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Manchester United have been linked with a surprising move for Atletico Madrid midfielder Saul Niguez.

What’s the story?

According to French journalist Frances Aguilar, the Red Devils are in advanced negotiations with Atletico for the services of the 26-year-old dynamo, making them favourites for his signature.

The Spanish giants have been negotiating a swap deal with Barcelona for Saul, one which would see Antoine Griezmann return to the Wanda Metropolitano, but that could now be in jeopardy.

Fans will be buzzing

After finishing second in the Premier League standings last term, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has wasted no time strengthening his first-team squad this summer.

The long-awaited signing of Jadon Sancho is set to be announced imminently, while Real Madrid centre-back Raphael Varane appears to be edging closer towards the Old Trafford outfit.

And the duo could be joined by a surprise acquisition following the recent revelation regarding Saul’s future.

The Spain international had been heavily linked with a move to United’s bitter rivals Liverpool in recent weeks, but news that the club’s hierarchy are reportedly in talks for the £36m-rated ace will have the supporters buzzing.

With Paul Pogba’s contract set to expire in the summer of 2022, his future is far from clear, and Saul would be a capable replacement, significantly softening the blow of his potential departure.

Over the last years, Saul has established himself as one of the sports top midfielders, scoring 43 goals and providing 19 assists in 337 appearances for his boyhood club, winning one La Liga title, one Copa del Rey and two Europa Leagues along the way.

However, after only starting 22 top-flight fixtures last term and missing out on Luis Enrique’s 24-man squad for the European Championship, the midfield conductor is keen to seek pastures new.

His arrival on English shores would be a significant coup for Solskjaer, and the Norwegian tactician would suddenly have substantial strength in depth in the middle of the park.

Saul’s acquisition would add to the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Pogba, Donny van de Beek, Fred and Scott McTominay, providing United with an enviable array of talent.

Whether the Red Devils follow up their negotiations with a concrete offer remains to be seen, but it’s set to be an exciting time for fans of the 20-time English champions as the club’s hierarchy look to be serious about strengthening their side.

And, in other news…Journalist reveals exciting Man Utd transfer update that’ll leave fans buzzing

Tottenham Hotspur right-back Serge Aurier is set to leave the club and reunite with Mauricio Pochettino at Paris Saint-Germain in a €20m (£17.2m) move, according to Italian journalist Rudy Galetti.

The lowdown

Spurs signed Aurier from the French capital in 2017 for a fee in the region of £23million.

He penned a five-year deal on arrival, meaning he’s about to enter the last 12 months of his contract.

Aurier has made more than 100 appearances during his stint at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Last season, he played 27 times, scoring twice and adding three assists. Two of those goal contributions came in the 6-1 rout of Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has marvelled at the Ivorian, describing him as ‘so good and so fast’.

The latest

Galetti reports that Aurier ‘will be’ returning to PSG and working under Pochettino once again.

That’s after the French runners-up tabled an offer of €20million for his services.

Intriguingly, he adds that PSG’s proposed move for Inter Milan’s Achraf Hakimi now becomes ‘more complicated’.

Spurs’ rivals Chelsea have also been credited with an interest in Hakimi and may be encouraged to make a move knowing that a potential other suitor have eyes on another target.

The verdict

Aurier has lacked consistency in his performances at Spurs, and fans must always have been slightly concerned when he set foot on the pitch.

Still, €20million would be a very good return for a player close to the end of his deal, and they could put it towards a new name.

Matt Doherty, an alternative option, didn’t do enough in his first season at the club to suggest he merits a first-choice role, so Spurs still need to address this problem position.

In other news, Daniel Levy has dropped an intriguing transfer message. 

Aston Villa goalkeeper Tom Heaton has agreed to join Manchester United this summer, according to John Cross of The Mirror.

And, as to be expected, a number of Villa supporters have been sharing their thoughts towards the news on social media.

Cross claims that United have held talks with the 35-year-old in recent weeks and a deal now looks to be agreed and finalised.

Heaton hasn’t featured for Villa since suffering a serious injury on New Year’s Day 2020. He returned to the bench towards the end of 2020, however, he’s failed to get a look in due to Emiliano Martinez’s impressive first season at Villa Park.

The Englishman’s contract in the Midlands expires in a matter of weeks, and it now seems as if he’ll be returning to Old Trafford ahead of the 2021/22 season to provide backup to Dean Henderson and David de Gea.

Villa fans react

@villareport shared the update from Cross on Twitter on Tuesday afternoon. This is what these Villa fans had to say in reply…

“Oh no anyway”Credit: @josh_priv3″um anyways”Credit: @catrinedwards18″Bye Heaton”Credit: @makeyourdayadtr”Thought he’d have more ambition than settling to be a bench warmer. Shame.”Credit: @JayVtid”ambitious bench to bench move”Credit: @joshkentx”Shame a great player I hope he stays fit & gets some games for them UTV”Credit: @richard00761191

In other news: Many AVFC fans react to Tammy Abraham tweet, find out more here. 

Former Norwich City star Jon Newsome doubts a potential deal to sign goalkeeper Angus Gunn will happen this summer, despite understanding why a move is being mooted.

Gunn spent the 2017/18 season on loan at the Canaries from Manchester City, coming third in the Player of the Season vote.

The Canaries finished 14th in the Championship that season but since then, Gunn has moved permanently to Southampton for a fee of £13.5m.

However, he fell out of favour and was loaned to Stoke City for the 2020/21 season.

He has been linked with a potential return to Norwich as a result, per The Pinkun, but Newsome does not think a move would be for the best for the former England U21 international.

He made a total of 15 appearances in the Championship for Stoke and Newsome believes he needs to play regularly if he is to move to a new club; if he joined Norwich, he would be battling for a first-team spot with Tim Krul.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, Newsome said: “I can see where the link comes from.

“I can definitely see why the link would be there and I can definitely see why he would be interested and enticed by it but purely from a career point of view, would it be the best place to go? I’m not too sure.”

Speaking in an official club interview, Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy has dropped a summer transfer message.

The Lowdown: Spurs and the summer…

A very intriguing window lies in store for Tottenham Hotspur supporters, especially with the confirmed arrival of new club managing director Fabio Paratici.

The Italian has been tasked with overseeing Spurs’ transfer activity and has been put in charge of the club’s ‘sporting operations’ (tottenhamhotspur.com) – although some believe Levy won’t relinquish too much power.

Meanwhile, we could also see many faces head out of the exit door at Tottenham with the club needing to adopt a sell-to-buy policy.

The Latest: Levy drops Spurs transfer hint…

Levy, speaking in an official club interview, has now hinted that Spurs will be making moves this summer.

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Indeed, the 59-year-old has made a vow to Lilywhites supporters that there will indeed be investment made in the playing squad.

“We will spend,” he explained to the club’s official website.

“But we’re a self-sustaining club, we have to be sensible, sometimes fans think we ought to be spending but there have been circumstances where, actually, the coach doesn’t want us to spend on a particular player.

“All I will say is, we will make investment in the squad.”

The Verdict: Interesting times ahead…

Whether or not Levy follows through on his message remains to be seen, but this certainly has the potential to be an interesting summer for Spurs supporters.

Already, Tottenham have been heavily linked with swoops for both Borussia Monchengladbach star Marcus Thuram and VfB Stuttgart winger Nicolas Gonzalez.

Alasdair Gold has also told Spurs fans to expect a big summer of change in regards to outgoings as Spurs aim to bolster their transfer kitty.

In two months time, we could see a very different Lilywhites squad compared to now.

In other news: Paratici has already tried to sign this ‘phenomenal’ star for Spurs this summer, find out more here.

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Michael Ball, who made 20 appearances for Rangers, has given huge praise to Nathan Patterson following the full-back grasping any chance he has been given by Steven Gerrard.

Patterson was handed his league debut by Gerrard earlier this season and has ended up making seven league appearances, with one impressive display coming in the latest Old Firm game which Rangers won 4-1.

Gerrard is certainly blessed with talent at the right-back position as club captain James Tavernier has proved himself to be one of the best players in Scotland and now Patterson, at just 19-years old, is proving to be great competition for the former Newcastle United defender.

Speaking on how people have been talking about Patterson for a while now and why he compares him to Alan Hutton, Ball exclusively told FFC:

“There have been a few whispers from my side for quite a while about Nathan, although I hadn’t seen much about him. When he got given his massive opportunity to play against Celtic he put in a performance that showed why people have been talking about him.

“Rangers have done it in the past just look at Alan Hutton when he came through as a youngster and got his big move away to Tottenham. So he’s just got to get that opportunity to grow and develop.”

Gerrard has guided Rangers to an unforgettable season which has seen them win a record 55th SPFL league title and are just one game away from going the full league campaign unbeaten.

Patteson can learn from one of Rangers’ best players in recent years as Tavernier has been a mainstay in their side since he joined from Wigan Athletic in 2015 when they were in the Scottish Championship.

Frank McAvennie has exclusively told Football FanCast that Josh King would be a hugely successful signing for Celtic.

King joined Everton on a short-term deal in January, but has failed to score in eight substitute appearances and will be available on a free transfer this summer, should the Toffees decide against signing him permanently.

But whilst the Norwegian striker has failed to make an impact on Merseyside, King is a proven goalscorer in the Premier League having scored 48 times across five seasons for Bournemouth prior to their relegation last term.

Despite King’s poor form for Everton, he’s been attracting attention from other Premier League sides, although recent reports suggest that Eddie Howe wants to make him one of his first signings at Parkhead.

Howe signed him Bournemouth back in 2015 from Blackburn, and wants to reunite with King should be take the Celtic job and King himself quit Everton.

“I think he’s a good player. I think he could do wonders up here,” McAvennie told Football FanCast.

“It would be great for him to come up here, spend two or three years and win some trophies. That’s what he would want and he would score goals up here, although he would have to get fit.

“He would come up here and he would definitely score goals and would be a great replacement if Eddie goes.”

A reliable journalist has dropped an exciting transfer claim on Leeds United’s pursuit of Nicolas Tagliafico.

Speaking on the Kick-off podcast (via Voetbalprimeur), De Telegraaf reporter Mike Verweij has claimed that the Elland Road club’s interest in the Ajax defender seems to be ‘more serious than anyone assumed’, adding that Inter Milan also appear to be in the market for him.

Leeds must sign Tagliafico

Marcelo Bielsa’s team must do all that they can to try and sign Tagliafico once the summer transfer window opens.

The left-back would certainly be an upgrade on Ezgjan Alioski, as he has averaged more interceptions (1.8), clearances (1.3), shots (1.6), key passes (one), dribbles (0.4), crosses (0.7) and long balls (1.3) than the Leeds man so far in their respective domestic leagues this season.

One may argue that the Eredivisie is not at as high of a standard than the Premier League, but these figures show that Tagliafico is a more than capable player both in attacking and defensive areas.

At 28 years of age, the Argentina international is only just reaching the peak of his powers, and so now may be the best time for Leeds to capitalise on that by trying to bring him to Elland Road.

He would certainly seem a shrewd addition by the Whites should they be able to secure his signature.

In other news, Leeds are prepared to pay a club-record fee for this maestro!

Oliver Skipp impressed for Norwich City during their latest Championship title-winning season and Jon Newsome, who was the Canaries’ player of the season in 1995, has exclusively told Football FanCast that they will still want to sign the Spurs midfielder this summer.

Paul Stewart, who signed for Tottenham in 1988, spoke exclusively to FFC about how Skipp would be a revelation at Tottenham Hotspur next season, but after suffering a foot injury he may find it difficult to be ready for the start of the 2021/22 campaign.

There have been suggestions that Norwich will enquire about signing Skipp again this summer either on a loan or permanent deal as Norwich look to stave off relegation in the upcoming season.

Skipp has earned himself an impressive 6.90 WhoScored rating and Norwich would love to have him back if he is going to be fit for next season, as Newsome spoke exclusively to FFC:

“He had a fabulous season at Norwich and I’m sure the club would be interested in taking him off Spurs’ hands depending on the severity of his injury.

“Whether or not there’s an agreement in place for when he returns to fitness remains to be seen, but I would imagine he’s definitely one of the players that the club will have earmarked as a potential signing.”

Depending on who the new Tottenham manager is for next season, Skipp may find himself handed a chance to prove he is good enough to start for them in the Premier League.

Norwich will be looking to avoid a swift return to the Championship after just one season, much like their last endeavour in the Premier League under Daniel Farke as they finished bottom of the league and 14 points from safety.

Eddie Howe doesn’t have the ‘personality and weight of character’ of two successful Celtic predecessors, according to former Hoops striker Kris Commons.

It was reported last week that Celtic were close to an agreement with the former Bournemouth manager, their first choice to replace Neil Lennon long-term.

Commons: Howe is no ‘force of nature’

Writing in his Scottish Daily Mail column, Commons compared Howe with Martin O’Neill and Brendan Rodgers. The former memorably led Celtic to a UEFA Cup final in 2003, while the latter won seven trophies in his three seasons in Glasgow.

Commons is concerned that Howe doesn’t arrive with the same stature, as he wrote in the paper’s print edition (via Daily Record):

“Howe is not the Messiah in the way Martin O’Neill was. Nor is he Brendan Rodgers, who revelled in the limelight from the moment he arrived.

“O’Neill and Rodgers were forces of nature throughout their time in Glasgow. Their personality and weight of character always gave them a chance of succeeding.

“Howe, by contrast, seems more reserved. He is articulate, but softly spoken. It is difficult to imagine him holding court in the dressing room in the same way O’Neill or Rodgers did.”

Commons: Bournemouth can’t compare to Celtic

Commons went on to warn Howe that he faced an ‘almighty culture shock’. Bournemouth have been described as a ‘tiny club’ in the 37-year-old’s words, while Celtic are former European champions.

“On the day Rodgers was unveiled, 13,000 fans were there in Celtic Park to greet him,” Commons wrote. “He was an instant hero.

“Howe was managing a club whose home ground only holds 11,000 fans. More people turned out to see Rodgers parade a Celtic scarf above his head than can fit inside Bournemouth’s Vitality Stadium.

“This is not meant to sound flippant. Just an indication of the reality into which Howe is about to be thrust. It will be an almighty culture shock.”

Transfer Tavern verdict

Every manager has to start somewhere, and Howe’s success at Bournemouth was remarkable, guiding them from the bottom of the English Football League to spending five seasons at Premier League level.

This is the kind of opportunity for which he’s surely been waiting. He can be expected to relish the added scrutiny rather than shrink in the spotlight, and who’s to say he can’t go on to surpass the likes of Rodgers if indeed he is appointed?

Indeed, for all the Northern Irishman’s domestic success, he never made it beyond the Europa League round of 32. While regaining the title from Rangers is of course the immediate priority, the ultimate measure of a Celtic boss is perhaps their continental success.

Hopefully Commons’ concerns about Howe prove to be unfounded, if indeed the anticipated appointment is confirmed.

In other news, might Celtic face some late competition for Howe?