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Crystal Palace are unlikely to sign Middlesborough right-wing back Isaiah Jones this season, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

The Lowdown: Jones linked with Palace

The Eagles have been credited with an interest in the 23-year-old by The Sun earlier this month. The outlet claimed that Palace have been checking up on the right-wing back and would like to bolster that area of the pitch for Patrick Vieira.

Jones, who can also play as a winger when required, has been a regular for ‘Boro this season, taking his appearance tally for the club to 64.

The Latest: ‘Boro unlikely to sell

Jones was talking to GiveMeSport regarding Palace’s reported interest in the Middlesbrough man.

He said that he has been told that an exit for the 23-year-old during the current campaign is unlikely, hinting that the Eagles may have to wait until the summer to make their move.

The journalist said of the ‘Boro player: “From what I’m told, especially on the back of Michael Carrick coming into Boro, they will not be selling him this season.

“At the end of the season, that might change, and Palace might have a chance, but for the time being, I don’t think he’s going anywhere.”

The Verdict: Get it done

Palace have an exciting young left-back in Tyrick Mitchell, so it’s good to see that the club want to address the right-hand side, with current options Joel Ward and Nathaniel Clyne both over 30 years of age and out of contract in the summer.

Jones could be viewed as the perfect addition at Selhurst Park, but he has mainly been used as a wing-back and not in a back four, so his defensive game may need some work if he is to thrive in the top flight under Vieira.

Still just 23 years of age, Jones appears to be a future star, and after winning the Players’ Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year awards at Middlesbrough at the end of the 2021/22 season, a Palace swoop next summer could be a shrewd one.

Glasgow Rangers appointed Giovanni van Bronckhorst to take over in the dugout at Ibrox in November of 2021 after they lost Steven Gerrard to a club south of the border.

Ross Wilson backed the Dutch head coach in his first window in charge of the Gers by snapping up Aaron Ramsey, Amad Diallo, and James Sands on loan, whilst also signing Mateusz Zukowski on a permanent basis and John Souttar on a pre-contract agreement.

The Rangers sporting director was also able to dodge an error in January as he did not follow up on interest in Scottish winger Siriki Dembele.

It was reported that the Light Blues, along with their Old Firm rivals Celtic, were monitoring the attacker’s situation as his contract at Peterborough was set to expire at the end of the season.

Wilson opted to avoid a deal for the winger and English Championship side Bournemouth ended up signing him on deadline day for an undisclosed fee, although it had been claimed that Birmingham were readying an offer of £1.5m – offering an insight into the kind of money that may have been involved.

On paper, it looked like a promising signing for the Cherries as he had caught the eye whilst playing in East Anglia in the 18 months prior to that. He had scored five goals and provided one assist in 22 second-tier outings for the Posh, after racking up an outstanding 11 goals and ten assists in 38 League One starts in 2020/21.

Peterborough chief Barry Fry previously lauded the winger’s ability, telling Football FanCast: “Siriki can get the ball in his own half and with dazzling dribbling ability, he can beat four or five players and score a wonder goal or cross it for somebody else to score.

“He’s very, very exciting. He’s got the best stats outside the [English] Premier League, I think. We’ll try to keep hold of him if we go up, and we’ll make him an offer he can’t refuse! So watch this space.”

However, he struggled to make a significant impact as he scored two goals and provided one assist in 13 Championship appearances for Scott Parker’s side.

His lack of form for Bournemouth in their promotion-winning campaign has led to him being an outcast in their current Premier League battles. He is yet to make a single appearance for the club in any competition this term, despite not dealing with any injury issues.

The 26-year-old has been cast aside at the Vitality Stadium and his disappointing spell with the south coast club suggests that Wilson played a blinder by deciding not to bring him to Ibrox back in January.

Dembele’s lack of end product in the final third after stepping up to the Championship in England suggests that he is not cut out to play at a higher level, with Bournemouth seemingly feeling that he is not Premier League quality.

Therefore, the Gers chief dodged a bullet by avoiding a swoop for the attacker as his statistics indicate that he would not have added a great deal to the Light Blues squad, judging by his lack of goals and assists.

When Jarrod Bowen joined West Ham United from Hull in January 2020, few would have predicted his meteoric rise in David Moyes’ side.

The winger joined the Hammers in a deal worth £20m having hit an impressive 54 goals in 131 appearances for the Tigers in three-and-a-half seasons with the club.

Since then, he has gone on to make 112 appearances for the Irons, in which he has contributed 29 goals and 23 assists, establishing himself as one of the top Premier League players outside of the ‘big six’ and earning himself a call-up to Gareth Southgate’s England squad.

Last season was a hugely impressive one for Bowen as he managed 12 goals and 10 assists in 36 Premier League appearances, averaging a superb 7.14 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

This ranked him as the top performer in West Ham’s squad, so it is clear just how important he is at the London Stadium, which is perhaps why the club valued him at £100m to deter any interested suitors during the summer.

Had they cashed in on the winger for £100m, it would have been five times the fee that GSB paid in 2020, which represents remarkable business by the West Ham board.

Despite a difficult start to the new season which has seen him fail to contribute a goal or assist in the Premier League, former top-flight striker Kevin Campbell sang the 25-year-old’s praises, saying: “One thing he does do well is work ever so hard – so he’ll always have a place in that West Ham lineup. His goals pushed him for England, and rightly so – because he was incredible.”

Bowen’s second goal of the 2022/23 season came via the penalty spot in their 3-1 win over FCSB in the Europa Conference League on Thursday night, and hopefully that will prove the catalyst in helping him rediscover his form from last season.

Nonetheless, there can be no doubt that GSB’s decision to sign a player for £20m in 2020, who at that time was largely unproven at Premier League level, has massively paid off.

Crystal Palace have been linked with signing Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins recently and the England international could be a big upgrade on Jean-Philippe Mateta in Patrick Vieira’s side.

According to journalist Ben Jacobs, both Palace and Leeds United are monitoring the former Brentford man’s situation at Aston Villa ahead of a potential swoop.

He suggests that the 26-year-old could be one to watch before the transfer window shuts, although also claims that Villa have dismissed any claims of tension between the striker and manager Steven Gerrard, maintaining that the club don’t want to sell this summer.

Previous reports have suggested that Watkins could cost as much as £50m, which would represent a huge outlay for Palace, although he would arguably be a significant upgrade on Vieira’s current striker options.

Last season saw Mateta contribute just five goals and one assist in the Premier League, averaging a less than impressive 6.64 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

Watkins, meanwhile, would hit 11 goals and two assists, averaging a solid 6.9 rating from WhoScored, while he marked his first Premier League start this season with two assists in the win against Everton.

Watkins also outperformed the Frenchman with regards to shots (2.2 vs 1.7), key passes (1 vs 0.3) and dribbles per game (1.1 vs 0.5) last season, which emphasises that he is clearly the better all-round forward.

The Englishman does not lack ability in the air but possesses the pace that Mateta and Odsonne Edouard lack, so he could definitely be an upgrade for Vieira, as he is a willing runner that can work the channels and also press the opposition.

Jamie Carragher was full of praise for the Villa striker last season, saying:

“He’s been a real handful tonight. Every time that ball goes up. No defender has had a free header. Great body strength. He’s been bullying those centre-backs about, especially Matip, who has found it – not difficult – but it’s been a real fight every time it’s gone up to the front man.”

That certainly wasn’t the first time Watkins has caused problems against Liverpool, as he hit a perfect hat-trick in the remarkable 7-2 win against Jurgen Klopp’s side in 2020.

Anyone that is able to bully Virgil van Dijk, who is undoubtedly one of the top defenders in world football, is a player worth watching and while he could be an expensive option for Palace, he would definitely represent a big upgrade in Vieira’s attack.

talkSPORT journalist Alex Crook has dropped a West Ham transfer update.

What’s the word?

The update concerns Watford striker Emmanuel Dennis with Crook recently speaking to GIVEMESPORT to give an update on West Ham’s reported pursuit of the player, saying:

“Now they’ve got Scamacca, I wonder if they’ve done some background checks on him because, from what I’m told, maybe he’s not necessarily the type of character that David Moyes wants to bring into the dressing room.”

It appears that Moyes and West Ham have dropped their interest in the 24-year-old following this update and it could be a decision that the manager regrets.

Moyes needs another striker

West Ham opened up their Premier League campaign with a 2-0 defeat at home to Manchester City. Erling Haaland grabbed a double for the away side and although Moyes won’t be able to recruit players of his calibre, another striker is required if they are aiming to build on last season’s success.

The club has signed Italian frontman Gianluca Scamacca from Serie A side Sassuolo, but this still just leaves the Hammers with two senior centre forwards in their ranks. With another demanding campaign ahead with continental fixtures, injuries will be commonplace and thus, not signing Dennis could be a decision they live to regret.

A move for the striker looked to make a lot of sense. He wouldn’t break the bank, with Watford valuing him at £20m and he has top-flight goalscoring experience.

The Nigerian international scored ten goals and grabbed a further six assists for Watford last season as they were relegated from the Premier League. With West Ham relying on wingers Said Benrahma (11) and Jarrod Bowen (17) and Michail Antonio (13) for goals last season, its clear that further additions to the front three are required.

Moyes could regret not signing Dennis as the 24-year-old generated more shot-creating actions per match than Antonio last season (3.17 to 3.09) and had a higher percentage of shots on target (44.3% to 32.5%), showing that he could have been a worthwhile addition to the West Ham squad.

Moyes will look at other targets, yet this decision might not be one of his wisest moves.

West Ham United are believed to have joined the race to sign highly-rated Paris Saint-Germain prospect, Arnaud Kalimuendo.

What’s the word?

According to GOAL France, the Hammers are interested in signing the 20-year-old striker this summer, despite having only recently secured the arrival of Italy international, Gianluca Scamacca.

The report suggests that the promising Frenchman – who spent the last two seasons on loan at RC Lens – is keen to move on from the Parc des Princes in order to secure regular game time elsewhere.

The report also outlines how fellow Premier League side Leeds United have also made ‘several offers’ to sign the 5 foot 9 menace in the window thus far, with the forward set to cost in the region of €25m (£21m) for any interested party.

Absolutely amazing

That clamour for the £13k-per-week gem’s signature has undoubtedly been warranted such was his explosive form in Ligue 1 last term, the PSG academy product scoring 12 goals in 34 league appearances in what was a real breakthrough campaign.

The £16.2m-rated sensation had previously netted seven league goals during his first temporary stint at Lens the year prior, with all the signs pointing to a player who is only set to go from strength to strength in the coming years.

That is also the verdict of Get Football News France’s Cameron Smith, who wrote that the ‘ceiling is sky high’ for the fleet-footed starlet, while also stating: ‘Kalimuendo is a modern forward, his incisive speed, decision-making, intelligence, and technical ability are all of the highest level.’

While previously discussing a potential move to Newcastle United for the France U21 international, journalist Jacque Talbot suggested that Kalimuendo would be “absolutely amazing” for the Magpies, with it not too much of a stretch to suggest he could well have a similar impact at the London Stadium.

Once described as “absolutely deadly” by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, the youngster – who has made just four senior appearances for his parent club – could well thrive under the tutelage of David Moyes, with the Irons boss likely to relish the chance to develop such an impressive and exciting talent.

With his pathway to regular game time under Christophe Galtier seemingly blocked by the star-studded names available to the former Lille coach, Kalimuendo could well be in need of a new home in order to truly see his undoubted quality flourish.

Those at West Ham would likely welcome him with open arms.

AND in other news, Moyes can now form “unreal” duo as West Ham given green light for “limitless” £13m signing…

Leeds United and Victor Orta are reportedly now one of the clubs ‘best positioned’ to sign KRC Genk left-back Gerardo Arteaga for Jesse Marsch.

The Lowdown: More to come…

After confirming the signing of Tyler Adams from RB Leipzig on Wednesday evening, it seems as if the Elland Road outfit’s business this summer is still far from over.

They are reportedly in pole position to sign Club Brugge attacker Charles De Ketelaere, while The Athletic journalist Phil Hay has claimed that Feyenoord winger Luis Sinisterra is also on his way.

After already losing Kalvin Phillips to Manchester City, on top of the likely sale of Raphinha, it was important for the Yorkshire club to bring in a sufficient number of incomings to best prepare themselves for next season.

The Latest: Arteaga too?

As per Marca (via Sport Witness), the Whites are one of the clubs now ‘best positioned’ to sign Arteaga, alongside both Brighton and Hove Albion and Fulham.

They are following the 14-cap Mexico international ‘very closely’, while Salernitana, Real Betis, Villarreal, Celta Vigo and Getafe are also in the race for his signature.

The Verdict: Get it done

Given the high competition to sign Arteaga, this is a deal that the Peacocks need to get over the line as soon as possible.

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They only have one senior left-back in their squad at the moment in Junior Firpo, and with cup competitions on top of the Premier League, the 25-year-old will need to be rotated.

Arteaga is actually two years younger than Firpo at 23, and still has plenty of experience to his name, including six appearances in the UEFA Europa League last season (Transfermarkt), so should be a worthy competitor for the left-back position.

A big update has emerged on Sunderland and their pursuit of Jack Rudoni in the summer transfer window… 

What’s the talk?

According to Football Insider, the Black Cats have had an offer turned down for the central midfielder as AFC Wimbledon stand firm in negotiations.

The report claims that fellow Championship sides Luton and Huddersfield are also keen on the gem and have had bids of their own knocked back.

It is stated that all three teams are expected to go back in for the Englishman with renewed offers to snap him up from the League One outfit.

Huge Corry Evans upgrade

Kristjaan Speakman must now seal a deal to sign Rudoni as he would be a huge upgrade on Corry Evans in the middle of the park.

The experienced Northern Irishman played 36 times in the third tier last term and struggled to catch the eye as he was largely unimpressive in midfield.

Evans won 51% of his individual ground duels – making 1.3 tackles per game – and did not offer much of a threat going forward as he scored two goals and created two.

Rudoni, meanwhile, won 52% of his battles and made 1.7 tackles per match, which suggests that he was – slightly – better than the Sunderland man in that area.

South London Press reporter Edmund Brack recently showered the gem with praise in an interview with the Bristol Post, saying:

“He’s quite direct. When he picks up the ball, his first thought is always to go towards goal. It’s a 1-2 and then he’s off.

“He’s quite fearless. Anyone his age, they could be affected by the winless run AFC Wimbledon went through last season (the Dons failed to win 28 games in all competitions from December 11 through to the end of the season) but he continued to put in performances, and he nearly kept them up alongside Ayoub Assal and Luke McCormick.”

It is in attack where Rudoni can be a huge upgrade on Evans. The Wimbledon man plundered an impressive 12 goals and five assists in League One – 13 more goal contributions than the Black Cats man managed to produce.

This means that they have a similar level of defensive effectiveness whilst there is a significant gap between their offensive outputs. Therefore, Speakman can improve Alex Neil’s team by signing the League One maestro to replace the ex-Blackburn dud.

AND in other news, Sunderland enter race to sign 22y/o gem who can be “the difference”, he’s Neil’s dream…

With a good 2021/22 campaign behind them, it is going to be another big summer for Liverpool and manager Jurgen Klopp in the transfer window if they are looking to better this year’s exploits.

Having almost run Pep Guardiola’s expensively assembled Manchester City right down to the line, Liverpool lost out by a single point owing to the events in the final ten minutes of both sides’ final game of the season – despite at one point trailing them by 14 points – the joy at lifting both domestic Cups earlier in the season (the EFL Cup and the FA Cup) was eventually tempered by that disappointment, added to losing out on the Champions League Final to Real Madrid.

It could also shape up to be a disappointing summer when it comes to outgoing’s. Some fans are already preparing themselves for Mohamed Salah’s exit when his current contract expires next summer, but the Egyptian ace has already committed to staying for at least the final year of his deal, however, Senegal star Sadio Mane has seemingly been angling for a move to German Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and former Liverpool striker David Mellor was recently chatting to BookiesBonuses.com about what might happen this summer.

Liverpool have already rejected two offers from the side, the last coming on Wednesday and reported to be in the region of £30 million, but speculation suggests they are holding out for around £42.5 million and that would certainly explain the up tick in transfer rumour mill reports linking us with an interest in young Uruguayan international striker Darwin Nunez.

The 22-year-old Benfica talent is apparently valued at around the £85 million mark and the signing would undoubtedly be a coup for Klopp, particularly if Liverpool’s future does see Mane head out this window, followed quickly by Salah in 12 months time.

Mellor certainly feels his arrival at Anfield would be a tantalising prospect and a good statement to make given all the out going talk at the moment.

“What a player! I watched him in the Champions League for Benfica and I was thinking, ‘Wow!’ He’s only young – what is he, 22? He’s an international already with Uruguay. I watched him, and I was thinking he’s an absolute handful. He’s got the lot in terms of the movement, the finishing, and the pace as well. He is an exciting young talent, and there’s no doubt about it – he is going to be in big demand this summer, so whoever is his most likely option – I think there is a big player and a big future there for him. I was impressed with what I saw. If Liverpool are in for him, then Liverpool are an appealing option for any top young player at the moment, and he would certainly be one of those.”

Nunez, of course, is not the only attacker linked with a switch to Klopp’s side. The club have already completed the capture of highly rated Fulham talent Fabio Carvalho, and having looked very bright in his recent England debut, 25-year-old West Ham United attacker Jarrod Bowen in another potential name being linked given his own impressive Premier League goalscoring record, and Mellor believed a big pull for him will have been in seeing what Klopp helped turn Mane into following his own arrival at the club a few years ago.

“The manager improves these players. We talked about Mane – taking him from a top player to a world-class player – Liverpool give these players the platform to do that and it’ll be so appealing for so many players to want to come to Liverpool. Bowen has been outstanding for West Ham – a very important player for West Ham – they’re not going to want to lose him. But it’s a question of who the manager would want through the door because there is no doubt about it – Liverpool are a very appealing option for players in Europe at the moment.”

It is going to be a good few hectic weeks for fans with the window now open, but whatever happens, few will doubt that Liverpool will be looking to improve further this window and go into the next campaign stronger in the search for more success.

Photo by Unsplash

Tottenham Hotspur are interested in a deal to bring Yannick Carrasco to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the summer transfer window.

What’s the word?

That’s according to a claim made by Juanfe Sanz (via Sport Witness), with the El Chiringuito journalist suggesting that Fabio Paratici has now submitted an offer to Atletico Madrid regarding a deal for the versatile left-winger.

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Sport Witness go on to state that the 28-year-old has a release clause of €60m (£51m) written into his contract at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium, with Spurs reported to have been willing to pay this figure in the January transfer window.

Carrasco would be “unreal” for Spurs

Considering just how impressive Carrasco has been for Atleti this season, it is not difficult to understand why Antonio Conte would be interested in a deal to bring the forward to north London this summer.

Indeed, over his 33 LaLiga appearances in the current campaign, the £42.5m-rated winger – who can also be deployed at left midfield or left wing-back – has been in sensational form for Diego Simeone’s side, scoring six goals, registering six assists and creating nine big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.5 shots, making 1.5 key passes and completing 2.6 dribbles per game.

The £141k-per-week Belgium international has also impressed in a defensive capacity, making an average of 0.6 interceptions, 0.9 tackles, 0.4 clearances and winning 4.9 duels – at a success rate of 51% – per fixture.

These returns have seen the player who Josh Bunting dubbed “underrated” and Phil Kitromilides labelled “unreal” average a quite remarkable SofaScore match rating of 7.07, ranking him as Atletico’s third-best performer in the Spanish top flight.

Furthermore, according to FBref data, the 28-year-old also ranks in the top 1% of wing-backs in Europe’s big five leagues for dribbles completed per 90, as well as the top 1% for npxG, the top 2% for shots, the top 2% for shot-creating actions, the top 5% for progressive carries and the top 2% for npxG+xA over the last 365 days.

As such, it is clear for all to see that Carrasco would be something of an unreal fit for Conte’s left wing-back role at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, leading us to believe that Paratici must do everything he can to convince the Belgian of a move to north London this summer.

AND in other news: Paratici could land Kulu 2.0 as Spurs eye £17m signing, he would “explode” under Conte