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Linfield manager David Healy has said that they won’t be forced into cheap sales after rejecting summer interest for right-back Trai Hume, who was reportedly a transfer target for Celtic.

The Lowdown: Highly-rated man

The Hoops and English side Lincoln City were both linked with a move for the highly-rated teenager late in the transfer window, with bids rejected for Hume, who can also play as a centre-back.

Following a loan spell with Ballymena United, where he scored five goals and set up another five in 34 appearances, the 19-year-old was denied the chance to move elsewhere by Linfield as offers in excess of £100,000 were rejected.

With Josip Juranovic out injured, Anthony Ralston has been Ange Postecoglou’s number one pick at right-back for their opening few games of the season.

The Latest: Healy remains firm

Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Healy delved into the situation regarding the teenager and Celtic.

The Linfield boss said: “With our valuation of the player, it was a million miles away. Trai is still developing and in need of experience and games.

“He still needs to gather minutes. He will do that over the period of time that he remains at our football club, unless somebody who values the player properly comes in.

“One thing we don’t want to do is stand in anybody’s way but we don’t want to devalue our football club.”

Healy continued: “We want to put a marker down whereby we say to clubs if you want our players, gone are the days when you give us a £1,000 development fee for a 16-year-old who we feel in two years’ time could be worth £50,000 or £100,000. Those days are long gone.”

The Verdict: Hardball for Hume

Healy’s comments certainly won’t go down well with Celtic, who will now need to put a good offer on the table for Linfield to take seriously.

With Lincoln unlikely to be able to compete with the Hoops financially, if the Parkhead club can offer the money demanded by the Northern Ireland champions, hopefully it won’t be long until the versatile defender moves to Glasgow.

In other news, one former Celtic striker has made a claim about Jota. Find out more here.

Sky Sports pundit Kevin Phillips is adamant that Celtic have suffered a “massive blow” following the injury sustained by Kyogo Furuhashi on international duty with Japan.

The Lowdown: Furuhashi has made a stellar start to his Parkhead career

Making a superb start to life at Parkhead, the 26-year-old has swiftly become a key player for the Hoops, registering eight goal contributions in nine appearances with seven goals and one assist [Transfermarkt].

However, he now looks set to be sidelined for up to a month with a knee injury following an international clash against China, as confirmed by Hoops manager Ange Postecoglou [BBC].

The Latest: Phillips bemoans ‘awful’ injury sustained by Furuhashi

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Football Insider, Phillips bemoaned the Japanese international’s injury, stating: “It’s not ideal for anyone”.

He then added: “That’s the risk when you have international players. It’s a massive blow but you plan for things like this.

“It’s an opportunity for someone to come in and perform and they do have a new striker there.

“I hate to say it but it’s always an opportunity, it’s awful for him, the injured player, but it’s true.

“He’s been excellent for them and I’m sure he’ll be back in the side once he’s fit”.

The Verdict: Postecoglou will hope Furuhashi returns soon

After losing one of their most influential players in an important block of fixtures as the Europa League group stage gets underway, Phillips rightly believes that the news will come as a massive source of frustration to Furuhashi and everyone at Celtic.

However, the former England striker also correctly states that there will be opportunities for those on the fringes to step into the void, something that Swiss striker Albian Ajeti has tapped into following his brace against Ross County last weekend [BBC].

Nevertheless, Furuhashi has been an hugely potent threat in his time at Parkhead so far, scoring once every 79 minutes [Footy Stats].

He has also wowed supporters with his pressing ability, anticipation and his pinpoint utilisation of the ball. Looking ahead, Ange Postecoglou will hope that his summer signing will be back to firing on all cylinders as soon as possible.

In other news, Kieran Devlin has given an update on the fitness of another Celtic summer signing.

Flocking to Twitter, many Tottenham Hotspur fans have erupted as news emerges on their club and Barcelona playmaker Philippe Coutinho.

The Brazilian, who moved to Barca in an earth-shattering deal which could reach £146 million, has struggled to hit the heights he reached at Anfield.

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Coutinho’s tenure at the Camp Nou has been marred by a lack of consistent starts with the 29-year-old even going out on loan to Bayern Munich for the 2019/2020 season.

The German giants opted not to make his stay permanent, however, with Coutinho’s future now at the centre of much discussion given Barcelona’s ongoing financial plight.

Now, it appears Spurs could be interesting in making a move for the former Premier League superstar, with El Nacional claiming they are interested in signing him on loan in January.

If possible, Barca would also like to include an obligation to buy in any deal, with many Lilywhites supporters now gushing over this news on social media.

One fan even called Coutinho a would-be ‘perfect signing’ for Nuno Espirito Santo.

Find all of their best verdicts on the development down below.

Spurs fans erupt over Coutinho news…

“YESSSSSSSS”

Credit: @ikhalids

“PLEASE ACTUALLY MAKE THIS HAPPEN”

Credit: @The_Tech_Beast

“Perfect signing”

Credit: @kanefromthelane

“Yes yes yes”

Credit: @thfcem28

“we need this massively”

Credit: @spursroles

“Would be a brilliant signing. An ACTUAL playmaker.”

Credit: @Rory4Spurs

“Finally, someone who can score from outside the box”

Credit: @__HK47__

In other news: Spurs also want ‘outstanding’ 29 y/o who Pochettino wanted to make one of his highest earners, find out more here!

Former Premier League striker Marcus Bent has exclusively told The Transfer Tavern that Romelu Lukaku is overrated – and Chelsea could have spent their money better elsewhere.

Almost exactly seven years after he left the Blues for Everton, the Belgian frontman made a sensational return when he secured his move back to Stamford Bridge in a £97.5m deal from Inter Milan.

Following a tricky period at Manchester United when he failed to live up to another monumental transfer fee, Lukaku rediscovered his goalscoring touch in Italy, netting 47 league goals across his two seasons to help Inter win Serie A for the first time in 11 years.

But the pressure won’t get any easier upon his return to Chelsea, with Lukaku now tasked with being the man to score the goals that Timo Werner couldn’t last term to fire Thomas Tuchel’s men to their sixth Premier League title this season.

Lukaku’s goals for Inter took his career tally past the 250-goal mark in club football, 113 of which have come in England.

However, Bent told The Transfer Tavern that he’s still unconvinced by the 28-year-old Belgian:

“Personally, I’m not a big fan of Lukaku. I think he’s quite weak in certain situations, I think he’s overrated. I don’t think he can hold the ball up. Yeah, he can score a goal, but I think he’s overrated.

“He’s playing in a side that have good players, but think Chelsea could have gone for someone else with the money they paid.”

Fulham defender Maxime Le Marchand is edging closer to a departure from Craven Cottage.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by French media outlet Le 10 Sport, who claim that the 31-year-old is closing in on a move to Ligue 1 side Strasbourg, who have offered the centre-back a two-year deal.

The report goes on to state that the Frenchman should put pen to paper on his contract at the French side in the coming days, ending his three-year spell in west London.

Get him gone

Having joined Fulham from OGC Nice alongside Jean-Michael Seri back in 2018, a deal which is reported to have cost Slavisa Jokanovic’s Cottagers side £3.6m, it would be a difficult argument to make that the defender ever truly lived up to his price tag.

Indeed, despite having spent three years at Craven Cottage, the Frenchman made just 48 appearances for the club, the majority of which came during his first season in west London, when he made 26 appearances in the Premier League.

Over these fixtures, the man Tony Kahn dubbed a “valuable” asset failed to impress, helping his side keep a mere three clean sheets, as well as losing possession of the ball an average of 11.3 times and being dribbled past 0.9 times per fixture.

These returns saw the £1.8m-rated man earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.70, ranking him as the club’s 15th-worst performer in the top flight of English football.

Since then, the £24k-per-week defender found himself becoming a bit-part player for the club, making 14 Championship appearances in 2019/20, before being loaned out to Jupiler Pro League side Royal Antwerp last season.

And, considering the fact that Le Marchand is yet to make an appearance under Marco Silva, it would appear highly unlikely that the centre-back is a part of the 44-year-old’s long term plans, leading us to believe the Portuguese boss should do all he can to rid himself of the Frenchman prior to the closure of the summer transfer window next week.

In other news: Silva heading for his biggest Fulham transfer error yet on £4.5m-rated “waste of time”

Celtic have been name-checked with an interest in Fenerbahce winger Bright Osayi-Samuel by Turkish outlet Fanatik.

The Lowdown: Osayi-Samuel profiled

Osayi-Samuel only joined Fenerbahce in January from Queens Park Rangers and is under contract with the Turkish giants until 2025.

The 23-year-old, who has netted 19 times during his career, has struggled with his current employers. He has scored just one goal and registered a single assist in his 19 games for the club.

Described as ‘dangerous’ by QPR manager Mark Warburton last year, the Nigerian can play anywhere across the front three, with his main position coming on the right wing.

The Latest: Fenerbahce future

Fanatik shared a story on Osayi-Samuel on Tuesday morning. Within their report, they claimed that Fenerbahce are waiting for an offer for the winger, with both Celtic and Rangers credited with an interest.

A fee of €3m (£2.5m) is touted and it seems that Fenerbahce are willing to sell by evaluating any offers they receive, with Osayi-Samuel struggling to adapt to Vítor Pereira’s new system.

The Verdict: A gamble

Osayi-Samuel hasn’t had the best of years, so bringing him to Celtic Park could be a gamble. However, you’d expect that the Hoops would have looked into his career, and if he can get back to the form of the 2019/20 season, a £2.5m deal could be a steal.

He was involved in 14 Championship goals for QPR in that campaign and picked up two club accolades as a result.

Osayi-Samuel is still just 23 years of age and already has more than 200 senior appearances under his belt, so if Ange Postecoglou can get the best out of him, a £2.5m move would be seen as a great piece of business from Celtic in the long run.

In other news: Celtic now ‘in talks’ for ‘really, really good’ 6ft 3 ace; may cost ‘significant’ fee. 

West Ham United’s takeover saga is by no means over as a major update emerged earlier this week…

What’s the word?

As revealed by the Evening Standard, investment firm PAI Capital are set to launch a second bid to purchase the East London-based Premier League outfit, having had their first offer of £400m rejected by majority shareholder David Sullivan, who described it as “derisory”.

The consortium, which involves managing partner Nasib Piriyev and former QPR chief Philip Beard, are determined to negotiate a deal.

Piriyev told the Evening Standard that they were granted access to the club’s business data around six months ago and that PAI Capital did provide proof of funds, despite reports on the contrary.

“If Mr Sullivan does not agree to our offer price, he has the full right to do so because the shares are his private property,” he said. “Although I do believe any owner of a Premier League club and a brand of West Ham’s calibre must also feel a duty to the community and fans – but what he cannot do is simply say that we are not serious.

“That is false information, but we are not going to fall for this move and do not want to escalate any conflict.

“So, with all respect to Mr Sullivan, we will continue pursuing this opportunity and make our best efforts to get him to agree to our offer and sell his controlling stake of the club.” GSB Out

It’s certainly no secret that the relationship between Sullivan, David Gold and Karen Brady and the London Stadium fanbase has been rocky for the past few years.

When staring down the barrel of relegation at the end of the 2019/20 season, thousands of fans protested against the board across a string of matches. Meanwhile, their trip to Anfield to face Liverpool saw some supporters unfurl banners, reading: ‘Run like a circus – Owned by clowns’ and ‘GSB out – Sold a dream, delivered a nightmare.’

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David Moyes then, thankfully, steered the club to safety.

However, later that summer, GSB sanctioned the exit of promising academy gem Grady Diangana, who had signed a six-year deal at the club only 18 months earlier. And this caused further uproar, with even captain Mark Noble venting his anger at the club.

The Scot has since guided the Irons into the Europa League but those feelings of anger against the ownership have not gone away, with supporter group Hammers United planning to protest, once again, before their home match with Manchester United next month.

PAI Captial seem relentless in their attempts to take over the club from Sullivan and co, so this should give the West Ham faithful plenty of hope. It may be a long and drawn-out process – you only have to look at Newcastle’s situation – but at the very least, there’s genuine and public interest that could see GSB out the door.

This latest claim from Piriyev should leave many around East London absolutely delighted.

AND in other news, “Is a worry” – ExWHUemployee drops fresh West Ham transfer update…

Carlton Palmer reckons that a conversation needs to take place between Rafa Benitez and James Rodriguez over the Colombian’s Everton future.

Rodriguez only made the switch to the Premier League last summer, but his Toffees career has been in major doubt since Carlo Ancelotti returned to Real Madrid last month.

But whilst another reunion with the Italian at Madrid is now looking unlikely, AC Milan have entered the race to sign the former Monaco and Bayern Munich attacker, who’s got just 12 months left on his deal.

Rodriguez made an impressive start to his Everton career, scoring plenty and assisting even more as Ancelotti’s side topped the Premier League during the early weeks, ending the campaign with six goals and nine assists in 26 appearances in all competitions.

However, an ongoing calf problem saw the 29-year-old miss the best part of four months between December and March, with Rodriguez’s lack of minutes seeing him left out of the Colombian squad for the Copa America.

Despite uncertainties over his future, he’s currently in USA with the rest of the Everton squad for their pre-season tour of Orlando.

And Palmer exclusively told Football FanCast that he thinks Rodriguez is someone Benitez needs to keep on board:

“I’m sure Rafa is going to sit down with him and talk. He had a lot of injuries in the second half of the season, and I believe he’s the highest paid player at the football club.

“He’s a talented player, so I’m sure Rafa will sit down and talk to him, maybe he’s got over his injuries.

“The one thing you don’t want to do as a football manager, you don’t want to let good players leave the building if you can help it.”

Sunderland are in talks regarding a deal to bring Jordan Gabriel to the Stadium of Light this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The Northern Echo, who claim that Kyril Louis-Dreyfus has held talks with Nottingham Forest regarding a deal for the right-back, for whom Chris Hughton’s side are reported to be demanding a fee of £600,000.

The report added that the Black Cats are also pushing to secure a deal for Exeter City winger Josh Key, although there had been no progress in talks over the weekend.

Meanwhile, Lee Johnson recently fielded questions regarding Sunderland’s summer transfer business, stating: “We’re working really hard behind the scenes and a lot of that is to put yourself in a position where you’ve got the options. They’re [Gabriel and Key] not our players and so I can’t talk about them, as you know.”

KLD must move for Gabriel

Considering just how much potential Gabriel appears to possess, and with Johnson hugely lacking in depth at right-back, Louis-Dreyfus must do all he can to secure a deal for the Nottingham Forest starlet ahead of next season.

Indeed, over his 29 League One appearances while on loan at Blackpool last term, the £225k-rated defender helped his side to keep ten clean sheets, averaging 0.8 interceptions, 0.9 tackles, 1.5 clearances and winning 4.6 duels per game (Sofascore).

The man who Blackpool Gazette journalist Matt Scrafton dubbed an “important” player also impressed going forwards, registering one assist and creating one big chance for his teammates, along with averaging 0.7 key passes per match.

These returns saw the £1.2k-per-week man earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.75, playing a key role in the Seasiders’ promotion to the Championship.

As such, with Sunderland harbouring their own hopes of securing a return to the second tier next season, the addition of a player with experience of getting his team over the line could increase the Black Cats’ chances of going on to achieve the feat in the upcoming campaign.

In other news: Imagine him & O’Nien: KLD could solve big Sunderland problem with “faultless” £4k-p/w beast

Danny Ings has rejected a new contract at Southampton, which leaves Ralph Hasenhuttl with a tough decision to make regarding the striker’s future at St Mary’s.

Ings rejects four-year deal

According to The Athletic, the 28-year-old striker has rejected a four-year contract offer from the South Coast club, one which would have comfortably made him the highest-paid player at St Mary’s, as he has expressed his desire to play at a higher level.

The England international made it clear earlier in the year that he wanted to play for a side competing in Europe, so after Southampton’s collapse in the second half of last season’s Premier League, it was perhaps always going to be tough for Hasenhuttl to keep him around.

Should Southampton sell Ings?

Although the Austrian has suggested in the past that Ings won’t be leaving this summer, he must now decide whether or not to cash in on the former Liverpool man while he still can, as Ings will be free to leave for nothing at the end of next season when his current contract expires.

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The likes of Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with the talismanic striker in recent months, which suggests that an exit could well be on the cards after this contract development, but there is a risk that Southampton could seriously struggle in his absence.

Last season saw the striker finish as the Saints’ top scorer with 12 goals, despite regular injury problems, and the season before that, he hit 22 goals in the top-flight, which emphasises just how important he is in this Southampton side.

Therefore, there is a real risk that the financial boost of selling him this summer would be outweighed by the potential threat of relegation next season without him, as there is no guarantee that the likes of Che Adams, or a new striker, would be able to step up should the “outstanding” Ings depart.

It is undoubtedly a huge blow for Hasenhuttl that one of his most influential players is clearly keen to leave and it will be interesting to see whether or not Ings remains a Southampton player by the time the Premier League season kicks off next month.

This update is likely to have Saints fans fuming as their club are pretty much in a lose-lose situation. They either sell Ings this summer to get a decent fee for him or lose him for free in a year’s time. Either way, it’s far from ideal for Southampton.

And, in other news… Southampton missed out on “fantastic” beast dominating Euro 2020