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Tottenham insider John Wenham believes defender Joe Rodon could seal a north London exit in the final days on the January window, Football Insider report.

The Lowdown: Rodon under Conte

Rodon is one of five senior centre-backs on the books in north London but has hardly featured under Antonio Conte.

The 24-year-old has made just one appearance under the Italian, coming against Morecambe in the FA Cup earlier this month. He’s been a regular in Conte’s Premier League matchday squads but hasn’t managed to make a cameo off the bench.

Leeds were name-checked with an interest in Rodon ahead of the January window, with reports suggesting that Spurs were likely to give the green light to a temporary exit. However, Alasdair Gold recently admitted that Spurs are yet to receive any official offers for the Wales international.

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The Latest: Wenham’s comments

Wenham was talking to Football Insider regarding Rodon and a possible exit this month.

Here’s what he had to say, labelling it a ‘surprise’ that no offers have come in but backing Rodon to seal an exit ‘in the last days of the window’.

“It is a surprise there have been no offers.

“He might not have played much this season but he did really well at the Euros, clubs must know how good he is.

“A lot of clubs should be looking for a centre-back with plenty of Premier League experience, is capable of playing in a two or three at the back and a full international.

“It does surprise me that it has been reported there have been no offers. I think this is one of those things that might ramp up in the last days of the window.

“Maybe it’s one where clubs will look to sign him after they have been snubbed by their preferred targets.

“I still expect him to leave.”

The Verdict: Will Conte need him?

If Rodon doesn’t seal a Spurs exit before the end of the month, it may not be the end of the world for Conte. That’s because the Spurs boss could be down to the bare bones at the back with Cristian Romero and Eric Dier injured and Japhet Tanganga linked with a move to AC Milan.

Should the latter of the three depart and no defensive reinforcements arrive, Rodon would be one of two fit centre-backs available, meaning the Italian may be forced to use him over the coming weeks.

Things could change between now and the end of the month of course, so the Welshman’s future could be one to keep an eye on.

In other news: Spurs make 11th-hour attempt to dramatically scupper rivals’ move for £40.5m-rated ‘beast’. 

As per a report in the paper edition of Tuttosport, via Sport Witness, there has been a development in Tottenham Hotspur’s pursuit of Inter Milan star Marcelo Brozovic.

The Lowdown: Spurs eyeing move…

The Croatia international is yet another one of Antonio Conte’s former Nerazzurri men who he personally wants to bring to north London alongside defender Stefan de Vrij.

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As per recent updates, the 52-year-old wants Brozovic at Tottenham with TUTTOmercatoWEB even claiming that he is ‘ready’ to welcome the player with ‘open arms’.

This comes amid his 2022 contract situation at the San Siro, and despite Brozovic himself admitting he would like to extend, Tottenham and many other clubs are waiting in the wings ready to take full advantage if talks break down.

The Latest: Spurs make approach…

As per Tuttosport (via SW), Tottenham are one of the many clubs to make an approach to the player’s representatives alongside Manchester United, París Saint-Germain, Atlético Madrid, Bayern Munich and even Newcastle United.

It is also believed that one of these clubs may have already offered Brozovic an €8 million-per-year (£6.7m) salary, which roughly translates to around £129,000-per-week.

The Verdict: What Spurs need?

Surprisingly, despite being a traditionally more defensive player, the 29-year-old could come as a temporary solution to fill the Christian Eriksen-shaped void.

The 70-cap star was remoulded as a playmaker at Inter last season whilst superstar duo Harry Kane and Son Heung-min were the only Tottenham players to match or better some of his creative stats in their respective leagues.

Brozovic averaged the same amount of key passes per 90 in the final third as Kane (1.4) over 2020/2021 whilst racking up six assists, highlighting how he could make an impact for Tottenham further forward (WhoScored).

Former Inter Milan and Udinese boss Andrea Stramaccioni described Brozovic as a ‘very precious’ player for the Serie A giants and we believe he could become just as important under Conte in the Premier League.

In other news: Journalist says ‘worldbeater’ could now be tempted to join Spurs, find out more here.

Newcastle United were handed yet another defeat in the Premier League with a disheartening 2-0 loss against Arsenal at The Emirates Stadium thanks to goals from Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli.

Despite conceding two goals and not managing to give the travelling Toon supporters a goal of their own to celebrate, one player managed to stand head and shoulders above the rest of his teammates on the day and put in a solid display for the Tyneside club – Jonjo Shelvey.

Before being replaced by Isaac Hayden after 89 minutes, Shelvey had a total of 56 touches of the ball, more than any other Newcastle player on the day and managed to complete 40 of the 42 passes he attempted including four accurate long balls.

The midfielder also managed to prove himself to be a bit of a nuisance for Arsenal’s defensive players by having four shots at goal with three on target as well as managing to the woodwork.

Shelvey additionally played his part defensively as well by making three interceptions, three clearances and blocking one shot in the process.

This latest performance for the Toon earned the 29-year-old an overall match rating of 7.5/10, making him the highest-rated player on the day according to SofaScore, higher than Fabian Schar who was the only Newcastle defender that managed to not pick up a yellow card.

With this in mind, it’s safe to say Shelvey was Howe’s only shining light on this occasion in terms of individual performance.

Also, given how the newly appointed Newcastle manager previously said that he thinks Shelvey will be an “important” player for the Toon going forward, his performance today certainly backed that up.

Considering how Shelvey also managed to put in a solid display during Newcastle’s 3-3 draw against Brentford last weekend, it seems as though Howe’s arrival at St. James’ Park has revitalised the midfield man, which will be a big positive for everyone at the club.

Moving forward, with Newcastle’s next game putting them up against Norwich City in midweek, who are also fighting for their survival in the Premier League, if Shelvey can make it three impressive performances out of three and the players in front of him can get some goals while the defenders behind him can keep a clean sheet, this could give the team a great chance of picking up their win of the campaign.

In other news, PIF can land Howe’s dream NUFC deal with “world class” £126m gem, he’s the next Suarez…

As per Football Insider journalist Wayne Veysey, some news has emerged on West Ham United’s transfer plans for January with a new forward on the agenda in Rubin Kazan forward Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.

The Lowdown: Moyes eyeing January…

The Irons are still competing on all fronts with manager David Moyes aiming to bolster his squad in the January transfer window and cope with the increasingly congested fixture calendar.

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Injuries to Angelo Ogbonna and Kurt Zouma have prompted them to also hunt for an emergency centre-half but that hasn’t stopped them being linked to forward options.

Jesse Lingard is thought to be on the agenda, for example, while Moyes and recruitment chief Rob Newman also seek out a centre-forward as back up for Michail Antonio.

Now, some news has emerged on another attacker West Ham are now eyeing.

The Latest: West Ham ‘plotting’ Kvaratskhelia move…

As per Football Insider’s Veysey, West Ham and Everton are ‘plotting moves’ for Russian Premier League winger Kvaratskhelia as the Irons cast their net far and wide.

It is believed the Georgia international, a very highly rated prospect, now has concrete interest from West Ham as Newman and Moyes eye a swoop.

Kvaratskhelia has apparently caught the eye of Hammers scouts after a stellar performance for the Georgians in their 2-0 World Cup qualifying win over Sweden last month.

The Verdict: Exciting option?

Targeted by the likes of Tottenham before, it is clear that the 20-year-old certainly has bags of ability – with journalist Fabrizio Romano taking to his Twitch stream earlier this year and explaining that he is ‘incredible’ (via HITC).

He had many suitors in the summer window also, including Borussia Dortmund, with Sky Sports reporter Max Bielefeld saying that Kvaratskhelia is considered a ‘very interesting, but expensive’ player with a price tag that could reach €20 million (£16.9m).

The Kazan ace has also been dubbed ‘The Georgian Messi’, such is his stellar reputation, but we believe West Ham are better placed prioritising an out-and-out striker right now given Antonio’s poor run of form.

Their central defensive crisis also takes precedent, but a swoop for Kvaratskhelia certainly shouldn’t be ruled out for the future.

In other news: ‘We are back’, ‘What I wanted to hear’…ExWHUemployee’s ‘best news’ has many West Ham fans buzzing, find out more here.

Former Nottingham Forest striker Marlon Harewood has suggested that his old side will struggle to keep hold of Joe Worrall this summer in an exclusive interview with Football FanCast.

Worrall has been linked to teams in the Premier League, with both West Brom and Burnley said to be interested in the 24-year-old.

Despite finishing the game on the losing side, Worrall was praised by some Forest supporters for his defensive performance against Watford as he demonstrated his importance to boss Chris Hughton.

Hughton, however, may not have Worrall to call upon for much longer, that is according to Harewood. Speaking on the player’s future, the ex-Premier League forward exclusively told FFC:

“He’s one of them players that is going to attract a lot of interest from other people, and it’s going to be one of them where Forest are going to struggle to keep hold of him because there’s going to be a lot of top-flight clubs interested.

“Hopefully they’ll be able to keep all their players, but I can’t see it because obviously this year was a promotion battle, but it hasn’t really gone that way. So I think next year they’ll have to rethink all their structure and I think Worrall will be one that will be leaving the club.”

Harewood ended by saying: “I don’t want him to [go], but he’s one of them players that Forest will need to let go to gain some money in to try and revitalise the team again.”

Links to Burnley come as no surprise, with the Lancashire club also facing the possibility of losing one of their central defenders this summer.

James Tarkowski, who was a target for West Ham at the start of the season, will be a free agent in 2022, meaning Burnley could look to cash in in the next transfer window.

Should that happen, with Leicester City having also been credited with an interest in the England international in the past, Sean Dyche moving for Worrall looks a real possibility in what would be a blow for Hughton and Forest.

Barry Fry has exclusively told Football FanCast that he doesn’t believe Daniel Levy will regret appointing Jose Mourinho if Tottenham fail to win a trophy this season.

The Spurs chairman made the decision to sack the popular Mauricio Pochettino back in November 2019, before replacing him with the former Chelsea, Real Madrid and Manchester United manager in a bid to break Tottenham’s long wait for a trophy.

However, the north London crashed out of the Europa League in embarrassing fashion on Thursday evening, losing 3-0 to Croatian outfit Dinamo Zagreb, less than two months after exiting the FA Cup, meaning their only chance of silverware this season is in next month’s Carabao Cup final against Manchester City.

Tottenham are also six points off the top-four, and are in serious danger of not only missing out on the Champions League places, but European football altogether.

Despite their poor form under Mourinho, Peterborough’s director of football doesn’t think that Levy will see his decision to hire Mourinho as a bad one.

He told Football FanCast:

“Knowing Daniel, I don’t think that he ever thinks he makes a bad decision. Everybody was surprised when he made that appointment.

“But Daniel has built one of, if not the best stadium in the world at Tottenham now, it’s unbelievable. I’ve been a few times, and I’m always ‘wow, wow, wow’. So Daniel has done absolutely brilliant, because that was his brainwave, and everybody is grateful for that.

“But Tottenham fans also want to see an entertaining team on the pitch and they want to see a trophy. But they’ve got a chance of a trophy, so if they get a trophy then he will be god again.”

Tottenham return to Premier League action in desperate need of three points against Aston Villa at Villa Park on Sunday evening.

The Athletic’s David Ornstein, a reliable source, has revealed that Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus is a target for Arsenal ahead of the upcoming summer transfer window. 

The lowdown: Doubts emerge?

Signed for £27million from Palmeiras in 2016 (Sky Sports), the Brazilian has scored 93 times in 230 outings for the Citizens.

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Despite the impressive return the Brazilian has struggled to hold down a regular place in Pep Guardiola’s first team and as such has only started on 22 occasions in 35 outings across all competitions this season.

Jesus put on a Man of the Match display at Eastlands on Saturday afternoon with a remarkable four-goals and one assist in a 5-1 demolition of Watford – but his long term future at the Etihad is in question…

The latest: Ornstein makes transfer claim

Taking to Twitter on Friday, journalist Ornstein of The Athletic stated: “Arsenal exploring possibility of signing Gabriel Jesus from Man City. Clubs yet to speak but talks between Edu + reps for months. 25yo open to idea, #AFC current favourites. Calvert-Lewin among options @TheAthleticUK #MCFC #EFC 1st reported @jorgenicola.”

Out of contract in 2023 (Transfermarkt), Arsenal are billed as the ‘current favourites’ to sign the man hailed as an ‘unsung hero’ by Guardiola back in March 2021 following a brace against Wolves.

The verdict: No deal

This shouldn’t even be under consideration for City as Jesus’ astonishing form, when given the opportunity by Guardiola, has backed just how useful he can be for the Sky Blues – as evident by his ridiculous performance yesterday.

So far this term the versatile forward has scored 11 times and provided 12 assists, importantly proving to possess the Midas touch when it comes to big game showdowns with Liverpool.

Even with the potential arrival of Haaland, Jesus has proven to be a top-level operator for the Sky Blues and should be kept on in rotation with or as an understudy for the Norwegian. Albeit Arsenal would be an attractive proposition for the player and a palatable one for Guardiola given the links to Mikel Arteta, selling to a Premier League rival must be out of the question.

In other news: Pep falls out with ‘world class’ Man City star behind-the-scenes, he could now leave…find out more here.

For Leeds United, it would seem that their bubble has well and truly burst.

The year of 2020 was a remarkable one for the Whites. They achieved promotion and sealed their passage to the Premier League for the first time since 2004.

On top of that, they smashed their transfer record to sign Rodrigo from Valencia. Yet, in 2021, things are coming to a halt.

They are yet to win this year and have now suffered three straight defeats. There is little wrong in being beaten 3-0 by Tottenham, but after losing by the same scoreline against Crawley, there was plenty of embarrassment.

It was a horrendous result, one epitomised by a haul of three very bizarre substitutions at half-time. Unfortunately, things didn’t improve against Brighton as they lost 1-0.

Their attacking flair has disappeared and that’s not been helped by the work rate and the overall performance of Rodrigo.

After he signed in the summer for a fee of £30m, there was a lot of expectation. However, at present, with his three strikes, he has cost the club £10m a goal.

Clearly, he has been a disappointment so far. On his day, he is an enthralling talent and the way he cannoned an effort off the crossbar when Leeds drew 0-0 with Arsenal summed up what he’s about.

However, in three consecutive games now he has been abject, being hauled off by Marcelo Bielsa in each match.

Against Spurs, Rodrigo was bullied by Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. The Spain international completed just one dribble as the Tottenham midfielder disrupted Leeds’ flow by winning 11 ground duels.

When they played Crawley, he amassed just seven passes before being dragged off at half-time. Coincidentally, the summer arrival completed just four more passes against Brighton, despite playing 17 more minutes.

It was a lackadaisical display from Rodrigo, a man who completed the second-fewest passes of any Leeds player to start. To make matters worse, the Spaniard also didn’t achieve a single shot or key pass.

His attacking performance was woeful, but his lack of tracking back in midfield drew considerable anger from Luke Ayling.

Leeds Live reporter Beren Cross wrote in his post-match thoughts: “When Luke Ayling gave Rodrigo both barrels for not tracking his man late in the first half, he was summing up what many of us were watching.”

He continued: “In short, Rodrigo looked tired and off the pace at Elland Road. As Brighton drove a coach and horses through the middle of the rutted pitch, he was swimming through lactic acid in its wake.”

Indeed, his lack of touches (21) summed up his tired nature. He took possession on fewer occasions than substitute Pablo Hernandez and managed just two more than another substitute in Tyler Roberts. If that didn’t epitomise his unwilling performance, nothing will.

Rodrigo has now been poor for three games in a row and Bielsa will want to see a lot more from the club’s record signing. At the moment, he looks disinterested and incompetent when it comes to Leeds’ style of play.

That needs to change urgently.

AND in other news, Forget Bamford: Leeds must revive interest in £27m beast with “magic in his feet”…

After securing an impressive win against Spurs last weekend, Leeds United return to Premier League action when they take on Burnley on Saturday afternoon.

Goals from Stuart Dallas, Patrick Bamford and Rodrigo were enough to seal a 3-1 win against the north Londoners and Marcelo Bielsa will be hoping to make it back-to-back wins when his side make the journey to Turf Moor.

With the season winding down, the manager may feel that these last couple of games present him with the perfect opportunity to take a look at some of the club’s best young talent.

While the Leeds boss will be keen to see some of his returning first team stalwarts back in the starting line-up, there may be a chance for one or two academy boys to make their mark.

With that in mind, here is a look at how Leeds might line up when they make the trip to Turf Moor to take on Burnley.

In goal, Illan Meslier will once again keep his place, and while club captain Liam Cooper could be back from injury and suspension respectively, Bielsa may feel that the likes of Pascal Struijk and Diego Llorente deserve to keep their places.

With Gjanni Alioski’s long-term future at Elland Road not yet resolved, and all indications pointing to him leaving the club in the summer, Bielsa may feel that now is the time to look ahead.

Niall Huggins was a part of the successful under-23 side which clinched the Premier League 2 Division 2 title, and the 20-year-old left-back will be hoping to make his full Premier League debut against Burnley – he made a cameo appearance off the bench against Arsenal earlier this year.

Elsewhere, Kalvin Phillips, Rodrigo and Raphinha all came off the bench last week to continue their progress from injury, and they should all now be ready to make a start – that could see both Mateusz Klich and Tyler Roberts dropped to the bench.

Bielsa also confirmed in his pre-match press conference that Joe Gelhardt is out injured, so any hopes of him making an appearance in the first team in the Premier League this season are pretty much over.

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With the young striker ruled out, Patrick Bamford will once again lead the line, hoping to pick up where he left off last week after his goal against Spurs.

Predicted XI: Meslier; Ayling, Llorente, Struijk, Huggins; Phillips, Raphinha, Dallas, Rodrigo, Harrison; Bamford.

Meanwhile, Leeds source drops exciting update on club’s transfer plans…

Sunderland midfielder Lynden Gooch had something of a shocker on Wednesday evening as Sunderland slipped up in their play-off semi-final first leg.

Having picked up four points against Lincoln City over their two meetings in the regular League One season, with a thumping 4-0 victory at the LNER Stadium back in December and a 1-1 draw at the Stadium of Light in March, Lee Johnson’s Sunderland side could well have gone into Wednesday’s clash against Michael Appleton’s outfit believing they held the upper hand over the Imps.

However, this was far from the case in the fixture itself, with second-half goals from Tom Hopper and Brennan Johnson securing a hugely important 2-0 win for Lincoln, and leaving the Black Cats with it all to do in the second leg of the tie if they are to have any hope of playing Championship football next season.

Perhaps unsurprisingly considering the result, a number of Lee Johnson’s players did not fare particularly well in the match, although, Lynden Gooch’s performance stood out as one of the worst on the night.

Deployed in the middle of an attacking midfield three, just behind centre-forward Charlie Wyke, Gooch was extremely ineffectual for the Black Cats in an offensive capacity, managing no shots on target and completing just one of his four attempted dribbles.

The £5k-per-week midfielder failed to ever really get a foot on the ball either, with his 47 touches over the 90 minutes only being more than that of Charlie Wyke, Jordan Jones and Denver Hume of Sunderland’s starting outfielders – with the latter of this trio being withdrawn after 11 minutes due to injury.

And, on the occasions the £540k-rated man did have the ball at his feet, he was extremely reckless with it, losing possession a whopping 20 times in the match, with no other Black Cats player losing the ball more often than the USA international.

Furthermore, Gooch also committed four fouls – with no player from either side making more – and won just three of his 11 duels – with a 27% success rate – while his overall SofaScore match rating of 6.3 was the joint-worst of any of Johnson’s starting XI.

As such, if Sunderland are to have any chance of overturning their deficit in the second leg of the semi-final, Gooch will undoubtedly have to up his game – if, that is, Johnson opts to stick with the 25-year-old in his starting XI.

In other news: Nixon drops big SAFC claim over £653k-rated “wizard” that’ll surely leave fans gutted – opinion