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Everton must not pursue their reported move for Leicester City defender Jannik Vestergaard.

The links

Football Insider report that Everton director of football Kevin Thelwell is very much an admirer of Vestergaard.

He apparently tried to sign the Dane during his time at Wolverhampton Wanderers, and launched a fresh scouting mission during the recent international break.

Thelwell and his recruitment team believe he could be an asset to the club because of his ‘aerial dominance’ and experience in the Premier League, but there’s reason to question that assessment.

Former player underwhelmed

Last summer, amid links to Tottenham Hotspur, former PL midfielder Rob Lee admitted that he was unconvinced by Vestergaard and urged the Lilywhites to think twice about a move (via Football Fan Cast).

He questioned the consistency of the centre-back’s performances: “I’ve seen him play well, seen him play badly, so I wouldn’t go breaking the bank for him,” he said.

“I’d go and break the bank for Danny Ings, but for Vestergaard, no, not really. He’s not Virgil van Dijk, is he?”

Strong criticism from journalists

In the end, it was Leicester City that snapped him up, but some journalists believe the move has proven to be a mistake.

For example, Josh Bunting of the Islington Gazette has called it a ‘poor’ signing that ‘hasn’t worked at all’, while Zach Lowy regards him as ‘one of the biggest flops’ of the summer transfer window.

Lowy also believes that the 6 foot 6 Vestergaard isn’t as dominant as he ought to be – he labelled him ‘about as imposing in the air as a macaroni penguin’. The numbers support this too, as the Denmark international ranks eighth for winning aerial duels in the Foxes squad, despite being by far their tallest player (Whoscored).

Tactical concerns

What’s more, Vestergaard may not be the best fit for Frank Lampard’s system at Goodison Park.

The manager has looked to be aggressive, playing the kind of high line Rodgers employs at Leicester, but BBC Sport writer Raj Chohan has observed that the Foxes look ‘so much’ more vulnerable when they ask Vestergaard to push up the pitch.

And The Athletic’s Rob Tanner has noted that the 29-year-old may simply be better suited to playing deeper.

Based on these verdicts, it looks like moving for Vestergaard could be a costly mistake for the Toffees, who already have a number of flops at centre-back with Jamie Carragher branding them a ‘Championship back four’.

In other news, a transfer insider says Arsenal have a second Everton target in mind.

Reliable journalist Fabrizio Romano has dropped a transfer claim linking Benfica striker Darwin Nunez with a move to a whole host of Premier League clubs, including West Ham United.

The Lowdown: Failed January move

The Uruguay international was at the centre of numerous transfer rumours in the January transfer window, one of the most prominent of which came with West Ham making a move towards the end of the month.

Whilst it was said that the transfer attempt was in the pipeline for weeks, Jack Rosser of the Evening Standard has claimed that the Irons submitted a club-record £60m bid for the 22-year-old on deadline day.

Nunez reportedly said that he preferred a move to a Champions League side, so Benfica rejected the east London club’s bid.

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The Latest: Romano’s news on Nunez…

Fabrizio Romano has now shared the latest news regarding a potential £66.6m summer move for Nunez.

Taking to Twitter, he claimed: “Darwin Núñez will leave Benfica in the summer, fee around €80m. His new agent will now meet with many top clubs to explore opportunities. #transfers

“Man United already discussed his name internally – Arsenal wanted him last January as West Ham but Darwin was not for sale.”

Whilst the Irons aren’t explicitly said to be planning on making an imminent move, it is implied that Nunez’s agents will meet with the club over a potential sale.

The Verdict: Would be a fantastic signing

Former Benfica manager Jorge Jesus has hailed the 22-year-old as one of the brightest prospects in world football, saying: “He was the most expensive player in the history of the Benfica and, with the pandemic I don’t know, but he could also be the most expensive player to leave the Benfica. This boy will be the best in the world and, unfortunately for me, I will lose him in no time.”

With such high praise, and with a return of 31 goals in 36 matches this season (including five in the Champions League), it is no wonder that a whole host of Premier League clubs are interested in the Uruguayan striker.

However, with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United now reportedly interested, a move to West Ham seems far less likely to come to fruition, particularly if they miss out on qualification for Europe next term.

In other news: ExWHUemployee drops triple transfer claim

Chelsea’s loss to Man City in the Caraba Cup final gave the Stamford Bridge faithful and Maurizio Sarri a lot to think about. The fixture highlighted that Chelsea are still a team that can defend well, that Maurizio Sarri perhaps isn’t as tactically inflexible as he’s made out, and, perhaps most important of all, it highlighted that the Blues had improved significantly since the last time City and Chelsea met. 

Despite the loss, Chelsea can take a lot of lessons from the game, and perhaps the most obvious of these surrounds Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Chelsea have struggled for midfield creativity this season, with neither Ross Barkley or Mateo Kovacic able to impress at Stamford Bridge.

However, on Sunday, fans got perhaps their best sighting yet of Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Brought in during the closing stages of the game, he immediately settled in the Chelsea midfield – and it’s fair to say that he impressed throughout the final minutes of normal time and throughout extra time.

Perhaps most impressive was his dribbling. He achieved 4 successful dribbles against City – the second of any Chelsea player on the pitch – despite his limited minutes. Only Eden Hazard was ahead of him, and that goes some way to highlighting the impact that he’s able to have. He was direct and to the point, and that’s what Chelsea have recently been lacking. Barkley (who had just 2 successful dribbles) and Kovacic (who didn’t feature) always pass sideways or backwards, and they’re rarely eager to drive forwards. Loftus-Cheek’s presence gave Chelsea a new way to attack, and his influence was huge.

Stats only tell half the story, though. He’s quick on the ball, he’s technically gifted, and he’s a relentless runner. In truth, Loftus-Cheek offers exactly what Chelsea’s midfield needs, and he could be hugely useful over the course of the rest of the season.

He’s had fitness problems this season, but he looks to be past the worst of them. It’s time for Maurizio Sarri to trust him.

Thoughts?

An update has emerged on Newcastle United and their interest in Leeds United star Kalvin Phillips…

What’s the talk?

According to The Mirror, the Magpies are preparing to make a move for the defensive midfielder in the summer transfer window, with Manchester United also keeping tabs on the England international.

The report claims that the Toon are able to offer him £120k per week, which is a significant bump from the £25k-a-week he is currently earning at Elland Road.

Leeds are said to want a fee in the region of £50m for their star midfielder but it remains to be seen whether or not Newcastle are willing to meet that amount.

Rock

Italian legend Andrea Pirlo previously dubbed Phillips a “rock”, and that is exactly what the 26-year-old would be for Eddie Howe at St James’ Park next season.

The Leeds midfielder was once described as a “destroyer” by Steve McClaren, and his impressive statistics in the Premier League back up that praise. In the top flight last term, he averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.21 for the Whites across 29 appearances. 

He averaged a monstrous 4.2 tackles and interceptions per game, also winning 5.3 individual duels per match in the middle of the park. Over the last 365 days, Phillips ranks in the 99th and 97th percentiles for pressures and blocks per 90 respectively in Europe’s top five leagues, which further goes to show how strong he is at the defensive side of his game in midfield.

The Leeds machine is exceptional at screening the back four, as shown by his impressive statistics, and that is why he can be Howe’s rock next season. Phillips could sit at the base of the midfield and provide protection for the likes of Dan Burn and Fabian Schar, with Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton, for example, having more license to get forward and join in with the forwards.

Along with his ability to cut out opposition attacks, he has also shown that he can start some of his own with his passing quality. Last season, he created 1.2 key passes per game and created a whopping five ‘big chances’ despite playing in a number six role.

With 4.7 long passes per match in 2020/21, he has the passing range to open up defences with his creative play, which shows that he offers quality at both ends of the pitch. Therefore, he would be a fantastic signing for the Toon, and he would surely be a player that Howe would love to have on Tyneside for the foreseeable future.

AND in other news, NUFC had an “absolute steal” with £13m “colossus” whose value has doubled in 3 months…

Newcastle United are set to beat Celtic to the capture of Galway United youngster Alex Murphy. 

The lowdown: Celtic eyeing up young talent

Celtic signed Johnny Kenny from Sligo Rovers in January for a nominal fee, clearly looking to build up from the bottom, strengthening the squad of the future.

The Hoops were then linked with 17-year-old defender Murphy in February amidst interest from West Brom and Serie A outfit Torino.

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At that time, the seriousness of the interest from the Premier League club was apparent as an initial report from the Irish Examiner claimed a €100,000 (£83,000) offer had already been made.

Nowm it appears as though Celtic were ultimately unable to land their target, as another English side have swooped in…

The latest: Money talks

According to a report from RTE, newly mega-rich Newcastle have won the race to sign the talented teenager.

It’s claimed that Murphy will move to St James’ Park in the summer after turning 18 on June 25.

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Celtic are once again mentioned as being amongst the interest parties to miss out on the twice-capped Republic of Ireland Under 16 starlet as well as Brighton & Hove Albion.

The verdict: Big blow

After signing a first professional contract with Galway in August 2021, manager John Caulfield described the youngster’s career trajectory as ‘very good’ amidst growing speculation around his future.

Despite his tender years, the teenager has made seven senior appearances in the Irish first division already – completing 90 minutes on five occasions.

Whilst it remains to be seen whether Murphy can make the grade in the English top-flight, the Celtic hierarchy will no doubt be disappointed to miss out on a highly-rated youngster, although this type of attempted capture does show where the Hoops’ upcoming transfer targets may lie.

In other news, pundit pinpoints key attribute that has been crucial for Celtic. Find out more here.

Rangers enjoyed a busy January transfer window as they brought in a number of players to bolster Gio van Bronckhorst’s squad at Ibrox.

Ross Wilson was hard at work as he secured deals to bring in James Sands, Amad Diallo, Aaron Ramsey and Mateusz Zukowski, with John Souttar also set to join at the end of the season.

The Gers are two points clear of Celtic at the top of the Premiership table and these additions could help them to land a second successive league title.

How could van Bronckhorst’s best XI now look? Here is our take on it…

The back four may remain exactly the same, with Zukowski the only addition to the head coach’s immediate options for the rest of the season.

James Tavenier has averaged an outstanding SofaScore rating of 7.81 for the Gers, with the skipper popping up with five goals and ten assists from right-back in the Premiership. This shows that there is no need for the Polish recruit to come straight into the XI and he could spend the next few months learning from the club captain and developing his game on the training pitch.

In midfield, Ramsey could replace Scott Arfield as one of the three, playing alongside Glen Kamara and Joe Aribo. The £16k-per-week Canadian gem has popped up with some important goals this season, scoring three goals in 15 Premiership outings this season.

However, the arrival of the former Arsenal man could force him to be resigned to a place on the bench for the rest of the campaign. Ramsey is a proven performer at the top level, having scored in the Premier League and Serie A for the Gunners and Juventus throughout his career, and could – therefore – bring an added level of quality to the side.

This could also leave January signing Sands on the bench, with Kamara starting in the dictating midfield role slightly behind Aribo and Ramsey. The Finland international has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.03, completing an impressive 91% of his attempted passes, whereas Sands has recorded a score of 6.95 and completed 87% of his pass attempts.

Whilst there may not be a great deal between them, statistically, Kamara has been at Rangers longer and could have van Bronckhorst’s trust for now. However, the USA international could work his way into the XI and keep his place if he continues to put in solid performances when called upon.

In the front three, Diallo could be the club’s best option on the right-wing. He had a dream debut as he scored in the 3-3 draw with Ross County, whilst also creating one chance and completing one dribble.

Rangers have struggled for goals in the right-wing position, with Scott Wright and Ianis Hagi managing just four between them. This is why Diallo could end up being a regular starter as his competitive bow for the club suggests that he could be the goal threat they have been lacking.

AND in other news, Body blow: Rangers dealt big injury setback ahead of Old Firm, Gvb will be gutted…

Monday night’s affair between Crystal Palace and Leeds United saw both sides share the spoils.

Coming into this tie, the Eagles and the Whites will have been cautious, knowing that they are dangerously close to the relegation battle taking place just a few places below.

In theory, Leeds would have wanted the points more, sitting just five points above Everton who are in 18th place. But, on the pitch, it was Vieira’s side who were the aggressors – almost doubling the visitors’ total amount of shots, with 17.

Although Palace failed to score and consequently secure a win, a draw was much needed for the Eagles, who had conceded five and scored just one coming into this fixture in all competitions.

The clean sheet was much-required too, and the goal could have happened for the home side, which is why a section of the fanbase will be disappointed with one player in particular.

With a total expected goals tally of 0.97 xG across his four shots, Jean-Phillippe Mateta will have been astonished that his name somehow evaded the score sheet.

In fairness to him, his movement made him a thorn in the side of the opposition defence, though he failed to take one of his four chances which included an opportunity along the lines of a tap-in.

That chance alone came with an xG total of 0.73, meant that the Frenchman had a high chance of burying that opportunity based on previous shots from that vicinity.

Excluding his runs, the £53k-per-week earner did not offer anything else to the game and rarely helped his side in the build-up play, instead relying on through balls.

His ten passes and fewer touches (32) than goalkeeper Vicente Guaita are a reflection of his failure to assert himself in other aspects of the game and his 25% shot accuracy is perhaps the overall indicator of Mateta’s night against Leeds.

Though it’s the 71% ground duels lost that Eagles fans will be frustrated with the most.

The 24-year-old won just two of his seven ground duels last night and was a hindrance to his side in their attempts to win back possession.

It was not the best night for Mateta, though on another day he could have left with at least a goal to his name.

It’s now been four games without a goal for the Frenchman.

In other news: Vieira must finally unleash CPFC’s £15.3m “delight” today, he will terrify Leeds – opinion

Aston Villa are tracking Inter Milan defender Stefan de Vrij, who is also wanted by Tottenham, as per Football Insider.

The Lowdown: De Vrij profiled

De Vrij is represented by Mino Raiola, the same man who looks after another Villa target in Paul Pogba.

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The Dutch centre-back turned 30 last month and has been with Inter since 2018, where he has made 155 appearances.

He has been labelled a ‘monster’ by former Lazio defender Mauricio and now seems to be wanted in the Premier League.

The Latest: Source shares De Vrij interest

Football Insider shared a story on Saturday afternoon regarding De Vrij. They were informed by a recruitment source that the defender is on Villa’s radar, with Steven Gerrard seeking the addition of an A-list centre-back in the summer.

De Vrij was valued at £40m in January but will be into the final 12 months of his Inter contract at the end of the season.

The Verdict: Revenge on Spurs?

Villa’s Premier League rivals Tottenham are also after De Vrij’s services this summer, with Antonio Conte keen on a reunion with the Inter Milan centre-back.

Spurs pipped Villa to the signing of midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur late in the January transfer window, so it looks as if the Midlands club could now get their revenge by beating the north Londoners to the chase for the Dutchman.

A new centre-back appears to be high on Gerrard’s wish list, so this could be a transfer link to keep a close eye on over the coming months.

In other news, Villa have also been linked with this audacious free agent swoop

Aston Villa trio Lucas Digne, Marvelous Nakamba and Kortney Hause will all return to training ahead of the clash with Wolves next weekend. 

The lowdown

Villa’s season run-in begins with the short trip to Molineux on Saturday afternoon following the international break.

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Digne missed the 1-0 defeat against Arsenal last time out after sustaining a hamstring injury just 10 minutes into the clash with West Ham United earlier this month.

Hause has been absent for the last three Premier League three matches with an abdominal problem, while Nakamba’s return has been long-awaited. The Zimbabwean underwent knee surgery in December, sidelining him for 14 top-flight games.

The latest

Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece and Leigh Curtis reported that Digne has already returned to full training with his national team France. Meanwhile, Hause will ‘link back up with the group at Bodymoor Heath’ at the beginning of the week.

However, Gerrard is expected to exercise caution with Nakamba as he resumes ‘full training’. The midfielder is unlikely to play against Wolves and could instead feature for the under-23s against Stoke City on Friday night as he aims to build up his fitness.

The verdict

The Wolves game may come too soon for Nakamba, while you’d imagine that Hause will be confined to the bench, given that he has only started four league matches this season.

However, Digne’s return is a significant boost for Gerrard. The 28-year-old leads the squad for accurate crosses per 90 minutes (1.3) and is also joint-second for chances created with 1.4 (level with Emiliano Buendia and John McGinn, behind Philippe Coutinho on 1.5).

Indeed, Gerrard believes that the £25m January signing fits his system to a tee, which is “vital” for the manager. The Frenchman could be a player who makes the difference against Villa’s Midlands rivals, given his prowess for creating chances, and having him back in training is very good news indeed.

In other news, the sale of this star could fund Villa’s summer spending plans.

Everton have found scoring goals particularly difficult at times throughout their latest Premier League campaign.

With just seven league games left to play this season, the Merseyside club have only been able to hit the back of the net 34 times.

In terms of which players have or haven’t contributed to the rather disappointing number of times that Everton have been able to bag, one player that hasn’t had his name on the scoresheet all that often is Salomon Rondon.

Since arriving at Goodison Park back in the previous summer transfer window, the £3.6m-rated striker has only scored one league goal in 16 appearances.

And, with the summer window now just around the corner, it seems as though the Toffees could be looking at bringing in a player that has some experience of scoring in the Premier League.

What’s the news?

According to a recent report from TEAMtalk, Everton are one of the clubs interested in making a move to sign Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi this summer.

Chelsea signed the Belgian in a deal worth £33m back in 2016 from French club Marseille.

Since then, the striker has made 77 appearances for the west London club across all competitions, scoring 25 goals in the process.

The 28-year-old dubbed a “beast” has been on numerous loan spells during his time as a Chelsea player, including two with Crystal Palace.

Bye-bye Rondon

His latest loan spell has seen the Belgium international spend the season in Turkey with Besiktas – where he’s been in hot goalscoring form.

With 28 league appearances to his name, the £69k-per-week centre-forward has found the back of the net 14 times.

Having been labelled by Lampard as a player who “loves scoring goals,” Batshuayi could well be a better attacking option for the Toffees than Rondon in terms of being a regular goal threat.

Taking all of this into account, if Chelsea are willing to negotiate a cut-price deal for the attacker in the summer, Everton should definitely explore the possibility of getting him to Goodison Park, especially if they cut ties with their Venezuelan dud.

However, with the report claiming the other clubs such as Wolves, Southampton, Brighton & Hove Albion and Leeds United are also interested in the striker – as well as teams in Spain, Italy and Germany – the Toffees could have a challenge securing his signature.

AND in other news: Everton plot bid for “unplayable” £29m “force of nature”, he’s like “an express train”