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Tottenham Hotspur supporters will love manager Antonio Conte’s recent comments…

What’s the word?

Speaking ahead of their penultimate pre-season friendly against AS Roma in Tel-Aviv, the Italian head coach claimed that “we can work for many years together,” as relayed by football.london reporter Alasdair Gold, who was in attendance for his press conference.

The former Inter Milan and Chelsea manager is only under contract for the remainder of the current campaign, having signed an 18-month deal when he took over from Nuno Santo back in November.

There is an option of a one-year extension and these comments will surely hint toward that being triggered at some point this campaign.

Spurs supporters will go wild

Given the uncertainty over the Italian’s longevity in the Spurs dugout, whether it be down to their ambition in the transfer market or their performances on the pitch, Spurs fans may well go wild over these comments.

Ultimately, Conte worked wonders with the squad last season, earning a fourth-place finish, which they stole from arch-rivals Arsenal’s grasp late in the campaign.

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He has now been backed in the transfer market with six new additions, with the club on the lookout for a seventh in the form of either another centre-back or attacking midfielder.

Conte is certainly being backed as sporting director Fabio Paratici splashed a whopping £60m on Richarlison from Everton, and he’s unlikely to even start due to Heung-min Son, Harry Kane and Dejan Kulusevski’s form towards the back end of the season.

There are always murmurs in the press surrounding Conte and his future that send worries right through the fanbase but these latest comments will surely alleviate those doubts to send supporters into raptures, less than two weeks before the start of the new Premier League campaign.

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Conte suggests that he can work with this squad for many years to come, meaning he seems committed to the Lilywhites for the long-term, and it’s that sort of stability the north Londoners need to get back on top.

Those fans around the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will surely be buzzing.

AND in other news, Alasdair Gold reveals Antonio Conte transfer claim…

Phil Hay has dropped a major update on the future of Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips.

What’s the word?

In recent comments made on The Athletic Football Podcast, the Leeds United correspondent stated his belief that, should the Whites go on to suffer relegation from the Premier League on Sunday, it will be a near-impossible task for Victor Orta and Andrea Radrizzani to convince the 26-year-old to put pen to paper on a new deal at Elland Road, as well as suggesting that it would also be extremely difficult for the club to keep hold of the England international in the summer transfer window.

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Concerning Phillips’ long-term future in LS11, Hay said: “With Kalvin Phillips, it’s a little bit more difficult to tell. The club have been hopeful that they might pin him down with a new contract for one more year.

“They know that, ultimately, he’ll want to play at a higher level, but you’re right, if they go down it seems impossible to convince Phillips that it’s good for his prospects given that there’s a World Cup coming up later in the year.”

Supporters will be devastated

Considering just how important a part of the Leeds side Phillips has proven himself to be in recent years, the prospect of Sunday being the midfielder’s last game for the Whites is sure to be a thought that will leave the Elland Road faithful devastated.

Indeed, over his 29 Premier League appearances last time out, the £45m-rated maestro was crucial in Leeds securing a highly impressive top-half finish, making an average of 1.6 interceptions, 2.6 tackles, 1.7 clearances and winning 5.3 duels – at a success rate of 52% – per game.

The £38k-per-week talent also impressed in a creative capacity, bagging one goal, providing two assists and creating five big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of 1.2 key passes, 4.7 long balls and 41 passes per fixture.

These metrics saw the deep-lying playmaker average a quite remarkable SofaScore match rating of 7.21, not only ranking him as Marcelo Bielsa’s best performer in the league but also as the ninth-best midfielder in the division as a whole.

And, while a hamstring injury has limited the 19-time capped international’s game time in the current campaign, he has nevertheless impressed over the 19 Premier League matches in which he has featured, making an average of 1.1 interceptions, 2.7 tackles, 37.8 passes and winning 4.8 duels per outing – with these returns seeing the 26-year-old average a SofaScore match rating of 6.82.

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As such, should Phillips indeed move onto pastures new amid links to Manchester United, Newcastle United and Aston Villa this summer, it would undoubtedly come as a gutting blow to Leeds supporters.

Indeed, the Elland Road faithful will certainly be desperate for their club to pick up all three points against Brentford this weekend – not only to see their club potentially remain in the Premier League but also to give the Whites a chance of keeping the Leeds-born talent beyond the end of the current campaign.

AND in other news: Huge blow: Fresh injury update emerges ahead of Brentford, it’s awful news for Leeds

Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side return to European action this evening, with Bodo/Glimt making the trip to Parkhead for the Europa Conference League play-off round meeting.

After being narrowly eliminated in the Europa League group stage, the newly-formed Conference League offers the 56-year-old and his side a second chance at going on a European cup run this season – and potentially even the opportunity to pick up the club’s first international trophy since the Lisbon Lions’ European Cup triumph back in 1967.

As such, Postecoglou will undoubtedly be looking to field his strongest possible XI tonight, with sweeping changes from the initial lineup against Raith Rovers last weekend expected to be made by the Greek-Australian coach.

So, how many alterations will the 56-year-old make to the side that started the 4-0 Scottish Cup victory last time out? Here’s how we think Celtic could line up against Bodo/Glimt, along with the latest team and injury news…

With Postecoglou recently revealing that Josip Juranovic will be available for selection after recovering from illness, as well as confirming that Mikey Johnston and Yosuke Ideguchi will not feature this evening, we predict that the 56-year-old will make eight changes to the team that lined up against Rovers last weekend.

Three of these changes come in the back four, with Liam Scales, Stephen Welsh and Anthony Ralston making way for the returns of Greg Taylor, Carl Starfelt and the fit-again Juranovic respectively.

In the middle of the park, Callum McGregor takes the place of Nir Bitton in the more defensive role of Postecoglou’s midfield three, while the £15k-per-week Tom Rogic – who Brendan Rogers previously dubbed an “elusive” player – makes way for the 21-year-old Matt O’Riley – who Kieran Devlin labelled a consistent “8/10” performer.

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Finally, there are wholesale changes in the front three, with the aforementioned Johnston being ruled out due to injury, while Giorgos Giakoumakis and James Forrest also drop out of the XI, with Jota, Liel Abada and Daizen Maeda staring on the left-wing, right-wing and at centre-forward respectively.

In other news: Ange must now unleash “one of the brightest” Celtic talents, he’d blow Bodo/Glimt away

According to a report by Milan Live, West Ham United have now got Lille forward Jonathan Ikone in their sights as they eye more attacking additions for manager David Moyes.

The Lowdown: West Ham in forward hunt…

Over the summer, Moyes made no secret of his desire to add more forward additions to his ranks and bolster West Ham’s chances for 2021/2022.

As he candidly admitted, the Scotsman was ‘desperate’ to sign a striker in particular and it isn’t difficult to see why when taking into account star man Michail Antonio’s concerning injury history.

The Jamaica international has started this season in sublime form; bagging six goals and three assists in just nine Premier League starts whilst also winning the English top flight’s Player of the Month award for August.

Moyes has had to manage him carefully, though, with the Hammers boss electing not to use the 31-year-old at all in the Carabao Cup for example.

He has even sent club doctors abroad to monitor Antonio when the player goes touring on international duty.

An injury to Antonio, which is always a lingering possibility, would spell disaster for West Ham and Moyes – leaving little wonder why they are currently weighing moves for new attacking additions like Andrea Belotti and Jesse Lingard.

The Latest: West Ham set sights on Ikone…

As per Milan Live, West Ham have now set their sights on another forward in Lille star Ikone who has featured in the Champions League this season.

A key player for the Ligue 1 title-winners over 2020/2021, he has been attracting attention from Serie A giants AC Milan, but as they apparently pull out of the race, the Hammers and Everton swoop in.

West Ham, alongside the Toffees, are now in contention to sign the 23-year-old and are ‘seriously considering buying the player’ for Moyes.

The Verdict: Underwhelming?

Lille apparently value their man at around €40 million (£34.2m) according to an exclusive Anfield Central, and for that price, we believe Ikone should be strongly avoided.

The summer signing of Nikola Vlasic and links to Lingard, who could leave Manchester United in January for half of Ikone’s reported price (The Sun), arguably render the Frenchman’s addition unnecessary.

Going by his numbers, he doesn’t exactly stand out as a must-have target for Moyes either.

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According to WhoScored, Ikone’s averages of 1.3 shots, 1.1 key passes and 1.1 completed dribbles per 90 don’t measure up to that of key West Ham first teamers.

The likes of Said Benrahma, Jarrod Bowen and Antonio have all racked up superior numbers to Ikone in terms of these attacking aspects, leaving one to wonder what he could add under Moyes.

A ‘very sought-after’ player before signing for Lille, we believe he shouldn’t be anywhere near the top of Rob Newman’s transfer wish list for January.

In other news: ‘Woohoo’, ‘Going for the title’…ExWHUemployee’s transfer claim has many West Ham fans buzzing, find out more here.

Noel Whelan believes that reported Everton transfer target Marvelous Nakamba could help Rafael Benitez add more ‘energy and life’ to his midfield. 

The former Leeds striker discussed the potential transfer with Football Insider.

The lowdown

The Telegraph reported last week that Aston Villa’s Nakamba was a target for the Toffees. In order to sign him, Everton would apparently have to at the very least match the £11m fee Villa shelled out for the Zimabwean in 2019.

Nakamba played all 90 minutes for Dean Smith’s side on Saturday as they opened the campaign with a 3-2 defeat away to newly-promoted Watford. He won seven of his 16 ground duels, making two tackles and completing three dribbles (via SofaScore).

The signs are that Benitez wants to add another midfielder to his ranks in the remaining weeks of the window. A separate report last week suggested that preliminary talks had been held with Newcastle United over Sean Longstaff.

Benitez lined up with Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure in the middle of the park for his first competitive fixture against Southampton on Saturday, while Fabian Delph and Tom Davies were among the substitutes.

The latest

Allan and Doucoure only arrived on Merseyside last summer but Whelan suspects that Benitez wants to put his own ‘stamp’ on the side.

So far in this transfer window, Everton have signed two wingers in Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend, along with a backup goalkeeper in Asmir Begovic.

Whelan told Football Insider: “Everton bought a couple of midfield players last season, very good ones at that, who bring energy.

“Maybe Rafa Benitez has seen something in the side that he feels they need to be successful and progress.”

He added: “We know every time a new manager comes in he always wants to bring in his own players. That’s his stamp on the team. This could be one player he’s looked at before and feels could bring some energy and life to that midfield.”

The verdict

Everton’s midfield looks to just fine as it is, for Allan and Doucoure complement each other quite well. The former is the principal destructive presence, while the latter brings the box-to-box dynamism.

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Nakamba would be a somewhat uninspiring addition. He was afforded only nine Premier League starts last season, with Smith preferring Douglas Luiz and John McGinn in the Villa engine room, while his 6.52 seasonal WhoScored rating was far lower than both Allan (6.77) and Doucoure (6.78).

Ultimately, that suggests the Zimbabwe international wouldn’t discernibly strengthen Everton’s existing midfield options, so perhaps Benitez should seek to put his own “stamp” on the team in other ways.

In other news, another Everton midfield target has emerged.

A major update has emerged about MK Dons’ pursuit of Sunderland striker Will Grigg.

What’s the talk?

MK Dons’ sporting director Liam Sweeting has confirmed that he would like to sign Grigg from Sunderland this summer. Grigg joined MK Dons on loan in February, having played for the club earlier in his career.

Sweeting has said that his club thinks highly of Grigg and will be keeping their ear to the ground on his situation as they prepare a potential swoop for the Northern Ireland international. He told MKfm:

“That will be down to me and Russ, obviously Griggy is a player we think really highly of but he doesn’t belong to us, he belongs to Sunderland.

“We don’t have as much control over that one as we might have another target, but for sure we’ll be informed on that situation.”

Current MK Dons striker Charlie Brown praised Grigg earlier this year. He labelled the Sunderland man as an “absolute beast” and admitted that he is learning from him. He told the MK Citizen: 

“He’s brilliant on and off the pitch, I get on really well with him. We’ve got a good connection and when I’ve played with him, I’ve really enjoyed it.

“I’m learning from all of them. When Cammy was playing, I was watching him thinking he’s an absolute beast, and it’s the same with Griggy now.”

Sunderland fans will be buzzing

Sunderland fans will surely be buzzing with this news. It shows real intent from MK Dons to pursue a deal for Grigg as they want to be kept in the loop in regards to his situation at the Stadium of Light. This suggests that they are ready to sanction a bid for the 29-year-old should Lee Johnson decide that he does not want him as a part of his squad for the 2021/22 League One campaign.

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Grigg has been a flop since arriving at Sunderland from Wigan for a reported £3.07m. In 61 competitive appearances for Sunderland, the forward has managed a meagre eight goals and three assists, figures that simply do not justify his large price tag. He has not been able to catch the eye at the Stadium of Light and this summer could be the perfect time to move him on, especially if MK Dons are now keen on bringing him in.

His sale could come as music to the ears of Sunderland fans, as the club would be getting rid of a player who has struggled to perform for them in recent years. In the first half of the 2020/21 campaign, Grigg failed to score a single goal in 12 appearances for the club in all competitions. Fans had to watch Grigg falter in front of goal consistently for the club, which is why they will surely be buzzing that there is genuine interest from a club looking to take him away.

AND in other news, Speakman must seal deal for “tremendous” £800-p/w beast, Sunderland fans would love it…

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Harry Winks was once touted to be the future at both domestic and international level.

In 2018, former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino backed him to become England’s Andres Iniesta, and the Englishman’s value soon soared to a career-best of £36m less than a year later.

“Harry has the profile of the perfect midfield player. His characteristics are perfect. When we talk about midfielders like Xavi and Iniesta, he’s like this type of player,” claimed the Argentine to the Evening Standard.

Value crash

Things have not gone to plan for Winks in the past 18 months or so.

Transfermarkt’s latest valuation update (18th March 2021) on the 25-year-old, who is soon to enter the peak years of his career, shows a drastic 45% decrease to £19.8m.

This merely emphasises how big a downfall he has had since the appointment of Jose Mourinho.

It now makes Winks the 12th-most valuable player in Spurs’ current squad, the 127th-most in the Premier League and the 352nd-most worldwide, via Transfermarkt. That’s not the levels you’d expect from someone who was once compared to a World Cup and five-time Champions League winner.

Out of favour

What’s to blame, though?

Well, Winks started Mourinho’s first game in charge back in December 2019 – a 3-2 win over West Ham United and even closed out the season as a first-choice option, starting and playing the full 90 minutes in their last six league outings.

But with the arrival of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the summer and the re-emergence of club-record signing Tanguy Ndombele, he has found it hard to cement down a regular spot in the starting XI.

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Indeed, the 5 foot 10 academy product has been restricted to only seven league starts all campaign. Even when trusted, he’s failed to deliver, as the midfielder ranks amongst Mourinho’s worst-performers, with an average WhoScored rating of just 6.38.

No player who has started more games has delivered a poorer rating.

That has to be a major contributing factor towards his downfall.

England axe

A direct consequence of that has been his absence from Gareth Southgate’s recent England squads – a lack of game time plus inconsistent performances is a surefire way to see yourself axed from international duty.

Having picked up all ten of his Three Lions caps under the 50-year-old, Winks has not been seen since a 26-minute cameo against Iceland in November.

The latest squad even included a return for Jesse Lingard – not seen since the UEFA League Nations third-placed playoff win over Switzerland in June 2019 – and another call-up for 17-year-old wonderkid Jude Bellingham.

And when you consider it was missing the likes of James Maddison and Jack Grealish through injury, it’s hard to make a case for Winks returning before this summer’s European Championships.

Levy’s fury

Given everything mentioned above, it’s hard to see a long-term future for him at Spurs either, and this could result in chairman Daniel Levy looking to cash in whilst he still can.

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But, understandably, he must be left reeling by his drastic dropoff in value, as he won’t be making as much as he would expect as say two years ago.

There have even been reports suggesting that Winks will insist on an exit this summer, that’s according to Sport (via Sport Witness), who also claim he is enticed by the idea of playing in Spain.

At £19.8m, Levy will have a hard task of driving up his price but if anyone can do it, then it’s certainly the tough negotiator himself.

AND in other news, Spurs dealt double injury blow ahead of Newcastle clash

Tottenham Hotspur return to top-flight action this afternoon as they look to continue to assert their dominance at the top of the Premier League standings.

Jose Mourinho’s men qualified for the Europa League knockout stages with a table-topping victory over Belgian outfit Royal Antwerp on Thursday night whilst seven days ago, they put on a clinic in defeating arch-rivals Arsenal in the north London derby.

Now they head to Selhurst Park to face Roy Hodgson’s Crystal Palace, who themselves come into this one on the back of a 5-1 whitewash over West Bromwich Albion.

Speaking to reporters in his pre-match press conference, the ‘Special One’ hinted at rotation as we enter a hectic festive period, but there was always going to be a tweak from the XI that started in Europe.

Here’s the line-up we’re predicting later today…

There could be as many as nice changes with just two players keeping their place from Thursday evening, Sergio Reguilon, who was withdrawn early with this one in mind, and Giovani Lo Celso, who ran the show.

Club captain Hugo Lloris returns between the sticks, replacing back-up goalkeeper Hugo Lloris whilst Mourinho goes back to his usual league back for of Reguilon, Eric Dier, Toby Alderweireld and Serge Aurier.

The Ivorian right-back has come on leaps and bounds this season, so much so that reports have emerged suggesting he is in line for fresh terms on his £120k-per-week current contract. He’s usurped summer signing Matt Doherty as the first-choice option in the role.

Defensive midfield powerhouse Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg comes back into the XI after enjoying a much-deserved rest in midweek and his influence could see Tanguy Ndombele and Lo Celso start together in the engine room as they look to punish the Eagles.

It means there is no place for Moussa Sissoko and the £36m-rated Harry Winks is axed.

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Steven Bergwijn should get the nod over Gareth Bale and Lucas Moura, who both drop to the bench. The £64m-rated Dutch dynamo seems to have won the starting gig in the league at the moment.

And finally, the undroppable, red-hot, prolific pairing of Heung-min Son and Harry Kane will both start as expected.

In other news, “I don’t see him fitting in” – Exclusive: Pundit drops exit hint over £25m Spurs “nightmare”…

Pierre van Hoojidonk has said that he had talks with Glasgow Rangers manager Dick Advocaat during his time in Scotland.

However, the former Dutch striker claimed that he could not make the move to Ibrox due to his connections with Celtic.

The Netherlands international had a fantastic record with the Hoops, scoring 52 goals in 84 appearances in just over two years, but that came during a barren spell for them in which they won just one trophy, the Scottish Cup, during his time in Glasgow.

The former Nottingham Forest player was talking on the Lockdown Tactics Podcast and recalled the time Advocaat had tried to take him to Ibrox. He said:

“I was on the phone with [Dick] Advocaat during that period.

“Arthur [Numan] had just signed and Dick was going to be the manager.

“Dick called me and said ‘Come on, come to Rangers.’

“I said ‘Dick, you don’t know what it is like. You have no clue. If you say this you don’t have a clue’.

“I met him a couple of years ago after that moment at Celtic Park when I went to see Celtic vs Rangers and he said ‘I understand completely why you said no.”

The ‘Gers were already a side packed full of talent at the time, with the likes of Paul Gascoigne, Brian Laudup and Ally McCoist already available. Adding a striker with the ability of Van Hooijdonk to the squad would have been, quite frankly, unfair to the rest of the competition.

Of course, he could never make the switch directly across the divide – the hatred between the two is just too strong. Still, fair play to Advocaat for having the bravery to make the approach!

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‘Gers fans, would you like to have had Van Hooijdonk at Ibrox or was he right to turn down a move to the club? Let us know what you think in the comments section below!

Everton’s 3-1 win against Crystal Palace at Goodison Park came at a price.Theo Walcott had done well at the start of the match, even providing the assist for Bernard’s opener. However, soon after, he was forced off with a muscle injury, which saw on-loan man Djibril Sidibe come into the side.

Did he play for Everton? Simple question but a lot tougher than you think…

His introduction to the play, though, was comical. The 27-year-old was stood waiting to come on, only to realise that he didn’t have one of his socks on. That meant he had to go back down the tunnel and get one before he could enter the fray.

Many Everton fans were flabbergasted by what they had seen.

It is stupendous that a professional footballer could forget to put on a sock – especially when he had already put one on as well.

Many fans also spotted something else in the background.

It just gets better and better. What was going on at Goodison Park during those few minutes?

Some supporters noticed the reaction of manager Carlo Ancelotti.

You can understand the Italian’s frustration. With him needing to make a quick change due to an injury, he will have been hoping for no delays.

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Watch Everton Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

No matter how much football you watch this weekend, you will struggle to find a more hilarious scene!

Meanwhile, Everton fans react to this hilarious training video.