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Wolves are plotting a bid for Vitoria Guimaraes midfielder Andre Almeida ahead of a crucial summer transfer window for Bruno Lage.

What’s the word?

Portuguese news outlet Jornal de Noticias (via Sport Witness) claim that Wolves are discussing a deal for Almeida as Lage plans a major summer rebuild for next season.

The player could cost £6.8m and at only 21 years old, would represent a shrewd investment.

With his contract due to expire at the end of next season, Wolves may take advantage and try to secure a bargain deal.

Dream Moutinho heir

Lage has had a very solid first season in charge of Wolves, leading the club to a top-half finish despite a poor final few weeks of the campaign derailing some momentum.

He faces a big summer ahead, with the futures of Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho uncertain, fresh faces will be guaranteed.

In Almeida, Wolves could have the perfect heir to the 35-year-old maestro. Almeida plays slightly further forward in an attacking midfield role and despite not scoring any goals this campaign, an 86% passing accuracy stat is solid.

The midfielder can also contribute defensively, making on average 1.4 tackles per game and winning 56% of his total duels.

These are extremely similar to Moutinho’s, who has a slightly better pass accuracy (87%) and wins 2.1 tackles per match, although his dominance in duels isn’t as good as Almeida’s (43%).

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With that in mind, it’s easy to see why he’d make such a good replacement for the Portuguese veteran with his easy on the eye and accurate passing a key attribute when assessing the heir to his midfield throne.

For the aforementioned fee, Lage should be going all out to secure the youngster’s services, with Zach Lowy lauding him as “intriguing”, then it could certainly be worth the money.

AND in other news, Wolves can save millions by unearthing 22-year-old “diamond”, Lage will be ecstatic

Celtic have been given an injury boost on the double ahead of their next Premiership clash, with Sunday’s opponents deprived of two more players.

The lowdown

Fourth-placed Hibernian are due to welcome the Premiership leaders to Easter Road on Sunday lunchtime, but they will be without James Scott and Elias Melkersen, who have both joined an extensive injury list for the Edinburgh club.

Hibs already knew they would be without Paul Hanlon, Paul McGinn, Joe Newell, Demetri Mitchell, Harry Clarke and Kyle Magennis against Ange Postecoglou’s side.

Celtic have won all three meetings between the teams so far this season, prevailing 3-1 away from home in October before winning 2-0 at Parkhead last month in the Premiership. They also defeated tomorrow’s opponents in the Scottish League Cup final just before Christmas.

The latest

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Hibs boss Shaun Maloney confirmed the fresh double blow, fearing that his side will miss the ‘speed’ and ruthlessness of Scott in particular.

As quoted by The Scotsman, he said: “Unfortunately, the same six players are still out, and they are senior players. We’ve also lost Elias and James through illness, which is a shame.

“It’s a shame because Elias was progressing, and James Scott brings something to us that I see as a coach. In certain moments in matches he brings that speed and that power to finish games.”

The verdict

Valued at £360,000 by Transfermarkt, Melkersen has yet to make his debut for Hibs following his January move from Bodo/Glimt, who knocked Celtic out of the Europa Conference League this week.

The absence of the £450,000-rated Scott is more significant given that he had featured in four of the last eight games, and Maloney seems to view the Hull City loanee as a potential game-changer off the bench.

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In truth, a severely depleted Hibs, who have only picked up five points from their last seven matches, may be dreading this clash with the league leaders, particularly with two more players added to their extensive missing list.

In other news, Celtic have been linked with someone who scored against them recently

The future of Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha is still far from clear despite reports suggesting he’s set to be offered a new contract, according to journalist Tom Barclay.

What’s the story?

Zaha’s current deal is set to expire in the summer of 2023, leading to speculation that this season will be his last with the south London outfit.

However, The Sun’s Alan Nixon recently revealed that fresh terms were set to be placed on the table by Palace’s hierarchy, sparking hope that the capital club’s talisman will commit his future.

But there is no guarantee that Zaha will stay put, and Barclay claimed ‘it’s not clear’ what is going to happen next regarding the Ivory Coast international’s future.

Speaking about the 29-year-old’s contract situation to GIVEMESPORT, he said: “From what I’m told, at the moment, it’s not clear where we’re going to go with this. But what is clear is that his contract is winding down, so a decision is going to have to be made.”

Crystal Palace fans should be worried

The £13m-rated gem has established himself as Palace’s star performer since re-joining the club in 2014, scoring 51 goals and providing 42 assists in 253 Premier League appearances for his boyhood side.

And he’s thriving under Vieira’s tutelage in the opening weeks of 2021/22. Zaha has bagged four top-flight four goals already this season after benefitting from the arrival of several exciting acquisitions, but the feel-good factor surrounding Palace could soon end.

Zaha’s standout displays have seen him continually linked with a Selhurst Park exit amid interest from the likes of Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Everton, and just last summer, he openly expressed his desire to have another chance at playing for a top team in order to compete for silverware.

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Only time will tell whether the creative talent chooses to seek pastures new over the coming months, but Palace’s fanbase will be hoping he puts pen to paper on a new deal soon. At the moment, however, they will be deeply concerned about their star man’s future.

And, in other news…40 duels won, 37 clearances: £18m-rated “absolute tank” has been pivotal for Palace

Nottingham Forest have completed a deal to bring Jordi Osei-Tutu to the City Ground this summer.

What’s the talk?

In a story that was first broken by Daniel Taylor, with The Athletic journalist revealing in a post on Twitter that Dane Murphy was nearing the signing of the Arsenal right-back, the Garibaldi announced in their own post on Tuesday evening that a deal for the 22-year-old had been finalised, with the highly-rated youngster joining on a season-long loan deal.

In his tweet, Taylor said: “One of Arsenal’s talented young players expected to become Nottm Forest’s next arrival. Jordi Osei-Tutu, a right-back, had an impressive loan spell at VfL Bochum previously. Injuries with Cardiff last season, but well regarded in AFC set-up. NFFC proposing loan.”

Hughton will be buzzing

With right-back having been something of a problem area for Forest this summer, as Chris Hughton has informed Carl Jenkinson that he is free to leave the club, leaving Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel as the 62-year-old’s only viable option in the position, the fact that Murphy has finally got a deal over the line to bring in a new face on the right-hand side of defence is sure to have left the Reds boss buzzing.

Indeed, over his 21 2.Bundesliga appearances while on loan at Bochum back in 2019/20, the £1.08m-rated man highly impressed, scoring five goals and registering two assists, as well as making an average of 0.9 key passes and taking 0.9 shots per game.

The Arsenal starlet also impressed in metrics more typical of his position, making an average of 0.8 interceptions, 1.2 tackles, 0.5 clearances and winning 5.4 duels per match, with these returns seeing the £2.5k-per-week defender earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.75.

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As such, not only will Hughton be provided with cover and competition for Lawrence-Gabriel in the signing of Osei-Tutu, he will also be getting a player who is extremely adept both going forwards and at the back – something that will undoubtedly delight the manager.

In other news: Forest dealt blow over “one of the best” ahead of Bradford tie, Hughton will be gutted

A number of Liverpool fans have been reacting in delighted fashion to the news that Ibrahima Konate has officially become a Reds player.

Jurgen Klopp managed to guide his team to a third-place finish in the Premier League in 2020/21, but it was an extremely difficult season for the German.

The 53-year-old had to overcome a number of obstacles, the most notable of which was having to make do without Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip for the vast majority of the campaign.

[freshpress-quiz id=“355458″]

The trio are all still injured and Liverpool ended up playing unproven duo Nathaniel Phillips and Rhys Williams as a centre-back pairing in the final games.

It has highlighted the need for the Reds to sign a new defender this summer and Konate has always looked set to be that man, having been continually linked with a move to Anfield.

On Friday, Liverpool confirmed that a deal for the RB Leipzig man had been completed, with the 22-year-old arriving on a ‘long-term’ contract.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/the-latest-liverpool-transfer-news-2/” title=”The latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=“none”]

Liverpool fans react to Konate update

These Reds supporters have taken to Twitter to provide their thoughts on the positive news.

“Happy Friday Reds”

Credit: @AnythingLFC_

“Things you love to see. Welcome, Ibrahima Konate”

Credit: @LFC_JamieBS

“What a signing. Let’s go, LFC”

Credit: @Akki_SwagMan

“Love this, Liverpool going out and getting exactly the player needed early doors. A player who has all the potential to become one of the best in the world and form a formidable partnership with Van Dijk”

Credit: @DHardayal

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“This is exceptional value”

Credit: @lrchandley

“Let’s gooooooooooo”

Credit: @Kea_IsTheName

In other news, some Liverpool fans have been bemoaning an update on one Reds player. Find out who it is here.

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Rob Lee, who appeared 332 times for Newcastle United, believes the best option the Magpies have going forward is to get more crosses into the box.

Newcastle’s last two goals have both come from Jamaal Lascelles getting on the end of a cross and with players like Ryan Fraser and Jacob Murphy on the wings, there should be no shortage of balls being fired into the area.

Lee was impressed with Murphy’s cameo against Aston Villa as he set up his captain for a last-second equaliser, however, he’s never been impressed by the former Norwich City winger when he has started a game for Newcastle.

Speaking on whether or not Murphy should start for Newcastle, Lee told FFC exclusively:

“Jacob Murphy seems to have all the ability in the world, he’s quick and can get crosses into the box. However, it seems that whenever he starts he doesn’t play well from what I’ve seen of him.

“I think the one thing Newcastle have got to do is get crosses in. You saw at the end against Villa we were desperate, but we were getting crosses into the box and then Lascelles got on the end of one and scored, so that’s what I think we have to do.”

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Newcastle have attempted just 305 crosses in the Premier League which is the fifth-lowest, however with their previous two goals coming from balls whipped into the box it could be an avenue Steve Bruce wishes to exploit more.

Murphy once again had to settle for coming on as a substitute in the defeat to Brighton on Friday, but will be hopeful of a start when they host Tottenham Hotspur at St James’ Park after the international break.

Glasgow Rangers weren’t exactly quiet in the summer transfer window, but perhaps Ross Wilson could have added the icing on the cake with one final signing.

Steven Gerrard was given not one but two back-up strikers in the form of Cedric Itten and Kemar Roofe, whilst Wilson also brought in Bongani Zungu before the stroke of play on transfer deadline day.

Whilst Rangers secured the services of Leon Balogun on a one-year deal in the summer with the option to extend his contract for a further year after Nikola Katic suffered a serious knee injury during pre-season training, Filip Helander and George Edmundson are currently self-isolating with the latter having fallen afoul of the coronavirus guidelines.

This means that the Ibrox boss only has three options for two centre-back positions at present – as talented left-back Calvin Bassey can also play in a more central role if required, whilst Connor Goldson and Balogun are almost guaranteed to start against Scottish Premiership rivals Ross County at Victoria Park on Sunday afternoon.

An injury crisis or an outbreak of coronavirus cases could cause several problems at the back, so the Ibrox boss may want to think about dipping into the academy ranks, and he may be more inclined to do so after Leon King made his first-team debut last weekend.

Rangers crushed Scottish League One club Falkirk in a comfortable 4-0 win in the Betfred Cup to cruise into the last eight with the 16-year-old coming off the bench to replace James Tavernier at right-back in the second half.

Primarily a centre-back, King is cut from a similar cloth to Goldson, who has also been utilised at right-back in the past.

In 15 appearances in the Scottish Premiership this season, the 27-year-old has scored two goals and supplied one assist, whilst he is averaging 1.1 tackles per game, via WhoScored.

It’s no surprise, then, that Goldson has attracted attention from clubs south of the border, as reports in recent times revealed that several Premier League side retain an interest in the Wolverhampton-born defender, which is where King could come into the fray.

Despite his young age, his rapid progress hasn’t gone unnoticed, as the teenager has already made the jump from the academy ranks to the senior squad, albeit on a temporary basis.

Former Rangers full-back Alan Hutton hailed the young talent after the win last weekend, telling Football Insider: “It’s crazy, at 16, to be playing in the Rangers first-team.

“I think he turns 17 just in January but they’ve done really well to hold onto him, I think he’s kind of the next one, the next big one that we see making the breakthrough.

“A lot of teams down south, I know, were interested in him but he signed a new contract back in March – another great prospect for the future, they speak about him very highly.

“Even though he’s physically ready, I don’t think he’s ready in terms of coming in and playing all the time. I think it’s about learning, training with the first-team, getting used to that sort of atmosphere and progressing well.

“To get those compliments from Steven Gerrard, again, another one that must have his confidence absolutely through the roof at the moment.”

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The Daily Record recently reported that King has signed his first professional contract with the 54-time Scottish champions which made him one of the club’s highest-paid youngsters in the process, amid interest from the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal.

If that’s the case, then the Ibrox boss would be wise to integrate him further into the first team to ward off any potential suitors, especially when you consider the impact of Bassey in recent weeks.

Goldson could act as the perfect mentor to the young academy product as it’s fair to say that King is still learning about the game and life in general. After all, he has experienced both the highs and lows of being a professional footballer after returning from successful surgery.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers boss Steven Gerrard could unshackle Kemar Roofe as the team’s No. 10…

This article forms part of our Profit Players feature series, which is where Football Transfer Tavern takes a look at how well a player has fared since being signed or sold, using statistical figures and statements from pundits to prove how good of a deal the club managed to achieve.

In 2013/14, Charlie Austin’s prolific form in front of goal helped to fire a team playing in blue and white into the Premier League. Five years on from those heroics with QPR, for whom he also scored 18 top-flight goals despite their relegation a year later, West Brom put their faith in a second lightning strike by signing him from Southampton for £4m last August.

Austin came to The Hawthorns with a tremendous scoring record at Championship level but, having turned 30 last summer and endured a lean campaign with the Saints, it would have been understandable if some Baggies fans had reservations about his arrival.

Any such opposition to Albion’s decision to buy him may well have grown after the first three months of the season, with only one goal in his first 11 league appearances for Slaven Bilic’s side. He duly lost his place in the starting XI following the November international break but, far from shattering his confidence, it ended up getting the best out of him.

Austin duly went and scored in five successive league games despite starting only one of them, hitting six goals in the space of just two hours on the pitch (as per WhoScored). Most of those were crucial goals, too, with late winners against Sheffield Wednesday and Preston, along with a two-goal salvo to ensure victory from a losing position away to Birmingham. The 30-year-old was swiftly proving to be the epitome of a supersub.

The £4m man hasn’t been able to maintain such excellent form, with only one goal since Christmas as he continued to settle primarily for substitute appearances rather than a place in Bilic’s first XI (as per TransferMarkt). However, it is evident from his tremendous form in late 2019 that he is quite capable of embarking on rich scoring bursts.

Despite only starting 13 of Albion’s 35 Championship matches so far this season, Austin is their second-highest scorer with nine goals in all competitions, only one behind Hal Robson-Kanu. His goals have been worth eight league points to the Baggies, without which they would not be in an automatic promotion place, and his eight league goals have come in 1,123 minutes of game-time, one per 140.37 minutes. Contrast that with Kenneth Zohore, who cost twice as much last summer but has just three league goals in 602 minutes, one per 200.67 minutes.

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Should the Championship season resume and West Brom maintain their place in the top two, they may well look back on their £4m investment in Austin and regard it as an astute purchase towards a proven scorer with previous in firing teams to promotion.

West Brom fans, how good a decision was it to sign Austin for £4m last August? Comment below with your views!