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Some Everton fans have been left fuming over some news that has emerged from Phil Kirkbride.

Writing in his latest piece for The Liverpool Echo, Kirkbride has now revealed that the Goodison Park faithful are set to appoint Joel Waldron as their new Head of Academy Recruitment.

He has been working as the Merseyside club’s Academy Chief Operating Officer, but is now ready to take over from Chris Perkins, who left to join Tottenham Hotspur in a similar role.

Joel is the son of former Head of Academy Recruitment Martin Waldron, which has not gone down well with some Toffees supporters, as they feel as if he has not earned the role on merit and instead has only been appointed because of who his father is.

Everton fans on Kirkbride news

These Blues fumed as the news was shared on Twitter, with one EFC fan even going as far as to claim that it is just ‘weird’:

“And people wonder why the Academy has been a complete waste of space since it was built?”

Credit: @TormentedToffee

“Lazy appointment by Everton once again.”

Credit: @Warren_Evans

““The son of former Head of Academy Recruitment Martin Waldron” kind of rings alarm bells, doesn’t it?”

Credit: @UpperGwladysBlu

“Sounds a bit weird when the dad got sacked by EFC”

Credit: @abbot551

“The jobs for the boys merry-go-round”

Credit: @EvertonAllSorts

“Nothing like jobs for the Boyz at Everton”

Credit: @holroyd_ryan

In other news, find out what club news has Evertonians buzzing here!

Manchester City kick off their Premier League title defence with a trip to North London on Sunday afternoon, with Pep Guardiola’s side looking to earn their first-ever win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The Citizens began their season with a 1-0 defeat against Leicester City in the Community Shield last weekend, but Guardiola can welcome back the likes of Ederson, John Stones, Kyle Walker and Raheem Sterling following their international commitments this summer.

However, all eyes will be on Spurs striker Harry Kane, with the England captain reportedly set to feature despite being heavily linked with the Citizens throughout the summer.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects Guardiola to line his side up in North London, with Grealish making his first start as a City player…

After returning from Copa America duty with Brazil, Ederson seems likely to replace Zack Steffen in between the sticks.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-manchester-city-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=”Read the latest Manchester City transfer rumours and news!”]

In defence, John Stones and Ruben Dias resume their centre-back partnership, whilst Kyle Walker and Joao Cancelo both deserve starts at full-back following their impressive performances in the 2020/21 campaign.

After a disappointing end to last season, Rodri is left on the bench with the more experienced Fernandinho earning a start, and he is joined in midfield by Ilkay Gundogan and Grealish, who could take up the Kevin De Bruyne role in the Belgian’s absence.

Following a superb Euros with England, Raheem Sterling gets the nod on the left-wing, with the Englishman dubbed “world-class” by Frank Lampard and Rio Ferdinand after his excellent performances for Gareth Southgate’s side as they reached the Final.

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Riyad Mahrez starts on the right-hand side after an excellent pre-season, supporting Ferran Torres up front, with the Spaniard arguably City’s best striking option at the club following Sergio Aguero’s summer departure.

In total, there could be as many as five changes for the trip to the capital.

And, in other news… Guardiola delivers worrying injury update, Man City fans will be fuming

Eberechi Eze has ‘very little chance’ of starting for Crystal Palace against Aston Villa on Saturday afternoon, according to The Athletic’s Matt Woosnam. 

The lowdown

Last time out against Burnley, the 23-year-old featured in Palace’s matchday squad for the first time this season. However, he watched the entirety of the 3-3 draw from the sidelines, with Patrick Vieira holding him back for now.

Eze hasn’t featured for Palace’s first team for more than six months now, having sustained an Achilles injury in training in May. He has made two appearances for the club’s under-23s in recent weeks to aid his return his fitness.

The latest

On Saturday morning, Woosnam was asked by a supporter in The Athletic’s matchday discussion whether there was a ‘good chance’ of Eze being selected in Vieira’s XI.

The journalist replied: “Very little chance of Eze starting just yet. Expect him to get minutes off the bench before that happens.”

The verdict

With James McArthur now out injured, there does appear to be an opening in the Palace midfield, but Woosnam has previously written that Jeffrey Schlupp will likely be the preferred option until Eze is completely ready.

It’s hard to argue against a cautious approach given the evident severity of the injury. Patience will seemingly be required, but it’s easy to understand that Eagles fan’s apparent eagerness for the 23-year-old to return today.

He was the team’s most creative player last season, finishing the campaign with six assists and an average of 1.3 key passes per 90 (via WhoScored). His return can’t come quick enough, but it might not necessarily come today, if Woosnam’s prediction proves correct.

In other news, Mark Wyatt reckons this man will be dropped on Saturday.

Crystal Palace will be without midfielder James McArthur for a further six weeks, according to The Athletic’s Matt Woosnam.

Scans revealed that the 34-year-old had suffered a torn hamstring in the victory over Wolves at the beginning of this month, and having sat out the 3-3 draw with Burnley last weekend, he could now miss Palace’s next nine Premier League matches.

If the timeline is accurate, he could be in line to return for the Eagles’ trip to their arch-rivals Brighton on 14 January.

How big a blow is McArthur’s absence?

Prior to the injury, McArthur had started every Premier League game under new Eagles boss Patrick Vieira.

If you go by WhoScored’s rankings, he’d been Palace’s third-best player behind Conor Gallagher and Christian Benteke. The Scotsman was averaging 2.4 accurate long balls (fourth in the club’s ranks), 2.3 tackles (third) and 1.2 interceptions (fourth) per 90 minutes, highlighting his importance to the team and how big a loss he will be during a busy period of the season.

Woosnam revealed the news on his personal Twitter profile, and here’s what these Palace supporters had to say, with one describing it as a “devastating” blow to the team.

Crystal Palace lament McArthur injury

“Jimmy Mac will be a huge miss as we don’t have another player with his engine that can cover so much ground”

Credit: @cpfc_jw19

“6 weeks! Oh dear we are really going to miss him”

Credit: @StephenRodin1

“We better start scoring even more then. Cos we’ll be shipping em in now!”

Credit: @ic_lewis

“Devastating news, he has been our rock”

Credit: @rickyj555

“Absolutely gutted, why is it always us”

Credit: @joe_cpfc_01

“Didn’t need this on a Tuesday morning”

Credit: @CPFCMax9

In other news, a journalist weighs in on Palace’s links with this Premier League forward.

Liverpool could form a dream duo at Anfield next season after being linked with a move for Real Madrid midfielder Isco.

What’s the story?

According to Spanish outlet Fichajes [via Anfield Edition], the Reds are interested in signing the 29-year-old creative talent this summer as Jurgen Klopp looks to bolster his first team options.

Calciomercato have now provided an update on Isco’s situation, claiming that Real Madrid have placed a £20m price tag on the Spain international, with new manager Carlo Ancelotti happy to let him depart.

Imagine him and Thiago

Isco has played a pivotal part in Los Blancos’ success over the last few years, scoring 51 goals and providing 56 assists in 366 appearances for the club. His impressive exploits helped Real Madrid claim four Champions League crowns, two La Liga titles and one Copa del Rey during his time at the Bernabeu, but he has largely failed to fulfill his early promise.

Much was expected of the technically gifted forward in the early years of his career after shining on the biggest stage, even drawing Zinedine Zidane comparisons, but he has faded into the background at the Bernabeu over the last couple of years.

After starting just 23 league fixtures since the start of 2019/20, Isco appears to be surplus to requirements in Madrid, and with just one year remaining on his current contract, he is available at a bargain price.

With Liverpool thought to be working on a restricted budget this summer due to the financial impact of the global pandemic, the Spaniard’s £20m asking price could make him an attractive prospect for the Reds.

Famed for his outstanding dribbling ability and eye for a pass, Isco could form a formidable partnership with Spain compatriot Thiago in the Liverpool engine room should he make the switch to Merseyside over the coming months.

The pair have the ability to split open the tightest of defences with a killer pass at any moment, and their combination play could be too much for Premier League backlines to handle. Thiago has averaged 1.3 key passes per game over the course of his career, with Isco eclipsing him with a 1.4 average for this metric.

Klopp arguably never replaced Philippe Coutinho following his big-money move to Barcelona back in 2018, but Isco could be the club’s natural number 10 that they’ve lacked ever since, finding space between the lines before being picked out by Thiago and then feeding one of the front three himself.

It’s surely an exciting prospect for any Liverpool fan and one which director of football Michael Edwards must try to facilitate.

In other news… Edwards preparing Liverpool move for “undefendable” £30m beast, he’s a big upgrade 

Former Everton star Michael Ball insists that Carlo Ancelotti’s exit could well be a blessing in disguise for the club.

The Italian has departed Goodison Park to move to Spanish giants Real Madrid in the wake of Zinedine Zidane’s resignation at the Santiago Bernabeu.

It has left Everton on the hunt for a new manager, a search that has taken more than a few twists and turns.

New reports now suggest that ex-Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo is the frontrunner for the role.

Ball, though, believes that the club could well have been saved a fortune by Ancelotti’s decision to move back to Spain, where he had previously won the Champions League with Los Blancos.

Ball believes that given his previous track record at Everton – he oversaw a 10th-placed finish in 2020/21 – he could have been sacked by Christmas, had this summer gone wrong.

Speaking exclusively to The Transfer Tavern, ex-Toffees star Ball said: “There’s only so much the board can do. They’re backing players, they’re backing managers, and they’re not performing, how many opportunities do you want to give them?

“And I feel in the long run, the silver lining regarding Everton, it could be a blessing in disguise because if Carlo brought in a couple of players in the summer and it never worked out, Carlo might have been gone by Christmas, with the expectations of the board, and that would have been a big compensation package to release Carlo from his contract.”

Express & Star reporter Luke Hatfield believes Wolverhampton Wanderers target Duje Caleta-Car would be an exciting deadline day signing if they can get the deal over the line, although Sky Sports’ Lyall Thomas has reported a move is unlikely before 11pm.

The 24-year-old Marseille defender has been heavily linked with a move to the Premier League for some time and turned down a switch to West Ham United last year.

According to French media outlet RMC Sport, Wolves have become Caleta-Car’s latest suitors and have tabled a £12.85million bid. The report suggests Marseille are looking to cash in on the Croatia international, who made two appearances at Euro 2020.

The 24-year-old has yet to feature for Marseille this season and new Wolves head coach Bruno Lage, who succeeded Nuno Espirito Santo in June, could be keen to strike a deal before the transfer window slams shut tonight.

Hatfield, who admits Wolves have been linked with a number of central defenders throughout the window, believes Caleta-Car would improve Lage’s backline.

He told The Transfer Tavern: “Central defence is a position where they need to strengthen.

“Caleta-Car would be an exciting signing and it rings a little bit more true when compared to other players who have been linked to Wolves. It seems like a more reasonable link than some other names.

“He could be an interesting signing if it were to happen.”

Lots of Everton fans have been left fuming as some news emerged on Niels Nkounkou.

As per the official website of the Goodison Park faithful, the Frenchman has signed for Standard Liege on loan for the rest of the 2021/22 season.

Nkounkou has played in seven senior games in total over all competitions for the Merseyside club, including an appearance in the 2-1 away win at Huddersfield Town in the EFL Cup this campaign (Transfermarkt).

His departure means that Rafa Benitez now only has one senior left-back in his current squad at the moment in Lucas Digne, leaving them awfully short in that area if he were to get injured for a sustained period of time.

Thus, it seems a strange idea to let Nkounkou go without bringing in any cover.

Everton fans on Nkounkou exit

These Toffees fumed as the exit news was confirmed on Twitter, with one Blues supporter even going as far as to claim that it is ‘disgraceful’:

“No cover at left-back now… this makes no sense”

Credit: @bighfizzle

“As it stands, we are one injury away from disaster at the back. Gross negligence”

Credit: @LeeFMc83

“Announce Brands contract termination”

Credit: @Adam_1878

“Who’s Digne’s replacement? What disgraceful planning!”

Credit: @ymedeiros13

“BRANDS OUT”

Credit: @efcmidd13

“Complete shambles club is run by amateurs”

Credit: @piers_waters

In other news, find out what confirmed news has Evertonians buzzing here!

When the summer transfer window opens in a matter of weeks, Celtic are going to have a huge task on their hands.This will be one of the biggest rebuilds in the Hoops’ history with a plethora of players set to be sold and a number of others heading back to their parent clubs.Odsonne Edouard could be heading to England while another Bhoys player attracting attention from south of the border is Kristoffer Ajer.If the imperious Norwegian left Paradise behind it would represent a huge blow to their chances of narrowing the gap to Rangers.After all, he has been a shining example to others, holding together a particularly abject defence.Celtic conceded 16 more goals than Rangers in the Premiership this term so they could do with strengthening that area.Ajer leaving would be a poor start to that but they could find a very similar player by targeting Micky van de Ven.The 20-year-old hasn’t been linked with Celtic at the time of writing but after assessing his playstyle, we’ve concluded that he’d be perfect for replacing their towering Norwegian.Van de Ven currently plays for Volendam in the second-tier of Dutch football where he captains the side. He’s had a very impressive campaign, winning the Best Talent award for his displays throughout 2020/21.[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-celtic-manager-and-transfer-news-howe-favre-mcgregor-mccann-tierney” title=”Read the latest Celtic manager and transfer news!”]Standing at 6 foot 3, he’s just three inches shorter of Ajer but the way in which he plays is the spitting image.Described as a “freak†for the level he currently plays at, Van de Ven has been tipped for a move to the Eredivisie. He’s also been touted as a promising acquisition for Celtic.In a thread on Twitter, Scouted Football wrote: “Suggested elsewhere that Van de Ven would be a really interesting/exciting option for Celtic. May need time to settle but suits him as the next step, and not even sure it would need a seven-figure fee to get him. One of the best options in that market.â€Representing a bargain in the market, there’d be fewer players more equipped to replace Ajer than Van de Ven.Like the Norway international, he has a big frame that can overwhelm players while he’s also vibrant in possession of the ball.Scouted Football added: “But where Van de Ven really excels/excites is on the ball, more specifically as a progressive ball-carrier. Volendam facilitate it (questions about portability to higher levels too) but his ability to drive from deep is extraordinary.â€Out of context, that could quite easily describe Ajer.He is the very definition of a marauding centre-half, something we saw against Rangers a few weeks ago when the defender tip-toed his way past several players inside the area before getting a shot away. He also attempted a typically striking 40-yard run against Hibernian on the final day.Assessing footage of Van de Ven, you’ll notice his long strides and long-bursting runs into the opposition half.

The modern centre-back is usually capable of playing with the ball at their feet and driving forward but breaking towards the penalty area is particularly rare.

To lose Ajer would be a meaty blow for the incoming Eddie Howe but the young Dutchman in question would be a stellar replacement.

After all, you only need to look at the way Howe progressed Nathan Ake at Bournemouth, turning the defender into a man Manchester City wanted to spend £40m on.

He’s proven himself astute at developing young talent; something Van de Ven should lap up.

AND in other news, Celtic begin negotiations to sign 22-goal beast, he’d be a huge upgrade on Elyounoussi…

Everton need to make big changes at the club this summer whether they are relegated or not, and now the club are set to enter talks with Moise Kean and his representatives imminently to determine his future.

What’s the latest?

According to Italian news outlet Corriere Dello Sport (via Sport Witness), Juventus and Raiola ‘are working to understand if they can find a way out of the agreement with Everton or alternatively an immediate solution on the market.’

The report further states that conversations between the powers at Goodison Park and the parties in Turin will ‘be resumed at the end of the season.’

Moshiri must axe Kean

In terms of the 22-year-old’s future at Everton, there is no doubt that there is no interest from either the player or club to reinstate his position back in Merseyside, and after a less than spectacular season at Juventus, Farhad Moshiri must do all he can to brutally axe and cut ties with the striker.

Kean is currently tied into a contract with the Merseyside club until June 2023 but with talks opening, there will be hope that the player’s future can be resolved and if the club can make some money on the player it would really benefit the club.

Everton are reportedly looking to recoup financial losses this summer, so selling the youngster on will surely be in the best interests of everyone, with Kean clear that he has no desire to return to Goodison Park.

The £49k-per-week gem who was hailed “dangerous” by Mixu Paatelainen, was underwhelming in his time at Everton scoring just four goals in 39 appearances for the club and this season has continued his mediocre output scoring just six goals in all competitions for Juventus, so with that being said his impact would not be an upgrade on what Everton already have in their squad.

Ultimately, the main focus for the club right now is to secure Premier League safety in the remaining six games of the season, and until their future is determined it will be unlikely that any transfer business is dealt with ahead of that.

AND in other news: Everton now plotting bid for £13.5m-rated “revelation”, he’s miles better than Iwobi