All posts by z3u9t.icu

Fabrizio Romano claimed on Saturday that Poland are ready to approach Aston Villa’s Matty Cash over a possible switch of nationalities.

And a number of Villa supporters have been giving their thoughts to the update on social media.

Cash, who qualifies for Poland through family on his mother’s side, had been reluctant to turn away from England as he has hopes of turning out for England.

The 24-year-old hasn’t featured for The Three Lions at any level, with the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Kyle Walker, Reece James and Kieran Trippier all seemingly ahead of him in Gareth Southgate’s right-back ranks.

According to Romano, Cash is ‘open’ to the opportunity of playing for Poland and is waiting for a passport to go through.

Villa fans react

Romano posted the news regarding Cash on Twitter on Saturday afternoon, hours before he netted his first Villa goal in a 3-0 win over Everton.

This is what some Villa fans had to say in reply, with one labelling it as ‘interesting’.

“I think he should accept it. I don’t see there is much of a chance he would get into the England squad as there are approximately 4178.9 RB that’s capable to be in the England squad right now.”

Credit: @rico_chong

“great move for him he’d be their starting rb”

Credit: @luke1874_

“Hope he goes for it. England are stacked in that position.”

Credit: @JayVtid

“interesting”

Credit: @Kim_UTV

“makes perfect sense really”

Credit: @avbiIly

“Looks like our all English back 4 is coming to an end. Understand why Cash has done it. England has so many good RB !”

Credit: @seanlangley94

In other news: Source says Lange wants 40-goal ace on £25k-p/w for Villa; he’s scoring a goal per game. 

Wolves are interested in signing young Monaco centre-back Benoit Badiashile in the January transfer window, according to a new report.

The Lowdown: Badiashile an exciting prospect

The 20-year-old has emerged as an exciting player in Ligue 1, making nine starts in the league and enjoying a pass completion rate of 88.5%. He has also averaged 4.3 aerial duel wins per game in the Europa League this season, which is more than any Wolves player has managed in the Premier League.

Badiashile appears to be a man in demand, and Molineux could potentially be his next destination.

The Latest: Wolves linked with move

According to Sky Sports News [via Talking Wolves on Twitter], Wolves are interested in making a move for the Frenchman, as Bruno Lage looks for centre-back reinforcements.

The £25.2m-rated defender’s current Monaco deal expires in the summer of 2024.

The Verdict: Ideal centre-back alternative

Central defence does look like one area where an addition would be welcome at Wolves this month, with too much reliance on the availability of Max Kilman, Conor Coady and Romain Saiss. Indeed, the latter is currently away at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Willy Boly would invariably be a strong backup for the trio but he continues to be plagued by medical issues, highlighting the need for a new signing at centre-back.

At 20, Badiashile would be considered a long-term acquisition who could fill in when required this season before hopefully growing into a key figure at Molineux over the next few years.

In other news, Wolves have been handed a potential transfer blow. Read more here.

According to reports, Leeds are eyeing a summer move for Everton starlet Thierry Small.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent days and weeks have suggested that Gjanni Alioski is on his way out of Elland Road, with suggestions that Turkish giants Galatasaray have already offered him a contract to join on a free transfer this summer.

It’s no surprise, then, that Leeds are being linked with a move for a new left-back, and the latest name to be touted is 16-year-old Small.

According to the Daily Express, Small is willing to snub a three-year professional deal at Goodison Park to find a better pathway to first team football elsewhere, with Leeds one of a number of Premier League sides name-checked as being able to offer that.

Shades of Ian Harte

When Ian Harte was in his pomp, he came up with some big-time goals for Leeds – he scored 35 times for the club – and that kind of natural attacking left-back is exactly what the Whites would be getting in Small.

In just 16 games for Everton’s under-18s and under-23s this season, the starlet has already bagged himself an impressive six goals, including three goals and one assist at Premier League 2 level – this despite him only being 16.

Toffees’ youth team boss David Unsworth has waxed lyrical about his ability and his attitude, and that should be music to the ears of Marcelo Bielsa.

The 47-year-old said: “Thierry is a fantastic boy. He’s been in the academy system a while and is an attacking left-back with great pace and power. The pace, the power, how he gets forward – he’s a smashing lad.

“I love working with him, he’s a great boy. He’s very coachable, very approachable, honest and has all the attributes of what I like to see in young Everton players. He has great desire too. I’m delighted with him.”

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=”Latest Leeds transfer rumours and news”]

With Small’s natural instincts going forward, and his eye for goal, Victor Orta could well sign a new Harte for Leeds in the gifted 16-year-old.

Meanwhile, this Leeds target is shades of Mark Viduka…

After the club confirmed Tottenham Hotspur will open 2021/22 season ticket renewals on Monday 12 April, chairman Daniel Levy has sent a message to Lilywhites supporters as Spurs anticipate finally welcoming supporters back for next campaign. 

As part of the government’s plan to ease the country out of lockdown, clubs across England have been announcing season ticket renewal options for 2021/2022 as Premier League sides hope to be boosted by the welcome return of income from matchday revenue.

Levy sends message to Tottenham fans

Tottenham have now confirmed their renewals will open on Monday next week, and after the official club development, chairman Levy has sent a message to supporters in gratitude for their patience.

In a teasing declaration on the club’s website, Levy explained as part of his statement: “We are proud of our passionate and loyal fanbase and we cannot wait to see you back in the stadium where you belong as soon as possible.

“This vision has seemed like a distant possibility on so many occasions, yet we have never given up hope that we would one day be in a position to say, with a degree of certainty, it is time to welcome you all back home.”

Transfer Tavern take

Spurs supporters were briefly allowed back at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as part of the old government tier system, with 2,000 fans in attendance for the north London derby back in December.

It has been over a year since the stadium has been at full capacity, however, and the Lilywhites potentially welcoming back supporters properly next season comes as a big boost for the club financially and for fans who want to see their team live.

In other news: Tottenham turn to ‘very talented’ unseen Spurs youngster after blow, find out more here.

Newcastle United enjoyed a fantastic January transfer window as they made a number of key additions to Eddie Howe’s squad.

PIF brought in Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn, Bruno Guimaraes, Matt Targett and Chris Wood and they have all played a part in the club’s revival in the second half of the season.

The Magpies are now 14 points clear of the bottom three and look set for another campaign in the Premier League, with central defender Burn playing a huge role in their recent success.

He joined from Brighton in January and has averaged a solid SofaScore rating of 7.01 in the top-flight this season for the Toon and the Seagulls combined.

Forget Dan Burn

Whilst the giant Englishman has been an excellent addition to the team, the Magpies now have the chance to sign a player who will make the fans quickly forget about him.

German outlet Bild recently reported that Newcastle are interested in signing Frankfurt defender Evan Ndicka, who is valued at £24m (€28m).

The French tank can be the club’s new defensive leader and be an upgrade on Burn or play alongside him as he has proven his quality in Germany this year.

Frankfurt boss Adi Hutter previously showered the gem with praise, saying: “I honestly have to say that I was surprised by his development. Evan has developed phenomenally. He’s very attentive in the analysis of his own game. He’s very modest and always takes a lot on board.”

The centre-back has also received applause from former Frankfurt player Alexander Schur as he claimed the Frenchman “shows no nerves” and “plays with great authority.” 

In the Bundesliga this season, Ndicka has averaged a fantastic SofaScore rating of 7.14. He has made an impressive 3.4 tackles and interceptions per game and won 60% of his duels, showing that he has been putting in consistent performances and dominating opposition attackers throughout the campaign.

Ndicka also ranks higher than Burn for progressive passes, progressive carries, dribbles completed and pass completion per 90 mins over the last 365 days. This means that the Frankfurt man would be an upgrade on the current Toon star in terms of what he offers in possession, whilst his statistics in the Bundesliga in comparison to Burn’s in the Premier League suggest that his all-round displays would also be better.

Therefore, Howe can land a new defensive leader for Newcastle by bringing him to the club this summer. He has shown that he has the quality to be a major player at St. James’ Park and he has the potential to improve further at the age of 22, which means that he would be a sublime signing for now and for the future.

AND in other news, Bid planned: Howe must seal NUFC deal for £30m “monster” whose “simplicity is genius”…

It would appear that Lee Johnson’s Sunderland side are beginning to peak at just the right time.

It hasn’t been an easy ride for the former Bristol City manager but his team have now lost just once in their last nine league outings.

Despite their truly ridiculous list of injuries in the last few months, Johnson has engineered four straight wins in all competitions and as a result, they’re in the Papa John’s Trophy final and in the playoff positions.

What’s been most impressive about recent matches, however, is their defensive record.

Bailey Wright, Jordan Willis and Tom Flanagan are all missing but they’ve now kept two consecutive clean sheets with a patched-up defence.

Luke O’Nien and Dion Sanderson partnered each other once again in the club’s 2-0 win over Fleetwood this week, a match where there was little to complain about.

The centre-back pairing were both convincing but unfortunately, there were problems on the left-hand side again. Callum McFadzean was brought back into the team after missing the clash with Burton due to concussion protocols.

However, just like Jake Vokins has been in recent weeks, McFadzean was disappointing. The left-back consistently misplaced passes and lost the ball on a regular basis.

He was relatively untested in defensive scenarios but we’ve already had plenty of warning signs about the £2.4k-per-week earner’s performances in recent months.

The 27-year-old gave away a penalty in the 1-1 draw with Wimbledon back in December while he was arguably at fault for both strikes in their 2-1 defeat to Plymouth. On both occasions, the goals came down his side as he failed to get tight enough to his man.

McFadzean was largely anonymous on Tuesday night, though, winning just one of three ground duels he competed in. Not much came down his side but when he did get on the ball, it made for grim reading.

The defender completed only 70% of his passes – the worst tally of anyone to take the field for Sunderland. Furthermore, he lost possession of the ball on 23 occasions. Once again, that was the worst record for anyone in red and white.

When he got forward, he was also underwhelming, proving unsuccessful with all three of his crosses. No wonder he lost the ball so regularly.

Depending on the formation Johnson wants to play, McFadzean has to be dropped for good. If a three-back is in operation, then surely the lively loanee Jordan Jones is a good bet to come in.

AND in other news, SAFC ace who left Parkinson fuming has been a passenger for months…

Former Premier League striker Dean Windass loves the idea of a Tammy Abraham and Callum Wilson strikeforce at Newcastle United.

Falling out of favour at Chelsea following the arrival of Thomas Tuchel, £36m-rated Abraham continues to be linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge.

According to The Northern Echo, St. James’ Park could be a possible destination for Abraham, with Newcastle said to be keen on bringing the 23-year-old forward and team-mate Billy Gilmour to the club.

For Windass, if Steve Bruce can pull it off and pair Abraham up front with Wilson, the Magpies could have quite the attack.

“I know Steve likes to play three at the back, so that means you can get two up top with Callum Wilson and Tammy Abraham,” the ex-Hull City star said to TT. “What a strikeforce that’d be in the Premier League.”

Indeed, it could be a very prolific forward line when you look at the records of the two strikers.

Wilson finished the 2020/21 season with 12 Premier League goals despite missing a lot of action due to injury, while Abraham was able to score 18 goals in all competitions back in the 2019/20 campaign when he was a regular under Frank Lampard.

William Saliba would be open to joining Newcastle United on loan for the 2021/22 season, according to Chronicle Live journalist Lee Ryder.

The lowdown

Arsenal paid £27m to sign the Frenchman in 2019 but loaned him straight back to Ligue 1 outfit Saint-Etienne. The 20-year-old then spent the first half of the 2020/21 campaign with the Gunners’ youth teams before a temporary switch to Nice in January.

He played 20 Ligue 1 games for the club, averaging 1.9 successful aerial duels, 1.3 interceptions and four clearances per match (via WhoScored).

Saliba has been tipped to enjoy a successful career in England by one-time Saint-Etienne team-mate and former Newcastle ace Yohan Cabaye, who said that the young defender was ‘like a big man’ and that the ‘future looks bright’ for him.

The latest

Ryder reported for Chronicle Live that Newcastle have been monitoring Saliba, now valued at £16.2m by Transfermarkt, for 18 months.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta would not stand in his way if a loan bid arrives from St James’ Park, while the player himself would be keen on a chance to leave the Emirates Stadium and prove his worth in the Premier League.

As a result, this may be a ‘quick and easy deal’ for the Magpies to do, as Ryder tweeted.

The verdict

Saliba’s performance levels in France have actually merited a chance at Arsenal, but Newcastle would be more than happy to reap the rewards of the Gunners’ hesitancy, and this could be a very clever piece of business.

The club’s resources are said to be limited this summer but, with a shrewd approach, they can still enhance their squad significantly.

In other news, Newcastle have also been linked with an Arsenal forward.

Manchester United’s attacking injury woes are set to continue this weekend, with as many as three attacking stars set to be ruled out for their FA Cup quarter-final meeting with Leicester City.

Ahead of the match, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer confirmed that Marcus Rashford is set to miss the game having been withdrawn at half-time against AC Milan on Thursday, whilst Anthony Martial and Edinson Cavani are doubts having been suffering with their own respective injury problems.

Should none of the trio be fit enough for the trip to the east Midlands, it leaves the Red Devils extremely thin on the ground when it comes to attacking options.

It would likely lead Solskjaer to deploying the likes of Mason Greenwood, Daniel James and Amad Diallo in an attacking trio in what would be a huge downgrade for the Red Devils.

Of course, the three are talented young players but they have not managed to get anywhere near the output of Rashford, Cavani or Martial throughout the 2020/21 campaign. Between them this season, the three have managed to score 32 goals, whilst notching 17 assists in all competitions, a huge contribution.

Meanwhile, James, Greenwood and Diallo can only boast ten goals and five assists combined. As a matter of fact, the injured trio’s impact this season is even more telling that, without their goals, United would be 16 points worse off in the Premier League table. This would leave the Red Devils on 41 points and firmly marooned in mid-table.

It goes without saying that United’s attacking threat will be hugely reduced at the King Power Stadium and that is certainly not what the Red Devils need as they travel to a Leicester side who have only conceded one goal in the FA Cup so far this season.

AND in more news, take a look at Paul Pogba’s inspirational cameo in the UEFA Europa League win against AC Milan…

Mark Warburton’s Queens Park Rangers head into Wednesday evening’s Championship clash in decent form, having picked up four points from their opening two fixtures of the season.

However, their opponents, Middlesbrough, are also unbeaten in the league so far this term, with Neil Warnock’s side having secured an impressive draw away at Fulham on the opening day of the 2021/22 campaign, as well as dispatching Bristol City 2-1 at the Riverside Stadium last weekend.

As such, the Rs will undoubtedly have to be at their best if they are to get anything from Wednesday’s fixture, with Warburton having to make a couple of tough calls as to who he will choose to start the game.

So, here’s how we think QPR could line up against Middlesbrough, along with the latest team and injury news…

With Warburton recently revealing that he is optimistic Charlie Austin, who missed the victory over Hull City due to a slight knee injury, will be fit enough to return to the side, as well as confirming that Sam McCallum will not be included in his matchday squad due to illness, we predict that the 58-year-old will make just one change to the side who comfortably saw off the Tigers last weekend.

Indeed, this change is Austin coming in for Christopher Willock, who is unfortunate to drop to the bench after impressing in both the Millwall draw and in the win over Hull, with the forward getting himself on the scoresheet at the weekend.

However, it is undeniable that the £1.8m-rated Austin, who scored eight goals over 21 Championship appearances for QPR last season, poses far greater attacking threat than Willock, meaning if the 32-year-old is indeed deemed fit enough to start, he will surely take the 23-year-old’s place in the XI.

Furthermore, Wallace retains his spot at left wing-back as a result of McCallum’s continued absence, while the likes of Jimmy Dunne, Andre Dozzell and George Thomas have to make to with spots on the bench.

Other than McCallum, Warburton has a clean bill of health at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium, and will undoubtedly be hoping that his side continue their early-season form with another impressive performance and result at Riverside.

In other news: QPR handed big injury boost ahead of Middlesbrough clash, fans will be buzzing