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Wolverhampton Wanderers are looking ahead to the summer transfer window, with a Brazilian full-back linked in the bid to improve Julen Lopetegui’s defence.

Despite being linked with a host of players, the dominant narrative of Wolves’ expected transfer activity is the pressures surrounding issues of FFP.

It’s expected that Lopetegui will be forced to recruit on a budget this summer, as the difficulties of the Premier League season begin to spill into the break.

What’s the latest on Dodo to Wolves?

As reported by Torcedores, relayed by Sport Witness last week, Wolves are in the picture to sign Fiorentina ace Dodo this summer.

There has since been an update regarding the player’s availability, with his club placing a price tag between €30m and €35m (£26m – £30m) on the defender.

Italian outlet TuttoMercatoWeb relayed the update of the Brazilian’s price tag with reference to Juventus’ interest in the defender.

What could Dodo bring to Wolves?

While Wolves are expected to face financial shortages this summer, the club are also expected to make a number of sales, which could still allow signings to happen.

One player that has been linked with a move away from the club is Rayan Ait-Nouri, who was rumoured to be “ready to leave” Molineux in December.

The Algerian’s potential departure could assist in freeing up finances and leave a vacancy in defence that could be perfectly filled with Dodo, who despite predominantly being a right-back has featured on the left-hand side in his career before.

According to TuttoMercatoWeb’s report, the Brazilian is 'one of the best' defenders on the flanks in Serie A, making him a worthy investment should Wolves have the ability to spend.

While the full-back’s defensive abilities are praised, the 24-year-old is extremely competent going forward, in qualities that are required to be a recognised full-back in the English game.

As per FBref, Dodo betters Ait-Nouri in a range of attributes going forward from defence, averaging 2.83 progressive carries to the 21-year-old’s 2.51 per 90, showing his strength on the ball and going forward.

A similar pattern is evident in the duo’s impact on goal, most obviously through the Serie A defender’s four goal contributions (one goal and three assists) this season to the Wolves defenders’ single goal.

As highlighted by FBref, the Molineux target averages 2.55 shot-creating actions per 90 in comparison to Ait-Nouri’s 1.92, showcasing his desire to get amongst the goals whether it be through assisting or scoring.

The future of the “sublime” Wolves defender, as praised by analyst Jack Fawcett, remains in doubt, however, the club may not need to fret over his departure should they capture the signing of Dodo.

There is little doubt that the Brazilian wouldn’t fit smoothly into Lopetegui’s plans in the Algerian’s expected absence, however with Italian giants Juventus also eyeing the star, Wolves will need to act quickly.

Crystal Palace are believed to be interested in a sealing a summer reunion with Conor Gallagher, according to talkSPORT reporter Alex Crook.

How is Gallagher performing at Chelsea?

The 23-year-old made himself a hero at Selhurst Park over the 2021/2022 season, spending a highly impressive year there on a temporary basis. He scored eight goals and chipped in with three assists, standing out as one of the Eagles' best players, before returning to Chelsea once the campaign reached its conclusion.

While Gallagher will no doubt have hoped to replicate that level of influence in a Blues side, he found himself in and out of the starting lineup throughout the 2022/23 season. While he featured in 35 of Chelsea's 38 Premier League matches, only 18 of them were starts, making it difficult for him to find any kind of rhythm week in, week out.

It could be that the west Londoners are willing to listen to offers for the England international once the summer transfer window opens, with plenty of interest in him from fellow Premier League clubs.

Could Gallagher make Palace return?

According to talkSPORT's Crook, Palace are keen on re-signing Gallagher this summer, but they aren't alone in eyeing up a move for him:

"Gallagher is not believed to have done enough this season to convince the Blues hierarchy that he ill be a part of their long-term plans.

"West Ham, Newcastle and Crystal Palace, where he had a successful loan spell, have all been alerted to the possibility of signing the £40million-rated midfielder."

Gallagher returning to Palace before the start of next season could be a hugely exciting signing, given how popular he was during his loan spell at the club.

It could simply be that he isn't quite at the level required to be a regular starter for a club of Chelsea's stature, but there is no shame in that, instead possessing enough talent to be a star man for a team like the Eagles. He showed that last season, during which time he was described as a "massive player" by then-manager Patrick Vieira, as well as "extraordinary and outstanding" by Thomas Tuchel.

Gallagher himself would surely jump at the chance to potentially rejoin Palace, considering he knows the club well and seemingly had a strong relationship with the fanbase when he was last there, although that may depend on whether a club who can offer European football come in for him instead.

Leeds United on-loan midfielder Weston McKennie is not wanted by Juventus beyond this summer, according to a fresh transfer update.

Has McKennie done well at Leeds?

The American joined the Whites back in the January transfer window, coming in on a temporary basis, but with a permanent move a possibility at the end of the season.

In truth, McKennie has been an underwhelming signing, considering his reputation when he came in, doing little to help Leeds' ongoing struggles in the Premier League. The £49,000-a-week midfielder has made 18 appearances in the competition, 15 of which have been starts, but no goals and just one assist have come his way, and his all-round influence in the middle of the park has been lacking, ranking as the club's 18th best performer, as per WhoScored.

The 24-year-old's future is now up in the air, with a new claim emerging over his future that doesn't necessarily bode well for him moving forward.

What does the future hold for McKennie?

According to Gazzetta dello Sport [via Sport Witness], McKennie "must absolutely be sold" by Juventus this summer, with the Serie A giants not seeing a future for him, despite racking up 96 appearances for them in the past. Arthur and Denis Zakaria are in the same boat, with Juve wanting to get a number of fringe players off their wage bill.

The report also states that Leeds are unlikely to retain the USA international's services, with the midfielder highly unlikely to want to be playing Championship football next season, assuming the Whites are relegated from the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

In truth, McKennie has done nowhere near enough to justify Leeds keeping him on, even if he wanted to stay, with his performances so disappointing overall. He has enjoyed nowhere near the influence of Tyler Adams, with his compatriot's absence through injury in recent months an enormous blow.

While it was hoped that McKennie could fill the void left by him – Clint Dempsey has called him "dangerous" in the past – he has generally been unnoticeable and not had the impact so many thought he would, averaging just 0.2 blocks per game and playing just 0.7 key passes per match.

For that reason, the idea of him not joining the Whites permanently may not be seen as a great loss, and he could be looked back on as a poor addition, unless he manages to perform some heroics against Tottenham this weekend, playing a part in Leeds pulling off a miraculous escape act on the final day.

TalkSport pundit Jamie O'Hara has claimed that "a lot of billionaires" will want to buy Tottenham Hotspur if they are put up for sale.

What's the latest Spurs takeover news?

It was a terrible final home game of the season for Spurs on Saturday as they were comfortably beaten 3-1 by Brentford in the Premier League.

This means, the campaign will see Tottenham end without any trophies yet again, while the club don't even have a permanent manager or a sporting director in charge.

It certainly is a mess in North London right now and fans have been furious with ENIC and chairman Daniel Levy for some time, protesting against the ​​​​​​ownership set-up with growing regularity.

However, there is no guarantee that they would be bought by someone who would do a better job of running the club if Tottenham was put up for sale.

Even so, while talking about it all on TalkSport, former player O'Hara insisted there would be no shortage of offers for the Premier League asset if ENIC did opt to sell.

He explained: “I can assure you now if Tottenham went up for sale properly – and Joe Lewis did come out and say we're going to sell the football club – there'd be a lot of billionaires who would want to buy it.

"Are you joking? You've got concerts? You've got Formula One there. You've got NFL matches there. It's one of the most sought-after stadiums in the world."

Who wants to buy Spurs?

It's notable that O'Hara doesn't call upon any footballing achievements when listing while the football club would be a good asset for any prospective buyers.

To be fair to him, though the new stadium is a great venue, with deals struck to host music concerts, boxing and rugby in London N17. And the club have even, somewhat spuriously, estimated that 5.9bn people globally will be interested in events held at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

However, even if it is a potentially attractive asset, as we've learnt with the saga that has developed after the Glazer family put Manchester United on the market this season, it wouldn't be simple to get ENIC out and someone else (someone better) in charge.

Still, there may already be a leading candidate to takeover Spurs with Iranian-American billionaire Jahm Najafi – chair of MSP Sports Capital – reportedly working with a consortium ahead of a possible £3b takeover in the near future.

It will certainly be interesting to see how it all plays out.

According to reporter Jacque Talbot of Football Transfers, a significant Tottenham Hotspur transfer development has now come to light involving Benfica star Darwin Nunez.

The Lowdown: Spurs set for busy summer?

Lilywhites boss Antonio Conte has now met with club chief Fabio Paratici in Italy as Spurs map out a list of summer targets (The Telegraph).

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This comes after Premier League giants confirmed a £150 million capital increase which could seriously back Conte in the next transfer wind0w ahead of his first full season in charge.

On the transfer agenda, it is believed that the north Londoners are interested in landing an alternative frontman to star striker Harry Kane, with Talbot now sharing a significant update involving Nunez.

The Latest: Nunez meeting held…

According to the reporter, writing for Football Transfers, Spurs and representatives of the in-demand striker have held a meeting as they enter talks – though it is currently unclear whether Paratici and co wish to move further with a formal bid.

This comes as Tottenham, via Talbot, do ‘want to bring in a marquee striker’ for Conte.

The Verdict: Make the move…

As the north Londoners currently weigh pushing further, there is little denying that Nunez would add seriously quality going by his huge goal haul over 2021/2022 – not to mention the fact he has been labelled an ‘absolute beast’ by members of the media (Hari Sethi, Anfield Index Podcaster).

However, reports he could cost around £100 million could be a real deterrent for Spurs even despite their recent cash injection.

Tottenham and Paratici have to strengthen in other areas as Conte reportedly sets his sights on a major overhaul, so we believe the club should look at potentially cheaper alternatives first before deciding to press further for Nunez.

In other news: ‘Not only Perisic’ – Tottenham push for ‘genius’ signing after Conte call ‘in recent days’…find out more here.

Sunderland have been handed a major boost ahead of the League One Play-Off Final game against Wycombe Wanderers.

What’s the latest?

As per Sunderland Echo, Alex Neil has issued an update on the health of his squad and it is entirely positive from a Sunderland perspective.

Neil said: “We’ve got a clean bill of health I think for the first time [since I’ve been here].

“People we didn’t expect, who we thought might not be able to make it, [could be available]. People like Winny have been in training.

“So at the moment, we’re looking good.”

Sharing more on the fitness of Carl Winchester, Neil stated: “I think we’ll have a better idea of exactly where he’s at after today and tomorrow.

“He’s been on the grass, and he’s done a little bit, but today and tomorrow will have a big bearing on how close he actually is.“It’s pleasing for Winny as well because he has had a big contribution since I’ve been here to get us to where we are. It’s a good situation.”On the status of Nathan Broadhead, who returned from injury in a one-minute cameo in the last game against Sheffield Wednesday, Neil added:”Nathan’s been fine. He had limited time at the weekend (in the second leg) but the difficulty I had there was because of the way we played the game and the shape we adopted, he’s a natural centre-forward and we were only playing with one in the game.”A major boostThe return of Winchester, who has not featured since the game against Cambridge United on the 23rd April will come as a big boost for Neil who will undoubtedly be elated to see him back.The 29-year-old has featured 40 times for Sunderland in League One, in what has been a seamless transition from League Two football for the Northern Irishman in his first full season for Sunderland.His versatility is his greatest asset in this side. He is a true utility man, having played at right-back, centre-back, centre midfield and defensive midfield on more than one occasion for the Black Cats this season.Boasting what he claims to be “a clean bill of health”, the Black Cats boss and his squad will fancy their chances against Wycombe on Saturday.Additionally, the return to full fitness of Broadhead is also a big boost with the Everton loanee scoring ten goals in the third-tier this term. That’s exactly the sort of potency that could lead Sunderland back to the Championship this weekend.

In other news: Sunderland keen to sign 15-goal gem who’s “perfectly placed”, Imagine him and Stewart 

Everton were saved from relegation by the skin of their teeth on Thursday night in a stunning comeback win over Crystal Palace.

The Toffees had looked in trouble following their defeat against Brentford, and knowing that a win against Palace would secure their Premier League status regardless of other results, it was the biggest win for the club in years.

The hero of the night? Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

It’s no secret that there hasn’t been a standout player this season for Everton, with Frank Lampard toiling by the week with a struggling side. However, if the 25-year-old marksman can get back to the form that the fans know he is capable of, then next season could be very different for the team.

Calvert-Lewin transfer blinder

The Merseyside club pulled off a blinder with his signing, having bought him from Sheffield United for a mere £1.5m in 2016. His market value as of March 2022 stands at £37.8m, with a high of £40.5m in December 2020.

His rise to stardom and England honours has been wonderful, and it’s a testament to his belief and talent that he has gotten this far in his career – and that there is probably still plenty to come.

If Everton were relegated, the likelihood is that Calvert-Lewin would have left the club and remained in the Premier League, with recent reports linking him with a move to Newcastle United.

His goalscoring record at Goodison Park rose exponentially until niggling injuries and a lack of goals dented the player’s confidence. Having struck 36 times in all competitions in the two campaigns prior, he has just scored five league goals this season, albeit with the most recent of those the most important one in the club’s modern history. Nonetheless, he will be aiming to improve that return next season.

Whatever happens, Everton could make a huge profit on the striker if they really wanted to this summer, especially with another three years left on his current contract.

Lampard will be desperate to keep the player, whose ability in the air was dubbed “prodigious” by academy coach John Ebbrell. Given Calvert-Lewin’s obvious talent, it’s easy to see why.

AND in other news, Forget Richarlison: Everton “nightmare” with 17 duels won was ther real star against Palace

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been dealt a worry before his side’s crunch north London derby clash with Tottenham Hotspur this evening.

The Lowdown: Major occasion…

The Gunners face off against their bitter rivals in a highly-anticipated, blockbuster Premier League clash which may well determine who is playing Champions League football next season.

Both Arteta and Spurs boss Antonio Conte are chasing a place in Europe’s most coveted competition for 2022/2023 and securing a top-four finish will be crucial to both sides for many reasons.

The riches of sealing your place in the pot doesn’t only give you more pull to attract big names in the transfer market, but it also grants a potentially crucial financial windfall in the form of lucrative revenue.

Perhaps above all, for supporters, it is a privilege to watch their side take part with this looming Spurs and Arsenal battle perhaps coming as the most crucial one in years.

Arteta will want as many quality first-teamers to choose from as possible, but as per an injury update, he is facing the possibility of being without a key man in Bukayo Saka.

The Latest: Arteta dealt Saka worry…

As shared by the club’s official site, Arsenal and their head coach are sweating over the fitness of their forward, who is touch-and-go for the derby with Spurs tonight.

The manager refused to give an estimate on his chances of featuring at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as his inclusion is currently up in the air.

Indeed, Saka came off in the win over Leeds United last weekend and is a ‘doubt’ for this evening alongside Ben White:

Arteta explained: “Thomas (Partey) is still out, Kieran (Tierney) is still out and with Ben he is still a doubt, we have to assess him and see how he is feeling, which is much better. With Bukayo it’s the same.”

The Verdict: Potentially huge blow…

Not having the bright young attacker available to face the Lilywhites would be a major blow, undoubtedly.

According to WhoScored, Saka stands out as Arsenal’s best player by the numbers – having racked up the most goals and assists (11G, 6A) combined for them domestically this season.

The versatile gem is also their best performer overall going by average match rating per 90 with a solid 7.10/10, even attempting more shots at goal each game than all of his teammates (2.5).

A consistent threat, Saka has been called ‘unplayable’ for his performances by members of the media, with his potential absence coming as a real worry for the top-four hopefuls against a motivated Conte side.

Fabrizio Romano has dropped an update on the future of reported Tottenham Hotspur transfer target Adama Traore.

What’s the talk?

In a recent post on Twitter, the Italian journalist and transfer insider revealed that Barcelona have no intention of activating their €30m (£25m) option to purchase the Wolverhampton Wanderers winger, meaning the 26-year-old is set to return to Molineux at the end of the current campaign – before potentially being moved on once again by Bruno Lage this summer.

In a further report, The Express claim that this development will come as a boost to Antonio Conte and Fabio Paratici, as Spurs attempted to sign the Spain international in the January transfer window, and now appear to have a free run at the forward in the summer market – with it being said a move by Tottenham looks likely ahead of 2022/23.

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In his tweet, Romano said: “Barcelona have no intention to pay €30m buy option for Adama Traore. The only way to keep him has always been a swap deal, with no money included in the negotiation with Wolves. As of today, there are chances for Adama to come back at Wolves and then leave again.”

Conte will be buzzing

While it is true that Traore’s return to Barcelona has not exactly gone as the winger would have hoped – having started just three of his nine LaLiga appearances for Xavi’s side – the news that Tottenham could have a second chance of landing the Spaniard this summer is sure to have left Conte buzzing.

Indeed, it was widely reported that the Italian had hoped to convert the forward into a right wing-back at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and it is easy to see why the Spurs boss believed the £25.2m-rated talent would be suitable for this role.

According to FBref statistics, the £46k-per-week attacker ranks in the top 1% of wingers in Europe’s big five leagues for dribbles completed per 90 minutes, as well as the top 4% for progressive carries, the top 12% for touches in the opposition penalty area, the top 23% for shot-creating actions and the top 29% for aerial duels won over the last 365 days.

As such, it is clear that, if deployed on the right of a back five, Traore’s ability to progress the ball from defence to attack would be a huge weapon for Tottenham when counter-attacking – something that is undoubtedly one of the main reasons for Conte’s interest in the player Jurgen Klopp dubbed “unplayable” this summer.

And, following Romano’s latest update on the winger’s future, it would appear as if Conte and Paratici now have a second chance to land the eight-time capped international, something that is sure to please the Italian.

AND in other news: Paratici plotting £40m Spurs bid for £70k-p/w target, he’d be a “monster” for Conte

Newcastle United’s priority this summer is to land a striker and Benfica’s Darwin Nunez ‘has long been admired’, The Athletic’s Chris Waugh writes.

The lowdown

Newcastle did sign a striker in January, activating the £25million release clause in Chris Wood’s Burnley contract.

But Wood has struggled since his arrival, with just one non-penalty goal to his name in 15 appearances.

After starting 13 straight games, he was an unused substitute against Norwich City and only played the final 23 minutes of the 1-0 defeat against Liverpool on Saturday.

Benfica frontman Nunez, called ‘world class’ by Jorge Jesus, is enjoying an outstanding season, having netted 34 goals in 40 appearances across all competitions. Transfermarkt value the 22-year-old at £36million.

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The latest

Newcastle correspondent Waugh tweeted that ‘a top-level striker is the priority this summer’ at St James’ Park.

In the attached story, he shares ‘strong indications’ from club sources that the ‘majority’ of their budget will be directed towards this position.

Newcastle are long-term fans of Nunez but Waugh believes that he’s ‘almost certain to head elsewhere’. Fortunately, head of recruitment Steve Nickson has drawn up a shortlist with a ‘host of alternatives’.

The verdict

What could this mean for Callum Wilson, who remains Newcastle’s top scorer this season with six goals?

Well, Waugh does raise the possibility that the new arrival could play alongside Wilson, and it’s worth remembering that Howe previously deployed the Englishman in a front two during their time together at Bournemouth.

But he must still be a little concerned by the stories he’s reading and may seek assurances from the manager.

Indeed, insider Dean Jones recently claimed that Wilson is unlikely to be a ‘main player’ when he’s returned from the calf injury that’s kept him out since December.

Is there still a place for him when Newcastle have the funds to make a blockbuster addition?

In other news, Frank McAvennie reacts to a Bruno Guimaraes exit story.