All posts by rastrear-estafeta.com

West Ham United centre-back Angelo Ogbonna is already attracting interest ahead of the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Italian media outlet Citta Celeste, who claimed that the Hammers defender has emerged as a target for Maurizio Sarri’s Lazio, who are hoping to land the 33-year-old on a free transfer upon the expiry of his current contract at the London Stadium in the summer.

Previous reports had claimed that, despite the former Italy international’s season-ending cruciate ligament injury, the Irons are planning on offering him a new one-year deal, although a move back to his homeland could well tempt the former Crotone, Torino and Juventus defender.

Disaster

While it is true that Ogbonna may not have too many years ahead of him in which he is capable of playing a starring role at the very highest level of the professional game, it is undeniable that the centre-back still has much to offer West Ham in the short-term. That leads us to believe that his departure this summer would be a disaster for David Moyes and his team.

Indeed, in recent years, the £1.8m-rated defender has proven himself to be one of the Hammers’ most important players in the top flight, earning seasonal SofaScore match ratings of 6.82 in 2019/20, 6.81 in 2020/21 and averaging a rating of 6.71 over his 11 Premier League appearances in the current campaign prior to his injury.

This form led to the £70k-per-week defender receiving some huge praise, with Declan Rice stating of the Italian in December 2020: “He’s so good. Honestly, he’s gone to another level this season. He looks like a real top, top centre-half and he’s stepped up when it’s really mattered.”

West Ham podcaster Sam Delaney also praised the influence of the 33-year-old on the Irons’ backline in March of last year, stating: “The fact is he’s a real leader and he’s marshalled that defence whether we played in a four or a three. You can see him being vocal and he was so integral to it.”

As such, it is clear to see just how much of an impact Ogbonna has made in the heart of the West Ham defence, not only with his consistently solid performances but also with his leadership abilities. Moyes simply cannot afford to jettison such qualities in the summer, especially on a free transfer.

In other news – Forget Diop: West Ham liability with 40 touches must have just played his last game for Moyes

Newcastle United are reportedly setting their sights on signing Leon King in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Emerging talent

At just 17 years of age, King is one of the emerging talents in Scottish football, having already made his senior debut for Glasgow Rangers.

The club’s coaches regard him as a ‘huge talent’ and are ‘convinced’ that he can establish himself in the first team at Ibrox in the coming years (Football Insider).

However, he is out of contract in the summer, so that presents a good opportunity for the St James’ Park outfit to sign him.

The Latest: Newcastle set sights on King

As per Football Insider, both Newcastle and Manchester United have now ‘set their sights’ on the Gers sensation ahead of the January transfer window.

Sources from Ibrox have revealed that there is ‘fresh doubt’ over the teenager’s future, and he could even be sold for a compensation fee of around £250,000.

The Tyneside club are ‘interested’ in opening talks with King over a pre-contract agreement in January ahead of a potential summer move.

The Verdict: One for the future

King is a player for the future, so it would be a smart idea for the Magpies to sign him now before he develops further and attracts interest from other clubs.

The defender clearly has a lot of promise, as he has also played for the Scotland national team at youth level.

The Newcastle Academy could then use and develop him, or he could be sent out on loan to get further experience playing men’s football, but it is clear that there are multiple possibilities with this potential signing.

In other news, NUFC are willing to pay big money for this rising star

An update has emerged regarding interest from a Premier League club in Rangers midfielder Joe Aribo.

What’s the talk?

According to Football Insider, Crystal Palace are keeping tabs on the Nigeria international ahead of the January transfer window.

The report claims that the Eagles will be closely following the midfielder’s progress in the coming months as they consider a swoop for him.

Nightmare

Rangers chief Ross Wilson must avoid a January nightmare with Aribo following this update on Palace’s interest in his services.

The 25-year-old has been instrumental in the club’s early-season form, starting all of their league games as they sit top of the Premiership, and Steven Gerrard would surely be left fuming if one of his key players departs midway through the campaign. Losing an instrumental part of the team could disrupt the 41-year-old’s plans and cause issues in midfield during the second half of the season.

Aribo has averaged an excellent SofaScore rating of 7.05 in the Premiership this season, which is higher than Steven Davis, John Lundstram and Glen Kamara have managed. He has averaged 1.8 chances created, 1.3 tackles and 1.6 shots per game, scoring twice and providing one assist.

His former Charlton teammate Ezri Konsa once compared the Gers beast with Manchester City legend Yaya Toure, saying: “Having Gerrard as his manager at Rangers, that has made him go up another level.

“Joe’s style is unique. When I was with him at Charlton he did remind me for a while of a left-footed Yaya Toure. But you don’t get a lot of midfielders like Joe, there aren’t many around.

“Like Toure, for a tall guy he’s got such great feet. But that languid style he’s got is actually fairly unique in the game.”

This is high praise from Konsa and his statistics in the Premiership this term suggest that he deserves the applause, which could be why Palace are now looking at him. It also highlights why Wilson must avoid selling him in January as he has been a terrific performer in midfield and his sale would be a major blow for the Gers, potentially handing Celtic a boost in the title race as the champions would lose a key member of their squad.

Wilson must avoid a nightmare in January in agreeing to listen to offers in the summer, if indeed Aribo is interested in leaving. He must make sure that the Nigerian is at Ibrox for the remainder of the 2021/22 campaign, with next summer offering Rangers plenty of time to find a replacement ahead of the following season.

AND in other news,  Rangers gem has seen value soar 233% since 2018, he’s a Wilson masterclass…

Aston Villa have been told that signing Oriol Romeu from Southampton in the January transfer window would be ‘smart business’. 

Former Premier League hitman Kevin Phillips made the claim in an interview with Football Insider.

The lowdown

The Athletic’s Gregg Evans reported last week that Romeu may be on a list of midfield options drawn up for Steven Gerrard by sporting director Johan Lange.

Villa apparently ‘tracked’ Romeu during the summer and it seems that their interest remains heading into the new year.

Defensive midfielder Romeu, who’s previously played for FC Barcelona and Chelsea, has started 17 of Southampton’s 18 Premier League games so far this season.

The 30-year-old is in the penultimate season of his contract at St Mary’s and is valued at £4.5million by Transfermarkt.

The latest

Phillips said the ‘nasty’ Romeu reminded him of Tottenham Hotspur’s Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – a consistently good but under-the-radar operator.

He thinks the Spaniard would offer Villa a ‘platform’ if they can get the deal done.

“I think Romeu would be a solid option for Villa,” he said.

“He reminds me a lot of Hojbjerg. He is an 8 out of 10 every week but he will never be that player who pulls up trees. I wouldn’t say he ever stands out but he does the nasty side of the game – the tough industrious side of things.

“Villa will know what they’re getting. Romeu is an organiser and a leader. If Villa could secure his services, it’d be smart business. He gives you a platform to build off and allows other more offensive players to play.”

The verdict

Romeu would bring vast experience to Villa Park, with 219 Premier League appearances under his belt.

Phillips compares him to Hojbjerg, but he actually boasts a similar stylistic profile to Liverpool’s Fabinho, standing out among positional peers for his progressive carries, successful aerial duels, tackles and clearances (via FBRef).

Based on Transfermarkt’s calculations, he’d also be fairly cheap, and so it could be a shrewd bit of business for Villa, particularly after they lost Marvelous Nakamba to a long-term injury.

In other news, fans ripped into this man’s performance against Chelsea.

Some Everton fans have been criticising the performance of Dominic Calvert-Lewin in their 2-0 home defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup on Saturday evening.

Late goals from Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne were enough in the end to send Pep Guardiola’s men through into the semi-final stage of the competition and sink the Merseyside club at Goodison Park.

There were some decent performances for Carlo Ancelotti’s team, but Calvert-Lewin flattered to deceive in the eyes of some Everton fans.

The former Sheffield United man lost seven of his duels and also relinquished possession of the ball no fewer than 14 times throughout the match, the most out of any outfield Toffees player to have set foot on the pitch (Sofascore).

Everton fan reaction to Calvert-Lewin display

These Everton supporters slammed his performance on Twitter, with one fan even going as far as to claim that the 24-year-old England international striker was ‘terrible’ against the Premier League leaders:

“Thought Calvert-Lewin was lazy for their first goal. Let their centre-half run right past him.”

Credit: @sav4efc

“Not good enough. If you’re making the decision to defend all game….you defend all game. Calvert-Lewin literally cantered back and watched him run the ball past him to take the shot tipped on to the bar. If he had pressed this could’ve ended completely different.”

Credit: @Reverand_dave

“Asked for that all game, invited them every time they had the ball, backed off and with the team like them it’s a matter of time that you pay for it! Gomes, Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison all terrible tonight!”

Credit: @CJonesLJ

“Calvert-Lewin has to do more there, should be applying far more pressure than he does!!”

Credit: @ChrisPickles24

“Calvert-Lewin’s head seems in another place here. A good 5-7 yds off the game.”

Credit: @connjam

“#EVEMCI #FAcup We played well until 84th min, against a great #mancity team. #DCL #richarlison are NOT scoring enough goals, they need to play with an experienced striker! Next season we should improve! #weekendvibes”

Credit: @RitaBruceEFC

In other news, find out which Everton player some fans have slammed after comments emerged!

Plenty of Aston Villa fans have hit out at Trezeguet’s first half display against Tottenham on social media.

Dean Smith made two changes from the 1-1 draw with Newcastle United last time out, with Morgan Sanson and Matty Cash coming in for Jacob Ramsey and Ahmed Elmohamady respectively.

Trezeguet kept his place in the side, making his 11th Premier League start of the current campaign on Sunday night and his 20th appearance in all competitions.

However, his first half display didn’t hit the right note with some supporters, who took to Twitter to vent their frustrations at the Egypt international.

Villa fans react

The 26-year-old began on the left-hand side of a front three alongside Ollie Watkins and Bertrand Traore, coming up against Spurs’ Japhet Tanganga, with one fan comparing the clash between the two as to ‘League One’ level.

In the first half at Villa Park, the 26-year-old failed to register a shot or win an aerial duel, while also recording fewer than 10 accurate passes (SofaScore).

This is what some Villa fans had to say about the wide man’s performance in the first 45, with one describing it as ‘abysmal’.

“Trezeguet running around like a competition winner again”

Credit: @Okay170

“I really don’t enjoy being negative or slagging players, and I know we are missing Jack but Trezeguet is such an awful player! I genuinely don’t think he brings anything to table, very few players have ever left me feeling as frustrated in the 30 odd years I’ve been watching”

Credit: @AVFCRichard

“Trezeguet is abysmal”

Credit: @tomk1874

“Can someone please help me understand why @Trezeguet is preferred to El Ghazi? #avfc”

Credit: @GMP4AVFC

“Trezeguet vs Tanganga has League 1 vibes”

Credit: @vizzy9

“Other than effort, Trezeguet isn’t offering anything for us! #avfc”

Credit: @Mattes21_avfc

In other news: Many Villa fans make their feelings known at transfer update on 2020 target, find out more here. 

Leeds United have been heavily linked with Red Bull Salzburg star Brenden Aaronson in 2022, and his performance on Sunday will certainly have caught Victor Orta’s eye.

This forms part of our Transfer Watch series, where we react to a performance from a current transfer target.

The Lowdown: Leeds hoping to wrap up Aaronson deal

Aaronson has been the Whites’ main target this year after the club made two bids for the USA international in the January window.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-united-news-42/” title=”Latest Leeds United news!” poster=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/cropped-2022-03-10T184055Z_1834933207_UP1EI3A1FW561_RTRMADP_3_SOCCER-ENGLAND-LEE-AVA-REPORT-1-scaled-1.jpg” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

As we know, the attacking midfielder remained in Austria with Salzburg but is still on Leeds’ radar ahead of Jesse Marsch’s first full season in charge at Elland Road.

Aaronson made 25 appearances under Marsch last season and reports have suggested that the Whites are hoping to wrap up a move for the 21-year-old this summer.

The Latest: Impressive display from Aaronson

Salzburg clinched a ninth straight Austrian Bundesliga title on Sunday following a 5-0 win over Austria Vienna. Aaronson returned to action after a six-week layoff with a knee problem and impressed, ending with a SofaScore match rating of 7.3/10.

The attacking midfielder scored a penalty and registered three key passes, one of which led to a big chance.

He only had 30 touches of the ball during his 64-minute display but he starred upon his return and even showed off his pace after the final whistle when looking to dodge a beer shower from his team-mates.

The Verdict: Sign him

Should they stay in the Premier League, Leeds should be looking to wrap up a move for Aaronson as soon as possible.

Marsch doesn’t have an out-and-out attacking midfielder to choose from at Elland Road, making the 21-year-old’s arrival even more crucial.

Described as a player with a ‘monster mentality’ by Salzburg manager Matthias Jaissle, Aaronson has now contributed to 28 goals in 61 games for the Austrian champions, and with an impressive record under Marsch already, he could slot in perfectly at Elland Road.

In other news: Leeds and Orta may agree fee for ‘quality’ target ‘this week’ after Phil Hay’s reveal

With the transfer window ticking ever closer to completion, Neil Lennon and Nick Hammond desperately need to bring a few more bodies to Celtic.

That being said, not even new signings would bridge the colossal gap between Rangers and the Hoops at the top of the SPFL.

What’s the word?

Lennon admitted this week that Celtic were near to signing two new players in the concluding days of the window.

He didn’t open up on who those faces will be but according to the French press, it could be Congolese midfielder Giannelli Imbula.

Le Parisien reports that the midfielder has been offered to the Bhoys who are now weighing up a potential move. Imbula is out of contract after leaving Russian club Sochi and thus, could move to Parkhead on a free transfer.

The 28-year-old was linked with the likes of Chelsea and Arsenal earlier in his career in a move that could have cost in the region of £25m according to La Provence (via The Express). His displays, however, has fallen off since that.

Brown’s successor?

Imbula’s career has been a rocky road. Signed by Stoke for £18.3m in 2016, he played just 28 times in four years. Spells with Toulouse, Rayo Vallecano and Lecce followed but unfortunately, he’s not been able to live up to the dizzy heights expected of him when he was younger.

When the midfield general first signed for Stoke, Xherdan Shaqiri suggested that Imbula had unbelievable technique, even comparing him to a certain Patrick Vieira.

With qualities like that, it’s easy to see where he’d fit in. Celtic have preferred Scott Brown for the vast majority of this season but his place in the side has come under considerable threat from Ismaila Soro. The diminutive midfielder has been superb since signing for the club and has made that holding role his own.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-this-weeks-latest-celtic-manager-stories” title=”Read this week’s latest Celtic news!”]

However, with the arrival of Imbula, it could finally give Lennon the ammunition to axe Brown once and for all. The Scotland international is a tenacious individual but at the age of 35 is clearly coming towards the end of his career.

Some of his performance this term would certainly suggest that his displays are dropping off and consequently, moving away from his tired and timid nature would be good news for everyone at Celtic.

He has been at fault time and time again this season, with the latest of his woeful errors coming when he was sent off against Livingston last week.

With the Hoops stuck in such a rut, it’s time for fresh faces in Glasgow. Brown has done it all at Celtic but Imbula’s potential arrival must be the end of the road.

After all, he is a tough-tackling midfielder too. He won 2.4 tackles per game for Marseille during the 2014/15 campaign when he was being touted with big-money moves.

Of course, those types of displays have been few and far between over the last few years but he’s certainly in the mould of Brown. On a free transfer, it would be smart work in the transfer market from Celtic.

AND in other news, Celtic struck genius deal with £10k-p/w titan who’s “grabbing the bull by the horns”…

West Ham United sealed a place in the Europa League as they cruised to victory over Southampton in the final Premier League game of the 2020/21 season on Sunday evening.

And David Moyes largely has Pablo Fornals to thank after a quickfire first-half brace set the tone for their performance, on a day where a point would’ve been suffice.

The Spaniard fired into an empty net to open the scoring on the half-hour mark, and then doubled his and the Hammers’ tally three minutes later when latching onto Vladimir Coufal’s cross.

In the second half, the three points were sealed by a surprise name in Declan Rice, who was arguably an unsung hero after running the midfield engine room.

Captaining the side in Mark Noble’s absence, the England international was an absolute beast under Moyes, recording a 7.3 rating on SofaScore. Only the goalscoring midfielder, Aaron Cresswell and goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski managed better.

The 22-year-old is going to be a wanted man once again this summer, with local rivals Chelsea already mooted with reigniting their interest.

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

The Telegraph’s Matt Law believes the Blues could use Tammy Abraham as a makeweight in a bid to tempt the Irons into a sale.

Good luck with that after his latest outing.

Rice was frequently involved in the game, managing 47 touches and was a major influence in linking the defence to the attack, registering two successful dribbles (100%), making 74% of his passes, and firing two shots at goal, via SofaScore.

Furthermore, the 6 foot 1 monster – who is now valued at £54m – was a rock defensively, putting in two tackles, which was above his average for the season whilst he also won a whopping 87.5% of his battles, proving to be a hard man to bypass.

His presence certainly helped stop the influence from the likes of James Ward-Prowse and Stuart Armstrong, two of the Saints’ top playmakers.

Rice, a £60k-per-week earner at the London Stadium, also earned the praise of The Athletic’s Roshane Thomas, who claimed he enjoyed a “brilliant performance” and also stated that he came off to a standing ovation – quite deservedly so.

Whilst Fornals will take the plaudits for firing the Hammers into Europe, it was the display from Rice that may well go unnoticed despite playing a starring and underrated role on the day.

AND in other news, Hammers must land 6 ft 4 forward who’s “out of this world”, it won’t cost GSB a penny…

Lyon midfielder Houssem Aouar is reportedly available for £25m this summer, and Liverpool must swoop for the talented technician as they seek a replacement for Gini Wijnaldum.

What’s the story?

According to French outlet L’Equipe, the 22-year-old’s value has plummeted after an underwhelming campaign with the Ligue 1 giants, meaning a potential bargain is there to be had.

The report claims that Aouar would be open to offers coming his way, but with Arsenal also thought to be interested in acquiring his services, Jurgen Klopp may have to move quickly to secure his signature.

Liverpool must swoop

Liverpool will be glad to see the back of a testing 2020/21 campaign, where serious injuries to several key players destroyed their hopes of retaining their Premier League crown. The Reds recovered admirably in the latter stages of the season, winning their final five games to secure a Champions League qualification spot.

However, there are still expected to be several changes made by the Merseyside club over the coming months as Klopp looks to freshen up his first team squad, and a successor to Wijnaldum should be  top of the wish list.

The Dutch international is expected to join Barcelona on a free transfer once his current contract expires, leaving a substantial hole in the Liverpool engine room.

Wijnaldum offered a unique combination of skills which will be hard for any player to replicate, with the 30-year-old often impressing through his work rate, technical ability and eye for goal.

Nevertheless, when comparing the two midfielders’ numbers, there are some surprising similarities.

Despite Aouar regularly playing a slightly more advanced role at the Groupama Stadium than the one Wijnaldum often played in Klopp’s system, the France international still matched the Liverpool man’s 0.6 tackles per league game this season, and his total of 0.6 interceptions per league game was only just under Wijnaldum’s 0.7.

In an attacking sense, Aouar completely outperformed his counterpart. Admittedly this is partly down to the tactical responsibilities placed upon Wijnaldum, but it’s still telling all the same.

Aouar recorded 2.3 shots per league game compared to Wijnaldum’s 0.8, made 1.3 key passes where the Dutchman made just 0.6, and also pulled off 1.5 dribbles in contrast to Wijnaldum’s 0.9.

After Manchester City found life tough against an impressive Lyon side back in 2018, Pep Guardiola was quick to lavish praise on Les Gones’ midfield maestro.

“Houssem Aouar is a very good player. He is incredible. We talk a lot about (Tanguy) Ndombele, but Aouar is also excellent. He’s always very calm with the ball at his feet, with an excellent technical quality,” marvelled the City boss.

With Aouar having a market value of £45m (Transfermarkt), Liverpool could solve their midfield problem with a clever cut-price deal this summer. Their director of football Michael Edwards must swoop for the Frenchman and provide Klopp with the tools he needs to mount another title tilt next year.

In other news… Liverpool heading for massive transfer mistake over £30m liability, Klopp must avoid