Category Uncategorized

Celtic, along with the likes of Crystal Palace and Leicester City, are monitoring Dundee United defender Kerr Smith, according to The Scottish Sun.

The Lowdown: Smith profiled

Smith is just 16 years of age and is under contract with his current employers for a further two years.

He’s made seven senior appearances for The Tangerines, two of which have come this season – he has been described as ‘fantastic’ by teammate Mark Connolly.

The Scot actually spent a week with Manchester United last year on trial, and it seems as if he could be on the move for good before the end of the month.

The Latest: Monday report

The Scottish Sun shared a story regarding Kerr on Monday lunchtime.

Within their report, they labelled Southampton as the frontrunners for the Scot and claimed that Celtic, Palace, Leeds and Leicester are all tracking the defender.

It seems as if the Hoops are weighing up a potential late swoop for Smith, even though they are also closing in on Shamrock Rovers defender Liam Scales in a deal worth £500,000.

The Scottish Sun are expecting the Dundee United board to move Smith on over the next six days.

The Verdict: Hjelde replacement?

Celtic look set to lose a young centre-back to Leeds in Leo Hjelde, so perhaps Smith could come in to replace the Norwegian going forward.

Smith is regarded as one of Scotland’s best young talents, so down the line, winning the race for the 16-year-old could turn out to be a real coup.

It seems as if Celtic will have to beat a number of Premier League clubs to his services, though, so it could be a big ask in the final days of the window.

In other news: ‘Great chance’ – 34 y/o feels £988k-p/y ace will be a Celtic player on Sep 1 after Romano claim. 

A spate of bomb attacks in India has caused some concern in Australia ahead of the four-Test tour in October and November 2008. Representatives from Cricket Australia and the Australian Cricketers’ Association, possibly a security consultant too, are due to leave for India on August 10 for an inspection.The concerns have emerged in the same week when players’ associations in Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa have lambasted the ICC decision to go ahead with the Champions Trophy in Pakistan despite security concerns.Peter Young, Cricket Australia’s general manager of public affairs, was to discuss the situation with James Sutherland, the chief executive, the reported. “We have a principle which supports a consistent process of having a pre-tour inspection and assessment before every tour,” Young said.The BCCI, though, played down any talk of the tour being put off. “We don’t have to go by media reports,” Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI chief administrative officer, told Cricinfo. “We will take a stand if it has to be taken and we don’t have to publicly announce it”Australia had postponed its tour to Pakistan earlier this year, after a series of bomb blasts rocked the country. Players such as Ricky Ponting and Andrew Symonds had expressed their concern over the visit in March-April, and have reiterated the same ahead of the team’s defence of the Champions Trophy in September.The proposed tour begins with the first Test in Bangalore on October 9. Bangalore was hit by a series of blasts on Friday, though the low intensity of the explosives caused marginal damage.

Reliable reporter Alan Nixon has admitted he is ‘expecting’ Celtic to make ‘panic moves soon’ when it comes to transfers.

The Lowdown: Plenty of rumours

Ange Postecoglou has made three big-money signings so far this summer in Liel Abada, Kyogo Furuhashi and Carl Starfelt.

There have been plenty of rumours since those three deals went through, with right-backs Aurelio Buta and Josip Juranovic and goalkeepers Joe Hart and Ben Foster linked with a move to Parkhead. There have also been rumours in France to forwards Diego Costa and Jean-Kevin Augustin.

However, Starfelt remains Celtic’s latest addition, with that transfer going through nine days ago.

Since then, the Hoops have been knocked out of the Champions League, and Nixon didn’t exactly have good news for Celtic supporters.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/celtic-updates-11/” title=”Celtic updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Latest: Nixon’s post

Nixon, who writes for The Sun, was asked by a Celtic fan if the Hoops were close to any signings on Thursday afternoon.

He replied, admitting he has ‘not heard anything’ – a worrying three-word update.

“Not heard anything … but expecting panic moves soon.”

The Verdict: Not ideal…

With Nixon not hearing of any potential Celtic incomings, it appears to be a worrying time in Glasgow.

The Hoops get their Scottish Premiership campaign underway on Saturday evening and, to take right-back, for instance, Postecoglou has two inexperienced players in Anthony Ralston and Lee O’Connor to choose from against Hearts.

Postecoglou has also used two different ‘keepers in Vasilis Barkas and Scott Bain in his two competitive games, so a new shot-stopper appears needed as well.

However, it seems as if Celtic fans will have to wait even longer for any more additions.

In other news: ‘Also…’ – Sky Sports drop live TV claim revealing £33k-p/w Celtic target; he loves Parkhead. 

West Bromwich Albion manager Valerien Ismael is facing a nightmare transfer scenario at The Hawthorns this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a Steve Madeley report for The Athletic, who claims that Albion are in desperate need of a new centre-forward ahead of their upcoming Championship campaign. However, without raising funds through the sale of some of the club’s current players, Ismael’s transfer kitty will not allow for a big-money addition to his attacking arsenal in the summer transfer window.

Madeley goes on to state that the most likely way of the Baggies raising money this summer would be by sanctioning the departures of both Matheus Pereira and Sam Johnstone, with it being claimed the pair would bring in over £30m – even at significantly reduced asking prices.

Finally, it is said that, in the event that the Frenchman does not cash in on either of his most valuable stars, he will have to turn his attention to out-of-favour Premier League forwards or an up-and-coming young goalscorer in the transfer market.

Nightmare scenario

Considering just how impressive both Pereira and Johnstone were for West Brom last season, it is undeniable that losing either of the two this summer would put a significant dent in the club’s hopes of securing an immediate return to the Premier League next season.

Indeed, over his 33 Premier League appearances last term, the £13.5m-rated Pereira bagged 11 goals, registered six assists and created a whopping 11 big chances for his teammates, with these returns seeing the £39k-per-week winger earning a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.18.

Meanwhile, over Johnstone’s 37 Premier League appearances, the £7.2m-rated goalkeeper kept six clean sheets and made a total of 166 saves throughout the season, with these metrics seeing the £28k-per-week shot-stopper earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.03.

Unsurprisingly, these ratings saw Pereira and Johnstone rank as the Baggies’ top two performers in the Premier League last season, demonstrating their importance to the team.

However, as Madeley states, with Mbaye Diagne returning to Galatasaray following his loan spell at The Hawthorns last year, it is indeed true that Ismael is short of options in attack ahead of next season. A proven goalscorer very much appears to be a necessity if Albion wish to give themselves the best shot at promotion.

As such, it would seem as if the Frenchman is stuck between something of a rock and a hard place, with the 45-year-old having to decide whether his team’s need for goals is greater than an incredibly solid option in between the sticks or a massive creative influence from the wing – a headache it is certain will be keeping the manager up at night.

In other news: West Brom transfer news confirmed on “exciting” highly-rated gem, fan surely buzzing

BRISBANE, Nov 24 AAP – Western Australia is firmly in control after a roller coaster ride of a day in the Pura Cup clash against Queensland at the Gabba.A total of 15 wickets fell during the first day of play with Queensland on 5-106 at stumps, chasing Western Australia’s total of 228.The Warriors lost their last six wickets for just 30 runs as momentum swung like a pendulum throughout the day.The Warriors started on the front foot when captain Mike Hussey called correctly and elected to bat on a wicket that promised plenty of bounce and some sideways movement.Hussey and opening partner Chris Rogers preceded to dispatch the Queensland attack to all parts of the Gabba as they put on 59 for the opening stand, bringing up the team’s half century in 44 minutes off just 11 overs.Hussey smashed Bulls quick Michael Kasprowicz for four boundaries in one over, but the former test pacemen had the last laugh when he had Hussey caught behind for 33.Queensland stemmed the flow of runs following Hussey’s dismissal with Joe Dawes bowling five consecutive maidens to bring the Bulls back into the game. He was rewarded with the wicket of Rogers who dragged the ball onto his stumps.The game was then delicately poised with the Warriors at 3-102 at the break.The second session belonged to the home side with the Bulls claiming seven wickets.The only bright note for the Warriors was an 82-run partnership between Murray Goodwin and Ryan Campbell who took the score from 116 to 198.Goodwin’s departure triggered the major batting collapse which saw the Warriors all out before the tea break.Dawes and Lee Carseldine claimed three wickets apiece with Ashley Noffke and Michael Kasprowicz claiming two each with Ryan Campbell top scoring for the visitors with a quickfire 62.Queensland looked to be in the drivers seat but they were soon in trouble when captain Jimmy Maher was run out for 13 attempting a quick single.It went from bad to worse for the Bulls with both Martin Love and Stuart Law going out for second ball ducks in the same over.Queensland duo Andrew Symonds and Brendan Nash fought a rearguard action compiling a 51-run partnership.But both batsmen were dismissed in quick succession late in the day to leave the Bulls struggling for 5-72.Lee Carseldine and Wade Seccombe guided the Bulls to stumps still 123 runs short of their target with only the tail to come.Western Australian captain Hussey said the pitch was not to blame for the avalanche of wickets.”I thought it was a really good cricket wicket the ball came onto the bast nicely. We were disappointed to only get 228 but we knew if we worked hard we could put the bulls under pressure,” Hussey said.”To get Maher, Love and Law cheaply really helps but there are no slouches in the Queensland tail so we will have to work very hard.”

Lots of Everton fans have been left to react as some footage emerged involving Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

As shared by Toffee TV on Twitter, Gareth Southgate hugs and congratulates a number of England players on the touchline after their 2-0 win over Germany at Wembley Stadium in their last 16 tie on Tuesday evening.

However, as Calvert-Lewin goes to try and get his attention, the Three Lions manager appears to ignore him.

The Merseyside club striker was controversially left out of Southgate’s 23-man squad in what was one of the biggest games in England’s history, and so some members of the Goodison Park faithful have associated this with the manager appearing to ignore him on the touchline.

Of course, Southgate could have purely missed him unintentionally, but the footage did not go down well with some Toffees supporters.

Everton fans on Calvert-Lewin footage

These Blues fans gave their reactions after the footage was shared on Twitter:

“I know thought the same why would you do that where everyone can see didn’t think Southgate was like that”

Credit: @annmckenzie67

“Can’t stand Southgate time for Dom to go on holiday”

Credit: @richythepigeon

“My little heart”

Credit: @rhysdav43668344

“Everyone except Calvert????”Credit: @footballstocks1″Yea hilarious to ignore a young lad who just wants to play for his country”Credit: @ianspeny”Poor that from the gaffer to embarrass a player on nation TV”Credit: @MrBasheIn other news, find out which Champions League giants want to sign this EFC star here!

Millwall are closing in on a deal to bring Dan Ballard to The Den this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Football Insider, who claim that the Arsenal centre-back is set to complete a medical with Gary Rowett’s side this week, ahead of a season-long loan switch to south London.

The report goes on to state that the two clubs have agreed a deal in principle for the loan of the 21-year-old, with the finalisation of the defender’s temporary move to the Lions looking on course to be tied up in the coming days.

Millwall fans should be buzzing

Considering just how much potential Ballard appears to possess, should Millwall indeed go on to land the centre-back this summer, his signing can easily be viewed as a massive coup for the Championship side, one that should have fans of the club buzzing.

Indeed, over his 28 League One appearances while on loan at Blackpool last season, the Northern Ireland international highly impressed for Neil Critchley’s side, helping the Seasiders keep 14 clean sheets, as well as making an average of 1.7 interceptions, 0.7 tackles, 5.2 clearances and winning a whopping seven duels per game.

The £3.4k-per-week defender also chipped in for ‘Pool going forwards, scoring two goals, providing one assist and making an average of 0.3 key passes per league fixture.

These returns saw the man Critchley dubbed a “faultless” centre-back earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.08, ranking him as the club’s joint second-best performer in the third tier of English football, demonstrating just how important Ballard was in helping Blackpool secure promotion back to the Championship.

As such, with Millwall looking to mount a push for a top-six finish of their own next season after a highly impressive 11th place finish last time out, the addition of Ballard to Rowett’s options in the centre of defence would very much seem to be a big step in the right direction for the Lions, who will almost certainly be one of the teams to watch in the upcoming Championship campaign.

In other news: Get it done: Rowett must seal Millwall swoop for “explosive” 15 G/A beast this summer

MatériaMais Notícias

Diego Lugano fez contra o Santo André no último domingo, no Morumbi, seu quarto jogo pelo São Paulo na temporada 2017. Muito pouco, na análise do uruguaio, que nesta segunda-feira admitiu que esperava ter disputado mais partidas até o momento. Nada contra as decisões do técnico Rogério Ceni, mas pela motivação pessoal.

– Coitado de mim se não esperasse jogar mais. Obviamente, é menos do que eu esperava. De qualquer jogador. É a base da competitividade que o jogador tem de ter para jogar no São Paulo. E para exigir dos companheiros, que seja reflexo no campo – afirmou o camisa 5 do Tricolor.

O uruguaio, no entanto, saiu em defesa do sistema defensivo do time, diante do excesso de gols sofridos na temporada. O São Paulo está há oito jogos invictos no ano, mas ficou apenas três jogos sem sofrer gols: foram 12 gols sofridos.

– Obviamente as estatísticas não são boas. Na semana passada tivemos uma conversa. Uma auto-crítica com Rogério, vendo vídeos. E chegamos a conclusão de que talvez nenhum dos gols foi por desequilíbrio tático, o time ser superado defensivamente. A maioria foi por decisões individuais, que foram punidos com gol. Algumas por perder duelos individuais na área. Coisa que está muito longe de ser erro tático, ou coletivo. São decisões individuais. Dentro das estatísticas, dá muita tranquilidade para nós. Porque o time mesmo ofensivo mantém um equilíbrio importante – analisou o uruguaio.

– A gente não gosta de sofrer gols, porque a crítica vai sempre pro defensor. Mas também tem que ser inteligente, para saber quais foram os erros. Estatisticamente, é ruim, mas se analisar os erros foram individuais, nunca coletivos. Cabe a nós, defensores, sermos um pouco mais desconfiado de cada bola, até passar essa fase. E pode anotar aí quando chegar em jogos decisivos, com máxima de concentração, a defesa vai ser o que foi ano passado, que sustentou o time. Estou muito tranquilo neste aspecto porque sinto que é assim – completou Lugano.

Lugano comemorou o fato de não ter sofrido lesão este ano ainda e se colocou à disposição de Rogério Ceni para jogar já na quarta-feira, contra o ABC-RN, pela Copa do Brasil. Vale lembrar que Rodrigo Caio e Maicon ainda são dúvidas para o confronto. Lugano falou da chance de ter um título inédito. Ele quer o Morumbi lotado.

– Quarta-feira talvez comece seriamente essa escalada. Tomara que a torcida compareça, nos dê apoio, dite o ritmo do jogo. Porque ano passado, cedemos para o Juventude, uma noite fria, com pouca torcida. E a defesa tem de se comportar como se comporta em Libertadores, com muita confiança em cada bola. Às vezes, essa mentalidade pode ser mais forte do que o excesso de confiança. Meus companheiros não concordam muito. Mas pode ficar mais feia, mas em um campeonato longo, pode ser melhor – disse Lugano.

RelacionadasSão PauloRodrigo Caio deixa treino e será reavaliado para enfrentar o ABCSão Paulo06/03/2017São PauloSão Paulo anuncia renovação de Lucas Fernandes até o fim de 2021São Paulo06/03/2017São PauloAtaque do São Paulo tem melhor início de Paulistão desde último títuloSão Paulo06/03/2017

West Bromwich Albion have been dealt yet another blow in their bid to appoint a new manager at The Hawthorns this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Sky Sports reporter Rob Dorsett, who revealed in a post on Twitter that Michael Appleton has informed the Baggies hierarchy that he does not wish to take on the vacant role at The Hawthorns.

According to Dorsett, the 45-year-old Lincoln City manager wants to remain with his current side in order to see through his ongoing project with the Imps, who narrowly missed out on promotion to the Championship under the former West Brom U23 coach last season.

Silver lining

It’s been rather challenging to keep up with all the managers who have reportedly turned down the offer of becoming Sam Allardyce’s successor at The Hawthorns this summer, with Appleton being the latest addition to a list that includes the likes of Roy Hodgson, Frank Lampard and David Wagner.

In addition to this glut of rejection, the club’s owner, Guochuan Lai, and the Baggies chief executive, Xu Ke, now appear to be conducting the search for their next manager on their own, following the recent departure of the club’s sporting and technical director Luke Dowling.

However, when looking for a positive in all this mess, one thing that stands out is the rapidly reducing size of Lai’s shortlist, with the businessman ruling out the likes of Swansea City’s Steve Cooper and Barnsley’s Valerien Ismael due to the fact he would have to pay compensation to bring them to the club.

As such, one of the only viable candidates left remaining is the former Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder, a candidate whom the West Brom owner had originally vetoed the Championship side making a move for.

However, the possibility of Lai making a u-turn on his decision regarding the 53-year-old could well be put to the test in the coming days, and likely depends on how firmly against paying a fee to bring in the club’s next manager the owner really is.

If he sticks to his guns, in addition to all of the other available managers rejecting the club’s advances, Lai may not have a choice to appoint Wilder at The Hawthorns, something that would very much appear to be a considerable silver lining to Appleton’s rejection.

In other news: Lai could have just made his biggest West Brom mistake to date, fans are rightly livid

Crystal Palace must avoid former Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe this summer as they continue to search for Roy Hodgson’s successor.

What’s the story?

Former Hull City striker Dean Windass recently claimed the 43-year-old tactician would be an ideal fit for the Eagles as they embark on a new chapter in their history, but the capital club should think twice before doing so.

Howe left the Cherries at the end of the 2019/20 campaign following their relegation to the Championship and was expected to take charge of Scottish giants Celtic before talks broke down, leaving him available for the Palace vacancy.

Palace must avoid

Hodgson’s decision to step down from his position in charge of the south London outfit has left them in a precarious position.

Although the former England boss brought stability to Selhurst Park throughout his four-year stay, he’s left the first-team playing squad in a far from healthy position.

Over a dozen stars are set to become free agents at the end of the month, and injuries to promising youngsters Eberechi Eze and Nathan Ferguson have made the task facing Hodgson’s replacement an extremely daunting one.

Therefore, opting for an experienced manager on this occasion is the logical route to go down, meaning chairman Steve Parish must avoid Howe on this occassion.

While Howe impressed for large spells of his tenure on the south coast, he ultimately oversaw a relegation despite spending relatively large sums of money during Bournemouth’s time in the Premier League.

Big-money signings such as Jordan Ibe, Dominic Solanke and Jefferson Lerma failed to produce the results required to maintain their top-flight status and raised some questions over Howe’s managerial ability.

Palace need someone who can oversee a major squad overhaul on a shoestring budget, unfortunately for the Englishman, he has failed to show he can do that so far in his career.

At one point it looked as though ex-Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo’s arrival at Selhurst Park was imminent until some last-minute demands saw that proposed move collapse.

And shifting their focus from Nuno to Howe would represent quite the compromise from the Palace hierarchy.

In his nine years in the dugout, the Portuguese boss has recorded a highly respectable 47.83% win rate, whereas Howe has managed a modest 42.51%.

Although these figures don’t automatically make Nuno a better manager than Howe, they are indicative of the varying levels of success the two men have had throughout their careers and maybe enough for Parish to opt for an older head.

And, in other news…Parish masterstroke: Palace must swoop for £9m-rated prodigy, he’s an “absolute tank”