Chelsea slash Armando Broja asking price as Monaco join Christian Pulisic's AC Milan in hunt for striker

Chelsea are willing to accept a cut-price bid for Armando Broja as they look to offload the striker in the summer transfer window.

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Chelsea willing to sell Broja in summerHave cut their asking price in halfMonaco & AC Milan interested in himWHAT HAPPENED?

The Albania international returns to Stamford Bridge this summer after spending the second half of the 2023-24 campaign on loan at Fulham. The Blues are looking to offload him, however, and reports they have dropped their asking price from around £50 million ($64m) to between £25m ($32m) and £35m ($45m).

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Broja is contracted to Chelsea until June 2028 but is prepared to leave Stamford Bridge in the upcoming transfer window. Monaco are said to be interested in signing the 22-year-old while AC Milan have also been linked as they bid farewell to ex-Chelsea star Olivier Giroud, who is on his way to MLS.

DID YOU KNOW?

Broja first joined Chelsea in 2009 and came through the club's youth academy, going on to make 38 senior appearances for the club. He was loaned to Fulham in January but made just eight appearances – all off the bench – and failed to score for the Premier League team.

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Chelsea and Broja will hope to arrange a transfer for the forward very soon so that the London team can add the transfer fee they receive to their budget for the new season, while the player will look to get his career back on track at a new club.

'El Dibu is a moron' – Argentina goalkeeper Emi Martinez branded 'unbearable' by Cristian Romero ahead of Copa America

Emi Martinez has been branded a “moron” and “unbearable” by Argentina team-mate Cristian Romero ahead of the 2024 Copa America.

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Villa shot-stopper one of the best aroundFamed for penalty-saving exploitsAble to get under the skin of opponentsWHAT HAPPENED?

The Tottenham defender, who is a Premier League rival of a fellow countryman on the books at Aston Villa, was speaking in jest when addressing his international colleague. There is, however, no doubting that Martinez has become a larger-than-life character that can rub some people up the wrong way.

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Martinez has become famed for his penalty-saving antics, with his ability to get inside the head of opponents contributing significantly to Copa America and World Cup triumphs for the Albiceleste. Romero is one of those happy to have the 31-year-old on his team when they are representing their country.

WHAT ROMERO SAID

Spurs star Romero has told of having to line up against Martinez: “El Dibu is a moron, he is unbearable as a rival. He is in his best moment, we enjoy it as Argentines. Being a person who came from little and today he is the best goalkeeper in the world, it is beautiful to see him there. He is also a great person.”

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Martinez is hoping to help Argentina to back-to-back Copa triumphs, with talismanic captain Lionel Messi also forming part of that quest. Romero added on having the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner available, as questions are asked of how much longer the 36-year-old will continue: “We'll see how long we have him, but while he’s there we're going to enjoy it to the fullest because he is out leader.”

Late transfer at West Brom could see big Diangana upgrade arrive

Carlos Corberan will hope the occasion of the Black Country Derby doesn't get the better of his West Bromwich Albion players, Wolverhampton Wanderers making the short trip to the Hawthorns to play the Baggies in what could be an enthralling FA Cup contest this Sunday.

The Spanish boss will certainly want some form of a reaction from the away defeat to Norwich City last time out in Championship action, the West Midlands side having more of the possession at 60% but having nothing to show for it at full-time in a dire 2-0 defeat.

Corberan could well look to add some quality to the forward positions after such a passive attacking display at Carrow Road, looking at signing this loan player until the end of the season in a surprise move.

If all goes to plan, this exciting loanee could be an upgrade on Grady Diangana who remains out of action for the Baggies owing to the African Cup of Nations taking place.

West Brom looking at attacking recruits

According to a report from Daily Mail journalist Stephen McGowan, Celtic are attempting to offload Liel Abada this month on loan with a whole host of clubs circling for the 22-year-old as a result.

West Brom, Watford and Southampton are all name-checked in the article as second-tier sides casting their eyes in the direction of Abada, with further interest coming from abroad courtesy of Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga.

Falling out of favour this season at Parkhead under Brendan Rodgers, the Baggies could well offer Abada's career a lifeline this January – the Hoops winger a livewire on his day, as has been showcased during his stay in Glasgow to date.

Diangana could well return back from AFCON sweating about his immediate first-team future if this deal is successful, Abada boasting excellent goalscoring statistics in Scotland compared to the unpredictable Congolese forward's recent output in England.

January transfer window: All the deadline day deals from England and Scotland

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ByCharlie Smith Feb 1, 2024 How Liel Abada compares to Grady Diangana

Last season under the guidance of Ange Postecoglou at Celtic, Abada routinely tore Scottish Premiership defences to shreds.

Scoring ten times and assisting a further five goals as the Hoops strolled to yet another SPFL title triumph, Abada even missed nine big chances during that campaign which could have made his numbers overall even more impressive.

Kyogo Furuhashi and Liel Abada of Celtic.

This terrifying form in front of goal led to Postecoglou labelling Abada a "handful" last season after a bright cameo against St. Mirren, the now popular Tottenham Hotspur boss often utilising the attacker as an impact substitute as well as starting him during his decorated time in Scotland.

Comparatively, Diangana last season in the Championship only mustered up four goals and three assists with his powers at the Hawthorns seemingly fading over time since bursting onto the scene in 2019.

Diangana is some way off the heights he managed when originally joining the Baggies on loan, with Corberan potentially wanting to add a figure similar to the Congolese attacker in Abada this window that can take second-tier defences by storm.

With Jed Wallace putting in a second-rate showing playing at right midfield last game – unsuccessful with all of his dribble attempts at Carrow Road on top of winning just two of his 16 duels – the time could well be right for Corberan to bring in a new option for the right flank in the £17k per week Israeli.

grady-diangana-transfer-gossip-leeds-united-west-bromwich-albion-farke-cody-gakpo

Diangana will still play his part for the promotion-chasing Baggies on his return, but with Abada potentially joining, West Brom could have a fresh and exciting attacker to call upon who could cause Championship defences absolute havoc and help the West Midlanders pick up more wins on the board.

Glenn Maxwell doubtful; Australia eye top-of-table finish

This will be only the third World Cup meeting between both sides since that epic Edgbaston game

Preview by Andrew McGlashan05-Jul-20192:25

Vettori: Tahir can look back on career with pride

Big PictureIn another world, this could have been the ultimate match to finish the group stage: 20 years since the Greatest ODI Ever at Edgbaston which put Australia on track for the first of a hat-trick of World Cup titles and consigned South Africa to one of their most agonising near-misses.Instead, it’s largely an irrelevant match, except for potentially deciding where Australia will play their semi-final. Another win for them (or a defeat for India against Sri Lanka) and they’ll stay in Manchester to face New Zealand. The opposite set of results and it will be back down the motorway for a rematch with England at Edgbaston. The way Australia overcame both those sides in the recent group matches means they won’t worry who they play, but staying in the same city would make life a little easier – plus they’ll want to keep the winning momentum going.For South Africa, it’s a final chance to salvage a bit more pride from a poor World Cup after they put in a professional display to beat Sri Lanka. They have a host of issues to confront when they get home to begin the challenge of rebuilding over the next four-year cycle with much of their future resting on the shoulders of Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram and Kagiso Rabada. We already know this will be the last ODIs for Imran Tahir and JP Duminy. A few more many follow.Form guide(last five completed matches)
Australia WWWWW
South Africa WLLWLIn the spotlightPat Cummins has chipped in throughout the World Cup without quite being a dominant force. It hasn’t mattered, and a record of 12 wickets at 27.25 with an ecomony of 4.66 is very handy, but he has been overshadowed by the left-arm exploits of Mitchell Starc and Jason Behrendorff. However, after a home season where he had to carry the attack perhaps that is no bad thing. It would be no surprise at all if Cummins has a major impact in the closing stages of the tournament and the pace and carry of Old Trafford will suit him.He will continue his T20I career, but this is the final chance for Imran Tahir to clock up the celebration miles in ODI cricket. With one game to go, his 106 outings have clocked up an impressive 172 wickets at 24.63 (someone should do the maths and work out the ground he has covered with team-mates trying to catch him). A pitch that is known to offer some spin and bounce gives him a chance to sign off in style.Getty ImagesTeam newsAustralia’s batsmen went through a brutal net session on Thursday with two casualties: Shaun Marsh is out of the World Cup with a broken wrist and Glenn Maxwell also went to hospital for a scan. Maxwell didn’t sustain any serious damage, but will be assessed before this match. If he is ruled out Peter Handscomb could come straight into the team. The Australia management has previously said they won’t rest quicks for the sake of it, so we could see an unchanged attack.Australia (probable) 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Usman Khawaja, 4 Steven Smith, 5 Glenn Maxwell/Peter Handscomb, 6 Marcus Stoinis, 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Jason BehrendorffSouth Africa put in a solid display against Sri Lanka, winning by nine wickets, so may go with the same team. However, a call on Hashim Amla’s fitness will be taken in the morning, after the batsman appeared to injure his left knee during a practice session on Friday.South Africa (probable) 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Aiden Markram, 4 Faf du Plessis (capt), 5 Rassie van der Dussen, 6 JP Duminy, 7 Andile Phehlukwayo, 8 Dwaine Pretorius, 9 Chris Morris, 10 Kagiso Rabada, 11 Imran TahirPitch and conditionsIt’s usually a very good pitch at Old Trafford with something on offer for everyone, from new-ball bounce to spin and the ability for batsmen to play their shots. The forecast is for a dry day with just the outside chance of a showerStrategy punt Bowl Pat Cummins to Faf du Plessis: in six innings the pair have faced each other in ODIs, Cummins has dismissed the South Africa captain on four occasions. In 68 balls, du Plessis has scored 46 runs off him. Quinton de Kock could also be in for a tough time because he struggles against left-arm pace (average 38.20 in the first ten overs) and also offspin (average 30 in the first 10 overs) which gives Australia at least three options to target him with. In comparison, against right-arm pace in the opening Powerplay, de Kock averages 60.50. Aaron Finch has had a terrific World Cup and South Africa will want to consider using Tahir against him. Tahir has removed him three times with only Kane Williamson, Shakib Al Hasan and Mahela Jayawardene more regular victims (which just emphasises how good a bowler Tahir has been)Stats and Trivia Mitchell Starc needs three wickets to overtake Glenn McGrath’s 2007 haul of 26 wickets as the best for Australia at the World Cup. This is the 100th ODI between Australia and South Africa. This will also just be their third World Cup meeting since that 1999 epic at Edgbaston. Two of those came in 2007.Quotes”Once you cross the rope, Australia are my favourite team to play against.”

PHOTO: Ouch! Legendary sprinter Usain Bolt suffers nasty ruptured Achilles injury in Soccer Aid appearance for World XI

Legendary sprinter Usain Bolt featured for World XI at the Soccer Aid charity match, however, the Jamaican suffered a serious Achilles injury.

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Bolt plays for World XI at Soccer AidStretchered off due to injury Reveals he suffered ruptured Achilles (C)Getty ImagesWHAT HAPPENED?

Since his retirement from the athletics circuit, Bolt has been heavily involved in the sport of football and the Jamaican was given the opportunity to captain the World XI against England at Stamford Bridge in the charity match. World XI eventually lost 6-3 to the 'home side' with Bolt having to be stretchered off the field midgame. The Jamaican has now revealed more bad news as he has suffered from a ruptured Achilles tendon in his right foot.

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After the match, the 100-meter sprint World Record holder, posted on X: "Raptured Achilles but done know we a warrior"

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Bolt last participated in the Summer Olympics in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, as he defended his 100-meter and 200-meter titles for the second straight Olympics. After finishing third in the 100-meter dash at the 2017 World Championships, he announced his retirement from the sport and he still holds the World Record for the 100-meter sprint at 9.58 seconds.

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WHAT NEXT FOR BOLT?

Bolt will now be out of action until he returns to full fitness which would likely take close to six months. However, with the Jamaican having already retired, it will definitely be treated conservatively to avoid any complications.

Crystal Palace in pole position as Parish plots new bid for Adam Wharton

Crystal Palace have until Thursday night to add to their first-team squad as Steve Parish looks to bolster Roy Hodgson's side before the January transfer window slams shut.

Crystal Palace transfer news

A new right-back appears to be on the cards as Genk defender Daniel Munoz is reportedly on the verge of an £8.5m switch to Selhurst Park this week. The Eagles have also made an enquiry over a possible deal to sign Birmingham central midfielder Jordan James, who is valued at £10m by his current club.

Birmingham midfielder Jordan James.

They look set to battle it out with fellow Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers, who have also enquired about the Wales international, whilst Atalanta have already seen an offer of £3m turned down by the Championship outfit this month.

A central midfielder is on the agenda for Palace as they are also reportedly keen to strike an agreement with Blackburn Rovers for young ace Adam Wharton.

Adam Wharton transfer update

According to Football Insider, the Eagles are currently in pole position to secure his services before the transfer window slams shut on Thursday. The report claims that the club have not been put off by their opening offer of £18.5m being turned down by the Championship side earlier this month.

Parish is now plotting a new bid for the England U20 international and is 'very keen' to wrap up a deal before this week's deadline passes, rather than waiting until the end of the season to bring him to London.

Blackburn do not want to lose their star midfielder, though, and are holding out for a fee of £25m, which is £6.5m more than the club's first bid. Tottenham Hotspur, Wolves, and Newcastle United are also said to be keen on the 19-year-old dynamo, and that may be why Parish is eager to do a deal as quickly as possible to avoid losing out to their Premier League rivals.

Palace want Wharton in ahead of the second half of the season due to Cheick Doucoure's Achilles injury that ruled him out of action for around six months in November of 2023.

Tackles per game

1.2

1.6

Interceptions per game

2.3

2.3

Duel success rate

50%

54%

Assists

Three

Three

Key passes per game

1.3

0.8

As you can see in the table above, the Blackburn star's current performances in the Championship are similar to the displays that the Eagles ace produced in the top-flight last term. Like Doucoure, Wharton is a midfielder who can put his foot in to cut out opposition attacks on a regular basis, whilst he also has the quality to make things happen for his teammates in the final third with assists and key passes.

The teenage dynamo, who currently ranks within the top 10% of Championship midfielders for tackles (2.76) per 90 this season, was once hailed as "complete" by talent scout Jacek Kulig and his statistics back that up, as he can produce quality at both ends of the pitch.

Wharton could, therefore, be excellent cover for Doucoure in the short-term if he can make the step up to Premier League football, whilst also being a long-term asset with the potential to grow and develop at the age of just 19.

D'Arcy Short makes short work of Leicestershire in dominant win

Home side ease over the line to record their third win in five games in the competition

ECB Reporters Network31-Jul-2019Durham 143 for 2 (Short 70, Clark 59*) beat Leicestershire 142 for 7 (Ackermann 52) by eight wickets.An onslaught from D’Arcy Short guided Durham to a dominant eight-wicket victory over Leicestershire Foxes in their Vitality Blast North Group clash at Emirates Riverside.Short was relentless in his innings, blasting the Foxes bowlers to all parts of the ground before he fell for a brilliant knock of 70. He and Graham Clark refused to let the visitors settle in their opening stand of 118. It allowed the home side ease over the line and record their third win in five games in the competition.Colin Ackermann had earlier made a half-century for the Foxes, but his side struggled to time the ball and their total of 142 for 7 was never going to be enough once Short found his stride. Leicestershire slumped to their fourth defeat in the Blast and will require a special effort in their remaining matches to have any hope of reaching the knockout stages.The Foxes made a bright start to their innings and were able to put the Durham seamers on the back foot. Harry Swindells displayed aggression in the powerplay, finding the boundary four times as well as dispatching Brydon Carse over the rope. Swindells was looking well set at the crease, but was run out on 29 by Peter Handscomb after setting off slowly for a single.Leicestershire began to get bogged down by the accuracy of Short and Liam Trevaskis’ left-arm spin. Mark Cosgrove attempted to pull Short to the boundary, but was caught short of the fence by Handscomb. Arron Lilly then became Short’s second victim, mis-timing a strike to the legside and was snagged by Jack Burnham for only 10. The collapse continued when Trevaskis bowled Lewis Hill on the charge to leave the visitors with work ahead them four down for 74 at the halfway stage.Ackermann provided much needed impetus to the Leicestershire innings, sweeping Short to the fence for back-to-back boundaries in the Aussie’s final over. Durham continued to make inroads when Harry Dearden chipped a Carse delivery to Graham Clark, who took a good catch over his shoulder.The Foxes skipper kept his side on course for a decent total, reaching his half-century from 39 deliveries. However, Ackermann fell in the final over to Matty Potts off a blinding catch from Handscomb diving to his left in the deep. The wicket prevented Leicestershire reaching the 150-run mark, posting a total of 142 from their 20 overs.Durham’s reply began with a solid start from Short and Clark, with the latter being dropped on six by Lilley at deep backward square leg. Short then took the lead in the partnership, freeing his arms by blasting Will Davis over the top for the first six of the innings.The Aussie upped the ante, dispatching Gavin Griffiths for four consecutive boundaries to push the run rate beyond 11 runs per over. Short reached his half-century from 26 deliveries, with his tenth boundary of the innings, leaving Durham in a dominant position at the end of the powerplay.Clark maintained the pressure on the Leicestershire bowlers, supporting his partner at the other end, with a six of his own over the head of Davis into the stand. Short fell going for big strike to many, missing a straight delivery from Callum Parkinson. Clark kept the momentum going and scored his first Blast fifty of the term. Although Ben Raine was dismissed cheaply, Durham cantered over the line with 32 balls remaining.

How the hell have Georgia qualified for Euro 2024?! 'Kvaradona' & Co out to cause more shocks on tournament debut

Napoli star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia helped to fire his country to their first-ever major tournament, and they will be aiming high in Germany

No international tournament is complete without an underdog story, and at Euro 2024 it will be Georgia who are looking to tear up the script and make yet more history. With the odds stacked against them and by following an unconventional, winding route, the Caucasus nation has reached its first-ever major tournament.

There is a familiar name in the dugout and a superstar in the starting line up, charged with keeping the minnow's dreams alive in Germany; back in familiar surroundings, Bayern Munich legend Willy Sagnol will be calling the shots from the touchline, while he will be relying on Napoli star and Georgian talisman Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to provide moments of inspiration on the pitch.

Sagnol certainly has no plans for his side to simply make up the numbers. "Now they [the players] have qualified, they want to try to progress in the group and maybe to reach the last 16 or quarter-finals," he told "We will go with this ambition. We know it’s going to be very, very, very difficult. But they dreamed so long about getting to a big competition, it would be a pity to go there and not do everything we can to compete."

But how did Georgia reach a historic first-ever major tournament and who are the key figures behind their success? GOAL has you covered…

GettyUnconventional qualifying campaign

For avoidance of doubt, Georgia did not cruise to Euro 2024 by finishing in the top two of their qualifying group – far from it, in fact, as they instead took advantage of the opportunity provided to them by their outstanding performance in 2022-23 Nations League.

Georgia actually came fourth in their Euros qualifying group behind Spain, Scotland and Norway as they picked up just eight points and were thumped 7-1 by the Spaniards along the way, but their near-flawless Nations League campaign in 2022, where they dropped just two points in six games as they won Group Four of League C, earned them a European Championship qualifying play-off place – a safety net after they fell short in the standard qualification chase.

It was confirmed that they would need to take the play-off route with two games still to play in the race to reach Germany, as Scotland secured second spot behind leaders Spain in Group A. The League C path contained the three Nations League C group winners – Georgia, Greece and Kazakhstan – as well as the League C group runner-up, Luxembourg.

AdvertisementGettyParty time in Tbilisi

Georgia were automatically drawn against Luxembourg in the semi-final and eased to victory in the absence of their talisman Kvaratskhelia, who was suspended. Instead it was Karlsruher striker Budu Zivzivadze who emerged as the hero on the night, bagging a brace to send his country to the final.

Sagnol's men were then pitted against Greece in a meeting of two nations looking for a way out of the footballing wilderness, with the Euro 2004 winners expected to progress to the tournament proper despite Georgia having home advantage in Tbilisi in front of 55,000 raucous fans. However, it was the hosts who would heroically triumph in a fiery affair.

After a scrappy, fraught and goalless 120 minutes of action, and with Kvaratskhelia once again helpless after being injured in normal time, Georgia would triumph 4-2 on penalties. Giorgi Mamardashvili saved Greece's first spot-kick and striker Giorgos Giakoumakis later missed to allow Georgia substitute Nika Kvekveskiri to step up to make himself the hero.

His converted effort sparked wild scenes as the home supporters poured onto the pitch to celebrate a first-ever major tournament qualification. Georgia were going to the Euros.

Getty ImagesUndoubted talisman

Despite being unable to make a key contribution in the decisive play-off campaign, Kvaratskhelia is undoubtedly the talisman of this history-forging Georgian side; out of relative obscurity, the tricky 23-year-old has emerged as one of the finest wingers on the planet in Serie A – although he plays in a roaming free role for his country.

While his sublime domestic season hogged the headlines in 2022-23 as Napoli marched to a remarkable Scudetto, Kvaratskhelia performances for his country were equally eye-catching and ultimately led to Georgia securing their play-off place.

'Kvaradona' scored five times in six Nations League games between June and September 2022, laying on three more goals for his team-mates as Georgia comfortably topped their group ahead of Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Gibraltar. He didn't catch fire until the latter stages of Euro 2024 qualifying, though, scoring three times in the final four games as a centre-forward.

"Some did not believe in us, but now they will believe it," Kvaratskhelia told after Georgia sealed a historic Euro 2024 place. "We are happy. I have never had such an emotion in my life."

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(C)Getty ImagesSecret weapons

It's not about 'Kvarardona', though. Albeit their defence is untested at the highest level, Georgia have something of a core of key players in their 5-3-2 shape; goalkeeper Mamardashvili is just 23 and considered to be a potential world-class talent, captain Guram Kashia is an experienced leader at centre-back, then they have the aforementioned Kvaratskhelia and French-born Metz striker Georges Mikautadze up front – a potential breakout star at the tournament.

Marmadashvili and Mikautadze in particular have the ability to make an impact. The former has proven himself to be an astute shot-stopper with Valencia in La Liga, which is handy given he is likely to be very busy in Germany. In 2023-24, his post-shot xG minus goals allowed (the most reliable metric for measuring shot-stopping ability) was a remarkable +10.2 – in the 97th percentile.

Meanwhile, Mikautadze comes into the tournament in searing-hot form having finished the campaign by scoring eight times in just seven games in Ligue 1. Sold Metz to Ajax in the summer after an excellent 2022-23 season in Ligue 2, he was loaned back to the French side in January having struggled in Amsterdam and rediscovered his goal-scoring touch back in familiar surroundings.

Tottenham now in advanced talks to sign "incredible" Liverpool target

After a successful January transfer window, which saw them welcome Timo Werner, Radu Dragusin and Lucas Bergvall, who will join up with the squad at the end of the season, Tottenham Hotspur have already reportedly set their sights on a bargain deal this summer. With talks at an advanced stage, the completion of this one could just be a matter of time.

Tottenham transfer news

Whilst the additions of Werrner and Dragusin are impressive, Spurs' best winter move may well prove to be Bergvall. It's a great compliment to the work that Ange Postecoglou has so far done that the Swede chose a move to the Premier League side over Barcelona.

Timo Werner applauding Tottenham supporters.

Bergvall explained the decision, telling Sportbladet: "It felt better in my gut. They're both incredible clubs. It was a very difficult choice, it was 50/50 for a very long time, but it felt like the next step for me was Tottenham. It wasn't very easy to say 'no' to Barcelona, it took a very long time to decide. It was a tough decision."

Now, ahead of the summer window, those in North London will be hoping to see another decision swing in their favour. According to Seb Ecrivain Foot, Spurs are in advanced talks with Lloyd Kelly over a summer move, but face competition from Liverpool, who are at the same stage.

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The Bournemouth centre-back will reportedly refuse to extend his contract at the Cherries and will, therefore, leave as a free agent this summer to potentially hand Spurs a bargain deal. Those at the Vitality Stadium may well be left frustrated at the fact that they didn't cash in during the January transfer window, as they watch one of their best assets walk away for free.

"Incredible" Kelly can complete Ange's backline

Spurs took a major risk in the summer by signing just one central defender in the form of Micky van de Ven. Postecoglou was left with just three senior centre-backs to turn to, with one of them being an experienced left-back in Ben Davies and another being Eric Dier, who the former Celtic boss had seemingly frozen out of the side.

Aware of their mistake, the Lilywhites have since signed Dragusin and can now welcome Kelly to complete a defensive rebuild. From two out of their four options being relatively uncertain, Spurs could have a quartet of solid options at their disposal with Van de Ven, Cristian Romero, Dragusin and Kelly. Here's how Kelly and Davies have compared this season…

Progressive Carries

11

9

Progressive Passes

34

58

Tackles Won

14

15

Interceptions

7

9

Clearances

31

32

Kelly has unsurprisingly been at the centre of praise in the past, including from former Bournemouth manager Gary O'Neil, who said after his side's victory over Liverpool: “I thought Lloyd was incredible. I think he had a 12-week ankle injury followed by a six-week calf injury.

"Didn't have much time in between, and then came back today having not trained much, to play left back against one of the best wingers in the world. I thought he showed everything, the potential he has to be a top defender. I thought it was a very, very impressive performance against a top attacker.”

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