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Everton are blessed with an array of first-team ready centre-halves in Mason Holgate, Yerry Mina, Michael Keane and now Ben Godfrey, but continue to unearth future gems in the youth ranks with the latest in line 17-year-old Reece Welch.

The Huddersfield-born teenager is coming under increasing levels of praise as he continues to progress at Finch Farm, having already been capped by England at Under 16s and U17s levels while being awarded his first senior contract last month just days after his birthday.

Now, Welch has found himself named by The Guardian as Everton’s best emerging talent in their Next Generation 2020 list, having been impressed by how the imposing 6 ft 4 youngster has displayed himself as a composed and skilful central defender backed by the Blues’ coaching staff through his desire to learn and improve.

Welch is currently a part of Paul Taite’s U18s side and has played the full 90 minutes in all four fixtures competed thus far this season, helping them to an unbeaten start featuring three wins and one clean sheet.

But Everton must be cautious not to fail another one of their rising defensive stars after witnessing Lewis Gibson find the route into the first-team a monstrous effort despite the support he garnered from key figures at the club over the years.

Much was expected of Gibson when the central defender departed Newcastle United to forge a career for himself with Everton, but the Durham-born talent has found breaking into the senior fold a challenging affair and will now be using his year on loan with Reading to prove his worth to the Goodison Park natives.

Praise has often been forthcoming for Gibson thanks to his efforts in the Toffees youth set-up since his costly capture in 2017 that could rise to £6million, with the once in-demand defender hailed by David Unsworth for being outstanding.

“Lewis Gibson has been outstanding,” Unsworth told the Liverpool Echo in the summer of 2018. “He’s got better and better and better and he’s a natural born leader and he’s been captain for the last couple of games.”

His progress continued as such and found himself a part of Marco Silva’s pre-season plans a year ago, training alongside the likes of Leighton Baines and Andre Gomes as a reward for helping the Blues clinch a Premier League 2 and Premier League Cup double.

But Silva ultimately let Gibson down as no competitive minutes were ever on offer, and Carlo Ancelotti later sanctioned a half-season loan spell with Fleetwood Town once the 20-year-old penned a new contract running until 2022.

It was arguably one of Silva’s greatest mistake by not handing Gibson the chance to prove his worth first-hand and Ancelotti must be aware that the more Welch improves, the more he will be deserving of a senior debut as the teenager could one day be everything and more at the heart of the Toffees’ backline if he lives up to the current hype.

AND in other news, a Premier League icon’s support of Everton’s £20m capture will come as good news for Carlo Ancelotti.

Premier League side Norwich City are set to announce a deal of £350k for Sunderland youngster Bali Mumba.

English top flight side Norwich currently have that status to fight for as they sit bottom of the Premier League table, but transfer plans are already being made at the club ahead of the summer window.

Football Insider were among the first to claim that the Canaries were interested in making a move for Mumba, who has been impressing for Sunderland’s academy sides.

The 18-year-old has largely been considered one of the top talents at the Academy of Light for some time, having made a step up to the first team on 10 occasions.

Those initial reports from Football Insider were followed by the Sunderland Echo, who claimed that an initial transfer fee of £500,000 had been agreed.

Very little had followed up those reports, however, and Sunderland included the youngster on their retained list earlier this week, handing fans a hope that Norwich’s interest had dwindled.

However, Sky Sports have now claimed that the youngster is on his way to Carrow Road in a deal worth less than expected and it has also emerged that he will pen a three-year deal.

This is another kick in the teeth for those Sunderland fans who have witnessed a large number of young players leave of late, including Josh Maja who moved to Bordeaux last season.

Mumba certainly has talent having made several senior appearances at such a tender age, but that talent will no longer be on show with the Black Cats. Norwich could well drop down to the Championship and that could hand the youngster the perfect platform to show his talent.

Do you think Mumba should have stayed at Sunderland? Let us know in the comments section below…

The proposed takeover of Newcastle United has been put into doubt by a fresh claim made by a group of MPs looking to block the bid, according to the Daily Telegraph.

As per the outlet, a letter collectively written by John Nicolson, Damian Collins, Caroline Lucas, John McDonnell, Crispin Blunt, Virendra Sharma, Alistair Carmichael, Lord Judd, Chris Law and Baroness Young of Hornsey to the chief executive of the Premier League Richard Masters has claimed that the “Premier League cannot sign-off on the sale” of the Tyneside club to Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund unless the country reforms its criminal justice system and releases all political detainees.

Indeed, the group of MPs were particularly concerned that the Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman is set to hold an 80% stake at St. James’ Park if the £300m deal between Mike Ashley and the Saudi-led consortium is approved by the Premier League.

Also among the buying side are businesswoman and head of PCP Capital Partners Amanda Staveley and the billionaire Reuben brothers, who are originally from India but are now based in London.

It is still yet unclear as to what the final decision from the Premier League will be, but this letter by certain MPs may potentially throw another spanner in the works.

Nevertheless, it will ultimately be down to Masters and the league itself as to whether they approve of the takeover in the northeast, leaving members of the Toon Army anxiously twiddling their thumbs in the hope that it eventually goes through.

Geordies, are you worried about this letter potentially scuppering the takeover? Comment below with your views!

Newcastle United have been linked with many dubious rumours since reports of a takeover first emerged.

There’s been everyone from Gareth Bale to Philippe Coutinho to Kalidou Koulibaly. All mega-money stars. The same can be said for the managerial position with Mauricio Pochettino and Zinedine Zidane mooted names.

But this week a little more realistic claim has emerged from Scotland.

Who the heck is that?! Can you name all 25 of these obscure Newcastle signings…

According to the Scottish Mail (page 131, print edition 17th May 2020), Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard sees a move to the northeast giants as an ‘attractive step’ in his career.

And the Magpies faithful have been reacting to the claim on social media.

The 22-year-old had been in emphatic form for the recently-crowned Scottish Premiership champions this season after bagging 27 goals in 45 appearances in all competitions, via Transfermarkt, who also value him at £12.15m.

Chief football writer of The Herald Matthew Lindsay believes any sale would be in excess of £30m while Alan Stubbs claims it could be between £35m and £40m – if not more.

For now, though, it remains to be seen what sort of fee he would command or if the move even has legs as the Magpies’ takeover is still yet to be officially announced.

But anyway, here’s how fans have reacted to the news…

AND in other news, Paul Smith makes PL claim amid Newcastle takeover

A legendary player who made 558 league appearances for Arsenal over 17 seasons with the club, as well as earning 68 caps for the Republic of Ireland, David O’Leary dipped his toe into management for the first time at Leeds United.

Having ended his career as a player at Elland Road, O’Leary worked at the club as an assistant before taking on the job full-time.

In his stint at the club he certainly helped bring success, with a Champions League semi-final appearance and the record of Leeds never finishing outside of the top five in the Premier League while he was at the helm.

However, despite significant expense in the transfer market, O’Leary never earned the club a trophy and his departure was followed by a steep and dramatic decline in the club’s fortunes, with a series of important players moving on and Leeds being relegated.

Here, we look back on O’Leary’s spell and see how much of it you can remember with 10 tough questions.

Leeds continued their unbeaten run against Luton and Patrick Bamford returning to the scoresheet was a real bonus after he struck home a well-taken opener.

It is back-to-back goals for the striker who also scored at home against Blackburn before the international break, and if he could go on a little run it would do him and his team the world of good.

With Eddie Nketiah still out injured Bamford is the main source of goals for the Whites to rely on, so it is vital he rediscovers some confidence and that finishing touch which has often deserted him in this campaign.

It was an impressive all-round performance from the former Middlesbrough man, who played a crucial role in the winner, too, though it was eventually deemed to be an own goal by Luton’s Matty Pearson.

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Nevertheless, supporters are still shocked by Bamford’s omission in the EFL Team of the Week, as they believe his display warranted inclusion, as seen from the reactions below.

Elsewhere, Leeds have been chasing a new addition to provide competition for Bamford, a player who Bielsa has taken a likening to in the past.

Many Tottenham Hotspur fans have been raving over a report by French media outlet Le Foot, saying that the club are “very closely interested” in Nice right-back Youcef Atal.

Le Foot report that Spurs, as well as Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain, are keen on the Algeria international, with it being a position that the north London outfit really need to strengthen.

Indeed, having sold Kieran Trippier last summer and loaned an out-of-favour Kyle Walker-Peters to Southampton during the January transfer window, Serge Aurier has been their only specialist player in his position this term.

Interestingly, the 23-year-old is currently sidelined with a knee injury he suffered in December 2019, but he is expected to be back for the beginning of the 2020/21 season, whenever that may be.

Missing football!? There’s still plenty of Spurs discussion going on in the Vital Tottenham Forum! Click here to get involved!

The African has a decent record in terms of goalscoring with seven in 44 outings for the Ligue 1 outfit since joining them in 2018, while according to WhoScored, he averaged 1.5 shots and 3.6 successful dribbles in his 13 French top flight appearances this term before his injury.

Tottenham supporters certainly seem thrilled at the prospect of signing Atal, with one individual saying they have “tears in my eyes”, while another said “that’s more like it”.

Cameo Clubs: Which obscure teams did these football legends play for?

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While Aurier had been improved in recent months, his previous displays mean it is no surprise that the Spurs faithful are excited at the prospect of a new right-back arriving.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

In other Tottenham news, a report has provided an exciting insight into what Levy & ENIC’s plan to keep Harry Kane happy…

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…

As quoted by The Daily Mirror, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has ruled out making an incredible move for Paris Saint-Germain sensation Kylian Mbappe.

What did he say?

The France World Cup winner has often been linked with a move to Real Madrid to join up with Les Bleus legend Zinedine Zidane, but reports in recent weeks have suggested Liverpool may enter the race to sign him in the future.

However, speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the Reds’ titanic clash against Manchester City on Sunday, Klopp played down speculation that they could pounce for the 20-year-old.

He said: “OK, from a sporting point of view, there are not a lot of reasons to not sign Mbappe, what a player he is. But it is about the money of course. No chance. Absolutely no chance, sorry for killing that story.

“I don’t think there is a club in the world that can buy Kylian Mbappe from PSG. And we are involved in that too. We cannot do it, it is as easy as that. We have nothing (more) to say about it to be honest, but (buying) this calibre of player is difficult.”

Anfield lure

Make no mistake about it, if PSG were to make Mbappe available, then Liverpool would be right up there in terms of being one of the most attractive propositions in European football for him to join. The Champions League holders may not have the financial resources as Klopp alludes to, but they have certainly built up the reputation and profile to be a destination for some of the game’s best players.

Money does talk of course, but if the French starlet was considering his options, then looking at joining Liverpool and playing under Klopp must surely be appealing. The chance to play in the Premier League, for a team that has already achieved major European success, sounds like the perfect job description for a player. So whilst the Reds manager may be distancing the club from a potential move, it may not be too big of a stretch as he thinks.

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…

Barcelona and Neymar are by now a truly old love story.

Throughout the summer we kept hearing about the Brazilian’s potential return to the Camp Nou but Paris Saint-Germain resisted all the Catalan attacks, as per Sport, and the superstar ended up staying at Parc des Princes.

However, the same report has stated that the Blaugrana are still contemplating the Brazilian’s return and will possibly try again in the near future.

Of course, the operation won’t be cheap but recent developments may have given Barcelona a surprising boost and it actually arrived in the form of Jadon Sancho, Borussia Dortmund’s young star.

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The Express reported that Paris Saint-Germain are looking to hijack the Englishman from Manchester United’s grip, as the Red Devils were also keeping a close eye on the young talent, amidst uncertainties over Neymar’s future at the French capital.

This can only mean one thing: they are preparing for the Brazilian’s departure and as things currently stand, only Barcelona are the real contenders for his signature.

It may have not worked out last summer but with a potential sale of Philippe Coutinho that could give them additional funds, seeing how the former Liverpool man is currently on loan with an option to buy for around €120m (£102.6m), the Catalans may succeed this time around.

But the key may very well lie in Paris Saint-Germain’s efforts to lure Sancho away from Manchester United and into their grip.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men are in dire need of reinforcements as their season is not really going according to plan.

The problem is that The Express claim Liverpool, Real Madrid and Juventus are also keeping tabs on the young forward, which could make the situation more complicated for both PSG and Manchester United.

In this instance, however, Barcelona will most likely be rooting for the French rivals because them securing Sancho’s signature may open the door to Neymar’s return to Catalonia.

And at the end of the day, that still seems like the ultimate goal.

Aston Villa came from a goal behind to secure an important 2-1 victory against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday (via BBC Sport).

Goals from Jack Grealish and Matt Targett were enough for the Villans to win three points, a result which saw them move three points clear of the relegation zone (BBC Sport).

Plenty of players impressed for Villa as they turned the game around, but one man who was subject to specific praise on social media after the match was centre-back Bjorn Engels.

The Belgian played five accurate long balls, made two clearances, one successful tackle and one interception on the afternoon, whilst also finishing with an impressive 90.4% passing accuracy (WhoScored).

Engels has formed a partnership with Tyrone Mings at the heart of the Villa defence and has started all nine of their Premier League matches so far (via WhoScored).

Villa fans were happy with the former Olympiacos and Reims man’s performance against the Seagulls, and in particular, were praising his partnership with Mings.

Here is what some of them had to say on Twitter…