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Tottenham Hotspur have enjoyed fine partnerships over the years, the latest being Harry Kane and Heung-min Son’s telepathic double-act that has seen them consistently deliver goals.

Indeed, they are on the verge of breaking Premier League records this campaign.

Belgian twosome Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen were the defensive wall for Mauricio Pochettino for many seasons, whilst there has to be an honourable mention for Victor Wanyama and Mousa Dembele.

And who could forget the ‘David and Goliath’ pairing of Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe?

Now the door has opened for Daniel Levy to seal the next deadly duo in north London.

According to L’Equipe, Spurs have made contact with veteran winger Angel Di Maria over a potential free transfer in the summer as he remains out of contract in the French capital at the end of the current season.

Whilst Paris Saint-Germain, managed by former favourite Mauricio Pochettino, is hopeful of keeping hold of the 32-year-old, Jose Mourinho is keen to bring his old Real Madrid man to N17.

And Levy ought to do what he can to convince the £220k-per-week Argentina international to join.

He’s formed an exciting partnership with Spurs midfielder Giovani Lo Celso for both club and country over the years. By bringing Di Maria to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Levy could create the second coming of Ossie Ardiles and Ricky Villa.

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When Keith Burkinshaw secured the two World Cup winners in 1978, it transformed the fortunes of Spurs and sent a stark warning across Europe.

The north London outfit had only just been promoted to the First Division, so the £750k swoop for the Argentinian pair was quite the outstanding coup.

They both struggled to hit the ground running, but soon their influence helped Spurs to two FA Cup final wins.

Levy’s team haven’t secured a piece of silverware since 2008, and the wait goes on, so bringing someone in of Di Maria’s calibre would certainly bolster their prospects of breaking that duck.

He has won La Liga and Ligue 1, and the Champions League too, whilst he was part of the Argentina squad to finish runner-up at the 2014 World Cup.

Di Maria can be Villa, whilst Spurs already have Ardiles 2.0 in Lo Celso.

When playing together, the duo have an impressive 76.5% win-rate and combined, they have delivered a total of 21 goals and 23 assists, per Transfermarkt.

Dubbed “exceptional” by new Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel and “extraordinary” by PSG enforcer Marco Verratti, Di Maria would be an incredible free transfer signing irrespective of his poor stint at Premier League rivals Manchester United.

The £25.2m-rated winger could help Lo Celso thrive with the £55m arrival only delivering seven goals and four assists in the 18 months he’s been at the club.

Perhaps the influence of his international and former PSG teammate can be the spark he needs, and in turn, it may well give Spurs another famous duo – one that is certainly shades of Ardiles and Villa mark two.

AND in other news, Mourinho could give Spurs new threat with £36m “exceptional talent” who idolises Ozil…

Leeds United managed to bank an important win on the road last night thanks to goals from Raphinha and Jack Harrison. The Whites narrowly scraped through and kept the spoils for themselves against Newcastle at St James’ Park.

The win will have undoubtedly lifted morale around the Leeds camp after breaking their three-game streak of defeat. However, not everything that came out of that match was a positive.

Elusive summer signing Diego Llorente started just his second match for his new club but was forced off the pitch after ten minutes with an injury. This will be massively frustrating for everyone involved with the club and Marcelo Bielsa, but the Argentinian must take some responsibility upon reflection.

Huge Llorente blow for Leeds

With the Whites currently without Robin Koch, they are struggling for options in defence. Liam Cooper has recently been paired up with Luke Ayling due to their lack of fit centre-backs.

Having Llorente back in action was a huge boost for Leeds, who are still a way away from having Koch back in the squad. However, it seems Bielsa got too eager to bring the former back into the squad and as such, he has now suffered yet another injury setback.

According to Phil Hay, Leeds doubled up on their doses of Bielsa’s trademark Murderball last week and Llorente was involved in these sessions. This in itself is hugely risky given the demanding nature of the training game, never mind when it involves a recently injured player.

The £22,000 per week new signing will have Leeds fans hugely frustrated right now. Llorente has missed a total of eight matches so far this season due to muscle injuries and could now be set to spend even longer on the sidelines, as per Transfermarkt. For an exciting £23million summer signing, not a lot of positives are surrounding him right now.

Starting Llorente was a huge risk from Bielsa given the issues they’ve had in that position, and one that did not need to be taken given they are comfortably sitting in mid-table in the Premier League standings.

Considering the Spaniard played just ten minutes against Newcastle before being forced off, it can’t be said that he played any part in the win either. The manager did not have to risk his fitness at all.

In other news, Signing Julian Draxler could be the end of Hernandez at Leeds…

Liverpool are reportedly one of the Premier League sides who are interested in signing Derby County 16-year-old this month.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, both Liverpool and Manchester United are ‘circling’ the youngster, with the piece suggesting that he is one of the best young footballers to keep an eye on for 2021.

The teenager recently made his first-team debut with the Rams under player-manager Wayne Rooney and is described as a quick and skilful forward.

Liverpool’s next Harvey Elliott?

Liverpool have shown that they can have great success in bringing in young talent in recent years, with Harvey Elliott perhaps the prime example.

The winger was signed as a 16-year-old in the summer of 2019 and has already made nine appearances for Jurgen Klopp’s first-team during his two years with the club.

Earlier this season, he joined Blackburn Rovers on loan and he has performed incredibly well in his time with Tony Mowbray’s side, having contributed four goals and six assists in 18 Championship appearances for the Ewood Park outfit, so clearly seems destined for a big future with the Reds.

Similarly to Elliott, Gordon is already making an impression in the Championship and was handed his first senior appearance as a late substitute in the Rams’ win against Birmingham City recently.

Following the game, Rooney was full of praise for the youngster, saying:

“I brought Kaide up with the first team initially to train with us for a week to see how he reacted to it, and he was one of the best trainers. I kept him with us and he has been training at the same level, if not better, as the others.”

Although Liverpool fans might not be the biggest fan of Rooney’s, there’s no doubting the success he had in England during his playing career and if he has put his faith in Gordon at just 16, then he must certainly be talented.

Therefore, the Reds must act on their reported interest in the Derby County ace and ensure that they are the ones to sign him ahead of Manchester United.

And, in other news, Forget Trent: “World-class” LFC star who made just 11 passes really let Klopp down vs Southampton…

Celtic could clinch a stunning bargain by landing Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Adam Reach.

What’s the story?

With Neil Lennon’s side virtually out of the race for the Scottish Premiership title, attentions naturally will turn towards how the Hoops could strengthen ahead of next season.

And according to The Lancashire Telegraph, one player who the Bhoys could make a move for is Reach.

The report claims that with his contract expiring come the end of the season, both Celtic and rivals Rangers could make a move for the 27-year-old. It’s added Lennon’s side “may once again take advantage of expiring contracts and cross-border transfer rules to bag bargain signings without having to pay a huge compensation fee.”

Bargain for Lawwell

With Reach’s contract running down, Peter Lawwell could clinch an absolute bargain for Celtic by snapping up the 27-year-old.

The versatile midfielder has virtually played in every single position this season for the Owls, barring centre-back and right-back. The 6 foot 1 ace may not be the kind of game-changing signing that Celtic fans might be hoping for, but Reach could bring the steady reliable hand that they’ve been missing.

Described as a “class player” by his teammate, Josh Windass, there’s no questioning Reach’s ability. His former boss at Hillsborough, Garry Monk, said: “On his day, Reach can be one of the most influential players in the Championship. He showed that on occasions last season. He can turn a game on its head in the blink of an eye. He has that quality.”

The key to this signing is the low cost of it, with Lawwell not even having to pay an actual transfer fee to get Reach on board. It’s deal that’s incredibly low risk but with the potential for a decent reward, and something Celtic would be foolish to pass up.

A rebuild isn’t often centred around the arrival of a marquee signing or a superstar player. Instead, that someone who can come in, hit the ground running and breathe new life is what’s needed, and Reach’s ability on the ball and his shed-load of Championship experience fits that bill to a tee. Nick Hammond could pull off a real transfer heist by getting this deal over the line.

Steve Bruce must agree to sell Dwight Gayle in the January transfer window amid reports Fulham are keen to sign the Newcastle United striker to save their season.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, the Craven Cottage natives are looking into the possibility of luring Gayle to south west London this month rather than waiting until his contract expires in the summer.

Fulham have been long-term admirers of Gayle and believe the 31-year-old can help keep the club in the Premier League, with Scott Parker short on alternatives to Aleksandar Mitrovic.

The Cottagers have discussed a potential offer which will see Newcastle net a small fee in the January market that will increase should the attacker help Parker retain his side’s top-flight status.

Clubs from the Middle East including Qatari outfits Al-Gharafa and Al-Duhail are also monitoring Gayle’s situation with his £40,000-per-week deal set to expire at the end of the season, while West Bromwich Albion would rather wait until his contract concludes.

Fulham currently sit three points from safety after four-straight draws but hold two games in hand over 17th-placed Brighton and Hove Albion, yet have struggled in front of the goal with only relegation-rivals Sheffield United, Burnley and West Brom scoring less thus far.

Should Newcastle sell Gayle?

Newcastle must listen to Fulham’s offer should the Craven Cottage natives step forward with a formal bid this month as Gayle has ransacked Mike Ashley’s pockets since being signed for £10m in 2016, whilst showing throughout his time at St. James’ Park that he cannot be trusted to help take the Magpies higher up the Premier League table.

Bruce will likely need convincing having frequently lauded Gayle and stating recently that he hopes the striker will put pen to paper a new contract, while believing the former Crystal Palace frontman – who has earned £9.5m since joining the Toon – has been unlucky with injuries.

“Dwight’s been unfortunate with his injuries, but he knows what I think about him as a player – he’s a goalscorer,” Bruce said, via quotes by BT. “How good it was to see him work tirelessly to get here. At the back end of last season, he was really on fire and he’s had an awful knee injury, but he’s got back.”

Gayle made his first appearance of the season in any competition during December’s 2-1 win over West Brom, in which he scored the winning effort, but has failed to find the back of the net in his following three outings and was an unused substitute in Newcastle’s last two games.

The 31-year-old had missed the first few months of the campaign with a knee injury, adding to calf and hamstring issues sustained during the 2019/20 season that restricted Gayle to 20 Premier League games in which he contributed four goals.

Bruce is unlikely to see much more from Gayle over the remainder of the term so must bin the striker while options are on the table, or be held accountable for the £7m-rated dud walking away for free.

AND in other news, Steve Bruce could discover Newcastle’s next Steven Taylor in a Magpies target tipped for “a tremendous career”…

Crystal Palace may have struggled to a dull 1-1 draw with Premier League rivals Brighton in the A23 derby, but one player stood out from the rest.

What’s the word?

Roy Hodgson heaped praise upon Gary Cahill following an impressive display after his return from injury at Selhurst Park on Sunday afternoon.

He told Palace TV: “First of all he’s a very, very good defender.

“His position is very good, he’s exceptionally good in the air, he’s a strong challenger for the ball and a very good blocker of the ball. These are the defensive qualities we don’t talk about every day… They’re the qualities that get you the clean sheets.

Hodgson has options at the back once again as Cahill, James Tomkins and Patrick van Aanholt have worked their way back from fitness. But the former Chelsea man showed his value as the Eagles secured a point against the Seagulls.

Bargain buy?

It’s safe to say that Cahill has turned out to be one of the club’s best buys in recent memory. The 34-year-old, who previously played for Bolton, Burnley and Everton, made 290 appearances for the Blues, scored 25 goals and supplied 7 assists, whilst he won the Premier League twice, the Champions League, two Europa League trophies and the FA Cup during his time at Stamford Bridge, via Transfermarkt.

Since then, the former 61-cap England international has played 28 games for Palace, and made 25 appearances in the English top flight last term, whilst he averaged 1 block and 4.4 clearances per game, via WhoScored.

The centre-back, who currently earns wages worth £65,000-per-week, was on the receiving end of a reckless tackle from Brighton defender Lewis Dunk, who was sent off in extra time.

SofaScore gave him a high grade of 7.1 for his efforts – if you look at his heatmap, you can see that he was most active inside the box, which explains why he made four clearances, two blocked shots, two tackles, whilst he only lost possession six times, won 100% of his ground duels, and four out of eight of his aerial duels, which shows that he was a threat in the air as well.

SkySports gave Cahill a 7/10 rating, which is fairly accurate, whilst football.london gave him the same score, claiming he “looked comfortable in the opening stages on his return, marshalling the defence well” but “could have picked up an injury late on due to Dunk’s ferocious tackle.”

Palace had a promising start to the season, before back-to-back defeats culminated in a 4-0 defeat to his former side Chelsea at Stamford Bridge before the international break. Whilst Hodgson’s side once again failed to keep a clean sheet, Cahill seems to have shaken off any concerns, which could bode well for the future.

Once lauded as an “exceptional” professional footballer by Steve Parish, the Palace chairman must secure his future at Selhurst Park, as his current contract is set to expire in 2021. If his performance is anything to by, the £2.25m-rated veteran must start against Fulham at all costs.

AND in other news, Roy Hodgson must unleash Crystal Palace ace Eberechi Eze against Fulham…

Wolverhampton Wanderers’ unbeaten run came to an end at the hands of their local rivals on Sunday afternoon as Nuno Santo’s side put in a disappointing display.

They made the 60 mile trip to the King Power Stadium but returned without any points after Jamie Vardy’s 15th-minute penalty proved to be the decider.

VAR had a controversial say in the matter, but that can be excused after the 33-year-old saw his second spot-kick saved by the heroic Rui Patricio between the sticks for the visitors.

And despite the defeat, there was perhaps a brighter spark amongst the Wolf Pack side in Ruben Neves.

The Portuguese monster, now valued at a whopping €70m (£63m), was industrious in the heart of the pitch and was often the instigator whenever Wolves did manage to penetrate the Foxes’ final third.

Per SofaScore, Neves made 69 of 76 passes (91%), including 12 of 14 long balls, and also recorded three tackles, three interceptions and one clearance.

No other player recorded a higher rating either with the box-to-box powerhouse raking in 7.6, which was also more than any Leicester player too.

The 23-year-old created one big chance and had three attempts at goal but that wasn’t quite enough to grab something at their nearby rivals – if anything, his teammates let him down as he was the clear standout.

Patricio will undoubtedly take what plaudits there are for the losing side, but without Neves’ presence in the engine room against the likes of James Maddison, Youri Tielemans and Nampalys Mendy, Wolves could’ve been easily overrun.

That much was evident in the fact that the Portugal international enjoyed more touches (92) than any other player on the pitch. He was, as he often is, frequently involved.

Nuno must quickly look to the performances of his wide options, namely Nelson Semedo and Rayan Ait-Nouri, as well as their leading man Raul Jimenez for firing a blank on Sunday.

Neves, though, can hold his head high.

AND in other news, Nuno could unearth the ideal heir to Diogo Jota right under his nose…

Many Liverpool fans have been showing their support for winger Xherdan Shaqiri after he opened up about what happened over the summer regarding his future.

The 28-year-old has been heavily linked with a move away from Anfield this summer, with The Athletic suggesting that he was due to follow Rhian Brewster out the exit door.

The likes of Lazio, Roma and Sevilla were believed to be interesting in his services but the tables quickly turned as the deadline passed and nothing was announced by the club.

During a recent interview with the Swiss FA, Shaqiri reiterated his desire to stay at Liverpool and stated that he feels good about it, despite saying that the media ‘write a lot’.

The Swiss winger has scored eight times and provided five assists in 42 appearances for Liverpool (as per TransferMarkt), with three years left on his contract. However, he has started a paltry two Premier League games since August 2019.

With all of the above in mind, these supporters are hoping to see more of Shaqiri in the famous red shirt this season, as the Reds aim to defend the Premier League title that they secured last season.

Here you can find some comments from Liverpool supporters on the “underrated” winger:

Liverpool fans, should Klopp have sold Shaqiri or was he right to keep him? Join the conversation by commenting below…

Wolves are reportedly interested in signing Eredivisie ace Oussama Idrissi this transfer window.

The Morocco international has been linked to the Premier League outfit by El Desmarque (via Sport Witness), who claim an offer of €16million (£14.4m) could be tabled for his services.

Wanderers aren’t the only ones in pursuit of Idrissi, though. The report states that both Sevilla and Napoli also have their eye on the 24-year-old forward.

How would Idrissi fit in at Wolves?

Nuno Espirito Santo’s side looked on course for a place in the top six last season but fell just outside of the margin on goal difference to Spurs. Their main attacking threat was undoubtedly Raul Jimenez, who notched an impressive 17 goals in 38 league appearances.

Next behind the Mexican was Diogo Jota with seven goals, followed up by Leander Dendoncker with four (via Sportsmole). The gap between Jimenez and the rest of the team in terms of goals scored is difficult to ignore. Wolves’ top scorer needs more support in attack if the team are to push up the table this season.

Signing Idrissi would pad out Nuno’s roster and provide more options when breaking down the opposition.

Could Oussama Idrissi replace Diogo Jota?

The AZ Alkmaar man tallied some superb numbers with the Dutch outfit last season. In 25 league appearances, Idrissi found the back of the net 13 times and provided a further five assists. His overall count for the term finished on 17 goals and ten assists across all competitions (via Transfermarkt).

The 24-year-old also operates on the left wing, which is a perfect match to fill the Jota-shaped hole left in the Wolves squad after the Portuguese moved to Liverpool.

Although Nuno experimented with his squad last season, Jota put in some strong performances and was the difference between a loss and a draw, and a draw and a win on several occasions. Losing him to Liverpool definitely makes the left wing an area of importance to strengthen.

With Idrissi’s numbers and international experience, for the low price of £14.4million, it’s a no brainer for Wolves to snap up the Moroccan before the window closes.

In other news, Leeds can land the perfect De Paul alternative in Erick Pulgar

As per The Herald and Times Sport, Glasgow Rangers are keeping an eye on Maccabi Tel Aviv midfielder Dan Glazer.

Steven Gerrard has previously confirmed that he would like to add another midfielder to his squad, and now it is being reported that he is eyeing a move for Glazer.

As per the report, the Gers are joined by a number of Championship clubs in eyeing the 23-year-old.

Glazer plays for one of Israel’s biggest sides in Maccabi, and he has already done enough to earn seven caps for the Blue and Whites – Scottish football fans will likely get the chance to see him in action first hand soon, with them facing Israel in their first UEFA Nations League game of the season on Friday evening.

So far, Glazer has made 79 appearances for his current club, scoring once, and has won the Israeli league on two occasions. Currently valued at £1.44m by Transfermarkt, Glazer is a defensive midfielder – whilst Gerrard is looking for someone in the middle of the park, there have been calls from the likes of Brian Laudrup for more creativity to be added, which is something that Glazer does not appear to have in abundance.

The Ibrox outfit could well be required to pay a seven-figure fee to take take him to Glasgow – it feels like they would be better off looking elsewhere.

Let us know what you think below!