BT Sport pundit Rio Ferdinand has said that he is “interested” to see how new Everton manager Sean Dyche gets the best out of Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

What’s the word?

With Frank Lampard sacked, the club embarked on a new era over the weekend and got off to the best possible start as they beat league leaders Arsenal 1-0 at home.

That performance and display will have no doubt given the Toffees a great boost as they push to turn around their season and avoid Premier League relegation.

Calvert-Lewin played 62 minutes against the Gunners and will hope that he can lead the line for Everton over the coming months as he looks to discover his best form.

While speaking about Dyche’s arrival on Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE, the host said: “Sean Dyche probably hasn’t had that profile of player to work with ever in his career… a forward who was as mobile and as athletic as somebody like Dominic Calvert-Lewin when he’s fit.

“To have those tools, he has not worked with that before and I’m interested to see how he gets the best out of that.”

Dream team?

Calvert-Lewin certainly struggled to find his best form under Lampard. Indeed, in 23 appearances for his former boss, he scored just three goals.

Against Arsenal, the striker didn’t get on the scoresheet but he did, however, make a positive impact in the game. For instance, in the 90min player ratings, they noted that he wasn’t at his best in front of goal but  “provided everything else” in a 7/10 performance.

With just 16 league goals in total this season, only Wolves (15) have scored few than Everton and so Dyche will need to fix that if he wants the team to avoid the drop.

In his career, the manager has never worked with a truly prolific goalscorer but the likes of Sam Vokes, Chris Wood and Ashley Barnes all found the net with decent regularity at Burnley.

Calvert-Lewin is arguably a little more athletic than those players and so, under Dyche, he could potentially be moulded into a real weapon for Everton in the near future.

Chelsea failed to win in the Premier League yet again under Graham Potter last weekend, with the 1-1 draw against West Ham United at the weekend marking the club’s third consecutive stalemate.

It isn’t getting any easier for the Blues either, with a Champions League tie against German giants Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night sure to be a tough encounter, and it will give the Englishman an indication of just where his team sits amongst the continent’s elite.

The atmosphere at Signa Iduna Park will surely be as boisterous as ever, and the Bundesliga side are on a five-match winning streak and will be aiming to make that six against Chelsea.

It might not be all bad news for Potter, though, as he will be able to unleash forward Joao Felix. UEFA have relaxed their rules regarding players featuring for two different clubs in the tournament in the same season, which will be a huge bonus for the Blues, especially considering his performance against West Ham.

Will Joao Felix start against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League?

Having served a suspension after being sent off on his debut last month, Felix returned to the starting line-up against West Ham and put in a wonderful performance, despite Chelsea failing to win.

He played the full 90 minutes and scored his first goal for the club, along with making two key passes and took 66 touches and three shots, ending the match with a Sofascore rating of 7.7/10 for his display.

Not content with merely impressing going forward, Felix also chipped in defensively by making three tackles and winning eight ground duels. If Potter can keep the Portuguese ace in this form for the rest of the season, Chelsea’s results might soon improve.

A tie against Dortmund seems a daunting one, although the 23-year-old has previous experience in the Champions League, scoring ten goals in 36 appearances in the competition during his spells at Benfica and Atletico Madrid.

The £247k-per-week gem was described as a “special talent” by reporter James Dodd a couple of years ago, and although he hasn’t quite lived up to the massive hype which was generated following his £113m move to the Spanish capital in 2019, impressing at Chelsea could go a long way to re-establishing him as one of the finest talents on the continent.

If Potter wants to secure any kind of positive result against Dortmund, he simply must unleash Felix tomorrow night, as the 23-year-old could terrorise the home side should he replicate his performance from the weekend.

Footage has emerged which shows VAR ignored a potential push in the back on Tottenham Hotspur’s Richarlison during their midweek Champions League tie.

The Lowdown: Spurs lucky to still be in the game

While losing the first leg would have never been the plan for Spurs or Antonio Conte, the fact that AC Milan squandered two huge chances to potentially put the game to bed will make them feel this narrow defeat isn’t too bad.

Tottenham did indeed have chances of their own as Eric Dier mistimed his jump when unmarked less than 10 yards from the goal as his header bounced wide of the goal without troubling Milan goalkeeper Ciprian Tatarusanu.

Spurs certainly weren’t threatening last night, mustering up an expected goals ratio of just 0.5 (as per FBref), but skipper Harry Kane could well have been handed a glorious chance to level things up had Richarlison been awarded a penalty.

The Latest: VAR ignores push in the back

As Richarlison was guiding the ball out of the Milan box, defender Rade Krunic appeared to barge the Brazilian in the back, which forced him to take a tumble, although VAR seemingly didn’t wish to get involved in the decision.

Given Kane’s high-profile penalty miss at the World Cup over the winter, there is no guarantee he would have netted in the San Siro, but it certainly would have been their best chance to level things up on the night considering their aforementioned lack of threat.

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The Verdict: Richarlison unlucky to not get a penalty

Tottenham clearly didn’t do enough to win or even get a draw out of the game, but if VAR had chosen to review this incident and awarded a penalty, Spurs could have been buoyed heading into the second leg.

The fact that VAR decided to not intervene with this decision when the level of Krunic’s contact is far from shoulder to shoulder as he clearly leans into Richarlison’s back will surely have fans and Conte fuming.

However, Tottenham can’t be relying on contentious penalty decisions going their way in the Champions League, as given how poor AC Milan have been this season – the reigning champions sit fifth in Serie A – Spurs should perhaps have been picking up some sort of positive result last night.

Tottenham Hotspur were recently credited with an interest in the Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot and there is now a belief that he is looking for a Premier League move.

Do Spurs want to sign Adrien Rabiot?

Reports suggest the French midfielder is a player who the Lilywhites have looked at recently as a potential option to bolster their midfield.

And it is believed the midfielder has even been offered to the north London club by his agent ahead of the 27-year-old’s contract ending in the summer.

Spurs have done business with Juventus recently with the signings of Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur which has established a good relationship between the clubs.

Now, speaking on his YouTube channel, journalist Fabrizio Romano has claimed the Frenchman would like his next transfer to be one that’ll take him to the Premier League:

“What we can say is that Juventus feel it’s going to be really difficult to extend his contract. They would love to keep Rabiot, but they know the conditions of the salary could be really difficult to match for Juventus and this is why there is a possibility for Rabiot to leave and become a free agent.

“Keep an eye on this possibility, and his biggest dream, from what I understand, is to play in the Premier League. So keep an eye on Adrien Rabiot, because Premier League clubs could be on the point and on the verge of starting contacts for Adrien Rabiot.

“So one to watch for the summer because the player dreams of Premier League football.”

Is this the end for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg?

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has played a huge role in Tottenham’s starting XI since making the move from Southampton nearly three years ago.

The Danish midfielder has already racked up 130 appearances for the north London club where he has provided Spurs with 10 goals and 14 assists.

And his importance to the side was highlighted on Sunday evening when the 27-year-old provided a stunning pass to set Ben Davies through before he laid off Emerson Royal to give Spurs the lead.

The 2022/23 campaign has been Hojbjerg’s most prolific in a Spurs shirt with the Dane returning five goals and five assists across all competitions.

In comparison, Rabiot has provided Juventus with a higher number of shot-creating actions per 90 minutes as well as more tackles per game (via Fbref).

Speaking during last year’s World Cup, France manager Didier Deschamps was left in awe of the Juventus midfielder and his development:

“He’s changed a bit, he’s taken something away and today he’s a complete midfielder. He is said to be a balance player, but he is capable of doing as well in defence as in attack. He’s smart, he always knows where he needs to be.”

However, the current Spurs midfielder has returned almost double the number of passes per 90 minutes this season and has offered more than double the number of progressive passing yards.

So if Spurs were to look to bring in the Frenchman on a free this summer, it would be interesting to see what role in the side Rabiot would take on.

After all, Spurs also have Rodrigo Bentancur and the young pairing of Pape Matar Sarr and Oliver Skipp proved more than capable on Tuesday night in the Champions League against AC Milan.

Southampton have had many hits on the transfer front over modern times, but one player who slipped agonisingly through the club’s fingers is Ben White, who plied his formative years as a footballer within the Saints’ esteemed academy.

Notable graduates from Testwood include Gareth Bale, Luke Shaw and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, with James Ward-Prowse arguably the Saints’ most coveted figure in recent months after rising through the ranks and emerging as one of the Premier League’s greatest-ever set piece specialists.

The Hampshire outfit have also shown on past occasions that there is an aptitude in nurturing talent and turning over a seismic profit, with Sadio Mane, the aforementioned Shaw and Virgil van Dijk all sold for mammoth fees to bolster the club’s ranks.

The latter represents one of the club’s greatest-ever coups, signing from Scottish giants Celtic for just £13m in 2015 and being sold to Liverpool for a remarkable £75m less than two-and-a-half years later.

Another player formerly on the Saints’ books is Arsenal’s Ben White, with the dynamic defender leaving Southampton for fellow south coast club Brighton & Hove Albion at just 16 years of age after being released by the former.

Was it a mistake to let Ben White go?

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, and so often in the rigorous world of professional football, youth players fail to make the grade with a certain academy, only to forge a successful career for themselves elsewhere.

White is an embodiment of this, and while he was deemed surplus to requirements during his formative years at Southampton, his meteoric growth into one of English football’s superlative defenders is a reminder that development is not linear.

As displayed above, White grew into a £50m player during his time with Brighton and Leeds United, where he spent a season on loan in the Championship and was instrumental in the Whites’ monumental return to the Premier League after 16 years outside the top flight.

Indeed, Arsenal swooped for the ace for the aforementioned amount in 2021, and he is now an integral part in a team challenging for the league title, and his ascension to prominence must sting badly for those who allowed him to depart Southampton as a teenager.

As per FBref, the “complete” 25-year-old (as hailed by his manager Mikel Arteta) ranks among the top 4% of positional peers in Europe’s five main leagues for progressive passes, the top 13% for pass completion and the top 13% for clearances. For a Saints team currently bottom of the Premier League and beset with one of the division’s worst defensive records, the folly of his departure all those years ago is only compounded.

While not bearing too much resemblance to Van Dijk in terms of playing style, there are some notable similarities between the two other than their St Mary’s connection and subsequent big-money transfers.

As per FBref, the two have similar returns per game for assists (0.05 v 0.04, White first), interceptions (1.33 v 1.34), ball recoveries (5.47 v 5.59) and progressive passes (4.44 v 4.6), marking both of them out as centre-backs who can win back possession for their team and use the ball intelligently.

Southampton have indeed got a lot right on the transfer front since returning to the Premier League in 2012, but blundering on White could be a deal which haunts the club in the coming months. Relegation lurks around the corner, and both the money which could have been plundered from White’s eventual sale had he remained with the Saints, or indeed his dynamic defensive skill set, could have been invaluable to the currently struggling crop.

As it is, they can do little but rue his premature departure, and battle furiously against the ever-increasing threat of dropping out of a league for which White could have a winner’s medal in three months’ time (and Van Dijk already has).

Liverpool are scrounging for any scrap of positivity right now, but they could find light at the end of the tunnel after a woeful spell of shocking form in the Premier League ahead of tonight’s pivotal Merseyside derby against Everton at Anfield.

In fact, concerns of a wobble have now morphed into a fully-fledged crisis, with Jurgen Klopp’s Reds still chasing their first league victory of 2023.

During this period, the likes of Brighton & Hove Albion, Brentford and Wolverhampton Wanderers have all put three past Alisson en route to victory, whilst a drab stalemate against Chelsea at Anfield last month laid bare Liverpool’s problems in attack since the turn of the year.

This is a perilous situation and one that Klopp will be desperate to rectify, having clinched the FA Cup and Carabao Cup last season, along with narrowly losing the Champions League final to Real Madrid and falling an agonising one point short to Manchester City in the Premier League title race.

There are a range of reasons as to why this internal collapse has occurred, and while injuries have played a part, the manner of the fall from grace cannot be chiefly attributed to setbacks this time around.

Nonetheless, Liverpool have felt the effects of several key players’ absences, notably Luis Diaz, Dioga Jota and more recently Virgil van Dijk.

Could Jota star against the Toffees?

Jota is in contention to make his return to the fold after missing 22 games since his calf injury setback against Manchester City in October, having only started on two occasions in the Premier League this term following a pre-season hamstring problem which saw him sidelined for the opening few weeks of the campaign.

Despite his stop-start season, the Portuguese forward has still supplied five assists from eight matches, including just four starting appearances, which is an illustration of the dynamic skill set that the Reds have been missing in his absence.

Klopp, who has hailed the 29-cap star as “exceptional”, waxed lyrical about Jota’s distinctive qualities, stating: “He has the technical skills, he has the physical skills and he is very smart and can learn all the tactical stuff pretty quick. He has the speed, has the desire to finish situations off really good. I think his goalscoring record is pretty impressive.”

Last season alone, the 26-year-old was one of Liverpool’s most pivotal components; not quite the pizzazz of Mohamed Salah, nor a replica of the blistering brilliance of Sadio Mane, Jota is still an incredibly efficient and composed seeker of goals, and the statistics above highlight just how important he is to his team.

Just take a look at FBref’s statistics on the player – Jota ranks among the top 1% of forwards in Europe’s five main leagues for rate of assists, the top 8% for shot-creating actions and the top 9% for progressive passes over the past year. With Liverpool looking static and devoid of inspiration right now, such traits will only enhance the collective effort and help to burrow a hole out of their current rut.

With the gem – who was signed from Wolves for £41m in 2020 – often enjoying himself against Everton in the past, Klopp will certainly be delighted to have such an impactful player back for tonight’s derby. Jota has scored two goals from just four starts against Liverpool’s city rivals, losing just once in eight outings against them.

The £140k-per-week ace is selfless, robust and a multi-dimensional force within the spherical frontline of Liverpool’s attack.

His return, if it comes tonight, could give the Reds’ forward line a much-needed fresh impetus and might just be the catalyst for positive change at Anfield.

Manchester United will face familiar foes in Leeds United this afternoon as they hope to exact revenge following their failure to secure all three points in midweek against the same opposition.

Erik ten Hag’s side failed to win for just the third time this year, and with Arsenal and Manchester City recently slipping up in their chase for the Premier League title, could United launch a surprise challenge?

The fixture congestion that is slowly building may disrupt any ambitions they have of a sustained challenge, although a victory this afternoon would offer a boost in confidence.

Ten Hag welcomed back Jadon Sancho in midweek for his first Premier League appearance since October, and the 22-year-old marked his introduction off the bench by scoring United’s equaliser in the 2-2 draw.

Will Sancho be unleashed against Leeds?

Since arriving in Manchester in the summer of 2021, his spell at the club hasn’t exactly lived up to the dizzying heights that some might have expected following his £73m move from Borussia Dortmund.

His first season at Old Trafford saw him score just five goals, which was some way down on his 16 in the previous campaign for Dortmund, which made him arguably one of the most highly-regarded youngsters on the continent.

The 22-year-old was expected to kick on this season under Ten Hag, but it hasn’t quite worked out that way, despite an encouraging start in August which saw him hit the winner against Liverpool in a 2-1 victory.

He trained away from the first team between November and January, with the manager wanting him to regain full mental and physical fitness, and it appears to have worked.

Substituted on for the final half-hour in midweek, Sancho not only managed to score but also made three key passes, had four dribble attempts and completed 92% of his passes in a rather successful cameo, and Ten Hag should duly unleash him from the start today.

He was once hailed as “robust” by Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc and “flamboyant” by ex-England youth coach Dan Micciche, and if he can get back to the form he displayed in Germany, he could become a formidable player for Ten Hag and United.

If given a start today, he could terrorise a Leeds defence which couldn’t stop his attacking prowess on Wednesday, and the Red Devils boss could use that to his advantage today to great effect.

Celtic would require a ‘big fee’ to consider letting Kyogo Furuhashi leave this summer, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Crystal Palace interest

The Hoops striker’s contract isn’t set to expire until 2025, but being the top goalscorer in the Scottish Premiership as it stands, he’s been generating interest ahead of the upcoming window.

Football Insider report that Crystal Palace are scouting the 28-year-old as they weigh up whether to make an approach at the end of the season should Patrick Vieira’s talisman, Wilfried Zaha, depart.

The Bhoys, however, reportedly want to build their side around the Japan international and could be set to offer him an extension to retain his services beyond the current campaign.

The Latest: O’Rourke’s comments

Speaking to GiveMeSport, O’Rourke heaped praise on Kyogo and suggested that Celtic would only consider a sale should they have a sizeable offer on the table. He said:

“I think it would take a big fee for Celtic to cash-in on Kyogo. He’s proved at Celtic what a top player he is. He has such clever movement and is a real deadly finisher as well.

“He’s got a real good goalscoring record for Celtic, he’s the top scorer in the Scottish Premiership this season as well, so [it’s] no surprise that there are clubs looking at him.”

The Verdict: Keep hold of him

Kyogo is a fan favourite at Celtic and considering the huge impact he has on the team, the club need to do everything they can to keep hold of him for the foreseeable.

The Asics-sponsored star has netted an outstanding 19 goals and registered two assists in just 24 league outings this term, averaging 2.5 shots per game.

The Ikoma native currently has a match rating of 7.12, making him Ange Postecoglou’s top-performing offensive player, further highlighting his importance at Parkhead.

Finally, the versatile forward has been labelled a ‘superb’ player by journalist Josh Bunting so offering him a new deal as a reward for his efforts would be nothing less than he deserves.

Tottenham Hotspur sporting director Fabio Paratici will undoubtedly already be plotting to strengthen the current squad this summer, with the Lilywhites still arguably in need of fresh faces if they are to truly contend for major honours moving forward.

A particular problem for the north London outfit has been the continued reliance on talisman Harry Kane, with the England skipper the only player to reach double figures (20) for goals this season in all competitions, with the likes of Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski only scoring two goals apiece.

With Antonio Conte’s side seemingly crying out for further firepower to help bolster the forward line, recent reports have suggested that the club could be targetting a move for Fulham star, Manor Solomon.

What’s the latest on Manor Solomon to Spurs?

According to major Israeli outlet Y Net, both Spurs and bitter rivals Arsenal are currently ‘monitoring’ the 23-year-old’s development at Craven Cottage, with the Israeli international having joined the newly-promoted side on loan last summer from Shakhtar Donetsk, amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

The report does suggest that the player himself is keen on a permanent stay with Marco Silva’s side at the end of the season, although the interest from the north London duo could prove a spanner in the works for the Cottagers’ hopes of striking a deal.

Could Solomon be Tottenham’s next Mousa Dembele?

Those back at N17 will no doubt remember a previous figure who arrived at the club after starring for Fulham in the form of midfield magician, Mousa Dembele, with the silky Belgian having signed for Spurs back in the summer of 2012, after two years in west London.

The now-retired colossus would go on to emerge as a leading figure for Tottenham over the next few years, eventually going on to score ten goals and provide 12 assists in 249 games in all competitions, prior to his exit in 2019.

Despite perhaps not always receiving wider acclaim for his quality, Dembele was certainly loved by those within the club, having notably been described as a “genius” by former boss Mauricio Pochettino back in 2017.

The playmaker’s ex-teammates also remain hugely complementary about his unique gifts, with current Newcastle United man Kieran Trippier having stated earlier this month:

“He’s an absolute magician. Just absolutely frightening, with the ball, without the ball. He had everything. He had absolutely everything.”

Having proven a particularly astute signing after arriving at the club just over a decade ago, the hope will be that chairman Daniel Levy can replicate that masterclass by bringing Solomon to the club this summer, with the 5 foot 7 ace having showcased his quality in recent weeks.

Despite having missed much of the campaign through injury, the 31-cap speedster – who is valued at around €12.5m (£11m), according to Football Transfers – has since scored three goals in his last three league games, including a stunning, curling effort in the recent draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

That impressive hot streak has seen the wide man lauded as a “game-changer” by The Athletic’s Peter Rutzler, with Solomon also previously demonstrating his attacking quality after providing 31 goals and assists in 106 games for his parent club.

Although Paratici may wish to see more from the impressive dynamo before he opts to make a move, on recent evidence the winger could go on be the next surprise star for the club, much like Dembele proved to be.

Everton and transfer disasters. Name a better duo, we’ll wait.

It has been a remarkably sour theme to the Farhad Moshiri regime at Goodison Park with a ludicrous amount of money –  nearly £700m in fact – being wasted.Enormous amounts of investment have been ploughed into the club but they have seen little aside from a plethora of managers in return.Very few have been able to get a tune out of the team since David Moyes left all those years ago with two successive relegation battles now to show for their troubles.Spending now happens to be less frequent but after receiving £40m for Anthony Gordon, there is a hope that should Sean Dyche keep them in the division, money will be reinvested wisely into the squad.What Everton will hope to avoid again is bringing in players like Morgan Schneiderlin, who simply failed to set the world alight in Merseyside.When did Everton sign Schneiderlin?The Toffees battled hard to secure the acquisition of the Frenchman back in January 2017, eventually paying Manchester United £24m for his signature.Unfortunately, that turned out to be money wasted as far as the hierarchy are concerned with the 6 foot 1 battler in his own words “regretting” leaving Old Trafford behind.He is unlikely to be the only one feeling regret either, with the former Southampton man playing 88 times across a three-and-a-half-year period.In that time, the now 33-year-old found the net just once while offering a return of two assists.Discipline was a problem as Schneiderlin entered the referee’s notebook 15 times, once every six matches, and was shown a red card on three occasions.A knee injury later ensured that he ended his time at Everton on the treatment table with that fact rather typical of his stay at the club, but also potentially a blessing in disguise for supporters.Where is Morgan Schneiderlin now?The now 33-year-old left the Toffees in the summer of 2020, heading back to his homeland where he was handed an opportunity to get his career back on track.Sadly, it’s been another tail of woe with the combative ace failing to score in 59 outings for Nice while picking up 13 yellows, a card every 4.5 games, in what represents an even poorer average compared to his last few campaigns in England.As such, he has been exiled from the first team picture and was told to find pastures new in January 2023.His destination? Australia.Schneiderlin’s time at the top level, therefore, would appear to be done and dusted with the A-League a considerable drop off from one of Europe’s top five divisions.Since joining Western Sydney Wanderers on loan, he has started just one match and played on three occasions.His statistics? You guessed it, a yellow card. However, that is combined with a goal and assist apiece following his first attacking contributions on Saturday.The French midfielder has only just arrived in a new country and thus will take some adjusting, but his fall from grace since departing United has been a rather alarming one. Consequently, is it ever a surprise that BBC reporter Phil McNulty once dubbed him “shocking”?Those words certainly weren’t true during his formative years in the Premier League but that was about as good as it ever got for Schneiderlin throughout his playing career to date. Indeed, his move to Everton was a failure for all involved and arguably, he is still picking up the pieces from that stint.