Arsenal have “held talks” to sign Southampton starlet Romeo Lavia, reports 90min journalist Graeme Bailey.

Which players are Arsenal signing in 2023?

The Gunners have been on fire in the transfer market so far this summer, splashing the cash to ensure their incredible 2022/23 season under Mikel Arteta is no flash in the pan.

The north Londoners have already announced the signing of Kai Havertz from Chelsea – a sure sign of the power shift in the capital – and deals for Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber are thought to be all but done.

Arteta and Edu’s work won’t finish there however, due to the fact that they are also set to lose some key players from the team that performed so well last term. Granit Xhaka has left the club to join Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen while Thomas Partey is also thought to be likely to leave, so the addition of Rice may need to be accompanied by another new arrival in the centre of the park.

And that’s where Lavia could come in, with the Southampton youngster expected to depart after the Saints’ relegation from the Premier League. The 19 year-old is one of several midfield targets to be linked – the likes of Moises Caicedo and even Real Madrid’s Aurélien Tchouaméni have been mentioned – but the Belgium international appears to be the most advanced.

Are Arsenal signing Romeo Lavia?

Indeed, the Gunners have actually “held talks” to sign the former Manchester City starlet, reports Bailey, but they aren’t alone as Chelsea and Liverpool have also made the same steps.

Manchester City, Manchester United and Newcastle are also keeping an eye on the situation, with the teenager “emerging as one of this summer's most in-demand players”. Saints apparently expect to recoup £50m to sell their prized asset.

It’s hard to imagine Lavia coming in and starting week in week out for the Gunners – he is outperformed by Rice in all but three of FBRef’s key metrics for defensive midfielders – but he would be an excellent option to have in the building depending on the opposition, especially with tricky European ties on the way.

The three areas he actually betters Rice in are tackles, blocks and successful take-ons, painting the picture of a player who is excellent at shielding the back four, breaking up play and then weaving out of tight situations to retain possession once he has taken it.

With Rice sure to be striding forward and aiding the more attack-minded players in the XI, having a pure number six behind the England international in certain games would allow him to focus more on those attacking phases of play, and Lavia looks the perfect candidate.

You don’t need to look far to find plaudits for the tough-tackling ace either, with Pep Guardiola saying this earlier this year: “We had, and we have, an incredible opinion about him. We thought to keep him, but maybe he would not (get) enough minutes like he has in Southampton.”

Many pundits and fans alike have pointed out the similarities between the way Arteta’s team operates and Pep’s City, so it is no surprise to see the boss looking to recruit a player valued so highly by his former mentor, and the interest from various big six rivals shows exactly how Lavia is seen by those around the game.

The three-member Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman meets in Mumbai on Monday to scrutinise candidates for the high-profile job of India’s coach. Former team director Ravi Shastri has emerged as the frontrunner.The BCCI received 10 applications – from Shastri, Virender Sehwag, Tom Moody, Richard Pybus, Dodda Ganesh, Lalchand Rajput, Lance Klusener, Rakesh Sharma (Oman national team coach), Phil Simmons and Upendranath Bramhachari (engineer with no cricketing background). It is learnt that the CAC will interview six of these 10 candidates. As per sources, the six likely candidates are Shastri, Sehwag, Moody, Simmons, Pybus and Rajput.The position for the coach had fallen vacant after Anil Kumble resigned from the post before the West Indies tour due to what seemed like differences in the dressing room.Shastri had initially not applied for the post but when the BCCI extended the deadline to accept applications till July 9, the former India captain jumped into the fray and suddenly became the hot favourite. Given his cordial equation with captain Virat Kohli, Shastri, who had a successful tenure as team director with India reaching the 2015 World Cup semi-final, is the favourite.

South Africa wrapped up England’s innings midway through the afternoon session on the fourth day, leaving themselves a target of 331 to win the first Test

The Report by Alan Gardner09-Jul-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:15

‘Moeen at his best when he is aggressive’ – Root

Do you remember the first time? Joe Root certainly will after England swept South Africa aside to mark his captaincy debut with a crushing victory as 19 wickets fell in a day at Lord’s. Moeen Ali, taking full licence of the attacking brief given to him by Root, ran through a mesmerised South Africa batting order to claim 6 for 53 on the way to a maiden ten-wicket haul in Tests.Having been set 331 to win the first Test, with almost 150 overs in which to get them, South Africa were unable to even take the match into a fifth day. With the pitch offering appreciable assistance for the spin of Moeen and Liam Dawson, they subsided to 119 all out in 36.4 overs, with Temba Bavuma’s 41-ball 21 providing the most prolonged resistance. Faf du Plessis, looking on from the balcony having returned to lead the team at Trent Bridge next week, was left with much to ponder.

England unchanged for Trent Bridge

England have named an unchanged squad for Friday’s second Test against South Africa at Trent Bridge, in the wake of their 211-run victory at Lord’s.
“I didn’t know what to expect but what was pleasing was everything I asked of the lads they were very open to do and responded to it,” Joe Root, England’s captain, said.
“I wanted us to be proactive, to stay ahead of the game and when there was an opportunity, to take responsibility. Everyone at certain points did that and it can’t be a bad thing moving forward.”
Squad Joe Root (capt), Alastair Cook, Keaton Jennings, Gary Ballance, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Liam Dawson, Stuart Broad, Mark Wood, James Anderson, Toby Roland-Jones.

South Africa were in trouble early in their innings, going to tea on 25 for 3, with Hashim Amla and Quinton de Kock their main hope of giving Root and England a fright. Only once had a team chased as many in the fourth innings to win a Lord’s Test, though Root may have recalled for a moment the occasion when he filled in as Yorkshire captain in 2014 and saw Middlesex ease to a target of 472 three wickets down on this ground.That gained him the nickname “craptain” in the Yorkshire dressing room, but it looks like England will have to come up with something more generous. In truth, Root did not have to resort to much in the way of tactical genius, as his two spinners bowled in tandem for 24 overs to finish off South Africa with time to spare on another sun-drenched evening in north London. South Africa had not lost a Test at Lord’s since 1960 but they broke that record in style.It meant their fightback during the first half of the day, when they claimed England’s last nine wickets for the addition of 114 runs became a distant memory. It could have been better still but Jonny Bairstow, who scored a vital half-century, was dropped on 7 as South Africa replicated the mistakes that were so costly to their chances in the first innings.After James Anderson had made the initial breakthrough, Heino Kuhn removed via a fine, diving catch from Bairstow down the leg side, Moeen picked up his first wicket when he brilliantly held a reflex return catch off Dean Elgar. South Africa’s stand-in captain must have feared the worst at that moment, and their fortunes sunk further when JP Duminy pulled Mark Wood straight to midwicket on the brink of tea.Moeen Ali celebrates his five-wicket haul as South Africa are rolled aside at Lord’s•Getty Images

The selection of Dawson, who made a pair with the bat, was not widely lauded beforehand but he delivered for Root when he plucked out the key wicket of Amla shortly after the interval. Moeen’s first four overs were maidens, bottling up South Africa from the Nursery End, and Dawson then produced a ripping delivery that pitched on middle and leg, spun past the groping bat and hit the back leg in front of off; Amla reviewed but in vain.De Kock and Bavuma dug in for more than 10 overs, lifting the score from 28 for 4 with a 36-run stand, but an increasingly confident England had Mo-mentum on their side. When de Kock tried to relieve some of the pressure by pulling, he only succeeded in dragging the ball into his front leg, from where it fizzed back into his stumps.Bavuma also fell trying to force an attacking shot to break England’s chokehold, a precise delivery hitting the top of off, and Moeen then had Theunis de Bruyn caught at slip and Keshav Maharaj bowled off an inside edge to record his maiden Test ten-for. Having contributed 87 to the first-innings total of 458, he became the first England player to score a fifty and take ten wickets in a Test since Ian Botham in 1980.Botham-like heroics will help keep most Test captains feeling chipper and, following his first-innings 190, Root could reflect on a perfect start to his tenure. It had been a slightly bumpier beginning to the day, however, as England lost nine wickets in 36.1 overs – though the consolation for Root was that the procession of batsmen returning to join him in the dressing room could attest to the increasing difficulty of the pitch.Bairstow was last man out, stumped off Maharaj, the spinner’s four-wicket haul a harbinger of what was to come. At lunch, England’s lead had been 279 but Bairstow and Wood scraped together valuable extra runs during a brisk ninth-wicket stand of 45. Apart from Alastair Cook and Gary Ballance, who added 10 and 11 respectively to their overnight scores, no other England batsmen managed to get into double-figures on the day.Maharaj might have removed Bairstow right at the start of his innings, only for Vernon Philander, who was fit to bowl after injuring his hand batting on the third day, to drop a simple catch at long-off. Maharaj claimed three of the seven wickets to fall in the first session, amid increasing signs of the pitch breaking up. The dismissal of Cook for 69, caught at cover attempting to lift the scoring, precipitated an England collapse of 4 for 10 in 39 balls – which would have been 5 for 19 had Bairstow’s offering been held.The evidence of the first over of the morning was that the Lord’s baize was by now a little rumpled. At least two deliveries from Philander kept low before the last jumped to hit Ballance on the glove. When Maharaj came into the attack shortly before the hour mark, the first ball of his second over went directly to slip out of the rough; the same over concluded with Root being bowled by one that didn’t turn.Cook and Ballance picked up initially in much the same mood as they guided England to the close on the third evening, a couple of tugboats towing their barge along the Thames. They had added a boundary apiece, taking their partnership to 59, before Cook suddenly weighed anchor and drove aerially into the covers, where Bavuma snaffled a sharp, diving catch.Morne Morkel continued his impressive Test by having Ballance caught behind with another exacting delivery that straightened from round the wicket and England slide’s continued with the dismissal of Root for 5 in the following over. Having seen Maharaj spin the ball sharply, Root swept a boundary but was then caught playing back and got an inside-edge on to his stumps.Ben Stokes did not have much time for reconnaissance, pinned lbw for 1 by a delivery that shot through low from Rabada. Stokes started walking as soon as it hit him, while Rabada – suspended for the next Test due to his outburst after dismissing Stokes in the first innings – kept his counsel. That left England 149 for 5 and it ought to have been 158 for 6 when Bairstow lofted Maharaj towards Philander, only for the fielder to drop it on to the rope. He gestured towards the skies, seeming to suggest that Spidercam had distracted him – but little could excuse the scale of South Africa’s defeat.

Joe Denly and Daniel Bell-Drummond took Essex’s attack for 207 to leave Kent scenting a quarter-final place courtesy of a last-night victory

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Aug-2017Joe Denly shared a record opening stand•Getty Images

Kent’s opening pair of Joe Denly and Daniel Bell-Drummond compiled a world-record T20 opening partnership of 207 on a night when records tumbled and Kent moved closer to qualifying for the NatWest Blast knockout stages.Denly led the carnage with 127 from 66 balls, including 11 fours and seven sixes, beating his own Kent record score of 116. The stand with Bell-Drummond, who was unbeaten at the end on 80, was the third highest for any wicket in the history of the competition.It also beat the 163, a Kent record for any wicket at the time, the same two batsmen put on earlier in the season against Surrey at the Oval.However, they were run close by Essex, for whom Varun Chopra hit a career-best T20 114, his second of the season. His 58-ball innings included nine sixes and six fours. When he was out in the 18th over, Essex were 29 runs short with two overs to go, and they finished 11 runs adrift.Kent now know that a third victory in a row on Friday night against Surrey at Canterbury will take them through to the last eight. Essex also require a win at Hove against Sussex to stand any chance of making the top four in the ultra-tight south group.For Essex, only Mohammad Amir, who finally removed Denly in the penultimate over, returned decent bowling figures – his four overs cost a comparatively parsimonious 20. Of Essex’s seven bowlers, only Ravi Bopara went for less than 10 an over. Calum Haggett conceded just 18 in his four overs in Essex’s reply, crucial in keeping Kent competitive in the field.The start of play was delayed for 20 minutes while the air ambulance landed on the outfield to attend to a steward who had suffered a suspected heart attack.Put in, Denly started as he meant to go on, contributing 37 of Kent’s first fifty runs including sixes over cow and long-leg off Jamie Porter and Paul Walter respectively. The former Middlesex opener reached the 23rd T20 half-century of his career from the 27th ball he faced.Denly’s third six came from a free hit after an inadvertent beamer from Walter, the ball being lost as it sailed out of the ground over midwicket. A fourth cleared the ropes in the same vicinity in an over that went for 22 runs and took Kent into three figures in 12 overs.Bell-Drummond had played second fiddle to his older partner, but a six off Simon Harmer took him to 37 and past the previous first-wicket partnership record of 119 for Kent against Essex in the format.A swept four off Ryan ten Doeschate took Bell-Drummond to his fifty from 35 balls, and he had a second six to his name in the same over for good measure.Denly reached his second century of the campaign with a boundary past mid-off. It had taken him 54 balls and contained 10 fours and a fifth six the ball before, hit straight off Zaidi. Another six took Denly to the highest of his three T20 centuries.There was drama when the world record was broken: it looked at first as if Denly had gone on 119 to a catch on the long-leg boundary by Callum Taylor. But the fielder admitted he trod on the rope and Denly was not only reprieved, but credited with his seventh six.He was finally out in the 19th over when he went for another big hit against Amir and was caught behind by James Foster. Kent lost a second wicket in the final over when Sam Billings was caught behind to give Walter his 15th wicket of the season, but at a personal cost of 65 runs on the night.Essex went off like an express train in reply. By the end of the Powerplay overs, they were 94 without loss and Chopra had reached his half-century from 19 balls. Mitchell Claydon felt the force in the sixth over when Chopra hit him for three successive sixes followed by three fours to move Essex from 64 to 94 in six balls.Chopra had already hammered two sixes before that in the previous over from Claydon, whose first two overs went for 46. Sixes number six and seven came off successive balls from Imran Qayyum over long leg and then straighter.Having put on 118 for the first wicket in nine overs, Dan Lawrence departed for a 22-ball 41, with one six, bowled by Calum Haggett. But at the halfway point, Essex needed 95 from 10 overs; incredibly, they were 34 runs ahead of the Kent total at the same stage of their innings.They lost Bopara on 138, caught sweeping at Qayyum at short fine leg, as the brakes were applied to the Essex charge. Only 37 runs were scored in the six middle overs from the ninth to 14th and the pressure got to Zaidi who holed out to deep square leg in Darren Stevens’s first over.A straight six off Neesham, his eighth, took Chopra to his century from 52 balls with six fours. With 39 needed off 18 balls, Chopra carted Neesham for six over midwicket before exiting two balls later, caught in the covers.Ten Doeschate chipped a six over square leg off the last ball of the 19th over to leave Essex needing 16 from the last six balls. The captain went to the second ball, caught at deep cover by Qayyum, and Adam Milne tied up Paul Walter and James Foster in the final four balls..

Luke Ronchi returned to Edgbaston in style to help preserve Leicestershire’s unbroken record

ECB Reporters Network16-Jul-2017
ScorecardLuke Ronchi’s return to Edgbaston was painful for Birmingham•ICC

Leicestershire Foxes continued their 100 per cent start to the NatWestT20Blast campaign with a nine-run win over Birmingham Bears at Edgbaston.Put in, the Foxes raced to 50 in the fifth over thanks to Luke Ronchi’s 23-ball 46, but went on to total only 147 for 9. At 72 for one in the eighth over, they seemed set for a tall score but the last 12 overs brought 75 for 8.It was a modest total but one they defended with great skill, restricting the Bears to 138 for 8. Clint McKay, fresh from a Foxes T20-best 5 for 11 against Worcestershire Rapids on Friday, denied the Bears a flying start with two overs for 11 runs and then the pressure was maintained by Colin Ackermann (4-0-21-3) , Cameron Delport (3-0-14-1) and Mathew Pillans (4-0-23-1).Against a Bears bowling attack missing Rikki Clarke due to a bruised thumb, the Foxes were given a blistering start by Ronchi. The Black Caps star, who played for the Bears in last year’s Blast, smashed six fours and three sixes before another intended big hit, off Boyd Rankin, lobbed up to mid-wicket.Mark Cosgrove soon edged Grant Elliott’s fifth ball to wicketkeeper Tim Ambrose and the innings went into decline. Only Delport stayed long against an attack led by paceman Rankin, leg-spinner Josh Poysden and medium-pacer Elliott.Elliott’s second wicket arrived when Delport skied a catch and only Tom Wells and Pillans offered anything from the lower order.Colin Ackermann had missed out with the bat but soon struck twice with his off-spin when the Bears replied, having Ian Bell caught at short fine leg and Sam Hain taken at deep mid-wicket.When Tim Ambrose was stumped off Delport, Birmingham were 64 for 3 at the halfway stage, needing to find 84 from the second half of the innings.That was far from easy against Delport’s skilful slow-medium and the accurate Ackermann and, as the required rate rose, the pressure told. William Porterfield and Elliott charged and missed and were bowled by Callum Parkinson and Ackermann respectively.The Bears needed 44 from the last four overs and, after Colin de Grandhomme edged Pillans behind in the penultimate over, it came down to 16 off the last, delivered by McKay. The Foxes captain closed the game out with predictable efficiency.

USWNT star Midge Purce signed autographs for Serena Williams' daughter after the team's comfortable win over China.

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USWNT outclassed China 3-0Midge Purce gave autograph to Serena Williams' daughterEmma Hayes will take charge of the team in the summerWHAT HAPPENED?

Sophia Smith opened the scoring before Lindsey Horan and Trinity Rodman contributed with two more goals as the United States women's national team registered a comfortable 3-0 win over China in a friendly on Saturday.

Tennis legend Williams was in attendance for the game and after the match, her daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. could be seen taking an autograph from USWNT and Gotham FC forward Purce.

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While current Chelsea manager Emma Hayes is yet to take charge of the USWNT side, her impact and influence were all over in the team's comprehensive win over the Chinese. Last week, Hayes flew to Florida to meet the team in person but was not around for Saturday's game as she returned to the UK to focus on the Blues.

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For now, Twila Kilgore will continue to remain in charge of the team as interim head coach and once the English manager arrives next summer, she will serve the team in the capacity of assistant manager.

Kilgore's side are set to face China in another friendly match on Wednesday which will be the team's last competitive match in the ongoing calendar year.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers will be hoping to add to his already-impressive collection of trophies for the club in the upcoming season.

The Hoops boss replaced Ange Postecoglou after the Australian tactician opted to join Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur last month and is now in his second spell at Parkhead.

He lifted seven trophies in less than three full years during his first stint in Scotland, with the upcoming campaign providing him with an opportunity to reach double figures.

The summer transfer window has well over a month left to run and the Northern Irishman could use it to bolster his squad in order to give his team the best chance of success.

Odin Thiago Holm and Marco Tilio have both joined in recent weeks but the Hoops may not be done there, as Young Boys central midfielder Fabian Rieder has also been linked with a switch to Paradise.

How good is Fabian Rieder?

The 21-year-old's performances in his home country suggest that he has the quality to be an excellent player for Celtic if it translates over to the Scottish Premiership next term.

He is a creative midfield player who also offers a goal threat from a number eight or ten position, which could make him Rodgers' next version of Tom Rogic.

The former Hoops magician, who left at the end of the 2021/22 season, made 105 competitive appearances under the 50-year-old manager during their time together at Parkhead.

The Australian contributed with 24 goals and 20 assists in that time, including five of each in 22 league outings in the 2017/18 campaign, which works out as a goal involvement every 2.39 games on average.

Rogic proved himself to be a midfielder with the ability to make a significant impact at the top end of the pitch and Rieder's form for Young Boys indicates that the potential is there for him to follow in the now-30-year-old's footsteps.

The Switzerland international averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.17 – a score that would have placed him seventh in Postecoglou's squad – across 33 Super League outings last season and chipped in with seven goals along with four assists, which works out as a contribution every three matches on average.

He also created seven 'big chances' for his teammates to go with 1.8 key passes per match. To highlight how good that is, only Jota (1.9) and Matt O'Riley (2.1) bettered it in Celtic colours throughout the Scottish Premiership.

Rieder also caught the eye at the U21 European Championship as he created 2.3 chances per game over his four appearances at the tournament, which is more than any of the aforementioned Hoops players managed last term.

This suggests that the Swiss wizard, who was hailed as "tenacious" and a set-piece "specialist" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has the quality to be an outstanding creator for Rodgers whilst also being able to contribute with a goalscoring threat from midfield.

Therefore, the Young Boys dynamo could be the manager's next Rogic as the potential is there for him to deliver goals and assists from a number eight role on a regular basis to support the likes of Kyogo Furuhashi, Liel Abada, and Daizen Maeda.

The ECB say they have yet to receive an approach from Cricket South Africa regarding the services of the England bowling coach, Ottis Gibson, who has been linked to the South African head coach’s position

Firdose Moonda04-Aug-20170:58

We’ve heard nothing about Gibson – Farbrace

The ECB say they have yet to receive an approach from Cricket South Africa regarding the services of the England bowling coach, Ottis Gibson, who has been linked to the South African head coach’s position which will be filled as early as next week. Current coach Russell Domingo, who has reapplied for the role, is out of contract at the end of the England tour and the first reported that CSA have been in discussion with Gibson to take over.But an ECB spokesperson said they have had no communication from their South African counterparts and will not entertain any approach until next Tuesday at the earliest, when the ongoing series has been concludedTalk of Gibson’s possible departure from the England camp was also news to Paul Farbrace, England’s assistant coach, who also suggested any confirmation would only come when the Test ends.”Ottis is someone who has obviously had a lot of international experience. He did a great job for the West Indies, won the Twenty20 World Cup as a head coach, then lost out in a semi-final against Sri Lanka – which was a bit unfortunate for him. But at the moment Russell Domingo is head coach of South Africa and doing a brilliant job and it would be disrespectful of us to talk about his position all the time he’s in it,” Farbrace said. “We’ve obviously heard the news tonight, but I promise you we’ve had nothing official. It’s all being left now until the end of the series, I hope.”Uncertainty over South Africa’s head coaching position has hovered over the side since January, when CSA announced they would be advertising the job and not extending Domingo’s contract for a fourth time. But it took five months for CSA to clarify the process they would follow in seeking a head coach, leaving Domingo, who has been in charge since mid-2013, in limbo.In May, CSA appointed a five-man panel, including former national coaches Gary Kirsten and Eric Simons, to recommend a candidate for the coaching job. They also opened applications until June 16, after which interviews were conducted. ESPNcricinfo understands Gibson did not apply for the job.Domingo confirmed he had put himself in contention and had been interviewed but Lions’ coach Geoffrey Toyana was thought to be the front-runner, having had success at domestic level. Other names mentioned included Phil Simmons, who has been seen around the South African camp during the tour of England, and Rob Walter, the former South African fitness and fielding coach who is now with Otago.The committee were due to address CSA’s board on July 21 but were delayed in their work and a decision on the coach was put back. One source suggested CSA was unhappy with the quality and the number of applications they had received and would consider head-hunting instead, especially since the mandate for the next coach is to win a World Cup.Gibson has tasted major tournament success, having overseen West Indies’ capturing of the World T20 in 2012. He is currently in the second year of his second stint as England’s bowling coach. Gibson previously worked with England between 2007 and 2010 and rejoined them in 2015. Though he has no coaching experience in South Africa, he has played for three domestic teams in the country: Border, Griquas and Gauteng.

Leeds United winger Jack Harrison could be "snapped up by a Premier League team" this summer due to a release clause in his contract, claims journalist Alex Crook.

What is the latest Jack Harrison transfer news?

It has been a busy summer of transfer activity for the recently relegated Leeds this year, but perhaps not in the way fans would've been hoping, as the club have already seen 11 players go out the door, some on loan like Brenden Aaronson, but some permanently, like Tyler Roberts.

That list of departing players could soon have another name as Spanish striker and Leeds' top scorer last season Rodrigo Moreno has completed his move to Qatari side Al Rayyan.

The Peacocks won't even earn much for the move; his £3m price tag will actually represent a £27m loss on the former Valencia man. The fee is so low due to a release clause in his contract that could be activated after the team's relegation to the Championship last season.

In yet more bad news for new boss Daniel Farke, Football Insider revealed last month that exciting attacker Harrison also has a similar release clause in his contract that could see him leave for just £16m this summer.

With his performances for the Whites over the last few years and that appealing price tag, it shouldn't be a surprise if he ends up playing in England's top flight again next year, per Alex Crook.

He explained the situation on air, which was posted on TalkSPORT's YouTube channel, saying:

"Most of that squad have got similar clauses, I think Jack Harrison will be snapped up by a Premier League team."

Is Jack Harrison good enough for the Premier League?

Harrison has had an interesting journey to get where he is today, moving to the USA in his teens before playing in the MLS and signing for Manchester City.

Following that, he spent four seasons in Yorkshire, making himself one of the first names on the teamsheet for much of that time.

He has certainly proved that he has what it takes to play in England's top tier, and even last season, as the team around him was crumbling, he was able to put in consistently decent performances, with WhoScored giving him an average rating of 6.72 across his 36 appearances.

His underlying numbers were also solid, with FBref, who compare players in a similar position across Europe's top five leagues, placing him in the top 8% for blocks, the top 15% for clearances, the top 21% for interceptions, and the top 32% for assists, all per 90.

His talents are clearly appreciated by his teammates, as left back Junior Firpo waxed lyrical about his teammate on the Leeds official podcast, saying:

"He's one of the best wingers I had, in terms of helping the fullback. This is really important for the fullback when you have a winger that is committed to the work and helps you with the 2 v 1's, especially here in the Premier League where every team has amazing wingers. It's unbelievable to have him."

While Leeds would undoubtedly miss him, for the reported fee of just £16m, he would represent outstanding value for any mid-table team in the Premier League, and it's likely just a matter of when and not if he makes that move this summer.

Everton are reportedly facing the threat of administration and a second points deduction, with 777Partners' proposed takeover of the club delayed.

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• Over £100m loaned to Everton by 777Partners
• Not willing to keeping funding club in New Year if takeover is not completed
• PL finding due diligence checks 'challenging'

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  According to the Everton's prospective buyers, 777Partners, have been informed by the Premier League that their takeover is unlikely to be approved before the end of the year. This has raised fears that Everton may enter administration next month. The American private equity firm has provided Everton with over £100 million in loans for operating costs since reaching an agreement to buy the club from Farhad Moshiri in September, but are not willing to continue pumping in funds at Goodison Park if the takeover process is not completed by the end of the year. Everton need an additional £20 million per month for staff wages and operating costs, which is beyond the scope of their fixed income. The club faces insolvency without 777's funding, potentially leading to administration and a further nine-point deduction on top of the 10 points that have already been docked.

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• Getty/Premier League
  

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  The convoluted labyrinth of 777's finances and corporate structure, which shelters over 60 companies in several sectors under their control, including insurance, aviation, and sport, is posing challenges for the Premier League in their assessment. The English top-flight is doing the arduous job of establishing the source and sufficiency of 777's funds, while also examining legal cases that have been filed against the companies in the United States.

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  adds that Premier League are reluctant to punish Everton with a second deduction of points, as it would send the Toffees plunging back into the relegation zone. However, they won't be pressured into rushing the due diligence process either, as they believe that the job at hand is complex and requires patient handling.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  The report also mentions that 777 have not yet been given any potential timeline about when the Premier League could be ready with their decision. However, Everton officials are coordinating with both 777 and the Premier League to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.

  Despite the off-the-pitch turmoil, Sean Dyche has ensured that his men remain focused on their job on the pitch. Everton have won four of their last five league matches and are currently 17th in the standings with 13 points from 16 matches, with a crucial clash against fellow strugglers Burnley up next on Saturday.