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Newcastle have initiated talks with Tottenham over the possible loan signing of midfielder Dele Alli, according to The Telegraph.

The Lowdown: Dele’s decline

At 22 years old, the midfielder was showing world-class potential, with his transfer market valuation highlighting his rapid rise to the top, having skyrocketed to an incredible £90million.

In the 2016/17 Premier League season, the Englishman scored an emphatic 18 goals, ranking him sixth in the entire league, grouped with the likes of Harry Kane and Romelu Lukaku.

However, Alli’s career has seen a huge decline since he burst onto the scene after arriving as a youngster from MK Dons in 2015, with that valuation now sitting at just £22.5m.

In recent years, the midfielder’s game time at Spurs has continually decreased. This is illustrated by the stark contrast between his career-high 37 Premier League appearances during the 2016/17 campaign and his meagre 2020/21 total, when he amassed just 15 appearances, eight of which came off the bench.

There was a glimmer of hope surrounding manager Antonio Conte’s arrival and what it meant for the 25-year-old’s Tottenham career. However, the situation remains unchanged, and Alli’s two starts under the Italian has confirmed his position at the club.

The Latest: Newcastle open Alli loan talks

In December, The Telegraph reported that Tottenham had given the midfielder the green light to leave Hotspur Way in the January transfer window, sparking rumours with a number of English clubs over potential permanent and loan deals.

According to a fresh report by The Telegraph’s reliable Luke Edwards, Newcastle have opened talks with Tottenham over the possibility of signing Alli on a loan deal.

This succeeds strong rumours linking Manchester United player Jesse Lingard with the Magpies, but it remains to be seen whether the relegation-threatened side will sign both midfielders

Alli would be the second departure under Conte this month after Dilan Markanday joined Blackburn Rovers.

The Verdict: A good opportunity

A transfer to another top-flight club, whether English or further afield, would certainly help Alli in the pursuit of reviving his career, with the hope of making Gareth Southgate’s England squad surely a key motivation in the move.

The midfielder has never lacked technical ability, with Brazilian legend Roberto Carlos previously claiming that he is ‘undoubtedly good enough for Real Madrid’. The issue lies in the player’s hunger to succeed, facing criticism over his work ethic from former boss Jose Mourinho.

If Alli is given the ability to demonstrate a newfound determination elsewhere, then a reprised career in the Premier League would not be surprising in the least, and a move to Newcastle could be the perfect place to do it, with the Magpies themselves desperately in need of some creative spark.

Rangers midfielder Scott Arfield has dropped a big claim on his future at Ibrox beyond the end of this season…

What’s the latest?

The Gers gem has admitted that his representatives will be speaking to the club over a new contract in Glasgow, with his current deal due to expire next summer.

He told Sky Sports:

“When you’re on the pitch you’re not thinking about contracts, you’re not thinking about money, you’re not thinking about security, you’re thinking about winning the game for the football club.

“It’s easy for me to think about that and harder for me to think about other things; if you ask my wife she’ll probably say a different thing.

“(It becomes clearer) when they talk to me. I’ve got representatives that will be speaking to the club.

“I haven’t done so at this minute in time but as I say, I’m all about football and they can talk about contracts at different times.”

Delighted

Rangers fans will surely be delighted by this news as Arfield has shown some promising signs since Gio van Bronckhorst’s arrival at the club.

This update may not have come at the best time after his frustrating performance against Hearts on Sunday, but the nature of his displays in recent weeks have been encouraging. His movement off the ball has been crucial to the Gers and how the Dutchman wants to play and he has played a key role in recent wins.

The £16k-per-week midfielder has played in all six of the 43-year-old’s games in charge at Rangers in the Premiership and Europa League, with the club picking up five wins and one draw in that time as he scored once.

It may not come across in his match statistics, but his runs in behind are crucial. He has a knack for knowing when to make the right run into a channel to either drag a defender out of the way or run onto a pass himself.

The former is how he can make a big impact without touching the ball as he can take players out of the game to afford more space for the likes of Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos to do their damage in.

This is why fans will surely be delighted by Arfield’s comments about his representatives speaking to the club over the possibility of a new deal. He would be a useful option for van Bronckhorst to call upon with his intelligent movement and work rate off the ball, whilst he has also chipped in with two goals this season.

AND in other news, GVB could save Rangers millions with “lovely” £3.1k-p/w colossus who has “everything”…

An update has emerged regarding Newcastle United’s pursuit of Lille forward Yusuf Yazici…

What’s the talk?

According to Turkish outlet Takvim, the Magpies are already in talks with his representatives over a potential January move, with the attacker said to be valued at €15m (£12.5m).

The report claims that Lille want to loan him out during the second half of the campaign and Newcastle are one of the clubs actively pursuing a deal.

Dream deal

Yazici could be a dream signing for Newcastle next month due to the structure of the move. The Magpies are currently 19th in the Premier League and at risk of relegation to the Championship, which means that permanent signings could be tricky to complete without worrying about how much they could cost the club in the second tier.

However, a loan deal works perfectly for them as it allows Newcastle to cut ties with the player if they fail to avoid the drop. It also means that they can potentially negotiate an option to sign him permanently in the summer if they retain their top-flight status, whether that is for the £12.5m quoted or another price.

For example, if Yazici comes in and scores the goals to keep the club in the Premier League, then they could snap him up permanently; or, if he struggles to adapt to English football and Eddie Howe’s team finish in the bottom three, then he can be sent straight back to France.

Former Lille coach Christophe Galtier once lauded the forward and his connection with Jonathan David, saying: “Yusuf has caught a good dynamic, and he is finding his direction. There is a lot of competition in his position, which drives him to perform well. It takes a lot of effort. I spend too much time with him. He is a very talented player in front of the castle. He plays like the second striker or the number 10.

“If you have such a talented player, the possibilities increase. He has a strong relationship with Jonathan David. They were also together in the Milan match. They were also good defensively in this game and made good placements. I find the two complementary. Such a relationship between the two players is a good thing for the coach.”

This highlights the quality he could bring to Newcastle and suggests that he could strike a chord with Callum Wilson up front. Yazici could look to form a partnership with the former Bournemouth man to complement him at the top end of the pitch, making him an ideal signing to bolster the attack.

He managed 14 goals and five assists in 18 starts for Lille across Ligue 1 and the Europa League last season, showing that he has the quality to provide regular contributions in the final third. This is another reason why it could be a dream deal for Newcastle if they pull it off, as the 24-year-old has proven that he can find the back of the net regularly at the top level.

AND in other news, PIF could save NUFC’s season with £20m move for “decisive” gem likened to N’Golo Kante…

David Moyes has plenty of decisions to make as his West Ham side kickstart a busy festive period with the visit of Brighton and Hove Albion to the London Stadium this evening.

The Irons have lost back-to-back Premier League matches but have maintained their place in the top-four, for the time being, having been defeated by Wolverhampton Wanderers and defending champions Manchester City in the last two weeks.

It’s their third game in the space of a week and they’ll continue to come thick and fast, with Chelsea at the weekend, Dinamo Zagreb a week Thursday and another four games before Christmas day.

Therefore, the Scot must be considering rotation, especially as he has been dealing with injuries to one key area of the squad but what sort of lineup could we see in east London tonight?

Here’s what Football FanCast are predicting…

There could be four changes from the side that tasted defeat at the Etihad only a few days ago.

In goal, veteran shot-stopper Lukasz Fabianski is expected to maintain his place, with PSG loanee Alphonse Areola only utilised in the cup competitions, though his backline will look a little different.

Aaron Cresswell is a major doubt ahead of kick-off and it’s unlikely that he will be risked, given how many matches are upcoming. Instead, we could see Ben Johnson switch sides and Vladimir Coufal returning at right-back.

[snack-amp-story url = “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/west-ham-news-transfer-updates-rumours-gossip-david-moyes-gsb-premier-league” title=”Read the latest West Ham news, transfer updates and much, much more!”]

The £18m-rated Czech international, dubbed a “machine” by skipper Mark Noble, has been usurped by the aforementioned academy gem ever since his injury, so this would be a good opportunity to stake a big claim.

Whilst, Craig Dawson may be rested in favour of Issa Diop, who partners fellow compatriot Kurt Zouma in the middle.

Moyes has a massive decision to make on Tomas Soucek amid his poor and inconsistent form struggles. He may well keep his place for now, alongside vice-captain Declan Rice.

Further up the pitch, we’re expecting to see Jarrod Bowen return to the starting XI, with Pablo Fornals occupying the other flank, whilst Said Benrahma could be axed for Manuel Lanzini after the Argentine’s goalscoring impact up in Manchester.

Michail Antonio has also struggled lately, scoring once in eight games, but as their only centre-forward – one that can flick the switch at any time – he should remain up top.

AND in other news, West Ham eye bargain £12m swoop after injury blow…

Leeds United are back in action this weekend for their Premier League clash against Arsenal at Elland Road after their demoralising 7-0 defeat against Manchester City in midweek.

During the heavy defeat against Pep Guardiola’s side, Leeds midfielder Jamie Shackleton was forced off the pitch with a suspected injury in the 38th minute.

Speaking ahead of their match against Arsenal in his recent press conference, Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa shared some details on Shackleton’s issue which will not be what the fans want to hear.

What’s the latest?

Bielsa revealed that not only is Shackleton out for the Arsenal game but also that he “has a problem in his Achilles tendon,” but did not offer any sort of timescale on when the player would be fit again.

Given how Leeds already have the likes of Kalvin Phillips, Patrick Bamford, Rodrigo, Liam Cooper, Pascal Struijk and now Dan James out injured, Shackleton’s injury couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Yorkshire club and fans will be rightfully fuming.

So far this season, Shackleton has made 11 appearances for Leeds in the Premier League with most of them seeing him play in the right-back position, where he started the game against City but couldn’t make it to halftime.

In those appearances, the 22-year-old has managed to rack up an average of 2.3 tackles per game whilst winning 53% of the duels he’s been involved in, showing how much of a useful defensive option he’s been for Leeds so far this season.

Looking ahead to the Arsenal game, Shackleton will definitely be a big miss for Leeds as an extra body at the back given the absence of Cooper and Struijk through injury and Junior Firpo through suspension.

In terms of who Bielsa could now call upon to replace Shackleton in the team, he could either put Luke Ayling back in his usual right-back position or give Cody Drameh the chance to prove his worth.

However, with Drameh replacing Firpo in the second half against City and the fact that Firpo will not be available for the Arsenal clash, this could force Bielsa into having to play Drameh in the left-back position for this occasion, leaving even less depth to choose from to replace the injured Shackleton.

Either way, given the current situation at Leeds in terms of their personnel being somewhat depleted at the moment, everyone at the club will undoubtedly be hoping that Shackleton and the rest of the injured players at Elland Road will be able to make full recoveries sooner rather than later to help get Leeds’ season back on track.

In other news: Phil Hay has dropped a Leeds United transfer update…

Manchester United rescued a potentially crucial point against Atalanta in their Champions League clash at the Gewiss Stadium thanks to another late Cristiano Ronaldo strike.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner popped up in the final few minutes to bag the winner against the same opponents just two weeks ago, and he once again saved the Red Devils’ blushes on Tuesday night.

It was a now typical disjointed, desperate performance from United throughout the 90 minutes, though, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s charges relied upon moments of individual brilliance rather than a cohesive system and strategy to stay top of Group F.

Josip Ilicic put the hosts ahead after just 12 minutes when his effort somehow squirmed under David de Gea’s body, but Ronaldo levelled things up with his first of the night following a flowing United move.

Atalanta then thought Duvan Zapata’s well-taken strike had secured a memorable victory for the Italians before the Old Trafford outfits new talisman volleyed in from outside the 18-yard box in added time.

In truth, only Ronaldo and Eric Bailly put in noteworthy displays on the night for the 20-time English champions, with several big-name stars putting in underwhelming showings on the European stage.

Paul Pogba was one of those who struggled in United’s engine room, but it was arguably their captain Harry Maguire who will be most disappointed with his performance.

As per SofaScore, the England international received a match rating of just 6.3 out of 10, the second-lowest of any of his teammates on the pitch in Bergamo and worse than Pogba.

Throughout the 90 minutes, Maguire looked shaky in possession, uncertain of his positioning and weak in his one-on-one battles, contributing heavily to his side’s hesitancy and indecision from top to bottom.

The 28-year-old lost six of his 10 duels, misplaced possession ten times, and committed two fouls, indicating how far off the pace he was.

Maguire’s below-par display saw former Manchester City midfielder Nigel de Jong take to Twitter to criticise the defender, saying: “Maguire again. Smh. Getting exposed every week now. Instead of stepping forward his tendency is always to step back.”

With Raphael Varane potentially injured again and City up next, Solskjaer will be hoping his captain can return to form in time for the weekend, or United risk another heavy defeat to a local rival.

And, in other news…Murtough must revive Man Utd move for “magnificent” £63m-rated gem, he’s like Carrick 

Some Liverpool supporters are delighted after an image showed Harvey Elliott back running on the training pitch, as he continues his injury recovery.

The 18-year-old made a hugely promising start to the season, looking every bit a reliable first-team squad member and starting three Premier League games, including against title rivals Chelsea, showing Jurgen Klopp’s faith in his potential.

Unfortunately, Elliott suffered a serious ankle injury in the 3-0 win at Leeds United back in September, with many months on the sidelines expected.

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It appears as though the midfielder is making excellent progress at the moment, however, with Liverpool’s official Twitter account posting a photo of him running outside on Monday.

It is arguably an indication that Elliott is set to return to the fold sooner than expected, which would act as a huge boost for Klopp – the midfield ranks are looking thin with Naby Keita injured and Jordan Henderson recently withdrawing from England duty.

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Liverpool fans love Elliott photo

These Liverpool fans took to Twitter to show their happiness at the update, with one calling it ‘mega news’.

“Brilliant”

Credit: @GarBreeninhoLfc

“THE KING IS BACK”

Credit: @Liverpxxl

“Fantastic to see this boy on grass again”

Credit: @OneScouse

“My oh my come on lads!”

Credit: @mierrrrregs

“Mega news! Mentality monsters”

Credit: @LFCWaddams

“I’m really happy to see him running again!”

Credit: @OKUHLE_16o6

In other news, Liverpool have been linked with a move for a Premier League attacker. Find out who it is here.

Flocking to Twitter, many Manchester United supporters have erupted over a pre-Liverpool blow involving star midfielder Bruno Fernandes.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is already under pressure after watching his side drop a plethora of Premier League points over this last month.

The Norwegian has overseen losses to both Aston Villa and Leicester City whilst also dropping points in a home draw to Everton, coming as United aim to win their first Premier League title in nearly 10 years (manutd.com).

Ahead of a highly anticipated clash against Liverpool at Old Trafford today, many Red Devils fans have fumed as some team news emerges before they take on Jurgen Klopp’s side.

Indeed, as confirmed by Solskjaer, star man Fernandes is now a doubt for one of the biggest clashes of their season.

The Portuguese playmaker has four goals and two assists in just eight Premier League starts this season, marking himself out as a really key player.

Taking this into account, it’s little wonder United supporters are worried he might not feature today.

Find all of their verdicts on the news down below.

Man United fans erupt over Fernandes blow…

“advantage liverpool”

Credit: @Ansh710839

“We are finished”

Credit: @martemmanuel_14

“Great.”

Credit: @Xire01

“OH GOD….we all know it will be Lingard at the 10 on Sunday!”

Credit: @OilDoug

“no bruno omg”

Credit: @rashy10_

“NOT BRUNO”

Credit: @MAX_DBN

“As if it couldn’t get any worse”

Credit: @Unit01773131

In other news: ‘Worse than Fred’, ‘Just sell’…Man United fans hammer ‘very weak’ player who ‘needs shipping out’, find out more here.

Birmingham Live shared a story on Monday, looking at Aston Villa forward Keinan Davis.

They claimed the 23-year-old could be the key in utilising the likes of summer signings Emiliano Buendia and Danny Ings, which, as to be expected, had plenty of Villa fans talking on social media.

Davis suffered an injury over the summer which stopped him from joining Stoke City on loan. He hasn’t featured under Dean Smith this season but recently netted on his return for the Under-23’s against Sunderland.

Birmingham Live focused on the 6ft 2 striker and how he could make an impact in Smith’s system using a front two.

They believe Davis’ physical presence and hold up play may help the likes of Buendia and Ings, who have struggled on the whole in a 3-5-2 formation.

Villa fans react

@AVFC_News shared their story on Davis on Twitter on Tuesday. Their post received plenty of interaction, with one labelling it as ‘unbelievable’.

“Dear me. Desperate this. Announce the 2-0 West Ham defeat and stop mucking about.. .”

Credit: @robbcorin

“Davis is not the answer at all dear me shocking”

Credit: @rmanzoni1

“Unbelievable”

Credit: @martinclifford1

“Please god no”

Credit: @ellisavfc05

“made me laugh this one”

Credit: @scottavfc8

“Lol unlock what? Couldn’t hit a barn door this lad”

Credit: @MaulReturns76

In other news: Luke Hatfield makes exciting claim regarding Aston Villa ace who Grealish called ‘unplayable’. 

Flocking to Twitter, some West Ham United fans have erupted over a fresh transfer claim involving Arsenal striker Alexandre Lacazette.

Irons boss David Moyes has been on the look out for a new striker since the beginning of this year, even confirming that bids had been made in January.

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As well as this, the Scotsman candidly admitted that he was ‘desperate’ to sign a forward in the summer – but West Ham failed to make a transfer happen in time.

The Hammers are arguably short of options in that area given their over-reliance on Michail Antonio, but some encouraging news has emerged on their hunt.

Indeed, as per 90min, West Ham are now a ‘potential destination’ for Gunners forward Lacazette – with it also looking likely he will leave the Emirates Stadium.

What’s more, despite interest from abroad, the 30-year-old is open to remaining in London as GSB and co eye a move.

Flocking to this claim, some Irons supporters have erupted with a wide array of takes – find all of their best ones from Twitter down below.

West Ham fans flock to Lacazette news…

“take this all day long”

Credit: @stephenlott

“No way Moyes would want him”

Credit: @WESTHAM_AWAY

“Yes please”

Credit: @didsofire

“Yes plz, be great back up for Antonio”

Credit: @ElToneGSBOUT

“I’ll take this”

Credit: @isForeverFly

“I’d be all over this dependant on price.”

Credit: @Hayds_

In other news: ‘I’ve heard’…Insider drops ‘boardroom level’ claim in possible boost for West Ham and Moyes, find out more here.