Tag Futebol

An update has emerged regarding Wolves’ chances of signing Slavia Prague forward Lukas Masopust.

What’s the talk?

According to 90min, Wolves are one of the clubs who have been offered the chance to sign the winger this summer. West Ham, Crystal Palace, Watford, Brighton, Leicester and Newcastle have also been told that they can sign him before the end of the window.

The report claims that he could be available for a fee in the region of £6m, with Slavia Prague willing to cash in on the Czech international.

Fans will be fuming

Wolves fans will surely be fuming if the club take up the offer of signing Masopust in the weeks to come. The forward is not good enough for the current squad and supporters could well be aghast if he is brought in as a new signing ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.

Bruno Lage needs to avoid his first howler as Wolves manager by rejecting the chance to land the 28-year-old, targeting alternative attacking options instead.

Masopust has never played outside of the Czech Republic, with more than 200 appearances in the Fortuna Liga throughout his career to date. The right-winger has 15 goals and 16 assists in 101 games for Slavia Prague in all competitions, which is hardly an impressive record in a division which ranks well below the Premier League in UEFA’s association club coefficient.

In 13 games for his country during the 2020/21 campaign, Masopust averaged a dismal WhoScored rating of 6.45 as he failed to register a single goal or assist from out wide. This suggests that he doesn’t stand out at international level either, along with his fairly average rate of goal contributions for Slavia Prague.

Why would he be a good addition for Wolves in the Premier League, then? If he is not able to score or assist regularly in the Czech Republic, then it seems unlikely that he would arrive at Molineux and become a potent presence for Lage’s side next season.

At the age of 28, he is not an up-and-comer who would arrive with potential. He is in the peak years of his career and may not have much room left to develop, which is why Wolves must avoid this deal. Fans won’t be happy if an underperforming winger comes through the door for £6m this summer and it would represent a first blunder at the helm for Lage…

AND in other news, Wolves must act on long-standing interest in “extraordinary” beast in cut-price deal…

Leicester City are interested in a move for West Bromwich Albion playmaker Matheus Pereira, as reported by the Mirror.

The Lowdown: West Bromwich Albion prepare for Sky Bet Championship life

Looking towards the new term, West Brom manager Valerien Ismael will be desperate to win promotion at the first attempt following his predecessor’s relegation from the top-flight.

Acquiring some top talent immediately will be crucial to prospective success, however recuperating large fees for assets like Pereira will also be a matter of fundamental importance for the 45-year-old.

Tapping into the latter philosophy, the Baggies now look set to field attention from the Premier League for their star man.

The Latest: Pereira courting attention from Leicester City; multiple other sides keen

Not being utilised by West Brom in their pre-season programme, the Brazilian is said to be prompting the Foxes to consider a move for his services [Mirror].

Pereira is under contract until 2024 with the Midlands outfit, though looks set to leave this summer for pastures new.

Al Hilal, Liverpool and West Ham United are all believed to be monitoring his situation keenly.

Reports last week suggested the Baggies expect around £25m to part ways with the 25 year-old this summer.

The Latest: Bidding war for Pereira?

Looking unlikely to keep Pereira at the Hawthorns beyond this window, a potential bidding war for his signature would be a big boost for Ismael and co.

In 2020/21, the playmaker enjoyed a superb campaign, registering 18 goal contributions in 34 fixtures; 12 goals and six assists [Transfermarkt].

Furthermore, Pereira caught attention with his ability to create dangerous situations, managing to record 1.8 key passes per game on average across the campaign, which was the most in the West Brom squad [WhoScored].

Once labelled as a ‘delight to watch’ by Match of the Day pundit Micah Richards, the Baggies only focus when it comes to departures at the moment should be to squeeze every penny possible out of the interest in Pereira [Birmingham Mail].

If they can secure upwards of that reported £25m price tag, that could go a long way towards building a squad capable of immediate promotion back to the big time.

In other news, West Bromwich Albion could re-sign a La Liga ace.

Alan Hutton has dropped his verdict on new Glasgow Rangers signing John Lundstram.

The Lowdown: Lundstram signs

Lundstram signed on a free transfer once his deal at Sheffield United expired at the end of the 2020/21 season.

The central midfield player has since played in pre-season matches against Tranmere Rovers and Arsenal ahead of the new campaign.

The Latest: Hutton on Lundstram

Hutton, a pundit who used to play as a right-back for the Gers, has since given his thoughts to Football Insider on the signing, and has been impressed by his displays so far in pre-season:

“You can see what he brings. He’s obviously very calm, he’s played at a higher level.

“The Tranmere game, which was his first game, was about him bedding in. Gerrard spoke about how hard they’ve been working him and he tired towards the end of that game.

“I think he’s going to be a steady grower. Game on game he’s going to get better and better. We’ve seen the potential over the last couple of seasons.

“There’s obviously room for improvement as well but I think he’ll get that under Steven Gerrard, be an inspiration, and he’ll flourish in a Rangers shirt.

“We’re starting to see the signs that he showed in his first season in the Premier League.

“He’s a top-quality player, very big and strong which I think you need in the SPFL. I think he’s going to be a very good signing.”

The Verdict: Smart signing

Lundstram is certainly a smart signing by Steven Gerrard’s team, especially given the fact that he came to Ibrox on a free transfer.

A player who now has plenty of Premier League experience under his belt, in where he managed five goals and a further three assists in his first season (Transfermarkt), Lundstram has played against world-class footballers like Kevin De Bruyne and Bruno Fernandes on a weekly basis in England, and so should have no problems in adapting to life in the Scottish Premiership.

The Englishman showed that he has an eye for both a goal and assist as well, which will no doubt be handy to RFC as they look to secure back-to-back SPFL titles.

Nonetheless, at 27 years of age, Lundstram is about to enter his prime, and could be a mainstay in the side for years to come.

In other news, find out what Rangers transfer claim Frank McAvennie has dropped here!

Many Everton fans have been slamming the performance of Alex Iwobi in their 4-0 pre-season defeat at Manchester United on Saturday afternoon.

The Nigeria international missed a good chance to bring the Toffees back into the game midway through the first half, as they were already 2-0 down at that point to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men.

Iwobi did not have a great game in general as Twitter fan page The Everton End voiced their frustrations with the winger during the match, which prompted a lot of negative reaction.

With the new Premier League season starting on Friday night, Rafa Benitez would have not been convinced by the Nigerian’s performance, and so the 25-year-old could well face being dropped to the bench for their opener.

He has played 65 times for Everton competitively but scored a paltry four goals in that time and has set up just four more (Transfermarkt) – centre-back Michael Keane netted three league goals last season alone – while he has drawn the ire of some Toffees fans in the past.

Everton fans hammer Iwobi

These Everton supporters slammed Iwobi’s performance on Twitter, with one even going as far as to claim that he was a ‘disgrace’:

“I’m really struggling with having to watch him this season”

Credit: @BrunsypPB

“Got to be the worst ever buy”

Credit: @kevdano

“Worst £40 mill we’ve spent!”

Credit: @_Sumz

“I mean this literally. He is the worst signing Everton have ever made. There has not been a worse signing, I won’t be convinced otherwise”

Credit: @BradleyHilditch

“Iwobi you are a disgrace”

Credit: @RobertS91163055

“Niasse was genuinely a better signing than Iwobi”

Credit: @efcdylan_

In other news, find out what confirmed news has had these Toffees buzzing!

Dean Windass reckons there’s almost no chance Reece James swaps Chelsea for Manchester City this summer.

Having been given his opportunity in the Blues first-team by Frank Lampard, the right-back has established himself as not only the club’s first-choice but has made his mark at international level.

James has made just one appearance for England at the European Championship, but according to The Athletic, is on Pep Guardiola’s wish-list.

City already have one of the most complete right-backs in the Premier League in Kyle Walker, whilst Joao Cancelo can play in several positions, including at full-back.

Valued at £40m by Transfermarket, the 21-year-old turned out 47 times in all competitions for Chelsea, scoring once, a stunner on the opening-day at Brighton, whilst chipping in with five assists.

James’ final club appearance of the campaign was the Champions League final against City at the end of May, but Windass exclusively told Football FanCast that the Chelsea academy graduate won’t be swapping shades of blue this window:

“I think eventually, but Kyle Walker is like a train, he has a couple of mistakes in him, but going forward he is incredible.

“I can’t see Reece leaving, I can’t see that happening just yet.”

Celtic are incredibly busy in the transfer market at the moment with Ange Postecoglou keen to nail down his squad as swiftly as possible.

The Australian did say that he hoped he’d have new signings to announce this week and after the arrival of Liel Abada, the new manager will be a happy man.

On the chalkboard

The Hoops are working behind the scenes frantically to conclude a number of other deals.

With Kristoffer Ajer set for the exit door after the Hoops accepted an offer from Brentford, they will look to wrap up a move for Carl Starfelt.

Brandon Soppy is also a target while conversations have taken place over Croatian winger Kristijan Lovric.

Finding further bodies to play on the wing is of utmost importance heading into their first competitive fixture next week in the Champions League.

James Forrest could miss the clash after finding himself in self-isolation while Mikey Johnston picked up a problem in their goalless draw with Bristol City.

Karamoko Dembele found the net against Charlton but it would be a big ask to expect him to start in the two-legged clash with FC Midtjylland.

The solution

If a deal for Lovric cannot be concluded then Celtic should look towards Atletico Madrid winger Rodrigo Riquelme.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-celtic-news-doig-nketiah-mccann” title= “Read the latest Celtic transfer news!”]

The Bhoys were linked with a swoop for the 21-year-old 12 months ago but he stayed in Spain until October when he joined Bournemouth on loan in the second tier of English football.

He started just twice for the Cherries in the league as he struggled to earn regular minutes in their high-flying side.

Riquelme scored against Derby County in the Championship and also found the net against Oldham in the FA Cup.

Although last season wasn’t a fair reflection of his abilities, he’s clearly incredibly gifted.

Speaking after the forward’s move to the Vitality Stadium, their ex-manager Jason Tindall said: “This football club has been synonymous with impactful wingers over the years, and Rodrigo fits that bill perfectly.

“He is a creative, exciting talent who I cannot wait to start working with. He is an extremely talented player who has appeared for one of the biggest clubs in Europe, and will complement the quality that is already in our squad.”

With Moi Elyounoussi heading back to his parent club, the idea of Celtic replacing him with Riquelme should excite supporters.

His strengths include the ability to dribble the ball at pace while he also possesses strong creativity.

With Riquelme on one side and new signing Kyogo Furuhashi in attack, this could be a mouth-watering combination for Postecoglou. Combine the Atletico winger’s dazzling abilities with the ruthless goalscoring nature of the Japan international and the new manager is certainly onto a winner.

After all, Furuhashi was the J-League’s top scorer in 2021 with 15 strikes to his name.

Throw Forrest into the equation as well and Celtic’s forward line already looks more vibrant than it did last term.

AND in other news, Celtic begin talks to sign “talented” £2.2m-rated machine, Ange really needs him…

Kent County Cricket Club completed the Second XI double when it won the Second XI Trophy today against Hampshire CCC at the Rose Bowl by five wickets

ECB Media Release10-Sep-2002Kent County Cricket Club completed the Second XI double when it won the Second XI Trophy today against Hampshire CCC at the Rose Bowl by five wickets. The win followed its victory in the Second XI Championship last week.Chasing a Hampshire total of 238 all out, opening batsman James Tredwell scored a match-winning 111 to help Kent to victory with just two balls remaining of their 50 overs.The victory capped a highly successful season in which Kent won six out of its 10 Second XI Championship games and therefore finished with a higher ‘points per game’ average than any other team (13.70).Derbyshire are confirmed as finishing second place in the Championship (points average: 13.25), with Glamorgan in third (points average: 12.55)

In reply to a number of enquiries that the website has received from concerned fans, Somerset Sabres friendly dragon mascot Stumpy has talked to us about his re-appearance tomorrow after a period of enforced absence

Richard Walsh18-Aug-2002In reply to a number of enquiries that the website has received from concerned fans, Somerset Sabres friendly dragon mascot Stumpy has talked to us about his re-appearance tomorrow after a period of enforced absence.From his secret hideaway deep in the heart of the Somerset countryside Stumpy told me: “It seems like a lifetime since I was last at the County Ground, but after being away for seven weeks it will be good to be back amongst all my friends,and I am really looking forward to it.”Stumpy will be at the County Ground for the crucial day-night relegation NUL National League match between Somerset Sabres and Nottingham Outlaws, that gets underway 4.10pm tomorrow.The last time that Stumpy was at the ground the Sabres suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of Worcester Royals, so tomorrow he will be hoping to bring the team better luck.One thing Stumpy can be assured of is a large crowd to welcome his return to the ground which has become his spiritual home since he first appeared earlier this season.Membership secretary Jo Betsworth told me earlier: “There has already been a large interest in the match and we are expecting one of our biggest crowds of the season to watch the Sabres take on Nottingham Outlaws. As well as the cricket there will be a number of other activities including the ever popular face painting, and of course the return of Stumpy who will be walking round the ground to meet his friends and sign autographs.”With a large crowd expected, the advice to those who are going along to the ground is to arrive well in advance of the action on the field. With the game being televised there will certainly be no shortage of entertainment so everybody is guaranteed a good time.Lets just hope that the Sabres get the result that they so desperately need from the match to help them climb away from the relegation zone.

Crystal Palace, Leeds United and AC Milan have all made enquiries for PSV Eindhoven winger Noni Madueke, according to The Evening Standard.

And a number of Palace supporters have been sharing their thoughts on the transfer update on social media.

Madueke actually left Palace’s youth academy in 2014 and has gone on to impress with the Dutch giants.

The 19-year-old made 32 appearances in all competitions last season, scoring nine times and registering eight assists.

Madueke is capable of playing all across the front line and seems to be on Palace’s radar ahead of a possible return to the club.

The Eagles could spend up to £80m on new recruits this summer, and Madueke who Aidy Boothroyd believes is a ‘bit like Phil Foden’, is valued at £14.4m by Transfermarkt.

Palace fans react

Both @cpfc_xtra and @CPFCtransfersHQ shared Palace’s enquiry on Twitter on Thursday.

This is what these Eagles fans had to say in reply, with a few keen to see a deal go through.

“Do whatever it takes”Credit: @BRL__18″Please”Credit: @FagenceLuca”Former Palace Youth. Hopefully that can play into our favour and we get him”Credit: @Mark_CPFC”I’m sure he’s gonna choose us!”Credit: @CPFCH10″Pleaseeeeeee”Credit: @JoelGray_”Off to Milan then”Credit: @CPFCMax9

In other news: ‘Honestly speechless’ – Many Crystal Palace fans ‘amazed’ at Thursday development, find out more here.

A new name has emerged in Tottenham Hotspur’s managerial search this week…

What’s the word?

According to Sunday Times and Daily Record journalist Duncan Castles, Sevilla boss Julen Lopetegui is being considered for the vacant role.

Speaking on a recent episode of ‘The Transfer Window’ podcast, he said: “I hear that there is an additional candidate that they’re working on in the shape of Julen Lopetegui, who could be a solution for them if they can’t get one of their earlier choices.

“Lopetegui is liked by Tottenham and is likely to be recommended to them by Paratici, he certainly has a good track record of work at Sevilla, winning the Europa League in 2020, and finishing third and fourth, getting them into the Champions League two years running.”

Paulo Fonseca is widely believed to be the front-runner for the gig after Italian transfer guru Fabrizio Romano revealed that the two parties were in ‘advanced talks’ over a potential three-year contract, but this news is certainly an intriguing twist.

Better than Fonseca?

Since this claim, reports in Spain have fueled the fire even further, with Estadio Deportivo likening the situation to that of Juande Ramos back in 2007, when he replaced Martin Jol in controversial circumstances. They claim that he is not their first option but he is among those being considered, and many around north London believe he could be a very good candidate.

For example, one supporter claimed the Spaniard was who they should be going for over the “Portuguese version of Roberto Martinez”, whilst another suggested that Lopetegui would be a great manager instead of the “defensively average” Fonseca.

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

Those are merely a couple of responses in reaction to reports linking the club with the Sevilla boss, and even though it’s a small sample size, it highlights the overriding consensus that the former Roma man is probably not the right appointment.

During his time in Italy, the 48-year-old has failed to build on his previous success elsewhere, failing to steer Roma any higher than a fifth-place finish in the Serie A, whilst his side were embarrassed by Manchester United across two legs in the Europa League semi-finals in recent weeks. They leaked eight goals in total in that tie, which would reinforce the views of some in N17 right now.

Meanwhile, Lopetegui won that very competition at the end of the 2019/20 season, defeating Antonio Conte’s Inter Milan – another name heavily mooted with the Spurs job in recent weeks.

If the 54-year-old former Spain and Real Madrid manager is genuinely being considered, that should give plenty of fans a little more hope as Tottenham’s managerial saga rumbles on.

It’s not too late for Daniel Levy to gauge the reaction here and opt for Lopetegui instead of Fonseca.

AND in other news, Paratici could appoint Spurs’ own Unai Emery in “exceptional” 48 y/o who blew Pep away…