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According to The Glasgow Times journalist Chris Jack, Rangers manager Steven Gerrard is hoping to complete the signing of Joey Veerman within the next two weeks.

The Lowdown: Season fast approaching

After winning the Premiership last term without losing a single game (thefishy.co.uk), the Gers are going into the new campaign looking to defend their title while also reaching the Champions League group stage.

So far, they have made two new signings in the form of Fashion Sakala (rangers.co.uk) and John Lundstram, and Gerrard will no doubt want to add one or two more fresh faces before the window slams shut.

The Latest: Gerrard wants Veerman

As per Jack, Gerrard is a fan of Veerman and wants to get a deal completed before the season kicks off in a couple of weeks.

The report says the deal could cost the Ibrox outfit up to £7m.

The Verdict: Time is of the essence

Gerrard will be hoping to get any new signings, including Veerman, through the Ibrox doors as soon as possible. While the transfer window is open until the end of August, it is not ideal to try and bring in new players when the campaign is already underway.

The midfielder is clearly a key target for Gerrard, with his nine goals and 11 assists last term in all competitions (Transfermarkt) illustrating his attacking prowess. It remains to be seen whether the 55-time Scottish champions can get a deal over the line for Veerman.

In other news, Rangers fans are livid at this pre-season news.

Swansea City are interested in a deal to bring Neco Williams to the Liberty Stadium this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by TEAMtalk, who claim that Steve Cooper’s side, along with a host of other Championship and Premier League clubs, are interested in taking the Liverpool right-back on a season-long loan deal in the upcoming transfer window.

It is reported that, at present, Jurgen Klopp is unsure whether or not he would be willing to part with the 20-year-old ahead of next season, however, if he eventually does sanction the temporary departure of the £7.2m-rated man, it seems like he will not be short of suitors.

Cooper must move

Having been thrown into an injury-ravaged Liverpool side at times last season, Williams turned in a number of impressive performances for the Reds in particularly challenging circumstances.

Over his six appearances in the Premier League, the defender made an average of one interception, one tackle and 0.5 key passes per game, with these returns seeing Williams earn an overall seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.66.

The £7.9k-per-week man also impressed over his four fixtures in the Champions League, providing one assist and creating two big chances, as well as making an average of 1.5 interceptions, 1.8 tackles and 0.5 key passes per game, seeing him average a highly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.13.

As such, it would very much appear as if Williams could be an excellent addition to Cooper’s Swansea side ahead of their upcoming Championship campaign, in which the 41-year-old will undoubtedly be aiming to go one step further than the Swans’ play-off final appearance this season by securing promotion to the Premier League.

However, with a whole host of clubs interested in the Welsh international, whom Ryan Giggs once dubbed an “outstanding” talent, Cooper should move sooner rather than later for the right-back, or else he risks missing out on the signing to one of the Swans’ Championship rivals.

In other news: Alan Nixon drops massive Swansea City update which is sure to leave fans buzzing

As Tottenham Hotspur are set to hand a big role to sporting director Fabio Paratici, journalist Jack Pitt-Brooke of the Athletic has dropped an exciting behind the scenes claim involving the 48-year-old (Twitter).

The Lowdown: Paratici and Spurs…

Reports last week heavily linked the Italian with a role on Tottenham’s board amid all the noise surrounding talks with former Inter Milan boss Antonio Conte.

Both men have worked together closely in the past at Juventus, and while Spurs couldn’t get Conte through the door, Paratici is set to land a big role at the Lilywhites.

The Latest: Athletic journalist drops exciting Paratici claim

Indeed, Pitt-Brooke has explained on social media that Paratici will oversee all footballing decisions and ‘especially’ Spurs’ search for a new manager.

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As well as this, there is apparently huge confidence behind the scenes at Spurs in the chief’s ability to run and operate an efficient football club.

“Fabio Paratici on his way in to Spurs. Will be handed a big role overseeing all football decisions, especially the new head coach,” said Pitt-Brooke (via Twitter).

“Expectations are high inside Tottenham that Paratici’s networking and negotiating skills will help the club, that he will add more football expertise to the ‘Football Board’, and that he will drive up standards (which have slipped) across the board. Big job to step into!”

The Verdict: Interesting times ahead…

News that Paratici will be overseeing more of the footballing decision-making as an alternative to chairman Daniel Levy must surely come as exciting for Spurs fans.

Tottenham will now revert back to the sporting director model and the most interesting aspect of this development could be that Paratici will now be heavily involved in the manager hunt, something that has been hectic to say the least under Levy’s leadership.

Pitt-Brooke’s claim that there is much optimism inside the club could at least fill Spurs fans with confidence that he may make an informed and educated decision, rather than the scattergun approach which has seen countless names linked in the media over the last few weeks.

In other news: Paratici has his eyes on this ‘top class’ player for Spurs, find out more here.

Flocking to Twitter, many Sunderland fans voiced their criticism for Lynden Gooch following his display in their penalty shoot out loss to Bradford City on Tuesday night.

The Black Cats did just enough to reach the knockout rounds of the EFL trophy, topping Group F, after drawing 1-1 in normal time to Bradford – but the game went to penalties anyway to decide an overall victor.

Lee Johnson’s side have secured a home tie for the next round by topping their group, with Nathan Broadhead’s strike earning the solitary point needed after Bradford’s Theo Robinson opened the scoring.

Even though they got the job done, Sunderland have also extended their winless run of games to six on the trot with their last victory coming away to Crewe Alexandra in mid-October.

Both Alex Pritchard and Gooch saw their penalties saved by the travelling side after normal time as Bradford clinched the shoot-out win – with many supporters taking aim at the latter man in particular.

While squandering his penalty in the shoot-out, Gooch was also ranked among Sunderland’s lowest performers on the night according to SofaScore – coming in as the joint-fifth worst starter with a 6.9 rating.

His overall evening also proved a sloppy one with the 25-year-old completing just 2/7 crosses, 4/11 long balls and losing possession a seismic 32 times – as well as getting booked (SofaScore).

Taking these numbers into account, and the fact Gooch saw his spot-kick saved, it’s little wonder supporters weren’t impressed.

Find all of their verdicts from Twitter down below.

Sunderland fans slam Gooch…

“And, surprise, surprise, he got himself booked. Again. I can’t remember the last game he played when he wasn’t booked. His quality of play is awful and his decision-making is worse. Johnson’s blue-eyed boy though. Unlike Embleton.”

Credit: @Boshanko

“No qualms with him missing a pen, especially in the most pointless shootout ever, but his performance even out of position was shocking, simple things. His attitude to storm off the pitch while everyone else remained to clap, disgusting.

Credit: @davis0688

“Truly is a frustrating footballer. The way he’s regressed in recent years is mind blowing. Went from being arguably one of the best in the league to one of the most unreliable in the squad.”

Credit: @SpeakSAFC

“Should never pull the shirt on ever again. Absolute waste of space”

Credit: @1879SAFC

“The WORST player on the pitch…”

Credit: @Casual7Observer

“How gooch gets a game is beyond me”

Credit: @fonz1971

“How’s he still here”

Credit: @RobsonEll

Liverpool have surprisingly been offered the chance to sign Samuel Umtiti this summer, with Barcelona deeming him surplus to requirements.

The Reds are surely looking to bring in at least one centre-back this summer, following a disastrous time of things in that area this season.

Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip have all missed a huge chunk of the campaign, with the latter pair continuing to be injury-prone figures.

Ibrahima Konate looks like being Liverpool’s primary target in the centre of defence, but a fresh rumour has emerged seemingly out of nowhere.

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Liverpool offered chance to sign Umtiti

According to Anfield Central, the Reds have been given the chance to sign the Barcelona defender, who scored France’s goal in the 2018 World Cup semi-final win over Belgium.

Liverpool aren’t interested in at the moment, however, with Manchester City, Manchester United, Juventus, Lille and Lyon also believed to have been offered Umtiti for as little as £6million.

Transfer Tavern take

At 27, Umtiti is still at a good age for a centre-back, but he has had big injury problems of his own, so we feel it would be a massive shock for Liverpool to follow through on this one.

Indeed, since joining Barcelona in 2016, the World Cup winner has suffered 11 different injury issues, six of which were knee problems, which does not sound like that type of player the Reds want after what has happened this campaign.

On top of that, Van Dijk is the undisputed first-choice starter in the left-sided berth, meaning the left footed Frenchman would have to settle for a squad role.

Considering Umtiti would likely demands high wages, too – he is currently on £208,000 per week – it is a transfer not worth considering.

In other news, Liverpool’s move for Ibrahima Konate is set to depend on two key factors. Read more here.

Former Leeds United midfielder Carlton Palmer can still see Dan James leaving Manchester United this summer despite Marcus Rashford undergoing surgery on his shoulder.

The England forward is now set for a spell on the sidelines, meaning Ole Gunnar Solskjaer may need James to play a bigger role at the start of the season.

James is the subject of long-term interest from Leeds, with The Athletic’s Phil Hay claiming that Marcelo Bielsa tried to bring him to Elland Road before the capture of Raphinha.

The Argentine is said to still have an interest in the player, and Palmer is refusing to rule out a transfer to Leeds this summer.

Asked by FFC if Rashford’s shoulder surgery had scuppered the Whites’ chances of landing James in this transfer window, the retired England international said:

“I don’t think so. I don’t think it’s a problem for him to let him go. He’s made a lot of signings this summer, so he’s been pushed down the pecking order.

“I did my shoulder on the last day of the season, dislocated. I had it pinned and I was back for the first game of the season, so I don’t think Rashford is going to be out for months and months on end.”

It remains to be seen whether Leeds’ interest materialises into anything in this transfer window. But if they got James, they would obviously be signing a winger who would bring so much pace to the side.

“I’d put myself top,” the Wales international said earlier this year when discussing who the fastest player at Old Trafford is.

West Ham United’s centre-back hunt has returned to a familiar name this week…

What’s the word?

According to Get French Football News, the Irons are set to restart talks to sign Marseille colossus Duje Caleta-Car before the transfer deadline on August 31st.

It comes after David Moyes and co were dealt a devastating blow in their attempts to secure Kurt Zouma from Chelsea, with the Frenchman said to have rejected a switch to the London Stadium.

The Hammers have long been linked with the 16-cap Croatian international and back in October, the Guardian claimed that he had turned down the chance to sign for West Ham as they couldn’t offer him European football.

Obviously, that has now changed.

Moyes clearly likes him

If Moyes has been tracking Caleta-Car for that long, then it’s time for GSB to press ahead and sanction the transfer. Whilst it remains to be seen exactly how much he’d cost, ExWHUemployee believes he’d be available for just £15m.

That could be a bargain considering CIES Football Observatory currently value him at €20m (£18m).

Described as “very physical” and “really big” by GFFN’s Adam White, the 6 foot 4 centre-back would give the Scot a massive presence in the heart of midfield, especially alongside another imposing beast like Angelo Ogbonna.

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The 24-year-old started 32 matches for Marseille in Ligue 1 last season, where he won an average of 2.5 aerial duels per game, reinforcing just how commanding he can be. He also managed 1.3 interceptions, 3.9 clearances and an impressive passing accuracy of just over 86%, via WhoScored.

It’s clear that Caleta-Car isn’t just a physical specimen but one that is rather intelligent and one that is capable of playing with the ball at his feet. He may also lack pace but he evidently makes up for it, having averaged more interceptions than Ogbonna (1.1), Issa Diop (1.2) and Aaron Cresswell (0.9).

The Croatian livewire also has a ruthless streak in him, having picked up 47 yellow cards and four red cards across 221 appearances for both the Ligue 1 outfit and his former club RB Salzburg.

Caleta-Car has even been tipped to become a success in England one day by his international teammate, ex-Liverpool star Dejan Lovren.

“In my opinion, Duje could easily play in England. He is physically very strong, stronger than other players. He will explode in a few years and become even stronger,” he claimed to La Provence.

After the blow to Zouma, GSB could do little wrong in sanctioning a move for the 24-year-old defender. He’d be a steal at that price.

AND in other news, David Moyes receives huge West Ham boost as significant Rush Green development emerges…

With the likes of Pedro Neto and Daniel Podence set to miss a particularly large chunk of pre-season, Wolves will need to bolster their forward line this summer.

The Portuguese duo are creative and canny operators on their day, a breed of player which has been synonymous with Nuno Espirito Santo since he arrived in the Midlands in 2017.

With that in mind, a similar addition should be on the cards.

What’s the word?

Wolves have been interested in signing Valencia attacker Goncalo Guedes for a few months now. Earlier this year, it was reported that they were attempting to hijack West Ham’s ploy to sign him once the summer rolled around.

Indeed, it would appear the Molineux outfit are now towards the front of the queue for his signature after a fresh report emerged on the 24-year-old’s future this week.

AS claimed (via Sport Witness) that Wolves intend to buy Guedes when the window opens, but they now face competition from Sevilla, who are willing to put €20m (£17.2m) on the table in order to lure him away from the Mestalla.

Podence upgrade

Guedes ticks all of the boxes for a Jeff Shi signing – he’s Portuguese, a client of Jorge Mendes and he’s a diminutive winger.

There is a lot more to his game than that, however.

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Described as an “unpredictable” player by former Ballon d’Or winner Luis Figo, the forward has a tendency to blow hot and cold, but he has had a storming end to the season with Valencia as he made a late surge to be included in the Portugal squad for the upcoming European Championships.

Guedes has scored seven goals this term, taking his Valencia tally to 23, and has provided seven assists for his colleagues. The vast majority of those chance creations have come in recent months.

During Valencia’s 4-1 win over Eibar last weekend, he scored twice and also registered an assist. That took his tally in the last ten games to five assists and three goals.

The Portugal international really looks to have hit his stride at the moment, which is more than can be said for Podence, who has had an injury-hit campaign in England but has still not provided regular numbers when afforded the opportunity to play.

If we compare the two players, Guedes has produced more key passes and dribbles per game, while he has also been fouled on a more regular basis.

It’s the number of take-ons where there is the greatest disparity. The Wolves transfer target has registered 2.1 dribbles per match this season, while Podence has managed 1.6 per game.

Consider the fact that the Old Gold attacker has only set up two goals in 2020/21 and things look even worse for him. Nuno would duly be making a wise addition by bringing Guedes to Molineux.

AND in other news, Wolves can seal their best signing since Neto with move for “exceptional” 31-goal gem…

An update has emerged on Rangers and Gio van Bronckhorst’s attempts to bring a new striker to Ibrox this month…

What’s the talk?

According to TEAMtalk, the Gers are eyeing up a deal to sign an attacker in the January transfer window.

The report claims that Rangers, Norwich, Newcastle and Crystal Palace are among the clubs interested in signing the QPR centre-forward, Lyndon Dykes, although it remains to be seen how much the west London outfit will demand for his services.

Get it done

Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Ross Wilson must get this deal done for Rangers this month, as Dykes could be a superb signing and improve their current options.

The Gers are not blessed with an abundance of physical players who are capable of mixing it up in individual duels against better teams. This is highlighted by Leon Balogun being the only Light Blues player who has won more than 1.8 aerial battles per game in the Europa League this season, whilst Joe Aribo (2.1) is the only midfielder or attacker averaging more than two per game in the Premiership.

Meanwhile, Dykes has won  4.3 aerial battles per game in the Championship this term for QPR, having averaged 4.8 last season. This shows that he offers a physical presence in the number nine role which Van Bronckhorst is currently lacking in his squad.

Scotland boss Steve Clarke previously lauded the attacker, saying: “Lyndon’s a confident lad and so he should be. He knows what he wants.

“He’s not a big-head, he’s nothing like that. He’s done the hard yards in football, from Queen of the South to Livingston and he’s earned himself a fantastic move to London. It’ll be nice to watch him in the Championship next season.

“He’s going to be working with a really good coach in Mark Warburton so Lyndon can only improve now for his club and hopefully his country as well.”

The £3.15m-rated bulldozer has also proven that he can score goals regularly. He has found the back of the net 18 times for QPR since the start of the 2020/21 campaign and has scored four goals in six starts for Scotland in World Cup qualifiers.

Therefore, he could add goals to go along with the physical boost with which he could provide Rangers. This is why the Light Blues must work hard to secure his services this month.

AND in other news, Van Bronckhorst must ruthlessly axe £900k-rated Rangers dud, he’s a “weak link”…

Hopes for Boli Bolingoli will have been high at Celtic upon his £3m arrival at Parkhead back in 2019, with the Hoops subsequently selling first-choice left-back Kieran Tierney in the same transfer window.

Indeed, the defender had impressed over his 25 Bundesliga appearances for Rapid Vienna in the season prior, scoring two goals, registering two assists and helping his side keep eight clean sheets in the league, as well as making an average of two interceptions, 1.4 tackles, 1.2 clearances and winning 4.4 duels per game.

However, after making a mere 14 Scottish Premiership appearances in his debut campaign, things took a further turn for the worst for Bolingoli last season, when the left-back travelled to Spain without informing Celtic, as well as breaking quarantine restrictions on his return to Scotland.

This led to the left-back receiving a three-match ban from the Scottish FA, while Neil Lennon also took the decision to bomb the former Belgian U16 international out of his squad, with the club labelling his actions as “irresponsible” and the Northern Irishman sending him on loan to Istanbul Basaksehir for the duration of 2020/21.

In Turkey, the £12.5k-per-week man also failed to impress over his 12 Super Lig appearances, helping his side keep just two clean sheets, as well as making an average of 1.5 interceptions, 1.8 tackles, 0.9 clearances and winning 3.6 duels per fixture.

These returns saw the 26-year-old average a disappointing seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.74, ranking him as Basaksehir’s 17th-worst performer in the Turkish top flight.

And, while Bolingoli has featured once for Celtic under the new leadership of Ange Postecoglou, the defender has been left out of the Celtic squad for the majority of their games this season, suggesting that the future does not look overly bright for the left-back at Parkhead.

Further still, as a result of this lack of game time over the past two seasons, Bolingoli’s value has plummeted from £3.15m at the time of his move to Scotland to just £1.98m today – meaning that, should Postecoglou wish to move the Belgian on any time soon, he will almost certainly have to take a loss in the transaction.

As such, with the benefit of hindsight, it would have to be said that Celtic’s former chief executive Peter Lawwell had something of a nightmare when signing Bolingoli back in 2019.

In other news: Forget Rogic: Ange could save Celtic millions by unleashing “fantastic” teen prodigy