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Wolves are interested in 19-year-old SL Benfica forward Goncalo Ramos, according to a report from Portuguese outlet Novo.

They claim that the club are in ‘early talks’ with the Liga NOS outfit over the signing.

The lowdown on Wolves target Goncalo Ramos

Ramos is primarily a second striker rather than an out-and-out number nine.

After scoring 15 goals and providing six assists for Benfica’s B-team, he earned his opportunity at senior level, and he’s hit the ground running with six goals in his first 13 appearances.

Ramos has also featured eight times for Portugal’s Under-21s, including a substitute appearance in the final of the European Championship earlier this month.

Portugal, whose starting line-up for the game included Wolves loanee Vitinha, lost 1-0 to Germany.

Were he to join Wolves, he would be seen as part of their next attacking generation, along with Fabio Silva, a £35.6million signing last summer.

Fan feed Talking Wolves relayed the report, and here’s what the fans made of it.

Wolves fans react as Ramos talks get underway

“Are we running a football club or a crèche?”

Credit: @MKG661

“On a real note, would we need him since we have Fabio though? Wouldn’t we need a slightly older backup striker?”

Credit: @iamrockymstar

“Wonderkid FC”

Credit: @xGJHP

“That’s not how you spell Sergio.”

Credit: @wolfinbristol

“Another one for the youth them loaned out…. Another Rafa Mir”

Credit: @Wolfie71209247

“We’re just playing Football Manager, aren’t we?”

Credit: @adamwwfc03

In other news, fans were much happier with this transfer update. 

The West Indies left the Antigua Recreation Ground (ARG) yesterday evening with as many worries as a long-standing Caribbean prime minister.There was non-stop partying in two of the most popular stands on the ground after the second day of the important fourth Cable & Wireless Test against India, but the mood in the West Indies’ dressing room might well have been sombre.After staging a partial fightback in the morning, their efforts were thwarted initially by dogged resistance and later by confident strokeplay by two batsmen firmly entrenched in a record partnership.Vangipurappu Ventata Sai (V.V.S.) Laxman, whose initials have been affectionately amended to Very Very Special following two remarkable innings against world champions Australia, once more produced something of that calibre at a time when India were desperately in need of a revival.His unbeaten 124, which started half-hour into the morning, might not rank with his 167 in Sydney or his 281 in Calcutta, but in the context of the series, it was just as vital for India, who have almost certainly put themselves in a position where they cannot lose the match.Any century is very important and this, being my third, is also important. It was always a dream of mine to score a century in the West Indies and I am really thrilled, Laxman said.In the first two games I was getting into the 60s and 70s and not converting big scores. I thought I would just hang in there, added the 27-year-old right-hander who has often been criticised for not doing justice to his immense talent.It is a great honour playing for my country. It’s always been my dream to score consistently and I am really hoping to improve on my consistency in the future.In his company for almost five hours was the little wicket-keeper Ajay Ratra, who appeared to be a genuine tail-ender in his previous two Tests.This time, he was unruffled by nothing the West Indies bowlers sent his way, and he resumes this morning seven short of a hundred with India on an impregnable 462 for six.Bland statistics will reveal that India added another 236 runs and the West Indies managed only three wickets as was the case on the opening day, but to the purists, it might have been another day of absorbing Test cricket.The first session yielded a mere 46 runs when India were on the ropes; the second brought 65 when they were trying to regain their composure; and the third produced 125 when they were the ones throwing the punches.By then, a group of Indian supporters, here on a work attachment with the Antigua & Barbuda government and sitting in the Richie Richardson Stand next to the Press Box, were joyously making merriment as if it was a Hindu festival.They repeatedly saluted Laxman and Ratra, whose unbroken stand of 205 surpassed the previous seventh-wicket high against the West Indies of 186 between Dilip Sardesai and Elnath Solkar at Kensington Oval in 1971.Laxman, who spent 22 balls over his first run, was typically classy, his 14 boundaries executed with the timing and class that he displayed during his three previous half-centuries in the series.There were the nice, flowing drives and a rare hook before tea, but he was particularly severe after the day’s second break when he and Ratra tore into the bowling.Ratra, tidy behind the stumps but woeful with the bat in four innings in Trinidad and Barbados when his scores were 0, 2, 1 and 13, batted defiantly before growing in stature to unleash some authentic strokes of his own.His best was probably a hard pull off Pedro Collins, who later induced him into a top-edged hook to a vacant fine-leg.A few minutes before tea, Ratra also pulled Ramnaresh Sarwan just short of mid-on at a time when many felt the part-time leg-spinner should have been long introduced to break the growing partnership.Cameron Cuffy bowled just one over after tea, but there were no injury concerns over him. Nor were there any over Brian Lara who left the field after hitting the turf on his troublesome left elbow while trying to make a diving safe.The first session was especially encouraging for the West Indies, their bowlers showing aggression on a pitch that contained early moisture following heavy rain in the wee hours of the morning that threatened a prompt start.Three wickets went down in the space of an hour, including those of the two key overnight batsmen who were approaching landmarks.Rahul Dravid and captain Sourav Ganguly were hemmed in by tight stuff and eventually something had to give.Ganguly attracted the first real loose ball in the morning, but ended up slapping Cameron Cuffy’s long hop hard but straight to Wavell Hinds at point.Hinds, West Indies’ best fielder over the two days, especially on Day 1 when he made several sprawling saves in the outfield, gleefully accepted the catch with Ganguly five short of his 50.Dravid had attempted nothing rash for the 50 minutes in which he eked out only five runs to add to his overnight 86 until he chopped Dillon into his stumps.He stopped in disbelief, paused for a second and asked himself what he had done wrong, then kicked the turf before walking off with a 90-something next to his name for the fifth time in Test cricket.It was somewhat of a surprise that Anil Kumble emerged from the pavilion to take the No. 7 slot, perhaps two notches higher than he is suited for.Predictably, Dillon peppered him with a few nasty deliveries, one of which crashed into the grill of the helmet after Kumble completely took his eyes off the ball. Clearly stunned, he spat blood, but was brave enough to continue.Kumble lasted 20 minutes before he inevitably fended off another delivery on the body around the corner and into the waiting hands of Shivnarine Chanderpaul at backward short-leg.

Emiliano Martinez reportedly played a key role in convincing fellow Argentine Emiliano Buendia to choose Aston Villa over Arsenal, as stated by Chris Wheatley.

In a sparkling 2020/21 season, Buendia notched an impressive haul of 15 goals and 17 assists as he inspired the Canaries to the Championship title [Transfermarkt].

Never likely to avoid interest from significant Premier League clubs, the Argentina international is now set to join Aston Villa in a deal worth a reported £40m despite considerable interest from the Gunners [Croydon Guardian].

Further introspect has revealed that Martinez played a key role in this decision. Wheatley was quick to disclose why this came to pass, tweeting: “Same agent as Emi Martinez, negotiations swift and easy for Villa to complete”.

Furthermore, it is no coincidence that the two players are both currently on Argentina international duty, which may have also had an impact on Buendia’s decision [Birmingham Mail], and it’s little wonder that loads of Aston Villa fans took to Twitter to revel in the latest news of their latest signing.

Villa fans react to reported Martinez influence

Here is what some of the Villa faithful had to say following the “brilliant” update:

“doing wonders on and of the pitch”

Credit: @AVFCxBilly

“Knew he’d have a say” Credit: @liamhaddon1″I love this game” Credit: @liam_davies7 “the way he never fails to amaze me <3″Credit: @schwarzgeIben”JWP get that done, he’s brilliant”Credit: @daveLowe3″Best keeper in the world”Credit: @JFFNavfcIn other news, these Villa fans react to the club’s reported interest in this midfielder.

New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming came into the National Bank Test Series wanting his side to be respected for its achievements, past, present and future, and today’s 78-run win to draw the series with England 1-1 went a long way towards ensuring that respect.It took some bold decisions, and some innovation, especially under the lights last night, but the stability provided by the impact players selected for the match, Chris Harris who scored an invaluable 71 in the first innings, Daryl Tuffey who took nine wickets and Andre Adams who took six, allowed Fleming to dictate on his own terms.Fleming was required to throw some caution to the wind to achieve that and at 19/4 on the first day of the Test his gamble was under question.The win was New Zealand’s first over England at home since 1984, Fleming’s 16th as captain, and while his batting contribution throughout the series was minimal he had the personal satisfaction of leading New Zealand to its 50th victory in Tests and also becoming the first New Zealander to take 100 catches.Nasser Hussain, the England captain, might not be concerned about the ICC Test Championship ladder, but Fleming had the satisfaction of taking New Zealand to fourth on the ladder, forcing England back to fifth.But reflecting on what amounted to a victory achieved in the equivalent of eight sessions of normal playing time, Fleming said that even when 19/4 he felt New Zealand were in the best position to make the most out of what the wicket had to offer.So it proved when he declared overnight and left England with 312 as a target in a minimum of 105 overs today.England went for broke and at lunch had scored a staggering 154/5, but the momentum was always with New Zealand, even after Fleming dropped Hussain off the fourth ball after the break.At one stage Hussain threatened to hold up the victory, but he ran out of partners as Nathan Astle slowed what had been a frenetic run rate, and then picked up a key wicket in Mark Butcher from a ball that exploded off the pitch and lobbed from Butcher’s bat to be caught at point by reserve fielder Brooke Walker.It was then Tuffey, the player of the match, Adams and Chris Drum, who had 11 Tests between them who undid England by taking three wickets each. Their bowling throughout the match, might not have been as tight as Fleming would have liked when he claimed too many boundaries were conceded, but they were better than England’s bowlers in the conditions and that made the difference.”They went for a lot of boundaries, but they took wickets throughout. I would have liked them to be a lot tighter,” Fleming said.The key wickets were Graham Thorpe, who got a faint edge to a ball from Tuffey to be caught by Adam Parore to become his 200th wicket-keeping dismissal, and Hussain who was squared up by Adams and offered him a caught and bowled chance which he pounced on.Getting runs in the third innings had been vital to New Zealand’s ultimate success because throughout the series England had denied them opportunities at vital times. England had been very professional and New Zealand had been up against it in the match and they needed to take risks.Hussain said afterwards that even when New Zealand were 19/4 he thought his bowlers had not bowled well. He said a gusty wind at the northern end of the ground had been a problem when New Zealand forced a draw here four years ago and it was a concern again in those circumstances.”We bowled poorly on that sort of wicket to let them get up to 200. The wicket was doing plenty all the way through,” he said.Batting on the third evening when the shadows were coming across the pitch had been difficult and New Zealand had used them well to have England 11/3.Hussain explained his concerns about having to field while New Zealand were batting under the lights last night.”They had set a base of 200 ahead and they were going to tee off as the ball got older. That’s how Astle wants to play, it suits his game and it suits Adams’ game. By that time the damage had been done, even if they had batted on a little bit this morning the game was always going to be a result on a wicket like that,” Hussain said.”I thought we bowled fine last night, when sides come at you like that you have to vary your pace.”The thing about last night was that some of our boys were struggling to see the ball.”I mentioned that to Venkat [umpire Srinivas Venkataraghavan] and Venkat fully agreed with me and said, ‘Yeah it is difficult, but in no time in the history of the game has any side been taken off fielding and as far as Test cricket goes and ICC regulations say you can’t take a side off fielding, speak to the ICC about it’, and I’ve got no problem with that,” he said.Hussain didn’t want to be labelled “a whinging English captain”.There had been some fascinating cricket played in the series, the cricket had been excellent but the lighting issue had to be looked at by people off the field.”The New Zealand side are very resilient, we’ve always known that. They’re a similar side to us, they’re hard to break down. I’ve always said in a three match series we have to be at our best all the time to beat sides and we were just off by one or two hours in this game and we got nailed,” he said.That is respect, just as Fleming wanted it.

Frank McAvennie has dropped an encouraging transfer claim on Tyler Roberts and whether he would fit in at Newcastle United.

The Lowdown: Newcastle eyeing Roberts

As per Football Insider, the Magpies are closely monitoring the 22-year-old ahead of a potential move from Leeds United once the summer transfer window opens.

He is out of contract at Elland Road in 2022 and is yet to agree an extension, so the Whites may view a deal this summer as a good opportunity to cash in on him in order to gain some value from a transfer fee rather than risk losing him for nothing next year.

The Latest: McAvennie claims Roberts would start at Newcastle

Speaking to Football Insider, McAvennie – who is now a pundit after playing for the likes of West Ham United and Celtic – has claimed that Roberts would be a starter under Steve Bruce at St James’ Park, believing that the Toon Army would instantly warm up to him. The 61-year-old said:

“If he’s not getting a game, I think so.

“If you’re not playing you have to ask to leave. If he goes to Newcastle he’ll be a starter straight away. 

“They have great fans and they will love him up there if he hits the ground running. 

“Roberts can ask for guarantees but the manager can’t give them. He can only give them if he’s playing well. 

“You can’t tell a player he will always start because what if he starts playing badly? It’s a stupid statement.

“At his age, he’s got to be playing.”

The Verdict: Roberts would add to Newcastle squad

Roberts is certainly a player who could add something to the Magpies squad, and with the added experience of playing at Premier League level under Marcelo Bielsa, he would not have to adapt to the demands of the division were he to join Newcastle.

McAvennie’s point about his game-time is also pertinent – while the forward has played in 26 league games this season, only 14 of those have been as a starter.

Also, at just 22 years of age, Roberts should get even better over the next few years, while his added versatility is also a quality which could be very useful to have on Tyneside next season, especially with the amount of injuries the Magpies have incurred to key players such as Allan Saint-Maximin and Callum Wilson.

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The Welshman would certainly seem to be a smart buy should Newcastle look to sign him in the summer.

In other news, Lee Ryder has shared some insight from sources close to the potential takeover of NUFC on a possible timescale for arbitration.

شن أحمد حسام ميدو لاعب الزمالك السابق والإعلامي الحالي، هجومًا عنيفًا على يورجن كلوب المدير الفني لفريق ليفربول الإنجليزي، بسبب تصريحاته عن مباراة مصر والسنغال في تصفيات إفريقيا المؤهلة إلى كأس العالم، قطر 2022.

ومن المقرر أن يلتقي منتخب مصر مع نظيره السنغالي، يوم الجمعة المُقبل، الموافق 25 من مارس، في مباراة الذهاب بالقاهرة، على أن تكون مواجهة الإياب في داكار يوم 29 من الشهر ذاته.

وكان يورجن كلوب قد صرح بأنه فضل عدم الدفع بـ ساديو ماني جناح ليفربول أمام وتينجهام فورست، في ربع نهائي كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي، في المباراة التي فاز بها الريدز بهدف دون رد، أسوة بـ النجم المصري محمد صلاح، حتى لا يُساء فهمه. (طالع التفاصيل من هنــــا)

وقال ميدو خلال تصريحاته عبر برنامجه “الريمونتادا” على شاشة قناة “المحور”: “لم أر في حياتي مدير فني يقول مثل تلك التصريحات، من المفترض أن كلوب هو المدير الفني لـ ليفربول ولا يهمه سوى مصلحة ناديه، ولا يجب أن ينظر لمصلحة أيًا من صلاح أو ماني”.

وتابع: “مباراة مصر والسنغال ليس لها علاقة بـ ليفربول، ورسالتي لكلوب أنت تأثرت بالهجوم عليك من أليو سيسيه مدرب السنغال قبل كأس الأمم الإفريقية بالكاميرون”.

وواصل: “غياب ماني عن مباراة نوتنجهام رغم جاهزيته وتصريحاته بعد المباراة عن وجود عدل بين صلاح وماني، هذا أمر لا يعنيك، أنت ما يعنيك فقط هو مصلحة فريقك، ولكنك خشيت رد فعل أليو سيسيه”.

وزاد: “كلوب دفع بمحمد صلاح في مباراة آرسنال، رغم إن لاعبنا المصري لم يكن جاهزًا بنسبة 100%، لماذا لم تخش على مصلحة اللاعب؟”.

واختتم: “يورجن كلوب، من المفترض أنك رجل ألماني عملي، لا يهمك سوى مصلحة فريقك فقط، إنت مدرب كرة قدم ولست الله لكي تحقق العدل”.

After such an inconsistent campaign, Wolves no longer have anything to play for this season.

Nuno Santo’s team have performed well below par and as they gear up to face Brighton this afternoon, they will do so from 12th in the table.

Ambitions of qualifying for Europe have fallen by the wayside but it’s not been entirely the manager’s fault.

Wolves have suffered from a mind-blowing number of injuries this term with Jonny sustaining two ACL problems and Raul Jimenez fracturing his skull.

Pedro Neto has broken his knee cap while Willy Boly will miss the game on Sunday while he recovers from the after-effects of the ongoing pandemic.

With all this in mind, how will Wolves line up when they welcome Brighton to Molineux this weekend?

We’re tipping Nuno to make three changes to the side that drew with West Brom last time.

There is no place for Willian Jose in the side as Fabio Silva gets an opportunity to build on the goal he netted against the Baggies.

There is one change in the attack where Owen Otasowie drops out after his rare chance last weekend. With that in mind, Daniel Podence comes back into the fray in a wide position.

Vitinha gets another chance as the attacking midfielder after shining so bright at the Hawthorns.

The other change could be an enforced one. Wolves are currently sweating over the fitness of Rayan Ait-Nouri and if he can’t make the game, Max Kilman might come into the team.

The left-back replaced him towards the end of their clash with Albion but the £14k-per-week earner hasn’t actually started for the Old Gold since February 7th.

Boly misses out so it’s a centre-back pairing of Conor Coady and Romain Saiss again.

Joao Moutinho is back to full fitness so he replaces Leander Dendoncker in midfield for the third and final change in this XI. He has been absent for the last two matches with a minor ankle problem.

AND in other news, Wolves beast who became “ridiculous” under Nuno sees his value rise by 180% in 3 years…

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…

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Leeds United have been handed a major boost in their transfer chase for Brentford striker Ivan Toney.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent weeks have suggested that Marcelo Bielsa’s side are eyeing up a move for the forward this summer, and it now appears that Brentford would be willing to do business – at a certain price.

Football League World have claimed that the Championship side will demand a fee in the region of £35m to let the striker go, with the Bees feeling that he has more Premier League pedigree than current Aston Villa frontman Ollie Watkins.

The report reveals that Brentford believe the “25-year-old has an even greater potential to score goals in the Premier League than Watkins”.

Radrizzani must act now

With Leeds now knowing what it will take to prise Toney away from Brentford, the Whites simply have to go after the striker who’s bagged an impressive 126 goals in his career already.

Speaking earlier last year, Peterborough’s director of football Barry Fry said: “He’s turned into a tremendous all-round footballer. It’s important to remember Ivan is not just an exceptional goal-scoring forward, he’s also an outstanding defender.”

Toney himself has the confidence that he could cut it at the highest level, even comparing himself to Milan and Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

He said: “I’ve always liked Zlatan. I just love his confidence. Some people see it as arrogance but you must be like that to succeed. I’m similar to Zlatan in both my confidence and the way I play. When he wants to do something, he just does it. I have some of that in my game and personality. And I believe I’ll be a Premier League striker.”

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Given how he’s taken to the Championship like a duck to water, Andrea Radrizzani must surely open up the cheque-book and make a move for Toney this summer, who could potentially explode in the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Leeds could sign another Stuart Dallas in this ace…