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Aston Villa appear to have had the last laugh despite seeing former goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini now play for Champions League side Atalanta.

What’s the story?

The club signed the Italian shot-stopper back in the summer of 2016 when Roberto Di Matteo was in charge, and the then Villa boss made it clear that they had made a major statement of intent with his signing.

Di Matteo insisted: “We have managed to sign him despite the fact he was being chased by a number of top sides and that is a great sign. He’s a young man but has plenty of experience and I’m sure he’ll prove to be an excellent signing for the club.”

The Greatest Bargains in Premier League history – How much did they cost?

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In the end, Gollini managed just 20 appearances in total for Villa, before Steve Bruce made the decision to let him leave the club permanently for just £3.75m. Whilst things have worked out for him back in Italy, Villa shouldn’t feel too regretful now.

Emi Martinez’s arrival

Make no mistake about it, prior to the summer transfer window, Gollini’s exit would surely have been looked at by Villa with a sense of regret and ‘what if’.

The Italian has established himself as the number one goalkeeper for Atalanta who stunned sides across Europe by reaching the Champions League quarter-finals, before eventually losing to Paris Saint-Germain.

A cruciate ligament injury has kept him out of action for the start of this season, but with 41 appearances across all competitions in the previous campaign, there’s no doubting he will reclaim his spot in between the sticks.

But whilst Gollini has impressed, Villa have solved their goalkeeping conundrum with their summer move for Emiliano Martinez. The massive Argentine arrived off the back of a FA Cup and Community Shield victories with the Gunners, and has helped his new club keep the best defensive record in the Premier League with just two goals conceded.

What was initially a massive Bruce blunder in letting Gollini go, has now seen Villa enjoy the last laugh, with Martinez set to form the backbone of their side for the next few years to come.

Hands up if you saw that performance coming after the dismal opening day defeat to Newcastle?

West Ham finally got their Premier League campaign up and running with a superb 4-0 win over Wolves at the London Stadium on Sunday night, with goals from Jarrod Bowen (2), Sebastien Haller and an own goal from Raul Jimenez ensuring they got their first points of the season.

But whilst Bowen capped a fine individual performance with a brace – including an excellent run and finish for his first goal – it was Michail Antonio who set the tone for the Hammers and arguably stole the show.

Spot the fact from the fib: Are these Premier League records true or false?

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As per Sofascore, he won a mammoth 14 duels on Sunday which was a game-high, whilst he was also the most fouled player on the pitch, earning five free-kicks.

The 30-year-old never stopped fighting for the cause, and despite having to come up against Wolves’ back-three of Roman Saiss, Conor Coady and Wily Boly, he ran them ragged – the centre-back trio recorded a match rating of 6.2 or less.

Despite having a thankless task and often being asked to do a one-man job as the lone front-man, Antonio rose to the challenge with aplomb.

Even though he lost possession 21 times, it wasn’t for a lack of effort or ability, instead more an indicator of the kind of risks he was willing to take whenever he had the ball – it was no surprise that by the end of the game, his total of six completed dribbles were the highest of any Hammers ace.

So whilst Bowen may be the one to take all the headlines in the aftermath of a stunning victory, Antonio’s display was the epitome of everything that West Ham did well on the night.

Tottenham Hotspur are ready to do business this transfer window with Real Madrid duo Gareth Bale and Sergio Reguilon expected through the door and Daniel Levy could make one hell of a statement by adding a striker to that impressive swoop…

What’s the word?

According to the Express, Spurs boss Jose Mourinho wants to add Torino talisman Andrea Belotti to his squad to resolve their attacking problems before next month’s deadline.

They claim that the north London outfit are trying to secure the 26-year-old on an initial loan deal but the Serie A outfit want in excess of £50m for his services.

It’s no secret that the Portuguese boss is desperate for a second option upfront after Harry Kane’s injury last season exposed a serious lack of squad depth.

Just imagine…

Well, Spurs securing one of the most lethal finishers in Europe would certainly be one huge way to end their striker nightmare and he’d certainly be worth every penny of that £50m asking price.

Across the Serie A and Europa League last season, the Italian marksman bagged a whopping 22 goals in 42 appearances. He also averaged 3.2 aerials won, 2.9 shots, 1.3 dribbles and 1.2 key passes per game, via WhoScored, showing he’s more than just a prolific goalscorer.

Belotti can bring others into play and clearly provides relentless work rate – something echoed by Torino president Urbano Cairo, who labelled him a “real captain” who’s “dragging us through games.”

Meanwhile ex-England boss Fabio Capello once claimed that Belotti was “one of the best strikers in Europe,” before adding: “He knows how to move, he basically knows how to do everything. He’s fast, technically skilled and is probably better than [Gabriel] Batistuta.”

His playing style has been likened to that of Jamie Vardy, Didier Drogba and Andriy Shevchenko – even Sergio Aguero due to his movement off the ball.

Spurs’ recent freebie arrival Joe Hart is also a huge fan having enjoyed a loan spell in Turin back in 16/17 – “It’s hard to compare him to someone else because he’s special. He’s Belotti and that’s it,” he said.

Mourinho isn’t going to get a better all-round forward to provide genuine competition to Kane than Belotti, so he should absolutely push for Levy to seal this deal.

Just imagine a frontline of Bale, Son, Kane and Belotti. It would be an absolutely terrifying prospect for their league rivals.

AND in other news, Spurs could secure Mourinho his next Diego Costa with £5m swoop…

From start to finish, Tottenham endured a miserable 90 minutes against Everton on Sunday.

Jose Mourinho’s side never really got out of first gear during the contest, with Jordan Pickford only having to make a couple of smart saves. The north Londoners managed just nine total shots, whilst they were comprehensively out-muscled all over the pitch – Everton made twice as many tackles and almost five times as many interceptions.

And whilst it was certainly a bad team performance on the whole – Mourinho even describing his team as being lazy in their pressing – one man in particular had a nightmare game for the Lilywhites.

Is it Mido or Pedro Mendes? This Spurs quiz will separate the loyal from the fake…

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Lucas Moura started the game on the right-hand side, but was about as anonymous as possible, with his 5.5 overall match rating by far the worst of anyone to play in the game.

The 5 foot 8 winger struggled to impose himself on the match, with the likes of Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure making sure any balls into his feet were snuffed out.

He lost possession 21 times – the most of any Spurs player – and lost 14 of the 16 duels that were contested on the ground. Put simply, Lucas was just far too much of a lightweight in a game that Mourinho would surely have called for intensity and aggression.

Out of everyone wearing a white shirt, it was the £80k-a-week ace who looked completely short of match sharpness and energy. Everton just overpowered him, with Lucas Digne’s over-lapping runs down the left flank forcing him back towards his own goal more often than not.

Spurs and Mourinho needed someone of his quality to be at it not only in an attacking sense, but in the basic principles. Anyone who has watched the All or Nothing documentary will have noted how much store the manager has put in making sure players give the maximum effort possible in every game and not to quit.

Sadly for Mourinho, Lucas did exactly that on Sunday.

This article forms part of our Total Duds feature series, which is where Football Transfer Tavern takes a look at how a player has fared since being signed or sold, using statistical figures and statements from pundits to prove how bad a deal the club got.

Back in August 2016, Arsenal were looking to strengthen their attack and signed Spanish striker Lucas Perez from Deportivo de La Coruña for £18m, per Transfermarkt. The forward had just come off of his best season as he managed 17 goals and 10 assists in 36 La Liga appearances, and it looked like the Gunners had picked up a very prolific finisher.

He made 21 appearances in his first season in all competitions, scoring seven goals and registering five assists, per Transfermarkt, a decent start to his career in England. However, what didn’t bode well was the fact he only managed one Premier League goal in 11 games.

This seemed to be a worry for the club, too, and they decided to loan him back to Deportivo for the 2017/18 season where he managed nine goals and eight assists in all competitions. He managed a decnt goal tally on loan in Spain, but it wasn’t enough for supporters of Deportivo when he only managed five goals in his first 21 appearances, and there were pictures of graffiti from the fan base calling for him to leave the club halfway through the campaign when they were in the relegation zone.

It seemed that he couldn’t replicate his 2015/16 form which saw the Gunners sign him and hinted that maybe it was just a one-off and he couldn’t remain so consistent.

To be loaned out once more at the age of 29 highlighted that Arsenal didn’t see him as part of their plans, and when he returned to north London, fellow Premier League side West Ham bought him from the Gunners for £3.96m, per Transfermarkt.

Perez was only contracted to Arsenal for two years and his only appearances for the club were the 21 games he played in his debut season. That poor return, combined with the loss of just over £14m that the Gunners made from his transfers, highlights that he was an expensive dud at the Emirates Stadium.

Gunners fans, do you think Perez was a total dud? Comment below with your views!

Manchester United will be desperate to bounce back from their FA Cup semi-final exit when they welcome West Ham to Old Trafford.

Man United slumped to a disappointing defeat to Chelsea at Wembley, which ended their chances of a first final under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The Red Devils had enjoyed a 19-game unbeaten run up until that point, although they will get another shot at silverware this season when the Europa League returns in August.

United will want to make swift amends, although they won’t have an easy task on their hands, as West Ham have pulled off some remarkable results in recent weeks, including a 3-2 victory over the Blues at the London Stadium at the start of the month.

Transfer Tavern has put together a predicted starting lineup, which sees Solskjaer make five changes to the side that lost to the Blues last weekend.

Solskjaer admitted his team selection in the FA Cup defeat “didn’t work” and he will want to rectify that mistake.

The Red Devils are firmly in the race for a top four finish, although they face stiff competition from Chelsea and Leicester City.

Solskjaer’s side are currently fifth in the table, tied with the Foxes on 62 points, with two games left to play in the campaign.

United’s main attacking quartet had earned rave reviews until they started without Anthony Martial, Paul Pogba and Mason Greenwood, as Solskjaer made four changes to the side that beat Crystal Palace, and he will surely return to the team that had performed so well since the Premier League restart.

He switched to playing three at the back which turned out to be a terrible decision as the Blues ran riot on Sunday.

Solskjaer will likely revert back to his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation, as Martial resumes his fine form at the top of the pitch.

Meanwhile, Greenwood will regain his place in the starting lineup, meaning Daniel James will make way as a result.

After his decision to give Pogba a rest proved costly, the Frenchman will resume his partnership with Bruno Fernandes in the midfield, and Fred will drop to the bench instead.

Eric Bailly is expected to miss the match with West Ham after sustaining a head injury, allowing Victor Lindelof to slot into place next to Harry Maguire.

On the other hand, Solskjaer has a fully fit squad to choose from, and Luke Shaw could earn his first start for the club since the 2-2 draw with his old side Southampton, replacing Brandon Williams at left-back.

David de Gea’s performances have come under scrutiny this season and the Spaniard did himself no favours after being at fault for two of Chelsea’s goals. The Spaniard looks short of confidence and Sergio Romero could earn a surprise call-up from the bench to deputise for the erratic goalkeeper.

United will most likely start the game as favourites, but they must be at their very best if they want to turn things around. There is no room for error in the race for the top four.

United fans, do you think this is how Solskjaer will lineup against West Ham? Let us know your views by commenting below!

Glasgow Rangers have moved to confirm that their partnership with Castore does not include any other party after rumours had emerged that Sports Direct were still involved in some way.

On Wednesday, the company, owned by businessman and former Gers stakeholder Mike Ashley, shared an Instagram post saying they would sell the new Gers home shirt, which was released on the same day and made by Castore, “exclusively” from August 1st.

However, the Ibrox outfit’s hierarchy have quickly quashed any of those claims, releasing a statement saying:

“Following today’s unveiling of the 2020/21 home jersey, Rangers continues to look forward to their long term exclusive partnership with Castore, which, for the avoidance of doubt, is a direct agreement between those two companies with no other persons party to the deal.”

This should be fantastic news for the Glasgow Rangers supporters, with whom Ashley is not exactly the most popular figure for the part he has played in their commercial dealings in the past. The deal with Castore was meant to be a fresh start for the club – this statement appears to re-confirm that. The confusion is that Sports Direct will still be able to buy shirts directly from the club themselves and sell them on, just like any other such sports shop.

The club also revealed that the Ibrox Retail Store will receive a £250,000 renovation and will open on August 1st.

“The Ibrox Retail Store will undergo a £250,000 renovation and become a key venue for all Rangers supporters and on matchdays will be supported with further pop up stores within the Stadium.”

Following the announcement that 40,000 season tickets have been sold, it looks like a promising time to be a Gers fan.

Let us know what you think below!

Name: Frankie Maguire

Club: Sheffield United

Date of Birth: 29 July 2003

Position: Midfielder

Frankie Maguire – his career so far

Frankie Maguire is one of the youngest bright talents that’s already dubbed to be a great success over at Sheffield United. The young midfielder is only 16 years of age and yet, it seems that he’s been impressing the right people at such a rate that the word has already spread through the media and possibly even other clubs.

But Maguire has been with the Blades since before the U12 level and has only recently signed a two-year scholarship deal after turning 16 in July 2019. Needless to say, he is still far too early into his development to be in the conversation for a possible first-team appearance or even to be knocking on the door for an opportunity within Chris Wilder’s squad.

Still, despite his young age and clearly lack of any kind of experience under his belt, the 16-year-old prodigy has gotten a taste of the U23 level action due to his sheer talent and potential that simply had to be tested against the older squads who would be more of a challenge for someone of his skill set.

Maguire progressed onto an apprenticeship at Sheffield United Academy, which is divided between his development as a footballer and also ensuring he continues his education, after finishing his studies at the UTC in June 2019.

So at the very moment, he is studying a BTEC Level 3 NVQ qualification in Sport along with an FA coaching qualification while also spending time ironing out his technical abilities, tactical knowledge and also working on his overall fitness.

For a youngster at the very beginning of his career, he’s taking big steps to ensure he’s ready once the opportunity arises. And given the talent he possesses, that opportunity might be just around the corner for the young gem.

Transfer latest

Since we are talking about a 16-year-old kid who’s still in the academy at the club, it doesn’t surprise that there are currently no transfer rumours or transfer news surrounding Maguire. The latest piece of Sheffield United news coming out of the camp was the signing of his two-year scholarship last year but other than that, the mill has gone silent.

Of course, the midfielder has been named as the top young talent at Sheffield United for the year 2019 by Guardian last year, which is definitely a big recognition of his potential and current state of development.

As time goes on and Maguire manages to tally more minutes under his belt in the development squads, we are bound to start hearing of him again.

Player profile

Not much footage is available for scouting when it comes to the young prodigy but what we can gather from the limited data that’s available is that Maguire is an industrious midfielder, good on the ball, fast on his feet and with a keen eye for a pass.

So far, he’s been excelling in the technical department and also showing a certain dose of maturity when it comes to decision making, leadership skills and overall mental prowess that seems to be developed beyond his young age.

But there is also the physical aspect and he is fitter and more aggressive than most of his peers, which mixes well with his great on the ball abilities. Maguire is quite tall as well and can be an asset when marking or tackling the ball away from the opposition players.

It does seem like he could transform into a great box-to-box midfielder in due time and is well on his way towards reaching the highest levels.

On this day four years ago West Ham fans were made to say goodbye to the Boleyn Ground ahead of a hugely controversial move to London Stadium in Stratford.

At the time, fans were carefully of optimistic of what a new 60,000 capacity stadium could help them achieve moving forward, but what has transpired since will have led to much larger opposition to the move had the fans known what a mess the stadium move was to cause.

The Boleyn Ground was a classic football ground with a reputation of being very intimidating for opposition players. It was the home of every single West Ham fan who had the pleasure of going there, but all they have now are fantastic memories of the great stadium.

So, to mark the four-year anniversary of that emphatic final match at Upton Park, we’ve put together the Ultimate Boleyn Ground quiz for Hammers fans to test their knowledge of the place they used to call ‘home’…

Good luck!

This article forms part of our Total Duds feature series, which is where Football Transfer Tavern takes a look at how a player has fared since being signed or sold, using statistical figures and statements from pundits to prove how bad a deal the club got.

One signing that Everton fans must wish never happened was the acquisition of Davy Klaassen back in 2017. Ronald Koeman seemed to have started his summer transfer window off well after poaching Jordan Pickford for a record fee for a British goalkeeper. Next through the door came the manager’s fellow Dutchman Klaassen, who penned a five year deal with the Blues (via BBC Sport).

It seemed a smart and apt signing for Koeman at the time, who had his finger on the pulse of the talent pool in his home country. Plus, the midfielder joined from a strong Ajax side, where he sported the armband and led his team to the 2017 Europa League final against Manchester United.

However, the manager’s take proved to be a huge lapse in judgment.

Klaassen arrived at Goodison Park after Everton forked out £24.3 million for his services. The Dutch international featured just 16 times for the senior team and contributed one assist, which was against Ruzomberok in the Europa League qualifying rounds (via Transfermarkt).

The man who brought him to club was given the boot in October 2017 following a humiliating 5-2 home defeat to Arsenal which saw them slip into the relegation zone. After also failing to make the desired impact on the team, Klaassen departed just 12 months into his five year deal and signed for Werder Bremen, where he still plays today.

The sale of the 27-year-old saw Everton pocket just £12.15m, exactly half of what they paid for him the previous year meaning they made a 50% loss on him.

The whole Klaassen era is an embarrassing one for the club, who were forced to take a substantial loss on a player who couldn’t find regular minutes under three different managers in the space of 12 months – in all honestly he totally flopped at Goodison Park. However, with Carlo Ancelotti now in charge, hopes are higher that a similar scenario won’t happen again.

What did you think of the signing of Davy Klaassen, Blues? Join the conversation in the comments below!