Chelsea are desperate for a striker and have moved to the head of the queue for one of Europe’s greatest, Ange Postecoglou is considering a reunion with an old friend, and failed football manager Frank Lampard has generously indicated that he will consider the Rangers position.
IN TIME’S VICTORY
It’s no secret that Chelsea desperately needs a striker. Despite a much-needed and pleasant 2-0 win against Fulham on Monday night, they continue to stink up the Actual Table while maintaining first – with a perfect record – in the no-doubt league.
The good news for Chelsea is that they are now apparently in pole position to sign one of the hottest strikers in the game. The bad news is that it won’t be until next summer and who knows how bad their xG deficit might get between now and then.
Still, Victor Osimhen – who is currently slightly at odds with Napoli anyway – is top of Chelsea’s wishlist for next summer and Caught Offside reckon PSG are less keen than they once were which is all good news for Chelsea. They are described as one of the few teams that can afford Osimhen, but might be more accurately described as one of the few teams cheerfully willing to pay what it takes.
As is mandatory in any transfer update these days about a Big Six club eyeing up a striker, it is noted that Chelsea retain an interest in Ivan Toney and Evan Ferguson. Feel like we could all start taking as read now that Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs, United, whoever all retain an interest in Ivan Toney and Evan Ferguson.
JOT IT DOWN
This job has worn us down to a cynical nub of a thing over the years, and part of us now thinks that one of the reasons stories linking Spurs with Jota are resurfacing now is because it snares some confused traffic from the weekend’s much-discussed antics.
This is of course not about the Jota who got himself sent off in one of the Premier League’s quietest ever games, but the one who used to play for Celtic. And play very, very well for Celtic under Ange Postecoglou. No great shock to think Ange might be up for that particular reunion, while Jota wasn’t named in in Al-Ittihad’s Saudi Pro League squad after making a £25m summer move from Parkhead.
90min now report the Portuguese winger hopes to be released from his contract and become free to immediately resume his career in Europe or at worst do so in January. Loads of clubs – including just as predictably Celtic themselves – are monitoring the situation, but it’s the Spurs-Postecoglou link that is understandably the most enticing. Jota, like Brennan Johnson who Spurs eventually signed in the summer, is much more of an Angeball-style touchline-hugger than some of Spurs’ existing wide-forward options.
LAMPARD TO FOLLOW GERRARD?
Failed football manager Frank Lampard has graciously made it known that he would be willing to consider being manager of Rangers. It’s awfully good of him, and also handy to know the Venn Diagram can be updated.
Funny to think of Newcastle being one of the clubs definitely silly enough to hire Lampard. Or Chelsea being too good, for that matter. A different world, wasn’t it, in January 2022. Most of the rest still applies, though: we don’t think any Premier League club is now going to give him a go, while we also suspect he remains far too convinced of his own abilities to countenance another degrading and demeaning spell in the Sky Bet. Rangers, a huge club in a small league, would appear to be just about the only middle ground that might do the trick for Super Frank. Added bonus of course that his old England midfield mate Steven Gerrard has already had a decent go at it. Plenty of narrative there.
Anyway, he’s on the shortlist according to the Daily Telegraph, while the Scottish Sun note he is now favourite with the bookies which is always a