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According to a Tottenham Hotspur source at Football Insider, midfielder Harry Winks is now in talks to join a Premier League rival.

The Lowdown: Spurs in major overhaul…

Since managing director Fabio Paratici arrived in north London, there has been no shortage of transfer activity in and out of Tottenham.

Pierluigi Gollini and Bryan Gil have both officially arrived at the club while Erik Lamela, Danny Rose, Toby Alderweireld and Juan Foyth have all departed N17.

Now, a Spurs source has shared yet more news on their outgoings this summer.

The Latest: Winks in exit talks…

As per FI, midfield man Winks has been told he will be a fringe player under Nuno Espirito Santo this season and is in talks to join a Premier League rival this summer.

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Nuno has even personally green lit the transfer and Winks could now leave before next month’s transfer window deadline.

Negotiations are ‘underway’, as per this report, as Tottenham look to complete another permanent sale following the flurry of outgoings this summer.

While Spurs value the 25-year-old at around £30 million, it is believed they may have to accept a lower bid.

The Verdict: Boost for Spurs?

Depending on how Spurs fill the hole left behind by Winks’ possible departure, this could be a further boost for Tottenham if they manage to finalise a sale.

The Lilywhites are in a sell-to-buy hole but have their sights set on more defensive additions as well as the acquisition of someone to partner Harry Kane up front.

Offloading Winks for more profit could be a necessity if Paratici wishes to strengthen even more this summer.

In other news: ‘Massive’, ‘Exactly what Levy wants’…Sky pundit excited by Spurs stadium news! Find out more here.

Former Leeds United midfielder Carlton Palmer has told Football FanCast in an exclusive interview that Wolves winger Adama Traore is not good enough to play in a top-four side.

According to journalist Duncan Castles, Leeds have made a £30m offer for Traore. However, the 25-year-old has no interest in joining the Whites as he aims for a Champions League level club.

Traore had his struggles last season. While he was able to beat defenders as usual, averaging an impressive 4.1 dribbles per league game (via WhoScored), he was far from productive in the final third.

The Spaniard came up with just four goal contributions in the Premier League, two goals and two assists, and for Palmer, he simply has not fulfilled his potential.

“No, he’s not good enough,” the former Leeds player said. “He has all the attributes to be one hell of a football player, but he hasn’t really fulfilled his potential.

“I don’t see him getting a top-four club at all. I don’t see stability and where he would play at a top-four club.”

Certainly, as mentioned, Traore does have the skill set to be one fine player. However, presently, that lack of an end product is probably holding him back.

Steve Parish and Crystal Palace will not budge on Wilfried Zaha’s valuation, former Premier League midfielder Carlton Palmer has told The Transfer Tavern.

Zaha had been strongly linked with both Tottenham and Everton at the end of last season but nothing is yet to materialise.

The latter’s interest dates back to 2019 where they had an offer rejected for the player, which was confirmed by the club (via Liverpool Echo).

Transfer insider Dean Jones, speaking on the Football Terrace, has claimed that Spurs are still looking at Zaha ahead of deadline day. Palmer, though, has warned them and other outfits not to expect a discount.

“Steve Parish is one of those guys. He won’t budge on this,” the ex-Leeds United player said. “If he’s said it’s 50 million, for example, it’s 50 million. So it’s for the clubs now to trigger that.”

While you would never rule anything out, it would be a surprise to see Tottenham splash out on Zaha in this moment of time.

Nuno Espirito Santo currently has the likes of Son Heung-min, Lucas Moura and Steven Bergwijn for those attacking positions, the trio all impressing in that recent 1-0 win against Manchester City.

They have also just brought in Bryan Gil from Sevilla so are hardly lacking in that area of the pitch right now.

Ex-Manchester City defender Steve Howey believes a loan move to the Championship would benefit Liam Delap.

The 18-year-old was in scintillating form for Manchester City’s EDS squad last season, as he scored scoresheet.

After his incredible form last season, Delap has been linked with a temporary move away from the Etihad with the likes of West Bromwich Albion and Stoke City two clubs mentioned as to where he could play his football next season.

With examples of players in the past going to play Championship football and then return to the first team at their parent club, Howey believes a loan move would benefit Delap.

Howey told The Transfer Tavern: “You look at Mason Mount, you look at Kane, all these players have gone out on loan and I had times where you’re playing week in, week out. For me the Championship is a ridiculously hard league, it’s just relentless, constant games, tough opponents. 

“We’ve just been speaking about Freddie Woodman who’s gone out and done that and now is a possibility. I think it would be a great idea for him to go out because you cannot really see him get much game time, whereas if he goes to a Championship club, Pep can watch him closely, monitor everything, speak to them pretty much all the time and see his development.

“It would do him the power of good, but that’s just my opinion, it just depends on the player.”

Whether Delap stays at the Etihad Stadium after the transfer window closes or heads out on loan, he will be hoping for plenty of minutes and another brilliant season in front of goal, telling Sky Sports: “As a footballer you just want to play as much as you can and that’ll be my target this season, just to play as much as I can.”

Celtic target, Legia Warsaw’s Josip Juranovic, could be a Hoops player by the weekend, according to STV News.

The Lowdown: Fee agreed

A move for the Croatia international, who can play as a right-back, right-midfielder or a centre-back, started to gather real pace on Tuesday.

Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas revealed that Celtic and Warsaw have agreed on a £2.5m deal for the 26-year-old, with talks regarding finer details ongoing.

Juranovic is on £6,100-a-week in Poland (£317,200-a-year) and will now discuss personal terms with the Hoops.

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The Latest: Signing by the weekend

STV News shared a story on Tuesday evening regarding Celtic and Juranovic.

Within their report, they claimed that Juranovic could make the switch to Celtic Park by the weekend – that would mean crossing the T’s and dotting the I’s in the next 48 hours.

Should a move officially go through at the price reported by Thomas, Juranovic would become the club’s eighth addition of the window and fourth over £2m, taking Celtic’s summer spending to £17m.

The Verdict: McKay giving Postecoglou what he wants

Postecoglou wanted a right-back and a winger before the end of the window, and it appears Dominic McKay will be supplying a player capable of playing in both positions in Juranovic.

He’s primarily a right-back but all six of his starts this season have come as a right-midfielder, so he could potentially challenge for a spot further forward in Postecoglou’s 4-2-3-1 system.

Hopefully STV News’ claim is correct and Juranovic is a Celtic player by the weekend, as he may then make his Scottish Premiership debut the following weekend in the first Glasgow derby of the campaign.

In other news: Ange’s phone call: Celtic set sights on 6ft ‘phenomenon’; he likes the sound of a Parkhead move. 

Leeds United winger Helder Costa showed exactly why Marcelo Bielsa should sell him in this summer transfer window by putting in a woeful display in his side’s 2-0 win over Crewe Alexandra in the Carabao Cup second round.

Reports in recent weeks and months have suggested that the Whites were open to letting him go this summer on a permanent basis, as they see him as someone who could be sold for a decent money to then be reinvested into the squad.

That was then followed up by The Athletic’s Phil Hay who revealed that sources in Spain had told him that La Liga clubs, including the likes of Valencia, are monitoring him, although no formal bids had been placed.

On Tuesday night, Costa was given the chance to start from the off and prove to Bielsa why he’s worth keeping around, but instead, delivered the a shocking performance.

Despite his team dominating on their way to a comfortable victory, the Portugal international struggled to really get to grips with the game, despite the gulf in class between the two sides.

As per Sofascore, he actually made fewer passes than goalkeeper Illan Meslier, provided no key passes, failed to complete any dribbles, and saw his two attempts on goal miss the target completely.

Costa just looked far too lightweight, losing six of his 11 total duels, and conceding possession on nine separate occasions – a real indication of the kind of wastefulness with which he played with.

And, in his post-match player ratings for The Yorkshire Evening Post, Graham Smyth gave him a five, saying: “Persisted despite a struggle to make a first half impact and a wild shot when he got a chance. Couldn’t create much danger on the right.”

Those sentiments were followed up by Leeds Live’s Beren Cross, who also gave him a five, adding: “Another ineffectual performance from the winger, despite the quality of the opposition. A performance summed up by the drive inside from the right flank which had everyone on their feet before driving the ball halfway up the Norman Hunter Stand.”

Make no mistake about it, a home tie in the Carabao Cup second round against a side currently lying in 22nd in League One was the perfect chance and audition for Costa to remind Bielsa and the club of the qualities he possesses.

Instead, his abject display surely more than confirmed the feeling that the Portuguese ace simply has to go in the remaining few days of the summer transfer window.

Costa’s time at Elland Road must be over now.

Meanwhile, Phil Hay has dropped a Leeds United transfer update…

Sunderland striker Will Grigg’s potential departure from the Stadium of Light is in doubt.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Alan Nixon, with The Sun journalist revealing on Twitter that Doncaster Rovers have “a couple of things to do” before they can finalise a move for the Black Cats centre-forward, who had been expected to leave the League One leaders prior to Tuesday’s transfer deadline.

When asked whether or not the 30-year-old seemed likely to join Rovers, Nixon said: “A couple of things to do to make that happen.”

Indeed, a subsequent claim made by Rob Staton threw further doubt on the Northern Ireland international’s move, with the BBC Radio Sheffield journalist stating on Twitter: “Doncaster want Will Grigg but at this stage it seems unlikely.”

Fans will be gutted

Grigg has been poor over his two-year spell at the Stadium of Light, and should his move to Doncaster indeed fall through, it could then cast doubt as to whether Lee Johnson will be able to afford a move for Bayern Munich forward Leon Dajaku. Therefore, these latest updates regarding the 30-year-old are sure to have left Sunderland fans gutted.

Indeed, over his 62 appearances for Sunderland, the £1.08m-rated man has found the back of the net on just eight occasions, while the former Wigan Athletic hitman has also been blunt creatively, providing his teammates with just three assists.

When taking into account the man who Jack Ross claimed is “desperate to be a success” cost the Black Cats a League One record transfer fee of £4m back in 2019, as well as earning a substantial £6k-per-week during his time on Wearside, it would not seem unfair to claim that Grigg has been a considerable waste of money for the club.

Furthermore, should the centre-forward’s failure to secure an exit from the club subsequently rule out Johnson’s own move for Dajaku, not only would the Mackems be stuck with a player who is quite clearly not in the manager’s first-team plans, they would also be missing on a youngster who appears to be an incredibly exciting prospect. Such an outcome would undoubtedly leave everyone involved with the club feeling frustrated.

In other news: Louis-Dreyfus in advanced talks for £1.7k-p/w ace, he could be a “great signing” for Sunderland

The return of Christopher Jullien will be a ‘massive’ boost for a Celtic side who look like they’re ‘missing a leader’.

That’s according to former Scotland full-back Alan Hutton, who was speaking to Football Insider.

The lowdown

Julien has been out of action since the end of December 2020 with a knee injury. It’s ruled him out of 34 matches to date.

Speaking midway through last month, manager Ange Postecoglou said that Jullien was ‘still very much on an individual programme’ and insisted Celtic were being ‘careful’.

It will be ‘a little while’ before he’s back in contention, the Australian added.

Celtic have managed to keep four clean sheets in their first 11 competitive matches of the new campaign.

The latest

Hutton says the partnership of Stephen Welsh and Carl Starfelt is unconvincing, with the former inexperienced and the latter struggling to ‘find his feet’.

He expects the composed Jullien to elevate the defence when he does eventually return.

“They must be desperate to have him back,” the former Rangers, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa man said. “I think they’re missing a leader at the moment in that centre-half pairing.

“Welsh has come in and done really well, but he’s young.

“Starfelt has only just walked through the door, he’s not found his feet yet after a difficult time at the start of the season.

“They need a calm head back there, so Celtic will be desperate for Jullien to come back.

“He’s played in those high-pressure games, and he can help bring on the centre-backs around him with his experience as well.

“He’ll be a massive part of this Celtic side, and when he’s fit he’ll come straight back in.”

The verdict

Celtic’s centre-back ranks have been doubly weakened with Jullien sidelined and Kristoffer Ajer transferred to Brentford for an initial £13.5million back in July. Those two formed a reassuring partnership.

After such a serious injury, there may also be concerns that Jullien will struggle to recapture his former levels.

It’s key for Celtic’s domestic, and indeed European, ambitions that he’s fit and firing soon.

In other news, Celtic have been linked with this attacker.

Alan Hutton has sung the praises of Robby McCrorie after the 23-year-old impressed in goal for Glasgow Rangers recently.

The Lowdown: Clean sheets

McCrorie has started in the last two games for the Ibrox outfit against Alashkert in the second leg of their Europa League qualifier, and at home in the Old Firm derby last weekend.

In those matches, he managed to keep two clean sheets, with the 0-0 draw at Alashkert followed up by the 1-0 win against bitter rivals Celtic (Sofascore rating of 7.4, the fourth-highest of any player on the day.

The Latest: Hutton on McCrorie

Speaking to Football Insider, former Rangers right-back Hutton hailed McCrorie after his impressive performances, and even went as far as to suggest that Steven Gerrard may decide against sending him out on loan again. The 36-year-old said:

“Gerrard will be very impressed with him.

“I think it was a little bit sink or swim for him, it was just left up to him with the two other experienced goalkeepers missing.

“He’s been out on loan, he’s had that experience and that’s led to his first Rangers game.

“The Old Firm game is different to anything else, but he’s taken it all in his stride and I thought it was an excellent performance.

“He stepped up and made some decent saves, so overall he must be very happy with his performance.

“Gerrard, Gary McAllister and those guys must be seeing what kind of goalkeeper that he’s capable of being in the future.

“They know that he can step up and be trusted. I’m really happy for him.

“To be able to go out in those situations and make big saves is bound to make him a better goalkeeper.”

The Verdict: Keep

After being sent out on loan to Berwick Rangers, Morton, Queen of the South and Livingston throughout his Gers career so far (Transfermarkt), McCrorie has shown that he can now perform for his parent club.

With the seasoned pro of Allan McGregor as a role model, the 23-year-old should only benefit from watching the veteran stopper in training, hopefully getting more minutes on the pitch as the season progresses.

He should be kept at the club at all costs rather than farmed out on loan again, so long as he can continue putting in impressive displays for the first team.

In other news, Rangers may find it ‘difficult’ to keep this ace at Ibrox

Presenter Joe Wainman has made an intriguing claim about Leeds United transfer target Noa Lang.

What’s the story?

Sport/Voetbalmagazine (via Sport Witness) claimed that Marcelo Bielsa’s side remained interested in signing Lang before transfer deadline day, but a deal failed to materialise for the Club Brugge winger.

Now, Wainman has delivered his verdict on why a summer move didn’t happen for the 22-year-old, but dropped a teasing claim on whether the Whites will make a future move for him.

He said: “The thing with Club Brugge is they had already sold Emmanuel Dennis to Watford and Odilon Kossounou to Bayer Leverkusen for big money, so they weren’t short of cash.

“When you look at what Noa Lang is doing in Belgium for them, it might have been a case of them being able to afford to hold onto him.

“I looked at someone like Noa Lang and thought maybe towards the back-end of the window Club Brugge would have to take some money, but the fact they moved other players on meant they were healthy.

“I think maybe we will revisit that in the summer.”

Leeds fans will be buzzing

Able to play anywhere across the frontline, Lang showcased just why Bielsa wanted him at Elland Road, bagging an impressive 17 goals and providing a further 11 assists in just 37 games.

Dubbed a “phenomenon” by Belgian journalist Peter Vandenbempt, the winger made history when he became the first player in 60 years to mark his debut with a hat-trick for Ajax, while his teammate at Brugge, Cyriel Dessers, has even admitted that Leeds’ interest in the fleet-footed winger is to be expected.

He said: “He is absolutely ready for the Premier League. He was fantastic last season. Then it is logical that there is a next step.  I would love to see him in the Champions League with Club Brugge, but he has shown that he is one of the best footballers in Belgium.

“He is a graceful footballer, but he also works very hard. I often sat on the bench, so I could keep an eye on him there. But the way he works, I didn’t know he had that in him. He has really taken a step. The interest does not come out of nowhere. I know how Leeds work.”

Wainman’s claim that rather than simply moving on from their pursuit of Lang, that they could revisit that in the summer, is sure to have fans excited given just how good Lang is right now, and how great he could be in the future.

Meanwhile, Phil Hay has dropped an update on this Leeds United star…