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Tottenham reporter Charlie Eccleshare believes Spurs will try and sign an alternative attacking player in January, with a move for Fiorentina’s Dusan Vlahovic more likely next summer.

The Lowdown: Vlahovic links

Tottenham were after Vlahovic in the summer, however, as we know, a move never materialised.

Fiorentina owner Rocco Commisso revealed earlier this week that the 21-year-old won’t be penning new terms with the Serie A side, with his current contract up in 2023.

It appears as if Vlahovic is still on Tottenham’s radar, however, it seems as if another attacking addition will be heading to north London in the New Year.

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The Latest: Eccleshare’s claim

Eccleshare, Tottenham’s correspondent for The Athletic, answered various questions in a mailbag on Friday.

One of the questions he responded to was about Spurs’ plans for the January window.

He admitted that a move for Vlahovic is more likely next summer, however, he did reveal that director of football Fabio Paratici will be after an attacking acquisition in the winter window. Eccleshare name-checked Wolves winger Adama Traore as a player who could fit the bill over the coming months.

The Verdict: Exciting times

Spurs’ only attacking addition over the summer was Bryan Gil from Sevilla, with the club losing the services of loanees Gareth Bale and Carlos Vinicius prior to the 2021/22 campaign.

Erik Lamela went to Sevilla in a deal that brought Gil to London, so it seems as if Nuno Espirito Santo is in need of bolstering his ranks.

It appears as if Spurs will do all they can to do just that, with a move for Vlahovic potentially happening next summer.

In other news: ‘Perfect’ – Spurs pundit raves as Paratici eyes ‘top signing’ for Nuno, find out more here.

Crystal Palace attacker Eberechi Eze was in contention to be called up to Gareth Southgate’s standby list for the European Championship over the summer, according to Michael Bridge.

The Lowdown: Impressive debut season

Eze caught the eye of many Premier League clubs after scoring 14 goals and setting up another eight for QPR in the 2019/20 season and Palace won the fight to sign him as they paid just under £20m for him last summer.

The 23-year-old was involved in 10 goals in 34 appearances in his debut Premier League season, but it was curtained in the worst possible manner as he injured his Achilles in training with only two games remaining at the end of the campaign.

He hasn’t featured yet this season under Patrick Vieira, but he will be hoping to continue his impressive start to life in the Premier League when he fully recovers from that setback.

The Latest: England call-up was in the pipeline

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Bridge has made an astonishing claim about Eze and Southgate’s squad prior to Euro 2020 this summer, saying that the £18m-rated maestro was on the fringes of getting the call-up for the Three Lions for the tournament.

The Sky Sports journalist said: “Eze, I was told was potentially going to be on the England standby list for the Euros, the way he was playing.”

The Verdict: Still on the cards

Eze’s performances last season were often the shining light in a dreary campaign for Palace. His transition from the Championship to the Premier League seemed to be easy and his four goals and six assists were influential in Roy Hodgson keeping them up in his final year in charge.

With Wilfried Zaha and now Michael Olise in Vieira’s squad, Palace seem to be on the up with their attacking, high-pressing football and it could suit Eze perfectly. If he can come back and rediscover the goal contribution returns he produced prior to his injury, then a call-up to Southgate’s squad won’t be too far away.

With the 2022 World Cup still more than a year away, Eze has time to recover, get back into the Eagles’ XI and do all he can to be potentially called up to represent his nation on the biggest stage. It would be just reward after so cruelly being deprived of partaking in England’s Euro 2020 adventure.

In other news, a rumour linking this Premier League midfielder to Palace has one pundit puzzled. Find out more here.

Dean Windass has exclusively told The Transfer Tavern that some Tottenham fans could show their anger and boo Harry Kane against Manchester City on Sunday.

Kane delayed his return to the UK and skipped training last Monday as he tries to force a move to the Premier League champions following a summer of speculation linking him with Pep Guardiola’s men.

However, the striker has since taken to Instagram to deny those claims and said that he would never miss training and would be returning to Hotspur Way for pre-season.

With a lack of pre-season training under his belt, it looked extremely unlikely that Kane would be involved against City on opening-day this weekend.

But when speaking to Sky Sports earlier this week, Spurs manager Nuno Espirito Santo confirmed that his entire squad will be available for selection and specifically stated that Kane is one of those.

However, having failed to play a single minute in pre-season, a place on the bench would appear most likely for the England skipper.

When asked if he could get booed by his own supporters, Windass told The Transfer Tavern:

“Well, yeah course. Football fans are very fickle, and it changes very quickly. You don’t become a bad player overnight, but supporters will show their anger… if Harry starts against Manchester City, could you imagine that?”

New Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst made a ‘catastrophic error of judgement’ in choosing to watch their Scottish League Cup semifinal defeat from the stands. 

That’s according to The Daily Record’s Keith Jackson, writing in his Monday column.

The lowdown

The Van Bronckhorst era got off to a pretty disastrous start on Sunday as his new club fell to defeat against Hibernian at Hampden Park. The Gers found themselves three goals down inside the first 40 minutes, and Scott Arfield’s goal failed to ignite a comeback.

Van Bronckhorst, whose appointment had been confirmed on Thursday, was sat alongside sporting director Ross Wilson in the rafters rather than in the dugout. That’s despite the fact his work permit had reportedly gone through, which means that he could have taken full charge at the weekend.

The latest

Jackson was scathing in his criticism of the new Rangers boss after, in his eyes, he refused to carry out his ‘responsibilities’.

The journalist wrote: “This was not just a catastrophic error of judgement for Van Bronckhorst who made himself look weak by choosing to watch on from the main stand, it was a shirking of responsibilities on an industrial scale.”

The verdict

Only time will tell whether this was a significant misstep. It may have cost Rangers a place in the Scottish League Cup final, yes, but what kind of response can Van Bronckhorst muster?

With the Gers sitting third in their Europa League group on four points, Thursday’s Ibrox clash with Sparta Prague looks like a must-win if they are to progress to the knockout stage. If they do get those three important points, then you might feel that the cloud hanging over the club – amid growing fears that last season’s success may have been a one-off – will at least partially be lifted.

Put it this way, Van Bronckhorst’s seating arrangements last Sunday will be long forgiven and forgotten if the Gers retain their Premiership title.

In other news, many Rangers fans were excited by this development.

Leeds United youngster Bobby Kamwa featured on trial at Sky Bet League One side Rotherham United in a pre-season victory over Harrogate Town, as reported by Rotherham Advertiser journalist Paul Davis.

The Lowdown: Bielsa’s Leeds United get set for 2021/22

Leading towards the new campaign, Marcelo Bielsa and the Whites hierarchy will already have the wheels in motion with regards to their aims for this season.

Whilst bringing in players like Junior Firpo will play a part in prolonging success at the club, trimming the squad will also be of paramount importance in order to fund the pursuit of new recruits, whether that be the first-team or the academy.

One man who may be on the way out of Elland Road is youngster Kamwa following recent developments.

The Latest: Kamwa features on trial for Rotherham

According to Davis on Twitter, the centre-forward played a part in the Millers’ 3-1 win over EFL League Two opponents Harrogate last night.

It is said Kamwa has two days to prove himself to the Rotherham United coaching staff.

The talented Thorp Arch product signed a new two-year contract at Leeds United last year, meaning he could depart Elland Road for free in 12 months-time [Leeds United FC Official].

The Verdict: Right time for club and player to part ways

Considering the unlikely reality of the prospect obtaining minutes for Bielsa’s first-team any time soon, moving to the English third-tier may present an excellent opportunity for Kamwa to gain regular senior experience.

In 2020/21, the Cameroonian featured 11 times for the Leeds United Under-23 side, notching two goals [Transfermarkt].

Only time will tell with regards to whether Rotherham offer him a role at the AESSEAL New York Stadium, though it may be the right time for player and club to part ways in a critical point in Kamwa’s footballing development.

In other news, Leeds United have been linked with a Bundesliga ace.

Many Everton fans have been flocking to a transfer update on Nikola Vlasic.

As per Bobsoccer.ru, a Russian news outlet, the Goodison Park faithful are considering buying him back from CSKA Moscow, after he was sold to them for £14.13m back in the summer window of 2019.

Vlasic has come off of the back of a great 2020/21 season, scoring no fewer than 12 goals and making a further six assists in 34 games in total over all competitions (Transfermarkt).

At 23 years of age, the Croatia international still has a lot of potential to fulfil, and given that he is an attacking midfield player, perhaps he can fill in for James Rodriguez when the Colombian is absent from the team.

The former Real Madrid superstar missed a fair chunk of last term through injury.

Everton fans on Vlasic transfer update

These Merseyside club supporters flocked to the transfer update as it was shared on Twitter, with one Toffee even going as far as to claim that Vlasic is a ‘class’ player:

“Terrible decision to sell him. Bought Lookman and Vlasic for good prices and then never made use of them.”

Credit: @marchy27

“We shouldn’t of sold him in the first place. Fully open to him returning”

Credit: @_NateTweets

“Absolute class he is, wasn’t given a chance when he was here”

Credit: @PHardwit

“Boss player btw, just a mad story”

Credit: @ShoeyEFC1234

“Didn’t get a proper chance at us! Same with Moise Kean! Get him back!”

Credit: @TurpoEFC

“Why did we actually sell him? We didn’t need to sell him, we could see that he was going to be a good player and he is only 23 now”

Credit: @hmmmm123456543

In other news, find out which PL-winning manager the Toffees have contacted here!

Queens Park Rangers are closing in on a deal to bring Martell Taylor-Crossdale to the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by West London Sport, who claim that QPR have taken the 21-year-old centre-forward on trial following his release from Fulham earlier this summer, with the former England U20 international able to join the Championship club outside of the transfer window due to his status as a free agent.

The report goes on to state that the youngster has featured for the QPR U23 side in their recent fixtures, and scored in the 2-1 loss against Barnsley at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium on Tuesday.

Exciting signing

While it is true that things did not exactly work out for Taylor-Crossdale following his move from Chelsea to Fulham in the summer of 2019 – with the centre-forward rejecting a move to Hoffenheim in order to join the Cottagers – the 21-year-old nevertheless proved during his time with the Blues that he is a player who boasts a considerable amount of potential.

Indeed, having joined the Chelsea academy back in 2008, the youngster impressed across the various age groups of the Premier League side’s youth setup, scoring 35 goals and providing six assists over his 53 appearances for the U18s, two goals over six appearances for the UEFA U19 side and seven goals across 29 appearances for the U23s.

And, while the striker failed to establish himself in the Fulham first-team during his spell at Craven Cottage – making just one senior appearance for the west London side – he did manage to score five goals and provide one assist over his 15 Premier League 2 appearances for the club’s U23 side in their 2019/20 campaign.

As such, it would very much appear as if there is a prolific goalscorer within Taylor-Crossdale, he just needs to find the right environment in which to finally make the step up to first-team football.

And, considering the development of players such as Ilias Chair, Bright Osayi-Samuel and Eberechi Eze under Mark Warburton at QPR, the 58-year-old could well be the coach who finally manages to get the best of out the striker – with his potential signing undoubtedly being an exciting one.

In other news: QPR confirm transfer development which has left Warburton over the moon

Many Crystal Palace fans have voiced their dismay on Twitter after journalist Alan Nixon dropped an 11-word update signifying that Real Madrid loanee Borja Mayoral is unlikely to join the Eagles in this transfer window.

The Spaniard is currently on loan at Serie A giants Roma and has been since last autumn. Demonstrating his pedigree 2020/21, the 24-year-old fired in 17 goals in 45 appearances, helping the Giallorossi to qualify for the Europa Conference League [Transfermarkt].

Coming towards the end of the current transfer window, Palace have been mooted with an interest in taking Mayoral to south London to bolster their depth in attack [AS].

However, Nixon appears to have quashed speculation that Mayoral could pitch up at Selhurst Park via Twitter. Communicating to his sizeable following, the reporter stated: “Palace. Mayoral loan move looking difficult. Roma want to keep him”.

In light of this news, plenty of Crystal Palace supporters took to social media to voice their displeasure at recent events.

Crystal Palace fans react

Replying to Nixon as well as popular Crystal Palace fan outlet CPFC Transfers HQ on Twitter, here is what some fans had to say about the fading prospects of Mayoral joining the Eagles:

“Well we all saw that coming. It would be a great deal but so difficult to do now. I suspect Roma just want as much as possible for him if he were to go, so Real have some decisions to make. Can’t see it happening”

Credit: @Phillyconcarne

“It was always going to be very difficult/ unlikely to land Mayoral.”

Credit: @Wheddsta

“No surprise there”

Credit: @MattCPFC”A shame but was always gonna be a difficult one #cpfc”Credit: @mandyswagsta

“no Alan, don’t do this”

Credit: @robertmeilak”Not a chance, especially as he played last night. Trying to deal with 2 European giants and throw in Mourinho…doesn’t happen.”Credit: @MarcWilliams22In other news, Crystal Palace fans react to links with a Wales international. Find out more here.

Speaking in a football.london Q&A, reliable Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Alasdair Gold has dropped a claim on Ajax boss Erik Ten Hag.

The Lowdown: Ten Hag linked to Spurs…

The Dutchman has been touted as a name on chairman Daniel Levy’s list of Tottenham managerial candidates for some time, with reports as far back as last month detailing him as a possible appointment (Fabrizio Romano).

This came after Spurs suffered setbacks in regards to former top targets Julian Nagelsmann and Brendan Rodgers, with the former officially set to become the next Bayern Munich manager and the latter publicly dismissing a move to north London.

Ten Hag is a manager who fits the mould of an attack-minded, possession-favouring coach allegedly wanted by Tottenham as they seek an heir to Jose Mourinho.

The Latest: Gold drops Ten Hag claim…

Amid the noise surrounding Mauricio Pochettino and a potentially sensational return to Tottenham, reliable correspondent Gold has provided an update on Ten Hag.

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Indeed, the 51-year-old is apparently seen as an alternative, with the journalist refusing to rule him out of the running.

“Everything depends on how willing PSG are to let Pochettino go and perhaps how their fans feel about the Argentine,” explained Gold (via football.london) when asked for the latest.

“It’s certainly not a done deal in any shape or form. I wouldn’t rule Conte out of the Tottenham job either or Ajax boss Erik ten Hag, who has similar characteristics to Pochettino.”

The Verdict: Exciting alternative…

The notion that Ten Hag is ‘similar’ to Pochettino, as explained by Gold, makes him the perfect alternative should PSG make life difficult for Spurs to appoint their former manager.

Recently lauded as ‘one of the most exciting coaching talents in Europe’ by Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp, Ten Hag is also famed for his ‘Cruyffian influence’ (Planet Football).

Given that Spurs are after somebody who can reinstall an exciting brand of football at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, this claim on Ten Hag could come as music to the ears of some supporters.

In other news: Alasdair Gold also says Spurs could now swoop for this ‘incredible’ colossus, find out more here.

A big Rangers transfer development has emerged over their interest in signing a young Scottish prospect…

What’s the talk?

According to the Scottish Daily Express, Gio van Bronckhorst is plotting a six-figure bid to sign Aberdeen diamond Lancelot Pollard this summer.

The report claims that they want to get a deal done quickly to avoid missing out on him as he is attracting interest from south of the border.

Liverpool and Manchester United are both said to be keen on the young talent, with Jurgen Klopp’s side holding an ‘active’ interest in him. It remains to be seen whether either side are willing to join Rangers in making a bid for his services.

Supporters will be excited

The supporters will surely be excited by this news as it shows that the club are attempting to snap up future stars to improve their academy.

Fans will be delighted that Ross Wilson and the head coach have an eye on developing the youth ranks at Ibrox as well as making additions to strengthen the first team. They will want to see a blend of experience and youth come through the door in the summer to bolster van Bronckhorst’s team now and in the years to come.

The likes of Leon King and Alex Lowry have made their way through to the senior side this season after impressing in the academy, whilst Nathan Patterson was sold for a club-record fee in January to Premier League side Everton.

This highlights the value in maximising the potential of the B team. Not only can Rangers develop players, like Lowry, who can break into the team to make an impact for the Gers but they can also find gems who they can sell on for a huge profit in the future.

Therefore, attempting to sign Pollard will excite the fans as he could be a player who goes on to be a huge success at Ibrox in the years to come. Although, there is very little data available on him so it is difficult to judge whether or not he will be able to make it in Glasgow.

However, the youngster must be catching the eye for Aberdeen as he is now a sought-after talent, which suggests that he has shown great potential with his performances this season in the youth ranks.

AND in other news, Body blow: Van Bronckhorst now set for huge Rangers disaster over £27k-p/w “rock”…