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Crystal Palace keen on signing £14.4m-rated midfielder with 79 Premier League appearances – report
Crystal Palace have made an enquiry for Arsenal midfielder Ainsley Maitland-Niles, according to football.london. The Gunners graduate spent the second half of last season on loan with West Bromwich Albion, where he played in his preferred central midfield role. The 23-year-old has another two years left on his Gunners contract, but recently said that he would be open to leaving the north London club permanently. Palace have enquired about the England international with their sporting director Dougie Freedman said to be an admirer of the England international. Sportslens view: Maitland-Niles has made 128 appearances in his Gunners career, and the majority of those appearances have come in the full-back/wing-back positions. He has regularly stated that he has the preference to play in the ce...
Man United ready to sell £100k-a-wk Tottenham Hotspur target amid attitude concerns – report
Manchester United are willing to listen to offers for goalkeeper Dean Henderson amid concerns over his attitude, Football Insider claims. The England international started last season as the back-up goalkeeper behind David de Gea, but he became a regular during the back end of the campaign. Despite this, he was ignored for the Europa League final against Villarreal. The club lost via a penalty shoot-out, with De Gea failing to save any of the 11 spot-kicks. Ahead of next season, the club are planning a radical overhaul of the goalkeeping department, and they have already released Sergio Romero and Joel Pereira. The club are also open to offers for Henderson and De Gea but acknowledge that they may struggle to offload the latter due to his hefty £350,000-a-week wages. Henderson is said...
Arsenal could target €70m Edu favourite if either Lacazette or Nketiah leave the club – report
Arsenal are keeping tabs on Real Sociedad striker Alexander Isak and could make an approach for his services this summer, The Athletic claims. The 21-year-old had a productive 2020/21 campaign for the La Liga outfit, registering 17 goals from 44 appearances across all competitions. He has been linked with some of Europe’s high-profile clubs, and it is now claimed that the Gunners are monitoring him with a view to a summer transfer. Gunners technical director Edu remains a huge admirer of the Sweden international, and he is among the top striker targets on the club’s shortlist. The London club could make a move if one of Alexandre Lacazette or Eddie Nketiah are sold. Isak has a €70 million buy-out clause in his contract. Sportslens view: Isak has shown glimpses of his potential during ...
Premier League’s ‘Big 6’ agree punishments over European Super League fiasco
The Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ have agreed to pay a fine following the European Super League drama back in April. On April 18, it was announced that 12 of Europe’s top clubs had agreed to break away from UEFA and form a new league, known as the European Super League. Manchester United, Man City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, and Arsenal all joined from England, as well as three each from Spain and Italy. The response to the announcement was intense. Players and managers spoke out against the idea, while fans protested at grounds. Some of football’s governing bodies, such as UEFA and the FA, threatened punishments for those who participated in the plan. The proposal lasted two days, before clubs buckled under the pressure. Chelsea were the first to back out, and the other five Engl...
‘We are not satisfied’ – Liverpool star sends strong message ahead amid backlash from teammates
Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker has confirmed that Brazil players will take part in the upcoming Copa America tournament. Brazil players staged a mutiny and reportedly expressed their frustration after the tournament was moved in the middle of the pandemic. The popular international tournament was supposed to be hosted by Colombia and Argentina. However, both were removed as co-hosts following street protests and a rise in coronavirus cases. Brazil were given the duty to host the tournament by CONMEBOL at the last minute after a bid from the United States was rejected. Everyone at the Brazil camp, including coach Tite, felt that felt the tournament should not go ahead in Brazil with the country facing an outbreak of the virus. Brazil is one of the worst affected pa...
Barcelona have held talks with agent of £36m-rated German, player would favour move – report
Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan would be open to joining Barcelona this summer, El Chiringuito reporter Jose Alvarez claims. The Blaugrana have been busy in the transfer market since the end of the season, and they have already announced the arrival of three new players. Among them are Sergio Aguero and Eric Garcia, who will officially join on free transfers when their City contracts expire at the end of the month. The Blaugrana have continued to be linked with several City players including Aymeric Laporte and Raheem Sterling, and Gundogan is the latest on their radar. It is reported that the club’s officials recently held talks with the uncle and agent of the midfielder over a possible transfer in the upcoming transfer window. The German international is said to favour a move t...
Report: Euro club keen to sign £15m Liverpool player who ‘blossomed’ last season
Marko Grujic set for Anfield exit this summer. According to reports from The Athletic, Portuguese club Porto are leading the race to sign Grujic this summer on a permanent deal. The 25-year-old spent the last season on loan at Porto where he ‘blossomed’ under the guidance of coach Sergio Conceicao. The Reds are prepared to offload him to boost their transfer kitty. Grujic was the first signing of Jurgen Klopp’s Anfield reign, but the Serbian midfielder has failed to make an impact at the Merseyside club. Liverpool signed Grujic in a deal worth £5.1 million from Red Star Belgrade in January 2016. He was initially loaned back to his hometown club for the rest of that season. He has made just 16 senior appearances in all competitions for the Reds, and hasn’t played in the Premier L...
Barcelona midfielder open to staying at club to fight for his place next season
Miralem Pjanic has refused to rule out the possibility of staying at Barcelona next season while speaking to Marca, despite experiencing a disastrous first year at the club. The Bosnia & Herzegovina international left Juventus for Camp Nou in a transfer worth €60million last summer, with Arthur Melo heading the opposite direction as part of a coordinated swap deal. However, neither player has managed to live up to expectations, especially Pjanic, who recorded just six La Liga starts under Ronald Koeman in 2020/21. The 31-year-old has found himself bottom of the pecking order in the Spanish club, with Sergio Busquets, Frenkie de Jong, Pedri and Illaix Moriba all enjoying more playing time than him. Following a lacklustre season-long stint at Barcelona, the ex-Roma playmaker could be goi...
Report: Everton keen on recruiting French manager
Everton are currently in discussions with Christophe Galtier to become their next manager, according to BeFoot. The Toffees have been without a manager after Carlo Ancelotti left them in order to take charge of Real Madrid for a second stint. Galtier will be in high demand after sensationally guiding Lille to the Ligue 1 title last season and winning the Ligue 1 manager of the season award. The report did add that Galtier has reached an agreement to take charge of French club Nice though this has not deterred Everton. One could argue that Everton will be a better next career step for Galtier rather than Nice. The latter placed ninth in the French top-flight last season and even if the 54-year-old agrees to join them, he will have to embark on a long-term project to develop the outfit into ...
West Ham to step up interest in £30m-rated star with 14 goal contributions last season – report
West Ham United are ready to step up their interest in re-signing Manchester United forward Jesse Lingard following his Euro 2020 heartbreak, The Sun reports. The England international had a superb loan stint with the Hammers during the second half of the season, registering nine goals and five assists from 16 games. His efforts helped the club qualify for the Europa League group stage for the first-time ever, but he still did not make the cut for the Euro 2020 squad. His absence from the tournament has offered the Hammers the opportunity to negotiate a permanent deal with the Red Devils in the coming weeks. Sportslens view: Lingard’s career was on an evident slump with the Red Devils before he made the temporary switch to the Hammers at the turn of the year. The move has helped him build ...
Report: Euro club eye summer move for £110k-per-week Arsenal star
Villarreal have joined the race to sign Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin in the summer transfer window. According to reliable journalist, Gianluca Di Marzio, the Yellow Submarines have joined Sevilla in the race to sign the Spaniard this summer. The 26-year-old is one of the senior members of the current Arsenal squad, but he could be allowed to move on, with Mikel Arteta looking to sculpt the squad to his own taste. Bellerin, who is on £110k-per-week wages at the Emirates, is one of the high earners at the club. He has a contract at the club till 2023, but the Gunners could look to cash in on him. The Spaniard has previously worked with Villarreal boss, Unai Emery, at Arsenal. Villarreal won the Europa League last season and they will be competing in the Champions League this t...
23-yr-old informs friends that he is joining Leicester City this summer
Celtic star Odsonne Edouard has been heavily linked with a move away from Parkhead this summer. According to Football Insider, the Frenchman has now informed his friends that he will leave the Scottish outfit to join Leicester City. Edouard has already made up his mind and is set for a reunion with Brendan Rodgers at the Premier League club. Personal terms have been agreed with the player, and Leicester are sorting out the structure of the deal with Celtic. The Foxes needed to add more depth to their striking department, and 23-year-old should prove to be a quality long term addition. The Frenchman scored 22 goals in all competitions for Celtic last season, and he is likely to improve with experience. Edouard has just one year left on his contract with Celtic and is likely to be available ...
