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Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, Bundesliga expert Daniel Pinder believes Stuttgart striker Sasa Kalajdzic is very similar to Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Kalajdzic has been a revelation in the Bundesliga this season, ranking among the top scorers in the division.

The 6 ft 7 forward is now being linked with a move to the Premier League, with Everton just one club said to be interested in his services.

According to Italian outlet Tutto Juve, the Toffees and Newcastle United are both keen on the player, while Juventus are his admirers from Italy.

For Pinder, Kalajdzic is an individual who could bring a lot to Goodison Park and shares some similarities with Calvert-Lewin.

When asked whether the two could play alongside each other, the editor-in-chief at Get German Football News told FFC:

“I think they’re quite similar in terms of goal threat, but Kalajdzic can drop deep and play as a central attacking midfielder or as a false nine, so he can offer a lot to Everton.”

As well as Everton and Newcastle, West Ham are also said to be interested in the Austria international’s signature.

It means the Merseyside club could have a real battle on their hands should Kalajdzic decide he wants to move to England, especially if West Ham manage to qualify for the Champions League.

Interest in Aston Villa centre-back Tyrone Mings is growing ahead of the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Birmingham Live, who claimed that Newcastle United are plotting a move for the 28-year-old in the upcoming winter market, with Eddie Howe having identified the defender as one of his primary transfer targets in a bid to strengthen his leaky Magpies backline.

However, the report added that, following Steven Gerrard’s recent appointment as the new manager at Villa Park, it would seem unlikely the 41-year-old will look to cash in on the England international in the January transfer window.

Major error

Unlikely as it seems that Gerrard would cash in on the Aston Villa captain so soon after his arrival, it must nevertheless be said that selling Mings would be a major mistake on the 41-year-old’s part, no matter how enticing a potential big-money offer from Newcastle may be.

Indeed, the 28-year-old has become a highly important part of the Villa side since joining them back in 2019, with his overall level of performance last season highlighting just how crucial a player the centre-back is to the Midlanders.

Over his 36 Premier League appearances last season, the £27m-rated defender helped his side to keep a whopping 14 clean sheets, as well as making 1.1 interceptions, 0.9 tackles and 4.7 clearances and winning 4.1 duels per game.

The player who Gareth Southgate dubbed a “leader” also impressed going forwards, scoring twice and registering two assists, as well as taking 0.5 shots and making 0.2 key passes per fixture in 2020/21.

These returns saw the £80k-per-week defender earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.95, ranking him as Villa’s ninth-best performer in the top flight of English football last season.

As such, considering that Aston Villa have already conceded 20 goals in the league this term, parting with a player who is undoubtedly one of the club’s best centre-backs in January would seem to be a grave error.

In other news: Lange can solve Gerrard’s biggest problem at Villa with £5m swoop for “unpleasant” 23 y/0

Taking to Patreon, reliable club insider ExWHUemployee has made a transfer claim involving Wout Weghorst whilst also sharing an ‘interesting’ update.

The Lowdown: West Ham still in striker hunt…

West Ham’s hunt for a new centre-forward alternative to Michail Antonio has been ongoing since last January, when David Moyes first confirmed that offers had been made.

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Since then, their search has so far proved fruitless as they are repeatedly linked with many options, with Moyes himself going as far as to say he was ‘desperate’ for a forward signing over the summer.

The likes of Andrea Belotti, Adam Hlozek and Youssef En-Nesyri have been mentioned lately, but talk of a past summer target in Wolfsburg striker Weghorst has now resurfaced.

The Latest: Ex shares ‘interesting’ update…

Writing on his Patreon, Ex said that Weghorst continues to be a ‘definite target’ after West Ham’s public links earlier this year.

As well as this, the club insider relays an ‘interesting’ social media update, namely that the 29-year-old has now started following the club on Instagram.

He added that while you cannot read too much into his decision, it is certainly worth discussing given West Ham’s links with the player.

The Verdict: A must move?

While the towering 6 foot 6 colossus is slowly approaching the twilight phase of his career, he could be a brilliant backup option to Antonio going by his plaudits and goalscoring record.

He racked up an impressive 25 goal in all competitions last season for Wolfsburg and has even drawn comparisons to former Premier League star Ruud van Nistelrooy.

Lauded as the ‘most dangerous player in front of goal’ by his former boss Oliver Glasner, The Athletic claimed over the summer that he is valued at around €30m (£25.9m), a fee which could represent good value for money for West Ham.

In other news: ‘Christmas sorted’, ‘Announce the league’ – ExWHUemployee’s ‘fantastic news’ has many West Ham fans excited, find out more here.

The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece has revealed that Coventry City midfielder Gus Hamer is “admired” by Steven Gerrard.

What’s the story?

During a Q&A for The Birmingham Mail, Preece claimed that both Gerrard and assistant Gary McAllister were both at Coventry’s clash with Birmingham recently, and that Hamer is someone they have had their eye on.

He said: “As for January, usual names are sticking given Gerrard’s Rangers links but position-wise; a left-back, DM and possibly a forward could be added. Villa, Gerrard and Lange still assessing squad (three weeks into six-week review process). Bailey/Traore injuries are a concern for me.

“There could also be something in Gerrard and Gary Mac being at Coventry vs Birmingham the other week as well with Gus Hamer (Cov) admired.”

Perfect for Villa

Despite playing in a deeper position last season, Hamer was Coventry’s third top scorer with five goals while he also provided three assists too.

That all-round facet to his game is reflected by the fact he also averaged an impressive 1.4 interceptions and 1.3 tackles per game, and a team-high 1.5 key passes and 1.8 shots per match.

It’s no surprise then that his boss, Mark Robins, raved about his talents on the Sky Blues Extra podcast, where he called him “unbelievable” (via the Coventry Telegraph), whilst pundit Ali Maxwell simply dubbed the Dutchman as the “class act” of this Coventry side.

In fact, Robins has already tipped Hamer to move to the Premier League in the future and praised his “frightening” technique, and given the kind of dynamic midfielder he is, could be absolutely perfect for this new era under Gerrard at Villa.

The 5 foot 6 machine could bring some vital depth and quality to Villa’s engine room, especially when you consider that they tried to sign James Ward-Prowse in the summer and are now currently dealing with injuries and potential AFCON absences with Marvelous Nakamba next month too.

Meanwhile, Gerrard must finally unleash this Villa star…

Marcel Brands hit gold with Everton’s deal to sign defender Ben Godfrey from Norwich City, with Tottenham Hotspur now reported to have been left incensed after missing out.

What’s the word?

According to Football Insider, some senior Spurs executives have launched an inquest to see what lessons can be learned from missing out on signing Godfrey in October.

The centre-back moved to Goodison Park for £20m after a year in the Premier League with the Canaries, in which he helped Daniel Farke’s side keep two clean sheets in 30 games as the Carrow Road natives were relegated back to the Championship.

Everton are thought to have faced the greatest competition from newly-promoted Fulham in their quest to sign Godfrey, despite the 23-year-old being a player about whom Tottenham had first enquired more than a year before.

Spurs are claimed to have contacted Norwich to discuss Godfrey’s availability ahead of the January 2020 transfer window after discussions over a summer 2019 deal fell through, at which point they were made aware of the Canaries’ £20m-25m valuation.

It is not suggested that the north London outfit returned in the off-season with a new approach, but questions are now being asked as to why Jose Mourinho’s side did not push the Toffees harder before Godfrey penned a five-year deal at Goodison Park.

The England under-21 international has featured in all but three possible games since joining the Blues, having twice been rested and benched once due to a hamstring injury, while starting 22 of his 23 appearances across all competitions.

A Brands masterclass

As well as being a regular across the Everton backline since joining the Toffees, Godfrey has earned more than his fair share of admirers having established himself comfortably against competition from Michael Keane, Yerry Mina and Mason Holgate for a central defensive role.

No admirer appears to come bigger than Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti, who Football Insider note considers the £77,000-per-week enforcer to be his best central defender and the one with the most potential.

His performances at full-back after stepping in to replace Lucas Digne following the French ace undergoing surgery on an ankle ligament injury earlier in the season have also garnered rave reviews from former Toffees defender David Weir.

“He’s really stepped up to the plate. We all knew he was a good player when Everton signed him and had high hopes, but he’s exceeded those expectations by the level of his performance, both in central defence and also in full-backs as well,” Weir told Football Pass last month.

Godfrey’s displays in the Everton backline so far this season have returned a higher average number of successful tackles per Premier League game (1.58) than Mina (1) and Keane (0.72), along with a greater haul of ground duels won (2.47 to 1.58 and 0.96), plus more interceptions (1.21) than Mina (1.11), per SofaScore.

The York City product establishing himself so well as Ancelotti’s favoured option will go down as a masterclass by Everton’s Director of Football Brands, who – along with his team – was responsible for bringing Godfrey to Merseyside.

“He has surprised me because I didn’t know him so well,” Ancelotti said of Godfrey, via quotes in the Liverpool Echo last month. “The signing from the club, from our scouts has been good. He has been able to adapt very quickly to different positions.”

AND in other news, Everton can sign a £13.5m-rated brute Carlo Ancelotti thinks is “excellent” for free…

Leicester City are set to open talks with Youri Tielemans over a new contract at the King Power Stadium, and Brendan Rodgers will surely be delighted at the prospect of the midfielder extending his stay.

The 24-year-old hit a stunning strike over the weekend to seal a historic FA Cup final win for the Foxes against Chelsea, and the Midlands outfit are set to reward the Belgium international with improved terms.

According to the Daily Mail, Leicester are planning on significantly increasing Tielemans’ wages, making him one of the club’s top-earning players alongside Jamie Vardy and Kasper Schmeichel.

The former Monaco man has been crucial to the Foxes’ success this season, starting 35 of Leicester’s 36 Premier League games, scoring six goals and providing four assists in the process. His exploits have helped the 2015/16 champions to break into the top four once again, and a place in the 2021/22 edition of the Champions League is well within their grasp.

As the Foxes continue to assert themselves at the top end of the table and disturb the established ‘Big Six,’ keeping hold of their best assets will be critical to their continued progression.

Tielemans’ impressive 7.09 WhoScored rating illustrates his importance to Leicester and his quality was further highlighted by Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola after an impressive display against the Cityzens earlier in the campaign.

“Tielemans is a top, top-class player. I remember when I arrived, my first season, and Vincent Kompany started speaking about him when he was in the national team for Belgium, how good he was in that period. Vincent, as always, he was right,” recalled the Spaniard.

Building on their incredible FA Cup triumph will now be the main focus of Rodgers and everyone at Leicester, and the importance of Tielemans in those plans cannot be downplayed.

His 1.3 key passes, 82.6 touches and 2.1 tackles per game (SofaScore) this season showcase how the Anderlecht academy graduate is at the centre of everything his team does, and if Tielemans puts pen to paper on this proposed new contract, then it could be the start of an exciting new chapter for Leicester.

In other news…Forget Tielemans: “Colossal” Leicester gem who won 78% of his duels was Rodgers’ FA Cup star – opinion

Everton are back in action this evening with another home clash in the Premier League, this time against Leicester City.

Heading in off the back of their 1-0 victory over Manchester United earlier in the month, Frank Lampard and the Everton fans will undoubtedly be looking to see their team secure another win this time out to move further away from the relegation zone.

Looking ahead to tonight’s showdown and their remaining league games of the campaign, it seems as though the Merseyside club have been handed a major boost over one of their key players.

What’s the news?

In a recent Twitter post from journalist Patrick Boyland relaying news from Lampard’s latest press conference, Toffees defender Yerry Mina will be in the squad to take on the Foxes.

The centre-back has been out of action since February with a hamstring injury and has only made ten league appearances for his side due to previous issues.

Great news for Lampard

With the Toffees only losing four of the ten league games that the Colombian has played in and only two of the games he completed a full 90 minutes in, having him back in the squad as another option will be a great thing for Lampard going forward.

To highlight what a useful option he will be, the 27-year-old has won nine tackles and made 14 blocks and 36 clearances in the league this season.

If he can make a return to action and continue being a tough figure at the back for his side, he could end up being the difference between Everton staying up or going down.

In terms of tonight’s showdown, it seems unlikely that the Toffees boss will immediately throw Mina back into the team considering how long he’s been out of action for.

With that in mind, if Lampard wants to have the defender available for the rest of the season, the 43-year-old will have to manage Mina’s minutes, for the time being, so he doesn’t risk getting injured again.

Also, with the centre-back pairing of Ben Godfrey and Michael Keane managing to keep a clean sheet last time out against the Red Devils, it would make sense for Lampard to stick with those two on this occasion to see if they can do the same again against Leicester.

In other news: Insider drops behind-scenes Finch Farm update that’ll leave Everton supporters furious

On a recent episode of Fabrizio Romano’s ‘Here We Go’ podcast, the Italian journalist revealed that should Manchester City be keen on signing a new centre-back, they could target Villarreal defender Pau Torres.

The 23-year-old defender has also attracted interest from Manchester United recently and it seems as if his time with Unai Emery’s side could soon be coming to an end, but the Citizens arguably don’t need to sign him.

Torres reportedly has a release clause of €50 million (£45.06 million), so it would be an expensive deal for director of football Txiki Begiristain if he wanted to bring him in.

The Citizens already signed both Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake for big money during the summer transfer window, so they are not exactly short of defensive options.

Whilst John Stones might have been the man axed in order to accommodate a new centre-back such as Torres, the Englishman’s recent performances have demonstrated that he is more than capable as a starter in Guardiola’s side.

Signing the Spanish defender would, of course, add to the quality of squad depth at Manchester City which is never a bad thing but considering the impressive performances from City’s defence of late, which has seen them keep six clean sheets in their last eight games, they really don’t need to splash the cash on Torres in January or next summer.

In addition to this, Torres has no experience in the Premier League and has just 55 senior appearances to his name at Villarreal, so he could hardly be considered experienced and would therefore likely be signed as a player for the future, which could harm the development of young defenders such as Eric Garcia and Taylor Harwood-Bellis.

Torres’ performances in La Liga this season have seen him average a sold 6.78 rating, which is significantly less than the impressive 7.25 rating Stones has managed thus far.

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Therefore, City should keep faith in the options they already have and potentially save themselves £45 million on Torres.

And, in other news… Manchester City missed out on a big talent in 2018, touted to be one of the best in the world

After an impressive season on loan with Ross County, Stephen Kelly could prove to be the heir to Glen Kamara in Steven Gerrard’s Rangers side next season, with the Finland international continuing to be linked with a move away from Ibrox this summer.

The 21-year-old Rangers academy graduate has spent the season on loan at Victoria Park and has established himself as a regular in John Hughes’ side, making 23 appearances in the Premiership and averaging a solid 6.55 WhoScored rating for his performances, with two assists to his name.

Last year saw Kelly commit to a new deal at Ibrox which sees him contracted until 2023, so Rangers clearly believe in his ability and his potential to become a regular with the Bears in the future.

After his new contract was announced, sporting director Ross Wilson had this to say about the young midfielder: “It was part of our development plan for him to now test himself at Premiership level and Steven Gerrard has made clear to Stevie that we expect him to make a strong impact in the league at Ross County.”

It seems as if Kelly’s loan move to Ross County has had the desired effect, and with Premiership experience under his belt, there seems no reason why he can’t challenge for a spot in Gerrard’s side next season, especially if Kamara departs in the summer.

The former Dundee man has been heavily linked with a move to the Premier League, with his former club Arsenal reportedly at the front of the queue, with recent reports suggesting that the Gunners were willing to offer him a five-year deal at the Emirates Stadium.

It is definitely a possibility that the Finland midfielder could leave, but Gerrard may already have his ideal replacement in Kelly. The youngster scores impressively when it comes to tackles, interceptions and key passes per game, which marks him out as an all-round midfielder in the mould of Kamara.

Kelly’s current manager Hughes was full of praise for the Rangers academy graduate earlier in the season, saying: “He’s as brave as a lion and has the courage to get on the ball. He’s my type of player: someone who wants the ball and keeps it ticking over.”

Therefore, there seems no reason why Kelly can’t establish himself in the Rangers first team next season and step up as Kamara’s long-term replacement, especially if the current Ibrox ace moves south.

In other news… Ross Wilson can solve big problem in Gerrard’s side with swoop for “unbelievable” £1.8m-rated gem

Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy must look to offload Serge Aurier this summer amid interest in his signature.

In the past few days, several clubs have emerged as a potential destination for the divisive £18m-rated right-back.

According to RMC Sport (via Get French Football News), Spurs are keen to move him on for around €10m (£9m), with the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan and Atletico Madrid keeping tabs on his situation, whilst Foot Mercato have surprisingly claimed that even Real Madrid have enquired about a move.

If he leaves for that sort of money, then Levy would have lost around £14m on the Ivorian in the four years that he has been at the club, having originally joined from PSG for around £23m in August 2017.

Aurier will enter the final year of his current £120,000-per-week contract at the end of the season but, even if he had several years to go, Spurs should be seeking to push him out the door at all costs.

Saturday’s defeat to Leeds United was another small reminder that he costs the north London giants more than helps them, and perhaps it’s now a step too far to rely on him for much longer.

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During the game, former Lilywhites player Jamie O’Hara, now a pundit at talkSPORT, blasted the 28-year-old for his performance. “Aurier is just an absolute liability,” the 34-year-old wrote on Twitter just half an hour into the match.

That comment is merely just one of many we’ve seen in recent weeks, and perhaps throughout the entire time that Aurier has been a regular for Spurs.

After their Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City only two weeks ago, Sky Sports analyst Jamie Carragher piled into the 66-cap Ivory Coast international (via talkSPORT) and said: “Aurier is maybe one of the biggest liabilities in Premier League football and is a player who would possibly put you off management with the amount of crazy decisions he makes.”

Despite all of these scathing verdicts of the right-back, he has still started 19 times in the Premier League this season and even usurped Matt Doherty to be Jose Mourinho’s, and now Ryan Mason’s, first-choice option in the role.

However, with defensive mistakes being the defining theme of Spurs’ turbulent season, it would be wise for Levy to cash in on the 28-year-old before the next manager arrives to give him one less headache to worry about.

If any bids come in for Aurier, then Spurs must take what they can get for him.

AND in other news, Levy could repeat his fatal Hoddle mistake if Spurs appoint “intelligent” 40 y/o…