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According to a report from the Daily Telegraph and reliable journalist Mike McGrath, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola is set to receive significant backing this summer with the club willing to spend £200 million on the right players to bolster his squad – with many Citizens buzzing as this ‘great news’ emerges.

The Sky Blues are ticking back into full gear following a slow start to the Premier League campaign, with Guardiola’s side now reigning victorious in seven of their last nine league encounters.

Investment in their backline over 2020 appears to have paid dividends as summer signing Ruben Dias continues to form a stellar partnership with the rejuvenated John Stones, backed up by the pair keeping seven clean sheets in City’s last nine in all competitions among the plethora of victories.

Now, as per the Telegraph, City are willing to spend a further £200m in the summer to further reinforce the squad if primed targets are made available – coming as the Sky Blues are heavily linked with the likes of Erling Haaland. 

In reaction to this development, as relayed on social media by Man City Xtra and Man City Report, it’s safe to say plenty of fans are overjoyed – find all of their best verdicts down below.

Man City fans buzz as £200m transfer kitty touted

“Rival tears incoming”

Credit: @mcfcadam_

“I love this club”

Credit: @trendz_football

“Great news”

Credit: @AdamKDB123

“I CANNOT WAIT”

Credit: @mxnciteh

“OIL MONEY BUYING THE LEAGUE AGAIN!!!

I LOVE IT!!!!!”

Credit: @bruynedekevin17

“The fume this is gonna cause, it’s beautiful”

Credit: @olicoulsxn

“Music to my ears”

Credit: @tristangwade

In other news: Man City fans didn’t like this alleged decision from Txiki Begiristain, find out more here.

Steve Bruce must unleash Ryan Fraser from the start when Newcastle United visit Leeds on Wednesday night with the winger back ready for action after a hamstring injury.

The ex-Bournemouth attacker has missed the Magpies’ last four Premier League fixtures but has battled to overcome the issue and be passed fit for the midweek trip to Elland Road.

Bruce is yet to be given the chance to truly rely on Fraser since his arrival at St. James’ Park as a free agent in the summer, having only begun a strict training regime after signing with the Magpies.

Bruce felt Fraser’s Bournemouth exit played a role in his slow start to life on Tyneside, with the 26-year-old’s decision to reject a short-term contract extension to cover the delayed end of the season seeing him last step on the pitch in March.

“Considering he hasn’t played since March, his effort, endeavour and enthusiasm was there for everybody to see,” Bruce said of Fraser, via quotes by the Independent, after the Scotland international scored on his debut against Blackburn Rovers in the Carabao Cup.

“The only bit of quality we showed all night was the goal. It was a great ball, a great run and Ryan stuck it in well.”

Bruce now sees Fraser like a new signing after his rehabilitation was uninterrupted by the closure of Newcastle’s training ground following an outbreak of Covid-19, and has confirmed the £14.4m-rated forward will be in the squad to face Leeds on Wednesday.

“Fraser is OK. It has just been injury and he has trained for the past week and a bit,” Bruce said, via quotes by the Chronicle. “He has been interrupted because of the training ground closure.

“He is fully fit and like a new signing for us.”

But Fraser is only expected to be named among the substitutes at Elland Road, which would be a mistake by Bruce who should be handing the Aberdeen-born maestro only his second Premier League start in black and white.

Bruce lauds Fraser for being a “very, very meticulous” player who was “champing at the bit” to get started for Newcastle, only to see that option taken away through injury. But his desire to get going will simply have grown whilst out for the past month.

In that time, Toon fans have often seen their side struggle for creativity in midfield with Sean Longstaff the only one to provide a key ball in defeat to Southampton, no single player proving multiple key balls against Chelsea, Jonjo Shelvey the sole midfielder to create chances at Crystal Palace while neither Longstaff nor Miguel Almiron provided a key ball in Saturday’s win over West Brom.

Matt Ritchie may have fashioned a joint-game high three key balls against Slaven Bilic’s Baggies, per WhoScored, but also failed to register a single successful dribble while Almiron lost two of his three and accounted for 42% of the Magpies’ total seven shots on target.

Bruce can solve his need for consistent creativity in midfield on both fronts by starting Fraser, not by introducing the £41.8k-p/w attacker from the bench when chances to influence proceedings are far slimmer.

AND in other news, Lee Charnley must secure a January loan exit for an in-demand Toon gem Steve Bruce takes for granted.

Many Everton fans have slammed Lucas Digne after the France international got himself sent off with a straight red card against Southampton this afternoon.

Digne was sent off in the 72nd minute for a foul on Kyle Walker-Peters, with the Merseysiders already 2-0 down in the match.

The 27-year-old did not have a good game in general, failing to make a single tackle, interception, key pass or accurate cross, earning him a rather poor 5.1 overall rating, the worst score out of anyone on the pitch (Sofascore).

The Toffees ended up losing the match 2-0 thanks to first half goals from James Ward-Prowse and Che Adams in what was a pretty disappointing display overall from Carlo Ancelotti’s team.

Everton fan reaction to Digne performance

These Everton supporters blasted Digne for getting himself a red card as well as the left-back’s overall poor performance, with a couple of Blues even branding him as ‘stupid’:

Evertonians, find out why some fans were unhappy with the starting line-up here and don’t forget to comment below with your views!

After taking the lead through a wonder strike from Grady Diangana, West Brom came away from their clash against Everton on Saturday afternoon with nothing to show at the end of it.Slaven Bilic’s side hit the self-destruct button right on the stroke of half-time when former Arsenal man Kieran Gibbs retaliated and stuck out a hand in James Rodriguez’s face, earning himself a straight red card from referee Mike Dean.

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The Baggies battled back to make it 2-2 thanks to a free-kick from Matheus Pereira, but the Toffees eased to a victory in the end against ten men.

And after watching him lose his cool and get himself sent off, West Brom fans took to Twitter to voice their frustrations with Gibbs.

A couple of fans suggested that the Baggies desperately need a new left-back before the end of the transfer window, with one supporter even insisting that Gibbs should never play for the club again.

Make no mistake about it, up until that sending off, West Brom looked in control of the game, registering the same number of shots on target in the first-half (3) and being unfortunate with the nature of Everton’s equaliser through Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

But Gibbs’ sending off completely changed the complexion of the game, and it was no surprise to see the Toffees run away with it after the break.

When Bilic heads back on to the training field, he’ll have to have a serious think about Gibbs going forward.

Coventry City’s new signing Julien Dacosta has discussed his ambitions ahead of the 2020/2021 season.

After gaining promotion to the Championship from League One, Sky Blues boss Mark Robins has already began to make some improvements to his side this summer.

A young defensive midfielder in Gustavo Hamer has arrived from PEC Zwolle to add an extra dimension to Coventry’s midfield, completing a deal last week as confirmed via the club’s official website.

Joining Hamer in his arrival to the Midlands outfit is Dacosta, who joins the club on a free transfer and the young defender has touched on his ambitions for next season.

Born in Marseille, Dacosta joined his hometown club as a youth player and developed through the club’s academy before moving to lower league side Chamois Niort in 2017.

The £428,000-valued full-back would go on to make 80 appearances in all competitions, establishing himself as a much trusted first team member.

In a recorded message on the club’s Twitter account, he said: “Hello fans. I’m very happy to have signed for Coventry.

“This is a very big club, with a great story. And I hope to help write another page of this story.

“I’m in a hurry to wear the Sky Blue jersey in the Championship and make the supporters proud.

“Go Sky Blues!”

Coventry fans must be so excited for the new season, especially after gaining promotion. Mark Robins is making some incredible movements to bolster his side and the signings of Dacosta and Hamer are excellent additions.

His words are also comforting to hear as he looks to give his all towards the cause.

How do you think Dacosta will get on for Coventry next season? Let us know in the comments section below…

Tottenham Hotspur have completed a rather impressive turnaround under Jose Mourinho.

When the controversial Portuguese manager was appointed in November, the 2018/19 Champions League runners-up were languishing in 14th position but Spurs ended the campaign in sixth place and will compete in the Europa League next term.

Whilst he’ll still have his doubters due to his pragmatic nature, Mourinho does indeed deserve praise for what he’s just accomplished and it should after all be merely a solid foundation to life in north London.

It’s clear that some sort of overhaul or turnaround in players is required. That much is already known with the club reportedly seeking both Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Max Aarons as their top targets this summer, as per The Athletic.

However, Sunday’s drab draw at Crystal Palace should have given Mourinho plenty more food for thought, particularly at left-back after Ben Davies dropped a clanger.

Per SofaScore, the 27-year-old won just two of his 12 duels (17%), recorded zero tackles, lost possession 21 times and also committed three fouls. It was quite a disastrous display all-round.

And it’s not like the Welshman has pulled up any trees throughout the course of the season – in fact, he’s been distinctly average, which is summed up by his WhoScored rating of just 6.77.

He’s gone missing in big occasions too – against the likes of arch-rivals Arsenal, Man Utd, Wolves and Chelsea, he’s struggled to surpass the 6.66 mark.

Spurs’ attacking output from the left flank also ranks as the worst in the division at just 35% and given Heung-min Son has bagged ten goals from that side this season, the brunt of the blame falls with Davies.

As much as Mourinho could probably do with a defensive lynchpin now that Eric Dier has cemented his place in the backline – something Hojbjerg certainly would bring having averaged 2.4 tackles and 1.5 clearances per game – it’s clear to see that left-back spot is one of the weakest spots in the team.

Whether young starlet Ryan Sessegnon or a mooted target such as Ben Chilwell can fill that attacking void very much remains to be seen.

But if the two-time UCL winner is to bring what Mauricio Pochettino couldn’t to north London, then he ought to find his next Ashley Cole or Cristian Chivu before bolstering elsewhere.

AND in other news, Mourinho eyeing timely transfer reunion with ex-Spurs man…

Tottenham are holding talks with Southampton to sign Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the summer. 

Jose Mourinho has identified Hojbjerg as his top target to transform the side that he inherited from Mauricio Pochettino.

Hojbjerg has made it clear he wants to leave Southampton as he is looking for a new challenge. He will be out of contract next year and this summer could be the last chance for Ralph Hasenhuttl to cash in on his former captain.

According to Football Insider, Spurs are negotiating with the Saints over a possible move, with Tottenham confident that they can complete a deal for the Dane this summer. The Saints were demanding £35m for the ex-Bayern Munich ace but he could be available for a cut-price deal worth £20m as they are eager to get rid of him as soon as possible.

Although Daniel Levy is infamously tight-fisted, the club believe that they will be able to reach an agreement with Southampton in a matter of weeks.

Hojbjerg was stripped of the captain’s armband after refusing to sign a new deal with the Saints and a move is surely in the interests of both parties involved.

Spurs have borrowed a huge sum of money from the Bank of England, as Levy has taken out a £175m loan to cover the costs of these uncertain times. However, the club have held early discussions with his agent Pini Zahavi to sort out conditions of the contract.

Everything seems to be working in Tottenham’s favour, as Zahavi has a strong relationship with Mourinho, which should in theory smooth things over.

As it stands, Spurs should easily be able to afford the asking price, as they splashed the cash to sign Tanguy Ndombele last year. However, clubs are working under extreme conditions, so fans will have to wait and see what deals can be made before the transfer window closes.

Tottenham fans, should Daniel Levy sign Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the summer? Let us know down below!

Some Aston Villa fans have debated whether or not Dean Smith should stick with one striker up front or go with a two.

Villa sit 19th in the Premier League table as things stand and will restart the 2019/20 season with a game in hand over the other relegation battlers, which takes place against Sheffield United next Wednesday.

After promotion to the top flight a year ago, an inconsistent season in the Premier League so far has seen Villa perform well at times, reaching the Carabao Cup final earlier this year, and Smith will be looking for similar performances from his team to get themselves out of the bottom three.

Playing the majority of the season with one striker, a debate is now emerging on whether or not the Villa boss should change to a two-man front line. Gregg Evans from The Athletic has penned an article looking into the potential of playing two up top, mentioning youngster Keinan Davis, Mbwana Samatta and the injured Wesley.

Debating the potential of Smith going with two up front, some Villa fans gave their thoughts on how the attack should line up…

Should Dean Smith start with two strikers up front? Let us know in the comments section below…

One of the big decisions Newcastle will have to make if and when this proposed takeover goes through, is the future of current manager Steve Bruce.

The Magpies boss took over the reins on a permanent basis from Rafa Benitez after the Spaniard’s departure last summer, and to his credit, has ensured the Tyneside club have steered well clear of the relegation zone – at the time football was postponed, they were eight points clear of 18th-placed Bournemouth.

But whilst Bruce has done a respectable job in ensuring Newcastle will once again be playing Premier League football next season, the prospect of new owners and larger investment means the yardstick will surely be changed in terms of ambition.

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If the club do go on to make big-money signings, then there will be a sense of hope and expectation that challenging for European football may become the new objective – and Bruce simply doesn’t have the gravitas or credentials to be leading a side like that, despite recent claims that the players are keen for him to stay.

Bruce’s resumes of clubs isn’t the most awe-inspiring, whilst he doesn’t have any experience of managing a team in the Champions League.

Reports in recent weeks have linked the Magpies with the likes of Mauricio Pochettino and Massimiliano Allegri – the kinds of managers who have built up considerable experience at the helm of some of European football’s biggest sides, and competing for titles.

Keeping Bruce as Newcastle look to build a new era would be somewhat of a cowardly decision that would send out completely the wrong message and intent about what the Tyneside club hope to achieve.

Players like Barcelona superstar Philippe Coutinho have been linked, and it’s been claimed that he would only move to Newcastle if Pochettino takes charge – that in itself is an indication of how simply having money to splash will not be enough to entice the biggest and best players.

The club needs an inspirational or well-recognised figurehead a la Carlo Ancelotti at Everton to inspire this revolution. And Bruce simply isn’t that man, and why the Magpies would be making a huge mistake if they kept him on board.

Meanwhile, Newcastle fans react to an update on Steve Bruce’s future.

So Newcastle fans are still having to wait anxiously to finally hear the news that Mike Ashley has left the building.

The club have been on the verge of a takeover for what feels like eternity now, and things appear to be only inching closer to completion.

Now, The Daily Telegraph journalist Luke Edwards has insisted that due to there being no official or unofficial notification from the Premier League, “nothing has changed yet”, and that the “takeover remains imminent”.

And after hearing Edwards’ clarification on where things stand at the moment, Newcastle fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts on it.

A couple of fans seemed to be very optimistic after Edwards’ update, suggesting that the news all but confirmed the takeover is going to happen soon.

If and when the takeover does official go through, it promises to be worth the wait.

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The Ashley nightmare will finally be over, and Newcastle fans will have something to celebrate. After suffering years and years of turmoil under his leadership, an extra few days or weeks shouldn’t be considered the worst thing in the world if it does eventually see him leave the club.