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Transfer insider Dean Jones has delivered his verdict on the potential Leeds United pursuit of Liverpool forward Takumi Minamino. 

The lowdown: Whites’ interested

This comes following a report from The Times claiming Leeds are among the frontrunners to sign Minamino this summer after the Japan international was made available by Liverpool.

The Whites have been heavily linked with the versatile 27-year-old previously, including under former manager and fan favourite Marcelo Bielsa.

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With Jesse Marsch now at the helm in Yorkshire and having worked alongside the mercurial Minamino previously at Red Bull Salzburg, the interest looks set to be ramped up…

The latest: Jones on Minamino

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Jones suggested having already clinched deals to reunite Rasmus Kristensen and Brenden Aaronson with Marsch, a similar move for the 40-cap Japan starlet would be smart from Victor Orta.

He said: “People like Minamino might be the guys that fit into that.

“They’re not going to sound like world beating signings, but they might just be exactly what Jesse March needs as he kind of transitions his side and adds steps to it.”

The verdict: No brainer

For the reported £17million asking price, signing Minamino would be a superb piece of business as Marsch looks to build a squad to steer way clear of the Premier League drop zone next season.

Despite being somewhat of an also-ran in the major tournaments since arriving in England, the man hailed as a ‘special’ player by former Liverpool forward Luis Garcia has managed 17 direct goal contributions in 54 outings for the Merseyside giants.

During 2021/22, Minamino notched up an impressive ten goals and one assist from just 24 outings, hitting the back of the net four times in five appearances in the Carabao Cup, earning an outstanding 7.38 Sofascore rating whilst taking 3.2 shots on average per game in the process.

Supremely versatile with the capability to play across the frontline and in deeper roles, adding the dynamic attacker to the Elland Road ranks could be considered an Orta masterstroke so long as the fee doesn’t get out of hand.

In other news: Leeds now eyeing move for ‘lethal and sublime’ gem, read more here

Wolves are finally on the cusp of signing Sporting CP midfielder Joao Palhinha, having been linked with him countless times in the past six months.

The Lowdown: Palhinha a long-time target

Wanderers are expected to make a number of new signings in the summer transfer window but no player has been tipped to move to Molineux more often than Palhinha.

Links dating all the way back to last June have suggested that Bruno Lage would make a move for the 26-year-old, eyeing him up as Ruben Neves’ natural replacement in Wolves’ midfield.

Now, the deal looks like it is closer than ever to going through, after transfer reporter Pete O’Rourke confirmed earlier this week the midfielder is a ‘long term target’.

The Latest: Transfer set to go through?

According to Correio da Manha on Thursday evening, Palhinha will be a Wolves player next season, with the transfer on the verge of being completed.

An agreement is believed to have been reached over a €20million (£17m) move, with another €5m (£4.2m) in achievable add-ons.

Wolves have already secured their first summer signing in the permanent capture of Hwang Hee-chan, so Palhinha looks set to become addition number two.

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The Verdict: Perfect Neves replacement

Neves is clearly going to leave a gaping hole in Wolves’ team if he goes, but this update is hugely exciting, with Palhinha appearing to be a tailor-made replacement, having been hailed as a ‘very good’ player by Jorge Jesus.

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Classy with the ball at his feet, the Sporting CP man enjoyed an 87.8% pass completion rate this season in both the Primeira Liga last season and in World Cup qualifying for Portugal, which is actually higher than Neves’ in England.

A hugely impressive average of 4.5 tackles per game at Euro 2020 last summer also proves that he is tenacious off the ball, so Wolves are getting themselves a strong all-round package.

In other news, a transfer insider has made a key Wolves claim. Read more here.

A huge Newcastle United claim has emerged on their interest in Christian Eriksen heading into the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

Reporter Jacque Talbot has teased that the Magpies are going to hold discussions with the Denmark international later this month.

He Tweeted: “Some further details on the Christian Eriksen and Newcastle story. Heard a whisper Howe and the player set for talks next week.”

The former Tottenham midfielder joined Brentford on a short-term deal in January and is now a free agent ahead of the 2021/22 campaign.

Supporters will be excited

Toon supporters will be excited by this claim as Eriksen would be a fantastic addition to Eddie Howe’s midfield options.

The 30-year-old made a stunning comeback to Premier League football after suffering a cardiac arrest at the European Championships last year to lead Brentford to survival this term.

In 11 appearances in the top-flight, he averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.54 as he chipped in with one goal and four assists. The gem produced consistently brilliant performances whilst proving that he can still have a big impact in the final third, particularly when it came to helping his teammates.

He was at his creative best as he provided 2.8 key passes and created five ‘big chances’ in total for the Bees, ending the campaign with 3.73 Expected Assists.

This shows that he is capable of teeing up teammates with opportunities to score on a regular basis. The likes of Chris Wood, Callum Wilson, Allan Saint-Maximin, and any other forward the club may sign will now be salivating at the prospect of being on the end of his passes and crosses.

Meanwhile, Matt Ritchie topped the charts for the Magpies with 1.6 key passes per game – with Saint-Maximin in second with 1.4 – and this suggests that Eriksen would be a huge improvement on Newcastle’s current levels of creativity.

Bringing him in on a free transfer would also be an astute piece of business by Dan Ashworth. Whilst they will still need to afford the wages that he will demand, the club will not have to pay a transfer fee for his services and this can free up funds to be used elsewhere.

Supporters will now be hoping that the ex-Brighton chief and Howe can wrap up a deal for the 30-year-old as they will be excited by the thought of him delivering teasing deliveries into the box at St. James’ Park next season.

AND in other news, Ashworth “looking” at Newcastle deal for “clever” £75m gem, he can be Howe’s own Salah…

Sky Sports journalist Michael Bridge has now shared a ‘hopeful’ Tottenham Hotspur transfer update for supporters.

The Lowdown: Spurs set for busy summer…

Already bringing in Croatia footballing legend Ivan Perisic on a Bosman deal, Spurs are showing real statements of intent so far as they aim to back manager Antonio Conte.

The Lilywhites’ recently announced a £150 million equity increase which, according to reliable reports, will be used to reinforce the Italian’s options ahead of his first full Premier League season in charge.

Inter Milan star Alessandro Bastoni, Brentford big name Christian Eriksen and Man City striker Gabriel Jesus are just some of the names on Conte and transfer chief Fabio Paratici’s radar.

In what could be a real summer of change, Bridge of Sky Sports has now shared a ‘hopeful’ update after Spurs completed a deal for Perisic.

The Latest: Bridge shares ‘hopeful’ Spurs transfer update…

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Writing on Twitter in the last 48 hours, in reply to a supporter who asked if a right-wing-back and centre-half were next through the door, he explained:

“What I can say now is the club wouldn’t target anyone they thought wouldn’t join the club. That’s why I’m hopeful. I’ve just had to remind myself it’s May 31st.”

That statement is following on from a previous message where he claimed Tottenham want two more additions over the ‘next few weeks’.

The Verdict: Promising?

Tottenham, based off these messages from Bridge, appear to be getting a fair bit of their business done early and are aiming to fulfil Conte’s desires.

That alone is very promising as the club steer away from chairman Daniel Levy’s age-old tactic of doing deals late in the window to pressure clubs into quick-fire cheap sales.

Indeed, it’s safe to say this summer could be the most exciting one at Spurs for some time, given how long supporters have grown frustrated by Levy’s tactics.

In other news: £50 million Tottenham target drops teasing four-word transfer hint for Conte…find out more here.

Liverpool have had a phenomenal season so far winning two trophies and will compete for their third in the Champions League final this weekend, but all the success hasn’t stopped the side from wanting to strengthen their team this summer.

Jurgen Klopp has led his team to three finals this term and took the Premier League title race down to the last day, with the side playing every single game possible in the 2012/22 campaign, however, the age of their key players is clearly an area of attention the club wants to address.

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Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino will all be in their 30s by the start of next season and all three only have 12 months left on their contract, so it could now be an opportunity to look at their options for the future of the forward line.

One player who has been linked with a move to Anfield this summer is Christopher Nkunku, however, the Kopites have tough competition as both Chelsea and Manchester United are also interested in the RB Leipzig forward, and when you look at his output this season it’s not hard to see why.

In 51 appearances this season for the German club, Nkunku has scored 35 goals and registered 20 assists with a goal involvement every 76 minutes played which is incredibly impressive.

The £64m ace who was hailed “special” by teammate Tyler Adams isn’t just good at finding the back of the net, he has created 16 big chances, wins the majority of his ground and aerial duels combined (51%), produces 1.9 key passes and delivers 1.9 successful dribbles on average per game.

That further proves that he is a complete nightmare for opponents and his worth ethic on the ball is something Liverpool would benefit from.

Last summer the Reds were named as one of the clubs interested in Tottenham Hotspur star Son Heung-Min who shared the Premier League golden boot this season with Salah, but after signing a new contract with the North London club the interest has cooled off, however, Nkunku could be a great alternative for Klopp.

After all, Nkunku’s most ‘similar’ player on FB Ref is none other than Spurs forward, Son, who bagged 24 goals of his own throughout 2021/22.

With that being said, FSG must work fast if they want to sign the 24-year-old this summer as other clubs are in hot pursuit of the player too and it would be a shame for the club to miss out on another transfer target that could bring a fresh perspective to the famous forward line at Anfield.

AND in other news: Liverpool plot £42.5m bid for “spectacular” gem with “no ceiling”, he’s Bellingham 2.0

Aston Villa have been dealt a worrying setback ahead of their clash against Premier League relegation battlers Burnley tonight.

What’s the latest?

Villa keeper Emi Martinez picked up a knock in training on Wednesday, which could rule him out of tonight’s game.

As per Birmingham Live, Gerrard said:

“Emi’s a doubt at the moment.

“We’re just analysing the situation that happened today [Wednesday] in training, but I think he’ll play and he’ll be fine.

“It was just a knock in training. We’ll analyse it. I’m confident he’ll be there. If he’s not there, Robin’s champing at the bit. He’s been awesome. He’s trained well and he’s ready and I’ll have no qualms putting Robin [Olsen] in if I have to. If Emi’s fit and he’s fine – we’ll assess him in the next hour or two – then he’ll play.”

A big blow

Despite Gerrard’s comments about back-up keeper Olsen, the loss of Martinez will come as a big blow to the Villans, with Martinez registering 11 clean sheets this season and making an average of 2.6 saves per 90.

Furthermore, he’s also one of the best in his position across the top flight, with journalist Joey D’Urso labelling him “world-class” last term.

Despite these metrics, the Argentine has faltered somewhat in comparison to last campaign, so it will also come as a big blow to a goalkeeper who will have been hoping to end the season in good form, with the idea of starting the next season in the same vein.

Though, with the update from Gerrard, it looks as though Martinez will be touch and go.

Whilst he may sit out tonight’s game, the Villa boss will be hoping he is fit enough to feature in Villa’s final game against Manchester City, with a win over the Citizens almost certainly enough to hand old club Liverpool the Premier League trophy.

In other news: AVFC eye summer move for “exceptional” £50m brute, he’s their next Idrissa Gueye