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Celtic are searching for a new manager following the departure of Ange Postecoglou, and former Rayo Vallecano boss Andoni Iraola is set to apply for the job, according to a recent report.

Who is Andoni Iraola?

After spending the vast majority of his playing career with Athletic Bilbao, Iraola took his first job in management in 2018, being appointed by AEK Larnaca, however he spent just 29 games in charge of the Cypriot side, before being sacked.

The Spaniard went nearly two months without a win in his first managerial role, however CD Mirandes took a chance on him in 2019, and he proved his worth, leading the club to the Copa del Rey semi-finals for just the second time in their 92-year history.

After spending 49 games at the helm of Mirandes, the 40-year-old has since been with Rayo Vallecano, after having an approach from Leeds United blocked last season.

However, The Mail + now report the young manager has rejected a contract offer from Vallecano, and he will throw his hat into the ring for the Celtic job, but he is not the only candidate in the running.

It is also detailed that Graham Potter, Jesse Marsch, and Kjetil Knutsen are all under consideration, with the Celtic hierarchy recently drawing up a list of candidates to replace Postecoglou.

The board are in no rush to make a swift appointment, as they would rather prioritise making sure they get the right man for the job.

Should Celtic appoint Iraola?

Not only did Iraola make history with Mirandes, the Spaniard did a fantastic job in charge of Rayo Vallecano, leading them to an unlikely promotion to La Liga, against the backdrop of COVID disruptions, injury issues and the club's failure to pay the players.

After regaining their place in the Spanish top flight, Vallecano had a very solid season, eventually finishing in 11th place, having never looked like they in any real danger of being relegated.

Journalist Nick Emms has branded the former Rayo Vallecano boss a "Bielsa disciple", making reference to his "high-tempo, high-pressing style", which can be compared to the system Marcelo Bielsa adopted to great effect in charge of Leeds United.

Given that Postecoglou was also known for his attacking style of play, it may be important for Celtic to appoint a successor who implements a similar system, and Iraola could end up being a perfect replacement.

Tottenham Hotspur and by extension transfer chief Fabio Paratici are now plotting a major summer bid, according to a report by Italian journalist Alfredo Pedulla.

The Lowdown: Spurs in summer hunt…

Reliable reports suggest the Lilywhites are certainly showing no sign of slowing down as head coach Antonio Conte reportedly sets his sights on more targets.

The former Chelsea boss has overseen a real turnaround at N17, guiding Spurs to a top four finish in the Premier League last season and subsequent qualification for next season’s Champions League campaign.

Club owners ENIC and chairman Daniel Levy even granted a £150 million equity increase which will be used to back Conte in the market and grant him necessary additions.

Paratici is the man tasked with putting plans in place to land Tottenham’s targets with Pedulla now making an exciting claim on what he’s plotting.

The Latest: Pedulla makes Martinez claim…

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According to his sources, the north Londoners ‘will’ make a major bid to sign Inter Milan star striker Lautaro Martinez but it will be difficult to get the deal done.

He explained (via Twitter):

“#Lautaro wants to stay at ANY COST. We have already talked about it, let’s add: #Tottenham will present a proposal of 90 million upwards that #Inter will evaluate that it can legitimately reject.”

The Verdict: Crucial few days?

It will be interesting to see whether the Nerazzurri contemplate selling their forward amid their reported need to make cash through player sales.

The San Siro side may have to generate revenue through letting their big name players leave for pastures new, and if they green-light Tottenham’s mooted bid, Conte may well be boosted by the Argentine’s possible arrival – depending on if they can agree terms,

The 38-cap international, who Romelu Lukaku called a ‘beast’, stood out as one of Simone Inzaghi’s most crucial assets over 2021/2022 – scoring 21 goals and assisting three others in the top flight alone (Transfermarkt).

Martinez would certainly inject real quality in the final third for Conte and provide serious competition for star man Harry Kane.

In other news: Club chief ready to offer £22.5m-rated ‘beast’ in Tottenham talks with Paratici! Find out more here.

Tottenham Hotspur may turn their attention to RB Leipzig’s Josko Gvardiol as they look to strengthen the centre of their defence, according to The Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick. 

The lowdown

Antonio Conte wants to ‘bolster his back three’ this summer after successfully leading Spurs back into the Champions League.

It was only last summer that Leipzig paid £16.9million to sign Gvardiol from Croatian outfit Dinamo Zagreb.

The 20-year-old made 46 appearances in his first season at the club, starting 28 of their 34 Bundesliga matches and nine of their European games.

The £27million-rated Gvardiol, who’s also capable of operating as a left-back, is under contract at the Red Bull Arena until June 2026.

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The latest

Kilpatrick writes that Spurs would like to sign Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni in a deal worth more than £50million, but they’ve encountered a significant issue.

The defender is reluctant to leave the San Siro and it will be a ‘challenge’ to convince him to move to North London.

And that ‘hesitance’ could see Spurs move onto an alternative target in the form of Gvardiol.

The verdict

Gvardiol, dubbed ‘very special’ by talent scout Jacek Kulig, is a very well-equipped modern centre-back. Consult his FBRef scouting report and you will see a player in the top ten percentiles for pass volume, progressive passes, progressive carries, dribbles and interceptions.

Given the breadth of his skill-set, it’s no surprise that he’s established so quickly both at club level and at an international level (he already has ten Croatia caps under his belt).

Last year, Gvardiol was nominated for the Golden Boy award, given to the best young player in Europe’s top five leagues. He simply looks destined to become one of the best in his position in the world.

In other news, this journalist is adamant over a Spurs transfer agreement.

Former Scotland manager turned Sky Sports pundit has been left thrilled by some Tottenham Hotspur transfer news involving Man City star Gabriel Jesus.

The Lowdown: Lilywhites ‘set’ for Jesus battle…

Spurs and transfer chief Fabio Paratici, as per reliable reports, are eyeing a move for the Brazil international after his impressive finish to the 2021/2022 Premier League season.

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Jesus ended last campaign with a brilliant six top flight goals in seven of his last appearances under manager Pep Guardiola as the South American becomes heavily linked with an Eastlands exit.

The 25-year-old is now on manager Antonio Conte’s radar as Mike McGrath of The Telegraph claims Spurs are ‘set to rival’ north London neighbours Arsenal for his signature.

The Latest: McLeish reacts…

McLeish, giving his take in reaction to the news, has been left thrilled – claiming Jesus is ‘tremendous’ and would be brilliant back-up to star man Harry Kane.

He explained to Football Insider:

“The five games at the end of the season, he was tremendous. He showed his real quality. He’s a guy who’s coming to the peak of his powers.

“He may not be the best prolific goalscorer we’ve ever seen but he could evolve to give a better contribution and to score goals. At Tottenham, okay, there’s a pressure on them because of where Conte’s taken them but it won’t be the same pressure he’s under at Man City.

“He could definitely could be cover for Harry Kane.”

The Verdict: Brilliant option…

Still yet to hit his prime and already proven in England, we believe Jesus is certainly a brilliant option.

Steve McManaman recently branded the striker a ‘superstar’ for his incredible recent form, and with a price tag of around £55 million, there is an argument to be had that it’s a fairly do-able move on paper.

Amassing over half a century of caps for Brazil at international level, his 58 goals and 32 assists in the top flight alone back just how threatening he can be in the final third.

As Tottenham gear up for a transfer battle with Arsenal, Conte could be overjoyed if Paratici manages to win the tussle for Jesus.

In other news: Conte could see ‘one of the best in the world’ join Tottenham after behind-the-scenes development…find out more here.

A huge development has emerged on Rangers gem Steven Davis and his future at Ibrox heading into the summer transfer window…

What’s the talk?

According to the Scottish Daily Express, the Gers are closing in on an agreement to keep him in Glasgow for another season. His current deal expires ahead of the 2022/23 campaign and Ross Wilson has moved to secure his future with fresh terms.

The report claims that Premiership clubs Motherwell and St Mirren are both keen on signing the veteran gem and the Light Blues have fended them off to retain his services.

Supporters will be delighted

The Gers supporters will surely be delighted with this news as keeping hold of Davis will be a boost to Gio van Bronckhorst’s squad next season.

He is an experienced and valuable member of the team who can offer a great deal for the club on and off the pitch in 2022/23. The Northern Ireland international has played a whopping 344 games for Rangers in separate spells and played 306 matches down south in the Premier League.

This shows that he knows exactly what it takes to play at the top level and has a wealth of experience to impart to the other members of the squad.

He can, therefore, play a huge role off the pitch as he helps the younger players by giving them tips and keeping them grounded as they make their way into the first team. Davis can be an example to the likes of Alex Lowry and Charlie McCann with his professionalism, setting an example for them to strive to match.

On the pitch, he can also have an impact for van Bronckhorst. In the Premiership, he averaged an excellent SofaScore rating of 6.96 across 18 appearances, making 1.9 tackles and interceptions per game and completing 88% of his attempted passes.

He also played seven times in the Europa League and was trusted to come on in the final of the competition against Frankfurt, before starting in the Scottish Cup final win over Hearts. This shows that the Dutch head coach believes that the 37-year-old still has the ability to perform in huge games for Rangers.

Supporters will, therefore, be buzzing with the news that he is set to sign a new contract and will be hoping that he can continue to be a reliable option for van Bronckhorst to call upon next season.

AND in other news, Wilson could land Rangers’ next £20m talent with bid for “top notch” £3.4k-p/w target…

Reliable journalist Alan Nixon has told Derby County supporters to hold their horses after some contract news this week prompted excitement about Chris Kirchner’s potential takeover.

The Lowdown: Buchanan signs

Kirchner announced on Twitter last week that he has secured a deal to become the new owner of the Rams, but it is still dependent on the sale of Pride Park.

Mel Morris’ ownership of the ground has been a huge roadblock throughout the takeover process, but a recent contract development had fans thinking maybe things were on the up.

Indeed, the news that the club have triggered Lee Buchanan’s contract extension seemed to imply a takeover was as good as done, given the fact that Phil Jagielka was unable to extend his deal in January due to the ownership situation.

The Latest: Not so fast…

After hearing of the developments on Buchanan, Nixon offered a worrying reaction, urging supporters to ease their excitement.

“Before anyone gets ahead of themselves…” he said on Twitter.

“Taking up contract options and making contract offers on time is SEPARATE from any suggestion takeover deal is done. It had to be then or players would walk. The takeover thing depends on stadium and is being worked on.”

The Verdict: Worrying

It is certainly worrying that the situation with the stadium is still not resolved – Kirchner only has until May 31 to complete the finer details on the takeover, so time is running out to pry the ground away from Morris.

Wayne Rooney’s team have already been threatened with more points deductions both for outstanding loans and separately for failure to pay playing staff, so the fact Buchanan’s contract is sorted is of course good, but it’s seemingly not the sign of things to come fans were hoping it was.

Time is ticking for Kirchner to get his deal over the line, and it looks like it’s all going to come down to Pride Park in the next seven days.

Newcastle United reportedly now ‘want’ to sign Jules Kounde in what would be a club-record move this summer.

The Lowdown: January bid

As per Mundo Deportivo (via Sport Witness), the St. James’ Park faithful ‘offered’ Sevilla as much as €70m (£59.3m) to try and sign Kounde in the January transfer window, but a move never materialised.

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That would have been a club-record deal, and now it seems they are going to try their luck again in the summer.

The Latest: Wanted

According to Mundo Deportivo (via Sport Witness), the North East club still ‘want’ to sign Kounde, and are now a ‘rival’ to FC Barcelona for his signature.

However, the La Liga giants cannot afford to pay his €90m (£76.3m) release clause, which could well open the door for the Tynesiders.

The Verdict: Difficult

With teams like Barcelona weighing up a move for Kounde, there is no doubt that he will be a wanted man this summer, and so the Magpies may find it difficult to persuade him to join without any European football to offer.

Dubbed ‘world-class’ by former Tottenham Hotspur and England international goalkeeper Paul Robinson, the France international has played in the UEFA Champions League this season, and will be next term should Sevilla get a point in their last match of the league campaign.

Nonetheless, he is only 23 years of age, and may not feel like a move to the Toon suits him at this stage of his career.

In other news, find out which £36m-rated star NUFC could now sign for free here!

Liverpool could sign Bayern Munich star Serge Gnabry in a swap deal with Sadio Mane this summer, according to Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg.

The Lowdown: Mane linked with exit

On Monday, Mane was linked with a surprise exit in the summer transfer window, with Bayern believed to have spoken to his representatives over a possible move.

The Senegalese superstar is out of contract at Liverpool in 2023 and the Bundesliga giants see him as a primary transfer target, especially with Robert Lewandowski potentially moving on.

Another key aspect of this update is also doing the rounds, though, now suggesting Liverpool may not be looking just for cash…

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The Latest: Gnabry to come in?

According to Sky Germany’s Plettenberg, Liverpool are considering a swap deal with Mane and Gnabry, bringing in the Bayern winger as their current superstar’s replacement.

The former Arsenal man has enjoyed an impressive spell in Germany, scoring 64 goals and registering 40 assists in 170 appearances, as well as winning the Champions League in 2020.

The Verdict: Good player, but no thanks

While Gnabry is an outstanding player in his own right – Rio Ferdinand has hailed him as both ‘phenomenal’ and world-class’ – it would still be preferable for Liverpool to keep hold of Mane.

Granted, he is three years older than the Bayern hero, but he is an incredible physical specimen, meaning he should still be a top-level player well into his 30s.

Mane has only just started to thrive in a new central role under Jurgen Klopp and it would be a huge blow to see him decide to move on now.

If a swap deal did happen however, Gnabry would certainly fit the bill, given his pace, directness and end product, but the hope is that it won’t come to fruition.

In other news, James Pearce has dropped a key Liverpool transfer update. Read more here.

Bruno Lage will be without Daniel Podence for Wolves’ trip to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, according to a report by Nathan Judah.

Taking to Twitter, the journalist stated: “Podence is a bit of a grey area, has an injury and potentially could play through injections, but he’s unwilling at the moment because he might aggravate that problem.”

The Molineux side have been without the 26-year-old for the last three games and in that time have failed to score a single goal – coincidence much? As a result, Lage will need to find a burst of attacking threat from somewhere and must not shy away from unleashing Pedro Neto in Podence’s absence.

Lage must unleash Neto

Wolves face a tough ask in their quest to bring European football back to Molineux for next season. In their final four Premier League games, they take on Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool, with Norwich as the penultimate match.

With goals having been hard to come by this season for the Old Gold, with only 33 in their 34 top-flight games, they cannot afford to be shy in front of goal against three of the league’s best defences.

This is where the under-utilised Neto, who has been described by journalist Sanjeev Jasani as “unbelievable”, comes in.

The 22-year-old has made just nine appearances this season after missing more than half of the campaign due to a knee injury that he sustained towards the end of last term – as per Transfermarkt. he has been sidelined for a mammoth 295 days.

In those nine Premier League appearances, he has started just once, with all of his other outings coming from the bench.

Wolves are in dire need of a player who can provide a cutting edge in the final third, and given his previous form before his injury, Neto is certainly that player.

He bagged this season’s metrics, that would see him as Wolves’ second-highest scorer and leading assists provider in the current Premier League campaign, had he replicated those numbers.

Given that Chelsea boast the third-best defence in the league having conceded just 29 goals this season, it’s apparent that a Wolves side who have failed to score over their last three matches will require something special to find the back of the net against Thomas Tuchel’s side. Neto cold be the man to provide it, particularly with Podence laid low.

In other news: Lage can finally axe “rubbish” liability as Wolves can unleash the next Phil Foden 

Manchester City have not been reluctant to approach some of their fellow Premier League clubs to sign their marquee names in the past.

Some players who have made moves to the Etihad Stadium from other top-flight clubs include Jack Grealish, Riyad Mahrez, Raheem Sterling, Kyle Walker and John Stones.

Now that the summer transfer window is set to open for business in the coming weeks, it seems as though the Citizens have their eye on securing the signature of another one of the Premier League’s top talents.

What’s the news?

According to a recent report from the Daily Mail, City are interested in signing Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba on a free transfer this summer.

With his current contract at Old Trafford set to expire at the end of June, the Frenchman could be set to call time on his six-year second spell with the Red Devils.

Pogba re-joined the Manchester club in the summer of 2016 from Juventus in a deal worth a then world-record fee of £89m after leaving for free in 2012.

In 233 senior appearances for City’s rivals, the 29-year-old – who is currently picking up a wage of £290k-per-week – has scored 39 goals and provided 51 assists from midfield.

Despite playing just 20 league games for United this season, the 2018 World Cup winner has still delivered nine assists for his current team, which is more than any other player in their squad.

Also, with an average of 1.6 shots per game, only Cristiano Ronaldo (3.6) and Bruno Fernandes (2.4) have a higher average of players currently in Ralf Rangnick’s squad. This show just how much of an attacking danger the Frenchman can be from midfield.

From a defensive point of view, Pogba also has an average of 1.8 aerial duels won per game. Taking into account how United are the only team with a higher percentage for aerials won this season than City, adding the 29-year-old to their ranks could be a great way to make the English champions even stronger in the air.

Described as a “work of art” by his recently deceased agent Mino Raiola, Pogba could be a solid addition to Pep Guardiola’s squad if the Citizens are able to work out a deal for him in the summer.

In addition, taking a player off their rivals to potentially become an important figure for City and win trophies would presumably leave many fans in the blue half of Manchester ecstatic.

In other news: Big blow as behind-the-scenes transfer development emerges, it’s bad news for Man City