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Everton have been linked with a move for Borussia Monchengladbach attacker Marcus Thuram as new manager Rafa Benitez looks to bolster his forward line.

What’s the story?

According to Italian outlet CalcioMercato, the Toffees are one of three sides interested in signing the highly-rated 24-year-old over the coming months, with Borussia Dortmund and Inter also listed as potential suitors.

With just two years remaining on his current contract, Thuram could be available for a reduced price next summer if Everton are prepared to wait that long.

Everton could finally replace Lukaku

After arriving on German shores back in 2019, Thuram has established himself as one of the Bundesliga’s most exciting young stars.

In his 40 appearances for Monchengladbach last season, the £25.2m-rated gem bagged 11 goals and provided a further 12 assists in all competitions, but his contributions didn’t stop there.

He also created four big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of two shots and making 0.6 key passes per game.

These returns saw teammate Denis Zakaria brand Thuram a “phenomenal” talent and earned him a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.91, ranking him as Monchengladbach’s tenth-best performer in the top flight of German football.

The versatile striker also impressed during his brief appearance for France at Euro 2020, making one key pass, completing one dribble and winning one duel in the 3-3 draw with Switzerland, with his display earning a SofaScore match rating of 7.2.

His impressive performances for club and country led to Movistar commentator Alain Valnegri telling El Pais that Thuram reminded him of Chelsea forward Romelu Lukaku, saying: “He can be dominant and allow him to act as an offensive terminal, Lukaku style.”

A serious knee injury has limited Thuram to just 46 minutes of action in the current campaign, though, and he’s set to be sidelined until the new year, making a January move a potentially risky one.

Nevertheless, Everton’s hierarchy must sanction a move for the youngster, adding some much-needed strength in depth to Benitez’s attacking options and potentially finding their next Lukaku in the process.

And, in other news…Everton increasingly likely to sign £187k-p/w gem, fans surely buzzing 

Kevin Phillips has expressed surprise at Everton’s reported interest in Newcastle United midfielder Sean Longstaff. 

The former Premier League Golden Boot winner was speaking to Football Insider.

The lowdown

The Liverpool Echo’s Phil Kirkbride reported last week that new Everton manager Rafael Benitez was keen on a reunion with Longstaff at Goodison Park.

The midfielder made his breakthrough under Benitez during the 2018/19 season. Within weeks of his Premier League debut against Liverpool, he earned a run of eight straight starts which was only halted by injury.

Benitez left the club at the end of that campaign but ‘preliminary discussions’ have now taken place over a possible swoop for the 23-year-old.

Longstaff made 15 league starts under Steve Bruce last season, averaging 2.3 accurate long balls, 1.4 tackles and 0.9 interceptions per game (via WhoScored).

With less than 12 months remaining on his contract at St James’ Park, he is valued at £13.5m by Transfermarkt.

The latest

Phillips pointed out that Benitez has already rekindled one relationship at Everton, having brought in former Magpies winger Andros Townsend.

However, even though the Spaniard ‘obviously likes’ Longstaff, the ex-Sunderland striker cast doubt on the wisdom of pursuing the deal.

Phillips told Football Insider: “Do I think Everton need him? Possibly not. Benitez is going down that route though, he’s already signed Andros Townsend and he had him at Newcastle.

“Longstaff hasn’t played loads of Premier League games but he does have that experience.

“I’m surprised Benitez is in for him but he obviously likes him and Longstaff played well under him,” he continued.

“It’s a surprising one, I’m not sure Everton need him.”

The verdict

In Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure, Everton already have an excellent midfield.

Clearly, they also need depth: a pair of muscle injuries befell Allan last season and the Blues looked considerably weaker in his absence.

However, Jean-Phillipe Gbamin has now returned from his long injury absence, and he may be a more natural replacement for Allan than Longstaff. Tom Davies can also be called upon in that role.

You can therefore understand why Phillips would question the decision to spend potentially more than £10m to sign another central midfielder, particularly when Everton are under such tight financial constraints this summer.

In other news, some Everton fans react to reported interest in this Euro 2020 star.

With Everton having lost six of their last eight Premier League games, manager Rafael Benitez has come under immense pressure in recent weeks, with his job at Goodison Park seemingly under threat.

Even though club owner Farhad Moshiri recently sent a message to Jim White saying that the 61-year-old’s job is safe for the time being, there has been a recent update which could throw the Spaniard’s future back into the realm of uncertainty, which could be very exciting for many Toffees fans.

What’s the latest?

According to The Mirror (via Daily Express), Moshiri has reportedly demanded a meeting with Benitez before Everton’s next league match against Arsenal on Monday and apparently “wishes to speak to both Benitez and members of the board to discuss what is going so wrong.”

The former Liverpool manager got his tenure at Everton off to a reasonably good start by winning four of their opening six league games of the season, but since the start of October, their results have been very worrying.

In fairness to Everton and Benitez, the Toffees have had to deal with some unfortunate injury issues, with the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Yerry Mina and Andre Gomes all sidelined at the moment.

Even though Moshiri has apparently said in his message to White that Benitez “needs time to have his mark on the squad” and that he will be “supported to add depth to the squad,” this could well be a smokescreen for the time being before their reported meeting, which could well lead to a very different outcome if Moshiri thinks Benitez isn’t the right person to lead the team.

Taking into account the fact that a lot of Everton fans are not particularly happy with Benitez at the moment given the team’s dismal run of form, as some of them were before he even joined the club in the summer, it would be safe to presume that many will have their fingers crossed that Moshiri will change his tune about the manager when he flies in from the USA to have his meeting with Benitez.

Indeed, speaking to GiveMeSport, journalist Paul Brown noted that the 66-year-old businessman is not “particularly patient” with managers at Goodison Park when things begin to turn sour. This development could excite those Everton supporters who would gladly see the back of the Spaniard.

Taking into account their poor run of form, it does seem as though something needs to change at the Merseyside club to get their season back on track.

With the January transfer window on the horizon and their current injury woes, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the club do some business in the window rather than get rid of Benitez to see if he can turn their fortunes around.

In other news – Forget Coleman: Everton lightweight who lost 91% duels may have just cost Benitez his job…

Tottenham Hotspur are ‘ready’ to fight for the signature of Braga striker Vitor Oliveira, according to Calciomercato. 

The lowdown

The youngster appears to be making his first team breakthrough at Braga, having featured in four of their last five league matches and earned his Europa League debut.

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Last weekend, he emphatically made his case to be a regular going forward with a four-goal haul against Santa Clara in a 6-0 Taca de Portugal mauling.

The 21-year-old, who has three years left on his contract, is presently valued at just £450,000 by Transfermarkt.

The latest

According to Calciomercato, Oliveira’s form for Braga is said to have attracted the interest of ‘numerous foreign clubs’.

Spurs are among them, but so are their London rivals West Ham United, so the stage is set for the two capital clubs to do battle for his signature in 2022.

The verdict

Oliveira has also earned international recognition this month, making his Portugal under-21 debut in a European Championship qualifier against Cyprus.

The signs are that what looks like a modest price tag might about to be skyrocket after his flying start to the season, which has seen him hit seven goals in nine first team appearances for Braga.

However, one possible consideration for Spurs when buying young strikers is the impact on Dane Scarlett, whose path to the senior team could be blocked if Oliveira is signed. The Spurs starlet has plundered in 23 goals in as many matches for the under-18s, so you could question the need to look at emerging strikers elsewhere.

In other news, Conte has made this transfer request to Paratici.

Glasgow Rangers fans have been reacting to the new that Jordan Jones is closing in on a move to Wigan Athletic on loan.

The Gers kicked off their Premiership campaign last Saturday with a 3-0 win over Livingston thanks to goals from Ianis Hagi, Scott Wright and Kemar Roofe. Jones, who returned to the Ibrox outfit following the end of his loan spell at Sunderland, was not even included in the matchday squad and it appears he has no immediate future with the 55-time Scottish champions.

The latest news on his future suggests he could be about to spend the next season on loan with Wigan – that is according to news from The Guardian journalist Will Unwin.

With 15 goals and 29 assists throughout his career (Transfermarkt), he still has some ground to make up to become prolific from the flank – the Latics could be the place to see him do that.

The news was shared by Unwin via his Twitter account, and it attracted plenty of attention from the Rangers supporters. They took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Jones news below

“What a job Ross Wilson is doing. That lot are releasing their best centre mid and we’re finding clubs for deadwood”

Credit: @manno1990

“Wish we could get rid of him permanently sadly his rumoured 8k wage with us makes it impossible to move him on”

Credit: @bkerr72

“Surely if he’s not going to feature in our squad by now its time to cash in?”

Credit: @rockthekasbah88

“He’s like a verruca, Nightmare to get rid of”

Credit: @csljm84

“I’d rather we just sold him”

Credit: @BillyGers90

“Can they just take him permanently please”

Credit: @38821090G

In other news, Rangers fans were livid with this journalist’s tweet.

Aston Villa have been handed an update on their pursuit of Southampton and England midfielder James Ward-Prowse.

What’s the story?

According to recent reports from The Guardian, Dean Smith is keen on making a move for Ward-Prowse, and now, Football Insider have delivered an update on the situation.

They claim that a recruitment source has told them that Smith’s side have now registered their interest in the midfielder and that it is very much “concrete”.

The report adds that a potential deal is still in the early stages, but Villa are planning for midfield changes this summer.

Dean Smith will be buzzing

Dubbed a “machine” by his teammates at Southampton, the £27m-rated Ward-Prowse had a fine season in the Premier League, scoring eight goals and providing a further seven assists in the top-flight – that also included a brace against Villa themselves back in November when the Saints ran out 4-3 winners.

The latest update that Villa have now registered their interest in the English ace, and that the Midlands club are “planning for midfield changes” will be music to the ears of the Villa boss.

The Villa midfield is arguably the one part through the spine of the team that was found lacking last season, with Emi Martinez a stand-out in goal, Ezri Konsa and Tyrone Mings a formidable presence in defence (they conceded just 46 goals all season), and Ollie Watkins up top.

But in central midfield and in the number ten role, Villa were lacking, with the likes of Douglas Luiz, John McGinn and Ross Barkley all well off the pace – none of them managed more than three goals each.

But with Ward-Prowse’s ability to get goals both from open play and from set-pieces, Villa could add a real game-changer to their ranks in the middle of the park.

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And, given what Smith has recently said about what he wants from his new signings, Ward-Prowse fits the bill.

He said: “In terms of our recruitment, we talk about the sweet spots that we’re looking for, which is that the players have Premier League experience and are (ideally) British because there is no adaptation risk at all.”

It’s exactly why this latest update should have Smith buzzing.

Meanwhile, Villa could form a superb partnership with this star…

If you look down the squad list of a club in the English top-flight, it’s more than likely that you’d find a player who plied their trade at Parkhead and donned the famous Celtic shirt.

A plethora of the Bhoys’ top talents have walked out on the club in search of better pay and a higher standard of football.

You only need to look at the recent transfer window, where Celtic lost Odsonne Edouard, Kristoffer Ajer and Ryan Christie to south of the border. They even lost one of their finest academy players to England in Leo Hjelde.

Virgil van Dijk is the most famous example from years gone by, while Kieran Tierney, Stuart Armstrong and Fraser Forster have all forged good careers elsewhere. However, one player who didn’t set the world alight in Glasgow has also been incredibly successful in England.

That happens to be Teemu Pukki. The Finnish striker didn’t impress hugely during his time at Celtic, scoring just nine times in 38 appearances.

That tally might not be in the same measly ballpark as Albian Ajeti and Patryk Klimala, but you can see why Ronny Deila decided to let him go in 2015.

However, on reflection, both the manager and fans alike will be happy to admit that it was a mistake to let him depart.

Deila himself revealed his regrets in 2019 over selling Pukki, saying: “He played my first matches at Celtic, but it seemed like the club was a little too big for him at the time. It may have been a mistake [letting him go out on loan to Brondby], as seen in retrospect.”

That came amid Pukki’s rather incredible form for Norwich. After leaving the Hoops behind for just £608,000, he is now valued at £6.3m by Transfermarkt.

The Finn has been sensational after swapping Brondby for the Canaries and has racked up a grand haul of 68 goals in 129 outings at Carrow Road. His best season was undoubtedly in the 2018/19 campaign, when he was named the Championship’s Player of the Season after scoring 29 goals in 43 league games.

Commenting during a rich vein of form for the 31-year-old, Norwich manager Daniel Farke remarked: “I think he was unplayable during the whole game [vs Birmingham]. They had problems controlling his movement and he created a lot.”

Celtic would go on to bring Moussa Dembele and then Edouard to the club but it was evidently a mistake to sell a clinical attacker like Pukki as cheaply as they did.

AND in other news, “Being monitored”: Journo makes Celtic transfer claim, their next Ajer may arrive soon…

Newcastle United are now reportedly weighing up a cut-price move to sign Jack Hendry before the summer transfer window ends.

The Lowdown: Centre-back wanted

The St. James’ Park faithful are clearly after a new central defender, with the likes of Phil Jones and Mouctar Diakhaby being linked so far this month.

However, with so little time left in the window remaining, any deal will have to be done fast in order to bring them to the North East.

The Latest: Hendry eyed

As per The Daily Mail, the Tyneside club are one of a number of sides to have made enquiries over the possibility of signing Hendry, along with Burnley, Southampton, West Brom and Sheffield United, while Torino are also interested in his signature.

Oostende value their player at around the £8m mark but a deal could be done for around £4m, which has put a lot of teams on alert.

The Verdict: Sign

Given that could be available for half of his value, the Magpies should not be breaking a sweat in trying to get this Hendry deal done.

Described as a ‘natural leader’ by Oostende manager Alexander Blessin back in November, he is currently the captain of his side – despite only joining last year – and so would bring leadership qualities both on the pitch as well as on it.

He has also started the 2021/22 season off well, winning no fewer than five of his duels per game in the Belgium Pro League, while also averaging 4.6 clearances, 1.2 interceptions and 1.2 tackles per match (Sofascore).

Nonetheless, the Scotland international would certainly be a smart purchase by the Toon.

In other news, find out whose display against Southampton was criticised here!

Aston Villa could sign their new Idrissa Gueye in Metz starlet Pape Sarr as a major transfer update emerges.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent weeks have suggested that Dean Smith’s side are interested in signing the 18-year-old this summer, and it now appears that his current club are willing to let him go for the right price.

Metz’s president, Bernard Cerin, said: “All the clubs now want to buy him for cheaper. We are in the opposite situation. We want to keep him a little longer.

“The wish is to keep everyone – but we do not control everything. A very high offer makes it difficult for you to convince a player to stay.”

A new Idrissa Gueye

Villa fans will, of course, know all about Gueye and the tenacious midfield work that he got through in his time at Villa Park, before making the move to fellow Premier League side Everton and now PSG.

In Sarr, Smith could find an exciting, younger version of the Senegal international.

The 18-year-old is enjoying a real breakthrough campaign with the Ligue 1 side this season, playing 22 times in the league, and has established himself as one of the first names on the team sheet in recent weeks for Metz boss Frederic Antonetti.

And, Antonetti has not shied away from lavishing his midfield starlet with praise, saying: “Pape Matar Sarr is elegance in the midfield, it’s talent, it’s making others play.”

He said: “He will be able to go as far as he wants to go. He must work, be as he is there, modest, regular, hardworking. He must continue to love football and he will do like the great players, he will go far. I think he will go very far.”

Dubbed as someone who’s “got everything” to his game, Sarr has averaged an impressive two tackles and 1.2 interceptions per game, while also boasting a passing accuracy of 85.3% – compare that to Gueye who’s managed 2.3 tackles and 0.7 interceptions per match in Ligue 1 this season, and having a 92.6% pass accuracy.

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Given his age, and the fact he’s already piling up plento of experience in terms of top-level football, and Sarr could be the kind of young talent who can fill those considerable shoes that Gueye left at Villa when he departed.

Meanwhile, Villa are facing a major transfer battle over this star…

Manchester City have agreed terms with the representatives of Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland, The Daily Mail’s Mike Keegan reports. 

The lowdown

The Athletic’s David Ornstein reported in March that the battle for Haaland had become a two-horse race between City and their UEFA Champions League semifinal opponents, Real Madrid.

Given that the player possesses a €75million (£62.2million) release clause that becomes active in the summer, it was always likely to come down to who offered him the most attractive package.

And it appears City have won out, securing a striker who featured in the 2021 FIFPro World XI.

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The latest

Keegan revealed late on Monday night that City have agreed a £500,000-per-week plus contract with Haaland’s camp, making him the highest-paid player in English football.

The reigning Premier League champions will now move to trigger the player’s release clause following a ‘significant step forward’.

As a result, the move is expected to go through in the ‘next week or so’, with Ornstein following with similar reports that the player has ‘approved’ the deal.

The verdict

This is undoubtedly a monumental signing for City. Haaland boasts a staggering goal record, netting 131 times in his first 179 senior appearances.

This season, he’s bagged 25 strikes, at least three more than any City player, despite only playing 26 matches. In fact, he’s averaged better than a goal per game since he moved to the Westfalenstadion (one every 86 minutes).

City failed in their attempts to sign Harry Kane last summer and have largely operated without a recognised no. 9 this season.

But now they’ve seemingly signed another striker in the elite bracket, for a fraction of the money Daniel Levy demanded, and with many more years ahead of him at the top of the European game.

In other news, a City source has shared a Jack Grealish revelation.