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A new name has emerged in Tottenham Hotspur’s managerial search this week…

What’s the word?

According to Sunday Times and Daily Record journalist Duncan Castles, Sevilla boss Julen Lopetegui is being considered for the vacant role.

Speaking on a recent episode of ‘The Transfer Window’ podcast, he said: “I hear that there is an additional candidate that they’re working on in the shape of Julen Lopetegui, who could be a solution for them if they can’t get one of their earlier choices.

“Lopetegui is liked by Tottenham and is likely to be recommended to them by Paratici, he certainly has a good track record of work at Sevilla, winning the Europa League in 2020, and finishing third and fourth, getting them into the Champions League two years running.”

Paulo Fonseca is widely believed to be the front-runner for the gig after Italian transfer guru Fabrizio Romano revealed that the two parties were in ‘advanced talks’ over a potential three-year contract, but this news is certainly an intriguing twist.

Better than Fonseca?

Since this claim, reports in Spain have fueled the fire even further, with Estadio Deportivo likening the situation to that of Juande Ramos back in 2007, when he replaced Martin Jol in controversial circumstances. They claim that he is not their first option but he is among those being considered, and many around north London believe he could be a very good candidate.

For example, one supporter claimed the Spaniard was who they should be going for over the “Portuguese version of Roberto Martinez”, whilst another suggested that Lopetegui would be a great manager instead of the “defensively average” Fonseca.

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Those are merely a couple of responses in reaction to reports linking the club with the Sevilla boss, and even though it’s a small sample size, it highlights the overriding consensus that the former Roma man is probably not the right appointment.

During his time in Italy, the 48-year-old has failed to build on his previous success elsewhere, failing to steer Roma any higher than a fifth-place finish in the Serie A, whilst his side were embarrassed by Manchester United across two legs in the Europa League semi-finals in recent weeks. They leaked eight goals in total in that tie, which would reinforce the views of some in N17 right now.

Meanwhile, Lopetegui won that very competition at the end of the 2019/20 season, defeating Antonio Conte’s Inter Milan – another name heavily mooted with the Spurs job in recent weeks.

If the 54-year-old former Spain and Real Madrid manager is genuinely being considered, that should give plenty of fans a little more hope as Tottenham’s managerial saga rumbles on.

It’s not too late for Daniel Levy to gauge the reaction here and opt for Lopetegui instead of Fonseca.

AND in other news, Paratici could appoint Spurs’ own Unai Emery in “exceptional” 48 y/o who blew Pep away…

According to a report by the Express, via West Ham Central, GSB and the club have identified West Bromwich Albion ace Matheus Pereira as a possible target this summer if they don’t manage to secure Jesse Lingard on a permanent deal.

Lingard has been in sensational form for the Irons since signing on loan from Old Trafford in January, scoring nine goals and assisting three others in 13 Premier League starts (WhoScored).

This has resulted in West Ham desiring to make his move a permanent one with it said to be a major priority for the club this summer.

However, as an alternative target should they fail to make an agreement, GSB and co could move for West Brom attacker Pereira – with the Irons seemingly identifying a possible coup thanks to his side’s relegation.

By comparison, the 25-year-old has bagged 10 goals and five assists for the Baggies as a real shining light in their team.

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Some Irons believe he would be a better signing than Lingard as supporters flock to discuss the Brazilian on social media.

Find their best verdicts down below.

West Ham fans flock to Pereira claim

“Is it bad that I might want him over Jesse?”

Credit: @joelitt78828048

“Better than lingard”

Credit: @g4bstar

“If it’s a straight toss up between Lingard and Pereira ; same transfer fee, same salary. I’d go for Pereira.”

Credit: @irons85858585

“Reading between the lines ,he’s cheaper and will want less in wages than Lingard so he’s the one for us”

Credit: @Andysilve1

“Why not both”

Credit: @Banjonut1

“Both plz”

Credit: @WHUemployee

In other news: GSB will go as hard as they can to seal ‘magnificent signing’ for West Ham, find out more here.

Liverpool fans feared the worst as they struggled at the back earlier this season but after a consistent run of games, Nat Phillips established himself as the number one centre back for Jurgen Klopp, and Paul Jewell believes that the 24-year old won’t be happy sitting on the bench next season.

With Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez expected to be fit for the start of next season, Klopp is likely to select his trusted centre back pairing whenever possible, despite Phillips showing his ability to lead and be a threat in both boxes.

Since Liverpool clinched a spot in the top four, reports have emerged that they are willing to sell Phillips this summer if any club is willing to pay £10 million for a 24-year old who has only played 36 league games in his career.

Phillips became a fan favourite during his run in the first team and he won’t be happy to go back to the reserves or just settling for cup appearances, something Jewell explained exclusively to Football FanCast:

“This is the scenario that Nat has where he was on loan last year in Germany, he’s done well in the Liverpool side but it’s likely that Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez will come back into the starting line up next season. That’s the problem that young players have once they’ve had a taste of playing regular football.

“He won’t be happy to sit on the bench every week so that will be a discussion for him and Liverpool to have and if he’s not going to play regular football at Liverpool, does he go and seek regular first team football elsewhere?”

The £64,615 per week had established what appeared to be a reasonable partnership with on-loan signing Ozan Kabak, but it appears that the Schalke defender won’t be staying at Anfield when his loan deal expires this summer.

Recently, Van Dijk confirmed that he would miss the European Championships this summer so that he can be fully fit for the start of next season for Liverpool.

Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Josh Windass is attracting the interest of a host of Championship clubs.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The 72, who claimed that Cardiff City have made an approach for the £1.44m-rated Owls ace, while Football Insider reported that Ipswich Town, Middlesbrough and Stoke City are also thought to be keen on a move for the 27-year-old.

Windass is one of the few Wednesday players whose contract does not expire at the end of the current season, meaning that the club could demand a fee for his sale this summer.

Unforgivable move

While Wednesday have had a season to forget in 2020/21, with the Owls starkly facing the prospect of suffering relegation to the third tier of English football, Windass has been one of the few bright sparks at Hillsborough.

Over the £10,000-per-week midfielder’s 40 Championship appearances this season, he has bagged nine goals and provided five assists – with no other Wednesday player scoring or assisting more than the 27-year-old in the league – while also averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.80, ranking him as the Owls’ seventh-best performer in the division.

As such, while a summer clearout would seem necessary at Hillsborough in order to help balance the club’s catastrophic books, selling a player of the importance of Windass – coupled with the mass exodus of out-of-contract players – would be a disaster ahead of the club’s 2021/22 campaign, whichever league they will be playing their football in.

Not only would selling Windass leave Darren Moore with an incredibly difficult goalscoring and creative void to fill in his side, the loss of the player whose own father Dean dubbed as “explosive” would also be gutting for the fans of the club, as the 27-year-old has by far and away provided them with the most excitement of any Wednesday player with his goals and assists this season.

As such, considering that Dejphon Chansiri is already not in the fans’ good books, selling one of their star players is not likely to be something which improves their relationship with the owner, and could even be considered an unforgivable move by the Hillsborough faithful.

In other news: Shocking Sheffield Wednesday update could seal Owls’ relegation – opinion

Mark Douglas has dropped an enticing transfer update on Newcastle United and their pursuit of Kyle Joseph.

The Lowdown: Newcastle linked to Joseph

The St. James’ Park faithful have been reported to be lining up a move for Joseph in the summer transfer window, with his current deal at Wigan Athletic set to expire at the end of the 2020/21 term.

Celtic have also been linked to the striker, but Douglas has given an update that could be vital in the race to sign him.

The Latest: Newcastle front runners

Writing in his latest piece for The Chronicle, the journalist has shared that the North East club are among the front runners to sign Joseph as he is being chased by a number of other clubs in the Premier League.

The 19-year-old would be given a pathway into the first team on Tyneside, though he would cost a compensation fee despite him being out of contract in the summer, which could extend to above £500,000.

The Verdict: Newcastle should sign Joseph

Joseph is a player for the future, having scored five goals and made a further assist in 17 games in total in the EFL League One as a teenager so far this season (Transfermarkt).

Latics journalist Paul Kendrick described him as a ‘shining light’ after a man-of-the-match performance back in November, and he is certainly someone to keep an eye on for the Toon Army when the window opens.

In other news, find out what big update on the potential takeover involving the ‘Big Six’ has been dropped here!

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Steve Howey, who made 270 appearances during his career, has claimed there are not many managers who will be able to come in and replace Pep Guardiola successfully.

Since arriving at the Etihad, Guardiola has won every trophy available to him apart from the Champions League, with the furthest stage they’ve reached being the quarter-finals.

Guardiola has made City a well-oiled machine in both attack and defence now with the addition of Ruben Dias this season, which has fixed their usually leaky defence, thus making them the favourites to win the Champions League.

Speaking on how it will be difficult to find someone capable of replacing Guardiola at City and who could fill the void, Howey told FFC:

“You’ve got Diego Simeone at Atletico Madrid and there’s maybe one or two others like Tuchel at Chelsea who is very well thought of, but it was a strange one when he left PSG.

“Obviously, Mauricio Pochettino is at PSG now. So if he does well then he could potentially be a suitor for Man City. It’ll be interesting to see how things pan out over the next season or two.”

Since Man City were taken over in 2008 they have had a number of managers with a lot of them being successful domestically, like Guardiola, however, they’ve all struggled in Europe.

City face Borussia Dortmund in the quarter-finals of the Champions League which will give them a first-hand view of Erling Haaland who they are linked with.

The upcoming transfer window could be the perfect time for Crystal Palace to wave goodbye to a costly arrival.

According to Correire dello Sport, centre-back Mamadou Sakho is on a list of potential summer targets for Serie A giants Lazio alongside the likes of Arsenal’s David Luiz and Chelsea’s Thiago Silva.

Out of contract at the end of the season after four years as a permanent Eagles player, Palace should certainly not fight too hard to keep the Frenchman at Selhurst Park.

Having arrived from Liverpool, initially on-loan, Sakho has endured a rollercoaster period with the club.

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He has, at points, been an excellent option at the back for Roy Hodgson, specifically during the 2018/19 season where he played 27 times in the Premier League alone as the club finished 12th in the standings.

However, he has also endured frustrating injury problems, having missed a total of 67 matches through injury, whilst he has only appeared on six occasions throughout the current campaign.

For context, the defender has only actually appeared on 75 occasions for the club in his four years at the club since arriving for what was a reported fee of £26m from Liverpool.

As a result, Sakho has now fallen considerable down the pecking order, finding himself behind the likes of Gary Cahill, Cheikhou Kouyate, Scott Dann and James Tomkins for a starting berth at centre-back.

Considering that lack of action then, the £6.3m-rated French international has certainly not justified his £100k per-week wages at Selhurst Park.

With Lazio then now swooping for his signature, Palace now have the perfect opportunity to let him go as opposed to extending his contract.

It really now could be time then, for the Eagles to wave goodbye to Sakho in the upcoming transfer window.

AND in more news, Palace have been handed a huge boost in their pursuit of Aaron Ramsey…

Stan Collymore has directed stinging criticism at Newcastle manager Steve Bruce and owner Mike Ashley.

Lots of Newcastle fans have bemoaned what they see as a prevailing narrative among pundits that expectations are too high, with Andrew Musgrove writing in Chronicle Live that such takes were only fuelling ‘the fires of discontent’.

The spectre of relegation looms larger on Tyneside after Brighton claimed a crushing 3-0 victory in Saturday’s night six-pointer, and Collymore does not believe Bruce has displayed the character required to lead them through the upcoming dogfight.

“Bruce never seems to be the one to take the blame,” he wrote in his Mirror column. “He shirks responsibility. Matt Ritchie called him a ‘coward’, so others have noticed too.

“He exudes misery… talking up average opposition, moaning about injuries, and talking in meaningless generalities, while rival coaches give insightful detailed answers.”

Mike Ashley may be deliberately ‘messing Newcastle around’

Collymore then turned his attention to Ashley, who continues to stand by Bruce amid the club’s worrying drift. The 56-year-old was on the verge of selling the club last summer before the £300m deal collapsed (BBC Sport).

Former Liverpool and Nottingham Forest striker Collymore duly accused the businessman of ‘spiteful’ decision-making.

“With Ashley, it feels personal,” he wrote. “Like he wants to mess the club around because he feels personally wounded because of the stick’s he’s taken.

“He’s the in-house aggressor, the more fans say they want him out, or journalists, the more he won’t. There’s an element of spite: ‘I won this club and I’ll do what I like, on my terms’.”

Transfer Tavern verdict

Are Collymore’s criticisms entirely fair? Not entirely – Bruce did take ‘full responsibility’ for the Brighton defeat, for example, although words can ring hollow at times.

Regarding Ashley, he was clearly willing to sell the club, and Newcastle fans were demanding answers from the Premier League rather than their incumbent owner when the takeover unravelled (BBC Sport).

Ultimately, however, both must go. Bruce says he loves the club but the real test of that affection is whether he is willing to walk away. His position now seems untenable, and hierarchical change must follow to prevent the continuation of this vicious cycle.

In other news, Newcastle are in pole position to sign this midfielder.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Premier League midfielder Lee Hendrie has suggested that Harry Kane is facing a defining season at Tottenham.

According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein (via OneFootball), some close to the north London club believe Kane could remain at White Hart Lane for the rest of his career.

However, with Jose Mourinho’s side failing to compete for major honours, Hendrie thinks the 27-year-old could still leave Tottenham in the summer in a now-or-never moment.

Discussing Kane’s future in an exclusive interview with FFC, the former Villa midfielder said:

“The question now to Harry Kane is, ‘does he want to win trophies?’ If he does, let’s face it, he could go to any football club, any football club.”

Speaking on the subject further, Hendrie added:

“I feel this season is going to be the season where we’re going to know if Harry Kane will stay at Spurs or [whether] he’s obviously going to go and leave the club and start to think about trophies. The way Spurs have been this season, they’ve been hit and miss. You know, there’s lots of sagas with [Jose] Mourinho.

“I just feel that at the end of the season, Harry Kane’s got a big choice to make because I can guarantee you now any football club [would take him], well I’m pretty sure he’ll [at least] be linked away again because I can’t see how Spurs are going to end up finishing in Europe this season.”

One club Kane has been linked with in the past is Real Madrid, and it is a potential transfer that makes sense if the England captain does decide to leave White Hart Lane in the near future. The Spanish giants’ first-choice striker Karim Benzema is now 33 years of age, so it would hardly be a surprise to see them targeting a forward of Kane’s calibre as a successor to the Frenchman.

In recent comments made on the West Ham Way Podcast (Patreon), ExWHUemployee claimed West Ham United are interested in a summer swoop for Tammy Abraham.

According to the West Ham insider, Abraham has emerged as a target for the Hammers this summer, with the 23-year-old said to have ‘fallen out of favour’ at Stamford Bridge in recent weeks.

ExWHUemployee also revealed, following recent contract discussions between the club and the £58k per week England international, Chelsea are not prepared to match the centre-forward’s wage demands in the negotiations that could see a renewal to his current deal, which expires in the summer of 2023 – potentially opening the door to the sale of the player this summer.

The Hammers insider claims Abraham is on a list of five or so forwards who Moyes ‘likes’ as we begin to look forward to the summer window.

Transfer Tavern Take

Having enjoyed an impressive start to the season, scoring six goals and providing one assist over his first 14 Premier League appearances this term, the £36 million-rated Abraham has seen his playing time become more limited in recent weeks, as well as his goals drying up – having not scored in the league since the turn of the year.

And, with the sale of Sebastien Haller in January leaving David Moyes with just one recognised centre-forward in his first-team squad, as well as the fact that ExWHUemployee claims Abraham ‘fits the criteria’ of striker that the West Ham boss likes, it would indeed appear that all signs point to the Hammers making a move for the Chelsea man this summer.

In other West Ham United news, many fans wanted this Premier League ace after a contract claim – find out more here!