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Fortunes are beginning to change for Everton, as after such a vibrant start under Rafa Benitez, are now back at square one.

They have tasted back-to-back defeats, with a midweek penalty shoot-out loss to Championship side QPR in the Carabao Cup the nadir of the Spaniard’s reign so far.

For the most part, Benitez has done a good job since returning to Merseyside. He may have entered the club amid controversy over his appointment but Everton’s downfall over the last seven days is not entirely his fault.

That’s because the Toffees have been without a number of their key players. Dominic Calvert-Lewin is out with a quadriceps problem while Richarlison is also absent after a knee injury sustained against Burnley.

Seamus Coleman is set to miss another two weeks but there has been some positive news regarding Jordan Pickford.

It was thought that the goalkeeper would spend the next fortnight on the sidelines alongside his clubmates, but Benitez has revealed that the England international is ahead of schedule in his progress.

The 61-year-old said: “Pickford is okay, he has been training. Lucas [Digne] has been training. The others (Richarlison, DCL, Coleman) is the same situation.”

Although they’ll still be without some important outfield players, the return of Pickford will be a huge boost to their chances of beating Norwich this weekend.

The 27-year-old is undoubtedly an error-prone goalkeeper but he has improved significantly in recent months, starring at the European Championship.

The ‘keeper’s form helped England reach the final as he narrowly broke a record stretching back to the successful 1966 World Cup. Everton’s number 1 surpassed Gordon Banks’ landmark of 720 minutes without conceding a goal for the Three Lions.

He has only kept one shutout since returning to Goodison Park but they evidently missed him against Aston Villa last week when Asmir Begovic let in three goals. His penalty-saving abilities would also have been beneficial when they lost to QPR in the Carabao Cup a few nights ago.

Pickford hasn’t always been the most reliable figure but he is a key cog at Everton and a senior figure in the dressing room. Benitez must be delighted to have him back in contention to face Norwich.

AND in other news, Everton can finally axe £5.2m-rated “horror show” by signing “uncoachable” 28 y/o ace…

Rangers winger Ryan Kent has been the subject of regular interest from Leeds United in the past, but it seems as if he will be remaining with Steven Gerrard’s side at Ibrox for another few months at least.

What’s the word?

Leeds were regularly linked with the 24-year-old following their promotion to the Premier League last year and were widely tipped to return for Kent this summer after an impressive debut season from Marcelo Bielsa’s side back in the English top flight.

However, the Elland Road club look set to complete the signing of Daniel James from Manchester United today, and The Athletic’s Rangers correspondent Jordan Campbell seems confident that the move will bring an end to the Whites’ interest in Kent.

He tweeted: “A couple of loans out the way will happen at Ibrox today but it’s looking like Rangers will hold on to their top players. Morelos & Barisic both staying. Dan James to Leeds has killed prospect of Kent, while Kamara is expected to extend & Patterson to Everton won’t happen now.”

A huge boost for Rangers

Kent has established himself as a key player at Rangers since joining from Liverpool on a permanent basis in 2019 and will undoubtedly be a hugely important player in Gerrard’s side this season as they aim to retain their Premiership title.

The 24-year-old winger has made 135 appearances for the Gers in total, contributing 27 goals and 30 assists for the club, whilst he enjoyed his best-ever goalscoring season in the 2020/21 campaign with 13 goals and 15 assists in all competitions.

Paul Robinson was full of praise for Kent last season, saying: “He’s the modern-day footballer as he can play in a lot of positions, he is very comfortable with the ball at his feet, and his pass accuracy is outstanding and as I’ve said before if Steven can keep hold of him, he’ll be a very good asset in the years to come.”

After the Gers blew their chance of reaching the Champions League group stage with a disappointing home defeat against Malmo three weeks ago, which reportedly cost them £40m, it had been widely reported that the likes of Kent and Alfredo Morelos could depart.

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Fortunately for Rangers fans, Leeds clearly weren’t willing to meet Kent’s asking price and turned to James instead. That should help the Gers keep hold of the English winger until January at least, which will surely delight Gerrard as well.

In other news… Jordan Campbell drops exciting Nathan Patterson update

Liverpool are reportedly in the running to sign RB Salzburg striker Karim Adeyemi as manager Jurgen Klopp looks to bolster his forward line.

What’s the story?

According to German outlet BILD (as relayed by The Mirror), the Reds are one of three European heavyweights keen to secure the highly-rated 19-year-old’s services.

The report states that Bayern Munich and Barcelona are also eyeing a move for Adeyemi, while Salzburg are believed to have placed a £17 million price tag on their prized asset.

Jurgen Klopp would love him

With Xherdan Shaqiri departing Anfield over the summer and Divock Origi continuing to be linked with a move away from Merseyside, Klopp is believed to be in the market for a new attacker.

The German tactician was unable to lure one to Liverpool in the recently concluded window, meaning he may make a move either in January or 12 months’ time.

And Adeyemi could be the ideal signing for the 19-time English champions. Klopp has a history of purchasing players from the Red Bull system due to their preferred style of play matching his.

The likes of Naby Keita, Ibrahima Konate and Takumi Minamino have all departed a Red Bull affiliated club to join Klopp at Anfield as their pressing system is similar is the 54-year-old’s unique gegenpressing setup.

Therefore, the Liverpool boss would surely love to snap up Adeyemi, signing a ready-made replacement for Origi and competition for the likes of Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota.

Last season the teenage talent bagged nine goals and provided a further 11 assists in 39 appearances as he helped his side secure a domestic double, and he’s started the current campaign in blistering fashion.

The 5 ft 10 dynamo has already notched up an incredible seven goals and one assist in his first nine outings in 2021/22 before he scored on his international debut for Germany against Armenia.

It remains to be seen whether Liverpool’s director of football makes a formal offer for Adeyemi in the coming months, but Klopp will surely be hoping a deal can be done for his compatriot.

And, in other news…Liverpool suffer injury blow pre-Leeds United, Jurgen Klopp will be gutted 

Frank McAvennie believes Glasgow Rangers’ exit from the Champions League will be a disaster for the Ibrox outfit.

The Lowdown: Gers out of Champions League

The Gers’ Premiership title win will have left Steven Gerrard and co hopeful that they could reach the group stages of this season’s Champions League.

However, they bowed out at the first hurdle as they lost 4-2 on aggregate to Swedish side Malmo in the third qualifying round.

The Latest: McAvennie worried

Speaking to Football Insider – albeit prior to the second leg on Tuesday – McAvennie suggested it would be a disaster for the Gers if they did not manage to get past Malmo. He said:

“The pressure is really on now.

“Knowing the Rangers board, they have probably spent the group stage money already.

“I think they had an eye on tonight’s game when playing Dundee but they should have still won.

“Rangers will be a different proposition tonight I’m sure. They just didn’t perform at the weekend.

“They need to start well so the crowd don’t get on their back.

“It’s a hard task but I think they will win. It would be a disaster if they lost.”

The Verdict: Must be clever

It is of course not good news for the Gers to bow out of the competition before it could become truly lucrative. A place in the group stages could have brought in £30m for the club (The Glasgow Times), money which would have been huge for the Scottish side.

However, they are unlikely to be in a perilous position as long as they are careful. Stewart Robertson said last term that the Gers will need to sell players in the future anyway (BBC), and the Gers do have plenty of valuable assets (Transfermarkt).

Missing out on the Champions League is a blow, but that does not mean they are out of European competitions altogether – they still have a chance of reaching the Europa League group stages, and any sales of star players like Alfredo Morelos could do more than enough to atone for Tuesday night’s financial hit.

In other news, Rangers fans are livid at this SPFL move.

Part of Crystal Palace’s transfer strategy this summer will include bringing in a couple of players on loan, The Athletic’s Matt Woosnam has revealed.

Palace recently secured the services of Marc Guehi from Chelsea and it looks like they could turn to the west London club once again as they aim to bolster their squad further.

According to The Athletic, there has been persistent interest in midfielder Conor Gallagher and Palace are now attempting to bring in the 21-year-old in what would likely be a loan deal.

Speaking to FFC about Palace’s summer, Woosnam said:

“In terms of who they actually get, I would expect there to be at least one loan, maybe two.

“They always seem to sort of take that option up of bringing someone in on loan. It’s a bit more flexible than buying them.”

From Gallagher’s perspective, joining a side like Palace makes a lot of sense.

Last season, the England U21 international played a lot of football during his loan spell with West Brom. In total, he made 32 appearances, scoring two goals in the process.

After having a good taste of Premier League football, Gallagher will surely want to get out again and play rather than settle for Chelsea’s bench, which would be the likely scenario given Thomas Tuchel already has the likes of N’Golo Kante and Jorginho.

A major update has emerged in Tottenham Hotspur’s pursuit of Cristian Romero…

What’s the word?

With the new Premier League season just a couple of weeks away, the North Londoners are desperately looking to complete some more business before they go toe-to-toe with defending champions Manchester City on the opening day.

Pierluigi Gollini and Bryan Gil are two new additions to the side, with the Atalanta centre-back likely to be the next name through the door as Spurs have been in talks over a €55m (£47m) deal for quite some time now.

Italian transfer guru Fabrizio Romano dropped a huge claim in Spurs’ attempts to secure him – writing on Twitter, he said:

“Cristian Romero hopes to join Tottenham as [a] priority. He’s pushing directly with the club, there’s nothing with Barcelona – only Spurs. Tottenham want Atalanta to accept their last bid as Romero’s wish is to join Spurs. [It’s a] tense situation between clubs, to be resolved soon.”

Good news?

This should come as hugely encouraging news for the Lilywhites faithful, who will certainly want to see a new centre-back arrive in the capital before they face City.

The prospect of having Eric Dier and Davinson Sanchez at the back is rather worrying, especially after they were dubbed “one of the worst partnerships” in the top-flight last season by ex-Spurs midfielder Jamie O’Hara.

A combination of a lack of leadership and individual mistakes meant Spurs recorded the worst defensive record of any of the traditional ‘big six’ – even Arsenal, who finished below them in the table, conceded fewer times.

That’s why they are desperate for a new defender and it is also why they are heavily pursuing a move for the Serie A’s ‘Defender of the Year’ for the 2020/21 campaign.

Romano claims that the Argentina international hopes to join the club, so that’s one boost, and there’s another in the fact that it is only Spurs pursuing his signature.

There’s no Barcelona, Manchester United or any other team to battle, so it’s all up to chairman Daniel Levy and sporting director Fabio Paratici to come to an agreement.

It seems like Spurs have edged one step closer to sealing a game-changing arrival, and that should leave fans absolutely buzzing.

AND in other news, Nuno must ruthlessly axe £90k-p/w “disgrace”, he’s no longer good enough for Spurs…

Rangers take on Alashkert in the Europa League playoff at Ibrox on Thursday night, with Steven Gerrard’s side hoping to secure a place in the group stages with a win against the Armenian minnows.

The Gers don’t come into the game in the best of form, after suffering three consecutive losses against Malmo (twice) and Dundee United in recent weeks, but looked back to their normal selves with a resounding 5-0 win in the League Cup against Dunfermline last time out.

Although Gerrard may be tempted to restore some of his more experienced players to the starting lineup for Thursday night’s clash, the performances of his younger players will surely give him a lot to think about ahead of his team selection.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects the 41-year-old manager to line his side up at Ibrox, with five changes from the team that thrashed Dunfermline…

First-choice goalkeeper Allan McGregor returns in goal, replacing Jon McLaughlin in between the sticks.

After superb performances last Friday, Calvin Bassey and Nathan Patterson deserve to keep their place in the side at full-back, whilst Filip Helander returns to the starting eleven at centre-back alongside Conor Goldson.

Glen Kamara serves the final game of his European ban, with Steven Davis replacing him in midfield, partnering Joe Aribo and John Lundstram.

Kemar Roofe is also suspended for this one, so Alfredo Morelos starts up front in his absence, with the Colombian no doubt hoping to improve on his superb record in Europe for the Gers.

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Ianis Hagi keeps his place on the right-wing, whilst Ryan Kent, who Gerrard described as a “constant threat” in 2020, returns in place of Scott Wright in the final change on the left-hand side.

And, in other news… Transfer report provides worrying update on “outstanding” Rangers start

An update has emerged on Newcastle target Kristoffer Ajer regarding a potential move away from Celtic.

What’s the talk?

According to The Telegraph’s John Percy, Brentford are on the verge of signing the 23-year-old for a club-record £13.5m. The structure of the deal has been agreed with the Scottish giants and Ajer now seems set to join the newly-promoted Bees.

Newcastle boss Steve Bruce is said to have identified Ajer as his number one centre-back target this summer and the club held talks with Celtic over a possible deal. However, the Magpies are now set to miss out on the Norway international to one of their Premier League rivals.

Fans will be gutted

Newcastle fans will likely be gutted by this news as Brentford have been able to usurp them and seal a deal for a priority transfer target. This is not a good look for an established Premier League club, as the west Londoners are entering their first year in the division and have been able to outmuscle the Toon Army in this particular pursuit. Whilst it remains to be seen whether or not Newcastle attempted to match their offer, Ajer was a top target for Bruce, and missing out on his signature is certainly a blow.

In the Premier League last season, Paul Dummett’s WhoScored rating of 6.66 was the highest of any centre-back in Bruce’s squad, while Jamaal Lascelles, who turns 28 later this year, is the youngest player at the club in that position. This suggests that Newcastle are in dire need of a quality, young, defender to bolster their squad. Ajer, at 23, could have been exactly what they need.

Speaking in 2020, Alex McLeish labelled Ajer “inspirational” and compared him to former Hoops defender and current Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk.

The 62-year-old told Football Insider: “I go back to that St Johnstone game, you see sometimes when it’s not going for Celtic, and the game’s in its dying embers, and then all of a sudden you see Ajer striding up the pitch trying to inspire like Roy of the Rovers.

“Running from defence, augment the attack and then it leads to a goal – these are inspirational moments, and he is an inspirational, influential player for Celtic. Like Virgil van Dijk, he came to Celtic, and we all know what happened next.”

Not only does Ajer have youth on his side, but his performances for Celtic were outstanding last season. He averaged an exceptional WhoScored rating of 7.16 in 31 appearances in the Scottish Premiership, winning 3.2 aerial battles and making 3.4 clearances per game.

This shows that he has the ability to be a significant upgrade on Newcastle’s current centre-back options whilst having scope to improve further at 23 years of age, which is why Magpies fans must be disappointed that Mike Ashley has allowed Brentford to win the race for the Norwegian ahead of them.

AND in other news, Newcastle handed boost over £15m “phenomenon”, Bruce will surely be buzzing…

Everton are interested in a deal to bring Joao Palhinha to Goodison Park this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Portuguese publication Record (via Sport Witness), who claimed that Everton, along with Tottenham Hotspur, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla, are keeping a close eye on the defensive midfielder’s performances for Portugal in Euro 2020 ahead of a potential move in the summer transfer window.

It is reported that Spurs have made contact with Sporting Lisbon regarding the availability of the 25-year-old, with the Liga NOS champions thought to be demanding a fee of around €30m (£26m) in order to part with Palhinha this summer.

Forget Gbamin

Considering that Everton’s £22.5m signing of Mainz midfielder Jean-Philippe Gbamin back in 2019 has not exactly worked out for the club, with the 25-year-old having made just three appearances for the Toffees due to a series of injuries, defensive midfield certainly appears to be an area of the pitch in which Marcel Brands must look to strengthen this summer.

With Palhinha impressing in Portugal last season, the player whom Ruben Amorim dubbed a “special” talent would certainly appear to be a fantastic candidate for the Everton director of football to bring into the club this summer.

Indeed, over his 32 Liga NOS appearances for Sporting last season, the £9,100-per-week man averaged 1.5 interceptions, 3.3 tackles and 1.2 clearances and won a whopping 9.1 duels per game. The £16.2m-rated midfielder also chipped in for his team going forward, scoring one goal, creating two big chances and averaging 0.4 key passes per league fixture.

These returns saw the 25-year-old earn an average SofaScore match rating of 7.12, ranking him as Ruben Amorim’s sixth-best performer in the Primeira Liga, helping Sporting win their first league title for 19 years.

Palhinha also wowed onlookers in his one appearance at Euro 2020 thus far, winning three tackles and seven duels during a 45-minute stint in Portugal’s 2-2 draw with France. He earned a SofaScore match rating of 7.3 for his efforts, the second-best score of any Portugal player in the match.

As such, we believe that Brands should indeed do all he can to get a deal over the line for the Sporting Lisbon star this summer, as Palhinha very much appears to possess the talent to form the base on which Everton’s new manager can mount a push for a top-four finish in the Premier League next season.

In other news: Forget Benitez: Moshiri could still land “excellent” 54y/o who Everton fans would love

Leeds United have been given a major transfer update on Jack Harrison, and it’s news which will surely have fans buzzing.

What’s the story?

In a Q&A for Leeds Live, Beren Cross dismissed suggestions that there may be some late hitches with a permanent deal for the winger and insisted that he will join up with Marcelo Bielsa’s side essentially from the start of pre-season.

The journalist said said: “I don’t believe so. From what I’ve been told, there won’t be any issues with Harrison coming in. To be honest, I’m not sure on the technicality in the paperwork, but it certainly came across last summer as though he would definitely be joining permanently 12 months later. It may have been left as an option rather than an obligation to give Leeds a way out if they changed their mind, but I’m not sure.

“Harrison’s deal has effectively been in place since last summer when he agreed his third year-long loan spell. It should go through on July 1, if not a little after. There are no concerns about it and he’ll be in place from the start of pre-season pretty much.”

Fans will be buzzing

The news that there are no hitches in Harrison’s permanent arrival and that he will be at Elland Road for the start of pre-season will surely have Leeds fans buzzing.

The Whites are yet to complete any significant first team signings just yet, with Birmingham City starlet Amari Miller the only player to walk through the door so far.

While Harrison has been at the club for so long and may not feel like a ‘new’ signing, there will be a major relief and excitement that he will now join on a permanent basis and will be at Elland Road for the long-term.

He enjoyed a superb campaign with Leeds in the Premier League last season, with his tally of eight goals bettered only by Patrick Bamford, and his haul of eight assists second only to Raphinha (Transfermarkt).

It’s exactly why Cross’ latest update on where things stand with a permanent deal for Harrison should have Leeds fans delighted.

Meanwhile, Leeds receive major update on Marcelo Bielsa’s future…