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Lots of Everton fans have been left buzzing as news emerged involving Salomon Rondon, with the Toffees finally announcing his squad number ahead of the clash with Burnley.

As shared by the official Twitter page of the Goodison Park faithful, it has now been confirmed that the Venezuela international will wear the number 33 shirt for the Merseyside club following his arrival in the summer transfer window.

It was vital that the Toffees brought in another striker to ease the scoring burden off of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, and Rondon may well fit the bill, as he has plenty of experience in the Premier League playing for both West Brom and Newcastle United (Transfermarkt).

He has also played in 61 games in total over all competitions under Rafa Benitez, scoring 26 goals and making a further 14 assists (Transfermarkt).

Thus, the 31-year-old certainly looks to be a smart addition, and the fact that he now has his official squad number means that he could play a part against Burnley on Monday night.

Everton fans on Rondon post

These Toffees supporters buzzed as the post was shared on Twitter:

“Happy days”

Credit: @CharliesSnowman

“Love it.”

Credit: @five15design

“Yesssssssss what a number”

Credit: @Conor_LaneSmith

“Anyone else get the feeling this guys gonna be a beast?”

Credit: @MattyGraham18

“Forget about all the hype of Ronaldo this is the only Ronny that matters”

Credit: @ste_coll5

“Proper striker”

Credit: @torneleesamuels

In other news, find out what transfer news has Blues happy here!

Former Newcastle centre-back Steve Howey has told Steve Bruce to consider signing Phil Jones, amid a deadline day fiasco with Craig Hope claiming the Toon manager is trying to arrange deals himself with the official club line that their business is done.

The Manchester United defender hasn’t made a competitive appearance for the Red Devils since an FA Cup tie at Tranmere in January 2020 – and spent the whole of last season out with a knee problem.

Jones did make his United return in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Burnley earlier this month but appears some way down the pecking order despite Ole Gunnar Solsjkaer confirming the England defender remains in his plans.

According to the Daily Mail, Mapgies boss Bruce has been keeping a close eye on the 29-year-old as he looks to bolster his defensive numbers following their wretched start to the Premier League season.

Newcastle have already conceded eight goals in three matches and have already tried five different central defenders in those three outings.

Bruce’s only significant addition to his squad this summer was the permanent capture of Joe Willock from Arsenal having missed out on Kristoffer Ajer, who eventually joined Brentford.

But with time running out, Howey exclusively told The Transfer Tavern that Bruce should keep his options open and explore the possibility of bringing in Jones:

“He’s been at Manchester United for a long time, he’s played for his country. But he’s been frozen out completely and is struggling for first-team places.

“These are the players you might want to look at and weigh up the options about acquiring their services.”

Former Nottingham Forest shot-stopper Mark Crossley believes that the club will need to sign two strikers if Brennan Johnson leaves before the end of the summer transfer window.

There has reportedly been interest in Johnson’s services from Premier League newcomers Brentford FC and Sky Sports claim they are in talks with Forest over a deal for the attacking midfielder, but the Bees are not prepared to pay the £10m that Forest value the 20-year-old at.

Johnson was in fine form last season while on loan at Lincoln City, making 48 appearances for the Imps, scoring 13 goals and adding a further 14 assists, as Lincoln reached the League One play-off final at Wembley.

But Crossley believes that if Johnson does depart the City Ground this summer, then Forest need to add two strikers their squad: “Brennan Johnson is a target for a lot of clubs, so if he ends up going then you probably think it’s not one striker that’s needed, we probably need two, especially if you’re trying to get out of the division.

“It’s all about the strikers, although other players in the team have got to come up with goals but you need that 20 goal per season striker and another one that probably going to buy in with 15 or 16 goals,” Crossley exclusively told Transfer Tavern.

Bottom of the table Nottingham Forest travel to rivals Derby County on Saturday afternoon and are in search for their first Championship points of the campaign having lost their opening four league fixtures of 2021/2022.

Former Premier League midfielder Carlton Palmer has slammed Arsenal for losing “their identity”, with Mikel Arteta’s men currently sitting 19th in the table.

Arsenal made it back-to-back defeats over the weekend after being utterly outclassed by London rivals Chelsea in a 2-0 loss at the Emirates.

Chelsea’s new £97.5m signing Romelu Lukaku absolutely dominated the home side, scoring on his second debut for the club and bullying central defender Pablo Mari for the entire 90 minutes.

This, of course, comes after the Gunners’ opening day defeat to newly-promoted Brentford, and Palmer has been left unimpressed by what he has seen from this current group of players from the red side of north London.

“They’ve now lost their identity,” the ex-Leeds United and Southampton player exclusively told FFC. “When I used to play against Arsenal, they had an identity, hard to beat.

“Lee Dixon, Tony Adams, Steve Bould, Martin Keown, Nigel Winterburn, Patrick Vieira. They had a spine in that side that was nasty. They were hard to play.”

Two games in and coming up against a very good Chelsea side with a bunch of first-team players missing, there is no reason to hit the panic button just yet as far as this season in isolation goes.

But fans will surely be expecting the club to start picking up some points after their next Premier League clash against champions Manchester City at the Etihad.

Crystal Palace reporter for The Athletic, Matt Woosnam, believes that the versatility of new signings Marc Guehi and Michael Olise is a plus for the Eagles.

Guehi signed a five-year deal at Selhurst Park and is comfortable playing as a centre-back, but has also featured as both a left and a right-back throughout his career. The defender was an important player for Swansea City last season as he featured in 45 games for the Swans in all competitions.

Olise also has a lot of first-team experience as he featured for Reading 46 times in all competitions, scoring seven goals and creating a further 12, and only didn’t feature in two of the Royals’ Championship fixtures last campaign against Luton and Preston where he was on the bench.

The 19-year-old is comfortable playing off either wing, as well as playing more centrally in an attacking midfield role, and also signed a five-year deal with Palace.

Woosnam believes that the versatility that both Guehi and Olise offer is a plus for the club, telling Football FanCast: “I think versatility is something that Palace would probably benefit from. I think to some extent Marc Guehi is a relatively first style defender he can play in a back five or three and also a back four.

“Michael Olise, again he wasn’t signed for that purpose but he can play on the right, I think he played there quite a lot for Reading sort of coming inside from the right or he can play centrally.”

Patrick Vieira has been busy in the summer window since taking charge of Crystal Palace, as alongside Guehi and Olise, Palace have also completed deals for Jacob Montes, Joachim Anderson and Conor Gallagher.

Sheffield United are rumoured to be interested in a deal to sign Manchester United midfielder James Garner on loan, according to The Sun.

What’s the story?

Garner is contracted with Manchester United until the summer of 2022, and it remains to be seen as to whether he’ll feature for their senior side anytime soon.

The midfielder spent last year’s campaign on loan with both Watford and Nottingham Forest, where he made a mixed impact with both Championship teams.

The Sun claim that Sheffield United are keen on finalising a loan agreement for Garner, who evidently made a good impression on Slavisa Jokanovic last term.

The Blades will be looking to win promotion back into the Premier League at the first time of asking, after their relegation from the top-flight last season.

‘Next Michael Carrick’

Football Insider have recently claimed that Manchester United are preparing to loan out Garner ahead of the new season after they’ve held contract talks with him over a long-term deal at Old Trafford.

Sheffield United are likely to be alerted to this rumoured update on the midfielder’s future, and they’ll be hoping they can beat a number of teams to land his signature this summer.

It has previously been reported that the likes of Forest were also keen on signing Garner on a temporary basis this summer, although it remains to be seen as to which club is leading the race at this stage.

Garner caught the eye with some strong performances for the Reds last season in particular, with the 20-year-old having an average Whoscored rating of 6.98 from the 2020/21 campaign, which put him top in the standings of Forest’s best performers.

He’s a solid performer in the defensive side of the game as well, with Garner averaging two tackles a game, as well as 1.7 interceptions per game. 

The Manchester United youngster also has an eye for a pass, with a pass accuracy of 80.9% during the 2020/21 season, which makes for strong reading compared to the majority of his former Nottingham Forest teammates.

Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjær has previously likened Garner to Michael Carrick, who spent time at Old Trafford during his playing career.

“I believe he’s got the chance to have a great future, he knows we believe in him, we’ve got great faith in him as the next Michael Carrick.

“I know he’s young and I know it’s not fair on kids to compare to great players like Michael was, but he’s the same mould, he plays simple passes, plays through the lines.”

Sheff United have a number of strong options available to them in a similar position to Garner, but you would imagine that the 20-year-old could learn a considerable amount from the likes of Ollie Norwood, John Fleck and Sander Berge in the future, which would make this a fantastic signing for Jokanovic’s side if they can pull it off.

Blades supporters should be buzzing about this potential agreement with Garner, as it’d be a real statement of intent about their ambitions of returning to the Premier League this season, as he has shown he’s more than good enough to be playing for a team challenging for promotion.

The Blades are set to take on Birmingham City in their season opener, in what could potentially be a tricky test for them at Bramall Lane and hopefully for their fans, they’ll have Garner in the starting line-up.

Everton have shown an interest in Manchester United’s Anthony Martial but his wages could put them off, according to a report from the Daily Star.

United want to offload Martial ‘as soon as possible’, with the arrival of Jadon Sancho at Old Trafford making him ‘surplus to requirements’.

The Red Devils have reportedly slapped a £50million price tag on the forward as they look to recoup some of their outlay on Sancho and prospective signing Raphael Varane.

Martial currently takes home £250,000 per week and potential suitors like Spurs, Everton, West Ham and Aston Villa are ‘not interested’ in making him a top earner.

Martial no longer wanted by United after loss of form

The Frenchman had enjoyed a fine 2019/20 campaign, recording 35 direct goal contributions (23 goals, 12 assists) in 48 appearances across all competitions.

Last season, his output fell to just seven goals, though he was injured for the final two months of the campaign (via Transfermarkt).

Fan feed Toffee TV relayed The Star’s claims, and here’s how supporters reacted, with one fan calling it ‘crazy’ to target a player on such huge wages.

These Everton fans warn against Martial signing

“Never ever rated this lad, he’s the worst striker United have”

Credit: @thbluenurse

“Crazy wages for a 25 year old that can’t even get into his own national team.”

Credit: @gbMKEFC

“Please god no , we’ve got enough dross without adding him !!!”

Credit: @bluebluetoe

“Don’t rate him, let’s look elsewhere”

Credit: @crewemole

“We don’t need another player out injured for half the season”

Credit: @RokitSkates

“Absolutely not”

Credit: @debbiewright197

In other news, Everton have also been warned against this transfer decision.

West Bromwich Albion have failed in their bid to bring Taiwo Awoniyi to The Hawthorns this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Neil Jones, with the Goal journalist revealing in a post on Twitter that the Liverpool centre-forward is set to complete a £6.5m move to Union Berlin, with the 23-year-old believed to have undergone a medical with the Bundesliga side on Tuesday.

It had previously been reported that West Brom, along with Fulham, Stoke City and a host of German clubs, were extremely interested in a move for the Nigeria U23 international, however, following Jones’ latest update, an Albion move for the striker now looks to be dead in the water.

Ismael surely fuming

Following Mbaye Diagne’s return to Galatasaray after the completion of his loan deal with West Brom at the end of last season, Valerien Ismael does appear to be in need of attacking additions to his Albion side this summer.

And, considering the potential Awoniyi demonstrated during his time on loan at Union last season, the centre-forward could well have made a fantastic addition to the Frenchman’s squad ahead of their upcoming Championship campaign.

Indeed, over his 21 Bundesliga appearances last term, the £4.5m-rated man bagged five goals, provided two assists and created one big chance for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.4 shots and making one key pass per game.

These returns saw the man Mergim Vojvoda dubbed an “excellent” player earn an average SofaScore match rating of 6.62, helping his side secure a highly impressive seventh-placed finish in the Bundesliga.

As such, the 6 foot 4 striker looks to be a rather exciting prospect, and we would not bet against him going on to flourish in the Bundesliga once again next season.

However, this will provide Ismael with no comfort whatsoever, with the 45-year-old now seeming to have missed out on deals for all three of Diagne, Famara Diedhiou and Awoniyi – with the latest setback sure to have left the Baggies boss fuming.

AND in other news, West Brom dealt knockout blow on “excellent” £20k-p/w gem, it’s an opportunity missed…

Manchester United have reportedly set a deadline by which a decision on Mason Greenwood’s future will be made.

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• Forward spending 2023-24 season at Getafe
• Tied to contract in England through to 2025
• Big call yet to be made on long-term future

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  With Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s partial takeover at Old Trafford being ratified by the Premier League, long-term plans are now being drawn up by the Red Devils. Greenwood is unlikely to play any part in those, but no definitive call on what happens next with the 22-year-old forward has been made.

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  WHAT RATCLIFFE SAID ABOUT GREENWOOD

  Ratcliffe has said of the one-cap England international, who continues to impress during a loan spell at Spanish side Getafe: “We will make a decision. I don’t know if he could still have a future. All I can do is talk about the principle of how we will approach decisions like that. Is he the right type of footballer? Are we happy with that? Is he a good person or not? He is a Manchester United footballer and we are in charge of football. So the answer is it’s quite clear we have to make a decision.”

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  According to , that decision will be made by the end of May. Ratcliffe is said to have made the Greenwood saga a “priority” for United. It is felt that a resolution is required that allows all parties to move on, without a protracted saga providing an unwelcome distraction.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR GREENWOOD?

  Greenwood has not figured for United since January 2022, when he was arrested on suspicion of rape and sexual assault. Those charges were dropped in February 2023 and the talented winger has attracted interest from Barcelona and Atletico Madrid during a stint at Getafe that has delivered seven goals and five assists so far this term.

Bruno Lage has been working busily behind the scenes in order to improve this Wolves squad ahead of the new season.

He’s started his work in impressive fashion by luring Trincao to the club from Barcelona with an option to buy.

However, the Portuguese cannot afford to rest on his laurels just yet.

On the chalkboard

Wolves have a number of areas they desperately need to improve before next season, specifically in attack where a lack of goals really troubled them in 2020/21.

Raul Jimenez was missing from the end of November until the end of the season after sustaining a fractured skull in a sickening clash of heads with David Luiz.

The Mexican was a huge miss as the club’s Player of the Season, Pedro Neto, ended the campaign as their joint top scorer alongside Ruben Neves on just five goals.

Jimenez has made a full recovery and will play for the rest of his career with protective headgear.

However, at the age of 30, you have to wonder whether the tall forward will find top form again.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-wolves-transfer-news-ceballos-zinchenko-euros-felix-lage” title=”Read the latest Wolves transfer news!”]

He’s been a wonderful servant for the Old Gold down the years, though, beating the goalkeeper on 48 occasions in 110 matches.

The new Jimenez

Rafa Mir would have been the ideal man to replace their star man in the future but it looks increasingly likely that the Spaniard will be heading for the departure lounge this summer.

Instead, they could hand the eventual task of replacing Jimenez to Schalke striker Matthew Hoppe.

According to 90min, Wolves are one of a number of sides plotting a bid in the coming weeks for the American centre-forward.

Born in California, Hoppe has enjoyed an intriguing rise to the German top-flight.

He played for LA Galaxy when he was a teenager and then went onto play for Barcelona’s academy in the United States.

Speaking about his time there, academy director Sean McCafferty, commented:

“In the Southwest Division you’ve got LA Galaxy, Real Salt Lake, two of the best academies in the country, and we were able to win the division. We’ve had tremendous consistency throughout the year, and we have the top goal scorer in the country in Matthew Hoppe. He’s of the highest level.”

Standing at the colossal height of 6 foot 3, he is similar in stature to Jimenez and like the club’s Mexican sensation, he is adept in the air and a complete natural when it comes to scoring goals.

Hoppe won 1.1 aerial duels per game last season and found the net on seven occasions. That’s not the greatest tally in the world but it’s important to remember that he’s still only 20 years of age.

Compared to Robert Lewandowski, the American evidently has immense potential.

A piece on the official Bundesliga website detailed the following: “Tall and lithe but with a strong frame, the American has a knack of losing his marker at just the right time, his clever movement creating pockets of space inside the penalty area. Although predominantly right-footed, he can also score with his left, with his head and from outside the box.”

Jimenez also has the ability to find clever pockets and score in a number of different ways. Consequently, Hoppe could be his ideal replacement in a few years time.

AND in other news, Alan Nixon delivers Wolves transfer update, fans should be excited…