All posts by rastrear-estafeta.com

At the age of 35, Liverpool midfielder James Milner is currently the seventh-oldest current Premier League player, with an astonishing 568 league appearances under his belt in what has been an impressive career in English football.

Taking that into account, and with his current contract at Anfield set to expire next summer, it’s not out of the question that the Merseyside club could be looking to replace the veteran if he ends up leaving then.

Rather than potentially splashing out a significant transfer fee on a new player from another club to replace Milner if he were to leave, we feel that Liverpool could already have their perfect heir for him within their youth squad in James Norris.

The 18-year-old, who is a product of Liverpool’s youth academy, is predominantly a left-back, a position where Milner has made 66 appearances throughout his career. He has also played as a central midfielder, centre-back and left-midfielder on two occasions for England’s under-19 side this season, showing her versatility at such a young age, just as Milner has done throughout his long career.

According to Liverpool’s official website, Norris is an “energetic left-back who can also play in midfield”, has “a great work ethic matched with a sweet left foot” and “loves to get forward and support the attack”.

Throughout his short career so far, he has made 35 appearances for Liverpool’s under-18 side, with five goals and five assists to his name, as well as making 13 appearances for the under-23 side, scoring one goal and providing one assist in the process.

Norris made his senior debut for the Reds during Liverpool’s 5-0 defeat against Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup back in December 2019.

Looking ahead to the future, if he can keep developing within Liverpool’s youth teams for the time being and adapting to different positions as he has been doing, he could well go on to become a very useful figure for Liverpool in their senior squad in the foreseeable future given his versatility, especially if Milner leaves the club when his contract runs out next year.

In other news – Forget Keita: Klopp must unleash £120k-p/w LFC outcast on Sunday, he impressed v Atletico

Crystal Palace have rebuffed a ‘host’ of loan bids for youngster Jack Wells-Morrison, according to TEAMtalk. 

‘A number’ of clubs in the second and third tier have approached Palace about taking Wells-Morrison on a temporary basis, among them London rivals Charlton Athletic.

But Patrick Vieira has ‘no intention of letting him go’ and instead wants to integrate him into the first team squad.

The lowdown on Jack Wells-Morrison

Wells-Morrison is predominantly a central midfielder but he can also play in slightly deeper or more advanced roles.

He’s still awaiting a senior debut for The Eagles, but he was named on the bench for Saturday’s FA Cup third round trip to Millwall.

Having scored eight goals in 24 appearances in the Under-18 Premier League, the 17-year-old earned a swift promotion to the Under-23s and has now racked up 15 PL2 outings (via Transfermarkt).

As noted by TEAMtalk, Morrison has been with the club for 11 years and his family are season-ticket holders at Selhurst Park.

Fan feed Palace Xtra relayed the news, and here’s what supporters made of it, with some feeling he could come into the first-team more next season when Conor Gallagher departs.

Many Palace fans flock to Wells-Morrison news

“Can only mean he’s involved in first team setup surely. Maybe just backup needed during AFCON”

Credit: @Joe_LT59

“Damn this kid must be good”

Credit: @JacobMozz

“Would be amazing if he can get a few sub appearances before the end of the season. Vieira must rate him to keep him from going on loan”

Credit: @jdmcpfc1990

“Championship??? Bro we must rate him so highly”

Credit: @SWPalace

“Gallagher replacement already at the club”

Credit: @joelcpfc_

“I’ve been SO impressed with him at U23 level and it excites me massively that Vieira sees him as someone we could potentially use this season”

Credit: @liamb0117

In other news, Palace are interested in this forward.

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has shared news involving Manchester United chief scout Jim Lawlor on Twitter.

The Lowdown: Ten Hag announced

It looks set to be a summer of change at Old Trafford, with Erik ten Hag now confirmed as Ralf Rangnick’s replacement at the end of the season.

Romano revealed in the early hours of Thursday morning that ‘contracts and paperworks’ were ready for the Dutchman following a full agreement last week, with Ten Hag now penning terms until June 2025.

The 52-year-old previously demanded to be 100% involved in new signings, outgoings and fresh contracts, and he’ll be working with a new scouting team in England.

The Latest: Lawlor to leave

News emerged on Wednesday regarding Lawlor, who has been on the books at Old Trafford for 16 years. He is set to leave the club over the summer, while head of global scouting Marcel Bout is also departing.

Romano took to Twitter on Wednesday morning to drop the key exit news on social media, saying:

“Manchester United revolution begins as chief scout Jim Lawlor leaves the club.”

The Verdict: Revolution needed?

Lawlor and Bout worked together for seven years and made a number of high-profile signings, which you could say largely haven’t worked out.

They’ve spent over £1.1bn on 37 players since 2014/15, with Paul Pogba the most expensive of those, who now looks set to leave for nothing this summer.

Hopefully, Ten Hag will be heavily involved when it comes to incomings and outgoings with a new scouting setup, in what could be an extremely busy first summer on charge.

In other news: Big news: Man Utd now eyeing signing of ‘absolute beast’ for Ten Hag in potential £100m+ deal. 

An update has emerged on Sunderland and their pursuit of free agent centre-forward Jermain Defoe…

What’s the talk?

According to INews, the Black Cats have made contact with the player and are one of a number of EFL clubs attempting to sign him.

The report claims that he wants to continue playing until the end of the 2021/22 campaign and is seriously considering a deal to join Sunderland.

SOL rocking

Lee Johnson could get the Stadium of Light rocking with a deal to re-sign the attacker. Not only does he have a successful history with the club but he is also a recognised name in English football and has enjoyed a brilliant career for club and country.

This means that he would almost be a marquee signing in the sense of the fanfare that would come with it, irrespective of his age. In 93 games for Sunderland between 2014 and 2017, he plundered an impressive 37 goals and four assists, which is why fans would surely be over the moon to see him back as they were able to enjoy his immense goalscoring talents previously.

The English predator has scored 200 club career goals to date and found the back of the net 20 times for England at international level. This means that the Mackems could be bringing in a player who has 220 strikes to his name, with the majority coming at the top level for club and country.

Rangers sporting director Ross Wilson once dubbed him “wonderful” and his record in Scotland suggests that he still has something to offer on the pitch at the age of 39. He managed 32 goals and ten assists in 74 games for the Gers, showing that he still has what it takes to be a regular goalscorer.

Therefore, he could bolster Johnson’s squad and score a few goals in League One to help the club with their promotion push back to the Championship. Fans would surely be buzzing to see him back in red and white after his previous spell with the club and the stands will be rocking if he comes in and has an impact on the season, as his statistics suggest that he will be able to do.

He was also part of the coaching set-up at Ibrox before Giovanni van Bronckhorst came in and brought in his own staff. This means that he could come in and play his part on the pitch before potentially retiring and taking up a coaching role at the club moving forward.

AND in other news, Alan Nixon drops Sunderland transfer claim that will leave fans gutted…

Aston Villa had a rather busy January transfer window in terms of their recruitment as well as moving some of their current players out on loan to other clubs.

Even though the winter transfer period has drawn to a close, it seems as though the Midlands club may already have their eyes on one deal in particular that they could look to complete when the summer transfer window opens.

What’s the news?

During a recent online Q&A on the Birmingham Live website, Villa journalist Ashley Preece was asked a question regarding the club’s current left-back situation after Matt Targett made a January deadline day transfer move to Newcastle United on loan.

In response, Preece revealed that the Midlands club are “looking to” try and sign Bologna’s 19-year-old left-back Aaron Hickey when the next summer transfer window opens.

With that in mind and the fact that they were linked with a move for the defender during the recent January transfer window suggests that Villa’s scouting team certainly see the teenager as a suitable recruit for Gerrard’s side.

Likened to Busquets

Prior to joining the Italian side back in September 2020, the £11.7m-rated full-back had racked up 34 appearances for SPFL side Hearts.

Since joining Bologna, the teenager, who has been likened to Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets in the past by Austin MacPhee, has managed to score an impressive four goals in 33 appearances across all competitions.

As well as his goals, the defender has also managed to deliver some solid performances for the Serie A side this season with WhoScored giving him an overall rating of 6.8/10 making him their fourth-highest rated player.

This would also currently place him in the top 10 of Villa’s highest-rated players in the Premier League this season, showing that he has what it takes to perform at a high level.

Moving forward, should Villa end up selling Targett at the end of the season when his loan spell at Newcastle comes to an end and if Ashley Young doesn’t renew his playing contract when that expires in the summer, launching a move for Hickey should definitely be at the top of Villa’s priority list to add some depth and freshness in that area of the squad.

After all, they could just find the next Busquets by doing so, landing a player capable of thriving in a multitude of positions; namely holding midfield and full-back.

In other news: Fabrizio Romano drops major 7-word AVFC deadline day update, Gerrard will be delighted – opinion

[ad_pod ]

Reported 2018 Liverpool target Jorginho’s poor run of form continued in Chelsea’s 2-0 FA Cup fifth round defeat against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on Monday night, and Reds fans were quick to react to his performance on Twitter.

The Liverpool Echo reported last May that the Merseyside outfit were interested in bringing the Italy international to the Premier League, but at the time Manchester City were the favourites to win the race for the midfielder’s signature.

Of course, the 27-year-old ended up linking up with the manager he worked under at Napoli, Maurizio Sarri, in west London instead, and while he started the season well and earnt pletny of plaudits, his displays have dropped off in recent weeks with his shortfalls off of the ball and defensively coming to the fore – as was the case against the Red Devils.

Liverpool supporters took to social media to have their say on the Italian’s latest showing on Monday, and while one said “Jorginho isn’t fit to lace Wijnaldum’s boots”, another said “he can’t defend and his passing is just average”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Jurgen Klopp has gotten quite inventive with his excuses this season. FFC’s James Jones think he has no one but himself to blame for Liverpol’s poor form in the video below…

Lots of Glasgow Rangers fans have been left bemoaning some news on Steven Gerrard.

As per Ashley Preece, Gerrard’s proposed move to go and manage Aston Villa is ‘all but done’, following the departure of Dean Smith.

The journalist has also claimed that he is ‘expecting an announcement within the next 24 to 48 hours if not sooner’, suggesting that Christian Purslow is set to get his man.

Of course, this means that the Ibrox faithful may have to search for a new manager to replace Gerrard soon, which is certainly not ideal midway through the season, in where the Liverpool and England legend has guided them to being four points clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership table.

Gerrard has achieved so much with the Light Blues over his three-year reign, taking the SPFL title off of the hands of Celtic last term and being lauded by pundits as an ‘exciting’ manager (Paul Robinson to Football Insider).

Taking this into account, it is not a surprise at all to see so many Bears supporters bemoaning this latest update.

Rangers fans on Gerrard news

Indeed, these Gers supporters shared their disgruntled thoughts as the development was shared on Twitter, with one claiming that they were ‘gutted’ while another fan described the news as ‘upsetting’.

Find all of their verdicts on this big Gerrard update down below.

“Gutted man absolutely gutted”

Credit: @rossco72_

“It’s looking more and more likely now. Real sore one.”

Credit: @ScottBradleyX

“Well that’s a bit upsetting”

Credit: @martincathie_1

“I am in so much pain”

Credit: @PhiIip1872

“I’m not crying you are”

Credit: @nerziaCY

“Oh dear”

Credit: @ChrisCooper0

In other news, find out what Academy update has Gers buzzing here!

West Ham United have been dealt a potentially huge blow in their bid to bring Jesse Lingard to the London Stadium in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by ExWHUemployee, who revealed in a recent post on The West Ham Way that, despite having featured sparingly for Manchester United so far this season, the 29-year-old attacking midfielder – who has been heavily linked with a move to East London – would like to remain at Old Trafford until the end of the season, when his current contract expires.

In his post, the insider unveiled a big twist:

Moyes will be furious

Considering just how impressive Lingard was after joining West Ham on a four-month loan deal last season, in addition to the fact that the Hammers attempted to sign the forward in the summer transfer window, the news that the England international looks increasingly unlikely to leave Manchester United this winter is sure to have left David Moyes furious.

Indeed, over his 16 Premier League appearances for West Ham last time out, the £19.8m-rated man scored nine goals, registered five assists and created three big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 2.6 shots and making 1.1 key passes per game.

These returns saw the £75k-per-week attacking midfielder earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.19, ranking him as the Hammers’ best performer in the top flight of English football last time out.

However, despite his remarkable form at the London Stadium, Lingard has once again found his game time limited at Manchester United, featuring in just eight Premier League fixtures so far this season.

As such, the 29-year-old’s apparent decision to wait until the end of the season before making a decision on his future is a rather baffling one, as continuing to sit on the bench at Old Trafford will do nothing towards helping the forward secure a spot in Gareth Southgate World Cup squad for Qatar 2022.

However, with it appearing as if a move for Lingard is now off the table this January, Moyes has been left with no other option than to turn his focus in the transfer market elsewhere, an outcome that will undoubtedly be incredibly frustrating for the 58-year-old manager.

In other news: West Ham handed huge injury boost ahead of Tottenham clash that’ll have Moyes buzzing

Steve Bruce must axe goalkeeper Sam Johnstone for the remainder of the season in order to prepare for life without him after the summer.

The former Premier League champion has had a “successful” career at the Baggies in the words of reporter Steve Madeley, but it looks like it could be about to come to an end with his contract set to expire in the summer.

When speaking to the Athletic, manager Steve Bruce said “the likelihood is that Sam is going to leave.”

The shot-stopper is poised to join a club in the Premier League in the hopes of gaining a place in the England squad at this winter’s World Cup in Qatar.

West Brom will now be looking at replacements for Johnstone but their campaign as good as done, they should consider axing the ‘keeper from their starting line-up now to best prepare for life without him.

His record this season is pretty good having kept 15 clean sheets overall in the Championship which is just three short of the league’s best which is held by central defender John Egan.

The 29-year old still has some of his best years left and has played over 15,000 minutes for West Brom. His overall record is impressive with 45 clean sheets in 167 appearances.

He has even been described as the “best English goalkeeper” by Jason Cundy.

So why drop him? Well, the Baggies have little to play for this season, their slim hopes of achieving a play-off spot were virtually ended with a 1-0 defeat to rivals Birmingham City the other week.

The remaining games they have would provide a great chance to give one of their other goalkeepers valuable experience in the league and would provide the coaching staff with a good idea of whether or not they could replace Johnstone.

Alex Palmer is the youngest of the three stoppers the club have available to them and has come through the academy having spent various spells on loan.

One of his most recent loan spells last year at League One outfit Lincoln City saw him make 46 appearances and keep 19 clean sheets in the division.

When you compare his performance last season to Johnstone’s, he has a better save percentage at 72.7 compared to 70.6.

Now would be the perfect opportunity to give him a more regular chance at Championship level and it could pay off for Bruce.

IN other news: West Brom: Grady Diangana struggled in defeat to Stoke City…

When Celtic spent £2m on the signing of Marian Shved back in January 2019, it would be fair to say that many at Parkhead were not overly convinced about the winger’s suitability for the club.

Indeed, shortly after the 21-year-old’s arrival in Glasgow, Brendan Rodgers appeared less than enthused about the capture of the Ukraine international, stating: “I can’t say I know a great deal about him but what I have seen he is a talent and something that will probably benefit the club in the future.

“We’ve got about a million wingers and don’t need another one but he’s a talent and in the summer we’ll probably lose wingers and he’ll look to come in. It’s an opportunity for the club to sign a young talented player but not one that will probably help us now.

“The club have been in contact with his representatives and he is a player for the future. I haven’t seen a great deal of him to be honest. It is something that has come to the club through circumstance and he has been watched. I think that they will look to get the deal done on him and he will probably be out on loan.”

As the Northern Irishman suggested, Shved did indeed depart Celtic Park on a temporary basis shortly after his arrival in Glasgow, returning to Karpaty Lviv for the remainder of the 2018/19 campaign.

However, what Rodgers did not predict was that the forward would also spend the vast majority of 2019/20 away from Parkhead, with the £810k-rated winger linking up with Belgian side KV Mechelen in August 2020 after making just three appearances for Celtic – once in Champions League qualifying, once in the Premiership and once in the Scottish Cup.

After Mechelen made the 24-year-old – who Wouter Vrancken dubbed a “loner” and suggested should “play billiards for the rest of his life” rather than football – a permanent signing for an unspecified amount last summer, the £7.9k-per-week Shved’s status as a Celtic flop was confirmed.

Indeed, with the attacker setting Celtic back around £1m in wages over his 129 weeks at Parkhead, in addition to his £2m transfer fee, it is clear that the Bhoys had a shocker when signing the Ukrainian, who well and truly rinsed Dermot Desmond.

AND in other news: Ange can axe “infectious” ace as Celtic become “serious contenders” for “massive” deal