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Carlo Ancelotti should urge Everton to pull off a swoop to sign Barnsley striker Daryl Dike from parent club Orlando City this summer.

What’s the word?

According to Eurosport, the Toffees have begun to track Dike’s progress at Oakwell and could move to snap up the 20-year-old at the end of the season.

Dike joined the Tykes on loan in January and has made an instant impact on their bid for promotion out of the Championship, netting five goals in 11 games and he was voted as the club’s Player of the Month for March.

His strikes include winning efforts at home to Birmingham City and on the road to Wycombe Wanderers, and he is yet to miss a fixture under Reds boss Valerien Ismael.

Barnsley hold an option to purchase Dike at the end of the season, said to be worth £17m, but it is considered likely that his performances may spark Premier League interest.

Everton’s scouts are understood to have been captivated by how Dike has adapted to the English game with a string of great displays prior to the international break.

Orlando City are quoted by Eurosport as valuing Dike at $20m (£14.5m), while TEAMtalk report that up to half of the top-flight have eyes on the forward’s situation.

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The Toffees are claimed to have shown the most interest, but Leeds, West Ham, Wolves and Newcastle are also keeping close tabs. Manchester United and Chelsea have been impressed by his talents, as well.

Should Everton sign Orlando City’s Dike?

Everton may face a challenge to bring Dike to Goodison Park in the off-season as Barnsley will no doubt look to turn his temporary spell at Oakwell into a permanent move, should Ismael manage to lead the Tykes into the top-flight.

Taking hold of an option to buy was a key reason why Barnsley signed Dike in the winter market, in a deal the Reds’ Chief Executive Dane Murphy claims to be worth less than the reported fee.

“It’s not realistic that Barnsley would agree to that,” he told the Barnsley Chronicle. “You just laugh at some of the numbers being thrown around. It’s silly season. The buy option is quite similar to prices we have paid for players before.

“It was key to the deal that we got a buy option in. We have made it pretty clear over the last few years that just pure loans don’t really appeal to us unless they are special circumstances.”

Murphy also waxed lyrical over the striker while speaking with The Athletic, claiming: “Daryl has a wealth of talent and he hasn’t reached his heights yet.

“But to expect what we’ve seen, the impact we’ve seen, the run of the team from where it was prior to him coming in, it would be a bit of a false narrative to say we expected it.”

Barnsley have taken nine wins in Dike’s 11 games, drawing once and losing once, to now sit inside the Play-Off positions, having been 12th and six points outside the top-six prior to the two-cap USMNT striker’s arrival.

Ancelotti may need another striker with Dike’s talent – and ability to score what Ismael describes as “unbelievable” goals – at Everton next season amid doubt in the futures of Moise Kean and Joshua King.

And with Dike having a seemingly high ceiling to his potential, the American could prove to be an interesting option that Ancelotti can mould into his own liking.

AND in other news, a Carlo Ancelotti target once valued at £89m “would be interested” in joining Everton this summer…

Chris Wilder has been linked with the vacant Celtic managerial post in recent days after it was revealed on Friday morning that he was set to be sacked by Sheffield United.

Wilder officially left the club on Saturday evening following the club’s announcement, but Sheffield United News provided an update earlier in the day on the 53-year-old’s potential Parkhead move.

Delay down to Celtic?

They claimed that United’s delay in announcing Wilder’s exit was actually due to interest from Celtic.

The Blades were scheduled to hold a news conference on Friday evening, which was eventually cancelled.

United were reportedly demanding that the Hoops pay a substantial compensation package to land Wilder as Neil Lennon’s long-term successor.

Transfer Tavern take

If the latest report is indeed true, then it seems as if Celtic could be closing in on Wilder’s services.

However, with his Bramall Lane departure now confirmed, we could well be hearing something emerging regarding Wilder’s possible move to Celtic in the coming days.

It remains to be seen how accurate Sheffield United News sources are on this one. Only time will tell.

In other news: Celtic target, who has outperformed two Hoops stars, has rejected a new deal and will leave for nothing this summer, find out more here. 

Speaking to Football Insider ahead of Jose Mourinho’s press conference, former Tottenham Hotspur keeper and Sky Sports regular Paul Robinson has been left worried by an injury to Son Heung-min – calling it ‘disastrous’ and ‘really bad news’.

Son has been a mainstay for Mourinho this season alongside fellow star attacker Harry Kane, starting 28 Premier League matches whilst bagging 13 goals and nine assists in that time (WhoScored).

Robinson reacts to Son injury for Spurs

The duo struck up a devastating partnership earlier this season, becoming one of the most deadly combinations in recent times, with Son’s absence coming as a huge potential worry for Tottenham.

Tottenham prepare to take on Dinamo Zagreb in their last 16 Europa League second leg tomorrow afternoon, and Mourinho is aiming to cement his side’s place in the next round on the road to a first piece of silverware since 2008.

Commenting on Son’s injury, with the South Korea star forced off before 20 minutes in a north London derby defeat at the weekend, Robinson has called the setback ‘really bad news’ and ‘disastrous’ for Spurs.

“It is disastrous for Spurs,” explained Robinson to Football Insider. “Whenever Kane or Son is out it is really bad news.

“It is obviously a bad one.”

Transfer Tavern take

There’s little denying his knock comes at a bad time with some important matches on the horizon for Tottenham.

Mourinho and Spurs still have a hope of finishing the season strongly, lying six points off the top four places with a game in hand on Chelsea, but they will need all of their star players readily fit and available for the run-in.

In other news: Tottenham are interested in making a move for this Serie A star, find out more here.

David Moyes should unleash Jarrod Bowen in a striker position when West Ham visit Manchester United in the FA Cup on Tuesday night amid doubt over Michail Antonio’s fitness.

The Irons boss has confirmed he wishes to name as strong a side as possible at Old Trafford, as he continues to build on the east London outfit’s strongest run in the competition since 2015/16.

But Antonio faces a late fitness test to see if the striker can play his part, having been taken off with a quarter of an hour to go against Fulham on Saturday amid suspicions of fatigue.

Antonio looked laboursome at Craven Cottage as he struggled to lead the line for the second time in the space three days, after also playing the full 90 minutes as West Ham beat Aston Villa 3-1 on Wednesday night.

The Villans affair was only the third occasion that the 30-year-old has played a full 90 in any competition since returning from a second hamstring injury this term, with Moyes opting to withdraw Antonio early in four of his seven starts and twice introduce him from the bench.

Antonio was also left an unused substitute as the Hammers beat Doncaster Rovers 4-0 to book their place in the fifth round of the FA Cup, but Moyes has confirmed he will make a late decision over whether or not the £11m-rated beast will feature against Manchester United.

“He’s still fatigued, so it’ll be a close call whether he makes it or not,” Moyes said. “I’ll see how he is today [Monday]. We’ll need to assess him tomorrow to see if he’s able to play or not.

“I think we’ve picked strong teams against Stockport and Doncaster. We’re certainly not picking a weakened team.

“We may have one or two changes through injury or suspension, whatever it may be, but we plan to go there with a really strong team and [see] if we can get through to the next round of the FA Cup.”

Andriy Yarmolenko was tasked with standing in for Antonio against Doncaster in the previous round of the FA Cup and scored West Ham’s second goal of the day, to net his first strike since bagging a brace against League One Hull City in the Carabao Cup in September.

It was not the only occasion this season that Moyes has started the Ukraine winger in a central role, after featuring through the middle against Tottenham Hotspur and in both Premier League meetings with Liverpool. He also took over the reins at Fulham on Saturday but offered little impact during his half an hour on the pitch.

Thus it should be Bowen who starts at the top of the attack against Manchester United if Antonio cannot, in a move that may also allow Ryan Fredericks to replicate his Aston Villa showcase on the right-wing in front of Vladimir Coufal.

Moyes has experimented with Bowen playing centrally twice this season, having looked to the £25m-rated maestro against Brighton in December while without Antonio and at home to Newcastle on the opening day of the season.

The decision did not return any goals on either occasion, but Bowen had proven to be a creative force in the middle with Hull by netting four and providing an assist in six games as a centre-forward.

He also offered three goals and three assists in six games as a shadow striker for the Tigers before his move to the London Stadium last January, which Noel Whelan lauds as a “really shrewd” piece of business by the Irons. Proving that he has the track record Moyes needs with no senior striker available after Sebastien Haller’s winter farewell.

AND in other news, West Ham failed to offload a £70k-p/w outcast in January despite a manager’s intent efforts…

According to a report by The Daily Mail, United Arab Emirates billionaire and member of the Abu Dhabi royal family Sheikh Khaled bin Zayed al Nehayan tried to buy West Ham United last season before the coronavirus pandemic – with this takeover claim shedding light on their attempted GSB talks. 

Sheikh Khaled attempted West Ham talks

Currently the prospective new owners of Championship side Derby County after they failed in a public attempt to buy Newcastle United, the Daily Mail claim they also turned their attention to West Ham last season alongside Bournemouth.

Indeed, before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the Bin Zayed Group allegedly displayed a significant interest in the Irons, making an initial enquiry to GSB over the purchase of West Ham.

However, following early talks, the group and Sheikh Khaled dropped their interest in buying the Hammers – with negotiations to take over Bournemouth understood to have reached a more advanced stage by comparison.

Transfer Tavern take

There has been no shortage of takeover rumours regarding West Ham in recent times, with Red Bull and Joseph DaGrosa among parties touted with past interest.

Football Insider also claim that GSB are open to selling the club but won’t entertain a buyout until receiving a proposal of around £600 million.

Whether or not a West Ham takeover happens in future remains to be seen, but the Bin Zayed Group are now revealed to have displayed a past interest.

In other news: West Ham fans flocked to this ExWHUemployee claim, find out more here.

After suffering a damaging 1-0 defeat to their fierce rivals in their opening game of 2021, change needs to be forthcoming for Celtic.

They have had a disastrous season and are now a whopping 22 points behind the Gers in the race for the SPFL.

On the chalkboard

Celtic weren’t bad in the first half against Rangers. They created opportunities and were unlucky not to score on two occasions through Leigh Griffiths.

However, in typical circumstances this term, they were let down by an individual error. This time it was from Nir Bitton who was sent off and in turn, meant Griffiths had to be sacrificed.

The Scot has scored three goals in his last five but failed to find the net last week, leading to a performance that “faded” according to Chris Doyle of Glasgow Live.

Indeed, the striker was a ball of energy in the first period but like his entire team, dropped off in the second. Eventually taken off in the hope of finding a more balanced team following the red card, it was perhaps harsh on Griffiths.

Though, has that just given us a glimpse of how Neil Lennon could go about picking his side on Monday evening?

The solution

The Bhoys take on Hibernian tonight and given their defeat last time out, it will be interesting to see who earns Lennon’s trust.

Griffiths is one man who shouldn’t and unfortunately for him, the manager must take the ruthless decision to axe him from the XI. That’s irrespective of the 13 unnamed player self-isolating follow Christopher Jullien’s positive COVID test.

Much has been made about whether he can play in a two-prong attack with Odsonne Edouard and last time out, it didn’t work too well. The Frenchman was the striker to finish the game with Mo Elyounoussi on the left and that’s how we reckon Lennon should start on Monday Covid permitting.

The winger has been electrifying this season, scoring 12 goals and registering five assists so it’s hard to make a case for him not playing.

Griffiths, who earns £15k-per-week at Parkhead, has been in good form but he cannot play if it’s going to upset the balance of the play as it did against Rangers.

Ryan Christie and Edouard are irremovable objects in the starting XI so if Lennon wants Elyounoussi to start, he can only really drop Griffiths. The Scot struggled with his link-up play, making just 13 passes and losing possession ten times vs the Gers.

Thus, Lennon must take the brutal decision to axe him.

AND in other news, “Huge disappointment” – Exclusive: Pundit reacts to massive Celtic injury blow for Neil Lennon…

According to Football Insider, a bid of around £500k could be enough for Celtic transfer target Siriki Dembele to be lured away from Peterborough.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent days and weeks have suggested Neil Lennon’s side are one of a number of sides interested in making a move for the 24-year-old, with Scottish Premiership rivals Rangers also being touted as a potential destination.

Now, Football Insider claim that League One side Peterborough may be tempted to cash in on Dembele if they receive an offer in the region of £500k, and that the forward has actually been on a collision course with Posh’s chiefs about sealing a move away.

Bargain for Hammond

At just £500k, Dembele seems like an absolute no brainer for Celtic and Nick Hammond in this January transfer window.

With Odsonne Edouard’s long-term future uncertain – reports have even suggested the Hoops have slashed his asking price in order to potentially get bids coming in – there is a real need to bring in a new forward.

And despite starting off out wide, Dembele’s move in-field into a central striker has brought rich rewards. He’s bagged five goals in 19 games in League One, and provided a further seven assists too, and that’s a testament to the kind of selfless forward he is.

Alan Hutton remarked that Dembele is someone “even Scotland have looked at”, and given his performances in League One for Peterborough this season, it’s no surprise to see why.

It may not be the kind of ‘glamour’ or ‘marquee’ signing that Celtic fans may be hoping for, but Dembele seems like a shrewd buy in the modern market.

Meanwhile, Desmond can spark real change at Celtic by firing this man; it’s not Lennon…

Glasgow Rangers fans were not happy with one man during the game against Ross County, with Alfredo Morelos looking far from at his best once again.

Whilst Gers fans have seen their side play exceptionally well in recent weeks, watching them build a significant lead at the top of the table and progressing into the Europa Leauge knockout stages, there have still been the odd whispers about one or two players.

Morelos has been one man who, despite Rangers’ excellent campaign so far, has not hit the heights that he did in previous seasons and that looks to have been noted by some members of the Gers’ fan base.

The Rangers fans were far from happy with the Colombia international, and they took to Twitter to share their thoughts on the matter, and as we all know, members of the Gers fanbase aren’t shy in making their feelings known about any topic, and they didn’t hold back here.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about Morelos below

In other news, Rangers fans rage at this SPFL decision.

It’s been a rough first half of the season for Arsenal, and speculation over Mikel Arteta’s future as manager is mounting.

The Gunners are in the midst of their worst start to a league campaign for a number of decades, and were eliminated from the Carabao Cup in mid-week with ease by Manchester City.

And with Chelsea next up for them in the Premier League on Boxing Day, the north London side could be staring at yet more festive disappointment.

Arteta will surely have to make some big calls and key changes to liven up his team, and with that in mind, below is a look at how they might line up against Frank Lampard’s Blues.

After making the controversial call to leave him out of the quarter-final against City, Arteta will no doubt bring Bernd Leno back into the starting line-up, and hope that the German can bring a bit more calmness to the Gunners back-line.

The likes of Hector Bellerin, Rob Holding and Kieran Tierney should also all return to the first-team, with the trio among those names rested in mid-week – only Gabriel should keep his place, having served his one-match suspension against Everton last weekend.

In midfield, Mohamed Elneny hasn’t quite the heights like he did against Manchester United in Arsenal’s 1-0 win at Old Trafford, and the Egyptian could make way for Granit Xhaka.

One of the more surprising omissions from Tuesday night was Reiss Nelson, and the England U21 international will surely be hoping that was because Arteta sees him as a potential starter against Chelsea.

And having made his comeback against City, Gabriel Martinelli will look to give Arsenal an extra edge in attack as long as he shakes off the knock he picked up in the Carabao Cup.

Predicted XI: Leno; Bellerin, Holding, Gabriel, Tierney; Xhaka, Ceballos, Saka; Nelson, Lacazette, Martinelli.

West Ham United boss David Moyes wasted the first of his three substitutes in Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Liverpool by calling on Andriy Yarmolenko to play the final quarter of an hour.

Moyes sought to make the first of his permitted changes by introducing Yarmolenko in place of Sebastien Haller, after the Frenchman failed to offer a persistent goal threat in the absence of Michail Antonio with the 30-year-old forced to sit out with a hamstring injury.

But the Scottish coach will only be regretting his decision as Yarmolenko failed to get into the game prior to Diogo Jota striking home from Xherdan Shaqiri’s pass to steal a win five minutes from time, before Said Benrahma and Manuel Lanzini swiftly entered the action.

Pablo Fornals’ second goal of the Premier League season had opened the deadlock for the Irons after just 10 minutes, though they returned to the dressing at the break with the score level after Mohamed Salah won and converted a spot-kick for a clumsy foul by Arthur Masuaku.

Moyes had considered cashing in on any residual value in Yarmolenko this summer, having identified Manuel Pellegrini’s £17.5million signing as someone the east London outfit could utilise in their bid to raise funds for his own incomings.

But a change of heart later in the summer saw the Ukraine international retained, as Moyes decided he liked what he’d seen from the attacker and was keen to keep the £6.75m-rated 31-year-old’s services, per ExWHUemployee on The West Ham Way podcast in August.

The Hammers boss’ sudden change will not have been a total turnaround, though, as Moyes had spoken of his support for what Yarmolenko offers in July after praising the former Borussia Dortmund man’s impact from the bench in their 3-2 victory over Chelsea.

“I’ve had a chance to see Yarma tonight, he gives me good competition,” said Moyes, via quotes by the Newham Recorder.

Moyes should not be feeling the same way as he did in July following Yarmolenko’s ineffective cameo in Saturday’s loss at Liverpool, as the veteran winger used his time in a central role to poor effect with just four passes made from 11 touches, per SofaScore.

He further failed to provide a key pass from either of his attempted passes, failed to register a shot on goal, won just one of four ground duels, lost possession four times, committed one foul, made no tackles, interceptions or clearances and attempted just one dribble.

Moyes will need to think long and hard over Yarmolenko’s place in the matchday squad ahead of next weekend’s London derby clash with Fulham at home, especially now that he feels Benrahma is fit enough to feature following his West Ham debut.

AND in other news, West Ham’s injury nightmare will only amplify David Moyes’ regret on failing to sign an “extraordinary” hitman.