All posts by z3u9t.icu

Rangers saw a significant number of players make the move to Ibrox during the short reign of former manager Pedro Caixinha.

However, much like the 51-year-old’s time in charge of the Gers, not all of the players that joined the club in 2017 ended up being particularly successful at Ibrox.

One player, in particular, that ended up being a major flop for the club is midfielder Carlos Pena.

In June 2017, Rangers signed the Mexican from Guadalajara in a deal worth a reported fee of £2.2m, making him the most expensive player signed under Caixinha.

Having made just 14 appearances for the Gers across all competitions, Pena’s contract was terminated only 18 months into the four-year deal he signed with them.

Despite being labelled as a “massive player with a lot of technique and physicality” by Caixinha, Pena was also seen as a “problem” by the former Rangers boss in regards to what he ended up delivering on the pitch for the team.

Even though he managed to find the back of the net four times in the 12 league appearances he made in the 2017/18 season, it was problems off the pitch that impacted his time at the club.

According to Andy Halliday, Pena had such an issue with alcohol that he would come into training smelling of it.

Halliday said: “He was messy alright, this guy was the modern alcoholic. He would just come in stinking of bevvy all the time. Stinking of it. From the time he came in I was only there for maybe a month, but honestly he was always stinking of booze.”

After leaving Rangers in March 2019, the player has gone on to have spells at clubs in Poland, El Salvador, Mexico and Argentina.

The 32-year-old has been without a club since January.

Taking all of this into account, it’s hard to see Pena’s transfer to Rangers being anything other than disastrous.

Having shelled out a total sum of £4.3m on the player from his transfer fee and £25k-per-week wages over the 84 weeks he was at the club, this just highlights what a waste of money it was from the Gers.

In other news: Wilson could land a new £13m talent as Rangers plot bid for £180k-rated sensation

Emiliano Buendia and Emiliano Martinez could both feature for Aston Villa against Everton on Saturday, according to Matt Maher.

The pair won’t be back in the country until a few hours before kick-off, which has had a number of Villa fans talking on social media.

Buendia and Martinez both went away with Argentina during the recent international break and have had to spend more than a week in Croatia to avoid hotel quarantine in the UK.

The pair have been training during that time, according to Maher, and are both in Dean Smith’s selection thoughts ahead of Saturday evening’s clash at Villa Park.

Maher believes that the goalkeeper is likely to come in for Jed Steer from the off, whereas the 24-year-old could also feature in what could be a busy Saturday for the duo.

Villa fans react

Maher and The AVFC Faithful shared the news on social media. Here is what these Villa fans had to say in reply, with one labelling it as a ‘stupid rule’.

“Very poor this from Villa, hope it never happens again.”

Credit: @OviAvfc1

“What a mess really. I doubt Buendia will start and he never got into the squad for either match.”

Credit: @Gazoaks

“Stupid rule”

Credit: @VillanTexas

“Can’t let this happen again. Buendia should’ve never been allowed to go if he wasn’t going to even get on the bench”

Credit: @jackavfc1

“Hmmmmm not the best”

Credit: @Timotheues69

“Looks like Smith fans have got their excuse ready for this loss. “Two of the starting 11 didn’t re-join the team until hours before kick off” #SmithOut”

Credit: @ryanea22

In other news: ‘Hate this club’ – Many Villa fans fume at ‘risky’ official announcement. 

West Ham United could capitalise on a ‘stalemate’ between Inter Milan and Cagliari to sign midfielder Nahitan Nandez, according to La Repubblica (via Sport Witness). 

The lowdown

The Uruguay international made 32 league appearances for Cagliari last season, averaging 1.8 tackles, 1.2 dribbles and one key pass per game (via WhoScored). His performances earned him a call-up to his country’s squad for the Copa America this summer.

Serie A expert Mina Rzouki has raved about Nandez, labelling him ‘unstoppable’ and claiming that he’s ‘one of the most underrated players’ in the Italian top flight. The 25-year-old, formerly of Boca Juniors, is valued at £19.8m by Transfermarkt.

The latest

The report from La Repubblica (via Sport Witness) claimed that Inter boss Simone Inzaghi has made Nandez a primary target, but the reigning Serie A champions have seen an offer rejected by Cagliari.

The player is ‘certain’ to leave the Sardinian club this summer, either in a permanent deal or on loan with an obligation to buy.

He is said to relish the idea of joining Inter but negotiations between the two clubs appear to have stalled. The Nerazzurri are under pressure to make a breakthrough, with West Ham waiting in the wings if the impasse between the Serie A duo isn’t resolved.

The verdict

Nandez appears to be an excellent all-round midfielder judging by his performance figures and the praise which has come his way, but West Ham’s priorities should lie elsewhere in the remaining weeks of the transfer window.

Above all, they need to sign a starting centre-back to ensure that their defence doesn’t prove to be their undoing. The goals they conceded in Sunday’s 4-2 win at Newcastle made this abundantly clear.

After that, the focus should be on recruiting some cover and competition for Michail Antonio at centre-forward. A clear gap exists in that area of the squad, where there is no natural alternative to the injury-prone 31-year-old.

In other news, some West Ham fans were unhappy with this man’s performance at St James’ Park on Sunday.

West Ham have been handed a timely injury boost ahead of the Premier League’s return next weekend…

What’s the latest?

According to The Athletic, Irons defender Arthur Masuaku is expected to be available for selection after the international break, having been absent since March with a knee problem.

The 27-year-old left-back has yet to be named in any of David Moyes’ three matchday squads but he has been keeping up his fitness levels by playing for the U23s squad in the Premier League 2.

Masuaku featured for the full 90 minutes in their wins over Arsenal and Chelsea and during their defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion. An encouraging sign.

It was also claimed in the report that there were no plans to farm the DR Congo international out on loan or sell him on, so that only goes to show what the Hammers’ boss thinks of him.

Timely boost

Masuaku is certainly not the first choice in the current squad, with Aaron Cresswell taking that crown, but having him fit and available is certainly a big boost to Moyes.

If the Englishman were to get injured, then the 5 foot 10 dynamo is his only senior back-up, whilst at times last season, the pair of them played together when the 58-year-old wanted to deploy a back-three.

He started ten of their opening 11 matches in 2020/21 and that was largely with Cresswell making up the backline as a left-sided centre-half.

His return allows Moyes to be flexible in his tactics, something that he may not be able to do without Masuaku at his disposal, given his lack of options in the role.

Despite a lack of game time last season, Masuaku still managed to top the charts for dribbles per game (2.4), which was more than Cresswell (0.1) and even the likes of Michail Antonio (1.7), Said Benrahma (1.4), and Jesse Lingard (1.1), per WhoScored.

This suggests that he’s very much one of Moyes’ more attacking defensive options and could be one reason why he likes to deploy him alongside Cresswell at times.

The 27-year-old isn’t bad defensively either, having averaged 1.7 tackles per game (joint-third most).

Valued at £6.3m and on wages of around £40k-per-week, Masuaku’s presence on the pitch will certainly be needed, especially when the games come thick and fast with the Hammers in the Europa League this season.

After returning against Southampton next Saturday, the Irons will head to Croatia to face Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday, before returning to England to host Jesse Lingard’s Manchester United in back-to-back matches.

Cresswell won’t be able to play them all, so his availability should come as a timely and big boost.

AND in other news, West Ham dealt hammer blow as huge Rush Green development emerges, fans will be fuming…

Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds moved up to 16th in the Premier League table with a 1-0 win over Watford at Elland Road on Saturday.

Diego Llorente brilliantly finished from close range after the ball dropped at an awkward angle for him, expertly turning his body to drill a shot past Ben Foster.

His strike ended up winning the three points for Leeds, as Watford only managed one shot on target in the entire match.

Whilst Llorente won the game for the Whites, one player who was an unsung hero for Bielsa was right-back Jamie Shackleton.

With regular starter Luke Ayling ruled out, Shackleton was called upon to step up at full-back for the second game running and he produced an excellent performance. He was defensively solid along with offering a reliable outlet on the ball down the right, which played a part in allowing Leeds to dominate the game and ultimately beat the Hornets.

In terms of his defending, Shakleton was superb. Per SofaScore, he won eight of his 11 ground duels and made two clearances and four tackles. Along with that, he did not allow a single Watford player to dribble past him in the 90 minutes.

This shows that he was strong in the challenge and positionally aware, as he was not exposed by any players dribbling past him. By being solid at the back, Emmanuel Dennis was limited to one shot in the game and had a dribble success rate of 0% on the left wing, coming up against Shackleton.

On the ball, the youngster also impressed. Via SofaScore, he had a whopping 96 touches of the ball in the 90 minutes. Shackleton was successful with two of his three attempted dribbles and completed 84% of his passes, whilst also winning two fouls and managing one shot in the final third.

He was active on the ball throughout the match and assured in possession, as he completed the vast majority of his passes. His dribbling success shows that he was also able to offer quality in transition, beating players to push Leeds up the pitch and get the team closer to the Watford goal to build pressure on the Hornets.

Therefore, forget Llorente, Shackleton was Leeds’ unsung hero against Watford. He merged strong defending with composure on the ball and Bielsa will surely be hoping that he can maintain this level of performance until Ayling is fit to return.

AND in other news, Fresh development emerges on “unlimited energy” beast that’ll leave Leeds fans excited…

Shields Gazette reporter Liam Kennedy has confirmed Newcastle United are looking to sign Hamza Choudhury before the transfer window slams shut.

It appears as though the Magpies are closing in on their first signing of the summer after the club agreed a fee in excess of £20million for Arsenal’s Joe Willock.

The midfielder is set to head to St James’ Park on a permanent basis after enjoying a successful loan spell with Newcastle last season. During his temporary stay on Tyneside, Willock became the first player since Alan Shearer to score in seven consecutive Premier League outings.

But Magpies boss Steve Bruce wants to strengthen his midfield further by poaching Leicester City’s Choudhury, who saw a loan move to Newcastle fall through at the end of the January transfer window.

The 23-year-old made just four Premier League starts last term and Kennedy has revealed the central midfielder remains on Bruce’s wishlist after narrowly missing out earlier this year.

He told The Transfer Tavern: “He is a player who hasn’t ever come off the wanted list. He was a hair’s breadth away from signing in January on a loan deal.

“Hamza Choudhury is a player that Steve Bruce rates and they were very close to signing. They thought it would happen but Brendan Rodgers pulled the plug in January and kept him on at Leicester.”

Leeds United are active in the January transfer window and are ‘progressing’ in their pursuit of new additions, according to reliable reporter Graham Smyth.

The Lowdown: Drameh on the move…

It has been a quiet start to the winter window when it comes to incomings, even though Victor Orta is thought to be after two midfield signings.

However, even though the Whites are yet to get any players through the door at Thorp Arch, it appears as if they are happy to allow Cody Drameh to leave on loan.

The young right-back is set to join Cardiff City on loan until the end of the season, and according to Smyth, Orta is working hard on potential incomings too.

The Latest: Smyth’s post

Smyth, chief football writer at The Yorkshire Evening Post, replied to a fan on Twitter on Monday morning who asked about updates on new signings.

This is what he had to say in reply, providing a positive outlook.

“They’re active. Things are ‘progressing’ we’re told.”

The Verdict: Good signs

Leeds have question marks over 11 players ahead of the trip to West Ham this weekend, so there’s no doubt that fresh faces would give the whole squad a much-needed boost.

You could argue that letting Drameh leave on loan puts more pressure on Luke Ayling and the versatile Stuart Dallas, so another player capable of adding depth in multiple positions like Dallas could prove priceless.

Leeds are short of midfield and attacking options and have a number of defenders injured, so it remains to be seen where the club may strengthen first. A versatile midfielder would be a good starting point, however, time is quickly running out, so Orta could do with making things happen before the weekend.

In other news: Radz and 49ers may now finance Leeds move for versatile ace with ‘great acceleration’. 

An update has emerged regarding a transfer offer for Rangers full-back Borna Barisic.

What’s the talk?

According to The Athletic, the Gers have rejected a £2m bid from English Premier League side Watford for the Croatian left-back.

The report claims that the offer was knocked back two weeks ago and that it would take a ‘significantly’ higher bid to convince them to part ways with the 29-year-old.

Fans will be delighted

Giovanni van Bronckhorst has averted a big Rangers disaster by not selling Barisic to Watford, especially for a mere £2m. Allowing the defender to exit would have left the club in a desperate position in the full-back areas, particularly with Nathan Patterson’s exit this week.

With Calvin Bassey emerging as a strong centre-back option for the Gers, James Tavernier and Barisic are the Dutchman’s only natural full-back options as it stands. Patterson had been providing cover on both flanks of late and the club may be forced to dip into the market to replace him, which illustrates how much of a problem it would have been to sell Barisic as well as the Scotland international.

Not only would it have created issues in terms of recruitment this month, it would also have weakened the team significantly, as the Croatian has proven his quality in the Premiership for the club.

Former Gers midfielder Alex Rae previously lauded the defensive monster, saying: “He performs at good level week-in, week-out and has terrific quality in the final third of the park.”

Barisic has averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.30 this season from left-back in the Premiership, providing two assists in the process. Last term, he averaged a score of 7.40 and racked up six assists as he created 2.2 chances per game for his teammates.

This shows that he has performed consistently over the past 18 months and is able to carry an attacking threat with his crossing from out wide. Therefore, Gers fans will be delighted that he appears set to remain at Ibrox after the club rejected Watford’s offer.

As we’ve outlined above, it would have been a disaster for Van Bronckhorst if Barisic had moved on from Glasgow this month, and the 46-year-old will surely be looking forward to having him in his team for the rest of the season, assuming there are no more twists in the transfer window. The Croatian is a key member of the champions’ line-up, and fans will surely be buzzing to keep him.

AND in other news, Jordan Campbell drops key Rangers transfer claim, Van Bronckhorst will be buzzing…

Leeds United are eyeing a transfer swoop for Reading midfielder John Swift, and he could be a massive upgrade on Tyler Roberts.

What’s the story?

According to The Sheffield Star, Marcelo Bielsa’s side, along with the likes of Newcastle United and Brentford, have got their eye on the attacking midfielder,

He’s a huge Roberts upgrade

With no goals or assists in 12 games in all competitions this season, it’s safe to say Roberts’ start to the current campaign has been nothing short of disastrous.

In fact, with a measly record of just eight goals in 94 games, the 22-year-old hasn’t shown anything like the kind of form that would suggest he’s going to develop into a real attacking force for the Whites.

Swift on the other hand has a track record of being someone who can offer a goal-scoring threat from attacking midfield unlike the Welshman, managing an impressive 62 goal contributions in 178 games – in fact, his start to the current campaign for Reading has actually been quite incredible, netting eight goals in 14 matches in the Championship as well as chipping in with six assists too.

Speaking back in August after a 2-1 win over Preston, Royals manager, Veljko Paunovic, said: “Now he’s back, it is important we keep him healthy and motivated as he is now because that will help us a lot.

“He is super talented and he showed an urgency that he wanted to decide the game. The first couple of passes to Azeez and Joao were fantastic vision and execution of the final pass – something we’ve missed in the past. We missed those slick combinations through the middle when we progress forward so that’s something we have to keep up.”

That ability to come from deep and find the back of the net – he’s scored 40 senior goals in his professional career thus far – would add a different dimension to Leeds’ side.

The £3.6m-rated star is exactly what Bielsa needs at Elland Road to take goal-scoring burden off Bamford and add far more of a threat than Roberts.

Meanwhile, Leeds must avoid a major howler with this star…

Newcastle United have reportedly now offered a deal to Sven Botman ahead of a potential move in the summer.

The Lowdown: Two-way battle

It has been widely reported that there seems to be a two-way battle between the St. James’ Park faithful and AC Milan for Botman’s signature this summer.

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The former reportedly had a bid rejected from Lille for the Dutchman in the January transfer window, and now it looks as if they will return for him at the end of the season, while the latter have even had their club legends talking up a deal.

The Latest: Deal offered

As per Football Insider, a source from the North East club has revealed that they have ‘not given up hope’ of signing Botman, after holding ‘extensive negotiations’ since January.

Both the KSA Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Milan have ‘offered a contract’ to the central defender, and have already ‘verbally agreed personal terms’.

The Tyneside outfit now have to negotiate a fee with Lille, who are thought to value Botman at £30m.

The Verdict: Sign

If the Magpies can snap Botman up for £30m, it could prove to be a real bargain in the future.

Described as a ‘golden boy‘ by his agent Francesco Miniero, he is already playing regularly at the highest level at just 22 years of age, and is surely a player that Eddie Howe would love to work with.

At six-foot-five, Botman is a colossus, and only two of his teammates win more aerial duels per game on average in Ligue 1 this season.

Nonetheless, he would certainly be a statement signing by the new owners and would seemingly settle into a monstrous back-line alongside 6 foot 7 Dan Burn.

In other news, find out who NUFC now ‘want’ as their ‘marquee’ signing here!