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Sheffield Wednesday trio Jack Hunt, Dominic Iorfa and Mallik Wilks could all start against Leicester City Under-21s, according to journalist Dom Howson.

The Lowdown: Sheff Wed in cup action

The Owls have a brief respite from League One commitments on Tuesday night, as they host the young Foxes in an EFL Trophy clash at Hillsborough.

In truth, even Darren Moore would admit that this competition certainly doesn’t take precedence this season, although a win still isn’t to be sniffed at.

While numerous changes are expected to the starting lineup, it could be that Moore’s team is stronger than some expect.

The Latest: Trio could all start

Taking to Twitter on Monday, Yorkshire Live‘s Howson claimed that key trio Hunt, Iorfa and Wilks could all feature prominently against Leicester:

“There is a strong chance Jack Hunt, Dominic Iorfa and Mallik Wilks will be involved in Sheffield Wednesday’s Papa John’s Trophy dead rubber with Leicester City’s Under-21s tomorrow night.”

The Verdict: Needlessly strong?

This is an intriguing update from Howson, considering the EFL Trophy feels more like a competition to give youngsters playing time in, rather than risk senior figures.

An injury to an important player at Hillsborough would likely cause much frustration among the fanbase when they could instead have been at home recharging the batteries.

That being said, Wednesday do arguably have the biggest squad in League One and Moore will want to retain match fitness in his players, so Hunt, Iorfa and Wilks could all benefit from the minutes, retaining sharpness ahead of the bigger matches to come.

Everton have been somewhat renowned for their transfer disasters since the arrival of Farhad Moshiri, as the owner has spent over £500m on transfers in just six years with only a relegation scrap to show for it.

However, it appears, since the appointment of Frank Lampard, the recruitment strategy has drastically improved in just one transfer window, as the personnel brought into the club this summer has certainly improved the performances on the pitch.

The two most influential signings would have to be Conor Coady and James Tarkowski, with the pair already forming a formidable centre-back partnership in the team and have both been recognised for their strong leadership skills alongside their high-quality defensive attributes.

However, one area of the team that saw a long-serving and successful partnership come to an end was in the forward line, as Richarlison made a move to Tottenham Hotspur this summer, leaving Dominic Calvert-Lewin at Goodison Park, but now the Everton boss could form a brand new attacking duo by taking advantage of the January transfer window.

Shakhtar Donetsk winger Mykhaylo Mudryk was heavily linked with a move to Merseyside during the summer, but the Toffees had their bid rejected, and now the club could try again in January following the winger’s fantastic form so far this season.

The 21-year-old who was hailed a “talent” by broadcaster Joe Flemons has already scored six goals and registered seven assists in 11 appearances with a goal contribution every 68 minutes so far, which is extremely impressive but it’s not just his goals that make him the perfect strike partner.

Over five league outings this term, the forward created one big chance, as well as making an average of one key pass, taking an average of 1.6 shots winning 4.6 duels and 1.2 tackles per game, proving that he not only delivers the end product but also works hard to offer goal-scoring opportunities to his teammates.

Mudryk has been the recipient of high praise over the last few weeks for his performances in the Champions League, and Thierry Henry spoke out on the £43.3m player hailing him “impressive” following his display against Real Madrid:

“I have seen him play for Ukraine and he was pretty impressive. I like his directness. I get annoyed sometimes when wingers always come to the ball.

“I always like that he plays one v one. He’s a good player. He has been linked to a lot of teams, so let’s see where he’s going to end up.”

With that being said, Mudryk would complement Calvert-Lewin perfectly with his selfless approach to his game and could be the much-needed partner the striker needs to alleviate some of the goal-scoring pressure on the Everton talent – to allow him to fully recover from his fitness issues.

Everton will now ‘do very well’ to sign Ajax attacker Mohammed Kudus having failed to land him over the summer, according to The Guardian journalist Ed Aarons.

The Lowdown: Late bid rejected

The Independent have reported that the Toffees made a last-ditch £15m offer for the 22-year-old in the summer transfer window, but this was rejected by the Eredivisie giants, having already sold several of their other big-name players.

The Ghanaian later admitted that he wanted to make the move to the Premier League club in search of more game-time but was denied the opportunity, although he has since been an integral member of Alfred Schreuder’s Ajax team in Amsterdam.

The Latest: Kudus could now be unattainable

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Aarons claimed that Kudus would now be looking to join a higher-profile team than Everton given his impressive start to the 2022/23 campaign.

The journalist said: “I think Everton will do very well to get him, I’d suggest, in the future because he’s got five goals in eleven league games for Ajax so far this season. And I think he’s probably destined for a club higher up the table eventually.”

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The Verdict: Time to move on

The Goodison Park outfit may have held some pulling power before, but the chances of landing Kudus now would appear even more difficult than when they tried to land him in the summer.

The ‘electric’ attacker, as he was described by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, has already made ten goal contributions in 17 outings across all competitions this term (Transfermarkt), and has been attracting interest from none other than Borussia Dortmund.

Having cemented himself as a hugely valuable player at Ajax, it’s hard to imagine that he’d want to walk away from such a good project, meaning that Everton should perhaps start turning their attention elsewhere.

Wolves have been handed a boost in their hopes of appointing a new permanent manager as a big update has emerged regarding Vitor Pereira. 

The Lowdown: A move on the cards?

The Old Gold have been without a permanent manager in the dugout since the decision was made to sack Bruno Lage earlier this month.

Since then, the Midlands club have won one and lost three of the four league games that Steve Davis has had in interim charge, leading to reports that the club could go back on their decision to stick with Davis.

Now, they may have a potential breakthrough on their hands over the possibility of seeing Pereira become their new head coach.

The Latest

According to journalist Jorge Nicola (via Sport Witness), a behind-the-scenes update has emerged regarding Pereira’s current position in charge of Corinthians, with Wolves name-checked in the report.

It was reported earlier this week that Molineux could be a potential next destination for the 54-year-old.

Nicola said: “An important source of mine at Corinthians assured me that Vitor Pereira has already informed the president, Duilio Monteiro Alves, the football coordinator, Alessandro Nunes, and director of football, Roberto de Andrade, that he is not staying for the next season. He has a number of reasons that justify his decision.”

The Brazilian season ends before the World Cup.

The Verdict

Having managed several clubs across a wide variety of countries, the Portuguese manager took charge of Corinthians back in February.

With 58 matches under his belt at the Brazilian club, Pereira, known for an attack-minded set-up loosely translating to a 4-3-3, has seen his side win 26 of them, drawing 15 and losing 17 along the way.

Moving forward, if the Wolves hierarchy feel that Pereira is the right candidate to take over from Davis, then his decision to part ways with the Brazilian club could be the first major step in making it happen.

During the summer transfer window, Wolves’ Rayan Ait-Nouri was a man in demand, with the Old Gold reportedly valuing him at £45m, but now he can’t get a game at Molineux.

Wolves initially signed Ait-Nouri on loan from Angers SCO in October 2020 before making the move permanent the following summer, following some impressive performances in the 2020/21 campaign.

The young full-back would make 21 appearances in that season, averaging a solid 6.56 rating from WhoScored for his performances in the Premier League after contributing one goal and one assist throughout some energetic displays.

He was one of the star performers in Bruno Lage’s side last season, averaging a much improved 6.96 rating from WhoScored, which ranked him as the top-rated player at Molineux of those to make at least five appearances.

This earned him a lot of praise from Lage, who said: “What Rayan’s doing is a fantastic season and he deserves this moment. We tried to do our best and we changed a little bit.”

Therefore, it is easy to see why he was attracting some interest during the summer transfer window, with Chelsea and Manchester City told that they would have to pay £45m if they wanted to prise him away from Molineux.

Sadly, it seems as if Wolves will be lucky to ever receive that sort of money for the left-back now, after a hugely disappointing start to the campaign which has seen him waste away on the bench after losing his place in the starting XI.

Although he is still only 21, his 6.54 average rating from WhoScored represents a huge decline from last term and it is perhaps no surprise that he has made just one start under Steve Davis following the sacking of Lage in early October.

Recent games against Crystal Palace, Leicester City and Brentford have even seen 20-year-old Hugo Bueno start ahead of him at left-back and after some eye-catching performances from the Spaniard which included an assist at Selhurst Park, Ait-Nouri may well struggle to get his starting spot back.

It seems as if Lage’s decision to switch to a four-at-the-back formation has really harmed Ait-Nouri’s potential as he was excelling as a wing-back in 2021/22.

To go from an in-demand £45m-rated star to a bench option for a side in real danger of relegation represents a disappointing fall from grace for the French defender.

West Ham United have been backed to reignite their previous transfer interest in Nathaniel Phillips. 

The Lowdown: West Ham’s previous interest in Phillips

The Hammers were linked with a move for the Liverpool defender towards the end of 2021 but ultimately didn’t end up signing him.

The subsequent summer transfer window saw the east London club add some new defenders to their squad in the shape of Nayef Aguerd, Thilo Kehrer and Emerson Palmieri.

The London Stadium outfit have been touted to reignite their interest in the Reds centre-back and launch a move to sign him after a recent report from Calciomercato suggested that Liverpool have decided to put Phillips up for sale in January, along with Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

The Latest: West Ham could go in for Phillips

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, transfer insider Dean Jones stated his belief that West Ham might make their move for the 25-year-old in light of the ‘for sale’ signs apparently going up at Anfield.

He said: “The strongest interest I guess you could say would be West Ham and Nat Phillips. They’ve had a keen eye on him, they’ve had good reports on him and they considered going for him strongly in the summer window. So I can see that one coming around again.”

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The Verdict: Good fit for West Ham

Looking back to the 2020/21 Premier League season, Phillips – who Jurgen Klopp called a defensive “monster” – made 17 appearances for the Reds and ended the campaign having made more clearances (81) than any other player at the Merseyside club.

This highlights his defensive acumen and shows why the £65k-per-week centre-back would be a good fit at West Ham, given how they have the joint-third highest percentage for aerial duels won (53.2%) in the top flight this season.

David Moyes’ side have only kept three clean sheets in the league throughout the campaign, so even with their new defensive recruits who came in over the summer, adding a player like Phillips – who has experience of playing well in the Premier League – could be a smart move for the Irons.

A report has shared that Everton do not plan to spend big in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Relegation-threatened again

When the Goodison Park outfit survived by the skin of their teeth last season, finishing just four points and two places above the relegation zone, the Toffees supporters would have hoped and expected that they would kick on this term.

Instead, they find themselves relegation-threatened again, sitting in 17th spot and just one point above the drop, and to give them the best possible chance of surviving again, they may need to think about investing in January.

The Latest: No ‘big’ expenditure

As per Football Insider, the Merseyside club are not planning to spend ‘big’ in January despite their position in the league table.

Owner Farhad Moshiri is not willing to underwrite another expensive winter window overhaul, after spending nearly £70m in the summer on the likes of Amadou Onana, Dwight McNeil and Neal Maupay.

The Blues hierarchy believe that Frank Lampard was ‘well-backed’ in the summer, which suggests that spending will be at a minimum in January.

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The Verdict: Worrying

The fact that Everton do not intend to spend big in January will come as very worrying news to Toffees supporters.

Their league position suggests that they need more reinforcements to strengthen the quality of the squad, while recent injuries picked up by Tom Davies, Abdoulaye Doucoure and Yerry Mina suggest that they may struggle with depth as well going into the second part of the season.

Nonetheless, Moshiri may need to rethink his original plan, and dig deep into his pockets once again in order to help get the Blues out of trouble.

Transfer expert Dean Jones claims that Jordan Pickford and Alex Iwobi may ‘think twice’ about signing new contracts at Everton.

The Lowdown: Contracts running out…

Both Pickford and Iwobi have contracts at Goodison Park that are set to expire in 2024, meaning that they will only have a year left on them come the end of the season.

The latter is reportedly in the frame for a new deal, but nothing is guaranteed at this stage, especially given the Merseyside club’s poor start to the season which sees them lingering in 17th place in the Premier League table.

The Latest: May ‘think twice’

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones has claimed that Pickford and Iwobi may ‘think twice’ about committing their long-term futures to the Toffees, given the situation around the club:

“For these two players, you would have to think twice about committing at the moment.

“They’ve both had pretty good campaigns, but they also both seem to get picked apart when things don’t go especially well.”

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The Verdict: Worrying

Pickford and Iwobi are two of Frank Lampard’s key players in his squad, having racked up over 2500 minutes between them in the Premier League so far this season, and ranking in the top five best performers for the Blues per WhoScored.

Pickford is already attracting interest elsewhere ahead of the January transfer window, and Everton may have to consider selling for reasonable fees if there are no signs of a new contract being signed.

Nonetheless, the Toffees will still be hoping that both players commit their futures to the club, and a turnaround on the pitch in the second part of the campaign.

Tottenham Hotspur full-back Emerson Royal is reportedly being eyed by Inter Milan for a potential transfer move. 

The Lowdown: Royal’s time at Spurs

Spurs signed the defender back in September 2021 from Barcelona on a five-year deal under previous manager Nuno Espirito Santo.

Since then, the Brazilian has made 59 appearances for the club across all competitions, chipping in with one goal and two assists.

Now though, with the January transfer window approaching, it seems as though Royal is on the radar of one of Europe’s top clubs.

The Latest: Inter eyeing Royal

According to a recent report from Corriere dello Sport (via Sport Witness), Inter have Royal as one of their top transfer targets for the January window, and see him as a suitable potential replacement for Denzel Dumfries.

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The report also adds that the Italian club believe that their connection with Antonio Conte could work in their favour, should they launch a move to sign the Spurs full-back.

The Verdict: Spurs should sell Royal

So far this season, the 23-year-old has made 12 appearances for Spurs in the Premier League, across which he has managed to win just 12 of the 24 tackles he’s made.

In addition to that, the £40k-per-week full-back has failed to control the ball 15 times in total, which is more than the likes of Ben Davies (9), Ryan Sessegnon (6) and Eric Dier (5).

With only two of the nine attempts at goal he’s had be on target, this further highlights how ineffective he has been on the pitch this season.

His overall performances in the league have earned Royal, who has been slammed for his “horrendous” displays in this campaign by journalist Sean Walsh, a rather underwhelming season rating of 6.62/10 from WhoScored, leaving 10 other Spurs players with higher scores.

Taking all of this into account, we feel that if Inter were to make an offer for the Brazilian in January, Spurs should definitely consider selling him.

A big claim has emerged on Glasgow Rangers and the Ibrox giants’ plans for the upcoming January transfer window…

What’s the talk?

Journalist Dean Jones has claimed that new Light Blues head coach Michael Beale will be given the opportunity to bring in players at the start of 2023 to build his squad after arriving to replace Dutchman Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

The reporter has stated that the boss has been sold a long-term project by the club and that starts with the Englishman’s first window at the beginning of next year.

He told GIVEMESPORT: “Part of it is that Rangers have spelt out a promising future plan for him. He knows he’s going to be able to shape the first team and he will be able to have a big say on how the club is run too.

“I think they really see him as a big figurehead here and that is something that’s really exciting. The promise of funds in January comes as part of the package.”

Excitement for Beale

This update should leave the latest Gers manager excited as it indicates that he will have the money to make potential improvements to his side.

The Light Blues are currently nine points behind their bitter rivals in the Premiership table after 15 matches, and they finished bottom of their Champions League group, crashing out of Europe entirely, under Van Bronckhorst’s reign.

Rangers’ poor form domestically and in European competition suggests that Beale has inherited a team that is low on confidence and not performing at maximum capacity.

Therefore, bringing in a few fresh faces in January could be a welcome boost to the squad as signing new players, if they are of the requisite quality, would improve the competition within the squad – forcing current first-team stars to up their game or risk being dropped.

Van Bronckhorst brought in John Souttar, Tom Lawrence, Ridvan Yilmaz, Malik Tillman, Ben Davies, Antonio Colak and Rabbi Matondo in the summer transfer window but the club’s form in the Premiership indicates that they are yet to have the desired impact as a collective.

Beale may, therefore, want to bring in his own players to turn the season around and begin to close the gap between Rangers and Celtic in the Premiership table.

This is why he should be excited by Jones’ claim that Ross Wilson has promised funds for the January window, as it means that the 42-year-old coach will be able to identify his own targets to come in and make an impact during the second half of the season and beyond.