Liverpool are back in the running to pursue global talent Kylian Mbappe, according to French media.
The reigning Premier League champions are reportedly eyeing up a deal for the Frenchman and are said to be in talks over a 2021 move. That’s according to L’Equipe (relayed via @LFCTransferRoom), who claim Real Madrid are also fond admirers of the forward.
This isn’t the first time Liverpool have been mentioned alongside Mbappe. The Reds have been loosely linked to him throughout the year, but no talks of an official move have surfaced. A plot to land the 21-year-old next summer could mean that they are serious about bringing him to Merseyside.
Mbappe is currently valued at a whopping £162million and Paris Saint-Germain will almost certainly not let him go cheap. However, what is likely to be an astronomical price tag is more than justified. The young star boasts 91 goals and 51 assists for PSG in 125 appearances, as well as 27 goals and 16 assists in 60 Monaco games (via Transfermarkt).
This link has got Liverpool supporters fanning themselves as they imagine bringing Mbappe to Anfield. One fan has tweeted ‘be still my beating heart’, with another pondering over a potential deal.
They feel that ‘Edwards surely could get him’ for an initial up front payment and then the rest coming through instalments.
Read more replies from the Anfield faithful here:
Do you think Liverpool can land Kylian Mbappe next year? Join the conversation in the comments!
Leeds United fans have every right to feel miffed after their move for Michael Cuisance collapsed at the 11th hour.
The Whites looked to be on to a winner when trying to sign the former European Golden Boy nominee, but the deal fell through due to problems with his medical.
We don’t have all of the information at the moment about why his medical went awry, but we can only assume that Leeds had a good reason to pull the plug.
While missing out on Cuisance is something of a blow, the fact that the club haven’t jumped the gun and signed a player who may have fitness problems is a good sign.
The Whites have been stung before when signing a player who wasn’t fit enough to come into the team with Jean-Kevin Augustin’s fitness being questioned by Marcelo Bielsa almost immediately after he signed, and a string of further problems meant that the RB Leipzig man failed to start a single game during his loan spell.
Perhaps a medical that didn’t take place in a hotel room would have seen these problems come to light before Leeds agreed to sign him, giving the Whites time and money to spend on another striker who could’ve made more of an impact.
In the end, it didn’t matter too much, as Patrick Bamford proved to be good enough to lead the line in United’s promotion push, but Augustin’s failing still has to go down as a black mark on Leeds’ recent transfer record.
Luckily, Leeds seem to have been a lot more stringent this time around, and they may well have just avoided another Augustin-type scenario by doing their due-diligence on Cuiscance’s medical.
With the start of the Premier League just this weekend, there are plenty of talking points to take from the opening weekend of fixtures.
But nothing is more exciting to talk about when it comes to the Premier League than Fantasy Premier League football. It always comes up in conversation each game week – “how did your team do this weekend?”, or “mate I’ve absolutely wasted my triple captain this weekend, Kane had a stinker!”.
Despite this, it’s always good to evaluate your options and find some of the bargains buys that could save you cash and get you the points you still need. The midfield is an area that requires some of your most money spent – with many people filling it out with some of the best players in the league, and then scrimping and scrapping to fill the rest of the midfield spots.
That’s why today, we’re going to take a look at four of the best midfield options to choose from this season – ranging from all prices and from a mix of clubs in the league…
Leandro Trossard – £6.0m
The Belgian midfielder had a moderate season last time out, securing five goals with three assists – and accumulating 104 points in FPL.
During that time though, we were able to see glimpses of just how talented the 25-year-old is, and this season with the club’s new signings and Potter’s style of play slowly taking form, I can see Trossard enjoying a fruitful season.
At just £6.0m and with only 0.4% selection, Trossard is a hidden gem that has gone under the radar.
Pablo Hernandez – £6.0m
After Leeds’s promotion to the Premier League, midfielder Pablo Hernández played an integral part in getting them there.
Many Premier League fans will remember him from his time at Swansea, but since joining Leeds in 2016 the 35-year-old has matured like a fine wine.
Last season saw the Spaniard register nine goals with nine assists and will only cost you £6.0m if you were to slot him into your team, much like the other 2.1% of people have.
Mohamed Salah – £12.0m
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Despite being the joint highest expensive midfielder in FPL, Mo Salah has been a shoo-in for me ever since he joined Liverpool.
Last season was the Egyptian’s worst since joining the Reds in 2017, yet he still managed to score 19 goals and provide 10 assists, totaling to 233 points.
His cost of £12.0m has been enough to put a lot of users off him this season for some strange reason, only being selected by 30.8% – but I assure you that the 28-year-old is a must in anyone’s squad.
And that was backed up on the opening weekend, with the forward netting a hat-trick and 20 FPL points against Leeds United.
Bukayo Saka – £5.5m
The youngster impressed a lot of people last season, including Mikel Arteta, for his versatility and creativity no matter where he was on the pitch.
Scoring once and providing five assists in 26 appearances, most of which came from left-back, Saka managed 71 FPL points in that time – but it is this season that will see the 19-year-old make the biggest jump.
Arteta is expected to keep Saka in his starting XI, given the defensive additions made this summer as well as Kieran Tierney now being fully fit – meaning a more advanced position for Saka to up his goal and assist tally could be up for grabs.
At just £5.5m, Saka is a bargain choice and is only selected by 8.9% of other users.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has been linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur this summer and he has now seemingly dropped a huge hint on social media.Â
Hojbjerg’s official Twitter account has liked a tweet from SPORT1 journalist Florian Plettenberg suggesting that Spurs is the club he wants to join in the summer.
Even if the ‘like’ is subsequently removed, @Daily_Hotspur quickly took a screenshot of the evidence, thus preserving its public nature.
Hojbjerg has informed Southampton that he will not sign a new deal at St Mary’s, which has seen him stripped of the captain’s armband by Ralph Hasenhuttl. He has been relegated to the bench in recent weeks, although he did play the full 90 minutes in the 1-1 draw with Brighton at right-back.
Spurs were first linked with the former Saints skipper back in January, as Jose Mourinho has identified the Dane as the signing he needs to rebuild the midfield.
The ex-Bayern Munich ace has played 33 games inÂthe Premier LeagueÂthis season, supplying one assist, taking 1.4 shots, winning 2.4 tackles and completing 1.5 clearances per game on average (viaÂWhoScored).
He has made more than 100 appearances for Southampton in all competitions but seems destined to depart from St Mary’s in the summer transfer window.
Recent reports had suggested that he favours a move to Spurs instead of Everton, and his social media activity all but confirms these claims.
However, supporters should not jump the gun, as a deal is far from done at this point in time. The Guardian reported that the Saints have accepted a £25m bid from the Toffees, although talks are still ongoing with Tottenham.
If Hojbjerg arrives in north London, Spurs could be set for a changing of the guard, as it is highly likely that Kyle Walker-Peters will head in the opposite direction, while Harry Winks could be forced to make way. This may seem unfair on the former Mauricio Pochettino favourite, as he has formed a crucial partnership with Giovani Lo Celso in recent weeks.
Tottenham fans, do you think Levy will sign Hojbjerg in the summer? Let us know your views in the comments section below!
Newcastle United’s takeover is going to go through, according to former Palace chairman Simon Jordan.
The owner-turned-pundit was appearing on Tuesday’s edition of ‘White and Sawyer‘ on talkSPORT where he was asked about the situation and emerging reports surrounding pirate streaming service beoutQ.
Jordan suggests it would be a very big surprise to see the Premier League block the deal and that they are merely trying to gain some leverage over the illegal broadcast of their matches in Saudi Arabia.
It comes after the Guardian’s revelation into a World Trade Organisation report which had found the Saudi government to be involved with beoutQ, but that doesn’t necessarily mean those involved in the Magpies’ takeover are involved too.
In response to the situation, Jordan offered an encouraging verdict on the prospects of it being approved, he said:
“I just feel that the Premier League will use it as leverage to try and get some reigning in of that, but I will be very, very, very, very surprised – you [Jim White] talk to Amanda Staveley, you get the gist of it as well – I’d be very surprised if they block this and are able to block it because there are other people that own football clubs that one could question the veracity or the advocacy of their ownership and I think this is going to be a very difficult situation.
“The Premier League, if it blocks this move, is pretty much saying – to some extent – that club’s only to their approval, owners only to their approval, irrespective of the conditionality of that and then you move the bar and move the bar down, and you’ll have this argument raging in Newcastle more than anywhere else that this only retains the status quo for those that it suits.
“I’d be very surprised if it’s blocked, Jim. Very surprised.”
Jordan emphasises his thoughts that it would be a massive surprise to see the PL reject United’s takeover by a Saudi-backed consortium.
He also raises an interesting point that would call into question their decisions to approve other deals in the past, and whilst it remains to be seen who he’s talking about, it’s fair to suggest that Manchester City may come into the equation given they are owned by the UAE.
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The 52-year-old’s words perhaps ring truer than most speaking about the situation, particularly from those looking in from the outside as Jordan was in charge of Crystal Palace for ten years.
AND in other news, George Caulkin delivers update over Newcastle takeover…
After his incredible role in Liverpool’s Champions League triumph, Divock Origi’s place in the Reds’ history will forever be secured.
The Belgium international has come up with some big goals in some big games for the club, but whether he’s good enough to play second-fiddle to Roberto Firmino and actually start games on a regular basis is seriously up for debate.
Against Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon, Jurgen Klopp handed the striker the chance to feature from the off, and it was an audition that he failed miserably.
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The 25-year-old lasted just over an hour before being hooked for Firmino, and in that time did very little to convince anyone of a Reds persuasion that he should be someone who they must keep at all costs this summer.
As per Sofascore, despite playing through the middle, he registered no shots on goal whatsoever, and no dribbles either – so much for a supposed central striker.
Origi could barely get himself involved in the game, touching the ball just 26 times in the time that he was on the pitch, and making only 13 successful passes.
The Belgian couldn’t hold the ball up, or even make the right runs, and it was no surprise that some Liverpool fans were quick to voice their frustrations and anger towards him after the game – a few even called for him to be sold this summer.
For a team that won the Champions League last season, and has just been crowned Premier League champions this year, to have Origi be their second-choice striker just doesn’t fill anyone with confidence.
If Firmino were to get injured next season, then would Klopp seriously be confident about a striker who has scored just five times in 39 total appearances this season?
The Liverpool boss needs to be ruthless with him this summer, and whilst he has given Liverpool fans some memorable moments, it’s perhaps the perfect time for both parties to part ways.
When you think of Everton’s best bargain buys, Seamus Coleman invariably features at the top of the list.
The full-back joined the Toffees for a reported fee of just £63k, and has gone on to be a permanent fixture in the first-team squad for a number of years now.
But whilst the Irishman can stake a major claim for being one of the club’s most astute purchases in recent memory, one man who may have gone slightly under the radar, is Steven Naismith.
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The forward was signed by David Moyes back in the summer of 2012 on a free transfer after he rejected a contract with his former side Rangers.
It was no surprise that the then Everton manager waxed lyrical about what Naismith could bring to the table when the deal was confirmed. He said: “He will be an excellent addition to the players we already have and we look forward to him being fit and ready to play at the start of the season. He is an established international who can play in a number of positions. He has a flexibility we always like in our players and which will hopefully prove to be very useful for us.”
In the end, the Scot proved himself to be an unsung hero at Goodison Park, playing 123 appearances across all competitions. He scored 26 goals in his time on the blue half of Merseyside, and was often the man for the big occasion.
Out of all the times he found the back of the net in a Toffees shirt, 11 of them came against the Premier League’s ‘big six’. In fact, since the start of the 2010/2011 season, no other player had scored more against those sides than Naismith himself, with his closest challengers being Romelu Lukaku (10) and Kevin Mirallas (8).
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Every team needs someone who can deliver the business in the toughest of times, and Naismith was that man. For someone who Moyes signed for nothing, the attacker was nothing short of a revelation when you consider the value for money they got for him.
Coleman may be thought of as Everton’s best bargain buy, but Naismith is arguably in that same bracket too.
Meanwhile, Everton fans are happy for this player to leave.
This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…
Everton have struggled immensely this season and found themselves in an early relegation scrap as a result of some horrendous displays.
After their win over Southampton, the Toffees now have a bit of breathing space above the drop zone but Marco Silva and his men are far from pressure free.
Certain players have really struggled to pull their weight, as the club sit just six points clear of the drop having conceded 18 goals in 12 games. One of the players who has been under the spotlight is captain Seamus Coleman, who has registered just one assist all season long.
The signing of Djibril Sidibe from Monaco this summer has put more pressure on the Irishman, and the loanee’s performance against the Saints hinted that he is a strong candidate to resume the role of first-choice right-back.
The Frenchman was consistently a threat going forward and looked solid at the back for the Merseysiders.
The likes of Moussa Djenepo and Cedric Soares found little action down their left-hand side, as Sidibe completed an impressive seven tackles and blocked one shot.
The 27-year-old also made one interception and one clearance. However, it was going forward where he really impressed and may well have sold his credentials to Silva.
Sidibe made 23 accurate passes for Everton, which equalled to an 88% completion rate – the highest amongst any Everton player on the pitch. Within this impressive attacking display, the France international delivered a sweet cross to Richarlison, who tapped home the winner for the away side.
The fact Coleman is the club’s captain certainly adds a crucial layer to Silva’s team selection.
However, Sidibe has proved over these past few games he should be Everton’s main right-back regardless of the captaincy situation.
His 7.35 rating against West Ham United and now this performance away from home suggest he is more of an attacking threat than the 31-year-old.
Plus, with a crucial fixture against Norwich City up next, Silva cannot afford more dropped points and must continue to trust Sidibe at right-back.
This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers.
Everton’s Tom Davies must take his chance at Everton now that Andre Gomes is out injured, says Michael Ball.
What did he say?
Andre Gomes is going to face many months out of action after his horrific injury sustained against Tottenham Hotspur. The nasty ankle fracture forced the 26-year-old to undergo surgery and as he faces a long rehabilitation process fellow midfielders must step up.
Ball believes, despite the sad circumstances, that Davies must be the man to take Gomes’ place and faces a potentially career-defining time at Goodison Park.
The former Everton man told the Liverpool Echo: “It’s come under very sad circumstances but Tom has to grab his chance now.
“Since he’s come into the team, he’s shown the quality he’s got and hasn’t let anyone down,” Ball added.
“I’m made up for Tom and he just needs a good little run now of six or seven games where he’s keeping those 8/9 out of 10 performances going so he can make the spot his own and there could even be opportunities for him in the England set-up.
“Obviously Tom has got to focus on Everton first and foremost but if he can put consistent performances in at his best level, it could really set up his career.”
Career-defining period
Davies has been in the Everton squad for a while now, having burst onto the scene in 2016-17 where he made 24 Premier League appearances. This period saw the academy graduate bag two goals and provide three assists for the Toffees.
Now, at 22 years old, the Englishman has a fantastic opportunity to prove himself as the future of Everton and justify the hype that surrounded his breakthrough.
Marco Silva has been reluctant to play Davies this season, handing him just 283 minutes of league action. However, if the Portuguese international wants to build for the future, he must invest in Davies until Gomes returns.
It will, of course, be months until the former Barcelona man returns.
But now, it is time for Davies to prove to Silva that he is capable of thriving in the heart of Everton’s midfield.
This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
Speaking on talkSPORT, Danny Murphy has suggested that Arsenal would be better off with Chris Wilder or Sean Dyche as their manager than sticking with Unai Emery.
What did he say?
Arsenal currently sit sixth in the league, enduring a run of five games in all competitions without a win.
This has seen plenty of pressure being put on the shoulders of Unai Emery, with many fans wanting him out of the club.
It turns out that discontent about the Spaniard’s tactics aren’t exclusively coming from the stands, as Murphy has also questioned the Arsenal manager and the way he has gone about things this campaign.
Speaking on talkSPORT, he said: “His hands are tied a bit in terms of recruitment, but ultimately tactically they’re so inept. They keep playing out from the back and keep losing it. I’m all for sticking with your philosophy, but change it in the game, mix it up.
“He has shown before that he doesn’t mind mixing it up, when he first came there were lots of substitutions early in games, lots of tactical changes.
“But now… maybe the players have lost faith a little bit and that unfortunately subconsciously creates a really bad physical reaction in terms of you’re not believing in what you’re doing when you go out on the pitch and it drains you.
“If you look at Sean Dyche and Chris Wilder at Sheffield United, they are two English managers who have come up the hard way.
“Would Arsenal be in a better position now if Wilder was in charge or Dyche? Would they have more points? I think [they would], 100%.”
Getting a chance
It can be very difficult for managers of traditionally unfashionable clubs such as Burnley and Sheffield United to get their chance at a top team.
Once that does happen, it doesn’t always work out, with the most obvious example being when David Moyes took over from Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.
Arsenal are arguably a club in a crisis. Questions have been raised over Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s captaincy due to his relationship with members of AFTV, as reported by The Athletic, while the situation surrounding Granit Xhaka and whether he will play for the club again remains a pertinent problem.
While this type of situation can make things far more difficult for someone taking a step up in their managerial career, it is arguably the best chance for them to show they are up to the job.
This season, Wilder has taken his Blades side to a win over Arsenal and a place above them in the league, while Dyche has overachieved with Burnley, leading them to Europe in the past and a top 10 position this campaign.
Giving them a chance may not be the safest or most popular choice, but there is definitely a case that can be made for the argument that they would be an improvement on Emery.