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Liverpool are ‘in for a real shock’ as they look to raise funds through player sales, The New York Times’ chief football correspondent Rory Smith has warned.

The lowdown

Liverpool made their first signing of the summer on Friday, sealing a £36m deal for French central defender Ibrahima Konate.

According to The Athletic’s James Pearce, further incomings will partly depend on how much is generated from offloading fringe players. He noted that sporting director Michael Edwards is historically a specialist at extracting ‘bumper fees’ for ‘unwanted’ talent, but admitted that it will be more difficult to repeat the trick this summer in the midst of the global pandemic.

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire predicted in March that we would see a ‘buyer’s market’ this summer.

The latest

In a tweet, Smith referenced two price tags reported by Pearce. Liverpool are said to value Divock Origi, who scored only one goal in 2020/21, at £20m, while they want £15m for returning Cardiff City loanee Harry Wilson, who has made a paltry two senior competitive appearances for the Reds.

The journalist opined with incredulity: “The days of Liverpool selling fringe players better than anyone else were over. If their plans are based on these valuations, they’re in for a real shock. £15m for Harry Wilson? In a pandemic?”

The verdict

Smith has a point here. Why would anyone pay £20m for Origi off the back of such an underwhelming season? In truth, the optimal point to sell him was straight after his trophy-clinching Champions League final goal two years ago, when his reputation peaked.

As for Wilson, he may have shone in the Championship with seven goals and 11 assists, but you sense that most suitors will be keen on another loan move. He surely would have left permanently last summer if the market was there.

Ultimately, the Reds may have to generate cash through the sheer volume of sales rather than the individual transfer fees.

In other news, many Liverpool fans fumed at this transfer claim surrounding a rival club’s superstar. 

BBC Scotland pundit Marvin Bartley has been full of praise for the performance of Celtic forward Jota over the weekend. 

The lowdown: Celtic one step closer

The Hoops took another significant stride toward the Premiership title with a 2-0 victory over Ross County at Victoria Park on Sunday.

Ange Postecoglou’s side are now six points clear at the top of the table with four matches remaining after an opening goal from Kyogo Furuhashi and a late strike from Jota sealed the points in Dingwall.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/key-latest-celtic-updates-3/” title=”Key latest Celtic updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

After the match, there were plenty of plaudits for the Portuguese ace in particular…

The latest: Bartley praises Jota

Speaking to BBC Sportscene (April 24, 19:31), Bartley was full of praise for the display of the 23-year-old on loan from Benfica.

The Livingston defender gushed: “His all-around game is absolutely brilliant. If you’re a Celtic fan you want him signed up as soon as possible. He’s a striker’s dream, isn’t he? If you go in the right areas, he’ll find you. His head is up all the time.

“He can play left, he can play right, he’s pro-active, he’s constantly on the move. He’s got that belief he can go past anyone.”

The verdict: Top-drawer display from Jota

This was a performance right out of the top drawer from Jota as the Portugal under-21 starlet took his tally for the season to 11 goals and 12 assists in all competitions.

Overall, the youngster earned a standout 8.90 rating for his display, which contained four key passes and two further big chances created, along with the goal and assist (Sofascore).

Performances such as this will only further increase the clamour for the club to pay the reported £6m required to make the loan sensation a Celtic player on a permanent basis over the summer.

In other news, an expert has made a key claim regarding the ownership of Celtic. Read more here.

Get German Football News editor-in-chief Daniel Pinder has told Football FanCast that Arsenal should have signed Christopher Nkunku from PSG before his move to RB Leipzig, having been linked with him in April 2019 when Unai Emery was in charge.

The midfielder moved to the Bundesliga club for a fee of around €15m (£12.9m) and he has gone on to impress during his time in Germany.

Nkunku is just 23 and he can play in both central midfield and attacking midfield, and has done so well during his time at Leipzig.

In total, he has made 78 appearances for the club, scoring 12 goals and registering 25 assists.

He made the same number of appearances at PSG and Pinder, a Bundesliga expert, believes that the Gunners missed out by not signing the former France U21 international, who has won six caps for his country at youth level.

Arsenal have been linked with Nkunku after to his move but it is not clear if a bid was made prior to his switch.

He has also called on the Gunners to revert to the Arsene Wenger strategy of finding players who are unheralded but with the ability to grow and improve during their Gunners careers.

Speaking exclusively to FFC, he said: “Yeah, being an Arsenal fan, I like what Arsene Wenger did, signing unknown players.

“So maybe someone like Sasa Kalajdzic, Silas Wamangituka, but even just while we’re at it, obviously they were interested in Nkunku as well and I think that’s someone Arsenal should’ve signed from PSG before Leipzig got in there.”

Leeds United appear to be very active this week after a reliable journalist issued an exciting transfer claim…

What’s the word?

Reports emerged suggesting that the Yorkshire outfit had a £15m offer knocked back for RB Salzburg midfielder Brenden Aaronson, though the club are said to remain keen on signing him this month.

However, it’s not the only player that they have submitted a bid for.

“Victor Orta is being busy and Leeds have also tabled a bid for a second as of yet unidentified player,” revealed the Daily Mirror’s David Anderson to Twitter on Tuesday night.

It remains to be seen who the second player could be as United have been linked to many names in many different positions throughout the last two to three weeks.

Signings soon?

Whilst we may not know who Orta and co are targeting now, the point that they are now looking to conduct business is hugely exciting and encouraging news for the Elland Road faithful.

This window was quickly heading down the same path – a bleak one with no signings, nothing to help manager Marcelo Bielsa and the problems within his squad.

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Often, his side have been decimated by injuries and that was epitomised by the fact that he could only name one senior professional on the bench during Sunday’s 3-2 win over West Ham United. That being Rodrigo, who has only just returned from injury himself.

Leeds have long been on the lookout for a midfielder, with the last signing in the role being Adam Forshaw nearly four years ago. It has left the head coach awfully short on options.

With Kalvin Phillips on the treatment table, it is only Forshaw and Mateusz Klich available as clear-cut central midfielders. The likes of Stuart Dallas and Jamie Shackleton, who often play anywhere they are asked to, can fill in but they have largely been utilised at full-back.

It certainly seems as if Orta is trying his best to find solutions, having submitted two offers for two different players this week, and that should leave many supporters buzzing heading into the rest of the window.

With less than two weeks to go, the Yorkshire giants must accelerate plans to get at least one deal over the line.

AND in other news, Enquiry made: Leeds now eye £10m gem with “enormous ability”, Bielsa badly needs him…

A number of Aston Villa supporters have hit out at Ross Barkley on social media for his first half display against Manchester United on Sunday afternoon.

Dean Smith named the same side which beat Everton 2-1 last time out, with Jack Grealish unavailable for the 12th game in succession.

However, it was Barkley’s performance which had a number of Villa fans talking online, and not for the right reasons.

The 27-year-old was making his 17th Premier League start of the season and 26th appearance in all competitions during the current campaign. His display in the opening stages didn’t exactly impress some fans, though, with many venting their frustrations on Twitter.

The attacking midfielder was lining up in front of Douglas Luiz and John McGinn at Villa Park but failed to really get involved, leaving many Villa fans frustrated as he wasted a 14th-minute cross, a moment indicative of his display.

Villa fans react to Barkley’s performance

Here is what these Villa supporters had to say about the England international, with one describing his display as ‘poor’.

“Traore and Barkley really doing us no favours”

Credit: @_C45EY_

“Barkley is a waste of a man on the pitch”

Credit: @MJDodge84

“Dross Barkley strikes again”

Credit: @b0ngs12

“Traore and Barkley are so so poor”

Credit: @UTV_LC

“Can we send Barkley back now?”

Credit: @kandemanUK 

“If Barkley had just some footballing IQ”

Credit: @josh_priv3

In other news: Villa make contact for in-demand defender; report shares brilliant reason for weekend absence, find out more here. 

Joelinton will not join another club this summer if they are unwilling to match his current wages, warns former Newcastle United defender Steve Howey.

Joelinton joined Newcastle from Hoffenheim back in 2019 in a club record £40m deal but has failed to live up to expectations.

The Brazilian forward scored just two goals in his debut Premier League season before netting four last term.

Considering that, it probably would not be a shock if Newcastle tried to cut their losses soon. However, Howey thinks that is easier said than done, believing Joelinton’s wages could be a problem.

Speaking exclusively to TT about the 24-year-old’s future, the ex-Newcastle player said:

“If the manager goes to Joelinton and says, ‘Listen, the club want to try and offload you,’ it’s not great news that you get from the manager. 

“But the player, because he’s got his contract, if the club that want to buy him are not prepared to match his wage or even better it, then he doesn’t move. The power’s with the player.”

Newcastle certainly find themselves in a tricky position with Joelinton, who still has a contract until 2025 and is reportedly their top earner at £85,000-a-week.

Offloading him is not going to be easy, so you would expect him to still be at St. James’ Park next season. From a Newcastle perspective, hopefully he can turn things around.

An update has emerged on Leicester winger Rachid Ghezzal, regarding Besiktas’ pursuit of the forward.

What’s the talk?

According to Turkish outlet Fanatik, Besiktas are in talks with Leicester over a permanent deal for Rachid Ghezzal and are attempting to haggle down his price tag. The winger spent the 2020/21 campaign on loan to the Turkish giants and is now being lined up for a second spell with the club after impressing in the Super Lig.

The report claims that Leicester want a fee in the region of £5.1m (€6m) for Ghezzal and Besiktas are trying to land him for less. Besiktas are also working hard to reduce his £3m-per-season (€3.5m) wage demands to line up with their finances.

Fans would be fuming

Leicester fans will be gutted if Jon Rudkin ends up sanctioning a sale for Ghezzal for less than £5.1m. If he allows Besiktas to haggle down a fee of £3m or £4m, for example, it could represent a terrible piece of business by the club off the back of an excellent season from the winger in Turkey. Fans would be angry at the Foxes for not being able to profit off his performances by garnering more money for his services, not less.

The 28-year-old was directly involved in 25 goals in 30 starts for Besiktas in the league, with eight goals and 17 assists from out wide. This shows that he was able to find his form and Turkey and consistently produce quality at the top end of the pitch, with a sensational average WhoScored rating of 7.65, which is what he was seemingly expected to do in the Midlands.

Upon his arrival in England, Ghezzal was hailed an exciting signing for the club by former Leicester boss Claude Puel. The Frenchman said that he would add creativity to the ranks following his move from Ligue 1 side Monaco on a four-year contract.

He told Leicester’s official website:

“I’m very pleased to welcome Rachid to Leicester City Football Club. He’s an exciting addition to our group who will bring creativity and competition ahead of an important season for us.”

Therefore, Leicester should be trying to maximise their profit from his impressive form and cash in on the wing wizard whilst they can.

Rudkin must avoid making a grave error by lowering his demands and accepting any low-ball offers from Besiktas. Fans will not want to see the club getting fleeced by another side for one of their players, especially given how well he performed for the European side last season.

AND in other news, Rudkin must axe “excellent” Leicester £77k-p/w maestro, Rodgers doesn’t need him…

Former referee Keith Hackett believes Celtic forward Leigh Griffiths will receive a ban for his antics on loan at Dundee, Football Insider report.   

The Lowdown: St Johnstone flashpoint

Griffiths, who headed out of Parkhead on a temporary basis on deadline day, was in the headlines for the wrong reasons during his third game for Dundee.

The £15,000-a-week striker kicked a lit flare into the away crowd during a 2-0 defeat to St Johnstone in the League Cup and was charged Police Scotland with culpable and reckless conduct two days later.

Sky Sports then shared an update at the end of September in regards to Griffiths also being charged by the SFA.

The Latest: Hackett reacts

Former FIFA referee Hackett was asked by Football Insider for his thoughts on Griffiths ahead of the hearing on October 16 when club action returns.

This is what the 77-year-old had to say in reply, believing the forward will get a ban.

“He can absolutely expect a ban.

“I’ve heard fans get heated, but kicking objects isn’t acceptable. It’s a silly situation, at the end of the day.

“It’s a pity but the actions from the player will send a signal to others not to do the same.

“It will also make people think what action the referee could have taken to avoid it. What action did the stewards take to avoid this as well?

“The stadium controller, the police, the authorities, they have to analyse how we can steer clear of these scenarios.

“The mitigating factor for the player is that the flare should not have been thrown onto the field of play.

“In his defence, he is rightly saying he saw it as a danger and removed it. You and I might kick it five yards, but he’s a professional footballer…

“Maybe he didn’t expect it to go that far, but he shouldn’t have done it. I’m not defending him.”

The Verdict: Celtic mistake

This wouldn’t have been as relevant for Celtic if they had cut ties with Griffiths in the summer, however, they decided to extend his Hoops deal by a further 12 months under Ange Postecoglou.

That now looks like an extremely poor call by the club, who were happy to let him leave on loan just months later.

It now seems as if he’ll be hit with a ban for his on-field antics, and you’d expect the Hoops won’t be offering Griffiths a new deal at the end of the season.

In other news: Coach with 17-honours may be open to replacing Postecoglou; he’s a Celtic fan. 

Derby County would consider a move to bring Jack Wilshere to Pride Park this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The Times (via Richard Cusack), who claim that the out of contract central midfielder is currently training with Wayne Rooney’s side, with the 35-year-old thought to be assessing whether or not he should offer the 29-year-old a deal ahead of the upcoming Championship campaign.

However, when questioned about the potential signing of Wilshere, Rooney denied that the former Arsenal man had been training with his side, although did nothing to dampen his club’s links to the England international.

As cited by Derbyshire Live, the manager said: “I played for England with Jack, he is a fantastic player. No, Jack has not been in with us, he hasn’t trained with us. You never know what develops, we will see what develops. I am open to any players coming in.”

Big mistake

While it would be naive to claim that Wilshere is not a player who boasts a substantial amount of ability as a footballer, with the midfielder having once bossed a Barcelona midfield consisting of Sergio Busquets, Xavi and Andres Iniesta, the 29-year-old has not exactly proven his talent in recent years.

Indeed, over a two-year spell at West Ham United, the £2.25m-rated man featured just 19 times in all competitions for the club due to a number of different injuries, all while reportedly earning a whopping £100k-per-week in east London.

After being released by the Hammers, Wilshere then spent a few months away from the game, before joining Championship side Bournemouth in January this year.

At the Vitality Stadium, the midfielder started just nine Championship games – making a further five appearances from the bench – over which he scored one goal and registered one assist, as well as taking an average of a mere 0.1 shots and making 0.6 key passes per game.

These returns saw the 29-year-old earn an average SofaScore match rating of 6.70, ranking him as the Cherries’ joint ninth-worst player in the second tier of English football last season.

As such, when taking into account his diminishing level of performances, his shocking injury history and his most likely big wage demands, the argument that Wilshere could well prove to be Rooney’s worst signing for Derby is not an overly difficult one to make – with the prospect of the 35-year-old offering the washed-up player a deal sure to leave many fans of the club livid.

In other news: Morris could be heading for grave Derby County transfer error, fans would be fuming

Many West Ham United fans want the club to sign Salomon Rondon after it was revealed that the Hammers are looking to hijack the Venezuela international’s reported move to Premier League rivals Everton, as per The Daily Mail.

The end of the transfer window is fast approaching and the Hammers are in a mad rush to get their business done. They have recently captured the signing of Kurt Zouma from Chelsea (whufc.com), while they are also believed to be close to signing both Nikola Vlasic (Sky Sports) and Nicolas Tagliafico (De Telegraaf).

It now appears they are looking to bring in another striker – after all, David Moyes currently has just Michail Antonio up front in terms of centre-forwards. According to The Daily Mail, the Irons are looking to take Rondon to the London Stadium before the transfer window slams shut. The deal for the forward with 151 career goals, 35 of those in the Premier League (Transfermarkt), would be a loan.

The news has attracted plenty of attention from Hammers fans on Twitter, and these supporters took to social media platform Twitter to share their thoughts on the development.

Let’s see what these fans had to say about the Rondon link

“Wouldn’t say no to this”

Credit: @westham_latest

“YES PLEASE”

Credit: @danielluker10

“I’ll take him as a back up and as long as he knows he’s just a back up. Can score goals, good in the air, sometimes good to bring on a lump up top in the 88th min against United in the cup”

Credit: @sam_lummis

“I’d be happy with this. Wouldn’t be a starter but a very good option to bring on later in the game. Shown what he can offer with his time at Newcastle.”

Credit: @samcwhufc

“Seeing loads of people saying no to Solomon Rondon at West Ham. We literally have no back up striker. He’s tall and imposing, played in the league before and gives another option. If we can get him fairly cheap it’s a no brainer if you ask me.”

Credit: @Elliotttaylor_

“Welcome back to 2019. Tbf for right fee and wage I’d be down for this. Always thought he was underrated and would work as a very good backup to Antonio. Has a link with Vlasic to help both also.”

Credit: @MarkHarrison23

In other news, West Ham are set for talks with this 28-year-old.