealish returning to the Midlands.

The 26-year-old, who scored 32 goals and provided 43 assists for the club, made the Championship Team of the Year when they got promoted in 2019 under Dean Smith and won Villa’s Player of the Year prize after helping them to survive in the top flight the following season.

He has also expressed his admiration for Steven Gerrard in the past, tweeting in 2014 that the then-Liverpool captain was an ‘unreal’ player whose ‘passion is the best’.

Furthermore, he insisted following his departure from the Midlands that he would ‘always be a Villa fan’, and perhaps he privately plans to make a comeback towards the end of his career.

However, Grealish’s underlying statistics in his first season at City suggest that he could make a much bigger impact this term.

Only three players – Kevin De Bruyne, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah – could better his record of 0.3 expected assists per 90 last term, and if his team-mates are more clinical this time around, his headline numbers could improve dramatically.

If they do, City definitely won’t be entertaining the idea of letting him go back to his former stomping ground.

Tottenham Hotspur could make another two or three new signings this summer transfer window…

What’s the word?

That’s according to Sky Sports reporter Michael Bridge, who delivered a fresh update live on air on Tuesday afternoon. He said on the Sky Sports Transfer Centre:

“I think maybe two or three more [new signings].

“Djed Spence is widely known [as a target], they want at right wing-back, they’re still negotiating a fee with Middlesbrough. The player wants to come, so Spurs and I imagine Chris Wilder and Boro want to get this done as quickly as possible.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-spurs-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-and-much-more-2″ title=”Read the latest Spurs news, transfer rumours and more!”]

“Djed Spence wasn’t part of Middlesbrough’s pre-season training camp in Portugal, so I expect that to happen.

“I think they want a more attack-minded central midfielder – someone a bit more creative.

“I thought maybe at the start of the summer that might have been Christian Eriksen but hearing from a couple of people that they think Christian Eriksen is looking for maybe a new challenge. Spurs is maybe not a new challenge for him as he was there for seven, eight years.”

Conte will be buzzing

With the Lilywhites competing in the Champions League this season, it would make sense to add strength in depth to the squad, enough to make them challenge on all fronts.

It would allow manager Antonio Conte to rotate his side without losing out on quality. The toll of two matches per week, after a rigorous pre-season camp, could easily take its toll by Christmas.

Spurs have already added some key names to the side, such as Richarlison from Everton and Yves Bissouma from Brighton. Two experienced Premier League talents that only bolster already-stacked departments.

Meanwhile, the likes of Ivan Perisic and Clement Lenglet provide the Italian with solutions to gaps in the squad.

In total, the north Londoners have made five signings, so if Bridge’s claim turns out to be true, then sporting director Fabio Paratici and chairman Daniel Levy could well hit the seven or eight mark, for the first time in a very long time.

Spence is likely to be one of those additions, as Bridge explains, whilst a new no.10 or creative-minded midfielder wouldn’t go amiss given the struggles of Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso, who could both leave permanently, too.

Either way, Conte has been backed to the hill this summer and their spending spree isn’t done yet, so you have to presume that he’s absolutely buzzing with their business.

AND in other news, After Djed Spence: Journo drops exciting Spurs transfer claim…

Following talk that West Ham United manager David Moyes is plotting multiple new additions this summer – having already wrapped up deals for Nayef Aguerd and Alphonse Areola – supporters may understandably getting excited as to who else could be coming through the door at the London Stadium.

One name who has perhaps set pulses racing more than most is Villarreal talisman Arnaut Danjuma, with Fabrizio Romano reporting earlier this week that the Hammers were in talks with the La Liga club regarding the Dutch winger.

The speedster is set to be available for a fee in the region of £40m owing to a release clause in his existing deal but a deal is now proving problematic, with negotiations thought to be off due to personal terms.

The clamour for his signature has been sparked by what can only be described as an explosive debut campaign in Spain last term, with the former Bournemouth man netting ten goals and providing three assists in the league for Unai Emery’s team.

The six-cap Netherlands international had only joined the ‘Yellow Submarine’ last summer after a two-year stint with the Cherries, having scored 17 goals and provided seven assists in the Championship during the 2020/21 campaign.

The most recent campaign saw the £25k-per-week machine – who has been dubbed a “nightmare for defenders” by pundit Kevin Phillips – particularly catch the eye in the Champions League, notably handing Manchester United’s Diogo Dalot a torrid time at Old Trafford last September.

He netted six league goals in his team’s remarkable surge to the semi-finals of the competition, scoring against both Juventus and Bayern Munich, with that tally seeing him rank among the top 11 scorers in the tournament.

One such player in that elite group was Paris Saint-Germain sensation Kylian Mbappe, with the Frenchman having also plundered six goals in the competition prior to the Ligue 1 giants’ round of 16 exit at the hands of eventual champions Real Madrid.

Despite his lofty status in the game as a World Cup winner and highly-coveted asset, the 23-year-old seemingly shares a number of stylistic and statistical similarities to the aforementioned Danjuma, according to FBRef.

That is some comparison considering that Mbappe has scored 181 goals and provided 79 assists in 263 career games for club and country (as per WhoScored), with the former Monaco marksman arguably one of the best players in the world right now.

To think that Danjuma could even be anywhere near that level would be enough to spark wild excitement among Irons supporters; as would the player’s own recent admission that he has “unfinished business” in the Premier League, having only made six starts in the top flight during the 2019/20 season at the Vitality Stadium.

Should Moyes be able to fend off rival interest and get negotiations back on the table, the West Ham manager could well have his own Mbappe on his hands in the Villarreal star.

AND in other news, Moyes plotting move for “special” £45m “baller”, he’d be a “superstar” for West Ham

Burnley centre-back Nathan Collins is still a summer transfer target for Wolves ahead of next season, journalist Alan Nixon has claimed.

The Lowdown: Collins linked with Wolves move

The 21-year-old had an impressive season for the Clarets, proving to be one of the few bright sparks in a campaign that saw them relegated from the Premier League.

Collins looks likely to remain in the top flight and join another club this summer, considering his current level is arguably too good for the Championship, ranking as Burnley’s fourth-best player in top-flight action last season.

Wolves have been linked with a move for the defender and it is a rumour that is refusing to go away.

The Latest: Journalist provides fresh update

According to Nixon on his Patreon [via The Lancashire Telegraph], Wolves remains keen on bringing Collins to Molineux this summer.

It is claimed that Burnley are asking for a sizeable £40million for the Republic of Ireland international’s services, however, with Newcastle United and Leeds United also interested.

[freshpress-quiz id=“398117″]

The Verdict: Great option for Wanderers

While Collins’ transfer fee is admittedly high, he is someone Wolves should definitely be looking at this summer if they can bring that number down a touch, as Bruno Lage looks to replace the departed Romain Saiss.

[freshpress-poll id=“399044″]

Sean Dyche described the youngster as ‘excellent’ last season and he made an average of 4.3 clearances per game in the league, as well as winning 3.1 aerial duels per match. In Wolves’ current squad, only Saiss made more clearances per game and only Toti won more headers.

At 21, Collins would be a long-term acquisition who could potentially be Max Kilman’s long-term partner at the back, assuming the latter stays put at Wolves.

In other news, a Premier League side are keeping tabs on one Wolves player. Find out who it is here.

A claim has emerged regarding Leeds United and their current situation surrounding Kalvin Phillips’ future at the Yorkshire club.

What’s the talk?

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, talkSPORT journalist Alex Crook had this to say on the matter.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-leeds-united-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-and-more” title=”Read the latest Leeds news, transfer rumours and more!”]

He said: “I think there is, behind the scenes, a sort of resignation that Kalvin Phillips will probably leave this summer, and actually, it might not be a bad thing for Leeds because it will give them a lot of money then to be able to revamp the squad and sign the players Jesse Marsch wants.”

In recent weeks, the midfielder has been linked with a move away from Elland Road with fellow Premier League clubs Manchester City and Liverpool rumoured to be circling around the player.

Awful news for Leeds fans

As one of Leeds’ youth products, the 26-year-old has gone on to become a crucial figure for the team.

With 234 senior appearances under his belt for the club, Phillips has seen his side go from being in the Championship to securing their place in the Premier League for a third successive season.

To highlight how important the England international is to the Whites, out of the nine league games he missed last season, Leeds lost seven of them and conceded 17 goals in total.

It was the same case this season as the Elland Road outfit lost 12 of the 18 games he didn’t feature in, once again how vulnerable the team are defensively when they don’t have Phillips on the pitch.

With that in mind, it would be an awful thing for the Leeds fans to potentially see their midfield star wave goodbye to Elland Road this summer.

However, as Crook mentioned, should the Yorkshire club end up selling the midfielder in the coming weeks for a substantial transfer fee, this could give Marsch a big pot of cash to spend on the team and make sure that Phillips’ potential absence won’t be as much of a problem as it could be.

If the people behind the scenes at Leeds are resigned to seeing the 26-year-old leave the club, then they need to make sure that they get the best deal possible in terms of the finances.

In other news: “Leeds are..“: Romano drops big transfer update that’ll leave supporters buzzing

Liverpool could make a swoop for Dutch winger Cody Gakpo after he has recently been talking about his future.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, the 22-year-old is ready to assess his future this summer as he looks increasingly likely to leave PSV Eindhoven for pastures new.

Gakpo told Dutch outlet De Telegraaf that “anything can happen this summer”, putting Liverpool on standby alongside other suitors.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-liverpool-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-salah-gnabry-isak-romano” title= “Read the latest Liverpool news!”]

Arsenal and Manchester United have also been linked with the winger, and the Reds could face a battle for his signature.

Imagine him and Salah

Liverpool have had a remarkable season, and it could get even better. They are in the Champions League final and could snatch the Premier League title away from Manchester City on the last day of the season.

Jurgen Klopp is seemingly keen on adding to his squad and planning for the future despite that success. His diligent transfer business over the last couple of years, such as bringing in Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz, has rejuvenated the title-winning team from 2019/20.

Gakpo, who could be available for just £42m this summer, would be an excellent addition to the squad. Journalist Valentijn Driessen described the winger as “constantly threatening” after he scored the winner in the KNVB Cup final against Ajax last month.

With 21 goals and 15 assists in all competitions this season, it’s hard to think that he wouldn’t add something to the Liverpool side. Although Diaz also plays in Gakpo’s preferred left-wing position, the Dutchman can operate on the right or even as a centre-forward if necessary.

This versatility will only please Klopp further and added competition isn’t a bad thing, especially when the German wants the team to challenge for every competition they enter.

Liverpool fans will surely be excited to think of a wide comprising of serial goalscorer Mohamed Salah and Gakpo, and it may just become a reality this summer.

AND in other news, Klopp eyeing £150m “wonderkid” who “suits Liverpool’s style”, it may be bye-bye Salah

Everton are struggling for survival in the Premier League this season and following another defeat last weekend, Frank Lampard’s side has fallen into the relegation zone and now his future is coming into question.

What’s the latest?

Journalist Paul Brown has dropped a huge claim on the Toffees boss surrounding his future at Goodison Park depending on the outcome of the current season.

Brown told GIVEMESPORT:

“It feels like Lampard can’t be there next season because he’s failed to do his job, that’s definitely a possibility, although the only way I see a new manager coming to Everton is if they go down and the owner goes, ‘you failed, off you go, on your bike’.”

Supporters will be worried

The thought of falling into the Championship for the first time since the Premier League began back 30 years ago is already a worrying prospect enough for supporters, without the thought of losing players and the manager in the process.

The inconsistency and constant upheaval at Goodison Park since Farhad Moshiri arrived at the club six years ago has ultimately put them in the position that they have now found themselves, and sacking the sixth permanent manager appointed in six years is not necessarily in the best interests of the club.

Not only is the speculation surrounding the manager a concern, but the future of key players also hangs in the balance with both Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison linked with moves away from Everton this summer which will only further impact the team if they do leave so minimising disruption is essential.

The Toffees boss has managed 15 games for the club losing nine, winning five and drawing one so far, and although this run of results isn’t making a big enough impact to secure safety for the side at this point, there is still opportunity in the next six games which a one-game advantage on their relegation rivals around them.

Ultimately, if Lampard does make the great escape from relegation this season it would be a fantastic achievement considering the inconsistency in performances this season but Everton need to get to the end of the season before they make any reckless decisions on the future of people at the club.

AND in other news: Everton now plotting bid for £13.5m-rated “revelation”, he’s miles better than Iwobi

There were notable performances from Ben Foakes, Moeen Ali and Keaton Jennings but almost everyone contributed to England’s first away Test win in two years

George Dobell in Galle10-Nov-2018For all its imposing ramparts, ownership of the fort in Galle has changed hands often over the years.At one stage the Dutch, struggling with the attentions of the French closer to home, invited the British to look after it for a while in the expectation they would retake control when resources allowed. It was a bit like asking the fox to mind your chickens while you have a snooze.Sri Lanka were almost as obliging at moments during the second Test as the Dutch had been at the end of the 18th century. To see Kusal Mendis slice to mid-off, Angelo Mathews pull to midwicket (where the chance was spurned), Kaushal Silva playing against the spin or Dhananjaya de Silva attempting to thrash a wide ball for seven was to see a side lacking the discipline or determination required at this level.The Sri Lanka coach, Chandika Hathurusingha, compared his batsmen to “school kids”, which seems about right. It is a side that could learn much from the scrupulous professionalism and commitment for which Rangana Herath was known.For that reason, this was not quite an England victory to rate with similar subcontinental Test triumphs in India in 2012, Pakistan in 2000 or those here in 2001.It was significant, though. Given England’s away record – they were, remember, in the midst of their longest winless streak away from home in their history – and their record against spin, in particular, any victory in Asia is worthy of respect. It was Joe Root’s first win overseas as captain and England’s first win with a Kookaburra ball since Stuart Broad’s inspired spell in Johannesburg in January 2016.This Sri Lanka side, flawed though it may be, had some decent scalps, too. Pakistan in the UAE, for example, and Bangladesh in Bangladesh. England couldn’t manage either of those results.The most pleasing thing from an England perspective was that just about everyone contributed. James Anderson and Sam Curran only took a wicket apiece but, by striking with the new ball in the first innings, they played their part. Ben Stokes only took one wicket, but the hostility he generated – remarkable given the docile surface – unsettled the Sri Lanka middle order. And while Adil Rashid bowled well below his best, he did make the vital breakthrough in the first innings, breaking the partnership between Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal, and was an affordable luxury in a three-man spin attack.But more than that, it may have marked something of a changing of the guard. There was no Alastair Cook and no Stuart Broad – England had only won Test without either of them since the 2005 Ashes and that was in Mumbai in March 2006 – and, such was Ben Foakes’ excellence, it raised the possibility that neither Jos Buttler or Jonny Bairstow will ever again keep in a Test. Keaton Jennings provided grounds for belief that he may yet develop into a reliable Test opener and Buttler provided two key supporting contributions.Moeen Ali and Jos Buttler celebrate the fall of Angelo Mathews•Getty ImagesEngland used their one unique selling point – the remarkable number of allrounders they currently have – to ensure they had a deep batting order and both variation and contingency plans in the attack. So Curran, at No. 8, and Rashid, at No. 9, produced valuable runs while the presence of six bowlers seemed to take the pressure off Moeen Ali. He has never had better match figures in an overseas Test and rarely bowled better in a fourth innings.And then there’s Foakes. It is naive to pretend we can ever return to a time when keepers could hardly bat, but it’s also foolish to suggest the value of a keeper’s run can offset a missed chance. In Foakes England have a batsman good enough to bat at No. 7, at least, and a better keeper than they have had since the days of James Foster. Matt Prior, who watched this match in his role as a commentator, suggested Foakes may already be better than Foster, who was once rated the best there has ever been by Jack Russell.They are strong words and time will tell, but there is huge value in having such a skilful keeper. While there may be a temptation to classify his first Test dismissals as routine, it’s worth remembering that, between November 2012 and December 2015, England didn’t take a single wicket by a stumping in Test cricket. The best tend to make things look easy.There is a lesson to learn from Galle, though. While the instinct of most batsmen on both sides is to counterattack in almost all circumstances, the key innings in this match were old-school, patient affairs. England remain insistent that their first-morning batting was appropriate – Root suggested his side could have been “50 for 5 if we had sat in our bunker and waited for a good ball” – but the fact is they were dug out of trouble by Foakes’ century, while Jennings shut Sri Lanka out of the game in the second. Neither tried to take the attack to bowlers as much as they sought to defy them and accumulate steadily.If England want to go the next step, from being an attractive and dangerous side to one of the very best, they need to tailor their aggression just a little more. Three-session centuries might not be as much fun as 60-ball 50s, but Tests are still won more by the former than the latter. Root, in particular, will get more out of his substantial talent if he realises that.England need to develop their defensive game – there’s no way they should be 50 for 5 if they trust their defensive techniques – and remember the old adage about allowing bowlers the first session of a Test. This match ended more than a day early; there’s plenty of time to defend, or even leave, a few more balls. Even Lewis Hamilton slows down for corners.