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According to recent reports from Portugal, West Ham United have made an approach for FC Porto centre-forward, Moussa Marega.

The report by Portuguese newspaper A Bola (via Sport Witness) claims that both West Ham and Crystal Palace have ‘been in touch’ for Marega, whose contract at Porto expires this summer.

However, it is then stated that Fenerbahce appear to be leading the race for the 29-year-old, who has scored 11 goals and registered five assists over his 37 appearances in all competitions for Sergio Conceicao’s side so far this season.

Transfer Tavern Take

With the £12.6 million-rated Marega having highly impressed over his five-year spell with the Dragons, bagging 71 goals and providing 33 assists over his 182 appearances for the club, it is not overly surprising to hear that West Ham hold an interest in the striker.

Indeed, the east London side are in need of backup for Michail Antonio this summer, as, following the January sale of Sebastien Haller, the 30-year-old is David Moyes’ only option as an out and out centre-forward at present.

Furthermore, with the Mali international being available on a free transfer come the end of the season, perhaps Marega could be viewed as a cost-effective and experienced addition to Moyes’ attacking arsenal at West Ham.

In other news: West Ham are preparing a summer offer for this 16-goal £13k p/w Moyes target – find out more here!

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has provided an update on the long-term injuries to Thomas Partey and Jurrien Timber.

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• Arteta gives updates on Partey and Timber
• Timber could return before end of season
• Partey could return very soon for Gunners

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  Timber may recover from an ACL injury before the season ends, Arteta has acknowledged. The Dutch international, who joined from Ajax in the summer, won numerous accolades for his preseason exploits. Sadly, he hasn't played since suffering a knee injury in the first Premier League match of the season against Nottingham Forest.

  As for Partey, Arteta has hinted that the midfielder could make his return to action against Newcastle on Saturday evening. The midfielder has made only four appearances in the Premier League this season having suffered with a number of problems.

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• WHAT ARTETA SAID

  Talking during his press conference, Arteta said [via football.london]: "Will Timber be able to return before the end of the season? I really hope so. He’s doing really well. He’s been with some players on the pitch. He’s going to start to do some bits with us on the pitch in the next week or so. Then we’ll have to see how he’s doing, his confidence level, his fitness level. Hopefully, the answer will be yes.

  "Will Partey return this week? Let’s see. We have another session today. He’s been out for many, many months now. We need to really nail the timing of when he has enough in the tank to compete. But I think he’s very close."

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Timber has been making progress and made his first steps back out onto the grass during the mid-season training camp in Dubai. Since then, the 22-year-old has intensified his recuperation. As for Partey, his absence has become far too common an occurrence for the Gunners but due to Declan Rice and Jorginho's addition over the last 18 months, Partey's importance in the squad has deteriorated.

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• WHAT NEXT FOR ARSENAL?

  The Gunners will continue their battle for the title when they take on Newcastle United on Saturday, February 24. They will look to hit the ground running as they look to get over their Champions League loss to Porto earlier.

USMNT boss Gregg Berhalter has admitted to fans that he realizes he is an "easy target" for critics when it comes to national team performances.

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• Berhalter speaks at fan Round Table
• Admits he's "easy target" for critics
• Asks for "patience" ahead of major tournaments

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  In a fan round tabke in Washington D.C. with American Outlaw supporters, Berhalter addressed some of the criticism that has been handed his way since taking over in 2019. Recently, the USMNT has lost three of their last five games – and now, heading into two major tournaments in 2024, that criticism has resurfaced.

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  WHAT BERHALTER SAID

  When asked about the dubbed "lack of progress" the USMNT has made by a fan, Berhalter responded by countering with an opposite take, sharing the accolades that they have obtained during his tenure.

  “It’s about patience,” he said. “We’re achieving things. We’ve won two Nations Leagues and have one left… We won a Gold Cup. We went to the second round of the World Cup. We got five points, two shutouts in the last World Cup, and there’s been a lot of progress. So it’s not just like, patience without progress. We’re making progress. The other thing I think people really forget is how young we were at the World Cup. I think it just gets ignored sometimes.”

  The USMNT boss, did however, relay that he understands why critics target him and why his name is so often in the headlines – even when he's not related to the subject.

  “The national team job is such an easy target,” he said. “I mean, that’s the thing about it — there’s one national team coach, right? It’s easy to target that person or that program, so it’s part of the job. I always say that there’s no pressure that can be added from the outside that we don’t already put on ourselves. That’s the entire team — players, coaches, everyone.”

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  The USMNT boss, per the World Football ELO Rating System, has struggled against top sides in matches while in control of the USMNT. Per that metric, Berhalter has not beaten a top-25 ranked world soccer side since taking over in 2019, and in 14 matches against European or South American opposition, they've only claimed victory three times: against Ecuador, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Northern Ireland.

  Despite the ELO report, the USSF trusts that Berhalter is the man to lead the USMNT into the 2024 Copa America – and eventually, the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR BERHALTER AND THE USMNT?

  The semifinals of the CONCACAF Nations League take center-stage this March, with the USMNT taking on Jamaica for a berth in the finals. The USA are looking to win their third-straight Nations League title. After, Berhalter's side will prepare for the Copa America 2024 with a blockbuster friendly against Colombia.

Andre Onana has brutally been told that his weaknesses are his “abilities as a goalkeeper” following an poor start to life at Manchester United.

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• Cameroonian signed for big money from Inter
• Yet to convinced in English football
• Talk of Spanish star being brought back

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Cameroon international was acquired by the Red Devils in the summer transfer window when a £48 million ($60m) deal with Serie A giants Inter was pushed through. Onana was considered to be the perfect choice to succeed long-serving David de Gea between the sticks at Old Trafford.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  While his ball-playing ability has never been in doubt, questions are being asked of Onana’s struggles to keep opposition shots out of the back of his net. A number of costly mistakes have been made, leading some to suggest that Spanish shot-stopper De Gea could be invited back to Manchester as a free agent.

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  WHAT THEY SAID

  Former United defender Paul Parker, who won two Premier League titles during his time with the Red Devils, is not a fan of Onana and has told of how the 27-year-old is falling well short of expectations: “Andre Onana´s weaknesses have to be his abilities as a goalkeeper, especially his ability to save the balls, his shot stopper abilities and his handling. He is erratic and he is never in control of his saves, it bounces off him. I hope it will be a David De Gea story, where he all of a sudden he gets to understand English football. Everyone keeps telling me how great he was for Inter Milan but I just can't see it. Italian football is not as intense as English football and he is challenged a lot more now than he was in Italy.”

  Parker added: “David De Gea was a goalkeeper you could rely on and Onana is not that. David De Gea´s mind was right, and I´m wondering if he will ever perform well for Man United. His strengths… What are his strengths actually? I don´t know. It has to be that he is actually decently confident on the ball but he is still miles away from Ederson or Allison, even though everyone expected him to be on that level with his feet. He is definitely struggling both mentally and physically, way more than he did in Italy.”

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• DID YOU KNOW?

  Amid the talk of De Gea potentially being offered a route back to Old Trafford, Parker said of United’s former No.1 – who is a four-time Player of the Year award winner at the Theatre of Dreams: “People were very cynical and disrespectful to David De Gea because he was better at saving balls than playing as an outfield player, but we have to say that Onana is not that good with his feet. He might be above average and it tells me a lot if people were highlighting his abilities with his feet if he is not better than what he has shown so far. I think everyone can see that Onana has a poor back four in front of him, but De Gea had that as well and he did what he did and Onana has never been close to doing that.”

Paul Pogba “only thinks” about returning to competitive action and “trains all the time” during his ban at Juventus, says the Frenchman’s agent.

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• France international unable to play at present
• Waiting on outcome of sporting trial
• Hoping to get his career back on track

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The World Cup-winning midfielder is currently serving a suspension after failing a drugs test. Pogba initially posted elevated levels of testosterone following a Serie A game with Udinese on August 20. The B sample provided during that test also came back positive for the testosterone-boosting hormone DHEA.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Pogba’s ban in Turin has been extended indefinitely, with it possible that his contract could be terminated if he is found guilty of doping offenses at a sporting trial. The 30-year-old is still fighting his corner and hopes to return to action in the not too distant future.

• WHAT THEY SAID

  Pogba’s representative, Rafaela Pimenta, has told of plans for her client: “We see the future one day after the other. We are doing everything we must to try to explain what is happening with Paul. But this explanation has to happen in front of a judge. I think that to enable a judge to have independence and to reach his conclusions as he has to reach, we cannot influence him with public comments. We have our arguments, very serious and very important, and I have to offer the judge to endorse these arguments without trying to influence him. We are doing everything we have to do. Those who know Paul know what has happened. They know that Paul is an honest, correct person and that he always does things with integrity. He is living it with confidence and professionalism. He trains all the time and only thinks about getting through these difficult moments to come back.”

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• WHAT NEXT?

  Pressed on whether Pogba could be cleared to resume his career immediately once his case has been heard, Pimenta added: “We are working for this. I have confidence in the system. I have the tendency to trust until proven otherwise. I only have signs that it is a system that works. I hope you can understand our position.” The France international is tied to a contract at Juventus through to 2026.

West Brom have had a poor record when it comes to finding strikers to lead their line.

In recent seasons alone, we’ve seen the likes of Kenneth Zohore and Charlie Austin come and go, almost in a flash, but it could have been all so different had they kept hold of Kemar Roofe.

The 28-year-old has thrived since the Hawthorns hierarchy – at the time, Jeremy Peace was chairman – sanctioned his permanent exit to Oxford United for an undisclosed fee.

At the time, he was only 23 and had shown glimpses with six goals in 16 starts, but within three weeks of the 2014/15 season finishing, Roofe was sold to the League Two club for what was surely a minimal fee.

He has since blossomed into a hugely prolific goalscorer, making that decision to let him go look sillier with each passing season.

Roofe has since scored a whopping 77 goals across spells at Leeds United, Anderlecht and SPFL front-runners Rangers in the subsequent six seasons following his permanent departure – that’s an average of 12 goals per season…

Where is Roofe now?

The Walsall-born frontman is loving life at Ibrox this term, scoring 12 times across the SPFL and Europa League.

As mentioned above, that same number is his average per season, so he’s on track to bypass that easily – and more damningly, this level of return is something that Albion has not seen in several seasons.

On their way to promotion from the Championship last term, only Austin (ten) and Hal Robson-Kane (ten) could hit double figures.

The 2018/19 campaign was an anomaly, with Dwight Gayle and Jay Rodriguez both surpassed 20 for the season – neither remained at the club.

Whilst between 2015/16 and their relegation season (2017/18), no Baggies player managed to reach nine or more goals, so evidently, there’s been a long-standing trend at the Hawthorns.

Perhaps, Tony Pulis – West Brom manager at the time – should’ve considered the future a bit more whilst in charge, just maybe Roofe would have benefitted from another loan spell and just maybe, the Midlands outfit would have benefited from his own ability, or at the very least, more money.

Leeds United eventually sold the Baggies youth product to Belgian giants Anderlecht for £7m, which should have Albion reeling even more than they already should be.

It was one calamitous and short-sighted decision to offload him and one they are still paying for now.

AND in other news, West Brom could find their next Jason Koumas in 19 y/o “real talent”…

Liverpool recorded a potentially pivotal victory over Burnley at Turf Moor on Wednesday evening, elevating themselves into a Champions League qualification spot for the first time since February.

The hosts made a fast start in midweek, with Sean Dyche’s men harassing the Reds through some intelligent pressing and strong, physical challenges.

Chris Wood could have put the Clarets ahead when he was bearing down on Alisson Becker’s net but shot wide of the mark to let Liverpool off the hook.

The 2019/20 Premier League champions took full advantage of Burnley’s poor finishing, slowly asserting themselves upon proceedings and taking control of the game after Bobby Firmino calmy slotted Andy Robertson’s cut-back into the corner of Will Norris’ net.

Further efforts from Nat Phillips and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain made the three points secure for Liverpool, but there was one man who let Klopp down on one of the biggest occasions this season.

As per SofaScore, Mohamed Salah received a rating of just 6.3/10, the lowest out of all the Liverpool players, and a staggeringly low rating given the outcome of the game.

The Eygpt international won just two of his eight duels against his physically imposing opponents and, almost unbelievably, had only 46 touches throughout the 90 minutes, eight fewer than the 54 goalkeeper Alisson Becker had.

It was a night where Klopp would have wanted his big star to step up, but he failed to deliver. Thankfully, a few of the Reds’ lesser-heralded players were able to rise to the occasion.

It’s hard to be too critical on the 28-year-old forward, though. The Anfield outfit have seriously struggled for large periods of the current campaign, with attacking duo Sadio Mane and Firmino both suffering from a serious drop-off in form.

However, Salah has managed to maintain his incredible goalscoring record in spite of the difficulties surrounding his campaign, bagging an astonishing 31 goals and providing five assists in 50 appearances for the Reds.

Liverpool fans will be hoping his below-par performance in midweek was a one-off then as their top-four hopes go down to the final day with a clash against Crystal Palace set to determine their European fate.

And, in other news…Asking price set: Edwards must act to sign Reds target with a pass accuracy of 87.1% – opinion

Following a number of remarkable performances for Elliott Dickman’s Sunderland under-23 side this season, Lee Johnson must unleash Josh Hawkes in the Black Cats’ upcoming play-off semi-final clash against Lincoln.

After impressing during his time at Hartlepool United, scoring 13 goals and providing one assist over 63 appearances for the National League side, Hawkes made the move to the Stadium of Light on a free transfer in September 2020.

While the 22-year-old has found first team game-time hard to come by under Lee Johnson, making just one appearance for the Black Cats’ senior side during his time on Wearside thus far, the attacking midfielder has nevertheless displayed his capabilities for the club’s under-23s.

Over his 20 Premier League 2 fixtures for the Sunderland under-23s, Hawkes has scored a whopping 13 goals – the joint-most in the competition alongside Aston Villa’s Louie Barry – and has registered six assists, with the youngster’s goals often being game-changing, as well as firing the youth side to the play-offs.

Indeed, the performances of the 22-year-old have not gone unnoticed by Johnson or Kristjaan Speakman, the latter of whom has spoken openly regarding the potential of Hawkes making the step up to first team football in an interview with the SAFC Unfiltered podcast (via Sunderland Echo).

He said: “Josh’s performances with goals and assists has been really, really good. He’s right up there in both charts. A player at his age now, he needs to be able to come into the first-team environment. He’s trained an awful lot with the first team.

“He’s not quite managed to squeeze himself onto the starting XI, which speaks probably more about the quality in the team than to say Josh has fallen short. Myself and Lee are watching almost all the games, Josh has performed really really well and he’ll be in the first-team squad for pre-season.

“Naturally there’s going to be a reshuffle of the squad in the summer and pre-season provides those players with a great opportunity to get involved in the games and perform. That’s the next step he needs to take.”

Despite Speakman’s outlook for next season, considering just how impressive Hawkes has been for the development side, the argument could easily be made that the midfielder should at least be included on the bench for the club’s upcoming play-off semi-final clash with Lincoln City. The 22-year-old has proven that he is a game-changer, while his pace and fitness which comes with youth, coupled with an obvious eye for goal, could make all the difference for the Black Cats as they chase a return to the Championship.

Indeed, there would appear to be nothing to lose for Johnson in sticking the 22-year-old – whom the Sunderland manager himself dubbed an “exciting” player – on the bench for the showdown against  the Imps, while the reward could well be monumental for the club.

In other news: Sunderland handed huge boost ahead of play-off semi-finals, Johnson will be buzzing – opinion

West Ham are leading the race to sign Sam Johnstone this summer, according to emerging reports…

What’s the word?

That’s according to ESPN, who claim that the Irons are the front-runners to land the coveted West Brom goalkeeper due to manager David Moyes previously working with the 28-year-old at Manchester United.

The Red Devils are also said to be interested in bringing him back to the club. with David de Gea’s future in doubt, whilst Spurs are thought to be admirers, too.

Albion are said to value their no.1 shot-stopper at around £18m after an impressive season between the sticks for the Midlands strugglers.

An eye on the future?

It wouldn’t be the biggest surprise to see Moyes sign a new gloveman in the summer as by the time the new season swings around, first-choice goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski will be 36 and his backup, Darren Randolph, will be 34.

Despite his side possessing the worst defensive record in the Premier League, Johnstone has actually been a commanding presence in goal for the Baggies and without him, they’d probably be officially relegated already. At 6 foot 4, he has proven to be one of the division’s best shot-stoppers – hardly a surprise given they face so many attempts each game.

As per FBRef, the £32.5k-per-week Hawthorns star makes 4.27 saves per 90 minutes, the most in the Premier League. And his success-rate of 71.2% ranks slightly ahead of Moyes’ current no.1 (68.5%).

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Johnstone has earned high praise throughout the campaign, as a result of his fine performances.

“He’s one of the best [goalkeepers],” explained manager Sam Allardyce to talkSPORT. Whilst Glenn Hoddle told the Evening Standard: “I have seen him four times this year and he has been outstanding.”

He has kept some big names at bay with his imposing stature between the sticks, too – mooted Irons target Danny Ings couldn’t score past him despite two shots, and in that game, Johnstone rated as SofaScore’s top player and similarly, not even Edinson Cavani could find the net either, with the shot-stopper among Albion’s best-performers again.

Recently he was called up to Gareth Southgate’s England squad but did not feature on the pitch, though that is an encouraging sign for him ahead of this summer’s European Championships.

Also lauded as a “diamond” to work with by Steve Bruce, Johnstone would be an interesting candidate to push Fabianski and become Moyes’ next first-choice.

It’s a move that former Hammers man Frank McAvennie would like to see happen too. Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast this week, he said: “I think it would be really good business,” before adding: “It’s right up West Ham’s street.”

GSB, Moyes and the club should absolutely seal a swoop for Johnstone this summer. At £18m, it could prove to be a steal.

AND in other news, West Ham could find perfect Rice replacement in “exceptional” £30m-rated beast…

In an exclusive interview with The Transfer Tavern, Steve Howey, who made 100 appearances for Manchester City, has claimed that on-loan winger Jack Harrison will want to sign for Leeds permanently.

Harrison is currently on his third successive loan spell with Leeds and after helping them win the Championship title last year, he has been handed his first chance in the Premier League despite signing with Man City in 2018.

The £15,000 per week winger has made 124 appearances under Marcelo Bielsa and it has been reported that Leeds will eventually make his move a permanent one this summer.

Speaking on how much he has been impressed by Harrison this season and if the player will want to stay at Leeds, Howey told The Transfer Tavern:

“He has impressed me because he’s proved himself and he wasn’t going to get an opportunity at City, but he’s been given a chance at Leeds and fair play to him because he’s done brilliantly.

“He’ll be delighted to sign permanently because he’s been there a couple of seasons and now he’s had that first taste of the Premier League he’ll want more, and not only that but playing week in week out helps massively.”

Leeds have impressed going forward this season with their regular front three of Harrison, Raphinha and Patrick Bamford combining to score almost 30 goals.

Before his first loan move to Leeds, Harrison had a spell at Middlesbrough in the Championship but he failed to impress while on Teeside as he managed just four appearances.