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West Ham recorded a crucial 2-1 victory over Everton in the Premier League this afternoon as goals from Aaron Cresswell and Jarrod Bowen secured three points for the Hammers in the quest for European qualification.

The left-back scored an excellent free-kick to give David Moyes’ side the lead going into half-time before defender Mason Holgate volleyed a deflected equaliser past Lukasz Fabianski in the second half.

However, Bowen, on return from a month-long injury layoff, scored the decisive goal, tapping into an empty net after Michail Antonio’s strike was parried by Jordan Pickford.

To make matters even worse for Frank Lampard’s relegation-threatened side, captain Michael Keane was shown a second yellow card, the third consecutive league game in which Everton have seen a man sent off.

Although the English duo scored the goals, fellow countryman and midfielder Declan Rice was a rock in the middle of the park for the East London outfit at the London Stadium.

According to SofaScore, the Englishman recorded a 7.2 match rating after making 95 touches and enjoying a 94% passing accuracy against the Merseyside outfit.

Moreover, the 23-year-old won half of his ground duels whilst contributing one key pass, losing possession just nine times, an average of every 10.6 touches.

From a defensive point of view, the colossus showed just why he’s been dubbed an “explosion” and a “revelation” by his manager, contributing three interceptions as well as two blocks and one tackle.

It’s no surprise that West Ham’s prize asset was impressive, particularly against one of the top-flight’s biggest strugglers in Everton.

Rice has been repeatedly subject to a potential big-money move away from East London this summer, with Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola labelling the 23-year-old as “an exceptional player.”

However, Moyes has recently stated that the midfielder isn’t for sale and that a fee north of £150m would be the minimum asking price if he is to depart.

The Irons are now back into the Premier League’s top six after their important league victory, however, seventh-placed Manchester United are level on points and have a game in hand.

Next up for the Hammers is the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final against Lyon, another crucial game that Moyes will need all of his players to step up for. A performance similar to that of today’s from Rice certainly won’t be objected to by those associated with the Stratford side.

AND in other news: Moyes can finally axe “shocking” WHU dud as claim emerges, supporters surely buzzing

Everton are on a dire run of form and Rafa Benitez has been not been dealt any favours when it comes to injuries at Goodison Park.

According to The Athletic, Richarlison is set to be out for a number of weeks with a calf tear after he was substituted in the second half of the defeat to Crystal Palace on Sunday.

The Toffees have lost seven of their last nine Premier League matches, having won just five of their 16 matches in the division this season.

Revival

They are in desperate need of something to kickstart their revival under the Spaniard and Richarlison’s injury could open up the door for the spark they need to come in. Ellis Simms could be called up from the academy to come in and make his senior bow.

The 20-year-old is yet to make his first-team debut for Everton but his record in the youth teams and out on loan suggests that he has the potential to be a difference-maker for the Blues.

He scored 10 goals and provided two assists in 24 League One games for Blackpool last term and has scored 55 goals for the Toffees across the U18’s and U23’s, meaning he has 65 career strikes to his name at senior and youth level combined.

In the 2018/19 campaign, he scored a sensational 32 goals in 21 under-18 Premier League matches – scoring 41 times in 44 games at that age bracket overall. Since moving up to the 23’s, he has scored 17 in 37 outings – with his loan spell with the Tangerines coming last season.

Everton U23s Assistant John Ebbrell previously heaped praise on the young attacker, saying:

“What I do know with Ellis, if he ends up one-vs-one with the goalkeeper, he’s scoring.

“From experience, I know if you have time to think for that finish it can be difficult but Ellis is really calm and composed in those situations. He very rarely misses.”

His goalscoring statistics and Ebbrell’s comments on his finishing suggest that he could be able to make the grade in the first-team if he is given a chance by Benitez in the coming weeks. Richarlison’s injury could be the perfect opportunity to throw him in at the deep end to see if he is able to swim or not.

If Simms is able to come in and score goals at Premier League level then it could kickstart Everton’s revival and see them begin to move up to the part of the table where they want to be, rather than struggling in the bottom half.

AND in other news, “What I’m hearing…”: Greg O’Keeffe drops big Everton update, fans surely buzzing…

Rangers have received a boost with the news that Borna Barisic is happy at the club, as per Football Scotland. 

The lowdown

The Gers have already lost one full-back this month, with Everton snapping up Nathan Patterson.

Barisic has also attracted Premier League interest, this time from Watford, who tabled a £2m bid last month which was promptly dismissed by the Scottish champions.

The Croatian’s £18,000-per-week contract, signed in January 2020, still has two-and-a-half years to run.

The latest

Football Scotland reporters Mark McDougall and Euan Robertson wrote that Barisic is ‘enjoying life in Glasgow’, and it would apparently take a bid of £5m for Rangers to even consider letting him go.

The report added that the Light Blues are in ‘a strong negotiating position’ after the club-record sale of Patterson last week.

The verdict

Keeping Barisic would be a big boost for Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Rangers, and it would also illustrate the benefits of parting with Patterson.

The Croatian is a trusted lieutenant, selected for 12 Premiership games and all six of the Gers’ Europa League group stage matches this season.

He has also been the team’s third strongest performer according to SofaScore metrics, with an average rating of 7.3/10. Indeed, in the Light Blues’ squad, only James Tavernier (3.4) has created more chances per 90 minutes than Barisic.

His former manager Steven Gerrard hailed him as a “top player” back in 2019, praise which is merited judging by the above statistics, so to hear that the 29-year-old is quite happy to remain at Ibrox despite Watford’s interest should come as a real fillip to everyone associated with Rangers.

In other news, many Rangers fans flocked to this double exit claim

Crystal Palace have the opportunity to finish in the top half this season, currently just two points behind Leicester City and Aston Villa, but with Patrick Vieira planning for his final push in the remaining Premier League fixtures to secure a top finish, he may have been delivered a huge setback.

What’s the word?

As reported by Daily Mail, Wilfried Zaha had to sit out of the international friendly against England last night after suffering a grade two hamstring injury in training with the Ivory Coast.

The Crystal Palace forward is now very unlikely to be available for selection in Monday’s clash at Selhurst Park against Arsenal, as he reportedly was given an X-ray that has revealed the extent of an injury causing problems.

The Ivory Coast manager, Patrice Beaumelle, revealed further that “if it gets worse it is maybe six weeks or two months out.”

If it is that bad, it may mean that Zaha doesn’t play again this term.

Vieira will be gutted

With only nine Premier League fixtures remaining for the Eagles, the French manager will surely be gutted to have potentially lost one of his most reliable and experienced attacking threats in the team.

The 29-year-old has scored ten goals in all competitions for Palace already this season, with some of his strikes making an important impact on points won for the side. For example, there was a crucial second half goal scored against Norwich that pulled back a point, and a penalty scored against Wolves to seal a comfortable victory recently away to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Palace also have a hugely important clash in the FA Cup coming up at Wembley against Chelsea in just over three weeks, and losing the attacker for the monumental clash that has taken Palace to their first FA Cup semi-final since 2016, could be a disaster for Vieira.

There will surely more clarity on the seriousness of the injury when Zaha returns to his club and is further assessed later this week, and the Eagles boss will likely call upon his other attacking players to complete the difficult challenge against the Gunners at Selhurst Park this weekend, no matter the outcome.

In other news: Vieira set for huge howler as CPFC plot bid for “terrible” £91k-p/w dud who’s “so bad”

Peter Lawwell would be heading for disaster by hiring Hibernian manager Jack Ross to replace Neil Lennon as pressure builds on the Irishman at Celtic.

What’s the word?

According to The Scottish Sun, Lennon stood on the brink of being fired following last weekend’s humbling League Cup defeat to Ross County, which saw the Hoops’ 35-game domestic cup-winning run come to a disappointing end.

Fans revolted against Lennon in the aftermath of the loss, with hundreds of supporters tearing down fencing after descending on Parkhead, from where the under-fire coach could hear the shouts for him to go.

Lennon stood firm in front of the media, claiming “I think I should get more time”, but it is thought that Ross could be one of several options for Lawwell and majority owner Dermot Desmond to consider should the axe fall.

Ross took charge of Hibernian in 2019 following an ill-fated spell with Sunderland, where he was relieved of command for failing to meet the owner’s expectations after being handed the English third-tier’s largest wage budget.

The 44-year-old has somewhat got his career back on track since returning to Scotland, with Hibernian sat third in the Premiership after 16 games, while claiming 25 points over his 18 games in charge during the prematurely concluded 2019/20 campaign.

Only Celtic (49) and Rangers (36) secured a substantial return of points greater than Hibernian’s record following Ross’ appointment last season, with Livingston and St. Johnstone claiming 26 points each.

Ten-in-a-row hopes finished

With pressure from supporters mounting on Lennon to leave Celtic, the Hoops hierarchy may be forced into a change of plans having not been expected to fire the Irishman before January’s Glasgow Derby clash with Rangers at the earliest.

But appointing Ross would only serve to see Lawwell set a course for disaster at Parkhead and finish the Lennoxtown outfit’s hope of a record tenth Premiership title in a row, as the Hibernian boss will not be the one to overturn the mammoth margin separating Celtic from their bitter rivals Celtic.

The Hoops are making heavy work of their title defence and could end Sunday 14-points behind Steven Gerrard’s Gers, albeit with two games in hand, and are showing no signs of mounting a turnaround,  with just two wins in 11 matches across all competitions.

When Sunderland’s fortunes faltered last year and the Black Cats sat sixth in League One having contended for promotion the season before, the axe swung on Ross as owner Stewart Donald had freed the funds he felt would have gotten the Stadium of Light natives over the line.

Sunderland had only lost twice all season when Ross was fired, and it should spark fear in Lawwell that Donald believed the coach could not turn things around, while his Hibernian tenure has not been without fault either.

Defeats to Ross County, Livingston, Hearts and Aberdeen sit like a stain on Ross’ record, that boasts just 15 wins in 34 Premiership fixtures while conceding 42 goals and scoring just 50.

AND in other news, Peter Lawwell can deliver Celtic’s next Virgil van Dijk by signing an “unbelievable” enforcer.

As we move into a ninth week without a permanent manager for Celtic, those at Parkhead should be beginning to panic.

The Bhoys have been battered and bruised this season and now they’re being left rather embarrassed in their search for a new head coach too.

What’s the word?

Over the course of the last seven days, Eddie Howe has discovered he may well have some competition on his hands to become the new manager.

Howe has been in advanced discussions with the Celtic board but now Roy Keane is back in the hunt and Jose Mourinho has also reportedly been contacted.

However, despite that, the Hoops are no closer to announcing a new manager. In fact, they’re still pretty much where they started when Neil Lennon first resigned back in February.

That’s the word of Frank McAvennie who revealed what his sources had told him over the weekend.

Speaking to Football Insider, he said: “The more we go on, the more people are getting annoyed, it’s too long to appoint a manager. I’m not happy with it but that’s Celtic, we shouldn’t expect anything else from them.

“It’s same old Celtic. I just hope there will be something coming out that I don’t know about but, from what I’m told, there’s nothing close at the moment.”

Get a move on

Supporters will have every right to be enraged by what’s going on at the moment, especially as they now have to see the campaign through without a single trophy to celebrate.

John Kennedy was made interim manager when Lennon resigned but he’s not been able to reinvigorate and breathe fresh life into the Hoops over the last few months.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-celtic-manager-and-transfer-news-howe-lampard-klimala-ajer-gossip” title= “Read the latest Celtic manager and transfer news!”]

He’s only lost just one game in charge but the performances have lacked inspiration and cutting edge, something we saw in the 2-0 defeat to Rangers.

Had Dermot Desmond already appointed a new manager then perhaps they’d still be in the competition? After all, the defensive mistakes that plagued Lennon’s final few months in Glasgow were rife during that defeat.

The longer the wait goes on, the more troublesome Celtic’s summer could become too.

They have a number of issues relating to the playing staff to sort out with the likes of Odsonne Edouard, Kristoffer Ajer, Ryan Christie, Tom Rogic and Olivier Ntcham pondering moves away.

That’s without forgetting the number of loanees that will have to return and the fact that Scott Brown is moving on too.

Without a manager, this process can’t be streamlined and recruitment may be put on hold. Celtic are in a mess that Desmond needs to correct quickly. They cannot wait much longer than they already are.

AND in other news, Bye-bye Ajer: Celtic must unleash rarely-seen “weapon” next term, he’s clear of Duffy…

Many Liverpool fans flocked to claims that manager Jurgen Klopp is keen to see Georginio Wijnaldum stay at Anfield.

The 30-year-old has been heavily linked with a move away from Merseyside for some time, with Barcelona one of the sides that are hugely interested in his services.

But the Daily Mail revealed that Klopp wants the Dutchman to remain at Liverpool and would like to see him sign a new contract.

Wijnaldum’s current deal expires at the end of the season and he can already speak to other clubs on pre-contractual negotiations – and can even come to an agreement before the transfer window opens.

Despite this, supporters have lost patience with the Holland international and want him to leave the club, as one fan described it as an “absolute travesty” that Klopp is hoping to keep the midfielder.

Only time will tell what Wijnaldum’s future holds, but these fans have made their feelings pretty clear…

No love lost with Wijnaldum and these fans

“Please no”

Credit: @freestriv

“I don’t. Let him go”

Credit: @yuta_adi

“back pass merchant”

Credit: @gfhdjdjssjj

“An absolute travesty”

Credit: @Rele_Lethale

“He’s your Man but let him go.”

Credit: @iconicGer_

“Gini exit presents perfect opportunity to upgrade the quality of our midfield!”

Credit: @svosve_26

In other news, James Pearce stunned by ‘poor’ Jurgen Klopp decision during Chelsea defeat.

Leeds United would be making a major transfer mistake by signing Newcastle United star Jacob Murphy this summer.

What’s the story?

With the Premier League season reaching its climax on Sunday, Marcelo Bielsa will be keen to kick-start the summer transfer window with a few early signings at Elland Road.

According to Football Insider, the Whites are set to join Scottish giants Rangers in the race to sign Murphy.

The report added that the winger has just over a year left on his contract at St James’ Park, with a number of other Premier League clubs also interested in signing him.

Underwhelming from Bielsa

While Murphy has lately been deployed by Bruce as a right wing-back, his record when used as a winger is rather underwhelming, and one which won’t have Leeds fans excited at all.

In the 19 games this season where he has played further forward out wide, the £25,000-a-week earner has managed just two goals and three assists in all competitions. By contrast, Raphinha has four goals and five assists in 22 games from the right flank for Leeds this term.

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Murphy has effectively been a passenger for the Magpies going forward, and that’s not the kind of player the Whites need if they are to reach another level next season in the Premier League.

Bielsa needs to be targeting more proven options in the top flight, and Murphy’s below-par goalscoring record raises some major questions marks over Leeds’ reported interest in signing him this summer.

In other news, Leeds could reach a new level if they pull off a deal for this “extraordinary talent”.

Lee Johnson has made himself quite clear this winter. He wants to sign players capable of stretching the play in the final third.

If Sunderland are to achieve promotion, then those individuals must also be capable of scoring goals.

What’s the word?

The Black Cats’ festive and New Year period has been a rather disastrous one. Four games were postponed due to the ongoing pandemic and their 0-0 draw with Northampton last weekend hardly did enough to raise spirits.

However, the addition of new players this month could add a great deal.

Carl Winchester from Forest Green has been linked but a new target on their radar is Hibernian forward Kevin Nisbet.

According to The Scottish Sun, Sunderland have already made contact with Hibs in a bid to sign the 23-year-old.

It’s reported that the Mackems have asked for a valuation of the player ahead of a January switch. He was signed for £250,000 but considering his form, would likely cost Sunderland more.

Bye-bye Grigg

If Sunderland sign a new striker this month, then it would have two positives. Not only would it bump £4m signing Will Grigg down the pecking order, but it would also significantly boost their promotion hopes.

Grigg has failed to score at all this season and besides Charlie Wyke, they lack natural goal scorers. However, if they bring Nisbet to the Stadium of Light they’d have an exquisite finisher, one who has a habit of beating goalkeepers.

The forward has found the net on 12 occasions in all competitions for Hibs this season and it’s that kind of record that the Mackems have been crying out for.

Their top goal scorer in league football last term was Chris Maguire with ten strikes so it’s clear they need one thing in order to boost their promotion bid; more goals.

Nisbet would provide that in abundance and if a certain Jack Ross can get the best from him, surely Lee Johnson can as well?

Ross’ football wasn’t the most pleasing on the eye in the north-east but he’s extracted enormous results from the young striker in Scotland.

Speaking about Nisbet this season, the former Sunderland manager said: “Both feet, headers, tap-ins, longer range ones. Today (11/23/20) he played as a lone striker and that’s not something he’s had to do a lot this season, he’s played against Nir (Bitton) and Kristoffer Ajer who are two good players.”

Ross continued: “To show he can handle that and work tirelessly, and then get his reward, he’s been a brilliant signing for us and his goal return is excellent, at this season to have that number of goals is terrific and I don’t see that changing.”

Considering some of the defenders he’s defeated in the SPFL, he would surely be a big threat in League One. Kristjaan Speakman needs to sign him.

AND in other news, Sunderland could find their new Bailey Wright in £750-p/w gem once dubbed “faultless”…

Noel Whelan has dropped a big claim on the potential takeover of Newcastle United after HMRC ceased their investigations into the club.

The Lowdown: HMRC drop investigations

On Thursday, it was confirmed that HMRC are discontinuing their investigation into the taxes of the St. James’ Park faithful.

It now means that there is more clarity in the North East for any potential new owners who are looking to take over the Tyneside club, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium.

The Latest: Takeover path may be cleared

Speaking to Football Insider, Whelan, who is now a pundit after a stellar footballing career playing for the likes of Leeds United and Coventry City, has claimed that the clarity may open the door for fresh takeover interest:

“Now that’s out of the way, it’s a massive plus for the football club.

“Also for any potential takeover and the buyers. It’s something that was hindering people from coming forward and wanting to buy the club. 

“It opens the door for people to come in and table bids, and that’s what I expect now there’s clarity in the football club. 

“The sooner someone takes over and Mike Ashley gets what he wants, the quicker they can start rebuilding.

“Newcastle deserves an owner who will look after it. Someone who will put money into it and take it back to the glory days. 

“The days of David Ginola, Philippe Albert and Tino Asprilla. The shackles need to come off.”

The Verdict: HMRC conclusion can only be a positive

The conclusion of the HMRC investigation can only be a positive for the Magpies, as it does offer a lot more clarity to any potential bidders.

The investigation may have been a worry before hand, given that the Toon could well have lost a lot of money from it if it ended up going against them.

However, given that it has all been cleared up, NUFC can now focus on trying to push through a takeover of the club.

Nonetheless, they still have an arbitration case against the Premier League based on the failed bid by the KSA group, which could give an indication over what twists and turns this saga will take next.

In other news, find out what transfer boost Newcastle have been gifted here!