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A number of West Ham supporters have hailed exciting Hammers youngster Pierre Ekwah, following footage of his brilliant goal for the Under-23s on Monday night.

David Moyes’ first team are enjoying another impressive season in the Premier League to date, winning 1-0 away to Everton on Sunday afternoon.

The victory leaves West Ham sitting seventh in the table and again looking likely to compete for a European finish.

Away from the senior side, however, the young Hammers enjoyed a memorable win on Monday, picking up a 4-3 victory away to Tottenham U23s.

One player who shone on the night was 19-year-old Ekwah, who scored a stunning left-footed half-volley [via the club’s official Twitter update] to put West Ham 1-0 up.

The midfielder joined from Chelsea in the summer and already appears to be making a positive impression in east London.

West Ham fans laud Ekwah

These West Ham fans took to Twitter to laud Ekwah’s moment of brilliance.

“This lad looks decent to be fair”

Credit: @JoeyTalksFooty

“He’s a beast! Heard he’s very highly rated. New Declan perhaps if he goes? If so, great vision by the club to bring him in”

Credit: @pwhitters

“Ping!”

Credit: @beewestwood

“GOOOAAALLLL! Pierre Ekwah scores a brilliant goal from 20 yards out to make it 1-0 to West Ham”

Credit: @RoshaneSport

“Great goal”

Credit: @RoshaneSport

“Great backup”

Credit: @Caseynewsonnn

In other news, some West Ham fans have reacted to a gruesome injury update. Read more here.

When West Bromwich Albion resigned Romaine Sawyers for around £2.88m back in 2019, hopes at The Hawthorns were extremely high for the Baggies academy product.

Indeed, the 29-year-old had just enjoyed an impressive season with Brentford, providing six assists, creating two big chances and averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.89 over his 42 Championship appearances for the Bees.

This initially appeared to be form that Sawyers would continue for Albion, with the midfielder turning in a number of solid performances during his first season back in the West Midlands, scoring one goal, registering one assist and averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.80 over his 42 Championship fixtures in 2019/20.

The Saint Kitts and Nevis international’s partner in the middle of the pitch, Jake Livermore, also seemed to be extremely impressed with the ability of Sawyers, with the West Brom captain stating back in 2019: “He is fantastic. I love the boy as a kid and I love him as a player. I love playing alongside him. He is a nice calming influence. I think we bounce off each other quite well.

“He was at West Brom as a kid and credit to them because he has been fantastic since he has come back. I back him to be a real, real top player and I have played with a few. But I back him to be as good as anyone I have played with, to be honest. And I mean that.”

However, upon the Baggies’ promotion to the top flight, things started to take a turn for the worst for the £1.8m-rated midfielder.

Indeed, over his 19 Premier League appearances the following season, Sawyers failed to have any real impact for Albion, scoring no goals, registering no assists and earning an extremely disappointing seasonal SofaScore match rating of just 6.47 – ranking him as the club’s joint-worst performer in the league.

This is a trend that has continued for the £10k-per-week man in the current campaign, as, after being bombed out of the Albion side by Valerien Ismael this summer, the 29-year-old has failed to impress over his eight Championship appearances while on loan at Stoke City, scoring no goals, registering just one assist and averaging an extremely shoddy SofaScore match rating of 6.58.

As such, despite signs of early promise upon his return to West Bromwich a little over two years ago, Sawyers’ poor displays at the bet365 Stadium, coupled with the fact that his contract at The Hawthorns expires next summer, could well indicate that the academy product has played his final game for the club.

In other news: Forget Bartley: WBA’s £36k-p/w “leader” who made just 4 passes failed Ismael once more

French football expert believes that if Maxwel Cornet makes a move to the Premier League it will be to Burnley. 

Football Insider have reported that the Clarets are in advanced talks to sign the Lyon player, in a deal worth £14m and are hopeful of beating Bundesliga outfit Hertha Berlin to his signature.

Leeds United were also reportedly interested in Cornet and according to Olympique-et-Lyonnais, the Whites had an offer of €12m rejected last month.

But White believes that if Cornet was to make the switch to the Premier League then it would be to Burnley, telling Transfer Tavern: “Burnley are the ones that we’re hearing are the closest or the most interested, alongside Hertha Berlin.

“So, yeah, Premier League very possible if Leeds are still hanging around, I’m sure they’re still keeping tabs, but Burnley are more likely as far as we understand.”

Cornet featured mostly as a left-back last season but did also feature on both wings for Lyon, scoring 252 times, scoring 51 goals and providing 29 assists.

If Cornet does make the switch to Burnley, it would be their third signing of the summer, having made two already, with Nathan Collins and Wayne Hennessey both arriving at Turf Moor from Stoke and Crystal Palace respectively.

Having won their first league game of the season at the 15th attempt against Burnley last Saturday, Newcastle will be looking to form a winning habit going into the festive period as they travel to a Leicester City side who were knocked out of the Europa League on Thursday.

The Magpies are three points off safety with a game in hand on 17th-placed Watford after the Hornets’ 2-1 defeat to Brentford on Friday night. They will also be facing a Foxes side who might be low on confidence, having won just one of their last six league outings as well as their elimination from the Europa League after a 3-2 defeat to Napoli.

Furthermore, Brendan Rodgers’ side have shipped 13 goals in their last six matches in all competitions and will be without a handful of key players after a viral outbreak at the East Midlands club, making it the ideal opportunity for Newcastle’s frontline to pounce and add to the Magpies’ tally of 17 goals in the Premier League.

It has also been reported that winger Ryan Fraser has overcome a hamstring issue after missing the win over Burnley. Miguel Almiron was the man to step in for the Scotsman that day, so there is no reason why the Paraguayan should lose his place after a performance which went down a treat with many  members of the Toon Army.

On the chalkboard

It is fair to say that the 27-year-old has been underwhelming since joining Newcastle from Atlanta United in January 2019 for a then-club record fee of around £20m. A return of 13 goals and five assists in 105 appearances is rather tepid, but there is certainly an opportunity for Almiron to get into the Newcastle team now, with Eddie Howe still in the early stages of his tenure at St James’ Park.

Against Burnley, the £74k-p/w attacking midfielder had an 82% passing accuracy, as well as making three tackles and successfully completing 100% of his dribbles (per SofaScore). It was a solid performance and a decent foundation to build upon in an attempt to be a regular starter under the former Bournemouth boss, who has said of the Paraguayan: “When you give someone an opportunity you want them to take it and I thought Miggy did that. His energy is very infectious and I thought his work rate from a defensive perspective was very good. Also he had really good moments going forward.

Like Almiron, the aforementioned Fraser is yet to score for the Magpies this season. However, the Scotland winger hasn’t been particularly impressive of late, with SofaScore rating the performance in his last game, a 1-1 stalemate with Norwich City, at a lowly 6.4/10.

None of United’s wide men have been particularly impressive this season, which is why Almiron is certainly within a shout of getting a frequent run in the team. The Paraguayan just needs to take whatever opportunities come his way.

In other news – Paid £5m, now worth £3.15m: Ashley had a Newcastle transfer howler with this dud who’s “out of his depth”

Aston Villa could miss out to Newcastle United in the race for Axel Tuanzebe, according to Football Insider. 

The lowdown

The Manchester United defender has been made available for loan following the signing of Raphael Varane from Real Madrid.

And Dean Smith is apparently keen to recruit an ‘athletic’ centre-back to provide cover and competition for the first-choice partnership of Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa.

Tuanzebe has already spent time on loan at Villa Park, but intriguingly it was during Steve Bruce’s tenure.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has previously hailed Tuanzebe, who made nine Premier League appearances last season, as ‘outstanding’.

The latest

As per a recruitment source, Newcastle have the advantage after Bruce assured Solskjaer that Tuanzebe would enjoy a ‘regular starting role’ at St James’ Park. Manchester United are seemingly concerned that the 23-year-old wouldn’t be afforded those kind of opportunities at Villa.

The report does offer supporters some grounds for hope, though, by pointing out that covering the ‘multi-million pound’ loan fee as well as the player’s wages would be ‘less of an issue’ for Villa than it would be for the Magpies.

The verdict

Recruiting an additional centre-back is an absolute must for Villa. Smith only has three senior options at his disposal at present and adding genuine competition will theoretically extract more from Konsa and, especially, Mings.

Tuanzebe would be an excellent signing, but you can very much understand Manchester United’s concerns.

Perhaps Smith could express a willingness to use a 3-5-2 shape in certain games, significantly improving Tuanzebe’s prospects. That would also have the added bonus of accommodating both Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins at the head of the team.

In other news, there’s an update on Villa’s pursuit of James Ward-Prowse.

Dean Windass has exclusively told Football FanCast that he thinks James Maddison is happy at Leicester and moving to Arsenal would be a “backwards step”.

According to the Daily Mail, Mikel Arteta’s side have made the 24-year-old midfielder their top summer target as they look to replace Martin Odegaard, who recently returned to Real Madrid.

Maddison enjoyed another impressive season for the Foxes, scoring 11 goals and chipping in with 10 assists to help Leicester qualify for Europe once again and win their first ever FA Cup.

His impressive form, though, wasn’t enough to convince Gareth Southgate, with the likes of Mason Mount, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish all picked ahead of the former Norwich man, who’s still sitting on just one England cap.

Maddison only committed his long-term future to Leicester less than 12 months ago, and the report believes that Arsenal would be willing to pay around £60m for his services.

But whilst Arsenal might offer stature and history, Leicester have finished above the Gunners in each of the last two seasons and are on the up, whilst Arteta’s men are on the back of failing to qualify for Europe for the first time in over two decades.

Therefore, Windass told Football FanCast that Maddison is content with what he’s got:

“I think James is happy. He would be well happy there, him and Brendan Rodgers look as if they get on well, he’s got that link with Jamie Vardy.

“You would want to go to Arsenal, everyone would, but I think it would be a backwards step.”

Tottenham Hotspur may be top of the Premier League upon their return from the international break but there are still some issues to iron out for manager Nuno Santo.

One of which is their chance creation and goalscoring, having only found the net three times with successive 1-0 victories to kickstart the 2021/20 campaign.

Indeed, the north Londoners are the only side with a 100% record in the top-flight but they are also the joint-lowest scorers sat 13th or above, meaning there is a problem somewhere in attack.

Heung-min Son leads the way with two goals and he also tops the charts for shots-per-game (3.3). But no player is managing to do better than Harry Kane’s two key passes per game, despite the England international only starting one of their three matches, per WhoScored.

The reliance on these two was also a problem last season, both scored 58.8% of their league goals and both were first and second for creating chances – the likes of Tanguy Ndombele, Dele Alli and Giovani Lo Celso were nowhere to be seen.

However, Nuno could already have a solution right under his nose, thanks to the expertise of sporting director Fabio Paratici in the transfer market.

In shifting Erik Lamela out, the Italian managed to secure promising Spain gem Bryan Gil in return and he could hold the keys to fixing Spurs’ creativity issue.

According to football.london’s Alasdair Gold on a recent episode of his ‘Gold and Guest talk Tottenham’ podcast, the 20-year-old prodigy is already being spoken about in high acclaim.

“I think they’ve just got to nail down that role for him. As soon as they nail down that role, I think we’re going to see a very talented young player coming to the fore. He’s kind of got a bit of everything: he can pass, he can dribble, he’s very creative, he has clever movement,” he said.

“They’ve just got to decide, is he a guy that can ultimately become the new Eriksen, because the more and more I watch him play, I think the ability’s there to do that. Some have even made a Modric comparison and said, maybe he could end up coming even deeper and becoming that kind of player.”

Modric and Eriksen, two players that would undoubtedly ensure that there were no issues in attack, particularly the latter as Spurs have sorely missed his presence since he left for Inter Milan in January 2020.

Gil averaged 1.7 crosses and 1.9 key passes per 90 in La Liga last season, via WhoScored, which certainly reinforces the view that he could be a solid option in a creative role.

Also described as a player with “unbelievable amounts of technique” and “a left foot on him you’d kill for” by ESPNUK editor David Cartlidge, Nuno must now look to unleash the £27m-rated wonderkid in the coming weeks.

He could well be the perfect solution to one of Spurs’ only current problems.

AND in other news, Spurs dealt cruel double injury blow ahead of Palace clash…

Aston Villa must land Liverpool starlet Curtis Jones in the January transfer window amid Alan Nixon’s recent claim.

What’s the story?

In a tweet posted just before transfer deadline day, Nixon said: “Aston Villa. Big interest in Curtis Jones at Liverpool. A bit of the Grealish about that talented lad. Might be one for next window. Not in squad yesterday…”

In response to that news, former Arsenal striker Kevin Campbell has suggested that Jones could be a very intriguing transfer target for Smith if the club are having a disappointing season.

He said: “It’s going to be an interesting few months, January especially. It depends how Villa do, if they do ok they might wait until the end of the season.

“If they aren’t doing as well as they want to, they will have to really push for Curtis Jones. Villa like young players and Jones is exactly that, he’s got real quality. Villa are looking to buy smart, buy young and looking to buy players with something to prove which is smart.”

He has shades of Jack Grealish

While Jack Grealish may not be Villa’s darling anymore following his big-money move to Premier League champions Manchester City, there’s no questioning that he is a massive loss on the pitch.

In Jones, Smith could get someone who has all the intangibles to bring that same level of excitement that Grealish brought to the table, while he’s already amassed more big-game experience by playing in the Champions League unlike his older counterpart.

Indeed, after Liverpool’s win over Everton in January 2020, when the teenage talent scored a stunning decisive goal, Jurgen Klopp sang the 19-year-old’s praises and tipped him to reach the big time provided that “nothing strange happens”.

He said: “It was an absolutely sensational goal, I love it. Let me speak about Curtis. Unbelievable player, Scouser, very confident, can’t wait to play in the first team. Rightly so. He is in a very good way, I’ve known him for three-and-a half years. He has made big steps, he will be a Liverpool player if nothing strange happens 100%. You sometimes forget, and we forget it in training, that he is only 18. Unbelievable.”

The Liverpool boss went so far as to dub Jones an “exceptional talent”, and that kind of praise is indicative of the kind of lofty heights Klopp expects the talented starlet to reach.

The £27m-rated ace’s ability to come up with something spectacular, like he did against Everton 20 months ago, has real shades of Grealish.

Jones steps up when the spotlight shines brightest, reserving his best performances for Liverpool last season in the Champions League. As per WhoScored, he averaged an impressive 7.37 match rating, scoring one goal and providing two assists in five games – no other Liverpool player bettered his match rating out of those who featured more than three times in the competition.

If Smith goes in for Jones in the January transfer window, they could move quickly to replacing Grealish in this team.

Meanwhile, Ashley Preece has confirmed a major Aston Villa boost…

Leeds United have been a dealt a blow in their quest to sign Romain Perraud this summer, with Southampton the clear front-runners to sign him.

The Lowdown: Leeds keen on Perraud

The Whites will likely be looking for a new left-back in the coming weeks, with Ezgjan Alioski expected to move on to pastures new.

Leeds have been linked with a host of players in that position, but Brest defender Perraud has arguably been mentioned the most.

[freshpress-quiz id=“355458″]

The Latest: Southampton lead the race

According to L’Equipe [via Sport Witness], Southampton are the current front-runners to sign the Frenchman, with the report stating that he is ‘closer’ to joining them compared to Leeds and Newcastle.

It is also claimed that the Saints and Brest have a ‘good relationship’ stemming from previous transfer dealings, further suggesting that Perraud could be on his way to the south coast this summer rather than Yorkshire.

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The Verdict: Left-back search continues

This is a blow for Leeds, considering Perraud scored three goals and registered seven assists in Ligue 1 last season, highlighting his attacking class.

Phil Hay has also sung his praises in a profile piece for The Athletic, writing: “Perraud, 23, played for France up to under-20s level and his performance data shows characteristics which would meet Bielsa requirements: a creative edge and a high number of dribbles and shots for a player at his position, combined with a very active role in pressing defensively.”

It means that Marcelo Bielsa may have to look at other options, with Nicolas Tagliafico an experienced left-back at Ajax and Huesca’s Javi Galan a younger, more explosive choice, averaging 3.3 dribbles per game in La Liga in 2020/21.

This is all assuming that Alioski moves on, but should the North Macedonian stay put, the need for reinforcements wouldn’t be as pressing.

In other news, one player is reportedly ready to join Leeds this summer. Find out who it is here.

Leeds United midfielder Owen Bray is set to depart Elland Road at the end of the season, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Bray profiled

Bray is 19 years of age and is primarily a central midfielder who has made eight appearances in the club’s academy.

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He is out of contract at the end of June after having had his scholarship extended last summer alongside Taylor Ragan. Bray has made just one appearance for the U23s, and it looks as if he’ll now move on over the coming months.

The Latest: O’Rourke’s post

O’Rourke took to Twitter on Tuesday morning to provide an update on Bray, revealing that the teenager is set to depart the Whites soon.

“Leeds midfielder Owen Bray is set to leave Elland Road at the end of the season when his contract expires.”

Reports have suggested that League One side Wigan Athletic are looking at Bray ahead of a possible move, with the Whites youngster set to turn out for Wigan’s U23s against Hull City.

The Verdict: Makes sense?

Leeds have a number of promising midfielders coming through at Thorp Arch, including Lewis Bate, Sean McGurk and Jack Jenkins, so allowing Bray to depart could suit all parties.

He’s struggled to become a regular in the U23s squad, with his only appearance coming in a 7-0 EFL Trophy defeat to Accrington Stanley back in 2020.

On that basis, moving to the lower leagues in search of first-team football could be a wise call by Bray, after limited opportunities at Elland Road.

In other news: Leeds and Orta want ‘extraordinary’ ace in Bosman move; same agent as Bamford.