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According to 90min, Paris Saint-Germain midfielders Georginio Wijnaldum and Julian Draxler are open to being part of a loan swap deal which would involve Tottenham’s Tanguy Ndombele or Dele Alli heading in the opposite direction.

The Lowdown: Ndombele and Alli exiled at Spurs

According to reliable journalist Fabrizio Romano, Spurs and PSG are still in talks over a loan move for club-record signing Ndombele, and the Lilywhites are considering various options as a direct replacement for the midfielder.

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Lilywhites manager Antonio Conte has exiled the 25-year-old at N17, leaving the Frenchman out of the matchday squads for their previous two Premier League games, and he has even forced him into training alone at Hotspur Way.

Dele Alli has also faced a similar situation under the 52-year-old, having been excluded from Spurs’ matchday squad for the London derby against Chelsea and making the starting XI just four times in all competitions during the Italian’s reign at the club.

The Latest: Wijnaldum and Draxler open to Spurs loans

90min editor Sean Walsh reported of Wijnaldum and Draxler’s interest in a possible loan switch to Tottenham, sharing a link to his article via Twitter.

In the tweet, he summarised: “Georginio Wijnaldum and Julian Draxler are open to joining #THFC on loan, potentially as part of deal to send Tanguy Ndombele or Dele Alli to PSG.”

This news arises as the Ligue 1 club have been deciding on which players they could include as part of a swap deal to lure Ndombele or Dele away from Spurs.

Wijnaldum would be open to a return to the Premier League and his representatives have informed Tottenham of his willingness to move back to England. Draxler is said to also be an option for Spurs, as the German has been on the fringe of the PSG squad for several years, so it seems likely that the club would be willing to let him leave on loan.

The Verdict: Good deal for all parties

With the details of the deal yet to be determined, it is hard to determine the plausibility of a complex swap deal. However, looking at the players involved on paper, Spurs are seemingly getting a good deal, especially when you consider that the two potentially outgoing midfielders have both been effectively exiled by Conte.

Having made 217 Premier League appearances and won some of football’s biggest competitions, Wijnaldum is a proven player who could make an instant impact in Spurs’ midfield.

Draxler could also prove to be a shrewd signing who could provide Conte with depth in the attacking positions. He has excelled in the Bundesliga in previous years, and squad rotation may be crucial if Tottenham are to achieve Champions League qualification, so they could do a lot worse than bringing in the Germany international too.

In other news – “Still in talks”: Fabrizio Romano provides the latest on exit-linked Spurs colossus

Aston Villa have seemingly joined Leeds United in the race to sign Marseille midfielder Boubacar Kamara, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Lowdown: Kamara profiled

Kamara is 22 years of age and is primarily a defensive midfielder who can also line out at centre-back. A France under-21 international, he has already made 145 appearances for his current employers and has even captained the club this season.

His contract is set to expire at the end of the campaign, though, and it seems as if Steven Gerrard could make a move, with Villa looking for midfield reinforcements following Marvelous Nakamba’s injury.

The Latest: Romano’s update

Romano took to Twitter on Saturday afternoon, confirming Villa’s links to Juventus midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur.

However, he shared comments from Bianconeri manager Massimiliano Allegri, who claimed that the Italian giants won’t sanction any move for the Uruguayan this month.

Romano then added that Kamara is also on Johan Lange’s list when it comes to a new midfielder, tweeting: “Aston Villa are interested in Rodrigo Bentancur, confirmed as Tom Collomosse reported today. Juventus have not received any official bid yet – while Allegri today said they ‘won’t do any move in January’. Been told there’s also Boubacar Kamara in Aston Villa list.”

The Verdict: Shrewd move?

Kamara is valued at £22.5m, but due to his contract situation, you’d expect that Villa could land the versatile midfielder for a lot less than that in the final days of the January transfer window.

Should a move for Bentancur fail to materialise, Kamara could be an excellent alternative as he already has plenty of experience under his belt and is still in the early stages of his career. Also, he could improve Villa’s ball distribution, with his 90.7% passing success rate this season better than anyone to have started under Gerrard in the Premier League.

It seems as if the Uruguayan is Villa’s top midfield target, though, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens over the next eight days.

In other news: ‘Crazy to sell’ – Lots of Villa fans flock to update as Newcastle swoop for Gerrard regular

Leeds United won’t be letting Raphinha leave this January transfer window with less than 48 hours to go…

What’s the word?

That’s according to Italian journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, who delivered a promising update from Elland Road to social media this weekend.

“Leeds have no intention to sell Brazilian winger Raphinha in January. West Ham asked for him but deal looks more than complicated, as per @JacobSteinberg,” he revealed.

“Leeds are still thinking of Takumi Minamino on loan from Liverpool in case Summerville will leave the club.”

Great news

Raphinha’s form this campaign will have certainly attracted suitors, though the Irons’ interest comes as a massive surprise given David Moyes’ options.

However, Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and Premier League rivals Liverpool have also been linked with a move for the Brazil international, who has practically carried the Yorkshire giants on his back this term.

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As per WhoScored, the 25-year-old winger leads the way for goals (eight), assists (two), crosses (1.2 per game), key passes (2.1 per game), dribbles (2.4 per game), and shots (3.1 per game).

He has really stepped up to the mark during the absence of last season’s top scorer Patrick Bamford.

Losing Raphinha would deal Marcelo Bielsa and the squad a big blow to their chances of remaining in the big time for a third successive season, that’s for sure.

There have also been suggestions of the former Stade Rennes star signing an extension to his £63k-per-week-deal with two-and-a-half years remaining, which would put the Yorkshire outfit in a pretty powerful position going into future transfer windows.

His value has soared to £36m, having been signed for nearly half that (£17m) back in October 2020.

Dubbed a “magician” and an “unbelievable player” by his peers, it appears as if Raphinha will see the season out, at the very least, and that’ll leave supporters around Elland Road absolutely delighted.

There won’t be anyone disappointed by Romano’s latest update.

AND in other news, Phil Hay drops worrying Leeds United transfer claim ahead of deadline day…

Everton are considering a move to bring Luka Jovic to Goodison Park on transfer deadline day.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Mike McGrath, with The Telegraph journalist revealing on Twitter that Frank Lampard is contemplating a late move for the Real Madrid centre-forward in a bid to bolster the attacking options in his first-team squad.

In McGrath’s subsequent report for The Telegraph, the journalist revealed that the 24-year-old will be allowed to leave the Bernabeu prior to Monday night’s transfer deadline, as the Serbia international is not a current part of Carlo Ancelotti’s first-team plans.

In his tweet, McGrath said: “Everton considering Luka Jovic as a loan option from Real Madrid to strengthen Frank Lampard’s attack. Player will be allowed to leave on loan. EFC can make foreign loans but no more domestic after arrivals of El Ghazi and Van de Beek.”

Deadly trio

Since his £52.4m move to Madrid back in 2019, Jovic has not exactly been in the best form of his career, but the 24-year-old nevertheless proved during his final season with Eintracht Frankfurt that he would make a fantastic addition alongside Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison in the Everton attack. The Toffees duo have struck 24 and 17 goals respectively since the start of the 2020/21 season, a clear sign of the attacking threat they possess.

Over his 32 Bundesliga appearances in 2018/19, the £18m-rated Jovic scored 17 goals, registered six assists and created seven big chances for his team-mates, with these returns seeing him earn a highly impressive seasonal SofaScore rating of 7.14.

In the same season, the £152k-per-week Serbian bagged a further 10 goals, provided one assist and created two big chances over his 14 Europa League outings, taking his total haul to 27 goals and seven assists over 46 games played in the two competitions.

As such, should the player who Mladen Krstajic dubbed a “goal-getter” be able to rediscover such form after a potential switch to Everton tonight, Lampard could well form a deadly attacking trio at Goodison Park which should undoubtedly help fire the Toffees back into the top half of the Premier League table.

In other news – “It’s true…”: Journalist drops major update on last-gasp Everton deal, Lampard would love it

Leeds United must tie Raphinha down to a new deal in order to receive a huge fee for him in the future, according to journalist David Anderson.

The Lowdown: Raphinha’s nightmare at Villa

Raphinha struggled massively in midweek as Leeds engaged in a rip-roaring affair at Villa Park. The 25 year-old was handed a 4/10 rating by MOT Leeds News, who called his display ‘dire’.

Indeed, the Brazil star may have just been exhausted from his international duties, but he produced perhaps his worst day in a Leeds shirt, losing possession an enormous 25 times and winning just 30% of his duels.

Hopefully, that awful performance wasn’t a sign of his effort levels waning with so many question marks over his future – West Ham made a January bid for the sparkling winger while Liverpool are reportedly eyeing a summer move.

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The Latest: Journalist makes Whites plea

In an ideal world, Raphinha would remain with the Whites for years to come, but the lure of playing Champions League football could be too good to turn down this summer.

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Anderson urged Leeds to sort a new deal for Raphinha, putting them in a stronger position if another team attempts to sign him:

“If you’ve got an asset and you tie him down, look at Harry Kane at Tottenham, all it does is bump up their transfer value because obviously the buying clubs will be like, ‘Hold on, this guy’s got three plus years left, young age. We’re going to have to pay serious money.’

“Maybe Leeds then, whether it’s this summer or summer of 2023, can then start talking about the bidding starting at 50, 60, £70m for a player like him.”

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The Verdict: Makes perfect sense

This makes complete sense from a Leeds perspective, ensuring that the worst-case scenario of an exit would at least see them receive an enormous amount for Raphinha’s services.

The 25-year-old has arguably been the Whites’ best player this season, scoring eight goals in the Premier League and standing tall while other key men have been injured.

He has been an outstanding signing from Rennes, and while his form has been a huge positive for Leeds, it has also caught the eye of some of the country’s biggest clubs.

And, with the Brazil international yet to sign a new contract at Elland Road, there is of course that nagging concern that Leeds may not get what they deserve if he eventually does move on.

In other news, an agent has claimed Leeds are interested in signing a Premier League player. Read more here.

Everton midfielder Tom Davies has revealed on social media that he won’t make a return from injury until next season.

The Lowdown: One league start

Davies, who has started just one Premier League game all season, has been out of action since November after suffering a knee injury against Tottenham.

He then sustained a hamstring issue at the end of December and had to undergo surgery on the high-grade tendon problem.

As we know, the 23-year-old is yet to return to action under Frank Lampard, and the new manager will now have to wait until the summer before getting a good look at the midfielder.

The Latest: Davies responds to fan

A Toffees fan asked Davies on Instagram for an update on his injury and when he would make a long-awaited return.

Relayed on Twitter (via @NSNOTalks), Davies replied, saying ‘next season’ with a crying face emoji.

The Verdict: Not good

Davies, who Alan Myers said last year gets ‘a lot of stick from fans’, has had a season to forget after playing just 155 minutes of league football.

Lampard hasn’t had the best of starts in terms of injuries, with Yerry Mina also out until April with a thigh problem, and although there was hope Davies would return in April, that won’t be the case.

You’d expect his main focus now will be on returning to fitness in time for a full pre-season under Lampard with a view to becoming a regular starter in 2022/23 – he couldn’t ask for a much better coach to help him develop into a top central midfielder.

In other news: Major out-of-window exit update now emerges on ‘key’ Everton ace; Lampard green lights deal. 

Adam Forshaw could fix two of Marcelo Bielsa’s biggest issues at Leeds United right now.

The Yorkshire giants tasted another hammering defeat to a big side in the Premier League at the weekend, losing 4-2 to old rivals Manchester United to add to the list alongside Arsenal (4-1) and Manchester City (7-0) in recent months.

In fact, the Whites have leaked a whopping 28 goals since Kalvin Phillips fell to a hamstring injury against Brentford on December 5th.

Problem One: Kalvin Phillips

Indeed, Leeds have sorely missed the presence of their defensive lynchpin, who offers so much stability in front of the backline. They have not kept a single clean sheet in the nine games he has missed, conceding an average of 3.1 goals per game.

Shocking.

The England international isn’t expected to be back this week, with worrying fixtures against more top dogs in Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur on the horizon and that’s a big concern.

“It’s a big problem and something they’ve got to look at and try and improve, and possibly Phillips could be a part of that. You can’t keep conceding all these goals and expect to win games,” claimed ex-Villa star Alan Hutton to Football Insider this week.

It’s easy to see why Leeds miss the 26-year-old so much as he averages 2.3 tackles and 1.2 interceptions per outing in the top-flight this season, via WhoScored. Only a few players better that rate and that’s only because they have played way more or way fewer games.

However, despite defeat in Sunday’s six-goal thriller, Forshaw put up remarkable numbers similar to that of Phillips.

He attempted the most tackles (ten) in the match and was successful in 50% of these, which also saw him top the charts in that regard, as per LeedsLive journalist Joe Donnohue.

Forshaw also registered two interceptions.

Problem Two: Final third play

Another one of the biggest issues facing Bielsa is his side’s influence in the attacking third – whilst they may leak plenty of goals, they aren’t scoring many either.

Hardly a surprise with Patrick Bamford joining his fellow countryman Phillips on the treatment table at Thorp Arch.

Only eight teams have scored fewer goals than Leeds this season, and only three of those are above them in the table.

Bamford has missed 18 league games after finishing as their top goalscorer on 17 goals last season.

Although, it’s not as if there is much creativity or drive in the final third as no player has registered more than two assists with Raphinha leading the way on two key chances created per game, via WhoScored.

But again, this is where Forshaw could provide a solution as his relentless work rate and energy often sees him drive forward. Against United, he also led the statistics for pressures attempted (33) and successful pressures (16).

The majority (12) of those 33 attempts were in United’s half.

Forshaw is also capable of playing that diagonal long ball that Phillips is ever so good at, having averaged 2.1 successful attempts per league outing this campaign, which is only 1.4 behind the Three Lions star.

“Forshaw is a player who, when he has played, he is always between the better players of the team,” once claimed Bielsa. “He has a feature that is very difficult to get. He defends similar to Kalvin, he attacks similar to [Mateusz] Klich.”

Indeed, the former Boro star is the man capable of bringing the ball forward to help the Whites generate more goalscoring opportunities with his energy and evident ball-playing ability.

Therefore, the £60k-per-week machine could well hold the keys to solving two of Leeds’ biggest problems right now. He really ought to be the first name on the teamsheet at Anfield on Wednesday.

AND in other news, Fewer touches than Meslier: “Absolutely shocking” Leeds dud badly failed Bielsa vs Man Utd…

Aston Villa have been scouting Marseille’s Boubacar Kamara for ‘the past few weeks’, according to But! Football Club (via Sport Witness). 

The lowdown

The 22-year-old defensive midfielder is also capable of operating as a centre-back. His contract expires on 30 June, which means he is currently free to negotiate pre-contract terms with clubs outside of France.

Villa signed Lucas Digne and Philippe Coutinho in January but were unable to land a defensive midfielder as they’d hoped, having refused to meet the asking price for either Yves Bissouma or Rodrigo Bentancur.

The Athletic’s Gregg Evans has said that the club are now expected to address that perceived weakness in the summer.

The latest

The report from But! Football Club (via Sport Witness) stated that recruitment staff from Aston Villa have been watching Kamara during the month of February.

The expectation is very much that the player will ‘pack his bags’ and leave Jorge Sampaoli’s side come the end of the season.

The verdict

Could Kamara be the answer for Villa in the middle of the park?

The Daily Mirror’s David Anderson has talked up his potential to GiveMeSport, hailing him as ‘one of the next big things’.

Indeed, figures from FBRef illustrate that the 22-year-old is a well-rounded number 6 in the same mould as Liverpool’s Fabinho. He ranks in the 70th percentile or better (relative to positional peers) for pass completion, progressive passes and interceptions.

One potential problem for Villa, though, is that Manchester United are also said to be tracking the £22.5m-rated Frenchman, and they will hope to use the significant carrot of potential Champions League football to persuade him to choose Old Trafford over Villa Park.

In other news, Ashley Preece has an update on Bertrand Traore

Tottenham Hotspur will be looking to bounce back from their disappointing defeat to Middlesbrough in the FA Cup as they face Everton in the Premier League tonight.

Spurs lost 1-0 to the Championship outfit as they failed to qualify for the last four of the cup competition and they now play host to the Toffees in the top-flight.

A win for Antonio Conte’s side will put them level on points with West Ham in sixth in the table as they continue to chase a top-four finish and Champions League qualification for next season.

Axe him

One player Conte must ruthlessly axe in order to give his side the best chance of picking up all three points is central midfielder Harry Winks.

The England international must be dropped to the bench after his abysmal showing against Boro in midweek as he let the manager down badly. Rodrigo Bentancur is back fit for this match and his availability will allow Winks to be axed as he can take up the spot in midfield next to Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

As per SofaScore, the Spurs academy product failed to complete a single tackle in 120 minutes in the FA Cup. He was dribbled past five times as Boro found it easy to take the ball past him in the middle of the park, showing that he was nowhere near good enough on the defensive side of the game.

The midfielder also lost all eight of his individual duels and this suggests that he struggled with the physicality of the Championship side. He was outmuscled in every battle he engaged in and only created one chance, whilst failing to take a single shot at the other end of the pitch as his attacking play did not make up for his lapse defending.

Former Tottenham defender Graham Roberts previously blasted the regression of the midfielder’s play since bursting onto the scene. 

He told Football FanCast: “He’s gone Mr Conservative, he plays simple, and if I don’t give the ball away, I’m a great player. You’re not, he’s become an average player, and that’s being fair.”

The £91k-per-week dud’s performance was a shining example of why this criticism from Roberts was apt as he completed 87% of his passes and had 89 touches of the ball but did nothing with it and was abysmal out of possession.

Conte must now take Winks out of the firing line and place him on the bench against Everton by selecting Bentancur in his place.

AND in other news, Major boost: Spurs handed big double injury lift pre-Everton, Conte will be buzzing…

Wolves have seen a number of standout players move away from Molineux in recent months and years, such as Diogo Jota and Adama Traore.

Looking ahead to the summer transfer window, it seems as though the Old Gold could be at risk of seeing a couple more of their prominent players saying goodbye to the club.

What’s the talk?

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, journalist and transfer insider Pete O’Rourke was discussing the upcoming summer transfer window and what it could hold for Wolves duo Joao Moutinho and Romain Saiss, who are both out of contract at the end of the season.

He said: “I’m sure lots of clubs will be looking at both players and thinking they can maybe lure them away from the club with lucrative offers.”

Focusing on Saiss, the defender has made more blocks (49), interceptions (65) and clearances (156) than any other Wolves player in the league this season. That highlights just how crucial he has been for the Old Gold at the back and how much he has contributed to their solid defensive record, with just 23 goals conceded in 28 games.

This also shows how big a miss he would be if he does end up moving away from Molineux in the summer and the club don’t replace him.

Moutinho would also be a major loss for Bruno Lage’s side, as he has racked up the joint-highest average of key passes per game (1.2) and the second-highest passing success percentage out of anyone to have started more than one league match this season with 86.6%, making him an important cog in Wolves’ midfield.

With all this in mind, it’d be safe to suggest that Wolves fans would be terrified by the prospect of seeing both players leaving the club in the summer, and the pressure would rightly be on to find suitable replacements for them before the 2022/23 season starts.

The club should definitely approach the two players and their representatives to see if they would be willing to extend their stay at Molineux and continue being important figures in Lage’s team.

In other news: “Sensational” Wolves machine with 96% pass accuracy was immense against Watford