All posts by n8rngtd.top

When Raul Jimenez was stretchered off against Arsenal with a fractured skull, you didn’t necessarily fear the worst for this Wolves attack.

After all, it’s one that possesses the effervescent figures of Pedro Neto and Daniel Podence, one that can lay claim to the vibrant Adama Traore. In the grand scheme of things, Wolves shouldn’t have problems in the final third.

Add their record signing in Fabio Silva to the equation and things should be rosy at Molineux. Unfortunately, they are not.

Despite beating Arsenal and Chelsea in recent weeks, they have suffered disappointing losses to both Aston Villa and Burnley. It seems that when the Midlanders take on claret and blue, they forget how to play.

Silva notched his first Premier League goal from the penalty spot against Sean Dyche’s men but it spoke volumes that a man signed for £35.6m wasn’t entrusted to start.

Instead, they relied on Owen Otasowie in forward areas, someone who traditionally plays as a holding midfielder. It was a bizarre decision and despite showing promising signs, it clearly didn’t pay off.

Thus, you have to look at the decision making in the summer from both Nuno and Jeff Shi. Evidently, paying such a large sum of money for Silva was not a great idea in the short-term, but in hindsight, they shouldn’t have got rid of Patrick Cutrone.

The Italian, who is now valued at £14m via Transfermarkt, didn’t exactly have the greatest of first seasons at Molineux but he is still a presence in attack, one that had a decent track record in 2019/20.

Last term, Cutrone netted three times for Wolves – more than Silva has – before he lost trust with Nuno and departed for Fiorentina on loan in January. He contributed to six goals in 19 Serie A outings before staying on for the 2020/21 season.

The Italy international is still technically on Wolves’ books and is having another turgid campaign, failing to start for Fiorentina. Therefore, we wonder how much use he could have been to the manager, especially at a time when their only senior striker in Jimenez is out injured.

Yes, the relationship between player and head coach is fragile but he wasn’t a disastrous signing for the Midlanders. After all, Conor Coady rated him highly.

Speaking about Cutrone in December 2019 after a match with West Ham, the skipper said: “His finish was brilliant but it’s not just that – he works so hard for the team. He’s like Raul – he works his socks off and he brings so much to the team, so it’s brilliant that we had him to come on.”

One quote stands out there; “like Raul.” How Wolves could do with someone of that presence now.

AND in other news, Wolves liability who LOST 83.4% of his duels will have Nuno fuming…

Since leaving Liverpool on a permanent deal to join Rangers in 2019, Ryan Kent has been flourishing under Steven Gerrard for the Scottish Premiership side, to the extent where the Reds may end up regretting selling him.

The winger originally joined the ‘Gers on loan for the 2018/19 season and after impressing there, they made the decision to make his loan stay a permanent one, shelling out £6.48 million for the Englishman (per Transfermarkt).

In 95 appearances for Gerrard’s side, the 24-year-old has contributed an impressive 19 goals and 19 assists in all competitions (per Transfermarkt).

Last season saw the young winger grab eight goals and four assists in all competitions, which was enough to attract the interest of Leeds United in the summer, following their promotion back to the top-flight.

The Yorkshire club were told that they would have to pay £20 million for Kent, as that is the reported release clause in his contract and after their interest seemed to die down, he would end up staying with the Ibrox Stadium outfit.

However, he has impressed again at the start of this season, having contributed four goals and two assists in 14 Scottish Premiership games, which has seen him average a superb 7.57 rating (per WhoScored).

Therefore, it would not be a surprise to see Leeds, or another Premier League side, register an interest in the Englishman in the upcoming January transfer window and if he does end up leaving for £20 million, then Liverpool may regret their decision to let him go for so cheap back in 2019.

During his time with the Reds, he would make just one senior appearance, despite impressing for the U’23s and earning valuable experience in loans with the likes of Coventry City and Barnsley (per Transfermarkt).

You can argue that the youngster was never given much of an opportunity to shine at Liverpool, although when you consider the quality Klopp has on his wings in Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, this was perhaps always likely to be the case.

Gerrard was extremely complimentary of the winger after a win against Willem II last season, saying:

“From an attacking point of view, I think Ryan was the game changer for us tonight.

“He does incredibly well running in behind and he has added that into his game this season. He gets us the penalty for the breakthrough and he is just a constant threat. He is so sharp and he has added a different dimension to his game.” (per The Scotsman)

It will be interesting to see if Kent’s impressive form does earn him a move to the Premier League and if he is able to perform well in the top-flight, then the Reds may well end up feeling that it was a poor decision to let him go.

Liverpool may have just shifted a new plan into place after finalising a loan move for outcast winger Ben Woodburn. The Wales international joins Blackpool on a short-term deal, joining former youth coach Neil Critchley in League One.

The 21-year-old has spent the last season-and-a-half away from Anfield, representing Sheffield United and Oxford respectively. Woodburn has made five appearances for the Liverpool U23s so far this campaign, bagging himself a goal against Manchester United in the league (via Transfermarkt).

Future plans for Ben Woodburn

After rising through the ranks an impressing Jurgen Klopp alongside close friend Trent Alexander-Arnold, the forward man fell off the map. Unlike his fellow academy graduate, he has been limited to just 11 senior appearances for the Merseyside outfit. Woodburn’s last appearance for the Liverpool first team was in 2018 – a six minute cameo against Brighton in a 4-0 Premier League win.

Since then, his future has looked sure to indicate a permanent move away from Anfield. However, Michael Edwards’ recent negotiations with Blackpool could be part of a much bigger picture.

Critchley left the Liverpool set-up to take charge of the Seasiders back in March, finishing off the 2019/20 season with a 13th place finish. This campaign has seen the club struggle, as they currently sit in the lower reaches of League One. Acquiring a pacy winger like Woodburn could help pull Blackpool out of a rut and see them start to climb the table.

Operating under a manager he knows well could be the making of the Welshman, who made history with Liverpool as their youngest ever goalscorer back in 2016. With attacking options limited this season, Klopp may be hoping to integrate Woodburn into the first team and serve as back-up to the front three.

Indeed, the German waxed lyrical over the youngster just last year, hailing him as an “outstanding talent” (via Liverpool ECHO).

Sadio Mane was recently ruled out of action due to a positive Covid-19 test. Diogo Jota has the left-wing covered but an injury to Mohamed Salah could be detrimental. Klopp and Edwards may be working on a clever ruse to flip Woodburn’s career on its head and see him become a regular senior player.

In other news, Michael Edwards pulled off some of his best work with Liverpool’s Christian Benteke sale…

Tottenham Hotspur are seemingly about to revisit the Serie A in pursuit of their next signing…

What’s the word?

According to Calciomercato.it, the north Londoners are one of the teams keeping tabs on the future of Fiorentina colossus Nikola Milenkovic ahead of a potential move.

It’s claimed that the 23-year-old isn’t keen to renew his current contract in Florence with it set to expire in 18 months – with Spurs, Manchester United, Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid hot on his heels, he could leave the club sooner rather than later.

London rivals West Ham United were in firm talks to sign the Serbian international during the summer, but David Sullivan baulked at their asking price of £25m plus £10m in add-ons, as per Jim White.

Better than Skriniar?

The Italian top-flight is evidently a hot-bed for defensive talent right now and Spurs have been here before, also during the latest window when they failed to secure a move for Inter’s Milan Skriniar.

Chief scout Steve Hitchen met with the Serie A giants but was unprepared to fork out €60m (£54m) upfront, according to Italian transfer guru Gianluca Di Marzio.

Well, that may have turned out to be a masterstroke as La Viola’s 6 foot 5 man-mountain has been the better performer this season.

In comparison to Skriniar, Milenkovic has averaged more tackles (2.2), interceptions (2.2), blocks (1.5) and aerial duels won (3.5) per game. He has even conceded fewer fouls (1.2) and has both scored and assisted this term, via WhoScored.

The Inter Milan star hasn’t even recorded a tackle in the league this season.

Given his nationality and imposing stature, the colossal defender has been likened to Nemanja Vidic, though journalist Dejan Stankovic believes he’s even more than that.

“Milenkovic is better than Vidic with the ball at his feet, and he is much calmer on the field. He is the most talented centre-back Serbia have had since Vidic, and they definitely have one thing in common – both are fearless.”

His former boss at Partizan, Ivan Tomic, speaks in a very similar nature about Milenkovic too, adding: “Milenkovic has [the] physical characteristics of a beast. He reads the game well, plays the ball, and should have a great career ahead of him.”

He could be available for slightly cheaper than Skirniar and he’s performed much better. This seems like a no-brainer for Daniel Levy to make this January – even after the addition of Joe Rodon.

AND in other news, Mourinho may regret the failure to land £18m brute who’s shades of Drogba…

Former Bari sporting director Stefano Antonelli has claimed that Udinese were keen on selling Rodrigo de Paul to Leeds United during the European transfer window.

Spending just under £100m during the transfer window, Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa was also linked with a move for De Paul but nothing materialised before Monday’s deadline passed.

With interest in the Argentine midfielder emerging over the last month, Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Graham Smyth opened up about the potential of a bid, claiming that such interest had been used as a ‘smokescreen’ by the Elland Road outfit as they looked at other targets.

That being said, Viola News claimed the interest was ‘genuine’ with the Udinese midfielder’s agent reportedly waiting for the nod from the English club.

Udinese happy to sell £27m-valued De Paul to Leeds

De Paul, who netted seven goals and supplied six assists in Serie A last term, is valued at £27m by Transfermarkt. It has now been claimed by Antonelli that Udinese were happy to sell the midfielder to Leeds if the right price was agreed.

Antonelli is quoted as telling Italian outlet Tutto Mercato (via Inside Futbol): “I have been working there for 21 years with continuity and I know the Pozzo family, they have always been a selling club.

“If they had the right offer they would have sold him because they know cycles end.

“They know De Paul’s cycle is over, but an offer never arrived.”

After missing out on a potential deal for De Paul, Bielsa is now reportedly keen to bring in young Norwich midfielder Todd Cantwell with personal terms said to have been agreed prior to next Friday’s closure of the domestic transfer window.

No De Paul, no problem

A move for De Paul would certainly have handed Bielsa an additional attacking threat, but having spent substantially during the transfer window, a big-money move for the Udinese man could have been frivolous.

Indeed, Cantwell may be a better option, considering he performed well at Carrow Road last season despite Norwich’s relegation.

Leeds have been in good form so far this season and Bielsa will not want to change too much at present with things going so well.

Do you think De Paul would have been a good signing for Leeds? Let us know in the comments section below…

Leeds United fans have every right to feel miffed after their move for Michael Cuisance collapsed at the 11th hour.

The Whites looked to be on to a winner when trying to sign the former European Golden Boy nominee, but the deal fell through due to problems with his medical.

We don’t have all of the information at the moment about why his medical went awry, but we can only assume that Leeds had a good reason to pull the plug.

While missing out on Cuisance is something of a blow, the fact that the club haven’t jumped the gun and signed a player who may have fitness problems is a good sign.

The Whites have been stung before when signing a player who wasn’t fit enough to come into the team with Jean-Kevin Augustin’s fitness being questioned by Marcelo Bielsa almost immediately after he signed, and a string of further problems meant that the RB Leipzig man failed to start a single game during his loan spell.

Perhaps a medical that didn’t take place in a hotel room would have seen these problems come to light before Leeds agreed to sign him, giving the Whites time and money to spend on another striker who could’ve made more of an impact.

In the end, it didn’t matter too much, as Patrick Bamford proved to be good enough to lead the line in United’s promotion push, but Augustin’s failing still has to go down as a black mark on Leeds’ recent transfer record.

Luckily, Leeds seem to have been a lot more stringent this time around, and they may well have just avoided another Augustin-type scenario by doing their due-diligence on Cuiscance’s medical.

With the start of the Premier League just this weekend, there are plenty of talking points to take from the opening weekend of fixtures.

But nothing is more exciting to talk about when it comes to the Premier League than Fantasy Premier League football. It always comes up in conversation each game week – “how did your team do this weekend?”, or “mate I’ve absolutely wasted my triple captain this weekend, Kane had a stinker!”.

Despite this, it’s always good to evaluate your options and find some of the bargains buys that could save you cash and get you the points you still need. The midfield is an area that requires some of your most money spent – with many people filling it out with some of the best players in the league, and then scrimping and scrapping to fill the rest of the midfield spots.

That’s why today, we’re going to take a look at four of the best midfield options to choose from this season – ranging from all prices and from a mix of clubs in the league…

Leandro Trossard – £6.0m

The Belgian midfielder had a moderate season last time out, securing five goals with three assists – and accumulating 104 points in FPL.

During that time though, we were able to see glimpses of just how talented the 25-year-old is, and this season with the club’s new signings and Potter’s style of play slowly taking form, I can see Trossard enjoying a fruitful season.

At just £6.0m and with only 0.4% selection, Trossard is  a hidden gem that has gone under the radar.

Pablo Hernandez – £6.0m

After Leeds’s promotion to the Premier League, midfielder Pablo Hernández played an integral part in getting them there.

Many Premier League fans will remember him from his time at Swansea, but since joining Leeds in 2016 the 35-year-old has matured like a fine wine.

Last season saw the Spaniard register nine goals with nine assists and will only cost you £6.0m if you were to slot him into your team, much like the other 2.1% of people have.

Mohamed Salah – £12.0m

Despite being the joint highest expensive midfielder in FPL, Mo Salah has been a shoo-in for me ever since he joined Liverpool.

Last season was the Egyptian’s worst since joining the Reds in 2017, yet he still managed to score 19 goals and provide 10 assists, totaling to 233 points.

His cost of £12.0m has been enough to put a lot of users off him this season for some strange reason, only being selected by 30.8% – but I assure you that the 28-year-old is a must in anyone’s squad.

And that was backed up on the opening weekend, with the forward netting a hat-trick and 20 FPL points against Leeds United.

Bukayo Saka – £5.5m

The youngster impressed a lot of people last season, including Mikel Arteta, for his versatility and creativity no matter where he was on the pitch.

Scoring once and providing five assists in 26 appearances, most of which came from left-back, Saka managed 71 FPL points in that time – but it is this season that will see the 19-year-old make the biggest jump.

Arteta is expected to keep Saka in his starting XI, given the defensive additions made this summer as well as Kieran Tierney now being fully fit – meaning a more advanced position for Saka to up his goal and assist tally could be up for grabs.

At just £5.5m, Saka is a bargain choice and is only selected by 8.9% of other users.

Liverpool are back in the running to pursue global talent Kylian Mbappe, according to French media.

The reigning Premier League champions are reportedly eyeing up a deal for the Frenchman and are said to be in talks over a 2021 move. That’s according to L’Equipe (relayed via @LFCTransferRoom), who claim Real Madrid are also fond admirers of the forward.

This isn’t the first time Liverpool have been mentioned alongside Mbappe. The Reds have been loosely linked to him throughout the year, but no talks of an official move have surfaced. A plot to land the 21-year-old next summer could mean that they are serious about bringing him to Merseyside.

Mbappe is currently valued at a whopping £162million and Paris Saint-Germain will almost certainly not let him go cheap. However, what is likely to be an astronomical price tag is more than justified. The young star boasts 91 goals and 51 assists for PSG in 125 appearances, as well as 27 goals and 16 assists in 60 Monaco games (via Transfermarkt).

This link has got Liverpool supporters fanning themselves as they imagine bringing Mbappe to Anfield. One fan has tweeted ‘be still my beating heart’, with another pondering over a potential deal.

They feel that ‘Edwards surely could get him’ for an initial up front payment and then the rest coming through instalments.

Read more replies from the Anfield faithful here:

Do you think Liverpool can land Kylian Mbappe next year? Join the conversation in the comments!

Everton are undergoing a total midfield revamp this summer with the likes of Allan, James Rodriguez and Abdoulaye Doucoure all expected through the door at Goodison Park, so perhaps latest reports come as a bit of a surprise…

What’s the word?

According to Mundo Deportivo (via Sport Witness), the Hammers hold interest in Barcelona outcast Rafinha and he’s one of many players they are looking to sell.

It’s claimed that the La Liga giants want a fee of €16m (£14.25m) for the 27-year-old with West Ham, Arsenal and Lazio also mooted as possible destinations.

Rafinha’s contract expires next summer and having come through the La Masia academy, he has gone out on loan three times from the Nou Camp.

Shades of 2017

If Marcel Brands and Carlo Ancelotti are successful in their triple swoop as mentioned above, then a move for Rafinha doesn’t really make too much sense as there will be midfielders aplenty in Merseyside.

This very much feels like a move former director of football Steve Walsh would make – the man who splashed around £150m before being sacked with the Toffees practically out of every competition possible.

During that summer, he signed Sandro Ramirez, who has gone on to cost the club in excess of £16m despite only playing a total of 16 matches.

It’s thought that Rafinha is on around €75k-per-week (£66.7k-per-week) at Barcelona, which is a substantial amount for someone that would be a back up at best.

Not to forget that the Toffees still have the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Andre Gomes at the club, even if they sign those three midfielders.

During his loan spell at Celta, Rafinha only averaged 0.8 key passes and delivered just the one assist from 29 appearances, via WhoScored.

It just reeks of being a 2017-esque transfer disaster, so Everton ought to avoid this move at all costs.

AND in other news, Ancelotti suffers a blow as Toffees need to pay up for summer target…

Tottenham Hotspur are the overwhelming ‘favourites’ to sign Southampton star Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg this summer, reports say. 

Jose Mourinho has identified Hojbjerg as the missing piece of the puzzle he needs to rebuild Tottenham’s midfield.

According to The Athletic, as relayed by Ricky Sacks, Spurs are the front-runners to complete his signing in the summer, amid interest from Everton.

Carlo Ancelotti has wasted no time at all in trying to sign the Danish international, as the Toffees have already submitted a £14m bid for his signature.

Southampton initially valued him at £25m in January, although they are now willing to accept £20m for him as circumstances have changed, but Everton’s offer has still fallen short.

The Dane has set his sights on a move to Spurs over any other club, as he is keen to learn from Mourinho.

Hojberg, 24, has played 33 games in the Premier League this season, supplying one assist, taking 1.4 shots, winning 2.4 tackles and completing 1.5 clearances per game on average (stats provided by WhoScored).

Ralph Hassenhuttl removed the captain’s armband from the midfielder after he refused to sign a new deal at St Mary’s, and he even suffered the ignominy of being dropped from the squad altogether, although he played the full 90 minutes at right-back in the 1-1 draw with Brighton.

While he will not be available for a cut-price deal as Spurs had initially hoped, he should be more than affordable, as Daniel Levy spent £53.8m on Tanguy Ndombele last year.

A move for Hojbjerg could see Kyle Walker-Peters head in the opposite direction, although the Lilywhites have not launched a formal bid as of yet.

Spurs could see a changing of the guard if Hojbjerg arrives in north London in the summer, as former Pochettino favourite Harry Winks could be forced to make way, while questions remain over Ndombele’s future at the club.

Tottenham fans, do you think Daniel Levy should sign Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the summer? Let us know down below!