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Sunderland have recently announced that they have completed a deal to sign Alex Pritchard, following his release from Huddersfield Town.

What’s the story?

Pritchard had been with the Terriers, and went on to make 83 appearances in total for the Yorkshire-based side, having spent the earlier years of his career with the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Norwich City.

But Pritchard struggled to make a notable impact with Carlos Corberan’s side in the 2020/21 season, with the midfielder making just 19 appearances, and not registering a single goal or assist in that campaign, which doesn’t make for the best of reading.

He’ll be hoping that he can recapture his best form with Sunderland next term, with the new season set to get underway in under a month’s time.

Fans will be buzzing

The 28-year-old has impressed with the likes of Brentford and Swindon Town earlier in his time in professional football, and the Stadium of Light faithful will be eager to see the midfielder make a positive start with Lee Johnson’s side.

Pritchard was previously highly-regarded by former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino, according to Football Insider, whilst he was with the Premier League side, and set to undergo a medical with West Brom earlier in his career.

Sunderland have been somewhat of a ‘sleeping giant’ for far too long now, with Lee Johnson’s side preparing for yet another season in the third tier of English football.

The Black Cats finished fourth in League One last term, but their hopes of promotion were dashed as they were beaten by Lincoln City in their play-off semi-final.

But they seem to be wasting no time in preparing for the new league campaign, with Pritchard joining Aiden McGeady in signing for Sunderland, as they target promotion back into the Championship in the 2021/22 season.

Sunderland are set to take on Wigan Athletic in their first League One match of the 2021/22 season, in what is likely to be a tricky test against the Latics at the DW Stadium. But with players with like Pritchard in their team for the new campaign, you wouldn’t put it past Sunderland to finally win promotion into the Championship this term.

Pritchard clearly has something about him if he’s been on the books with Spurs earlier in his career, but it’s vital that he hits the ground running at the Stadium of Light, otherwise it could turn out to be a similar story to his time with Huddersfield Town, which never really took off for one reason or another.

But, given his wealth of experience, and the fact Sunderland have clinched another new signing in this summer transfer window, fans of the club are sure to be buzzing.

Everton appear to be closing in on the appointment of Nuno Santo as their new manager, but one other name tipped to replace Carlo Ancelotti is Graham Potter. However, Lawrie Sanchez believes that the Merseyside outfit might have been cautious of going for the Brighton boss because of how Marco Silva’s tenure went.

Potter and Silva have similarities in terms of how they started at smaller Premier League or foreign clubs before getting a move to a more established top-flight English club and now being linked with big clubs like Spurs and Everton, but Silva’s term at Everton did not go to plan.

The Brighton manager, who director of football Marcel Brands is reportedly especially keen on, has earned rave reviews from managers such as Pep Guardiola, and was widely tipped as a candidate for the Spurs job. However, despite all the praise he is still yet to guide the Seagulls to a higher finish than 15th in the Premier League.

This next appointment has to be spot on so Everton can plan for the long term future both on and off the pitch, and Sanchez believes that the Toffees could be a bit wary of appointing Potter because of his lack of experience, much like Silva, as he told Football FanCast exclusively:

“Clubs look at what they’ve done before and they went and got the new bright manager when they signed Marco Silva from Watford, and he had only just got there as he had just left Hull.

“They’ve been stung before with a young manager with the Silva situation and then they’ve ended up going for established names like Koeman, Ancelotti and Allardyce. So, I’m not saying he couldn’t do it at Everton but they seem like they want an established name.”

Everton are going to move into a new stadium in the coming years so they will be wanting to have the club in the best possible position on the pitch for that happening, and hopefully have European football in their debut season in their new ground.

Potter has managed to turn Brighton into a slick possession-based team in only two seasons and if they had a striker last season who was clinical in front of goal then they would have been pushing much higher up the league, as they had an xG of 51.6 compared to them actually only scoring 40 times.

According to a report by Corriere dello Sport, as relayed by Sport Witness, West Ham United midfielder Felipe Anderson is now vying for an east London exit and has Lazio as his preferred destination.

The Lowdown: Anderson nightmare…

The Brazilian spent 2020/2021 on loan at FC Porto in Portugal but failed to make any sort of impact.

Indeed, Anderson barely featured over what has been a year to forget for the once exciting West Ham signing.

The 28-year-old started just four matches in all competitions at the Estádio do Dragão, with two of them in the Portuguese League Cup, one in top flight and another in the Champions League (WhoScored).

Anderson took to the pitch for a total time of 128 minutes in Liga NOS, with reports surrounding his future emerging in the past weeks.

The Latest: Anderson trying to force Lazio move…

As per Corriere dello Sport (via Sport Witness), Anderson has been looking to force an exit with his agents calling clubs and offering him around.

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It is said that his ideal move would be a return to Lazio, where he enjoyed many seasons before joining West Ham in the summer of 2018.

The newspaper state Anderson ‘has tried again in the past few weeks through his agents to see if the situation has changed with the new manager (Maurizio Sarri)’ – with his openness to an Italian capital return now ‘inevitably’ inserting the player on Lazio’s list of possible attacking targets.

Whether or not Sarri prioritises him as a signing remains to be seen, but Anderson is now certainly keen on the move and an exit from east London.

The Verdict: Time to go…

Like many clubs, West Ham face an unusual transfer market due to the financial toll caused by coronavirus.

Many teams up and down in the country will, arguably, be in a sell-to-buy situation and the Hammers may be no different.

As such, it would be wise to offload certain figures before investing heavily in marquee signings and Anderson should be one of the names let go.

At 28 with plenty of experience playing top-level football, the winger still has market value and possesses some ability despite his lack of playing time.

Tony Cottee, speaking to talkSPORT, once called him ‘absolutely fantastic’ for his glimpses of quality and West Ham may be able to command a fairly decent figure for him.

In other news: GSB in battle to sign ‘outstanding’ forward called ‘perfect’ for West Ham, find out more here.

Everton have ‘been offered’ former Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo as a possible replacement for Carlo Ancelotti.

That’s according to the print edition of Spanish publication AS (via Sport Witness).

Fabrizio Romano confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that Real Madrid were in talks with Ancelotti, whom they identified as a candidate to replace Zinedine Zidane. Los Blancos were said to be ‘pushing’ to bring the Italian back to the Bernabeu, and the Italian’s departure has since been confirmed.

Ancelotti signed a four-and-a-half-year deal when he took over at Goodison Park in December 2019 but Nuno could now be a decent replacement option.

The 47-year-old parted company with Wolves at the end of the season after they finished 13th in the Premier League. Prior to that, he led them to promotion and back-to-back seventh-place finishes.

Twitter account Everton News Feed relayed the claim from AS, and here’s how supporters reacted. Many were unconvinced by Nuno’s credentials as a possible successor to Ancelotti off the back of a poor season, with one even remarking that they would rather have the much-criticised Marco Silva back at Goodison Park.

Everton fans concerned by Nuno links

“Don’t think he’s good enough for our club, he’s done a great job at Wolves don’t get me wrong but no Ancelotti replacement”

Credit: @KingKierxn

“I’d rather Marco Silva back”

Credit: @jake_everton

“Just no”

Credit: @bobadilla

“This is so typical Everton”

Credit: @JoshuaBartley

“Avoid this at all costs”

Credit: @BigChungusREE

“Yikes”

Credit: @ajpb03

In other news, many Everton fans flocked to this transfer update on one Toffees midfielder.

As explained by the Athletic in their guide to Euro 2020, West Ham United are understood to have sent scouts to watch Slavia Prague gem David Zima in action.

The Lowdown: Slavia Prague raid…

West Ham have been linked with a plethora of players from the Fortuna Liga club since the successful signings of both Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal last year.

Both men have since gone on to make their mark at the London Stadium and there have been reports of other Slavia players echoing their journey to east London.

Abdallah Sima, Jan Kuchta and Ondrej Kolar are three men from the club who have caught West Ham’s eye, with another now emerging courtesy of The Athletic.

The Latest: West Ham eyeing Zima

As explained by the outlet in their Euro 2020 report, West Ham are understood to have sent scouts to watch the 20-year-old.

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They are one of three Premier League clubs to have done so given Zima is displaying promise in the Czech Republic.

A regular under Slavia boss Jindřich Trpišovský last campaign, making 21 league appearances, the 6 foot 2 defender has also already been capped at international level.

The Verdict: One for the future…

While his numbers point to a player with much promise, with centre-back said to be one of the priority positions for David Moyes, we still believe he shouldn’t be at the top of the Hammers’ list this summer.

He may be one to keep an eye on for the future, but West Ham should be focused on deals which are going to immediately improve their squad as they embark on a European campaign next season.

For instance, a permanent move for Jesse Lingard should be at the very forefront of West Ham’s mind considering his exceptional nine goals and four assists in 16 Premier League outings last term (WhoScored).

In other news: West Ham now want to sign this ‘dangerous’ 25-goal monster, find out more here.

Many Everton fans have been left to flock to an update from the Goodison Park faithful on Francis Jeffers.

As per the official website of the Merseyside club, Jeffers has left his role as coach of the U23s to take up a new position with Ipswich Town.

He joins the EFL League One side as a first-team coach and will work with their current manager Paul Cook.

The update certainly caused some stir among several Toffees supporters, given Jeffers’ controversial past with them, as he famously rejected a lucrative contract with his boyhood club in the hope to join Arsenal, where he would earn more money (BBC Sport).

Nonetheless, some Blues seem to be more than happy to see the back of him as he continues his coaching journey with the Tractor Boys.

Everton fans on Jeffers update

These EFC fans flocked to the update as it was shared on Twitter to give their thoughts on Jeffers:

“Good!! He shouldn’t have been near the place”

Credit: @andyunz

“Good.”

Credit: @lukeWilko1878

“Made up”

Credit: @gwladysmattEFC

“££££££££££££”

Credit: @johnmcpartlan16

“Jumping ship again”

Credit: @carlofantasico

“Good riddance”

Credit: @TopBalc

In other news, find out what transfer update Toffees have flocked to here!

Following their promotion to the Premier League after a highly impressive Championship-winning season, Daniel Farke must axe returning Norwich City centre-back Timm Klose this summer.

With FC Basel recently confirming that they would not be taking up the option to purchase the 33-year-old following his loan spell at the club, Klose looks set to return to Carrow Road ahead of the 2021/22 campaign.

That the Swiss club are not taking up their option to buy the £450,000-rated defender may come as something of a surprise for Stuart Webber and Norwich, as the Switzerland international had been in rather fine form for the Super League runners-up this term.

Over his 28 appearances for Patrick Rahmen’s team this season, Klose helped his side to keep six clean sheets, as well as averaging 1.5 interceptions, 0.9 tackles and 6.1 clearances per game, culminating in an average SofaScore match rating of 7.03 – ranking him as the club’s eighth-best performer in the Swiss top flight.

However, these displays should not tempt Daniel Farke into welcoming the £20,000-per-week defender back into his squad ahead of their Premier League campaign, as his level of performance in the top flight for Norwich last season was simply not of the standard required to survive in the league.

Indeed, over his seven league appearances in the club’s Premier League jaunt in 2019/20, Klose failed to help Norwich keep a single clean sheet, while also making an average of one interception, 1.1 tackles and 3.6 clearances per game, in addition to averaging a SofaScore match rating of a mere 6.59.

As such, with the centre-back now being two years older, and likely slower and less fit, it would be an very unlikely scenario that Klose will be any better suited to Premier League football this time around, with it being a fair assumption to make that Farke – who previously claimed that the defender makes a number of “costly” errors for the club – will not utilise the 33-year-old all that often.

With the former Wolfsburg man still picking up a hefty wage at Carrow Road, it would seem highly advisable for Webber to do all he can to move Klose on this summer – something which would also free up a chunk of the club’s wage bill to possibly be spent on a potential new signing.

In other news: Ornstein drops colossal Norwich City transfer claim which will surely leave fans gutted – opinion

After picking up a bit of form in recent weeks, Newcastle reverted back to type with a hugely disappointing 2-0 defeat to Arsenal in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

The Magpies came into the game at St James’ Park off the back of two wins and two draws from their last four matches and were facing a Gunners side who had been beaten in Europe in midweek.

If Newcastle fans thought their side would put up a fight and take the game to the north Londoners, then they were sadly mistaken. They managed just five shots all game, and only one of them was on target, whilst they also registered just 38% of possession.

And one man who badly let his manager down was Miguel Almiron.

The Paraguay international was his usual energetic self, trying to chase down players and close them down, but there was a real lack of quality when he had the ball at his feet.

As per Sofascore, Almiron’s 31 touches and 19 passes were even lower than goalkeeper Martin Dubravka and painted a real picture of just how ineffective and anonymous he was.

Going forward, the 27-year-old showed absolutely nothing of note for the Magpies, having no attempts on goal whatsoever and not even managing a single dribble attempt either. He also provided no key passes and didn’t attempt a single cross either, and it was no surprise that Bruce eventually saw enough and hooked him for Joelinton mid-way through the second half.

The Chronicle’s Lee Ryder simply dubbed it “one of his poorest displays of the season”, and, speaking after the game, Bruce admitted Almiron had a difficult outing, saying: “I think he’s played very well of late playing in that midfield area. But like us all (against Arsenal), we’ve found it a bit of a struggle. With what we’ve got at the top end of the pitch, I believe he’s still a very, very decent midfield player and can add goals and a bit of flair from it (midfield) like he has done.”

A Gunners side surely lacking in confidence after a Premier League defeat to Everton last week, and then a Europa League humbling at the hands of Villareal on Thursday, were there for the taking.

Instead, Almiron in particular just didn’t show any attacking urgency to try and take advantage of that, and just let the Gunners completely off the hook.

Meanwhile, Newcastle are interested in signing this Premier League star about to be relegated…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Rob Lee, who is a Newcastle United Hall of Famer, believes the way Steve Bruce is using Joe Willock as a super-sub is perfect for the 21-year old.

The £20,000 per week midfielder has taken his chance while out on loan with the Magpies having scored four goals, with three of them coming after Willock had been subbed onto the pitch late in the second half.

Willock had been handed just two Premier League starts with Arsenal during the first half of the season but made an instant impact on Tyneside when he scored on his debut against Southampton.

Speaking on why Willock’s current role is perfect for him and why he isn’t currently starting for Newcastle, Lee exclusively told FFC:

“I genuinely don’t think it’s to do with how he’s playing I think it’s just the way that the team is set up, and I know Joe will want to start but it would change the dynamic of the side.

“At the moment he won’t like it but it suits him because everyone’s tired and when he comes on he’s got fresh legs and more often than not he’s getting chances, but he will be desperate to get in the team and he’ll be knocking on Bruce’s door no doubt, but I’m sure it’s not a long term thing.”

It has been reported that Arsenal would be willing to accept a fee of around £20million for Willock and the Magpies are likely to be at the front of the queue.

Willock’s latest goal for the Magpies came in the 96th minute against Liverpool, which earned his side a valuable and rare point at Anfield.

Former Leicester City man Keith Gillespie insists that there is no need to panic over Jamie Vardy’s recent struggles in front of goal in an exclusive interview with Football FanCast.

The forward has scored 12 goals in 26 Premier League games for the Foxes this season but he has scored just once in his last 12 games.

He drew another blank at the weekend against Manchester City, as the Foxes lost 2-0, and his form has been alarming given his history of hitting the back of the net reliably.

In his first 12 games of the season, Vardy scored 10 goals, but Gillespie, who played for the Foxes between 2003 and 2005, insists manager Brendan Rodgers will have no concerns over the 34-year-old.

Indeed, Leicester have three other players who have scored over 10 goals this season, in Harvey Barnes, Kelechi Iheanacho, and James Maddison.

Gillespie told FFC: “Strikers do go through patches when they don’t score and things don’t go right for them. I think there was a period when they relied on Jamie Vardy’s goals so much but now Iheanacho’s weighing in, you had James Maddison before that, you had Harvey Barnes as well, so there wasn’t that reliance on Jamie Vardy week in, week out.

“You know what Brendan Rodgers thinks of Jamie Vardy because we’ve never, ever questioned it and gone ‘he’s only got one goal in 12 games, is he going to play the next game?’ Of course he’s going to play the next game because he’s still important to them.

“He’s an unselfish striker, the work rate that he puts in.”

Vardy has scored 20 goals or more on three occasions in the Premier League, in 2015/16, 2017/18, and 2019/20.