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Sunderland return to action in the Championship this afternoon as they travel away to face recently-relegated Watford at Vicarage Road.

The Black Cats are currently sixth in the table and will be hoping to retain their position in the play-off spots heading into the first international break of the campaign.

They are currently one point ahead of Watford heading into the match and five points behind Norwich in second-place, the first automatic promotion spot.

Tony Mowbray has won two of his first three games in charge of the club since taking over from Alex Neil, beating Rotherham and Reading 3-0 each, and will be hoping to continue the strong start to his reign.

Sunderland smashed the Royals away from home in their last outing but did come away from the game with a concern as Ellis Simms came off injured in the first-half.

The manager has since confirmed that he has a minor injury and could be involved against Watford this weekend, although he may have to wait until the other side of the break if he is not deemed 100% ready to play.

Keeping this in mind, Mowbray must now unleash attacking midfielder Elliot Embleton from the start in place of Simms at Vicarage Road.

The Englishman came off the bench to replace the striker against Reading and caught the eye with a sublime display. He assisted two of Sunderland’s three goals and completed 90% of his attempted passes, which shows that he was reliable in possession whilst still providing quality in the final third.

Journalist Josh Bunting claimed that he is “energetic” and provides a “spark” on the pitch, which was backed up by his creativity in the win in midweek.

Last season, he was a regular contributor at the top end of the pitch as he chipped in with nine goals and six assists from midfield in League One – including a strike in the play-off final to help secure promotion to the Championship.

The 23-year-old midfielder should now come in to form a fluid front three alongside Alex Pritchard and Patrick Roberts. They are all diminutive playmakers who can rotate across the frontline during games to cause constant problems for the opposition, leaving defenders unsure about who they should be marking.

This would give Embleton the chance to build on his performance against Reading whilst affording Simms the opportunity to rest, on the bench or until the other side of the break, which is why Mowbray must start the £5.3k-per-week magician.

Tottenham Hotspur appear to be lining up a move for Stefan de Vrij in 2023…

What’s the word?

According to Italian outlet L’Interista, the north Londoners are one of two Premier League sides to have made contact with Inter Milan over potentially signing the Dutch international.

Newcastle United are also keen on the 30-year-old colossus.

It’s thought that manager Antonio Conte remains a ‘great admirer’ of de Vrij, having coached him during I Nerazzurri’s Serie A title-winning campaign in 2020/21 – their first Scudetto in over a decade.

Conte loves him

It remains to be seen exactly how much the Inter star would command, particularly as he remains a regular starter under Simeone Inzaghi at the San Siro, though CIES Football Observatory currently value him at €15m (£13.4m), with his current £122k-per-week contract set to expire in the summer.

That would represent something of a bargain for Lilywhites sporting director Fabio Paratici, who could well still be on the lookout for another central defender, given his manager deploys a three-back system and is short on true options, in which one is only on loan in the form of Clement Lenglet.

De Vrij is an elite talent and one that Conte knows well, so it could be something of a dream arrival come January or perhaps the summer, where he’d be available on a free transfer.

As per FBref, who liken his statistical profile to that of four-time Champions League winner Raphael Varane, the Holland titan ranks within the top 6% of all central defenders across Europe for pass completion per 90 (92.1%), proving to be an astute player on the ball.

This campaign, he also leads the Inter squad for aerial duels won (3.1 per game) and for interceptions (1.7 per game), which highlights his defensive intelligence and ability to read the game and act upon what’s happening successfully.

The combination of these attributes makes him a very solid candidate indeed and it’s easy to see why Conte may want to reunite with his former star, given the evidence above.

De Vrij, who was once lauded as a “monster” by his ex-teammate Mauricio, must be among the priorities come the turn of the year.

AND in other news, Spurs receive bad news ahead of Arsenal clash…

Being a sporting director at a Premier League club is a demanding job and these days every move is scrutinised by the press and supporters. While no sporting director gets every transfer right, Leeds United’s Victor Orta has uncovered some real gems since his arrival at Elland Road.

Raphinha Was A Diamond In The Rough

Few on English shores would have heard of Brazilian winger Raphinha following his move from French outfit Rennes to Leeds back in 2020. A slight but pacey winger with a bag of tricks, the South American was clearly a player with potential. What was most noticeable at the time was the vocal dissent from the Rennes supporters to allow Raphinha to leave for Elland Road for a fee of around £17 million. That should have told Leeds fans all they needed to know and it was soon clear to the Elland Road faithful why Rennes’ supporters were somewhat disgruntled that their Brazilian star was to play for a side just promoted to the Premier League.

Orta and his scouts at Leeds clearly did their work behind the scenes and at the time there was not much talk of other interest in the Premier League. Leeds have not had much luck with Brazilian players in the past and few have ever really shone in the rigours of the Premier League. However, Raphinha took to the pace for the division like a duck to water and soon earned a first call-up to the Brazil senior side. Brazil is the current 9/2 favourite in the World Cup odds to win the World Cup in Qatar this year, and Raphinha looks set to play a big role. With the winger’s efforts catching the eye of some of the biggest clubs in England and abroad, it was always going to be difficult to keep hold of Raphinha for the long term. Barcelona snapped up the Leeds star over the summer with the Whites potentially earning £55 million from the deal. The sale of Raphinha to Barcelona and England international midfielder Kalvin Phillips to Manchester City helped fund Leeds’ summer dealings, which saw some much-needed reinforcements join the West Yorkshire outfit.

Sinisterra A Star In The Making

Orta looks like he might well have pulled off another “real deal” signing in the form of Colombian attacker Luis Sinisterra. The 23-year-old impressed with his efforts at Dutch outfit Feyenoord last season and Leeds splashed £21 million to bring the winger to Elland Road. Similar to Raphinha with pace, tricks and a determination to get on the ball and make things happen, Sinisterra has also hit the ground running in the Premier League.

Opening his goalscoring account in the EFL Cup against Barnsley with a fine strike at Elland Road, Sinisterra bagged his first Premier League goal a week later against Everton. A fine solo effort in an away defeat to Brentford also drew attention to Sinisterra’s talents before September’s international break where he went on to score three goals for Colombia. The fee for Sinisterra now looks to be another bargain for Leeds and again highlights the sterling work done by Orta and his team behind the scenes.

American Duo Looking Sharp

In a busy summer window, Orta also saw the arrival of two USA internationals Brenden Aaronson and Tyler Adams at Elland Road. Both players had worked under Leeds boss Jesse Marsch previously and they have slotted in well to the system under their fellow American coach. Aaronson really announced himself on the big stage to Leeds supporters with the opening goal in a 3-0 win over Chelsea, while Adams has already made himself a reputation for being a nuisance to opposition players in the middle of the park. Adams also has shown he has the technical ability and the vision to help fill the void left by Phillips after his move to City.

With Spanish midfielder Marc Roca also showing touches of class, it has overall been a positive summer of business for Orta and the Leeds hierarchy. More will be expected from Danish defender Rasmus Kristensen as he settles into the Premier League, while there is great excitement about what new arrival Wilfried Gnonto can do after the Italian international’s late arrival in the window.

Orta has been a key figure in the background in Leeds’ rise from the Championship in 2020 to trying to establish themselves back as a Premier League mainstay. From the early evidence of the new season, Orta’s work could well bear fruit for the Whites this term.

Photo by Unsplash

Aston Villa will be looking to continue their recent upturn in form when they take on Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Monday evening.

Steven Gerrard was under a lot of pressure as Villa boss but has seen his side pick up five points from the last three fixtures, although the draw against Manchester City was far more creditable than last weekend’s stalemate against 10-man Leeds United.

Despite holding a man advantage against their hosts in Yorkshire, Gerrard’s side rarely looked like scoring and it seems clear that a creative spark is needed if the Villans are going to pick up three points when they face Steve Cooper’s struggling Reds on Monday.

To do that, Gerrard should unleash Emi Buendia from the start at the City Ground, with the Argentinian having struggled for regular game time so far this season.

The former Norwich City man joined Villa in the summer of 2021 but has struggled to live up to his club-record fee, with just five goals and seven assists in 46 appearances, having managed 15 goals and 17 assists in his final season with the Canaries.

Buendia has struck one strike to his name in the Premier League in eight appearances this season but has only started twice, so deserves his chance to feature from the start.

Only Ashley Young and Jacob Ramsay have averaged more key passes than the Argentine this season, which suggests that he has the creativity in his locker to help end Villa’s woes in front of goal.

Despite Leon Bailey and Philippe Coutinho both having more game time this season, they have both averaged just 0.6 key passes per game and have only two goal contributions between them, so surely it is time for Buendia to start.

WhoScored suggests that the 26-year-old excels at through balls and playing key passes, possessing pretty much all the attributes you would hope an attacking midfielder would have, with long shots, finishing, dribbling and set-pieces also listed as his strengths.

Gerrard was full of praise for the £75k-per-week earner after a strong run of form last season, saying:

“He’s a tenacious little character and player, he’s got amazing talent and he’s got stronger and stronger with each training session.

“He believes he can only get better, I have that type of belief in him.”

With the Villa fans no doubt still questioning whether Gerrard is the man to bring European football to Villa Park in the future, the Liverpool legend can get the fans back on side and potentially rocking by unleashing Buendia from the start on Monday, as he can be a big difference-maker and a joy to watch when he is at his creative best.

Sport Witness journalist Sean Lunt was left criticising Alex Iwobi for his role in the lead-up to the penalty given against Everton on Saturday evening.

The Lowdown: Game thrown away

The Toffees threw the game away when Jordan Pickford made an error by fumbling the ball, which led to him being adjudged to have taken down Harry Kane in the penalty box, before the England captain tucked away the spot kick to give Tottenham the lead in the second half.

The visitors missed two big chances in the first half through Demarai Gray and Amadou Onana, and ultimately paid the price as Tottenham Hotspur ran out 2-0 winners in the end thanks to a late strike from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

The Latest: Iwobi criticised

Taking to Twitter, Lunt was highly critical of Iwobi in the build-up to the penalty being given, claiming that the Everton forward made a ‘lack of effort’ to block the original cross coming in and saying that the Nigerian looked ‘completely uninterested’ all evening.

The journalist stated: “Alex Iwobi is completely uninterested in this game. The lack of effort to block the original cross before the penalty decision was shocking.”

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The Verdict: Uncharacteristic

Iwobi did look out of sorts compared to his previous impressive performances this season, during which he has been rewarded with talks over a new and improved contract at Everton.

The Nigeria international lost out on three of his duels against Spurs and also made no clearances or interceptions, giving the ball away unnecessarily on five separate occasions (SofaScore).

The Toffees will be hoping that he can bounce back quickly from this unusual slump ahead of their next match away to Newcastle United in midweek.

Mark Goldbridge has criticised Fred’s performance in Manchester United’s disappointing 0-0 draw at home to Newcastle United in the Premier League.

The Lowdown: Man United held by Newcastle

The Red Devils hosted the Magpies on Sunday afternoon hoping to continue their improved league form but it ended up being a poor day at the office.

United were never at their best at Old Trafford, and while chances came and went throughout the 90 minutes, a draw was arguably fair in the end as both teams had an equal number of shots on target (two).

It was a day which saw too many individuals fall well below their usual level, and it will be looked back on as two points dropped come the end of the season.

The Latest: Goldbridge unhappy with Fred

Taking to Twitter during the game, Goldbridge make it clear what he thought of Fred’s performance, believing that it may be worth throwing in academy youngsters Zidane Iqbal or Kobbie Mainoo instead, with both having been among the substitutes yesterday.

The talkSPORT host insisted:

“Iqbal or Mainoo can’t be any worse than Fred. Got to be worth a go.”

The Verdict: Is he good enough?

While Fred’s attitude and work ethic can never be questioned, there are real lingering doubts over whether or not the much-maligned midfielder is good enough for United now that they have the likes of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen to call upon.

There are clear limitations to his game in terms of providing genuine guile and control in the middle of the park, and Erik ten Hag may well be looking for an upgrade in that position soon.

Against Newcastle, Fred won just two out of eight ground duels and one of our four in the air, highlighting what a timid showing it was from him.

It might be risky for Ten Hag to throw the inexperienced Iqbal or Mainoo into a Premier League game soon, but the Carabao Cup next month might offer a window of opportunity.

Celtic could seemingly find it difficult to keep hold of their star men, amid reported interest in midfielder Matt O’Riley.

What’s the word?

The 21-year-old is currently attracting admiring glances from across Europe, with the former MK Dons man – who is said to be valued at around £20m – reportedly being scouted by Premier League giants, Manchester United, during the summer window.

More recent speculation has suggested that Leicester City are also stepping up their interest in the Denmark U21 international at present, having reportedly sent scouts to watch the playmaker in action at Parkhead during the Champions League defeat to RB Leipzig.

Amid that speculation, journalist Pete O’Rourke – in an interview with Football FanCast – has suggested that the Old Firm outfit could well have an issue trying to keep the suitors at bay.

Asked about the Hoops’ confidence with regards to keeping the youngster at the club, the transfer insider stated: “Yeah obviously it’s always tough for the likes of Celtic and Rangers when English Premier League clubs do come calling for their players.

“Obviously, the finances on offer in the Premier League compared to Scotland are vast, so again that will be a big problem for Celtic as they try to keep hold of O’Riley.”

Van Dijk 2.0

As O’Rourke alluded to, the Glasgow side – as well as rivals Rangers – are no doubt seemingly used to seeing their star assets poached by clubs south of the border, with most finding it hard to turn down the glitz and glamour on offer at the top level of English football.

Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou will likely be dreading the loss of a talent such as O’Riley, with the London-born ace having been a hugely impressive figure since his January arrival, proving something of a bargain in relation to his initial £1.5m transfer fee.

The 6 foot 2 “magician” – as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig – has unsurprisingly earned admirers as a result of his sparkling form of late, with four goals and seven assists in 36 appearances across all competitions to date.

The “mature” gem – as dubbed by national team coach Jesper Sorensen – has been producing performances that have belied his years, with it having been a real meteoric rise of late for the promising talent.

As recent history has proved, the Scottish Premiership side could well be powerless to prevent O’Riley from making a move away should he so wish, with Parkhead having become something of a stepping stone in the last decade or so.

That was no doubt evident in the case of Virgil van Dijk, with the towering defender having been signed for a reported fee of just £2.6m from Dutch outfit Groningen back in 2013 at the age of 21, before being moved on to Southampton just two years later for £13m.

While that represented a tidy profit for the Bhoys, it has proven a difficult ask to attempt to fill the Netherlands international’s void in the side over the years, with it only current star Cameron Carter-Vickers who has seemingly been able to replace the towering titan at the club.

Postecoglou will no doubt be hoping that a repeat scenario does not occur if O’Riley is to be sold, with it set to prove a hard task to be able to replace such an exciting talent on the cheap.

Frank Lampard is already looking ahead to next season in terms of improving his Everton side, with Napoli winger Hirving Lozano linked with a move to the Toffees – according to Spanish publication Marca (via Liverpool Echo).

The 27-year-old’s agent spoke recently about interest in Lozano, saying: “In my opinion, Lozano will leave next June, also because he earns over 4m (£3.5m) at Napoli.

“Even though he is delighted to be here, he has never hidden that he aspires to the top English clubs even if now he is probably realizing that Napoli itself is a top club.

“I think he can join Manchester United or Everton.”

This is encouraging news for Lampard, and he could well land his very own Bukayo Saka by making a move for Lozano, with the two comparable via FBref’s player comparison model.

Saka has been tearing it up recently at Arsenal, scoring five goals and registering four assists in all competitions this season and, despite Lozano being six years older than the Englishman, Everton could benefit from having someone similar on their right-wing providing a goalscoring threat.

Despite Saka scoring more league goals (four to two), Lozano actually averages more shots per match (4.51 to 2.42) while also generating more shot-creating actions per match (4.50 to 4.01).

The £84k-per-week Napoli winger has created more big chances than Saka this season (three to one), however, Saka just edges out Lozano in terms of key passes per match (1.9 to 1.2) – although it proves that the two are extremely attack-minded from wide positions.

Rangers Review journalist Derek Clark dubbed the Mexican as “frightening” before Napoli faced the Gers in the Champions League last night and it’s clear that Lampard needs a greater attacking output from out wide in order to take pressure off Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

If Everton did bring the player to the Premier League, the 44-year-old will be hoping that Lozano can have the same impact that Saka did for Arsenal, terrorising defences and creating an extra attacking dimension.

Former BBC pundit Noel Whelan has backed Newcastle United in their pursuit of both James Maddison and Youri Tielemans in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Midfielders wanted

The Daily Mail’s northeast reporter Craig Hope revealed last week that the St James’ Park outfit are set to prioritise the signing of a central midfielder in January, as they search for an ally for Bruno Guimaraes.

They have been linked with moves for both Maddison and Tielemans and could strike a double deal with Leicester City.

The Latest: Newcastle backed for both

Speaking to Football Insider, Whelan has claimed that Tielemans playing alongside Bruno in Newcastle’s midfield would be ‘outstanding to watch’, while Maddison would also be a ‘fantastic’ signing.

The 47-year-old stated: “Tielemans would be a fantastic addition. Along with Maddison – if they can get the two of them in one move, then I’m not sure they need too much else.

“Tielemans is a player who catches the eye straight away. He would compliment Guimaraes in that midfield area – the two of them as a pair would be outstanding to watch. Both like to get forward and be creative.

“Newcastle, with where they’re sitting right now, have a real opportunity to go out and get a player like him to help them secure that European football.”

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The Verdict: Get both in!

If Newcastle can offer the right prices, then there is no reason that they cannot sign both players from the Foxes in January.

Leicester have a history of selling their key players to Premier League rivals if the price is right, and Tielemans should be very much attainable given that his contract at the King Power Stadium expires in the summer.

Not only would the duo bring plenty of top-flight experience, they have also shown their quality once again in a Leicester team which has struggled at times this season, having notched up eight goals and three assists between them in the league so far, ranking them as the Foxes’ two best performers (WhoScored).

Indeed, taking two quality players from one of their top-flight rivals midway through the campaign would feel extra sweet for the Magpies.

West Ham United are reportedly plotting a January transfer bid for Blackburn Rovers attacker Ben Brereton Diaz. 

The Lowdown: Previous interest in Brereton Diaz

The Hammers were linked with a move for the Chile international during the previous summer transfer window but nothing came of it.

With Brereton Diaz’s current contract at Ewood Park set to expire at the end of the season, the upcoming January window could be the last chance for the Lancashire club to potentially cash in on the player rather than risk losing him as a free agent in the summer.

Now it appears that the Hammers are keen on reigniting their interest in the attacker and bringing him to the London Stadium.

The Latest: A January transfer move on the cards

According to a recent report from Football Insider, the east London club are plotting a January move for Brereton Diaz, who some West Ham scouts were watching over the weekend.

The report also adds that David Moyes is a big admirer of the player and has made it clear to his scouts that he would like to see the Blackburn star added to his squad in January.

The Verdict: A smart move for West Ham

Hailed as an “elite” player by Gary Brazil, Brereton Diaz has scored 51 club goals throughout his career at senior and youth levels from 208 appearances.

Not only is the 23-year-old the Championship’s joint-top goalscorer with nine to his name, he’s also had more shots at goal than any other player in the division (61).

He also has the second-highest number of shots on target in the league (21), which could make him a useful signing for the Hammers given how they have the worst percentage in the top flight for shots on target (25.6%) prior to their game against Crystal Palace.

Moving forward, given how highly Moyes seemingly rates him, securing a January deal for Brereton Diaz could be a very smart investment for the Hammers to make.