All posts by z3u9t.icu

Lots of Everton fans have been left buzzing over some injury news that has emerged ahead of their game away at Norwich City in the Premier League.

As per The Athletic journalist Patrick Boyland, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison and Yerry Mina are all now back in training for the Goodison Park faithful, meaning that they could all feature against the Canaries if deemed fit enough.

All three of them rank among the Merseyside club’s ten best players so far this season, according to WhoScored, with Calvert-Lewin number one.

The striker has scored three goals in the four matches that he has played in the Premier League this term, and having him back with Richarlison will certainly give Rafa Benitez’s team more of a goal threat, while Mina provides another solid option defensively.

Everton fans on injury news

These Toffees buzzed as the injury news was shared on Twitter, with one Blues supporter even going as far as to claim that it was a ‘huge boost’:

“Good news Boyland at the back post!!!”

Credit: @EFCMatt1

“Huge boost for weekend hopefully”

Credit: @GraemeMcV

“Yesssssss”

Credit: @Foxy0580

“Cracking news this”

Credit: @Byrdsman75

“Brilliant. Start all 3 on Saturday imo”

Credit: @CBobblers1878

“Things you love to see”

Credit: @JGreenway8

In other news, find out which EFC ace’s claim has fans speculating here!

Many Glasgow Rangers fans have been left buzzing as managerial news emerged on Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Derek McInnes.

As per The Athletic, the former is now a ‘strong contender’ to replace Steven Gerrard at Ibrox and has ‘expressed his desire’ to rejoin his former club. On the other hand, McInnes – who ‘turned down’ the vacancy at the Light Blues in 2017 – is ‘not understood to be in the running’.

Van Bronckhorst has an impressive managerial CV, having guided Feyenoord to their first Eredivisie title in 18 years back in the 2016/17 season (BBC), while he also won four other major trophies with the Rotterdam club. Of course, he is also a two-time Premiership winner as a player with the Light Blues.

Meanwhile, McInnes’ CV is less convincing, with just two trophies to his name, and he has only managed St Johnstone, Bristol City and Aberdeen before.

Therefore, it is not a surprise to see so many Gers fans leaning towards the appointment of Van Bronckhorst over McInnes.

Rangers fans on Van Bronckhorst and McInnes manager news

These Rangers supporters were left buzzing as the managerial news was shared on Twitter:

“McInnes not in the frame was all I needed to hear”

Credit: @IK_1987

“Your last sentence has made me very happy”

Credit: @woods_al

“I hope you’re right”

Credit: @MintyRod

“This is better than Gerrard, bring him home”

Credit: @Lisa____xx

“Love to see it”

Credit: @cameron56689617

“DRINKS ON ME”

Credit: @heyitsk_stew

In other news, find out which two other managerial candidates have emerged

Speaking to Football Insider, Tottenham Hotspur ‘insider’/club source John Wenham has shared his thoughts on a recent development involving Inter Milan star Stefan de Vrij.

The Lowdown: de Vrij emerges as Conte target…

As per numerous claims from Italian, Spanish and English media, Nerazzurri defender de Vrij is very much on new manager Antonio Conte’s list of targets.

The 29-year-old is apparently one of many Serie A big names who could be targeted by the Spurs boss and managing director Fabio Paratici, with Calciomercato.it listing him among six others in Federico Chiesa, Matthijs de Ligt, Marcelo Brozovic, Alessio Romagnoli, Dusan Vlahovic.

Meanwhile, Fichajes believe that things are slightly more advanced – claiming last week that the Dutch international is edging ‘closer and closer’ to signing for Spurs as Conte seeks to solve his major defensive problems.

Last but not least, Football Insider have the most recent development, stating de Vrij is personally open to the idea of a Spurs move – wanting more information and telling friends he is ‘very keen’.

The Latest: Insider backs realistic Spurs chance…

Speaking to FI, in reaction to these developments, insider Wenham believes that the centre-back is indeed a ‘realistic signing’ if the Lilywhites can negotiate a reasonable fee – certainly not his reported £40m valuation.

“He’s clearly a player Conte trusts. if he does want De Vrij then that is a deal I can see us doing,” said the Spurs source.

“He’s an international player with 55 caps, he’s a trophy winner and he’s an instant improvement on Ben Davies.

“The £40million fee is a bit steep for a player who doesn’t have that long left on his contract.

“I think Tottenham would look for a discount there, a £25million deal seems fair to me.

“Especially if you look at his age as well. He is a more realistic signing.

“If Conte really wants him then the club have to back that decision.”

The Verdict: Get it done…

If Tottenham can indeed whittle his price down to around £25m, even despite his age, we believe it is certainly a deal worth pursuing.

Racking up over half a century of caps for the Netherlands, de Vrij has not only played in two major international tournaments, but also possesses lots of Champions League and Europa League appearances at club level.

Making 44 cameos across the continent’s most elite European competitions since 2010/2011, de Vrij’s wealth of experience on the biggest stages in football could be invaluable to Conte and Spurs.

A remarkable ball-playing centre-back, de Vrij averaged a higher pass accuracy (93.8%) than any Tottenham player last season as Inter ended Juve’s stranglehold on the Scudetto (WhoScored).

We believe his composure and assurance would complement Cristian Romero to superb effect and potentially educate Tottenham’s relatively young defender in the process.

Lauded as a ‘worldbeater’ by pundit Noel Whelan, this could be one major potential coup for Spurs.

In other news: ‘Understand’, ‘In recent weeks’…Alasdair Gold shares exciting development out of Hotspur Way, find out more here.

An update has emerged on Newcastle United’s interest in Chelsea and England playmaker Ross Barkley…

What’s the talk?

According to The Northern Echo, discussions are underway between Eddie Howe and the club’s recruitment chief Steve Nickson over potential January signings.

The report claims that the Chelsea attacking midfielder is one of the names being discussed, along with Harry Winks, Jesse Lingard and James Tarkowski.

Get it done

PIF must ensure that they can get a deal over the line for Barkley, as the England international could improve their chances of avoiding relegation this season.

The £100k-per-week beast has 230 career appearances in the Premier League and knows what it takes to perform at this level, playing for Everton, Aston Villa and Chelsea in the top flight. He has racked up 28 goals and 31 assists in that time, showing that he is capable of delivering in the final third with contributions in front of goal.

Outside of Callum Wilson and Allan Saint-Maximin, no Newcastle player has more than one Premier League goal this term, which suggests that the squad could be bolstered by a goalscoring midfielder in January. Barkley has 11 goals and 11 assists in 94 games for Chelsea and could be the player to come in and provide a spark in the final third.

Indeed, his former Everton manager Roberto Martinez once compared him to ex-Premier League icons Michael Ballack and Paul Gascoigne. The Spaniard said: “I’ve never seen a young English player with his sort of mentality.

“I can see some (Michael) Ballack in him and some Gazza (Paul Gascoigne). It’s fine for us to make comparisons but he is Ross Barkley. He has great balance, is good with both feet and is developing an incredible awareness.

“You can compare him against any of the best young Brazilians, Dutch or even Spanish.”

This provides an insight into the type of player Barkley is, with his ability to create something out of nothing shown in his statistics for Chelsea. He is capable of popping up with a goal or assist from the middle of the park and that talent could help the Magpies to win games in the second half of the season in their fight against the drop.

Therefore, Howe and PIF must launch an official swoop for the 27-year-old and attempt to bring him to St James’ Park in the winter window.

AND in other news, PIF must seal dream NUFC move for “exceptional” 114-goal magician who Howe would love…

Liverpool returned to winning ways with a 2-0 victory over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on Sunday evening.

An excellent finish from Curtis Jones followed by an own-goal from Kean Bryan were enough to secure the three points for Jurgen Klopp’s side, which leaves them just two points outside of the top-four spots.

One man who impressed with his performance against the Blades was experienced midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum.

In the absence of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, the Reds needed their other midfielders to step up against a physical Blades side and Wijnaldum barely put a foot wrong during the 90 minutes.

As per SofaScore, the 30-year-old would pick up a solid 7.2 match rating for his display, with only Adrian, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson rated higher of the Liverpool players on the night.

The former Newcastle man was the captain for the game and he produced a captain-like display, completing 56/59 of his passes, resulting in a superb pass accuracy of 95% – even better than the 92% pass accuracy registered by master-passer Thiago.

Considering the Dutch international has averaged a 91.9% pass accuracy in the Premier League so far this season, it shows that he was even more impressive than usual at Bramall Lane.

Wijnaldum was also able to contribute two key passes, which was more than both Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, as he was often the driving force and attacking threat in midfield.

Although he only contested two duels during the game, he won both of them, and he also gave away possession on just four occasions during the 90 minutes, suggesting that he was just too good for Sheffield United’s midfielders.

He was also unlucky to be denied by Aaron Ramsdale with a rasping shot from the edge of the area, from which Firmino failed to put away the rebound.

Therefore, it was arguably a near-perfect display from the midfielder, who earns £90k per week at Liverpool, and he definitely stole the show for Klopp’s side in a game that they desperately needed to win.

And, in other news… LFC signing gem with “extraordinary quality” would surely be the end for £50k-p/w dud

Tottenham will be looking to continue their run in the Europa League with a positive result against Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday evening, although Jose Mourinho may have one eye on Sunday’s North London derby when he selects his team for the game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Spurs progressed comfortably past Wolfsberger in the last round, whilst Dinamo Zagreb made it through to the Round of 16 after beating Russian side Krasnodar 4-2 on aggregate.

Whilst it won’t be an easy game for Spurs, the Portuguese manager should make the most of his squad depth and make plenty of changes for the visit of the Croatian side, with the likes of Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son perhaps deserving a rest.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects Mourinho to set his side up against Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday, with 10 changes from the side that started against Crystal Palace on Sunday…

Joe Hart is likely to continue his role as the usual starter in the Europa League, coming in for Hugo Lloris.

There are three changes in defence, as Serge Aurier comes in for Matt Doherty at right-back, and Ben Davies replaces Sergio Reguilon on the left.

Toby Alderweireld is rested, with Eric Dier partnering Davinson Sanchez at centre-back, with the Colombian the only man to keep his place.

Mourinho has already confirmed that Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg will be rested, and after sitting out against Palace, Tanguy Ndombele is likely to come back in, with Moussa Sissoko the man to partner him in midfield.

Dele Alli’s recent impressive form sees him come back in, whilst Erik Lamela and Steven Bergwijn start in place of Gareth Bale and Son, who reportedly earns £175k per week at Spurs, on the wings.

Finally, Carlos Vinicius will be looking to continue his decent record in the Europa League, with Kane rested, although it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Englishman feature if Spurs are struggling to make the breakthrough on Thursday.

And, in other news… Mourinho masterclass: Jose has revitalised £110k-p/w gem at Spurs with one simple change

Leeds United have been heavily linked with Red Bull Salzburg star Brenden Aaronson in 2022, and his performance on Sunday will certainly have caught Victor Orta’s eye.

This forms part of our Transfer Watch series, where we react to a performance from a current transfer target.

The Lowdown: Leeds hoping to wrap up Aaronson deal

Aaronson has been the Whites’ main target this year after the club made two bids for the USA international in the January window.

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As we know, the attacking midfielder remained in Austria with Salzburg but is still on Leeds’ radar ahead of Jesse Marsch’s first full season in charge at Elland Road.

Aaronson made 25 appearances under Marsch last season and reports have suggested that the Whites are hoping to wrap up a move for the 21-year-old this summer.

The Latest: Impressive display from Aaronson

Salzburg clinched a ninth straight Austrian Bundesliga title on Sunday following a 5-0 win over Austria Vienna. Aaronson returned to action after a six-week layoff with a knee problem and impressed, ending with a SofaScore match rating of 7.3/10.

The attacking midfielder scored a penalty and registered three key passes, one of which led to a big chance.

He only had 30 touches of the ball during his 64-minute display but he starred upon his return and even showed off his pace after the final whistle when looking to dodge a beer shower from his team-mates.

The Verdict: Sign him

Should they stay in the Premier League, Leeds should be looking to wrap up a move for Aaronson as soon as possible.

Marsch doesn’t have an out-and-out attacking midfielder to choose from at Elland Road, making the 21-year-old’s arrival even more crucial.

Described as a player with a ‘monster mentality’ by Salzburg manager Matthias Jaissle, Aaronson has now contributed to 28 goals in 61 games for the Austrian champions, and with an impressive record under Marsch already, he could slot in perfectly at Elland Road.

In other news: Leeds and Orta may agree fee for ‘quality’ target ‘this week’ after Phil Hay’s reveal

According to La Nazione, Leeds have got a “concrete” interest in signing Fiorentina striker Christian Kouame.

What’s the story?

Marcelo Bielsa’s side have been a revelation in the Premier League this season, and head into the New Year off the back of a 5-0 thumping of fellow top-flight new boys West Brom at the Hawthorns.

Despite that, it seems the Whites are keen on making some reinforcements in the January transfer window, and Italian publication La Nazione (via Sport Witness) claim that Leeds are very much interested in the 23-year-old Kouame.

The report adds that Fiorentina are just waiting on Leeds to make an offer, before eventually considering the kind of proposal on the table for the Ivory Coast ace.

Orta heading for disaster

At 23, Kouame has got plenty of time to develop into a star, but his performances for Fiorentina this season have been nothing short of woeful.

He hasn’t been a regular starter for La Viola, but a record of just one goal in 15 games in all competitions should surely be seeing Leeds head in the opposite direction.

The Whites have got to be smart with their spending, and Andrea Radrizzani will no doubt be keeping a close eye on just how Victor Orta and co do in the January transfer window.

Spending money on bringing the £12.6m-rated Kouame, when he has yet to really prove anything in European football, would be nothing short of inexcusable.

Radrizzani will surely be fuming at the fact Orta has his eyes set on a 23-year-old with no senior international caps to his name, and has only broken double figure in goals for one of the six clubs he has played for.

Newcastle’s Matt Ritchie has dropped an enticing transfer claim about where he thought his future was during the January window, with the summer transfer period now not too far away.

The Lowdown: Ritchie’s future was uncertain

Ritchie’s future at the St. James’ Park faithful was uncertain when the January transfer window came along.

The Scotland international was strongly linked with a Deadline Day exit back to his old club in AFC Bournemouth, but that move never came into fruition.

Of course, those rumours were joined a month later by the story of a bust-up in training between the Scot and manager Steve Bruce.

The Latest: Ritchie thought he was leaving

Ritchie has since spoken to Sky Sports about how close he was to leaving the North East just a few months ago, to which he claimed: “If I’m honest, yes, I thought my Newcastle career was over”.

The former Portsmouth man, who currently earns £45,000-per-week, still remains at the Tyneside club, and it has ended up being a good decision not to let him go.

The Verdict: Ritchie still important to Newcastle

Ritchie is still an important player for the Magpies, as shown by him starting in their last five games in the Premier League in the 2020/21 term (Transfermarkt).

The 31-year-old still has a lot to offer both off of the pitch with his experience and leadership, as well as on it, as former Cherries boss Jason Tindall saw when he described him as a ‘fantastic’ player back in January – when his side were linked with the versatile man.

Nonetheless, in case there is any revived interest in the summer to sign Ritchie, the Toon should look to keep hold of the winger at all costs.

In other news, find out what transfer boost NUFC have received here!

In the end, Aston Villa were left to bemoan a familiar tale of Manchester United being handed a dubious penalty, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side taking full advantage and securing a 3-1 win on Sunday afternoon.

Dean Smith’s men took the lead thanks to an absolute stunner from Bertrand Traore, but saw the game fall apart thanks to a contentious penalty decision, a spot-kick that Bruno Fernandes duly dispatched.

Goals from Mason Greenwood and Edinson Cavani late on sealed the United comeback, and while understandably Smith will be furious with having another refereeing call go against them in a clash with the Manchester side, he may also have a major headache with the performance of Matty Cash.

The full-back had a difficult afternoon coming up against Paul Pogba and Luke Shaw, and while Traore did better than most weeks in trying to track back and help him out, he just couldn’t get going whatsoever.

As per Sofascore, he lost possession 16 times over the course of the game, the third-most of any Villa player, and being forced to go a bit more direct than he perhaps usually would have.

And then, arguably his biggest mishap on the day, was how he let Cavani ghost in front of him with a quick run and nod past Emi Martinez in the Villa goal – it was just a complete lack of concentration that rather typified his display.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/villa-dean-smith-transfer-gossip-rumours-news-premier-league-buendia-berge-mcneil-trezeguet-villa-park” title=”Read the latest Villa transfer rumours and news!”]

And, writing in his post-match player ratings, The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece gave him a five, and said: “Up against Pogba and Shaw on United’s left and battled bravely. Cash was caught out on the odd occasion, though, and allowed Shaw to get beyond him for a strike at goal. Cash was in poor form and lacked conviction in his play as he was pinned back time and time again. The right-back was arguably at fault for Cavani’s header which wrapped it up as the Uruguayan ghosted past him to head home.”

With the Premier League season now reaching its end, Smith surely has the perfect opportunity to be handing out vital first-team minutes to some of the club’s brightest young talents.

And in the 18-year-old Kaine Kesler, he’s got a dream understudy to Cash just waiting for a chance to shine at first-team level.

While one poor performance should hardly see Cash just chucked out of the starting line-up for good, with only a couple of games left, surely it would do a lot more good for the development of Kesler for the teenager to be brought into the fold?

It’s a major headache for Smith but one that could pay big rewards for Villa in the long-term.

Meanwhile, Villa should finally unleash this academy starlet…