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Everton are set to hold onto star striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin for the remainder of the season at least with the Toffees planning to reject any potential offers that come their way for the striker in the January transfer window.

What’s the story?

According to The Daily Star, Everton will block a potential exit for the Englishman before Monday’s deadline with Premier League rivals Arsenal keen on the 24-year-old.

The Toffees are set to appoint former Chelsea boss Frank Lampard as their new manager following the sacking of Rafa Benitez almost two weeks ago and the 43-year-old is keen to hold onto his star striker, for the remainder of this window at least.

Mikel Arteta is still in the hunt for a new striker after the Gunners missed out on signing former Fiorentina man Dusan Vlahovic who instead joined the Italian outfit’s Serie A rivals Juventus.

It has also been suggested that the Arsenal manager was confident of sealing a deal for Calvert-Lewin amid the chaos at Goodison Park surrounding the managerial situation. However, the striker looks set to stay.

Fans will be delighted

Before taking a single training session, let alone taking charge of a match, Lampard has already made a major scalp to kick off his tenure on the blue side of Merseyside with a bang.

Calvert-Lewin is undoubtedly one of Everton’s most valuable possessions and the Toffees will be very keen to hold onto their star striker, at least for the remainder of the season, with their position in the Premier League an uncomfortable one.

Currently sat in 16th, the Toffees are dangerously close to the relegation zone with just four points separating them from 18th place Newcastle United. They do, however, have two games in hand on the Magpies.

The Englishman will prove vital if Lampard is to steer the Toffees clear of any relegation concerns with his goal scoring record a major asset.

Although he is yet to score in his three games since returning from a three-month layoff caused by a toe injury, the 24-year-old is still the club’s best goalscorer.

Calvert-Lewin netted in each of Everton’s three opening league games before his injury and also ended last campaign with 21 goals in all competitions.

At 24, the Englishman will only get better and, once he rediscovers his form, Everton will have a major weapon in their arsenal once again.

Meanwhile, Patrick Boyland has dropped another Everton transfer update…

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has dropped a promising injury update regarding Giorgos Giakoumakis.

What’s the latest?

In a recent interview with The Scottish Mail on Sunday (via 67hailhail), the Bhoys boss revealed that the centre-forward is now back in training after recovering from a knee injury, as well as suggesting that the 27-year-old should be in line for a return to first-team football after the winter break.

Speaking about the condition of the Greece international, Postecoglou said: “Giako is close. One session was not enough for him to be right for Sunday. He is back now to almost being available. If we had one more game he would probably be available but we are now looking to get him back after the break.”

Fans will be delighted

Considering the excitement that surrounded Giakoumakis’ £2.5m move to Parkhead this summer, the news that the striker – who has so far started just two games in his Celtic career – is finally back in contention for first-team football is sure to have delighted the Hoops fanbase and the 56-year-old manager alike.

And, if the £2.25m-rated man can hit anywhere near the heights he did at VVV-Venlo last season in the second half of the current campaign, his return from injury will very much feel like a new signing for Postecoglou and his side.

Indeed, over his 30 Eredivisie appearances last time out, the £8.2k-per-week hitman scored a remarkable 26 goals, registered one assist and created three big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 3.2 shots – 1.5 of which were on target – and making 0.5 key passes per game.

These returns saw the centre-forward earn an extremely impressive seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.35, ranking him as the joint sixth-best performer in the entirety of the division – a rather extraordinary feat when considering the fact that he was playing for a side that suffered relegation from the top flight.

As such, should Giakoumakis indeed be able to refind this form in the second half of the current campaign, it would undoubtedly come as a game-changing boost to Celtic’s chances of reclaiming the Premiership crown come next May – an outcome that would delight everyone involved with the club.

In other news: Ange can finally axe £41k-p/w Celtic deadwood with January swoop that “should happen”

Flocking to Twitter, many Southampton fans have shared their takes as a major transfer claim comes to light involving former star Gareth Bale.

Serbian-born businessman Dragan Solak recently completed a £100 million takeover of the club in what kickstarts a brand new era at St Mary’s Stadium (Sky Sports).

The cable television tycoon’s purchase of a majority stake in Southampton brings an end to the club’s long search for a new owner with former chairman Gao Jisheng now relinquishing control of the Saints.

CEO Martin Semmens remains in his role managing the club as Southampton’s transfer chief and new owner Solak has reportedly set one eye on the January transfer window.

According to El Nacional, making a major claim on what Southampton could now do under their new ownership, Semmens and Solak have identified their ‘first’ transfer goal as they set their sights on Real Madrid winger Bale.

The Wales international, according to their sources, is attracting interest from the south coast side and it is a transfer that has the ‘approval’ of Galactios president Florentino Perez.

As well as this, it is believed that Solak has ‘already begun negotiations’ with Bale’s agent, Jonathan Barnett, and Real’s board of directors over re-signing him at Southampton.

Southampton fans erupt…

Taking to Twitter, given the nature of this transfer claim, it’s safe to say there has been no shortage of reaction from Saints fans.

While some are excited over the prospect of a Bale return, especially considering his pedigree at the top level and previously good years with Southampton, others believe this move could be too far out of the club’s reach.

His age (32) and possible salary demands arguably come as a stumbling block to this move so it’s not hard to see why some fans don’t dare to dream.

Find all of their best reactions to this news down below:

“Imagine the scenes”

Credit: @gdwtownsend

“Yes please!!!”

Credit: @PhilGrinch

“Get it done! Let’s see how serious these new owners are!!”

Credit: @MarcTR4

“Anyone who says no is an idiot”

Credit: @RahilMajid

“This won’t happen but I would love it to he can’t even be compared to Walcott. Bale is another level Theo would never get to imo”

Credit: @saintjoshb

“It would be incredible. But I just don’t think, even with the new owners, that we could afford the funds for his wages. He’d lift the atmosphere of the club, I just hope he would actually try.”

Credit: @SamuelR75523948

“Surely not”

Credit: @Bradders1302

Celtic goalkeeper Vasilis Barkas is wanted by a number of Turkish sides ahead of the January transfer window, according to Sky Sports reporter Anthony Joseph.

The Lowdown: Barkas’ Scotland struggles

The Hoops forked out £4.5m on the 27-year-old back in July 2020, however, it hasn’t turned out to be an inspired piece of business.

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Barkas has made just 23 appearances in green and white, with just one of those coming under Ange Postecoglou. He hasn’t been seen since his Parkhead blunder against FC Midtjylland in a Champions League qualifier back in July and has only made one Scottish Premiership matchday squad.

And it now seems as if the 6 foot 4 colossus is set to leave Glasgow in 2022.

The Latest: Joseph’s post on Barkas

Joseph was a busy man on Monday afternoon, providing plenty of Celtic-related transfer updates.

He finished with a piece of outgoing news, claiming Barkas, thought to be on £20,000-a-week at Parkhead, is ‘open’ to a departure in 2022, whether that be a permanent or temporary one.

“Finally, a number of Turkish clubs are interested in Celtic goalkeeper Vasilis Barkas, who is believed to be open to a loan or permanent move next month.”

The Verdict: Get rid…

Postecoglou doesn’t need to keep hold of Barkas after signing Joe Hart over the summer and having Scott Bain and Conor Hazard as back-ups. [Transfermarkt]

So, on that basis, getting his hefty wage off the books at Lennoxtown seems to be the best decision, even if it is on loan for the rest of the season.

If Celtic receive a respectable permanent offer, then he should leave for good, but not needing to worry about his £20,000-a-week salary could be priceless, especially with the Hoops looking into deals for Japanese trio Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Yosuke Ideguchi.

In other news: ‘Outstanding’ star may miss four games as Celtic issues worsen ahead of Betis clash

Leeds United suffered their third Premier League defeat in a row tonight with a 4-1 defeat against Arsenal at Elland Road.

Goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka put the visitors 3-0 up before half-time with Raphinha managing to pull one back for Marcelo Bielsa’s side from the penalty spot, only for substitute Emile Smith Rowe to seal the three points for the Gunners with another goal.

In what was yet another disappointing night for Leeds, one player who stuck out for all the wrong reasons on this occasion was Tyler Roberts, who failed to have much of a positive impact on the pitch for his side and arguably let Bielsa down.

In his 90 minutes on the pitch, Roberts only had 42 touches of the ball, five fewer than Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier, and he lost possession on 13 occasions.

From an attacking point of view, while the Welshman – who is currently earning a weekly wage of £22k-per-week according to Salary Sport – had three clear shots at goal, only one of them was on target.

Defensively, things weren’t much better for Roberts either after failing to win any of his three ground duels, as well as failing to make even one tackle or interception to try and win the ball back for his side.

This display earned the 22-year-old an overall match rating of 6.2/10 from SofaScore, making him the second-lowest rated Leeds player on the day, highlighting how disappointing he was.

Leeds Live picked up on Roberts’ poor performance against the Gunners by saying that the attacker “time and time again found himself in a position to hurt Arsenal or create something for a teammate and repeatedly chose the wrong option or executed his decision badly.”

With Leeds having the likes of Patrick Bamford, Dan James and Rodrigo out injured, Bielsa is having to rely on Roberts among others to help the team score goals and get points on the board. However, this performance has shown that the Welshman isn’t capable of stepping up when he is most needed.

Moving forward, with Leeds set to take on Liverpool for their next league game, if players such as Bamford, James and Rodrigo aren’t fit enough to feature, the pressure will be on Roberts to at least deliver a better performance than the one he did tonight.

In other news: Phil Hay shares interesting update at Leeds United that’ll surely have fans buzzing

Norwich City had a very eventful weekend with the Canaries finally securing their first win of the season before the celebrations took a twist when the club announced they had parted ways with manager, Daniel Farke, with immediate effect.

There have already been a few names put into the conversation, with the firm favourite being someone currently out of management.

That happens to be Chelsea legend, Frank Lampard.

Fabrizio Romano took to Twitter yesterday evening to confirm Norwich’s interest in the former midfielder and two other managers; “Frank Lampard had a conversation with the Norwich City board today, but still no decision made. Three names on the list, meeting planned to progress in internal talks and decide,” he said.

The main concern for Norwich is having a hefty relegation battle on their hands as they currently sit at the bottom of the premier league table, with just 5 points from 11 games. Luckily, there is still time to get a good run going, but is there potentially somebody available that would be a better fit than Lampard for Norwich’s circumstances?

Dean Smith was relieved of his duties as head coach at Aston Villa this weekend after five consecutive losses and has already appeared on the Canaries’ shortlist. Although he was only sacked a few days ago, Smith seems to be the perfect fit with the skills required to give Norwich the best opportunity of staying in the Premier League next season.

Dubbed a “universally liked” character by Villa CEO, Christian Purslow, the 50-year-old took Aston Villa from mid-table in the Championship and turned them into an established Premier League side. Smith’s success and experience with Villa will not go unnoticed by Norwich City’s sporting director, Stuart Webber, who will be looking for a manager with the proven ability to turn the tide on the club’s abysmal start to the season.

Tim Sherwood, who was speaking on Premier League Productions, has claimed that Norwich would be a ‘great job for him now’ as Smith looks to the future, and the next step in his career.

“He’s still a very good manager,” said Sherwood. “He has proved that he can get someone promoted and he has proved he can stay in the Premier League.”

Smith famously led Villa to a great escape from relegation in 2020, following it up with an impressive 11th place finish in the season after. Norwich will be looking for a similarly ambitious and direct approach from their new manager, to release them from their current relegation woes and secure another season of Premier League football.

AND in other news, Webber could land NCFC’s dream Farke heir with “attractive” coach, he’s a perfect fit…

A major update has emerged on Frank Lampard, regarding a potential move to Rangers to take over at Ibrox.

What’s the talk?

According to Record Sport, the Gers held talks with the 43-year-old over a potential deal and have now settled on a short-list of three candidates, which does not feature his name.

The report claims that the discussions with Lampard were brief, whilst he also reportedly spoke with Norwich prior to their appointment of Dean Smith earlier this week.

Delighted

It had recently been reported that Rangers were not looking at Lampard at all, but this update reveals that the club were considering a deal for him at one point and went as far as holding talks with the ex-Derby County head coach since Steven Gerrard’s departure.

Gers fans will be delighted that Ross Wilson ultimately made the decision not to progress the talks further, as he could have been a poor appointment by the club. Wilson made a big call to axe Lampard from the running and is now eyeing three other candidates and that could benefit them in the long run, as the 43-year-old’s C.V is unimpressive.

He finished sixth in the Championship in his first season with Derby, despite xG suggesting they should have finished 18th. Lampard was then handed the Chelsea job and finished fourth in his debut campaign before being sacked 19 Premier League games into the next term.

Following his exit from Stamford Bridge, Italian midfielder Jorginho provided a damning assessment on why he failed in the role. He said:

“Look, I’ll be really sincere here on Lampard. I believe, given he was a legend at the club, he skipped some steps necessary for learning before moving to a big club.

“He came to a club where he is a legend, without having experience at other clubs. I think he came too soon, skipped a few steps ahead and wasn’t ready for a job at this level, to be honest.”

This provides an insight from a player who worked under Lampard for 18 months and shows why fans will be delighted that Wilson has opted against bringing him to Ibrox. He has not won a single trophy as a manager and his dismal xG statistics at Derby, followed by his sacking at Chelsea, suggest that he has had an underwhelming coaching career to date.

Therefore, Rangers fans will be happy that he will not be coming to Glasgow to potentially fail in a third job, with Wilson now looking at other candidates.

AND in other news, Time’s up: GVB could become an instant hit at Rangers by axing £1.8m-rated dud…

Speculation has been rife regarding the possible transfers Newcastle could pull off in the January window following PIF’s takeover of the club.

The likes of Raheem Sterling, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Timo Werner are just a few of the many names linked with a switch to St James’ Park after Mike Ashley sold the club to the Saudi Arabian consortium.

However, the focus must now be drawn to the players who could lose their game-time as a result of incoming transfers as it would be beneficial to have some out the door before bringing in new arrivals, due to limitations on the size of the squad and preserving harmony among the group.

One player who should be sold in the January window is midfielder Jonjo Shelvey. The 29-year-old has been a liability for Newcastle in the middle of the park and should be replaced by PIF, or whoever the manager is come the opening of the transfer market, with an upgrade in that position being signed instead.

Whilst Shelvey has the silky skills on the ball and the ability to switch the play with his excellent range of passing, he often lets himself down with a lack of work off the ball and his poor decision-making. Despite playing in central midfield, he has a career average of just 0.9 interceptions and 1.2 tackles per game, showing that he does not put the hard graft in defensively.

He has picked up 27 yellow cards and four reds during his time at St James’ Park, with the latest dismissal coming in last weekend’s 3-2 defeat to Tottenham. Shelvey was brought off the bench by Bruce to help rescue the game and instead ended up being sent off for two silly challenges, giving his teammates a taller mountain to climb.

In two Premier League appearances this season, racking up 94 minutes of play, the former Liverpool man has completed one tackle, made zero interceptions, blocks or clearances and received three yellows cards, with two of them leading to a red on Sunday. On the ball, he has not been his useful self either, as he failed to complete a single dribble and provided just one key pass.

Tellingly, the 29-year-old has recorded the lowest average WhoScored rating of anyone in the Magpies’ squad this season with a paltry 5.22, being by far the worst player in a team occupying a place in the Premier League relegation zone. That does not paint a pretty picture of his form.

With Steve Bruce reportedly set to be sacked, the £70k-per-week dud’s time at St James’ Park could also be up after his dismal cameo appearance against Spurs. If Newcastle’s next manager was watching that game, he may have already jotted down a mental note to get rid of Shelvey at the first possible opportunity.

He proved himself to be a liability and that is not the sort of character or player you want to have around when trying to rebuild the club to lead them into a future of positivity and success. Therefore, it could be time for the Magpies to ruthlessly axe Shelvey by cashing in on him in the next transfer window, based on both his style of play generally and his disciplinary record, which was highlighted against Tottenham.

AND in other news, “Sources say”: Craig Hope drops major Newcastle claim that’ll delight supporters…

An exciting update has emerged on Villarreal boss Unai Emery, regarding a potential move to Newcastle…

What’s the talk?

According to Daily Mail journalist Craig Hope, the Magpies are expecting to make an official appointment before their match against Brighton on Saturday.

Reports earlier this morning outlined the club’s interest in bringing the Spaniard to St. James’ Park, but Hope’s latest update suggests that they believe a deal will be done in the coming days.

In a nine-word claim, he said: “NUFC expect to appoint Unai Emery before the weekend.”

Cloud nine

Newcastle fans will surely be left on cloud nine following this exciting update from Hope as the club are seemingly confident of securing an agreement to bring Emery to Tyneside.

Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie made a claim earlier in the day as he said Emery was under serious consideration by the club. Downie also claimed that there is a feeling the Spaniard has unfinished business in the Premier League, although at that point in the day there was no expectation of anything happening.

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This still left room for interpretation, as it was unclear as to whether or not the Magpies were able to strike a deal with Villarreal or whether or not Emery was keen on the job. However, this latest report from the Daily Mail journalist clears up both of those issues by stating that the club ‘expect’ to get it done, rather than saying they are hoping or trying to get him in.

The word ‘expect’ implies that PIF are confident of Emery being in charge for Saturday’s kick-off against Brighton at the AMEX. This is why fans could be left on cloud nine as Steve Bruce’s successor appears to be very close to being confirmed, putting an end to the speculation.

This weekend could be a first chance for the fans to see the Spaniard in charge at Newcastle, although he is likely to have little time to prepare the team to play the way he wants to play, so an immediate improvement on the pitch should not be expected.

The two-week international period could be an excellent opportunity for him to work with the remaining players on the training pitch to get them ready to battle against relegation in the coming months. If he can steer them away from the drop, the Toon Army will no doubt be elated.

AND in other news, Imagine him & Wilson: PIF could form dream NUFC partnership with £100k-p/w “fighter”…

Noel Whelan says he’s been left ‘questioning’ whether Carl Starfelt was ‘a good signing’ for Celtic. 

The former Leeds United, Coventry City and Middlesbrough forward was speaking to Football Insider.

The lowdown

Celtic signed Starfelt from Russian outfit Rubin Kazan for a fee of £4million back in July.

He joined the Hoops on the same day that Kristoffer Ajer left for English Premier League outfit Brentford.

Starfelt wasn’t the only addition to Celtic’s centre-back ranks, with Cameron Carter-Vickers and Liam Scales arriving from Tottenham Hotspur and Shamrock Rovers respectively.

The Swede struggled in Thursday’s Europa League defeat at the hands of Bayer Leverkusen at Celtic Park.

The Daily Record’s Craig Swan handed him a rating of just 5/10 for his display, saying he was ‘never comfortable on the ball’.

The latest

Whelan says that Starfelt hasn’t had the impact that would have been desired at Celtic Park.

He’s been told he needs to step up if he’s to justify Celtic’s outlay.

“They brought in new players this year, Starfelt being one of them,” he said. “You expect them to turn the tide.

“Now you’re questioning was it a good signing? Is he the right man for it?

“Because performances need to be a lot better from a player of that standard. You can’t hide away when you’re out there on the field, everyone sees it.”

The verdict

Starfelt is effectively playing for his place right now, with Christopher Jullien’s return on the horizon.

When everyone is fit, you’d have to say Carter-Vickers ought to be starting alongside the Frenchman.

It was worrying how cautious Starfelt looked on the ball against Leverkusen. It doesn’t really chime with Postecoglou’s philosophy whatsoever.

In other news, read Kieran Devlin’s worrying line on Postecoglou.