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Everton play their first game in over two weeks on Tuesday when they travel to Cardiff, and Marco Silva should attempt to replicate his former club’s performance against the Bluebirds.

When Silva swapped Vicarage Road for Goodison Park, Everton fans were certain he had made the right decision, but the manager has come under intense scrutiny recently.

The Toffees have lost five of their last six games in all competitions, and the only win in that period was a 1-0 victory over last-placed Huddersfield.

A trip to the Cardiff City stadium to take on the Bluebirds represents a chance to get back on track though after Watford pummelled the Welsh outfit 5-1 on Friday night, and Silva should take a page out of Javi Gracia’s book and deploy a 4-2-2-2 formation on Tuesday night.

On the chalkboard

Watford set up with a pretty traditional back four on Friday night, but Gracia switched things up in midfield, pushing his wide players further forward and more central.

By doing this, the Hornets were able to create situations where the attacking players outnumbered Cardiff’s back three, something Troy Deeney and ex-Toffee Gerard Deulofeu took full advantage of, scoring all five goals between them.

Silva and Everton have the players to replicate this strategy if Cardiff continue with a back three, and the pace, skill and guile of both Ademola Lookman and Bernard make them perfect for those advanced positions in midfield.

At the base of midfield, a combination of any two of Andre Gomes, Idrissa Gueye and Tom Davies should be more than capable of fulfilling the roles that Etienne Capoue and Abdoulaye Doucoure carried out on Friday night.

Boost for Richarlison

The biggest beneficiary of this system could be Richarlison, who has lost his way a little bit during the Toffees’ poor run of form.

The 21 year-old has bagged ten Premier League goals this season, but has cut an increasingly isolated and frustrated figure recently, particularly when deployed up front on his own.

Putting him in the Deulofeu role, with a traditional target man like Cenk Tosun carrying out Deeney’s duties, would allow him much more space to get on the ball and work his magic.

It may hurt Silva’s pride, but the man who replaced him at Vicarage Road dropped a master-class in Wales on Friday night and he would be a fool not to try and emulate it.

The Athletic have now revealed some big Sunderland manager news involving Roy Keane.

The Lowdown: Keane rumours

Indeed, Keane becoming the next permanent manager at the Stadium of Light looked all but done earlier this week, with The Daily Telegraph journalist Luke Edwards reporting that a deal was ‘close’ to bring him in, while Football League World reported that he was ‘in the driving seat’.

Fans and media alike are desperate for an appointment to be made – Scott Wilson of the Sunderland Echo called it ‘unforgivable’ for the Black Cats to play two crucial games in the promotion race without a new face in the dugout.

However, with further delay over a confirmed decision by the board, it seems as if they will now look at other candidates.

The Latest: Deal off?

As per The Athletic journalist Michael Walker, who also writes for The Irish Times, Keane ‘is no longer’ part of the board’s search for a new manager, following the departure of Lee Johnson:

“It appears Roy Keane is no longer part of Sunderland’s search for a new manager.”

The Verdict: Big blow

Indeed, it will come as a huge blow to the Stadium of Light faithful that the chances of Keane returning slipped away so fast.

Walker does not make it clear why the deal collapsed, although Football League World reported that his wage demands were ‘pretty substantial’.

Of course, Black Cats fans will have fond memories of life with Keane as manager before, having got them promoted up to the Premier League from the Championship in first place in his first term on Wearside – he then kept them up in the top flight the season after (Transfermarkt).

When he left, his decision was thought to be accepted ‘reluctantly’, at least according to chairman Niall Quinn, but now a return to SAFC is unfortunately off the cards.

In other news, find out who Sunderland’s three worst players were against Cheltenham Town here!

Aston Villa’s new signings this January have already been making their mark on the team with Philippe Coutinho scoring a goal in his debut appearance at Villa Park last week and Lucas Digne securing an assist for the winning goal against Everton on Saturday afternoon.

Now, Steven Gerrard could be set to add a third star signing to impact his squad.

What’s the word?

Transfer insider, Fabrizio Romano, has teased on social media that Aston Villa could still be interested in signing Boubacar Kamara during the January transfer window.

Romano tweeted;

“Been told there’s also Boubacar Kamara in Aston Villa list.”

The Midlands outfit are not alone in their pursuit for the Marseille midfielder as he has already been linked with a number of Premier League clubs including Leeds United and Newcastle United.

Fans surely buzzing

Villa fans have already been taking to social media to respond to the glimmer of hope that Romano has given for the potential signing of Kamara, with one fan tweeting:

“B. Kamara is the dream, IMO. The perfect player for us. Hope we can get him.”

Kamara, who was hailed as “out of the ordinary” by former teammate, Rolando, has made 21 appearances and scored one goal so far for his Ligue One club from his defensive midfield position and has definitely earned the attention he is attracting when you look at his defensive attributes.

According to SofaScore, in the league this season, the 22-year-old has won the majority of both his aerial duels (54%) and his ground duels (56%), has a 94% accurate pass rate in his own half proving he is effective in developing play from a defensive position and averages at 1.2 interceptions per game.

These statistics only further show the strengths that the Frenchman can add to Villa, with clear reliability in his position and has only missed three games through injury in the last three and a half years, meaning he would not only be reliable in his ability and talent, but also in fitness, with a serious injury costing Villa in their midfield already this season when Marvelous Nakamba sustained a serious knee injury.

Gerrard will need to work fast in securing the player’s signature as he is a hot prospect in defensive midfield, especially with midfield positions being a key target that many clubs in the Premier League are looking to fill or upgrade.

In other news: Journalist drops latest Yves Bissouma transfer update

Newcastle United are reportedly now in talks to sign Benoit Badiashile in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Carlos closer?

News broke out on Tuesday evening that Diego Carlos has now handed in an official transfer request to Sevilla to try and force a move through to St. James’ Park.

However, a transfer fee has not been agreed between the two clubs yet, meaning that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium may still be looking at other targets in the centre-back position given their desperation in that area.

One of those could well be Badiashile, of whom they have been strongly linked to this month.

The Latest: Badiashile talks

As per L’Equipe (via Sport Witness), talks between the North East side and AS Monaco have continued ‘in recent hours’, and the former have already made an offer worth €40m (£33.3m), which has since been rejected.

Monaco have ‘no intention’ of letting Badiashile leave in this window, unless the Tyneside outfit can come up with a much improved offer.

He is also injured and expected to be out for ‘three to four weeks’, which may complicate the deal further.

The Verdict: Pay the money!

Whatever sum of money it would take to bring in Badiashile this window, the Magpies should simply pay it.

They currently have the second-worst defensive record in the Premier League, and the Frenchman would certainly help improve that.

Dubbed as a ‘tenacious‘, ‘strong‘ and ‘fast‘ player by Football Talent Scout Jacek Kulig, Badiashile has everything that a modern central defender needs in the top flight, and at just 20 years of age, has so much potential.

He would be a great alternative to Carlos should that deal fall through, as he actually averages more tackles and interceptions than him in their respective domestic leagues so far this season (WhoScored), and so this is one that the new owners should not be sleeping on.

In other news, find out which former Prem star NUFC are now interested in here!

Donny van de Beek is undergoing a medical at Everton ahead of his loan move from Manchester United, Sky Sports News have revealed.

The lowdown

It emerged on Sunday that Van de Beek had opted to join The Toffees for the remainder of the 2021/22 season.

Crystal Palace were also interested in the Dutchman, but he’ll instead take up the opportunity to work under Frank Lampard on Merseyside.

Everton have agreed to foot the entirety of his £120,000-per-week salary for the duration of the loan period.

The £22.5million-rated midfielder has only played 380 minutes in all competitions this season and is yet to start a Premier League game.

The latest

Referring to Sky Sports’ ‘State of Play’ transfer tacker, presenter Tom White said Van de Beek’s move was now a step closer to completion.

“Everton are close to signing him on loan after agreeing a deal with Manchester United,” he said.

“It [the transfer tacker] says ‘in talks’. In the last few seconds, that has changed because [he’s having a] medical now.

“That has just come into us in the last few seconds, a fresh update to us.”

The verdict

Completing the signing of Van de Beek would make it a very solid January for Everton.

They’ve found a long-term successor for Seamus Coleman in the form of Nathan Patterson, and also moved quickly to replace Lucas Digne with the signing of another youngster, Vitaliy Mykolenko.

Anwar El-Ghazi, on loan from Aston Villa, adds depth to the squad, and Van de Beek, billed ‘close to perfect’ by BT Sport’s Owen Hargreaves, should inject real quality.

In other news, fans were buzzing over this news on a defender. 

Leeds United are heading into January in dire straits.

They are just five points above the relegation zone, with several teams below them having a game or two in hand, and there’s a mounting injury crisis amongst Marcelo Bielsa’s first-team squad.

As many as 11 players missed the 4-1 defeat to Arsenal at the weekend – their third successive thrashing in the Premier League.

It means Bielsa, director of football Victor Orta and owner Andrea Radrizzani will surely go against their usual mid-season transfer window plans to actually sign someone.

Of course, the Argentinian head coach needs widespread additions across the team but there is one role that he may already have a solution to.

It’s no secret that United have missed a creative influence in the final third, having waved goodbye to Pablo Herandez in the summer. Only five teams have scored fewer goals than Leeds (18), two of which occupy a place in the bottom three, whilst a little over 44% of their goals have come from set pieces alone.

Although Bielsa could well discover a new Hernandez in the form of academy gem Stuart McKinstry, who seems primed to save Radrizzani and co millions in the upcoming window.

The 19-year-old dynamo has already made his senior bow, coming on as a substitute during a Carabao Cup clash with Fulham in September this year, where he scored the winning penalty to see the Whites into the next round.

Meanwhile, for the U23s in the Premier League 2, he has provided three assists from 11 appearances, whilst playing anywhere in midfield.

The Athletic’s Phil Hay once labelled McKinstry as Leeds’ ‘next big thing’.

“He’s a very confident ball carrier, he’s physically strong, good upper body strength, excellent feet, good at beating his man and creative. In his head, he probably feels he can play in other positions up front as well,” he said.

That very much sounds like Hernandez and in his hay day, he too was able to play on the wing, as well as centrally.

Elsewhere, McKinstry’s former academy director at Motherwell, Steven Hammell, lauded him as a “fabulous young player” who “will do wonderful things and become a household name in the next three or four years” to the Lanarkshire Live Sport Podcast.

Even some of his academy teammates have spotted his massive potential, likening him to Sergio Busquets and Lionel Messi, so the Elland Road faithful also have plenty to be excited about when it comes to their promising Scottish gem.

As such, Bielsa should turn to the teenage sensation in 2022 because he could well emerge as a solid candidate to replace Hernandez in attacking midfield.

AND in other news, Leeds could sign Bielsa’s next Ben White in swoop for “flawless” £18m-rated colossus…

Nottingham Forest shared travel details with supporters ahead of Friday evening’s clash with West Brom, and a number of fans have been reacting to the updates on social media following the club’s official post.

The Reds make the trip to The Hawthorns looking to extend their unbeaten run to six games with a positive result against Valerien Ismael’s side.

Steve Cooper’s men will be backed by a sold-out away end, but Forest fans attending the 8pm kick-off may have some public transport issues before and after the game.

Forest have urged supporters to consider alternative travel, with a metro service to and from The Hawthorns not in use, while there will be just one train from Birmingham New Street after the match.

Forest fans react

Here is what these Forest supporters had to say in reply to the club’s official Twitter post, with many fuming at Sky Sports for rearranging the game for TV coverage and one labelling it as ‘pathetic’.

“State of this”

Credit: @NottinghamGupta

“What pathetic public transport we have in this country. What a useless government”

Credit: @Martyns5

“@SkyFootball well done again”

Credit: @CampionMilan

“Do @SkyFootball want to champion this match they’ve moved to a Friday night as one of their Net Zero Carbon football games? No – thought not”

Credit: @Nottingham67

“Sky should pay for coaches for away fans when they decide to move games to sell more adverts”

Credit: @ifeyescouldsee

“Sky Sports working in fans best interest as usual”

Credit: @DaveHo1mes

According to a report from Italian outlet MilanLive.it (via Sport Witness), Liverpool remain interested in signing Watford winger Ismaila Sarr. 

The lowdown: Reds slayer

Initial interest in Sarr materialised shortly after the Senegalese ace had put Jurgen Klopp’s side to the sword at Vicarage Road in February 2020.

The 24-year-old forward was in unstoppable form on the night, scoring twice in a 3-0 victory as Watford ended Liverpool’s hopes of going through the Premier League season unbeaten.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-27/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Anfield club instead opted to sign Portuguese ace Diogo Jota, whose productivity has been off the charts since arriving on Merseyside.

However, as the summer transfer window looms, a reignited move for the ex-Rennes speedster remains a possibility…

The latest: On the radar

As per MilanLive.it, translated by SW, it’s stated that Liverpool ‘seem to have plans to get serious’ in pursuit of Sarr this summer.

The report claims that AC Milan view the Reds and new sporting director Julian Ward as a ‘dangerous competitor’ in the race to sign the 39-cap star.

This comes after reports last month revealed Klopp is personally a huge fan of the player, marking him out as his number one target to reinforce the attack.

The verdict: An inevitable departure?

So far this season Sarr has scored five times and provided one assist in 17 top-flight outings for relegation-threatened Watford, taking the Africa Cup of Nations winner to 41 direct goal contritions for the Hertfordshire club.

Named player of the season in 2020/21, having dropped down to the Championship only to fire Watford straight back up, should the Hornets indeed be relegated for a second time during his stay then a move away seems inevitable.

Predominantly operating from a right-wing role, Sarr would provide adequate cover for Mohamed Salah, a position of relative understrength in comparison to the abundance of natural left-wing options in Sadio Mane, Luis Diaz and Jota himself.

Lauded as a ‘freak’ by teammate Ben Foster, adding the £24.3million valued man to the already frightening Liverpool attacking ranks would be a worthwhile venture at the right price.

In other news, manager admits desire to sign Liverpool cult hero. Find out more here.

Tomas Soucek and Kurt Zouma are both in contention for West Ham’s clash against Manchester United on Saturday, according to a report by football.london.

The Lowdown: Soucek and Zouma were big losses

Czech Republic captain Soucek was absent for the Hammers’ last two fixtures, in which they beat Norwich City 2-0 and lost 3-2 to Leeds United. The midfielder was unavailable after testing positive for Covid-19, which dealt David Moyes a huge blow.

So far this season, Soucek has ranked second out of the entire West Ham squad for numerous statistics occurring in the Premier League; these include tackles, interceptions, and even fouls – a debatably necessary trait for a defensive midfielder.

Zouma was another player who missed games out due to a positive test. Following his six-week absence after sustaining a hamstring injury, the Frenchman was only just back in training before that setback, rendering him unavailable for the Irons’ upcoming matches.

Before suffering his injury, Zouma was a crucial element of Moyes’ back-line, having led the team in clearances made per game, maintaining a level of stability for the East-London side.

The Latest: Soucek and Zouma in contention for Man United fixture

According to a report by football.london, Moyes has confirmed that Soucek’s isolation period is set to end this week and that he will return to training, ahead of the Irons’ clash against Manchester United. When questioned about Soucek, Moyes responded:

“He could be in contention but everybody coming back from Covid you are not sure of their ability, how they are feeling what their symptoms are. So those things make it very difficult to make a judgement.”

Furthermore, after an extra week of training following his positive test, Moyes confirmed that Zouma will be nearing a return.

The Verdict: Moyes relieved by their return

With Zouma once being labelled the ‘ultimate defender’, it is easy to see why Moyes will be relieved that the centre-back will soon be available for selection. The Hammers have suffered with a lack of depth this season, with Moyes keen on bringing in an extra centre-half in Angelo Ogbonna’s and Zouma’s absences.

Manuel Lanzini was tasked to stand-in for Soucek for the two games the Czech was unavailable: a tough task, given the praise hailing the midfielder as ‘incredible’ in his position.

The Argentine performed admirably in the Iron’s victory over Norwich but he struggled against Leeds, clearly suffocated by their ferocious press. As a result, fans will be glad to see Soucek’s return, as it will allow Lanzini to be utilised in his preferred position.

Lots of Glasgow Rangers fans have been left bemoaning some injury news involving Ryan Jack.

Speaking in his pre-game press conference ahead of their match away at Hearts in the Scottish Premiership at Sunday lunchtime, Giovanni van Bronckhorst has revealed (via Planet Radio) that Jack went off their last training session with a ‘problem’, and confirmed that he will ‘not be available’ for the clash.

It is a real worry that the central midfield player has picked up yet another injury, given the problems that he has had in the past while at Ibrox.

Nonetheless, Jack is still a important member of the squad, and played in title-winning season, but the fact that he has picked up another injury has supporters fearing the worst, with some even going as far as to suggest to move him on.

Rangers fans on Jack injury news

These Teddy Bears bemoaned the injury news as it was shared on Twitter, with one Ger even going as far as to claim that it is ‘tragic’:

“Think he’s finished”

Credit: @stu644

“Think his career is done.”

Credit: @ssaunders92

“Tragic. When fit, by far the best midfielder in Scotland. Get better soon Ryan”

Credit: @coo56734508

“Love Jack but his time might be coming to an end at Rangers, been injured for far too long”

Credit: @gaz_hamilton97

“Sad to say but he’s finished”

Credit: @N18721

“As much as I love Jack, if this is another long-term injury we need to think of moving on and replacing him unfortunately.”

Credit: @jordorobinson98

In other news, find out what contract claim by this ‘quality’ ace RFC fans have flocked to here!