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England have been rubbish at World Cups since we won it way back in 1966.

Every four years we go in to the tournament with renewed hope and optimism of ended so many decades of hurt, but in the end we’re always let down.

Russia 2018 will be no different as Gareth Southgate looks to be the man to end a generation of disappointment by bringing home the FIFA World Cup trophy.

It’ll be a very different looking England team than we’re used to as well as Southgate continues to give the national team a refreshing look and feel about it. There will be many World Cup debutants in England’s squad, but can you remember the England players who have appeared most for the Three Lions in World Cup history?

We’ve given you just two minutes to name in England’s top 20 most capped players at a World Cup finals in the quiz below, so can you beat the clock?

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Former West Ham United manager Alan Curbishley is confident that David Moyes is good enough to get the club back on track.

The Scotsman has been in charge of the East London outfit for just over three weeks and is yet to taste victory.

The new manager had a mixed start by recording a 2-0 defeat to Watford and then a 1-1 draw with Leicester City in the Premier League.

On Wednesday night matters were made worse when he took the Hammers to his old stomping ground Goodison Park.

Moyes was facing his former club Everton for the first time since taking on his new job, and it was a very unhappy return.

For a club that were lingering just two points above the relegation zone, the Toffees managed to earn a 4-0 victory.

Wayne Rooney scored a hat-trick, which included arguably the best goal of the season so far.

Despite West Ham’s current predicament, which leaves the club two points from safety, Curbishley thinks that Moyes can keep the club afloat.

The 60-year-old told the Daily Star:

“The recruitment in the summer – they brought a lot of players in – but because of injuries and a lack of form they don’t know their best first XI. I think once David sorts that out and gets them organised then they’ll pick up.”

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According to a report from The Daily Mirror, Everton have turned down a £12 million bid from RB Leipzig for young sensation Ademola Lookman. The 20-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at the Bundesliga outfit and impressed with five goals and four assists, with it clear that new manager Marco Silva would be mad to let the Englishman go on a permanent deal this summer. 

But with Lookman himself reportedly ‘keen’ on moving from Goodison Park this summer, Everton should indeed sanction his departure, but only on the condition that it is a loan deal.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, the 20-year-old made the move to Merseyside back in January 2017 amid much anticipation after a hugely impressive time at Charlton Athletic, and that sense of excitement rose immediately given he netted minutes into his debut against Manchester City.

However, the England Under-20 World Cup winner has been unable to build upon that success with just 23 further appearances for Everton, to the point that he himself instigated a loan move to Leipzig earlier this year, which turned out to be a great decision.

And that’s because the 20-year-old really proved his credentials with five goals and four assists in 11 appearances for the German outfit, thus suggesting that he may well be ready to finally command regular football at Everton.

Yet if new boss Silva doesn’t feel that he can get him into the side, instead of selling one of the brightest English stars in Lookman, he should instead let him go out on loan once again.

His spell at Leipzig last season, in one of Europe’s toughest leagues, has further underlined the immense amount of talent and potential the 20-year-old has, and as such what a huge asset he could be for Everton in the years to come – selling him this early in his development would surely be the wrong decision.

Who do you think will win the World Cup? Let us know here

However, another loan move at a club in which he enjoyed success last season, away from the spotlight in England, could be ideal for Lookman to continue his development towards the top player he can obviously become, ready to return to Everton and challenge for a first team spot in the near future.

So while the Toffees were right to reject a £12 million bid from Leipzig for the 20-year-old, they should sanction his departure on the condition that it is a loan deal, not a permanent one.

Everton fans… what do you think? Let us know!

The West Ham fans gathered around in the Transfer Tavern are hoping that their clubs positive start to the transfer window is a sign of things to come as they look to build on their 13th position.

Having secured three new signings, the start to the transfer window has been a good one for West Ham but the club and fans know full-well that that isn’t enough. Our punters have mixed feelings over whether West Ham should give Reece Oxford, (who is valued at £4.5 million on Transfermarkt) another go to prove himself, suggesting that he isn’t a failed wqonderkid after all.

Oxford burst onto the scene when making his Premier League debut at 16 against Arsenal and bossed Mesut Ozil the whole game, promoting interest from many European giants just after that one performance. Since then though, the predicted upwards trajectory hasn’t become a reality and Oxford has largely spent his time out on-loan with Reading and German club Borussia Monchengladbach.

The 19-year-old enjoyed a successful season with the German side last season, as he went on to make seven Bundesliga appearances in an injury-disrupted season. To think that they were impressed with him after just season those games, Oxford may just have a future at West Ham if given the opportunity by new boss Manuel Pellegrini.

Reece Oxford can operate as a defensive midfielder or at centre-back and his last chance at West Ham depends on how well he does during their pre-season with starts in just a few days.

Should West Ham give Oxford another chance… Let us know!

According to a report from The Daily Echo, Southampton are on the verge of sealing a deal for Denmark international defender Jannik Vestergaard. The 25-year-old was part of the Danish squad for this summer’s World Cup in Russia although failed to appear during the tournament, with his side bowing out of the competition at the last 16 stage following an agonising defeat to Croatia on penalties.

Yet it looks as though the centre back is closing in on a move to St Mary’s, which is sure to spell seriously bad news for current Saints defender Jan Bednarek.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, the 22-year-old only made the move to the South Coast last summer after coming up through the ranks and then starring for Lech Poznan, although the defender was unable to break into the first team at St Mary’s until the very end of the 2017/18 season.

The Poland international failed to muster a Premier League appearance for the Saints until April 14 in starting their 3-2 defeat to Chelsea at St Mary’s, and he must have done something right given he then earned four successive starts in the league under Mark Hughes.

Is this the best World Cup ever? Give us your thoughts here

And while many may feel that Bednarek is now very much in contention for a starting role this season, Vestergaard’s arrival is sure to push him down the pecking order, and with the ever-reliable Maya Yoshida, the impressive Wesley Hoedt, and Jack Stephens still at the club, it remains to be seen whether he is a first-choice next term.

The fact that Hughes is reportedly seeking to play three at the back is sure to aid in Bednarek’s quest, but having featured on fewer occasions than the aforementioned Saints trio last season in the Premier League, he could be the man to significantly suffer from Vestergaard’s arrival.

Thus, the £12.6 million-rated (as per Transfermarkt) star’s seemingly imminent move to St Mary’s could spell seriously bad news for Bednarek in his hopes of making the grade at Southampton.

Southampton fans… what do you think? Let us know!

Manchester City should try to land Julian Weigl from Borussia Dortmund after they failed to sign Chelsea-bound Jorginho.

What’s the word?

For months it seemed that Jorginho was destined for the Etihad Stadium following widespread reports of the club’s interest in the Napoli midfielder.

However, in a shock turn of events, the 26-year-old signed a five-year contract with Chelsea after Maurizio Sarri was confirmed as the Blues’ new manager.

This means that City manager Pep Guardiola and his staff will have to go back to the drawing board.

One man who has previously been linked to the Premier League champions is Borussia Dortmund’s Julian Weigl.

The 22-year-old, who has been at the German club since 2015, plays in a similar style to Jorginho.

Why is Weigl a decent alternative?

The young midfielder, who is valued at £27m by Transfermarkt, has the skill and ability to thrive in a Guardiola team, and he would be even better thatn Jorginho would have been under Pep’s tutelage.

Despite his slight frame, Weigl has strength on the ball and he also possesses a football intelligence beyond his years.

The German can control the tempo of the game and orchestrate moves from the middle of the park.

A negative in Weigl’s game is that he does not have much pace, but with plenty of City’s other midfielders having quick feet, it would not be a huge miss.

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Following the world-record transfer of Alisson, Liverpool now need to sell some players to pay back some of the £63 million they splashed out on the Brazilian goalkeeper. 

Klopp has identified seven squad players as surplus to requirements at the club, including Danny Ings, Lazar Markovic and Divock Origi. According to John Percy of the Daily Telegraph, Valencia will make a £27 million move for the Belgium international.

Origi now finds himself behind Dominic Solanke, Daniel Sturridge and even Rhian Brewster in the pecking order and is now surplus to requirements.

The Breakdown

Joining Liverpool for £10 million in 2014, Origi has always shown the potential to be a great striker but has never really delivered on it. His best season for the club was two years ago when he scored seven goals in 34 games, while last year he was sent on loan to Wolfsburg where he managed six goals in 31 Bundesliga matches.

His goalscoring record might not be that of a prolific striker but nevertheless, the 23-year-old could still turn out to be a good player and a change of scenery could be the catalyst for his future development.

What Valencia would be getting is a mobile and quick striker who may actually thrive in Marcelino’s system. From Liverpool’s perspective, a £27 million transfer fee for the Belgian would be great business.

With Solanke and Sturridge backing up Firmino, there’s seems no place for Origi in the squad, therefore the deal makes sense for all concerned and will go some way to repaying Alisson’s fee.

Thoughts Liverpool fans? 

There are only 10 days left in the transfer market which means some last minute deals are bound to happen and Newcastle could be a team that could be about to make one or two. 

The club still needs to add a striker, a midfielder a defender and a left-back before the window closes.

It also seems that if Mike Ashley does bring any players in, it won’t be for a high price. However, having sealed the deal for Aleksandar Mitrovic, Newcastle now have an extra £22 million to spend this summer.

Following on from that, The Sun is now reporting that the club are chasing Argentina international, Nicolas Tagliafico, who has also attracted interest from Fulham.

The Breakdown

Although Argentina ultimately had a disappointing World Cup campaign Tagliafico played in four of the their games in Russia and has impressed.

The Argentinian joined Ajax last summer but only made 15 appearances for the Dutch club. Due to that, Ajax are willing to let the 25-year-old leave for £8 million and could be a smart piece of business for the Magpies.

While much has been said about Newcastle lack of a striker and midfield, not much attention has been paid to the left-back position. As it stands, Benitez only has Javi Manquillo and Paul Dummett to call on, and frankly neither are top quality for the club.

Tagliafico would be an instant upgrade on the position and would give Newcastle more of an attacking outlet on the flank.

What do you think Newcastle fans? 

According to the club’s official website, Davy Klaassen has left Everton for Bundesliga outfit Werder Bremen. The Dutchman made the move to Goodison Park last year after impressing greatly at Eredivisie giants Ajax, although the 25-year-old has been unable to translate that form into his time in English football, hence it was always likely that he would leave the club this summer.

And with Werder Bremen having sealed a deal for the £13.5 million-rated flop (as per Transfermarkt), Everton fans can now reflect on what was surely one of their club’s biggest transfer blunders in bringing the midfielder to Merseyside.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, there was much anticipation among Toffees fans when Klaassen joined the club from Ajax this time last year, as the 25-year-old had put together an outstanding season in his homeland in bagging 20 goals and laying on 12 assists for the Dutch heavyweights.

Thus, it looked for all the world that Everton were getting a supremely talented number ten who could aid in their quest to bridge the gap to the Premier League’s top six, but it simply hasn’t worked out like that for the 25-year-old.

In fact, Klaassen mustered just 16 senior appearances for the Toffees last term of which only seven came in the English top-flight, with neither Ronald Koeman nor Sam Allardyce trusting the midfielder to do a job in the side.

The Netherlands international eventually finished the campaign with no goals and just one assist to show for his efforts on Merseyside to further underline his struggles, at the same time plunging his future at the club into doubt.

Yes, there is no doubt that the Everton hierarchy must take some responsibility for their awful recruitment process last summer, what with Klaassen one of three number tens signed during the close season, and as such very much a victim of the transfer policy.

Yet the Dutchman simply hasn’t proven to be anything close to the player that excelled in the Eredivisie and as such cost £23.6 million last summer, and his recent move to Werder Bremen certainly appears to be in the best interests of all parties involved.

In fact, such has been Klaassen’s woeful spell in English football, his addition will surely go down as one of Everton’s biggest transfer blunders.

Everton fans… what do you think? Let us know!

Arsenal under Unai Emery look like a completely new team and that is exciting for the fans watching on.

The former PSG manager’s first pre-season with the Gunners has been pretty successful as a number of players have been fighting hard for their place in Emery’s team in just over a week’s time.

Arsenal are still lacking a few players if they’re serious about challenging for the top four, some believe and if they want to resolve that, Barcelona’s Rafinha, (who is valued at £25.2 million on Transfermarkt) is a midfielder that would bring a lot of quality to the Emirates.

The Brazilian midfielder spent part of last season on-loan with Inter Milan where in his short time he impressed by scoring twice and providing three assists. Predominantly, he would ideally play as an attacking midfielder but with a great engine in him, Rafinha would be more than capable playing as a box-to-box player for the Gunners.

Aaron Ramsey has been an important player for Arsenal over the years but what’s to say the grass couldn’t be greener if they got Rafinha as part of a swap.

Barcelona are reportedly interested in the Welshman and this could allow Arsenal to negotiate and try and get Rafinha to come the other way as part of the deal.

Having already recruited five new players including highly-rated Uruguayan midfielder Lucas Torreira, Emery is building a team that once again looks capable of challenging for the top four at least. Rafinha would only add to the quality and because he can play in a number of different roles, maybe he could even be more suited to Arsenal than Aaron Ramsey…

Thoughts… Let us know!