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Tottenham Hotspur are interested in a deal to bring David Raya to north London.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by 90min, who claim that Antonio Conte and Fabio Paratici are considering a number of goalkeepers in their bid to replace long-term number one Hugo Lloris – the soon-to-be 36-year-old whose current deal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is set to expire in the summer of 2024.

The report goes on to suggest that the Brentford shot-stopper is one of the players on the 53-year-old’s shortlist of potential replacements for the Frenchman, and with the 27-year-old also out of contract in the summer of 2024, a move for the Spain international may not be overly difficult to pull off.

Lloris’ dream heir

Considering just how impressive Raya has been for Brentford in recent seasons, coupled with the slowly declining displays of Lloris over the last year or so, it is not difficult to see why Conte and Paratici would be considering a move for the Spaniard.

Indeed, over his 24 Premier League appearances in his debut top-flight campaign with the Bees, the £13m-rated talent was in exceptional form, keeping eight clean sheets and making an average of 3.3 saves – at a success rate of 74% – per game, with these returns seeing the shot-stopper average an extremely impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.01.

It has been a similar story over his 15 league outings so far this season, with the £25k-per-week shot-stopper having already kept four clean sheets and made an average of 4.3 saves – at a success rate of 72% – per game, with these metrics seeing the 27-year-old average an even more impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.03.

In comparison, over Lloris’ 15 Premier League appearances this term, the £100k-per-week “legend” has kept four clean sheets and made an average of 3.0 saves – at a success rate of 68% – per game, with these returns seeing the 35-year-old average a SofaScore match rating of 6.88.

Furthermore, aside from his “superb saves” – in the words of The Athletic’s Jay Harris – Raya also has “immaculate distribution” and is extremely comfortable with the ball at his feet, with FBref ranking the Spaniard in the top 5% of ‘keepers in Europe’s big five leagues for touches per 90, as well as the top 22% for launched passes and the top 18% for average length of his goal kicks.

As such, with Raya being nearly eight years Lloris’ junior, as well as the Brentford star returning more impressive numbers in the top flight so far this season, it is not difficult to understand why Tottenham are keen on the 27-year-old, as the Spaniard would indeed appear to be something of a dream heir to the Frenchman between the Spurs sticks.

Transfer insider Dean Jones has said that Leeds United will allow Adam Forshaw to move on in January.

The Lowdown: Forshaw’s injury issues

The 31-year-old has had a number of off-field struggles in recent years, most notably a hip problem which ruled him out of 71 consecutive games.

Hailed as ‘fantastic’ by former Leeds manager Simon Grayson, Forshaw has made just three appearances in the Premier League during the current campaign and is out of contract next summer.

It looks as if Whites officials are now ready to call time on his Elland Road stay earlier than expected, with preparations being made ahead of the January transfer window.

The Latest: Jones’ comments

Speaking to GiveMeSport regarding Forshaw, Jones said that he has been told Leeds will make the midfielder available for transfer and believes that clubs in the Championship will be interested.

The journalist said of the 31-year-old: “It probably is and he is available in January. I’m told that it is true. There will be interest in him, particularly at the top of the Championship.”

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The Verdict: Right decision

Forshaw has hit double figures for league appearances just once in the last three seasons, so it does appear to be the right decision to offload him in the New Year.

The midfielder showed glimpses of Premier League quality last season, lining out 22 times, but his injury problems have since returned and unfortunately he can’t be relied on due to his fitness history.

Hopefully he will find a new club and play regular first-team football, and he should depart with the best wishes from all associated with Leeds.

West Ham United take on struggling Southampton at St Mary’s this afternoon, with David Moyes’ side looking to pick up their fifth successive win in all competitions, having begun to show signs of life after an initial slow start to the campaign.

The Hammers’ latest triumph came at home to Belgian outfit Anderlecht in the Europa Conference League, as the east Londoners maintained their perfect start to the competition with a 2-1 victory, courtesy of goals from Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen.

The latter man remains a particularly lethal presence at the London Stadium, with that having been his third goal in four games across all fronts.

However, the Englishman will be hoping to improve on his underwhelming record on the road, with just four goals in 54 Premier League away appearances to date.

Up against a side whom the Irons’ failed to beat in three meetings last term, here’s how Football FanCast predicts that Moyes’ men will line up…

The visitors are facing a number of potential availability concerns ahead of that clash, with both Angelo Ogbonna and Craig Dawson having been forced off with injury in midweek, while fellow centre-back Kurt Zouma missed the match entirely due to illness – as did striker Michail Antonio. Summer signing Thilo Kehrer was another who sat out that win as a “precaution”, although the expectation is that the German ace should be in line to return, despite lingering doubts over teammate Zouma.

Amid that defensive crisis, we predict that Moyes will make five changes from that midweek outing, with the former Everton boss potentially set to persist with a back five, due to the possible lack of centre-back options.

In goal, Lukasz Fabianski will resume his usual league starting berth, with the aforementioned Kehrer – as well as Ben Johnson and Aaron Cresswell – forming something of a makeshift back line.

At wing-back, Vladimir Coufal and Emerson Palmieri will likely keep their places having started on Thursday night, while there could be two alterations in midfield with the first-choice pairing of Tomas Soucek and skipper Declan Rice likely to return.

In attack, Pablo Fornals could well be forced to give way as a result of the formation tweak, with the £67k-per-week “machine” – as dubbed by broadcaster Tom Rennie – having started in last week’s win over Fulham.

That should well see an attacking trio of that man Bowen, alongside new arrivals Lucas Paqueta and Gianluca Scamacca, with the latter man having looked “very dangerous” of late, according to journalist Tom Collomosse, with two goals in his last two league games.

Aston Villa could land ‘a bigger fee’ for Jacob Ramsey than the one they received for Jack Grealish, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Ramsey at Villa

Ramsey, who came all the way through the academy ranks and turned 21 in May, has been a first-team regular at Villa Park since the 2020/21 campaign. The central midfielder has now racked up 72 senior appearances after progressing through the youth teams, contributing to ten goals.

His displays earlier this year led to speculation of an England call-up from Gareth Southgate, though that is still yet to materialise.

The Latest: O’Rourke’s comments

Talking to The Transfer Tavern regarding Ramsey, O’Rourke believes the midfielder has the potential to become a ‘top player’ and didn’t rule out the possibility of Villa receiving a club-record fee in the future, eclipsing the £100m fee Manchester City paid for Grealish.

“I think he could go on and be a top player. The way transfer fees are right now in football, you would never say never that Villa might be able to go and get a bigger fee than they got for Jack Grealish.”

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The Verdict: Exciting…

Ramsey appears to be at home in the Premier League and you can imagine him going from strength to strength in the Midlands after signing a new five-year deal back in April.

Should he improve on his already impressive game in years to come, then there is every chance his career-high £22.5m Transfermarkt valuation will continue to grow.

That could well result in some of Europe’s biggest clubs showing a real interest, and who knows, Ramsey could follow in Grealish’s footsteps by sealing a big-money exit.

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg could become a wanted man in 2023, according to reports.

The 27-year-old star is being lined up as a potential replacement for Luka Modric at Real Madrid and those claims were ramped up after the two went head-to-head on the international stage earlier in the week.

Hojbjerg lined up for Denmark in their 2-1 defeat to Croatia but despite the loss, the former Bayern Munich man appeared to have caught the eye.

Danish outlet BT had this to say in their post-match ratings column:

‘Maybe we have the replacement for Luka Modric at Real Madrid right here. The Spanish club is said to be in love with him, and we can easily understand that. Nominated for player of the month in the Premier League, but unfortunately, it wasn’t today that he got the Spaniards to put half or a whole billion for him. Although that should be his price.’

During the summer transfer window, the LaLiga giants were mooted with a move for the Spurs warrior.

The Telegraph’s chief football correspondent Jason Burt claimed that he was being lined up as a successor to Casemiro, who joined Premier League Manchester United, whilst The Sun’s Tom Barclay revealed to GIVEMESPORT that manager Carlo Ancelotti is indeed a big fan.

But as the Danish media suggest, Hojbjerg has been more Modric than Casemiro under the stewardship of Antonio Conte.

The 37-year-old veteran has arguably been one of the Lilywhites’ greatest-ever midfield talents, having been compared to Paul Scholes by ex-Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson for his ability to ‘control games’.

Although his days are now numbered. It should hardly be a surprise to see Galacticos president Florentino Perez return to chairman Daniel Levy for his successor as the Dane has been remarkable.

Hojbjerg has been untouchable in Conte’s starting XI, playing more minutes (810) than anyone else, with Hugo Lloris and Eric Dier the only other two to play 100% of Spurs’ games this term.

That power to completely control a game is certainly in the £100k-per-week Dane’s locker as he ranks inside the top 10% of all midfielders across Europe for progressive passes (6.02 per 90) over the last year, via FBref.

This is greater than some of his positional peers in the Premier League, such as the aforementioned Casemiro, N’Golo Kante, Fabinho and even Rodri.

Meanwhile, Modric has averaged only 0.3 more progressive passes per 90 than the Tottenham gem and the pair both average around 70 or more passes per 90, as well as a 90% passing accuracy, making the comparison all that sweeter.

Under Conte, Hojbjerg has gotten forward a lot more, having delivered three goals and five assists from 42 appearances – that’s three more direct contributions than in nine fewer minutes under Jose Mourinho, per Transfermarkt.

Aptly dubbed a midfield “monster” by one-time Denmark and Derby County midfielder Morten Bisgaard, Tottenham may well have a new Modric in the form of Hojbjerg.

This time, though, Levy must look to garner a fee larger than £30m, having cost just half that (£15m) in the summer of 2020.

AND in other news, Spurs missed out on Conte’s new Bastoni in “aggressive” £26m gem – just imagine him and Romero…

Liverpool are facing a race against time to bring in a new central midfielder before Thursday’s transfer deadline but they could secure a phenomenal deal by signing Konrad Laimer.

It is no secret that Jurgen Klopp wants to bring in Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund, with a deal for the teenager reportedly on the cards for next summer, but the German manager could find a similar player a year early in Laimer.

According to recent reports, the Austria international is one man on Liverpool’s shortlist as they look to bolster their midfield options following injuries to Thiago, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita.

Last season saw the 26-year-old contribute four goals and four assists in 26 Bundesliga appearances for Leipzig, averaging a solid 6.67 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

According to FbRef, the second-most similar player to Laimer in terms of style of play is Bellingham. The former Birmingham City youngster has established himself as one of the top talents in world football during his time at Dortmund, contributing 11 goals and 19 assists in 95 appearances for the Bundesliga side.

Last season saw the two midfielders register extremely similar numbers in terms of expected goals and assists per 90 minutes (0.30 vs 0.29), percentage of dribbles tackled (35.4 vs 35.8) and fouls committed (45 vs 44).

This emphasises that both midfielders can do the dirty work in midfield, while they also like to get forward in attack, which is arguably what Liverpool are lacking in the absence of Oxlade-Chamberlain and Keita.

While Bellingham is clearly the better long-term prospect for Liverpool’s midfield, Klopp emphasised following the defeat against Manchester United that he needed more bodies in the middle of the park, and at £25m, Laimer could be a bargain option for the Reds.

Laimer has gathered a lot of praise during his time in Germany, with Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann dubbing him a “Monsterballeroberungsmaschine”, which translated to English means “a monster, ball-winning machine.”

This is reinforced by WhoScored, who claim that tackling is Laimer’s greatest strength, while he also excels at through balls, long shots and dribbling, which again goes to show that he can offer Liverpool plenty from both an attacking and defensive perspective.

Bellingham is also said to excel at through balls and dribbling, which highlights their similarities further. Thus, if FSG and Klopp want a stop-gap midfielder until the 19-year-old potentially arrives at Anfield, then Laimer could be the ideal man.

Southampton have suffered an early injury blow after Ralph Hasenhuttl confirmed that both Theo Walcott and Nathan Tella have been ruled out of Saturday’s fixture against Tottenham Hotspur.

The Lowdown: Getting down to business

The Saints enjoyed a heavily packed pre-season schedule, picking up one win and two draws in five games, and have been busy in the summer transfer market, with six new signings walking through the doors at St. Mary’s.

The south coast outfit are now looking forward to their Premier League curtain-raiser as they take on Antonio Conte’s Spurs this weekend, but will have to do it without two key attacking players.

The Latest: Hasenhuttl’s injury update

Speaking during his pre-match press conference on Thursday, Hasenhuttl revealed that neither Tella nor Walcott would be involved in the action vs Tottenham. As quoted by Southampton’s official website, he said:

“Theo Walcott has not had pre-season so far. He is not back in training.

“Nathan Tella was also out with injury for a little while, he was training today for the first time so he will also not be available for the weekend.”

The Verdict: Hoping to kick off with a bang

Walcott not coming into contention isn’t much of a surprise given he’s been consistently linked with a Saints exit for the majority of the window, so him not being involved could suggest that he will more than likely be on his way out before September 1.

Tella, on the other hand, will not be risked unnecessarily given the promising youngster also suffered through some injury issues last term, so they will miss his direct threat on Saturday afternoon.

Taking on the Lilywhites on the opening day of the season will be no easy task, but with plenty of fresh faces, Hasenhuttl will be hoping that his side can produce a solid performance and pick up all three points in north London without the two wide players.

Leeds United could make one more attempt to sign Charles De Ketelaere…

What’s the word?

That’s according to journalist Alexandre Braeckman, who claimed to MOT Leeds News that the Yorkshire giants have submitted a final proposal for the Club Brugge maestro.

It’s thought that the Premier League side have offered a better package than that of Serie A champions AC Milan and are ready to swoop in should a move to the San Siro fail to materialise.

“Leeds will react immediately if a deal is not found,” the reporter revealed.

The Jupiler Pro League outfit reportedly want around €40m (£34m).

Best signing yet?

De Ketelaere has been a key target for manager Jesse Marsch all summer – the 48-year-old recently told reporters (via The Express): “I think it’s been well-documented that De Ketelaere was a goal of ours and it’s not finished yet with him.”

Indeed, director of football Victor Orta must continue to pursue the Belgium international as he could well become Leeds’ best signing yet, having already brought in six new players, including Red Bull trio Tyler Adams, Brenden Aaronson and Rasmus Kristensen, and Luis Sinisterra from Feyenoord.

The Whites have, of course, also lost two key players in Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha, and the latter’s influence will be hard to replace, but that is something that De Ketelaere can help to alleviate.

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Capable of playing in a multitude of attacking positions, the 21-year-old dynamo can provide creativity and goal threat wherever he’s deployed. Last season, he was played in seven different roles and still managed to produce 18 goals and ten assists from 49 appearances, via Transfermarkt.

“He is actually an infiltrating No 8 or No 10, but rarely plays in this position,” claimed Belgian journalist Sven Claes to The Athletic. “He is already really phenomenal in handling the ball. His decisions under pressure are often very impressive.”

Also lauded as a “complete package” player by scout Jacek Kulig, De Ketelaere has also earned comparisons to Kevin De Bruyne, which only adds to the furore behind potentially signing him at Elland Road.

In terms of progressive passes (3.45 per 90), expected assists (0.29 per 90) and pressures (22.14 per 90), the Belgian star ranks inside the top 5% of his positional peers across Europe, and that makes him a superb fit for Marsch’s high-intensity system.

As such, the 6 foot 3 gem could be Leeds’ best signing this summer, and with a move to Milan stalling, it would make sense for Orta to come in with a late raid from their grasp.

AND in other news, Fabrizio Romano drops Leeds transfer update…

Glasgow Rangers have enjoyed an impressive start to the summer transfer window as they have brought four first-team players to Ibrox so far.

Gio van Bronckhorst and Ross Wilson have snapped up deals for John Souttar, who signed a pre-contract in January, Antonio Colak, Tom Lawrence, and Rabbi Matondo to bolster the squad.

Their business may not be done yet, though, as they continue to be linked with players around the globe, with the window not slamming shut until the end of next month.

Journalist Manuel Veth recently claimed that the Gers are eyeing up a potential loan deal to sign Giovanni Reyna, whose father – Claudio – played for the club, from Borussia Dortmund.

The reporter added that a move is unlikely at this moment in time, but Ross Wilson has around six weeks to convince the German side to sanction the transfer.

If he can tempt them into sending the USA international to Ibrox then Gio van Bronckhorst could have his own version of Brazilian legend Kaka next season.

The official Bundesliga website compared him to the iconic attacking midfielder, stating: “His ability to run at top speed for extended periods, breaking into opposition boxes and scoring goals is more reminiscent of AC Milan and Brazil great, Kaka.”

Being compared to the retired maestro is high praise of Reyna as the Brazilian won the Ballon d’Or, the World Cup, and the Champions League during his career – making over 400 appearances for Real Madrid and Milan combined.

The Dortmund wizard’s former coach Lucien Favre once said that he has “something special” and talent scout Jack Kulig dubbed him a “highly creative” midfielder. 

He has scored six goals and provided seven assists in 30 Bundesliga starts, along with four goals in 11 caps for the USA. This is an excellent return for a player playing at the top level as a teenager and shows that he is already capable of making an impact in the final third.

He can, therefore, be a goal-scoring and creative threat for the Gers from an attacking midfield position if he makes the move to Ibrox before the end of the window. This would make him van Bronckhorst’s own version of Kaka – who scored over 100 goals for Italian giants Milan during his career.

Wilson must now work hard to convince Dortmund that a season of playing regular football in Glasgow is the best next step for the £42k-per-week talent.

AND in other news, Rangers can land a masterclass by signing £500k gem who’d “hit the ground running”…

Atletico Madrid are interested in signing Celtic right-back Josip Juranovic in the summer transfer window, according to Sky Sports journalist Lyall Thomas.

The Lowdown: Juranovic shines for Celtic

The Croatian has been an important figure for the Hoops since arriving from Legia Warsaw last summer, performing with consistency at right-back.

Juranovic started 23 games in the Premiership last season, helping Celtic to clinch title glory as he and Anthony Ralston shared the workload on the right-hand side of Ange Postecoglou’s defence.

However, a new transfer update suggests that the 25-year-old could be on the move this summer.

The Latest: Atletico linked with Juranovic

Taking to Twitter on Sunday, Thomas claimed that Atletico see Juranovic as a possible addition before the start of next season.

He revealed:

“Exclusive: #AtleticoMadrid are interested in signing #Celtic right-back Josip Juranovic. More on #SSN and online soon.”

The Verdict: Keep hold of him

Juranovic may not necessarily be Celtic’s most glamorous figure but he is one of those players who makes a team tick, bringing solidity and character to a defence which conceded a league-low 22 goals last term.

For that reason, losing him to Atletico this summer would be a big blow, just as Ange Postecoglou’s men are about to embark on an exciting Champions League group stage campaign.

Juranovic’s defensive nous would arguably be the biggest loss – he averaged 1.4 tackles and 1.5 clearances per game in the league last season, ranking in the top three of regular first-teamers for the former – but three goals and one assist are also proof of the attacking quality that he can offer.

The hope is that he stays put in Glasgow for many years to come, ignoring Atletico’s advances in the process.