All posts by h716a5.icu

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According to Inter Live, Tottenham Hotspur can sign Inter Milan midfielder Matias Vecino for £25m in this summer’s transfer window.

What’s the word, then?

It is expected to be a busy summer transfer window for Tottenham; that was not the case ahead of the 2018-19 campaign, but it would be a huge surprise if the London club were not active at the end of this season.

Christian Eriksen is being widely tipped to move on, whilst the same can be said for Toby Alderweireld, who could be heading for Manchester United.

Central midfield is an area that needs improving at Tottenham, with Mousa Dembele leaving for the Chinese Super League earlier this year.

According to Inter Live, Tottenham are considering a swoop for Vecino this summer and have learned that any move will cost them £25m.

Vecino has been a regular at Inter this season – making 30 appearances in all competitions – whilst he has a contract at the San Siro until June 2022.

Should Tottenham move for Vecino?

A 31-time Uruguay international, Vecino has shown over the last two seasons that he can more than hold his own at a major European club.

The 27-year-old has previous when it comes to scoring against Spurs, meanwhile, as he netted a late winner against Mauricio Pochettino’s side in the Champions League earlier this season.

Vecino is a talented and experienced footballer, but would not be the type of signing to excite the Tottenham supporters, particularly when considering that Eriksen could indeed leave the club.

In the current market, £25m is not a lot of money for a player of Vecino’s ilk, but Tottenham are not exactly huge spenders and should look elsewhere this summer despite the South American’s obvious talent.

[ad_pod ]Kieran Trippier recently admitted that he has struggled for Tottenham Hotspur this season.Indeed, The Telegraph quoted the right-back as saying that he ‘could have done a lot better’ for his club during the 2018-19 campaign.Trippier has been a regular for Spurs this season, making 29 appearances in all competitions, contributing one goal and four assists.The defender’s form has not always been brilliant, though, and the Tottenham fans have not exactly been shy in criticising him this term.The 28-year-old was one of England’s stars en route to the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup, but he has been unable to carry that form into the current campaign.Check out the harsh words the Playmaker FC squad had to say about Wayne Rooney’s England career in the video belowIn fairness to Trippier – a 2015 arrival from Burnley – he was man enough to admit his shortcomings.The Spurs fans are not really that interested, though, with many taking to social media to criticise the former Manchester City youth player in light of his comments.A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

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Manchester City fans have taken to Twitter in horrified fashion after seeing Nike’s mashup kit, created to celebrate the brand’s six-year partnership with the reigning Premier League champions.

The strip features a mixture of various different City strips from across the last six years, modelled by rising star Phil Foden – despite Nike’s efforts, it has to be said that the shirt is fairly horrific.

442oons have charted the entire career of Man City’s main man Sergio Aguero through song in the hilarious video below…

Nike’s partnership with the Cityzens comes to an end when the current campaign draws to a close, where Puma will then take the reigns of supplying kit for England’s current most successful side.

The deal with them is set to last for a decade, and is said to be worth around £650m to the City Football Group.

Puma will begin their partnership with City in June, and will represent a far more attractive proposition financially than Nike ever did – the former suppliers paid City around £20m a year, whereas the new ones will help the Cityzens earn more than three times that.

Let’s see what the City fans on Twitter have been saying about this monstrosity of a shirt…

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Leeds United fans have been expressing their love for Marcelo Bielsa on Twitter after a fan-filmed video of the Argentine manager celebrating at full-time against Millwall emerged.

Bielsa has become somewhat of a legend in the Yorkshire city due to his antics; spying on the opposition, handing out sweets to kids and sitting on his water cooler have given Bielsa hero status amongst Leeds fans.

The video shows the scenes on the touchline as the final whistle sounds – the normally reserved Bielsa is seen celebrating passionately whilst hugging his coaching staff as Leeds rescued victory from the jaws of defeat and moved back into second place after their win against Millwall.

With promotion now in touching distance for the Yorkshire club, fans have been vocalising their love for Bielsa on Twitter after his celebrations echoed the sentiment of the fans. Their long wait to return to the Premier League may finally be over soon…

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According to Football Insider, Everton are considering a move for Birmingham City forward Che Adams in this summer’s transfer window.

What’s the word, then?

Everton are widely expected to move for a new striker this summer amid suggestions that Cenk Tosun will be leaving Goodison Park.

As per Football Insider, the Toffees are huge admirers of Adams, who is enjoying a terrific campaign for Birmingham.

Indeed, the 22-year-old has found the back of the net on 22 occasions in 40 Championship appearances for the Blues during the 2018-19 season.

Burnley were strongly linked with a move for the forward in January, with the Clarets said to have offered in excess of £12m for his services.

It does seem likely that Adams will leave St Andrew’s this summer and Everton could be about to bring him to the Premier League.

What would the signing mean for Everton’s attack?

Dominic Calvert-Lewin has only scored six Premier League goals this season, but there is no question that the 22-year-old has impressed.

He was terrific against Arsenal at the weekend and the thought of Adams operating in tandem with Calvert-Lewin will be exciting for Everton supporters.

Theo Walcott has struggled this term, but Bernard and Richarlison have both shown their qualities, while Gylfi Sigurdsson has managed 12 top flight goals.

In this era of ‘big 6’ dominance, has finishing 7th become as good as winning a trophy? The Pl>ymaker FC squad have their say in the video below…

Tosun has proved that spending big money on foreign strikers is not always the way forward and if Adams arrived to supplement the likes of Calvert-Lewin in the final third then Everton could cause all sorts of problems next season.

Adams is untried and untested in the Premier League, but his goal record this season simply cannot be ignored and the Toffees should seriously consider a summer swoop.

Talk emerged this weekend that Celtic’s soon-to-be out of contract defender, Dedryck Boyata, could be on the verge of signing a pre-contract with Bundesliga outfit, Hertha Berlin.

Reports on Mail Online (via Germany’s Bild newspaper (in German with subscription required) claimed that the Belgian international is poised to join the German club.

Their Hungarian coach, Pál Dárdai, will be hoping to take the club forward from a mid-table side, to one that can challenge for European spots, and obviously see the former Manchester City defender as the perfect fit for his defence.

But Neil Lennon, despite admitting previously that the player may have made his last appearance for the club, played down the talk, and insisted he is hoping to see the player remain in Glasgow.

Speaking of the news of a potential deal with Hertha, Lennon said: “‘I’m not aware of that.

“Dedryck was here at the game today.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if there is interest in him but we are still hopeful that we can persuade him to stay, which would be great for everyone.”

It would be a blow for Celtic to lose the Belgian, but by far, the biggest negative would be losing him for free.

That said, with a permanent manager still being sought — whether that is Lennon, or someone else — whoever is appointed is likely to be given transfer funds, which could be used to replace the defender.

But how big a loss would Boyata’s departure really be to Celtic?

He is a big player for the team… when he plays. And therein lies much of the issue.

Over the past three seasons, according to Transfermarkt.co.uk, injuries have been a problem for Boyata, and have caused him to miss 35 per cent of Celtic’s league games — not including a spell in the 2016/2017 season where he was simply left out of the squad after a previous injury.

This season alone has seen him miss 14 of Celtic’s 33 league games, working out at 42 per cent. In fact, injury has seen him on the sidelines for over a third of league fixtures in each of the last three seasons.

Due to the constant success of the club, it means they will always be playing in three domestic competitions, and European games too — whether Champion’s League qualifiers, group stages, or Europa League games — and that means high demands of players at Celtic Park.

So if a player is missing a huge chunk of games every year, then in many respects — regardless of his ability — he becomes something of a liability for the team.

With that in mind, we at the Tavern don’t think it would be as big a blow to Celtic in the long-term, as it may appear.

If they could invest funds into a suitable replacement — someone they could get a high percentage of games out of — the effects of Boyata’s departure would soon be forgotten.

As mentioned previously, the biggest annoyance is seeing the player leave for no fee, which is largely out of the club’s control.

What do you think of Boyata’s rumoured departure, Celtic fans? Would you see it as a massive blow? Or is no player irreplaceable? Let us know your thoughts…

Man Utd have a rich history of developing young players, and on the 28th of February 2016, another young Red Devil made his first Premier League start. With Louis van Gaal’s team taking on Arsenal, the Dutch boss had a shortage of attackers, and he turned to a young Marcus Rashford in pursuit of glory against the Gunners.

What followed has since gone down as a huge moment in the modern history of the Red Devils, with Rashford emerging onto the Premier League scene with a bang. Scoring two goals, he was later nominated as the Man of the Match, and unsurprisingly, lots of Man Utd fans hailed their new boy wonder.

Sometimes, initial impressions can be deceiving. There have been countless players that have made one fantastic appearance as a youngster and failed to follow it up with further quality. After all, it’s easy to make an initial impression; it’s a different task entirely to keep it long-term.

Loads of Man Utd fans were quick to pass judgement on Rashford, touting him as the next big thing in England, and in hindsight, they weren’t wrong.

The attacker is now a regular at Old Trafford, and he’s apparently on the verge of earning a contract worth an astonishing £300,000-per-week. Not bad for a player that was originally brought in just to plug a gap.

It’s a testament to not only his quality, but also the power of the Man Utd Academy. There’s clearly so much talent there, and Rashford serves as evidence for the suggestion that all a player needs is a chance. In a period of one game, Rashford went from an unknown to a Premier League wonderkid – and now he’s taken it to the next level.

Who knows how far he will go. He’s got all the tools to make it to the top. And the signs were there when he made his Premier League debut against Arsenal just over three years ago.

Man Utd fans – what were your first impressions of Rashford? What is next for him? Let us know below!

West Ham United fans will be desperate to see a number of additions in the summer as things just haven’t gone to plan in the current campaign, with a European spot now highly unlikely. 

The Hammers’ biggest problem has been at the pinnacle of the attack as the likes of Javier Hernandez, Lucas Perez and Andy Carroll have been hugely disappointing. And, Marko Arnautovic hasn’t exactly been at his best in the current campaign, so improvements are definitely required this summer.

One player who West Ham are reportedly (as per Chronicle) interested in is Atalanta’s Duvan Zapata.

Indeed, the Colombian has established himself as one of the deadliest strikers in Europe this season, having produced an incredible 25 goals and six assists.

He’s exactly the kind of striker that West Ham United have been calling out for as his strength and pace helps him get into promising positions and then he makes use of his finishing ability to really punish the opposition. The main thing is that he can ensure a consistent flow of goals, which will be important next season at the London Stadium.

Zapata has even been called a ‘beast’ (as per BBC) by Atalanta team-mate Martin de Roon, which is understandable as he’s built like a monster and has the goals to back it up.

Apparently, David Gold and David Sullivan may not even need to break the bank to secure his services in the summer, as according to CIES Football Observatory, the striker is worth €23 million (£19.9 million).

Of course, it remains to be seen as to whether his current club would let him leave for that price, but the Hammers would secure themselves a bargain if that fee was to be paid for his services.

He’s certainly a better option than Edin Dzeko, who has been linked (as per Corriere dello Sport, via The Sun). The former Manchester City man is getting on with age and would only be a short-term option for the London club, so moving for Zapata would make so much more sense, especially as he’s scored 12 more goals than the Roma man.

West Ham United fans, surely you’d rather see Zapata rock up at the London Stadium this summer? Join the discussion by commenting down below! 

No matter what happens this season, Ajax’s story will be one of the best of the campaign.

The Dutch giants run in the Champions League has been one of the best storylines in football this season, with Ajax already knocking out both the reigning European champions Real Madrid and the favourites for the competition Juventus already, and this has made clubs around the continent take note of some of the stars behind these giant killings.

One of the players to attract attention is midfielder Hakim Ziyech, who scored in both legs against Real Madrid and has been one of Ajax’s best players this season in the league scoring 15 goals and assisting 15 in 26 Eredivisie games, and according to reports Liverpool are interested in the Moroccan international.

The Daily Mail report that Jurgen Klopp’s side, as well as Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal, are all interested in the Ajax playmaker, who is valued at £25 million. With the Reds likely to strengthen this summer, what would the potential consequences be of Liverpool signing Ziyech?

Liverpool gain major threat from the bench

Largely played out on the right wing, Ziyech will likely find most of his game time at Liverpool coming off the bench for Mohamed Salah, and although the Moroccan would prefer it to be starting games, being brought on as a substitute isn’t a bad thing for the attacker.

A fresh Ziyech going at Premier League defenders who have played an hour plus of football is a dangerous weapon for Liverpool to posses. The former FC Twente forward is an all-out attacker who can do everything in the final third, and for Liverpool, his skill set is something that Klopp will be a lot better with than without.

Klopp finds another gem

At £25 million, Ziyech has a case to be one of the bargains of the summer wherever he ends up, and Liverpool have made a reputation for themselves in recent transfer markets of being able to pick up exceptional players for way below their real market value, and the 26-year-old winger could be the next bargain in Klopp’s time on Merseyside.

We have seen Liverpool sign the likes of Andrew Robertson, Georginio Wijnaldum and the aforementioned Salah for cheap fees and drive up their values massively after a season or two, and the same will happen to Ziyech should the club get a deal over the line.

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Celtic are reportedly eyeing a move for Milad Mohammadi, who is best known for his hilarious failed “flip throw” during the 2018 World Cup.

What’s the story?

According to Football Insider, the Hoops could swoop for Mohammadi this summer.

The left back will be out of contract at current club Akhmat Grozny, where he has been a fixture in the team this season with 24 Russian Premier League starts.

And you may well recognise him from the World Cup, as his attempt to launch the ball into the box for Iran with a somersault failed miserably, leading to multiple viral videos and memes of the incident.

Fulham and Bristol City are also interested in the 26 year-old.

Check out the below above to see football played as you’ve never seen it before… in a maze!

Izaguirre uprgade

Mohammadi doesn’t need to be a world beater, because he would not arrive as a replacement for Kieran Tierney.

Instead he should be viewed as an upgrade on Emilio Izaguirre, who will also be out of contract this summer.

By moving for Mohammadi, the Hoops would upgrade a position that has harmed them in the past given Tierney’s injury problems, all without spending a penny.

And the Iran international has some very impressive stats this season, averaging 2.5 tackles per game, 1.4 interceptions and 1.1 clearances, per Whoscored.

He is no slouch going forward either, boasting 1.3 shots, one key pass and 1.4 successful dribbles per game.

Mohammadi is a well-rounded, dependable defender with above average delivery, and he is also versatile enough to play on the left wing if an injury crisis were to strike. This one should be a no-brainer for the Bhoys, regardless of his iconic World Cup mishap.