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David Moyes can end his West Ham United striker woes by signing Eintracht Frankfurt ace Andre Silva to fill the void left by Sebastien Haller.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, Silva has emerged as a potential target for the London Stadium natives after Moyes made clear his intentions to reinvest the £20m made from Haller’s exit.

AFC Bournemouth’s Joshua King also remains high on the former Manchester United boss’ shortlist, which features a string of options including Cagliari’s Giovanni Simeone and Stade de Reims’ Boulaye Dia.

But Moyes is loath to pay over the odds to solve his attacking situation, with Reims expected to demand no less than £15m for Dia while the Irons are touted to offer £16m for King, who will be a free agent at the end of the season.

Silva is under contract at the Deutsche Bank Park through to the summer of 2023 on €50,000-per-week (£44.5k-p/w) terms, after joining Eintracht Frankfurt permanently from AC Milan in the last transfer window for just €9m (£8m).

The 25-year-old had set Milan back €38m (£34m) when signed from Porto in 2017 but never lived up to his price tag at the San Siro, scoring just 10 goals in 41 games. Yet he rediscovered his touch in front of the net with Frankfurt last season, striking 16 times in 37 matches during an initial year-long loan deal.

Silva has continued to thrive in Germany since completing his bargain move to Adi Hutter’s side, with his brace at DSC Arminia Bielefeld on Saturday moving his tally for the term to 15 goals in 19 outings, plus five assists, across all competitions.

The dream solution?

Moyes could find his and West Ham’s dream striker solution with a move to acquire Silva in the January transfer window, but will be expected to face serious reluctance to sell with the £25m-rated attacker proving to be a pivotal weapon in Hutter’s arsenal.

Silva has scored at least one goal in more than half of his Bundesliga outings thus far this season, and has only sat out one German top-flight fixture as a result of an injury when a muscular problem prevented his involvement in December’s 2-1 defeat to VfL Wolfsburg.

That loss has proved to be Frankfurt’s only defeat in their last 13 league games after beating Armenia 5-1 on Saturday, with Die Adler proving to be strong contenders for Champions League qualification.

Silva is neither under or overperforming at present, too, with the 37-cap Portugal international – once lauded by Cristiano Ronaldo for his “phenomenal” record – scoring on par with his expected goals record, per FBref.

He is additionally not afraid to switch play, constantly harries opponents, uses any part of his body to control the ball and is rarely caught offside.

Michail Antonio’s high workrate was considered to be a key factor in why he was relentlessly favoured over Haller since Moyes’ return to east London, with the Ivory Coast international not believed to have shown the same determination to make a difference – something that would not be said of Silva.

AND in other news – Exclusive: Pundit drops verdict on West Ham’s interest in a lethal striker adored by a Moyes favourite.

Glasgow Rangers are expected to rotate their squad once again when they return to Scottish Premiership action against Hamilton on Sunday afternoon.

Rangers manager Steven Gerrard is set to make a few changes for the Gers’ clash with the Accies this weekend.

Gerrard fielded a largely-unchanged side for the Premiership tie against St Johnstone and he was rewarded with a solid 1-0 win over the struggling Saints.

However, the Ibrox boss is expected to take the opportunity to rest a number of first-team stars on Sunday as he reverts to a starting XI similar to that which triumphed 8-0 against Hamilton last time out.

So, without further ado, here is Football FanCast’s predicted starting line-up, which sees Gerrard ring three changes to the team that beat the Saints.

As is often the case, it’s likely Allan McGregor will start in goal behind a traditional back four once more.

Connor Goldson and James Tavernier will both retain their starting berths but Borna Barisic and Filip Helander are likely to drop out as Calvin Bassey and Leon Balogun return to the starting line-up.

Glen Kamara was rested against the Saints but should return in place of Steven Davis in the midfield, while Gerrard could opt for a slight formation change against the Accies so Joe Aribo and Ryan Jack will keep their places.

Scott Arfield is edging closer to full fitness but is unlikely to feature here, while Alfredo Morelos serves the second of his three-match suspension following his stamp on Ryan Porteous.

Kemar Roofe has been served with a notice of complaint by the SFA after his controversial challenge on St Johnstone’s Murray Davidson so could miss out in favour of Cedric Itten, although Roofe is the more likely pick having started the previous Premiership fixture.

Meanwhile, Ianis Hagi should continue on the right wing with Ryan Kent lining up on the opposite wing if Gerrard sticks with Roofe as his central striker.

AND in other news, Steven Gerrard should unleash Rangers defender Calvin Bassey against Hamilton Academical…

According to reports, Tottenham remain interested in signing Torino striker Andrea Belotti, amid claims of their transfer interest last summer.

What’s the story?

Torino’s sporting director, Davide Vagnotti, confirmed back in October that Spurs had actually made an approach to sign Belotti, but their offer wasn’t serious enough to be considered by them.

Now, Italian publication La Stampa (via TuttoMercatoWeb) claim that Jose Mourinho’s side “above all”, see Belotti as the “typical striker suited to the English” way of playing.

The report adds that with the 27-year-old’s contract at Torino coming to an end in the summer of 2022, his future must be resolved before the start of the new season.

Forget Carlos Vinicius

Having signed Vinicius from Benfica last summer on a season-long loan, Mourinho would surely have been hoping that the Brazilian could have represented the kind of Harry Kane alternative that could ease the burden on Spurs’ talisman.

Instead, the 25-year-old has been somewhat of a disappointment, with his haul of six goals coming exclusively in the cup competitions, against the likes of Ludogorets, Royal Antwerp and Marine.

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The striker even came in for some criticism from his manager after the Premier League defeat to Chelsea, with Mourinho saying: “Vinicius, for example, is a player that has incredible spirit but his understanding of how to press, the positions on the pressing are not something that he’s still comfortable with so it was difficult, yes, but no chances.”

In the £36m-rated Belotti, however, they would be getting someone who has been banging in the goals in Serie A for a number of years now. The 27-year-old is the man who wears Torino’s armband, and has been hailed as a “real captain” for his performances for the club, and this season has just seen him continue his fine goal-scoring form – he’s bagged 11 times and provided another six assists in just 20 league games.

Joe Hart, who played with Belotti in his time at Torino, praised him for his “instinct for goals”, and that kind of knack is something that you just don’t lose. He could bring that clincal striker’s edge that Spurs miss without Kane in their side – you only have to look at Vinicius’ costly late miss against Chelsea to see that.

When Vinicius’ loan runs out, Spurs should simply wave good-bye to him and instead try and finally strike a deal for Belotti. The Italian would bring some added leadership and a much-needed ruthlessness in front of goal.

Meanwhile, Spurs could sign Mourinho’s next Lampard in this £18m-rated star…

The Athletic’s Gregg Evans has delivered a major update on Aston Villa’s transfer plans for the summer.

What’s the story?

Dean Smith’s side have enjoyed a superb campaign thus far in the Premier League and are still very much in the hunt for a shock European place for next season.

One of the shining lights of Villa’s year has been Ollie Watkins’ performances since his arrival from Brentford last summer, with the 25-year-old having scored 12 goals in all competitions.

But with Wesley only recently working his way back to fitness after more than a year out with a knee injury, and Keinan Davis clearly not in favour, Villa’s striking options are on thing ground.

And now, Evans has delivered a slightly concerning update, suggesting that Wesley will first be given an opportunity to impress before the club “will consider recruiting again in that area come the summer”.

He added: “Talks over the way forward will take place in the weeks and months ahead. Villa have potential targets drawn up already but will assess the situation closer to the end of the season.

“Much will depend on where they finish in the table (they are currently eighth on 36 points with two games in hand on, for example, fifth-placed Chelsea on 43) and whether it’s felt they will need extra resources immediately next season.”

Smith may be fuming

After taking a major gamble in choosing to not sign a striker back in the January transfer window, Villa are in danger of being overly cautious once again.

An injury to Watkins anytime soon would leave the Villa boss with a half-fit Wesley, and Davis, whose record at the club is nothing to write home about – he’s managed a measly five goals in 75 games.

While giving Wesley the chance to get back to full fitness is admirable, that doesn’t detract from the fact Villa could really do with another front-line centre-forward to compete with both the Brazilian and Watkins.

And, the notion that Villa will assess the situation depending on where they finish in the table, is a slap in the face for the manager. Smith has worked wonders in getting this side who narrowly avoided relegation last season into a team challenging for a European spot.

The least he deserves is to be backed 100% in the transfer market, and be given the funds to make the signings and reinforcements that he wants, irrespective of whether they achieve European football or not. The Villa boss won’t be happy at all that the club’s transfer plans are still up in the air.

According to the Daily Mail, Tottenham Hotspur have made Nick Pope a top transfer target ahead of the summer window…

What’s the word?

It’s claimed that the England international is their first-choice candidate to succeed the long-serving Hugo Lloris in north London, though they face competition from rivals West Ham.

The French veteran will enter the final year of his current contract at the end of the season and is thought to be a target for former boss Mauricio Pochettino at Paris Saint-Germain.

Burnley reportedly value their 28-year-old goalkeeper in the region of £30m.

Football Insider have also reported this week that Spurs could sign two new goalkeepers in the summer as they desire a potential new no.1 and a reliable back-up option.

Spurs rebuild

In the summer before his fateful sacking, ex-Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino warned supporters that a “painful” rebuild was needed, and you could argue that the same still applies to this day, as much of the same plethora of players and deadwood still remain at the club.

Only two new signings have come in and cemented their place amongst Mourinho’s starting XI – Sergio Reguilon and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, but the likes of Erik Lamela and Danny Rose are still under contract.

And then there are plenty of question marks surrounding the consistency of players like Lloris, Serge Aurier, Lucas Moura and Moussa Sissoko – all of these players have been in north London a very long time and should be moved on sooner rather than later.

As described in the Daily Mail earlier this month, Mourinho ‘still has plenty of deadwood to clear out before this Spurs team is shaped into his mould,’ which merely backs up claims from former top-flight defender Alan Hutton, who claimed they would need a “few” summer windows to resolve this mess to Football Insider back in March 2020.

Evidently, a rebuild is needed and starting between the sticks is a wise place to start, regardless of whether the 34-year-old stays or goes.

Lloris has come under increasing pressure over the past 18 months or so as he frequently has a mistake or two in him – most recently during their FA Cup defeat to Everton, a game in which he conceded a whopping five goals, he was slammed by numerous pundits.

Trevor Sinclair called him “lettuce wrists,” echoing the thoughts of Rio Ferdinand, who dubbed the experienced star “weak” and “embarrassing,” via talkSPORT.

Meanwhile, Pope has proven to be a more reliable option, so much so that Jurgen Klopp hailed him as “sensational.”

The Clarets ‘keeper tops the charts for save percentage (80.6%), even above clean-sheet king Ederson, which far exceeds that of Lloris (76.9%) and is even more impressive considering Pope faces nearly one more shot than the Spurs man each outing, via FBRef.

Pope also ranks first in the Premier League for post-shot expected goals, when removing the actual number of attempts conceded, which means he is displaying an incredible ability to stop the ball from finding its way in, in comparison to the rest of the league. Lloris is lingering behind in fifth place for this metric, also via FBRef.

Earlier in the campaign, the Burnley sensation was unlucky to not keep a clean sheet against Spurs as he had silenced Harry Kane all afternoon – he made two saves and enjoyed one successful run-out, thwarting his international teammate, who had a total of four shots that day, as per SofaScore.

Mourinho’s defensive problems are well-documented, as individual errors constantly let the side down, so adding a player as impressive as Pope should restore some stability to that inconsistent backline, which is why Spurs must begin their rebuild with the 6 foot 3 colossus.

It’s time to wave goodbye to the deadwood and bring through a new breed to elevate the club onto the next level under Mourinho.

Pope would be a mouth-watering and exciting way to kickstart exactly that.

AND in other news, £26m-rateed “animal” drops a major statement as Spurs advance in Europa League…

Fans of Crystal Palace have been reacting to a post on Twitter, which relayed the pre-match comments of Roy Hodgson regarding the fitness of Jeffrey Schlupp and Connor Wickham.

So far this season, Schlupp has featured in 15 league games for Palace, scoring two goals and providing one assist. However, after picking up a hamstring injury in the club’s 2-0 victory over Sheffield United at the start of January, the midfielder has missed the club’s last nine Premier League fixtures.

Meanwhile, Wickham is yet to feature for the Eagles this term due to injury, with the centre-forward’s last Premier League appearance for the South London side coming back in January of 2020.

However, speaking in his pre-match press conference prior to the Manchester United fixture on Wednesday evening, Hodgson confirmed that both long-term absentees will be available for selection for the visit of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side.

He said: “While we’re talking about positive news, I’m happy that Jeff Schlupp and Connor Wickham have recovered and will be available for me too. With Jeff and Connor, they will be available even for tomorrow evening.”

Although, after Crystal Palace relayed the 73-year-old’s comments on Twitter, many fans of the club appeared far from happy with the manger’s update.

So, what exactly did these Crystal Palace fans have to say in reaction to Roy Hodgson’s pre-match comments?

“The highly talented and creative Eze benched for the remainder of the season in favour of the one dimensional, hopeless Schlupp incoming.”

@MDJones82

“I’ll play for free over Wickham, pls I’m on my knees.”

@SellyMenace

“Eze dropped.”

@wayneoG

“Schlupp replacing Eze, you heard it here first.”

@MarcWilliams22

“Can you ask Roy why Benteke played 90 mins against Fulham when he offered nothing?”

@buddhazron

“Hope Connor has moved to a bungalow.”

@JackkBarton

In other news, many Palace fans reacted to these Hodgson comments – find out more here!

Former Leeds United hero Paul Robinson believes Ben White should ‘100%’ be Marcelo Bielsa’s “number one target” in the next transfer window.

The Whites could have a busy summer in the transfer market, as Bielsa looks to add to his squad and take them to the next level in the Premier League.

A mid-table finish looks increasingly on the cards this season, but Leeds may have loftier ambitions moving forward, as they look to get back towards the top of English football.

Robinson calls for Leeds to re-sign White

White was a superb performer for Leeds during a loan spell from Brighton last season, playing all 46 Championship games as Bielsa’s men returned to the top flight, but he is now back at the Amex Stadium.

Robinson is calling for the Whites to bring the 23-year-old back to Elland Road, telling MOT Leeds News that the centre-back should be considered the club’s primary transfer target:

“100%, I think Ben White should be the number one target in the summer.

“Diego Llorente has looked good but he’s still off the pace for me. The goal against West Ham was a mistake by the keeper but it was still Llorente’s man that got away from him.

“The way that Ben White’s performed in a struggling Brighton side – as well as he did for Leeds in the Championship – means he should be Orta’s number one target.

“He can play centre-back, holding midfield, he knows the club. [Robin] Koch and Llorente were brought in to replace White and while I know they have had injuries, they haven’t done that.

“For me, he has to be their number one target regardless of whether Brighton go down or not.”

Transfer Tavern take

White was an exceptional performer for Leeds, with Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp hailing him as a “brilliant” player with an “amazing future” earlier this season. But it could be that funds on new players are saved for other more pressing areas of the pitch, considering the defensive options at Bielsa’s disposal when everyone is fit.

Signing him permanently last summer would arguably have made more sense, but the Whites have since brought in Diego Llorente and Robin Koch.

In other news, one Leeds player has hinted at a summer exit on social media. Read about it here.

Swansea City’s hopes of securing an automatic promotion spot in the Championship this season took a huge blow on Tuesday night as they were thrashed 3-0 by Bournemouth.

A spectacular goal from Philip Billing opened the scoring before an unfortunate own goal from Joel Latibeaudiere doubled the hosts’ lead just before half time. 

Arnaut Danjuma then sealed a comfortable win for the Cherries by smashing a shot past Freddie Woodman to make it 3-0 late on, with Steve Cooper’s side rarely threatening.

To make matters worse, Watford were comfortable winners at Rotherham, meaning the Swans are now three points behind the Hornets, although they do still have a game in hand on them.

One man who particularly disappointed with his performance at the Cherry Red Records Stadium was right wing-back, Connor Roberts.

The Welsh international has been one of Swansea’s best performers so far this season but he was well below-par on Tuesday night, which will surely frustrate Cooper given the importance of the match.

As per SofaScore, the 25-year-old would pick up a poor 6.3 rating for his performance, with only Ryan Bennett (6.2) Latibeaudiere (6.1), Woodman (6.0) and Jamal Lowe (6.0) rated lower.

Danjuma, who was playing on the left-wing, caused Roberts plenty of problems throughout the game, as he played five key passes and got a goal and an assist, resulting in an impressive 8.6 rating.

The Swansea right-back has been excellent going forward this season, with four goals and five assists to his name in the Championship but he struggled to produce any real quality in good positions as only one of his five crosses was accurate, whilst only one of his five long balls would find a Swansea shirt.

He was also very wasteful with the ball, as only 39/52 of his passes found a teammate, resulting in a less than impressive 75% pass accuracy and he also lost possession a remarkable 26 times during his time on the pitch – more than any other player.

Roberts also struggled from a defensive perspective, as he made no tackles and just one interception in the 90 minutes, whilst he would win just two of the five duels he was involved in during the game, suggesting that Danjuma well and truly had the better of him.

Therefore, considering Cooper has relied upon Roberts to be a consistent performer in his side so far this season, it is very disappointing that he was so poor in such an important game for the Swans.

After making his return from injury on Sunday night, it’s fair to say that Matty Cash didn’t enjoy the greatest of games in Aston Villa’s 2-0 defeat to Tottenham.

The former Nottingham Forest star had been out of action for Dean Smith’s side for several games due to injury, with veteran defender Ahmed Elmohamady coming in for him.

After being named as an unnamed substitute last time out against Newcastle, Cash was given the nod to make his first appearance in a Villa shirt since his injury, but things just didn’t go to plan.

As well as being involved in the controversial decision to award Harry Kane a penalty in the second half, the right-back just seemed to lose his composure as the game wore on, perhaps more to do with his match fitness levels more than anything else.

As per Sofascore, he lost possession a whopping 29 times on the night, by far the most of any player on the pitch, and a telling sign of how he just couldn’t get his normal game going – his season average has seen him concede possession 14.4 times per match in the Premier League.

As well as his wastefulness on the ball, Cash also attempted no dribbles, provided no key passes and delivered no crosses either – offensively, the full-back was just a complete non-entity and couldn’t link up with Bertrand Traore at all.

Writing in his post-match player ratings for the Birmingham Mail, Ashley Preece admitted: “Back in for his first start since tweaking his hamstring at Brighton. Cash started brightly and was aggressive in the challenge against the likes of Lucas and Reguilon.

“However, his performance dipped off significantly in the second half and it was Cash’s clumsy challenge which put this fixture to bed as his trailing leg caught Kane in the box for the penalty. His aggressive nature and willingness for the cause were both welcome but, like most, he wasn’t on his usual game.”

With Elmohamady set to turn 34 later this year, and reports already indicating that Smith is preparing to let him go, there’s a real lack of genuine quality and competition to challenge Cash at right-back either when he’s out injured, or if he’s in bad form.

It’s exactly why the Villa boss will be worried about Cash’s display against Spurs, and will simply be hoping that it was a minor blip in what has otherwise been an impressive debut campaign at Villa Park for the former Forest full-back.

Meanwhile, this Villa man was woeful against Spurs…

Many Everton fans have been left very happy with an injury update that the Goodison Park faithful have given on Jean-Philippe Gbamin.

Showing training pictures of individual players before their FA Cup home tie against Manchester City on Saturday evening, the official Twitter page of the Merseyside club confirmed that the central midfield player is ‘back doing individual ball work’ after a very long period out injured.

The Toffees have not been able to see him play in a Blues shirt since August 2019, and so it has come as a much welcome relief to them that the Ivory Coast international is back in training, and could well still play a part in the rest of the 2020/21 term.

It will come as a relief to Gbamin as well, who will be looking to find his touch once again after being out of the beautiful game for so long.

Everton fan reaction to Gbamin update

These EFC supporters lauded the update on Twitter, with one fan saying that he was ‘so happy’ while another went as far as to call it ‘brilliant’:

“Amazing that really pleased for him and everyone who has got him to this point massive hurdle overcome ….now is he any good at football ?? Ha”

Credit: @everton05185858

“Like a new signing”

Credit: @RWillguys

“Brilliant to see.”

Credit: @StacyMu78345188

“Things you love to see #JPG #EFC”Credit: @ChrisPickles24″I’m so happy!!!”Credit: @EFCMatt1″Over the moon to see the lad back had wretched luck with injuries since his move”Credit: @Fordy1EFCIn other news, find out who has urged Everton to play one ace more here!