Everton’s season ended in the worst way possible last weekend as they were well and truly battered by the Premier League champions.Their defence was cut open like a knife through butter while they lacked cutting edge and penetration on the counter-attack.

What’s the word?

One way of improving their fluency in the final third would be to sign a winger.

Football FanCast revealed last month that the Toffees were in the market for somebody who could play on the right-hand side. However, we believe Everton should stop at nothing to bolster the other flank as well.

Fortunately, it looks as though they’ll be doing exactly that. Football League World report this week that Carlo Ancelotti’s men are battling for the signature of tricky Bournemouth flanker Arnaut Danjuma.

Everton are looking to take advantage of the south coast side’s failure to get promoted from the Championship.

A number of top-flight sides are now circling with Wolves, West Ham and Brighton also interested in Danjuma’s signature.

Iwobi upgrade

If Everton can lure the attacker to Goodison Park this summer then he’d represent a huge upgrade on Alex Iwobi.

The Nigerian signed for £28m in the summer of 2019 but his arrival on Merseyside hasn’t been greeted particularly positively.

On his day, he can frighten the opposition with his dribbling but very rarely does he combine that with end product.

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Iwobi has scored just twice this term, taking his tally in the royal blue of Everton to four strikes in 65 appearances.

Those numbers aren’t strong enough whatsoever for a side challenging for a place in European football so improvement is need.

Danjuma would provide Ancelotti with the ability to beat a man but also provide goals and assists.

The Dutchman was in inspired form for the Cherries this term, racking up a mightily impressive haul of 17 goals. Capable of playing anywhere across the front three, it was on the left where he truly stood out.

The 24-year-old was impressive when it came to creating chances for his teammates as well, providing eight assists in all competitions.

He claimed the award for the EFL Championship Player of the Month in April and has gone from strength to strength this season, particularly under Jonathan Woodgate.

With the former defender at the helm, Danjuma totted up ten goals and six assists in just 18 league outings.

It’s hardly a surprise that Woodgate’s found the time to wax lyrical about his abilities: “I know last season that he didn’t really get a run in the Premier League and he maybe found it a bit difficult to get game time, but this season he’s been outstanding.â€

The Bournemouth boss continued: “I can only talk of what he’s done under my reign, but at the minute, he’s playing some exceptional football, and what else he is doing is working for the team.â€

Capable of producing moments of magic from nowhere, he’s the type of player you’d always love to have in your team.

Against Norwich he showed exactly what he’s capable of, skipping past two Canaries players before rifling a bullet right into the top corner.

It showcased his scintillating dribbling skills too, an area of his game that usurps nearly every player at Everton. Danjuma managed 1.8 dribbles per game this season, a number that only Richarlison can replicate.

This would be a top drawer signing from Ancelotti and Marcel Brands.

AND in other news, Everton can begin the transfer window with a bang by signing “dangerous” 16-goal beast…

Double Hampshire junior indoor cricket champions

Mike Vimpany08-Apr-2002Double Hampshire junior indoor cricket champions. That’s Havant, who proudly show off their medals after winning both the Hampshire Under-13 and Under-16 Indoor Cups at Winchester’s River Park Leisure Centre.Stuart Ransley, Chris Morgan and Simon Hodgson sparkled as Havant saw off plucky St Cross Symondians and near neighbours Waterlooville to lift the Under-13 crown.The Under-16s comfortably beat Sarisbury Athletic in the final, after scraping a one-run semi-final win over Hursley Park.Matt Palmer cracked a superb 71 as Hursley were dismissed for 141, chasing Havant’s 142-5.Results – Under-13 Semi-finals
Waterlooville 195-5 (Shephard 61, Burnett 34, Robson 28, Hillman 26)
Hook & Newnham Basics 44Havant 153-2 (Morgan 39, Ransley 28, Hodgson 27, Hardacre 22)
St Cross Symondians 132-4 (Bayliss 26, Jenkins 25, Porter 25, Lovett 20, Walker 2-26)Final:
Havant 143-4 (Ransley 50, Morgan 37, Hodgson 24)
Waterlooville 116-3 (Hillman 35, Robson 28, Hudson 23)Under-16 Semi-finalsBasingstoke & North Hants 88-2 (Davies 26, James 23)
Sarisbury Athletic 90-0 (Journeaux 28, Evans 26, Ingram 24)Havant 142-5 (Wade 44, Molyneaux 33)
Hursley Park 141 (Palmer 71, van der Merwe 28)Final:
Havant 136 (Wade 57, Molyneaux 32)
Sarisbury Athletic 87 (Evans 43, Molyneaux 2-24).

There is no secret that Leeds United want to sign Rodrigo De Paul from Udinese, but former midfielder David Norris believes that the potential arrival of the Argentine could be a concern for Mateusz Klich.

Klich was part of the Leeds squad that helped earn promotion back to the Premier League but a 6.51 WhoScored rating shows that he has slightly struggled to adapt to life in the top flight.

De Paul is likely to command a fee around the £40 million mark so he would almost be guaranteed to start every Premier League game when fit, therefore Klich could see his minutes severely cut next season as he has done nothing to show he is capable of competing with Kalvin Phillips or even Stuart Dallas.

Klich would certainly be a great squad player who knows Marcelo Bielsa’s methods and how to carry out his instructions and when asked if the midfielder could be worried about his game time next season if De Paul signed, Norris had this to say when he spoke exclusively to Football FanCast:

“Yeah, I think Klich might be because he hasn’t set it on fire and it hasn’t gone well for him. So I think potentially, it could be a bit more difficult for him.”

Considering the high standards that De Paul has set for himself at Udinese then a lot more players could see it as a challenge to improve themselves ahead of next season but Norris does believe that most of them deserve another chance in the Premier League because of what they achieved last season, he said:

“In general, I think most of the players have done enough to deserve another crack at it, but if he comes in and hits the ground running, then obviously other players will have to step aside.”

Far too often last season, when Phillips was injured, Klich could neither dictate play nor shield the back four effectively enough given his lack of athletism and energy compared to the England international, which may force Bielsa’s hand in bringing in a replacement.

علق حسين الشحات لاعب الأهلي على فوز فريقه أمام الهلال السوداني في المباراة التي جمعت بينهما اليوم الأحد، وحسم التأهل لربع نهائي دوري أبطال إفريقيأ.

وسجل حسين الشحات هدف الأهلي الوحيد في المباراة التي أقيمت اليوم على ملعب السلام، في ختام منافسات دور المجموعات بدوري أبطال إفريقيا.

طالع أيضًا | منافس الأهلي المحتمل في دور ربع نهائي دوري أبطال إفريقيا.. صدام عربي

وقال حسين الشحات خلال لقاء عبر قناة “بي إن سبورت”: “الحمد لله على الفوز، كنا نلعب على الانتصار وليس التعادل، لأننا نخوض اللقاء على ملعبنا، سجلت الهدف ولكن هذا نتيجة مجهود زملائي”.

وأضاف لاعب الأهلي: “نحن نخوض المباراة على أرضنا وكان لا يجب أن نعطيهم الفرصة لكي يلعبوا، وكانت لدينا تعليمات من موسيماني بالضغط طوال المباراة حتى بعد أن نُسجل أي هدف”. هدف فوز الأهلي على الهلال (1-0) دوري ابطال افريقيا

Former Tottenham Hotspur star Paul Stewart believes that there is a 50/50 chance that Mauricio Pochettino will return to the club this summer in a sensational managerial move.

The sacking of Jose Mourinho midway through the campaign has left Spurs on the hunt for a new boss.

They have been linked with a number of potential head coaches, including Antonio Conte and Erik Ten Hag.

But reports over the past week have centred primarily on Pochettino, with The Athletic reporting that the two parties are in talks over a potential reunion.

Spurs sacked Pochettino 18 months ago, while the Argentine only joined PSG in January.

It would be a headline-grabbing move but Goal have reported that the former Southampton boss has asked to be allowed to leave the French club, with Real Madrid also interested in appointing him.

Stewart is not sure if Pochettino will be willing to make the move to north London, given the contract he is on in France, and the fact that he is working with the likes of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, but he has not ruled out the prospect of him coming back to north London.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, he said: “He’s four months into his tenure at PSG so I’m going to say it’s 50/50, purely and simply because he’ll be on a lucrative contract at PSG, he’s working with some of the best players in the world at PSG and he may well see that as another project like he did with the Spurs project.”

Jack Grealish will not be leaving Aston Villa in this summer transfer window, according to the Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece.

Despite admiration from Manchester City and Manchester United respectively [Daily Express], with reports earlier on Tuesday suggesting the Etihad as the more likely destination, the boyhood Lions supporter looks set to stay on at Villa Park for the foreseeable future.

According to the report, Villa do not believe their skipper is for sale at any price.

Though an admirer of his footballing exploits, Citizens boss Pep Guardiola is rumoured to be targeting a striker first and foremost. Unsurprisingly, these developments will have intensified after the official exit of Sky Blues legend Sergio Aguero to Barcelona [BBC].

This will come as music to the ears of the Villa Park faithful. Producing ten assists and six goals in the 2020/21 campaign, it comes as no surprise that the England international is now up for the Premier League player of the season award [Aston Villa FC].

No doubt buzzing, loads of Villa fans have taken to social media to voice their delight at the news.

Tuesday delight for Aston Villa fans

      “Cancelling my vaccine to inject this instead”   

Credit: @charlie_avfc

“SUPER JACK GREALISH”
Credit: @haani_m1

“I love you rn”

Credit: @AVFC_Alex

“ASHLEY PREECE AT THE BACK POST”
Credit: @TomFshAV

“Just give us the league now”

Credit: @EdKershawAVFC

“Oh my”
Credit: @elootor

In other news, Jack Grealish has been nominated for a prestigious award

The relationship between Everton target Rafa Benitez and his previous clubs is an interesting one.

At Valencia, he is hailed an icon for his two La Liga successes and at Liverpool, he will always be a legend for winning the Champions League.

At Goodison Park, however, his name isn’t exactly met with favouritism. He dubbed the Toffees a “small club” back in 2007 and he is not exaclty the most popular man due to his allegiances with Anfield.

He isn’t exactly thought of in the greatest terms at Real Madrid either. The Spaniard was given the job at the beginning of the 2015/16 season but was sacked midway through the campaign in January.

Marcelo played under Benitez in Spain and the duo could be one that’s reunited at Everton this summer. Senior officials at Goodison Park are said to be on the verge of hiring Benitez as the club’s new manager after talks stalled with Nuno Santo.

This comes just days after interest was registered in Madrid’s legendary full-back, Marcelo.

The 33-year-old is coming towards the end of his career but he’d still be a magnificent capture for the Toffees. This is a defender who has been there and done almost everything there is to do in football.

He is one of the most decorated around with four Champions League titles to his name and could thrive under Benitez.

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The Spaniard extracted an enormous amount from the Brazilian back in 2015 by giving him attacking freedom down the left-hand side.

Marcelo quickly became indispensable to Benitez. Towards the end of October of that season, 61% of his passes had been in the opposition half while no Real player had managed more crosses.

He played as many key passes per game as both Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale while recovering the same number of balls as German orchestrator Toni Kroos.

That was evidently a mesmeric campaign for Marcelo and if he can provide the same output under Benitez in Merseyside, it would be a terrifying duo.

The pair clearly get on with the Brazilian saying the following during the former Newcastle manager’s time in the Spanish capital: “Benitez is an amazing coach, very competitive. He talks to us a lot and shows us where we have to improve, he’s on top of it all to make us better.”

Taking home a wage packet of £266k-per-week, Marcelo will need to take a pretty hefty pay cut but if he is willing to do so as his career begins to wind down, Marcel Brands and co must sanction this move.

Everton may have Lucas Digne at their disposal but the opportunity to sign a player like Marcelo doesn’t come around very often.

AND in other news, Everton must complete swoop for “phenomenal” 28 y/o, he thinks Nuno Santo is “amazing”…

As the light dimmed over the Bert Sutcliffe Oval, the final stages of the New Zealand home season began with this draw between Central Districts and a New Zealand Selection XI

Matthew Appleby20-Mar-2001As the light dimmed over the Bert Sutcliffe Oval, the final stages of the New Zealand home season began with this draw between Central Districts and a New Zealand Selection XI.This practice game for CD became something of a Test trial for Shayne O’Connor (match figures 6-32), Lou Vincent (93) and Jacob Oram (15, 31 and 1-28), in what has proved to be a useful undertaking by New Zealand Cricket.Selection XI coach Ashley Ross told CricInfo that the teams “will have largely reached their objectives by tomorrow, with the bowlers having a good bowl and the batsmen all getting a bat.””Sir Richard’s been pleased that they have all been able to show some form,” he continued about the match that has been played in excellent conditions and on a true pitch throughout.Central scored 106/6 today in reply to the Selection XI’s 269/6 declared. They thus finished 37 behind with four second innings wickets intact. The youthful CD team had to contend with an attack consisting of five bowlers with recent Test experience.Missing Craig Spearman (holiday), Mark Douglas (work) and Mathew Sinclair (Test), CD coach Dipak Patel told CricInfo he was “disappointed” David Kelly, Glen Sulzberger and Jacob Oram had failed to make “decent scores on what is a good batting wicket.” He hopes the one-day game tomorrow will “rectify” that one downside on what has been “overall a pretty good exercise.”However, with daylight saving beginning last weekend, the sunset on the horizon brought an early end to the day, and to the season here at the lovely ground named after the great Bert Sutcliffe.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Cruzeiro já tem um sucessor de Thiago Scuro na cadeira de diretor de futebol. Com o cargo vazio desde o mês de dezembro, o presidente Gilvan de Pinho Tavares deu fim ao mistério e confirmou Klauss Câmara para a função.

O anúncio foi feito pelo presidente celeste neste domingo, antes do jogo-treino contra o Araxá, na Toca da Raposa. Klauss Câmara era diretor das categorias de base do Cruzeiro e agora dividirá o departamento junto com Tinga, outro recém contratado para ocupar a função de gerente de futebol.

– Ele já vinha exercendo essa função e agora de fato e de direito. Conversamos com ele e o oficializamos como novo diretor de futebol profissional do Cruzeiro. Ficou muito feliz e falou que era o sonho da vida dele. A partir de hoje, o Klauss já está exercendo definitivamente o cargo – disse Gilvan.

Nos últimos meses, Klauss ajudou o presidente Gilvan e o vice de futebol, Bruno Vicintin, a conduzir algumas negociações do Cruzeiro. Foi com a ajuda dele que o clube conseguiu fechar o acordo com o Palmeiras envolvendo Robinho, Fabrício, Fabiano e Willian. Além disso, Klauss viajou aos Emirados Árabes Unidos para convencer Thiago Neves a se transferir para Minas Gerais.

Aos 36 anos, Klauss está em sua terceira passagem pelo Cruzeiro. Ainda jovem, ele chegou ao clube para jogar nas categorias de base. Em 2010 e 2011, teve sua primeira experiência fora dos campos e começou a trabalhar como coordenador de captação. Após uma breve saída, retornou ao clube em 2014, já como diretor das divisões de base.

Manchester United’s hopes of Europa League glory were ended in dramatic fashion as Villarreal triumphed 11-10 in a thrilling penalty shootout.

After Gerard Moreno put the La Liga outfit ahead, connecting with a well-taken Dani Parejo free-kick, United struggled to break down their organised and compact opponents.

The Yellow Submarines had been well-drilled by former Arsenal boss Unai Emery, but a deflected shot fell kindly into Edinson Cavani’s path early in the second half for the Uruguay international to slot into an unguarded net.

However, the Red Devils failed to build any momentum on the back of their fortuitous equaliser, and in a game lacking in quality where only three shots on target were recorded, the game meandered through extra time without any incident of note.

After 20 successful penalties from both teams, it was down to the respective goalkeepers to decide the tie, and after Geronimo Rulli cooly tucked his spot-kick into the top corner, the Argentine keeper got down low to keep David de Gea’s tame effort out and a lot of focus post-match has been on De Gea’s performance.

Whilst questions can be asked of De Gea’s shootout showing, it’s hard to pin all the blame for the loss on him. No United player covered themself in glory bar the impressive Scott McTominay, although one man, in particular, let his teammates and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer down with an extremely underwhelming performance.

As per SofaScore, Marcus Rashford won just six of his 19 duels on Wednesday evening, epitomising his desperately poor showing in Gdansk.

The lightweight display meant the Old Trafford outfit struggled to keep hold of the ball in the attacking third of the pitch, with him often losing out to a Villarreal defender before any meaningful progress had been made and allowed the Spanish side to regain possession far too easily.

Rashford has had a fairly impressive season for his boyhood club, scoring 21 goals and providing 15 assists for his teammates in all competitions, yet the £76.5m-rated forward (as per Transfermarkt) was unable to find his best form in the biggest game of the campaign.

The England international is often very effective at dragging his team up the pitch and creating havoc with his direct nature and dazzling dribbling, but even that side of his game let him down in midweek.

Only three of Rashford’s nine attempted dribbles were successful as attack after attack was broken down with the ball at the 23-year-old’s feet.

We’re sure the young winger will come back stronger next season for his shocking experience in this European final, but it was certainly a night to forget for Rashford and on a night where he was needed to stand up and be counted, Rashford was a shadow of himself and he let his manager down with his poor showing.

And, in other news…James Cooper drops huge Man Utd transfer claim that’ll surely have fans buzzing