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Wolverhampton Wanderers and Jorge Mendes. It’s often been a fruitful partnership, but the latest client to be mooted to Molineux is better off being swerved at all costs…

What’s the word?

According to La Repubblica (via Sport Witness), mooted Wolves target Faouzi Ghoulam is on the chopping block at Napoli as they are keen to balance the books following the mega-money arrival of Victor Osimhen.

It’s also been claimed that the Algerian left-back dreams of a move to the Premier League and specifically the Midlands outfit.

The same report details a story from Corriere dello Sport, who state that his agent Jorge Mendes was working on a deal to bring him to Molineux.

Mendes has been trying to get his contract terminated at the San Paolo Stadium, which is thought to cost around €12m (£11m) plus bonuses.

Meddling Mendes

Without the Portuguese super-agent, Wolves may not have been able to sign the likes of Ruben Neves, Joao Moutinho, Diogo Jota, Rui Patricio and even manager Nuno Santo but this move is a step too far in terms of reliance.

Ghoulam, on the face of it, would help an emerging issue at the club with Jonny Castro out injured but the 29-year-old has barely featured himself over the last few years.

This season, he started just three matches whilst he hasn’t managed to feature from the off more than 12 times in the last three campaigns.

A combination of knee and muscular problems have kept him out of action, which is hardly much encouragement when Wolves need a regular starter – even more so after the departure of Matt Doherty.

It just seems like Mendes is trying to sort his client out with a decent move rather than the club itself, so Nuno Santo must reject the chance to sign another one of his players this time around.

Former Napoli fitness coach Corrado Saccone believes Ghoulam “is a world-class player” who deserves to play for one of Europe’s elite and has also claimed that he has “extraordinary resistance” – referencing his physical attributes.

But evidently, this just hasn’t been the case for several years now. Wolves must avoid him at all costs.

AND in other news, Jeff Shi would be making a mistake with reported Wolves long-term target…

Burnley have taken their interest in Harry Wilson to the next level after submitting an official bid of £12million for his services.

However, the Clarets will need to revise their offer if they want to win over Michael Edwards, who reportedly knocked back the bid. The Liverpool sporting director is looking for at least £3million more in order to let the Wales international leave the club this transfer window (via Football Insider).

It’s unclear whether Burnley will revisit with an improved amount, but time is running out and a player like Wilson could help transform Sean Dyche’s side.

How would Harry Wilson benefit Burnley?

After the Clarets finished in a respectable 10th place last season, they will be eyeing up their chance to close the gap on the top six. With 54 points at the end of the term, they were just five points behind Spurs in sixth place, who managed to claw back a solid finish despite their sticky start.

Top scorer Chris Wood would benefit from a playmaker like Wilson operating either in the engine room or on the wing. The 23-year-old has enjoyed three loan spells away from Liverpool and has made himself known as a superb free-kick taker with the ability to net from long-range.

This is a trait that could also transform Burnley’s attack, for matches where they are unable to break down the opposition’s defence.

Harry Wilson stats

Despite only breaking into Liverpool’s first team twice in his career, Wilson has impressed in the youth leagues and also during his loan stints. In 60 appearances for the Reds’ reserve side, the Welshman boasts a superb 32 goals and 14 assists. His first short-term move away was with Hull, where he racked up seven goals and four assists in 14 matches (via Transfermarkt).

His eagle-eyed vision means he has scored eight goals through a direct free-kick, winning the match on one occasion with his frightening accuracy.

Two of those free-kicks came during his time on loan with Bournemouth, which seriously impressed Eddie Howe.

In an interview with the Bournemouth Echo last November, the Cherries boss hailed Wilson as being “hugely impressive” after he notched a total of seven goals and two assists.

If Burnley are serious about bringing the playmaker to Turf Moor, they must rally their funds as fellow Premier League sides Southampton, Leeds and Newcastle are also very interested in his services.

In other news, Michael Edwards shows Liverpool worth amid potential transfer profit

Southampton have secured the signing of Premier League veteran Theo Walcott on a one-year loan deal. The former England international will return to his former club for the season after being ousted from Everton’s revamped senior lineup.

The Saints wasted no time in getting the deal over the line after Paul Joyce originally reported their interest on Monday morning. Talks then rapidly developed and Walcott will help boost Southampton up the table as they look to build on their 11th place finish last season.

How can Walcott improve Southampton’s attack?

Southampton struck gold when they signed Danny Ings last summer for a fee of £20million (via BBC Sport). Since joining the south coast side, he has transformed their attack and poses a real threat as one of the most prolific goal scorers in the league. But Ings can only put away the chances being given to him and this is where the Saints could do with some improvements.

Prior to deadline day, Ralph Hasenhuttl had just one senior right winger on his books in the form of 21-year-old Nathan Tella, who recently made the transition from youth football to senior level. Walcott – who has been starved of minutes over on Merseyside – will relish the chance to show his worth alongside his fellow England international.

His form has dipped a little since his peak at Arsenal, but he still has a lot left in him to resurrect his impressive numbers. In the 2016/17 campaign, Walcott bagged a total of 19 goals across all competitions for the Gunners, but his most impressive return was in 2012/13, with a tally of 21 goals and 16 assists (via Transfermarkt).

A new option for Hasenhuttl

With more than a decade of Premier League experience and his personal connection to the club, the 31-year-old will bring experience in abundance and the hunger to become a first team starter again. Walcott, who is valued at £10.8m, can provide a different attacking prowess to the likes of Nathan Redmond and Che Adams. His natural ability makes him a more proven finisher with a better eye for setting up goals, whist he is able to play anywhere across the front three.

Adams has just four goals in his Saints account so far and Redmond’s last Premier League goal came in June, so Hasenhuttl will do well to spice up his attack.

Southampton have bagged two wins out of four already but have scored just five goals. Walcott’s pace and vision to set up star man Ings will surely change this as the weeks roll out.

In other news, Ralph Hasenhuttl drops major transfer clanger ahead of deadline day…

Speaking to Radio Deejay, via Football.London, Italian World Cup winner Giuseppe Bergomi has issued a shock claim about Tottenham club icon Christian Eriksen after his displays in Serie A. 

Eriksen, who completed a move to Inter Milan back in January, putting pen to paper on a £16.9m deal, has so far failed to establish himself at the San Siro akin to his days at Spurs.

A key player under ex-Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino, the Danish playmaker pushed for a move to Inter but has found himself on the fringes of Antonio Conte’s plans.

Bergomi questions Eriksen

Bergomi has now issued his take on the Dane’s situation, claiming Nicolo Barella is by far the better option in midfield and that Eriksen should only be the ‘alternative option’. Claiming he has ‘never been convinced’ by the 28-year-old, Bergomi,  the 1982 World Cup winner is now questioning whether the playmaker has a place at Inter.

“Eriksen will always be a problem for Inter and the questions on why he isn’t playing will always be there,” he told Radio Deejay.

“Antonio Conte gave the best possible response, but we should ask ourselves if Eriksen really does have the talent to dominate in Serie A? I have never been convinced.

“Nicolò Barella is currently the best midfielder at Inter and he will take the trequartista role today against Milan. Eriksen can be an alternative option.

“We have to wait and see if the Dane’s mentality changes.”

Transfer Tavern take

The £100,000-a-week midfielder, who has found life difficult since his move away from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, was even linked with a move back to north London on deadline day (Football Insider). If he continues to be surplus to requirements in Italy, questions could be asked over a possible return to Spurs.

Given that Tottenham managed to arrange the loan of club legend Gareth Bale, who is to say Daniel Levy couldn’t do the same with Eriksen.

Spurs fans, would you take Eriksen back? Have your say in the comments section below…

Whilst they may have been holding Manchester United to 1-1 until the dying stages of the game, it almost felt inevitable that Newcastle were eventually going to succumb to defeat in the Premier League on Saturday night.

The Magpies took the lead thanks to an own goal from Luke Shaw in the opening few minutes of the contest, but their passive approach invited Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side to keep pressing, and in the end, the defence crumbled under the pressure – by the end of the game, they had been out-shot at a ratio of four to one (28 to 7).

But if you’ve been watching Newcastle throughout this season, then the fact United were peppering Karl Darlow’s goal with effort after effort was hardly surprising.

Think you’re a big Magpies fan? Can you name these former players by looking at their careers? Go on, give it a go…

World Class score: 95% | Expert score: 80% | Veteran score: 65% | Intermediate score: 45% | Amateur score: 30% | Try Again: 5%

The Tyneside club’s reliance on trying to soak up the pressure before being clinical on any counter-attacks or set-pieces has earned them a couple of notable results, but there has been elements of good fortune to them as well – not least being the beneficiaries of a hugely contentious VAR call that saw them earn a point away at Tottenham.

In fact, as per WhoScored, Steve Bruce’s side have faced, on average, 17.2 shots per game this season in the Premier League, which is by far the worst in the division.

Despite the fact the actual table shows them in 13th place with seven points from their opening five league games, it’s an approach that is completely unsustainable in the long-term.

You simply cannot rely on Darlow to pull off blinders week-in and week-out to keep a clean sheet, and the negative approach will end up taking its toll on a talented forward-line that boasts the likes of Callum Wilson and Allan Saint-Maximin.

Unless Bruce finds a way to help plug a leaky defence, and prevent Darlow from having to work double-time every game he steps on to the field, then Newcastle are heading for an unmitigated disaster.

After joining Aston Villa on a season-long loan from Chelsea, there may have been some skepticism around the Premier League at seeing Dean Smith’s side bring in Ross Barkley in the summer transfer window.The England international’s career hasn’t quite kicked on since he burst onto the scene with Everton, and it was telling that Frank Lampard was willing to ship him out to another side in the league.But since making his first appearance for Villa, Barkley has been an absolute revelation. Prior to Sunday’s Premier League game against Arsenal, he had managed two goals in seven top-flight matches, including strikes against Liverpool and Aston Villa.And whilst he may not have found the back of the net at the Emirates, he was once again outstanding for Smith. As well as setting up Ollie Watkins for his first goal of the game, Barkley was just a complete menace to the Arsenal defence, outfoxing them with his skill and trickery – one part even saw him and Jack Grealish have a mini training exercise just outside the Gunners’ penalty box.As per Sofascore, he provided a whopping six key passes over the course of the game, which was only two less than what Arsenal managed as a whole. As well as that, he also completed all three of his attempted dribbles, had a team-high 72 touches of the ball (13 more than the man in second Matt Targett), and sent in seven crosses too.It was a display brimming with everything good about the midfielder, and it was no surprise to see The Telegraph journalist wax lyrical about him and just describe his performance as “superb”.

So whilst it may have been Watkins who ended up bagging a brace, it was Barkley who stole the show with his masterclass.

Manchester City were boosted by the news earlier this week that Pep Guardiola has committed to a new contract that will see him remain as manager of the Citizens until the summer of 2023.

The Spanish manager’s excellent relationship with Barcelona forward Lionel Messi is well-known and with the manager committing his future to Manchester City, perhaps it won’t be too long until the legendary winger follows suit.

City were one of several sides to be linked with the 33-year-old during the summer after he announced that it was his intention to leave Barcelona following a disastrous season that saw them miss out on the La Liga title to rivals Real Madrid, as well as the embarrassing 8-2 loss against Bayern Munich (per Goal).

However, after a dispute over his contract, the Argentinian agreed to stay with the La Liga giants, as they refused to let him leave on a free transfer, meaning his €700 million release clause remained active.

Fortunately for City, and perhaps for Messi, his contract with Blaugrana is set to expire at the end of the current season meaning he will be free to leave then and foreign clubs will also be able to approach the forward in January with the view of him agreeing a pre-contract deal.

Therefore, if Messi is still keen to leave Barcelona, you would imagine that City would be amongst the favourites to sign him, due to their vast funds, as well as his excellent relationship with Guardiola.

During the Spanish manager’s time managing the winger, he contributed an extraordinary 211 goals and 91 assists in just 219 games, so it clear that the two work well together (per Transfermarkt).

Messi praised Guardiola’s influence on Barcelona in an interview in 2011, saying:

“Barcelona would not be the same without Guardiola.” (per Goal)

The respect goes both ways, as the Spanish manager detailed exactly why Messi is a genius in an Amazon prime documentary (via Sport Bible), saying:

“He’s not out of the game. He’s involved. Moving his head. Right, left, left, right.

“He smells who is the weak point of the back four. After five, ten minutes, he has the map.

“He knows if I move here, here, I will have more space to attack. Oh, that’s genius! That is quite incredible.

“We are contemporary of that guy. So enjoy it. Lionel Messi, just simply one of a kind. He is so good.”

Clearly, the two formed a great partnership during their time at Barcelona and following the update on Guardiola’s contract earlier this week, it seems that if Messi does leave Barcelona next summer, he could well end up at the Etihad Stadium.

Glasgow Rangers have had to deal with more than their fair share of injuries this season as Steven Gerrard’s side bid to stop Celtic from winning ten in a row. Joe Aribo and Leon Balogun have both been beset by injury problems in recent months whilst Nikola Katic remains sidelined with a cruciate ligament rupture – the latter has already missed more than three months of action with the Light Blues.

Gerrard was struck by another potential blow as Steven Davis appeared to be struggling with severe cramp during the final stages of the Euro 2020 play-off final but the Ibrox boss has been handed a huge boost ahead of the Europa League rematch with Benfica if recent reports are to be believed.

Rangers News have reported that the 35-year-old has survived unscathed after he was spotted in Northern Ireland training.

A huge injury boost for Rangers

Despite his age, Davis has arguably been one of Rangers’ best players in recent weeks. The Gers spoilt a strong performance against Benfica as they threw away a three-goal lead as the Portuguese giants staged a remarkable comeback in the second half before the international break. However, the Northern Irish international was the real standout in the thrilling 3-3 draw in Lisbon.

With Davis covering the defence, Gerrard could opt to start Glen Kamara and Joe Aribo just behind the front three. Or he may even decide to start the veteran just behind Alfredo Morelos so he can create chances and float swinging passes over the top once again. The Gers conceded two sloppy late goals so they must get their act together at the back with a stronger defensive plan before they face Benfica at Ibrox.

The Rangers manager will be relieved to see Davis back on his feet, as he recently praised the Northern Irishman for his “incredible” run of form. Speaking to Rangers TV, Gerrard said: “I watched the game and he continues with his own standards. He’s involved in a game that’s 5-1 and it’s obviously away from them but he continues to do the right things and that sums Steven up.

“On a daily basis he has incredible standards and that comes out in your performances. The way he represents himself and this club on and off the pitch is a credit to himself and his family.”

Wherever Gerrard decides to deploy him, the ever-reliable veteran should provide some much-needed stability at the back, as well as being a useful attacking asset. The Gers are currently top of the Group D table, tied with Benfica on seven points, so it’s important that they pick up as many points as possible if they are to secure the top-seeded position and with Benfica last losing 3-2 to Braga at home, they’ve got a good chance of getting the vital win.

AND in other news, Gerrard can solve Glasgow Rangers’ glaring weakness by promoting Leon King…

Andrew Taylor gets his second bite of the cherry in the Sunderland hot seat this weekend.

His first game in caretaker charge of the Black Cats ended in a 1-1 draw with Burton, but now he has to prepare his side to face Wigan Athletic.

Taylor fielded a pretty similar team to Phil Parkinson in midweek, perhaps due to a lack of preparation time.

Therefore, now he’s had a few days to practise his methods, will we see greater change? Only time will tell.

Here’s the XI we’re predicting Taylor to select for a 3pm kick-off on Saturday.

Sunderland are stuck in a rut at the moment and could be without three key players this afternoon.

Lynden Gooch has been ruled out for around a month and it’s been reported that Luke O’Nien could miss as many as three months with a dislocated shoulder.

There are also fears over the fitness of Charlie Wyke who suffered a knee issue against Burton a few days ago.

As such, we think that Taylor will have to make two enforced changes. Will Grigg was unlucky not score against the Brewers, hitting the post, so he comes into the XI for Wyke, while the other change is at right wing-back.

Loanee Dion Sanderson replaced O’Nien for the final exchanges when he went off last Tuesday so looks set to replace the former Wycombe man out wide.

The final change we’re tipping Taylor to make is in goal. Remi Matthews had a howler for Burton’s goal, spilling it straight to Charles Vernam who was left with a simple tap in.

He’s not looked particularly assured between the posts so we reckon it’s time for an adjustment.

The rest of the side sorts itself out, but starting for a successive game is Elliot Embleton, someone striving to prove himself after a lengthy injury spell last season.

In other news, check out the XI that we think would play if Sunderland appointed Danny Cowley…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, former footballer and current pundit Carlton Palmer has been discussing Danny Ings’ future with Southampton.

The striker joined the Saints on a permanent deal from Liverpool in 2019 and has been superb for the Saints ever since, with 39 goals and nine assists to his name in just 78 appearances for the South Coast club.

The 28-year-old striker, who earns £75k per week at Southampton, has enjoyed another superb start to this campaign, after grabbing 22 goals in the top-flight last season, having contributed six goals and three assists in just 10 top-flight appearances, averaging a superb 7.23 rating.

However, there is some concern that the England international could potentially depart Southampton in the near future, with Tottenham Hotspur having been linked with a move for Ings during the summer, whilst his contract with the Saints is set to expire at the end of next season.

Here’s what Palmer had to say about Ings’ future with Southampton when speaking exclusively to Football FanCast…

“If you’re Danny Ings, if you’re the manager and you’re in the top three. Are you going to leave there to go to Leicester [or] Everton? No, because you’re in third position. Unless you’re going to a Man United, and that might be questionable at the moment, but certainly Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool, right. Unless those top clubs who you know are regularly going to challenge for major honours, why would you leave?

“With the Premier League the way that it is, and the revenue that comes with the Premier League, I don’t see that there’s going to be an issue for Southampton to pay Danny Ings the wages he would want, or to pay the manager the wages he would want. So, for me, there’s no need to leave.”

Palmer seems confident that Southampton will be able to keep Ings, as he rightly questions why the striker would want to leave when the Saints are performing so well at the moment.

Therefore, unless one of the so-called ‘big four’ come in for Ings in future transfer windows, there seems no reason why he won’t extend his stay with the South Coast club.

And, in other news… Hasenhuttl mistake: Saints should axe Long in favour of academy talent who they can “have a lot of fun with”