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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

After enjoying a meteoric rise over the course of the past year or so, the fact Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s name is in the England conversation is a testament to how much he has grown in such a relatively short space of time.

Since bursting onto the scene with Crystal Palace, the 21-year-old made his high-profile move to Manchester United earlier in the summer, and he has quickly established himself as a mainstay of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side. Barring two Premier League games he missed courtesy of an injury, he has played in every other game in the top-flight.

Such were his impressive early impressions, he was called up by Gareth Southgate for the England squad in late August. And speaking about the decision to select him for the EURO 2020 qualifiers, the Three Lions boss remarked he had done well in his early weeks at United.

“We tracked him very closely last year and we thought he had an outstanding year but we wanted him to stay with the under-21 group. He’s adapted really well and very quickly to a high profile move and playing in front of 70,000 fans brings an intensity and a pressure so we’re really looking at him and Trent (Alexander-Arnold).”

But in this latest round of international fixtures, Southgate has opted against calling Wan-Bissaka up. In response, United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insisted that Wan-Bissaka’s time would come eventually, and he could perhaps embrace the decision to further get acclimatised to life at Old Trafford.

“I remember when I wasn’t picked for Norway the first time, because there were loads of rumours about me being picked, and I thought it ‘thanks’, because ‘I’m just getting used to the Norwegian top league now’. I think Aaron is going to get his time in the national team soon enough.”

However, the key issue that could potentially be a death knock to the right-back’s chances of forging a successful England career is his key weakness in contributing going forward. The 21-year-old has averaged a measly 0.2 shots and 0.3 crosses per game in the Premier League this season, which when compared to Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold’s numbers of 1.3 shots and 2.6 crosses per game, really shines a light on his offensive struggles.

Indeed, speaking on BT Sport (as quoted by The Express), Owen Hargreaves pinpointed how Wan-Bissaka must improve on his attacking game. He said: “He’s a really good player but he’s got to add that. He got three (assists) last season, hasn’t got any this season. I love him but here (at United) they use the full-backs, they get up the pitch and get goals and assists. He can improve on that.”

With Alexander-Arnold only 21 himself, and really showing the way of being a modern full-back, Wan-Bissaka desperately needs to revamp the key element of his game that is currently missing, or else risk seeing his England hopes go up in smoke.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

Everton are reportedly set to go back into the market for a young centre-back after missing out on Kurt Zouma in the recent summer window.

What’s the word?

Reports from Football Insider have claimed that Everton are set to resume their search for a centre-back after they couldn’t re-sign the Frenchman on a permanent basis.

However, Marco Silva will be targeting a young player rather than a senior one.

Given the impressive form of Mason Holgate, it is believed that Silva is no longer eyeing an experienced head at the back, but rather seeks a younger player in this position.

Never hurts to buy young

The Toffees have struggled at the back this season and their slight defensive woes have forced them into an early relegation scrap. The likes of Michael Keane have not been at the races, which should force Silva to buy, as it leaves him with just two other centre-backs.

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With Keane out the side, Yerry Mina and Holgate remain the only two men at the back.

Now, Marcel Brands and the coaching staff should seriously consider buying young to have another defender with them for years to come.

Holgate is only 23, and if Silva is going to want to build for the future at Goodison Park, he is going to need more young, promising centre-backs in his backline.

The Blues must rocket up the Premier League soon, as their six-point cushion on the drop zone could be gone very quickly during the hectic winter period.

Buying a young centre-back in January could help them in their endeavour to push into the top six.

After salvaging a late point against Southampton on Saturday afternoon, it seems that Arsenal’s Lucas Torreira was in need of some downtime.

But this wasn’t simply a case of going for a stroll in north London or relaxing in his likely extravagant residency as he went much further afield in pursuit of mental clarity.

In a bid to rapidly put a nightmare team performance behind him, the diminutive midfielder jet off to Italy to see Sampdoria in action.

His former club hosted Udinese yesterday and managed to steal a 2-1 victory courtesy of goals from Gaston Ramirez and Manolo Gabbiadini.

Clearly, the Saints have ended their feeder club relationship with Liverpool in favour of the Serie A outfit and their new partners are reaping the rewards.

And after making the journey to Italy, Torreira posted a message on Instagram expressing his enthusiasm for the club.

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No fear, Arsenal fans, the message posted in Italian roughly translates to “It’s always a pleasure to see you again” and not “please sign me up, old friend”.

And the admiration was reciprocated by his former club in a gushing reply to the original post.

There is clearly no love lost between the 23-year-old and the club who provided him with the platform from which to elevate his career.

And with rumours beginning to suggest AC Milan and Napoli are both interested in the South American midfielder, it may not be too long before Torreira steps foot on Italian soil again.

Tottenham fans and Jose Mourinho will be desperate to make some new signings this summer, but keeping Harry Kane is far more important than any new arrival the club could possibly lure to north London.

The Lilywhites talisman threw his future into doubt recently with comments made during an Instagram Live chat with Jamie Redknapp, in which he revealed that he could seek an exit if the club do no match his ambitions.

The Greatest Bargains in Premier League history – How much did they cost?

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And while the £135m-rated (Transfermarkt) star will be the first to admit he hasn’t quite been at his best this campaign, only mustering 17 goals in all competitions and 11 in the Premier League as opposed to his usual ridiculous numbers, doing whatever it takes to convince him his future lies with Tottenham should be the first order of business for Daniel Levy this summer.

Just take a look at some of his lethal finishing in the video below, as he tortures Newcastle with three exquisite shows of a true striker’s instinct…

The video shows the phenomenal range of goals the England skipper can score, whether it’s picking up a scrappy ball and turning it home, sprinting 50 yards to finish with aplomb or whipping a thunderous effort into the top corner. You name it, Kane can do it – he has bagged a truly sensational 181 goals in 278 Tottenham games.

Whether it by signing an adequate back-up to rescue him from persistent injuries, shoring up the defence or signing a playmaker to replace the creativity lost by Christian Eriksen’s departure, every move Tottenham make this summer should be focused around making their number nine happy.

Spurs fans, have you seen Adrian Durham go absolutely in on Kane and Mourinho…

It’s fair to say Bruno Fernandes showed in a couple of months why he might be one of Manchester United’s most inspired signings in recent memory.

The Portugal international arrived from Sporting CP in the January transfer window, and hit the ground running at Old Trafford. In just nine games for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side, he struck three times and provided four assists, and judging by his latest comments, he is already establishing himself as a real fans favourite.

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In a Q&A session posted on the club’s official website, the attacking midfielder admitted that he wants potential new signings to have a winners mentality, and that they should be “hungry for titles”.

After hearing what Fernandes had to say, United fans took to Twitter to voice their thoughts on the 25-year-old.

A couple of United fans felt their 21st league title is on its way to Old Trafford thanks to Fernandes and his mentality.

Fernandes just can’t seem to do anything wrong.

The Portuguese star has revitalised United, almost single-handedly changing the atmosphere surrounding Old Trafford. Since his arrival in the final week of the January transfer window, Solskjaer’s men remained unbeaten, in large part thanks to Fernandes himself.

And with ambitious comments like these, he is well on the way to becoming a cult hero at the club.

Meanwhile, Man Utd fans discuss their interest in this La Liga powerhouse.

Tottenham fans have taken to Twitter to reminisce about their signing of Luka Modric back in 2008.

The Croatia international joined the Lilywhites from Dinamo Zagreb for a then club-record fee of £16.5m, and he went on to become one of the most influential Spurs midfielders of the Premier League era.

The diminutive play-maker featured 160 times in his stay with the club, scoring 17 times and providing a further 27 assists, and was of course part of the Spurs team that enjoyed an impressive Champions League run in the 2010/2011 campaign.

Modric would then eventually leave north London to join Spanish giants Real Madrid, where he has established himself as one of the world’s best, winning the Ballon d’Or and helping Los Blancos lift multiple Champions League titles.

With confirmation of his arrival at Spurs coming on April 26, Spurs fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts about their former star.

Missing football!? There’s still plenty of Spurs discussion going on in the Vital Tottenham Forum! Click here to get involved!

Newcastle United winger Matt Ritchie has made some bold comments last week and it has sparked hysterics from some sections of the St James’ Park faithful.

The 30-year-old was naming his ‘Dream XI’ in an interview with In the Box, which is available to view on YouTube here.

Who the heck is that?! Can you name all 25 of these obscure Newcastle signings…

One player mentioned was his current Magpies teammate Jonjo Shelvey, he claimed: “If he had his head screwed on he could play for Barcelona. That’s how good he is.”

Shelvey has been at Newcastle since 2016 following a £12m from Swansea City, whom he once joined from Liverpool. The Englishman has gone on to play 131 times for the club, scoring 13 goals and providing 19 assists, via Transfermarkt.

Ritchie’s comments are quite bold considering that’s not the best of returns from the 28-year-old, but he has managed to find the net five times from 16 starts this campaign alone, so maybe he’s now entering his peak.

The box-to-box midfielder is also averaging 1.8 key passes, 1.8 shots and 1.2 tackles per game in the Premier League, via WhoScored.

Here’s how fans have been reacting to the audacious claim…

AND in other news, Newcastle fans react to interest in Jesse Lingard…

Despite being the reigning Champions League holders, and runaway leaders of the Premier League, Liverpool are not impervious to the current situation that is impacting the entire world.

Big-money signings are unlikely to be the norm this summer for any side across European football, and The Athletic journalist, James Pearce, has painted a rather bleak future as to what Reds fans can expect over the coming months.

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Pearce revealed their pursuit of RB Leipzig striker Timo Werner is likely to be dead in the water considering the kind of price involved, whilst no match-day revenue is expected until 2021.

And after hearing about the journalist’s downbeat update on the club’s plans for the future, Liverpool fans took to Twitter to voice their thoughts on the situation.

Amid all the incredible success that Liverpool have enjoyed over the past couple of seasons, it does seem a little strange to suggest that even Jurgen Klopp’s side won’t be able to make just one big signing this summer.

And it’s exactly why many of the club’s supporters seem so incensed with FSG over the news.

Love him or loathe him, it is fair to say Andre Villas-Boas never had it easy when he arrived at Tottenham Hotspur. 

Indeed, he was dealt a short hand right from the start, as Luka Modric left Spurs in his first summer at the club.

Nevertheless the Portuguese, who was a prodigy of Jose Mourinho, didn’t allow this setback to deter him, and the Lilywhites embarked on one of the biggest spending sprees in recent memory during his time in charge.

He should be credited with unearthing the likes of Jan Vertonghen and Christian Eriksen.

Furthermore, Villas-Boas arguably got Gareth Bale playing some of the best football we’ve ever seen, before the Welshman also left White Hart Lane for the Santiago Bernabeu.

Things quickly went downhill from then onward, but he should take pride from the fact that Tottenham accrued more points than Harry Redknapp managed in his two highest-placed finishes in the Premier League.

Fancy a challenge? Have a go at the Transfer Tavern’s latest quiz on Villas-Boas’ brief reign. Can you remember who was his most expensive signing? How come he can claim English descent? Test your knowledge down below!

According to Football Insider, Leeds are keen to exploit Reading’s financial issues by trying to sign John Swift this summer.

What’s the word?

Reports last year suggested that the Whites were interested in making a move for the midfielder, but a deal failed to materialise.

Can you name every one of the Leeds’ top goalscorers from the past 15 seasons? It’s a tricky one…

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Now, Football Insider claim that Marcelo Bielsa’s side have reignited their interest in the 25-year-old, and that a source has told them “that the club are confident it will take far less than the £7m asking price of 2019 to seal a deal”.

The report further adds that Readings financial problems, and the fact that Swift only has two years remaining on his contract, may make it “opportune” for them to cash in, and are braced for some summer bids.

Difference-maker

Despite missing out on his signature last year, it’s no surprise to see that Leeds are seemingly back in for Swift this time around.

The midfielder has been in fine form for Reading, scoring five goals and providing a further 11 assists across all competitions, and in fact, speaking back in February of this year, Bielsa raved about his talents.

He said: “Swift is a great player, I value him a lot.He is a player who appears suddenly in attack and the same in transition between defence and attack, but especially when he passes from the defence to the attack.”

The current England manager Gareth Southgate even tipped him to become a star back in 2016 – he worked with Swift when he was in charge of the U21s. He said: “John has done himself a favour leaving Chelsea. He’s got a great future ahead of him.”

With both Bielsa and Southgate talking him up, Swift certainly comes with a lot of credentials. And as a midfielder who can both score and create, could give Leeds an added dimension if they earn promotion to the Premier League for next season.