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Millwall have been dealt a huge blow in their bid to bring Ryan Porteous to The Den this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The Scottish Sun, who claim that Galatasaray are preparing a £1m plus add ons offer for the Hibernian centre-back in the coming weeks, with the Turkish side boasting the advantage of offering the 22-year-old the potential of playing Champions League football next season.

Millwall have also been credited with an interest in the Scotland U21 international this summer, and were believed to have had an offer of £1m rejected for the defender back in the January transfer window.

Rowett will be gutted

With Gary Rowett looking to build on a highly impressive 2020/21 campaign with Millwall next time around, the news of Galatasaray’s interest in one of the 47-year-old’s likely summer targets will undoubtedly come as gutting news for the Lions boss.

Indeed, the £630k-rated Porteous would very much appear to be an excellent addition to the Millwall backline ahead of next season, as the youngster was one of Jack Ross’ stars last term.

Over his 34 Scottish Premiership appearances for Hibs, the £2.7k-per-week centre-back helped his side keep 11 clean sheets, in addition to making an average of 1.5 tackles, 1.6 interceptions and winning 6.9 duels per fixture.

These returns saw the 22-year-old earn an average SofaScore match rating of 7.01, ranking him as the club’s seventh-best performer in the Scottish top-flight – playing a huge role in Hibs going on to seal a rather remarkable third-place finish in the league.

As such, if Galatasaray do indeed go on to sign the player whom Jack Ross dubbed a “brilliant” talent, it will be a huge blow for both Millwall and Rowett, as the club and manager will have to turn their attentions elsewhere in order to strengthen the Lions defence ahead of their upcoming campaign.

In other news: Rowett must sanction Millwall swoop for “highly-rated” £1.5k-p/w bargain this summer

Carlton Palmer has slammed the West Brom board for allowing Sam Johnstone to leave the club as a free agent. 

The lowdown: Johnstone attracting interest

A report from the Daily Mail has claimed that the 29-year-old goalkeeper is a target for Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham and Southampton this summer.

Set to become a free agent in July (Transfermarkt), Johnstone seems certain to end a four-year permanent spell at The Hawthorns at the end of the current campaign. Indeed, Steve Bruce has acknowledged that the ‘keeper will be on his way out of Albion once the season ends.

The anti-climactic ending to Johnstone’s West Brom career has been criticised by one former England international…

The latest: Palmer criticises West Brom

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Palmer – who works as a pundit for the BBC – has slammed the club’s decision to allow the England ace to leave for nothing.

He fumed: “They’re going to lose Sam Johnstone on a free, which is crazy business. Why not let Sam Johnstone go last season if you’re not going to get him to sign a new contract? Why not let him go and get £10m-£12m for him rather than let him go on a free, it’s just crazy.”

The verdict: Bang on the money

Whilst keeping the three-cap England goalkeeper was perceived as a positive having suffered relegation last year, without the prospect of an instant return to the top flight it now appears to be a major oversight from the West Brom hierarchy.

Last summer, West Ham saw a reported £10m bid for the stopper rejected by the Midlands club, money which would now go a long way towards funding a much-needed squad overhaul.

Moreover, Bruce may need to replace Johnstone as first-choice at The Hawthorns, with neither David Button nor Alex Palmer seemingly up to the task based on the concession of 20 goals in their 10 combined Albion appearances so far this season.

In other news, West Brom have been backed to sign a Premier League midfielder. Read more here.

Steven Gerrard’s Rangers have been linked with Heerenveen ace Joey Veerman recently and should the Dutch midfielder make the move to Ibrox this summer, he could prove to be their next Mikel Arteta.

According to Dutch news outlet Voetbal, Rangers are keen on signing the 22-year-old this summer after another impressive campaign in the Eredivisie.

They suggest that Rangers, Stade Reims, PSV and Atalanta are all monitoring Veerman ahead of next season, whilst Southampton and Feyenoord and Club Brugge have also been linked with him in the past.

So far this season, the midfield orchestrator has contributed seven goals and nine assists in 28 Eredivisie appearances, resulting in a superb 7.47 average rating, whilst he also has two goals in the KNVB Cup, taking his overall goals and assists tally to 18, an excellent return from a midfielder.

WhoScored lists some of Veerman’s strengths as his passing, dribbling, long shots and set-piece ability, which immediately marks him out as someone who could play a role similar to the one Arteta did during his time at the club.

The current Arsenal boss joined Rangers from Barcelona in 2002 and spent two years at Ibrox before moving to Real Sociedad, before later spending time in the Premier League with Everton and Arsenal.

During his time at the club, Arteta would manage 50 league appearances, in which he scored 12 goals, including some spectacular free-kicks.

Unsurprisingly for a Spanish midfielder, he was extremely talented on the ball and kept possession well but also pushed forward and was dangerous in attack.

Other than Joe Aribo, who has regularly featured on the right-wing, Rangers have arguably been low on goals from midfield this season, with Glen Kamara, Steven Davis and Scott Arfield scoring just five league goals between them this season.

Veerman, who would likely cost around £8.5m, could offer that midfield threat, whilst he is also renowned for his ability in possession, with former Rangers man Michael Mols singing his praises recently, saying:

“He is perfect with the ball and in possession, he’s a really great player. His passing and movement with the ball is really relaxed in a good way.”

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Therefore, Ross Wilson should definitely look to bring Veerman to Ibrox this summer as if he is anywhere near the player Arteta turned out to be, he will be a very good signing indeed.

And, in other news… Rangers suffer huge blow to £2.2m ace with “terrific quality” Gerrard will be worried

Paul Stewart fears Tottenham Hotspur may face a challenge in keeping Son Heung-Min if Harry Kane forces a move out of the club.

Star striker Kane is looking to leave Spurs before the transfer window closes in a bid to boost his chances of winning more silverware.

The England captain has hit the headlines for failing to return to Hotspur Way for pre-season training this week and Manchester City are keen to persuade Spurs chairman Daniel Levy to sell last season’s Premier League top goalscorer.

While Kane is itching to leave north London, Son committed his future to Spurs by penning a new four-year deal last month.

The South Korea international scored 22 goals and registered 17 assists in 51 appearances last term.

Son’s fine form led to speculation that Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich were looking to make a move and potentially seal his return to Germany having already featured for Hamburg and Bayer Leverkusen prior to heading to the Premier League.

Former Spurs ace Stewart fears signing a new contract could count for little if a major force looks to sign Son.

He exclusively told The Transfer Tavern: “When Harry stated his intention to leave, I said Spurs have got to be careful because people will be coming in for Son.

“Son was outstanding last season and he would be disappointed in the departure of Harry.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if one of the big teams in Europe came knocking on the door for Son.”

Former Liverpool centre-back Stephane Henchoz has explained why Xherdan Shaqiri sees his future lying away from Anfield this summer.

The Lowdown: Shaqiri linked with exit

Shaqiri has spent three seasons as a Reds player, making 63 appearances and famously scoring a match-winning double at home to Manchester United back in 2018/19.

It looks as though the 29-year-old’s time on Merseyside is coming to an end, however, with first-team opportunities few and far between.

Lyon are the latest club to be linked with a move for Shaqiri, who James Pearce once hailed for having ‘breathtaking technique’.

[freshpress-quiz id=“359326”]

The Latest: Henchoz provides update

Speaking to Blick [via Sport Witness], Henchoz claims it is only natural that Shaqiri wants to move on, given his lack of playing time:

“Shaqiri is an outstanding player, he has shown that many times. At Liverpool, however, the competition is simply too great.

“After this excellent Euro 2020, he would like to be a regular at a club. That is why he has now sent a clear signal to Liverpool with these clear words.”

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The Verdict: Best for all parties

It makes sense for everyone that Shaqiri finds a new club this summer, allowing him to be a key man elsewhere and generating transfer funds for Liverpool.

In Harvey Elliott, the Reds look to have a tailor-made younger replacement for the Switzerland international, and his path won’t be blocked by his senior teammate staying put.

Shaqiri has a huge amount of quality and could enjoy success elsewhere, but his time for the Reds has run its course.

In other news, Liverpool could reportedly make a move for a midfielder this summer. Find out who it is here.

Tottenham Hotspur head into the final game of the 2020/21 Premier League campaign knowing they must pick up all three points to stand a chance of qualifying for the Europa League.

But it will be no easy task as they face a Leicester City side who also need a victory in their bid to make the Champions League.

Spurs will need to vastly improve from their abysmal result in midweek, where they lost 2-1 to Aston Villa, and that result leaves interim boss Ryan Mason with plenty to ponder ahead of kick-off.

They looked disappointing in front of goal again, with big names like Harry Kane, Heung-min Son and Dele Alli all underperforming.

The link between midfield and attack may have been the root cause as the Lilywhites looked far more lively when Tanguy Ndombele’s presence entered the field of play during the second half.

Mason’s decision to opt for Harry Winks in the engine room in recent outings just hasn’t paid off. He is the man holding Spurs back right now as he offers very little going forward nor much defensively either.

Fans were less than impressed with his performance against Leeds, so perhaps it was surprising to see him come back into the starting XI in midweek after missing the win over Wolves.

As per WhoScored, the 25-year-old midfielder ranks as the worst performer on the season with an average rating of just 6.33. This should come as no surprise, though, as he’s never managed above a diabolical 6.57 average in any of his Premier League campaigns since his debut.

In terms of attacking output, the Englishman manages only 0.3 key passes and 0.1 dribbles per game, via WhoScored, often resorting to a side or backwards pass – something that is just not needed when the team are crying out for someone to drive them forward from the middle.

Against Villa, he once again failed to create a key chance, was dribbled past twice, and made only one of three long balls. proving to be rather wasteful too.

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Ndombele, however, tried to move Spurs forward in the mere 16 minutes he was on the pitch – via SofaScore, he made 90% of passes, successfully pulled off 100% of his dribbles, and won all of his ground duels, too.

Winks was poor defensively too. As noted by Chris Coleman during commentary, Eric Dier was seen lambasting his teammate during the game.

“You can see there. Eric Dier is having words with Harry Winks,” he said. “He’s saying that the shield in front of himself and Toby Alderweireld is not good enough. Grealish is getting in the space in front of the centre-backs and you don’t want that to happen. Eric Dier is asking for a bit more protection.”

Even the attack-focused Frenchman (1.2 tackles per game) is outdoing the £26m-rated passenger (0.9) with his work rate at the back, and that speaks volumes.

Given the £75k-per-week star has also been linked with an exit from N17 this summer, it would be wise to brutally axe him from the starting XI at the King Power this evening.

Winks has no right starting in a game of this calibre, especially not over a playmaker like Ndombele. It’s time for Mason to show no mercy over his old teammate in his final game in charge.

AND in other news, Mason must unleash “remarkable” £18m-rated beast on Leicester today, could be a game-changer…

Many Everton fans have been left to buzz as a transfer update emerged on James Rodriguez.

As per football journalist and transfer expert Pipe Sierra, AC Milan are interested in signing the former Real Madrid star in the summer window, and have made it known to his agent Jorge Mendes.

Talks between them and the Goodison Park faithful over his potential sale will start next week.

Rodriguez suffered from consistent injury problems throughout the 2020/21 season, and so some supporters of the Merseyside club feel as if they simply did not see enough of him.

He has also not exactly been enthusiastic about staying at the Toffees either since the departure of Carlo Ancelotti, and given that he is also 29 years of age now too, it may well be a good time to cash in on him, and use that money to reinvest in the squad.

Everton fans on Rodriguez transfer update

These Blues buzzed as the exit news was shared on Twitter:

“Let’s hope so, because he doesn’t want to be here now”

Credit: @AidyDews

“Shifting him, Bernard, Siggy would clear up lots on the wage bill. Hopefully some younger quicker signings to come.”

Credit: @wilmotoffee

“€10m is good money considering. We need to sell to get some more wiggle room buying. He needs to be replaced though”

Credit: @DannoJ21

“Swap deal for Leao would do”

Credit: @steffan38wen

“If true, I’d try and work Rafa Leao in to any deal frankly. James + €/£”

Credit: @NTylerVI

“Great move for him. Such a shame we never got to see him in the flesh”

Credit: @the_staveros

In other news, find out what comments about Ancelotti have Evertonians talking here!

As Crystal Palace took on Newcastle United at Selhurst Park today, many Eagles supporters were left blown away by the performance of striker Christian Benteke.

Patrick Vieira’s side, looking to gain some momentum after a fairly inconsistent start to the season, met the Magpies in London this afternoon in what was a fairly entertaining encounter.

The travelling side, fresh off their headline-grabbing takeover, were given a run for their money by Palace who constantly threatened and provided real problems.

One major vocal point of the attack was Benteke, and despite missing some big chances across the 90 minutes, hitting the woodwork twice, his goal summed up just how threatening he actually was.

According to SofaScore, the Belgian had six shots on goal in total and won the vast majority of his duels up against Newcastle – prompting supporters to praise Benteke on social media, who was unlucky to have a second strike ruled out by VAR too.

Find all of their best verdicts down below.

Palace fans blown away by Benteke…

“This is one of the best Benteke performances I can remember. He’s been excellent”

Credit: @TalkCPFC

“Forget the goal, Benteke has been absurdly good in hold-up today”

Credit: @jack_jsteele

“If you cross the ball, Benteke becomes almost unplayable.”

Credit: @CroydonExile1

“Benteke has much more confidence under Vieira”

Credit: @Dave_Winbod

“I can’t believe my eyes benteke back in form??”

Credit: @GhostKingUK

“wow our own benteke”

Credit: @AendeLaw

Liverpool have another opportunity to keep their unbeaten streak going this weekend, with a Premier League clash against Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield next up for Jurgen Klopp’ side following on from their 5-0 win against Manchester United and then their 2-0 Carabao Cup win over Preston in midweek.

On the chalkboard

One Liverpool player who did not feature in the game at Preston and who we feel should be in the starting XI to face Brighton is Jordan Henderson.

The Englishman did feature in the blistering win at Old Trafford, where he had 144 touches of the ball, racked up a passing accuracy percentage of 96%, grabbed one assist, made three key passes, completed 100% of the long balls he attempted, won two ground duels, and made three interceptions and two tackles. That ultimately earning him an overall match rating of 8/10, making him one of Liverpool’s highest-rated players on the day according to SofaScore, and shows why he should start against the Seagulls and why we think he could terrify Graham Potter’s side at the weekend.

So far this season, the 31-year-old – who has been described in the past as an “important” player for the Reds by teammate Virgil van Dijk – has made 12 appearances for the Merseyside club across all competitions, scoring one goal and providing two assists in the process.

In his eight Premier League appearances for Liverpool this season, Henderson has racked up an average of 1.4 key passes and 1.6 tackles per game and an overall passing accuracy percentage of 89%. That further illustrates how much of a significant midfield option he is for Klopp from a defensive and attacking sense and why he should be back in the starting XI on Saturday considering that he had a rest in midweek instead of being involved in the Preston game.

Also, with Fabinho having missed Liverpool’s previous two league games following a recent knee issue, it would make sense for Henderson to continue in the team if the Brazilian isn’t able to feature against Brighton this time around.

Moving forward, if Henderson does start against Brighton on Saturday and puts in a similar sort of performance as he did against United last weekend, we feel that this would give Liverpool a great chance of beating Potter’s side, who have 15 points from their opening nine league games of the season.

In other news: Klopp could unearth Liverpool’s next Salah with 20 y/o “hero” who’s a future star

Everton youngster Tyler Onyango already trains regularly with the first-team, but The Transfer Tavern’s EFL spy thinks the teenager could benefit from from a loan deal with Portsmouth.

Onyango, who is highly rated by assistant manager Duncan Ferguson, made his senior Toffees debut in an FA Cup tie with Sheffield Wednesday in January, but is likely to need a loan move to the EFL to get a regular taste for men’s football.

The 6 ft 5 teenager was involved several times with Carlo Ancelotti’s first-team, although he is yet to make his Premier League debut having been an unused substitute on eight occasions.

And the EFL insider exclusively told The Transfer Tavern that the young midfielder is already good enough to flourish at League One level when asked whether he would be a good fit at Portsmouth:

“Tyler Onyango of Everton is an interesting one that needs men’s football to get him near the Everton first team, where he is potentially close to being soon.

“He’s a big midfielder but has the ball retention of a good midfielder at League One level for Portsmouth.”

Danny Cowley teams historically like to play on the front foot with plenty of possession. So, with the EFL spy revealing that the teenager’s ball retention is one of his strengths, this would make for a good match.