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Paddy Kenny has urged Glasgow Rangers to sell Alfredo Morelos this summer as speculation increases regarding his future at the club.

The Lowdown: Morelos linked with Porto

Already during this transfer window, Morelos has been heavily linked with a move to Porto whilst away on international duty with Colombia at the Copa America.

It has even been reported that he has already agreed terms with the Portuguese outfit (Antena1), but there has not yet been any official confirmation.

The Latest: Kenny urges Gers to sell

Speaking to Football Insider, Kenny has urged the club to sell the 25-year-old this summer. He said:

“If he’s pushing for a move, I can’t imagine Steven Gerrard would want something like that lingering over the club.

“They’ll want to get the squad settled, have a good pre-season and try and retain that title.

“You may as well cut your losses, get him sold and move on. Go and get someone who wants to be there, who’s gonna play well, score goals and help you towards that title.

“That way, you can go and organise your side for next season too.”

The Verdict: One more year

Morelos has always appeared to be using Rangers as a stepping stone, albeit while showing an immense pride and passion for the club on the pitch.

He previously said he wanted to play in a more competitive league (Goal.com), while he also more recently admitted he dreams of playing in the Premier League (Radio Caracol).

That being said, he has been a fantastic servant for the Gers, scoring 94 goals and providing 43 assists in 182 games for the club.

The carrot of Champions League football may be too much for him to ignore, though. Porto have also qualified for Europe’s premier club competition, of course, but Morelos has gone through a lot to put the 55-time Scottish champions in a position to do the same. He may well wait to find out whether the Gers reach the same stage and, if they do, he could wait until next year to depart.

In other news, Rangers are set to get a 40% discount on this 21-year-old.

Aston Villa have been linked with a move for Norwich City midfielder Todd Cantwell.

And a number of Villa supporters have been sharing their positive thoughts to the rumour on social media.

According to reliable reporter Mike McGrath of The Telegraph, Villa have been monitoring Cantwell and Tottenham’s Harry Winks as they eye central midfield reinforcements.

Cantwell is capable of playing on the left, right and as an attacking midfielder and has 12 months remaining on his Carrow Road deal.

The 23-year-old is valued at £19.8m by Transfermarkt and has made over 100 appearances for Norwich in total.

Villa have already brought in Emiliano Buendia from Norwich in a club-record deal worth £34.56m this summer, and it seems as if they may well like what they see in Cantwell as well.

Villa fans react

@villareport shared the links to Cantwell and Winks on social media on Wednesday.

These Villa fans all seemed up for a potential swoop for the Norwich man, with one labelling a possible transfer as ‘great’.

“Cantwell let’s gooooooo”

Credit: @prgrssiveacct

“Cantwell yes please”

Credit: @DJNathyB

“Cantwell would certainly be a great signing, especially if Jack leaves. Not a massive fan of Winks but I would love us to sign a deep midfielder with good interception and duel numbers… maybe Skhiri?”

Credit: @george_bwh

“Cantwell I like. Winks not so much.”

Credit: @Zeus_AVFC

“Cantwell would be a nice signing. Couldn’t care less about Winks though”

Credit: @KishinJay

“I would love Cantwell however I don’t see what Winks offers us”

Credit: @ReeceTay_29

In other news: Many AVFC fans react to Mark Goldbridge’s post on Jack Grealish, find out more here. 

Rangers have missed out on reported target Britt Assombalonga after he joined Turkish side Adana Demirspor, which could prove to be a blow for Steven Gerrard and his side at Ibrox for next season.

The Gers were heavily linked with a move for the former Middlesbrough man earlier in the summer after it became clear that he would not sign a new deal with the Championship club, meaning he could’ve been snapped up by Ross Wilson on a free transfer.

However, it was revealed recently that the striker had signed a deal with the newly-promoted Turkish side on a three-year deal, which suggests that Rangers’ interest in him had either ended, or they did not do enough to bring convince him to move to Ibrox.

Despite the plethora of attacking talent on offer to Gerrard at Rangers, Assombalonga has proven himself to be a prolific scorer in the Championship and in League One in the past, and could definitely have rediscovered his goalscoring touch in a Rangers side that scored 92 goals in 38 league games last season.

Whilst the Gers have already added Fashion Sakala to their ranks this summer, there is still concern that Alfredo Morelos could leave the club, whilst Jermain Defoe has become a player/coach, which suggests that he will have limited game time once again next season.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-rangers-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=”Read the latest Rangers transfer rumours and news!”]

Therefore, signing 28-year-old Assombalonga on a free transfer could have proven to be a very shrewd piece of business by Wilson and Gerrard, considering he has hit 131 goals in his senior career thus far, despite a less than successful spell with Middlesbrough.

After making his debut for the Riverside outfit, Assombalong was heavily praised despite failing to score, with journalist Phillip Talentinre writing:

“Assombalonga’s work rate was exceptional.

“He chased plenty of lost causes and constantly looked to provide an outlet when up front, and he was quick to get back and help clear the lines when defending a Wolves corner or free-kick.”

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Gerrard would surely have valued someone with Assombalonga’s work rate in his side for next season, and it seems unlikely that he wouldn’t have been able to score goals for the Ibrox outfit considering his obvious talent, so Rangers fans should be angry that Wilson was unable to bring him in on a free transfer this summer.

And, in other news… Rangers handed huge boost with “outstanding” talent, Gerrard will be buzzing

An update has emerged on Tottenham target Jannik Vestergaard, regarding how much Southampton want for him if they do sell this summer.

What’s the talk?

According to Italian journalist Rudy Galetti, Southampton value Tottenham target Jannik Vestergaard at £17m (€20m), with the Dane heading into the final season of his contract with the club.

Galetti claims that Spurs are in negotiations with Southampton over a potential deal for the centre-back, whilst Jose Mourinho’s Roma are also in the mix.

Imagine him and Rodon

Daniel Levy could land a dream deal by bringing Vestergaard to the club following this update. £17m is an excellent price for a player of his quality, especially given that Southampton paid around £22m for him in 2019 from Borussia Monchengladbach.

The Sun have claimed that Toby Alderweireld, Davinson Sanchez and Eric Dier could all leave Spurs this summer, with the Belgian wanting to depart and Fabio Paratici being open to offers for the other two. This means that any new arrivals could end up playing alongside young defender Joe Rodon at the back.

Rodon averaged an impressive WhoScored rating of 7.01 in 22 starts as a centre-back for club and country last season, including four games in the Championship for Swansea, which suggests that he could have the ability to thrive if handed a greater role in the side by Nuno Santo next term.

Vestergaard, meanwhile, has also proven himself for club and country. Domestically, he has caught the eye of pundits, with Arsenal legend Martin Keown saying earlier this year that the towering defender has shades of Virgil van Dijk about his game, comparing how the pair pass the ball out from the back for Southampton and Liverpool respectively.

He told TalkSport:

“It’s his passing. It reminds me of Van Dijk.

“I call it a stationary platform. When you don’t run with the ball you stop and when you look at those two, the way they ping balls, the way he threads things into midfield, the challenges, he’s a big man.”

The 28-year-old gave a timely reminder of his quality in England’s semi-final victory over Denmark in the European Championships on Wednesday.

He recorded a superb WhoScored rating of 7.04 as he won four aerial battles, five tackles and one interception, whilst also making seven clearances and two blocks. This shows that he has the defensive nous to be a nuisance at the top level, as he helped the Danes force the likes of Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling and Mason Mount into extra-time.

He could be a brilliant addition to Santo’s squad and be a dream partner for the up-and-coming Rodon to learn from. They could form a strong partnership at the back.

AND in other news, Levy agrees personal terms with £17.2m-rated “warrior”, Tottenham fans will be buzzing…

Tottenham Hotspur have offered Tanguy Ndombele as part of a deal to bring Houssem Aouar to north London this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by ESPN journalist James Olley, who revealed in a post on Twitter that Fabio Paratici has offered Lyon the chance to re-sign their former midfielder as part of a swap deal for the France under-21 international, who has been heavily linked with a move to both Spurs and Arsenal in the summer transfer window.

In Olley’s report for ESPN, he claimed that Lyon would be willing to part with the 23-year-old for a fee in the region of €25m (£21.5m) this summer, adding that while the Ligue 1 side are yet to respond to Tottenham’s latest offer, talks are ongoing between the two clubs.

Fans will be furious

While it is hard to deny that Aouar would be a fantastic signing for Spurs this summer given his consistently high performance figures, there are a number of reasons as to why Tottenham fans might be furious with a potential swap deal regarding Ndombele and the Lyon maestro.

Firstly, with the 24-year-old having joined Tottenham for a club-record €60m (£53.8m) just two years ago, as well as currently being valued at £45m by Transfermarkt, swapping him for a player who is reported to be available for just €25m (£21.5m) this summer would seem to be very poor financial business for Daniel Levy and his club.

Secondly, while it is true that the £200,000-per-week Ndombele struggled for form in his first season in north London, the midfielder began to show signs of his true ability over his 33 Premier League appearances last term, scoring three goals, registering two assists and creating five big chances for his teammates.

These returns saw the man Joe Hart dubbed “unplayable” earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.90, ranking him as the club’s joint ninth-best performer in the Premier League.

Finally, with Ndombele having become something of a fan favourite at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – something demonstrated by the considerable outrage when Jose Mourinho left the midfielder out of his squad to face Arsenal last season – allowing the player to leave at all, let alone in a swap deal for someone who is available for a lot less than the Spurs man’s value, is not likely to go down well with the Tottenham faithful.

As such, while the addition of Aouar would indeed be something of a coup for Spurs, it should certainly not come at the expense of Ndombele.

In other news: Spurs dealt transfer blow over “important” £73k-p/w target, Paratici will be livid

Many Southampton fans have made it clear they do not want Fraser Forster to leave the club after he was linked with another loan move to Celtic.

Forster signed for the Saints in 2014 and has since gone on to make 138 appearances for the club, keeping 51 clean sheets along the way (Transfermarkt). His playing time has been significantly reduced more recently – over the last three seasons, he has made just nine Premier League appearances – and he spent the 2019/20 campaign on loan at Celtic.

It was from the Bhoys where £2.7m-valued Forster (Transfermarkt) was originally signed, and it seems that the Glasgow club would like to take him on a temporary basis once more according to journalist Alan Nixon – he even says that Celtic are in talks with the Saints over a possible loan move.

Forster appeared 13 times in all competitions for Southampton last term, so there is a chance that Ralph Hasenhuttl may want to use him regularly in the upcoming campaign. Also, as per WhoScored, he was the Saints’ best-performing goalkeeper in 2020/21, his 6.70 rating beating Alex McCarthy’s 6.49.

The news was relayed on Twitter by @SaintExtra, and it attracted plenty of attention from the club’s supporters. These took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what these fans had to say about the Forster news

“??”

Credit: @FtblBean

“Better be false.”

Credit: @newington13

“Noooo Desperately want to keep hold of Big Fraser”

Credit: @FrankLopezCoach

“What? He’s our best keeper who was excellent last year.”

Credit: @DomMooney1

“Better than McCarthy by far, not great news”

Credit: @BonePhill

“Very disappointing if that goes through, by far the better keeper!!! Not been treated well IMO!!!”

Credit: @paulbowring85

In other news, many Southampton fans want the club to sign this midfielder in the summer.

According to a report by Calciomercato, as written in their headline, Tottenham Hotspur are ‘serious’ about signing Roma midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini this summer with the club also ‘fast approaching’.

The Lowdown: Paratici turns to Italy…

Pellegrini is just one of the many Italian stars linked with a move to Spurs ever since the Lilywhites appointed new managing director of football Fabio Paratici.

The likes of Lorenzo Insigne, Domenico Berardi and Manuel Locatelli have also been mentioned as well as Serie A legend Leonardo Bonucci.

Now, Calciomercato bring the latest as Spurs eye yet another Azzurri international.

The Latest: Spurs ‘serious’ about signing Pellegrini…

Tottenham are ‘serious’ about signing Pellegrini this summer amid his current contract dispute with Roma.

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The 25-year-old’s deal is set to expire in 2022 as it stands with former Spurs boss Jose Mourinho, now manager of Roma, speaking to the player in ‘recent days’ over his situation.

While Pellegrini’s first choice would be to remain at the Stadio Olimpico for the time being, Calciomercato says to ‘beware’ of interested clubs with the interest of Spurs ‘confirmed’.

They say Tottenham and Paratici are ‘fast approaching’ for the player but unwilling to pay his €30 million (£25.7m) release clause which expires in under 10 days.

The Verdict: Great option for Spurs…

Lauded as ‘phenomenal’ by Roma legend and World Cup winner Francesco Totti, the dynamic ace could certainly provide a real element of attacking threat in Tottenham’s midfield.

Scoring seven goals and assisting six others in 30 Serie A starts over 2020/2021 (WhoScored), Pellegrini also averaged more shots on goal per 90 (2.1) than any Tottenham player last season bar Harry Kane (3.9).

Indeed, he also reigns superior over almost every Spurs man in terms of key passes per 90 (1.9) apart from Son Heung-min (2) – marking him out as a real one to watch out for this summer.

In other news: ‘News regarding Tottenham’…Sky Sports drop big live TV transfer claim, find out more here.

Crystal Palace fans should not judge Ainsley Maitland-Niles on West Brom’s relegation, says The Athletic’s Matt Woosnam.

Maitland-Niles is thought to be a target for Palace, with football.london reporting last month that the south London club have asked Arsenal about the player’s availability this summer.

He spent some of last season out on loan at West Brom, joining the Baggies during the winter transfer window, but was unable to help prevent them from getting relegated to the Championship.

Woosnam, however, does not think that should be a stain on the 23-year-old midfielder and has told supporters not to hold it against him.

“With Maitland-Niles, I guess you could get swept up in looking at well, you know, West Brom went down last season, so why are we sort of signing those when they’re not the best young players?” the Crystal Palace journalist said in a chat with FFC.

“But I think he’d be a good option for Palace.”

West Brom as a whole were not good enough last season as they finished in 19th, so it probably would be unwise to make an assessment on Maitland-Niles based on that campaign.

The likes of Leicester City and Southampton have also been credited with an interest in Maitland-Niles, so Palace could face a battle to sign the England international.

Marcus Bent reckons that Calum Chambers would be an amazing signing for his former side Crystal Palace.

The Patrick Vieira era is well underway, with the Frenchman already adding four players to his squad in Michael Olise, Marc Guehi, Joachim Andersen and most recently, Conor Gallagher on loan from Chelsea.

Despite several high-profile departures, Palace have managed to keep talisman Wilfried Zaha up to now, and are building an impressive squad ahead of the new campaign.

According to 90 Min, Vieira is hoping to make another defensive addition in the shape of Chambers, with Arsenal open to offloading the 26-year-old.

Chambers, who’s racked up 149 Premier League appearances, has been with the Gunners for seven years but hasn’t quite managed to establish himself as a regular despite his ability to play in more than one position (as per Transfermarkt).

But he ended the campaign as Arsenal’s first-choice right-back and has been used heavily there already in pre-season which would suggest that he could still be in Mikel Arteta’s plans.

With Palace desperately needing another right-back following the departure of Nathaniel Clyne, Bent recognises the Arsenal defender’s quality.

He exclusively told FFC:

“Calum Chambers is a good player, whether Crystal Palace can get him, they have to look at that, but he would be an amazing signing.”

Nathan Patterson has surprisingly been omitted from Glasgow Rangers’ Champions League squad ahead of their clash against Malmo next week.

The Lowdown: Gers kick off their Champions League campaign

The Gers will kick off their Champions League campaign against Malmo on Tuesday in the third qualifying round.

If they get through that two-legged tie, they will be one round away from the group stages of Europe’s premier club competition.

The Latest: Gerrard reveals squad

Steven Gerrard has now revealed his squad ahead of the clash against Malmo (UEFA.com).

Gerrard has had to make several omissions from the squad as he has only been able to name 23 players. Surprisingly, £1.17m-valued Patterson (Transfermarkt) has not been included in the side, with the boss deciding to proceed with just one natural right-back.

The Verdict: Bizarre

This does feel like a bizarre decision from Gerrard, although there may be something we are unaware of happening behind the scenes. Patterson would unlikely start the clash, with James Tavernier the captain and ahead of him in the pecking order, but he would have provided the perfect back-up or injection of life off the bench.

He represented Scotland at Euro 2020 and was labelled “fantastic” by Craig Mulholland last season (Inside Futbol) as he broke into the Gers’ first-team squad despite being just 19 years of age. Gerrard will be hoping that this decision does not backfire and blow up in his face.

In other news, Rangers fans were livid with this club update.