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Carlton Palmer has offered his opinion on whether or not James Ward-Prowse would be interested in joining Aston Villa…

What’s the talk?

The former Premier League midfielder has suggested that the Southampton captain would be tempted by a switch to Aston Villa this summer. Dean Smith is reportedly keen on snapping the England international up in the coming weeks and Palmer believes that they are a club he would like to join.

The former England international told Football FanCast: “If you’re being linked to Aston Villa, it’s an exciting time. It’s a young team with a great management team in Dean Smith and John Terry. It’s a club you’d want to go and join.

“He loves Southampton but if you’re ambitious, you want to go on and be the best you can. He’ll want to claim international honours and that’s only going to happen if you’re playing for a strong side.”

Lange must strike

Johan Lange must strike and pounce on any potential doubts in Ward-Prowse’s desire to stay at Southampton this summer. If there is even the slightest suggestion that the midfielder could be convinced to ditch the Saints and join Villa, Lange must explore every possible avenue to bring him to the Midlands, as he could be a terrific addition to Smith’s squad.

Ward-Prowse is a proven Premier League-quality midfielder who is heading into the peak of his career at the age of 26. He has played more than 250 games in the English top flight and has averaged a WhoScored rating of 6.87 or higher in each of the past three campaigns, exceeding 7.06 in two of them. This shows that he has the consistency and ability to be a top player at this level, and that is why Villa would benefit from his arrival.

Saints manager Ralph Hasenhuttl lauded Ward-Prowse as “outstanding” at the end of last season as the midfield maestro was named the club’s Player of the Year for his impressive efforts throughout the campaign.

The Austrian told the Daily Echo: “It’s not surprising for me, a player who played every minute this season is unbelievable.

“His physicality and his performances are outstanding. That’s our captain on the pitch and he is on the way that he is a very important player for this club for the long term, I think.”

John McGinn managed the highest WhoScored rating out of all of Villa’s central midfielders last term with a score of 6.88. Douglas Luiz, his main midfield partner, achieved a rating of 6.67 and comparing them to Ward-Prowse highlights the improvement the Saints skipper would bring to the side. The £75,000-per-week beast earned an eye-catching 7.07 rating whilst scoring eight goals and setting up another seven, which is more than McGinn and Luiz combined.

Therefore, he could provide a significant step-up in regards to Smith’s central midfield options. This is why Lange must pursue a deal for the Southampton man and do all that he can to prise him away from St Mary’s ahead of next season.

AND in other news, Aston Villa must act swiftly to sign £40m beast, he’s “Drogba-esque”…

Arsenal’s search for a new playmaker has taken an interesting twist this week…

What’s the word?

According to Goal.com’s Charles Watts, Leicester City star James Maddison has emerged as a target, with the Gunners interested in his signature but his £60m price tag could prove troublesome.

It’s thought that bringing Martin Odegaard back from Real Madrid has always been a priority and whilst that still isn’t out of the question, Watts says that talks with parent club Real Madrid have left the North Londoners feeling that they will have to look elsewhere.

Forget Odegaard

If technical director Edu Gaspar and the rest of the Emirates Stadium hierarchy can find a way to make this deal happen, then they can forget about signing Odegaard.

Maddison has been one of the most consistent attacking midfielders in the Premier League in recent seasons, playing a big part in the Foxes’ monumental rise under Brendan Rodgers, in which they won the FA Cup this season.

Injury blighted a lot of his 2020/21 campaign but the one-cap England international still delivered 11 goals and ten assists across all competitions, including strikes against Liverpool, Chelsea and Man City.

These returns were better than every single Arsenal midfielder combined. And he missed several months of the season.

In his 29 appearances in North London, the Madrid wonderkid only provided four direct goal contributions, averaging a goal or assist every 288 minutes in the Premier League alone, via Transfermarkt.

The £60m-rated Leicester dynamo also averaged 0.2 more key passes each outing than the Norway international too, so it’s not at all a bad thing if Mikel Arteta’s attentions were to turn elsewhere.

His manager Brendan Rodgers has frequently lauded him during their time together at the King Power, dubbing him everything from having “immense quality” to being “sensational.”

Whilst The Times’ chief football writer Henry Winter believes the 24-year-old maestro “has a special talent”.

If the Gunners want to fill their creative void, then ultimately, they should look no further than Maddison.

Arteta is, according to Football London’s Chris Wheatley, said to be “a huge fan” of his and that should be enough for Edu and the club to pull the trigger to get a deal done.

AND in other news, Edu must sanction Arsenal swoop for “very talented” £40m monster who’s “like Ozil”…

West Brom have registered their interest in Liverpool’s Harry Wilson, according to a report from The Athletic. 

The Reds are said to value the 24-year-old, who spent last season on loan at Cardiff City, at £13m. Benfica have already made an official approach for the Welshman, while newly-promoted Brentford are also in the hunt.

Wilson is ‘open to the idea’ of making a permanent exit from Anfield after being sent out on loan on five occasions. He has only made two senior competitive appearances for the Reds, most recently starting a Carabao Cup tie against Arsenal last autumn.

Pereira out, Wilson in at West Brom?

Wilson, who can play on either flank and in a central attacking midfield position, could potentially be a replacement for Matheus Pereira if the 25-year-old leaves The Hawthorns.

Pereira topped both the goals and assist rankings for the Baggies last season as they suffered relegation from the Premier League. A number of top-flight clubs are said to be monitoring the Brazilian.

Fan feed WBA Report relayed The Athletic’s news about the club’s reported interest in Wilson, and here’s what some fans made of it, with one calling the Welshman a “class player”.

West Brom fans urge the club to sign Harry Wilson

“Please to God let this be true. Phillips isn’t doing it for me anymore so this is a massive upgrade, young, agile and can make things happen”

Credit: @bryngill16

“I hope we can pull him in, will be good start to our rebuild”

Credit: @jamie11brennan

“Class player – seen him on loan at Derby & Cardiff, set piece specialist too”

Credit: @trussellgeorge

“Harry Wilson would be a good signing for WBA.”

Credit: @hammermatt1

“This would be a top signing. Get it done.”

Credit: @BiffyBoy1982

“I would definitely take him!”

Credit: @Welshyy21

In other news, West Brom are also keen on this 21-year-old.  

West Bromwich Albion have been handed a boost to their chances of keeping Sam Johnstone at The Hawthorns this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Claret & Hugh, who claimed that West Ham United’s reported interest in a move for the Baggies goalkeeper is wide of the mark, as David Moyes thought to be prioritising the signing of a centre-forward, a centre-back and making Jesse Lingard’s deal a permanent move this summer.

Meanwhile, the Watford Observer also reported that Watford are not interested in a move for the 28-year-old in the upcoming transfer window, despite numerous links with the player for who West Brom are believed to be demanding a fee of £20m to sell.

Fans will be delighted

Considering just how impressive Johnstone has been for West Brom since joining in a £6.62m move from Manchester United back in 2018, reports that the two clubs most heavily linked with a move for the goalkeeper no longer appear likely to make a move for him this summer is sure to delight Baggies fans.

Last season in particular, Johnstone was in remarkable form over his 37 Premier League appearances, helping his side to keep six clean sheets as well as averaging 4.5 saves and 0.4 successful runouts per game.

These returns saw the £28,000-per-week shot-stopper earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.03, ranking him as the Baggies’ second-best performer in the top flight last term, behind only Matheus Pereira.

As such, if West Brom are able to hang on to the ‘keeper who Sam Allardyce dubbed “magnificent” ahead of their upcoming Championship campaign, Albion’s chances of securing an immediate return to the Premier League would appear to be significantly increased, which should please everyone involved at The Hawthorns.

In other news: Major West Brom managerial update emerges which will have fans buzzing

A major update has emerged on one of Charlton’s reported targets Todd Kane, regarding QPR’s plans for him this summer.

What’s the talk?

According to West London Sport, QPR are preparing to axe Todd Kane from their squad this summer and there are clubs aware of his availability. QPR are attempting to sign Moses Odubajo on a free transfer from Sheffield Wednesday, which would then free Kane to depart from the club this summer.

The report claims QPR have not received any offers for Kane as of yet. Last month, London Football News reported that Charlton were one of three League One clubs interested in a deal for Kane, alongside Portsmouth and Sunderland.

Earlier this year, Kane was hit with a seven-game ban by The FA for allegedly discriminating against Brentford’s Sergi Canos due to his nationality. QPR issued a statement at the time, including this line on Kane falling below the standards the club sets:

“Todd knows this falls below the standards he sets for himself as well as the standards we set for our employees and is against the inclusive nature of the club.”

Sandgaard must avoid error

Charlton owner Thomas Sandgaard must avoid making an error by continuing to pass up on the opportunity to put a bid in for Kane. As the aforementioned reports stated, Charlton are interested in the former Chelsea man, but QPR are yet to receive any firm interest in his services. Sandgaard needs to make sure it stays that way from a Charlton perspective as signing Kane could be a mistake by the club.

The £7k-per-week dud has struggled big-time on the pitch.

Kane averaged a WhoScored rating of 6.51 in the season just gone for QPR, which is a slight improvement on the dismal 6.33 he managed in the previous campaign.

In the 2020/21 season, Kane failed to average a tackle or interception per game, with 0.8 and 0.7 of each defensive action per game respectively, which suggests that he was unable to make an impact on the defensive end.

This is worrying for a right-back and another reason as to why Charlton would be making a mistake by signing the defender.

And, given his seven-game ban too, Kane just doesn’t appear to be the right fit for Charlton’s values, not least his football ability.

AND in other news, Charlton suffer major blow over “all-action” £1.5k-p/w ace, Adkins will be gutted…

Italian football journalist Fabrizio Romano has recently made a claim on Manchester City’s interest in Tottenham striker Harry Kane ahead of the summer transfer window.

The Citizens have been heavily linked with the England captain in recent weeks, after the striker made it clear that he wanted to leave the north London club following a disappointing season.

Although the 27-year-old finished top of the charts when it came to both goals and assists in the Premier League this season, Spurs ended a lowly seventh in the top flight, whilst they also lost the Carabao Cup final and were embarrassed by Dinamo Zagreb in the last 16 of the Europa League.

Therefore, it is no surprise that he is keen for a new challenge after failing to win a trophy during his time at Spurs, and Manchester City appears to be a likely destination this summer.

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Romano claimed on his ‘Here We Go’ podcast (via GiveMeSport) earlier this week: “Manchester City are convinced that Harry Kane is the first target. So they want to try for Harry Kane. They are intending to open talks in the next weeks for Harry Kane, but at the moment and the position with Tottenham, we have to respect Tottenham’s position, it’s still the same.”

It has been claimed in the past that Daniel Levy would demand an extraordinary offer in order to sell Kane but, considering the hugely impressive season the Englishman has enjoyed, as well as another season without Champions League football to come, this summer may well be the best time to cash in.

Certainly, if the striker were to sign for Manchester City this summer, it would be a huge boost for Guardiola and his hopes of retaining the Premier League title next season. One thing for which the Citizens have been culpable at times this season is being wasteful in front of goal, and the addition of a “world-class” clinical striker such as Kane would surely see them improve their goalscoring output.

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If City can convince him to make the switch to the Etihad Stadium this summer, Guardiola would surely be delighted. The Citizens will need a hugely talented player to step up following Sergio Aguero’s departure from the club, and Kane’s performances during his time with Spurs emphasise that he could score a ridiculous amount of goals in this City team.

In other news… Man City dealt blow with £31.5m-rated star once rated “better” than Alexander-Arnold

Manchester City have been linked with a move for Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma recently – and should he join Pep Guardiola’s side this summer, it would be a huge blow for Premier League rivals Liverpool, who have also been regularly linked with the Mali international in recent months.

According to the Daily Star, City are ‘confident’ of signing the 24-year-old this summer despite interest from the Reds along with Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham.

The report suggested that City are in the market for a midfielder due to doubts about Fernandinho’s future with the club, and whilst Brighton are resigned to losing Bissouma this summer, they are expected to demand around £30m for him.

This would see them earn a significant profit on the £15m they paid to sign him from Lille in 2018, a deal which looks to have been a shrewd purchase by the Seagulls given his impressive performances since joining.

Bissouma has gone on to make 92 appearances for the Sussex club, in which he has contributed four goals and one assist, so he has plenty of Premier League experience under his belt already.

His recent displays for Graham Potter’s side have been quite impressive, as he has earned above a 7/10 rating from WhoScored in each of his last six Premier League appearances, so it is easy to see why he is attracting so much interest ahead of next season.

Notably, his average of 2.8 tackles per game is better than anyone in Guardiola’s squad and almost double Fernandinho’s 1.5 match average.

Whilst the “exceptional” Bissouma – as hailed by Gary Lineker – could prove to be an excellent long-term replacement for Fernandinho in Guardiola’s side, his potential arrival would also strike a huge blow to one of City’s possible title rivals for next season in Liverpool.

Although Jurgen Klopp’s side have endured a nightmare 2020/21 season, it seems likely that with Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez available next term, they will be challenging at the top again, so City could get an early edge on the Merseyside club by signing Bissouma.

It seems as if the Reds are keen to bring in the Brighton ace as a replacement for Georginio Wijnaldum, who looks set to depart Anfield in the summer when his contract expires, so it would be a significant blow for Klopp’s side if City were to beat them to the signing of the 24-year-old.

Therefore, City’s director of football Txiki Begiristain should definitely consider a move for the Mali midfielder this season, as he could prove to be an excellent addition for a number of reasons.

In other news… Txiki can sign Pep his ideal Fernandinho heir with swoop for “outstanding” Premier League star

After falling to a 3-2 defeat to Crystal Palace last time out in the Premier League, Aston Villa will be hoping to bounce back to winning ways when they take on Spurs on Wednesday night.

Dean Smith’s side took the lead on two separate occasions, before a late salvo from the Eagles saw the home side walk away with all three points at Selhurst Park.

The Villa boss did have some positives injury updates in his pre-match press conference ahead of tonight’s game against Spurs, and the fans will desperately be hoping the returns of a couple of key players can reverse their fortunes.

With that in mind, below is a look at how Villa might line up when they make the trip down to London to face Spurs.

In goal, Emi Martinez will be hoping to keep only his second clean sheet in his last 11 Premier League games, while the back-four should also the return of Tyrone Mings who the Villa boss revealed has a good chance of featuring from the off after missing the game against Palace with injury – that should see the 25-year-old Kortney Hause drop back to the bench.

Smith also confirmed in his pre-match press conference that Matty Cash will now miss the rest of the season, so Ahmed Elmohamady will keep his place at right-back.

Further ahead, the Villa boss could make some exciting changes.

With the FA Youth Cup final against Liverpool on Monday, it would be unlikely that any of Villa’s best young talent will feature in the final Premier League game of the season against Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.

And with that being the case, Smith may wish to hand out a debut to the likes of Carney Chukwuemeka who made the bench for the 3-2 defeat to Palace last time out.

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Chukwuemeka could be joined in the starting line-up by club captain Jack Grealish, who has made cameo appearances off the bench in the past couple of Premier League games.

Predicted XI: Martinez; Elmohamady, Konsa, Mings, Targett; Chukwuemeka, McGinn; Traore, Grealish, El Ghazi; Watkins.

Meanwhile, Dean Smith must drop this Villa liability tonight…

Chris Hughton is open to the idea of allowing Lyle Taylor to leave Nottingham Forest this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Football League World, who claim that the Garibaldi could make the 31-year-old centre-forward available for loan in the upcoming transfer window.

It is reported that a number of Championship clubs, including the likes of Middlesbrough, Blackburn Rovers and Barnsley, are keeping a close eye on the situation of the £900k-rated Montserrat international ahead of a potential summer move.

Taylor must go

After signing for Sabri Lamouchi’s Forest side on a £5k-per-week three-year deal back in August of last year, Taylor did not enjoy the finest of debut seasons at The City Ground this term.

With Evangelos Marinakis sacking the manager who signed the striker just four games into the club’s 2020/21 campaign, before subsequently appointing Chris Hughton, it soon became clear that Taylor was not the 62-year-old’s first-choice centre-forward.

However, the 31-year-old still went on to make a total of 39 Championship appearances for Forest this year – although only 15 came as starts – over which the former Charlton Athletic hitman scored a mere four goals, registered no assists and created just one big chance for his teammates.

Taylor also hit the target an average of just 0.4 times per game, as well as missing eight big chances over the course of the season, with these metrics seeing the striker earn an extremely disappointing seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.64 – ranking him as Hughton’s joint-ninth worst performer in the second tier.

These lacklustre displays largely contributed to Nottingham Forest’s worst league finish since Mark Warburton was in charge of the club in the 2016/17 Championship season, with the Garibaldi scoring a mere 37 goals over their 45 league fixtures this season – with the only side scoring fewer than the Reds being Derby County, who hit the net just 36 times this term.

As such, it would appear highly advisable for Hughton to move Taylor on this summer, be that on a loan or even a permanent deal, as the former Wimbledon forward – whom Neal Ardley previously dubbed an “outstanding” player – does not appear to be compatible whatsoever with the 62-year-old’s style of play at Forest.

In other news: Transfer update emerges on “hit and miss” 24 y/o dynamo that could divide Forest fans

Morgan Gibbs-White has long been the darling of Wolves’ academy.

He won the U17 World Cup with England in 2017 and has been making strides year upon year at senior level.

The attacking midfielder has featured in the Premier League and despite an injury-hit campaign this term, joining Swansea on loan last year was key to his development.

However, because of fitness issues, he’s now facing pressure to get in the side. That’s because behind him in the pecking order are a number of hot young talents ready to make a breakthrough.

Speaking to The Athletic last year, a senior Wolves figure told the outlet that they were currently working with the strongest U18 side ever assembled at Molineux.

It’s clear to see why. They possess Christian Marques, a player touted to be the next Conor Coady while they also have the tricky Theo Corbeanu in their ranks.

That being said, of all those now to have transitioned to U23 and senior football, it’s Chem Campbell who is one of the stand out names.

He can play in a plethora of positions from behind the striker to out on the flanks and that’s why Gibbs-White should be looking over his shoulder so closely.

After making the move to Wolves from Birmingham City, Campbell has quickly risen up the ranks. He was named in The Guardian’s 20-best young players at Premier League clubs in 2019 and the 18-year-old is now the second-youngest player to feature for Wolves at senior level.

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Campbell has still only played on one occasion for Nuno’s side but he clearly has a very bright future in the game.

He has pace, is composed in possession and has plenty of creativity. Speaking about the teenager last year, former Crewe manager and former Wolves candidate Boss Davis said: “He can produce things out of nothing,” he began.

“Defensively he’s got work to do in terms of his responsibilities but with the ball he can create things just with his skill. He catches the eye.”

That’s a glowing review for a talent who surely deserves a better look at by Nuno. After all, Wolves now have nothing to play for during the run-in so could blood some of their younger players.

Davis continued: “I like him more on the left, right-footed coming inside. He’s got the ability to finish and to link up — he’s got that eye for a pass. He gets a bit stuck on the right a bit more.

Just 18 years of age, he is one of a number of candidates from the academy who could start to transition more to first-team life in the coming months.

Gibbs-White better watch out.

AND in other news, Wolves could sign big Silva upgrade in “fantastic” 56-goal beast, Nuno would love him…