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Aston Villa have contacted Paris Saint-Germain over a possible move for goalkeeper Sergio Rico, according to journalist Matteo Moretto.

The Lowdown: Randolph, Olsen links

Villa have already brought in Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Digne this month and seemingly now want to add to their back-up goalkeeping ranks before the window slams shut.

West Ham’s Darren Randolph and Sheffield United’s Robin Olsen have been two shot-stoppers linked with a move to the Midlands, but Johan Lange is now looking abroad with PSG’s Rico.

The Spaniard is on £41,000-a-week in France and has made just one Ligue 1 appearance this season, so it would make sense for the Parisians to cash in.

The Latest: Moretto’s post

Moretto took to Twitter on Thursday afternoon, claiming Villa have contacted PSG over an initial loan with the option to buy the 28-year-old.

However, Rico wants regular game time, so a move to Mallorca appears to be his preference.

“Sergio Rico’s priority is to play regularly and that is why he prioritizes signing for Mallorca. In the last hours Aston Villa appeared, who contacted PSG offering a loan with an option to buy, but the English team already has Martínez as the owner of the project.”

The Verdict: Not likely?

A move to Villa Park for Rico doesn’t look promising due to his playing wishes and Emiliano Martinez firmly first choice at Villa Park.

On that basis, it may be wise to go back in for Randolph, who is used to serving as back-up at the London Stadium.

He’ll already know the area well following his stint with Birmingham City and would offer more experience than current back-up Jed Steer.

Villa ware certainly on the chase for a second choice ‘keeper though, so it could be one to track closely.

In other news: ‘Really?’ – Many Villa fans react to who could now leave after El Ghazi. 

While Celtic have seen their league form drastically improve under the leadership of Ange Postecoglou in recent months, with the Bhoys remaining undefeated over the last eight Premiership fixtures, the 56-year-old Hoops manager will nevertheless be aware that his side will face one of their sterner tests of the season at Parkhead this evening.

Indeed, Robbie Neilson’s Heart of Midlothian side have also been incredibly impressive in the current campaign, sitting just two points behind Celtic in the league, as well as having already taken three points off of the Bhoys on the opening day of the season.

As such, Postecoglou will know that he must get his team selection spot on against Hearts if he is to have any hope of his side reducing the gap between them the current Premiership leaders, with one player who the Greek-Australian coach simply must call upon tonight being Nir Bitton.

Game-changer

With Tom Rogic’s hamstring injury leaving Celtic somewhat short in the middle of the park, Postecoglou opted to slightly change his setup in the middle of the park, playing the more defensively-minded Bitton in place of the 28-year-old attacking midfielder.

And, while this change would, on the surface, appear to make the Bhoys more defensive, Bitton has in fact flourished in the absence of Rogic, with the 30-year-old being one of the Hoops’ most impressive players over the last four fixtures.

Indeed, in this period, the £720k-rated Israel international has enjoyed 353 touches of the ball, completed 269 passes, made 15 tackles and won a whopping 31 duels, with these metrics seeing the £14k-per-week midfielder average a SofaScore match rating of 7.33.

As such, while both Bitton and Rogic look as if they will be available for selection against Hearts this evening, Postecoglou simply must unleash Bitton ahead of the Australia international.

Not only would he help to solidify Celtic against a side who have already scored 25 goals in the league, the man the 56-year-old manager himself dubbed “influential” has also proven to be something of a game-changer in the middle of the park in the absence of Rogic.

In other news: Celtic handed big transfer boost ahead of January, fans will be elated

Barcelona have agreed terms with Manchester City forward Ferran Torres and the Catalan giants are still pushing for a deal to be made following a failed bid, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Torres arrived in Manchester during the summer 2020 transfer window in a deal worth £25.2m. The 21-year-old has enjoyed a fine start to life in England; in 43 matches for the club, he has scored 16 goals and produced four assists. That is despite starting just 19 top-flight games in almost a year and a half at the Etihad Stadium.

However, the youngster is currently out injured with a fractured foot, having missed 16 games as a result, and it is still unclear as to when he will be able to return. Despite this setback, Barcelona are very interested in luring the Spain international to the Camp Nou in the January transfer window.

These Man City fans erupt at Romano’s claim

According to reports by Romano, Barcelona are pushing to make a deal with City for the winger and have made a €50m (£42.7m) bid, whilst the Premier League champions hold their price tag at €60m (£51.3m). Despite this, Torres has already agreed personal terms with the La Liga club.

In response to Romano’s tweet, a number of City fans flocked to the comments to usher the process along in the hope that a deal could be done to fund moves for reported targets such as Dusan Vlahovic and Erling Haaland.

Here’s what some fans said:

“take the 50m and run blud, he isn’t worth more than that”

Credit: @EBH15_

“There’s still hope”

Credit: @mcfcmam

“Get it done and bring home Erling”

Credit: @cityzen017

“have fun in the Europa League”

Credit: @slawoid

“Sell Torres 60m, get Vlahovic in for 70”

Credit: @MCFCSaad2

“Let him go.. there are players who are so much better than him in our squad!!”

Credit: @ajacob310

In other news: ‘Ballon d’Or pending, ‘In his own league’ – These Man City fans swoon over ‘unstoppable’ beast

Newcastle United are currently enduring a difficult season in the Premier League as they sit rooted to the bottom of the table.

The Magpies are winless in their first 12 matches and are in the bottom three alongside Dean Smith’s Norwich and Sean Dyche’s Burnley.

Despite their rough campaign so far, one player has been able to stand out as a consistent performer in the team – Allan Saint-Maximin. He has averaged a superb WhoScored rating of 7.29, with three goals and three assists in the top-flight.

Dream deal

Newcastle sealed a dream deal when they landed the Frenchman two years ago. The club reportedly paid £16.5m to sign him from OGC Nice in the summer of 2019. He came to Tyneside off the back of managing nine goals and 12 assists in his last two Ligue 1 seasons for Nice, showing off his ability to make things happen in the final third.

The 24-year-old ended his first campaign at St. James’ Park with five goals and seven assists in all competitions, dazzling supporters with his incredible dribbling skills. He averaged a whopping 4.7 completed dribbles per game in the Premier League, with an average rating of 7.29, showing his ability to take players on and get fans off their seats.

Speaking of which, earlier this year, Steve Bruce reserved high praise for the Frenchman, whilst ruling out a sale for him over the summer. He told The Mirror:

“You can never say never but absolutely, 100%, I will say that we are keeping him.

“I said when I walked through the door two years ago, and he did too, that the supporters will enjoy watching him.

“Whether you’re a Newcastle fan or not he’s worth his admission fee alone, isn’t he? In terms of his trickery, pace and power, he’s such a natural footballer, the kid.”

To date, Saint-Maximin has racked up 24 direct goal contributions for Newcastle, with ten strikes and 14 assists in all competitions for the Magpies. This has led to his Transfermarkt value rocketing up to an impressive £27m, an improvement on the £16.5m they reportedly paid for his services.

At the age of 24, he could also have more growth to go through as a player. This means that, if managed correctly, his value could continue to soar if he is able to increase his numbers in the final third by adding more goals and assists to his game.

Therefore, Newcastle sealed a dream deal when they brought him to the club as they landed a quality young player with the potential to progress and be worth far more than they paid for.

AND in other news, Howe may find Janmaat 2.0 in NUFC deal for “underrated” £30m gem, fans would love him…

A number of Liverpool supporters are furious that Mohamed Salah only finished seventh in the Ballon d’Or voting on Monday evening.

The 29-year-old has arguably been the greatest player of the Jurgen Klopp era at Anfield, producing world-class brilliance on a consistent basis.

This season, Salah has been as good as ever, scoring 17 goals already and being called the world’s best player by some.

[freshpress-quiz id=“375258″]

From a Liverpool perspective, there was hope that the Egyptian superstar could scoop the prestigious Ballon d’Or on Monday following a memorable year.

As relayed by the club’s official Twitter channel, though, Salah could only finish seventh in the voting, somehow finishing behind sixth-placed Cristiano Ronaldo. The Liverpool star has 18 goal contributions in the Premier League already this term compared to the Manchester United forward’s six, along with netting 15 goals from January to May 2021.

It was Lionel Messi who scooped his seventh Ballon D’Or and the hope is that Salah can take it home this time next year.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-13/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Liverpool fans angry at Salah ranking

These Liverpool fans on Twitter reacted angrily to Salah’s final ranking in the award standings.

“Absolute joke this. If Mo played for Barcelona or Real Madrid he’d be the winner! Sour grapes from the powers that be! Fix! Corrupt! Congratulations though Mo..we love you. You are ours.”

Credit: @Paulieb668

“An absolute disgrace”

Credit: @DoddzyYNWA

“FIFA robbed him, he should have finished ahead of CR7”

Credit: @Tracy_Kesh

“What a joke”

Credit: @emmmmmmmzy

“Best player on the planet rn finishes 7th”

Credit: @Jack8Richards

“Easily the most disrespected player on the planet”

Credit: @Olly_Boulton

In other news, some Liverpool fans are excited about a Reds transfer rumour. Read more here.

Rangers boss Steven Gerrard has delivered an injury update on Leon Balogun…

What’s the latest?

The 41-year-old has revealed that the Nigeria international felt something in his hamstring against Brondby, forcing him to be withdrawn in the second half.

Balogun scored the opening goal on Thursday night with a fine header from James Tavernier’s cross before limping off in the 64th minute. Gerrard has said that he is “praying” it is nothing serious, but they will not know until they do further tests.

He told The Herald: “We are hoping we have got to it before there is a tweak or any muscle damage.

“We are hoping it is a little bit of tightness and we will know in the next 24 hours. I will certainly be praying tonight. He felt something in his hamstring. That’s what he came off with, but he wasn’t sure if he felt something or whether it was a bit of tightness.

“We will work that out in the next 24 hours and hopefully he will pull through because he is important for us. I thought his performance was top tonight as well.”

Gutting blow for Gers fans

Rangers fans will surely be left feeling gutted after reading these worrying quotes from Gerrard. Whilst he has not ruled out an immediate return to action this weekend, the Gers boss has left it open-ended by refusing to make a prediction on how serious the blow will be for the defender.

This means that supporters could start to worry about Balogun’s situation and how many games he could miss. Even if he sits out one match for Rangers, fans could be dismayed as he is a terrific player for the club and an important cog in the defensive unit.

Balogun’s average SofaScore rating of 7.47 in the Europa League this season is the highest in the Rangers squad and his score of 7.11 ranks him fifth in terms of outfield players in the Premiership. This highlights the level of quality he brings to the side and why it is gutting news that he has picked up a hamstring injury on Thursday night.

The 33-year-old has made three tackles and interceptions combined, along with 3.9 clearances and 4.3 aerial duels won per game in the Premiership this season. His outstanding defending has helped Rangers to the top of the table and his impressive statistics show why his injury will be a big blow for Gerrard if it ends up keeping him out for a period of time.

AND in other news, Forget Kemar Roofe: Rangers dynamo with six dribbles stole the show against Brondby…

There are plenty of ways for Rangers to raise money to fund transfers to bolster their squad, whether by winning trophies or securing sponsorship deals or ticket sales.

One of the most lucrative ways of raising funds in football is player trading, signing and selling players and attempting to make a profit to then sign upgrades further down the line.

This is why Ross Wilson’s role as the club’s sporting director is integral to the long-term success at Ibrox, as he needs to ensure that he is planning for the future with his signings as well as for the here-and-now for Steven Gerrard.

Wilson masterclass

Wilson has pulled off a masterclass in this respect with the signing of Fashion Sakala from Belgian club Oostende in the summer. The Zambia international ticks a number of boxes for Rangers in terms of what they should be looking for in a signing – young, potential, cheap, on the up.

His contract expired at the end of last season and Rangers were able to swoop in and snap him up on a free transfer, with the 24-year-old putting pen to paper on a five-year deal.

The Belgian outfit signed him from Spartak Moscow’s reserves in 2018 and he produced 11 goals in his first 52 league appearances for the club. By the end of his second season, Transfermarkt valued him at a measly £1.08m.

He then managed 16 goals and five assists in 34 games for Oostende in the 2020/21 campaign, culminating in his transfer to Rangers, and his value soared between last October 2020 and this month. At the time of writing (30/10/21), Transfermarkt value him at £3.6m, which means that his valuation has soared 233% in just one year, proving that he is a player on the rise and growing in value.

Wilson hailed the attacker as determined and humble in Rangers’ official unveiling of Sakala’s arrival at the club in the summer.

The sporting director said: “Fashion has had an excellent season in Belgium and we believe he will develop further still working with all of our staff at the training ground. Fashion is a determined, humble and positive guy and we are sure he will fit the group here.

“We wanted to add more pace and power to the group across January and the summer and I am pleased that we have done that, firstly with Scott Wright and now with Fashion Sakala. I know Steven and the coaches are excited to work with Fashion and I am sure that he will further enhance his growing reputation here with Rangers.”

The 24-year-old has shown signs of promise in his early Rangers career. He has averaged a solid SofaScore rating of 6.77 across seven Premiership appearances, including two starts, with one goal and one assist to date. This suggests that there is potential there for him to become a useful player for the Gers in the future.

Therefore, Wilson has pulled off a masterclass with Sakala as he has been able to bring in a player on a free transfer whose value has been soaring over the past 12 months, whilst also having the ability to make an impact on the pitch for Rangers. This could duly aid the club in the future if they are able to get the best out of him while at Ibrox and perhaps make a huge profit on him further down the line.

AND in other news, Gerrard could unearth Charlie Adam 2.0 in Rangers gem with “great future in the game”…

Many Everton fans have been left buzzing as transfer news emerged on Franck Kessie.

As per a report this week by 90min, which has since been shared by Toffee TV on their Twitter page, the Goodison Park club – as well as Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, and Leicester City – are monitoring his situation at AC Milan, where he has yet to agree to sign a new deal with his contract expiring next summer.

Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint Germain have all enquired about Kessie, but a move to the Premier League is high on the wish list for the Ivory Coast international, who struck 14 goals last season for the Rossoneri despite playing as a defensively-orientated midfielder.

Given the calibre of competition for his signature, and the fact that he is currently playing in the UEFA Champions League, it would be quite the coup for the Merseyside club if they were able to snap him up.

Everton fans on Kessie transfer news

These Toffees fans buzzed as the transfer news was shared on Twitter, with one claiming that they were ‘excited’ and another describing it as ‘awesome’:

“PLEASE”

Credit: @29tooffeeezz

“I heard this the other day before their match last night in which he got sent off. Once Everton has touched you ……. (P.S would be an awesome signing to be fair)”

Credit: @joshhodge81

“Absolute masterstroke if we pull that off”

Credit: @_EvertonTheGear

“JUST INJECT HIM IN TO MY VEINS!! He’s great on the counter which is what this team needs. There are critics to his tackling ability but we have that bulldog Allan to help with that. Please @Everton get this man!!!!!!”

Credit: @GeezyEFC

“I wish mate, imagine Allan, Doucoure and Kessie in midfield”

Credit: @JoeyOconnor22

“Don’t even get me excited like that!!”

Credit: @EFCDayne

In other news, find out what contract news has had these Everton fans buzzing

Manchester United’s winless run in the Premier League extended to three games after they fell to a hugely disappointing 4-2 defeat against Leicester City this afternoon.

The Foxes scored two late goals to snatch a deserved victory against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s charges, with strikes from Jamie Vardy and Patson Daka securing all three points.

In truth, no United player can be proud of their showing at the King Power Stadium, but some members of the back four were particularly disappointing.

Right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka was poor in possession, completing just 50% of his dribbles and failing to pick out a teammate with any of his three attempted crosses, but it was Harry Maguire who really had an afternoon to forget.

The Red Devils captain was returning the starting line-up after being sidelined with a calf injury, and the 28-year-old looked extremely rusty against his former club.

Leicester forward Kelechi Iheanacho dispossessed the centre-back on the edge of his own box after he misjudged the weight of a David de Gea pass, setting up Youri Tielemans for the Foxes’ equaliser after Mason Greenwood had opened the scoring.

However, things went from bad to worse for the England defender. He needlessly put the ball out for a Leicester corner under no pressure in the 78th minute and was unable to clear his lines after the ball had been swung into United’s box leading to Caglar Soyuncu smashing the ball home from close range.

His desperately poor display saw SofaScore award Maguire a match rating of just 6.1 out of 10, the lowest received by any player on the pitch. During the 90 minutes, he won just 56% of his duels, made one error leading directly to a goal and was dribbled past on one occasion, highlighting his underwhelming performance at the King Power Stadium.

Questions will be asked over whether Maguire should have been starting so soon after coming back from an injury, but the 6 foot 3 gem let Solskjaer down against Leicester, piling further pressure on the Norwegian.

In other news… MUFC could secure their next Pogba in “devastating” £74k-p/w gem, Ole would love him 

Manchester United will be aiming to kick off their Champions League campaign in impressive fashion when they take on Swiss outfit Young Boys this evening.

The Red Devils have picked up 10 points from a possible 12 in the opening weeks of the Premier League season, and transferring that form onto the European stage will be Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s next task.

United were hugely underwhelming in this competition last term, bowing out in the group stage after making a solid start, with Paris Saint-Germain and RB Leipzig progressing at their expense.

However, with a slightly easier group on paper this time around, the Old Trafford outfit are expected to advance to the knockout stages with minimal fuss, but Solskjaer will be without a handful of first-team stars for this clash at the Wankdorf Stadium as Edinson Cavani has joined Scott McTominay and Marcus Rashford on the treatment table.

With that in mind, here’s how Football FanCast expects the Red Devils to line up against their Swiss opponents in today’s early evening kick-off…

In goal, Spain international David de Gea is set to keep his place between the sticks despite Dean Henderson’s recovery from a viral infection after making a strong start to the season.

Ahead of him will be the same back four which has started the last two league fixtures, with Luke Shaw, Harry Maguire, Raphael Varane and Aaron Wan-Bissaka showing promise as a defensive unit.

The engine room is where Solskjaer really has some big decisions to make. Nemanja Matic formed a double pivot alongside Paul Pogba over the weekend, but the £7.2m-rated Serbian could make way for Fred in the middle of the pitch.

That should mean Pogba keeps his place alongside the reinstated Brazilian, with England internationals Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood either side of Cristiano Ronaldo in attack and Bruno Fernandes just behind his Portuguese compatriot, who will hope to build on his two goals from his ‘second debut’ on Saturday.

And, in other news…Ole must keep faith with “outrageous” £175k-p/w gem, he could be MUFC’s game-changer