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Sunderland suffered their third defeat in four Championship matches as they were hammered 4-2 by Burnley at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.

The Black Cats had raced into a 2-0 lead but capitulated in the second half as Vincent Kompany’s men ran riot to end up with a comfortable win on Wearside in the end.

Patrick Roberts was absent from the matchday squad to face the Clarets and manager Tony Mowbray explained his situation after the match.

He told The Northern Echo: “We don’t think it’s a serious problem. We’ll see how the week goes, he’s had a huge workload of late.

“He probably hasn’t played many three-game weeks, he’s picked up a knock in training and was uncomfortable.

“The decision was that we didn’t think it was worth losing him potentially for eight to ten weeks. We decided to give him a breather this week and give someone else an opportunity.”

Roberts has scored two goals and provided one assist in his last seven Championship matches for the Black Cats and has been a bright spark at the top end of the pitch in recent weeks.

However, he could now be out for a short period of time after picking up this knock and that leaves other players, as Mowbray stated, with an opportunity to show they should be starting regularly ahead of him.

One gem who did exactly that against Burnley was on-loan attacker Amad Diallo. The Manchester United loanee peeled away at the back post and wrong-footed the goalkeeper with a reverse, left-footed, finish into the near post to open the scoring in the game, demonstrating the ability he has in front of goal.

His goal was not the only eye-catching part of his performance, though, as he also created three chances for his teammates and won six of his 11 individual duels. This shows that he held his own from a physical perspective and had the quality on the ball to open up the Burnley defence to tee up his teammates, although he was not rewarded with an assist for his efforts.

Former Manchester United winger Daniel James once hailed Amad as being “unbelievable” in training and journalist Josh Bunting recently praised the 5-foot-8 magician, stating in a post on Twitter: “You can see the talent he has is exceptional, the quality is there, was so bright yesterday and for me, he made a huge difference.”

The 20-year-old’s performance against Burnley suggests that he has the potential to step up in Roberts’ absence, and beyond, and be the new hero for Mowbray at the top end of the pitch.

His statistics at youth level also indicate that he has the scope to go on and produce quality in the final third on a consistent basis, as he was directly involved in ten goals in five games for Manchester United’s U21s and 28 goals in 46 matches for Atalanta’s Primavera side.

It is now down to the £20k-per-week talent to provide that he can be consistent on the pitch in the Championship and his display against the Clarets was a terrific start.

Aston Villa ‘will be tempted’ to allow Douglas Luiz to leave the club in the January transfer window, according to journalist Ashley Preece.

The Lowdown: Luiz almost leaves Villa

The Brazilian was continually linked with a move away from Villa Park throughout the summer, with Arsenal trying harder than anyone to snap him up.

Luiz ended up remaining at Villa past deadline day, however, and he is now knuckling down and performing solidly for Steven Gerrard’s side.

The 24-year-old is into the final year of his current deal though, meaning he will be able to leave on a free transfer next summer if he isn’t sold before then.

The Latest: January exit mooted

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Preece admitted that NSWE will be weighing up the idea of letting Luiz find a new club in January, in order to avoid losing him for nothing:

“Villa will be tempted to cash-in. He has been a bit of a decent servant for three years and it was a good deal with Manchester City.

“He was crucial in Villa staying up in Project Restart and he was their best player by far during that time.

“He’s been played out of position at times during his Villa career as well and done well, but now there is a big decision on Purslow’s shoulders. Will he be cashing-in come January? We’ll find out.”

The Verdict: Mid-season risk?

There are positives and negatives to Villa selling Luiz in January and it would be decision that would only be able to be properly assessed next summer.

On the plus side, the club would earn money through the sale of the midfielder, but losing him midway through the season would undoubtedly weaken Gerrard’s side, especially with injuries ravaging the spine of the team.

Luiz has been hailed as ‘outstanding’ by Gabby Agbonlahor and has been a strong servant – ultimately, the decision could lie with Christian Purslow and Gerrard, with fans likely to be divided.

Arsenal are interested in signing Juventus midfielder Manuel Locatelli in the January transfer window, according to a new transfer report.

The Lowdown: Arsenal miss out on midfielder

The Gunners were looking to bolster their midfield options during the summer but they ended up failing to make significant reinforcements in that position.

There were attempts to sign Aston Villa’s Douglas Luiz on deadline day but he ended up staying put, meaning that Mikel Arteta has to get by with his current options.

However, it could be that a new signing comes in during the winter, with a fresh claim suggesting as such.

The Latest: Arsenal keen on signing Locatelli

According to Calciomercato, Arsenal plan to reignite their interest in Locatelli once the January transfer window arrives.

The 24-year-old has struggled to impress at Juventus since joining on loan from Sassuolo last year, only playing 22 minutes of Champions League football so far this season and being blamed by many Bianconeri supporters for the club’s poor form of late, which has left them mid-table in Serie A and up against it to progress in Europe.

The Verdict: Ideal January addition?

Locatelli could be exactly what Arsenal are seeking in terms of a midfield signing, even though he hasn’t set the world alight at his current club.

The midfielder’s quality shone through at Euro 2020 when he scored twice against Switzerland en route to his nation’s eventual triumph in the final, with his quality on the ball and physicality often proving to be influential.

Locatelli has averaged 2.2 tackles per game in Serie A this season, while his 89% pass completion rate at Euro 2022 sums up his ability to retain possession, having been called ‘incredible’ by journalist Dylan Walsh in the past.

Indeed, if things continue to go badly for him in Turin, both he and his club might be open to a transfer, which might play into Arsenal’s hands.

Nottingham Forest have signed 16 new players this summer but don’t appear to be slowing down with a new transfer target being pursued by the newly-promoted Premier League club.

What’s the latest?

According to Tutto Mercato Web, Nottingham Forest have had their first bid of €16m (£13.4m) for Japhet Tanganga rejected by Tottenham Hotspur, but are preparing a second bid to secure the signing.

As per the report, Spurs value their centre-back at €20m (£17m) and Forest are prepared to raise their offer to ensure they can secure a deal before the transfer window closes on September 1st.

Niakhate alternative

Although Forest have wasted no resources spending around £140m to build a team that can compete in the Premier League over the season ahead, there is definitely still an opportunity for the club to strengthen their centre-back positions following Moussa Niakhate’s injury blow.

Steve Cooper confirmed at the weekend, after his team’s 1-1 draw with Everton, that new signing Niakhate could be out for “months” (via Daily Mail):

“He is out for a few months. He had a scan in the week and it didn’t come back too good.”

As a result the signing of the currently out-of-favour Spurs defender could be a great opportunity for Forest to add even more Premier League experience and suitable cover for their injured centre-half in the club’s pursuit to retain their top-flight status.

Despite making just 19 appearances in all competitions last season for the North London club, Tanganga proved he is a consistent and solid centre-back that would be a great addition to The City Ground.

The 23-year-old who was hailed “fantastic” by Jose Mourinho, made 1.3 tackles, 2.7 clearances and won 3.8 duels per game, completed a large majority of his dribble attempts (71%) and kept three clean sheets whilst in the back-line over 11 Premier League appearances.

Tanganga also ranks in the top 10% of his positional peers across the top five European leagues for tackles, pressures, touches and progressive carries over the last 12 months, proving that despite not being a constant selection at Spurs the player has always been consistent in his defensive contributions when called upon.

With that being said, the signing of Tanganga would be a major coup for Cooper as he attempts to find a solution to strengthen his back-line over Niakhate’s injury and there could be the opportunity of first-team football beyond his peer’s recovery if he can offer the reliability he has at Spurs.

Leeds United have been dealt a blow in their bid to bring Che Adams to Elland Road this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The Athletic, who claim that, despite Victor Orta having been heavily linked with a move for the Southampton centre-forward this summer, it is Everton who now appear to be leading the race for the 26-year-old hitman – with Frank Lampard’s side in talks over a loan-to-buy deal for the Scotland international.

Blow for Marsch

With time very much running out for Orta to add a new centre-forward to Jesse Marsch’s first-team squad prior to September’s transfer deadline, the news that yet another of the club’s reported targets now looks as if he could be off the market is sure to have come as a gutting blow to the 48-year-old American.

Indeed, Adams would have appeared to make a fine addition to the likes of Patrick Bamford and Joe Gelhardt in the Leeds United attack, as the £16.2m-rated forward more than proved last season that he is a capable goalscorer as well as an efficient creator of opportunities in the top flight of English football.

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Over his 30 Premier League fixtures last time out, the £52k-per-week talent scored seven goals, registered three assists and created six big chances for his teammates, in addition to taking an average of 1.6 shots, making 0.9 key passes and completing 0.7 dribbles per game.

These returns would have seen the 26-year-old rank as Leeds’ third-highest goalscorer and second-highest big chance creator last season, while his average SofaScore match rating of 6.85 would have ranked him as the Whites’ joint seventh-best performer in the league overall in 2021/22.

As such, while the player who Ross McCafferty dubbed “unreal” may not be the most glamorous name that has been linked with Leeds this summer, it is clear to see that Adams could have been an extremely astute signing for Orta to get over the line prior to the closure of the current market – especially for a figure in the region of just £10m.

Leeds United will need to make a ‘crazy offer’ to PSV to sign defender Philipp Max this summer.

The Lowdown: Max profiled

Max, a Germany international, is primarily a left-back who can also play further forward as a left midfielder when required and has even turned out as a centre-forward on seven occasions.

He’s been with PSV since 2020 and has made 91 appearances for the club, contributing to 27 goals.

The 28-year-old has been hailed as ‘outstanding’ by Dutch football expert Michael Bell, and with Junior Firpo out for eight weeks, it looks as if Leeds have Max on their radar.

The Latest: ‘Crazy’ update

According to a Dutch outlet however, PSV will need to receive a ‘crazy offer’ to sell Max this summer.

The report name-checked Leeds with an interest, claiming that the Whites ‘would like to add’ Max to their squad after already signing one Eredivisie star in Luis Sinisterra from Feyenoord.

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The Verdict: Left-back needed

Leeds definitely need to sign a left-back over the coming weeks with Firpo and Stuart Dallas injured while Leif Davis was sold, but it may not be Max with PSV seemingly standing firm.

Jesse Marsch is currently going into his first full Premier League season without a recognised senior left-back, so the sooner the club can sign one, the better. Max has plenty of top-flight experience in both the Netherlands and Germany so could be the ideal addition due to his versatility and attacking qualities, but it looks as if Andrea Radrizzani will need to write an eye-catching cheque to PSV to stand a chance.

Leeds United look set to miss out on signing Manchester City’s Romeo Lavia, with Southampton closing in on the midfielder, according to The Athletic.

The Lowdown: Leeds interest

The Whites have been in negotiations with the Premier League champions over the past seven days regarding a move for Kalvin Phillips. The two clubs have now agreed on an initial £42m fee for Phillips, which could rise to £45m with add-ons.

Leeds were thought to be interested in bringing Lavia to Elland Road in a separate deal, but City were reluctant to part ways with the Belgian, labelled an ‘aggressive’ player by Vincent Kompany and ‘highly thought of’ by City reporter Sam Lee.

The Latest: Saints close to deal

The Athletic provided an update regarding Lavia on Wednesday morning.

They claimed that Southampton are close to completing a move for the 18-year-old, pipping Leeds to a deal in the process.

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The Verdict: Gyabi instead

Even though Leeds were after Lavia, it still looks like Andrea Radrizzani and Victor Orta may have a chance of landing another City youngster.

News emerged with Phillips’ pending move to the Etihad that teenage midfielder Darko Gyabi could be heading to Elland Road in a separate £5m transfer.

Gyabi has been described as a ‘Rolls Royce’ by Xander Wilkinson and an ‘outstanding signing’ by Harry Brooks, so a transfer should soften the blow when it comes to Lavia.

Celtic had no trouble when it came to finding the back of the net during their previous SPFL campaign.

In their 38 league games, the Hoops ended up scoring 92 goals in total, which is 12 more than their Old Firm rivals managed to score in second place.

One figure that contributed a lot in that regard for the Bhoys is Kyogo Furuhashi.

With 15 league appearances to his name, the 27-year-old scored eight times and delivered two assists along the way.

Having missed a significant number of games through injury, it’s safe to suggest that the Japan international could have added more goals to his tally had he been fit enough throughout the campaign.

With that in mind, Kyogo will now be looking to have a more consistent season next time around and hope he doesn’t run into more fitness issues.

The summer transfer window has opened for business, with the Hoops already adding Benjamin Siegrist to their ranks. Another figure the Parkhead club have been linked with is Randers FC striker Stephen Odey, someone that could form a frightening duo alongside Furuhashi.

Having made 135 senior club appearances throughout his career, the 24-year-old has scored 37 goals and supplied five assists in the process.

With 33 appearances to his name last season for Randers, the attacker found the net 14 times, highlighting just how much of a consistent goal threat he can be.

To further highlight his attacking talent, no other player at the Danish club managed to make as many shots at goal (63) or shots on target (29) as the Nigerian.

Labelled as an “exceptional” player and a “deadly” attacker by his former coach Fidelis Ilechukwu, Odey certainly has what it takes to be a useful addition to Postecoglou’s squad.

The fact the 27-year-old Kyogo has played on either flank when needed means that his versatility could clear a path for Odey to take a place in the centre-forward spot. As a result, it’s easy to see how the two could play together in the same side, forging a mouth-watering duo in the final third.

Should the Hoops boss feel the need to add another striker to his ranks this summer, the Nigerian could be a suitable option in that regard.

In other news: Deal close: Celtic on the verge of “unbelievable” signing, it’s great news for Ange

Celtic defender Christopher Jullien has been touted to leave Parkhead during the upcoming summer transfer window.

What’s the news?

Speaking to Football Insider, former Hoops striker Frank McAvennie did not mince his words about the defender’s current situation at the club and what the immediate future could hold for the Frenchman.

He declared: “It’s clear that Ange doesn’t like him [Jullien]. There were so many games to play last season and he never got a look in, that tells me he’s pretty much finished at Celtic.

“[Cameron] Carter-Vickers and [Carl] Starfelt played every game. I think one of them needs a big, powerful defender to partner them at the back and you would think Jullien fits that mould.

“But he hasn’t played and it doesn’t sound like he’s injured again so Ange clearly doesn’t like him as a player.  I expect he will leave this summer because Ange won’t keep anyone who isn’t contributing.”

Fans will be buzzing

Celtic signed the centre-back from French club Toulouse during the 2019 summer transfer window in a deal worth a reported £7m.

Since then, the 29-year-old has gone on to make just 62 appearances for the Hoops across all competitions (47 of those in his first season at the club), chipping in with 10 goals and four assists over the three years.

After being sidelined for the best part of a year as a result of a serious knee injury, the defender only played 16 minutes for Celtic this season once he recovered, which makes it easy to see why McAvennie thinks Ange Postecoglou doesn’t view Jullien as a credible squad option.

With the defender’s current contract at Parkhead set to expire in the summer of 2023, if what McAvennie says is true and the Celtic manager isn’t a fan of the Frenchman, the upcoming transfer window could give the Hoops the best chance to cash in on the 29-year-old.

Taking this into account, if Jullien isn’t likely to have a future at Celtic, then the club getting as much money as they can for him this summer would surely be the best option for all parties. That scenario would likely have lots of Hoops fans buzzing, especially if the club can find a suitable replacement for the forgotten French defender.

In other news: “Celtic have..”: Transfer insider drops exciting claim that’ll have supporters buzzing

Everton are still waiting for defender Yerry Mina to decide his future as he prepares to enter into the final year of his contract at Goodison Park.

The Columbians former agent has recently spoken to Italian outlet L’Interista where he revealed that Mina has always wanted to play in Italy, and that there has been contact between the player and Inter Milan in the past.

However, he also said that this doesn’t mean the player won’t decide to renew his contract with Everton, and that he expects him to evaluate all the offers on the table and decide where he wants to play.

The £18m-rated defender struggled with injuries last season and missed 25 games, and his absence played a huge part in the club struggling to maintain their Premier League status.

If The Toffees are to avoid a relegation battle next season, then he will play a key part, so Frank Lampard needs to do all he can to persuade him to stay.

However, letting his contract run down is also a bad idea when Everton need to generate funds in order to be able to make new signings.

They can’t risk letting him go for free so making sure he commits his future with a new contract this summer is a must.

Mina moved to Merseyside from FC Barcelona back in 2018 for £27.2m and has made 91 appearances for the club, he’s a fans favourite and could lead the rebuild under Lampard and be guaranteed game time if he stayed.

If you look at his statistics for the 2020/21 Premier League season you can see just how good he can be. He showed composure with the ball ranking in the top 7% for touches in the defensive third and percentage of dribblers tackled.

In comparison to Everton’s two other main centre-backs Michael Keane and Ben Godfrey, he performs better in several areas. His pass completion percentage in 2020/21 was higher than both at an impressive 94%.

He’s been described as a “rock” by former Everton player Don Hutchinson.

We think he’s Everton’s best defender, and for a side who conceded the fifth most goals last season, keeping him at the club would be their most important signing this summer.

AND in other news: Everton eye £30m swoop for 21 y/o “special talent”, just imagine him and Gordon…