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Crystal Palace’s recent impressive form came crashing to an end on Saturday as they were comfortably beaten 3-0 by Everton at Goodison Park.

Goals from Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Anthony Gordon and Dwight McNeil saw Frank Lampard’s side deservedly earn the three points, with a result that sees them leapfrog the Eagles in the Premier League table.

There were plenty of poor performances on show from Patrick Vieira’s side on Saturday but perhaps none more disappointing than Wilfried Zaha.

As per SofaScore, the Ivory Coast international would earn a shocking 5.7/10 rating for his performance, which was the worst of any player to feature in the game from both sides.

During the 90 minutes, the former Manchester United man would lose possession a remarkable 18 times – the most of any Crystal Palace player on the day.

Zaha simply failed to impose himself on the game and saw very little of the ball, having just 47 touches and completing 18 passes at Goodison Park, which was fewer than the 20 passes completed by goalkeeper Vicente Guaita.

It was also a decrease on the 24.9 passes he has averaged per game in the Premier League so far this season

The 29-year-old winger also failed to contribute a single key pass, while he was successful in just two of his seven dribble attempts and managed a single shot on goal on Merseyside.

Again, this was a disappointment given his performances so far this season, which have returned on average 1.1 key passes, 2.7 shots and 2.2 dribbles per game in the top flight.

While Crystal Palace fans have been treated to the best of Zaha on occasion this season, Saturday was truly the worst of the Ivorian, as he let his frustrations get the better of him at Goodison Park, as he earned a yellow card for a late challenge on Gordon.

The Athletic’s Everton correspondent Patrick Boyland summed up this act of petulance on Twitter, writing:

“Naughty from Zaha. Throws a tantrum just about every time he comes here.”

It was suggested in the summer that Zaha would cost interested clubs around £25m but it seems likely that he will see out his contract at Selhurst Park before leaving at the end of the season.

Palace fans will be hoping that Saturday’s performance was just a blip and that Zaha will be back to his fantastic best for the rest of the season.

West Bromwich Albion manager Steve Bruce’s future remains up in the air after the 3-2 defeat to Swansea City, according to reliable journalist Joe Chapman.

The Lowdown: West Brom lose at home

The Baggies were desperately in need of a Championship victory on Saturday afternoon, with Bruce’s side welcoming the Swans to The Hawthorns.

Instead, West Brom suffered another abject result, taking a 2-1 lead during the second half but eventually surrendering their promising position and losing 3-2 to an 89th-minute decider from Michael Obafemi.

It was a defeat which heaped further pressure on Bruce, who was the recipient of “sacked in the morning” jibes from both sets of supporters as many Albion supporters vented their fury.

The Latest: Bruce carrying on

Taking to Twitter on Saturday evening, The Birmingham Mail’s Chapman revealed that the West Brom manager has been told he isn’t sacked yet.

The reporter stated:

“Asked Bruce if he has had any reassurances regarding his future, and whether he has spoken to board/owner. For now, he’s carrying on until told otherwise.”

The Verdict: Seems only a matter of time

It really does feel like only a matter of time until Bruce is relieved of his duties, with performances and results simply nowhere near good enough this season.

For West Brom to be languishing in 21st place and perilously above the relegation zone is unacceptable in October, particularly when they have the fifth-highest squad market value in the Championship (as per Transfermarkt), so a managerial change seems needed.

It would not be a big surprise if Bruce isn’t in charge for the Baggies’ next game away to Preston on Wednesday night, with replacements surely being eyed up as numerous supporters at The Hawthorns made their feelings crystal-clear yesterday.

When Liverpool brought an 18-year-old Joe Gomez to the club from Charlton Athletic in 2015, few batted an eyelid. A £3.5m price tag was all it cost, and the highly-rated starlet was theirs.

However, as the years have gone on and the Reds have altered their centre-back pairings, he has remained the one constant in that position during Jurgen Klopp’s Anfield reign.

Now 25 years old, the Englishman has featured 148 times for Liverpool  and has impressed with his lightning speed and defensive instincts.

He is still not the finished article, but he has been there throughout the club’s revival under the German and grown alongside it.

What has also grown is his market value, with Transfermarkt now rating him at £22.5m. This marks an astounding 542% increase in value since making the move to Anfield seven years ago and is yet another example of FSG’s fine work in the market.

With his many appearances during this period, he has a suitably impressive trophy cabinet to go with it. He is a Premier League champion, a Champions League winner, featured in both their FA Cup and Carabao Cup triumphs last season and has also lifted the UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup and Community Shield.

He has won it all at Liverpool, and when the context of his price tag is taken into account, it makes his acquisition all the more intelligent.

Even despite their patchy form to start off this season, with his own defensive credentials called into question, he has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.06 whilst averaging 1.8 interceptions, 1.6 tackles and 1.2 clearances per game. That ranks him among the top three players at Anfield for each metric.

Klopp has also been quite vocal in his admiration for the defender, about whom he claimed in 2020: “He is a sensational footballer, which is good. He has outstanding speed, which helps us a lot to keep our last line high; he is a really good challenger; good in one-on-one situations; football-wise, I said already, good.

“The package is really nice. It was always clear in the moment he starts playing and can get rhythm again, everything will be fine – and that’s how it is.”

Liverpool have struck gold once again with Gomez, who has made his initial transfer outlay from 2015 look like chickenfeed considering what he has achieved since.

Wolverhampton Wanderers have only made three signings so far this summer, however, with more interest surrounding their players, it could force the club to make another move before the transfer window closes next week.

What’s the latest?

According to The Athletic’s Wolves reporter Steve Madeley, the club “would consider” selling Willy Boly but will need to find a replacement before they can allow him to go.

Madeley tweeted:

“As per @JPercyTelegraph, Wolves have rejected a Nottingham Forest bid of around £1m for Willy Boly.

“Get the impression they would consider selling but not at that price nor without having a replacement lined up.”

It’s a big risk

Selling Boly could be a big risk for Wolves if they do allow the centre-back to leave this summer without signing a suitable replacement, especially after letting Conor Coady go on loan to Everton.

If the club did sell their centre half they would be left with Nathan Collins, Max Kilman, Yerson Mosquera and Toti in their squad, leaving them with very few experienced and senior heads. That said, they wouldn’t just need to replace Boly’s position but his experience in the team.

The £50k-per-week titan, who was once dubbed “outstanding” by Joleon Lescott on BT Sport, has 147 appearances for the Midlands club, and despite his injury issues has been a reliable and consistent defensive presence for Wolves.

Although making only ten Premier League appearances last season, Boly had a 91% pass completion rate in his own half, demonstrating immense composure with the ball at his feet. He was also a brute in defensive situations, making 1.4 interceptions, 2.5 tackles and 3.5 clearances per game, as well as winning the majority of his duels combined (56%).

Bruno Lage has now opted for a back four this season instead of their famous back three that has been most commonly used in the team over both Lage’s tenure and with former boss Nuno Espirito Santo, and was largely successful with Wolves earning three top-half finishes over the last four seasons.

However, it is now unlikely that Boly will feature in the team with Nathan Collins and Max Kilman forming a centre-back partnership over the first three games of this season, so would surely be tempted by the promise of first-team football at Forest where their starting centre-back Moussa Niakhate is currently injured.

With that being said, the powers at Molineux will either need to do everything they can to convince Boly to stay on for another season or find a worthy replacement over the remaining days of the season. Either way, selling before lining up someone to replace him would be a considerable risk, one the club shouldn’t be considering.

Leeds United are in advanced talks over a deal to bring Ismaila Sarr to Elland Road this summer.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to Santi Aouna, with the Foot Mercato journalist revealing in a recent post on Twitter that, following earlier reports of the Whites’ interest in a £25m move for the Watford forward, Victor Orta is now close to agreeing personal terms with the 24-year-old.

However, Aouna also went on to claim that the Senegal international’s arrival in LS11 is dependent on the departure of one of Jesse Marsch’s current first-team squad, while the journalist also revealed that Patrick Vieira has now contacted the attacker regarding a potential switch to Crystal Palace prior to September’s transfer deadline.

In his post, Aouna said: “Crystal Palace darkens on Ismaila Sarr. Patrick Vieira has already exchanged with the player. Leeds are strongly interested and have almost a salary agreement with the player but his arrival is conditional on a departure.”

An “unbelievable” coup

Considering just how talented a forward Sarr has proven himself to be over the past few years, in addition to Crystal Palace now looking to have entered the race for the 24-year-old, the argument that the Senegalese sensation would be an unbelievable coup for Orta to pull of this summer is an easy one to make.

Indeed, over his £24.3m-rated talent highly impressed, bagging five goals, providing six assists and creating nine big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.6 shots, making 0.9 key passes and completing 1.7 dribbles per game.

Despite the Hornets’ ultimate relegation from the top flight that season, the £71k-per-week Sarr once again caught the eye over his 39 Championship outings in 2020/21, scoring 13 goals, registering ten assists and creating 11 big chances – playing a key role in Watford securing an immediate return to the top flight of English football.

The versatile forward – who is comfortable operating from any position across a front three – impressed yet again over his 28 Premier League fixtures in 2021/22, notching five goals, providing two assists and creating five big chances for his teammates, in addition to taking an average of 1.8 shots, making one key pass and completing 1.5 dribbles per match.

However, once more, the Hornets found themselves in the bottom three come the end of the campaign, and the player who Troy Deeney dubbed “unbelievable” has rather predictably impressed upon his return to the second tier, having already scored one goal, registered one assist and created one big chance over his three appearances in the current campaign.

As such, with Patrick Bamford’s latest injury setback leaving Marsch extremely short of depth up top, in addition to the signing of a new forward well-known to be one of Orta’s priorities over the remainder of the summer transfer window, the Spaniard simply must do all he can to land Sarr in the coming weeks.

It is clear the 24-year-old’s versatility, creativity and ability in front of goal would all make him something of a perfect addition to the Whites’ attacking arsenal this season.

Celtic midfielder Matt O’Riley is said to be attracting interest from Leicester City and Ange Postecoglou’s latest comments on the 21-year-old will not leave Hoops fans happy.

What’s the word?

Despite only moving to Parkhead in January, O’Riley’s impressive performances have clearly impressed those south of the border, with Leicester City reportedly keen on bringing the Bhoys midfielder to the King Power Stadium this summer.

While you would hope that any manager would be keen on retaining one of the top young talents in his side, Postecoglou has seemingly encouraged the interest from the Foxes in his recent comments about the former MK Dons man.

He said: “I encourage it. If big clubs want our players that’s great. It means they are going well.

“I keep saying to the boys, they don’t need to worry about their futures if they are the best they can be today. That kind of stuff doesn’t come on my radar so I don’t worry about it.

“I’ve not seen anything from Matt to suggest he’s thinking about these things. The players know why big clubs might come in for them. It’s not because we’ve given them publicity – it’s the work they do, day in and day out.”

Supporters will be fuming

While Postecoglou’s attitude towards developing players is a good one to have, his comment about ‘big clubs’ wanting his players may well irritate fans who would argue that Leicester are nowhere near as big a club as Celtic, considering their respective records in Europe and trophy hauls.

Of course, it is understandable that players might want to move to the Premier League, but Celtic have only been able to enjoy O’Riley for a few months, and Postecoglou should really be sending out a hands-off warning.

The 21-year-old has featured just 20 times in a Hoops shirt thus far, in which he has contributed four goals and two assists during a seriously impressive half a year in Glasgow.

He will undoubtedly be a key player next season and will continue to develop, so to sell him before he has really had a chance to settle in Scotland would be very underwhelming transfer business by Celtic.

As a result, fans will be hoping to see a lot more from O’Riley rather than losing him to an English side so soon.

AND, in other news: “I’m hearing..”: Journalist drops big Celtic transfer claim that supporters will hate…

Former Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Paul Robinson has urged the club to sign an extra centre-back this summer and has suggested Inter Milan defender Milan Skriniar as a possible addition.

The Lowdown: Lenglet close to Spurs move

According to reliable journalist Fabrizio Romano, Spurs are now ‘hopeful’ of completing the loan signing of Barcelona defender Clement Lenglet ‘very soon’.

However, it has been suggested elsewhere that Antonio Conte could remain on the lookout for a more permanent centre-back solution this summer.

As per The Guardian, Fabio Paratici is interested in making a move for Slovakia international Skriniar, with the Lilywhites having previously failed in their attempts to sign the defender in 2021.

The Latest: Robinson’s claim

Robinson, who now works as a pundit for Sky Sports, believes that Conte will add another signing at centre-back this summer.

When questioned whether Skriniar was needed by Tottenham, the ex-England goalkeeper told Football Insider: “Dier was magnificent last year but Conte will want competition for places. I think we will see another signing in that area.

“Skriniar would be a top signing. Dier was fantastic but when you look at where Spurs want to go, it is a squad game. Skriniar would give the manager real options at the back.

“If you bring in Lenglet and Skriniar to compete with [Cristian] Romero, Dier and Ben Davies you have a very strong back three regardless of who you play.”

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The Verdict: He’d be a great signing

Valued at £58.5m by Transfermarkt, the centre-back has entered the final 12 months of his contract in Italy. Therefore, the Serie A club may be worried about losing the 27-year-old on a free transfer next year, potentially pushing them into selling him for a reduced fee this summer.

If so, Spurs should go all out for the Slovakian.

When compared with positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year, Skriniar ranks in the 96th percentile for non-penalty expected goals, pass completion rate and progressive passes received (via FBRef).

With such quality potentially available on a free transfer, this could end up being a great signing for Conte, if he takes Robinson’s advice and goes in for the player.

Sky Sports pundit Kevin Campbell thinks Liverpool are definitely making the ‘right move’ by offering Naby Keita a new contract.

The Lowdown: Contract talks opened

The 27-year-old first made the switch to the Premier League when he joined the Reds from RB Leipzig five years ago, but as a result of only having 12 months remaining on his current contract at Anfield, his future is now uncertain.

However, there has since been a positive update in the sense that LFC have opened talks with the midfielder over a new deal, with transfer insider Fabrizio Romano further confirming that the club have made it one of their priorities to tie the maestro down this summer.

The Latest: Campbell backs Liverpool decision

Asked by Football Insider whether he thinks Liverpool have made the right decision in offering new terms to Keita, Campbell said: “I like Keita.

“I think he is a very good player. Whenever he is in the team, he has performed.

“You can tell a good player when there is not drop-off. That is how you know that you’ve got a squad of top player. There was times that Keita was on the bench and Klopp brought him on to up the level.

“He has a silky way of dribbling and playing decisive passes. I think the right move is to tie him down to a new deal, 100 per cent. Klopp has to keep that squad intact.

“They were one point off of the title last season. It is going to be another close one this season.”

The Verdict: Magician in midfield

Keita has slightly fallen down Jurgen Klopp’s pecking order in recent times, with the German having the likes of Henderson, Fabinho and Thiago all available for selection, but he’s someone who is definitely more than worth keeping in and around the squad.

Even though the Guinean only made 14 top-flight starts last season, he still managed to make a hugely positive impact when given the chance, averaging an 86% pass success rate and two tackles per 90 minutes, via WhoScored, highlighting his ability to tighten up and control a midfield.

With Takumi Minamino on the verge of sealing a Reds exit and Henderson not getting any younger, Keita should get plenty of chances to impact the starting XI going forward, where he will undoubtedly continue to enjoy plenty more success with Liverpool in years to come.

Aston Villa had been linked with a move for Roma star Henrikh Mkhitaryan in recent weeks but the Armenia international now looks set to join Serie A rivals Inter as he targets Champions League football.

What’s the word?

Villa had been named as one potential destination for the former Manchester United and Arsenal man this summer, with the 33-year-old available on a free transfer with his Roma contract set to expire later this month.

However, journalist Fabrizio Romano has now confirmed that he will be swapping Rome for Milan, as he tweeted:

“More on Henrikh Mkhitaryan deal. He’s set to sign a two-year contract with Inter, he wanted Champions League football so he decided to refuse AS Roma proposal. Inter Deal completed, medical tests and official statement pending. Here we go.”

Villa supporters will be gutted

Although Mkhitaryan’s spell in the Premier League didn’t live up to expectations, following his impressive form for Borussia Dortmund prior to his move to Old Trafford, he could have been a solid addition to Steven Gerrard’s squad.

Since joining Roma from Arsenal in 2020, the experienced midfielder has gone on to make 117 appearances for I Giallorossi, in which he has contributed an impressive 29 goals and 28 assists.

Gerrard might boast a number of attacking-midfield options including Philippe Coutinho, Emi Buendia and Jacob Ramsey, but Mhkitaryan would have added some real versatility and quality to the Villans’ attack and considering he was available on a free transfer, it would have been a no-brainer for the Midlands club.

After Arsenal signed him in 2018, Arsene Wenger was extremely complimentary of the Armenian, saying:

“Henrikh is a very complete player. He creates chances, he defends well, he can absorb distances and he’s very committed as well.

“I must say he’s a player who has all the attributes.”

While he might have lost a yard of pace in the four years since, he was still a key player for Jose Mourinho’s Roma last season, averaging an impressive 6.99 rating from WhoScored for his performances in Serie A after notching five goals and six assists.

Therefore, Villa fans should be gutted that their side wasn’t able to entice Mkhitaryan to Villa Park.

And, in other news… Aston Villa can form dream duo with free transfer swoop

According to the BBC, there has been a significant West Ham United transfer update involving long-time transfer target Jesse Lingard.

The Lowdown: Moyes attempts permanent move…

Ever since the Manchester United ace thrived during a loan spell at the London Stadium in the first f ew months of 2021, Irons manager David Moyes has been attempting to re-sign the player on a permanent deal.

The Englishman has been at the centre of West Ham transfer attempts both in January and last summer, but those failed to result in Lingard signing for the Hammers indefinitely.

However, as the 29-year-old’s contract at Old Trafford nears its end, Moyes and GSB have the opportunity to finally seal his capture for zero transfer cost on a Premier League Bosman deal.

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The Latest: BBC share Lingard update…

According to Simon Stone for the BBC, the West Ham manager is indeed back in for Lingard once more, with the east Londoners already making a pre-summer move in the form of an enquiry.

Stone added that Moyes has a personal long-standing interest in his former attacker, who is set to leave Manchester as a free agent next month.

The Verdict: Seal a move…

Signing Lingard for no transfer fee really is a no-brainer for Moyes and West Ham, who will be looking to build upon their remarkable rise over the last two seasons.

Having already excelled under Moyes, all while knowing the club from his first temporary spell, the Red Devils outcast could find a real home at Rush Green, and we believe that Lingard should give first priority to an Irons reunion.

Pundits like Paul Robinson, who was speaking to Football Insider on the possible transfer, have claimed that Lingard would be a ‘massive signing’ for West Ham, and we’re inclined to agree, especially considering that he can now join for free at the end of June.

In other news: Club chief flies to London as West Ham now eye ‘incredible’ £30m striker…find out more here