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Lots of Everton fans have been left buzzing as news emerged from Dominic Calvert-Lewin on his injury.

Speaking at a Football For Change event (via Tony Scott), the striker has now confirmed that he will be back in a few weeks, claiming ‘we’ll see for the Merseyside derby’.

The Toffees are due to play Liverpool at home on December 1st, suggesting that Calvert-Lewin may only be out for a couple more weeks.

Of course, Everton supporters do not need reminding just how important he is to the team. He has not played since August but had scored three goals in his first three matches in the Premier League this term before his injury setback (Transfermarkt).

His record against Liverpool is not the greatest, having only won once in 12 appearances against the Reds, but he has scored one goal and provided two assists against them before (Transfermarkt), so has proven to be a handful against the Toffees’ biggest rivals.

Everton fans on Calvert-Lewin injury news

These Everton fans buzzed as the news was shared on Twitter, with one hailing it as an ‘amazing’ update:

“Praise the lord”

Credit: @_luke1878_

“If he’s back for the derby and I’m there??? Oh baby”

Credit: @usaefc

“Best thing we’ve heard about the club for quite a while…”

Credit: @EFCT0M

“Yes!!”

Credit: @ste_efc76

“JUST IMAGINE”

Credit: @KatherineDaly19

“Amazing news”

Credit: @JamieMirror

In other news, find out which player’s comments delighted many Evertonians

Jesse Marsch’s Leeds United side extended their undefeated run to five Premier League games on Monday night, with the 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace seeing the Whites keep their second consecutive clean sheet away from home, as well as securing what could prove to be an all-important point in their fight for survival.

Indeed, the result sees Leeds pull five points clear of 18th-placed Everton – although the Toffees do have a game in hand – something which, with just five and six league fixtures left to play for the respective teams this season, would appear to give the Whites a fantastic chance of enjoying top-flight football once again in 2022/23.

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However, that is not to say the job is done for Marsch and his side, and, with the Whites’ next three fixtures consisting of Manchester City at Elland Road, Arsenal at The Emirates and Chelsea at home, should the 48-year-old manager wish to give his side a chance of securing safety during this run of fixtures, he must address a glaring issue in his lineup.

Lost possession every two touches

With Patrick Bamford remaining sidelined due to injury on Monday night, one of the biggest challenges the American faced when putting his starting XI together was who to deploy through the middle of his attack – Dan James, Joe Gelhardt or Sam Greenwood.

And, despite being on a run of seven games without a goal when played up top, Marsch once again decided to go for James – a decision which, not for the first time in the manager’s reign at Leeds, did not pay off.

Indeed, while the 24-year-old’s work rate in running the channels cannot be questioned, anyone with two functioning eyes can see that the £25m summer signing is simply not suited to playing as a lone centre-forward – something Marsch must realise.

Over the course of his 59 minutes on the pitch, the £50k-per-week attacker enjoyed just 14 touches of the ball, completed a mere seven passes, managed no shots at the Palace goal, failed to find his man with his one attempted cross and ceded possession for his side on seven separate occasions – meaning he gave the ball away with every other touch.

The Wales international also offered little from a defensive point of view, losing all of his two ground duels and one aerial duel, as well as committing one foul – a rather cynical challenge on Joel Ward, for which the winger received a yellow card and was dubbed “pathetic” by Chris Sutton.

These returns saw James receive a disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.6, ranking him as the Whites’ joint-worst starter on the night, while Leeds Live journalist Beren Cross also appeared unimpressed with the performance of the forward, awarding him a three in his own player ratings, as well as stating:

“Still hard to see what the gameplan is with the diminutive forward in the frontline. Whatever it is, it’s not getting the best out of him. Another hour of chasing shadows.”

As such, while it is true that none of the Whites’ attacking cast particularly impressed on Monday evening – with Jack Harrison, Rodrigo and Raphinha being awarded a three, a three, and a five in Cross’ ratings respectively – it is evident that playing James as a lone striker does not benefit the player himself or his team, as the Welshman failed his manager once again at Selhurst Park.

AND in other news: Orta given green light for “superb” £8.5m-rated signing, it’d be a huge coup for Leeds

Flocking to Twitter, a number of West Ham fans have reacted furiously to David Moyes’ post-match comments following the Irons’ 3-2 loss to Southampton on Boxing Day.

A late goal by defender Jan Bednarek secured a crucial three points for the Saints in a rare away victory at the London Stadium, seeing the Hammers’ miserable streak of poor results continue over the hectic Christmas schedule.

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Michail Antonio made an instant impact upon being introduced at half-time, equalising just four minutes later. After the Saints retook the lead, Saïd Benrahma levelled the score at 2-2 in the 64th minute, before Bednarek clinched the winner shortly afterwards.

This result meant that the Hammers have secured just five points in their last seven league games, which has duly seen them slip seven points behind Arsenal in fourth.

These West Hams fume over Moyes’ comments

West Ham’s official Twitter channel posted a video of Moyes’ post-match interview. The manager was unimpressed with his side’s performance, saying that “lots of things didn’t go as well as we’d have liked” and that he couldn’t fathom why they were so “flat” in the first half.

A number of Irons fans took to the comments to respond, with many disillusioned with their club’s recent form. Here’s what some of those said:

“We are running on empty and it’s all down to the owners naive reluctance to appropriately balance the squad in the summer and try and play an entire season with no cover in key positions.”

Credit: @W1zardOz

“The contrast between our first choice defence and what Moyes has had available to him for the last month is shocking at this level. The contrast between Cresswell and Masuaku especially.”

Credit: @WestHamJoshV

“Let’s be real, we will be in the bottom half very soon the way our current form is”

Credit: @ellingford_paul

“Just copy and paste the same video for the next few months as well”

Credit: @veryupsetfan

“he says this every time”

Credit: @whujoe

“Moyes, you have had your time, time for a new manager. You served us well, we now require someone who is top of their game. Unfortunately you have nothing further to offer.”

Credit: @PeteWindham

In other news: ‘Yikes’, ‘Such a blow’ – Many West Ham fans left devastated by ‘horrific’ injury news

Crystal Palace, Chelsea and Leicester City are all weighing up offers for Ajax midfielder Edson Alvarez.

That’s according to Football Insider, which has led to a number of Eagles fans giving their thoughts to the news on social media.

Alvarez is a holding midfielder who can also line out as a centre-back, and he currently holds a career-high Transfermarkt valuation of £18m. Only Christian Benteke among Palace’s squad can exceed Alvarez’s 3.7 headers per game this season, while his passing success rate of 88% trumps every player at Selhurst Park.

The 24-year-old has been with Ajax since 2019 and has made 84 appearances for the Dutch giants. A Mexico international, Alvarez is seemingly on Palace’s radar, with the club making regular checks on him this season.

Football Insider claim that Ajax are braced for offers from the Premier League trio and face a battle to keep him at the club beyond the end of the January transfer window.

Palace fans react

Both @cpfc_xtra and @CPFCtransfersHQ shared the news regarding Alvarez’s Eagles links on social media. Here is what these Palace supporters had to say in reply, with one labelling a possible move as ‘class’.

“We’re big time under PV”

Credit: @tomjones2610

“Get it done, honestly he’s class”

Credit: @SteYouLater24

“This would be CLASS. I rate him big.”

Credit: @common_wishbone

“Omg Edson is so so good, I’d love him”

Credit: @WardTheGenie

“52 Mexico caps at 24, get the man in”

Credit: @LlLFishy

“Now this would be a great signing but can’t see it happening”

Credit: @mandyswagsta

In other news: ‘I’m honestly surprised’ – Matt Woosnam reacts as ‘great’ off-field news emerges from Palace

Even though Aston Villa may have had a fairly impressive January transfer window in terms of the business they completed throughout the month, it seems as though they’ve now been dealt a blow in their apparent chase to sign one of the Premier League’s most promising young talents.

What’s the latest?

After being linked with a move for Manchester City midfielder James McAtee during the recent January transfer window among many other clubs also vying for his signature, Villa and those other clubs have now been dealt a big blow in their future attempts to sign the 19-year-old.

That’s after he recently put pen to paper on a new long-term deal at the Manchester club on Wednesday evening.

Gerrard gutted

In 81 appearances for City’s youth sides, McAtee has managed to rack up 42 goals and 26 assists, highlighting the clear attacking talents he has and presumably why so many clubs were apparently after him last month.

This also shows how disappointed and gutted Villa manager Steven Gerrard will be at missing out on having a young talent like McAtee in his ranks.

Described as an “intelligent” player in the past by City academy coach Brian Barry-Murphy, he could have been the perfect replacement for current Villa teenager Carney Chukwuemeka with the future of his time at Villa Park in doubt.

Now that the midfielder has pledged his future to the reigning league champions and current leaders until 2026, this could put an end to the possibility of the Midlands side or any other team signing him on a permanent basis in the immediate future.

However, with the teenager only making three senior appearances for Pep Guardiola’s side across all competitions so far this season, all coming from the substitutes bench, there’s every chance that a loan move away where he’d be able to play regular senior minutes would be seen as beneficial for the youngster.

With that in mind, when the next summer transfer window opens, if the Englishman doesn’t manage to break into the City team before then and isn’t likely to get much senior game time, it would definitely be worth seeing if they’d be willing to loan him out to a club like Villa.

In other news: Alan Nixon claims Villa are “going to sign” highly-coveted gem, he’s a “real talent” – opinion

Leeds United could be well-placed to land Sergino Dest from FC Barcelona this summer, sports journalist Pete O’Rourke says. 

The lowdown

TEAMtalk reported at the end of March that Leeds were looking into the possibility of signing Dest.

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The Whites are apparently enthused by the prospect of signing the 21-year-old, confident he would be an ‘excellent addition’ to Jesse Marsch’s squad.

It was only in October 2020 that Dest, who can operate as a right back, right winger and a left back, sealed an £18.9million move from Ajax to Barcelona.

But before he suffered a muscle injury last month, there were signs that he was falling down the pecking order at the Nou Camp.

He’d started 11 of the first 12 La Liga matches under Ronald Koeman, but Xavi had only selected for him for four of the last eight before he sustained the injury (via Transfermarkt).

The latest

Speaking to GiveMeSport, O’Rourke said Leeds, and by extension Whites director Victor Orta, could tap into their existing relationship with Barcelona after they struck a £13.5million deal for Junior Firpo in 2021.

And having Dest’s fellow countryman Marsch in the dugout could also be a significant factor.

“Leeds do seem to have a decent relationship with Barcelona, having signed Junior Firpo in the summer,” he said.

“You can’t rule this one out, especially with the American links.”

The verdict

Dest, who’s scored three goals and provided four assists in 69 appearances for Barcelona and boasts 31 career G/A (11G, 20A), would be some coup for Leeds.

In 2020, he featured in the IFFHS Under-20 Team of the Year alongside the likes of Erling Haaland, Phil Foden and Ansu Fati.

And even if Leeds can’t make a satisfactory offer of their own, a swap deal for the £16.2 million-rated ace could be a possibility.

According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona have considered offering Dest to Leeds as part of a move for Raphinha.

Adding a player of the USA international’s ability and potential would surely soften the blow of losing the team’s top goalscorer.

In other news, could Marsch revisit an Orta target Bielsa resisted?

Tottenham Hotspur managing director Fabio Paratici is now reportedly in talks to try and sign Corentin Tolisso for Spurs after contacting his agents.

The Lowdown: Ndombele replacement?

Calciomercato reported earlier on in the week that Spurs are ‘in the running’ to sign Tolisso alongside some of the biggest names in European football, namely Inter Milan, Juventus, PSG and Atletico Madrid.

Perhaps they have one eye on Tanguy Ndombele potentially leaving the North London club, given recent reports of interest from abroad and the fact he wanted to leave during the summer, per The Times.

Nonetheless, if Nuno Espirito Santo were to lose one of his central midfield players, then a replacement would be needed.

The Latest: Paratici wants Tolisso

According to a most recent report from Calciomercato, Tolisso has made the ‘surprise decision’ not to renew his current deal at Bayern Munich, which is expiring next summer.

He is reportedly a ‘long-time ball’ of Paratici, who has been talking to his agents to try to bring him to the Lilywhites.

However, there is ‘nothing advanced or defined’ at this moment in time, as Atletico Madrid have been named as a club who could potentially hijack a deal.

The Verdict: Ndombele out, Tolisso in

It has not quite worked out for Ndombele at THFC, with a mere ten goals and eight assists in 83 games on total over all competitions across the last three consecutive seasons (club-record £63m for him, fans should certainly expect more.

At a good age of 24 and still holding a market value of £40.5m, now may be the best time for Nuno and Paratici to cut their losses.

In would step Tolisso, who could come on a free transfer next summer, and if it does not work out, they can always sell him on for a profit.

Nonetheless, there is no reason why it should not, given that he has scored three times as many goals (48) as Ndombele (16) has from midfield in his club career so far, and is capable of playing anywhere across the middle of the park like Ndombele can, providing depth in multiple positions.

A UEFA Champions League and World Cup winner as well (Transfermarkt), Tolisso has that extra winning mentality, which would be very useful for a side who have not won a major trophy since 2008.

In other news, find out who this Tottenham ‘insider’ believes may be offered a new deal here!

Wolves youngster Ki-Jana Hoever will miss his side’s Premier League clash with Newcastle United through injury, according to reliable journalist Tim Spiers.

The Lowdown: Wolves head to Newcastle

Bruno Lage’s side are back in league action on Friday evening, making the trip to St James’ Park to take on a Magpies side who have pulled clear of the relegation zone.

It is another important game for Wolves in their quest to qualify for Europe this season, with victory taking them into seventh place ahead of Manchester United, for the time being at least.

With United playing one match fewer and also heading to out-of-sorts Everton on Saturday, it feels like a must-win game for the Wanderers.

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The Latest: Hoever ruled out

Taking to Twitter, Spiers has confirmed that Hoever will be absent at St James’ Park because of injury, despite returning to training:

“Hoever also trained a bit but he’s not available tomorrow.”

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The Verdict: Blow to squad depth

While any injury is a blow, the absence of Hoever shouldn’t be a huge issue to the first XI, with the 20-year-old only starting four Premier League games this season.

However, with Nelson Semedo fit but perhaps not ready to start after such a long lay-off, it means that Jonny will likely continue at right-back rather than his preferred role, where he has scored in his last two appearances, so it is definitely a hit to the depth at Lage’s disposal.

The hope is that Hoever is back in the near future, however, allowing Jonny to switch back to the left and providing competition for Semedo, giving Lage the flexibility he needs to fire Wolves to a European place.

In other news, Wolves are believed to be in a four-way battle to sign one player. Find out who it is here.

Fabrizio Romano has delivered a major update on Arsenal’s transfer plans…

What’s the word?

According to the Italian journalist, the Gunners will definitely sign a new striker in 2022, whether they are able to this month or will have to wait until the summer still remains to be seen.

“Arsenal are trying to sign [Dusan] Vlahović since October – but Dusan is still planning to leave in summer, not now. Nothing has changed yet. Really complicated negotiation on player/agents side. Many clubs will be in the race in June,” he revealed on Twitter before adding:

“Arsenal have many names in the list for the new striker now or summer. It’s not only Vlahovic. And they will sign an important striker in 2022, for sure.”

Vlahovic seems increasingly unlikely for the north London outfit this month but it’s not all doom and gloom as Romano claims that the club will land a first-team ready forward before the end of the year.

Several intriguing names have been mooted with a move to the Emirates Stadium in recent weeks, ranging from Lille talisman Jonathan David to Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Much-needed addition

This will surely come as music to the ears of manager Mikel Arteta, who will be hugely concerned about his striker department heading into the summer.

That’s because he could quickly be without a senior centre-forward.

Alexandre Lacazette looks destined to leave Arsenal for nothing at the end of the season as his contract comes to an end. There has been little talk on him extending his deal to remain.

Meanwhile, the future of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is perhaps the biggest question mark. He was stripped of the captaincy after a disciplinary breach last month and has not started since the defeat to Manchester United at the start of December.

And now the 31-year-old has been sent home from the Gabon camp at the Africa Cup of Nations due to health complications, only further throwing doubt over his chances of playing for the Gunners ever again.

It also seems unlikely that Eddie Nketiah will want to stick around should he continue to find opportunities hard to come by. He has regularly been linked with top-flight rivals Crystal Palace. Just like Lacazatte, the young striker’s contract is up in the summer.

On the above evidence, it is easy to see why Arteta so badly needs a new forward at some point this year. It would be more beneficial to bring one in this month but that will prove a hard task.

Either way, the Spanish head coach must be buzzing over the thought of signing a new talisman to lead this promising Arsenal squad into the future.

AND in other news, Arsenal could secure Arteta’s perfect Vlahovic alternative in £45m-rated “phenomenon”…

Steven Gerrard has enjoyed his start to life as a Premier League manager after swapping Rangers for Aston Villa last month, with his side winning three of their first four league games under the 41-year-old.

Game number five was a return to Anfield for the former Liverpool captain, for whom the Villa boss made more than 700 appearances as a player.

Despite a resolute performance from the Midlands outfit, the Villans lost out to Jurgen Klopp’s side as Mo Salah’s 67th-minute penalty proved the difference on Saturday. Defensively the visitors looked solid, but one player in particular who stood out was Douglas Luiz.

The 23-year-old was a real presence in the middle of the park for the visitors, completing 84% of his passes as well as having 65 touches. Furthermore, the Brazilian had a 100% long ball accuracy and also completed all of his attempted dribbles whilst winning 75% of his duels.

According to SofaScore, Luiz’s fellow midfielder John McGinn struggled to replicate similar numbers to his teammate. The Scotsman had a 72% passing accuracy whilst also having fewer touches (56).

Moreover, McGinn lost possession 19 times compared to Luiz’s 11, meaning that the 27-year-old lost the ball every 2.9 touches as opposed to every 5.9 touches for the Brazilian.

The Scotsman has been one of Gerrard’s standout performers since the 41-year-old took charge of Villa last month, averaging a performance rating of 7.95 prior to the Liverpool contest, according to SofaScore. However, the midfielder could only manage a 6.3/10 rating against the Reds, making it his worst performance under the new manager by some margin.

As for Luiz, it’s certainly promising to see the Brazilian getting a run of matches under Gerrard after endured a mixed start to the season, missing games against West Ham, Southampton and Brighton.

Alongside McGinn and Marvelous Nakamba, it appears that the 23-year-old is part of the Villa manager’s preferred midfield trio, with that particular combination now starting the last three games. Today’s performance suggests that Luiz is making the most of the chances being handed to him by Gerrard.

In other news: Aston Villa can start January with a bang by signing “unbeatable” £27m-rated machine