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Arsenal want to sign FC Barcelona winger Raphinha at all costs, according to Spanish outlet Sport.

The Lowdown: Missing out on Mudryk

The Gunners and Mikel Arteta appear to be keen on adding to their attacking ranks this month with a move for a wide forward.

Mykhailo Mudryk seemed to be the club’s top January target, however, London rivals Chelsea came in and secured a €100m deal for the 22-year-old.

Sporting director Edu Gaspar appears to have a list of alternative targets, though, with speculation emerging on Raphinha and Bayer Levrkusen’s Moussa Diaby.

The Latest: Raphinha news

Spanish outlet Sport shared a story on Wednesday regarding Arsenal and Raphinha, claiming that the club insist on signing the Brazilian this month.

The report adds that contact has already been made with the player’s representatives, however, Raphinha, who is sponsored by Adidas, is not clear about leaving the Nou Camp as he wants to fight for a position in Xavi Hernandez’s side.

The Verdict: Things can change…

Although a transfer looks unlikely at this stage due to the player’s stance on remaining in Spain, it could still be one to keep an eye on in the final weeks of the window.

Arsenal learned first-hand how a transfer can turn on its head with their pursuit of Mudryk, and reports last month stated that Barcelona are considering selling the winger.

Therefore, if the Spanish giants no longer want the 26-year-old, hailed as a ‘magician’ by former Leeds team-mate Dan James, then perhaps a move to the Emirates could materialise.

He proved himself in the Premier League with Leeds last season, contributing to 14 goals in 35 games, so he could be a smart addition in 2023, if the club can persuade the winger over a potential move.

Tottenham Hotspur fans have been provided an update on the future of Lucas Moura by transfer guru Fabrizio Romano.

The Lowdown: Moura’s Tottenham future

Moura’s Tottenham contract does not expire until June 2024, however he has evidently started to fall down the pecking order at the club, with Antonio Conte giving him far less game time than he has become accustomed to.

The winger made 34 Premier League appearances last season, but this term he has only been selected for a total of 90 minutes across eight league outings, being utilised as more of an impact player, in part due to a calf injury that ruled him out for eight games.

The Latest: Romano’s update

Romano took to Twitter to dispel the rumours from the last few weeks that the Brazilian has been in talks with boyhood club Sao Paulo, but he details that he could leave at the end of the season, saying:

“There are no talks between São Paulo and Tottenham for Lucas Moura, as things stand.

“Brazilian winger could stay at Spurs until the end of the season and then leave as free agent in June, this is the expectation.”

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The Verdict: Right move?

With Dejan Kulusevski being ruled out of the game against Aston Villa on New Year’s Day, it is the correct decision for Conte to keep Lucas at the club until the summer, as he is still a good back-up option to have

Lauded as ‘outrageous’ at his best by journalist James Ducker, the 30-year-old has averaged 0.32 assists per 90 over the past year, placing him in the 84th percentile compared to his positional peers, highlighting that he is still very much a threat going forward.

Moura is still injured at the moment, with Conte unable to provide any concrete date on when he is likely to return, but when he is back to full fitness, he will be a helpful player for Tottenham in their push for the top four, and the club can then sign a younger replacement in the summer.

Manchester United are one of a number of clubs who are keen on signing Borussia Dortmund youngster Youssoufa Moukoko, according to reliable journalist Ben Jacobs.

The Lowdown: Moukoko shines at Dortmund

The 18-year-old is already making a name for himself in Germany, despite his tender years, with 14 Bundesliga appearances already coming his way this season.

In that time, Moukoko has scored six goals and also chipped in with three assists for good measure, shining alongside fellow prodigious talent Jude Bellingham.

The Nike-sponsored prodigy is out of contract at the end of the season, however, and there looks set to be a scramble for his signature.

The Latest: United keen on move

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Jacobs claimed that United are one of the clubs interested in signing Moukoko:

“Manchester United are one of those. They’ve tracked him for quite some time. They haven’t entered into any kind of advanced talks yet.

“Liverpool and Spurs are ones to watch and don’t rule out a move to La Liga and Barcelona either. Barcelona’s position is very much that they’re working on the player’s side to try and persuade him not to sign a new contract in the hope they’ll get him for free.

“As soon as transfer fees come into it, it wouldn’t surprise me if they back off the race. So, lots of suitors here.”

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The Verdict: Big talent for the future

At 18, Moukoko is clearly still a footballer learning his trade, but he has a massive ceiling and could be an exciting addition to Erik ten Hag’s United squad.

To already be a regular for one of Europe’s biggest clubs is a testament to his quality and he has even been hailed as ‘amazing’ and the ‘biggest talent in the world’ by Erling Haaland in the past, which speaks volumes.

The lure of United could be great for Moukoko, especially with Ten Hag turning their fortunes around, and he could be part of a long-term attack that also features the likes of Antony, Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford.

Everton are reportedly looking to terminate Jarrad Branthwaite’s loan deal at PSV Eindhoven. 

The Lowdown: Branthwaite’s move to PSV

Back in July, the Toffees defender joined the Dutch club on a season-long loan deal.

Since then, the Englishman has made 11 senior appearances for PSV across all competitions but has only started four games.

But despite being only a few months into his season-long loan spell, it appears that the defender could be set to see his time in the Netherlands come to an early end.

The Latest: Everton to terminate Branthwaite loan

According to a recent report from Football Insider, Everton have spoken to PSV about terminating Branthwaite’s loan deal in January after having discussions behind the scenes.

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The report adds that no decision has yet been made and there is still a possibility that Branthwaite could stay on at PSV for the rest of the season, as the Dutch club have increasingly warmed to the centre-back following some early struggles.

The Verdict: An extra option for Lampard

Despite his lack of regular playing time in the Eredivisie, the 20-year-old has still been able to show what he’s capable of on the pitch.

For example, in addition to having the highest passing accuracy percentage (89.6%) at the club, Branthwaite has also racked up the third-highest number of clearances (24) at PSV.

In terms of a potential early return to Everton, the fact that Frank Lampard already has the likes of Conor Coady, James Tarkowski, Ben Godfrey, Michael Keane, Yerry Mina and Mason Holgate as his disposal makes it hard to see why he would want Branthwaite back in the mix, even if Mina leaves the club.

In our view, if the defender is likely to be getting more time on the pitch at PSV, Everton should keep him where he is and let him continue his development.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola will not leave the club before they win the Champions League, according to talkSPORT pundit Gabby Agbonlahor. 

The Lowdown: Guardiola’s contract situation

Guardiola’s future at the Etihad Stadium has been the topic of discussion for some time as his current deal at the club is set to expire at the end of the season.

Earlier this month, the Spaniard revealed that the situation surrounding his future is under control and that he will make a decision with the club about it at the appropriate time.

Now with domestic football on hold to accommodate the World Cup in Qatar, the topic of the 51-year-old’s future has been the subject of discussion, with Agbonlahor giving his verdict on the matter.

The Latest: Guardiola to stay for Champions League victory

Speaking to Football Insider, the talkSPORT pundit and former Aston Villa player thinks that Guardiola will stay:

He said: “I think he will continue. There is no rush for Pep to try and move.

“I can tell you that he’ll have unfinished business because I don’t think they’ll win the Champions League this season and he’ll want to win it with them before he leaves the club.

“I have Real Madrid winning it again. They’ve strengthened from last season and are better than what they were, Antonio Rudiger has come in.”

The Verdict: City must keep hold of Guardiola

In addition to winning numerous domestic titles with the Citizens, Guardiola has taken the club to their first ever Champions League final back in 2021.

This season has seen the Manchester club make their way into the last 16 of the competition, after going unbeaten in the group stage.

While it’s safe to assume that Guardiola would love the chance to win the Champions League with City, it would be interesting to see if he would be willing to continue his journey at the Etihad if they don’t manage to win it this time around.

In terms of seeing the club offer the manager a new deal, we feel that this should be their top priority given how successful the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich head coach has been since his arrival in 2016.

Frank Lampard made some excellent decisions during the summer transfer market that have given Everton a solid foundation to build on this season as they chase a top-half Premier League finish.

Signing Conor Coady, James Tarkowski and Amadou Onana has created a spine in the team which has seen them concede just 12 goals in 11 top flight fixtures so far.

With the January window fast approaching, the onus is on Lampard to move a few players who aren’t justifying their wage, and defender Yerry Mina should be one of them.

 Mina must go

The Colombian centre-back is earning £120k-per-week and having played just once in the Premier League this season due to injury, he is not justifying this massive weekly outlay.

In fact, since joining the Toffees in the summer of 2018 from Barcelona, Mina has missed 60 matches for the club, playing 91 times in over four seasons.

According to Calcio Dangolo (via Sport Witness), AS Roma are interested in bringing Mina to Serie A as they are on the hunt for a centre-back.

With his contract expiring at the end of the season and the club not willing to renew his deal, recouping some of the £27.2m fee they splashed out on the player will be one of Lampard’s main aims during the winter window.

With Coady and Tarkowski forming an excellent partnership in the heart of the defence, even when Mina does become fit, there is no guarantee he will oust any of them from the starting XI.

Journalist Martin Mucha described Mina as a “titan” following his performances for Colombia at the 2018 World Cup, becoming the first defender to score in their first three matches in the competition.

With Lampard aiming to significantly reduce the wage budget, helped by the departures of Fabian Delph, Jonjoe Kenny and Cenk Tosun, moving on Mina will suit all parties.

Hopefully, the club can get some sort of fee for him in January and potentially use this to improve other areas of the team.

Leeds United have been in a torrid run of form of late, picking up just six points from a possible 30 in their last 10 Premier League games.

These results unsurprisingly have left Jesse Marsch’s position looking somewhat unstable, as he has led a side that invested £93.91m over the summer to 18th place in the top flight standing, two points adrift from safety.

As the pressure ramps up and potential candidates begin to be sounded out by the media, it is worth looking back at who they could have got when they dismissed Marcelo Bielsa back in February of this year.

Although he was yet to be sacked at the time of this report, The Telegraph nevertheless claimed that Ernesto Valverde was one of three candidates in line to replace the Argentine who was revered across Yorkshire.

The Spaniard has flitted across Europe with his managerial exploits, earning vast experience before being offered the Barcelona job in 2017.

During his three-year stint in Catalonia, he managed to win four trophies including two La Liga titles, before being sacked due to issues regarding his play style.

Since then, the club have won just one Spanish Cup.

He has earned most of his praise for his various work with Athletic Bilbao, in which he secured Champions League football and brought them their first trophy in 31 years with a Supercopa de Espana win over the side he would later manage.

It marked a monumental task completed for a club that relies so heavily on signing players solely from the Basque region.

Perhaps under constraints at Leeds, he could have been the man to keep them safe and ensure a stronger start to the season than the one they are currently suffering.

In a recent interview, Xavi was full of praise for a man he dubbed “extraordinary” who had completed “excellent work” at the club.

Enjoying a bold and attacking brand of football, Valverde would surely have become an instant fan favourite were he to have brought even a modicum of his previous successes to Elland Road.

It seems like given their current form, Victor Orta dropped a clanger when he opted for Marsch instead of his compatriot.

Steven Gerrard made the bold decision to keep Cameron Archer at Aston Villa during the summer but his lack of first-team action suggests it might have been a big mistake by the Villa boss.

The 19-year-old academy graduate enjoyed a superb breakthrough campaign last season, first catching the eye with four goals in the League Cup for Villa’s first team, including a hat-trick in a win against Barrow.

He was sent on loan to Preston North End in the Championship and continued his impressive form in the second tier, hitting seven goals in just 20 appearances for the Lancashire club, taking his tally to 15 goals in 56 senior appearances.

Manager Ryan Lowe was full of praise for the young striker’s impact in the second tier, saying:

“Cameron has got an abundance of talent.

“It is getting him in the right places, I don’t want him coming short all the time, I want him to be on the shoulder, sniffing around, being proactive, not reactive.

“His quality levels are fantastic, he’s bullish, strong, he can roll, he has got that little burst of pace too.”

Archer’s fine form would continue during the summer, as he managed four goals in just four outings for England U21s, and it all seemed set for the 20-year-old to have a big 2022/23 campaign.

Gerrard confirmed during the summer that Archer would remain with the first team and was expected to challenge the likes of Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings for a starting role.

However, that hasn’t come to fruition, as despite Villa’s poor start to the season, the academy graduate has featured in just 17 minutes of action this term, making three appearances from the bench.

Even against lower league opposition in the League Cup, Archer was afforded just eight minutes of playing time, and this lack of first-team action is surely harming his potential, as he wasn’t called up to the England U21 squad for the current international break.

It makes little sense that Archer is warming the bench when he was attracting so much Championship interest during the summer and Gerrard looks to have made another blunder in keeping him at the club without giving him any real chances.

Aston Villa could reportedly seal a deadline day deal for Southampton defender Jan Bednarek.

What’s the news?

In a recent Twitter post, journalist Toby Cudworth said on the matter: “Hearing Jan Bednarek could now be heading to Aston Villa on loan and not #WHUFC as previously thought – transfer deadline day twists and turns have started.”

As Cudworth mentioned in his tweet, the defender has also been linked with a move to West Ham United this summer.

Southampton signed the centre-back from Lech Poznan in the summer of 2017. Since then, the 26-year-old has gone on to make 153 appearances for the Saints across all competitions, chipping in with seven goals and four assists along the way.

Could be a “monster” for Gerrard

To highlight his defensive capabilities, the Poland international made more interceptions (95) than any other Southampton player in the league last season, along with the second-highest number of clearances (169) and third-highest number of blocks (64).

Described as a “monster” by journalist Sam Tighe, Bednarek could be a very useful signing for the Midlands club if they get him in, as only three other Premier League clubs have faced more shots on target than Villa (26) so far this season.

Also, with Diego Carlos out injured, adding an experienced and capable defender like the Saints colossus to their squad could be a very smart move from Villa.

Having been an unused substitute for Southampton’s three previous league matches, a move to Villa Park – where he may have a better chance of playing regularly – could be what the player is craving.

With the Villans reportedly set to welcome Leander Dendoncker to the club – having had a £13m offer accepted by Wolves – snatching Bednarek from the clutches of rival suitors West Ham on the same day would certainly show how ruthless NSWE can be in the transfer market and continue their track record of signing players from fellow English clubs.

If Villa are able to seal the Southampton defender’s signature, even on a loan deal as Cudworth said in his tweet, this will give Steven Gerrard’s side some extra strength and depth at the back, which could be most welcome having conceded nine goals in their opening five league matches of the campaign.

Arsenal’s hunt for a new winger could soon take them to Holland and it wouldn’t be for the first time.

The Gunners have been linked to several names in recent weeks, having missed out on Raphinha after technical director Edu Gaspar admitted that he had an interest in the former Leeds United star but he had his sights set on FC Barcelona instead.

Meanwhile, Cody Gakpo of PSV Eindhoven is one player to have been mooted with a switch to the Emirates Stadium and it’s thought that the north Londoners are leading the race for his signature.

“Arsenal are favourites to sign Gakpo for sure,” revealed transfer insider Dean Jones less than two weeks ago.

It’s thought that the Eredivisie outfit could cost in the region of €40m, which would set the Gunners back around £34m, according to Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano.

The last time Arsenal went shopping in the Netherlands, it paid serious dividends as ex-Feyenoord striker Robin van Persie was not only a prolific goalscorer but he also took the captain’s armband, too.

Gakpo has been compared glowingly to the Dutch sensation.

“I always refer to Thierry Henry and Robin van Persie – he’s not at that level yet. But they came into the Premier League as left wingers and were turned into strikers under Arsene Wenger and did very well,” claimed Dutch football expert Marcel van der Kraan to Sky Sports News. “He is slowly being transitioned into a striker because he has had some good coaching from [Ruud] Van Nistelrooy.”

Last season, the 23-year-old put up some remarkable numbers in what was his best season in a PSV shirt. He found the net 21 times and also put up 15 assists – such form being comparable to the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland in terms of young talent in Europe.

Whether manager Mikel Arteta wants Gakpo to play on the wing or up top remains to be seen but this versatility is a key attribute of his and only adds to the attraction of signing him before the transfer deadline on September 1st.

Once lauded as “phenomenal” and “special” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, the Netherlands international could well become the ‘next Robin van Persie’ at the Emirates Stadium.

Only Ajax’s Dusan Tadic registered more big chances created than the 6 foot 2 machine, whilst his expected goals and assists saw him rank fifth overall in the Eredivisie, as per Fotmob.

Edu must now look to close a deal for the Dutch sensation in the coming weeks as he looks to hand his manager a new threat in attack.

AND in other news, Arsenal could secure £34m “enormous talent”, may be bye-bye to Emery’s “utter disaster”…