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Former Norwich City star Jon Newsome has told The Transfer Tavern that the club will have already opened negotiations with Tottenham Hotspur over a deal to sign Oliver Skipp permanently.

The midfielder has been in unbelievable form for the Canaries all season, as they have won the Championship title.

The 20-year-old has played in every single game in the second-tier this season, scoring once and laying on two assists from his defensive midfield position, although the Eastern Daily Press are reporting that the youngster may have suffered a serious foot injury.

Skipp has developed well away from Spurs, and it remains to be seen whether or not he will be given a chance to earn his spot in the first-team squad next season.

Indeed, Spurs have sacked manager Jose Mourinho and are on the lookout for a new manager; it is not yet clear who will be in the dugout next season.

As such, Newsome believes Norwich will be desperate to keep Skipp around, and will have already begun the dialogue with the Premier League club.

He told TT: “He’s had a great season. Will the club test the water? Will they test the water with Tottenham?

“They’re managerless at the moment. I would be really surprised if a conversation has not already been had.

“There’s a lot to be said for it, you go to a club that wants you, that you’ve had great experience and enjoyable times with, so I think it would be quite a positive thing for him if that offer was on the table.”

A major claim has been made on Celtic’s transfer plans, regarding Portuguese attacker Jota’s future at Parkhead…

What’s the talk?

According to journalist Pedro Almeida, the Hoops will sign the forward on a permanent deal from Benfica, with the winger currently on loan from the Liga NOS giants.

He has claimed that they will pay €7.5m, roughly £6.3m, to complete the signing, Tweeting: “Celtic will advance to the definitive signing of #Jota from Benfica for 7.5M€.”

Buzzing

Celtic fans will surely be buzzing by this update as Jota has been in terrific form since arriving at the club and keeping him at Parkhead in the long term could be a huge boost for Ange Postecoglou.

The attacker has racked up an impressive 12 direct goal contributions in 15 games for Celtic, with six goals and six assists. This includes four goals and four assists in eight Premiership appearances, showing his ability to both score and create goals for the side.

Postecoglou admitted earlier this season that he wants to keep the Portuguese attacker at the club in the long term and claimed that the player is loving life in Glasgow. He said:

“He hasn’t had the easiest start to his career, he was out on loan last year and it didn’t work out for him. I think he’s loving life here and my job is to make him the best possible player he can be.

“If he feels that this is the place for his future we’d be more than happy to keep him here but he’s got a pretty good head on his shoulders and he knows that the best way forward for him is to keep playing his football and the rest will take care of itself.”

At the age of 22, he also has the potential to develop further and grow as a player. This means that Postecoglou could improve him over the course of the coming years and potentially turn him into an asset worth far more than £6.3m to the club in the future.

Therefore, with his current contributions and his potential to increase his value, fans will be buzzing to see him stay at Celtic on a permanent deal. If he is able to maintain his current form and build on it, the money eventually paid could soon be seen as a bargain for the club.

AND in other news, Bitton 2.0: Ange could find Celtic’s new midfield beast in 20 y/o who’s “like Petrov”…

An update has emerged regarding the make-up of new Rangers boss Gio van Bronckhorst’s backroom staff at Ibrox as he aims to bounce back from the Gers’ crippling defeat last weekend…

What’s the talk?

According to Gazet van Antwerpen, via Sport Witness, the Dutchman is hoping to complete a deal to land Royal Antwerp talent coordinator Zeb Jacobs in the coming days.

The report claims that there is a concrete interest from Rangers in the 26-year-old, who currently works on youth development with the Belgian outfit, and they are looking to finalise a move ‘soon’.

Buzzing

Rangers fans will surely be buzzing with this news as it suggests that van Bronckhorst wants to place an emphasis on youth development at Ibrox. Jacobs is said to have impressed Gers chiefs with his work in Belgium – developing young players and helping them progress into the first team.

This means that he could come in and help to bridge the gap between the academy and the senior team. Whether that means he will come in and directly work with the starting XI with a specific focus on the younger players or in the academy helping the stars of tomorrow push on to reach van Bronckhorst’s side remains to be seen, but it is good news either way for supporters who want to see the next ‘one of their own’ play at Ibrox.

Nathan Patterson is currently part of the first-team set-up and playing a backup role to James Tavernier at right-back and Jacobs’ arrival could potentially help him kick on and nail down a starting berth.

The likes of Juan Alegria, Aaron Cervantes and Tony Weston could also benefit as they attempt to make the leap from academy football to making their Scottish Premiership debuts.

This is why the Ibrox faithful will be buzzing with this news as it could see a number of young players make their way at Rangers, should Jacobs have the desired impact upon his arrival.

They will also be delighted with van Bronckhorst wanting to make this a priority as it shows that he is willing to offer chances to younger players and will not rely on senior heads to get him out of every situation.

It is now down to Ross Wilson and the Dutchman to ensure that they can iron out a deal with Antwerp in the coming days to bring him to Ibrox.

AND in other news, Gio could save Wilson millions with Rangers beast who is a “winner and warrior”…

Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier could potentially join La Liga giants Barcelona next summer, according to a fresh rumour which has emerged.

The Lowdown: Meslier shines for Leeds

The 21-year-old has emerged as one of the standout figures of the Marcelo Bielsa era at Elland Road, excelling between the sticks. He has now made 65 appearances for Leeds, proving to be a model of consistency and becoming the youngest goalkeeper in Premier League history to play 50 times in the division.

He has kept 23 clean sheets during his time in Yorkshire, which works out at approximately one every three matches, a very respectable return.

The Frenchman looks set to have a huge future in the game, and although his current Whites deal doesn’t expire until 2026, there appears to be some interest in him ahead of forthcoming transfer windows.

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The Latest: Barca linked with Meslier

According to pundit Gerard Moreno [via Planeta Barca and Sport Witness], who specialises in Barcelona news, Meslier is wanted by the La Liga giants due to the poor form of Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

A summer move is mentioned rather than a January switch, although no official approach appears to have been made. Andre Onana, Koen Casteels and Bartlomiej Dragowski were also identified by Moreno as potential replacements for the £49.5m-rated Germany goalkeeper, who boasts 14 trophies to his name during his time at Camp Nou.

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The Verdict: Potentially huge loss

Much like a number of Leeds players who are highly sought-after, it is perhaps wishful thinking to expect Meslier to remain at Elland Road for many years to come.

That would be an ideal scenario, of course, but considering that he is arguably one of Europe’s best young goalkeepers – he has been hailed as ‘excellent’ by BBC pundit Micah Richards – it is easy to envisage him joining a top European club.

If Meslier does choose to move on, it is vital that Leeds receive a decent fee for his services in order to replace him with a similarly talented player and bring in other reinforcements. He is valued at £18m by Transfermarkt, so prospective suitors should not expect to get away with paying anything less.

In other news, David Ornstein has provided a key update on one Leeds player. Find out who it is here.

Anwar El Ghazi was a notable absentee from the Aston Villa team sheet for the match against Wolves and Dean Smith has provided an update on the player.

The latest on El Ghazi

Smith confirmed that El Ghazi is out with an infected toe picked up against Sheffield United, with the manager saying: “He came back after the game and had a bruise which got infected. He wasn’t able to get a boot on. He’s a big loss.”

This is a big blow for Villa

It has been a remarkable turnaround for El Ghazi, who has scored six goals in his 16 Premier League appearances so far this season (Transfermarkt). This is already two more than he managed the whole of last season over 34 games.

He received great praise from former Villa defender Alan Hutton, who said: “I’ve played with him and played against him. In training, he can be unstoppable.”

El Ghazi has also been a great attacking threat and has been a handful for defences, with an average of 2.1 shots, 1.1 key passes and 1.4 successful dribbles per game this season (WhoScored). He clearly was missed in the 0-0 draw against Wolves as many Villa supporters slated the performance of his replacement Trezeguet.

Hopefully the injury is not a lengthy one, especially during a particularly good campaign for the player, as he provides a much better threat than Trezeguet (who has failed to score in his 18 appearances this term) and he could be vital for a top half finish in 2020/21.

In other Villa news, some fans have been piling praise on one star at the club following his latest comments. Have a read who it is here!

Leeds United will target Crystal Palace left-back Patrick van Aanholt this summer when his deal at Selhurst Park expires.

That’s according to a report from The Mirror, who claimed that the 30-year-old fits the profile required by Marcelo Bielsa of an attacking full-back.

Van Aanholt to replace Leeds’ Alioski?

Van Aanholt, valued at £7.2m by Transfermarkt, is considering the next move of his career after Tyrick Mitchell’s emergence has seen him in and out of Roy Hodgson’s side.

The Dutch defender, who has made 19 appearances this season, will be available for nothing in the summer, when his contract is due to expire.

The Whites have a left-back of their own out of contract in the summer in Ezgjan Alioski, and it seems as if Van Aanholt could come in to replace the North Macedonian, with Bielsa eyeing a new first-choice left-back.

Transfer Tavern take

Many Eagles supporters weren’t impressed with Van Aanholt on Saturday during the 1-0 win over West Brom, with one describing his display as ‘awful’.

The £55,000-a-week Palace man stalled over fresh contract talks with Palace towards the end of 2020, and a move away from Selhurst Park for nothing now seems likely.

He has made 130 appearances for the club, scoring 14 times and providing six assists, but it appears as if he won’t be hitting the 150 mark for the Eagles.

In other news: Many Palace fans are buzzing at links to £9m-rated Premier League midfielder, find out more here. 

Leeds United have been credited with an interest in Aston Villa defender Matt Targett, 90min report.

The Lowdown: Newcastle loan

Targett has been on the books at Villa Park since 2019 but made the move to Newcastle United on loan in January after Steven Gerrard brought in Lucas Digne.

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The 26-year-old, who Villa Park legend Gabby Agbonlahor believes is ‘really comfortable on the ball’, has made 12 appearances for the Magpies, helping them climb up the Premier League table under Eddie Howe.

Jamie Carragher has hailed the left-back during his time at St. James’ Park, and it looks as if his displays have now caught the eye of Leeds chiefs.

The Latest: Leeds links

90min shared a Newcastle transfer story on Tuesday evening, which involved an update on Targett.

They claimed that Leeds, Leicester City and Wolves all hold an interest in Targett, although his preference is to stay at Newcastle, who have a ‘broad agreement in place’ ahead of a £15m permanent deal.

The Verdict: Firpo replacement?

It is interesting that Leeds have been credited with an interest in Targett, as they have also been linked with Celta Vigo left-back Javi Galan earlier this month.

Junior Firpo was the club’s main marquee signing last year from Barcelona but has had a first season to forget, making just 15 Premier League starts and picking up more yellow cards than any other Leeds player.

Links to two left-backs this month could mean that the Whites are looking to replace the Spaniard ahead of Jesse Marsch’s first full season in charge, however, relegation back to the Championship could blow the club’s transfer plans wide open in regards to both incomings and outgoings.

In other news: ‘Big blow…’ – Sky Sports man now reacts to ‘dramatic’ confirmed Leeds news for run-in. 

Aston Villa have struggled recently due to an outbreak of COVID in their squad. Gregg Evans has provided fans of the club with an update on their game next weekend against Everton.

The latest on Villa’s fixture vs Everton

The outbreak is at its worst currently for Villa, and this was emphasised by the fact they had to field an academy side against Liverpool in the FA Cup.

Evans, who is a journalist for the Athletic, tweeted: “#AVFC vs #EFC will take place on Sunday.”

This update is good news for Villa

The fact that the game on the weekend will go ahead suggests that the club are close to coming out of this bleak period and that most of the squad should have recovered by the game against Everton.

Their midweek game against Tottenham Hotspur had to be postponed. With the club already behind on matches, this will be a worry for Dean Smith. The fixture list is already heavily congested this season. Therefore, to have to postpone more fixtures will only make this issue worse. It would create a lot of fitness and injury issues so it is best that the game against Everton goes ahead at the end of the week, provided that it is safe to do so.

In other news, Dean Smith discussed a tactical decision he made in a recent fixture. Have a read of what he had to say here!

Peterborough United Director of Football Barry Fry has told Football FanCast that Tottenham Hotspur have to keep Harry Kane this summer if they are to challenge next season, and says that must kick-start a rebuilding job in north London.

The striker has been in electric form this season and has scored 31 goals in all competitions, while also providing 16 assists.

Kane has been heavily linked with a move away from the club this summer, with The Athletic reporting that he is keen to leave for a new challenge, particularly if the club fail to qualify for the Champions League.

Spurs are currently sixth, five points behind fourth-placed Chelsea with four games to go.

The club have, of course, sacked Jose Mourinho and have placed Ryan Mason in interim charge of the team until the end of the season.

It remains to be seen who will take over – there have been a number of managers linked with the club – but Fry says there is a major job to be done, though the first task is ensuring that the England captain remains.

His current contract expires in 2024 and Fry thinks he needs a new deal to show his commitment to Tottenham.

He told FFC: “Whoever comes into Tottenham, Kane’s got to stay, so they’ve got to give him a new contract and do whatever they’ve got to do to make him stay because no matter who comes in, without him, they’re going to struggle.

“There’s no doubt about it, they’re going to struggle.

“He’s got three years left on his contract, Tottenham are obviously in charge of that but we’ve all known before when a player is unhappy.

“I’m not saying Harry Kane’s unhappy, he loves Tottenham, he’ll do anything for Tottenham, but there comes a time when without massive rebuilding there, they’re not going to be challenging for the league title for a start.”

Ahead of their Premier League clash against Manchester City on Friday night, Newcastle boss Steve Bruce might consider making a ruthless decision and dropping Miguel Almiron from his starting line-up.

With the season now winding down, and the Magpies’ safety secured for another year after both Fulham and West Brom saw their relegation back to the Championship confirmed in recent days, there’s a real chance for Bruce to just experiment a little and bring some fresh energy into the side.

And one way he can do that, is by axing Almiron.

The Paraguay international has endured another difficult season on Tyneside, with just four Premier League goals to his name all year – in fact, he’s been on a shocking run of form that has seen him fail to find the back of the net, or and provided just a single assist, since February 6.

A run of three months without a single goal contribution just isn’t good enough, even in the slightly more withdrawn role that he’s been used in lately.

And, last week’s performance against Arsenal was particularly disappointing, coming up against a Gunners side who had just been humiliated in the Europa League by Villareal and there for the taking.

As per Sofascore, the £75k-a-week earning ace’s 31 touches and 19 passes were even lower than goalkeeper Martin Dubravka, and was involved in barely anything of note.

He had absolutely no attempts on goal, and didn’t even managing a single dribble either. That’s not to mention the fact he also provided no key passes either, and it was no surprise Bruce eventually saw enough and took him for Joelinton mid-way through the second half.

After the game, The Chronicle’s Lee Ryder simply called it “one of his poorest displays of the season”, while Bruce himself admitted Almiron had a difficult outing, saying: “I think he’s played very well of late playing in that midfield area. But like us all (against Arsenal), we’ve found it a bit of a struggle. With what we’ve got at the top end of the pitch, I believe he’s still a very, very decent midfield player and can add goals and a bit of flair from it (midfield) like he has done.”

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Almiron’s work-rate and attitude is second-to-none, and there’s a lot to like about the way the Paraguayan goes about things. But sadly, the quality just hasn’t been there, and it’s holding the Magpies back. It’s time for him to be dropped from the starting line-up.

Meanwhile, Steve Bruce is eyeing this Premier League starlet…