Everton: Signing Becao would be a disaster

Everton have recently been tipped to make a move for Udinese defender Rodrigo Becao, but the statistics suggest that he would be no better than Michael Keane in Frank Lampard’s side next season.

According to Mirror journalist Rich Jones, the Toffees are considering a move for the Brazilian centre-back this summer as they look to amend some of their defensive frailties ahead of next season.

Lampard’s side shipped 66 goals in the top-flight last term, the fifth-worst of any team in the Premier League, so defensive improvements must be made if the Toffees are to avoid another relegation battle next time around.

However, they might be better off looking elsewhere for new defensive options, as Becao’s form in recent seasons does little to support any claims that he would be a success in the Premier League.

Last season saw the Brazilian make 35 appearances in Serie A, in which he contributed two goals and one assist, averaging a disappointing 6.65 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

Despite some horrible displays from Keane last term, with the red card against West Ham and his own-goal-stained performance in the 5-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur springing to mind, he still managed more goals and assists and a better WhoScored rating in the Premier League than Becao in Serie A.

Keane also contributed more interceptions, blocks, clearances and successful headers per game than Becao, so it seems strange that Everton are reportedly keen on signing the 26-year-old.

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Considering that the Toffees have reportedly secured the signing of James Tarkowski on a free transfer from Burnley, they would surely be better off strengthening in other positions, rather than arguably wasting money on the £5.4m-rated Becao.

It is difficult to see what the Udinese man, who has been labelled “insurmountable” in the past by Brazilian journalist Bruno Queiroz, would offer Lampard next season if the Everton boss wants to make improvements in defence, as all the statistics suggest that the 43-year-old would be better off persevering with Keane.

In other news… Dele Alli 2.0: Everton plotting swoop for “average” £20m dud, supporters will be fuming

Wolves: Dean Jones issues Seferovic verdict

Journalist Dean Jones has shared his view on Wolverhampton Wanderers’ potential interest in Benfica striker, Haris Seferovic…

What’s the word?

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the trusted insider has raised the hopes of the Molineux faithful after suggesting that they should “get excited” about a possible move, following a viral image that showed manager Bruno Lage meeting with the Switzerland international.

Although it is unclear if that was related to a possible move, Jones has suggested that it would do no harm for supporters to be optimistic: “I see it both ways. I can see why they would defend it and say there’s nothing in it, but if you’re a Wolves fan, then you might as well get excited about it because there hasn’t been much to get excited about over the course of the last six months.”

The 30-year-old had previously been linked with a switch to the Midlands last summer, having played under the Wolves boss during their time together in Portugal.

Time to get excited

That connection has been the centre of the speculation regarding the forward’s potential move to England, with the pair having won the league title together during the 2018/19 season for the Lisbon outfit, after Lage had taken charge midway through the campaign.

That season would see Seferovic net 27 times in all competitions – including 23 goals in the league – notably netting twice in a remarkable 10-0 thrashing of Nacional, as Benfica ended the campaign with a joint-club record of 103 league goals.

That is a far cry from Lage’s current side who scored just 38 top-flight goals last term – the fourth-worst record in the division – with the Old Gold seemingly crying out for a prolific presence to lead the line.

Although the former Eintracht Frankfurt man did enjoy a poor campaign of his own last time out – with just five goals in 15 games in all competitions – that was largely due to frustrating spells out with injury, having previously netted 22 league goals the year prior.

Equally, at international level he also boasts a solid record with 24 goals in 85 caps, notably netting a hat-trick in a 5-2 thrashing of Belgium in 2018, while he also bagged a double in the thrilling 3-3 draw with France at last summer’s European Championships.

Such talent has seen him dubbed a “monster” by one journalist, while former coach Ottmar Hitzfield also previously labelled him a “full-blooded centre-forward”, as he can also add a physical quality to his finishing prowess.

With doubts over the future of Raul Jimenez, Seferovic could be the ideal man to come into the side to fill the void, with Lage needing to reunite with the £7.2m-rated gem this summer to help solve Wolves’ attacking woes.

As Jones suggested, it could well be time for supporters to start getting excited, even if it is all just speculation at present.

IN other news, Lage plots Wolves bid for £34.1m gem who’s “one of the best”, imagine him and Palhinha

Celtic eyeing up Connor Barron signing

Celtic are interested in signing Aberdeen youngster Connor Barron in the summer transfer window, according to a fresh transfer rumour.

The Lowdown: Big summer ahead

It was a superb 2021/22 season for the Hoops, with Ange Postecoglou guiding his team to Premiership and Scottish League Cup glory.

The key thing now is to build on that success, with funds available for new signings after sealing Champions League group stage qualification for next season.

While established names may be required in order to make Postecoglou’s squad stronger, it could be that emerging young talent also comes in at Parkhead.

The Latest: Hoops keen on Barron signing

According to The Scottish Daily Express, Celtic have ‘run the rule’ over Aberdeen midfielder Barron, having sent scouts to watch him in action for Scotland’s under-21s.

Postecoglou is believed to have been ‘impressed’ with the 19-year-old in the past 12 months, having made a total of 15 appearances for the Dons.

The Verdict: Building for the future

Barron has been hailed as a ‘brilliant’ and ‘brave’ player by his manager Jim Goodwin, and he is someone who could be an exciting prospective signing for Celtic.

Having young homegrown talent in the squad is always something which should be the case at Parkhead, and the 19-year-old could come in as a future midfield star, initially a fringe player to provide backup before growing into a crucial first-team figure over the years.

It is vital that Postecoglou sees this as a long-term project over many years, and signing players of Barron’s ilk could play a big role in ensuring that Celtic have a core group who could form the backbone of the team well into the future.

In other news, Celtic have reportedly ‘set their sights’ on one player. Find out who it is here.

Tottenham star Emerson held at gunpoint

Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Alasdair Gold was one of the first to react on Twitter to news that right-back Emerson Royal was a victim in an attempted armed robbery.

The Lowdown: Emerson involved in incident

The Brazilian first made the switch to the Premier League when he joined the Lilywhites on a five-year contract from Spanish giants Barcelona for a fee believed to be £25.8m. He has since made 41 appearances in all competitions for Antonio Conte’s side during his first season in north London.

News was broken by football.london reporter Rob Guest that in the early hours of Friday morning, the 23 year-old defender had successfully managed to escape an attempted armed robbery.

The article states that there were ’29 shots fired’ between police and the assailant, but the Spurs star has assured people that he is safe and well and will speak out about the incident soon.

The Latest: Gold reacts to Emerson update

In a new post on his personal Twitter account, Gold reacted to the shocking revelation he’d heard involving Emerson and wrote:

“This sounds horrible. Thank goodness Emerson is ok.”

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The Verdict: Relief

It will come as hugely positive news to not just his family and friends, but also to everyone associated with Tottenham to know that the six-cap international is unharmed.

The £22.5m-rated starlet has been a regular feature in Conte’s starting XI this season, making 31 top-flight outings, scoring one goal and providing one assist during that time, via Transfermarkt.

Royal is said to have returned to his home country for a short break following the conclusion of the season, but will obviously now need to be given the appropriate time to recover from the incident before even considering making a return to the football pitch ahead of the start of the new term.

In other news… Fabio Paratici has reportedly opened talks over the possibility of signing a ‘scary’ new player.

Man United want Pau Torres "at all costs"

Manchester United have begun their new chapter under Erik ten Hag and are said be vying for the signature of Villarreal defender Pau Torres.

What’s the word?

That is according to Marca, via Sport Witness, who have stated in their latest report that the Old Trafford side are the club that yearns “most strongly” to sign the Spaniard.

It is said that Ten Hag has requested a centre-back who is comfortable on the ball, with the club believing that 25-year-old Torres “fits perfectly” into the 52-year-old’s plans.

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As per the report, Manchester United are “willing to pay up to €50m (£42.5m)” for the defender, which has placed them ahead of the competition.

The 25-year-old’s agents reportedly “plan to travel to Manchester this week” to negotiate contract details, as long as United “can reach an understanding” with the Yellow Submarine.

Ten Hag will love him

Since the departure of Daley Blind, who ironically returned back to Ajax to garner even more success playing under Ten Hag, United have lacked a natural left-footed central defender.

Like Pep Guardiola recently, the Dutchman is an advocate of natural centre-backs who fit into one of the two positions in a four-at-the-back set-up which means Torres is someone he’d love to sign.

With the way that both coaches seek to achieve mass possession, the centre-backs effectively become the midfield base in possession, so ball-playing defenders whose foot is suited to their respective position in the backline can offer stability.

Torres can be that option for Ten Hag, and with the latest news stating their yearn to sign the Spaniard, it looks as though United understand the importance of the Villarreal man too.

The 25-year-old’s numbers in possession over the last year would see him become the most esteemed ball-playing centre-back among the United squad, with his average of 4.64 progressive carries, 1.04 carries into the final third, 4.31 progressive passes, and 6.70 passes under pressure just some of the metrics that would drastically improve the United backline, whilst predictably toppling both Raphael Varane’s and Harry Maguire’s numbers.

Based on that, it’s hardly a surprise to see the defender dubbed “extraordinary” by former Villarreal player and coach Javi Calleja.

With six goal contributions this season in La Liga, in the form of five goals and one assist, Torres is fully established in possession and has scored more goals than the likes of Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Edinson Cavani this season.

United could pull off a masterclass with a signing like Torres in what would be a fierce statement of intent towards the rest of the Premier League.

In other news: Offer made: Man United have submitted bid to sign £85.4m “lion”, he’s Lewandowski 2.0 

Rangers: Kieran Maguire drops Europa League finance claim

Rangers’ failure to win the UEFA Europa League could actually lead to a boost from matchday income, claims football finance expert Kieran Maguire.

The Lowdown: Rangers’ Europa League campaign

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side came agonisingly close to winning their first European Cup since 1972 after going the full 90 minutes in a 1-1 draw against German side Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League final.

Painstakingly, the Gers lost out on penalties as Aaron Ramsey was denied moments before Rafael Borre crashed in the decisive spot kick.

The Glasgow outfit would have automatically qualified for the Champions League group stages if they had beaten Frankfurt. Instead, they must now navigate two play-off rounds before qualifying.

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The Latest: Maguire’s claim

Despite this, Maguire believes that Rangers may be better off with two extra matches in the long run.

Speaking with Football Insider, he claimed:

“They’ve missed out on £3.9m in prize money.

“But you also qualify for the European Super Cup. It would be a very high-profile tie against either Real Madrid or Liverpool that they have missed out on.

“Then there is also automatic qualification in next year’s Champions League. They finished runners-up in the Scottish Premiership so they could still go through the preliminary stages.

“So if they do make it to the group stages of the Champions League, they will actually lose very little.

“In fact, you could argue they would be even better off because you can sell out Ibrox a few more times in those preliminary rounds.”

The Verdict: Great season for Rangers

Despite the painful loss in the Europa League final, the 2021/22 campaign can be labelled a big success for Rangers under new boss van Bronckhorst.

Just days after leaving Seville with runners-up medals, the Gers faced off against Hearts in the final of the Scottish Cup. Two goals in extra time ensured victory and another trophy being added to the club’s illustrious cabinet.

Therefore, with everything considered, Rangers fans should consider this season a success, thus providing them with hope for the title race in the Scottish Premiership next year.

In other news: Rangers: Jonny McFarlane stunned by Cinch news

Ebadot kickstarts Bangladesh's fast bowling romance

Bangladesh have relied on their spinners at home over the years, but as today demonstrated, that might be changing

Mohammad Isam15-Jun-2023Bangladesh fans don’t really know what it’s like to see their fast bowlers rattle opponents at a home Test. They were never a side that had a genuine fast bowling attack in their first decade, which led to a period between 2016 and 2020 when the team management decided to show the door to fast bowling at home. When Afghanistan last played a Test here in 2019, Bangladesh didn’t even field a specialist seamer.The circumstances have certainly changed. Bangladesh’s fast bowling has progressed so much in the last two and a half years that the Shere Bangla National Stadium curator, Gamini Silva – seemingly following instructions from the team management – put out a green top with pace, bounce and carry in the one-off Test against Afghanistan this week.There was turn on the pitch from the first day too, but the fast bowlers from both sides have outperformed spinners. They have combined to take 13 wickets, including eight in the first session on the second day. Nijat Masood took a five-wicket debut haul, before Ebadot Hossain snared four wickets.Such scenes are a rarity at this venue which is well-known for dishing out regular raging turners. But with the fast bowling unit improving in all formats, the Bangladesh think-tank showed that they have belief in them.Ahead of this Test, Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusinghe said that they want to see how their different skillsets can give them options over five days of a Test match. It was during Hathurusinghe’s first reign as head coach when Bangladesh team management wanted only raging turners at home. It paid off with maiden Test wins over England and Australia but they lost to Afghanistan, West Indies and Sri Lanka using the same tactics. It was becoming too predictable.

We had a pitch in our favour so we wanted to make best use of it. The rest is up to the team management. I think if we keep bowling well at home, the team management can have confidence in usEbadot Hossain

On Thursday, it was Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam and Ebadot Hossain who blazed away in the hot afternoon. Left-arm quick Shoriful opened the floodgates with two crucial strikes before Ebadot bounced out four of the batters. Taskin didn’t get wickets but he’s the natural leader of this attack, and wickets are often around the corner for the 28-year old tearaway.Ebadot looked the most hostile of the Bangladesh bowlers, either attacking the stumps or bowling quick bouncers to keep the batters guessing. He said that the idea was to use the bouncer a surprise weapon.”I think this is the first time that we got this type of wicket (at home),” Ebadot said. “We were lucky to have three fast bowlers playing here. We tried to bowl them out for as less a total as possible. I am happy that we could stick to our plan. We extracted bounce out of the wicket. We cannot plan for it. We tried to make use of the pace and bounce of the wicket. They found it tough.Ebadot Hossain struck twice with the new ball in the first session•Walton”I didn’t get my wickets just by bowling bouncers. I set up the batter with full balls before surprising them with a bouncer. I have grabbed this plan slowly. Before I used to bowl two or three bouncers an over after bowling inswingers and outswingers. But now I could do execute a plan of surprising the batter due to the wicket.”Ebadot said that the unit is trying to match up to the world standards of fast bowling’s effectiveness at the highest level. He said that the more they have performances that help the team win, the more confidence the team management will have in them.”Our pace bowling department have improved a lot in the last three years. I am not saying that we are the finished product but our graph is going upward in this period. We want to do consistently well. We have been able to grab the fast bowling dominating mindset of world cricket.”The fast bowlers did well in this good wicket. The match isn’t over. We have bowled only one innings. We want to do better in the second innings. We were all confident that we could do well in this game. We had a pitch in our favour so we wanted to make best use of it. The rest is up to the team management. I think if we keep bowling well at home, the team management can have confidence in us,” he said.Ebadot said that he didn’t regret not taking the five-for, as the captain Litton Das was having to catch up to a slow over rate. Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Taijul Islam shared the last three wickets.”I am okay with not getting five wickets. We were two overs behind so the captain employed spinners from both ends. He told me that I won’t be bowling since we needed to make up for the overs. Team comes first for me, more than my personal goals,” he said.Ebadot also had another bit of good news during this spell of 4-47. His bowling average has gone down to less than 50 for the first time in his Test career. It has taken him 20 Tests in four years to get to this level. These four years have also seen Bangladesh changing its perception about fast bowling. When was the last time you saw the wicketkeeper collecting the ball around his chest for two days in Mirpur?

'Being a great striker doesn't necessarily make you a great manager' – Ex-Leicester star takes savage dig at former Man Utd star Ruud van Nistelrooy after terrible Foxes spell

Odsonne Edouard has launched a scathing attack on Ruud van Nistelrooy, claiming the Manchester United legend’s managerial ability fell well short of his playing career after a miserable spell together at Leicester City. The French striker, who barely featured during the Foxes’ relegation season, says he “didn’t get along” with the Dutchman and was frozen out for seven months.

  • Edouard and van Nistelrooy's row

    Edouard has broken his silence on his doomed loan stint at Leicester City, pointing the finger squarely at former boss Van Nistelrooy. The Crystal Palace forward joined the Foxes on loan last summer and featured sparingly under Steve Cooper before being completely sidelined once Van Nistelrooy took charge in late November. Despite Leicester’s growing goal drought, the Dutchman ignored Edouard for most of the campaign, with the striker making just six appearances as the Foxes crashed out of the Premier League.

    Van Nistelrooy’s tenure proved disastrous, with only five wins in 27 matches and eight consecutive games without a goal at one stage. Edouard’s exclusion puzzled many, especially given his experience in English football and Leicester’s lack of cutting edge up front. By the end of the season, the Frenchman was out of favour, the team was relegated, and relations between the two had completely broken down.

    The fallout from Leicester’s relegation ultimately cost Van Nistelrooy his job**, as he departed the club in June without another managerial offer on the table since. His failure to revive Leicester’s fortunes, and his handling of senior players like Edouard had become a focal point in post-season reflections. For Edouard, however, the experience appears to have served as both a frustration and a lesson in resilience.

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    Edouard's dig at Man Utd legend

     “The Premier League is indescribable. You have to experience it to understand it, but at Leicester, things went wrong for me. I didn’t get along with Van Nistelrooy,” Edouard told L’Equipe.

    “I was stuck for seven months without playing. Being a great striker doesn’t necessarily make you a great manager,” he added, in what can only be described as a brutal assessment of his former coach.

    He continued: “After training, I would do an even harder session with my fitness coach. I didn’t give up. Leicester had a professional impact on me. I don’t really have any reasons. At the beginning, I played a little [under Steve Cooper], then things didn’t work out with Van Nistelrooy. I didn’t get along well with him. I found myself blocked for seven months without playing.”

    Edouard’s honesty underline a sense of betrayal and wasted opportunity, particularly as Leicester’s lack of goals could have used his experience. His claim that van Nistelrooy’s coaching pedigree did not match his playing legacy has since sparked debate about the Dutchman’s coaching prowess.

  • Edouard back in France

    Edouard’s spell at Leicester ended in disappointment, but his career has taken a sharp upward turn since returning to France with Lens. The 27-year-old has rediscovered his scoring touch, recently netting a penalty in a 2-1 win over Roberto De Zerbi’s Marseille that lifted Lens to second in Ligue 1. The Frenchman has spoken about feeling “liberated” in his new environment, where he has been trusted to lead the line rather than fight for scraps of playing time.

    Leicester, on the other hand, continue to rebuild under the leadership of Marti Cifuentes following their relegation nightmare, with the club still counting the cost of poor managerial decisions from last season. Van Nistelrooy’s reputation has taken a significant dent, and whether he can restore it will depend on his next move, if one comes at all. 

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    What comes next?

     For Edouard, the focus now lies firmly on maintaining his resurgence with Lens and possibly forcing his way back into the conversation for the French national team. His performances in Ligue 1 suggest he has rediscovered the confidence and rhythm that deserted him in England.

    Meanwhile, Van Nistelrooy’s post-Leicester career has been far less eventful. After his sacking in June, the Dutchman remains without a managerial post despite previous success at PSV Eindhoven, where he lifted the KNVB Cup. His short, unbeaten stint as interim boss at Manchester United last season now feels a distant memory as questions grow over whether he can rebuild his coaching reputation.

Not just Morgan Rogers: Emery must drop "electric" Aston Villa star

Aston Villa return to domestic action in the Premier League later this afternoon as Unai Emery’s side prepare to welcome Fulham to Villa Park.

The Spanish head coach is looking to mastermind the team’s first win in the league this season, having managed three draws and two defeats in five matches so far.

A goal from John McGinn was enough for the Villans to grab the win against Bologna in the Europa League on Thursday night, but it was not a perfect performance.

Emery may look to make some alterations to his starting line-up from that win over the Serie A outfit, and Morgan Rogers is one player who should drop out.

Why Morgan Rogers should be dropped

The England international started in the number ten position against Bologna and was booed by a small section of supporters because he failed to put in an impressive display.

The “harsh”, as Jay Bothroyd said, boos came during a performance that included Rogers losing the ball a staggering 29 times in the match, more than any other player on the pitch, per Sofascore.

A pass completion rate of 42% across 90 minutes of football is not good enough for an Aston Villa player, which is why he should be dropped from the line-up to bring Ollie Watkins back in, with Donyell Malen dropping deeper.

Rogers is not the only player who should be dropped from the XI, though. Emery must also ruthlessly ditch summer signing Evann Guessand from the team to face Fulham.

Why Evann Guessand should be dropped alongside Morgan Rogers

Villa’s England international was not the only attacker who failed to perform against Bologna in midweek, as Guessand struggled badly on the right wing at Villa Park.

The summer signing from Nice, who was described as “electric” by U23 scout Antonio Mango, won three of his 11 duels and completed just six passes in 90 minutes against the Italian outfit, per Sofascore.

Unfortunately, the Ivorian flop’s form in the Premier League since his move to the club has not been much better, having started two of his four outings in the division to date.

25/26 Premier League

Evann Guessand

Appearances

4

Starts

2

Goals

0

Big chances missed

1

Big chances created

0

Key passes per game

0.0

Assists

0

Dribble success rate

11%

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, Guessand has been incredibly ineffective at the top end of the pitch for Villa in the Premier League, with no chances created in four matches.

A dribble success rate of 11% also shows that opposition defenders have found it far too easy to get the better of him in one-on-one situations, which may be why he has struggled to create or score any goals for the Villans.

His complete lack of impact in the final third in the Premier League could open the door for Emery to bring Jadon Sancho into the starting XI on the wing, after his eight-minute cameo against Sunderland last time out in the division.

The England international created two chances in 74 minutes in his first start for the club against Brentford in the League Cup, which is more than Guessand has created in 348 minutes in all competitions for Villa, per Sofascore.

Aston Villa now want to sign £35m Sunderland star after performance against them

A concern for Regis Le Bris…

By
Tom Cunningham

Sep 27, 2025

This is why Emery must ruthlessly ditch the Ivorian attacker from the starting line-up alongside Rogers, with Watkins and Sancho coming in to replace them.

Forget Simons: Spurs must rue selling their answer to Odegaard for only £8m

Xavi Simons is a player who has arrived at the club with huge expectations after the Tottenham Hotspur hierarchy forked out £52m for his signature this summer.

The Dutch international is seen as a huge talent for the immediate and long-term future in North London as the Lilywhites look to reach the next level under Thomas Frank.

Their Europa League triumph last campaign no doubt aided their chances of landing the 22-year-old, who was firmly on Chelsea’s radar before his big-money transfer.

Supporters will no doubt be hoping he can help catapult the club up the Premier League table in 2025/26, after registering a measly 15th-place finish under Ange Postecoglou.

Frank has no reason to be unhappy with the board, especially after their investment during the off-season, hopefully replicating the success of one player from their local rivals.

The suffering Martin Odegaard has inflicted on Spurs

Martin Odegaard, who currently plies his trade for local rivals Arsenal, has been a player who has constantly impressed against Spurs – often causing the fanbase numerous moments of torment.

In his eight outings against the Lilywhites, the Norwegian international has been on the winning side on six separate occasions – subsequently achieving a 75% win rate.

He’s also scored twice and registered an assist, subsequently having a bearing on the result in 50% of the triumphs for Mikel Arteta’s side in the North London Derby.

There’s no denying that the supporters of Spurs will wish that they could have their own version of the star within the side, especially given the suffering he’s placed upon them in recent years.

The summer addition of Simons could certainly help Frank’s hopes of landing a top-level attacking midfielder, but it’s likely that he will need time to bed in to life in England.

However, the hierarchy may have made a mistake in allowing one other former player to depart the club, given his impressive form since moving away from the Lilywhites.

The former Spurs star who could’ve been their own Odegaard

Over recent seasons, Spurs have spent hefty sums on attacking talent to try and bolster the options in the final third – but not all of their investments have paid off.

Bryan Gil cost a fee in the region of £25m back in the summer of 2021, with real expectations that he could provide needed quality off the left-hand side, along with Heung-min Son.

However, the Spaniard only made 43 senior appearances for the Lilywhites, failing to score a single goal and subsequently returning to his homeland and rejoining his former side, Girona.

The 24-year-old wasn’t the only promising talent to join Spurs from LaLiga, with attacking midfielder Giovani Lo Celso moving in a £27m transfer back in January 2020.

Lo Celso racked up 90 appearances over a three-year spell in North London – scoring a crucial goal against Manchester City a couple of years ago, which helped the side claim one of their famous results against Pep Guardiola’s men.

Whilst he racked up 10 goals for the club, it wasn’t enough to keep him in the first-team plans of Postecoglou, resulting in the Argentine making an £8m transfer back to Real Betis in the summer of 2024.

However, since his move back to Spain, the 29-year-old has once again recaptured his best form, leading to FBref labelling him as a similar player to Arsenal star, Odegaard.

When comparing their respective stats from the 2024/25 campaign, Lo Celso massively outperformed the Gunners captain in key areas – highlighting the mistake made in allowing him to depart last summer.

The former PSG star, who’s been labelled “incredible” by journalist Noah Trister, posted a higher goal and assist rate per 90, along with a better shot on target accuracy rate – showcasing the clinical edge he possesses in front of goal.

How Lo Celso & Odegaard compared in 2024/25

Statistics (per 90)

Lo Celso

Odegaard

Games played

25

30

Goals & assists

11

11

Goals & assists per 90

0.68

0.43

Shot on target accuracy

52%

31%

Key passes made

2.7

2.4

Passes into final third

5.5

5.1

Take-ons completed

1.3

0.9

Crosses completed

5.9

3.3

Fouls won

3.9

0.9

Stats via FBref

He also registered more key passes per 90 (2.7) and more passes into the final third per 90 (5.5), subsequently having the creative nature the hierarchy were frantically searching for all summer.

Lo Celso’s dominance over Odegaard is further demonstrated by his higher tallies of crosses per 90 and take-ons completed – numbers which make him a more all-round talent when in possession and breaking the lines.

The decision to offload the 29-year-old for just £8m now appears to be one that the club will love to regret, especially given his remarkable form for Betis over the last few months.

Simons desperately needs to live up to his mammoth price tag in the near future, with the Lilywhites board potentially allowing their answer to Odegaard slip through their fingers for a minimal fee.

It's not Kudus: Spurs sensation could become their best forward since Kane

Tottenham Hotspur may have hit the jackpot on one talent who could emulate Harry Kane’s success.

By
Ethan Lamb

Sep 18, 2025

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