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West Ham are hoping that the international break has done Vladimir Coufal the world of good as they return to Premier League action on Sunday afternoon…

What’s the latest?

According to Claret and Hugh, the 29-year-old right-back has been suffering from a minor injury, one that saw him withdrawn from Czech Republic duty last week.

It’s thought that his body was in need of a break after featuring week win, week out for club and country since the start of last season.

An Irons source told the website: “Coufal’s body just needed a break. He’s played non stop for 18 months.

“He’s been feeling pain for weeks and hopefully this short break will help him recover as we need him back to his best.”

Positive news

Coufal recently put pen to paper on a new three-year contract with an option of a further year, having shone since a £5.4m move from Slavia Prague in the summer of 2020.

He missed their last Europa League outing with injury but returned to feature in their final game before the international break, a late 2-1 defeat to newly-promoted Brentford.

You could tell that the industrious £18m-rated dynamo was still nursing a problem as he was some way off his usual standards, as explained by Football FanCast after the game.

The Czech star has quickly emerged as a real fan favourite around the London Stadium and he must’ve narrowly missed out on the club’s ‘Player of the Year’ award after providing seven assists in the Premier League last term, a feat only bettered by Aaron Cresswell (eight).

Coufal has rarely missed games for the Hammers since arriving in east London. He played 34 times in the top-flight last season and ranked as David Moyes’ fifth-best performer, as per WhoScored ratings.

No player managed more tackles every 90 minutes (2.2) than the right-back and he wasn’t far behind for interceptions (1.2) and key passes (1.3) either.

“Coufal is a machine, he loves football,” is how club captain Mark Noble described him to ‘That Peter Crouch Podcast’ earlier this year, whilst Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher once lauded him as “a manager’s dream” to Monday Night Football [4th May, 22:24pm].

On that evidence, having him back available – and fully fit – would be a big boost for Moyes as he looks to steer his side back on track with a win at Goodison Park this weekend.

AND in other news, 108 touches, 82 passes: West Ham titan may be back to his best after int’l masterclass…

Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa side drew 0-0 with Leicester City in the Saturday afternoon Premier League clash at the King Power Stadium.

A lack of quality in the final third saw the match remain goalless as Villa ended their four-match winless streak, while Leicester themselves made it back-to-back league matches without a victory.

Villa started the better of the two, with Leon Bailey failing to take a glorious opportunity to give Steven Gerrard’s side the lead.

The first half saw both teams flatter to deceive, with just one shot on target each. Ollie Watkins continued to be the scourge of the Leicester defence but couldn’t find a way through.

Both James Maddison and Emiliano Buendia had great chances to win the fixture, but the match finished 0-0, with the performance of Villa’s Jacob Ramsey, in particular, letting his manager down.

Ramsey was a liability

During his 89 minutes on the pitch, Ramsey lost all seven of his duels – a failure rate of 100% – lost possession of the ball seven times and offered little going forwards, failing to hit the target with a shot, being unable to complete his one attempted dribble and not finding his man with his one attempted cross.

The midfielder also enjoyed a mere 35 touches of the ball, just six more than goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.

Former Premier League striker Kevin Phillips previously stated his belief Ramsey is a “big talent” after an excellent run of form, but he certainly didn’t show that against Leicester today.

In fact, following this match, his last four appearances in the league have seen him yield a shoddy 6.5 average SofaScore rating.

With Villa struggling near the bottom of the table, without relegation ever looking like a possibility, Gerrard will surely find himself with money to spend in the summer as he attempts to lead the side to the European places next term.

And, while it is true that the likes of Leon Bailey and John McGinn were also poor on Saturday, it is Ramsey who needs to up his game over the final four Premier League matches in order to prove to Gerrard that he deserves a starting spot next season – as the youngster was a liability against the Foxes.

AND in other news: Gerrard now plotting AVFC bid for £46k-p/w “phenomenon”, he’s better than Phillips

After their disheartening 3-2 defeat against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon, Leeds United have another tough away match next up in the Premier League with a trip to The Etihad Stadium on Tuesday evening to take on Manchester City.

On the chalkboard

In terms of which players Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa could pick to be in his starting XI to take on the reigning Premier League champions, one figure that has not had much of a look-in for a while that should be unleashed against Pep Guardiola’s side is 20-year-old winger Crysencio Summerville.

So far this season, the £8.4k-per-week earner has played just 68 minutes of Premier League action coming from four substitute appearances against Newcastle United, West Ham United, Southampton and Wolves.

In the 24 appearances he’s made for Leeds’ U23 side, Summerville has managed to score nine goals and provide eight assists in the process, showing how much of a goal threat he can be on the pitch.

Even though he has a total of 81 appearances under his belt as a right-winger, Summerville has played on the left at times, which could be where he’d have to play against City if Bielsa does decide to give him his first start of the season. That’s if you consider how Raphinha predominantly plays on the right and has scored six goals in the league in that position already this season.

Also, with Jack Harrison being very disappointing this season with an overall performance rating of 6.48/10 from SofaScore, which is lower than Summerville’s overall rating of 6.53/10, this could be the Dutchman’s way into the team if Bielsa decides to drop Harrison and start Summerville on the left.

With Chris Powell describing Summerville as a “bag of tricks” with his strength being to take on his opponents in one v one situations with his “raw talent,” this shows how he could be a really terrifying prospect for City’s defenders as well as having to deal with Raphinha as well.

Looking ahead to the match against City, it’s definitely worth giving Summerville the chance to prove himself against arguably the toughest team to play against in the league. They’ve got the highest overall possession average (66.7%) out of anyone in the Premier League and have only conceded nine goals in 16 games compared to Leeds’ 25 in the same number of league games.

In other news: Orta must seal Leeds swoop for 20-goal monster who’ll still be scoring “when he’s 60” – opinion

West Ham United have made an offer in a bid to bring James Tarkowski to the London Stadium in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by ExWHUemployee, with the club insider revealing on a recent episode of The West Ham Way podcast that David Moyes and his West Ham transfer team are very much interested in a deal for the England international this month.

They are even thought to have launched an offer of around £7m-£8m in a bid to test the waters with Burnley regarding the sale of the centre-back.

Speaking about the Hammers’ interest in the 29-year-old, Ex said: “We definitely want him. Moyes is definitely interested in him. We bid £30m for him in the summer, we definitely are interested now. I think we might have even put in a £7m or £8m bid already, just to test the water.

“However, there’s no rush to sign him as such. I mean, I know there is in the sense that we’ve got games and the Europa League and the FA Cup to compete for, but in terms of the bigger picture, he’s a free transfer in the summer.”

Moyes desperately needs him

While Kurt Zouma looks as if he is ahead of schedule in his recovery from a hamstring injury sustained towards the beginning of December, the fact remains that West Ham will be without the services of Angelo Ogbonna for the remainder of the season.

That means that, should Moyes wish to give his side the best possible chance of securing Champions League football at the London Stadium next season, the 58-year-old simply must sign a new centre-back this January.

It would appear as if this is an opinion the manager himself agrees with, with the Scot recently stating: “We could probably do with some more cover after Angelo Ogbonna’s season-long injury. If I can get Kurt back quickly that eases the pressure in central defensive areas. But we are always looking to strengthen here, we are always looking to find players who can help us or improve us.”

And, considering just how impressive Tarkowski has been for Burnley so far this season, the 29-year-old would appear to make a fantastic addition to Moyes’ current options in the heart of his West Ham defence.

Indeed, over his 16 Premier League outings in the current campaign, the £19.8m-rated defender has helped his side keep two clean sheets, scored one goal and registered two assists, as well as making an average of 1.4 interceptions, 1.6 tackles, 5.1 clearances and winning 7.3 of his duels per game.

These returns have seen the £70k-per-week man average a SofaScore match rating of 7.15, ranking him as Sean Dyche’s second-best performer in the league this season.

As such, while the early return of Zouma will undoubtedly come as a huge boost to West Ham’s top-four hopes, it is undeniable that Moyes desperately needs a fresh face at centre-back if he is to break into the Champions League places this season, with the player who Dyche dubbed an “outstanding” talent appearing to be an excellent option for the Hammers.

In other news: Moyes identifies £43k-p/w “monster” as new Newman target, he could be WHU’s next Payet

Wolverhampton Wanderers could be dealt a colossal blow as the January transfer window nears completion with captain Conor Coady subject to interest from Premier League rivals Newcastle United.

What’s the story?

According to The Daily Star, Newcastle are plotting a late bid for the Wolves defender and could offer in the region of £25m to bring the Englishman to Tyneside.

With the window set to close on Monday, United would have to move quickly to get a deal for the 28-year-old over the line.

The Magpies’ seemingly unlimited funds that have come as a result of their Saudi-backed takeover in October are well documented and are still reportedly keen to spend on reinforcements as they look to secure Premier League survival.

Eddie Howe’s side are the Premier League’s second-worst defenders behind Norwich City, having shipped a whopping 43 goals in 21 top-flight matches so far this campaign.

Coady has enjoyed an excellent campaign for Bruno Lage’s side thus far and a departure mid-season could have seriously dire consequences for the West Midland’s outfit.

Wolves must keep Coady

Not only is Coady a hugely popular and influential figure at Molineux, but he’s arguably Wolves’ best defender, something that means the club’s fanbase would be fuming to see him depart.

The Old Gold are the Premier League’s second-best defenders behind league leaders Manchester City, having conceded just 16 goals in 21 matches with Coady proving highly influential in securing that feat.

The 28-year-old hasn’t missed a Premier League match all season, keeping eight clean sheets in 21 appearances as well as scoring twice.

Moreover, the centre-back is now firmly in the picture of England manager Gareth Southgate’s plans, having made his debut for the national team in September 2020 and has eight caps to date.

Wolves are targeting a top-six finish but, by parting ways with Coady, Lage would be losing a major presence and influence as well as a kingpin and catalyst for his excellent start to life as a Premier League manager.

As a result, his side’s ambitions of European qualification could suffer a disastrous blow should they lose him.

In other news: Wolves could land perfect Traore replacement in “exceptional” £27m-rated “phenomenon”

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Tottenham Hotspur face a tough challenge on Saturday, as they travel to Turf Moor to take on Burnley.

Sean Dyche’s side have been in fine form recently and are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League outings. Former Liverpool defender and BBC Sport pundit Mark Lawrenson believes that the Clarets will extend their run this weekend, despite being up against Mauricio Pochettino’s third-placed outfit.

What he said

In his regular predictions column for the BBC, Lawrenson has predicted a 1-1 draw between these two sides on Saturday. Speaking of Burnley’s much improved recent form, Lawrenson says that “a big improvement in the Clarets’ defence has played a big part in that and I don’t think they will give much away on Saturday either.”

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

Whilst a draw away to Burnley, where Dyche’s side can be notoriously tough to beat, isn’t a terrible result in itself, it would be disastrous for Tottenham’s title hopes.

A chance to make history

The north London club are currently outsiders for the Premier League title. If Liverpool were to be beaten by the in-form Manchester United on Sunday – which is eminently possible – then three points would take Spurs to within just two of top spot.

At that stage, Pochettino’s side would have to be considered very much in the race. A first Premier League title triumph would be a historic moment for the club, and this season offers them a great opportunity to really push for that dream.

However, failure to win at Turf Moor would likely extinguish their chances altogether, potentially leaving them eight points off the top if Liverpool beat their bitter rivals.

If they really want to do something incredible this year then they cannot afford to slip up on Saturday.

Lots of Glasgow Rangers fans have been left fuming after a claim from Ewan Murray emerged involving their annual report.

The Ibrox faithful released their report on their official website, which confirmed staff costs of £47m, including £33.5m on the first team playing squad in total.

Murray, a journalist who oversees coverage of Scottish football, took to his Twitter page to give his thoughts on the numbers, claiming that it is a ‘serious outlay’ for a team looking to win the Scottish Premiership and reach the last 16 in the UEFA Europa League.

Murray has caused anger among Light Blues supporters with some of his posts before, seemingly even looking for bites at times.

The numbers may be deemed to be high, but the Light Blues will only spend what they think will give them the most success, and are well within their right to do that.

Some Gers also noticed how he did not compare the numbers to those of their main rivals Celtic.

Rangers fans on Murray claim

These RFC fans fumed as Murray shared his claim on Twitter:

“The golf correspondent is taking up fishing, again”

Credit: @will_i_aint_74

“His point is basically grown from a point of jealousy which means he completely ignores facts, like how much did the team who finished 2nd spend on there playing staff. All about the Rangers with this guy”

Credit: @KevDogg93

“Honestly don’t know what your point is here”

Credit: @LJKershaw

“Here we go”

Credit: @CraigSim

“What is your issue with all things Rangers?? The only defence is that it seems to be a concern of many in the poor excuse that passes as Scottish sports journalism.”

Credit: @johnhalliday88

“If you only knew how stupid this is you wouldn’t have wrote it.”

Credit: @__DaReal__

In other news, find out whose display against Brondby was blasted here!

Pundit Paddy Kenny has been reacting to an update regarding Newcastle United forward Allan Saint-Maximin, Football Insider report.

The Lowdown: Summer exit?

Saint-Maximin has been a regular for the Magpies this season, making 30 appearances in all competitions.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/newcastle-news-5/” title=”Newcastle news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The 25-year-old has been deployed as a left-winger under Eddie Howe and has contributed to eight Premier League goals.

However, according to The Daily Mail, his days at St. James’ Park could be numbered. They believe that Newcastle are ready to sell the French forward over the coming months and would accept a bid in the region of £50m.

The Latest: Kenny reacts

Talking to FI following the update on Saint-Maximin, Kenny labelled £50m as ‘crazy money’ and admitted he’d be ‘surprised’ if the Magpies didn’t accept an offer in that region, should one arrive.

“£50million, that’s crazy money.

“For a man who has scored five goals this season? For an attacking player, it’s not good numbers.

“I know Newcastle don’t need to £50million but if that offer was on the table, they would take it.

“You can invest that in a player who will provide more goals and assists.

“I would be surprised if Newcastle didn’t accept an offer like that.

“There are quality players out there who you could get for £50million who will get you more goals than that.

“I know he’s good to watch but you need results in this business and that is a lot of money to turn down.”

The Verdict: Keep?

A £50m move away would make him Newcastle’s most expensive departure of all time, surpassing the £36.9m fee Liverpool paid for Andy Carroll.

However, Saint-Maximin appears to be a key player for the Magpies, with Howe admitting in the week that he has a ‘great relationship’ with the attacker, adding that he ‘has a long-term future at the club’.

The 25-year-old appears to be at the peak of his powers with a career-high Transfermarkt valuation of £28.8m, so the best of Saint-Maximin could yet be to come, possibly making him a key player to build a team around in an attacking sense.

In other news: ‘At the moment’ – Transfer insider says NUFC ace will only be a ‘rotation’ player next season. 

Crystal Palace travel a short distance to pay a visit to their arch-rivals Brighton and Hove Albion tonight on the south coast, with this being the first Premier League fixture for Patrick Vieira’s side since New Year’s Day.

The rivalry between the two clubs stems from the 1970s after a series of controversial clashes caused a feud between Brighton manager Alan Mullery and Eagles boss Terry Venables.

Current Palace manager Vieira will be hoping to take all three points from the game at the Amex Stadium and move above Leicester City into 10th ahead of the Premier League weekend.

The Frenchman confirmed in his press conference that he is without five senior players for the trip, with James McArthur still out following a hamstring injury from which the £55k-p/w star is yet to recover, despite hope that he would have made a speedier return.

Speaking ahead of the match, Vieira addressed the 32-year-old’s injury and timeframe on a possible return, saying: “There is still a long way to go. I think we’re talking about a couple of weeks.”

Wilfried Zaha, Jordan Ayew and Cheikhou Kouyate are all away with their national teams at the Africa Cup of Nations, while James Tomkins has sustained an injury and the club are waiting on more news as to how long he will be sidelined. However, Vieira is “hopeful” that 6 foot 3 first-choice goalkeeper Vicente Guaita will be available for tonight.

With that being said, we expect two changes to the line-up we saw against the win over Milwall in the FA Cup last weekend, and we think it will look like this…

Despite having only five appearances for Palace this season, we expect that Vieira will give Eberechi Eze the opportunity to remain in the starting line-up after an exemplary performance in the cup win over Milwall.

In terms of the two changes, we can see Jean-Philippe Mateta being swapped out for star striker Odsonne Edouard, who was rested in the cup clash at The Den.

The other change sees Guaita replace Jack Butland in the side, as the Spanish goalkeeper has recovered from a dislocated finger he sustained last month, which ruled him out against Milwall six days ago. The ex-Stoke netminder could have been facing the chop anyway after his goal-causing blunder in Bermondsey.

The rest of the side should stay the same, and Vieira will be hoping that Palace can pick up just their second away league win of the season. A repeat of last year’s 2-1 victory at the Amex wouldn’t go amiss.

In other news: Vieira was dealt this double blow ahead of tonight’s clash

Flocking to Twitter, many Liverpool supporters have absolutely erupted over a three-word message from their club concerning superstar Sadio Mane.

The Senegal international is one of manager Jurgen Klopp’s most crucial players and has been a key component of his forward line since signing from Southampton for £34 million in 2016.

His 105 goals and 43 assists in all competitions for the Reds since then have made his £34m fee look like an absolute bargain, and after last season’s torrid time with injuries, supporters are concerned over losing their key players to fitness issues.

Liverpool suffered a scare in that regard over the weekend when Mane returned prematurely from international duty with Senegal.

Lions boss Aliou Cisse confirmed to the country’s media that Mane had flown back to Merseyside following a blow to the ribs, with supporters and the club alike sweating over his condition.

In a teasing update, Liverpool have now dropped the three-word message ‘time for training’ whilst also showcasing an image of Mane in full practice at Kirkby.

As the club’s post alleviates fears Mane could have been a doubt for Arsenal this weekend, reliable reporter James Pearce has since reaffirmed that the 29-year-old ‘should be available’ (The Athletic).

Liverpool fans erupt…

According to WhoScored, Mane has racked up the second-most shots per 90 on average for Liverpool out of their entire squad so far this campaign (3.4) – sitting just behind star man Mohamed Salah (4).

He’s also racked up the second-most goals and assists combined (6G, 0A), with Salah again the only man above him with a ridiculous ten goals and seven assists (WhoScored).

Given Mane stands out as one of Liverpool’s major players by a distance, it’s little wonder fans have swooned as he takes part in full training.

Find all of their best reactions down below.

“let’s gooooo”

Credit: @Longiinus_

“Oh boy…”

Credit: @ZamoZitha

“Good news”

Credit: @prrrrLFC

“This is beautiful”

Credit: @CELESTOFC

“Yesssssss he’s in training”

Credit: @IsraeliKopite

“Awesome. We have Mane gearing to go. Now for Hendo training pics within the week”

Credit: @Xenuphrasis

“Wow! I am happy to see you playing against Arsenal.”

Credit: @AlieBSillah4