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Aston Villa will try to sign Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma in the summer, according to Ryan Taylor of The Express.

And, as to be expected, a number of Villa fans were quick to flock to the update on social media.

Villa were credited with an interest in Bissouma earlier this month and even reportedly had a £25m bid turned down.

It now seems as if Juventus’ Rodrigo Bentancur is the club’s main midfield target, but Bissouma is still on Johan Lange and Steven Gerrard’s radar.

According to Taylor, Villa are expected to go back in for Bissouma in the summer, when he could be into the final 12 months of his Seagulls contract. However, Brighton remain adamant he is not for sale at any price.

Villa fans react

The AVFC Faithful relayed Taylor’s claim on Twitter on Wednesday evening. This is what these Villa supporters had to say in reply, with one believing the summer window could be ‘absolutely mental’.

“We’re cooking”

Credit: @buendiazboyz

“I can’t see us getting Bissouma in the summer so many clubs will want him”

Credit: @Benavfctooth

“Dw we’re big time again now”

Credit: @youngprodigy08

“Our summer is gonna be absolutely mental”

Credit: @JayVtid

“Good we need Bissouma”

Credit: @mattdavis281

“110% have to”

Credit: @AvfcRegan

In other news: ‘Bottled it’ – Many Villa fans react to Fabrizio Romano transfer update. 

With the first game of Eddie Howe’s reign in charge of Newcastle United just a couple of hours away as they take on Brentford at St James’ Park, all eyes will be on who he selects in his starting XI as he aims to get the Tyneside club out of the Premier League relegation zone.

Taking this into account, one player who should be in the starting XI on this occasion is Joe Willock.

Time to let Willock loose

After making two substitute appearances in Newcastle’s league games against Crystal Palace and Chelsea last month, the 22-year-old spent the entirety of the 1-1 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion watching from the bench.

Now that Howe has taken over at the club, this could be Willock’s opportunity to prove to the new Toon boss that he has what it takes to be a crucial figure in Newcastle’s midfield moving forward. However, the 43-year-old won’t be involved today due to a positive virus test, with Jason Tindall and Graeme Jones calling the shots this afternoon.

After originally joining the club on a loan deal last winter from fellow Premier League side Arsenal, he took Newcastle by storm by scoring eight goals in 14 league appearances.

The Magpies then secured Willock, who has been praised in the past by Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta for the “special” qualities in his game, on a permanent move from the north London club on a six-year deal worth a reported fee in excess of £20m.

Although Willock, who is currently earning £80k-per-week according to Salary Sport, may not have started this season in the same goalscoring form (zero goals in 10 appearances) with which he ended 2020/21, he has still shown how capable an option he can be for the team by racking up an accurate passing average of 84% and an average of 2.8 tackles per game with 53% duels won.

With this in mind, today’s match against an off-form Brentford could be a great opportunity for Willock to get his season back on track after committing his future to the Toon, and potentially saving them from relegation if he can find his same goalscoring form from last season in the process.

In other news: Offer on the table: PIF working to land NUFC deal for beast which will leave fans buzzing…

After securing a 3-2 win over Atletico Madrid in their latest Champions League outing, Liverpool now face a trip to Old Trafford to take on Manchester United later this afternoon.

Ahead of the match against the Red Devils, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp revealed that midfielder Curtis Jones returned to first-team training after picking up an injury whilst away on international duty, whereas Thiago Alcantara will miss the match altogether.

Taking this into account, here’s how we feel Liverpool will line up at Old Trafford.

In goal, despite conceding two in midweek, we feel that Klopp will stick with Alisson Becker between the sticks to see if he can stop the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood from getting on the scoresheet.

Ahead of the Brazilian, we think Klopp will stick with the same back four that started against Atletico with Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold occupying the full-back positions with Joel Matip and Virgil van Dijk in the middle.

In midfield, even though he scored Liverpool’s opening goal against Diego Simeone’s side, we can see Klopp taking Naby Keita out of the starting XI as a result of his rather disappointing overall performance in midweek.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain gets the nod after he managed to put in a good shift after coming on in the second half against Atletico, rather than throwing Jones back into the side straight away.

For their attacking front three up top, it would be difficult to see Klopp taking either Sadio Mane or Mohamed Salah out of the team considering the duo have scored 12 league goals between them so far this season.

However, given how Roberto Firmino failed to register even one shot on target in 90 minutes in midweek, we feel that Klopp could be persuaded to swap him for £90k-per-week Diogo Jota who has three Premier League goals under his belt in 2021/22.

Whether Klopp goes with this exact starting XI we have suggested or not, we feel that this is a big game for the Reds, not just because of the heavy rivalry between the two sides but also because Liverpool will need a win to keep up with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table.

In other news: FSG must land Liverpool swoop for £29.7m-rated beast who’s a “better version of Pogba” – opinion

Crystal Palace’s promising start to the campaign had them dreaming of a first top-half finish since 2014/15 amid a new wave of hope and optimism under Patrick Vieira.

Victories over Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City formed a run of just one defeat in eight Premier League matches, with a seven-game unbeaten run indicating their form was no flash in the pan.

However, an injury to key midfielder James McArthur threatened to derail all of their impressive progress before the capital club had even reaped the rewards of their improvement.

A chaotic 3-3 draw with relegation-threatened Burnley marked the first game of the 34-year-old’s absence before three consecutive defeats compounded their newfound struggles.

Luka Milivojevic and then Jeffrey Schlupp were initially selected as McArthur’s replacements by Vieira, but with neither player excelling in the Palace engine room, summer-signing Will Hughes was finally handed an opportunity to impress over the weekend.

Since signing from Watford over the summer, the £30,000-per-week beast had only received 10 minutes of first-team action prior to Sunday’s showing.

However, his outstanding 73-minute display at Selhurst Park illustrated how Hughes is already solving Vieira’s biggest conundrum since arriving at Palace; how to replace an injured McArthur.

The former England U21 international controlled the middle of the park alongside Conor Gallagher, constantly breaking up opposition attacks before kickstarting ones of his own.

“He helped us to play really well in our build-up from the back, and for somebody who started his last game seven months ago, he was unbelievable,” said Vieira on Hughes in his post-match interview.

And the French tactician wasn’t the only one impressed with the 26-year-old’s eye-catching performance in south London.

The Athletic’s Palace reporter Matt Woosnam tweeted his admiration for Hughes, writing: “Conor Gallagher once again stole the headlines yesterday, but Will Hughes was excellent on his full debut.”

With Gallagher bagging a brilliant double, it’s clear that the youngster was Palace’s match-winner against Everton, but Hughes’ underlying numbers also illustrate his vital importance.

As per SofaScore, he received a match rating of 7.4 out of 10, the second-highest total awarded to any player that featured.

Throughout his time on the pitch, Hughes achieved a passing accuracy of 93%, had 58 touches of the ball and created one big chance that led to his providing an assist.

But he was equally as impressive out of possession, making two tackles, winning eight duels and blocking one shot, highlighting his hugely effective display.

Winnable fixtures against the likes of Southampton, Watford and Norwich City lie ahead for Palace over the festive schedule, and Vieira will be hoping Hughes can replicate the level of performance he showed against Everton in the weeks to come. With McArthur still out, that’ll be vitally important.

And, in other news…Vieira must seal Palace swoop for “crazy” £10.8m-rated beast likened to “LeBron James” 

With a potential 12-man exodus on the cards at Celtic this summer, it could be all change at Parkhead.

The likes of Odsonne Edouard and Kristoffer Ajer are regularly linked with the exit door and thus, the new manager will likely have his work cut out in the transfer market.

On the chalkboard

Another player who could depart Parkhead in a few months time is Ryan Christie. The Scot has scored just twice in his last 25 outings and has been regularly tipped to leave by Frank McAvennie.

That comes after substantial interest in the winger throughout the winter. Leeds United were linked with making a move for Christie, while it was also reported that Arsenal were interested in his services.

It would be a timely departure when you consider his significant downfall in recent months.

Last term, Christie was one of the stars of the Celtic side. He scored 20 goals and supplied 16 assists in the process. However, in 2020/21, he has been nothing short of abysmal.

The Scotland international has netted five times and has regularly struggled to beat the goalkeeper. The nadir of his season was undoubtedly when Celtic lost 1-0 to Ross County.

Christie was selected up front on that occasion but spurned four chances and even blasted the ball over the bar from a matter of yards out. It was a moment that perfectly summed up his timid season.

The solution

With Moi Elyounoussi set to head back to Southampton at the conclusion of his loan spell, the Hoops will likely have to search for internal solutions.

One such option could be James Forrest. The attacker has only played once since September after a very lengthy injury lay-off. Though, there is a controversial figure in their midst who could just be given a second chance to prove himself; that’s especially if Christie does leave.

That happens to divisive winger Marian Shved. The Ukrainian has only played for the Bhoys on three occasions and has had a rather difficult few years in Scotland.

Shved admitted over the winter that he has an ounce of regret about his move to Celtic and you can understand why based on the limited opportunities he’s received.

The 23-year-old’s loan spell at Mechelen in Belgium was hardly going to plan either. He was turning up late for training and showing a diabolical attitude. For many players, there would be no way back from that.

Mechelen boss Wouter Vrancken initially said: “Let’s be honest here, Marian Shved is an outstanding talent who would not normally choose to play for a club like Mechelen. We are very lucky to have him.”

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That was before he unleashed a rather remarkable assault on Shved: “The players and staff have done everything they can to include Shved in the squad, but he puts himself above the group.”

“Well, it stops now,” he added. “If he wants to be a loner, he can. Go play billiards for the rest of his life or something.”

Fortunately, Shved has since turned his season around. The Ukraine international has worked to get back in the side and has provided promising results in recent months.

He assisted Mechelen’s goal in an impressive 1-1 draw with Anderlecht last weekend, taking his tally of goal involvements for the season to seven in 16 games.

Before Vrancken’s brutal assessment of Shved, he had not scored all season. It would appear that the penny has finally dropped with the hot-headed winger.

If he applies the same attitude on his return to Celtic, there’s no reason why he can’t work himself back into their long-term plans. With the club in disarray and players potentially leaving, there will be openings for him to exploit.

AND in other news, Soro should be fuming if Celtic sign £50k-p/w brute this summer, he’s a “class player”…

Many Everton fans have been left to hail a transfer update on Kalidou Koulibaly as talkSPORT have reported that Carlo Ancelotti wants to sign the Napoli ace.

As per the radio station, the Italian boss is likely to have the financial backing from the Goodison Park faithful in the summer window, and would like to sign Koulibaly in order to try and push them onto the next level, which would be qualification for the UEFA Champions League.

The 29-year-old would certainly be a statement signing for the Merseyside club given his previous links to both Liverpool and Manchester United and his once £89m transfer fee, as talkSPORT reports.

Koulibaly has played under Ancelotti before, and so the latter will know how to get the best out of the big central defender, meaning that he should have little problems adapting to a different style of football.

Everton fan reaction to Koulibaly transfer update

These Toffees supporters hailed the transfer update on Koulibaly on Twitter, with one Blues fan even going as far as to call the Senegal international ‘superb’:

“Bring him in and sell Yerry Mina. Koulibaly is a significant upgrade on all the CB’s at the club. Fact”

Credit: @sharpconvo

“Imagine Godfrey and Koulibaly at the back .. we could defend on the halfway line …”

Credit: @petefinch1976

“We can hope. Superb player. You never know. Fingers and everything else crossed”

Credit: @NickNickparker

“Carlo building a spine to our team”

Credit: @jablett1

“Mate. Imagine it”

Credit: @AlexATHinton

“He’s quality far better than “Bambi on ice fella” and if we get Europe we need a deep squad! 7 CB’s will do for me”

Credit: @mickyholt

In other news, find out which two global stars EFC may be offered the chance to sign here!

Gio van Bronckhorst is in with a chance of securing a treble of trophies with Rangers before the end of the season as we enter the clutch stage of the campaign.

The Gers are second in the Premiership as it stands and are in the semi-finals of the Europa League and the final of the Scottish Cup. This means that the Dutchman can end his debut term at Ibrox in glorious style if they can get over the line on multiple fronts.

He is looking to carry on the excellent work done by his predecessor, who won the Scottish top-flight title ahead of their rivals last season.

Steven Gerrard led the Light Blues to glory in 2020/21 as he enjoyed an unbeaten league campaign, with his sublime work in the transfer market playing a big role in that success.

One signing he played a blinder with was the addition of English winger Ryan Kent, who joined on a permanent deal in 2019 – after initially arriving on loan a year earlier.

At the time of the move, he was valued at just £1.58m by Transfermarkt as he finally left Liverpool after a number of loans away from Anfield.

Gerrard previously labelled Kent “a constant threat” while others have claimed he’s “the Mbappe of Scottish football” and it is easy to see why when you look at his statistics for the club over the years.

In 2020/21, the Englishman produced ten goals and 11 assists in the Premiership to help the side secure the title and he has carried his fine form over into this season. Under Gerrard and van Bronckhorst combined, the forward has three goals and 17 assists domestically and in Europe.

Kent has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.14 in the league this term and this shows that he has been consistently delivering superb displays throughout the campaign. He is a reliable player for the Dutch head coach and has gone from strength to strength since making the switch from Merseyside.

At the time of writing (21/04/22), Transfermarkt value him at a whopping £12.6m, just over £11m more than his price tag in 2019. This highlights his incredible progression in Glasgow over the years as he has been able to drastically raise his market value by performing on the pitch for the Light Blues.

Bringing him to Ibrox was a sensational piece of business by Gerrard and it will be interesting to see where his career goes from here, whether that be at Rangers or elsewhere – hopefully the former.

AND in other news, Sources: Shock Rangers transfer claim emerges that will leave Wilson excited…

Ben Jacobs has dropped an update on the proposed £300m takeover of Newcastle United by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) group involving a potential arbitration case.

As per a tweet from the sports journalist, the chief executive of the Premier League Richard Masters, via a letter to Liz Twist MP, said that the Tyneside club’s arbitration case with the top flight will be resolved in ‘a timely manner’, however, he followed up by tweeting: ‘I am told we might not hear significant news until February’ in terms of the arbitration hearing taking place.

In a reply to a Magpies fan on Twitter, Jacobs further explained that while he does not sense that there will be a definitive yes or no answer on the takeover itself next month, he does think that the overall picture with regards to the deal between Mike Ashley and the KSA consortium ‘will be a lot clearer by then’.

What next for the Newcastle takeover?

The next step in terms of trying to get the failed takeover bid back on track is surely the arbitration hearing, where a judge will attempt to settle the legal disputes between the St. James’ Park faithful and the EPL.

If the case goes in the favour of the North East club, then it will be about getting the KSA’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) formally back to the negotiating table, as Jacobs points out that they are currently not making any moves in regards to reviving the bid until that process is cleared.

If both of these steps happen, then Toon supporters would have a right right to feel more cautiously optimistic about a takeover.

In other news, find out who was slammed for his display versus Sheffield United here!

Speaking to Football Insider, BBC pundit and commentator Noel Whelan has been left thrilled by a report that goalkeeper and club mainstay Hugo Lloris is planning to remain at Spurs for at least another year (Football Insider).

The Lowdown: Lloris linked with exit

The Frenchman, having made 372 appearances for Spurs in all competitions since signing from Lyon in 2012 (Transfermarkt), is another big name that has been linked to a Tottenham exit this summer.

Lloris has just one year left on his contract and is yet to agree a renewal, with French news outlet L’Equipe (via TEAMtalk) even claiming Man United could look to sign him this summer to replace David de Gea.

However, Football Insider have now shared that Lloris has his heart set on remaining at Spurs for the 2021/2022 season despite his contract status and has even held talks with chairman Daniel Levy.

The Latest: Whelan thrilled by ‘great news’ involving Lloris

Reacting to this development over Lloris, Whelan has been left thrilled whilst branding it ‘great news for Tottenham’.

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“Lloris is hugely important to Tottenham,” explained the pundit to Football Insider.

“He is their leader, their number one and he is a fantastic goalkeeper. There are not many goalkeepers around, that’s the thing. He has so much experience as well.

“If he is going to see out his contract that is great news for Tottenham. They do not need to venture into the market and spend money in that department just yet.

“His experience and leadership both on and off the field is invaluable. He is one of the best goalkeepers out there, even though he has been hit and miss over the last couple of seasons.”

The Verdict: Big boost for Spurs…

With the ongoing Harry Kane exit saga arguably casting a shadow over the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Spurs fans could be welcome to any form of consolation.

News of Lloris allegedly committing his short-term future to Spurs certainly comes as that small slice of good news with tensions surrounding the club at an all time high.

As Whelan explains, the shot stopper is a hugely important member of the team and Tottenham will need all the help they can get for what is set to be a very interesting 2021/2022 season.

In other news: Tottenham could be offered this £250,000-per-week ace for Kane, find out more here.

Everton’s season ended in the worst way possible last weekend as they were well and truly battered by the Premier League champions.Their defence was cut open like a knife through butter while they lacked cutting edge and penetration on the counter-attack.

What’s the word?

One way of improving their fluency in the final third would be to sign a winger.

Football FanCast revealed last month that the Toffees were in the market for somebody who could play on the right-hand side. However, we believe Everton should stop at nothing to bolster the other flank as well.

Fortunately, it looks as though they’ll be doing exactly that. Football League World report this week that Carlo Ancelotti’s men are battling for the signature of tricky Bournemouth flanker Arnaut Danjuma.

Everton are looking to take advantage of the south coast side’s failure to get promoted from the Championship.

A number of top-flight sides are now circling with Wolves, West Ham and Brighton also interested in Danjuma’s signature.

Iwobi upgrade

If Everton can lure the attacker to Goodison Park this summer then he’d represent a huge upgrade on Alex Iwobi.

The Nigerian signed for £28m in the summer of 2019 but his arrival on Merseyside hasn’t been greeted particularly positively.

On his day, he can frighten the opposition with his dribbling but very rarely does he combine that with end product.

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Iwobi has scored just twice this term, taking his tally in the royal blue of Everton to four strikes in 65 appearances.

Those numbers aren’t strong enough whatsoever for a side challenging for a place in European football so improvement is need.

Danjuma would provide Ancelotti with the ability to beat a man but also provide goals and assists.

The Dutchman was in inspired form for the Cherries this term, racking up a mightily impressive haul of 17 goals. Capable of playing anywhere across the front three, it was on the left where he truly stood out.

The 24-year-old was impressive when it came to creating chances for his teammates as well, providing eight assists in all competitions.

He claimed the award for the EFL Championship Player of the Month in April and has gone from strength to strength this season, particularly under Jonathan Woodgate.

With the former defender at the helm, Danjuma totted up ten goals and six assists in just 18 league outings.

It’s hardly a surprise that Woodgate’s found the time to wax lyrical about his abilities: “I know last season that he didn’t really get a run in the Premier League and he maybe found it a bit difficult to get game time, but this season he’s been outstanding.â€

The Bournemouth boss continued: “I can only talk of what he’s done under my reign, but at the minute, he’s playing some exceptional football, and what else he is doing is working for the team.â€

Capable of producing moments of magic from nowhere, he’s the type of player you’d always love to have in your team.

Against Norwich he showed exactly what he’s capable of, skipping past two Canaries players before rifling a bullet right into the top corner.

It showcased his scintillating dribbling skills too, an area of his game that usurps nearly every player at Everton. Danjuma managed 1.8 dribbles per game this season, a number that only Richarlison can replicate.

This would be a top drawer signing from Ancelotti and Marcel Brands.

AND in other news, Everton can begin the transfer window with a bang by signing “dangerous” 16-goal beast…