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Liverpool midfielder Harvey Elliott is set to play more of a starring role for the Reds during the 2022/23 season, according to journalist James Pearce.

The Lowdown: Elliott’s disrupted rise

The 19-year-old was a regular in the early weeks of last season as he impressed in a midfield role, particularly in a high-profile clash against Chelsea at Anfield, when he came close to scoring with one long-range effort.

Sadly, Elliott’s season was badly disrupted by a broken ankle suffered at Leeds United in September, and he ended up missing five months of action in total.

Upon his return, the Englishman failed to earn regular playing time, with more experienced midfielders preferred for a string of big matches across four competitions.

The Latest: Pearce makes Elliott prediction

However, taking to Twitter on Monday, Pearce claimed that Elliott is expected to play a far bigger role in 2022/23 season as he looks to go up another gear under Klopp at Liverpool.

The Athletic journalist tweeted:

“Clear from listening to Jurgen Klopp that he expects Harvey Elliott to play a big role in 2022-23. The teenager worked hard over the summer to ensure he was in the best possible shape for the start of pre-season.”

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The Verdict: Breakthrough campaign?

For all the calls for Liverpool to sign a new midfielder this summer, Elliott could be the man who makes the number eight spot to the right of Fabinho his own, having been hailed as ‘fearless’ by Klopp.

Jordan Henderson is now 32 and arguably not quite the player he was before, while Naby Keita continues to divide opinion among Reds supporters, often blowing too hot and cold. Similar applies to Curtis Jones, while James Milner is 36.

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At 19, Elliott remains a very young player, but he may feel that this is his moment to become a bona fide regular starter for Liverpool as he looks to reach his vast potential.

Sky Sports pundit Kevin Campbell has slammed the Football Association for their ‘nonsense’ decision to ban Richarlison from playing in his Tottenham debut. 

The Lowdown: Richarlison receives ban

The Brazilian put pen to paper on a five-year contract with the Lilywhites last week when he officially joined the Premier League giants in a £60m move from Everton, but he won’t be able to start life at Hotspur Way how he imagined after a new development has emerged.

Back in May, the 25-year-old picked up a lit flare and threw it into the stands at Goodison Park when celebrating scoring a goal for the Toffees against Chelsea.

As a result of this incident, it’s been revealed by the Daily Mail’s Sami Mokbel that the forward has been handed a one-match ban due to his actions, meaning that he will miss the first game of the new season for Spurs.

The Latest: Campbell’s FA rage

Speaking to Football Insider, Campbell firmly disagreed with the FA’s decision and insisted that the slate should have been wiped clean. He said:

“The powers that be have got it wrong.

“The fact that they have acted, they cannot now turn around and let it go. Once you charge somebody you have to go through with something.

“It is a nonsense, a farce and shouldn’t have ever been done.

“But because they pushed it at the time, they cannot backtrack on it. They had to see it through. I am not surprised that they’ve done it.

“They have deprived Richarlison of his debut for Spurs. Do I agree with it? No, not at all. I think it should have been squashed. He should not have been charged.

“He should be free to make his debut on the first day of the season.”

The Verdict: Unnecessary decision

The fact that Richarlison is now a Tottenham player and has already left the club where the incident took place should be used as means for a new start, rather than the event being prolonged for no apparent reason.

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Paratici and co would have known that this could be a possible outcome before agreeing to sign the striker, but one small potential sanction was never going to be enough to put them off making their move, and rightly so.

The effect of this ban means that Richarlison will miss out on Spurs’ curtain-raiser at home to Southampton on the opening day of the season on August 6, but should come back into contention for the big fixture against rivals Chelsea the following matchday.

Sunderland are reportedly now ‘interested’ in signing Jack Rudoni, and have already made a bid for the AFC Wimbledon midfielder.

The Lowdown: Standout season

Rudoni enjoyed a standout season at Wimbledon, where he was voted as their Player of the Year (POTY).

Dubbed an ‘excellent‘ player by former Dons manager Mark Robinson, the six-foot-one maestro managed 12 goals and a further seven assists in total over all competitions (Transfermarkt), impressive numbers indeed from the middle of the park.

The Latest: Bid made

Taking to Twitter, South London Press journalist Richard Cawley has revealed that the Stadium of Light outfit are ‘interested’ in signing Rudoni, and have already made a bid for the Englishman:

“Biggest bid for Jack Rudoni in this window has been around £500k + add-ons. Sunderland and Huddersfield have both made bids. Bristol City and Blackpool are also interested.”

The Verdict: Get it done

Given the competition from a number of their Championship rivals for his signature, Rudoni is a deal that Alex Neil’s side simply need to get done as soon as possible.

Having come up against him in League One last campaign, they will already have an idea of how he can slot into the side, and his 19 goal contributions were more than any Black Cats midfielder managed.

Considering Rudoni was playing in a team that got relegated as well, it is further testament to how impressive the 21-year-old was.

Nonetheless, SAFC will not want this deal to drag on into the start of the new season, and so will want to get it wrapped up straight away.

Aston Villa correspondent Ashley Preece has made a claim regarding the club’s pending moves for Rangers forward Rory Wilson and Hearts midfielder Ewan Simpson.

The Lowdown: Wilson and Simpson deals

NSWE have already forked out just over £49m on four summer signings ahead of Steven Gerrard’s first full season in charge at Villa Park.

It now looks as if the club are looking to bolster their academy ranks, with sporting director Johan Lange closing in on moves for the aforementioned duo from the Scottish Premiership. Villa look set to pay Rangers £350,000 for Wilson, while midfielder Simpson is set to cost £250,000.

The Latest: Preece’s comments

Preece took to Twitter on Friday evening to say that there is ‘lots happening’ at Villa’s academy.

He revealed that there is ‘a lot of excitement’ regarding the pending moves for Wilson and Simpson, which are set to be announced next week.

The Verdict: Future stars?

Wilson netted 49 goals at youth level last season, while Simpson is widely regarded as a potential star in the making, so it’s no surprise to see excitement within Villa ahead of the moves that they lined up last year.

Wilson is 16 years of age and Simpson will turn 16 next month, so you’d expect that the pair will go straight into the club’s under-18s with a view to breaking into the under-23 setup over time.

We have seen recently with 18-year-old Tim Iroegbunam that academy additions can quickly break into Gerrard’s first-team plans, so these names could be one to keep a close eye upon over the coming years.

Tottenham Hotspur have been rather active in the transfer market since Antonio Conte was appointed as their manager last November.

During the January transfer window, the Lilywhites brought in Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur, both from Juventus.

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Despite it still only being early days in the current transfer window, the north London club have already secured deals for Ivan Perisic, Fraser Forster and Yves Bissouma.

Looking back over their recent Premier League campaign, one man who was undeniably a standout figure for Conte was Heung-min Son. In 35 top-flight appearances, the attacker found the net 23 times and delivered nine assists, earning himself a share of the Golden Boot.

Looking ahead to the rest of the summer transfer window, Fabio Paratici could follow up his already impressive work over the past few weeks by securing what could be Tottenham’s next version of their South Korean star.

Earlier this week, it was reported by The Athletic that Spurs are interested in signing Leeds United winger Raphinha.

In October 2020, the Yorkshire club struck a £17m deal with Ligue 1 club Rennes for the Brazilian. Since then, the 25-year-old has gone on to score 17 goals and deliver 12 assists in 67 appearances for the Whites.

With the same number of Premier League appearances to his name as Son last season, the Leeds star made more dribbles, delivered more crosses and took just one fewer shot at goal than the 29-year-old.

This highlights the attacking similarities between the two and shows why the Brazilian could be a great attacking asset for the north London club if he swaps Yorkshire for N17.

Described as a “magician” by fellow Leeds attacker Dan James, Raphinha has also had his attacking flair and tricks on the pitch labelled “disgusting” by an admiring Jermaine Beckford.

Despite having a reported price tag of at least £60m, this could be an investment worth making for Spurs, as the Elland Road star seems to have the ability to be another Son at Tottenham.

With the Lilywhites having the prospect of Champions League football under a hugely successful manager in Conte to use as persuading factors when it comes to signing players this summer, there’s every chance that this could sway the Brazilian to say goodbye to Leeds and start a new chapter of his career.

In other news: Sky Sports drop big behind-the-scenes transfer claim, it’s terrible news for Spurs

Aston Villa could well be best placed to land highly-rated Burnley defender Nathan Collins, according to journalist Paul Brown.

What’s the word?

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the transfer insider stated that the Midlands outfit could well be in pole position to land the 21-year-old, amid reports that they are one of a handful of Premier League sides keen to prise him from Turf Moor.

Brown stated: “I think he’s definitely a good option for teams with that profile, and I think that Villa will probably have the jump on them in terms of, if they wanted to get him, I think that they would have the best chance of doing so.

“Again, because of Steven Gerrard, but also just because of where the club are heading. So yeah, a really good player that is on the market.”

Recent reports have suggested that the Lancashire side could demand as much as £25m for the centre-back, despite having only bought him for £12m from Stoke City a year ago.

Imagine him and Carlos

Newly-appointed Burnley boss Vincent Kompany has been dealt something of a difficult hand with both Ben Mee and James Tarkowski on their way this summer, while the club’s recent relegation has left them vulnerable to losing additional prized assets, such as Collins, with circling sharks smelling blood at the financially struggling outfit.

As Brown alluded to, Villa could be well placed to capitalise on that uncertainty and land the Republic of Ireland international, with the youngster having caught the eye in his debut, top-flight campaign last term.

In 19 league outings, the £9m-rated gem averaged an impressive 4.3 clearances, 1.9 tackles and 1.3 interceptions per game, keeping five clean sheets and netting twice to ensure a positive season on a personal note, despite the collective failure.

Such form also sees him compare favourably to those in his position across Europe’s top five leagues, as ranks in the top 2% for blocks made and the top 3% for aerial duels won, while his presence as an attacking threat is also obvious as he ranks in the top 1% for touches in the attacking penalty area.

The £5.9k-per-week brute was also the subject of wider acclaim while on international duty in recent weeks, as he netted a remarkable, solo goal in the 1-1 draw with Ukraine, sparking praise from Villa legend and compatriot Paul McGrath, who dubbed him a “special player”.

That endorsement from “one of the all-time greats”- in the words of Jack Charlton – will no doubt pique the interest of those at Villa Park, with young Collins potentially the man to slot in alongside recent signing Diego Carlos, to form what is a much-needed, settled defensive pairing.

Last term saw manager Steven Gerrard fail to settle on a regular centre-back partnership, with the underwhelming form of both Tyron Mings and Ezri Konsa sparking suggestions that they could be moved on this summer.

In their place, a powerful defensive axis of Collins and Carlos could well thrive, with the latter man having been praised for his “no-nonsense” approach by pundit Kevin Campbell.

With the Villans having shipped 54 top-flight goals in the 2021-22 campaign – the tenth-worst record in the division – a total revamp could well be needed to spark a drastic improvement next term, with the two men mentioned above undoubtedly a fearsome prospect for any forward.

IN other news, AVFC face battle to land “aggressive” £60m machine, he’s one of the “best” in his role

A Sky Sports journalist has shared some ‘confirmed’ Nottingham Forest transfer news regarding Manchester United goalkeeper Dean Henderson live on TV.

The Lowdown: Henderson profiled

The shot-stopper is an academy graduate of the Red Devils having joined the Premier League giants at the age of just 14, where after multiple loan spells with the likes of Shrewsbury and Sheffield United, he eventually made his first-team debut in a Carabao Cup fixture against Luton Town back in 2020.

And even though the 25-year-old has plenty of valuable experience under his belt, his lack of game time at Old Trafford this season, having made zero top-flight appearances, has resulted in him being linked with a move away from ten Hag’s side.

Following a fresh update, it appears as though Steve Cooper is eyeing up a move for the man between the sticks.

The Latest: Sky Sports News update

Sharing a live TV update on Forest’s interest in Henderson, Sky Sports News’ Dharmesh Sheth revealed that ‘a couple of sources have confirmed to me’ that the club are now ‘pushing’ to sign the Whitehaven-born talent.

The journalist insisted that a potential move would ‘make a lot of sense for all parties’ after suggesting that Brice Samba ‘doesn’t look like he wants to sign a new contract’.

The Verdict: Samba replacement

With it sounding highly unlikely that Samba will be playing at the City Ground next season, Henderson would be the perfect replacement to take over his gloves and claim that number one jersey.

Even though the keeper has only recorded 29 senior outings for United over the years, he’s managed to keep 13 clean sheets during that time, as per Transfermarkt, and will need to make the move elsewhere to get regular first-team football if he wants any chance of getting into Gareth Southgate’s England World Cup squad later this year.

This is something that he would definitely receive at Forest if Samba were to depart, and having shone on loan at Bramall Lane – his teammates called him ‘insane’ and ‘exceptional’ – Henderson surely has what it takes to step into the play-off hero’s shoes.

In other news… a reliable journalist has dropped a huge Forest update on the future of James Garner.

A big update has emerged on Newcastle United and their interest in Kristjan Asllani heading into the summer transfer window…

What’s the talk?

TV Dello Sport reporter Alfredo Pedulla has claimed that the Magpies have made an enquiry to Empoli in an attempt to snap the midfielder up.

The player would prefer to remain in the Serie A and Milan are said to be waiting in the wings and this leaves the Toon with plenty of work to do to get a deal over the line.

Pedulla Tweeted: “Asllani would like to stay in Italia, but Newcastle asked for a meeting. Milanese waiting.”

Eddie Howe will be excited

The Newcastle head coach will be excited by this update as Asllani would be an excellent prospect to add to the group next season.

He is not a big-name player who will come in and be expected to perform week-in-week-out, but he can be a useful squad member in the short term to develop into a key performer.

Asllani is a promising young player who has shown that he has the potential to be a big player in the future. At the age of 20, he has already racked up 23 Serie A appearances for Empoli and averaged a solid SofaScore rating of 6.76, starting 14 games.

The Albanian midfielder ended the campaign with one goal and one assist to his name, creating two ‘big chances’ as he showed flashes of creativity. He also proved that he is reliable in possession as he completed 93% of his passes in his own half and 84% overall.

Off the ball, he held his own as he won 53% of his individual duels and made 1.6 tackles and interceptions per game in the Serie A. Whilst these are not outstanding statistics, Asllani has given himself a solid base to work on moving forward after his first professional season.

Given his age, he enjoyed an impressive debut campaign and that is why he can be an exciting addition to Newcastle’s squad as he is a player with the potential to get better.

He can be a rotation option initially and learn from the likes of Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton whilst adapting to the Premier League.

Howe will surely be excited to work with him on the training pitch to help him fulfil his potential and that is why he will be buzzing with the club’s efforts to bring the youngster to Tyneside.

AND in other news, Howe can axe £25m NUFC flop by signing “frightening” £94m predator who’s “the future”…

Malik Ouzia of The Evening Standard has now shared an exciting West Ham United transfer update as manager David Moyes edges closer to a signing.

The Lowdown: Moyes eyeing moves…

The Scotsman, after just missing out on a 2022/2023 Europa League place, has set his sights on improving West Ham’s squad as he steps up talks.

Having already announced four departures, the Premier League side could be on for a real overhaul this summer window as the Irons reportedly chase a left-back, central midfielder and striker (The Evening Standard).

They’re also tipped to strengthen in other areas as they eye a permanent deal for loanee shot stopper Alphonse Areola, all while having their eyes on a central defensive addition in Rennes star Nayef Aguerd.

The Latest: Hammers closing in…

According to Ouzia, writing on Twitter, the Irons are now ‘confident’ of sealing a deal for the Morocco international as a ‘key priority’ for Moyes.

He explained:

“West Ham confident of sealing €15m deal for Nayef Aguerd of Rennes. Highly-rated in France, left-sided centre-back a key priority for Moyes this summer.”

The Verdict: Exciting…

The 26-year-old has been a phenomenal player in Ligue 1 for Rennes over the last season, being described as one of the division’s best in his position and a real bargain.

According to WhoScored, he ranks in Rennes’ top ten for most minutes played over 2021/2022 whilst averaging more clearances per 90 than any of his teammates – backing his obvious ability.

€15 million (£13m) is certainly an absolute snip for a player of Aguerd’s age and class defensively.

In other news: West Ham talks imminent as Moyes steps up chase to sign 6 foot 4 powerhouse, find out more here.

Hearts are keen on making midfielder Ben Woodburn’s loan move from Liverpool a permanent one this summer.

The Lowdown: Productive loan spell

The Welshman joined the Scottish Premiership side on a temporary basis last summer and enjoyed a fruitful campaign away from Anfield.

Woodburn scored three goals and registered one assist in 24 league appearances, also winning one Match of the Match award from WhoScored.

It appears as though Woodburn is surplus to requirements at Liverpool, and with his contract expiring this month, he could well leave the club for good.

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The Latest: Hearts want permanent deal

According to The Scotsman, Hearts manager Robbie Neilsen wants to sign the 22-year-old permanently this summer.

It is also claimed that Woodburn is ‘open’ to the idea of joining the Scottish outfit for good, having enjoyed his time there to date.

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The Verdict: Right time to leave

Woodburn is a talented young player who once threatened to be a future superstar, having become Liverpool’s youngest goalscorer of all time back in 2016.

He has been hailed as a ‘perfect’ talent by Jurgen Klopp, but despite this, now feels like the logical time for him to move on and join a new permanent club.

Woodburn is clearly no part of Liverpool’s future plans, given the number of loan spells he has had, but there is no shame in not making the grade for such a great team.

In other news, Fabrizio Romano has made a key Liverpool claim. Read more here.