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Everton have reportedly joined the race to sign Mikkel Damsgaard in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Damsgaard impresses

Many of the club’s supporters might not have heard of the 21-year-old before Euro 2020, but they’ll certainly know his name now.

He was nothing short of sensational in the tournament for Denmark before they were beaten 2-1 after extra time by England in the semi-finals at Wembley, all with huge pressure on his shoulders to replace Christian Eriksen.

Described as ‘phenomenal’ by team-mate Kasper Schmeichel after an eye-catching performance against Russia in the group stage, Damsgaard scored two goals, including a stunning free-kick against England in the semi-finals, and recorded one assist at the tournament (Sofascore).

The Latest: Damsgaard eyed

As per Calciomercato, Everton have joined the race to sign him ‘in the last few hours’ along with Merseyside rivals Liverpool, while Tottenham Hotspur, Leeds United, West Ham United and Leicester City have all shown an interest in the past.

Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan and AS Roma are also interested in signing the Sampdoria ace, who is quoted to cost in the region of €30m (£25.6m).

The Verdict: Sign

Damsgaard could well be the missing piece of the puzzle that the Toffees need in order for them to qualify for European competition next year.

Fresh of the back of his Euro 2020 heroics, he should certainly have a lot of momentum going into the new season, and at just 21 years of age, he still has a lot of potential to fulfil.

With a whole host of other clubs in line for his signature, the Blues will likely need to act quickly in order to secure his services.

In other news, find out what recent news has left these Evertonians buzzing

Former Premier League midfielder Carlton Palmer has told The Transfer Tavern in an exclusive interview that he is surprised by former Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo’s decision to join Crystal Palace.

The 47-year-old was available following his shock Molineux exit last month and had been linked with a host of clubs.

According to The Telegraph, Nuno had been interviewed by Everton after Carlo Ancelotti’s departure to Real Madrid, while Palace spoke to Frank Lampard and monitored the likes of Sean Dyche and Steve Cooper.

In the end, though, the south London outfit have seemingly opted for Nuno in a move that has surprised Palmer.

“I wouldn’t have thought he would leave Wolves to take the Crystal Palace job,” the ex-Leeds United player said. “That’s just in my opinion because it’s the same of the same for me.

“Palace, they might have a good season and finish just below halfway or whatever, but they’re not going to burst into that top five or top six. So, to me, Wolves and Crystal Palace are much of a muchness. So I’m surprised.”

Wolves and Palace finished in 13th and 14th respectively, so the above is a very fair point.

The latter, though, could need a massive rebuild job this summer, as the futures of so many players remain in doubt. Perhaps that is a challenge and task, creating a brand new team, Nuno is relishing.

Everton need to sign competition for Dominic Calvert-Lewin if they are to challenge for European football, says former Toffees defender Michael Ball.

Calvert-Lewin did his best to fire Everton into Europe last season after scoring 16 goals in 33 appearances.

However, the Merseyside club still fell short, finishing 10th and behind the likes of Tottenham, West Ham and Leicester City, who all managed to grab Europa League and Europa Conference League places.

And now Ball is calling for his old side to bring in new additions this summer, including a striker, in order for Everton to make that next step.

“Everton want to be challenging for Europe,” the retired full-back exclusively told TT. “I think you need competition in all positions. 

“I think a striker, maybe an experienced striker alongside him. I don’t know who’s about who will be happy to come to Everton and probably sit on the bench but also have that experience. [He] could help his game develop to the level he wants it to be at.”

When you look at Everton’s squad, it is probably something Rafael Benitez, who is set to be in the Goodison Park dugout this upcoming season, will probably agree with.

With Cenk Tosun and Moise Kean far from the first team with both spending the 2020/21 campaign out on loan, the Toffees are simply not blessed with forward options.

Sunderland manager Lee Johnson will be buzzing after the club’s sporting director Kristjaan Speakman confirmed that Elliott Embleton will be part of the first-team squad next season.

What’s the talk?

Embleton spent the second-half of the 2020/21 season on loan to Blackpool in League One and earned promotion to the Championship last weekend by winning the play-offs. Sunderland failed in their play-off campaign and then watched a player on their books help Blackpool seal promotion to the second tier.

His contract at Sunderland was due to expire this summer before the club triggered an extension to keep him at the Stadium of Light until 2022. Speakman has now claimed that he will impact Sunderland’s team in League One next season, rather than seal a permanent transfer to Blackpool. He told SAFC Unfiltered, via Blackpool Gazette:

“The easiest thing with Elliot would have been to loan him to League Two, and we held out and we held out because we were desperate to get him with the right club and the right coaching staff.

“Neil and the guys at Blackpool have done excellent with him, given him that platform and he’s gone and performed.“He’s demonstrated the ability to play at the level we need him to play at, so when he comes back here he can hopefully impact our team.”Sunderland midfielder Max Power praised the “brilliant” Embelton earlier in the campaign. He told SAFC unfiltered:“He’s technically one of the best players I’ve seen. A good mark of knowing someone’s technically good is he can take corners with both feet.“I think Elliot’s at that age now where he knows that he needs to stay fit. I know it must be tough for him because I thought last season, he was brilliant in pre-season and then he done his hamstring away at Sheffield United in the [League] Cup.” Johnson will be delighted

Johnson will be delighted that Sunderland have decided to keep Embleton at the club and integrate him back into the first-team picture for next season. Speakman could have opted to cash in on the 22-year-old after his impressive spell with Blackpool, especially given that they achieved promotion to a higher division than Sunderland, but Johnson now looks set to benefit from Embleton’s talents next term.

Embleton produced two goals and four assists in 17 starts for Blackpool. He averaged a WhoScored rating of 6.75 across 21 appearances and set up Blackpool’s equalising goal in the play-off final against Lincoln as he helped his side win 2-1 at Wembley. This shows that he has the quality to make a real impact at League One level and that he is built to perform in the biggest games, having done it in the play-off final.

The £4.3k-per-week midfielder could prove to be an upgrade on Aiden O’Brien. Johnson deployed O’Brien as an attacking midfielder and a winger during the game, as the Irishman played 33 times for Sunderland in League One, averaging a WhoScored rating of 6.61 and providing one assist for his teammates.

Embleton averaged a higher WhoScored rating and was able to create more for his teammates in the league for Blackpool, suggesting that he could improve Sunderland’s squad upon returning to the club this summer.

AND in other news, fans should be delighted as £4k-p/w beast has been backed to sign a new deal

Portsmouth have been dealt a major transfer blow as “excellent” defender Jack Whatmough has signed for League One rivals Wigan Athletic.

What’s the talk?

Wigan Athletic have https://twitter.com/LaticsOfficial/status/1400859923274211333officially announced the signing of Whatmough and the centre-back will join up with the Tics at the start of July.

This comes after BBC journalist Chris Wise claimed the 24-year-old has decided to sign for Leam Richardson’s Latics and will leave Pompey at the end of the month. He is out of contract this summer and has opted against signing an extension with Portsmouth to remain at Fratton Park.

Wise has claimed that Wigan were able to offer a more attractive package to Whatmough than Portsmouth, both in terms of the finances involved and the length of the deal.

Former Pompey defender Paul Robinson, who currently works as a coach at Millwall, recently spoke about Whatmough’s quality. He labelled the 24-year-old an “excellent” defender at League One level and commended his hard work and determination.

Robinson told The News: “What he has shown is what he has always shown on the pitch – that determination and hard work to get himself back fit and get back out there. When he does that, he’s a really good player and one Portsmouth will be gutted to lose.

“I think he is an excellent League One defender. Perhaps the only reason he hasn’t gone to a higher level already is because of his injuries.”There’s no doubt in my mind he would be and you’ve seen how much Portsmouth have struggled when he hasn’t played. When he wasn’t available for some of those crucial games (due to suspension), you saw that and it’s maybe why they ended up just missing out on the play-offs.” Cowley will be gutted

Portsmouth manager Danny Cowley will be gutted by this news as it means that he is losing one of his top performers from the 2020/21 campaign. Whatmough ended the season on a WhoScored rating of 6.86 in League One, with only three Portsmouth players ahead of him in the rankings. Tom Naylor, Sean Raggett and Ronan Curtis were the only Pompey men who outperformed him, highlighting the defender’s importance to Cowley’s squad and why his potential exit is a big blow.

The 24-year-old particularly impressed when starting at centre-back. In his 31 starts in that role, he averaged a WhoScored rating of 6.91, with a couple of substitute appearances and a showing at full-back taking the overall average down to 6.86. He won 1.6 tackles and made 1.1 interceptions, 3.8 clearances and 0.7 blocks per game in League One, showing his strong defensive skillset at this level.

Cowley is now watching one of his best players walk out of the door and join one of their League One rivals in Wigan, which could be all the more frustrating as the defender is not making a step up. It could be a different story if a Championship or Premier League team were offering Whatmough the chance to leap up a division or two.

Instead, Portsmouth are allowing one of their competitors to improve whilst weakening their own squad.

AND in other news,  Pompey handed major boost over £315k-rated gem dubbed “Juan Mata”, fans surely buzzing – opinion

Watford have offered Tom Cleverley a new three-year deal at Vicarage Road, according to a report by Football Insider.

What’s the talk?

A Watford source has told Football Insider that Xisco Munoz’s side have opened talks with the £2.7m-rated midfielder regarding a new contract, with the 40-year-old manager viewing Cleverley as vital to the Hornets’ chances of establishing themselves in the Premier League beyond next term.

If he signs, the 31-year-old would remain at Vicarage Road until the summer of 2024, with his current deal set to expire at the end of next season.

Fans will be buzzing

Having joined Watford from Everton in an £8.37m deal four years ago, Cleverley has gone on to establish himself as an important part of the Hornets’ first team, making 147 appearances for the club, over which he has chipped in with 18 goals and registered 13 assists.

This season, the England international was highly influential in ensuring that Watford made a swift return to the Premier League, scoring four goals, providing two assists and creating two big chances over his 34 Championship appearances.

The midfielder also averaged 0.7 interceptions, 2.2 tackles and one key pass per game, in addition to completing an average of 81% of his attempted passes, with these metrics culminating in a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.10 – ranking him as Watford’s third-best performer in the league.

As such, should the £50,000-per-week Cleverley commit the next three years of his future to the Hornets, it would surely leave fans of the club buzzing, as the midfielder will likely play a huge role for Xisco’s side again next season, this time with the aim of retaining their status as a top-flight team come the summer of 2022.

In other news: Watford gain huge transfer boost over “outstanding” £3k-p/w gem, Xisco will be buzzing – opinion

Despite only signing for the club last summer, Manchester United full-back Alex Telles could be set for a quick getaway from Old Trafford.

According to Calciomercato, Serie A champions Juventus are eyeing the Brazilian ahead of a potential summer move and are contemplating a swap deal involving current Juve midfielder Adrien Rabiot.

The report added that Telles could favour the move, having failed to establish himself as a first-choice option under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Despite those developments, the Red Devils must ensure they keep the left-back at the club. Regardless of his lack of first team opportunities, having made just six starts in the Premier League for United, Telles’ quality is obvious.

He already has four assists from left-back for the Red Devils in all competitions, a fantastic tally considering his limited game-time.

It builds on the excellent displays that he turned in for Porto, having scored 13 goals and notched 12 assists in all competitions during his final season at the Estadio Dragao – performances which seemingly convinced the Red Devils to bring him to Old Trafford.

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He has also been hugely praised by current United boss Solskjaer, who has suggested that Telles gives “everything” to the cause. It would surely be hugely damaging to lose a player of such quality, especially considering United’s current options at left-back.

Whilst Luke Shaw has been in exhilarating form this season, £25.2m-rated Telles is naturally the next in line should the former Southampton man sustain an injury in the foreseeable future.

Brandon Williams is also an option in the position but it would be naïve to suggest that Telles is not an upgrade on the Red Devils’ academy graduate, as evidenced by their performance metrics via WhoScored.

That strength in depth should certainly come in useful next season, with Solskjaer’s troops near-certain to return to the Champions League.

Selling Telles just under a year after his arrival at the club would therefore be a poor decision on behalf of Manchester United.

AND in more news, find out why Donny van de Beek should not be afforded more opportunities at the current time…

West Brom head into tonight’s clash with arch-rivals Wolves knowing that the game is a must-win, otherwise, relegation to the Championship is all but confirmed.

The Baggies are winless in two matches and that has seen them sink 11 points adrift of safety, with only five games left to play.

Sam Allardyce will need to get his team selection spot on but what sort of line-up could we see at the Hawthorns this evening?

Here’s our predicted XI as Albion battle Wolves in the Black Country derby…

Given the lack of solid options at his disposal, the 66-year-old boss could only make two changes from the side that drew 2-2 with Villa last time out.

One of which will surely come in defence after leaking five goals in the last two games.

At Villa Park, Semi Ajayi came in for Dara O’Shea, which was perhaps a little harsh given how well the Irishman has performed in the Premier League, so he could come back in but instead of changing his central defensive partnership, he could instead take the place of Darnell Furlong at right-back.

Conor Townsend is likely to keep his place on the left, with Kieran Gibbs set to leave for the MLS this summer, and that back four will be in front of coveted shot-stopper Sam Johnstone.

The other change could come in midfield as 21-year-old Chelsea gem Conor Gallagher faces the axe after making his first start in four games last weekend.

Matty Phillips will be pushing for a start under Big Sam but his inclusion would come at a cost in the middle, as Matheus Pereira would surely move centrally alongside Ainsley Maitland-Niles, with Callum Robinson continuing on the other flank.

So the £10.8m-rated loanee could be the one to make way.

Up top, Mbaye Diagne is likely to remain as the Baggies’ target man, meaning Karlan Grant and Hal Robson-Kanu have to settle for a place on the bench again.

AND in other news, Journo drops worrying claim over West Brom’s “big-game player”, Big Sam will be gutted…

Celtic are reportedly interested in signing Dundee United’s Benjamin Siegrist, with the goalkeeper now addressing the links regarding a move to Parkhead.

The Lowdown: Celtic were keen back in December

It’s not the first time Siegrist has been linked with a move to Celtic Park. Back in December, the Hoops reportedly added the 29-year-old to their list of January targets.

As we know, a deal never materialised, but it seems as if Celtic are still keen on signing the Switzerland Under-21 international, who kept 12 clean sheets last season.

Former Dundee United manager Micky Mellon described Siegrist as ‘brilliant’, and it seems as if his displays haven’t gone unnoticed.

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The Latest: Siegrist addresses Celtic interest

According to Swiss newspaper Blick, cited by Sports Witness, both Celtic and Ipswich Town are still interested in signing Siegrist.

He has just over a year remaining on his deal at Tannadice and was quizzed specifically on Celtic’s interest.

Siegrist was asked about Celtic possibly offering £400,000 to £1m for his services, to which he said:

“If there is interest, I’ll take a close look.”

The Verdict: Who should Celtic move on?

Siegrist’s telling five-word admission ‘I’ll take a close look’, appears to be a come and get me plea to the Hoops.

Should the Hoops firm up their reported interest, then you’d expect one of Vasilis Barkas, Scott Bain or Conor Hazard would have to move on.

Having four first-team ‘keepers at Parkhead could be one too many, so it would be interesting to see what Celtic would do.

They spent big money on Barkas last summer and agreed on a new contract with youngster Hazard back in March. On that basis, Bain could be the man sacrificed for Siegrist.

The 29-year-old made 15 appearances last season but was missing from the squad for the last two games of the campaign.

It looks set to be a busy summer for the Hoops, and their interest in Siegrist could be one to keep a close eye on.

In other news: Olivier Ntcham contract speculation refuted, find out more here. 

Some Manchester United fans have been left fuming at an update involving David de Gea.

As per the Daily Mirror, the former Atletico Madrid goalkeeper is set to become surplus to requirements at Old Trafford at the end of the season as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer puts his faith in Dean Henderson as the Red Devils’ number one ‘keeper.

The club would have to pay off a large chunk of his mammoth wages in order to get the Spaniard off  their books and value him at £50m, which is an ambitious price given the financial impact of the global pandemic.

Nonetheless, to lose a player of that calibre who has been a loyal servant to Manchester United without an adequate replacement lined up would not be the best bit of business, and the news has certainly been questioned by some supporters.

Manchester United fans on de Gea update

These United fans fumed upon reading the update on Twitter, with one even going as far as to claim that it would be a ‘Solskjaer disasterclass’ to let the 30-year-old leave:

“No way, Dave is going to be the number one of this club in the next three years, he is streets ahead of Hendo. Form is temporary class is permanent.”

Credit: @Apdihakem2

“Crazy if you ask me given it’s probably De Gea who wants to go now he has a baby in Spain if anything De Gea should buy himself out of the contract not the other way round”

Credit: @UAGMVMT

“Another sale which will backfire under Solskjaer.”

Credit: @KarlaHilton1

“This is a disgrace if true United fans on twitter should be ashamed of the way they have treated this legend”

Credit: @Awbmasterclass

“Terrible mistake”

Credit: @UTDpat_

“Another Solskjaer disasterclass in management but not a word is said because he’s not Mourinho”

Credit: @FinishedZ

In other news, find out what Anthony Martial update has left many fans fuming!