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According to The Mail Online, Crystal Palace are interested in signing Everton’s James McCarthy on loan before the end of the transfer window. 

The article also explains that Palace manager Roy Hodgson is keen to add reinforcements in the midfield at Selhurst Park, and the Republic of Ireland international seems like a great option given how out of favour he is at Goodison Park this season under Marco Silva.

McCarthy is yet to play a game for The Toffees in the Premier League this season, and would surely be keen on a move away to help his career. Moreover, Crystal Palace would be the perfect place to do this.

The Eagles’ midfield currently comprises of Luka Milivojević, Cheikhou Kouyaté and James McArthur. While the Serbian’s place seems guaranteed under Hodgson, McCarthy has a great chance to fight for one of the other two spots.

Why this would be such a good move is that Crystal Palace are currently in a worse position than Everton, so are more likely to play than the 28-year-old, but are not playing that badly. The Eagles have already beaten Man City this season in the league, pushed Liverpool all the way and recently beat Tottenham in the FA Cup. He would not be joining a horror-show of a club, and could, therefore, impress his parent club. Their performance against Spurs also showed that they are defensively resolute, meaning McCarthy has a great platform to impress.

This is a move that must happen if McCarthy does not want to waste his career.

Tottenham Hotspur are gaining momentum in the race to finish in the top four of the Premier League this season, and Antonio Conte will no doubt fancy his team’s chances of doing so.

The north Londoners take on Aston Villa at Villa Park on Saturday evening, and while the Italian may be reluctant to make too many changes, if indeed any, he may consider bringing in Sergio Reguilon to offer a more natural balance on the left-hand side.

The Spaniard’s absence saw Matt Doherty operate on that flank in the 5-1 win over Newcastle United last week, with Emerson Royal playing on the right as the duo both ended up on the scoresheet in a comprehensive performance.

However, Conte offered a very encouraging update on Reguilon ahead of Spurs’ game against Villa on Saturday.

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Speaking in his pre-match press conference, the 52-year-old said: “No new injuries, two good news because Ryan Sessegnon and Sergio Reguilon they had the training session with us.”

The Spaniard had been a permanent fixture in Tottenham’s line-up for the majority of the Premier League season, playing 23 matches in the top flight, scoring two goals and providing three assists in that time, even coming off the bench to find the net against Everton recently.

The 25-year-old’s ability to get forward is something that Conte has actively encouraged, with the left-back talking about the kind of job that the Spurs boss wants him to do.

Reguilon said: “I’ve never played five at the back before. I have to learn quickly. The gaffer has told me he wants me to be solid in defence but at the same moment I have to arrive in the box, help the strikers, score goals, give assists. Now I have more of a chance to score goals and give assists. So let’s work.”

Hailed as a “complete player” by his former Sevilla boss Julen Lopetegui, the Spaniard’s return could leave Villa’s defence terrified, particularly with his pace to get in behind. Steven Gerrard’s side are in a bad run of form lately with three defeats on the spin, and they won’t fancy coming up against a speedster like Reguilon who is constantly trying to maraud forward.

Restoring the £80k-per-week earner to the Spurs starting XI could be an inspired change by Conte this weekend.

AND in other news: Conte can form “dangerous” duo as Spurs plot bids for £156m pair who “really get along”

An update has emerged regarding Newcastle United and their interest in Union Berlin striker Taiwo Awoniyi… 

What’s the talk?

According to German outlet Bild, PIF are plotting a Magpies move for the Nigerian centre-forward, who is said to be worth £25m (€30m), this summer to bolster their squad.

The Toon are not the only club who are keen on a swoop for the attacker, though, as fellow Premier League sides Southampton and West Ham are also keeping tabs on him and may provide competition for his signature.

Remarkable

Bundesliga journalist Stefan Bienkowski recently dubbed the striker’s form “remarkable”, and that is exactly what the Nigerian can be for the Magpies next season.

He has been in sublime form for Union since making the permanent switch from English giants Liverpool in last summer’s transfer window. Awoniyi has scored 12 goals in 25 appearances in the German top flight, averaging a SofaScore rating of 6.82. He has also created three ‘big chances’ for his team-mates, showing that he can also link up the play to good effect.

The 24-year-old is proving that he can score on a consistent basis at the top level, and this is why he would be a remarkable asset for the Toon next term. No Newcastle player has scored more than six Premier League goals this season and Awoniyi would be the main man at the top end of the pitch if he is able to translate his form across to England.

After all, they certainly need someone with Callum Wilson’s long-term fitness in doubt and Chris Wood struggling significantly since being signed in January.

The Kiwi has barely had a sniff of goal, bagging just once after leaving Burnley.

Earlier this year, Jay-Jay Okocha claimed that the 24-year-old “confused” defenders for Nigeria and forced them into making mistakes with his work rate. This suggests that he also puts in a shift off the ball to cause problems for the opposition when out of possession, which will delight Howe as it will allow him to deploy a pressing system to create counterattack situations.

At the age of 24, Awoniyi also has the potential to improve. He is not the finished article at this point in his career, which means that he would be arriving to help the team in the short run and the long term. His aforementioned statistics show that he can be an upgrade on what Newcastle already have, but he also has the potential to develop his game even further, and this is an exciting prospect for the fans and Howe.

PIF must now press ahead with their plans to sign the centre-forward, as he would be an excellent addition to the squad and improve the striking options at St James’ Park.

AND in other news, NUFC had an “absolute steal” with £13m “colossus” whose value has doubled in 3 months…

Leeds have recently been linked with a move for Arsenal youngster Khayon Edwards, who could follow in the footsteps of Sam Greenwood at Elland Road.

This forms part of The Transfer Tavern’s The Gossip series, where we analyse players based on praise and criticism from past and present.

The Lowdown: Leeds keen on Edwards

The Whites have recently been linked with a move for Edwards and are thought to be in the mix in the race to sign the teenage striker.

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Goal reported that Chelsea have made contact with the 18-year-old, with Arsenal experiencing difficulty in their attempts to secure the forward on a professional contract.

Edwards could therefore leave in a cut-price deal over the summer, with just a compensation fee possibly needed.

The Latest: Greenwood a favourite at Leeds

Victor Orta has previous of bringing a young Gunners striker to Yorkshire in Sam Greenwood, who put in an impressive cameo in Leeds’ 3-0 win over Watford on Saturday.

He appears to be a favourite under Jesse Marsch, who revealed after the victory that the 20-year-old has adapted to his ideas better than anyone.

The Verdict: Edwards to follow suit?

Edwards has been efficient in front of goal this season, contributing to 23 goals in just 22 games, scoring 17, most of which have come for Arsenal’s under-18s.

He is still awaiting a senior debut at the Emirates Stadium, so perhaps he could be interested in a move to Elland Road, especially after seeing the likes of Greenwood and Joe Gelhardt coming through at Leeds and now being viewed as first-team players.

The Gunners youngster has been labelled as a ‘wonderkid’ and ‘prolific’ by an Arsenal news Twitter account, so you can see why the Whites are plotting a move for him. However, they may have to be quick, especially after the Champions League holders made their move.

In other news: Phil Hay has his say on ‘horrible’ Leeds ace who Marsch and Orta now want to offload

Everton are reportedly now eyeing a move for Everton Soares in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Champions League struggles

Everton played for Benfica in their 3-3 draw away at Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night, but unlike some of his teammates, seemed to struggle at Anfield.

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Rated as their worst player on the night, the winger lost out on a team-high nine of his duels, while he also failed to record a shot on target, and had a mere 34 touches of the ball in total, fewer than his own goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos (SofaScore).

However, the Goodison Park faithful do not seem to be distracted by his performance, judging by a fresh transfer update.

The Latest: Everton lurking

Writing in his latest piece for TEAMtalk, transfer insider Graeme Bailey has revealed that the Merseyside club are now ‘looking’ at a deal to sign Everton in the summer, with the futures of both Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison uncertain.

Everton is a player that their scouts have ‘worked hard on’, and even though he has a contract at Benfica until 2025, he could be sold for the right price.

The Verdict: Avoid

Everton is clearly someone that the Toffees have now looked at for a long time, as former manager Carlo Ancelotti even reportedly wanted him back in 2020 before he signed for Benfica.

Back then, he was making a name for himself at Brazilian club Gremio, where he scored 47 goals and made a further 17 assists in 179 matches in total over all competitions (Transfermarkt).

Former Gremio and Brazil head coach Luiz Felipe Scolari even went as far as to claim that Everton ‘reminds’ him of Cristiano Ronaldo, but he seems to have lost his way a bit since then.

Now 26 years of age, he has only managed lost his place in the Brazil squad.

Nonetheless, the Blues already have a number of wide options, and so should instead focus on strengthening other areas of the pitch first of all, namely through the spine of the team.

In other news, find out which ‘exciting’ speedster has now ‘quietly left’ EFC here!

Many Everton fans have been left buzzing over some manager news involving Jose Mourinho.

As per Italian football journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, the former Tottenham Hotspur manager will not leave Roma this season, and the vacant job at Goodison Park is currently ‘not in his plans’.

Sky Sports broke on Tuesday evening that Mourinho was ‘under consideration’ to become the next permanent boss on Merseyside following the departure of Rafa Benitez, with Duncan Ferguson only in temporary charge for now.

However, it looks as if it is very unlikely that he would take the job with the Toffees given his desire to stay at Roma, meaning that the board will now have to look at other candidates.

Of course, Mourinho has succeeded in English football, winning the Premier League title no fewer than three times with Chelsea, but he is arguably not the manager he once was, having left both Spurs and Manchester United midway through campaigns while outside of the UEFA Champions League places.

Blues supporters may not like his pragmatic style of play either, and so it is no surprise to see them feeling as if they have dodged a bullet.

Everton fans on Mourinho manager news

These Evertonians buzzed as the manager news was shared on Twitter:

“Fantastic”

Credit: @EvertoniaMatt

“Best news I’ve heard. Now tell me Lampard got lost on the M25 driving up to his ‘interview'”

Credit: @Tw1ttr1

“Happy days”

Credit: @Pablo_Beezo

“Thank heavens for that.”

Credit: @owendeasha

“Panic over”

Credit: @Day89

“Siuuuuuu”

Credit: @blue_toffees

In other news, find out what other manager update has EFC fans buzzing here!

Wolves are interested in signing Mexico and Napoli winger Hirving Lozano in the summer transfer window, according to a latest report.

The Lowdown: Lozano in-and-out at Napoli

The 26-year-old has found himself in and out of Napoli’s team this season, with injuries and illness holding him back at times but the wide man still managing to contribute.

Lozano has chipped in with four goals and assists apiece in Serie A, in just 16 starts, and he has helped them compete in a tense title race with AC Milan and Inter Milan.

The Mexican’s current deal doesn’t expire until the summer of 2024, but according to a fresh update, a move to Molineux could be on the cards.

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The Latest: Wolves keen on move

According to Napoli Today [via Sport Witness], Wolves have been ‘following’ Lozano ‘for some time’, as they weigh up a potential summer move.

The idea of him staying pout at Napoli is ‘not entirely a foregone conclusion’, which further gives Wanderers hope of sealing an exciting signing.

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The Verdict: Audacious swoop by Wanderers

Lozano has proven himself on the biggest stage of all, catching the eye for Mexico at the 2018 World Cup, registering one goal and assist each and standing out with his pace and directness.

For that reason, it is hugely exciting to see Wolves being linked with a move for him and he could be someone who takes their attacking game to the next level in the Premier League.

With Adama Traore likely to leave permanently this summer and Francisco Trincao expected to leave, too, Lozano could fill the void out wide, and much more, becoming the latest attacking hero at Molineux.

In other news, a journalist has dropped an exciting Wolves transfer claim. Read more here.

Aston Villa journalist Ashley Preece believes a summer move for Luis Suarez is possible. 

The lowdown

Villa have already pulled off a blockbuster transfer under Steven Gerrard, bringing Philippe Coutinho – the fourth-most expensive player in football history – to The Midlands.

Gerrard, of course, played with both Coutinho and Suarez at Liverpool.

Suarez, who’s about to turn 35, is now into the final six months of his deal at Atletico Madrid.

Villa’s current striking options – Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings – have only managed nine goals between them in 34 combined appearances this season (via BBC Sport).

The latest

In a fan Q & A, Preece said that Suarez ‘is one for the summer’ because he’ll be remaining at Atletico until the expiry of his contract.

The move may depend on ‘whether Gerrard gives him a call like he did with Coutinho’.

He envisages a ’12-month deal’ but did caution that Suarez’s ‘astronomical’ wages could complicate matters.

The verdict

Suarez would arguably be an even more high-profile signing than Coutinho. In his pomp, this is a striker who featured in the FIFPro World XI.

And his output remains strong. Since joining Atletico ahead of the 2020/21 season, he’s bagged 30 goals in 66 appearances, including nine this season

Suarez has spoken extremely highly of the Villa boss, hailing him as one of ‘a small number of players in the world that are irreplaceable’.

If Gerrard makes the call and he agrees to a reduced wage, then perhaps we could genuinely see Suarez at Villa Park.

In other news, fans react to this approach for their defender.

A major update has emerged on Newcastle United’s pursuit of Manchester United’s Donny van de Beek…

What’s the talk?

According to The Telegraph, the Magpies made contact with the midfielder to speak about a potential loan deal and were met with a firm decision in response – no.

The report claims that he told the club that he does not want to arrive at St. James’ Park on loan and part of his reasoning is their battle against relegation at the bottom of the table.

Gutted

Nick Hammond is facing his first blunder of the January transfer window for Newcastle by missing out on a deal to sign van de Beek as fans will be left gutted.

The report indicates that discussions were had between the two parties leading up to the player’s final decision and this suggests that the transfer chief did not do enough to convince him.

Newcastle’s pitch was not tantalising enough to tempt the Dutchman into ditching Old Trafford to join the Magpies and this could be an error as he could have been an excellent addition to the squad. Although he has struggled for game time at Manchester United, he has previously proven his quality for Ajax in the Eredivisie and the Champions League.

Back in 2020, Scott McTominay praised his character and believed that his game time would increase. He told Sky Sports:

“Donny van de Beek is a great lad and a brilliant football player. I’m sure, the way he is working in training and how hard he’s working, his time will definitely come to get more minutes on the pitch.”

However, that has not been the case and he has played 69 minutes of Premier League football for the Red Devils this season. This comes after he made 19 appearances last term, four starts, and played 515 minutes in the English top-flight.

In the 2018/19 campaign, he produced 12 goals and 12 assists from midfield in the Eredivisie and Champions League combined. He averaged a WhoScored rating of 7.16 across 12 matches in the latter, showing that he can produce quality displays on a regular basis at the top level, which is why Newcastle fans will be gutted that he has decided not to join the club.

It is now down to Hammond, Eddie Howe and PIF to either change his mind and seal a transfer or identify alternative targets who can come in and have an impact on the side.

AND in other news, “They’d like to sign..”: Reporter delivers big NUFC transfer claim, it’ll excite Howe…

Aston Villa are in advanced talks with Everton over the signing of left-back Lucas Digne, according to a report by The Athletic.

The Lowdown: Digne fallout with Benitez

The France international’s future has come under scrutiny this season following Everton’s poor run of form, which currently sees them sitting down in 15th position in the Premier League table.

Last month, it was reported that the full-back has publicly fallen out with Rafael Benitez, with the manager confirming that Digne has asked to leave the club. As a result, the Frenchman has not played a single minute of football since the Merseyside derby defeat on December 1.

The Latest: Villa in talks with Everton

According to a report by The Athletic, Aston Villa are in advanced talks with Everton over the signing of Digne.

Steven Gerrard had identified the former Barcelona man as his top target, with Villa keen on bolstering their options at full-back.  It is reported that the 28-year-old is seeking a move to a club already playing European football, or one with a serious chance of doing so next season.

Due to the recent arrival of former Premier League superstar Philippe Coutinho, Villa are confident that their exciting new project has convinced Digne to proceed with the move.

Previous interest from relegation-threatened Newcastle United was rejected by the left-back, with Chelsea also considering a swoop for the player following Ben Chilwell’s season-ending injury. However, Thomas Tuchel’s side only wanted a loan move, whereas Everton are more keen for a permanent deal to be done.

The Verdict: Big blow for Everton

The Frenchman has established himself as one of the best left-backs in the Premier League since his arrival at Everton, with his strong crossing ability often paying dividends for the Toffees, as demonstrated by his haul of 18 league assists on Merseyside.

Having slipped down the international pecking order, Digne will likely be glad to seal his exit from Goodison Park, as he will be desperate for regular first team football ahead of the 2022 World Cup in a bid to regain his left-back spot in the France side from Theo Hernandez.

His impending departure will be a sad sight for Everton fans, as the left-back solidified himself as a fan favourite during his time at the club. Also, former Toffees manager Carlo Ancelotti once described the 28-year-old as ‘one of the best in Europe’, so don’t be surprise if you see Blues supporters in dismay if Digne secures a move to Aston Villa.

In other news: Everton now prioritising ‘exceptional’ £9m-rated beast as third January signing