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An update has emerged on Liverpool striker Divock Origi, regarding Wolves’ interest in his services.

What’s the talk?

According to The Telegraph, Wolves are one of three Premier League sides showing an interest in Liverpool striker Divock Origi.

The report claims that Crystal Palace and West Ham are also keen on the Belgian international, although it does not state how receptive to a deal the Reds are at this moment in time.

Fans would be livid

Bruno Lage must avoid his first howler at Molineux by avoiding a deal for Origi. Wolves should not be looking to sign the Belgian forward this summer for multiple reasons.

For starters, his goal record is less than impressive. He has never scored more than eight goals in a league season since coming through at Lille in the 2012/13 campaign and has not scored more than four league goals since the 2017/18 season for Wolfsburg.

Last term, he failed to score a single Premier League goal in nine appearances after managing four in 28 games the previous year. This highlights his struggles in front of goal and why Wolves, from a footballing point-of-view, should not be interested in signing him. He has no proven track record of scoring consistently, which is why fans would be livid if the club brought him to the club.

This is not to say he is a terrible player. Former Belgian international and Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany previously hailed Origi as a monster. He said:

“He is very gifted and talented. Technically, he’s a monster. More importantly, he is an outstanding worker in training. I see him working like crazy. If he continues in this way, in a few years he will be among the five or ten best strikers in the world.”

Kompany’s comments suggest that there is potential there for him to develop if given the right game time, but it would be a gamble given his form for Liverpool in the last few seasons. But, why would Wolves take a risk on Origi fulfilling his potential when they already have a player in the building who they could work on?

The £77k-per-week dud is 26 now, whereas Fabio Silva is only 19 and Wanderers invested £36m, plus his wages, in his future. Origi coming through the door could stunt Silva’s development, as it could offer him fewer opportunities to get on the pitch and continue to hone his skills in the Premier League.

It could be more beneficial for Wolves to stick with Silva and allow him to spend the season learning from Raul Jimenez and then stepping onto the pitch when needed. Although he had a difficult first season in England, he still managed four goals and three assists in the league, which is more goal contributions than Origi has managed in a Premier League campaign since 2016/17.

AND in other news, Shi must sanction Wolves swoop for 27 G/A maestro, many fans would be over the moon…

Aston Villa have been handed a boost in their attempts to sign PSG midfielder Rafinha in this summer transfer window.

What’s the story?

According to recent reports from Spain, the Ligue 1 club are ready to let Rafinha leave this summer in order to raise some funds for their own signings, and Villa could come in for the Brazilian.

French outlet Le Parisien (via AS) have now delivered an update on the situation, saying that the midfielder is on a list of players who PSG are willing to offload this summer in order to refresh Mauricio Pochettino’s squad and raise some money.

Perfect James Ward-Prowse alternative

Talking about the 27-year-old, former Barcelona team-mate Andreu Fontas once said: “Rafinha is a great player. Physically, he is a beast and, technically, he is superb.”

As per WhoScored, Rafinha boasted an impressive 90.9% pass accuracy in Ligue 1 last season (considerably better than any Villa player with more than one start), while he also averaged 2.3 tackles per match as well (only Matty Cash fared better with 2.5).

The £13.5m-rated technician could bring that same fearlessness and intensity both on and off the ball to Villa Park should Smith land his man this summer.

Given reports which have previously claimed that PSG superstar Messi rates the Brazilian very highly and was completely on board with seeing the midfielder become a prominent part of Barcelona’s side, that offers a real indication of just how talented he is.

With Southampton also confirming that former Villa target James Ward-Prowse has signed a new contract to stay at St Mary’s, signing an equally technically gifted midfielder in Rafinha would go a decent way to forgetting about missing out on the England international.

Able to cover the ground well and snap into a challenge, as well as having the ability to dictate the tempo of a game with his metronome-like passing, Rafinha seems like an ideal midfield fit for Smith and Villa.

Meanwhile, Villa must land this “phenomenal” Euro 2020 star…

Midlands journalist Luke Hatfield can understand why Norwich City have slapped a £40m asking price on Todd Cantwell amid interest from Aston Villa.

Villa have been linked with another raid on Norwich after previously signing Emiliano Buendia from the club.

Cantwell is reportedly seen as a potential replacement for Jack Grealish, who has become the most expensive player in British history by moving to Manchester City for a fee of £100m.

Cantwell enjoyed a superb season in the Championship last term as Norwich won promotion back to the Premier League.

He made 34 appearances in all competitions and scored six goals, while also registering eight assists.

In the top-flight, he has yet to score or register an assist, which could be partly down to the opposition they have faced, having played both Liverpool and Manchester City.

Hatfield does not think that such a fee is overpriced, especially if Villa are willing to pay up, although he has doubts over whether he will end up joining Dean Smith’s side.

He said: “Is it overpriced? I suppose the price or the value for a player is whatever a club is really willing to pay for him.

“But for someone of Todd Cantwell’s quality and potential already, you can understand why Norwich are asking for £40 million.

“I don’t see him going to Villa this summer.”

The Harry Kane saga may be rolling on but Tottenham Hotspur were keen to show that there is life after their key striker. A 1-0 win over champions Manchester City on the opening day of the new campaign proves that this Spurs side can beat anyone in the league, irrespective of whether Kane is involved.

It’s also thought that the club is keen to sign another centre forward before the end of the window, either as a partner for Kane or a direct replacement. The media is naturally fascinated but there is a young striker in reserve who seems to have a big future ahead of him.

Spurs Turn to Scarlett

Many young strikers have come and gone at Spurs: For every Harry Kane there is a John Obika and a Cameron Lancaster to balance things out. That’s why the fans are being cautiously optimistic over Dane Scarlett and the potential for the 17 year old to have a big future.

He’s already featured in the first team and, while he’s yet to score, Scarlett has looked sharp in his brief substitute appearances to date. He was prolific at Under 23 level for the club and, when called up for the England Under 16s in 2019, he scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Denmark.

It’s early days but Spurs have rewarded the young striker with a two-year contract and there is genuine optimism among the supporters.

Realistic Aims

2020/21 was a disappointing season for Spurs fans as their club finished outside of the Champions League places. Having finished in seventh, Tottenham will now compete in the new Europa Conference League which is little consolation for the likes of Harry Kane.

With or without Kane, it would be unrealistic to expect Spurs to win the title this season. A more realistic aim for the club under Nuno Espirito Santo would be to finish inside the top four and claim a Champions League place.

Having beaten Manchester City in their first game of 2020/21, Tottenham have shortened to fifth favourites for that top four finish. Sports betting sites affiliated with sbo.net list Manchester City as the favourites, followed by Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United.

Those figures will continue to change throughout this 2021/22 Premier League season and the markets will remain open until such time as the final places are decided. Sbo.net’s recommend sportsbooks will react to results and update the figures accordingly.

Readers of the website will also be able to take in news items and opinion pieces relating to the world of football. Those articles may well help make decisions and, if it’s time to place a bet, there is a panel of recommended sportsbooks listed, many of whom have generous welcome promotions.

Once on board, there is a range of funding options available together with some effective customer service. It’s a useful website for the betting community but anyone looking to stake on Spurs will want to see the club solve their striker issues.

Falling out of Favour

Talking up a young player before they are ready is a dangerous business and another striker on the Spurs staff is proving that theory. Before Irish teenager Troy Parrott had made his senior debut, he was being referred to as the next Robbie Keane.

Keane had been one of Tottenham’s most prolific and popular performers of recent years and he was known for his impressive scoring return from a young age. Parrott duly made his Spurs debut as a 17 year old but he’s subsequently been loaned out to Millwall and Ipswich Town. In 32 combined games for those lower league clubs, he scored just twice.

There are many more examples of young players failing to live up to their hype but there is genuine hope that Dane Scarlett will be different. The fact that he’s yet to be loaned out suggests that Spurs will offer him a genuine chance in the first team although that situation could change before the close of the summer window.

If he remains in North London, the teenage striker could get an opportunity to shine in the EFL Cup and the Europa Conference League. Good performances in those competitions could well prove the belief that Tottenham have a true star on their hands.

Crystal Palace enjoyed a stellar summer transfer window, successfully overhauling their ageing first-team squad with a raft of exciting youngsters.

The last-minute arrival of Odsonne Edouard in a £14 million deal from Celtic added to the likes of Marc Guehi, Connor Gallagher and Joachim Andersen, putting the gloss on an extremely productive few months for the Eagles.

And now new manager Patrick Vieira has a selection headache that every football boss craves. The strength in depth at Selhurst Park will leave the Frenchman with some big decisions to make over the international period, with many stars pushing for a place in his best starting XI.

With that in mind, this is how Football FanCast expect the 45-year-old to line up his best XI following the conclusion of the summer transfer window…

The ever-reliable Vicente Guaita will keep his spot in goal after continuing to put in some impressive performances at the start of the new campaign.

In defence, the new centre-back partnership of Guehi and Andersen are set to be flanked by 22-year-old Tyrick Mitchell and the experienced Joel Ward, who will be tasked with bringing some Premier League knowhow to a young backline.

A new-look central midfield partnership of Gallagher and Will Hughes should provide the excitement, goals and energy that’s been missing from the Palace engine room in recent years, while Luka Milivojevic’s presence ensures it remains a solid and stable force.

Ahead of them is set to be an entertaining and skillful attacking trident of Wilfried Zaha, Michael Olise and Edouard, relegating the £8.1m-rated Christian Benteke to the bench as he’s been a liability in recent years due to a lack of goalscoring prowess.

Eberechi Eze’s return to fitness following an Achilles injury will give Vieira even more food for thought, although the former England Under-21 international is set for an extended spell on the sidelines.

And, in other news…Palace suffer major blow in pursuit of “explosive” 19-y/o prodigy, Vieira will be gutted 

Speaking to Football Insider, Sky Sports pundit Kevin Campbell has backed summer singing and new Tottenham Hotspur starlet Emerson Royal for stardom in north London.

The Lowdown: Spurs snap up new royal…

As confirmed on deadline day, Spurs finally bolstered their right-back options with the signing of Emerson from Barcelona.

Spurs had been linked with a plethora of full-back options on that side throughout the window, with the likes of Max Aarons, Tariq Lamptey and Takehiro Tomiyasu also linked.

Alas, with the latter man heading to Arsenal instead, Spurs snapped up the Brazilian in a last-minute swoop.

The Latest: Emerson backed for Spurs stardom…

Speaking to Football Insider, Sky pundit and former Premier League striker Campbell has been left overjoyed by his signing and insists the South American youngster can thrive at Tottenham.

Indeed, still only 22-years-old, the former Betis starlet comes to Spurs with the potential to have significant sell-on value as well as comparisons with Brazil legends like Maicon and Daniel Alves.

Campbell backs the hype and insists he is ‘perfect’ for the club.

“Let me tell you, this guy is very, very good. He is all action. He is up and down, very quick and loves to attack,” the pundit explained.

“The way Spurs play, with the full-backs bombing on, he is perfect. He is relentless down the flank because he is an incredibly fit guy. He also has good quality on the ball so I expect him to quickly become a fan favourite there.

“For £25.7million? It is cheap money.”

The Verdict: Get excited?

Still with plenty of years ahead of him, the Lilywhites have many seasons to see the very best of Emerson and it is justifiable to start getting excited.

He comes as an arguably perfect replacement for departed defender Serge Aurier and his attacking threat is there for all to see.

Emerson notched four assists from out wide for Betis last season and attracted more fouls on average per 90 (2.1) than any Spurs player managed in the Premier League (WhoScored) – perhaps highlighting his real trickiness.

In other news: ‘Finished article’…Sky pundit in awe of Spurs youngster who’s an ‘improved version of Ndombele’, find out more here.

Many Liverpool supporters are keen for the Reds to sign Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham.

Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool have received criticism for their lack of business in the transfer market as only Ibrahima Konate signed in a quiet window.

But the Liverpool manager remains on the lookout to bolster his squad and England international Bellingham is now allegedly Klopp’s top target after dazzling in Germany since his move from Birmingham City.

According to Daily Star journalist Jeremy Cross [via LFC Transfer Room on Twitter], a deal could cost up to £80million and the Reds face competition from Manchester United to secure his services.

The Daily Star have reported that Klopp wants to bring in a statement signing and the 18-year-old has been identified as that player.

With Georginio Wijnaldum departing on a free transfer to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer, Liverpool are in need of another midfielder, and it looks like they will need to break the transfer record fee they paid for Virgil van Dijk in 2018 to sign Bellingham.

Liverpool fans excited with Bellingham talk

These Liverpool fans took to Twitter to react to the rumour.

“Get this guy at any cost. Brilliant talent”

Credit: @LFC_purpose

“If you honestly think Bellingham would be worth the punt of £80m then you’d be… Absolutely right!”

Credit: @Twiss95

“Need it to happen”

Credit: @lfcellex

“Yes. Yes. Yes. Please”

Credit: @lukewalshdesign

“Pay whatever they want”

Credit: @davegarcia83

“Worth every flaming penny”

Credit: @JotaBelieveIt

In other news, Liverpool fans are buzzing with links to teenage sensation. Find out more here.

Wolves are a team that struggles for depth. Despite the large amount of money they spent last season and the call for better planning before his departure by Nuno Santo, the Old Gold still lack bodies.

However, there is a particular area where they’re stacked for options; full-back.

Last summer, Wolverhampton Wanderers signed four of them with Nelson Semedo and Ki-Jana Hoever arriving to play on the right and Marcal and Rayan Ait-Nouri signing to play on the left.

They added to the likes of Jonny and Ruben Vinagre but the Wolves pair have both been out of the side for very different reasons lately.

The former has sustained two ACL injuries in the space of the year while Vinagre, despite possessing enormous potential, was shipped out on loan.

His career at Wolves appears to be petering out rather quickly with 20-year-old attacking wing-back Ait-Nouri signing permanently and taking up his role of back-up in the team.

Yet, Vinagre is still playing for a prestigious club, one that won the Portuguese league last term in Sporting Lisbon.

That being said, his performances haven’t been entirely up to par and nothing summed that up more than his display against Ajax in the Champions League on Wednesday night.

To put things lightly, the defender had a nightmare as Sebastien Haller scored four times in a 5-1 drubbing.

Yes, your read that right, former West Ham striker Haller was actually in the goals,

However, it wasn’t the big French striker who provided him with problems. Instead, it was Ajax’s tricky Brazilian winger Antony.

Vinagre was entrusted with playing at left wing-back but was consistently beaten by the winger and caught out of position.

For the Dutch side’s first goal of the game, Vinagre was caught up field which allowed Antony space to cut inside from the right and hit the post before the rebound was fired in by Haller.

As the second goal came about, the Wolves loanee’s positioning was abysmal. Antony again caught him out and darted in behind the defender to latch onto a ball and then play a simple ball across the box that was finished off nicely.

It got worse for the 22-year-old when Ajax found a third. He dived in on the aforementioned Ajax winger but didn’t win the ball. Antony was subsequently allowed to pass the ball into Ryan Gravenberch who then found Steven Berghuis to make it three.

From a statistics point of view, the numbers make for grim reading too. He was substituted at half time after making just 13 passes at a success rate of 72%.

Furthermore, he lost possession of the ball every 3.4 touches. With this kind of performance in mind, it’s hardly a surprise that he’s been loaned out by Wolves in successive campaigns.

This was a horror show from the young defender and one that is unlikely to please the new Old Gold boss, Bruno Lage. They’d be wise to get rid on a permanent basis when the chance allows.

AND in other news, Forget Gibbs-White: Lage must unleash rarely-seen Wolves ace who’s “very smooth”…

West Ham United will be looking to extend their unbeaten start to the 2021/22 campaign as they welcome David Moyes’ former club Manchester United to the London Stadium later this afternoon.

The Hammers began their Europa League quest with a win over Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday night and the 58-year-old manager made plenty of changes to his starting XI.

But now his side returns to domestic action, he has a lot to think about in terms of team selection.

Here’s how the Irons could line up in east London today…

Moyes is likely to have a fully-fit squad to choose from, although we know that he will be without the services of leading talisman Michail Antonio after he was sent off late against Southampton last weekend.

That gives him a big call to make in attack and it’s one that could see Jarrod Bowen lead the line as West Ham lack much depth behind the 31-year-old forward.

As a result of that change, we could see a different system to usual, with Said Benrahma expected to come back into the XI, taking the place of Nikola Vlasic, whilst Pablo Fornals may partner him in attacking midfield.

Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek are two of the first names on the teamsheet these days but they could be joined by club captain Mark Noble, who takes the place of Manuel Lanzini from Thursday night.

There is also likely to be two more changes to the backline but after an impressive debut, it would be a surprise to see Kurt Zouma lose his place. Instead, Angelo Ogbonna is likely to replace Issa Diop, with Vladimir Coufal coming in for Ryan Fredericks.

Aaron Cresswell and Lukasz Fabianski keep their places.

Predicted West Ham XI vs Man Utd (4-3-3): Fabianski; Cresswell, Ogbonna, Zouma, Coufal; Rice, Noble, Soucek; Benrahma, Fornals, Bowen.

AND in other news, Signed for £15m, now worth 140% more: Moyes struck gold over “unplayable” West Ham gem…

A number of Liverpool supporters have been left hugely frustrated after Naby Keita was ruled out of Saturday’s clash with Brentford.

A much-changed Reds side picked up an impressive Carabao Cup win at Norwich City in midweek, but attention now turns to Premier League action.

On Saturday evening, Jurgen Klopp’s men make the trip to Brentford, for what could be a potentially tricky game in west London.

[freshpress-quiz id=“359326”]

Liverpool are already without Harvey Elliott and Thiago in midfield, and it now looks as though the injury-prone Keita is going to miss out as well.

Providing an injury update on Thursday [via the club’s official Twitter account], Klopp admitted that the Guinean was unlikely to be available at the Brentford Community Stadium, later confirming he is out the following day.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-4/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Liverpool fans react to Keita injury update

These Liverpool fans took to Twitter to react negatively to the news, as Keita continues to struggle in the injury department.

“Mad how kicking the grass can injure you for longer than a week”

Credit: @Kloppppp

“Naby getting creative with injuries. Kicking grass is a new one”

Credit: @FillyKris

“Keita OUT”

Credit: @Relvasss

“I’m done with Keita”

Credit: @MrPolo_

“Naby kicked the floor in a league cup game and now he’s out. Unbelievable”

Credit: @6times2019__

“He stubbed his toe. Sell him ASAP”

Credit: @OriginalOLAJ

In other news, some Liverpool fans are excited after a significant club announcement. Read more here.