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Versatile AFC Bournemouth attacker David Brooks would make the perfect Deadline Day signing for Everton, after Carlo Ancelotti’s unbeaten side were touted as a potential suitor.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, Goodison Park is one destination where Brooks could be plying his trade beyond the domestic transfer window if the Wales international does leave Bournemouth.

The Cherries are determined to retain the 23-year-old at almost any cost, with boss Jason Tindall eager to utilise his services in the south coast side’s bid for an immediate return to the Premier League following their relegation last season.

Brooks shone at the Vitality Stadium during his maiden campaign in the top-flight in 2018/19 following an £11.5million move from Sheffield United, scoring seven goals and penning five assists before a serious ankle injury restricted him to just nine outings last term.

Manchester United, Liverpool, Leicester City and Everton are all thought to be keen on striking a deal, nonetheless, but face paying as much as £40m with Bournemouth set to hold firm in their stance with the winger under contract until 2022.

The Cherries can further hold off any interest that may emerge for Brooks before Friday’s 17:00 deadline as they insist there is no pressure to sell the 14-cap ace, even after their relegation.

Brooks has opened the 2020/21 second-tier campaign with appearances in Bournemouth’s opening two fixtures, but has not featured since the closing stages of a 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough through illness.

The perfect late addition

While Brooks has failed to pen a goal or an assist in the Championship so far this season, the Warrington-born winger would make the perfect Deadline Day signing for Everton if the Blues are able to reach an agreement with Bournemouth.

Brooks displayed all his worth on the south coast during his debut campaign with a hand in 12 top-flight goals, including striking home key efforts against Crystal Palace, Brighton and Chelsea while fashioning Joshua King’s initial equaliser in a 2-1 loss to Arsenal.

He further created a total of nine big chances in 2018/19, along with averaging 1.1 shots, 1.0 key balls, 44.8 touches, 3.8 duels won and 1.2 tackles a game, per SofaScore.

Had it not been for needing two surgeries to mend ankle ligament damage sustained in a pre-season friendly, then Brooks would likely have offered Bournemouth vastly more than a mere one goal as they dropped out of the Premier League last term.

Former Cherries boss Eddie Howe failed to lower his admiration of Brooks’ ability upon the youngster’s return to action in June, stating via quotes by the Bournemouth Echo: “He is an outstanding player and I think there were moments in there that are promising for us.

“Obviously, the length of time he’s been out, there is going to be an element where he’s just going to be working his way back to his best levels.”

Everton could certainly do with greater depth on the right-flank now that Theo Walcott has returned to Southampton on loan, with James Rodriguez the only natural option Carlo Ancelotti has despite Richarlison, Alex Iwobi and Anthony Gordon all excelling on the opposing wing.

Rodriguez has also been a star on the right for the Toffees since his summer arrival, with the Colombian offering three goals and two assists in four Premier League appearances alongside an average 1.8 shots, 3.3 key balls, 6.3 duels won and 2.0 successful dribbles a game.

But while Brooks would be the perfect Deadline Day signing for the Blues and offer Ancelotti a second Rodriguez type, the £40m price tag slapped on the Wales international will ensure that he remains with Bournemouth – or at least not move to Goodison Park during the final hours of the domestic transfer window.

AND in other news, Everton have made a decision on the future of a £3million outcast.

Glasgow Rangers remain interested in signing Sampdoria midfielder Jakub Jankto, reports say.

What’s the word?

Italian transfer guru Fabrizio Romano recently revealed Rangers boss Steven Gerrard came close to signing the Serie A ace in the summer.

According to Sky Italia, as relayed by The Daily Record, it seems the Scottish Premiership league leaders are still interested in signing Jankto from Sampdoria. The attacking midfielder has previously been linked with moves to Arsenal and AC Milan.

However, the Gers must resist the urge to sign the 27-cap Czech Republic international at all costs.

No better than Arfield

Despite the Light Blues boasting a stacked midfield including Glen Kamara, Steven Davis and Scott Arfield, as well as Joe Aribo and Ryan Jack, Gerrard and Ross Wilson embarked on a summer spending spree. They brought in Bongani Zungu from French Ligue 2 side Amiens on an initial loan deal with the option to buy.

Jankto, 24, scored in Sampdoria’s derby against Genoa at the weekend and has scored two goals and supplied one assist in eight games in all competitions, whilst he is averaging 1.4 shots per game in Serie A so far, via WhoScored.

Meanwhile Arfield, who can also play anywhere across the midfield, has actually mustered more shots per league game so far (1.5), whilst he has produced four goals and three assists, as per WhoScored.

It’d be a bit of a shock if Sampdoria do decide to sell Jankto, as they splashed the cash to sign him from Udinese for a reported fee of €15m (£13.5m) in 2018. His market value is rated at £8.55m via Transfermarkt, which seems a little steep.

Fans will no doubt be wondering why the club were ever even interested in signing him in the first place, especially when you consider the fact the midfield dynamo currently earns eye-watering wages which are worth £25,000-per-week. For context, this would see him earn more than Rangers duo Ianis Hagi and Ryan Kent.

Having lots of options is one thing, but having expensive signings sat as unused substitutes on the bench is another matter altogether, as it’s worth remembering that Zungu can’t even get a game at the moment

AND in other news, Hagi and Kamara start, no room for Ryan Jack: Predicted Glasgow Rangers XI vs Benfica…

Liverpool can secure their place in the knockout stages of the 2020/21 Champions League with a victory against Atalanta on Wednesday night.

The Reds have a 100% record in the competition thus far and after triumphing 5-0 when playing the Serie A side away from home earlier in the competition, Jurgen Klopp will surely be tempted to experiment with his side on Wednesday evening.

The Merseyside club face Brighton away from home in Saturday’s early Premier League kick-off, so this seems like a good opportunity for Klopp to rest some of his key players.

Mohamed Salah is in contention for a return after recovering from the current viral outbreak but the German manager still has a long list of injuries to contend with, as Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jordan Henderson and Thiago remain sidelined (per BBC Sport).

Here’s how Football FanCast thinks Klopp could line his side up against Atalanta…

Klopp will no doubt be tempted to make plenty of changes to his defence, with James Milner and Andy Robertson both potentially rested despite their impressive displays in the recent win against Leicester City.

Konstantinos Tsimikas could be in line for his first Champions League start with Liverpool after he returned from injury earlier this month, whilst Neco Williams should get the nod at right-back after coming on as a substitute in the 3-0 win against the Foxes.

Although Fabinho was superb against Leicester City, he has only just come back from injury and Liverpool may be wise to rest him for the fixture against Atalanta to make sure he doesn’t pick up another injury so soon after his last.

Young Rhys Williams could be the man to take his place at centre-back, as the 19-year-old was praised for his performance in the 5-0 away win against Atalanta, with Klopp suggesting after the game that he was “exceptional” (per Goal).

With Naby Keita having gone off injured in Sunday’s win, we feel that Klopp will keep faith in Curtis Jones and Georginio Wijnaldum in midfield, with Takumi Minamino replacing the Guinean.

Salah gets the start on the right-wing, whilst Diogo Jota understandably keeps his place after notching a hat-trick in the reverse fixture.

Finally, Roberto Firmino should keep his place as after his goal on Sunday it is important to try and boost his confidence further, as he will surely have opportunities to increase his goal tally against the Italian opposition.

After being given the chance to impress on Thursday night, it’s fair to say Eddie Nketiah didn’t take his opportunity.

The Arsenal striker had a hugely disappointing game in the Gunners’ Europa League clash against Molde, looking wasteful in front of goal and finding it difficult against the Norwegian side’s defence.

And whilst Mikel Arteta’s side may have ran out comfortable 3-0 winners after a superb second-half performance in particular, the Gunners boss will not be happy at all with how his starting centre-forward performed.

Such was the trust that Arteta showed him, that he placed him at the top of his attack, and put experienced France international and fellow striker as the number ten.

But he didn’t take advantage of that opportunity whatsoever.

As per Sofascore, out of the nine duels that he contested on the night, he lost every single one of them. Too often he was easily shirked off the ball, and whilst he tried his best to run the channels, he just didn’t have the strength to hold his man off.

And perhaps even more disappointingly for him, his supposed poacher’s instinct also let him down on several occasions throughout the night.

He had four attempts on goal in total and failed to hit the back of the net with any of them, including one really poor header from an outstanding Nicolas Pepe cross.

It was made even more galling that Folarin Balogun, his replacement and potential challenger for a striker spot in the first-team, notched within seconds of coming on.

And many Gunners fans took to Twitter urging Nketiah to be sold, with some even calling for Balogun to be the man the north London side now pin their hopes on.

It’s fair to say Nketiah didn’t deliver what was expected of him against Molde. And with Balogun now knocking on the door, Arteta may feel that he has someone else to call upon through the middle.

Andre Gomes has been met with a huge hurdle to impress Carlo Ancelotti and regain his place in the Everton line-up after a lacklustre cameo at Leicester City on Wednesday night.

The Portuguese midfielder has not started a Premier League fixture since the Toffees were beaten 2-1 at Newcastle United at the start of November, with Ancelotti only feeling fit to field Gomes from the bench in four fixtures over the weeks since.

Gomes had been one of Ancelotti’s first names on the teamsheet when the campaign begun, yet struggled to prove himself on the field and has done little to force the Italian to rethink his plans.

The former FC Barcelona talent revealed last month that he was still feeling the effects of the fractured dislocation to his right ankle sustained against Tottenham more than a year ago, with fitness a key concern.

“The truth is, I am still trying to find my best feeling, to get fit, to get ready to be 100 per cent for all the game,” the 27-year-old said, via quotes by the Liverpool Echo.

“In the past months, with the pandemic, it was hard for me physically. A lot of details can change, my body shape or how fit I feel. When we came back after the first lockdown, I had a really small injury in one place, then something else in another place, because I was trying to compensate coming from the big injury.

“I was trying to get fit and regain power. We had a small pre-season before nine games in two months. Then we had a short break and another small pre-season, when I needed minutes.

“It would have been perfect for me to have all that time to recover and prepare in a normal way. Now, I am working to get as fit as I can and trying to feel better, trying to be confident when we are playing. But, more than anything else, I am trying to improve physically.”

Gomes was given a chance to show himself in a better light at the King Power Stadium on Wednesday night when Ancelotti called on him to replace Allan after losing the Brazilian to a hamstring injury late in the first half.

But the £18million-rated maestro failed to deliver and continues to be met with a huge hurdle to regain a place in the starting line-up, after appearing well off the pace against Leicester in a game his best contribution was in fouling Harvey Barnes to prevent a dangerous counter-attack.

The one-time La Liga winner only came out on top in five of his 10 ground duels in the East Midlands, lost possession 11 times, committed two fouls, was dribbled past once and failed to record any of his 35 touches inside the final-third, per SofaScore.

His only defensive contribution came through two successful tackles, while failing to push forward ensured Gomes ended the night without a shot or key pass beside his name despite boasting a 100% dribble success rate.

Ancelotti may be fearing for the loss of Allan and questioning who can step up when Everton host Arsenal on Saturday, but it would take a Christmas miracle for Gomes to saunter back into the line-up anytime soon.

AND in other news, Everton enter a four-way battle to sign a gritty 21-goal marksman in January.

Former England international Rob Lee, while speaking exclusively with Football FanCast editor James Beavis, has claimed David Gold and David Sullivan are open to selling West Ham United.

The Irons currently sit eighth in the Premier League standings after a fine start to the season under David Moyes, who has orchestrated five wins and taken two draws in the opening 11 fixtures.

West Ham have held their own against Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, Liverpool and beat Leicester City, while a win at Leeds United on Friday night can take the London Stadium natives up to fifth.

Reports by The Athletic have suggested West Ham’s co-owners Gold and Sullivan are actively open to offers for the east London side, no matter how much the pair strive to play down the speculation with talkSPORT claiming a senior figure was denying any real interest.

Lee, who spent a year at Upton Park between 2003 and 2004, feels that if the right price comes along, Gold and Sullivan would grab the chance to offload the Irons having realised what it will take to compete in the Premier League.

“If they get the right offer, they get the right money coming, I think they would leave, without a doubt,” Lee told Football FanCast.

“They’ve been there quite a few years, they have realised that in order for a club in the Premier League to stay with other clubs, you have to spend a lot of money.

“Whether they’ve got that money or whether they want to spend that money, I’m not sure. So, if somebody came in for the right price, I think they would sell.”

It has been claimed by The Sun that West Ham were braced for a £350million offer to sell the club to an elusive American consortium in September, who vowed to keep battling for sole control of the London Stadium outfit.

The financiers are said to have experience of large-scale operations across the pond and sought to reshape the Hammers for the future, and based their offer on the £300m Mike Ashley is thought to value Newcastle United at.

Interest first came to the surface days after Moyes secured West Ham’s Premier League survival in the summer, before Gold and Sullivan sanctioned the permanent signings of Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal plus loan deals for Said Benrahma and Craig Dawson.

Benrahma is yet to start a game for West Ham, who hold a £20m obligation to buy the Algerian at the end of the season, while Dawson is yet to feature in any of Moyes’ matchday squads across all competitions.

AND in other news, David Moyes would throw an “outstanding” £30m West Ham star under the boss with his brave plan to beat Leeds United.

Leeds United have been linked to a move for Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara as the January transfer window fast approaches. Steven Gerrard has been urging the club to tie the 25-year-old down, amid fears that he could be tempted to leave Glasgow next month (via TEAMtalk).

The Whites join the likes of Everton, Southampton and even Dortmund eyeing up a swoop for Kamara. However, Carlton Palmer can’t see any winter transfer coming to fruition. Speaking to Football FanCast’s Tom Ward, the pundit debunked the idea of Rangers losing the Finland international any time soon.

Palmer said: “Rangers are having a fantastic season, so why would they let him go? And why would he want to leave? Obviously, you want to play in the Premier League but Rangers are going great guns at the moment.”

Indeed, the blue side of Glasgow is on the home stretch in the Scottish Premiership this season. Gerrard and his men are yet to register a single league loss and have now stretched their lead at the top of the table to a massive 13 points.

Thanks to their Old Firm win back in October plus some big scoring results, the Gers have been unstoppable. If they can hold onto their impressive lead, they will snub Celtic of their tenth consecutive Premiership title.

For a player like Kamara, now is the perfect time to be at the club. They are turning lots of heads with their fiery performances and have a good chance of going far in the Europa League. But Leeds and others will still be circling the defensive midfielder as they continue to be hammered by injuries in their returning Premier League campaign.

They will definitely be looking to recruit in January, but may have more of a task on their hands than they originally thought when it comes to prising Kamara out of Scotland.

In other news, Signing Mark McKenzie would be huge move from Lawwell…

Lee Johnson has made himself quite clear this winter. He wants to sign players capable of stretching the play in the final third.

If Sunderland are to achieve promotion, then those individuals must also be capable of scoring goals.

What’s the word?

The Black Cats’ festive and New Year period has been a rather disastrous one. Four games were postponed due to the ongoing pandemic and their 0-0 draw with Northampton last weekend hardly did enough to raise spirits.

However, the addition of new players this month could add a great deal.

Carl Winchester from Forest Green has been linked but a new target on their radar is Hibernian forward Kevin Nisbet.

According to The Scottish Sun, Sunderland have already made contact with Hibs in a bid to sign the 23-year-old.

It’s reported that the Mackems have asked for a valuation of the player ahead of a January switch. He was signed for £250,000 but considering his form, would likely cost Sunderland more.

Bye-bye Grigg

If Sunderland sign a new striker this month, then it would have two positives. Not only would it bump £4m signing Will Grigg down the pecking order, but it would also significantly boost their promotion hopes.

Grigg has failed to score at all this season and besides Charlie Wyke, they lack natural goal scorers. However, if they bring Nisbet to the Stadium of Light they’d have an exquisite finisher, one who has a habit of beating goalkeepers.

The forward has found the net on 12 occasions in all competitions for Hibs this season and it’s that kind of record that the Mackems have been crying out for.

Their top goal scorer in league football last term was Chris Maguire with ten strikes so it’s clear they need one thing in order to boost their promotion bid; more goals.

Nisbet would provide that in abundance and if a certain Jack Ross can get the best from him, surely Lee Johnson can as well?

Ross’ football wasn’t the most pleasing on the eye in the north-east but he’s extracted enormous results from the young striker in Scotland.

Speaking about Nisbet this season, the former Sunderland manager said: “Both feet, headers, tap-ins, longer range ones. Today (11/23/20) he played as a lone striker and that’s not something he’s had to do a lot this season, he’s played against Nir (Bitton) and Kristoffer Ajer who are two good players.”

Ross continued: “To show he can handle that and work tirelessly, and then get his reward, he’s been a brilliant signing for us and his goal return is excellent, at this season to have that number of goals is terrific and I don’t see that changing.”

Considering some of the defenders he’s defeated in the SPFL, he would surely be a big threat in League One. Kristjaan Speakman needs to sign him.

AND in other news, Sunderland could find their new Bailey Wright in £750-p/w gem once dubbed “faultless”…

Recent reports have suggested that Sepp van den Berg could be allowed to leave on loan this month, which reflects that Jurgen Klopp simply does not rate the Dutch defender at this moment in time.

What’s the word?

According to Goal, Liverpool are willing to let the 19-year-old leave on loan this month, despite their current injury crisis.

The report suggests that the Merseyside club have held discussions from three different clubs, from Belgium, Germany and Switzerland respectively, as they look to get the 6 ft 2 youngster some first-team football experience under his belt.

Does he have a future with Liverpool?

The fact that Klopp has trusted Nathaniel Phillips and Rhys Williams, both of whom had never appeared in the Premier League before, ahead of Van den Berg this season, is perhaps a damning reflection of where the 19-year-old currently stands at Liverpool.

The centre-back joined the Reds from PEC Zwolle in the summer of 2019 and he has four first-team appearances to his name, having established himself as a regular in the first-team with the Eredivisie side.

He has also made seven appearances in the U’23 side so far this season, in which he has contributed one goal but he has clearly not done enough to prove to Klopp and the Liverpool coaches that he was capable of stepping up in the absence of Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip this season.

Liverpool journalist was full of praise for the young defender after his performance in the FA Cup against Shrewsbury Town last season, saying:

“I thought against Shrewsbury he was absolutely brilliant. I mean that was by far and away the best I’ve seen him play, for him to take on that responsibility and he seemed to be far more aggressive than he normally has been.”

Hopefully, if he does leave on loan, he can do get some regular first-team experience but there is definitely a worry that Klopp doesn’t rate him, as he has not been given an opportunity to impress at all this season, despite Liverpool’s injury crisis in defence.

And, in other news… Klopp must ruthlessly axe LFC ace TAA dubbed “world-class”; he was abysmal vs AVFC

After a scare in the FA Cup fourth round against Cheltenham Town at the weekend, Manchester City were eventually able to progress thanks to a late flurry of goals.

However, the performance may be a cause for concern for Pep Guardiola, as those on the fringes of his squad arguably failed to perform against League Two opposition.

Therefore, it seems likely that the Spanish manager will make plenty of changes for the trip to West Brom on Tuesday night, where a win could take the Citizens to the top of the Premier League table.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects Guardiola to line his side up against the Baggies, with nine changes from the team that beat Cheltenham…

Ederson returns in goal with Zack Steffen having seemingly established himself as Manchester City’s cup goalkeeper with another appearance against Cheltenham Town last weekend.

Guardiola will likely rotate his entire defence, with John Stones and Ruben Dias resuming their partnership at centre-back, whilst Joao Cancelo and Oleksandr Zinchenko come in for Eric Garcia and Benjamin Mendy at full-back.

Phil Foden is one of just two City players to keep his place, and he drops into midfield to fill the void left by Kevin De Bruyne, who misses out through injury, with Rodri and Ilkay Gundogan providing the more defensive duties in midfield.

Raheem Sterling comes in for Ferran Torres on the left-wing, with Bernardo Silva replacing Riyad Mahrez on the right, with the Portugal international having finally found his shooting boots in recent weeks following his goal against Aston Villa.

Gabriel Jesus keeps his place up front after his winning goal at the weekend, but the Brazilian can not afford to be so wasteful against Sam Allardyce’s side on Tuesday night.

And, in other news… Txiki can sign Pep a Gabriel Jesus upgrade in “top goalscorer”