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Everton are reportedly closing in on the signing of Juventus midfielder Aaron Ramsey as new manager Rafael Benitez begins to make his mark on the first-team squad.

What’s the story?

The Toffees are one of a number of Premier League sides who have been linked with a move for the 30-year-old in recent weeks, with Crystal Palace and Newcastle United also credited with an interest.

However, it appears as though Everton have moved ahead of their domestic rivals in the race for Ramsey’s signature, with Italian outlet Calciomercato claiming he is “increasingly likely” to sign for the Goodison Park outfit.

The report also states that doors will “reopen” for the Wales international in January after he turned down several opportunities to leave Turin over the summer as the Blues prepare to “welcome” the creative talent to the club.

Everton fans will be buzzing

News that Ramsey could soon be joining Benitez’s revolution on Merseyside will surely have large sections of the club’s supporters buzzing with excitement.

His current contract doesn’t expire until the summer of 2023, but rumours suggest the Italian giants are eager to get his £187,000-per-week wages off their books over the winter window after falling down the pecking order under Massimiliano Allegri.

In a recent interview, Ramsey expressed his displeasure at how Juve staff have managed him regarding his persistent injury issues, claiming the national team setup knows how to get the best out of him.

“Philosophy and training methods are different in Juve compared to those carried out with the Wales national team,” said Ramsey.

“In the national team, there are people who have been used to managing me for years and who know how to bring out the best in me, helping me to play many consecutive matches, as I was able to demonstrate at Euro 2020.

“I feel good when I am managed correctly and when I have the opportunity to play regularly,” Ramsey concluded, leaving Juventus’ hierarchy reportedly open to his exit.

During his career, the former Arsenal ace has secured three FA Cups, one Serie A title and one Italian Cup, illustrating the quality that he would bring to Everton, and he could be an ideal replacement for the departed James Rodriguez.

With his potential successor already in the pipeline after just a matter of weeks, supporters will surely be thrilled. He is a proven Premier League talent who has thrived on the continental and international stages.

And, in other news…Signed for £1.7m, now worth £13.5m: Brands struck gold for Everton with £57k-p/w beast 

Aston Villa confirmed on Thursday lunchtime that they have sold out tickets for their first two home fixtures.

And, as to be expected, their update had a lot of Villa fans talking on social media.

Dean Smith’s side return to Villa Park on Saturday, looking to bounce back from an opening weekend defeat to Watford.

They’ll be taking on Newcastle United, who also lost their first league fixture of the new campaign.

Villa are again at home the following weekend against newly-promoted Brentford, and home tickets for the two Premier League fixtures have sold out.

It’ll be the first time Villa Park has been full since February 2020, with the club’s last packed-out home game before the pandemic coming against Tottenham.

Villa fans react

The club shared the news regarding back-to-back sell outs on their official Twitter page.

This is what these Villa supporters had to say in reply, with one labelling it as ‘awesome’.

“We are MASSIVE”Credit: @davidmooney26″wow heroes”Credit: @AVFCHarry_”Wow my club doing bits!”Credit: @Raheil_m94″Awesome!”Credit: @footballlover63″FULL HOUSE VILLA PARK!!! INJECT THAT INTO MY SOUL”Credit: @LilleyCashAVFC”Best fans ever”Credit: @Lol061220

In other news: ‘Bad move’, ‘Nooo’ – Many AVFC fans fume as ’embarrassing’ news is confirmed. 

Aston Villa midfielder Conor Hourihane believes his career at the club ‘is over’ and is looking at his next move, as per journalist Nathan Hemmingham.

The Lowdown: Hourihane’s 2021

The Irishman, who was called ‘excellent’ by Steve Cooper earlier this year, has spent the majority of 2021 out on loan.

Hourihane joined Cooper’s Swansea City side in the January transfer window and almost helped them earn promotion to the Premier League, making 22 league appearances in south Wales as they reached the Championship play-off final.

The 30-year-old returned to the Midlands over the summer and made one appearance in the Carabao Cup before joining Sheffield United on a temporary basis. He has lined out 11 times for the Blades so far, with his Villa contract expiring in the summer of 2022.

The Latest: Villa Park career over

Yorkshire Live reporter Hemmingham posted a link to an interview with Hourihane on Twitter on Friday afternoon, with the midfielder apparently believing that his Villa Park career ‘is over’.

The Republic of Ireland midfielder now thought to be eyeing a permanent move to Bramall Lane, with Paul Heckingbottom now the man in charge.

The journalist tweeted: “Conor Hourihane says he has resigned himself to the fact his Villa career is over and is now playing for his future elsewhere, having worked with PH before, he would love to earn a permanent deal here next season”.

The Verdict: All good things must come to an end…

Hourihane has been a terrific servant to Villa after joining from Barnsley back in 2017, making 151 appearances in claret and blue. However, a permanent exit is now inevitable with his contract up at the end of the season and his limited Villa game-time since they returned to the Premier League

The midfielder made 46 appearances in Villa’s promotion-winning campaign of 2018/19, and while he has probably played for the club for the last time, his contribution in getting them back into the top flight should not be forgotten. Alas, all good things must come to an end.

In other news: Gerrard offered ‘aggressive’ versatile beast in Jan; Villa yet to dismiss idea. 

Celtic have been dealt a huge injury blow ahead of their upcoming Premiership clash.

What’s the latest?

In recent comments cited by Football Scotland, Ange Postecoglou revealed that Anthony Ralston looks set to spend a significant amount of time on the sidelines after picking up an ankle injury in the 1-0 win over Hearts on Thursday.

Speaking about the condition of the right-back, the 56-year-old said: “We will get a round-up from the medical people. Tony felt something in his ankle which is disappointing because he’s been outstanding for us.”

In further comments cited by 67hailhail, Postecoglou continued: “Tony’s probably the one that’s most concerning certainly because for him to come off I’d assume it’s something significant.”

Postecoglou will be gutted

Considering just how crucial a player Ralston has been for Celtic so far this season, the news that he could be ruled out for a substantial amount of time, including Sunday’s fixture against Dundee United, is sure to have left Postecoglou gutted.

Indeed, over his 13 Premiership appearances, the £270k-rated defender has been in exceptional form, helping his side to keep five clean sheets, scoring three goals, registering five assists and creating a whopping nine big chances, as well as averaging 1.8 key passes and 2.1 tackles and winning 7.1 duels per game.

These returns have seen the 23-year-old average a highly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.72, not only ranking him as Celtic’s second-best performer in the league from those who remain in the Hoops’ first-team squad, but also as the third-best player in the entire Premiership.

As such, the absence of the Scotland international will undoubtedly come as a huge blow to Postecoglou and his side, who will be looking to continue their impressive run of recent league form with yet another victory against Dundee United on Sunday.

In other news – 117 touches: Celtic “colossus” who made 95 passes proved Ange right vs Hearts

Tottenham Hotspur are now reportedly targeting a move to sign Noni Madueke before the summer transfer window ends.

The Lowdown: Ex-Lilywhite

Madueke was an Academy player at Spurs, and featured for them in the U18 Premier League back in the 2016/17 season (Transfermarkt).

He left north London to join PSV’s youth system in 2018, and has since worked his way up into their first team.

The Latest: Spurs return

As per The Evening Standard, the Lilywhites are now targeting a potential move to sign Madueke back, while Mikkel Damsgaard is also a target.

It is said that they would like to add another creative player to their squad, and so have turned their attentions towards Madueke.

The Verdict: Must sign

Bringing Madueke back to THFC is a no brainer given just how much he has kicked on since leaving.

The England U21 international scored nine goals and made a further eight assists in 32 games in total over all competitions in the 2020/21 term, which is very impressive considering that he often operated on the wing (Transfermarkt).

Described as a ‘very explosive’ player by former PSV midfielder Tommie van de Leegte, the possibility of having both Madueke and Son Heung-Min on opposite flanks is a truly frightening concept for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team.

Nonetheless, at just 19 years of age, he still has so much potential, as former England youth manager Aidy Boothroyd compared his rise to that of Phil Foden back in March and current PSV boss Roger Schmidt hailed him as a ‘special’ talent who can become one of the world’s best.

This looks like a no brainer for Spurs.

In other news, find out which international star Tottenham have now made an offer for here!

GSB should make their move for mooted West Ham transfer target Yangel Herrera after a fresh claim was made about his future…

What’s the word?

During an exclusive interview with The Transfer Tavern, La Liga expert Euan McTear claimed the 23-year-old midfielder will definitely leave Manchester City this summer, having spent the last two seasons on loan at Granada.

“He’ll leave them for sure,” he claimed.

Last month, the Daily Mail suggested the Venezeulen international was one of several players up for sale as the Premier League champions looked to fund moves for Harry Kane and Jack Grealish.

The Hammers were one of several top-flight teams linked with interest in Herrera in the report and he is expected to cost in the region of £20m.

Get it done

Irons boss David Moyes will need to bolster his playing squad in pretty much every position this summer if they are to remain competitive next season as the prospects of playing over 50 games should become a reality after qualifying for the Europa League.

Of course, some roles are a bigger priority – such as upfront – where the Scot only has one senior striker in Michail Antonio, who is often injury-prone.

But one or two injuries to the engine room could spell disaster at the London Stadium.

First-choice duo Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek are only really backed up by retiring skipper Mark Noble and if West Ham do not add a new central midfielder this summer, they will almost certainly have to in 12 months time.

So why not do it now, with someone like Herrera on the market.

McTear also waxed lyrical about the 23-year-old’s recent season, in which he excelled for La Liga outfit Granada on their way to the Europa League quarter-finals.

“He’s been key to their qualification for Europa League and then the run to the quarter-finals,” he told The Transfer Tavern.

“He’s like a classic box-to-box midfielder, a bit of a throwback in that way. His first instinct is to try and dribble, to pass it forward, charging forward he took so many shots this season, he would get in the box, he scored quite a few goals early on when they were lacking strikers and attacking midfielders and that’s the thing too, he’s been really versatile.”

Also dubbed a “complete central midfielder” by Venezuelan football expert and journalist Carlos Ponte to talkSPORT, Herrera has shown a niche ability to impact the game in multiple ways, mixing aggression and tenacity with an average of 0.7 dribbles, one shot, 1.8 tackles and 2.2 fouls per La Liga outing, via WhoScored.

The 24-cap international, who stands at exactly 6-foot, would be a nice addition to Moyes’ midfield armoury this summer and for just £20m, it wouldn’t take too much of the budget away to bolster other areas.

GSB must make the move amid this exciting claim.

AND in other news, Forget Abraham: Moyes must sanction West Ham swoop for “unstoppable” £15m “big talent”…

Leicester City manager and former Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has revealed that he wanted to bring Ademola Lookman to Celtic Park during his time with the Hoops.

The Lowdown: Lookman’s Leicester move

Lookman, on £56,000-a-week with parent club RB Leipzig, sealed a late loan move to Leicester City on deadline day.

The Foxes have the option to buy the 23-year-old who Scott Parker described as ‘first class’, at the end of the season.

The winger began his career at Charlton Athletic, and it appears as if he was actually a Celtic target during his time at The Valley.

The Latest: Rodgers’ comments

Rodgers was talking at a press conference on Thursday, cited by Leicester Mercury.

When talking about Lookman, Rodgers confirmed he’s known about Lookman since he was just 15 years of age and admitted he wanted to bring the ‘top talent’ to Scotland.

“I’m really excited about working with Ade. He’s a top talent. I wanted to take him to Celtic when he was at Charlton. I was aware of him when he was 15. He has all the tools, he has a great dribbling ability, how he views the game, he has an eye for a goal. My hope is that this environment will give him a chance to flourish. Hopefully he can find a home here. I have no doubt the supporters will be excited by him.”

The Verdict: If only…

Lookman can play anywhere across the front three and has already racked up over 150 senior appearances, one of which came in the Champions League.

On that basis, you’d expect a versatile winger with Premier League and Bundesliga experience would have gone on to star in Glasgow if Celtic and Rodgers lured him to the club as a teenager.

However, it’s good to see that the Hoops are looking to build for the future themselves with the signings of youngsters Liel Abada, Liam Shaw, Osaze Urhoghide, Joey Dawson and Ciaran Dickson this summer.

In other news: McKay’s ‘top’ under-the-radar Celtic signing has already made an ‘impact’ at Lennoxtown. 

Flocking to Twitter, many West Ham United fans have erupted over news involving Sparta Prague striker Adam Hlozek.

The Czech Republic international, who scored a brilliant 15 goals whilst bagging eight assists in just 19 Fortuna Liga appearances last season (Transfermarkt), was linked with a move to east London.

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Indeed, the Irons apparently held lengthy talks over signing him in the summer as he impressed when called upon at Euro 2020, at least according to 90min. 

Hammers boss David Moyes eventually failed to bag a striker or alternative to Michail Antonio up front, arguably West Ham’s only failure of the summer window.

Now, as per journalist Toby Cudworth, news has emerged on Hlozek and West Ham’s hunt for a forward – even after the window deadline.

According to the reporter, West Ham remain ‘very’ interested in signing the teenage sensation as GSB set their sights on yet another Czech star.

Flocking to this news, it’s safe to say many Irons supporters have erupted on social media – find all of their best verdicts down below.

West Ham fans erupt over Hlozek news…

“We are for the Czech Republic what wolves are for Portugal, and I love it!”

Credit: @Zaksta1011

“Music to my ears”

Credit: @_ghzst

“GET HIM IN”

Credit: @camwestham

“Actually think he’s a perfect signing. Good size, powerful, fast, scores goals. Will also get much better. Next year would be a good time to sign. Think a few clubs will be after him, but we will have pulling power to him, I am sure.”

Credit: @Michael78291492

“We have to get him.”

Credit: @Tommb22

“Definitely get him in”

Credit: @westhamworld

In other news: ‘Yayyyy’, ‘Ooooo’, ‘Actually mental’…West Ham fans rave over ‘fantastic news’, find out more here.

Writing on Twitter, reliable club insider ExWHUemployee has made an eight-word West Ham transfer claim involving 2020/2021 loanee sensation Jesse Lingard.

The Lowdown: Lingard wows…

The Englishman, signing on a temporary deal from Manchester United for the second half of 2020/2021, set the world alight under manager David Moyes.

Over 16 Premier League appearances for the club, Lingard bagged a brilliant nine goals and four assists whilst averaging more efforts on goal than any West Ham man (WhoScored).

As a result, reports have heavily linked the 28-year-old with a permanent move to the London Stadium and West Ham are believed to have set it out as a goal for this summer.

The Latest: ExWHUemployee makes eight-word claim

Writing on social media, the club insider responded to a fan question asking if West Ham had dropped their interest in the Red Devils ace going by what he had read about them making an approach for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

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Making an eight-word claim, Ex stated: “Nope Jesse is still the number one priority”.

The Verdict: Music to the ears of supporters…

Lauded as ‘absolutely phenomenal’ by talkSPORT pundit Adrian Durham during his exceptional spell at West Ham, it’s hard to argue with that assessment.

It is arguably crucial that the Hammers manage to complete a deal for Lingard and it would certainly be one of the best buys of the summer judging by his 2020/2021 campaign with the club.

ExWHUemployee’s claim that he is still a number one priority for West Ham should come as music to the ears of supporters.

In other news: West Ham in talks to finalise agreement for 24 y/o after extensive discussions, find out more here.

Liverpool have been dealt a huge blow ahead of the Merseyside derby with Everton after Roberto Firmino missed training and is a huge doubt for the clash.

He was the only absentee at training yesterday according to This is Anfield, with the Reds fielding a strong squad at their Kirkby complex. The Brazilian also missed his side’s comfortable victory over rivals Manchester United in the week, following a foot injury he sustained in the FA Cup semi-final last weekend.

Manager Jurgen Klopp said the situation was still uncertain heading into the game and that “he’s getting better” but “it’s uncomfortable and painful” for him.

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The 30-year old has had a smaller but still as crucial role in Liverpool’s success this campaign appearing 31 times and being directly involved in 15 goals. His availability against Everton would have provided Klopp with the perfect chance to rotate and rest players ahead of the important Champions League semi-final first leg on Wednesday.

Liverpool and Everton are further apart in terms of their form this season than they have been in a very long time. The Reds are battling for the Premier League title whilst their neighbours are fighting to avoid relegation.

Frank Lampard’s side desperately need the points so might prove tougher than what their league placing suggests, the local rivalry here is also huge so that surely adds extra motivation.

Firmino hasn’t scored in any of the 11 games he has played against the Toffees but does have two assists to his name. He was, however, involved in the league game last year where Everton defeated Liverpool for the first time in over a decade.

If he misses out today then we potentially could see him play in the game against Villarreal. If Liverpool are to be successful on all fronts this season then they’ll have to use the squad.

As for his future, it remains to be seen whether or not he is content with being more of a squad player. His contract expires next summer so Liverpool could cash in this year to avoid losing him on a free transfer.

Former England international Kevin Phillips said in an interview last month that he believes Firmino “is likely to move on” and that “he will want a new challenge”.

Even if that ends up happening, there’s no doubting his overall ability with him producing many great performances in a Liverpool shirt.

IN other news: Sources: Liverpool agree terms to sign “special” £36m-rated ace, Klopp surely buzzing – opinion…