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Michael Ball thinks Everton could sell Richarlison to allow Rafa Benitez to sign top target Kalidou Koulibaly.

Benitez, who was named as Carlo Ancelotti’s successor last month, has bolstered his squad by signing Andros Townsend, Asmir Begovic and Demarai Gray.

He has his sights set on being reunited with Senegal international defender Koulibaly, who he managed at Napoli.

Current Napoli chief Luciano Spalletti has insisted Koulibaly is not for sale but that did not stop the Toffees making an opening bid, according to Calciomercato, which was rejected. It is thought that the Italian club will only allow the 30-year-old to depart for a significant fee.

Meanwhile, Richarlison is among those on former Everton boss Ancelotti’s wishlist following his appointment as Real Madrid’s new boss. It has been reported that Ancelotti has already made contact in the hope of taking the Brazil international to the Bernabeu.

Ex-Everton left-back Ball believes Richarlison could leave Goodison Park to allow Benitez to sign his top target.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, he said: “Summer windows, especially after tournaments, result in shock transfers happening.

“We don’t want Richarlison to leave but if he does there would be massive money in the kitty to replace him and bring players like Koulibaly to the football club.”

Newcastle United are reportedly eyeing a move for Mario Lemina in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Midfielders needed

Given that Joe Willock is not guaranteed to sign from Arsenal on a permanent deal, and Matty Longstaff has also been recently linked with a move away from St. James’ Park on loan, the North East club may need to bring in reinforcements in the centre of midfield.

Steve Bruce will certainly be looking to add to his squad in time for the new 2021/22 season, and midfield should be an area that he will be looking to strengthen in.

The Latest: Lemina eyed

As per the Daily Mail, the Tyneside club are reportedly interested in signing Lemina, who only has a year left on his current deal at Southampton.

The Gabon international spent last term on loan at Fulham, who find themselves relegated from the Premier League down to the EFL Championship.

The Verdict: Wait for other targets

While signing Lemina should not be completely ruled out by the Magpies, given his past experience of playing in the top flight, they should wait to see who else may become available first later on in the window.

The 27-year-old had a fine individual campaign for Fulham, wining 4.5 of his duels a game in the top flight, while also averaging 2.2 tackles and 1.1 interceptions per match (Sofascore).

However, he was not able to help enough to keep Scott Parker’s side up, and the fact that the Saints wanted to loan him out to a Premier League rival in the first place shows that they clearly do not rate him very highly.

Also earning a heavy £64,000-per-week at St. Mary’s Stadium, the Toon should avoid signing him – for now.

In other news, find out which six-foot ace courted by Atletico Madrid NUFC are eyeing here!

Birmingham City are interested in a deal to bring Kyle Lafferty to St. Andrew’s this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Football League World, who claim that Lee Bowyer’s side are just one of a number of Championship clubs considering a move for the centre-forward in the upcoming transfer window.

The 33-year-old looks set to become available on a free transfer at the end of the month, following the expiry of his contract with Scottish Premiership side Kilmarnock.

Big mistake

Despite the fact that Lafferty turned in a number of impressive performances for Tommy Wright’s side last season, scoring eight goals, providing two assists and averaging a SofaScore match rating of 7.66 over his nine Premiership appearances, there are a number of reasons why Bowyer should avoid a move for the former Rangers striker this summer.

Firstly, Lafferty has not scored 10 or more league goals since the 2017/18 campaign with Heart of Midlothian, in which he managed 12 strikes over 35 appearances.

In fact, he has only actually achieved this feat on two other occasions in his career – scoring 11 goals over 31 appearances for Gers in 2010/11 and 11 goals in 34 Serie B fixtures for Palermo in 2013/14.

As such, despite the fact that the Northern Ireland international is very much an out and out forward, his return of goals over the course of his career has been somewhat disappointing.

Secondly, with Lafferty taking home a considerable wage of £3k-per-week at Kilmarnock, following his decent run of form, the 33-year-old is likely to demand a significant increase to this figure if he were to sign for a Championship club, particularly if the number of clubs interested in his services reported by Football League World is accurate.

Indeed, the BBC recently reported that the striker wanted wages “four times higher” than he was currently taking home at Rugby Park in order to stay on at the club next season.

Finally, with the £360k-rated man – whom Phil Parkinson previously dubbed a “danger” – very much heading into the twilight of his career, there would appear to be very little resale value in signing the forward, as well as the fact his abilities as a footballer will already be on the decline.

As such, it would seem highly advisable for Bowyer to turn his attention away from Lafferty this summer in order to concentrate his efforts on bringing in talent with a considerably brighter future than the veteran striker.

In other news: BCFC dealt transfer blow over “frightening” 22 G/A dynamo that’ll leave Bowyer gutted

Flocking to Twitter, many West Ham United fans have gone wild as the club announced that manager David Moyes has penned a new three-year deal – coming after Everton showed an interest in the 58-year-old.

The Scotsman guided West Ham to a sixth-placed finish in the Premier League over 2020/2021, securing their qualification for the Europa League group stage next season. 

An arguably remarkable achievement given they narrowly avoided relegation the season before, West Ham have now seen fit to reward Moyes for his brilliant job at the London Stadium.

The announcement had been predicted sooner than this weekend, with reliable club insider ExWHUemployee expecting it to be confirmed last week (Twitter).

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The delay prompted some concern given Everton were said to be eyeing a move for their former boss, but with the news now official, it’s safe to say plenty of Hammers are ecstatic.

Find all of their best verdicts on the development down below.

West Ham fans go wild for new Moyes deal

“OHH YESSSSSSSSS”

Credit: @JoshVernege

“It’s coming home”

Credit: @Woodgeorge16

“Huge W”

Credit: @DerenChakWHU

“Absolutely over the moon Moyes has finally signed a new deal and wants to continue building on the season we have had. Truly deserved that he got this deal and new contract, let’s hope the board can back him properly this transfer window.”

Credit: @AzamWHUFC

“IROOOOOONS”

Credit: @AaronPStephens

“Fantastic news”

Credit: @TheChar10

“Absolutely best bit of news this year for all who are connected to West Ham. Onwards and upwards now!”

Credit: @Thehoss84

“Excellent news, outstanding performance this season”

Credit: @PBviews2020

In other news: ‘According to some sources…’ – Journalist relays enticing West Ham transfer development, find out more here.

Writing on Twitter, journalist Jack Rosser of the Evening Standard has lifted the lid on a GSB call with his 9-word West Ham transfer revelation involving Ryan Bertrand.

The Lowdown: West Ham line up new defenders?

The defensive department is one key area of the pitch West Ham have been touted to reinforce this transfer window.

Centre-backs appear mainly on the agenda, with a recent Claret & Hugh report stating the Irons are keen for new bodies in that position.

Former defender Fabian Balbuena has also just departed, adding to West Ham’s need for a centre-half replacement, but the club could also look to strengthen in the full-back positions.

Junior Firpo, for example, has been linked with a move to east London as West Ham keen tabs on new defenders.

The Latest: Rosser lifts lid on GSB call involving Bertrand…

Now, writing on Twitter, journalist Rosser of the Evening Standard has lifted the lid on a GSB call involving former Southampton left-back Bertrand.

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The Englishman has now agreed to join Leicester City upon the expiry of his Saints contract but West Ham apparently had the chance to make a move – with Rosser dropping the 9-word claim ‘West Ham turned down the chance to sign him’.

West Ham had been backed to exploit the free agent market by reliable club insider ExWHUemployee as a useful tool, especially given the club’s financial difficulties due to coronavirus.

Alas, it appears Bertrand wasn’t worth the effort in that regard.

The Verdict: Good call?

Bertrand was a mainstay under Ralph Hasenhuttl during his last season on the south coast, where he started 29 Premier League games.

During that time, he made the third-most tackles per 90 on average (2.1) out of any Southampton player with over 20 appearances (WhoScored), so we believe he could have been an astute back up option for West Ham – especially on a free deal.

You could of course make an argument that the 31-year-old would’ve been a quick fix to bolster left-back position and hardly a long term solution, but with barely any fees involved, the Irons had little to lose financially.

In other news: ‘Exciting’, ‘Here we go’…West Ham fans flock to official club announcement, find out more here.

Tottenham Hotspur legend Graham Roberts does not like the idea of the club appointing Roberto Martinez as manager.

Sky Sports, via The Daily Mail, reported earlier this week that the former Everton boss has entered into talks with Spurs over the possibility of replacing Jose Mourinho as the club’s manager.

It remains to be seen if he will reach an agreement with the club, as he is set to manage Belgium in the European Championships this summer.

Roberts, though, doubts the potential appointment of the former Wigan Athletic boss.

Indeed, he does not think that his CV will be that appealing for Spurs, as he has yet to win anything with Belgium, and only succeeded at a small club.

Speaking exclusively to The Transfer Tavern, the UEFA Cup winner said: “Why would you go for a foreign manager that you know nothing of?

“Martinez, Wigan, okay, little club. Belgium manager, if you can’t manage those players at Belgium then well… If he doesn’t win the trophy this year he’s failed because he’s got the best players. That’s not for me.”

Indeed, Martinez has only ever won the FA Cup during his career, though he did guide Swansea City to promotion from League One in 2007/08.

Belgium also finished third at the 2018 World Cup.

Nigel Adkins’ Charlton Athletic side head into Sunday’s fixture knowing that nothing short of victory will give them a chance of securing a top six finish in the League One standings come the final whistle.

Having slipped up in recent fixtures such as the 1-0 loss to Peterborough United, 2-2 draw against Crewe Alexandra and 1-1 stalemate with Accrington Stanley, whether or not Charlton can end the season in a play-off position is now out of their hands.

However, a 3-1 win against Lincoln City on Tuesday evening has given the Addicks a sliver of hope in their quest for a top six finish, as a Charlton victory against Hull City this Sunday, coupled with Portsmouth losing against Accrington Stanley and Oxford United failing to beat Burton Albion, would see Adkins’ side sneak into sixth place.

Will the 56-year-old decide to make any changes to the team which started against Lincoln? Here’s our predicted XI, along with the latest team and injury news…

With influential midfielder Jake Forster-Caskey being ruled out through injury, as well as Diallang Jaiyesimi – who has been sidelined due to a hamstring injury in recent weeks – remaining doubtful, Adkins has some big decisions to make for the clash with Hull.

As a result, we are predicting two changes from the side which lined up against Lincoln City last time out.

The first alteration sees Chuks Aneke come into the starting XI after putting in a Man of the Match performance against the Imps, with the 27-year-old scoring one goal and registering one assist despite starting the game on the bench.

The forward takes the place of 19-year-old Ian Maatsen, who is now without a goal or an assist in any of his last four fixtures.

The other change sees the injured Forster-Caskey replaced by Albie Morgan, which seems only logical as the 21-year-old was the man who replaced the injured midfielder in the game against Lincoln.

This means that Jaiyesimi, if he is fit, only makes the bench, while the remainder of the Addicks side remains unchanged.

In other news: Lost possession 15x: Charlton passenger who committed six fouls let Adkins down against Lincoln – opinion

According to a report by Football Insider, West Ham United and GSB have made an approach to sign Liverpool attacker Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – with the club ultimately assessing his availability this summer. 

The Lowdown: Oxlade-Chamberlain emerges as target?

Links to the Liverpool midfielder have emerged as fairly new, with the wider consensus being manager David Moyes’ top priorities are both a permanent deal for Jesse Lingard and a new striker.

However, ExWHUemployee did recently claim that Moyes will look to strengthen at left-back, centre-back and in central midfield once he has acquired a new forward in particular (Patreon).

The Latest: GSB make approach…

Now, a West Ham United source has told Football Insider that GSB could look at Oxlade-Chamberlain as an option to bolster their midfield options.

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It is said that the club have made an approach to ultimately assess his availability whilst also making third party contact over the possibility of signing Oxlade-Chamberlain this summer.

The Anfield club, however, value him at around £22 million and West Ham will have to invest considerably if they wish to bring him to the London Stadium.

He comes as a possible alternative to Lingard with the Irons loanee attracting plenty of suitors after a stellar few months in Claret and Blue.

The Verdict: Avoid…

On a reported £120,000-per-week, if Oxlade-Chamberlain were to command a similar salary in east London, it would make him the highest paid player at West Ham (spotrac.com).

Blighted by a serious knee injury this season, the 27-year-old missed 20 matches for Liverpool over 2020/2021 (Transfermarkt) and the last thing West Ham need is an injury prone signing.

Reds boss Jurgen Klopp, speaking on Oxlade-Chamberlain at the end of last year, was adamant that the Englishman is still an ‘outstanding player’ despite his fitness issues (The Guardian).

However, with the £22m price tag and salary, we believe that he is simply not worth the price for West Ham.

In other news: West Ham fans blast this ace who lost the ball 17 times against WBA,  find out more here.

Some Everton fans have been left to fume as a transfer update emerged on Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

As per a report from the Daily Mail earlier this week, which has since been shared by The Toffee Blues on Twitter, the Goodison Park faithful as well as both Aston Villa and Southampton are interested in signing the Chelsea man in the summer window, but his high wages may be a stumbling block in any deal.

Loftus-Cheek did not have the best seasons on loan at relegated Fulham, in which he only managed to score one goal and not a single assist in 32 games in total over all competitions (Transfermarkt).

The central midfield player also has a very poor injury record, and coupled up with his high wages, it is no surprise to see that some supporters of the Merseyside club do not want him to be signed.

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Everton fans on Loftus-Cheek transfer update

These Toffees fumed as the transfer update was shared on Twitter:

“Nope. Nope nope nope nope nope.”

Credit: @EFCNovaScotia

“So now we are after younger treatment tables!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Credit: @BagFullofToffee

“It’s getting worse”

Credit: @redreg74

“Yeh, nothing like another top 4 reject to help @Everton push for mid table”

Credit: @EvertonLeague

“He’s very poor, no thanks”

Credit: @GoodisonMoore

“Not for 26 years old this year, not even reached anything in his career and have a look at his injury record.”

Credit: @SteveKelly86

In other news, find out who Bill Kenwright wants to be the next Blues manager here!

Plenty of Aston Villa fans have been waxing lyrical over teenage forward Louie Barry on social media.

Barry, who famously scored against Liverpool in the FA Cup earlier this season, scored a hat-trick at Villa Park as the club beat Burton Albion 9-0 in the FA Youth Cup on Wednesday.

Sean Verity’s side are into the quarter-finals of the competition following the emphatic win, where they will take on Newcastle United.

The 17-year-old, who is under contract with the club until 2023, sealed his hat-trick with a second-half free-kick.

Carney Chukwuemeka, Aaron Ramsey, Brad Young and Seb Revan were also on the scoresheet in an impressive display by the club’s young stars on home soil.

Villa fans react

Villa shared a picture of Barry and the match ball following the win, which, as to be expected, received plenty of interaction from the club’s followers.

This is what some had to say in reply regarding the youngster, with one fan page from Brazil ‘very happy’.

“Oh yes”

Credit: @LeoAVFC82

“Can’t be long now surely……”

Credit: @Dannybarker1981

“Congratulations on the 3 Goals Barry! We here in Brazil are very happy for you and wish you success”

Credit: @AstonVillabrfc

“Starboy”

Credit: @TheAsgardian

“what a player”

Credit: @catrinedwards18

“Get him in the squad deanooo”

Credit: @maxwelltibbins

In other news: Many AVFC fans react to Ross Barkley transfer update, find out more here.