Celtic are in an incredibly strong position when it comes to Kieran Tierney’s future

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Pundit and football agent Allan Preston insists Celtic hold all the cards when it comes to a potential Kieran Tierney exit this summer, speaking on Saturday afternoon’s edition of BBC Sportsound.

What’s he said?

Preston works for the football agency that represents the Scotland international and is a regular on the BBC Radio Scotland show, so when he appeared on Saturday’s panel one of the topics that came up was inevitably the talented left-back.

Refuting any suggestion that Tierney could be looking to force a move away from Celtic Park, Preston’s comments gave an insight into the current situation, amid bids from English Premier League sides Arsenal.

Celtic fans aren’t happy about Arsenal’s bid for one of their key players…

Speaking at length on the programme, Preston explained:

“It is all down to Celtic. If they get a price that they believe is the correct value for Kieran Tierney he could possibly be on his way. No one has hit that price yet.

“I know Kieran really well, I had some food with him the other day, he is such an unassuming young man. He is wealthy at the moment but he doesn’t possess a watch, he isn’t into material things like this.

“He still hangs about his pals from when he was a youngster, he sponsors his local pub team where his pals play and he’s not into his designed gear or anything like that.

“As the guys say he loves Celtic, he absolutely loves Celtic.”

Celtic’s negotiating position

Having already rejected two bids from Arsenal, it’s clear that the Hoops aren’t looking to make a quick buck when it comes to Tierney’s departure.

He is one of the key assets in Neil Lennon’s first-team squad and still just 22 years of age with four years left on his current contract, there is absolutely no rush to sell.

Watch Celtic Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Preston’s comments also make it clear that Tierney won’t be taking the huff anytime soon and handing in a transfer request or anything as dramatic as that.

That love for the club along with the business realities of any potential deal means that any side looking to sign the left-back will have to be serious and weigh in on the full £25m valuation Celtic have placed on his shoulders, before the Hoops even entertain the notion of him leaving.

Aston Villa Transfer Roundup: Konsa confirmed, Engels talks, Randolph on radar

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Aston Villa have been very busy during this transfer window, but what does the next month or so have up its sleeve for them? Today’s Villa transfer roundup gives you a confirmed arrival, talks for a Ligue 1 defender and interest in a Championship goalkeeper.

Konsa signs

Aston Villa have confirmed the signing of Ezri Konsa from Brentford. The Villans have reportedly paid £12m for the 21-year-old defender. Manager Dean Smith said of the purchase, “Ezri fits the profile of the type of player we were searching for.”

Advanced negotiations for Engels

According to L’Equipe Aston Villa are in advanced negotiations with Stade Reims in regards to their centre-back Bjorn Engels. The 24-year-old Belgian could join the Premier League outfit very soon the report adds.

Randolph on Villa radar

The Telegraph is reporting that Villa are looking at Middlesbrough’s Darren Randolph in their search for a new shot-stopper. The 32-year-old Republic of Ireland international played in every single league game for the North East club last campaign.

Crystal Palace fans troubled by Carl Jenkinson link

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Plenty of Crystal Palace fans have taken to social media to raise concerns over a reported £5m bid for Arsenal defender Carl Jenkinson.

The 27-year-old made just eight appearances for the Gunners last season and is largely out of favour at the Emirates despite Hector Bellerin’s long injury lay-off opening the door for a right-back to stake a claim.

He was given his longest spell in a first team when he was sent out on-loan to West Ham for 18 months between 2014 and 2016, making 52 Premier League appearances.

Watch Crystal Palace Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

But upon returning to his parent club Jenkinson has failed to establish himself, with youngster Ainsley Maitland-Niles forcing his way into a more regular spot and playing 30 games last season.

Palace are searching for a new right-back following the departure of Aaron Wan-Bissaka earlier last week, who made the move to Manchester United in a £50m deal.

Are Crystal Palace right to slap a £100m valuation on Wilfried Zaha’s head? Check out the video below to see why they are…

But Eagles fans are desperately trying to ensure they do not fork out any of that money for the Arsenal man.

Here is just some of the reaction:

Get it done Levy: Tottenham fans react to Ndombele pursuit

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Loads of Tottenham fans have been reacting to the latest on Tanguy Ndombele, as Daniel Levy is reportedly pressing ahead with a swoop for the Frenchman.

The Evening Standard claim Ndombele is Tottenham’s “priority signing” this summer, with Lyon demanding at least £60m for the French international.

Some reports have claimed the Lilywhites already had a €45m (£40m) bid rejected last week, and now an update from Soccer Link says Levy will try to force the signing as soon as possible.

According to the report, the Spurs chairman is aware of other suitors for Ndombele, and is determined to take action to secure his signature quickly.

The report claims a €60m (£53.53m) initial bid has now been made, contrary to the previous reports of a bid, and loads of fans have been giving their verdict.

The sheer mention of Levy was enough to annoy some fans, while others are hopeful their infamous leader will actually get the deal done this time.

Either way, have a look at some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

Transfer Focus: Marko Grujic Deserves to Be Given a Chance at Anfield

According to the Liverpool Echo, Hertha Berlin are keen on extending the loan of Liverpool midfielder Marko Grujic for another year, after impressing in his first season at the Olympiastadion.

What’s the word?

The Serbian midfielder has been a key figure in Hertha’s campaign this year, helping the side to a surprising 11th placed finish. In his 23 appearances for the club, the midfielder has scored five times and provided a further assist.

With the German side revealing their intentions to keep hold of the 23-year-old, it is easy to see why. According to the Bundesliga’s official website, Hertha boss Pal Dardai exclaimed last December: “I’ve been at Hertha for 22 years. This isn’t meant as an insult to anyone else, but Marko is by far the best midfielder I’ve seen in my time at the club.”

For Liverpool fans, hearing that kind of praise about Grujic is somewhat eyebrow-raising. The midfielder featured just 14 times in the two full seasons he was a part of Jurgen Klopp’s squad, and didn’t register a single goal or assist. But, with the Reds relying so heavily on their much-vaunted front three to score their goals, perhaps now is the time for Grujic to finally make his mark at Anfield.

A goal threat from midfield

As touched upon, if ever there was a criticism of Klopp’s side, it would perhaps revolve around their reliance on the likes of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane to score the bulk of their goals. Despite spending just under £100m on two midfielders last summer in Naby Keita and Fabinho, neither signing truly addressed the issue of adding a goal-scoring option from deeper on the pitch.

In the Bundesliga last season, Grujic averaged 2.1 shots per game; almost double that of Keita (1.1), and significantly better than the other natural ‘box-to-box’ midfielder at the club Georginio Wijnaldum (0.9). Such has been Liverpool’s negligent attacking threat from midfield that Klopp has felt inclined to use Xherdan Shaqiri, a bona fide winger, as one of his deeper three to offer up more creativity.

It was always a constant source of debate, particularly in the games where sides would park the bus, that the Reds needed something extra. Could a midfield trio of Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and Wijnaldum/Keita really provide that added impetus? Indeed, aside from his propensity to test the goalkeeper, Grujic also averaged more key passes (0.7) and more dribbles (1.4) per game than all four of those midfield counterparts. Having that midfielder who can carry the game forward and take the burden off his strikers is akin to gold dust.

So, whilst it may not be the popular option nor the blockbuster signing Liverpool fans might crave of, keeping hold of Grujic rather than letting him leave on loan again next season, might be the sword up the sleeve that Klopp needs to wrestle the Premier League crown away from Manchester City.

Liverpool fans react to Everton supporters chanting about them on Sunday

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Liverpool fans have taken to Twitter to react after Everton supporters were caught on camera mocking them for their failure to win the title on the final day.

Despite the Reds’ 2-0 win over Wolves, Manchester City’s 4-1 success against Brighton saw the Citizens defend their crown.

Toffees supporters were heard chanting “You nearly won the league” upon their return to Merseyside after travelling to London to watch their side face Spurs, whilst some were seen watching the City game and cheering the goals in the concourse at Tottenham’s stadium.

Luis Suarez certainly had no qualms about celebrating against his former employers in the video below…

To travel to an away game only to watch another team’s match to see if your rivals slip up whilst there is some commitment to the bitter rivalry between Liverpool and Everton.

Marco Silva’s men ended up finishing eighth, and the fact that they have focused their efforts on mocking a Liverpool side who finished with an astonishing 97 points and are in a Champions League final hasn’t gone down too well with the Reds fanbase on Twitter.

Let’s see what the Liverpool fans have been saying about the Everton supporters’ antics…

Why Manchester United need to sell Pogba and Lukaku this summer and start anew

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“If I’m Solskjaer, I’d build a team around him”. So insisted Danny Higginbottom last week to Sky Sports while laying out exactly how he would get the best out of the potentially brilliant, often disappointing Paul Pogba.

It is a well-worn trope that was fraying at the edges even just a few months into the 26-year-old’s extravagantly costly return to Old Trafford. By now it seems positively archaic.

With a heavy sigh though let’s go through it all again. Please don’t stop us if you’ve heard this before. You will have heard this before.

Pogba was so very effective for Juventus and plays his best football now for France because he thrives on freedom of movement and two disciplined centre-circle destroyers stationed behind him gives him that freedom. If he had that at Manchester United he would be consistently sensational.

The problem with that thinking of course is that Jose Mourinho, and latterly Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, have utilised their enigmatic star in such a way, many times over. And far too often he has been a show pony when they have needed a thoroughbred. On other occasions, just to mix things up, he has been completely anonymous.

On the same day that Higginbottom was suggesting that the simple answer to all of Manchester United’s woes was to double-down on their chief hindrance it was reported in the Independent that the player in question is very keen to push through a summer move to Real Madrid with an eye-watering fee of £130m mooted.

That would represent a decent mark-up on a failure. That would give Solskjaer a colossal sum to bring in two world class replacements, one more defensively minded (Declan Rice for example), the other a creative in the mould of Ivan Rakitic.

It’s just a suggestion.

Hustling and bustling ahead of the one-man soap opera to very little effect Romelu Lukaku is another of United’s recent marquee signings who is as per Goal.com also looking elsewhere, namely Serie A.

The misfiring striker has put in performances this term so utterly inept that it has prompted open hilarity from rival fans. He has failed to score against the top six. He has failed to score at all in the league since the start of February. Recently Gayr Neville said this of a forward who cost more than Mo Salah and Sergio Aguero combined – “You see him make one big run and he looks absolutely shattered. He almost looks tired after one or two runs. He’s a big decision.”

He is not a big decision. Nor is the selling of Pogba. Indeed both – who between them earn a staggering £470k per week – could be said to be no-brainers.

Solskjaer has a huge rebuild on his hands this summer and he should start at the top, bringing in players who will lead; players who will be utterly committed to his cause. It is in short, time to begin anew because if for no other reason another article about how to get the best out of their marquee mistakes will drive us all to insanity.

West Ham: Aleksandr Mitrovic the perfect candidate to replace controversial Arnautovic

He’s given many sweet memories at the London Stadium, but Marko Arnautovic’s departure from West Ham United only seems like a matter of time.

Obviously, it was almost sealed in January, before a few issues stopped him from making his destined move to the Chinese Super League and a new contract was signed. There was also that weird video of him announcing his intention to remain in East London. Very strange.

However, the Hammers have surely realised by now that an unhappy Arnautovic is the worst thing to have. The team is in dire need over a severe striker overhaul this summer, but replacing a talented striker like Aranautovic is difficult. Granted, he might be extremely controversial but his excellent goal-scoring ability is unmatched at the Hammers.

That being said, Pellegrini is seemingly looking at options to replace the Austrian international. According to reports (via The Express), West Ham are interested in Fulham star Aleksandr Mitrovic as a potential option to lead the line and, while he’s barely free from controversy himself, the Serbian might just be a strong addition.

If the Hammers want an appropriate replacement to Arnautovic, the former Newcastle United star is the man to go for. In spite of having to play for an inefficient, lacklustre Fulham side, the Serbian international shined through with some excellent performances. Indeed, he scored 11 goals from 36 appearances, bullying defenders with his physical prowess and predatorial instincts.

Alongside a better quality of player and a team that can defend (well, kind of) the ex-Anderlecht ace could finally prove he’s worth the hype on these shores.

Like Arnautovic, Mitrovic is quite the moody striker with that potential brilliance in him. Granted, even he gets into troubles at times, but the Serbian’s looked an awful lot different over the last season or so. All in all, Mitrovic can thrive amid West Ham’s sleek attacking system, being their ruthless hitman up front and soon making fans forget about Arnautovic.

West Ham fans, would you be happy with Mitrovic as Arnautovic’s potential successor? Join the discussion by commenting below…

كومان رافضًا انتقاد رد فعله: توقفوا عند هذا الحد ولا داعي لتكرار رأيي في التحكيم!

رفض رونالد كومان المدير الفني لفريق برشلونة الإسباني، الحديث مجددًا عن التحكيم بعد تعادل برشلونة إيجابيًا أمام ديبورتيفو ألافيس بهدف لمثله، كما رفض انتقاده بسبب رد فعله على مقاعد البدلاء.

وشهدت المباراة إلغاء هدف ثانٍ لـ أنطوان جريزمان بسبب التسلل، وكان هناك شكوك حول احتساب ركلة جزاء لـ فرينكي دي يونج.

وتحدث كومان في مؤتمر صحفي عقب المباراة، ونشرت صحيفة “ماركا” الإسبانية تصريحاته.

وبشأن صورته على مقاعد البدلاء، حيث بدا مستاءً ومنفعلاً، علّق كومان: إذا كنت ستنتقدني بسبب ذلك، فمن الأفضل أن نتوقف عند هذا الحد”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. جريزمان: أهدرت الكثير من الفرص وبرشلونة يحتاج لأهدافي

وأضاف: “أعتقد أننا فعلنا كل شيء اليوم من أجل الفوز بالمباراة، لقد لعبنا بالطريقة التي علينا اللعب بها”.

وعن ركلة الجزاء المحتملة لدي يونج، استرسل كومان: “أفضل عدم التعليق على الجزاء، لقد سبق لي أن قلت قبل أيام ما أشعر به”.

وأتم الهولندي: “لا أريد أن أتحدث عن هذا الموضوع مرة أخرى (انتقاد التحكيم والفار)، لقد قلته بالفعل وليس من الضروري تكراره”. هل حرم الحكم برشلونة من ركلة جزاء أمام ديبورتيفو ألافيس

 

ترتيب الدوري المصري بعد فوز الزمالك على الإسماعيلي

حقق فريق الكرة الأول بنادي الزمالك فوزًا مستحقًا على نظيره الاسماعيلي في مباراة اليوم بثلاثية مقابل هدف.

اللقاء أقيم على أرضية ميدان استاد القاهرة الدولي، في خضم منافسات الجولة الأخيرة من عمر الدوري المصري الممتاز.

فوز الزمالك اليوم منحه رسميًا وصافة ترتيب بطولة الدوري الممتاز، على حساب ملاحقه بيراميدز، ليحجز مقعدًا في بطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا الموسم المقبل. 

طالع | ملعبان مرشحان.. اتحاد الكرة ينتظر رد الأمن لتحديد ملعب نهائي دوري إبطال إفريقيا ترتيب الدوري المصري بعد فوز الزمالك على الإسماعيلي

1- الأهلي، المركز الأول، 86 نقطة.

2- الزمالك، المركز الثاني، 71 نقطة.

3- بيراميدز، المركز الثالث، 64 نقطة.

4- المقاولون العرب، المركز الرابع، 53 نقطة.

5- سموحة، المركز الخامس، 48 نقطة.

6- إنبي، المركز السادس، 48 نقطة.

7- المصري البورسعيدي، المركز السابع، 45 نقطة.

8- الإنتاج الحربي، المركز الثامن، 43 نقطة

9-. الإسماعيلي، المركز التاسع، 41 نقطة.

10- طلائع الجيش، المركز العاشر، 41 نقطة.

11- مصر للمقاصة، المركز الحادي عشر،41 نقطة.

12- الاتحاد السكندري، المركز الثاني عشر، 39 نقطة.

13- الجونة، المركز الثالث عشر، 37 نقطة

14- نادي أسوان، المركز الرابع عشر، 37 نقطة.

15- وادي دجلة، المركز الرابع عشر، 35 نقطة.

16- حرس الحدود، المركز السادس عشر، 30 نقطة.

17- نادي مصر، المركز السابع عشر، 21 نقطة.

18- طنطا، المركز الثامن عشر، 19 نقطة.

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