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Glasgow Rangers transfer target Joseph Okumu has revealed he is ready to take the next step and leave current club Elfsborg.

The Lowdown: Gers want Okumu

The Gers have been heavily linked with a move for Okumu (Aftonbladet), who currently plays in the Swedish Allsvenskan.

Their fierce city rivals Celtic have also been linked with a move for the central defender, who has been compared to Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk (mozzartsportke.com).

The Latest: Okumu speaks out on future

Speaking to Swedish outlet Fotbolldirekt.se, Okumu admitted he is ready to take the next step. He said:

“Yes, definitely [will take the next step]. The most important thing is that I have already made an impression here.

“When I have done that, and both I and the club are satisfied. I think we have the same interests here, that I will take the next step.

“I let my agent take care of it. When there is something concrete, he will let me know, but we have not talked about this, so I am not so sure about it.”

The Verdict: Time to strike

These comments from the 24-year-old indicate that it is time for the Gers to strike if they want to take him to Ibrox. While not directed at Rangers explicitly, this is a come-and-get-me plea to any of the clubs interested in the Kenya international’s services.

It has previously been said Elfsborg are looking for a fee of at least 40m SEK – about £3.4m. That would be a considerable sum for the 55-time Scottish champions, but with them in with a chance of qualifying for the Champions League group stages, they should not be frugal as they look for new signings. It remains to be seen whether Ross Wilson and co react to Okumu’s words.

In other news, Rangers have been urged to sign this man with 24 goals/assists last term.

According to a report by reliable journalist Mike McGrath, writing for the Telegraph, Manchester City club captain and fan favourite Fernandinho looks set to stay at the club beyond the end of 2020/2021 and extend his terms into a ninth season at Eastlands.

Indeed, as Pep Guardiola’s side are crowned league champions after Manchester United’s 2-1 home defeat to Leicester City on Tuesday evening, it appears yet more great news is coming out of the Etihad Stadium.

The record-breaking Blues have now clinched a fifth Premier League title overall and third under Guardiola, coming after they also sealed their fourth Carabao Cup triumph in a row.

In big update, journalist McGrath explains that midfield enforcer Fernandinho is ‘set’ to stay at the club beyond this season and expected to sign a one-year extension.

Sporting director Txiki Begiristain saw fit to hand the long-time City servant an extension last season, and with this news emerging they could now keep Fernandinho for even longer, it’s little wonder one fan called it the ‘best news of the day’.

Find a flavour of their excited verdicts from social media down below, after the news was shared via @City_Xtra.

Man City fans go wild for Fernandinho contract claim

“YEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS LETTTSSS GOOOOOOOOOO”

Credit: @ManCitehzen

“Still will be the best DM in the PL at 40. Also means he’ll be captain next season. Beautiful scenes.”

Credit: @_TrueInBlue

“Better than a new signing”

Credit: @blueinyorkshire

“music to my ears”

Credit: @KevBruyne17

“Perfect, perfect”

Credit: @Siphe_Sihle1

“Wow”

Credit: @greater_koirala

“FERNANDINHO HIVE STAND UP”

Credit: @KDBseason

“Best news of the day this!”

Credit: @TomGrose99

In other news: Another new deal update also has Sky Blues excited, find out more here.

Everton are interested in signing Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha in the summer transfer window, according to Goal. 

The report says the Blues have been keen on Zaha since the summer of 2019, when they offered £70million plus Cenk Tosun and James McCarthy.

That ‘admiration’ remains, and they believe Zaha’s price is now far lower. Indeed, he could be available for less than £40million.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side may face competition from Tottenham Hotspur, who are said to be ‘monitoring the situation’.

Zaha a vital figure at Selhurst Park

Though Palace’s demands appear to have eased somewhat, they understandably want to keep hold of him.

Zaha scored 11 goals for the Eagles last season, the highest tally in the squad. Christian Benteke (10 goals) was the only other player to pass the five-goal mark (via BBC Sport).

Roy Hodgson is leaving Selhurst Park, and there may be serious concerns about the impact of losing both a manager and a talismanic on-field figure.

Fan feed The Toffee Blues relayed Goal’s report, and here’s how supporters reacted.

These Everton fans implore club not to sign Zaha

“No absolutely not”

Credit: @bobmarl03974950

“No no no thanks”

Credit: @jimefc21

“Same issues…. never learning if this is the type of profile of player we’re signing. Definition of insanity”

Credit: @MichaelHilditc5

“If we sign anyone over the age of 23 there should be a riot at Goodison park. Buy youth and keep buying youth… with pace”

Credit: @PtkToffee

“Yet again another signing towards the twilight years of his career and would demand stupid wages”

Credit: @MarkFer07565155

“Any chance of us signing players under 28?”

Credit: @DVDWLKNSN

In other news, Marcus Bent made this sensational claim about a transfer across Stanley Park.

Oliver Skipp looks set to miss a significant portion, if not all, of Spurs’ pre-season after suffering a disappointing injury blow this week.

What’s the latest?

The 20-year-old Hotspur Way academy graduate has enjoyed a brilliant season on-loan at Norwich City, where he has helped deliver their second promotion to the Premier League in three years.

On Tuesday night against Reading, Skipp limped off in stoppage time with what seemed to be a foot problem, and now the extent of the injury has been revealed.

His season is now over.

Speaking to local reporters, Canaries boss Daniel Farke said:

“[It is] a big concern. It was pretty painful for him and our physios’ first assessment was they are not that optimistic for him. It seems like a major injury. Right now, too soon to give a firm prediction. We have to continue to assess him over these coming days but it was pretty sore.

“It is a shame because he was unbelievable this season. One of our outstanding players. All our thoughts are with him and we hope he is capable of being fit for the new season.

“It is an issue with his foot. We think it could be broken.”

Spurs themselves have since confirmed that Skipp did indeed fracture his metatarsal and that he’s had surgery to repair the broken bone.

Could impact plans

Given that he’s gone under the knife, it’s highly likely that Skipp will be in recovery and rehab for most of the summer and that will surely hinder his chances of making the Tottenham senior fold next term.

The young midfielder has been lauded as the “future captain” of the club and has hugely impressed at Carrow Road this term.

He is widely expected to be a first-team presence in the near future and you would imagine that whoever is in charge of Spurs come the summer would like to take a good look at him to assess if he truly does have the potential to step up into the Premier League.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-latest-spurs-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-managerial-update-levy-mason-mourinho-sacked” title= “Read the latest Spurs news, transfer rumours, managerial gossip and more!”]

Skipp has played the second-most minutes (3,863) for Norwich this season, so that only tells you just how crucial he has been to their fortunes. Additionally, his teammate Kenny McLean, explained just how integral he has been to the side, he told Sky Sports:

“He makes my job a hell of a lot easier, I’ll tell you that. He’s been outstanding all season and we’re lucky to have him to be honest. For this level, he’s very outstanding and he’s got a huge career ahead of him.”

The 5 foot 9 dynamo could be an ideal partner for the ever-present Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the heart of Spurs’ midfield.

There are doubts over the futures of Harry Winks and Dele Alli; Moussa Sissoko is getting no younger at 31 and both Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso are better deployed in more advanced roles.

However, if Skipp does miss pre-season – or at least the start of the next era under Daniel Levy’s next appointment, as is now expected after his surgery – then Spurs may well want to seek reinforcements in the transfer market and that would deal a crushing blow to his prospects in N17.

Skipp has featured 23 times for Spurs since his debut in October 2018 and should undoubtedly be a big player for the Lilywhites in years to come.

This injury is obviously unfortunate for the player but it is also a cruel setback to the next manager of Spurs, whoever that turns out to be, as he may not be able to take a proper look at Skipp’s credentials, which in turn will impact his plans for next season.

A new manager will always be keen to get a good look at his new players in person, especially a highly-touted youngster but it looks like whoever takes over the Spurs hotseat may have to wait a while before he can assess Skipp close up.

That’s a blow to the incumbent manager as he would want to have as much information as possible about his players and his squad going into his first season in the dugout, but alas, it looks like he’ll have to settle for watching replays of Skipp’s Norwich’s performances to make a decision on whether he feels he is good enough, or if he needs to go into the transfer market.

AND in other news, In-house hire could be Martin Jol 2.0 at Spurs…

Get German Football News editor-in-chief Daniel Pinder has exclusively told Football FanCast that Wolfsburg striker Wout Weghorst would be a perfect replacement for Harry Kane at Tottenham.

With Spurs desperately after a back-up striker for the England captain last summer, the Dutchman was strongly linked with a move to north London, but Jose Mourinho ended up bringing in Carlos Vinicius from Benfica instead.

But the Brazilian has scored just one Premier League goal, whilst Weghorst has continued to be one of the most feared strikers in the Bundesliga, with only three players scoring more than his 20 goals, two of which are Erling Haaland and Robert Lewandowski.

Kane himself has been in outstanding form, although there are growing concerns surrounding his future, with Spurs already out of Europe and five points behind fourth-placed Chelsea, meaning Champions League football next season is becoming increasingly unlikely.

Should Kane move on, Pinder told Football FanCast that Spurs should replace him with Weghorst:

“I think he’d be a perfect replacement for Harry Kane, should he leave. Whether it’s because he’s Dutch or not, he’s got similar attributes to van Nistelrooy.

“He’s tall, strong, even though he’s really tall, possesses a great touch – his movement is underappreciated in the Bundesliga. His threat inside the area, his work ethic in pressing the opposition defence.

“His stats alone are evidence of why he’s well regarded at European clubs and is a wanted man this summer.”

Tottenham might be targeting a more high-profile name, but Weghorst has been one of the most prolific goalscorers in Europe in recent seasons, and they could do a lot worse than bringing in the Dutchman, who has a better than one-in-two record for the Bundesliga outfit.

Some Arsenal fans have been left to slam some early team news ahead of their game at home against Liverpool in the Premier League.

As per the official website of the Emirates Stadium faithful, David Luiz will not be available for the match, while both Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe are to be assessed after suffering injuries, and Granit Xhaka has been unwell recently casting doubt over whether he will be able to play.

That is four potential starters for Mikel Arteta’s team that could be out of the fixture already, making it a much more difficult task to beat the reigning champions of the top flight.

Nonetheless, the Gunners will have to try and find a way of getting all three points as they look to make a late push to qualify for European football for the 2021/22 term, with a quarter-final first leg tie at home to Slavia Prague in the UEFA Europa League to come on Thursday night.

Arsenal fans on team news

These Gooners slammed the team news on Twitter, with one AFC supporter even going as far as to call it ‘stupid’:

“Stupid international matches injured our players”

Credit: @Saifudd65729089

“Luiz nooooooooooooooooooo”

Credit: @xafcxjayden

“Pain”

Credit: @GX_CR7

“This is a disaster, we need Saka and ESR”

Credit: @XhakaWinter

“Yeah another L incoming…”

Credit: @Assnadude_

“Luiz and Xhaka being doubts isn’t fun”

Credit: @downbadsir

In other news, find out what Martin Odegaard news Gunners are buzzing about here!

Aston Villa must make a ruthless call on Ross Barkley amid claims West Ham are interested in signing him this summer.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent weeks claimed that Christian Purslow was the driving force behind doing a permanent deal for Barkley come the end of the season, despite Dean Smith himself being “unconvinced” over whether the 27-year-old is worth the money needed to sign him.

Now, TEAMtalk have suggested that Hammers boss David Moyes has added Barkley to his list of targets this summer, while Villa themselves have now indicated they will not be looking to sign him.

NSWE will be fuming

Given how Barkley’s campaign has really fizzled out after some promising early appearances for the club, it would be a major blunder from Villa to be looking to sign the £18m-rated ace permanently.

After scoring twice in his opening two Premier League games for the club, Barkley has scored just once since in the top-flight, while he still only has one assist to his name in the competition too.

Speaking after he was taken off yet again in the second half against Leicester last month, Sky Sports pundit Alex Scott slammed him for his display, saying: “For me it’s another missed opportunity for Ross Barkley to show up and demand, he’s been subbed off again and you can see in his face he’s not happy. But how many chances does a player need?

“You need to take it upon yourself. There’s only so many chances that he can be deserving. He’s missed another opportunity today.”

With reports initially claiming that Purslow was spearheading Villa’s permanent move for Barkley, the chief executive must now make a ruthless U-turn. NSWE certainly won’t be happy at forking out a shed-load of money for a player who’s barely performed for them this season.

Meanwhile, Villa are eyeing a move for this 6 foot 6 giant…

Manchester United could potentially be set to spend big on their frontline this summer, with the Red Devils reportedly interested in Eintracht Frankfurt striker Andre Silva.

According to Bild, the German outfit are readying themselves for big bids for the forward, specifically from United and Spanish giants Barcelona.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ed Woodward must make sure they secure the signature of the £33.3m-rated hitman.

Since breaking through at boyhood club at FC Porto, the 25-year-old has developed a reputation as one of the most talented forwards in European football. But for a somewhat inconsistent period at AC Milan, the Portuguese has continued to thrive, and he is currently in the midst of his most lethal campaign of his career, having netted 24 goals in 35 appearances in all competitions in Germany.

As recently as January, Frankfurt boss Adi Hutter compared Silva to Bayern Munich forward Robert Lewandowski, describing him as “ice-cold” in front of goal.

Manchester United certainly need a player of such calibre if they want to cut the gap to rivals Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table.

It is already rumoured that Edinson Cavani could be departing the club after just one season at Old Trafford. Meanwhile, current Red Devils forward Mason Greenwood has not yet found top form in 2020/21, having scored just five goal in all competitions.

With Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial candidates for wide positions on each flank, this leaves Solskjaer with limited options at centre-forward. Silva’s arrival would rectify that conundrum.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-man-united-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=” Latest Man United transfer rumours and news!”]

Valued at £33.5m by Transfermarkt and with two years remaining on his current contract at Deutsche Bank Park, it would certainly not be cheap to bring him to Old Trafford.

However, his lethality, as well as United’s pressing need for a striker, means that Silva should be a priority signing for the club in the summer.

AND in more news, take a look at which forward the Red Devils should sell…

Mike Ashley has dropped a clanger amid claims Dwight Gayle is set to sign a new three-year contract to remain at Newcastle United.

What’s the word?

According to The Athletic, Gayle has committed his immediate future to the Magpies by agreeing to sign a new deal but on lesser terms.

The 31-year-old was due to be a free agent at the end of the current campaign, but has put pen to paper on a deal that will see that he remains at St. James’ Park through to at least the summer of 2024.

Gayle’s contract status had seen Galatasaray emerge as one of several Super Lig sides to be credited with an interest, along with potential moves to the Middle East, Europe or Major League Soccer.

Gayle was earning £40,000-per-week at Newcastle on his previous deal, which placed him level with captain Jamaal Lascelles and above Martin Dubravka (£38k-p/w) in the Toon’s wage bill, per Spotrac figures.

Newcastle boss Steve Bruce had been pushing for Gayle to receive a new contract despite rarely favouring the forward, with the £4.5m-rated dud only staring two of his 11 Premier League appearances this season.

“We’ll do everything we can to get him tied up,” Bruce said, via quotes by Chronicle Live, in December. “Obviously, he’s been struggling with an injury, but I think we’ll do our best and I hope that he can stay.”

Yet the United head coach has often overlooked Gayle despite a hamstring injury for 10-goal top-scorer Callum Wilson, with the London-born frontman left an unused substitute on nine occasions in the top-flight this term – including the 3-0 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion prior to the international break.

Should Newcastle retain Gayle?

Newcastle are expected to operate on a shoe-string budget in the summer transfer market due to the loss of revenue from games being played behind closed doors all season, making the retention of those set to become free agents key.

Yet retaining Gayle, even on lesser terms, should be seen as a mistake by Ashley should Bruce manage to keep Newcastle in the Premier League, as the striker has rarely met the standard required of him since leaving Crystal Palace in 2016.

The Magpies paid £10m for Gayle five-years ago and his efforts fired Rafa Benitez’s side to an immediate top-flight return with 23 goals in 32 Championship fixtures. But the following term only featured six goals in 35 Premier League games, before spending the 2018/19 campaign back in the second-tier on loan with West Bromwich Albion.

He was on fire at The Hawthorns with 24 goals in 40 league games, including the Play-Offs, but returned to Tyneside to strike home just five times in 31 Premier League fixtures over the past two seasons – only one of which has come this term.

Gayle’s performances under Bruce, during what have been two injury-ravished campaigns, have ensured that he was namechecked by Micky Quinn recently when listing some of the players responsible for Newcastle’s fight for top-flight survival.

“They’re on that slippery rock. You look at some of the players: Jonjo Shelvey and Dwight Gayle… Andy Carroll – past his sell-by date – Joelinton – couldn’t hit a barn door with a pea. These are guys I think fall below Premier League class,” Quinn told talkSPORT last month.

To now retain Gayle would suggest that Ashley has accepted relegation and is confident in the striker repeating his 2016/17 season, and is rewarding him for the commitment to stay and help secure another immediate return to the top-flight.

AND in other news, Newcastle are planning an £8m move for a “great character” with an amazing skill set…

Many fans of Manchester City have been reacting to a post on Twitter which relayed a report regarding the transfer situation of Erling Haaland.

According to Mark Ogden’s report for ESPN, there is a “growing likelihood” that Borussia Dortmund could look to move Haaland on this summer, one  year before a €75m (£64.5m) release clause can be triggered in the striker’s contract at the German club.

Ogden claims this is because Dortmund bosses believe they could sell the £141,000-a-week 20-year-old for “at least double” his release clause at the end of the current season, something which could become a “financial necessity” for the sixth-placed Bundesliga side should they fail to qualify for the Champions League next term.

After City Xtra relayed this report on Twitter, some fans of Manchester City flocked to have their say on the matter, with many begging Pep Guardiola and his side to “urgently” do all they can do land the £99m-rated Haaland in the summer transfer market.

So, what exactly did these Manchester City fans have to say in reaction to the report regarding Erling Haaland?

“Get it done.”

@JMC_OfficiaI

“Yes please.”

@CityJosxph

“Omar Berrada and Txixi don’t fumble the bag I can’t deal with Jesus anymore.”

@Amaz1ngAke

“Sign him ASAP.”

@TeohJohansen

“Let’s get him.”

@sentosabahari8

“We need it urgently.”

@fidels782

In other news: some Man City fans also flocked to this Romano claim, find out more here!