All posts by z3u9t.icu

Tottenham Hotspur have edged towards completing their first summer signing, after agreeing personal terms with Bologna full-back Takehiro Tomiyasu [Calcio Mercato via The Boot Room].

The Lowdown: Spurs gear up for the 2021/22 season

Looking ahead to 2021/22, Nuno Espirito Santo will be desperate to acquire high-profile individuals to sculpt a push for UEFA Champions League football this season.

Though they haven’t completed any dealings as of yet, the North Londoners have been heavily linked with moves for Marcel Sabitzer and Conor Coady.

Significantly, they now look to be veering towards finalising their inaugural transfer recruit of the window following recent reports.

The Latest: Personal terms agreed; only need to sort out a fee to complete the deal

Spurs are said to have reached a personal agreement with 22-year-old Tomiyasu. Barring any last minute hitches, the deal is expected is expected to go through.

In the current moment, Tottenham have offered around £15.4 million whilst the Serie A outfit value the Japan internationalist at closer to £17.1 million [The Boot Room], but all indications are these difference will soon be ironed out.

Newcastle United and Manchester United formerly held an interest in his services, but it looks as if though the Lilywhites will win the race.

The Verdict: Huge relief for Spurs

In need of defensive reinforcements, this news will come as an enormous relief to the Tottenham Hotspur hierarchy after a summer of turmoil so far.

Capable of playing at right-back or centre-half, the Japanese stopper has excelled within the Italian top-flight. In 2020/21, he made 33 appearances for his current employers, notching two goals [Transfermarkt].

Encouragingly, his propensity to anticipate danger rather than react to it will make him an attractive proposition to newly appointed boss Nuno.

Across the 2020/21 campaign, he made an average of 3.3 clearances and 1.7 interceptions per game. [WhoScored].

Showing an impressive level of consistency whilst having plenty of room to develop, Tottenham should look to ratify the transfer as swiftly as possible.

In other news, Spurs have made an approach for an Italian superstar.

Newcastle United have reportedly now made an offer in excess of £84m to sign Dusan Vlahovic in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Vlahovic stock rising

Vlahovic’s stock is continuing to rise as he makes a name for himself in the beautiful game, with market value now at a record £45m and surely set to inflate more.

The Serbia international is currently averaging more than a goal contribution a game at Fiorentina, with no fewer than 17 strikes and a further three assists made in just 19 matches in total over all competitions so far this season (Transfermarkt).

Given that he is a striker who is just 21 years of age, the Italian media are inevitably comparing him to Erling Haaland, as they claim that he is a ‘force of nature’ just like the Borussia Dortmund star.

The Latest: Big offer

Speaking to passioneinter.com (via Calciomercato), journalist Filippo Grassia has now claimed that the St. James’ Park faithful ‘have made a three-figure offer’ to try and sign Vlahovic, meaning a sum in excess of €100m (£84m).

It would be a ‘considerable temptation’ for Fiorentina to take that kind of money, but it is not clear whether Vlahovic himself would want to move to the North East.

The Verdict: Unlikely

Despite the riches that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium have at their disposal, it seems very unlikely that Vlahovic would move to Tyneside, especially in January.

His growing pedigree in the game means that big clubs in Europe are poised to try and pounce on his signature, and the Magpies cannot offer him any form of European football at the moment, only a relegation battle that he may not be interested in.

That is not to say that he would’t be a great signing not just for the Toon but for the Premier League as well, with his six-foot-three frame bound to terrorise any defence, as his 2.1 aerial duels won per game in the Serie A this term would currently rank him as the joint-fourth highest in Eddie Howe’s squad.

However, he just seems too difficult a signing to make at this moment in time.

In other news, find out which ‘phenomenal’ Prem star NUFC have now been urged to sign here!

Every day of every week somewhere in the world, football matches are being played to the delight of football fans all over the globe. This is also something that makes avid football gamblers happy. For the most avid football gamblers in the UK, having an opportunity to bet on football matches every day is a dream come true.

Unfortunately, too much online betting on too many football games could lead to gambling addiction. Yes, there are people in the online sports betting world who have trouble controlling their online gambling activities. By some estimates, that could be about 6% of the online gambling population in the UK, even around the world.

In the worst of gambling addiction cases, treatment and counselling would be the right call. Almost all addicts have something they need to sort out before they can set aside their addictive behaviours. Once they get the help they need, they should restrict themselves from ever gambling again.

Of course, online problem gambling issues don’t always lead to gambling addiction. Sometimes a problem gambling issue is nothing more than a sign that may be a break from online gambling would be a good idea.

Taking a Break with GamStop

As the UK’s number one gambling regulator, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) works hard to make sure the UK gambling industry is doing its part to protect kids and vulnerable problem gamblers. Within the online gambling community, the UKGC’s GamStop Self-exclusion scheme sits front and centre in the nation’s effort to deal with gambling addiction.

The beauty of the GamStop program lies in its simplicity. For UK online gambling operators, GamStop membership is mandated by the UKGC as a condition of licensing. To become a compliant member, operators only need to pay a subscription fee and place an accessible link on their respective websites.

For UK online gamblers, the voluntary registration process is free and only takes a few minutes to complete. All they have to do if they want help taking a break from their online gambling activities is to provide some basic personal information and choose a self-exclusion period with options ranging from 6 months to 5 years.

Once registration has been completed, the registered GamStop gambler will get the break they need. There is nothing that will stop the football online gambler from settling in as nothing more than a football fan. That is unless they decide self-exclusion is not for them. If and when that happens, the GamStop football gambler will have to make decisions.

Getting Around UK Self-Exclusion

Since GamStop registration is voluntary and a short-term self-exclusion option, there is nothing that prevents the GamStop gambler from changing their mind. If they change their mind, they will immediately have to face the fact that using licensed UK gambling websites won’t be an option. They will also find out there are ways to get around GamStop scrutiny until their self-exclusion period ends.

Leading the way of non GamStop alternatives would be UK gambling sites that are not GamStop members and or are not licensed by the UKGC. The reality is they are lots of non GamStop UK betting sites for online wagering available to gamblers trying to avoid GamStop scrutiny. Even better many of these sites are terrific alternatives because they are reliable and work hard to maintain stellar reputations.

If a GamStop gambler isn’t comfortable with this option, they might find other options more appealing. Here are some other non GamStop options worth mentioning:

Crypto-only casinos do not do much in the way of customer verifications Other offshore jurisdictions are quite welcoming of UK gamblers (VPN might be needed) Some operators have weak account verification protocols Retail gambling establishments in the UK have no connection to the GamStop scheme It’s acceptable to open new accounts under other identities with the permission of the new accountholder

For the avid football fan who decides to take a GamStop break, the hope is a short break will be all that’s necessary before they can safely start betting on football matches again. They may do so with licensed UK sports betting operators and their self-exclusion period expires.

Photo by Unsplash

Many Glasgow Rangers fans have been left fuming over some news that has emerged involving their Non-Fungible Token (NFT) scheme.

The Ibrox faithful announced the new scheme earlier this month, which has been set up to commemorate their 2020/21 title-winning campaign.

The tokens allow supporters of the Teddy Bears to be entered on a blockchain ledger of payments, of which there are 1,111 in total, so that they can purchase various items related to their title success.

The Light Blues have now made the items in the ‘Rangers FC Champions NFT Collection’ available to buy on their official website, with NFT’s that have to be purchased in order to give the supporters a chance of winning them.

While taking the Scottish Premiership title off of the hands of bitter rivals Celtic was a triumph at the time, it seems a lot of Gers just want to concentrate on this season now, following their 3-1 loss at home to Hibernian in the Scottish League Cup semi-final on Sunday.

Others see it as nothing more than a money-making scheme, given that you would have to buy a significant amount of tokens to give yourself the best chance of winning.

Rangers fans on NFT news

These RFC fans fumed as the news was shared in an official club post on their Twitter page:

“No. Just no.”

Credit: @MobRoolz

“Who do the club actually think wants these things???”

Credit: @ECMcElhatton

“Going from bad to worse Rangers”

Credit: @RampantRyanJack

“Stop scamming fans!”

Credit: @gordmatheson

“This ain’t it”

Credit: @EG_72_

“Shut up about last season, it’s done”

Credit: @GilmertonLoyal

In other news, find out what ‘catastrophic error of judgement’ Giovanni van Bronckhorst has made here!

A number of West Ham supporters are delighted after Vladimir Coufal was pictured back in training ahead of the Premier League clash with Aston Villa.

The Hammers are back in league action on Sunday afternoon, travelling to the Midlands to face Dean Smith’s side.

David Moyes’ team sit fourth in the table going into the match knowing that victory would take them level on points with champions Manchester City.

One player who looks set to be available for the hosts is Coufal, with the right-back pictured in training in a tweet shared by the club’s official Twitter account on Saturday.

The Czech Republic international has had injury problems of late, not playing in the league since the defeat to Brentford on October 3. He had been an ever-present up to then and illustrated his importance to the side by winning 2.1 tackles per game, the third-highest average in the Irons’ squad.

West Ham fans react to Coufal images

These West Ham fans took to Twitter to show their delight at Coufal’s return to the fold, having made a late appearance against Man City in the Carabao Cup in midweek.

“This guyyyy”

Credit: @beccaaaxx_xx

“Play him instead of Cresswell, he needs his break”

Credit: @T59281592

“Good to see him back”

Credit: @Markwake141

“Love Vlad”

Credit: @bobballardsport

“Is Vladimir Coufal playing v Aston Villa tomorrow afternoon? Great to see him back on the training ground and he looks fit now judging by those photos lovely jubbly eh! Ben Johnson on the subs bench I would have thought if David Moyes decides to play Vladimir Coufal? COYI!”

Credit: @Michael28183223

“He should play tomorrow”

Credit: @splasjyWHU

In other news, an expert has made a hugely exciting claim regarding West Ham’s finances. Read more here.

Nuno Santo will surely be nervously waiting for Tottenham Hotspur to make it through the January transfer window as a worrying report emerged this week…

What’s the word?

According to Spanish publication Defensa Central, La Liga giants Real Madrid are keen to try and bring Sergio Reguilon back to the Bernabeu but want to renegotiate their buy-back clause.

It’s thought that the current deal allows them to secure his return for around €40m (£34m), though that expires at the end of the current campaign and the Spanish outfit want to reduce that by around €10m (£8m), as per the report.

Madrid veteran Marcelo has lost his place to Ferland Mendy, whilst backup Miguel Gutierrez is vastly inexperienced, so the league leaders are considering a move for their former youth graduate.

Both Los Blancos president Florentino Perez and Spurs chairman Daniel Levy have done plenty of business in the past, despite the latter’s tough reputation when it comes to transfers.

Hammer blow

Heading into 2022, this is surely enough to leave Nuno and co absolutely sweating, for a number of reasons.

It is believed that Spurs are targeting attacking reinforcements in January, as per The Athletic, so it would be considered a setback to have to find a new left-back on top of these much-needed additions.

Creativity and goal threat in the final third has perhaps been their biggest Achilles heel so far this term.

Whilst, Reguilon is a key player under the Portuguese coach, having started and played the full duration in all seven of their Premier League outings this term.

His backup, Ben Davies, is far from inspiring and offers a lot less of an attacking threat than the Spanish international. Similarly, third-choice Ryan Sessegnon has been dealing with injuries and has been rarely utilised since his £25m move from Fulham a little over two years ago.

Reguilon is currently Spurs’ fourth highest-rated player (6.96) on the season and he has proven to be a major influence at either end of the pitch for Nuno, having averaged a squad-high 2.4 interceptions, on top of 2.1 tackles and 0.9 key passes, via WhoScored.

Therefore, the fact that Madrid are snooping around for his signature is cause for concern. They can activate that clause at any point between now and the end of the season, so Spurs must be praying that doesn’t happen as they’ll lose one of their key stars.

It’ll leave much of the Lilywhites faithful worried, concerned and probably a bit angry that the club even made such an agreement as his impressive form would have undoubtedly kept the La Liga outfit keen.

Whether the Spanish side do come calling or not very much remains to be seen at this stage.

AND in other news, Signed for £15m, now worth 200% more: Levy played a huge blinder with Spurs’ “monster”…

According to The Athletic, Tottenham can sack Nuno Espirito Santo on the cheap if they fail to finish in the top six this season.

The Lowdown: Mixed start to the season

Spurs have so far had a mixed start to the campaign. They started well, winning their first three Premier League matches 1-0, including a victory over champions Manchester City (Sky Sports).

However, they then lost three league games in a row, conceding three goals in each, before returning to winning ways on Sunday against Aston Villa.

The Latest: Levy’s backup plan

As per The Athletic, Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has a contingency plan in case things do not go as they hope with their current manager.

The report stated: “The Athletic has learned that chairman Daniel Levy succeeded in reaching the agreement on his terms, notably including a clause that would benefit Spurs if their season does not go to plan.

“It is understood that should Nuno fail to deliver a top-six finish, Tottenham would be able to sack the 47-year-old midway through his two-year deal without having to pay any compensation.”

The Verdict: Great news

While there was little fanfare around the hiring of Nuno, it looks like Levy has pulled off an impressive deal here. It is a win-win situation for the north London outfit – should they finish in the top six, the season will be a success; if they fail, they can bring in another manager without it costing them an arm and a leg.

In Nuno’s case, they do have a manager with Premier League experience who has twice finished in the top seven with Wolves. To get such a deal for a solid manager is impressive from Levy and illustrates his ability to find value in the market.

In other news, this man turned down the chance to manager Spurs in the summer.

Nigel Adkins’ Charlton head into their clash with Oxford United in League One this weekend in need of a positive result.

The Addicks began their league campaign with a fairly uninspiring 0-0 draw against Sheffield Wednesday last weekend before losing 1-0 to AFC Wimbledon in the League Cup in midweek, which represents a subdued start to their season.

They now face an Oxford side who were held to a 1-1 draw by Cambridge in their opening league match and beat Burton Albion on penalties in the Carabao Cup.

On the Chalkboard

With Charlton finding goals hard to come by so far, Adkins has the opportunity to dip into his squad to shake things up against Oxford on Saturday.

Diallang Jaiyesimi played the full 90 minutes out wide against the Owls and struggled to catch the eye. He received a WhoScored rating of 6.46, failing to create a single chance for his team-mates whilst also being dispossessed four times and losing the ball three times through poor control. This suggests that he does not deserve his place in the side on merit heading into the next match.

Therefore, Adkins should unleash the club’s latest signing Charlie Kirk on Saturday. The attacker joined on a permanent deal from Crewe earlier this week and he should be handed his debut against Oxford to try and solve a key issue for the former Southampton boss, namely the lack of goals from Charlton.

In Kirk’s official unveiling, Adkins commented on the signing by stating that the 23-year-old is an exciting ‘forward-thinking’ addition to the squad.

He told Charlton’s official website: “I am delighted that Charlie Kirk is joining us. He is a very talented and exciting, young, forward-thinking player and I’m really looking forward to working with him over the coming years.”

Adkins also added in his pre-match press conference that the winger will want to get involved as soon as possible. The manager said: “He’s been at the training ground this afternoon. We’ll just take stock of the whole thing. We’re delighted he’s with us and he’ll be wanting to play as quickly as he can.”

Charlton must bring him straight into the starting XI for Jaiyesimi in order to alleviate their goalscoring woes, as the ex-Norwich man was unable to score a goal himself or provide his teammates with a chance to do so. Meanwhile, Kirk racked up six goals and eight assists for Crewe in League One last season, which suggests that he has the quality to make things happen at this level.

Between his record for Crewe last term and Adkins’ effusive praise of his talents, the evidence is there to suggest that Kirk could help solve Charlton’s goalscoring problems against Oxford this weekend. That is why he should be handed his debut for the club tomorrow.

AND in other news, Just 7 passes: Charlton disaster who lost 67% of his duels surely left Adkins livid…

Crystal Palace are not expected to make Jean-Philippe Mateta’s stay at the club permanent after a disappointing loan spell from Mainz 05.

What’s the story?

That’s according to journalist Tom Barclay, who revealed he doesn’t believe that 23-year-old is in Palace’s long-term plans.

He told GIVEMESPORT: “Mateta, I don’t see being in the long-term Palace plan. I imagine when his 18-month deal is up, he’ll probably go back if not sooner, so that would open a spot up.”

Crystal Palace fans will be delighted

The former France U21 international arrived at Selhurst Park back in January 2021 on an initial 18-month loan deal with an option to buy, with the Eagles paying an initial £2.7m loan fee.

Palace also have an option to make the move permanent for a further £13.4m, although that only becomes an obligation if the versatile forward has started 15 Premier League games.

However, that prospect now appears to be extremely unlikely following several underwhelming showings for the south London outfit.

In seven top-flight outings last term, the 6 foot 2 beast found the back of the net on just one occasion under the tutelage of former manager Roy Hodgson, and things have gone from bad to worse during Patrick Vieira’s short reign.

Mateta has been awarded just 124 minutes of action by his compatriot throughout 2021/22 and has failed to start a Premier League game since the opening day of the season when he was hauled off just before the hour mark.

With summer signing Odsonne Edouard and the in-form Christian Benteke ahead of him in the pecking order, it’s hard to imagine the £7.2m-rated flop’s fortunes changing any time soon.

Therefore, large sections of the Palace supporters will be delighted at Barclay’s latest revelation as the capital club appear set to avoid a potentially expensive mistake in the transfer market.

And, in other news…Palace “lining up” swoop for “complete” £12.6m-rated gem, Vieira surely buzzing

Celtic are interested in Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster, according to Sky Sports.

The Lowdown: Foster’s love for Parkhead

Foster, who has been with Watford since 2018, has less than 12 months left on his Vicarage Road deal.

The 38-year-old, on £33,000-a-week in London, recently shared his love for Parkhead.

He described Celtic Park as ‘the best atmosphere I’ve ever played in my life’, with Foster featuring for Manchester United in a 1-1 draw back in 2008.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/celtic-updates-11/” title=”Celtic updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Latest: Sky Sports claim

Sky Sports, cited by Football Daily, shared an update live on TV on Thursday regarding potential Tottenham outgoings.

They mentioned Celtic’s interest in Joe Hart before saying the Hoops ‘also have an interest’ in Foster.

It appears as if it’ll be one of the other out of Hart and Foster, with Ange Postecoglou already having Vasilis Barkas, Scott Bain, Conor Hazard and Ross Doohan on the books.

The Verdict: Foster or Hart?

Foster and Hart hardly featured for their respective clubs in 2021 but both have over 300 games of Premier League experience under their belt.

Hart is four years Foster’s junior, so perhaps favouring a deal for the Spurs man would be a shrewd option.

It seems as if Celtic don’t want to pay a fee for Hart, though, so Foster could be an alternative target if those negotiations fall through.

Either way, it is clear Postecoglou is desperate for an old head in between the sticks – it has certainly served arch-rivals Rangers well with Allan McGregor.

In other news: ‘Celtic are finally closing in’ – Devlin’s transfer post on ace with ‘excellent final ball’.