All posts by z3u9t.icu

Many Everton fans have been left to fume as a transfer update emerged on Randal Kolo Muani.

As per a Foot Mercato journalist, the Goodison Park faithful have checked Muani as a player to potentially strengthen their attack, as they look for a possible replacement for Moise Kean, who may join PSG on a permanent deal.

The striker scored nine goals and made a further nine assists in 39 games in total over all competitions for Nantes in the 2020/21 term (Transfermarkt), but some members of the Merseyside club faithful feel that these stats are not good enough to be playing for them.

Muani is still only 22 years of age, and so has potential, but it seems as if several Toffees would prefer a more experienced and ready-made forward to come in and support Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Everton fans on Muani transfer update

These Blues fumed as the transfer update was shared on Twitter, with one EFC supporter even going as far as to claim that his stats were ’embarrassing’:

“9 goals in a season is embarrassing”

Credit: @joshua_eardley

“I can score more than that! Need better than that”

Credit: @fifasavedmylife

“Not good enough”

Credit: @hawksworth1966

“End interest now”

Credit: @hammermurp

“We’ve already got enough players with poor returns ….why buy more dross?”

Credit: @RobColes11

“Why? Another waste”

Credit: @coltsblues12

In other news, find out what transfer update has left Toffees buzzing here!

Renowned Glasgow Rangers podcasters Heart & Hand have been left reacting to some injury news that has now emerged on Kemar Roofe.

The Lowdown: Team news

Speaking in his pre-game press conference ahead of the match, Giovanni van Bronckhorst revealed that Aaron Ramsey has been ruled out for the next few games through injury, but should be back for their home leg against RB Leipzig in the UEFA Europa League semi-final.

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The Dutch manager confirmed that they also have a ‘problem’ with Roofe after he injured his knee last time out, and the club now hope that he too will return for the home leg.

The Latest: Podcasters react

Taking to Twitter, Heart & Hand gave their immediate reaction to the news on Roofe, claiming that it is a ‘huge blow’ for the Ibrox faithful:

“Huge blow losing Roofe but it is what is. Fingers crossed he’s back for 2nd leg.”

The Verdict: Not ideal

It is certainly not ideal to be losing Roofe for the next few matches, especially given that Alfredo Morelos is already out.

The striker has come off the back of four goals and two assists in his last three appearances in all competitions, including a hat-trick away at St. Mirren last time out in the Scottish Premiership (Transfermarkt).

He has made an impact not just in the SPFL, but the Europa League and Scottish Cup as well, and has certainly stepped up to the plate in Morelos’ absence.

Nonetheless, his injury now leaves the Teddy Bears a little light up top.

In other news, find out what fresh transfer update this Gers insider has now dropped here!

Noel Whelan has suggested Glasgow Rangers manager Steven Gerrard is wasting the talent of Kemar Roofe by playing him on the wing.

Whelan discusses Gerrard’s use of Roofe

Roofe signed for Rangers last summer from Anderlecht. Despite being a natural striker, he has played the majority of his games on the left or right flank this term as per Transfermarkt.

Speaking to Football Insider, Whelan believes Gerrard should play the £5.4m-valued 28-year-old (Transfermarkt) more centrally. He explained when asked whether Roofe would prefer to play through the middle:

“Yeah, I believe so.

“He came to Leeds as a winger and that was his position pretty much, for a long time he was out wide.

“I just think you get more benefit and his movement is much more effective in that central area, he’s alive, he makes great runs in behind and those little diagonal runs.

“I feel that he’s very regimented out wide, there’s not much movement from him, they miss that quick movement getting in behind.

“Those little quick balls in between defenders, he’s very static out there for a player like Kemar Roofe, his movement is exceptional in and around the box and to have him out wide. Yeah, it does seem a little bit of a waste.

“But if you asked Roofe if he’d rather be on the bench or on the wing, he’ll tell you the answer.”

Actually performed well on the flanks

Roofe shone at Leeds as a striker before moving to Belgium, where he managed seven goals in 16 games before making the switch to Scotland. However, while he has played in the unfamiliar role of a winger for much of the campaign, he has actually done rather well, netting 10 goals in 13 games in that role.

With Alfredo Morelos being the number one striker for Gerrard right now, it is hard for Roofe to nail down a starting spot as a central striker unless there is a change in formation. If the Colombia international were to leave in the summer, Roofe may be one of the biggest beneficiaries.

In other news, Rangers are delighted with this 20/21 news.

Arsenal are the latest club to be linked with a move for Tammy Abraham this summer…

What’s the word?

According to The Telegraph’s Matt Law, the Gunners are interested in the 23-year-old striker, who Chelsea have already offered out to a number of clubs in recent weeks.

Abraham has been made available to Arsenal’s arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur, along with Inter Milan and Borussia Dortmund, whilst other reports suggest that he’s the primary target for West Ham manager David Moyes in this transfer window.

Several Blues players have swapped Stamford Bridge for the Emirates Stadium in recent years, including David Luiz and Willian, so the England international could be the next man to do so.

With Alexandre Lacazette’s contract expiring in a year, he could well be sold to fund a potential £40m move for Abraham, who is widely expected to be departing Chelsea this summer.

Shades of Henry

Interestingly, Abraham was a boyhood Arsenal fan who idolised the legendary Thierry Henry. Speaking during a loan spell at Bristol City in 2016/17, he claimed: “To be honest I was an Arsenal fan. It didn’t make any difference at Chelsea.

“When you’re young and you choose who to support, if it’s a family thing, it’s a family thing. Luckily for me, it was a family thing, so it wasn’t really a problem at Chelsea.

“Someone I looked up to was Thierry Henry. His variations of finishing, his movement, the way he dribbles… someone like that has a key impact on me. I would love to be as big as him and maybe even better.”

Could Mikel Arteta be about to find the Gunners’ next Henry?

Abraham has fallen heavily out of favour since the arrival of Thomas Tuchel in the dugout at Stamford Bridge, although the England international still finished the season just one goal behind Jorginho, the club’s top goalscorer in the Premier League with seven.

His overall record for Chelsea is 30 goals in 82 appearances, which is a pretty respectable return at this level.

The 23-year-old is certainly a different presence to what Arteta currently has at his disposal in Arsenal’s attack. At 6 foot 3, he offers the same sort of rangy presence as Henry during his heyday, and the fact that he has effectively modelled his game on the Frenchman only bodes well.

Furthermore, former academy teammate Kasey Palmer once dubbed him a “goal machine.”

Lacazette is more stocky, whilst Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has seemingly cemented his place down on the left flank, thus opening up a spot in the current squad.

A move to the Emirates should appeal greatly too, with Abraham targeting a return to Gareth Southgate’s England squad in time for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Also described as a “phenomenal player” by former Premier League manager Alex McLeish, the £36m-rated forward would surely be an interesting acquisition for Arsenal this summer.

AND in other news, Fabrizio Romano drops exciting Arsenal transfer update…

Southampton will struggle to sign Japhet Tanganga this summer because Tottenham have high hopes for the defender, journalist Jack Rosser has told The Transfer Tavern.

The Saints failed with an attempt at the start of the year, with Rosser’s Evening Standard colleague Dan Kilpatrick reporting at the time that Jose Mourinho was not keen to let him go.

Fast forward to this transfer window and it is Tottenham who are now trying to initiate business with Southampton.

According to The Telegraph, Danny Ings is the north London club’s top transfer target, while The Times claims they also want to sign central defender Jannik Vestergaard.

As far as doing a deal that could include Tanganga moving the other way goes, though, Rosser thinks it is highly unlikely.

“No, I think Spurs have got high hopes for Tanganga,” Rosser said when asked by TT if a potential swap deal could be on the cards.

“Saints went in with an offer in January and it was quickly knocked back by Tottenham and by Jose, who said they wanted to keep him there and play him.

“Unfortunately, he had an injury towards the end of the season which sort of slowed that down.”

Tanganga can play at centre-back, right-back and has even been used as a left-back on a few occasions. And at 22, he is only going to get better, so you can understand Tottenham’s reluctance to let the English youngster go.

Manchester United will be without one first-team star when they head to Italy this evening…

What’s the latest?

The Red Devils face AS Roma in the second leg of their Europa League semi-final tie, and arguably they already have one foot in the final, having won 6-2 at Old Trafford last week.

However, United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer won’t be able to call upon Daniel James after ruling him out ahead of tonight’s kick-off.

He told reporters, via the club’s official website:

“We didn’t get any injuries at the weekend. We trained well after that but Dan James is not available. He’s still out for a little while.”

Gutting blow

This will come as an annoying blow to the Manchester giants, even if they are in a very strong position.

It would be a massive surprise to see the Serie A outfit turn around a four-goal lead, especially after their capitulation in the first leg, so to not have a player that was in line to start this sort of encounter is certainly a setback.

James has started three of United’s last six league games, when fit and has emerged as an interesting option on the wing in the recent absence of Anthony Martial, who also remains out.

The 23-year-old did not feature in the 6-2 whitewash but was named on the bench, and given Solskjaer is likely to rotate his squad tonight, James would have undoubtedly been in line to start the match.

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He has featured in all but one of their Europa League matches since exiting the Champions League group stages earlier this year, starting five of seven outings, as per Transfermarkt.

Solskjaer may be understandably angry to not have him available here.

Furthermore, United’s crucial game with Liverpool on Sunday was postponed due to a fan demonstration inside and outside the ground, as well as at the team’s hotel.

That game will now be played in a week’s time, meaning they’ll have four games in the space of a week, making the need for rotation tonight all that more important so not having James available is a huge blow.

Without the Welshman, Solskjaer will now frustratingly need to turn to one of his usual starters, one that he would have probably liked to have seen rested ahead of a tough week against Aston Villa, top-of-the-table rivals Leicester City, and now their Merseyside enemies.

In his absence, we could see teenage starlet Anthony Elanga, who could make his senior debut after being named in the 24-man squad, feature whilst Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood and Juan Mata will also make the trip.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Pundit claims Man Utd youngster can be the best in the world…

Former Premier League manager Lawrie Sanchez doesn’t think that Liverpool fans would begrudge Rafael Benitez were he to become the new Everton boss, amid reports on Wednesday evening that he could be on the brink of replacing Carlo Ancelotti at Goodison Park.

The Spaniard is a fans’ favourite at Anfield having delivered both the Champions League and then FA Cup in consecutive seasons with the club.

Benitez is currently a free agent having left his position as manager of Chinese Super League outfit Dalian Professional in January due to Covid-19, and is now being considered as a potential replacement for Carlo Ancelotti at Goodison Park.

He’s managed in England since leaving Liverpool in 2010, spending three seasons with Newcastle before ongoing problems with owner Mike Ashley saw him resign two years ago.

But Benitez could be on the verge of making a return to the Premier League just two years after his St James’ departure, although Everton are talking to several names despite Nuno Espirito Santo remaining the favourite following recent talks.

Benitez’s family still live on Merseyside, and with that in mind, Sanchez doesn’t think manging Everton would wreck his relationship with the Reds faithful.

He told Football FanCast:

“I don’t think the Liverpool fans would feel particularly aggrieved if Benitez were back in the city.

“Liverpool being working class people; they would never stop a man getting a job.

“Benitez is one worth keeping an eye on because he knows the Premier League, lives in the area and wins things.”

Graham Roberts believes Tottenham miss Christian Eriksen after the Denmark international moved to Inter Milan in January of 2020.

The Lowdown: Eriksen departure

Eriksen made the move to Spurs from Ajax in 2013 and ended up becoming one of the side’s best players, scoring 69 goals and providing 90 assists in 305 games (Transfermarkt).

However, he made it clear he wanted to depart, and moved to Inter in January 2020.

The Latest: Roberts thinks Spurs miss Eriksen

On Twitter, a Spurs fan said the club miss Eriksen.

Roberts answer was short but sweet and straight to the point. He simply said:

“Agree”

The Verdict: Never replaced

It is hard to disagree with this statement. After all, the £36m-valued 29-year-old (Transfermarkt) was an integral part of the side for seven years and even helped Spurs reach the Champions League final in 2019, which they ultimately lost to Liverpool 2-0 in Madrid.

It was after that match that he stated his desire to seek a new challenge (The Guardian).

Since then, things have not gone well for either. Spurs have only played one more Champions League campaign, while Eriksen has managed just eight goals in 60 games for Inter. Unfortunately, the Lilywhites fan favourite has not played since he suffered a cardiac arrest playing for Denmark this summer (Sky).

Perhaps a reunion of the two parties would not be the worst thing in the world if the playmaker’s health allows him to return to action.

In other news, this man has been urged to leave Tottenham.

Rangers chief Ross Wilson dipped into the market to bolster Steven Gerrard’s squad with a number of additions over the summer.

The Gers attempted to improve their squad after winning the Premiership last season to give themselves the best chance of retaining their crown and keeping their rivals at bay, with Juninho Bacuna, John Lundstram, Fashion Sakala and Nmandi Ofoborh all coming in.

Gerrard’s side are now top of the table after eight games and lie six points clear of Celtic, having won six of their matches in the top flight this term.

The only summer signing on whom they invested a transfer fee was central midfielder Bacuna. Rangers paid a reported £2.07m for his services and he has shown glimpses of what he can offer in recent weeks after working his way into first team contention.

He came off the bench in Rangers’ last match against Hibernian and impressed with his cameo. As per SofaScore, he completed 100% of his long pass attempts, won all of his aerial battles and created one chance whilst completing 93% of his passes. This shows that he was efficient and able to provide quality despite only being on the pitch for 11 minutes.

The midfielder joined the Gers from Huddersfield, where he made a name for himself in England after leaving Dutch side Groningen in 2018. At the time of his transfer out of his native Netherlands, his market value according to Transfermarkt was just £1.35m.  He then went on to play 107 times for the Terriers, scoring 12 goals and setting up nine, whilst also playing 21 games in the Premier League.

By the summer of 2019, his market value had risen to £3.15m and, at the time of writing, it currently stands at £4.5m. This means that his valuation has soared 233% since his move to Huddersfield in 2018, with the 24-year-old showing positive signs of growth as a player in recent years.

Wilson has, therefore, pulled off a masterclass with the signing of Bacuna by getting him at the perfect time. For starters, the £2.07m Rangers are said to have paid for him is less than half his current market value, which suggests they picked up a bargain, but he also has scope to improve further.

Bacuna could be a player who is able to flourish at Rangers and further enhance his reputation in the game over the next couple of years. Take Ryan Kent as an example – his value has increased 697% since his permanent transfer to Ibrox in 2019, showing how he has been able to take his game to the next level under Gerrard.

If the former Huddersfield gem increases by the same percentage in the next couple of seasons, then he would be worth roughly £31m, a staggering bump up from the £1.35m at which he was valued upon his arrival in England. Of course, there is no guarantee that he will develop at the same rate as Kent, but his career suggests that the best is yet to come and Rangers could profit from that on and off the pitch in the coming years, which is why his signing came at the perfect time.

AND in other news, 100% dribble success: Rangers beast with seven duels caught the eye for his country…

Aston Villa have delighted many of their fans on Twitter after posting an image of club captain Jack Grealish and Ukraine manager Andriy Shevchenko engaging in a warm embrace following their respective countries’ encounter at Euro 2020 over the weekend.

Enjoying a fantastic 2020/21 campaign, the 25-year-old playmaker chipped in with a sensational 19 goal contributions from 26 fixtures, with seven goals and 12 assists for Villa [Transfermarkt].

Now embroiled in international tournament football with England, Grealish has made a marked impact, registering two vital assists in the Three Lions run to the semi-finals [uefa.com].

In spite of being an unused substitute in the 4-0 defeat of Ukraine on Saturday night [BBC], this didn’t stop Grealish from being thrust into the limelight following the circulation of the iconic picture with former Ballon D’Or winner Shevchenko.

In light of this image, which was accompanied by the caption “Real recognise real”, it’s little wonder that loads of Aston Villa fans took to Twitter to express their delight at the club’s post..

AVFC fans react:

Replying to the Villans’ official Twitter account, here is how some fans summarised their opinions on the embrace between Grealish and Shevchenko, which one supporter described as “class”:

“our captain”

Credit: @catrinedwards18″Whatever happens in this tournament Jack has more than proved he is world class, such a shame it doesn’t seem to be recognised as much by others. This guy is more than a super sub, he’s a game changer.”Credit: @bradfadbad69″A legend of the game and Shevchenko”Credit: @av_reece”This is such an incredible image, not just the picture, but the embrace. A sign of true respect from one of the true legends of the game. A great character, well done.”Credit: @Bhangra_Machine”Love this”Credit: @jasonstafforddj”Class is permanent.”Credit: @byr79438501In other news, Aston Villa are planning a £30m+ bid for this transfer target