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Newcastle United are plotting a January move to sign Barcelona striker Memphis Depay, according to reports in the last 48 hours.

The Lowdown: Previous interest

The Dutchman’s contract at Camp Nou is set to expire at the end of the season, making him a free agent for any potential suitors interested, but it now appears that there’s a chance that a switch could be completed prior.

The Magpies were linked with a swoop for the 28-year-old over the summer, and even though a deal failed to materialise, Eddie Howe is still keen to bring his target to the Premier League.

The Latest: Newcastle eyeing Depay

According to Spanish outlet Sport (via Sport Witness), Newcastle could be ‘given their chance’ to sign Depay in the New Year, with Barcelona set to ‘take advantage’ of the World Cup to revalue their forward.

Whilst PIF’s target would ‘prefer’ to see out his deal, it’s stated that the ‘needs’ of the northeast outfit, alongside the ‘desire’ of the La Liga side, could ‘converge’ so that a move can be completed in January rather than 2023.

The St. James’ Park squad are said to have the ‘financial muscle’ to close the transfer, which stands them in good stead to sign the talent in return ‘for a fortune’.

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The Verdict: Isak alternative

Newcastle only recently secured the services of Alexander Isak up top, but Depay would provide excellent competition for the Swede should he decide to put pen to paper.

The ‘outrageous’ attacker, as dubbed by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, has made a remarkable 256 goal contributions in 418 appearances throughout his youth and senior career (Transfermarkt), and has eight trophies to his name.

Landing Depay on a free next summer would be a great piece of business, though splashing the cash in January may be required if they don’t want to risk losing him to a fellow competitor.

Manchester United are interested in signing Juventus midfielder Weston McKennie, according to journalist Simon Phillips.

The Lowdown: McKennie profiled

The 24-year-old, who has been described as a ‘pressing machine’ by MLS expert Chris Smith of 90min, is primarily a central midfielder who can also play on the right-hand side or in a holding role.

A 34-cap USA international, McKennie is sponsored by Adidas and is valued at a career-high £22.5m by Transfermarkt.

He has made 88 appearances for Juventus, 13 of which have come during the current campaign, and it looks as if he is a potential target for those at Old Trafford heading into 2023.

The Latest: United keen

Phillips provided an update from his Substack account regarding McKennie on Sunday. He claimed that Chelsea have joined seven other sides ‘monitoring’ the midfielder ahead of a potential move.

The reporter name-checked United as a side who are ‘interested’ in McKennie, along with a number of Premier League sides and European clubs Atletico Madrid and Borussia Dortmund.

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The Verdict: Shrewd addition?

Erik ten Hag managed to bolster his midfield ranks in the summer by signing Casemiro from Real Madrid, however, you could say that United are still fairly short of holding and central midfield options.

Therefore, bringing in McKennie, who has played in multiple positions during his career ranging from right-back to a centre-forward and has experience in Germany and Italy, could be a wise move.

He’d be able to provide cover in multiple areas, something that may prove invaluable in the second half of the season when United could still be playing in four competitions.

Aston Villa boast plenty of exciting young talent in their academy, plenty of whom will have seen the club’s current form and thought that they could be the ideal solutions to turn things around.

However, with Unai Emery now appointed as manager, it seems that the hierarchy have opted for an experienced big name to progress the Villans rather than a younger revolutionary like Steven Gerrard.

Nonetheless, the former Arsenal boss could look to implement Tommi O’Reilly in a similar way to what Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola did with Phil Foden into the first team. After all, many at the club have nicknamed the Villa youngster after the Sky Blues’ star academy product.

Still only 22, Foden has already featured 184 times for the Cityzens, scoring 52 goals and setting up another 36.

At just 18 years of age , Villa attacking midfielder O’Reilly already boasts plenty of experience at under-23 level.

Having scored eight goals and set up another three in 25 games for the under-18s, he was promoted to the next age category and handed 23 appearances for the under-23s.

He will now have his sights set on the biggest step up to senior football, and if Emery is to implement him slowly just as Guardiola did with Foden, he could reap the same benefits that Man City have.

This season, O’Reilly already has a goal and an assist in Villa’s opening six Premier League 2 matches, and his performances across the youth teams even led journalist Ashley Preece dubbing him a “lovely little footballer”

He would likely not burst into Emery’s plans right away, but if he is managed correctly, he could soon surpass the likes of Emiliano Buendia or Jacob Ramsey in the Villa first team.

The Spaniard already has a proven track record with trusting in youngsters, as he was the man who promoted Emile Smith Rowe to Arsenal’s first team in 2018/19.

This should fill O’Reilly with confidence that, should he keep performing to a high standard at underage level, the chances will come in the first team.

To promote another academy graduate would instantly get Villa fans even more supportive of the new regime under Emery, and if he can become anywhere near as successful as Foden has in Manchester, it will be a process well done.

Wolverhampton Wanderers’ poor season has gone from bad to worse in recent weeks, with their 4-0 defeat to Leicester City at the weekend compounding their recent misery.

Sacking Bruno Lage after just one Premier League win following a 2-0 defeat to West Ham United at the start of the month hasn’t improved things.

Decisions made in the summer were arguably the key to this massive drop-off in form by the Wolves side. Allowing defenders Conor Coady and Romain Saiss to leave during the transfer window has contributed to their poor defensive record, which has seen them concede 19 goals in all competitions so far.

Lage might have still been in charge had a move materialised for Portuguese defender David Carmo, however, as the defender would very much have been a perfect heir to Coady.

Shi had a shocker on Carmo

Jeff Shi was keen on bringing the centre-back to Molineux according to O Jojo (via Birmingham Mail), with the player having a £34.3m release clause in his contract.

Despite Carmo missing large chunks of last season as he was recovering from an injury, he eventually sealed a move to fellow Portuguese side Porto and Wolves missed their chance.

In Braga’s Europa League run last time out, Carmo shone with an average SofaScore match rating of 7.14, winning 69% of his total duels and making a staggering 6.9 clearances per game.

He has extended this form into the current season, helping Porto keep three clean sheets in his six starts, while he has only been dribbled past 0.2 times per match.

His former manager Carlos Carvalhal was full of praise for the defender upon his return from injury last time out, saying: “He is a fantastic centre-back, one of the best in the country.” And with Wolves losing a host of central defenders during the window, signing Carmo would have improved this area of the team.

It certainly looks like the 23-year-old has made the better choice, choosing Champions League football and a title challenge for what is sure to be a long and arduous season for Wolves facing a relegation battle.

The Old Gold should have unearthed their perfect Coady heir in Carmo, but it was yet another Lage disaster class in the transfer market.

Leeds United ‘wanted to bid again’ but are ‘unlikely’ to sign PSV Eindhoven superstar Cody Gakpo in the January transfer window, according to journalist Fabrizio Romano.

The Lowdown: Gakpo continues to shine

The Dutchman has emerged as arguably the Eredivisie’s star player currently, producing a string of influential, quality-laden performances for PSV.

Gakpo already has nine goals and assists apiece to his name in the league alone this season, actually racking up more goal contributions in all competitions than any player in Europe not named Erling Haaland – one ahead of Lionel Messi.

Leeds have been linked with an audacious move for the 23-year-old in recent times, with Andrea Radrizzani even confirming on social media that the Dutchman is a target, although they are far from alone in expressing an interest.

The Latest: Leeds move ‘unlikely’

Taking to Twitter, Romano confirmed that a switch to Elland Road is now looking off the cards, due to the interest from ‘top European clubs’:

“Cody Gakpo is doing fantastic with PSV. His transfer situation has now changed: Leeds and Southampton wanted to bid again for January but that kind of move looks unlikely.

“Top European clubs are interested in signing Gakpo in 2023.”

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The Verdict: Look for alternatives…

Hard though it may be to accept, Gakpo’s future looks likely to belong at a bigger, more successful club than Leeds, considering the level he is performing at.

The Whites are battling to stay in the Premier League but the winger will surely be eyeing up a move to a Champions League team, considering his dominant displays in the Europa League this term.

Gakpo has been described as ‘incredible’ by BBC writer Statman Dave and has a massive future ahead of him – if he did suddenly end up at Leeds, he could be a game-changing addition.

Newcastle United appointed Dan Ashworth as their sporting director ahead of the 2022/23 campaign and the ex-Brighton chief was a busy man throughout the summer transfer window.

He moved quickly to bring in Nick Pope, Sven Botman, Matt Targett and Alexander Isak in on permanent deals to bolster Eddie Howe’s first-team squad, whilst also snapping up Loris Karius on a free transfer after Karl Darlow sustained an injury.

His business has played a huge role in the club currently sitting third in the Premier League table after 14 matches played, having beaten Southampton 4-1 on Sunday.

Pope has been one of the Magpies’ top performers since he arrived from Burnley – averaging a SofaScore rating of 7.13 and keeping six clean sheets in 14 appearances.

Speaking on Ben Foster’s podcast (35:00), Pope’s former manager Sean Dyche described him as a “monster” and a “basketball star” because of his huge frame and he has used his body to deny opposition forwards throughout the season so far.

He turns 31 in April and some of the younger shot-stoppers at the club should be looking at him as a role model as they attempt to make the breakthrough at first-team level.

Howe may already have the heir to Pope’s throne between the sticks at St. James’ Park in 19-year-old goalkeeper Jude Smith, who was brought in from East Fife in the summer.

The teenage talent has caught the eye for the U21s since joining the Magpies. His manager, Elliot Dickman, hailed his “potential” in September and praised the stopper’s performances, saying:

“The games he’s played in, the first was Norwich away he was thrown in the deep end to an extent, and even in that game he kept the score down. The other games he’s played, he’s done terrific.

“He’s come in and hit the ground running, but there’s still lots for him to learn. He hasn’t been here long in terms of how we want to play and what we want to do, and I think he’s getting there which is a credit to him and all of the staff who are around him.”

Smith excelled in the EFL Trophy when he was tasked with playing against professional teams. He averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.20 across three appearances – against Lincoln, Barnsley, and Doncaster – as he saved 75% of the shots against him.

The 19-year-old is in the infancy of his career but he is already showing that he has the quality to impress at senior level, having also played 25 matches in the third tier of Scottish football last season.

He should now be doing his best to soak up as much information and guidance from Pope as he can so that he can fulfil his potential and progress through to the senior squad at St. James’ Park.

Smith is on the right track, having impressed Dickman and put in strong performances in the EFL Trophy, and Howe could unearth Pope’s heir in the future by aiding the teenager in his development over the coming years.

Tottenham Hotspur are interested in a deal to bring Anthony Gordon to north London in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The Sun, who claim that, after Spurs were strongly linked with the Everton winger in the summer, Antonio Conte is once again considering launching a bid for the 21-year-old in the winter market.

Meanwhile, Chelsea – who reportedly saw a £40m bid for the England U21 international in August – are no longer believed to be in the race for the attacker following Graham Potter’s appointment at the club – affording Fabio Paratici something of a clear run.

However, with Frank Lampard appearing desperate to keep the flanker – having offered Gordan a bumper new deal at Goodison Park, something that is yet to be signed – it is said the Toffees will demand a figure in the region of £60m to part with the forward.

Forget Gordon, unleash Gil

While it is undeniable that Gordon is a player who boasts a considerable amount of potential for future development, considering the winger’s poor form so far this season (3 goals, 0 assists), coupled with the fact that Tottenham already possess an incredibly talented and massively underused attacking prospect in Bryan Gil, Conte could save Spurs £60m by finally unleashing the Spaniard.

Indeed, according to FBref, the £30.5m-rated Gordan currently ranks in the top 12% of midfielders in Europe’s big five leagues and European competitions for non-penalty xG per 90, as well as the top 19% for shots, the bottom 39% for assists and the bottom 48% for shot creating actions over the last 365 days.

Furthermore, the £10k-per-week winger also ranks in the top 26% for dribbles completed per 90, in addition to the top 14% for touches in the opposition penalty area and the top 33% for progressive passes received over the past 12 months.

In comparison, FBref rank the £22m-rated Gil in the top 22% of midfielders in Europe’s big five leagues and European competitions for non-penalty xG per 90, as well as the top 35% for shots, the top 41% for assists and the top 12% for shot-creating actions over the last year.

The database also ranks the £40k-per-week flanker in the top 7% for dribbles completed per 90, in addition to the top 8% for touches in the opposition box and the top 6% for progressive passes received in the past 365 days.

Indeed, it is clear to see that Gordon and Gil have returned extremely similar numbers, and with the former having played 3061 minutes of football over the last year compared to the latter’s 832 minutes, the argument could easily be made that, with less time to impress, the Spain U21 international’s returns are even more impressive.

As such, rather than spending £60m to bring Gordon to north London this winter, Conte simply must unleash the “unbelievable” Gil who is “like Messi” – in the words of Jordan Campbell – as the Italian arguably already possesses a player who is a much better prospect than the Everton starlet in the Spanish sensation.

Aston Villa correspondent Ashley Preece has been reacting to the news of Tyrone Mings’ exclusion from the England World Cup squad.

The Lowdown: Error in front of Southgate

The defender has made 12 appearances during the current Premier League campaign under Steven Gerrard and Unai Emery. The 29-year-old, who has 17 international caps to his name, was part of Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2020 squad but hasn’t featured for the Three Lions since March.

Southgate was in attendance for Villa’s game with Chelsea last month, with the centre-back making a big error early on which allowed Mason Mount to score.

The Latest: World Cup absence

On Thursday, England manager Southgate named his 26-man squad for the World Cup in Qatar, with Villa duo Mings and Ollie Watkins both missing out.

Harry Maguire, Eric Dier, John Stones, Conor Coady, Ben White and Kyle Walker were preferred, with Preece admitting on Twitter that he was ‘gutted’ for Mings, who he feels has been ‘so strong’ for Villa this season.

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The Verdict: Not a surprise?

Mings began the 2022/23 season on the bench under Gerrard and missed the entirety of England’s UEFA Nations League campaign.

Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a major shock to the player that he has missed out on a World Cup call, although it will still be hugely disappointing given his previous involvement for the Three Lions.

Villa will also feel for their centre-back, although Emery may actually benefit from Southgate’s decision, as he will have more time to work with the player on the training ground over the next six weeks.

West Ham are reportedly interested in signing Fulham defender Tosin Adarabioyo and his arrival could spell the end of cult hero Craig Dawson’s time at the London Stadium.

According to Claret and Hugh, the Hammers could look to acquire the centre-back after the World Cup break and could pay around £16m for the former Manchester City man, despite his contract at Craven Cottage being set to expire in June 2023.

Since joining the Cottagers from the Citizens in 2020, the 25-year-old has gone on to make 88 appearances in west London, contributing three goals and two assists.

He earned the move to Fulham after impressing with Championship side Blackburn Rovers on loan from Manchester City, with his centre-back partner Darragh Lenihan singing the defender’s praises in 2019.

He said: “He’s brilliant. His distribution is excellent, he’s quick, he’s big. I’ve said to him that he has all the attributes to play for Manchester City in my opinion.

“He’s here to learn, and help us out, but he’s a fantastic player.”

This season has seen him make ten appearances in the Premier League for Marco Silva’s side, in which he has averaged a solid, if unspectacular, 6.60 rating from WhoScored.

However, this still ranks him ahead of all of West Ham’s centre-back options bar Kurt Zouma, which emphasises what he could add to David Moyes’ side should he join in the January window.

Adarabioyo would join an already long list of centre-back options in Moyes’ side, especially with Angelo Ogbonna and Nayef Aguerd having returned from injury in recent weeks, which suggests that another defender could be moved on to accommodate the Fulham star.

That man seems very likely to be Dawson, given that he came extremely close to leaving the Hammers during the summer transfer window, as he seeks a move to a club closer to his home in the north of England.

The 32-year-old has become a fan favourite during his time with the Hammers, notably for his performances in the Europa League run last season, as he was named in the team of the tournament.

However, he has struggled after returning from injury this season, averaging a poor 6.47 rating for his displays in the Premier League, so perhaps it is time he was moved on and replaced by a better long-term option in Adarabioyo.

Everton made a £15m bid for Mohammed Kudus in the summer but were unsuccessful in their efforts and now a reliable source has made a claim on the club’s pursuit of the talented player.

What’s the latest?

Speaking to Football FanCast, journalist Pete O’Rourke claims another move for Kudus would get Everton supporters “excited”.

O’Rourke said:

“He’d definitely be somebody who would get Everton fans excited.

“I think they were excited at his potential arrival in the summer only for the deal not to happen.”

Lampard can get Goodison rocking

Despite the struggles Everton have faced over the last 12 months, there is no doubt that Frank Lampard could get Goodison Park rocking again if the club were able to pull off a deal for the Ajax star.

The Toffees are in desperate need of more creativity and clinical performers in their attacking threat with only Wolverhampton Wanderers scoring fewer goals than Everton in the Premier League so far this season, and Kudus could be the perfect solution to improve the attacking threat.

Over 14 Eredivisie appearances so far, the 22-year-old ace – who was hailed “explosive” by journalist Deji Faremi – has scored five goals and completed 70% of his dribbles, as well as averaging 1.8 shots and 2.6 duels won per game, proving that he clearly has an eye for goal.

Not only that, Kudus is representing Ghana in Qatar at the World Cup and despite his team losing 3-2 to Portugal put on an exemplary performance that will catch the eye of the powers at Goodison Park.

The attacking midfielder earned the highest SofaScore rating in his team (7.4) during his 77-minute performance – completing 100% of his dribbles, winning 67% of his duels, making one tackle and successfully delivering 100% of his long balls.

Kudus has been the recipient of high praise for his recent performances with Ajax and Netherlands legend Wesley Sneijder claiming the rising star is “great to watch” after his display in the Champions League against Liverpool earlier this season:

“He shoots it fantastic,” Sneijder claimed.

“Until then, he hadn’t been in the game, but this is the Kudus in form. A great player to watch.”

With that being said, the signing of Kudus would be a major coup for Everton and would certainly give the team more depth and quality in their attacking threat over the second half of the season.