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Everton slumped to another loss in the Premier League to really ring alarm bells, this time a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Southampton on Saturday afternoon.

Stuart Armstrong and Shane Long grabbed the goals for the hosts which leaves the Goodison Park faithful still anxiously looking over their shoulders in the table.

Some performances were certainly not up to scratch, and The Transfer Tavern have since used statistical experts SofaScore to analyse who the three worst performers (to have played at least 45 minutes) were for the visitors on the day:

Allan – 6.3

Although tied with other players in terms of rating (6.3) Allan ranks in third here as he only played the first half.

The Brazilian lost out on six of his duels, and also failed to record any clearances, interceptions or key passes.

Allan also lost the ball seven times, and picked up a needless yellow card just 15 minutes into the game, summing up his underwhelming half.

Donny van de Beek – 6.3

van de Beek was also given a 6.3 rating, but ranks in second here having played the whole match.

The Manchester United loanee also lost six duels like Allan, and failed to hit the target with all three of his shot attempts.

He also made no key passes, and gave possession away on no fewer than on 19 separate occasions in total, the joint-second most out of his teammates.

Jonjoe Kenny – 6.2

With just a 6.2 overall rating, Kenny was ranked as the Merseyside club’s worst player.

Playing as a makeshift left-back, he lost all six of his duels, and did not manage to make any successful dribbles, tackles or accurate crosses, all while giving the ball away 15 times.

In other news, find out which Toffee is wanted on loan here!

There was always a divide in opinion between fans when it came to former Everton Director of Football Marcel Brands, who was responsible for many of their signings in recent years.

Plenty of arrivals at Goodison Park have not or did not quite make the grade at the club, or are yet to fulfil their potential since joining, and certain decisions made were quite clearly, in hindsight, the wrong ones.

One key mistake made by the Dutchman was to let talented young winger Josh Bowler leave the club on a free transfer, after spending the 2019-20 season on loan at Championship club Hull City, before being left in the reserves last year.

Despite not playing a single game at senior level in the previous campaign, there were a long list of clubs lining up to sign the 22-year-old from Chertsey on one-year contracts and indeed there still are, knowing that he had plenty of talent but not knowing whether or not they could unearth it.

Blackpool were the club that won the initial race, and their boss Neil Critchley immediately showed faith in the Englishman to try and help them beat the drop in the second tier, and thus far, Bowler has done an excellent job in helping his team get ever-closer to their target.

Having scored six goals and assisted three more, Critchley is aware of interest from a number of Premier League clubs, and expects more.

“Wingers who score goals and get assists and do the things Josh can do will attract attention,” said Critchley.

“I don’t see any other wingers in the Championship doing what Josh can do, so he’s a prized asset for us.

“He’s in a rich vein of form, so wingers who score and assist are worth their weight in gold.”

A left-footed forward who has 1.4 shots and 2.6 dribbles per game, the Blackpool star would have been exactly the type of player that new Everton boss Frank Lampard would have liked to have at his disposal, particularly with new signings Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend going through a difficult spell of form – with neither player scoring a league goal in 2o22 so far.

Toffees fans will surely be hopeful now that they have a manager who likes to develop their youth prospects, but it’s too late for Bowler who is reportedly being targeted by Leicester City and Wolves to improve their own first team.

In other news: Everton could find perfect Digne heir in “magnificent” 21y/o with “a lot of qualities”

The Athletic’s Phil Hay has revealed that yet another key figure behind the scenes has followed Marcelo Bielsa in exiting Leeds United…

What’s the story?

Bielsa of course was relieved of his managerial duties following the disappointing 4-0 defeat to Spurs at the weekend, and the club swiftly moved to appointing his successor in Jesse Marsch.

Naturally, that has seen a number of Bielsa’s staff also follow suit in leaving, and it appears that a man who has been instrumental in implementing Bielsa-ball at Elland Road is also set for a departure.

Replying to a fan query on Twitter about whether fitness coach, Benoit Delaval, would also be leaving, Hay simply said: “He is, yes”.

End of Bielsa-ball

One of the most admired aspects of Bielsa’s reign at Elland Road was of course the high-intensity pressing that the Argentine built up, taking the Whites from the Championship and into the Premier League.

The Yorkshire club’s first season back in the top-flight was an unqualified success, and Bielsa-ball was a huge part of that – the graphic below from The Athletic’s Peter Rutzler back in May of last year really pinpointed the way in which Leeds ran harder than anyone else.

A big part of that, other than Bielsa, was Delaval.

The Frenchman, who was on the books at Ligue 1 side Lille before accepting his role as fitness coach with the Whites back in the summer of 2018, came in for some special praise from Bielsa himself for the way in which he has transformed things behind the scenes at Elland Road.

He said: “I want to give recognition to Benoit Delaval, who is the fitness coach, and all the group who are being led by Rob Price, who is in charge of medical staff and recovery of the players.

“Those two structures that are very developed in the club, these things are linked to the physical activity of the players, the loads and the health, (and) they have done a very valuable job. They are professionals who are very up-to-date and very capable.”
While Marsch was always going to bring in his own staff, Delaval’s exit on top of Bielsa’s is another setback for Leeds given just big of a role they played in creating this high-performance culture at Elland Road.
Delaval’s work on the training ground and in getting most of these players who were playing Championship football, into Premier League level footballers – at least from a conditioning point of view – is a big credit to him.
Leeds fans would already have been gutted to see Bielsa go, and now another very valued member of the Argentine’s first-team staff is going too.

Meanwhile, Phil Hay has also revealed the biggest change Marsch could make at Elland Road…

Liverpool are nearing an never-before-seen deal over a potential new big-money shirt sponsorship, according to reliable journalist David Ornstein. 

The lowdown: Current incumbents

The Reds are enjoying life on and off the pitch at present as Jurgen Klopp’s side go in pursuit of an unprecedented quadruple, whilst the commercial side of matters at Anfield is also flourishing.

Following a partnership struck in 2010 with American finance firm Standard Chartered, Liverpool have donned the shirt sponsor whilst lifting the Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup and Premier League.

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However, with the current £40m per year deal set to expire at the end of the 2022/23 campaign, the Anfield hierarchy have already begun seeking out the next shirt sponsors for the Reds…

The latest: Ornstein brings sponsorship update

Taking to Twitter on Monday as he shared his report for The Athletic, Ornstein has claimed that Liverpool are closing in on what would be a previously unseen move from a Premier League club.

He tweeted: “EXCL: Liverpool may become 1st PL club to sign cryptocurrency firm as main shirt sponsor. #Crypto companies among those in talks to take over from 2023 if Standard Chartered don’t extend. #LFC want ~£70m over 2yrs, outcome likely in ~8wks.”

The verdict: Reds in demand

It should come as no surprise to see Liverpool exploring new avenues when it comes to commerciality after the club recently announced its own line of the popular NFT phenomenon.

This all comes after the Reds confirmed a lucrative partnership with kit supplier Nike in 2020, in turn connecting the dots between ownership group FSG and new investor LeBron James.

Despite enduring a period in the wilderness when it comes to Premier League titles, the Anfield club has retained much of its lure as a global attraction, and the recent success under Klopp has only served to enhance the appeal as the Reds were recently named the seventh richest football club in the world in the 2022 Deloitte Money League.

Predominantly operating as a sell-to-buy entity with off-field profits directly impacting the capabilities in the transfer market, the news of a potentially revolutionary new kit sponsor may excite Liverpool fans in the long run.

In other news, a pundit has cast doubt over one Liverpool superstar’s future. Read more here.

Leeds United have been encouraged to make a move for Matt Targett in the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

In a recent interview with MOT Leeds News, Paul Robinson stated his belief that, following recent reports claiming that the Whites are one of the sides interested in a move for the Aston Villa left-back at the end of the season, Victor Orta must do all he can to land the 26-year-old this summer, as he would represent a huge upgrade on Junior Firpo.

Speaking about the left of Jesse Marsch’s backline, the former England international said: “I think the left-back position is an area they need to address.

“Stuart Dallas, for me, is more effective in other positions across the field and you can benefit more from his leadership and experience there. It’s just not worked out for Junior Firpo.

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“Whether he comes back next season, hits the ground running and comes back as a different player remains to be seen but, this season, his defensive capabilities have been exposed.

“Leeds have conceded far too many goals down the left-hand side, his mistakes have led to goals have been poor and if they are to develop a side, Targett is a player that is at a level who’d improve upon what you’ve got.”

Orta can axe Firpo with Targett

It is not difficult to see why Robinson believes that Leeds require an improvement at left-back, as it would be difficult to argue with the claim that Firpo has struggled to make any real impression in the side following his £13m move to Elland Road last summer.

Indeed, over his 20 Premier League appearances this season, the £10.8m-rated full-back has endured a rather torrid debut campaign for the Whites, scoring no goals, registering one assist and creating one big chance for his teammates.

The £55k-per-week Dominican Republic international has also failed to impress in metrics more typical of his position, helping the Whites keep just one clean sheet, as well as being beaten by an opponent an average of 1.1 times and losing possession an average of 9.3 times per game.

These returns have seen the player whose defending Robinson dubbed both “schoolboy” and “inexcusable” average an extremely disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.56, ranking him as Jesse Marsch’s seventh-worst player in the league.

Meanwhile, over Targett’s 13 Premier League appearances for Newcastle this term, the £15.3m-rated left-back has been in sensational form, making an average of 2.6 tackles, 1.5 interceptions, 2.4 clearances and 0.2 blocks per fixture.

The £35k-per-week defender has also impressed going forwards, making an average of 1.2 key passes, 1.5 crosses and 1.8 long balls per match, as well as completing 0.5 dribbles and taking 0.5 shots per game.

These returns have seen the player who James Hendicott labelled a “beast” average a WhoScored match rating of 6.99, ranking him as Newcastle’s fifth-best player in the top flight.

As such, it is clear for all to see that Targett would be a huge upgrade on Firpo, leading us to believe that Orta must do all he can to move the former Barcelona man on this summer, before using the funds received from his sale to invest in a move for the much more promising Targett.

AND in other news: Orta can land the next Gelhardt as Leeds eye “incredible” 18 y/o with “so much talent”

Everton should still move to sign Portuguese midfielder Matheus Nunes this summer, despite suffering a setback amid interest from Manchester City and Newcastle United.

According to Portuguese newspaper Record (via Sport Witness) Everton are all but out of the race to sign the player as he wants an ‘ambitious’ project. However, if the Toffees are successful in their battle for survival they could convince Nunes that he should sign for them.

Reports state that Man City and Newcastle are the two clubs leading the race for the £50m talent, but they will also have their attention on other targets which could leave room for Everton to hijack any agreement.

With the construction of a brand new stadium, the club are also in a position to prove to the player that there is an exciting project on Merseyside.

Time to get rid of Allan

Midfield is an area that Everton do need to improve on in the summer. There are question marks over the future of Brazilian Allan, with his contract running out next year, and the club might decide now is the right time to cut their losses and get him off their wage bill.

He is currently the joint highest-paid player at Goodison Park with a weekly wage of £120k. Signing Nunes, who is 23-years old, would be a better investment for the future.

When you compare the two players this season, the Portuguese international has performed better in many areas. His passing accuracy percentage per game betters Allan’s at 86% compared to 80%.

That area of his game has been rather suspect of late with the former Napoli man completing a remarkably alarming tally of just three passes in his last two outings.

He has also created five big chances this season as opposed to the Everton star who hasn’t created any. Even when it comes to defensive stats Allan has made one error that has led to a goal this season compared to Nunes’ 0.

The 23-year old has been labelled “one of the best players in the world” by Man City manager Pep Guardiola as an “animal” by Paulo Futre, so it’s easy to see why so may are interested in signing him.

It’s highly unlikely that Everton will be able to outbid either Man City or Newcastle, but they can offer the midfielder something different. He would be an extremely key player in the team and would likely get more game time than at the other two clubs.

He would also get to work under Premier League legend Frank Lampard who would be a perfect mentor for how to adapt. If the Toffees have the money to make this move happen, they should give it everything they can.

IN other news: Lampard can unearth a new £50m talent in Everton’s “fantastic” 19 y/o who’s “class”…

Tottenham Hotspur could be looking to replace Lucas Moura with a big upgrade this summer, if recent reports are to be believed.

According to 90min, the north London outfit had scouts in attendance for Villarreal’s two-legged Champions League semi-final clash with Liverpool. It’s thought that they were taking a closer look at centre-back Pau Torres and winger Arnaut Danjuma.

The Yellow Submarines were defeated 5-2 on aggregate with the former featuring in both fixtures, and the latter only playing the first leg, missing the second through injury.

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After leaving Championship side AFC Bournemouth for Unai Emery’s side in a €25m (£21.4m) deal the summer, the six-time Netherlands international has enjoyed a standout campaign across both domestic and European competitions.

As per Transfermarkt, the 25-year-old has delivered a whopping 16 goals and four assists, which included goals as a centre-forward against Atletico Madrid, Valencia and Granada, where he bagged a hat-trick.

Danjuma has been one of Villarreal’s best-performing and most consistent stars, ranking fifth (LaLiga) and second (UCL) overall for average rating, whilst no player has found the net more times.

Currently valued at £45m, the enigmatic dynamo wouldn’t come cheap but he’d be a massive upgrade on the out-of-sorts Moura, that’s for sure.

The Brazilian winger has been usurped by Dejan Kulusevski in the pecking order under Antonio Conte, hardly a surprise given his poor returns of two goals and five assists in 31 league appearances.

Danjuma outranks the long-serving Spurs star in pretty much every attacking metric, as per FBRef.

In terms of shooting output, the Yellow Submarines sensation is managing 1.26 shots on target per 90, in comparison to Moura’s 0.83, whilst for expected goals and assists (excluding penalty kicks) sees the former Cherries man sit on 0.57 per 90, compared to the 0.35 put up by the Spurs ace.

Danjuma also manages 1.88 carries into the 18-yard box, way clear of Moura’s 0.84, on top of attempting more dribbles and receiving more progressive passes in the final third, also via FBRef.

Lauded as an “exceptional talent” by EFL pundit Clinton Morrison and “unbelievable” by former manager Jonathan Woodgate, it’s evident that Conte could secure a major upgrade on Moura with a swoop to bring Danjuma back to England.

Fabio Paratici and co must look to get this done during the off-season.

AND in other news, Paratici bargain: Spurs plot bid for “extraordinary” £45m titan, imagine him & Romero…

Everton have miraculously gone unbeaten in their last three Premier League games after taking a goalless draw and Frank Lampard will surely have mixed emotions about the result against Watford yesterday evening.

Of their remaining four games, considering Roy Hodgson’s side are already relegated from the league this season it could’ve been considered the Toffees’ easiest opportunity to take three points in their attempt to hold onto their Premier League status next season, so to take a draw from the game will be bittersweet.

Everton are two points clear of relegation rivals Leeds United and Burnley with three tough fixtures ahead against Brentford, Crystal Palace and then Arsenal at the Emirates on the last day of the season, so there’s no doubt the former Chelsea boss won’t be feeling too comfortable yet.

Despite having more possession (52%), more shots on target and more passes completed away from home last night, the Everton side could not find the creativity to take anything from the game against a weakened Watford side.

In fact, Everton had five shots on target in total over the course of the game compared to their opponent’s zero attempted shots on target, so to not convert a single one will be massively frustrating for Lampard. However, it won’t be surprising when you consider the number of goals the side have conceded (56) this season compared to the goals they’ve scored (37).

With that being said, Abdoulaye Doucoure played a huge part in missing his opportunities to progress the ball and build play during the tie at Vicarage Road on Wednesday night, which ultimately led to the stalemate result and opportunity missed to secure all three points in the game.

According to SofaScore, the 29-year-old attacking midfielder lost possession of the ball every 4.7 touches he made, which didn’t help in the slightest when it came to controlling the flow of the game.

He was also surprisingly poor in his defensive duties, losing the majority of his aerial and ground duels combined (6/16). He also struggled to assert his authority on his former employers, proving unsuccessful in 100% of his dribble attempts against the Hornets.

The Blues boss will be hoping that last night’s performance from the Frenchman will be a one-off considering he has played a crucial part in the two most recent victories prior to the Watford clash, and will hope that going forward the midfielder will step up to put in the hard work needed over the last three games to ensure they can remain in the Premier League next season.

AND in other news: “Everton are keen..”: Insider drops exciting transfer claim, Lampard will be ecstatic

Leeds United are back in action on Sunday with a crucial Premier League clash against Brighton & Hove Albion at Elland Road.

With the Whites currently in the relegation zone, they will need to make sure that they do all they can to pick up all three points this time around and hope that Burnley and Everton do the opposite in their games.

Their previous outing turned out to be yet another disappointing one for Jesse Marsch and his side, who lost 3-0 to Chelsea in midweek.

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One concern which arose during this defeat was that Raphinha looked to have picked up an injury problem, which eventually led to him being taken off in the 78th minute.

Looking ahead to this clash against Graham Potter’s side, it seems as though an update has emerged which will have lots of Whites supporters buzzing.

What’s the news?

Leeds journalist Phil Hay shared a post on Twitter relaying news from Marsch in his recent press conference regarding the fitness and availability of Raphinha.

According to the Leeds manager, the winger will be fit enough to play against the Seagulls this weekend.

Taking into account how the Brazilian is currently the Whites’ top scorer in the league this season with 10 goals and three assists to his name in 33 appearances, this will come as a huge boost to everyone of an Elland Road persuasion ahead of the Brighton clash.

To further highlight how important the 25-year-old has been for the Whites in the current campaign, he has the highest number of shots (78) and shots on target (19) at the club. He also has the highest number of shot-creating and goal-creating actions to his name out of anyone at Leeds.

The 25-year-old’s overall performances in 2021/22 have earned him a season rating of 6.94/10, making him the joint-highest rated outfield player at the club according to WhoScored.

With all that in mind, it’s undeniable that having him available to take on Brighton will have Whites fans elated and give the home side a much bigger chance of securing a victory than if they didn’t have him.

Marsch and everyone else connected with Leeds will undoubtedly be hoping that Raphinha can push his side to a much-needed victory against the south coast club as they make the long trip to Elland Road.

In other news: Insider drops huge Leeds transfer claim involving “big names”, supporters will love it

Aston Villa are set to add to their squad this summer, with Steven Gerrard looking as though he will get an opportunity to make his mark at Villa Park.

What’s the word?

That is according to a report from Birmingham Mail which claim that the 41-year-old has dropped his biggest transfer hint yet.

As per the report, it looks as though Gerrard is set to sign multiple players, and it could involve a free agent or two in the mix.

The Villa boss is also keen to get his business done as early as possible, saying: “I want them in yesterday. The quicker you get them in, the quicker you can get them settled. In an ideal world you want all your business done for when you come back for the first day of pre-season but that is unrealistic because people go away and do different things.”

The report mentions the likes of Luis Suarez, James Tarkowski, Divock Origi, Jesse Lingard, Conor Goldson, Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah as free agents that Gerrard could bring in.

Gerrard means business

If his latest comments are anything to go by, Gerrard means business this summer. His reputation as both a player and a manager can be put to good use, with Villa now able to be resourceful in their business.

All of the aforementioned players could leave a positive impact for Gerrard, with the likes of Suarez surely making the mouths of the Villa faithful water amidst the prospect of another link-up with recent permanent signing Coutinho after their mutual stints at both Liverpool and Barcelona.

The 41-year-old’s ideology of getting players in as quickly as possible is yet another positive that fans can take from his approach as a manager, with him looking to bed players in as early as possible to have them ready for the start of the new season.

Whilst it has been a tough start to his managerial career in the Premier League, he clearly has a plan and he should get the opportunity this summer to bolster a squad who will be looking to challenge for the European spots in what will be Gerrard’s first full season in charge of Villa.

In other news: “Gerrard wants“: John Percy drops big Villa transfer claim, supporters will be buzzing