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Tottenham Hotspur are eyeing up a move for Jonathan Bamba this summer, according to reports…

What’s the word?

Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas claims that the €40m-rated (£35m) Lille winger is among the forwards Spurs are taking an interest in ahead of the transfer window re-opening at the end of the season.

Bamba is another player that scouts from the north London club have been tracking. The 24-year-old joined Lille on a free transfer from league rivals Saint-Etienne in 2018.

Bye-bye Lamela

This news would almost surely spell the end for Erik Lamela’s time at the club, as this week, the long-serving Argentine has been linked with a return to the Serie A.

Bologna sporting director Walter Sabatini, who oversaw the 29-year-old’s sale from Roma to Spurs in 2013, has confirmed that his former star is indeed a target, he said (via the Evening Standard): “Lamela is one of the names we are looking into,” said Sabatini. “We are trying to understand if there are possibilities to get there and there is no guarantee.”

Given Lamela’s injury issues (133 games missed) and inconsistencies (one goal contribution every three matches), it is probably time to move on, so swooping for the Lille sensation is certainly a good place to start in trying to fill that void.

Over in Ligue 1, the exploits of Jonathan David, Renato Sanches and formerly, Nicolas Pepe have often taken the bulk of the plaudits for Les Dogues but the former France U21 international has remained a key asset.

Take this season, for example, Bamba has contributed seven goals and nine assists from 38 appearances across the French top-flight and the Europa League, via Transfermarkt.

That’s him providing a goal every two games, one fewer than what Lamela has delivered in eight seasons at Spurs. Bamba also ranks second for average WhoScored rating (7.17) this season, ahead of both David and Sanches.

Speaking in November about the winger’s form, Lille boss Christophe Galtier said: “Jonathan’s been in fantastic form at the start of this season. Full credit to him. Jo’s on the pitch more often than not, and if that’s the case, it’s because he’s an important player for the team.”

Between The Lines analyst, Zach Lowry, dubbed Bamba their “creative leader” because “everything runs through him in attack.” Indeed, the majority of their forward play has come from that left side, where the 5 foot 9 dynamo likes to operate in the pocket of space behind David.

Bamba has also been dubbed a ‘hidden gem’ in the past, too, with his ‘ lightning quick’ speed a key attribute, something that Lamela may no longer have given his age and injury history.

As evident above, replacing the Andre Villas-Boas signing with Bamba could be quite a shrewd move from Daniel Levy. He can strike gold by moving the Argentine on, and bringing in the Lille talisman as his replacement.

AND in other news, Levy must wave goodbye to 23 y/o Spurs flop, Pochettino once dubbed him “a big talent”…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Steve Howey, who made 99 appearances for Manchester City, believes it has never worked out for Benjamin Mendy at City despite costing the club a lot of money in wages and transfer fee.

Mendy arrived from AS Monaco after they won Ligue 1 with players such as Bernardo Silva, Fabinho and Kylian Mbappe, however, out of those players it is Mendy who has failed to live up to the expectations people had for him.

Since arriving at the Etihad for £51 million in 2016 he has managed to make just 67 appearances, with constant injuries restricting his game time and this season the emergence of Joao Cancelo and Oleksandr Zinchenko has seen him sit on the bench for most of the campaign.

Speaking on why City should look to get him off their books and how good he can be on his day, Howey told FFC:

“He’s been unfortunate with injuries and I think there have been one or two things off the pitch as well, but they bought him for a decent amount of money.

“He is devastating on his day down that flank, but ultimately he’ll be costing the club a fortune and it just happens sometimes where it doesn’t work out.”

The Manchester Evening News conducted a poll which saw Mendy voted as one of the players City fans would not want to stay at the club.

However, MEN have also reported that he may stay at the club because when City play with wing-backs Pep Guardiola has claimed he has the perfect qualities for that role.

Southampton fans have been reacting to the news that Manchester City are interested in signing Danny Ings to potentially replace Sergio Aguero (Sky Sports).

Ings’ future with the Saints is up in the air. As it stands, his contract is set to run out at the end of next season (Transfermarkt) but, while Southampton have made it clear they would like to extend his deal (via The Daily Mail), the former Liverpool man has, as of yet, not put pen to paper on an agreement.

To avoid losing the striker for nothing, Southampton may well look to sell him in the summer, and the Citizens are said to be interested in signing him to replace the outgoing Aguero, who is set to leave the club on a free transfer this summer after 10 years at the Etihad Stadium.

Saints supporters have been reacting to the news and, surprisingly, it seems they would not be too fussed to see him depart despite the £19.8m-valued star (Transfermarkt) scoring 42 goals in 92 matches for them. They took to social media platform Twitter to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Ings news below

“Good news, get rid and move on, ship out Redmond and djenepo too, both been under achieving at PL level, not sure they’ll achieve a regular squad number in the championship to be honest, that’s my opinion,”

Credit: @TonyTonyprince

“Let him go, picking up injuries and hasn’t looked interested for a while.”

Credit: @saintsfc2011

“Yes let him go I think if he’s not fully commited”

Credit: @doeboy1

“I’m ngl if they want him they can have him”

Credit: @J13578Josh

“Surprised i’m not alone in thinking we should sell Ings. I believe he’s had his moment in the sun and his next few seasons will be impacted heavily with injury. If we get an offer over £20m let him go”

Credit: @luke_lct

“Great! Should help plug the 75 mil hole”

Credit: @edwardmarshCT

In other news, Sevilla are said to be interested in this Southampton star.

West Brom’s survival bid was dealt a bitter blow on Saturday afternoon as they slumped to a disappointing defeat at the hands of former Baggies boss Roy Hodgson, but it was an all too familiar story.

Albion just cannot find the back of the net.

Their defensive fortunes have drastically changed for the better in recent weeks, going from the Premier League’s leakiest backline to conceding just three goals in their last six outings.

But in that run, they have scored just twice – Big Sam will not pick up many points if his team cannot stick it in the goal. Only one side – rock-bottom Sheffield United – have found the net fewer times.

And with the Baggies now eight points adrift, something has to change otherwise it’s an instant return to the second flight.

On the Chalkboard

In simple terms, Allardyce must provide new target man striker Mbaye Diagne sufficient service, something that has been lacking big time.

During that aforementioned run of matches, Albion have delivered over six accurate crosses on one occasion, whilst no player is managing more than one attempt per game (Matheus Pereira), as per WhoScored.

At 6 foot 4, Diagne has the capability to mix it with any top-flight central defender, especially as he’s averaging 4.3 aerial duels won per outing, which is more than any other Albion player.

Considering Big Sam deploys two wingers, his service should be far better, though it’s a simple fix and one that could see the creative Pereira (1.7 key passes per game) move back into the middle, where he is most effective.

It would mean that one of Ainsley Maitland-Niles or Conor Gallagher is sacrificed as all these central options cannot fit into the same side, but it’s a risk worth taking given the desperate need to score goals.

Allardyce’s best crosser of the ball is arguably Robert Snodgrass, who joined from West Ham in January yet finds himself out of the starting XI. Putting him back in out wide, with Pereira in the middle, could be exactly what is required to unlock Diagne’s true potential.

You’ve got the Brazilian playmaker feeding balls and dictating play in the no.10 role, and a proven veteran out wide to deliver the service the big target man needs.

Indeed, the 33-year-old has averaged 1.8 crosses per game throughout his long career, including two successive seasons in the top-flight managing 1.6 attempts or better, which is evidently an instant upgrade on the one per game that sits top of West Brom’s charts right now.

The £20k-per-week “whole package” was, at one point, the heartbeat of David Moyes’ Hammers side, according to The Athletic, with Roshane Thomas describing his crossing ability as ‘excellent.’

Similarly, Colin Calderwood told The Athletic: “He’s got crossing ability and is good at either creating or scoring goals,” before dubbing him a “team player.”

Just imagine how good Diagne could be with Pereira and Snodgrass pinging in balls left, right and centre – the Scotsman must start going forward.

AND in other news, West Brom’s Conor Gallagher let Sam Allardyce down vs Crystal Palace

Plenty of Southampton fans have been reacting to the news that Wesley Hoedt is set to return to the club at the end of the season.

Hoedt has spent this campaign out on loan at Italian side Lazio. Not so long ago, it seemed the Serie A outfit were eager to sign him permanently (lalaziosiamonoi.it). However, according to Radiosei (via lalaziosiamonoi.it), it appears the Rome-based outfit are no longer interested in pursuing such a deal.

The change in heart is reportedly down to a number of poor performances. He has actually started just four of the last 11 Serie A matches (Transfermarkt), which shows that Simone Inzaghi does not quite have faith in the £5.4m-valued defender.

The news was relayed by Twitter account @SouthamptonPage, and it is fair to say that some Saints supporters are not best pleased with the update as they took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Hoedt news below

“Stealing a living”

Credit: @stevebr27075195

“His arrogance gets in the way of everything”

Credit: @griffryan

“We’ll have to release him and lose a lot of money.. not being funny but no one is going to want him”

Credit: @WillsfcMitchell

“Probably one of the worse signings we’ve ever made. We signed him after he had a fight in training at Lazio with Felipe Anderson, was awful for us and now we can’t even give him away”

Credit: @Extr3me_Matrix

“Loan him out to Acrington Stanley for a year for a packet of hob-nobs and 241 vouchers at Chesington World Of Adventure.”

Credit: @bfgfox

“Such a failure for what we paid for him. The frustrating thing is there is a player in him, it’s his own ego and concentration that lets him down”

Credit: @HebbesAlex

In other news, Southampton enquire about this Premier League striker.

Carlo Ancelotti can say goodbye to the linked-away Yerry Mina at the end of the season if Everton are able to win the emerging race to sign Torino FC defender Gleison Bremer.

What’s the word?

According to Toro News, several Premier League clubs have made a note of Bremer’s ever-improving performances in the Serie A and could look to make a move this summer.

Bremer has started all 19 of his Italian top-flight appearances this term and added a fourth goal for the campaign, when the centre-half headed home a late winner away to relegation-rivals Cagliari Calcio last Friday.

His efforts have Everton, West Ham United and Fulham on alert, while Liverpool are also keen on the Brazilian’s situation as one of several options who could feature in Jurgen Klopp’s backline next season.

Fulham are only expected to pursue the 23-year-old should Scott Parker secure the Craven Cottage outfit’s Premier League status for another year, after previous efforts to sign the £18,000-per-week beast failed to materialise.

Torino are aware of the heightening interest in Bremer’s services and will look to hedge the risk of losing him by awarding the centre-back a new contract, with President Urbano Cairo and Sporting Director Davide Vagnati already in contact with the player’s agent.

But the priority remains Serie A safety, with the side of newly-appointed head coach Davide Nicola just five points clear of the bottom three after beating 18th-placed Cagliari for a first win in eight league games.

Hello Bremer, goodbye Mina?

Reports of Everton’s interest in Bremer follow claims by the Daily Mail that Ancelotti could look to move Mina on in the summer, with the Italian still facing question marks over his best defensive partnership.

Mina has made 19 appearances in the Premier League this term, starting each, having bounced back from a blunt early-season assessment from Ancelotti when the £18m-rated titan delivered a shaky first-half performance at home to West Bromwich Albion.

“Yerry had an average game, I think he could be more aggressive and do more with the ball,” Ancelotti said in September, via quotes by the Liverpool Echo.

“The only aspect we have to look at is him being more aggressive when he can press the opening. But he did really well against Tottenham [in the season-opener].”

Yet as doubt still appears to linger over Mina’s future, Everton could look to move on from the £120,000-per-week defender – notably their joint-highest earner – by pursuing Bremer.

The Torino ace is seen as a defence-first type with a great read of the game and an aggressive approach to breaking up opposition play, helping toward an average 2.1 interceptions per game in the Serie A this term, per SofaScore.

He also offers 1.4 successful tackles and 4.3 clearances on average to help his side claim five clean sheets – roughly one in every four appearances. Mina, meanwhile, has averaged 1.1 interceptions, 1.0 tackles and 4.5 clearances to help Everton claim four clean sheets in the Premier League – close to a one in every five games.

Mina and Bremer are also comparable for duels won with the Colombian successful in 1.6 ground contests (55%) and 3.1 aerial challenges (68%) a game, while the Brazilian wins 1.9 (55%) on the ground and 2.9 (63%) in the air.

So, if Everton are looking to move Mina on and are open to signing Bremer, the Toffees would seemingly not be taking a step back by signing a player consistently improving in Italy, and potentially one that ticks more of Ancelotti’s boxes than the Italian’s current option.

AND in other news, Everton eye free transfer of £113k-p/w maestro who “always gives everything”…

One of West Brom’s out-of-contract stars is being eyed up ahead of the summer transfer window…

What’s the word?

According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Baggies stalwart Kieran Gibbs is attracting interest from David Beckham’s Inter Miami side as well as other MLS teams, rivals from the Premier League and clubs in Turkey too.

It’s claimed that the Midlands outfit were willing to let the 31-year-old leave the Hawthorns last month as he’s among their highest earners and has recently been usurped by Conor Townsend.

But an initial offer from Miami did not suit Albion or Gibbs himself. As he’s out of contract at the end of the season, this is something that may well be revisited.

Let him go, let him go

Indeed, West Brom shouldn’t think twice about allowing the former Arsenal man leave as he’s been a complete waste of money since arriving for £7m under Tony Pulis in 2017.

In that time, he’s racked up 100 appearances in a Baggies shirt, but the fact that Townsend, who had never played above League One before joining the Baggies, has taken control at left-back speaks volumes.

Earlier this season, his disappointing time on the pitch was epitomised in a silly sending off against Everton, a game where Albion embarrassingly went onto lose 5-2. The majority of goals came in the second half with ten men.

Then-boss Slaven Bilic slammed him as “stupid” while Danny Mills told Football Insider that it was a “daft decision” and claimed it was “idiotic.”

Unfortunately for Gibbs, he’s not been in Sam Allardyce’s good books either, and that’s outside of the obvious point that he’s now the back-up option.

The Athletic’s Steve Madeley revealed at the start of January that the club were looking to seal an exit for him as an injury withdrawal prior to their game against Leeds ‘is understood to have angered Allardyce.’

Not that he’s been performing well either. In terms of average WhoScored rating for the season, he ranks 15th, but when factoring in nine or more league starts, that makes him fourth-worst.

With Charlie Austin out on loan, it’s thought that Gibbs is Albion’s top earner on £55k-per-week as per Spotrac, meaning he has cost the club around a total of £16.9m since arriving from the Gunners when factoring in fees and wages.

That would certainly put him among the most expensive flops the Hawthorns has ever seen, especially when you consider the fact that Oliver Burke cost £15m and Nacer Chadli around £13m too.

The Baggies must let Gibbs loose in the summer, even if they are to lose out on a fee. He simply has no future at the club.

AND in other news, West Brom could unearth a perfect Pereira heir in 20 y/o prodigy who’s a “real talent”…

Liverpool are reportedly considering a move for Arsenal centre-back Shkodran Mustafi this month as they look to ease their defensive issues, but he’s not the man Jurgen Klopp needs.

What’s the word?

According to The Athletic, the German defender is one of three centre-backs the Reds could consider before the transfer window shuts next Monday, while Sunday World report that insiders haven’t ruled out making a move for him before the deadline.

Arsenal are keen to offload the experienced centre-back, as he is out of contract in the summer, so wouldn’t demand a high fee.

Would he be a good signing?

To put it simply, no.

Mustafi hasn’t made a single start in the Premier League this season and has just three substitute appearances to his name, which is even more remarkable when you consider how much the Gunners were struggling earlier in the season.

His five appearances in the Europa League this season resulted in just two clean sheets, with goals conceded against the likes of Dundalk, Molde and Rapid Wien in that time.

Mustafi had a high reputation when he joined the Gunners from Valencia for £35 million but has seen his value and standing in the game rapidly decrease during his time in North London.

Despite being just 28-years-old, it is clear that Mustafi is surplus to requirements in this Arsenal side at the moment, and considering he hasn’t started a game since late December, he would presumably need time to build his match fitness should he arrive at Anfield. That is exactly what Klopp doesn’t need.

Mustafi has also spent time on the sidelines this season with a hamstring injury and has endured a number of problems in previous seasons, so signing another injury-prone centre-back is not the solution for Klopp.

Martin Keown highlighted Mustafi’s error-proneness last year, saying:

“We talked about Mustafi before the game, I sense there’s a fear in this player, and you can smell it.

“You’ve got to put everything out of your mind, I sympathise with Luiz. Mustafi’s an accident waiting to happen.”

Whilst Liverpool are desperate for a centre-back, Mustafi is not the answer, and Klopp would be better served selecting the reliable Jordan Henderson at the back for the rest of the season, than signing the former Valencia man.

And, in other news, Edwards can sign Liverpool’s next VVD in £36m beast; but there’s one snag for Klopp…

After securing a win against mid-table Blackburn Rovers at the weekend, Nottingham Forest turn their attentions towards relegation battlers Rotherham on Tuesday night.

Chris Hughton’s side have picked things up in recent weeks in terms of their form, with the defeat to Swansea last Wednesday their only loss in the last six Championship games.

Things are looking much brighter for Forest, and while Hughton will be unlikely to ring massive changes for tonight’s game, he may look to freshen things up slightly given the quick turnaround in games.

And with that in mind, below is a look at how Forest might line up.

In goal, Bryce Samba should keep his place, with the back-four in front of him remaining unchanged, with Forest’s defence having improved significantly in recent weeks – they’ve kept four clean sheets in their last six games.

The midfield could see one key change, with Hughton no doubt keen one eye on the East Midlands derby on Friday against Derby County, and that could see Manchester United loanee James Garner given a rest.

If Hughton does make that bold call, then the 6 foot 3 Ryan Yates could well be in contention for a recall to the starting line-up alongside Cafu.

Further ahead, Joe Lolley will also be hoping that he’s the beneficiary of Hughton wanting to keep players as fresh as possible, with another young talent in Alex Mighton benched in his place.

Predicted XI: Samba; Christie, Figueiredo, Worrall, Ribeiro; Yates, Cafu; Knockaert, Krovinovic, Lolley; Murray.

Gabby Agbonlahor has dropped an Everton transfer claim on Edin Dzeko after Gazzetta dello Sport reported that they and West Ham are interested in a loan.

Sky Italia have reported that the former Manchester City ace is currently training alone at AS Roma and has also been stripped of the captaincy after a bust-up with his manager Paulo Fonseca.

Meanwhile, Agbonlahor has suggested to Football Insider that the Goodison Park faithful should look to sign Dzeko before this month’s window shuts in a few days:

“Everton definitely need a striker.

“Calvert-Lewin’s back now but he could get injured again and he’s played a lot of football.

“Dzeko is an outstanding striker all through his career. At Manchester City he was outstanding.

“He would be a great signing for them.

“I’m sure Carlo Ancelotti will know Roma inside out from his time at Italy and if he can make a deal happen he will.”

Dzeko would be a smart signing by Everton

Given his bust-up with his manager, Dzeko may well be available for a loan move before the January window closes as Roma simply look to get him out of the way.

Thus, it could be a good time for Carlo Ancelotti’s team to pounce, as he could give some much-needed cover for Dominic Calvert-Lewin up front in case the latter gets injured or finds himself misfiring in front of goal.

Despite being 34 years of age now, the Bosnia and Herzegovina captain would still have a lot to offer the Toffees not only in terms of his leadership both on and off the pitch, but in Premier League know-how, with no fewer than 50 goals and 24 assists in 130 games over five consecutive seasons for Manchester City (Transfermarkt).

Nonetheless, it would certainly be a shrewd signing by the Blues should they be able to get a deal over the line.

In other news, find out what early team news ahead of Leicester City has been lauded by EFC fans here!