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Everton have been struggling with a mild injury crisis over the last three months, but with players now returning from injury there has been no better time for them as the Toffees take on some of the Premier League giants in their upcoming fixtures.

Between now and Christmas, Everton are set to face Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea, all within their next six fixtures, and will be hoping to grab as many points as they can from these huge games to climb into a much better position in the table.

Rafa Benitez’s side currently sit 11th in the table with just four wins so far this season, and with such tough fixtures coming up for the Toffees they will be thankful for the returns from injury with the likes of Richarlison and centre back Yerry Mina.

Everton have been ruthlessly exposed at the back over the last few months with Benitez’s side conceding seven goals in their last four games, with an embarrassing 5-2 defeat to Watford contributing to most of those goals.

It appears that most of Everton’s defensive issues come from set pieces, and zonal marking, with this being something that the manager has addressed. Everton’s expected goals against from set-pieces is 4.0 and tied for second-worst in the league.

Responding to this, the Spanish coach said; “The main thing for us is to make sure we attack the ball and show some character when we have to challenge, we’re not doing that. It’s not just zonal marking, if it’s man-to-man, then they block your defender and you could have a man free.

“I think it’s a question of how to defend, show character and the aggression you have to show when defending a setpiece.”

With all this considered it is no wonder that fans were buzzing that Yerry Mina made his return to training at Finch Farm last week.

Rafa could solve one of his biggest problems in conceding too many cheap goals, by unleashing the £18m rated beast against Man City in their next game.

The club took to Instagram to announce the highly anticipated return of the defender, with the caption reading: “Return of the King.”

Standing at 6 foot 5, the defender who has been described as a “monster” by Michael Ball, possesses all the physical traits to improve them from dead-ball situations.

The Toffees seem to be on the other side of their injury disasters, with key players back in training ahead of the Premier League’s return this weekend and Dominic Calvert Lewin’s imminent return after being sidelined with a quadriceps injury in August.

In other news: Better than Iwobi? Jonathan Ikone on Everton’s radar

West Ham United are set to launch a bid for Adam Hlozek this winter transfer window as they look to finally end their long search for a new striker…

What’s the word?

That’s according to trustworthy Irons insider ExWHUemployee, who delivered a fresh update on their pursuit of the Sparta Prague forward to his ‘The West Ham Way’ podcast this week.

“We have held an interest in the Czech Sparta Prague forward Adam Hlozek for some time, as previously reported by Ex. However, this has ramped up significantly in recent weeks.

“With Kretinsky now on board and being Chairman of Sparta Prague, we are very much set to place a concrete offer for his services this January.”

It remains to be seen how much the 19-year-old sensation would command, with Transfermarkt currently valuing him at just £15.3m.

Two years and counting

By the time January swings around, it will have been two years since manager David Moyes sanctioned the departure of Sebastien Haller to Ajax. Surprisingly, in that time, he is still yet to be replaced, meaning the Scot only has one senior centre-forward in Michail Antonio.

And the 31-year-old has dealt with numerous injuries over the last few seasons, so if that trend continues, it’ll leave the Hammers light up top. The likes of winger Jarrod Bowen and outcast Andriy Yarmolenko have had to cover for him whenever absent.

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Hlozek’s versatility in being able to play wide or upfront, as well as his undoubted potential as a teenager, makes him a very solid candidate to provide that perfect foil to the Irons talisman.

Despite his age, he has already racked up over 100 appearances for the Czech giants, whilst last season alone, he provided 15 goals and 11 assists in just 19 league appearances, that form that has continued into the current campaign as he’s delivered four goals and seven assists, per Transfermarkt.

The young dynamo has been dubbed an “extraordinary talent” by his agent Pavel Paska, who also has Tomas Soucek on his books.

All in all, fans around the London Stadium could be hugely excited by this latest claim from one of the most reliable sources when it comes to West Ham.

The fact that the club are prepared to launch a concrete offer for such a hugely promising talent is massively encouraging and it should have supporters buzzing that a major problem could soon be fixed, as early as next month.

AND in other news, Forget Antonio: West Ham disaster who lost ball every 2.5 touches badly failed Moyes…

Cedric Kipre, Matt Phillips and Adam Reach were deemed to be West Brom’s poorest performers in their 2-1 defeat to Brighton in the FA Cup third round.

The Baggies traded Championship commitments for domestic cup action on Saturday afternoon, welcoming Premier League outfit Brighton to The Hawthorns. Unfortunately, Valerien Ismael’s side exited the competition at the first attempt, losing 2-1 after extra time having initially taken the lead through Callum Robinson.

According to Sofascore’s performance metrics, it was Kipre, Phillips and Reach who stood out as the worst performers for West Brom of those to have played at least 60 minutes. We explore why that was the case.

Adam Reach – 6.4

The 28-year-old’s Baggies career has not got going since he joined from Sheffield Wednesday last summer and this was another ineffective outing, which took him to 20 Albion appearances without a single goal.

The winger played no key passes and had no shots on target in the match – a disappointing return, considering he is deemed a creative player – and he lost the ball a whopping 25 times, the most of any outfield player for the home side.

Reach played just two out of nine accurate long balls, too, and he did little to win over any of his detractors.

Matt Phillips – 6.3

Phillips was another Baggies player who failed to find his best form against the Seagulls, not affecting matters enough in the final third.

The attacker lost possession 12 times in a loose display, while from a defensive sense, he didn’t make one tackle or interception, failing to ruffle Brighton’s defenders’ feathers.

Phillips also didn’t have a shot on target in the match and won just one out of seven ground duels.

Cedric Kipre – 6.0

Kipre started in his usual right-sided centre-back role but had a very disappointing afternoon at the office, summed up by his game-changing red card midway through the second half.

He committed three fouls in total during a reckless performance, and he also failed to make a single interception or get a shot away during the game.

Furthermore, the 25-year-old won just three out of seven ground duels, as he was bettered by Brighton players all too often on a day to forget.

In other news: This Daryl Dike tweet had lots of Baggies fans gushing

With Newcastle United’s new owners still searching to appoint a director of football after having Michael Emenalo reportedly turn down an offer from the club, the latest name on their list is apparently Dan Ashworth, who is currently working as Brighton & Hove Albion’s technical director.

Earlier this week, Sky Sports confirmed that Ashworth is of interest for the director’s role at Newcastle, claiming that the Tyneside club have granted permission to speak to the 50-year-old about the position.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT about the current situation, journalist Keith Downie had this to say on the matter.

He said: “They’re trying to keep their cards close to their chest. I spoke to the consortium yesterday who said they were giving no comment on the Dan Ashworth story.”

Although this update doesn’t reveal much, it should nonetheless be a positive for the Newcastle fans who will no doubt be thrilled after the club’s very public move to hire Unai Emery as Steve Bruce’s successor before appointing Eddie Howe collapsed at the last minute.

Thus, making a more measured and low-key approach to hiring a director of football such as Ashworth would potentially be more beneficial for the club as a whole.

After hiring former Celtic and Reading director Nick Hammond on a short-term deal as a transfer consultant, if Newcastle were able to appoint a full-time director of football before the January transfer window closes, this would surely give the club a big boost in terms of finalising shrewd deals to strengthen Howe’s squad.

Given how Newcastle have only managed to win one of their 18 Premier League games so far this season, drawing seven and losing 10, conceding a total of 41 goals in the process, it’s safe to say Newcastle could do with adding some quality players to their squad as soon as possible, particularly in the defensive areas if they’re going to have any chance of avoiding relegation and having to spend a season in the Championship next year.

If Newcastle don’t end up securing the appointment of Ashworth or any other potential director before the end of January, the pressure will be on the likes of Hammond to do all he can to bring the right players in that he can as well as pressure being on Howe to keep the team in the Premier League.

Unlike their chase of Emery, however, they are at least doing things in the right fashion now. This is a steep learning curve for Amanda Staveley and co but they have clearly taken previous lessons into account. This should leave supporters seeking a brighter future for the football club absolutely thrilled.

In other news: Hammond could save NUFC’s season with “colossal” £24k-p/w beast, “nothing fazes him” – opinion

Former Everton manager Rafael Benitez believes ‘some players are scared’ of the club’s fans, The Athletic’s Gregg O’Keeffe has reported.

The lowdown

The Spaniard was sacked at the weekend following Everton’s 2-1 defeat at Norwich City, who are in the Premier League relegation zone.

The former Liverpool boss, who was only appointed at Goodison Park in July, oversaw just 22 games – seven wins (32%), four draws and 11 defeats.

Since they beat Burnley 3-1 in their fourth game of the season, Everton are bottom of the Premier League form table with only nine points from a possible 45 in that time (via Transfermarkt).

The latest

As per The Athletic, O’Keeffe wrote that, in Benitez’s eyes, some members of the team ‘buckle under the expectations of the fanbase’. The journalist added in a tweet accompanying that article that “Benitez felt Moshiri listened too much to agents”.

The Spaniard is said to be surprised by the timing of his dismissal, which came ‘just days’ after he was backed in his decision to sell Lucas Digne to Aston Villa.

The verdict

It was clear that Benitez’s tenure couldn’t go on. During Saturday’s defeat at Carrow Road, an incensed Everton supporter even tried to run across the pitch to confront him in the dugout

However, prior to last weekend, he seemed to have Moshiri’s full support. The Iranian had just last month claimed that Everton’s struggles were ‘largely’ down to injuries and insisted that Benitez would be supported in the transfer market.

Whoever’s to blame for things unravelling, the Toffees find themselves looking for a seventh different manager in less than six years. That suggests that there are some deep-rooted issues to be resolved at Goodison Park.

In other news, many fans flock to reports that a club legend could return to Everton

Former England international Carlton Palmer has urged Leeds United to sign a new striker in the upcoming January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Bamford’s injury problems

The Whites have had a season to forget so far in 2021/22, languishing in 15th place in the Premier League and struggling to repeat last year’s efforts.

A big reason for that has been Patrick Bamford’s lack of availability, with the striker struggling with injuries throughout the campaign.

With the January window now of the horizon, it could be that Marcelo Bielsa delves into the market for attacking reinforcements, given Tyler Roberts and Rodrigo have combined for just three top flight goals.

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The Latest: Palmer makes transfer plea

Someone who thinks that needs to be the case is former Leeds man Palmer, who told Give Me Sport that a fresh face is required in the final third, as the Whites look to turn their season around:

“They’ve been struggling for goals, so I still think it’s an area that Leeds need to address in the transfer window, they need to bring a striker in.”

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The Verdict: New striker must happen

There has been an evident lack of firepower from Leeds this season, with 17 goals scored after 16 league matches, compared to 30 this time last year. If you take out Raphinha’s seven strikes, the rest of the squad have barely broken double digits.

That highlights the need to bring in another striker, with too much pressure on Bamford and the Brazilian to stay fit and be the constant source of goals – if the latter suffers any sort of injury the squad looks perilously thin.

It would negligent if January drifted by without a new signing in that area, potentially putting Leeds at risk in the relegation scrap.

In other news, one Leeds player has been linked with a high-profile move away. Find out who it is here.

Pundit Paul Robinson has been reacting to Tottenham’s interest in Wolves winger Adama Traore, Football Insider report.

The Lowdown: Long-term target

Traore has been on Tottenham’s radar for some time now, with the club coming close to landing the speedster over the summer.

That was when Nuno Espirito Santo was in charge, but, as we know, a move never materialised, with Wolves cancelling a summer deal.

Since then, Traore has continued to struggle in the final third at Molineux and is still awaiting his first goal contribution of 2021/22. As a result, it appears as if Antonio Conte has fresh plans for the 25-year-old, similar to what he did with Victor Moses at Chelsea.

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The Latest: Robinson reacts to update

According to The Athletic, Conte and Fabio Paratici are still keen on Traore and would look to turn him into a right wing-back in north London, with journalist Sami Mokbel also reporting a £20m move is in the works.

Robinson, who features on Sky Sports, was talking to Football Insider regarding Traore. This is what he had to say to the update, labelling the Wolves man as ‘devastating’ and a ‘great addition’ for any side, however, he had his reservations regarding the Spaniard as a right wing-back.

“If Wolves are going to cash in on him it’s going to be soon because he is not going to sign another contract. He has been touted about heavily in recent windows.

“I cannot see him playing as a right wing-back in that system for Spurs. Defensively, I don’t think he gives Conte enough.

“Going forward he is devastating. He is a player I admire and that I like but as a winger, not a wing-back.

“He would be a great addition to any side but I don’t think he’s got the defensive capabilities to play on the right-hand side of a back five.

“I see him as part of a front three and Spurs have a lot of options in that area. I don’t think Spurs need him.”

The Verdict: Moses 2.0?

Moses heaped praise on Conte for the influence he had on his career, with the Nigerian playing a key role as the Blues won the Premier League in the Italian’s first season at Stamford Bridge.

And it now seems as if Traore’s career could turn around by moving to Spurs. The right-winger has scored just 10 times in 151 appearances for Wolves, so moving back into a deeper wing-back role could actually benefit him in the long run.

He’s got the athletic attributes and directness already, and was even labelled as ‘unplayable’ back in 2020 by Jurgen Klopp, while Pep Guardiola felt that no one can ‘handle’ his speed.

Conte clearly has a highly-rated target who he feels he can make better, and should he replicate what he did with Moses with Traore, it could be a frightening prospect.

In other news: Spurs now take next steps to sign ‘one of the best’ from PL rivals; Conte personally wants him. 

Celtic midfielder David Turnbull has dropped a claim regarding Jota’s potential permanent switch to Parkhead.

What’s been said?

In recent comments cited by the Daily Record, the 22-year-old Scotland international suggested that he and his teammates would love to see the Benfica loanee make a permanent move to Celtic in the January transfer window, as he and his colleagues have been highly impressed with the impact the winger has had during his short time in Glasgow thus far.

The report goes on to state that Ange Postecoglou’s side do hold an option to make the Portugal U21 international’s temporary deal a £6.2m permanent move this season, and Turnbull is clearly of the belief that the 22-year-old would be well worth the money.

Speaking about Jota’s transfer situation, the midfielder said: “We hope that he signs, but it’s up to them and the club to decide that. I’m sure the boys would be keen on him doing that anyway.

“He seems to be enjoying life in Glasgow, on the pitch you can see that. And away from the pitch, he seems to be enjoying it as well – apart from the weather. He seems to be loving life. Jota’s been absolutely flying and we are pleased for him.

“From the first minute he’s been excellent both on and off the ball and he’s been doing what he needs to do. He’s chipping in for the team by scoring goals and that has been excellent. It’s great for him and it’s great for the side.”

Fans will be delighted

Considering just how impressive Jota has been since his arrival at Parkhead back in August, the news that Turnbull and his teammates appear to very much be in favour of their club sealing a deal to sign the forward on a permanent basis is sure to have delighted the Celtic fanbase.

Indeed, over his 10 Scottish Premiership appearances this season, the £3.15m-rated man has already scored five goals, registered four assists and created two big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of three shots and making 1.5 key passes per game.

These returns have seen the winger average a SofaScore match rating of 7.39, ranking him as the joint fifth-best performer in the top flight of Scottish football.

The £7.1k-per-week forward has also been in excellent form for the Hoops over his five Europa League appearances, scoring two goals, providing two assists and creating four big chances for his side, metrics which have seen him average a SofaScore match rating of 7.40.

As such, it would indeed appear as if Jota would be well worth the reported £6.2m he’d cost Celtic to sign permanently this winter, while the prospect of the winger remaining at Parkhead beyond the end of the current campaign is certainly something that will delight Bhoys fans.

In other news: Celtic dealt big transfer blow, Ange will surely be fuming

Newcastle United will be looking to end their run of two straight defeats in the Premier League as they face Tottenham today.

The Magpies lost 1-0 to both Chelsea and Everton away from home in their last two top-flight outings prior to the international break and now face the prospect of a third successive loss.

They were beaten by an Alex Iwobi goal last time out as they struggled at Goodison Park in a game marred by a pitch invader locking himself to a goal post.

How many changes will Howe make to his team from that clash? Here is our predicted XI…

Martin Dubravka; Javier Manquillo, Fabian Schar, Dan Burn, Matt Targett; Jonjo Shelvey, Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton; Ryan Fraser, Chris Wood, Allan Saint-Maximin (4-3-3)

We are predicting that the head coach will make three alterations to the side, with Shelvey, Manquillo and Saint-Maximin all coming back in.

Starting off in the defence, Emil Krafth may find himself on the bench in favour of his Spanish colleague. The Sweden international has been a lightweight throughout the campaign, losing 53% of his duels and 63% of his aerial battles, and could be exposed against the talent of Heung-Min Son.

Whilst Manquillo has not been sensational in the Premier League, he has won a solid 64% of his overall duels in the top-flight – winning 59% of his aerial battles. This suggests that he is the stronger option, defensively, out of the two and that is why he may start at right-back.

In midfield, Joe Willock could be axed in favour of Shelvey. Matt Ritchie previously dubbed the ex-Liverpool man as “unbelievable” and his form in the Premier League this season for the Magpies has justified his praise. The gem has averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.91 throughout the campaign, showing that he has consistently delivered on the pitch.

Willock, who Freddie Ljungberg previously dubbed as “passive”, has averaged an underwhelming score of 6.73. As per SofaScore, the dud was dribbled past twice, failed to complete any of his attempted dribbles and completed 68% of his passes in the 1-0 defeat to Everton, which is why he may now find himself on the bench.

Finally, we are predicting that French forward Saint-Maximin will take up Miguel Almiron’s place. FFC published an article explaining why he should start and he should come in for the Paraguay international.

The ex-MLS star has been nowhere near good enough for the Toon this season. In 22 Premier League appearances, he has failed to produce a single goal or assist whilst averaging a dismal SofaScore rating of 6.60, which is why he should be dropped to the bench in favour of the former Nice man.

AND in other news, Howe must finally unleash “breathtaking” £93k-p/w Newcastle gem, he’s what they need…

Liverpool are set to complete the signing of highly-rated Celtic midfielder Ben Doak, according to Football Insider.

What’s the story?

According to their sources, now that the Reds have agreed the signing of Fulham’s Fabio Carvalho, they are close to agreeing on a deal for the Celtic teenager who has already been pictured holding a Liverpool shirt.

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The 16-year old is set to sign an initial three-year deal with Liverpool paying around £600k in compensation to the Scottish club. It’s understood that to begin with he will play for the club’s development side.

More exciting than Carvalho

Fabio Carvalho has lit up the Championship this season, with 14 goal contributions in 29 appearances, so we know an awful lot about how good he is.

However, the fact we know less about Doak, and that Liverpool are signing the youngster for such a fee for his age, makes this one more exciting and intriguing.

He has already made two senior appearances for the Hoops, one of which was as a late substitute in an Old Firm game which shows just how highly thought of he is in Scotland.

Where he has excelled is at youth level for his country. Doak has made six appearances for Scotland U17’s scoring four times, which included a hat-trick in a 6-1 rout against Georgia last month.

He’s been described in glowing terms as a “generational” talent by Bhoys Analytics and will be looking to the likes of his fellow countryman Andy Robertson when judging how successful a move to Anfield can be.

Doak rejected a professional contract from Celtic to move south of the border and sign for Jurgen Klopp’s side. Whilst this may seem like a bold decision, it’s not every day that you get offered the chance to sign for one of the best teams in Europe.

He is a wide player with the ability to play on the wing and in the full-back position, adding a further string to his bow, with Hoops manager Ange Postecoglou describing him as a “fantastic kid” who is “composed” for his age.

It was reported by The Athletic that Leeds were also interested in signing the teenager but Liverpool managed to seal the deal first.

Overall it’s an extremely exciting signing, he may not feature in the first team straight away but with a lot of clubs interested, he must be special. We’ll definitely be keeping an eye on how he progresses through a Liverpool set-up that is known for developing great players.

IN other news: Fewer touches than Alisson: Liverpool gem who won just 16.6% duels let his side down