All posts by z3u9t.icu

Marcel Brands must urge Carlo Ancelotti to unleash Joshua King far more than he ever fielded Cenk Tosun, after Everton signed the AFC Bournemouth striker on Deadline Day.

What’s the word?

According to talkSPORT presenter Alex Crook, King’s last-ditch move to Merseyside saw the Toffees agree to sign the Cherries forward on an initial six-month contract.

Everton will have an option to extend the Norwegian’s time at Goodison Park at the end of the season, with the transfer potentially worth up to £5m.

The Blues paid Bournemouth a nominal sum to finalise a deal in the final hours of Deadline Day, after the Vitality Stadium outfit sought to secure a fee for a striker who was set to be out of contract when his £45,000-per-week deal expired in the summer.

King will provide Ancelotti with vital cover for Dominic Calvert-Lewin at Everton after Tosun was allowed to re-join Besiktas on loan until the end of the season, having failed to secure a regular starting berth under a succession of managers.

Reports by Norwegian television channel TV2 had claimed King decided to join Everton over Fulham after Bournemouth accepted offers from both Premier League sides, but the Blues first had to offload Tosun and his wages to afford the £10m-rated beast.

King is yet to score a league goal in a heavily disrupted campaign for the 29-year-old, having sustained a thigh injury in pre-season before later testing positive for coronavirus and missing almost two months.

Ancelotti must trust King

King found his eye for the goal in the FA Cup with a brace against Oldham Athletic and a solo strike in the fourth round against Crawley Town last month, while providing assists in each tie. Showing that he has not lost his edge in front of the net, which saw the Manchester United product score 48 Premier League goals with Bournemouth over five seasons.

Everton’s Director of Football Brands must now urge Ancelotti to place his backing in the 51-cap Norway international, having seen the Italian only field Tosun for 43 minutes in the top-flight this term.

Brands has put his faith into King offering Ancelotti a greater attacking threat than Tosun could ever bring to the table, with the Turkey international only scoring nine Premier League goals since January 2018.

The Dutchman has also struck what could prove to be a masterstroke by including clauses that will allow Everton to sign King to a long-term contract in the summer, without having to pay the £15m Bournemouth were allegedly wanting for the versatile forward who their former head coach Eddie Howe lauded as the “complete package”.

But that will prove worthless if King does not feature, despite having the potential to offer the goals form the bench that could secure the Toffees European football, which Ancelotti did not previously have.

Everton have not seen a substitute score a single goal in the Premier League all season, an unwanted stat which only goal-shy duo Burnley and West Bromwich Albion can also lay claim to.

If 11-goal striker Calvert-Lewin has not found the net, the Toffees also struggle, with the Blues only scoring seven in their last seven games, running back to when the 23-year-old last scored.

King does not have to do much to offer more of a threat than Tosun but if he’s to get the goals the Merseyside outfit have been lacking, Ancelotti will have to back him.

AND in other news, the exit of a £28k-p/w dud is great news for a “gifted” Everton outcast…

Carlo Ancelotti must strive to offload Jonjoe Kenny at the first available opportunity amid doubt in the defender’s long-term Everton future.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, Kenny may have already played his final game in royal blue with the Toffees likely to look to move the 23-year-old on at the end of the season.

The right-back is currently on loan with Scottish Premiership giants Celtic after sealing a Deadline Day move to Parkhead, having seen a potential permanent transfer to Burnley fall through.

The Clarets were priced out of the market to sign Kenny in January as Everton sought a £10m fee (Sunday Mirror, 24/1, p. 67), which would have taken up too high a percentage of the Turf Moor outfit’s mid-season budget.

Kenny had only played 77 minutes over four appearances in the Premier League this season before departing Merseyside, and has since started all six of Celtic’s possible Premiership fixtures thus far.

Should Everton sell Kenny?

Any hopes Everton had of selling Kenny to the Celtic at the end of his time on loan may have come to an end earlier this week, with Hoops boss Neil Lennon stepping down from his position after falling 18 points behind Premiership leaders and bitter rivals Rangers.

Lennon was likely a driving force behind Kenny’s move to Parkhead at the start of the month, with the Northern Irishman a keen admirer of the Everton outcast, while Celtic were tipped to explore a permanent deal if the former England U21 international impresses.

But Kenny’s start to life in Glasgow has not been perfect, with former Hoops defender Frank McAvennie already questioning the £6.5m-rated full-back’s emerging refusal to cross the ball.

“We brought in Jonjoe Kenny and in the first couple of games he was whipping the ball across the box but that has stopped now,” he told Football Insider. “Maybe he is fed up because nobody is there. He might be thinking; ‘What’s the point?’ Everyone wants the ball into feet.”

After delivering an accurate cross in each of his first two Celtic appearances, Kenny is yet to add to his record having now gone four Premiership games without a single accurate attempt, per WhoScored.

His average match rating over his last three outings (6.73) is also far below that of his first three games (7.34), having endured a rapid decline after a personal-best 7.51 on debut against Kilmarnock to earn a personal-worst 6.61 last time out away to Ross County.

If Kenny had any hopes of returning to Goodison Park and forging a career with Everton as Seamus Coleman’s eventual successor, he could not afford to have many off days at Celtic.

But those performances are coming too often, with Kenny also offering fewer successful tackles (1.7) per game in the Premiership than Mason Holgate (2.2) and Coleman (2.1) have offered Ancelotti in the Premier League this season.

Holgate (3.9) and Coleman (2.0) have also averaged a higher number of clearances when fielded at right-back than Kenny (1.3) has for Celtic, suggesting the academy graduate is just not fit to make the grade on Merseyside.

And with Lennon now gone at Celtic, Everton may struggle to find a suitor willing to buy the 2022 free-agent, so must jump at the first opportunity and not hold out at the risk of all deals falling through.

AND in other news, Everton face European competition to sign a £35m target this summer…

Another professional debut was handed out by Tottenham Hotspur boss Jose Mourinho as Marcel Lavinier earned a 16-minute cameo during his side’s 4-0 win over Wolfsberger in the Europa League.

The 20-year-old academy sensation replaced Matt Doherty late in the second half and enjoyed an energetic spell that saw him record 19 touches. He also delivered two tackles, made six passes from eight attempts and won 80% of his five duels, via SofaScore.

On the whole, it was hugely encouraging, which begs the question – could he break into the first-team full-time?

The right-back spot has been a problematic area for Mourinho all season with the likes of Doherty (nine league starts), Serge Aurier (14 league starts) and Japhet Tanganga (two starts) splitting game time there.

There are doubts over them all.

According to ESPN, the Portuguese manager remains unconvinced by Doherty, Aurier will soon enter the final year of his current contract and has always been regarded as a liability, while we’re still yet to learn of Tanganga’s natural role despite hints that he has a future as a full-back.

Lavinier could solve this should his development continue at this increasing rate, and it has every chance to as he’s part of Spurs’ 25-man UEL squad for the remainder of the campaign.

You could even argue that Spurs have never truly replaced Kieran Trippier, who swapped north London for Madrid in 2019. In some ways, the emerging prospect is a carbon-copy as he too can play on the other side of defence and through middle.

As noted by the Daily Mail, Lavinier’s speed is a key asset and is a very versatile weapon to have at your disposal, especially given his direct nature – only further drawing comparisons to the Atletico Madrid man.

The young defender was snapped up by Spurs in the summer on a free following his release from local rivals Chelsea, and that move has turned out to be a masterstroke thus far.

In fact, it was perhaps a surprise to see him depart Stamford Bridge after notching three goals and eight assists across their U18 and U23 squads, as per Transfermarkt.

There’s still a long way to do, but Mourinho really could unearth Spurs’ future at right-back in Lavinier.

Forget Tanganga, the 20-year-old could possess so much more potential.

AND in other news, Jose can kickstart exciting Spurs rebuild with “sensational” £30m gem who stopped Kane – opinion

Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has discussed whether Arsenal should have had a penalty against Burnley, and many Gunners’ fans have made their views clear about his comments.

There was controversy when Arsenal were held to a 1-1 draw at Turf Moor on Saturday. During the second half, the ball had hit Erik Pieters’ arm and, after a long VAR check, the Gunners were denied a spot kick. Former referee Peter Walton has said he was surprised that the decision didn’t go in Arsenal’s favour but could understand why it wasn’t given as a penalty (Football.London).

Gallagher has now given his opinion about the incident and, speaking to Sky Sports (via Football Daily on Twitter), the former Premier League referee said that, if a penalty was given for the Pieters handball, he wouldn’t have had too many complaints about it.

As a result of the draw at Turf Moor, Arsenal remain tenth in the Premier League. They have only 38 points to their name and are nine points behind fourth-placed Chelsea, who occupy the last Champions League spot (BBC Sport).

The video involving Gallagher and his opinion was relayed on Twitter by Arsenal-related page AFCStuff, duly eliciting plenty of reaction from angry Gooners:

What did Arsenal fans make of Gallagher’s opinion?

“If this biased ex ref can say this, then I think those match officials should tender an official apology to Arsenal FC & should resign with immediate effect.”

Credit: @Call_Me_Daniels

“It was a 100% nailed on penalty, no excuses, it wasn’t given because it was in Arsenals favour.”

Credit: @RealIanPoulter

“Imo what’s the point of VAR if in the end it still the refs who decides whether if it’s a foul or not. We need VAR to works just like goal line technology that makes the decision by itself.”Credit: @audiyordana”Absolutely rubbish. What happen to common sense in the game. talking about what’s subjected decision or what’s not. it’s similar question mate, was that a penalty or not? I didn’t ask for philosophical question about what it is or what is not. He’s part of the problem.”Credit: @Nasri_mo10″You know it’s bad when even Gallagher says the decision was wrong.”Credit: @Arsenalinjected”Ex ref saying it is a pen. The @FA and @premierleague. Need to fix up mothers. CORRUPTION.”Credit: @_AFCFREDIn other news, Arsenal are the front-runners to sign a Premier League starlet – read more here.

Many Sunderland fans were full of praise for defender Dion Sanderson following their 2-0 win against Rochdale on Saturday.

The 21-year-old started at centre-back as the Black Cats climbed above Doncaster Rovers into fourth in the League One standings, albeit having played two games more than the south Yorkshire outfit.

Lee Johnson’s side were much more clinical on the day despite the visitors having more efforts on goal, with Sanderson scoring the opener and Charlie Wyke sealing the deal before half-time.

Despite getting himself on the scoresheet, there was more for the Stadium of Light faithful to be pleased about regarding the Wolves loanee’s outing. Per Sofascore, Sanderson made two clearances, played five long balls, won five duels and recorded a passing success rate of 90%.

Unsurprisingly, many Sunderland supporters were full of praise for Sanderson after he posted on Twitter about his performance, with the youngster being hailed as a “class act” and “too good to sit on the bench” at his parent club.

Sanderson hailed by these fans

“Get us promoted and then sign on the dotted line. Fantastic player you mate.”

Credit: @pierres02955293

“Class act, Dion. Best loan signing since Yann.”

Credit: @stustuy

“Absolute class above Dion, outstanding”

Credit: @MackemNeil84

“Too good to sit on the bench at wolves son”

Credit: @MatthewTunstal4

“Class act mate”

Credit: @Haggis1973Simon

“Fully deserved it”

Credit: @bamgboyeolu

In other news, these Sunderland fans delighted with comments made by Lee Johnson.

Fans of Crystal Palace have been reacting to a post on Twitter, which relayed Barry Ferguson’s claim regarding Steven Gerrard’s chances of being appointed the Eagles manager this summer.

Cited by the Daily Record, Ferguson rubbished claims that the Rangers manager is on Crystal Palace’s shortlist of potential Roy Hodgson replacements this summer, with the 73-year-old’s contract in south London set to expire at the end of the season.

The former Rangers midfielder claimed that he is “not surprised” that Palace are interested in the 40-year-old, but that there is “no comparison” between the Rangers and Crystal Palace jobs, as the recently crowned Scottish champions are a “much bigger side” than the Eagles, and that Gerrard would not swap his job at Ibrox for one at a mid-table Premier League team.

However, after CPFC Transfers HQ relayed Ferguson’s comments on Twitter, fans of the club flocked to have their say on the matter, with many suggesting that the 43-year-old is a hypocrite, as he himself left Rangers on two occasions to join mid-table Premier League teams in Blackburn Rovers and Birmingham City.

So, what exactly did these Crystal Palace fans have to say in reaction to Barry Ferguson’s claim regarding Steven Gerrard?

“The same Barry Ferguson who left Rangers twice to join Blackburn and Birmingham.”

@hjclarke

“Don’t know who he is but Palace are a much bigger club than a team that’s only 9 years old.”

@HunterCPFC

“You’re right there’s no comparison, Palace are a great club and whoever he manages now are the 2nd biggest team in their own city.”

@JackWaugh_

“Barry Ferguson, who left Rangers for Blackburn in 2003 and then again for Birmingham in 2009, here with a bad take.”

@SamSmiths_

“Stop lying.”

@Sumo08112

“Says the man who couldn’t hack it and bombed in the PL at a lower mid-table club.”

@SwindenBrian

“He is correct. We are far too big for Stevie G.”

@Paul43757482

“What a hypocrite.”

@Ukhilal1957

In other news: One Palace star has been linked with a move elsewhere in the Premier League, find out more here!

According to reports, Leeds United are interested in signing Feyenoord midfielder Orkun Kokcu in this summer’s transfer window.

What’s the story?

Sport (via Sport Witness) claim that the Whites have joined the likes of Leicester and Sevilla in the race to sign Kokcu, and that they have the money required to bring him to Elland Road.

The report adds that Sevilla are willing to spend a decent amount of money to land Kokcu, but that the La Liga side will face “tough competition” from Leeds.

Bye-bye Pablo Hernandez

Responding to a question for  The Athletic back in February, Phil Hay admitted that Pablo Hernandez’s time at Elland Road could be coming to an end soon.

He said: “It was quite telling that Castellon had a nibble at Hernandez in January. They obviously think there’s a good chance of tempting him back (and they would know, given that Hernandez is a co-owner there). If he doesn’t play much, I think this story will probably come back around in the summer. I doubt he’ll want to lose the last years of his career barely playing.”

And with the situation barely having changed since then – he’s played just 332 minutes of Premier League football all season – Leeds could wave goodbye to Hernandez, and that will open the door for someone to step into those shoes: step forward, Kokcu.

In a profile piece by The Evening Standard, they wrote: “While Kokcu is primarily viewed as a central midfielder, the 19-year-old is a gifted technician on the ball and has been tipped to move further up the field as a playmaker.

“The Turkish youngster enjoys dictating play in the central areas of the pitch and has a keen eye for a pass, much like Xabi Alonso and Cesc Fabregas, preferring to control proceedings from deeper positions.”

As suggested, Kokcu could be deployed further forward as a number ten, and has shown impressive form with Feyenoord this season, ranking second for key passes per game (1.6), and fourth for shots (1.9) among his teammates.

Speaking to Goal, former Manchester United defender Jaap Stam raved about Kokcu’s quality, saying: “He has the ability. He is a player who has the personality to want to improve, he always wants to do better. He’s never happy with himself, he’s disappointed if he doesn’t score, or his passes aren’t good enough.

“He’s certainly got the ability to make that step to the Premier League. He has creativity, scoring ability, stamina and running ability. He keeps on going. I saw him as a very promising player.”

Kokcu evidently has the “creativity” and ability to be a major threat in the final third of the pitch, and if Hernandez does depart, then the 20-year-old starlet could help kick-start a new era at Elland Road.

Victor Orta could land a shrewd signing in the Turkish gem.

Meanwhile, Bielsa should unleash this Leeds starlet next season…

In a few months time, Scott Brown will finally bring down the curtain on his Celtic career.

It has been a triumphant 14 years at Parkhead for the defensive midfielder, a time in which he has captained the Hoops to unparalleled success.

Brown has won ten Scottish Premierships, six Scottish Cups and six League Cups since arriving at Celtic in 2007.

He is nothing short of a Hoops icon, a player who has led the charge in terms of their incredible domestic success over the last two decades. However, with his contract up in the summer, he has agreed to become a player-coach at Aberdeen.

His exit is timely for several reasons. After they were finally usurped by Rangers again, it feels like now is the perfect time to bring through a new generation of Celtic players.

With that in mind, it’s in with the new and out with the old. Brown has arguably done the right thing; his performances this season have been slower and the Bhoys could do with fresh blood.

When looking at Brown’s natural successor, you may cast your eyes to a certain Ismaila Soro. The Ivorian has stood out at times this term, winning no fewer than ten tackles during Celtic’s win over Lille in the Europa League.

However, it’s a player not even at the club yet who could be Brown’s ready-made heir.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-celtic-manager-and-transfer-news-boupendza-mcgeady-marsch-mccarthy” title=”Latest Celtic manager and transfer news!”]

A few weeks ago it was confirmed that Celtic had agreed a pre-contract with Sheffield Wednesday’s Liam Shaw. The midfielder will arrive this summer and, judging by his qualities and positional sense, he could be the man to take Brown’s place in the squad.

Described as “very promising” by former Wednesday manager Tony Pulis, he is adept at playing as a central defender or as a holding midfielder.

So far this season, Shaw has won 0.8 tackles per game. That might not be the highest of numbers but he’d certainly be a more dynamic option than Brown in the middle of the park.

During Wednesday’s recent match with Rotherham, he played three key passes and produced four dribbles. With Brown lacking the legs to cover ground this season, the youngster should certainly add a lot to Celtic’s midfield.

However, the 20-year-old’s composure is crucial. After the clash with Rotherham, Owls reporter Dom Howson wrote: “Confident in possession as usual on his return to the side following a two-match suspension. Showed bags of energy.”

At the grand price of absolutely nothing, he’d be an astute Brown replacement. That being said, he’ll have plenty of impressing to do in order to live up to the Scotsman’s legacy in Glasgow.

AND in other news, £833k per goal: “Anonymous” Celtic flop has robbed Desmond of £5.4m this season…

Celtic may well be without a manager but that hasn’t stopped the transfer merry-go-round from rolling into Parkhead.

Roy Keane has been linked with the vacant manager’s job, but he is being rivalled by the likes of Lucien Favre and Thierry Henry.

On the chalkboard

One of the first things on the to-do list of any manager will be to improve the defence. Celtic’s backline has been shocking this season with individual errors plaguing their campaign.

They have shipped 14 more goals in the SPFL than Rangers and their issues in that position reared their ugly head again in the Old Firm derby.

This time there was a fresh culprit; Jonjoe Kenny. The Everton loanee was incredibly abject during that game and was the sole reason the score finished 1-1, rather than a Hoops win.

Kenny’s mind-boggling back pass led to the corner that Alfredo Morelos scored from, and the right-back didn’t particularly cover himself in much glory with his marking from that set-piece either.

The youngster has been inconsistent since being signed as Jeremie Frimpong’s replacement but fortunately, he’s only penned temporary terms in Scotland.

Keeping his departure in mind, the Bhoys will need some form of replacement.

The solution

Coincidentally, the answer to Celtic’s woes could also lie at Everton. Although Kenny is set to head back to Goodison Park, The Sun have suggested that Seamus Coleman could walk through the door and come to the Bhoys.

Discussing the potential signings that Keane may make if he becomes the new manager at Parkhead, they stated the defender could be tempted to reunite a partnership the pair developed in the Republic of Ireland set-up.

Coleman currently has a year left on his £70k-per-week deal at Everton so could move to Celtic on the cheap.

If they do sign him, not only will they be gaining an experienced international with 58 caps to his name, but they’ll be signing a leader and someone that’s perfect for their style of play.

Speaking about Coleman this season, Carlo Ancelotti waxed lyrical about his qualities, suggesting he was up there with some of the finest defensive captains we’ve ever seen: “I’ve had a lot of captains in my career but how Seamus expresses his love for the shirt is really top,” he began.

“He is a great captain, honestly. I don’t want to forget anyone [I have worked with] but he is up there as a captain with [Paolo] Maldini, John Terry and Sergio Ramos,” Ancelotti concluded.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-celtic-manager-and-transfer-news-roy-keane-nicky-butt-jesse-marsch-scott-brown” title=”Latest Celtic manager and transfer news!”]

Appraisals don’t come much better than that but importantly he’d be an upgrade on Kenny.

Coleman is more vocal on the pitch and crucially, very rarely has a lapse in concentration, something that let Kenny down during his Old Firm induction.

The 32-year-old has won the same number of tackles per game this season (1.6) and has proven to be a prolific goal scorer and creator for someone in his position.

He helped to define the role of a modern-day full-back, registering 26 goals and 29 assists during his stay in Merseyside so far.

The Irishman has very often been involved in the goals, something Kenny is unfortunate enough not to bolster. He only has two senior strikes to his name at club level.

Coleman may be in the twilight of his career but judging by how this season has gone, they could do with some more leadership and experience.

AND in other news, Big twist emerges in Celtic manager hunt, Desmond is surely buzzing…

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Carlton Palmer shared his concerns over Chey Dunkley’s latest injury and its potential impact on manager Darren Moore.

Dunkley has been plagued by injury this season and is once again sidelined due to a hamstring injury.

The 29-year-old central defender joined the Owls from Wigan Athletic last summer, but he has yet to feature under Moore following his appointment at the start of March because of the above.

It is a far from ideal situation for the Wednesday boss, something Palmer was quick to mention as he stressed the importance of Moore having players fit ahead of a run of fixtures that could define the club’s future.

The retired England international told FFC in an exclusive interview:

“It’s difficult. Sometimes you go through these periods where you pick up injuries, there’s just nothing you can do about it. I mean, the problem you’ve got when you’re like this young lad, well, young… how old is he, 29? When you start picking up injuries like this, you can’t get any momentum going.”

On the same topic, Palmer added:

“For Darren it’s difficult now because the games they have left are all cup finals. So he needs people who are at their best and at their fittest to enable him to get the results to keep Sheffield Wednesday up.”

In their fight for Championship survival, next up for Moore and Wednesday is the visit of Watford, which is likely to be a tricky fixture against the division’s second-placed side.