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Crystal Palace are interested in signing Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.

The Lowdown: A busy summer ahead…

It looks set to be a frantic few months at Selhurst Park. Roy Hodgson’s long-term successor is still yet to be brought in, while 11 senior players could end up leaving the club for nothing over the coming weeks.

Whoever Steve Parish brings in to lead a Palace rebuild will more than likely have to look at a number of signings, possibly in attack.

Wilfried Zaha has once again been linked with a summer exit, whereas Conor Wickham could be one to leave for nothing.

The Latest: Nketiah links

One man who the club could make a move for is Nketiah, according to Romano.

The trusted reporter shared the news on Twitter on Monday, claiming Palace, Watford, West Ham and Bayer Leverkusen are all interested in the 22-year-old, who Mikel Arteta labelled ‘extraordinary’ last year.

“West Ham, Watford, Crystal Palace are interested. Bayer Leverkusen are pushing since months to sign him on a permanent deal,” Romano claimed.

Nketiah, on £45,000-a-week, has been offered new terms by the Gunners, but as of now, has just 12 months left on his Emirates deal.

The Verdict: A smart target?

The striker became England Under-21s’ record scorer last year and has 16 goals to his name in 17 appearances at that level.

He’s already racked up 65 appearances for the Gunners, scoring 13 times, and has also worked under Marcelo Bielsa out on loan at Leeds United.

Nketiah’s Transfermarkt valuation currently stands at £14.4m, so a transfer in that region could be a smart piece of business in the long run.

He can also play out wide when required but should Palace firm up their interest, they may well end up facing some strong competition.

In other news: ‘This is massive’, ‘Great appointment’ – Many CPFC fans erupt as ‘fantastic’ news comes to light, find out more here. 

Two clubs reportedly want to sign Christian Atsu from Newcastle United once the summer transfer window opens.

The Lowdown: Atsu frozen out

Atsu barely played for the Magpies in the 2020/21 season – in fact, he made only one appearance, coming on for just 10 minutes in their 1-0 home win over Blackburn Rovers in the Carabao Cup second round (Transfermarkt).

Therefore, both club and player will surely be looking for a move away from the northeast for the Ghanaian, with two clubs reportedly interested in his signature.

The Latest: Two clubs want Atsu

As per Sports World Ghana, both Huddersfield Town and Al Hilal are interested in signing Atsu once the market opens. His current deal with the Magpies expires on June 30, so he will become a free agent after that assuming that a new contract is not offered to him in the meantime.

That seems highly unlikely as Steve Bruce has already told him to find a new club, and with regards to Huddersfield, manager Carlos Corberan has tasked the Terriers’ management to sign him up, with a meeting between the Championship club’s sporting director and the player’s representatives expected to take place in the coming days.

The Verdict: Atsu must leave

A deal for Atsu to leave Newcastle would suit all parties involved.

With the player currently earning £30,000 per week, the Magpies would save a lot of money by getting rid of the Ghana international, and they already have players like Allan Saint-Maximin and Ryan Fraser who can play in his position on the left flank.

As for Atsu himself, he needs to be going out and playing regular football, especially being 29 years of age, and Huddersfield could well be able to offer him that given that Corberan has already expressed his strong desire to sign him.

With his current contract at St James’ Park running out next month, he will likely be able to move on as a free agent anyway, so any potential deal shouldn’t be too complicated.

In other news, find out what Mohamed Bin Salman insight Ben Jacobs has dropped on the potential takeover.

Leeds United splashed the cash last summer and look set to do so once again as they look to improve on this season’s top half finish, and someone like Matheus Cunha would have to start at Elland Road if they could afford to attract the Brazillian, according to former Whites striker Brian Deane.

Cunha was part of the Hertha Berlin side that were almost relegated from the Bundesliga before a late revival saw them lose just once in their last nine games, albeit it was a meaningless final game of the season against Hoffenheim.

The Brazillian can play as either a winger or a striker but injuries have hampered him this season, however he’s still managed to return seven goals and six assists in 27 games for Hertha and despite this, he’s being linked with a £40 million move away.

With Marcelo Bielsa set to extend his stay with Leeds beyond this summer, signing someone like Cunha for such a large fee could be on the cards but Deane believes that he would have to start most games for Leeds to be worth that much money, as he explained exclusively to Football FanCast:

“Yeah, he would have to start because you don’t bring in a player for that kind of money and not expect to play him but you look at Rodrigo and he hasn’t really pulled up any trees, from a goal-scoring point of view.

“It’s always going to be difficult coming in, but I think there’s enough at Leeds to help support somebody new arriving at the club, as long as they are the right type of character as well.”

Cunha was only signed in January 2020 from RB Leipzig for a fee of around £16 million and during the second half of the season his five goals in 11 games helped Hertha put together a late, but unsuccessful push for the Europa League.

Leeds are certainly well stocked in attack with Raphinha, Patrick Bamford, Rodrigo and Jack Harrison all likely to be at the club next season, so another wide player may not be at the top of the club’s priority list.

According to a report by reliable journalist Mike McGrath, writing for the Telegraph, Tottenham Hotspur are in ‘pole position to land’ Lyon powerhouse Joachim Andersen.

The Lowdown: Levy’s centre-back hunt continues…

It is no secret that Spurs are looking into signing top class centre-back options for the 2021/2022 season as Daniel Levy looks to shore up a problem position for the Lilywhites ahead of the appointment of a new manager.

Sky Sports have previously touted the likes of Jerome Boateng and Jannik Vestergaard as on the target list, going as far as to say that inquiries have already been made.

Andersen has been mentioned elsewhere, with reliable football.london correspondent Alasdair Gold saying he is indeed on the agenda.

The Latest: Tottenham in ‘pole position’

Now, another reliable source has detailed the situation regarding Andersen, with McGrath now claiming that Levy and Spurs are in ‘pole position’ for the 6 foot 3 powerhouse.

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Having impressed for Fulham on loan this season, he has attracted attention from both Tottenham and north London rivals Arsenal – with Mikel Arteta’s side ready to compete for his signature.

He is apparently expected to move on from Lyon in the summer for around £20 million but Spurs need to trim their squad before making the move.

The Verdict: Exciting update…

Andersen has been one of Scott Parker’s most notable assets in a disappointing season for the Cottagers as the 24-year-old averages the joint-fourth most clearances per 90 in the Premier League over 2020/2021 (WhoScored).

He has also won more aerial duels than any Fulham player this season (WhoScored), earning praise from Craven Cottage legend Tony Gale as a result – who called him ‘absolutely sensational’ earlier in the campaign (fulhamfc.com).

Still at a fairly young age and valued at an arguably affordable price in a market likely to be majorly influenced by coronavirus, he could become a tremendous coup for Tottenham depending on next developments.

In other news: Alasdair Gold drops major Spurs managerial update, find out more here.

In some Leeds United news which was perhaps to be expected, it has been confirmed that both Pablo Hernandez and Gaetano Berardi will leave the Premier League club this summer.

Hernandez in particular has played such a huge role in the Whites’ ascent to the top flight from their days in the Championship, amassing an impressive 174 games for the club, scoring 36 goals and providing 41 assists, and his last-gasp winner against Swansea in last year’s promotion run-in has gone down in legend.

With the Premier League season coming to an end after Leeds’ clash against West Brom on Sunday afternoon, Marcelo Bielsa must surely grasp the opportunity to give Hernandez a well-deserved send-off in front of the returning Elland Road fans.

The Spaniard turned 36 last month and it has been incredibly telling that the highest number of minutes he has played in one top-flight game this season is the 67 that he completed against Leicester way back in early November.

Dubbed as an “inspiration”, the £21,000-a-week earner has previously stated that he wouldn’t want to overstay his welcome at Leeds if he felt like the time had passed him by. He said: “If you talk about football tactically or technically, this is probably the best time of my career. Physically I feel good but obviously 10 years ago, I felt better. I can’t change this.”

Now that the time has come for him to leave, the Spaniard should be given the chance to say his goodbyes on the pitch when Leeds welcome the Baggies to Elland Road.

It’s a sentiment which has been echoed by former Leeds ace Andy Couzens, who suggested that Hernandez and Berardi should both feature this afternoon.

The 45-year-old said: “All good things have to come to an end!! Two players that have given everything to this great club and will be forever in the club’s hearts. Let’s see them both play for the last time on Sunday and with only 8.5 thousand fans in the stadium they will still get the best send-off.”

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Hernandez deserves the opportunity to play one last time in a Leeds shirt, and Bielsa should be all for it. The Elland Road faithful would surely be absolutely buzzing to see it.

Meanwhile, Leeds are eyeing a move for this South American starlet…

Sheffield Wednesday return to Championship action this afternoon but they will be without manager Darren Moore in the dugout after a fresh health concern, meaning assistant Jamie Smith will lead the Owls out for the fourth time in their last five games.

The South Yorkshire side will be looking to bridge the eight-point gap to safety but know that a defeat would all but confirm relegation to League One as there are only five games left to play, including this one.

Last time out, Wednesday were beaten by promotion-chasing Swansea City and now they welcome an out-of-form Bristol City to Hillsborough Stadium, with both teams desperate to pick up three points.

Moore may not be at the game but he will undoubtedly have a big say in terms of team selection, so here is our predicted XI along with the latest news from the Owls camp…

There could be three changes from the side that tasted defeat in midweek, though it is unlikely that any of their recent injury absentees feature just yet.

Between the sticks, we should see Keiren Westwood remain after his return to the starting XI on Tuesday night and Moore could well revert back to his usual back three, having tinkered it against Swansea.

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That means Julian Borner and Tom Lees welcome back 20-year-old gem Osaze Urhoghide, with Sam Hutchinson moving into midfield to continue his partnership with Barry Bannan once again.

Adam Reach is surely going to keep his place at left wing-back, though the Owls boss could be tempted to inject a spark into his side on the other flank, so don’t be surprised if forgotten man Kadeem Harris is given a run-out over 29-year-old Liam Palmer, despite starting eight of their last nine games.

Harris should give them more flair in attack, and let’s face it, Wednesday need to score more goals to stand a chance of surviving.

The third and final change is likely to be in the attack with top goalscorer Callum Paterson returning alongside Jordan Rhodes up top, having been a casualty from the alterations in midweek.

Soon-to-be departing midfielder Liam Shaw will drop to the bench. The 20-year-old academy graduate is due to join Celtic at the end of the season.

As a result of Wednesday pairing the Scottish duo together, Josh Windass will drop deeper in a no.10 role behind the pair.

It does mean that the likes of Andre Green, Izzy Brown and Elias Kachunga are snubbed again despite the Owls’ lack of fortunes.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Palmer drops Sheffield Wednesday dressing room claim over Darren Moore…

Roy Keane is thought to be back in the running to take over at Celtic, with the stalling move for Eddie Howe causing a U-turn in the Bhoys boardroom.

That’s according to a ‘behind the scenes’ report from Football Insider, who have been informed by a Hoops source that the Irishman has growing support from within the boardroom and is becoming more prominent in the thoughts of the hierarchy.

Keane feared he had been overlooked by Celtic despite talks with the club, but it seems as if he is now back in the frame.

The report suggests that the Hoops hierarchy feel they need a new manager with a strong personality to rebuild a broken team and compete with Rangers, while the faltering move for Howe has also led to a rethink.

Transfer Tavern take

To us, appointing Keane as Celtic’s new manager would be a huge risk. The 49-year-old has been out of the managerial game for over ten years – with his experience in the dugout since then coming as assistant to both Martin O’Neill and Paul Lambert with Ireland, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest respectively.

Howe is another man in the Celtic picture along with Keane, and to us, the Englishman would be a better option, as he proved with Bournemouth that he can rebuild a side, taking them from League Two to the Premier League in the space of six seasons.

Howe also has over 350 games more as a manager than Keane and has been out of work for less than a year, so not only is he the fresher and more current manager, he is also actually more experienced as well.

In other news: Premier League club mandate agents to work on signing Celtic star, find out more here. 

According to recent reports from Italy, Glasgow Rangers attacking midfielder, Ianis Hagi, could be set to leave Ibrox this summer.

The report by Noi Biancocelesti (via Sport Witness) claims that, with it looking unlikely that Lazio will go on to make Andreas Pereira’s loan move a permanent deal at the end of the season, Simone Inzaghi’s side are considering other options for additions to their attacking midfield in the summer transfer window.

One such option is reported to be Hagi, with the Serie A side thought to have previously held an interest in the £21,000-per-week 22-year-old, prior to his permanent move to Rangers last summer.

And, it would appear that this interest is something that Lazio now appear keen on reigniting, with Noi Biancocelesti claiming that the Italian side, who did boast Champions League football this campaign, value the Romania international at around €6 million (£5 million).

Sport Witness suggest that this could prove something of a stumbling block for I Biancocelesti, as Steven Gerrard and co will likely demand a much larger fee for the midfielder.

Transfer Tavern Take

Having signed Hagi for £3.15 million last summer, in the unlikely event that Rangers do accept an offer of around £5 million for the 22-year-old in the upcoming transfer window, the club would still have turned a decent profit on the midfielder.

However, considering the fact that Hagi has proven himself a crucial part of Gerrard’s side this season, scoring seven goals and providing 12 assists over his 38 appearances in all competitions, with former Romania boss, Christoph Daum, dubbing midfielder an “excellent” talent, it is not difficult to imagine the Gers boss being uncertain about selling the midfielder for a figure of around £10 million, let alone the quoted £5 million.

In other news: this ‘superb’ £6.2k-p/w star lifted the lid on talks with the Rangers hierarchy – find out more here!

Leeds United are interested in signing Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara this summer, but other Premier League clubs are also keen.

The 10-man Whites picked up a famous victory on Saturday, winning 2-1 away to Manchester City in the dying seconds thanks to Stuart Dallas’ double. It was a win which took Marcelo Bielsa’s side ninth in the table at the time, with other results meaning they have since slipped to 10th.

Although it was further proof of this Leeds side’s brilliance, it is still vital that reinforcements come in this summer, allowing the squad to keep improving.

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Leeds linked with Kamara move

According to the Daily Mail, Rangers are ‘fighting’ to keep hold of Kamara, with a number of suitors keen on acquiring his signature.

Leeds’ interest is confirmed in the report, while Brighton, Southampton, Burnley and Watford are also mentioned as being interested in the midfielder who has been described as having a “fantastic attitude” by Steven Gerrard, his manager at Ibrox.

Transfer Tavern take

Making the step up from the Scottish Premiership to the Premier League isn’t always easy, but Kamara looks a formidable player, with 27 caps to his name for Finland, not to mention being a key man in Rangers’ title-winning season.

He was also once on the academy books at Arsenal and made one senior appearance for the club during Arsene Wenger’s reign in charge, an EFL Cup defeat at Sheffield Wednesday in 2015. A profile on Kamara by The Athletic wrote that he would ‘fit the mould of the sort of midfielder’ that the then-Gunners manager would have been seeking.

The 25-year-old could add depth to the Leeds midfield, bringing the same defensive nous that Kalvin Phillips offers in front of the back-line, averaging one tackle and 0.9 interceptions per game in the Premiership this season.

In other news, the absence of one Leeds man against Manchester City has been explained by Phil Hay. Read more here.

David Moyes should be happy to pay the £21.5m fee that West Ham United could have to pay in order to sign VfB Stuttgart striker Sasa Kalajdzic this summer.

What’s the word?

According to Kicker, via Sport Witness, Stuttgart are setting the market for Kalajdzic at €20m to €25m (£17-21.5m) as his name starts to hit transfer shortlists all around Europe.

The Bundesliga outfit are open to the fact they will have to sell some of their star players at the end of the season to fund arrivals, as Sporting Director Sven Mislintat strives to take the Mercedes-Benz Arena natives to the next level.

Kalajdzic has been in sensational form under head coach Pellegrino Matarazzo this term, netting 13 goals in 24 Bundesliga games – including eight in his last seven outings – to help fire Stuttgart to eighth in the table during their first year back in Germany’s top-flight.

His efforts are said to have put West Ham’s scouts on alert whilst Moyes strives to discover the eventual heir to Sebastien Haller, having opted against replacing the Ivory Coast forward during the winter market following his £20m move to AFC Ajax.

Other unnamed Premier League clubs are also keen on Kalajdzic, who has admirers at RB Leipzig and Serie A outfit AS Roma, but the 23-year-old is refusing to be drawn on speculation on his future.

“I am not concerned with this. I can well imagine an extension of the contract,” he told Kicker.

Kalajdzic is currently not scheduled to become a free agent until the summer of 2023, with his £7,500-per-week terms still having two more years to run.

Should West Ham sign Kalajdzic?

West Ham certainly appear to be emerging as a potential landing spot for Kalajdzic should the striker prove to be one option Stuttgart cash in on this summer, after recent reports claimed he was viewed as a cheaper alternative to Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham and Slavia Prague’s Abdallah Sima.

A potential £21.5m asking price would not be overtly cheap, given the Irons passed up on paying Stade de Reims €15m (£13m) for Boulaye Dia in January, yet Kalajdzic should not be scrubbed from thinking at the London Stadium.

The Stuttgart star has been setting Germany’s top-flight alight during his first year in the Bundesliga and struck two of his recent goals against Bayer Leverkusen despite losing 5-2 away to the Champions League qualifying hopefuls.

He also netted against Eintracht Frankfurt to put a dent in the Deutsche Bank Park natives’ top-four hopes and struck the equalising effort in a 1-1 draw with Leverkusen in October, as he lives up to the billing of being “important offensively” in the eyes of Mislintat.

Dia was rightfully overlooked in the winter market despite having 12 goals in 17 Ligue 1 games to his name by January 9th, as the 24-year-old has since failed to find the back of the net in any of his subsequent 10 French top-flight outings.

After scoring on the first day of the campaign away to title-hopefuls Monaco, Dia has also failed to fire home against a top side, instead, he’s been bullying the middle of the table and bottom-half clubs.

Kalajdzic may be just as unproven in England as Dia, but he is proving in Germany that he is worth taking a punt on once the transfer market re-opens for business this summer.

AND in other news, West Ham in four-way Premier League battle for 13-goal striker who is “annoying to the defender”…