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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

In recent reports from The Daily Mail, Newcastle United are looking to lure back Lewis Gibson, who they sold to Everton in 2017 for a reported fee of £6m. The reports suggest he could be tempted to return to Tyneside now that U23 boss Peter Beardsley has left.

What has he done on Merseyside?

Gibson moved to Merseyside when he was just 16 and has certainly made a name for himself amongst the many young English talents around the country. In 2017, weeks after moving to Everton, Gibson played a role in helping the England U17s win the World Cup, which earned him a regular spot in the Premier League 2 side, playing 17 times in his first campaign.

This season, the defender scored his first goal for the Toffees and has played just twice thus far. Throughout his time at the club, the teenager has mainly stayed with the U23s, meaning he has played above his age group for some time, considering he joined the club at 16 and is still only 19.

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As demonstrated by Transfermarkt, Gibson is also known for his versatility, playing predominantly at centre-back, although he has stepped in as a left-back and even as a left midfielder.

Also, last season, the former Newcastle man played a role in helping the U23s win the Premier League 2 alongside the likes of Mason Holgate and Fraser Hornby, both of which are also struggling for first-team action with Everton.

Gibson may need to leave

As mentioned, Gibson joined the Toffees at just 16, as he believed he saw more of a future with the club. Back in 2017, he told Everton officials (as quoted by Chronicle Live): “The reputation has long been there that Everton brings through young players. You only have to look at the likes of Tom Davies, Kieran Dowell, Jonjoe Kenny”.

However, it has been anything but this for the youngster. Since moving from Tyneside, the centre-back has not yet stepped out for the first-team, despite playing a huge role in the Premier League 2 triumph and proving his worth with England’s successful youth sides.

This year, young stars such as Holgate have found only 17 minutes of Premier League action all season, while Tom Davies has featured for just 20 minutes in the top flight in 2019/20, whilst Jonjoe Kenny has had to move to Schalke on loan to get the game time he needs. Even at 26, left-back Luke Garbutt has had to pack his bags for another loan spell, just to get the minutes he craves.

In truth, Gibson’s plan of moving to Everton to break into the first-team has not happened at all, and if he wants to play senior football soon then perhaps moving back home to Newcastle will be his best idea.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Speaking to West Yorkshire Daily on the BBC (6pm, 04/09), Angus Kinnear spoke highly of Andrea Radrizzani, hailing him and his financial commitment for why Leeds were able to hold onto key men this summer.

What’s he said?

Leeds’ summer was a topsy-turvy state of affairs as they saw 31 players depart the club and six men arrive through the doors on loan.

Some of those fell on transfer deadline day as Illan Meslier and Eddie Nketiah were welcomed following the departures of Bailey Peacock-Farrell and Kemar Roofe in their respective positions.

Roofe was a high profile name to exit Elland Road but perhaps the biggest loss of them all was Pontus Jansson who was named in the PFA Team of the Year last season.

However, it could have been much worse for Leeds after Kinnear revealed they swatted away interest for Kalvin Phillips and other players. The Whites’ Managing Director suggests they have Radrizzani to thank for that. He told the BBC:

“Not going up means your players are sought after by other clubs, we had Kalvin and that was very publicised. There were a number of other players that we received offers for from both the Premier League and the Championship.

“It’s a testament to Andrea’s financial commitment that the belief of the team as a unit and in Marcelo that they refused those offers, wanted to stay. We were able to refuse them and maintain the integrity of the squad.”

Top dogs pull through

This is yet again more fine evidence of the nous top officials at Leeds have.

Radrizzani joined the club in 2017 and has since been able to transform the club alongside Marcelo Bielsa as they achieved a playoff spot last term, previously languishing in mid-table.

It’s been quite the turnaround for the Whites who feel like a team that can once again compete for a place in the Premier League, sitting third in the Championship at present.

That’s largely thanks to the wealthy businessman whose financial commitment, as Kinnear notes, has played a huge part in Leeds sustaining a better future.

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Victor Orta’s role in transfers this summer was well documented as he had a pivotal part in landing Nketiah on loan but quite possibly without Radrizzani it wouldn’t have been possible.

Letting go of Jansson and Roofe wasn’t an ideal scenario but holding onto other key men really is a testament to the project they’re building at Elland Road.

Phillips attracted interest from three Premier League outfits in the summer whilst Mateusz Klich was linked with Burnley.

If you consider Kinnear’s words, they might have been long gone if Radrizzani wasn’t at the helm.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Roy Hodgson’s tactics at Crystal Palace don’t always go down too well with some sections of the club’s fanbase.

His decision to substitute Max Meyer for Jeffrey Schlupp was met with criticism, whilst some fans have also expressed annoyance at the 72-year-old’s satisfaction at a somewhat negative approach.

Hodgson is a vastly experienced manager and he must have his reasons for adopting a defend-first-attack-second style, although his improper use of two players is particularly bugging and also ignores the DNA of the football club.

The Eagles have always prided themselves on having fast, dangerous wingers who take the game to the opposition.

The likes of Yannick Bolasie, Sean Scannell, Victor Moses, Wilfried Zaha, Wayne Routledge, John Salako and Vince Hilaire spring to mind when you think of the flamboyant wide men who have donned the red and blue over the years – there always seems to be at least one tricky customer out on the flanks for Palace.

In Hodgson’s team however, there is not.

That isn’t for the lack of such a character being present – Zaha was included in that aforementioned bunch and he is one of the best in the Premier League at taking people on.

Hodgson is messing with the Palace DNA by using the Ivorian in the wrong position, whilst his use of Meyer is also damaging the club’s traditional impetus on threatening via the flanks.

Firstly, let’s look at Zaha.

The 26-year-old is semi-regularly to regularly used as a centre-forward alongside Christian Benteke under Hodgson, as opposed to starting every game out on the left flank – we have already detailed just how much more effective Zaha is when out wide in terms of scoring goals.

Against Sheffield United last time out, the former Manchester United man was starved of the ball and really failed to make an impact – he completed just two dribbles, had no shots on target and was dispossessed twice.

He should be playing on the left wing, an area in which Hodgson continues to deploy Meyer.

It only takes one watch of a Crystal Palace game to see that the Germany international is categorically not a winger.

He is small, fairly weak, and doesn’t possess the natural burst of pace required to beat a man out wide.

As a result, Meyer tends to naturally drift inside and try to get on the ball in more of a left centre-midfield position, which leaves a gaping hole on the wing.

It wouldn’t take a genius for someone to just tell the pair to be flexible with Zaha moving into the left-wing area when Meyer does drift inside, but Hodgson seems a man too stubborn to allow his players such freedom on the pitch.

The Athletic reveals that Hodgson doesn’t really trust Zaha on the left of his 4-4-2 system as he doesn’t feel he offers enough defensive protection, but that is where his best attacking output comes from.

It’s simply up to the former England manager to decide if he wants to sacrifice a bit of defensive solidarity and have his best player firing on all cylinders, or if he wants to ensure a greater chance of a goal not being conceded.

The problem with this is that, once a goal has been conceded, it is incredibly difficult to get out of this system and be more expansive.

Hodgson’s attacking tactics need a major rethink, and for all the time he is failing to utilise Meyer and Zaha, he is ignoring the DNA which the Eagles have prided themselves on for many years.

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West Ham United announced on Wednesday evening that midfielder Josh Cullen had re-joined Charlton Athletic on loan for the 2019-20 campaign.

Cullen helped Charlton earn promotion to the Championship during a loan spell last season – making 29 League One appearances for the club.

The 23-year-old has now returned to the Addicks where he will once again link up with former West Ham midfielder Lee Bowyer, who is in charge of the second-tier outfit.

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Cullen has made nine first-team appearances for the Hammers but has played just twice in the Premier League since the end of the 2015-16 campaign.

And with his contract at the London Stadium due to expire next summer, there is every chance that the former Republic of Ireland international has played his final match for the club.

The West Ham fans have been out in their numbers offering their views on the loan exit.

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And a selection of the Twitter reaction is available to view below:

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Celtic are closing in on their fourth summer signing in the shape of defender Hatem Abd Elhamed, according to STV Sport.

What’s the story?

Hapoel Be’er Sheva confirmed on Saturday that they’ve concluded the deal to sell the defender to Neil Lennon’s side. The reason the signing hasn’t been announced yet is issues surrounding a work permit, per STV Sport.

Having only featured once for Isreal, as a substitute, there’s no guarantee that the player will ascertain a permit to work in Scotland.

Lennon will be hoping the issues surrounding the deal can be sorted quickly to allow the player to be able to play in the Nomme Kalju game. Clubs have until midnight on Tuesday to register new signings for the Champions League qualification second round ties.

The news comes just as trialist Danny Simpson has called off his potential move, as he didn’t want to be a back-up at Parkhead, according to The Scottish Sun.

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Hendry’s time is up

Lennon’s clearly looking to reshape his squad, announcing to Sky Sports recently: “I think there’s some trimming to do, yes. We don’t want to have players on the periphery of the squad on a decent wage being left out.”

And the trimming of the playing squad and addition of reinforcements can’t be good news for those who haven’t featured much under the Northern Irishman.

One such player is Jack Hendry, who wasn’t stripped in either of the two competitive games this season, against Sarajevo.

The 24-year-old has been absolutely crucified by fans for his performances as a Celtic player and only played 15 times last season, none of which came under Lennon.

The ex-Dundee defender is similar to Abd Elhamed in that both are capable of featuring in the middle or on the right of the defence, and one has to imagine that the experienced ace’s arrival could be the end of Hendry’s hapless spell as a first-team player at Parkhead.

With not a single appearance under Lennon, and Abd Elhamed’s arrival coming in the same summer as two other defensive signings and a defensive midfielder, there is just no room at the inn for the man Brendan Rodgers spent £1.5m on back in January 2018.

[ad_pod ]Lots of Arsenal fans have taken to Twitter to react after it was reported by The Express that club officials would be meeting with Barcelona on Sunday to discuss a deal for Philippe Coutinho.The Gunners will know all about the Brazil international after watching him score against them for Liverpool numerous times over the years, although his nightmarish spell at the Camp Nou has seemingly made him available this summer.

The 27-year-old has been booed by his own supporters since moving to La Liga, and has also managed to score just 21 goals in 76 appearances for the Spanish champions since signing in a deal worth £142m.

Barcelona want to sell the former Inter Milan man, but are open to a loan move with an option to buy which appears to have sparked the Gunners’ interest.

One could argue this is a fairly baffling transfer story given Arsenal’s need for defenders over of attackers – the £72m signing of Nicolas Pepe has just been completed, but the futures of Laurent Koscielny and Shkodran Mustafi are still uncertain.

Let’s see how the Arsenal fans on Twitter reacted to the news…

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[ad_pod ]This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…Former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan has called on the Premier League to sanction agents who behave in the same way as Danijel Arnautovic, the representative of Marko Arnautovic, per talkSPORT.

What’s he said?

The West Ham striker completed a move to Chinese club Shanghai SIPG on Monday.

The move came about, per Football FanCast sources, after Arnautovic requested that a bid for him be accepted last week, while he also handed in a transfer request in January.

And Jordan, who was chairman at Palace between 2000 and 2010, believes that agents cannot have such a say in the futures of their clients.

He said: “I don’t understand what the ruckus is about. Everybody knew he was trouble when they signed him, so why are they surprised they got trouble as a result of him? What I don’t like, what I believe is, when someone represents you and then acts in the way his brother does, I think there should be sanctions on these sorts of people.

“Players are signed to a contract which says, if they do anything to bring the club into disrepute, they do anything to criticise the club, they get sanctions against them; fined a week’s wages, fined a month’s wages.

“Agents, on the flip side of it, who are clearly speaking for their player, and clearly being divisive and trying to create a temperature, get away with it scot-free.

“If an agent brings division between a club and a player, then they should be sanctioned for it.â€

Wild west

This should have been happening a long time ago.

Parish is absolutely right to suggest that Danijel has got into his sibling’s ear; sources at the club have confirmed that the club took a “poor deal†from Shanghai simply to rid themselves of the striker.

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That is unusual but it speaks to the impact the agent has had on Arnautovic’s future and his standing at the club; other sources have said that figures within the club simply did not trust Danijel.

And now we reach the end game, with West Ham selling off one of their most productive forwards with no replacement lined up.

For too long agents have been able to simply hawk their wares to any club that will listen; a crackdown can’t come soon enough.

Harry Maguire is likely to join Manchester City this summer after huge contract offer gives them an advantage over rivals United, as per the Mirror.

The Englishman is apparently set to complete a world-record £80million switch to Manchester City this week after being the subject of a transfer tug of war between Pep Guardiola and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, both of whom are chasing defensive reinforcements for very different reasons.

City are rumoured to be prepared to pay Maguire a huge £280,000-a-week to leave the Foxes and move to the Etihad this summer.

The defender is considered to be a natural successor to Vincent Kompany, who recently left City to re-join Anderlecht, the club he left 11 years ago. So, what does that mean for the Blues current starters?

As it stands, Manchester City have Aymeric Laporte, Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones at their disposal in the central position.

Frenchman Laporte made the 2018-19 PFA Premier League Team of the Season after a mightily impressive first full campaign in English football and doesn’t look to be going anywhere anytime soon. And while Otamendi has apparently admitted he would be open to a move away from Manchester this summer, the Argentine also noted he isn’t actively looking for a way out.

That leaves John Stones. The Englishman made 24 Premier League appearances last season but managed just 239 minutes in the final 10 games as City closed in on their second title in a row, ultimately finishing a point ahead of rivals Liverpool. But why?

The England defender was once considered one of the brightest young talents in English football in his playing days at Everton. However, the poor run of form he experienced would suggest that he has somewhat fallen off the wagon of late and could quite easily be perceived as a lack of faith shown by Pep Guardiola. And that’s hardly surprising if his recent UEFA Nations League performance is anything to go by, with his “stupid” decision leading to a Netherlands goal which would subsequently see the Three Lions out of the competition, according to former stars Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher.

With the Premier League as tight as it is, there is no room for error, and Pep Guardiola, who will be chasing the hat-trick, might just turn to Harry Maguire to free John Stones of pressure. Where that leaves the former Everton man, however, remains to be seen.

Manchester City fans, who would you play at the back if Maguire arrived? Do you think Stones is in danger? Let us know in the comments below…

Pipped to it: Manchester City are surely likely to miss out on target Giovani Lo Celso as Premier League rivals Tottenham bundle in with a mega bid.

According to Manchester Evening News, Manchester City are apparently monitoring Giovani Lo Celso’s situation this summer with the impressive midfielder, who once played for Paris Saint-Germain, ready for a move away from Real Betis.

It is understood that City boss Pep Guardiola will closely monitor the 23-year-old’s performances for Argentina at this summer’s Copa America, where some of the finest talents from that part of the world (and Japan and Qatar) will clash in Brazil. Tottenham and Atletico Madrid are also said to be keen on the player.

Spurs (per BBC Sport) are said to already have had an offer of £52.8million rejected by La Liga side Betis, with the club apparently convinced that they can extract more money from City or Atletico. Although we’re not entirely sure City will play ball, if history is anything to go off.

Lo Celso, who bagged himself a cool 16 goals in 46 appearances for Betis last season, initially joined on loan from the French capital last summer, with Betis exercising their option to make the loan agreement permanent at the end of the term.

This smart bit of business is expected to allow the Spaniards to demand upwards of £88million this summer from any of the numerous suitors – thanks to his mammoth release clause, but despite easily having the greatest financial clout, Man City look set to be beaten by a far keener Spurs side, who have not signed a player since Lucas Moura back in January 2018.

This wouldn’t be the first time the Blues have thrown away their dominance, either. Just last year they lost out of both Fred and Jorginho to Premier League rivals, Manchester United and Chelsea respectively, and though neither of the transfers have since worked out particularly well, Pep wasn’t to know that at the time.

Indeed, only now does it look like a City and Pep Guardiola made a great escape and not suffer another embarrassing defeat in the market, following the Sanchez saga a few months before.

Manchester City fans, do you feel like this is a sign of weakness? Let us know in the comments below…

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According to Sport1, Liverpool are considering a swoop for Max Kruse this summer as the experienced forward prepares to leave Werder Bremen on a free transfer.

But it would be fair to say that the Merseyside club’s supporters are not interested in their club moving for the 14-time Germany international.

Kruse will see his current deal with Bremen expire at the end of June.

The 31-year-old actually enjoyed a very productive 2018-19 campaign – scoring 12 times and registering 14 assists in 36 appearances in all competitions.

Sport1 have also linked Bayern Munich with a move, suggesting that the 5 ft 11 ace will not be short of interest when his contract expires at the end of next month.

Has Alisson been Liverpool’s most important signing of the season? Check out the video below to find out why Jurgen Klopp thinks so…

It would not be the worst idea in the world for Liverpool to move for the striker.

However, it would be fair to say that the English club’s fans do not want Kruse to arrive at Anfield ahead of the 2019-2020 campaign.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below: