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Former Premier League midfielder Lee Hendrie has told The Transfer Tavern in an exclusive interview that he was not surprised by Lee Bowyer’s decision to take over Birmingham City mid-season.

Bowyer was appointed manager back in March following Aitor Karanka’s exit from St. Andrew’s and has done an excellent job.

The 44-year-old, who left Charlton Athletic to join Birmingham, found Blues just three points above the relegation zone but was still able to guide his new side to Championship survival.

Given the predicament that the Midlands club were in, it was a job that some managers perhaps would not have wanted to walk into. But given Charlton’s own problems, Hendrie was not shocked when he heard Bowyer’s name being linked with the Birmingham role.

Speaking exclusively to TT about the Birmingham manager, Hendrie said:

“I spoke to Bowyer a couple times since he came down. Obviously spoke to him mid-season when he was at Charlton and he was disappointed he sort of missed out on players at Charlton, and he felt they were in a false position.

“There’s obviously salary caps and stuff like that and he found it a difficult job at Charlton. I felt he was chasing something that possibly wasn’t there, hence why I was not surprised as soon as the Birmingham job came up, that his name was straight amongst it.”

In the end, it was quite a comfortable finish for Birmingham, who built a nine-point gap between them and the relegation zone, showing how good of a job Bowyer has done at St. Andrew’s.

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Rob Lee, who made 343 appearances for Newcastle United, has claimed that Jonjo Shelvey is in the team to do things other than run about the pitch.

During an episode of Zoom Army, a series on Newcastle’s YouTube channel, Shelvey was asked by a fan why he was so lazy which saw the stand-in captain claim his running stats said otherwise.

The £70,000-per-week midfielder is more known for his passing ability, something that often left Rafa Benitez awestruck during his time at the club.

Speaking on how Shelvey is not in the team to run about the pitch and what he really brings to the team, Lee exclusively told FFC:

“I think he probably runs but doesn’t sprint, but he probably covers a lot of ground. I’m not a believer in stats because Jonjo Shelvey is not in the team to run around and close people down.

“Jonjo Shelvey has great passing ability and on his day his passing is as good as anybody so I’d say he is probably one of the best passers in the league.”

Shelvey signed in January 2016, which was to be only months before Newcastle were relegated to the Championship. However, the former Liverpool midfielder stuck with the club and helped get them promoted at the first time of asking.

The England international has been handed the captain’s armband while Jamaal Lascelles is recovering from an injury that could keep him out for several weeks.

According to reports from Spain, Sergio Aguero is keeping the door open on a move to Leeds United this summer, with Marcelo Bielsa thought to be a key factor in the potential switch.

The report by Mundo Deportivo (via Sport Witness) claims that Leeds are “in the picture” to land Aguero this summer, with the 32-year-old set to leave Manchester City at the end of the season.

It is reported that, despite interest from Barcelona, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain, Marcelo Bielsa’s position as manager at Leed is of “importance” to Aguero, and that the Argentine values the proposal of playing for the Whites.

Furthermore, another advantage that Leeds are said to hold is their readiness to make a move for the Manchester City star, with it being claimed that both Juventus and PSG would have to sell players before sanctioning any deal.

Transfer Tavern Take

With Sport Witness’ translation claiming that Aguero is prioritising the “sporting project” ahead of “economic proposals” when deciding his next move, as the 32-year-old wants to feature regularly for his new side in order to secure a place in Argentina’s 2022 World Cup squad, this could be yet another feather in Leeds’ cap in their pursuit of the centre-forward.

Despite the fact that Rodrigo is classed as a centre-forward, the Spaniard has often been played in a deeper role this season, meaning that Bielsa’s only real option as a senior striker is Patrick Bamford.

As such, if the man Pep Guardiola recently claimed is “irreplaceable” were to join Leeds this summer, all the Argentine would have to do is convince Bielsa that he is a better option to lead the line than Bamford in order to become the Whites’ main man up top, or perhaps even tempt Bielsa to deploy them both together.

In other news: ‘I am convinced’ – Agent drops huge Bielsa claim; Leeds fans will be gutted if he’s right – find out more here!

Wolves’ transfer business last summer left plenty to be desired. In fact, it’s rather simple to describe it as abject as the season has gone on.

Jeff Shi agreed deals to sell the likes of Diogo Jota and Matt Doherty, transfers that will eventually bring them over £50m in revenue.

Though, the moves that Shi completed in order to replace them haven’t gone according to plan. Fabio Silva has scored a grand total of two goals since his club-record switch of £35.6m.

Nelson Semedo, a player who could ultimately cost a similar fee after add-ons, has also been poor, being described as a “liability” defensively.

However, one deal that’s looking shrewder by the day is the arrangement that saw Vitinha come to Molineux on a season-long loan. Shi worked an option to buy of €16m (£13.6m) into the transfer and it’s looking likely that they’ll utilise that when the next window opens.

This would be superb business for a player improving all the time. Rarely-seen in the Wolves first team – he has started only twice in the Premier League – he is slowly starting to prove just how important he could be for Wolves.

Vitinha’s parent club is Porto but it would be a great surprise if that was the case for much longer. After all, his performances during the European U21 Championships so far have been impeccable.

The 21-year-old has been playing in midfield for Portugal and he helped them to finish top of a group including Croatia and England.

He has been one of the standout players so far, registering an assist against Switzerland on Wednesday evening in what was an all-action couple of days for Vitinha.

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The midfielder set the tone during his first outing against Croatia. The young prodigy managed a considerable five dribbles while he also completed two key passes. On top of that, Vitinha registered a pass success rate of 91%.

He was equally impressive against England, shining against players who regularly feature in the Premier League. Vitinha had the beating of Emile Smith Rowe, Oliver Skipp and Tom Davies in the middle of the park, taking 102 touches and completing 94% of his passes.

On that occasion, the Wolves youngster managed a solitary key pass and one dribble.

He arguably saved his best performance until last. Vitinha suppled Diogo Queiros for their opener on Wednesday versus the Swiss and made three key passes during his 73 minutes on the field. He managed 115 touches and again, completed over 90% of his passes.

When Vitinha first signed for Wolves, he was dubbed as “special” by Shi. Certainly, you can see why that’s the case.

This season has been tipped as Joao Moutinho’s final campaign as a regular in the Old Gold’s starting XI and if they utilise their option to buy in the summer, Vitinha could well be his successor.

Speaking about the midfielder last year, Jornal de Notícias reporter, Nuno Barbosa, said: “You’ll realise he knows what to do at every moment of the game, he’s very similar to Joao Moutinho.”

After such an impressive run of games over the international break, Nuno should finally unleash him in the Wolves starting XI on a regular basis.

He’s now proven he can light it up against some of the best young players on the continent.

AND in other news, Wolves gem has been a “liability” since joining, his value has already fallen by £7.2m…

Crystal Palace could well be concerned with summer approaching and a large number of current players set to depart the club.

As many as 16 first-team stars could find themselves released at the end of the campaign with their contracts continuing to come to an end.

One player who the Eagles will certainly not care for departing is striker Connor Wickham.

Only 27 years of age, the former Sheffield Wednesday and Sunderland striker has endured a woeful time at Selhurst Park since his arrival for a reported fee of £9m in 2015.

There was hope that he could have replicated his Black Cats form, but no such displays have materialised with Wickham having netted just eight Premier League goals for the club in 41 appearances in the competition.

It all means that each goal has cost Steve Parish and the Eagles over £1m.

Even a temporary loan spell at former employers Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship could not reignite his goalscoring touch, netting just twice in 13 appearances.

In fairness to Wickham, he has simply not been unable to find any form at all due to a number of persistent injury problems. Throughout his Palace career, he has missed a shocking 150 matches that he would otherwise have been eligible for due to a long list of problems.

That misfortune has really hampered his Palace career, and he seems highly unlikely to rectify that.

Initially left out of the Eagles’ Premier League squad at the beginning of the campaign, he has only just started making his return to the bench. Now with only a limited handful of games left for him to make an impression, he surely has to turn in some brilliant performances if he is to earn another deal.

However, considering the huge outlay for his signature and his poor return, as well as the fact that the club are still paying him approximately £60k per week, Parish will not include Wickham on the list of players he is desperate to keep at Selhurst Park and will instead look forward to the end of the now £900k-rated striker’s contract.

AND in more news, take a look at which Palace star can feel the benefit of Christian Benteke’s departure…

Everton have been dealt a huge blow in the club’s rumoured chase of AS Roma defender Gianluca Mancini, who has performed at a higher level than Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly this season.

What’s the word?

According to Gianluca Di Marzio, the Roma hierarchy have declared that Mancini is ‘untouchable’ in the summer transfer window and will block any attempts to sign the 24-year-old.

Mancini is aware of Roma’s position regarding his immediate future and will look to use the club’s stance as leverage in discussions over a new deal.

The centre-back’s agent Giuseppe Riso is due to meet with Roma in the coming weeks to discuss a new contract, as Mancini has become one of the most important parts of Paulo Fonseca’s plans.

Mancini is currently tied down at the Stadio Olimpico through to the summer of 2024 on a €2m-a-season (£33k-a-week) deal, and has started 25 of a possible 28 Serie A fixtures this term.

His efforts have attracted widespread interest, including from Everton, who Calciomercato claimed are big admirers of the Italy international earlier this month.

Premier League rivals Chelsea, as well as Bundesliga powerhouse Bayern Munich and Serie A giants Juventus and Inter Milan, were also listed as potential destinations, but any side wishing to sign Mancini were claimed to face a €39m (£33.5m) asking price, with Roma valuing the former Atalanta star at €10-15m (£8.5-13m) more than they paid the Gewiss Stadium natives in September.

A huge blow for Everton?

Roma allegedly declaring that Mancini is unavailable for a move in the off-season will come as a huge blow for Everton, as the four-cap centre-back has been performing at a higher standard in the Serie A this season than Napoli’s Koulibaly.

Reports have suggested that Koulibaly is Carlo Ancelotti’s top defensive target for the next transfer window and that Blues owner Farhad Moshiri is prepared to back a pursuit of the Senegalese star.

That chase is likely to come at around €50m (£43m) with Napoli lowering their asking price, but paying more to sign Koulibaly may actually see Everton acquire a lesser option than Mancini.

While Mancini has opened all 25 of his Italian top-flight appearances this season, Koulibaly has started 19 of his 20 and registered lesser numbers for his defensive contributions to date.

Per WhoScored data, Mancini eclipses Koulibaly for average number of successful tackles made per Serie A game this term with 1.6 to 1.2, as well as for interceptions (2.1 to 1), opponents caught offside (1 to 0.7) and clearances (2 to 1.9).

The pair are evenly matched for times dribbled past per game at 0.5, and when on the ball with both registering an 89% pass success rate, with Koulibaly’s only distinct advantage being in fouls committed with one per game to Mancini’s two.

Mancini, though, is working on improving his discipline as he looks to round off the edges to his game that are not yet polished. Also, with age on his side, the Roma star may have been the better option for Everton to target.

“I have to improve on so many areas, such as not getting so many yellow cards and reading the game better. I do feel that I have become a better defender over the last year, also because I am accumulating experience,” he told Sky Sport Italia earlier this month, via quotes by Football-Italia.

AND in other news, Farhad Moshiri is set to back Everton as Carlo Ancelotti eyes a 29-y/o he described as “the best” in the world…

What forms a recipe for a transfer at Molineux? Well, first of all, you have to be a fine cheese, a player capable of maturing over time and developing as each year passes by.

Secondly, you quite often have to hail from Iberia. Add a light sprinkling of Gestifute, Jorge Mendes’ agency, into the equation and you have a classic culmination.

Of course, Wolves do explore other areas but they have no fewer than eight of their players on the books of the so-called super agent. It’s hard to forget that Nuno Santo is also a client of Mendes.

Close ties to an agent as powerful as him leads to a lot of transfer rumours and one of the freshest to emerge regards Goncalo Guedes.

Football Insider revealed earlier this month that Wolves were trying to beat West Ham to the attacking midfielder’s signature. Again, he is a player with all the ingredients Jeff Shi loves.

He is Portuguese, he is young enough to develop at 24, and he’s a client of Mendes.

With seven goal involvements to his name in 2020/21, he’d be a shrewd addition for Wolves and crucially could give them a bit of added spice in the final third. After all, it’s something they’ve lacked enormously this term.

Fabio Silva has netted just twice while Willian Jose is yet to score for the Old Gold, something Steve Bull attributes to a lack of service.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, he said last week: “I can relate to where he’s [Jose] coming from because I’d be as frustrated as he is, and I’d want to get the wingers and strangle them and say get that ball in the box.”

Guedes is someone who can bring a bit of extra creativity to this Wolves side, possessing the ability to play on the wing and in behind the striker.

Though, as well as aiding Wolves’ frontline, he could make up for the loss of a certain Pedro Goncalves. The Portuguese sensation played a matter of minutes for the Molineux outfit before being sold to Sporting Lisbon with very little fanfare.

However, his development has been meteoric, now being linked with high-brow moves to clubs like Liverpool after scoring 15 goals and claiming five assists this term.

Guedes might not be as prolific as that, but he certainly knows where the net is and he comes with a glowing recommendation from none other than Luis Figo; “Guedes is a fast, irreverent and unpredictable player, who himself builds actions for his teammates and is also able to finish well,” the former Ballon d’Or winner said.

Building chances for others and finishing adeptly bears great similarity to Goncalves, a player Wolves must now be cursing their luck over.

Guedes has scored 20 times during his time at current club Valencia and due to the positions he occupies on the field, could be their inadvertent replacement.

AND in other news, Wolves must swoop for £74k-p/w beast this summer, Spiers once dubbed him “superb”…

According to reports, Leeds are interested in signing Bournemouth’s teenage sensation, Ajani Burchall.

What’s the story?

The 16-year-old has broken onto the scene at the Vitality Stadium this season, making his first-team debut at the back end of December when he came on as a second-half substitute in a 5-0 win over Huddersfield. The occasion was even marked by former Premier League striker Shaun Goater, who lauded his fellow Bermudan, calling him “the future”.

Now, Football Insider claim that with Burchall having rejected a scholarship deal with the Cherries, Leeds have registered their interest in signing him this summer.

The report adds that Leeds are not alone in their chase for the left-winger, with the likes of West Ham and Arsenal also said to be keeping an eye on his situation.

Next Sam Greenwood

It’s been one of the features of Andrea Radrizzani and Victor Orta’s regime at Elland Road over the past few seasons, that Leeds have looked to snap up a number of exciting young talents to boost the club’s academy.

The likes of Cody Drameh, Joe Gelhardt and Sam Greenwood have all arrived from other Premier League and Championship clubs, with the latter in particular making arguably the biggest impression thus far by making his first-team debut in the FA Cup clash against Crawley Town earlier this year.

Burchall, while he may be just 16, could follow in Greenwood’s footsteps as another exciting, attacking talent, who seemingly bears some of the same characteristics that has marked the former Sunderland youngster out as a promising player.

Bournemouth’s official club website has written that Burchall is “predominantly plays wide and is an exciting forward player who likes to take opponents on and has an eye for goal, while also being a hard-working, tough-tackling winger” – not too dissimilar to Greenwood.

Meanwhile, Burchall’s teammate at the Cherries, Steve Cook, said after his debut: “You could see how special a player he is. His first involvement was checked his shoulder, cut across a player and won his foul. For a 16-year-old, that awareness, that knowhow, I think the club have produced a really good player.

“On Saturday we had a few players who have come through the youth system, so it’s terrific. The club’s been known for that and I think Ajani has got great talent. He obviously can’t train with us day-to-day because he’s at school! But I’m sure he’s got a very good future and a very proud moment for his family.”

Orta could very well land Leeds’ next Greenwood by signing Burchall this summer.

Crystal Palace will be under no illusion of the scale of the task at hand after the humiliating 7-0 defeat to Liverpool at Selhurst Park on Saturday afternoon.

It was a sorry sight as Jurgen Klopp’s side put the Eagles to the sword after Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah both scored twice to leave Roy Hodgson with an awful lot of work to do.

The Eagles have conceded 25 goals in the Premier League this season, the third worst total behind newly-promoted sides Leeds United and West Bromwich Albion, and find themselves 13th in the table, level on points with Newcastle United, although Steve Bruce’s side has a game in-hand.

If that weren’t bad enough, Palace have several players who will be out of contract at the end of the season, including first-team regular starters Christian Benteke and Gary Cahill as well as Scott Dann.

With the January transfer window only a matter of days away, it’s time for Steve Parish to shift some of the deadwood, and you’d have to imagine that Max Meyer will be one of the first names on the list.

However, Hodgson must also urge the Palace chairman to cash in on former West Ham defender James Tomkins, who has made just one appearance during an injury-disrupted campaign despite earning around £50,000-per-week.

Reports in recent times revealed that West Bromwich Albion manager Sam Allardyce is keen to reunite with the 31-year-old after working with the centre-back at Selhurst Park and West Ham, and Parish could kill two birds with one stone by cutting his losses once and for all.

It sounds harsh, but the stats don’t lie, and Tomkins simply isn’t up to scratch anymore. The £3.6m-rated defensive stalwart came off the bench to replace Cheikou Kouyate in the second half to mark his first appearance of the season but he couldn’t prevent Palace from capitulating against Liverpool at Selhurst Park, although most of the damage had already been done.

Per SofaScore, he received a low rating of 6 out of ten for his efforts – despite playing just 27′ minutes of first-team football – as he failed to record a single tackle and he also managed to lose possession of the ball three times.

It’s fair to say that Tomkins has been an ever-loyal servant of the club but he has arguably entered the twilight of his career and as such, seems destined for the Selhurst Park exit.

When push comes to shove, Parish must be ruthless and push him out the door, as he’s certainly bled him dry over the past few months, that’s for sure.

AND in other news, Forget Sarr: Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish must secure Michael Olise as a Townsend alternative…

On a recent episode of Fabrizio Romano’s ‘Here We Go’ podcast, the Italian journalist revealed that should Manchester City be keen on signing a new centre-back, they could target Villarreal defender Pau Torres.

The 23-year-old defender has also attracted interest from Manchester United recently and it seems as if his time with Unai Emery’s side could soon be coming to an end, but the Citizens arguably don’t need to sign him.

Torres reportedly has a release clause of €50 million (£45.06 million), so it would be an expensive deal for director of football Txiki Begiristain if he wanted to bring him in.

The Citizens already signed both Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake for big money during the summer transfer window, so they are not exactly short of defensive options.

Whilst John Stones might have been the man axed in order to accommodate a new centre-back such as Torres, the Englishman’s recent performances have demonstrated that he is more than capable as a starter in Guardiola’s side.

Signing the Spanish defender would, of course, add to the quality of squad depth at Manchester City which is never a bad thing but considering the impressive performances from City’s defence of late, which has seen them keep six clean sheets in their last eight games, they really don’t need to splash the cash on Torres in January or next summer.

In addition to this, Torres has no experience in the Premier League and has just 55 senior appearances to his name at Villarreal, so he could hardly be considered experienced and would therefore likely be signed as a player for the future, which could harm the development of young defenders such as Eric Garcia and Taylor Harwood-Bellis.

Torres’ performances in La Liga this season have seen him average a sold 6.78 rating, which is significantly less than the impressive 7.25 rating Stones has managed thus far.

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Therefore, City should keep faith in the options they already have and potentially save themselves £45 million on Torres.

And, in other news… Manchester City missed out on a big talent in 2018, touted to be one of the best in the world