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Greg O’Keeffe has claimed that Andre Gomes is ‘awful’ in one area ahead of Everton taking on Manchester City in the Premier League on Saturday.

The Lowdown: Gomes’ Southampton nightmare

In the Toffees’ 2-0 loss at Southampton last weekend, it is safe to say that the midfielder had a nightmare.

A local Saints radio pundit (via Paul Brown) claimed that the 28-year-old was ‘poor’ and was ‘costing’ his team, even going as far as to say that he ‘couldn’t get any worse’.

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Gomes lost out on four of his duels in total that day and failed to record a single shot on target, dribble, clearance, interception or key pass, while he also lost possession of the ball 12 times, all in just 45 minutes on the pitch (SofaScore).

Therefore, his form will certainly be a worry ahead of the visit from the reigning Premier League champions this weekend.

The Latest: Gomes is ‘awful’ at stopping players

Taking to Twitter in sharing an article from The Athletic ahead of Saturday’s clash, O’Keeffe has claimed that Gomes is ‘awful’ at stopping players going past him.

The journalist also wrote that the Portugal international is not best suited to performing in a two-man midfield against strong opposition.

The Verdict: Start Doucoure instead

Even though Abdoulaye Doucoure has just resumed training, Frank Lampard should look to start the Frenchman instead of Gomes this weekend. given that the ex-Watford midfielder is in the squad,

The Euro 2016 winner needs to be taken out of the firing line, and no tougher test will come for Everton against champions and league leaders Man City.

Doucoure is much better suited to playing in a two in the middle of the park, as seen by the fact that he ranks highly among his team-mates in terms of tackles, shots, dribbles, passes and through balls per match (WhoScored), and the Toffees will surely need his overall quality if they are to take any points off Pep Guardiola’s side on Saturday.

In other news, find out what ‘big’ Toffees team news claim has been made ahead of Saturday

Southampton may have finally found their Virgil Van Dijk replacement at last in 6 foot 3 centre-back Mohammed Salisu, who signed for the club last season in a £10m deal with Real Valladolid – but it was another defender who caught the eye yesterday during their 3-1 FA Cup fifth-round victory at home to West Ham.

Yan Valery, who was standing in for Ghanaian 22-year-old Salisu who is out with “a little bit of a problem” was praised by manager Ralph Hasenhuttl, who was running out of superlatives for the Frenchman.

“Valery played a fantastic game as a centre-back,” said Hasenhuttl.

“Valery, very impressed, unbelievable performance. With the ball he can still be a little bit calmer, he didn’t want to take too many risks today, absolutely okay.

“He played a few more long balls, absolutely okay. Against the ball, how he defends now, I know that he can do this. His whole body language and his belief in what he has doing has changed completely for us and this is for me very important.

“When we played at Chelsea in the cup game, when he played in a back-three, I knew he was strong but now getting into a back four, sliding, defending, making decisions, it is much more difficult and you need to have more quality but fantastic, I must say, fantastic.”

The 23-year-old natural right-back was once described as the Saints’ “weak link”, but he’s now finally beginning to prove his harshest critics wrong. He has made just six appearances this season so far, with Tino Livramento and Kyle Walker-Peters ahead of him in the pecking order – so with that in mind, it was an excellent decision to begin transitioning the Saints star into a central defender.

He made a very impressive six interceptions and four clearances against West Ham, as well as making two tackles to win back possession and winning 75% of his aerial duels.

The last match before yesterday he played was against Coventry City in the fourth round of the FA Cup, and he was once again deployed as a central defender, this time on the right side of a back-three, and he also did very well – achieving a 7.4 match rating.

Should the homegrown defender continue his solid form as a centre-back, he could save the Saints millions on a new defender in the future, and potentially even form a solid partnership with Salisu at the back.

In other news: £10.8m Saints star who lost possession 16x has just given Hasenhuttl a big headache

Jurgen Klopp could be facing a crisis like none he has faced before during his time as Liverpool manager, as both Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah’s contracts are set to expire at the end of next season.

The likes of Darwin Nunez, Marco Asensio and Jarrod Bowen have all been linked with a move to Anfield in the near future, while Kaide Gordon is showing some impressive potential in the academy, and Takumi Minamino has been thoroughly impressive when called upon this season.

However, back-up striker Divock Origi is set to leave at the end of this campaign, and Klopp’s priority for the Summer could be to replace him with a new number nine.

What’s the news?

German striker Karim Adeyemi has been linked with a move to Liverpool for some time now, and have just been given a boost in their pursuit according to Sky Germany, as front-runners Borussia Dortmund are still yet to agree a fee with his club Red Bull Salzburg.

The Austrian club are holding out for £34m to commit to a sale, while the German giants currently are at least £5m apart in their valuation – giving hope to other potential suitors who are more willing to negotiate like the Merseyside club.

Liverpool need to act now

With Paris Saint-Germain and RB Leipzig also keen on the 20-year-old, Liverpool will need to act now on the starlet, who was described as “ice cold” by Germany manager Hansi Flick.

Having scored 15 goals in the Austrian Bundesliga so far this season, Adeyemi is the top-performing Salzburg forward this season with an average match rating of 7.18, as well as the current top scorer in the league.

For his performances in the Champions League, he ranks in the top 1% among strikers in Europe’s top five leagues and continental competitions for carries into the penalty area per 90 (2.24) as well as penalties won per 90 (0.60).

With a scoring frequency of one goal every 99 minutes in league football, the “atomic” speed demon could emulate former Salzburg star Erling Haaland and quickly become one of the best strikers in the world – which is why Liverpool need to act fast if they want to sign him in the Summer.

In other news: 24 y/o “joke” who wanted to “disappear from Liverpool” is now proving Klopp very wrong

Newcastle United will be looking to extend their winning run to five matches in the Premier League as they host Liverpool at St James’ Park this afternoon.

The Magpies face off against the Reds as Jurgen Klopp’s team are battling with Manchester City to land the title this season.

It will be a difficult match for Eddie Howe’s men but they head into the game off the back of wins over Norwich, Crystal Palace, Leicester and Wolves.

Despite that fine run, one change that the 44-year-old must make from their last outing, a 3-0 win against the Canaries, is to bring Fabian Schar back into the starting XI.

Howe must unleash Schar

The centre-back, who signed a fresh two-year contract earlier this week, was rested at Carrow Road after 14 straight top-flight starts leading up to the game in Norfolk. Newcastle picked up a whopping 29 points from those 14 matches, which shows how important the Swiss defender has been to the club in 2022, as he has played a key role in their resurgence.

Toon legend Alan Shearer previously hailed him as “commanding” and a “danger” going forward in 2019. The 30-year-old was also dubbed “absolutely outstanding” by journalist Dominic Scurr earlier this year, with these comments illustrating how well he has performed over the years.

Upon the announcement of the defender’s new contract, Howe heaped praise on the Swiss hulk as he said: “I’ve been delighted with Fabian’s form. He is the ultimate professional and a hugely important player in our dressing room.

“I’m delighted he has committed himself to the club. He is very driven for future success and I’m pleased he will be a part of our future.”

This shows how highly the head coach rates the £40k-per-week defender, and Schar’s statistics this year prove that he is deserving of such applause.

He averaged SofaScore ratings of 7.2, 7.3 and 6.9 throughout January, February and March respectively and is currently averaging a score of 7.2 in April. This means that he is roughly averaging a score of 7.15 in the Premier League in 2022, consistently delivering excellent displays at centre-back.

For context, Bruno Guimaraes (7.25) is the only Newcastle player with more than five appearances this term to average a higher rating in the top flight for the club. Schar has established himself as one of Howe’s key players and he must be brought back into the team for a big clash with a Liverpool side which has only lost two games in the entire league campaign.

AND in other news, “I’m told”: Insider reveals deal NUFC are set to complete, supporters will be buzzing…

David Moyes has delivered some important West Ham injury news ahead of their upcoming Europa League clash against Eintracht Frankfurt on Thursday night.

The Lowdown: Missing from the matchday squad

The Irons recently suffered a 2-1 defeat to Arsenal in the Premier League in their race for a top-six finish, but first team regular Ben Johnson appeared to be missing from the starting XI and wasn’t even occupying a seat on the bench, with teammate Vladimir Coufal taking his place.

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The 22-year-old has been in impressive form under Moyes this season so it was a surprise to see him not named in the match-day squad, however, it’s now been revealed that there was a very good reason as to why.

The Latest: Injury concern

The Athletic correspondent Roshane Thomas shared the news in a Twitter post, revealing: “Moyes says Ben Johnson has a thigh strain.”

Johnson joins a long list of defensive injuries at the London Stadium including Issa Diop and Angelo Ogbonna.

The Verdict: A massive blow

If the versatile wing-back is unavailable for selection in the second leg against the Bundesliga outfit, then this would come as a huge blow for the Scottish manager who needs all of his experienced defenders accessible to him, should the Irons have any chance of turning the tie around.

Despite Johnson only making 16 top-flight starts this term, he has been an absolute rock at the back for the Hammers, averaging 2.7 clearances, 1.8 tackles, and 1.2 interceptions per 90 minutes, via WhoScored.

Dubbed a “brilliant” player by pundit Paul Robinson since making his stamp on the first team, the £2.5k-per-week ace would be hugely missed if not declared fully fit in time, but will hopefully come back into contention for his side as soon as possible.

In other news… a BBC pundit has backed West Ham to make a move for a Championship starlet who could ‘do a Jarrod Bowen’.

Celtic will earn at least £17million if they qualify for next season’s Champions League, according to financial expert Dr. Dan Plumley.

The Lowdown: Nearing a Champions League return

Ange Postecoglou’s side are within touching distance of Scottish Premiership glory, leading Rangers by six points with three matches remaining this season.

A title win would see Celtic automatically go into next season’s Champions League group stage, allowing them to test themselves against some of Europe’s best teams.

Not only would it be an exciting challenge for Postecoglou and his players but it would also be a significant financial boost.

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The Latest: Expert drops £17m claim

Speaking to Football Insider, Plumley claimed that a minimum £17million windfall would come the Hoops’ way if they get the job done in the league:

“If you base it on the prize money, each club gets just over £13m. You then have win bonuses, which are £2.4m for a win and just under £1m for a draw. So around £17m is what you’re looking at the very least.

“If you go straight into the group stage, you know you have that extra money to play with. Celtic do generate good revenue for where they are in that league. If you add another £17m on top, it becomes even more significant.

“In terms of future planning, you can target transfers accordingly because there is no jeopardy. You know you’re going to be there come September.”

The Verdict: Exciting time for Hoops

There is a feeling that a special era is growing again at Parkhead, with Postecoglou doing a fantastic job since arriving and the title now tantalisingly close.

The financial gains from reaching the Champions League are huge and it would allow more money to be available for transfers, not to mention a higher calibre of player coming in to play amongst Europe’s elite under a special manager.

Celtic must not rest on their laurels just yet, though, with work still to do in the league, starting with Saturday’s visit of Hearts.

In other news, a journalist has dropped a key Celtic transfer claim. Read more here.

Manchester City have been rather proactive when it comes to signing new players during recent summer and winter transfer windows.

As the Manchester club are looking to secure their fourth Premier League title in five years, it seems as though they have been dealt a blow in regards to one potential transfer deal for the upcoming window.

What’s the news?

In a recent Twitter post, journalist and transfer insider Fabrizio Romano relayed comments from RB Leipzig director, Oliver Mintzlaff, regarding the future of Christopher Nkunku, who has been linked with a move to City.

He said: “We have clearly discussed it internally: we won’t let Nkunku leave this summer, we told him and his agent.”

Romano then added that Leipzig “will also try to extend his contract but talks are still at [the] early stages.”

Guardiola will be fuming

Now that it has been revealed that Leipzig will not be allowing their star figure to leave in the summer, this will surely be bad news for City, thus leaving Pep Guardiola fuming.

Since joining the German club back in 2019 from Paris Saint-Germain, the Frenchman has gone on to make 134 appearances for Leipzig across all competitions.

In those appearances, the 24-year-old has found the net 46 times and delivered 47 assists along the way with a whopping 54 of those involvements coming this term alone. That shows precisely why a team like City would have their eye on adding him to their ranks.

To further highlight how much of an impressive attacking and creative figure he is, no other player in the Bundesliga has racked up more shot-creating actions than Nkunku (129) this season.

He also ranks fourth for shots on target (36) and successful dribbles throughout the current Bundesliga campaign, making him a real handful for defenders and goalkeepers to deal with.

However, with it recently being reported that a deal for Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland is close to being completed, this could take some of the sting away from City fans and Guardiola over potentially missing out on signing Nkunku.

Although should the Manchester club fancy their chances of swaying the hierarchy at Leipzig into selling their French talent, he would certainly be an exciting addition to what is already a rather deadly attacking side if he doesn’t sign a new deal at his current club.

In other news: “Man City will..”: Romano drops behind scenes transfer claim, it’s bad news for Pep

Liverpool have had a quite marvellous season and even if the quadruple looks to be slightly swimming away from them, a Champions League final win in Paris in just over a week’s time should be enough to forget about the Premier League.

Jurgen Klopp’s Anfield empire has become even greater this term and after signing a new contract a few weeks ago, it’s set to become a complete behemoth.

This Liverpool team is now one of the best to walk the earth, it is one of the finest we’ve seen in Premier League history and if they seal another European crown in a few weeks’ time, we may even have to consider them as one of the very best ever.

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The question must be asked, therefore, how can this team get any better? Well, if they lose the likes of Mo Salah or Sadio Mane, whose futures are uncertain in Merseyside, they will need to sign new players to ensure their consistency remains imperious.

Luis Diaz’s arrival has been sublime, with the Colombian registering 11 goal involvements since signing in January, but there could be another hole left to fill in the summer.

It will need quickly filling too with Manchester City already 1-0 up in terms of this summer’s transfer activity after signing Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund.

However, Klopp can unearth the perfect tonic to that move by signing his own elite name; Christopher Nkunku.

Like Haaland, the Frenchman has played for a Red Bull affiliated club and he’s also torn the Bundesliga to shreds.

The RB Leipzig talent is a reported target for Liverpool and if they can get a deal across the line, it would be a phenomenal signing.

Dubbed a “nightmare” by ESPN and “unstoppable” by GOAL, there are few better offensive players in Europe right now with the 24-year-old capable of playing up front, on the wings or in attacking midfield.

Boasting 34 goals and 20 assists, he has even more goal involvements in 2021/22 than a certain Egyptian attacker in Merseyside.

He is also compared to some of Europe’s top names with FB Ref declaring him a similar player to Diaz, Mane, Salah and Tottenham’s Heung-min Son.

Nkunku has clearly taken his game to the next level this term and if he arrives in England this summer, Liverpool will have another player capable of rivalling Haaland and Man City for the title.

The race for the Premier League crown next season is going to be incredibly tasty.

AND in other news, Huge boost: James Pearce drops big four-word Liverpool update, supporters will love it…

Bouchier and Dean identified as possible Covid-19 contacts, expected to return for second T20I

Valkerie Baynes28-Aug-2021Charlie Dean and Maia Bouchier have been ruled out of England’s opening T20I against New Zealand after being identified as possible contacts of a COVID-19 case.The pair, who both earned maiden international call-ups for the series, are expected to join up with the England squad ahead of the second T20I at Hove in a week’s time, pending test results.”In order to evaluate the situation and undergo further testing they will miss the first Vitality IT20 against New Zealand,” the ECB said.Emma Lamb has been drafted into the England squad ahead of the first match, at Chelmsford on Wednesday.Batting allrounder Lamb scored an unbeaten 111 off 61 balls opening for Thunder in the Charlotte Edwards Cup against Sunrisers in July, when she also took 3 for 16. She then played all seven of Manchester Originals’ completed matches in the Hundred, with notable scores of 32, 39 and 46 and claiming all three of her wickets for the tournament against Birmingham Phoenix, again taking 3 for 16.Related

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The as-yet uncapped Lamb was named in a 24-strong England training squad last June as players resumed individual programmes at various venues around the country after the first wave of the Covid pandemic.Lamb’s inclusion means that England have again resisted the temptation to pick 17-year-old allrounder Alice Capsey despite her impressive efforts for Oval Invincibles during their late charge to the Hundred title.Bouchier scored 92 runs in seven innings for Southern Brave during the Hundred at an average of 30.66 and with a strike rate of 143.75. Allrounder Dean, who played for London Spirit in the Hundred, claimed a wicket and scored 22 as part of an England A team which beat New Zealand by four wickets in a 50-over warm-up match.Taunton will host the last of the three England-New Zealand T20Is on September 9, with five ODI matches to follow as both sides ramp up their preparations for the World Cup, starting in New Zealand in March, where England are defending champions.

Qiana Joseph, Chedean Nation, and Karishma Ramharack have been rested

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Sep-2021West Indies have added wicketkeeper Reniece Boyce and allrounders Sheneta Grimmond and Chinelle Henry to their 13-member squad for the fourth ODI against South Africa.Left-arm spinner Qiana Joseph, middle-order batter Chedean Nation, and offspin-bowling allrounder Karishma Ramharack have been rested.Henry, 26, featured in the first and second ODIs, having also played a game in the preceding three-T20I series. Meanwhile, Boyce, 24, and Grimmond, 23, last played competitive cricket in July, during the limited-overs A series at home against Pakistan.Ann Browne-John, CWI lead selector for women’s cricket, said: “The fourth and fifth ODIs will give the selectors an opportunity to have a look at some of the young players who have been on the bench and this would give a better assessment of the depth of the team. Qiana Joseph, who has been quite impressive with her left-arm orthodox bowling and has played all six T20 and ODI matches so far, has been rested for this match. She has definitely been a find for the team.”Rashada Williams also competently fitted into the opening batter position. As we prepare for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers, the players have these two final matches to dig deep and get some scores and fine tune their bowling.”The fourth ODI will be played at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground on Thursday, with the fifth ODI scheduled for September 19. South Africa won the first three ODIs in commanding fashion, registering wins by eight, nine, and eight wickets respectively.West Indies squad for fourth ODI: Anisa Mohammed, Deandra Dottin, Aaliyah Alleyne, Reniece Boyce, Shamilia Connell, Cherry Ann Fraser, Shabika Gajnabi, Sheneta Grimmond, Chinelle Henry, Kycia Knight, Hayley Matthews, Shakera Selman, Rashada Williams