Sheffield Wednesday’s recent transfer activity has just made it a whole lot harder for one Owls starlet to gain a long-awaited break in the first-team setup.

Player profiled

His name is Preslav Borukov, a Bulgarian striker who joined the south Yorkshire outfit back in 2016 from PFC Levski Sofia before signing his first professional contract in the summer of 2018.

Now aged 19, the Owls U23 frontman will soon be running out of time if he is to make a mark on manager Garry Monk and break into that senior fold.

Borukov is described as a ‘real physical presence’ by the club’s official website, who also state his ability to hold up the ball and attack crosses.

The young prospect has been capped at youth level for his national team and was named on the bench for Wednesday’s FA Cup tie at Queens Park Rangers last month.

The future

However, as previously stated, his place in Monk’s striker pecking order has sunk even further since his rare sighting as a substitute.

The 40-year-old boss clinched Conor Wickham on loan from Crystal Palace as well as unknown forward Alessio Da Cruz from Parma in the final week of the transfer window – the latter even made his debut at the weekend with Borukov nowhere to be seen.

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If you presume a fit Steven Fletcher – the top goalscorer at the club – is Monk’s first-choice option, you then have Wickham and Cruz to add to Jordan Rhodes, Sam Winnall, Atdhe Nuhiu and maybe even Fernando Forestieri.

That would mean the rising Bulgarian powerhouse is merely seventh or eighth choice currently. What chance does he have of ever becoming a first-team regular?

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The Owls have the second oldest squad in the Championship, so Borukov’s involvement would surely help Monk begin trending towards that rebuilding job, but it just seems growingly uncertain that the 19-year-old will ever be able to actually contribute given the mountain of options ahead of him.

And in other news, here’s why Sheffield Wednesday taking a significant risk with Connor Wickham…

Marcelo Bielsa has had a lot to answer for in recent weeks after Leeds’ poor run of form.

Indeed, his press conferences lately have been quite interesting – last week he answered just five questions in 59 minutes, and this week he’s given an explanation about one thing Leeds fans have been concerned about.

The Elland Road faithful were complaining on Tuesday evening about Ian Poveda not being in the matchday squad against Brentford.

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Understandably, when his press conference rolled around journalists were keen to find out why the 20-year-old had been left out against the Bees.

Bielsa’s explanation was that he wanted his bench to be more balanced with a mix of defenders, midfielders and strikers.

The first thing to note from that comment is that it simply doesn’t add up.

Against Brentford Leeds’ bench consisted of three defenders, one midfielder, one striker, and a winger, so immediately that doesn’t make much sense.

Jordan Stevens has been on the bench lately, and many fans believe that he should get a chance on the bench ahead of him, or others that have been appearing in the squad.

Another section of the fanbase were questioning why the former Man City man was even brought into the club if he wasn’t going to be used.

Others weren’t buying his explanation and they were quick to brand the manager a liar.

In other news, Marcelo Bielsa is developing an unhealthy obsession at Leeds.

According to The Telegraph, Everton are one of a number of clubs looking to lure Real Madrid’s chief scout Juni Calafat away from Spain.

What’s the word?

The report claims that along with the Toffees, the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool are considering trying to “poach” Calafat from Madrid.

It goes on to reveal that Calafat is “credited with overhauling Real’s recruitment and change of strategy by signing some of the most promising young talent in world football”.

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As well as Reinier Jesus’ arrival from Flamengo, the likes of Martin Odegaard, Eder Militao and Vinicius Junior, amongst others, have all gone to the Bernabeu under his watch.

Hidden gems

As Calafat’s track record suggests, he has got a very impressive history of signing exciting young talent from South American football especially. As well as the aforementioned, he helped bring in the likes of Fede Valverde and Rodrygo to Madrid too.

With Premier League clubs flush with cash these days, scouting networks are probably as strong and diverse as they have ever been. It means finding the next big talent becomes even more difficult to do, as a lot of teams are likely to have seen them one way or the other.

Calafat has shown he is a master talent-spotter in his time in Madrid, and so luring him to Goodison Park would help the Toffees unearth some hidden gems. His impressive eye for young players could land the Merseyside club some of the best up-and-coming starlets in the world, and particularly from South America. Everton’s future would be in incredible hands if they could convince him to turn down the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea.

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When Marcel Brands arrived as the club’s new director of football from PSV in the summer of 2018, Farhad Moshiri proudly remarked that he would help make them “more equipped to challenge the top teams” – after all, he helped sign the likes of Georginio Wijnaldum and Dries Mertens in his time with the Dutch club.

But in all honesty, his work at Everton has been largely underwhelming, with signings like Moise Kean under-performing massively – the Italian having scored just once in 23 games across all competitions.

But snaring someone like Calafat from a European giant like Madrid would be the ultimate coup for the Toffees, and even more of a stellar acquisition than Brands initially was. Though he may be a chief scout at the Bernabeu and not a director of football, he is certainly highly-regarded in Madrid considering they have signed players that he spotted.

It would be far more exciting for Everton than when they lured Brands to Goodison Park, and ensure that their future is extremely bright.

Meanwhile, Everton’s swoop for this starlet should spell the end for this Ronald Koeman signing.

After arriving in a £27m deal from PSV, Steven Bergwijn enjoyed a fairly promising start to life at Tottenham – his goal-scoring debut against Manchester City certainly not a hindrance to endearing himself to the Lilywhites faithful.

But in his three games since, the Dutchman has failed to find the back of the net or provide a single assist, with Jose Mourinho using him both from the left-hand side, and as a number nine.

Amidst Spurs’ current woes up front – both Harry Kane and Heung-min Son have been ruled out with lengthy injuries – the north London side’s boss has to be a bit more creative when it comes to trying to boost his team’s chances of scoring.

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And one way he can help do that, is by unleashing Bergwijn in the number ten role. The 22-year-old only started playing in that position this season for PSV – his previous campaigns with the Dutch side saw him operate on both flanks, and through the middle.

But in the ten games that he was deployed in that all important play-maker role, he scored twice and provided a remarkable seven assists – almost a goal contribution every game (a record comfortably better than any other position that he has played in this year).

And when you look at the underlying numbers behind his game, it really does seem like he’s tailor-made for that position just behind the striker.

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Whilst playing in the Eredivisie this season, Bergwijn averaged an impressive 2.8 key passes per game as he provided ten assists in just 16 games. And whilst his numbers in that category has taken a slight drop in the few games he has played in the top-flight (now 1.7), it is still impressively higher than any other Spurs player – including more than double that of Giovani Lo Celso (0.8).

With his natural pace from being a winger, the Dutchman could prove to be an intriguing alternative in the number ten role, and offer a different dimension to Mourinho’s side. He has shown he has the creativity to pick out a cute pass, whilst his speed could mean he could be a decisive player in transitions, helping to make the right decision with the final ball.

By keeping him out wide, or even as a number nine, there is always that element that when things aren’t going your way, those players are the ones to fade out of the game. But allowing Bergwijn to roam to his heart’s content in the middle, could ensure he always remains at the forefront of any Spurs attack. And that position change could well be the key to unshackling the £31.5m-rated ace’s true potential.

Meanwhile, Tottenham are scouting this Ligue 1 powerhouse.

It has been a difficult run for Crystal Palace in recent weeks.

The Eagles have lost each of their last three games, being defeated by Southampton, Sheffield United and Everton. However, they will be hoping to turn it around against Newcastle in their next game today, as they host the Magpies at Selhurst Park.

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Roy Hodgson’s starting XI for the game has been released, and it seems that many supporters aren’t happy with the presence of three defensive midfielders in the side.

Bearing in mind that Newcastle have only scored 24 goals in 26 Premier League matches so far this campaign, it does seem a bit of a bizarre choice.

Others are unhappy that this set-up comes at home, where Palace have only scored 10 Premier League goals this season.

Against a team that has clearly struggled for goals this season, Hodgson should be more adventurous – especially considering they are playing the match at home as well.

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Meanwhile, Steve Parish reveals how the Aaron Wan-Bissaka money was used.

West Brom crashed out of the FA Cup in midweek but that hasn’t stopped one player from receiving rave reviews.

Slaven Bilic’s side were defeated 3-2 by Newcastle United at the Hawthorns leaving the Baggies with only the league title left to fight for.

The Croatian rung the changes but young midfielder Rekeem Harper was one of the lucky two to keep his place and following the match, he posted some words of encouragement to Instagram, saying: “We go again.”

The young starlet’s teammate and fellow academy graduate Nathan Ferguson responded with a one-word verdict suggesting that he’s the “future”.

Ferguson, who hasn’t been seen since January’s defeat to Cardiff City, isn’t expected to be at the club much past the summer after a move to Crystal Palace fell through at the final hour.

He is likely to depart the Hawthorns at the end of the season with Eagles chairman Steve Parish reiterating his interest in the defender.

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But clearly Ferguson feels that Harper can have a big impact for his boyhood club going forward.

And in other news, West Brom assistant dedicates an Instagram post to “underrated” star…

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has some decisions to make in the centre of his midfield.

Manchester United have Fred, Scott McTominay, Nemanja Matic, Andreas Pereira and Paul Pogba in the middle of the park, and in his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation, someone is likely to miss out on a regular basis. With the summer transfer window coming up, a potential new arrival would make that area even more congested.

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It seems that the Red Devils have already made a decision in regards to one of those players, though. It has been confirmed that Nemanja Matic has agreed a contract extension at Old Trafford, as per the Norwegian boss himself.

This has got the club’s supporters reacting in their droves, and it appears that that they are divided on whether they want him to stay.

Some are happy to see the Serbia international to carry on with the 20-time English champions.

The former Chelsea man has missed much of the campaign due to injury, but featured in eight of United’s nine Premier League matches prior to this weekend, stepping up in the absence of Scott McTominay. Clearly, one of those fans would rather see him stay than Jesse Lingard and Phil Jones, two players who have received their fair share of criticism.

Others, though, are not happy with the update.

indeed, some supporters would rather him be allowed to move on. After all, he is now 32 – he is not exactly one for the future.

This news has not yet been officially confirmed by the club, so keep your eyes open!

Meanwhile, this 20-year-old would be a massive upgrade on Jesse Lingard.

And so, on a Wednesday night in March, Liverpool’s Champions League defence is over.

The Reds were, for much of the match, the better team against Atletico Madrid at Anfield. They bossed possession – they had 71% of the ball – as you would expect against a Diego Simeone side, and they put real pressure on Los Rojiblancos’ goal, managing a colossal 31 shots (11 of them were on target).

However, despite the visiting side managing just ten themselves, they still progressed to the quarter-finals, even winning the match 3-2 on the night.

It was a fine example of defensive efficiency, but they would not have made it through had it not been for Jan Oblak between the sticks. The Slovenia international was in stunning form, making nine saves. That didn’t include the mesmerising stop from Virgil van Dijk, which came after the ball had gone out of play.

There is arguably no shot-stopper more consistently stupendous than the 27-year-old. In each of the last three full seasons, he has a save-percentage ratio of at least 80% in La Liga – even this term, his 73.3% is still more than respectable. Alisson may have managed 80.4% this term, but that is the only campaign he has amassed such a number.

Oblak is almost synonymous with the number 13 jersey at the Wanda Metropolitano, but it could have all been so much different. In October 2018, a report from AS (via Sport Witness) said that Liverpool had made an “important offer” for the goalkeeper that previous summer, but he turned it down. At the time, he had a €100m (£88.5m) release clause.

Alisson, of course, is a fantastic keeper in his own right, but Klopp’s failure to convince Oblak to make the move to Merseyside has come back to haunt him in spectacular fashion. A treble seemed a possibility just a few weeks ago – now, only the Premier League is left, and Atleti’s star man has had a big say in that.

Meanwhile, this famed youth academy could provide Liverpool with their Sadio Mane replacement.

In the summer of 2016, Southampton looked like they had made an extremely exciting addition to their squad.

Les Reed had managed to negotiate the club-record arrival of Sofiane Boufal from Lille in a deal worth £16m, which has since been overtaken as the club’s record move by Danny Ings’ £20m arrival from Liverpool.

The Moroccan was added to Claude Puel’s squad in the same summer that stellar names such as Sadio Mane, Victor Wanyama and Graziano Pelle had departed, so there was plenty of pressure on Boufal to deliver.

As we type this article almost four years on from his arrival at St Mary’s, it’s safe to say that the £16m man has failed to deliver the goods.

For a start, his on-pitch efforts have been nowhere near good enough. Barring a wonder-goal against West Brom in which he ran from inside his own half, Boufal has netted just five strikes in 83 appearances for the Saints, which, when you consider his transfer fee, works out at £3.2m for every goal he has scored – he also has just five assists to his name.

However, his off-field behaviour seems to have been just as poor.

Boufal was involved in an altercation with Mark Hughes, which led to the forward being banished from first-team activities by the Welshman – the ex-Saints boss then said that the skilful attacker needed to rebuild a bit of trust.

Hughes also shipped the 26-year-old out on loan to Celta Vigo. Although he has since returned to St Mary’s and worked his way back in under Ralph Hasenhuttl, the former Lille man only has one goal and two assists this season in 24 appearances.

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He has been nowhere near good enough on a consistent basis for Southampton since he was signed for a significant chunk of cash, and has well and truly been a miserable addition to the squad.

In other news, Gao must be in disbelief over this man who has squandered £23.28m of his cash…

According to notable transfer expert Duncan Castles, this summer’s transfer window is likely to be a ‘depressed’ one compared to previous years amid the current suspension to football, largely around the world. With that in mind and the fact there’s nothing to give us a footballing fix, the Transfer Tavern are doing their best to remind their readers how some of their club’s fans reacted to the biggest signings of this season in order to focus on what’s been before us, rather than the uncertainty ahead. 

Make no mistake, Patrick Cutrone was a big transfer for Wolverhampton Wanderers when he joined the club from AC Milan in 2019. 27 goals in 90 appearances for one of the biggest clubs in Italian football as well as being an under-21 international, all by the tender age of 21, shows you he possessed a good amount of quality. So, you can understand the excitement that some Wolves fans displayed when he moved to the Midlands.

Well, five months on from him joining the club, the Italian made a swift exit and returned to Serie A, telling you everything you need to know about his time at Molineux. Indeed, he managed to score three goals and assist just four more in 24 appearances under Nuno Espirito Santo, an underwhelming return (via Transfermarkt).

However, it wasn’t his attacking contribution which saw him leave so soon. Compared to Raul Jimenez, the Italian was proving to be incredibly feeble especially in his attempts to defend from the front. While the Mexican averages the joint-third most fouls per Premier League game (1.1), Cutrone managed just 0.4, as per WhoScored. It really highlights how hard the former Benfica man has worked in order to stop opposition teams build attacks compared to the 22-year-old.

His comments following his move away seem to suggest a breakdown in relationship with the Wolves manager. The centre-forward claimed Santo was favouring players ‘who had been loyal to him’ when he commented on his lack of starts (via TEAMtalk). The ace’s time with the team showed he wasn’t quite a match for Jimenez and that fans jumped the gun in getting excited when he joined the club.

Wolves fans, where do you think it went wrong for Cutrone? Let us know your thoughts below!