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Speaking to Football Insider, BBC Radio 5 Live pundit Alan Hutton has heaped praise on Tottenham Hotspur following the signing of Argentina international Cristian Romero.

The Lowdown: Spurs snap up Romero…

As confirmed by the club, new manager Nuno Espirito Santo has been significantly reinforced by the arrival of Romero from Atalanta as their third major summer signing.

The 23-year-old, who won the 2020/21 Serie A MVP award for best defender, enjoyed a brilliant season at the Gewiss Stadium which prompted serious interest from Spurs.

After long and drawn-out talks, Tottenham announced his signing on August 6, with Hutton now heaping praise on the club for an ambitious move.

The Latest: Hutton thrilled by Romero signing…

Speaking to Football Insider, the former Spurs defender has waxed lyrical over the signing of Romero, highlighting it as a real show of ambition from the Lilywhites and managing director Fabio Paratici.

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“It’s a great display of ambition from Spurs,” Hutton explained.

“It was Paratici who brought him to Juventus from Genoa, so it’s a player he knows really well and trusts.

“It’s a big fee but he’s at an age now where he is playing at a high level as an established first-team player.

“Centre-back is an area that Spurs have been crying out to strengthen, with Alderweireld and Vertonghen departing recently.

“They need to establish a new centre-back dynamic, and that’s why they have spent the money on a very good player who is known by the backroom staff.

“I hope he can adapt to the league very quickly as there’ll be a lot of pressure on him to succeed.”

The Verdict: Huge coup…

Starting 29 Italian top-flight matches last season, Romero made more interceptions per game (3.1) than any Tottenham player did in the Premier League, whilst also winning a superior amount of aerial duels in that time (WhoScored).

These impressive numbers highlight why Spurs brought him to north London and perhaps indicate that he can fix Spurs’ long-time central defensive issues.

Hutton has every right to brand Romero’s signing as an ambitious one and Lilywhites supporters will hope that it ends up being a transformative acquisition.

In other news: Offer pending: Tottenham front race to sign ‘very exciting’ player with ‘gigantic buzz’, find out more here.

A number of Liverpool supporters are excited after Michael Rummenigge tipped Erling Haaland to move to Anfield next summer.

The Reds look increasingly unlikely to do any more major transfer business in this window, following a quiet summer.

Ibrahima Konate is still the only player to have come in, with Jurgen Klopp seemingly content with his options throughout his squad.

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It could be that more business is done at the end of this season, at a point when Klopp may feel his squad is more in need of freshening up.

Haaland has emerged as arguably the best young player in world football, scoring 62 goals in as many appearances for Dortmund, and former player Rummenigge told SPORT1 [via Anfield Watch on Twitter] that he could see the Norwegian joining Liverpool:

“I could well imagine Liverpool for Haaland.”

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Liverpool fans react to Erling Haaland prediction

These Reds fans were in positive spirits after reading the quotes, taking to Twitter to reveal their excitement as one supporter called it a ‘dream’.

“We’re actually signing Mbappe AND Haaland”

Credit: @OveratedLama

“Imagine!”

Credit: @tangamer8

“Yes please”

Credit: @Jay_Shep81

“I DON’T MIND”

Credit: @jatwlve

“Haaland for £60m next summer I beg”

Credit: @NicoLfc03

“I can see it happening knowing Michael Edwards”

Credit: @JAMESFF9

“I’ll dream for years.”

Credit: @Lone_R_anger

In other news, some Liverpool fans are delighted after a club update. Read more here.

Former Premier League striker Nigel Jemson believes that his beloved Liverpool could potentially make a move for Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski, provided they can drive his asking price down.

The Poland international has reportedly informed Bayern that he would like to embark on a new challenge in the summer transfer window.

Sky Sports reports that the striker has been valued at £100m in this transfer window, a price that is likely to make any transfer remarkably difficult in this market.

He is, of course, a legendary figure who has been nothing short of sensational for the Bavarian giants.

Lewandowski has scored 298 goals in 332 appearances for Bayern, and has also laid on 65 assists.

That is 363 goal involvements, and he has also won multiple trophies during his time in Germany.

He has won the Bundesliga nine times, including his time with Borussia Dortmund, and has also lifted the German Cup four times, the Champions League once, as well as the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.

And Jemson believes that Liverpool should do their best to bring his price down to around £60m and make a move to sign him this summer.

Speaking exclusively to The Transfer Tavern, he said: “You’ve also got Lewandowski. That’s come up that he wants a new challenge but the price tag of £100 million or something like that for a 33-year-old, I think that’s going to scupper any move to the Premier League, I don’t think anybody’s going to pay that sort of money but if you could nick him for £60 million, I think people would be very interested then.”

Former professional footballer Nigel Jemson believes that Ben Davies will have learned a lot from his spell at Liverpool. 

The 26-year-old signed a season-long loan deal with Sheffield United earlier this month and featured in the Blades’ most recent Championship outing against Huddersfield Town.

Davies has had plenty of Championship experience after featuring three assists.

The centre-back signed for Liverpool from Preston in February but failed to make a senior appearance for the Reds, although Nigel Jemson believes that he will have learned a lot from his time at Anfield.

“You know what it did do, it certainly gave Ben a good experience being around top, top professionals for a short time. So, I’m sure he gained a lot of experience in the short spell there to take with him to Sheffield United and see what happens from there,” Jemson told Transfer Tavern.

It has not been the best start to life back in the Championship for Sheffield United and manager Slavisa Jokanovic so far, with Blades only collecting one point from a possible 12.

Jokanovic has had previous success in the Championship, having guided Fulham to promotion to the Premier League after beating Aston Villa in the play-off final at Wembley in 2018.

Some Everton fans have been left fuming over the news that Salomon Rondon has signed for their club.

As per the official website of the Goodison Park faithful, the Blues were able to sign the striker on Deadline Day on a free transfer, as he signed a two-year deal at the Merseyside club, with the option of another season.

Although experienced in the Premier League with both Newcastle United and West Brom, Rondon was never really prolific in the top flight, achieving double figures in just one of his four campaigns (Transfermarkt).

At 31 years of age, one would question whether the Venezuela international can cope with the demands of the division anymore, especially given that he has not played in Europe for over two years.

Everton fans on Rondon signing

These Toffees supporters fumed as the signing of Rondon was confirmed on Twitter, with one Blue even going as far as to claim that it was ‘shocking’:

“Gonna be a long season this”

Credit: @adamf_24

“Time for bed”

Credit: @_MikeConnolly

“Christ, a 31-year-old on a potential 3-year deal.”Credit: @SteveBiggert”Shocking signing that”Credit: @LewisGundy__”Eating until 11pm for an underwhelming announcement like this. What a joke. With bottom-half teams signing more players than us it’s not hard to think where we may end up. Abysmal window, all 82x days of it. If we were really putting offers in, we could’ve signed more.”Credit: @KingMantisBand”Brands out”Credit: @Alexash999v2In other news, find out whose exit has Evertonians fuming here!

Leeds United were interested in signing Wolves winger Adama Traore in the summer transfer window, according to Paul Robinson.

The Lowdown: Leeds enjoy solid summer

The Whites got some good business done during the summer, even if it was low-key for the most part.

Kristoffer Klaesson came in as a backup goalkeeper to Illan Meslier, left-back Junior Firpo joined from Barcelona, Jack Harrison signed permanently and Daniel James arrived from Manchester United.

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The Latest: Pundit makes Traore claim

One player who was linked with a move to Elland Road during the window was Traore, but a transfer never ended up materialising.

Speaking to Football Insider, Robinson said Leeds were interested in snapping up the winger from Wolves, but he was ultimately too expensive for them and Tottenham:

“I think £50million is a lot of money. There were a lot of clubs interested in him this summer. There was talk, from what I heard, of Leeds as well.

“At the end of a day if Daniel [Levy] feels like a player is overpriced then he will not do a deal. He certainly will not overpay for a squad player.

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The Verdict: Better option than James?

Traore is a superb player when he wants to be – Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp once called him ‘unplayable’ – so he could have been an exciting addition to Marcelo Bielsa’s squad.

His incredible speed and unpredictability make him a nightmare for defenders to handle, but then again, just two goals and assists apiece last season highlight a lack of end product.

Only time will tell if James ends up being a superior alternative to Traore, but £50million was too much to pay for the Wolves man.

In other news, Leeds reportedly had an interest in another player in the summer. Find out who it is here.

Alan Hutton has offered his thoughts on Leon King’s chances of featuring for Rangers in the Europa League… 

What’s the talk?

Former Rangers defender Alan Hutton has suggested that Leon King could be given a chance to impress in the Europa League this season.

When asked about the opportunities King could be handed due to the registration rules in European competitions, he told Football Insider:

“Yes, I can see it happening. I think back to my time when I was playing – you obviously knew of these rules.

“You have to have X amount of young players on the bench, for example.

“I know some people don’t like these rules but as a young player breaking through, it gives you that opportunity.

“You get to see the surroundings and feel what it’s all about – with the atmosphere.

“It stands you in good stead for the future.

“As well as that, you are there to be called upon if something happens to the first-choice players. The manager obviously trusts these guys.”

Key problem

The emergence of King as a first-team option could solve a key problem Rangers are facing ahead of their clash with Lyon on Thursday. Hutton believes that Gerrard trusts his young players and this could be the perfect opportunity to throw him into the deep end to see if he can swim.

Connor Goldson and Filip Helander both look set to miss out through self-isolation and injury respectively, whilst Jack Simpson was not named in the Europa League squad. This leaves Leon Balogun, who has also covered at right-back this season, as Gerrard’s only senior centre-back option for the clash with Lyon.

That means King, who former Rangers player Mark Hateley said is “going to be massive”, could partner Balogun at the back against the Ligue 1 side. He has already played two senior games for Rangers so it would not be his first foray into senior action, although it would still be a huge call for Gerrard to trust him to perform against a top side in a European competition.

His only other option is to use another player out of position and that could cause problems as they would not be used to playing at centre-back. Whereas King has come up through the academy as a centre-back and will know what is being asked of him in that position.

This is why Gerrard must unleash him against Lyon alongside Balogun this Thursday and see if he is capable of making the step up. Hopefully, Goldson will then be available after returning from self-isolation and King can continue his development in the reserves whilst providing back-up to the first-team. He could solve a key problem in the short-term and it would be great to see an academy product come in and do a job, especially in Europe.

AND in other news, Rangers transfer claim made on “perfect” £6.2k-p/w beast, it’ll leave fans delighted…

A number of Liverpool supporters are fuming after talk over Erling Haaland joining the Reds was shrugged off by Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

The Norwegian has emerged as arguably the most exciting young player in world football at the moment, performing at an incredibly high level for Borussia Dortmund.

Haaland has scored 66 goals in as many appearances for the Bundesliga giants, and at 21, he looks to have an incredible future ahead of him.

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The thought of the striker even being in a Liverpool shirt is a mouthwatering one and the Reds have been linked with an audacious move for the hitman in the past.

However, speaking to Bild [via AS] recently, Bayern Munich legend claimed that Haaland won’t be moving to Anfield due to FSG being miserly in the transfer market.

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Liverpool fans angry at Haaland latest

These Liverpool fans took to Twitter to fume over the comments from Rummenigge, once again seeing it as a stick with which to beat the much-maligned FSG.

“You know you are a joke when even other owners are openly saying our owners don’t spend! Yet you got these top Reds in my mentions saying how great they are…”

Credit: @Thiago6STAN

“Tears. Even chairmen can say this about us and we cannot do anything because that’s the truth”

Credit: @AbhideepJain6

“In other news, water is wet”

Credit: @ali_reza110

“WOOWOWOWOW. We are getting bantered”

Credit: @AbdelDC

“This is so embarrassing”

Credit: @sleepyyzie

“Tearssssss”

Credit: @LadyToluu

In other news, Liverpool are reportedly in the chase to sign a legendary player. Find out who it is here.

Celtic are reportedly the front runners to sign free agent Robbie Brady, according to The Glasgow Times, cited by Burnley Express.  

The Lowdown: Brady still without a club

Brady has been linked with a move to Celtic Park twice this year. The first came back in February when Neil Lennon was still in charge and the second was after his departure from Burnley was confirmed.

The Irishman was thought to be attracting interest from Turkish side Gaziantep, while Swansea City manager Russell Martin labelled Brady as ‘brilliant’ but appeared to rule out a move.

He’s still without a club, and it seems as if Celtic Park could well be his next destination.

The Latest: Brady latest

Burnley Express shared multiple rumours in a Sunday story, one of which was on Brady.

They relayed reports from The Glasgow Times, claiming Celtic are thought to be lading the way for the 29-year-old’s services after Swansea ended their interest.

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The Verdict: Time to swoop?

Even though it’s been fairly hectic off the field at Parkhead recently with Dominic McKay’s exit, now could be the time for Celtic to make their move.

Ange Postecoglou directly addressed rumours to Brady last month, so you’d think he’d have a good idea of where he could possibly fit in.

He has plenty of experience at the top level and can play on the wing or as a left-back, which could be handy for the Hoops as the season progresses.

In other news: ‘Absolute madness’ – Many Celtic fans fume as ‘ridiculous’ news is confirmed. 

FC Barcelona want to sign Everton target Luis Diaz from FC Porto, according to a report from MARCA. 

The lowdown

Everton tried to arrange a swap deal for Diaz during the summer transfer window, with compatriot James Rodriguez going the other way (via The Athletic).

However, the proposed move stalled because Porto were unable to meet James’ wage demands.

Diaz has made a flying start to the new Primeira Liga season, scoring five goals in Porto’s first seven matches to lead the Golden Boot race, so it’s hard to imagine Everton’s interest has done anything other than increase.

The 24-year-old has just under three years left to run on his contract at the Estadio do Dragao (via Transfermarkt).

The latest

Diaz is ‘the latest name’ added to Barcelona’s list of targets by club president Joan Laporta.

His €30million (£25.6million) price tag is apparently affordable for the Catalan giants.

Barcelona are ‘not the only club who have taken notice’ of Diaz’s form, and rival suitors may be able to offer higher wages.

But Laporta’s hope is that his ‘pitch’ will lure the Colombian to the Camp Nou.

The verdict

Everton may have missed their opportunity to land Diaz. Based on his red-hot early season form, he’s going to catch the eye of more European heavyweights, and they may simply be unable to compete if Barcelona and others of their stature all join the race.

Still, you can’t really criticise club officials for failing to negotiate a deal. It ultimately comes down to the fact that James’ representatives ‘refused to budge’ on their salary expectations.

Perhaps one final blow for the Toffees from the Colombian’s tenure on Merseyside.

In other news, many Everton fans tore into this player during their clash with Norwich.