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Rangers are set to table an improved offer for Oldham Athletic defender George Edmundson, according to The Scottish Sun.

What’s the story?

The Ibrox side have been pursuing the 21-year-old for a while now, reportedly having a bid rejected earlier this week.

Steven Gerrard though appears intent on landing his man, with The Scottish Sun believing they are set to offer Oldham an improved deal in an effort to beat English clubs also keen on signing the defender.

Edmundson’s situation has changed since the last Rangers offer, say the paper, with the player rejecting a new long-term offer to stay with the League Two outfit.

Potential first-team player?

Given that the defender has never played above the fourth-tier in England it would be easy to think that Rangers would be interested in him as a player for the future to be developed, rather than a player for the first-team right now.

Clearly though the recruitment team at Ibrox rate him highly if they are coming back for a second bid, hinting that Gerrard sees him as a firm part of his plans next season.

With Joe Worrall heading back to Nottingham Forest and Gareth MacAuley’s contract expiring there is certainly room for the player, but the Gers’ reported insistence on getting to deal done suggests he could be a regular.

Should Nikola Katic be worried?

Connor Goldson is clearly Gerrard’s prime pick in the centre of defence, that was clear throughout the 2018/19 season. His defensive partner was changed multiple times though, with little success.

Nikola Katic started the season as a regular before being displaced by loanee Worrall, not winning his place back in the side until towards the end of the season when the Forest man was on the verge of an exit.

Gerrard appears to have some question marks when it comes to the Croatian and the presence of Edmundson could put his place in the team at risk again.

Ultimately the competition will benefit Rangers as a club, but Katic will need to hit the ground running next season or risks having another frustrating campaign.

أعلن الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم “FIFA”، عن الأهداف المرشحة لجائزة بوشكاش 2020، والتي سيحصل عليها الفائز في حفل توزيع جوائز الأفضل في 2020.

وكان الاتحاد الدولي قد ألغى حفلته لتوزيع جوائز الأفضل لهذا العام بسبب تفشي فيروس كورونا، قبل أن يتراجع عن القرار ويعلن عن إقامة الحفل بمدينة زيورخ 17 ديسمبر المقبل.

طالع أيضًا.. قائمة المرشحين لجائزة أفضل لاعب في العالم 2020

وضمت القائمة 11 هدفا للمنافسة على جائزة الأفضل في 2020، وسيتم الإعلان عن الفائز من خلال تصويت الجماهير عبر موقع الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم. قائمة الأهداف المرشحة لجائزة بوشكاش 2020

هدف الكوستاريكية شيرلي كروز

هدف الأوروجوياني دي أراسكايتا

هدف الإنجليزي جوردان فلوريد

هدف الفرنس أندريه بير جينياك

هدف الويلزية صوفي أنجيل

هدف النمساوي زلاتكو يونوزوفيتش

هدف الجنوب إفريقي هلومفو كيكانا

هدف الكوري الجنوبي، سون هيونج مين

هدف الكولومبي، ليونيل كوينيز

هدف الأوروجوياني، لويس سواريز

هدف الأسكتلندية، كارولين وير 

🏆 Nominees: FIFA #Puskás Award

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🇦🇹 Zlatko Junuzović
🇿🇦 Hlompho Kekana
🇰🇷 Son Heungmin
🇪🇨 Leonel Quiñónez
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🗳️ VOTE NOW 👉 https://t.co/gI6ctiog35 pic.twitter.com/mCXgcWs91r

— FIFA.com (@FIFAcom) November 25, 2020

Spurs need to add depth to their squad this summer, and if they sign Ryan Sessegnon then Danny Rose might be pushed back despite his solid season.

The Evening Standard have reported that Spurs are interested in the Fulham full-back and it’s no surprise considering the potential he’s shown over the last two seasons. Despite his club’s relegation, he’s proved he has the ability to make it to the top.

Danny Rose has been excellent too, playing 26 games this season despite being marred with injuries previously. He’s 28-years-old and is in his prime, so Mauricio Pochettino doesn’t need to replace him. He needs competition and Sessegnon will do more than just that.

The Englishman has been likened to Marcelo and Bale by the way he’s able to shoot up and down the left. His 35 games for Fulham this season show he’s capable of putting in these performances at the highest level consistently. Sounds pretty good, right?

Imagine that in the stunning new stadium. Shivers.

The England U21 international produced six assists and scored two goals in the Premier League this season, but expect that to shoot up if he moves to Spurs where he’ll be playing alongside some world-class players. Indeed, he’d soon push Rose out of the way and will establish himself as the man for the big occasion.

He’s just 18-years-old and he’s rated at £31.5m by Transfermarkt, so would demand a hefty fee, but it’d be a long-term signing and could ensure Spurs keep themselves at the top level for the next 10 years. He’s a decade younger than Rose and it’s time for a changing of the guard.

Spurs fans, who do you think will be first-choice left-back next season? Join the discussion by commenting below.

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The Mirror are suggesting that Mauricio Pochettino is planning to use Tottenham Hotspur’s UEFA Champions League earnings to seal the signing of James Maddison from Leicester City this summer.

The tricky English attacking midfielder burst onto the scene with Norwich City last season before a summer 2018 move to the King Power Stadium saw the 22-year-old notch up seven goals and seven assists in the Premier League, while creating an incredible 100 chances.

Pochettino is one of the best in the world when it comes to developing promising young talents and while Maddison’s progression at Leicester has hardly been limited, it does seem like a match made in heaven considering the midfielder is already producing the goods at Premier League level.

In light of this and the recent speculation, we asked some of Football FanCast’s writers whether Spurs should swoop for Maddison during the summer transfer window. Here’s a look at what they had to say…

Christy Malyan 

“Maddison’s clearly a very promising talent but he’s a very selfish player too. There have been countless opportunities this season when he’s wasted chances by electing to shoot himself rather than use team-mates. Tie in the fact Leicester will want a massive fee after signing him only a year ago and the amount of players we’ve seen take the Premier League by storm before petering out, Spurs should give it another year before making a move.”

Harry Sherlock 

“Maddison is an excellent playmaker and would fill a rather large Christian Eriksen-sized hole if the Dane heads to Real Madrid. If he doesn’t, Maddison isn’t likely to get all that much game time, though, so his future has to be tied to Eriksen’s. As a like-for-like replacement, he would be an excellent acquisition and would put a number of concerns to bed almost instantly.”

James Beavis

“Yes they should, and Tottenham must regret not going for him 12 months ago. It was clear to see with his performances for Norwich City that Maddison was capable of making the step up to the Premier League successfully, and so it proved for Leicester City in the 2018/19 campaign. The 22-year-old is capable of creating chances galore – Harry Kane would thrive on his service – and takes a mean set piece. The only issue for Spurs could be his valuation, as Leicester will likely demand a huge fee for the attacker.”

The play-offs are a very unforgiving competition, aren’t they?

Having achieved a third-place finish in the Championship under Marcelo Bielsa in the regular season, the Whites looked almost certain to book their place at Wembley Stadium on May 27th after winning the first leg of their semi-final against Derby County 1-0 last Saturday.

Yet the Rams had other ideas.

Boosted by the news that Kemar Roofe would be absent from the return clash at Elland Road, Frank Lampard’s side took the game to their opponents last night by deploying an attacking formation that ultimately paid dividends.

Although Stuart Dallas managed to fire in a fantastic brace for Leeds, a double from Jack Marriot combined with goals from Mason Mount and Harry Wilson secured a famous 4-2 victory for Derby who are now just 90 minutes away from the Premier League.

Whereas the East Midlands-based outfit’s key players stepped to the mark in their biggest match of the season to date, the same cannot be said for Patrick Bamford.

Brought in as a replacement for Roofe, the forward had the chance to justify why the Whites splashed out £7.11m (via Transfermarkt) to bring him to Elland Road from Middlesbrough last summer.

Yet with the pressure to deliver proving too much for Bamford, he produced a shocking performance against Derby in which he offered very little up-front for his side.

Already on thin ice with Bielsa after picking up a two-game ban for deceiving an official in Leeds’ 1-1 draw against Aston Villa last month, the fact that the 25-year-old was booked for diving by Anthony Taylor during Wednesday’s clash suggests that he hasn’t learned his lesson at all.

With Bamford’s lack of discipline costing the Whites in recent weeks, it may be time for the club to consider cutting ties with the forward if they are to bounce back next season.

Having only managed to fire in a measly total of nine goals in the Championship during the 2018/19 campaign, it is obvious that the former Chelsea ace is simply not good enough to lead a club to promotion with his latest failure being the fourth time he has failed in the play-offs in his career.

If Bielsa can offload him in the summer, the Argentine could use the money gained from a sale to make some much-needed improvements to his squad.

What do you think Leeds fans? Would you be happy to see Bamford leave Elland Road following his recent antics? Can your side bounce back from their play-off heartbreak in the 2019/20 campaign? Let us know below.

Steven Gerrard and company won’t have enjoyed the half an hour journey back from Rugby Park after losing 2-1 to Kilmarnock on Sunday. The loss meant that the Gers have taken just two points out of a possible 12 off of the Ayrshire side this season, although that might have been three from 12 had Borna Barisic not given away a silly penalty late on.

Whilst the game had a dead-rubber feel about it, if anything, it served as a reminder as to why Barisic has been in and out, but mostly out of the side this season. The Croatian full-back only signed at Ibrox last summer after impressing against the Gers for NK Osijek in a Europa League qualifier, but the £1.8 million man, as valued by Transfermarkt, has been woeful for the most part this season.

The 26-year-old is just one of the many reasons why Gerrard has struggled at left-back this season. With both Barisic and Jon Flanagan flopping, Lee Wallace spending most of the season in the solitary confinement he’s seemingly been in since last season’s episode with Graeme Murty and Andy Halliday a midfielder by trade, you can see why these problems have surfaced.

Barisic’s short time in Glasgow hasn’t been memorable at all, and it’s probably best that he bows out like that. The only way that the Ibrox faithful are in danger of having lasting memories of the Croatian is by way of some massive blunder. We’re yet to see anything from the full-back to suggest that he can prove otherwise, and as that’s the case Gerrard should get rid and bring in a more capable defender.

Whether or not Gerrard does go out this summer and targets a left-back is still to be seen, but whilst they continue to limp through with Barisic, Flanagan and Halliday holding down the fort on the left of the back four their title dream will remain just that. Should the issue be addressed next season then hopes will be boosted, but for now, shipping off Barisic is key as the silly season approaches thick and fast.

Rangers fans, have you had enough of Borna Barisic? Comment below!

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Harry Kane has delighted Tottenham Hotspur fans by declaring himself fit to play in the Champions League final this weekend, per The Guardian.

Spurs face Liverpool in Madrid on Saturday as they bid to win the competition for the first time in their history.

Kane, of course, has not featured for the club since their first leg win over Manchester City at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, having sustained ankle ligament damage during a clash with Fabian Delph.

He subsequently missed the dramatic away goals triumph over City at the Etihad Stadium prior to the miraculous comeback against Ajax in the Netherlands.

Kane, however, insists that he is ready to go for the biggest game in Spurs’ history.

He said: “If the final was tomorrow, I would be fit to play. I feel good. I’m back [training] with the team and there have been no problems so far. I’ve been in full training, doing everything. I’m at a place now where I’m ready to go for any game. The manager will assess it and decide. But so far I feel good and ready.”

And fans have been left thrilled by the news, though it remains to be seen if Mauricio Pochettino will choose to start the England captain after such a long period out.

Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

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Celtic fans were surprised to see Oliver Burke make such a big contribution to Scotland on Saturday after he came off the bench to score the winner in a 2-1 victory over Cyprus at Hampden.

Scotland badly needed all three points to kick off the Steve Clarke era with a bit of positive momentum and just a few minutes from time it looked like the European visitors had managed to sneak a draw.

They equalised late in the game after Andy Robertson’s superb opener, with Scotland fans bracing themselves for another embarrassing qualifying result.

Keith from C’mon the Hoops fondly remembers a true Celtic cult hero in the video below…

Burke though had other ideas, leaping like a salmon to head a hopeful cross onto the post, which luckily bounced right into his path on the rebound.

He couldn’t miss an open goal finish as Hampden erupted on the brink of victory with just one minute remaining.

It wasn’t the most sublime of efforts, which saw many Celtic fans joking if he’d been wearing green and white he might have still missed it.

The West Brom man endured a difficult few months on loan at the Hoops last season, failing to impress fans on a consistent basis.

These supporters took to Twitter over the weekend to share their thoughts on his international effort…

أعلن المدير الفني للفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي ريال مدريد، زين الدين زيدان، عن تشكيل اللاعبين لمواجهة إنتر ميلان في الجولة الرابعة من دور المجموعات لبطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا.

وتنطلق المباراة في تمام الساعة العاشرة مساءً بتوقيت “القاهرة” على ملعب “جوسيبي مياتزا” بقيادة الحكم الإنجليزي الدولي، أنتوني تايلور.

وشهد التشكيل غياب الثنائي، سيرجيو راموس وكريم بنزيما، للإصابة العضلية، مع تواجد كاسيميرو العائد من إصابته بفيروس كورونا على مقاعد البدلاء.

اقرأ أيضًا.. وكيل راموس يثير التكهنات بشأن تجديد عقده مع ريال مدريد

وجاء التشكيل الرسمي لنادي ريال مدريد كما أعلن على “تويتر” كالتالي:

حراسة المرمى: كورتوا.

الدفاع: ميندي، فاران، ناتشو، كارفاخال.

الوسط: كروس، مودريتش، أوديجارد.

الهجوم: هازارد، ماريانو، فاسكيز.

ويجلس على مقاعد البدلاء كلاً من: لونين، ألتوبي، أسينسيو، مارسيلو، كاسيميرو، فينيسيو، إيسكو، رودريجو، تشست، هوجو دورو.

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Tottenham Hotspur are lining up a move for Real Madrid midfielder Dani Ceballos this summer, per El Des Marque.

What’s the word?

Ceballos, primarily a central midfielder who can also play on the left flank, has enjoyed a productive season at Santiago Bernabeu, making 34 appearances in all competitions and scoring three goals.

However, new boss Zinedine Zidane has barely utilised the 22-year-old; he was not included in the squad for the final three games of the Liga season, against Villarreal, Real Sociedad and Real Betis.

He is subsequently likely to leave this summer, with Spurs listed as the “main player” in negotiations; they are reported to be willing to pay up to €50million (£44m) to secure his signature.

This news comes, of course, amid reports that Real are keen to sign Christian Eriksen from Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

A bargaining chip

Spurs could come out of this whole saga with a new midfielder and a bucketload of cash if they play their cards right.

Eriksen, it seems, is poised to move to the Spanish capital, following in the footsteps of Luka Modric and Gareth Bale by swapping north London for Madrid.

But Spurs’ interest in Ceballos adds a layer of intrigue and chairman Daniel Levy could insist on receiving the midfielder in part-exchange.

That gives him the high ground in negotiations; Real would surely like to reduce his asking price for Eriksen, which is reported to stand at over £100m, and they are unlikely to stand in the under-utilised star’s way if he wants to make the move to England.

If Real add some cash on top, Spurs will have the funds to reinvest in other areas of the squad and they will have strengthened their midfield, essentially, for nothing.