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Fulham face Everton at Craven Cottage on Sunday afternoon looking to secure just their second Premier League win of the season as they continue their fight against relegation.

The Cottagers face an Everton side that made a superb start to the 2020/21 Premier League season but dropped off before the international break, losing three consecutive games in the top-flight.

Scott Parker’s side meanwhile, impressed in their last game against West Ham, but ultimately succumbed to a 1-0 defeat after a late goal from Tomas Soucek, as well as a missed penalty from Ademola Lookman (per BBC Sport).

The English manager should bear this in mind when selecting his team to face the Toffees and although Lookman has impressed since joining on loan from RB Leipzig, his missed panenka penalty attempt was inexcusable, and he should be dropped to the bench for this game.

Here’s how Football FanCast thinks Parker should set his side up to face Everton…

Parker should keep faith in his defence and goalkeeper, as they were unlucky to lose out against West Ham in their last Premier League fixture, with Alphonse Areola, in particular, impressing with his performance in goal.

Tom Cairney and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa are almost guaranteed starters in Parker’s side at the moment, after both of their impressive starts to the 2020/21 season.

Harrison Reed could be the man to nullify the threat of James Rodriguez – the former Southampton man should stick as close as he can to the Colombian as to ensure that he cannot be a creative force for Carlo Ancelotti’s side.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek could also add some steel in midfield for Fulham and perhaps help out Ola Aina on the right-hand side defensively, as a lot of Everton’s threat comes from the crosses of Lucas Digne on the left, so handing the £21.6 million-rated loanee a start could prove effective if he helps Fulham win the midfield battle.

Finally, Aleksandr Mitrovic and Bobby Reid should start up front, as between them they have four goals in the top-flight this season, which is more than 50% of all the goals the Cottagers have managed, so they can add a goal threat in what will be an important fixture for Parker’s side on Sunday afternoon.

West Ham United and Celtic have been fighting for Shane Duffy’s signature for quite a while now. Both sides seem to be prioritising a boost to their defensive lines and the 28-year-old centre-back is the chosen one.

The reports have been going back and forth and it was always going to be a battle between money up front the Hammers were said to be offering and the player’s childhood love for the Hoops.

But now, according to the latest report from Daily Record, Celtic have decided to hit the pause button on the Duffy chase in order to finalise the transfer of David Turnbull from Motherwell.

This could indeed be an opening for David Moyes to strike and get the defender in while their rivals are shifting their attention to other targets. Of course, it has to be said that the coach himself has admitted the Hammers don’t have a lot of money due to the recent outbreak and it’s still questionable if there’s enough financial power in the club to scoop up the Brighton and Hove Albion defender.

Here’s what he said recently, as quoted by Daily Record: “We’ve got some bright young players and some players who are improving, so if we can add to it, great, but as I’ve reiterated a few times, the owners spent a lot of money over a year ago, and I’m sure we don’t have that amount of money available to spend again.”

Verdict

The money might be really tight at the moment but West Ham need defensive reinforcements and with Celtic preoccupied with Turnbull, now is the right time for them to strike a deal with the Premier League centre-back.

Of course, after selling Albian Ajeti to Celtic for around £5m and then offloading Jordan Hugill for another £5m to Norwich, maybe they can use some of those resources and invest them into the right areas.

It was reported recently by Herald and Times Sport that Jacob Murphy was keen to move on loan to Glasgow Rangers during the current transfer window.

However, following his performance in the Carabao Cup last night for Newcastle United, it looks like things might have changed at St James’ Park.

Newcastle manager Steve Bruce made it clear following their 7-0 victory in the cup over Morecambe, a game in which Murphy scored, that he has no intention of parting with the 25-year-old.

The Magpies boss said, “I won’t be letting him out on loan. He deserves to stay with us and he’s improved enormously. He’s had a really good pre-season and has shown a great attitude. He’s benefited from being out on loan last season and has really given us food for thought.”

The winger has also been linked with Sheffield Wednesday, who had him on loan last season, he and played 39 times for them in the Championship, scoring nine goals and supplying six assists, per Transfermarkt.

Overall in his career, he has managed 53 goals and 48 assists in 276 appearances, which is a very respectable return. His goal against Morecambe was his first of the current campaign, with Bruce perhaps hinting that he could get plenty more opportunities to add to that tally at Newcastle.

Although these statistics reflect well on Murphy, the ‘Gers might not be too worried about missing out on the winger.

Steven Gerrard currently has Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent, and Ianis Hagi in his attack and it would be difficult to envisage Murphy as anything more than a squad depth player, with the aforementioned trio scoring 10 goals and supplying nine assists between them already this season, per Transfermarkt.

Therefore, the ‘Gers need not dwell for too long on missing out on Murphy.

‘Gers fans, are you disappointed that Murphy looks unlikely to come to Ibrox? Comment below with your views!

Tottenham Hotspur are ‘confident’ of completing a deal for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, even though Southampton have accepted a bid from Everton for the midfielder.  

Hojbjerg has made it clear he wants to move to Spurs, where Jose Mourinho is willing to play him in front of the back four. Mourinho has identified the Dane as the signing he needs to rebuild Spurs’ midfield.

According to The Guardian, as per @Daily_Hotspur, Tottenham are confident that they can sign Hojbjerg from Southampton. Dave Hytner, the newspaper’s chief football correspondent, claims that Spurs will look to conclude negotiations with the Saints, despite falling short of their asking price so far.

Southampton plan to use Everton’s £25m bid as a benchmark, while Daniel Levy will look to lower their valuation.

Hojbjerg has told the Saints that he will not be signing a new deal at St Mary’s and he was removed from the captaincy by Ralph Hasenhuttl as a result.

The ex-Bayern Munich ace has lost his place in the starting line-up since the Premier League restart, although he played the full 90 minutes against Brighton at right-back.

Hojbjerg has played 33 games in the Premier League this season, supplying one assist, taking 1.4 shots, winning 2.4 tackles and completing 1.5 clearances per game on average (via WhoScored).

Although it looks like the Lilywhites are the favourites to sign him at the moment, a deal seems far from done.

While he will not be available for a cut-price fee as the club had initially hoped, in reality he should be more than affordable, as Levy spent £53.8m on Tanguy Ndombele last year.

Spurs could be set for a reshuffle if Hojbjerg arrives in the summer, as former Pochettino favourite Harry Winks may be forced to make way, while questions remain over Ndombele’s future in north London.

Tottenham fans, do you think Daniel Levy should sign Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the summer? Let us know in the comments below!

Harry Maguire stunned the footballing world and divided fanbases when he made a record-breaking switch from Leicester City to Manchester United last summer. That little venture made him the most expensive defender in the history of the sport as the Red Devils had to splash around £78m to land their man.

Whether he’s actually warranted such an incredible price tag or not is a story for another time but many have now taken that transfer as a benchmark for any potential future deals. Just like Neymar Junior’s move to Paris Saint-Germain completely destroyed the transfer market for star forwards, Maguire’s switch did the same for defenders.

But this could also be a good thing for a club like West Ham United. David Moyes wants to rebuild the squad a bit but he needs a lot of money to do that. One avenue the Hammers could potentially explore is selling their prized asset, Declan Rice.

And Frank McAvennie believes they will indeed do that if someone matches their asking price. But how much is Rice worth, anyway? According to McAvennie, as much as Maguire. Here’s what he said to Football Insider on the topic: ‘You’re talking about £80 million for Harry Maguire. I think that if he’s worth that then West Ham will be thinking that Declan’s worth somewhere between £60-80 million. But listen, the owners will have a figure in mind, and I think it’s the same with every club, if someone matches that, they will sell him.’

That sum of money would surely go a long way to giving West Ham what they need to acquire the much-needed reinforcements. But is there a team out there willing and able to cough up that figure in the current climate?

Verdict

It goes without saying that West Ham will most likely pull the trigger on their young asset when and if they receive an offer in such a high region. At the moment, however, we still don’t know if there is a club contemplating that course of action.

Still, there have been some whispers of some Premier League clubs monitoring Rice so you never know.

Noel Whelan believes Jack Clarke won’t stay at Leeds beyond January but is confident that he won’t be missed too much, as there are a number of quality wingers at the club.

What did he say?

Leeds took Clarke on loan from Tottenham after the club signed him over the summer, but he has made just three appearances this term and clearly isn’t a central part of Marcelo Bielsa’s plans.

With a lack of game time possibly harming his development Whelan is correct to suggest Spurs may look at a recall, and though he possesses pace and a direct style, Clarke leaving shouldn’t have too much of an impact, according to the pundit.

Whelan is confident in his assertion of what will happen and how such a development affects the club, but he is confident in the squad at Elland Road.

Speaking to Football Insider, he said:

“There’s no doubt Jack Clarke will leave as Tottenham won’t allow him to stay on the bench all season.

“Leeds have plenty of wide men in the squad so I don’t expect they will sign someone to replace him.

“I can see him [Alioski] filling in as a winger, and replacing Clarke, if the first choices like Harrison and Costa are out, or come off. He’s played there most of his career, can create and score goals and is one of the best finishers in the squad.”

Ready to step up

Bielsa is blessed with a number of options in his current set-up and so far he has used a number of players in different roles to his advantage.

Most notably, the deployment of both Stuart Dallas and Ezgjan Alioski at full-back, which isn’t their natural position, has led to notable success and even displaced Barry Douglas in the starting line-up.

That is some feat given the Scot played left-back regularly for Wolves when they won the Championship in 2017. It just goes to show the positive effect both players have on the team.

Virtually impossible: Can you name the year all of these Leeds flops arrived at Elland Road?

Alioski, in particular, has provided a threat going forward. His four goals and one assist indicate the danger he poses in the opposition’s final third and playing him on the wing would allow him to take up threatening positions more often.

If Clarke does indeed leave then Bielsa may opt to push Alioski further forward, and given the form he has shown this campaign that could be a switch which really pays off, as the Macedonian has years of experience playing there – just as Whelan suggests.

Clarke may possess energy and a different skillset to others in the squad but his absence shouldn’t be felt too hard, and if it allows Alioski to show his true potential then the team will benefit significantly from the development.

In other Leeds news, one of Europe’s most in-form strikers has been captured signing a Leeds shirt…

This article forms part of our Total Duds feature series, which is where Football Transfer Tavern takes a look at how a player has fared since being signed or sold, using statistical figures and statements from pundits to prove how bad a deal the club got.

Glasgow Rangers will be looking to close the gap to Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership next season.

The Gers finished the recently ended campaign in second place behind the Bhoys, 13 points adrift, meaning that Steven Gerrard has now gone a second term without managing to win any trophies – he surely cannot afford to go a third.

Jamie Murphy was not part of his plans in the past season, and it looks as though he will not be called upon for the upcoming campaign either. Following the end of his loan spell at Burton Albion, it has been reported that the 30-year-old expects to leave Ibrox permanently this summer. His departure would likely bring a premature end to a disappointing spell in Glasgow.

Before Murphy moved to the Gers, he had spells with Brighton and Sheffield United in England, but it was at Motherwell where he first made his name. He made 212 appearances for the Scottish outfit, scoring 49 goals and providing 18 assists along the way. With the Seagulls, whom the 54-time Scottish champions paid £1.08m for Murphy’s services in 2018 after a six-month loan spell, he amassed 10 goals in 83 matches – the Gers will have been hoping he could make a good impression for them.

Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case. He managed five goals and 10 assists in 17 matches during the 2017/18 campaign, which convinced the Gers to sign him permanently, but he made just eight appearances the following term after before suffering a cruciate ligament injury. Since returning from that terrible spell on the sidelines, he has featured just twice more and, although he scored seven times in 10 appearances in League One this season, it looks as though it will not be enough to earn him a place in the squad moving forward.

As such, it looks as though his time at Ibrox will end up costing the club £37,000 per appearance, while he missed 52 games through injury. It is a sad way to bring an end to an initially promising spell.

Let us know what you think below!

Tottenham Hotspur are embarking on a brand new era with Jose Mourinho at their helm.

Needless to say, this is a huge change for them following Mauricio Pochettino’s lengthy stint at the club.

But it’s been almost two weeks since the Argentine was sacked and the Special One was appointed, but if the reaction of many Spurs fans is any indication at all, it’s fair to say they still miss him and hold him in high regard.

Just recently, there was a picture posted on Twitter that was basically Pochettino’s first real sighting since he got the axe.

Needless to say, that made many Spurs fans rather emotional as they swarmed social media with all sorts of praise for their former gaffer, calling him “legend” and hoping for his return in the future.

Of course, it is still too early to tell how successful Mourinho will be but it seems that many of the fans are still hoping Pochettino will return one day in the future.

For all of Mourinho’s pedigree, this is still warranted just by the simple fact the Argentine took their team to new heights, reaching the Champions League final last year and making them fiercely competitive in England as well.

But apart from just gushing over his image on social media, many fans were also quick to tease their rivals, Arsenal, who were recently linked with Pochettino following the sacking of Unai Emery.

They reminded all the Gunners fans of Pochettino’s statement that he would rather work on a farm in Argentina than manage Arsenal or Barcelona.

Since this image was taken at Newell’s Old Boys’ in Argentina, many fans have promptly taken that as a sign that their former gaffer stayed true to his words…

Wednesday night’s Champions League clash between Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich was not really that important in the grand scheme of things.

After all, both teams knew they would be advancing to the knockout stages of the competition regardless of the result in Germany and with that in mind, Jose Mourinho decided to reshuffle the deck just a bit.

One of the young players who were given a chance to shine by the Special One was Juan Foyth, 21-year-old Argentina international who has played a total of five games across all competitions in 2019/20.

It seems, however, that many of the fans were actually impressed by his showing against the Bavarians and they were quick to point it out on Twitter.

But there was also a suggestion from one fan that he could potentially become their defensive midfielder in the future and seeing how he did record 83.3% passing accuracy on the night along with two tackles, one interception and six clearances, he just might fit the bill.

Of course, he is still very young and rushing to any kinds of conclusions might be a bit premature. Still, many of the fans already seem convinced.

It remains to be seen, however, if Mourinho feels the same way and is willing to hand chances to the youngster during the remainder of the current campaign.

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 man John Salako has spoken to Love Sport Radio about his views on Roy Hodgson.

Salako made 68 appearances for Crystal Palace, scoring six goals across a nine-year stint at Selhurst Park.

The man who has coached the Eagles’ U16 team, and was also the first-team coach under Alan Pardew in the 2015/16 season, is supportive of Hodgson and believes that the 72-year-old is the right man for the job.

Palace are doing fairly well this season, amassing 15 points from their first 12 Premier League games, although only Watford have scored fewer goals than the Eagles’ ten.

What did he say?

Salako told Love Sport Radio: “He is absolutely the right man to be in charge. We’ve had a horror run of fixtures, but Roy has done well.

“In the Premier League, you have to look at games in batches and know which games you’re going to pick up points in. The wins against the likes of Manchester United are bonus points, but you can’t expect him to beat the big boys every time.

“He’s got them disciplined, organised, and believing in the team ethic. Everyone knows their jobs, and it’s all going fantastically according to plan. We’ll pick up points over Christmas, and hopefully we won’t flirt with relegation this time!”

Salako is right – Hodgson is the right man for the job 

Surviving in the Premier League is more lucrative for a football club than it has ever been before, and due to club chairman Steve Parish’s plans for Palace, it is even more imperative for the south Londoners to have a manager who can keep them in the top-flight.

Palace earned just over £114m for staying in the Premier League last season. That money is important for the club anyway, but Parish has recently revealed plans to build a new £15m-£20m academy in Bromley, and also has the £100m redevelopment of the Main Stand at Selhurst Park to think about.

In order for these plans to go as smoothly as possible, while still keeping some money around for signings, having Hodgson in charge – a man who comes across as a surefire figure to ensure Premier League survival – is invaluable to Palace.

As Salako states, every player does know their job under the former England manager – while the football may not be mouth-watering nor exciting, Parish can’t afford to have anyone with a question mark over their head in charge as he attempts to complete his plans.