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Aston Villa are looking to land Rangers defender Leon King in a cut-price deal, Ashley Preece reports.

The Lowdown: King profiled

King is 17 years of age and is primarily a centre-back who can also line out at left-back when required. He has made two senior appearances for Rangers and was promoted to first team training during Steven Gerrard’s time at Ibrox, with the current Villa boss labelling him ‘superb’.

The teenager’s contract in Glasgow expires at the end of the season, and although Rangers are in talks with King over a new deal, it seems as if Villa are looking to take full advantage.

The Latest: Preece’s update

Preece took to Twitter hours before Villa’s game with Manchester City on Wednesday, revealing that Gerrard is looking to take advantage of the defender’s contract situation, with a cut-price deal in the region of £200,000 thought to be on the cards.

The journalist tweeted: “Some transfer news into @birmingham_live prior to kick-off as Gerrard looks to take full advantage of Leon King’s contract situation at Rangers. The 17-year-old was promoted to first-team sessions under SG. Cut-price deal for #avfc.”

The Verdict: Shrewd move

Gerrard is thought to be after a centre-back in the New Year, and although King may not be an immediate first team signing, you’d expect that he could break into his plans over the coming years.

The teenager is clearly a player who the 41-year-old rates after promoting him to first team training at Rangers, and the defender may prove to be a bargain for villa in a six-figure deal.

Manchester United are also thought to be keen on the youngster, which further shows how big a deal it could be in the long run if the Midlanders pull it off.

In other news: ‘Gerrard out’ – Many Villa fans erupt over club’s plans for ‘brilliant’ beast

A new loan ruling that is set to be implemented next season could have a big impact on Wolves, according to reliable journalist Tim Spiers.

The Lowdown: New loan ruling

According to The Athletic, clubs will be limited on the number of international players they can have out on loan in the future.

From next season, teams will only be allowed to have eight players on temporary moves elsewhere and that number will drop to six by 2024.

Wolves currently have ten players out on loan, highlighting how clubs will be affected by the new venture moving forward.

The Latest: Spiers reacts to claim

Taking to Twitter on Thursday, Spiers gave his thoughts on the news, discussing how it will impact on Wanderers’ business:

“New loan rules coming in next season which will impact Wolves, who had 10 players on loan overseas in the first half of the season (max of 8 next year then max 6 from 2024) and four at Grasshoppers (max 3 at one club).”

The Verdict: Good decision

In truth, it is healthy to see this ruling introduced, with the report correctly stating that it is a good way of preventing clubs from ‘stockpiling talent’.

It is good to see that players aged 21 and under won’t be affected, however, as loan moves can be healthy for their development, such as Wolves forward Theo Corbeanu, who is currently at MK Dons.

It will make teams think more about recruitment in general and potentially ensure they get the most out the players already in their ranks, rather than stockpiling players for purely financial reasons.

In other news, some Wolves fans have reacted to an exit rumour regarding one player. Find out who it is here.

There is now a growing belief at Tottenham Hotspur that Jose Mourinho will no longer be in charge next season.

That’s according to the ever-reliable Alasdair Gold of football.london, who dropped this bombshell over the weekend.

With only six games left to play in the Premier League, Spurs are five points adrift of West Ham and the top four, making Champions League qualification seem out of reach.

Whilst they’ve been knocked out of both the FA Cup and Europa League in what has been a dismal second half of their 2020/21 season.

One recurring issue has been defensive mistakes, with Mourinho unable to settle on a regular partnership at the back. Indeed, he’s utilised as many as 16 different defensive combinations, so it’s no wonder errors creep in and linger.

Spurs’ calamitous campaign has largely been summed up by their abysmal record when going in front – they have lost a whopping 20 points from winning positions, a feat that would see them occupy second place.

If Mourinho does leave, the new manager would need to alleviate this problem as their top priority, that’s for certain. But who?

Julian Nagelsmann is thought to be Daniel Levy’s top target should he hand the Portuguese his P45, though his inexperience in the Premier League has to be one concerning factor.

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His RB Leipzig team have the best defensive record in the Bundesliga but he’s got quality weapons at his disposal, with the likes of Dayot Upamecano and Ibrahima Konate all better options than Spurs’ current trio of Eric Dier, Toby Alderweireld and Davinson Sanchez.

Perhaps a manager who’s proven a little more with less resource in England is a better fix for this big issue.

Gold believes Fulham boss Scott Parker, who used to play for the Lilywhites, is one to keep an eye on as he still has “a lot of friends” at the club, and they’re monitoring his progress down the river.

Even though the Cottagers are in the relegation zone, he’s done a fantastic job to turn things around, especially defensively, where Lyon loanee Joachim Andersen has looked every bit like a future Premier League star – he’s someone Spurs could also look to sign in the summer, so maybe Levy should try and bring both to north London.

The Daily Mail have previously lauded the 40-year-old for his ‘defensive rebuild’ at Craven Cottage – when they went down in 2019, they leaked a whopping 81 goals. Now, they have the second-best record of any side 13th or below, having conceded only 43 times.

Parker has received glowing praise from two of the best in the English top-flight, too.

Pep Guardiola called him “incredibly good” and Jurgen Klopp echoed has such sentiments.

Perhaps Spurs ought to look to their former midfielder over Nagelsmann at this stage; he hasn’t spent bucketloads and the club’s hierarchy know what he can do all too well.

He could well be the lesser risk in comparison to Nagelsmann this summer.

AND in other news, Spurs can land Aurier upgrade in 22 y/o beast who’s made 74 tackles this term…

Former top flight goalkeeper Paddy Kenny believes Sadio Mane will sign a new Liverpool deal this summer after what he’s seen in recent weeks.

The Lowdown: Mane’s future up in the air

The Senegalese has returned to top form recently, scoring crucial goals against the likes of Manchester City and Manchester United, not to mention taking his tally for the season to 19 overall.

There is some concern surrounding Mane’s future at Liverpool, however, with his current deal expiring next year and a new contract not yet signed.

There appears to have been positive progress made in recent times, though, and the hope is that the situation is sorted in the near future.

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The Latest: Pundit confident of new deal

Speaking to Football Insider, Kenny, 43, dropped his verdict after seeing Mane’s red-hot recent form:

“He’s frighteningly good, isn’t he?”

“There is no way he’s leaving. Liverpool have one of the best attacks in the world and they don’t want to weaken that. He has proved how good he is over the last few weeks, not that we needed anymore proof.

“He’s one of the ones who is out of contract next summer so you would think Liverpool will want to tie him down with some of the goals he’s been scoring.

“I think that will get sorted. They want to keep Salah and Mane, those kinds of world-class players.”

The Verdict: No-brainer for Liverpool

There have been times when Mane has dropped below his absolute peak level, but his recent form is proof that he still has a huge amount to offer.

While 30 used to be seen as ‘old’ for a footballer, the likes of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Robert Lewandowski and Karim Benzema are proof that players can go well into their 30s now at the very highest level.

For that reason, giving Mane a new deal is a no-brainer for Liverpool, with the African superstar capable of being a force for three or four more years, at least.

In other news, another Premier League side could sign a Liverpool target. Find out who it is here.

Southampton fans have been reacting to the news that both they and Sheffield United have been charged after failing to control their players.

The Saints faced the Blades of Saturday March 6th, and ended up winning 2-0 thanks to goals from James Ward-Prowse and Che Adams. However, tempers flared in the latter stages of the game after John Fleck made a late and reckless challenge on Adams.

Both sides have now been charged by the FA after they were unable to control the tempers of their players (Sky Sports). As of yet, no punishment has been dished out.

The news was shared by Twitter account @SouthamptonPage, and it attracted plenty of attention from the Saints supporters. They took to the social media platform to share their thoughts, with plenty pointing the blame to the officiating, which has of course been abysmal throughout the season.

Let’s see what the Southampton fans had to say below

“And What did the VAR and the Ref fail to do”

Credit: @1960msr

“Literally nothing happened”

Credit: @Callum999

“Should charge the ref, dangerous tackle, Adams was lucky not to suffer serious injury”

Credit: @spmooney68

“Couldn’t handle Vestergod. Their problem…”

Credit: @SamuelR75523948

“I’ll be quite honest this made my day! Finally some passion and fight more please!!”

Credit: @Watcha_Dave

“What a joke! Nothing in it except a bit of passion after a late challenge. Nobody was sent off which shows there wasn’t that much in it. The FA need to put more of their time into sanctioning players who have been seen to diving & cheating”

Credit: @andrewwells68

In other news, Southampton fans react to news on this defender.

Ange Postecoglou has only been Celtic manager for a small period of time but he’s already living up to his opening day promise.

After being announced as the new boss, he declared that the Hoops needed to crack on with their transfer business ahead of a busy window.

What’s the word?

One area of concern for the Bhoys will be in attack where Postecoglou and Dominic McKay will need to act quickly to replace the outgoing Odsonne Edouard.

The Frenchman is reportedly on the verge of joining Leicester in a £15m deal but it doesn’t look as though they’ll use that sum to find a replacement.

Instead, the recruitment team are working on a free transfer in the shape of Charlie Wyke.

Football Insider reported this week that talks are now underway to lure him to Parkhead with his contract expiring with Sunderland at the end of the month.

The outlet suggests Celtic will make a concrete offer to the forward during the course of this week.

A great fit for Postecoglou

The Australian may rely on a quick and frantic style of football but Wyke would offer something Celtic don’t have in attack right now; an aerial ability.

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Edouard has always been a big physical presence in the final third but his heading ability isn’t the most natural.

Leigh Griffiths prefers to play with the ball on the deck while the less said about Albian Ajeti’s time in Glasgow, the better.

Standing at 6 foot 2, Wyke is a dominating figure in the box, capable of brushing defenders to one side with ease.

He is a monster in the air but he also knows how to find the back of the net with his feet as well.

The Sunderland forward scored 31 goals last term, netting 26 in the third tier of English football. Remarkably, 12 of those strikes came with his head.

Described as “clinical” by Mackems boss Lee Johnson, Wyke has a wonderful habit of being in the right place at the right time.

He makes clever runs to the near post and holds the ball up tremendously well. In winning 4.8 aerial duels per match this term, no attacker at Celtic even comes close to replicating that.

Mohamed Elyounoussi had the best aerial ability from an offensive point of view last term, winning just 1.5 battles per match.

With that in mind, this transfer has the potential to be absolutely game-changing for Postecoglou and his coaching staff.

AND in other news, McKay must complete Celtic move for 42-cap beast who dubbed Postecoglou “intimidating”…

Tottenham Hotspur have received some rather encouraging news…

What’s the word?

According to Italian transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, Spurs star Heung-min Son is expected to sign a new long-term contract, having held talks with the club since December.

He tweeted:

“Heung-min Son is expected to sign soon his new contract with Tottenham, negotiations going on since December and now all parties confident to complete the agreement.

“Son is staying at Tottenham, higher salary and new long-term agreement.”

The 28-year-old forward originally joined the North London outfit in a £22m deal from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2015 and is thought to currently be on around £140k-per-week.

Fonseca boost

After all the disappointment throughout the 2020/21 campaign, this is finally some great news for the Lilywhites faithful, and it’ll also hand their incoming new manager Paulo Fonseca an instant boost.

There are doubts over the future of Harry Kane after Sky Sports reported that he had expressed his desire to leave the club this summer.

That, combined with a seventh-place finish and yet another season without silverware, would surely be enough to put any key man off sticking around – but not Son.

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Valued at a whopping £76.5m, the 91-cap South Korean international is one of Spurs’ most influential and biggest players. He has provided 107 goals and 64 assists across 280 appearances, which is one direct goal contribution every one-and-a-half matches, via Transfermarkt.

He has formed a pretty lucrative partnership with Kane over the years, too. And that reached a new level early last season, where the pair broke a Premier League record to become the most prolific duo in any season, beating Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton from 1994/95.

Son’s importance to this Spurs squad was also displayed by the fact that he was one of their most creative options, finishing the campaign with a squad-high two key passes per game, on top of providing ten assists.

On his own, he provided nearly 40% of all their goals scored during last term.

Fonseca will surely be delighted to know that he will arrive at Tottenham with Son on the verge of being tied down for the long term. It gives him one less thing to worry about and of course, hands him a beast who will play a big part in his team.

This latest Hotspur Way development is exciting news for everyone.

AND in other news, Paratici could finally axe Lamela with Spurs swoop for “magical” £26m-rated “prodigy”…

Speaking to Football Insider, reacting to reports West Ham have made contact over a potential summer deal for Mislav Orsic, Sky Sports regular Paul Robinson has been left wowed by the 19-goal forward and his impressive show reel.

Orsic, primarily played on the left wing but can drive through the middle, has apparently been at the centre of West Ham interest recently – with GSB even making contact over a possible transfer for the 28-year-old according to another report by Football Insider.

Speaking to the outlet, Robinson has been left baffled by Orsic and his ability – with the pundit certainly rating him judging by what he’s seen.

Robinson stunned by Orsic

The Croatian’s stunning Europa League hat-trick dumped London rivals Tottenham Hotspur out of the Europa League, with Jose Mourinho unable to hold a two-goal first leg lead.

“His shooting ability was there for all to see,” Robinson told Football Insider.

“I mean wow, he scored some fantastic goals.

“He is not a player we know a lot about in England given that he’s playing for Dinamo Zagreb but those goals showed you a lot. I watched his showreel after that and I was impressed.

“He is clearly a player with an abundance of talent and with an eye for goal.

“He used that stage to put himself in the thoughts of Premier League teams.”

Transfer Tavern take

Whether or not West Ham end up doing a deal for Orsic this summer remains to be seen, but it seems Robinson would certainly approve of the switch.

Valued at just £6.75 million by Transfermarkt, it’s clear Zagreb may want much more for their star striker.

In other news: West Ham fans flocked to this transfer report, find out more here.

Former Celtic striker and Football Insider pundit Frank McAvennie has been giving his thoughts on Conor McGregor’s recent off-field Hoops claim.

The Lowdown: McGregor’s ‘conversation’

McGregor posted on Twitter in the early hours of Monday morning, admitting that he has had a ‘conversation’ on acquiring shares from Celtic owner Dermot Desmond. The UFC star didn’t specify as to when those talks took place, adding that he would be interested in investing in a sports team, with Manchester United also name-checked.

The 32-year-old was revealed as the highest-paid athlete in the world in recent days, and it appears as if he is keen to make his mark away from the Octagon in the future with shares in a sports team.

The Latest: McAvennie stunned

McAvennie was talking to Football Insider regarding McGregor’s recent claim. The 61-year-old admitted that it ‘would be incredible for Celtic’ and dropped an inside claim on Desmond, revealing that he isn’t aware of the 70-year-old willing to sell his shares.

The former Hoops striker said:

“Nah, no chance. Not a chance.

“It’s all hype, good publicity. Conor is brilliant in his field and he’s got the brass neck that goes with that.

“I’m not sure if he’s got the money. He’s an intelligent guy, even if he has been battered around the ring a few times.

“I’m not sure someone his age wants to put money into Celtic, or any football club for that matter.

“It’s a labour of love and Conor is a man for making something happen. It would be incredible for Celtic but I don’t see it happening.

“I’ve never heard of Desmond wanting to sell his shares anyway.

“Can you imagine him walking into the boardroom doing his McGregor walk? It would be good fun.”

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The Verdict: Off-field changes could tempt McGregor?

Plenty of behind-the-scenes changes have been going on at Celtic Park recently. Dominic McKay is in as the new CEO with Peter Lawwell retiring over the coming months, head of football operations Nick Hammond has resigned and recruitment chief Gary Penrice also looks set to leave.

A new director of football and first team manager are yet to be announced, so with the off-field reshuffle, it wouldn’t surprise us if McGregor looked to reignite his bid to invest at Parkhead.

You’d expect the UFC superstar to boost the club’s profile and financial wealth, should he acquire shares in Celtic, but it seems as if Desmond has no interest in selling any just yet.

In other news: ‘Something happened with Lennon’ – McAvennie’s inside Celtic claim as news emerges on ace who wants out; find out more here.

Steve Howey thinks deadline day arrival Santiago Munoz could go on to become a revelation at Newcastle United.

The Magpies wrapped up their transfer business by securing the services of Munoz on an 18-month loan deal, which has the option to buy, from Mexican top flight side Santos Laguna.

The striker may already have an affinity with the Toon Army as he shares a similar name to the fictional hero Santiago Munez in the 2005 movie Goal! which involves a Mexican striker joining Newcastle and firing them into the Champions League.

While it will be difficult for Munoz to match that storyline, particularly as he will start out in the Tyneside club’s academy set-up, he heads to the Premier League having scored three goals in the Mexican top flight despite being just 19.

The teenager became Newcastle’s second signing of the window, following the £20million acquisition of former loanee Joe Willock.

Former Magpies defender Howey hopes Munoz, who has won three caps for the Mexico under-23s, will prove to be a success story.

He exclusively told Football FanCast: “Sometimes you can get a player that you haven’t heard of and, all of a sudden, he is a revelation.

“It’s about doing your due diligence and research when looking into a player you’re going to get.

“The recruitment people have to be spot on because he isn’t tried and tested and Newcastle can’t afford to waste any money.”