According to reports in The Telegraph, West Bromwich Albion have turned down an £18m offer from Manchester City for defender Jonny Evans.

The Telegraph says that Citizens manager Pep Guardiola has identified the Northern Ireland international as a shock summer target as he looks to strengthen his central defensive options, having already boosted in the full-back positions by bringing in Benjamin Mendy, Danilo and Kyle Walker.

The Telegraph says that City are expected to return with an improved offer for the 29-year-old, although the Baggies are keen to tie Evans down to a new £85,000-a-week contract with his current deal running out in less than two years.

Meanwhile, Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez has endured a somewhat frustrating summer in the transfer market, and he is still looking for four new players before the window slams shut at the end of this month after signing Stoke City forward Joselu on Wednesday.

Here are three reasons Newcastle should hijack Man City’s bid to sign Evans…

Ability

While some may have raised their eyebrows that Manchester City are interested in Evans, West Bromwich Albion supporters in particular certainly won’t be too surprised.

The 29-year-old has been an impressive and consistent performer for the Baggies since moving to the Hawthorns from Manchester United in 2015, and it showed in his stats last season.

The Northern Ireland international showed his defensive capabilities by making 157 clearances and 82 interceptions in 31 Premier League appearances, while he also won 40 headed duels.

It is perhaps his ability on the ball that is most impressive though, and he had a passing accuracy of 81% last term, and showed his ability to bring the ball out from the back by successfully completing 23 of the 26 take-ons he attempted in the top flight.

Experience/Leadership

Newcastle United centre-backs Jamaal Lascelles, Florian Lejuene, Chancel Mbemba and Ciaran Clark don’t exactly have an abundance of Premier League experience, and it is an area that Rafa Benitez would probably like to add to before the transfer window slams shut at the end of this month.

Having made more than 200 Premier League appearances for Manchester United, Sunderland and West Brom, Evans certainly has that know-how and experience that is required at this level and he would be able to give the younger members of the defence like Lascelles and Mbemba a helping hand.

In addition, the 29-year-old is a leader and he has shown that by captaining the Baggies and that influence and vocal impact in the backline could prove to be key for the Magpies as they look to avoid being involved in a relegation battle.

First-team football

While Evans may be keen on a move to Manchester City for the chance to play in the Champions League and win trophies, one of the reasons he would have left Manchester United for West Brom in the first place would have been the opportunity to play more regular football.

Of course, the 29-year-old could choose to stay at the Hawthorns if he wasn’t convinced that he would break past the likes of Vincent Kompany, John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi at the Etihad, but if he does want out then he would undoubtedly be one of the first names on the team-sheet if he did sign for Newcastle.

Do you agree, Magpies fans? Let us know below.

According to the son of West Ham United owner David Sullivan on Twitter, the club are ready to commence legal proceedings against Sporting Lisbon communications director Nuno Saraiva after he claimed the east London outfit never submitted a deadline day bid for midfielder William Carvalho.

Sullivan had released a statement on the official West Ham website on Friday stating that they didn’t have enough time to complete a deal for the Portugal international before the window slammed shut, but according to Sky Sports Saraiva denied that they had ever received an offer for the 25-year-old, insinuating that the Hammers’ joint-chairman was lying.

The latest in the long-running Carvalho saga comes with the team struggling on the pitch after losing their opening three Premier League matches of the season, leaving manager Slaven Bilic under pressure.

West Ham supporters were quick to have their say on the update via social media, and they were far from impressed with some claiming that the club is an “embarrassment”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

There was a time when Marouane Fellaini was a joke figure at Manchester United, with many of the club’s supporters calling for the Belgian international to be sold.

That is no longer the case, however, with the powerful midfielder developing into a very important player in Jose Mourinho’s squad.

Fellaini has not started a Premier League game this season, but he has been involved off the bench, and scored in the 2-0 win over Leicester City before the international break.

The midfielder was ruled out of Saturday’s clash with Stoke City, however, after picking up an injury while representing Belgium during the recent international break.

The 29-year-old was surely the perfect player to help Man United overcome Stoke at the Britannia Stadium, and in his absence, the Red Devils could only manage a 2-2 draw.

It would be fair to say that Fellaini has now won over the Man United supporters, and many were calling for his presence during the clash at Stoke.

A selection of the best reaction on Twitter can be found below:

Joe Hart’s performance against Slovenia last night epitomised the concerns regarding his status as England’s No.1 goalkeeper.

Although the West Ham loanee hardly embarrassed himself, a smart double-save late on was juxtaposed by a rash challenge in the early stages that should have seen a penalty awarded to Wembley’s visitors.

And while Hart has struggled to rediscover the form that once had him rated as amongst the best goalkeepers in the world, a number of viable alternatives have emerged in recent years.

Take Southampton’s Fraser Forster – a 6 foot 7 juggernaut who regularly impressed in the Champions League during his Celtic days – Stoke City’s Jack Butland, Everton’s Jordan Pickford or Burnley shot-stopper Tom Heaton.

All have made strong cases to oust Hart over the last few seasons. So, Aston Villa fans, who do you think should be England’s No.1 goalkeeper at the World Cup next summer? Let us know by voting below…

Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez and Chile won’t be at next summer’s World Cup in Russia following their 3-0 defeat to Brazil on Tuesday night, but Gunners fans weren’t exactly sympathetic.

The South American nation were third in the standings going into the final fixtures and knew that a win against Brazil would guarantee their spot in the tournament, while a draw would be enough to at least see them contest a play-off fixture.

However, a goal from Paulinho and a brace from Gabriel Jesus saw the 2014 hosts run out comfortable winners, and positive results for Argentina, Colombia and Peru elsewhere meant that Chile finished sixth and were eliminated.

Sanchez came close to joining Manchester City towards the end of the summer transfer window and he hasn’t pleased the Emirates Stadium faithful with his performances this term as he enters into the final year of his contract, with a departure next summer looking likely.

Arsenal supporters were quick to have their say on the news via social media, and while some called it “karma”, others said they had “no sympathy at all” for the 28-year-old.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

As reported by The Sun, Arsenal are interested in signing Everton youngster Ademola Lookman this January.

What’s the story?

The Gunners are always on the hunt for young English talent they feel can be mainstays in Arsene Wenger’s starting eleven and they’ve cast their eye on an impressive 19-year-old who definitely fits the bill.

The Sun reckon that Arsenal are keen on bringing Ademola Lookman back to London after he signed for Everton from Charlton less than a year ago.

The paper say the Toffees aren’t eager to sell but that a bid of £15m could tempt them into letting him leave the club.

Lots to prove

Lookman may have plenty of potential but he has a lot of learning to do and a lot to prove to be considered a reliable English Premier League talent.

He’s not played a single minute of top-flight football so far this term for the Toffees, which doesn’t exactly bode well for his chances of potentially getting into an Arsenal side.

However, the winger showed flashes of brilliance last term, making eight appearances in the Premier League, even scoring on his debut against Manchester City.

Arsene Wenger excels at working with youth and the Emirates is a great environment for him to improve his game, so the pieces are there for him to make an impact.

Can those pieces come together and provide the Gunners with the excellent English performer they’re looking for?

Tottenham Hotspur fell further adrift of Manchester United and Manchester City on Saturday after losing to the former at Old Trafford.

In what will be one of their hardest matches of the season, they could find no way past a defensively minded Jose Mourinho side, who picked up all three points thanks to an Anthony Martial goal just nine minutes from time.

Spurs weren’t at their best without the injured Harry Kane and created little across the 90 minutes to really trouble David De Gea. The best chance fell to Dele Alli, who could not get his effort from a Christian Eriksen cross on target.

Alli is having an inconsistent season so far, looking at his stellar best periodically but not finding the consistency that made him such a Premier League force last season.

Tottenham fans, disappointed he couldn’t take his chance on Saturday, are expecting more from him and took to Twitter to share their thoughts on his performance…

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Tottenham Hotspur had to dig deep to find all three points against Crystal Palace on Sunday, winning by a slender 1-0 margin at Wembley Stadium in the English Premier League.Son Heung-min was the goal hero of the afternoon, netting just after the hour mark with a superb shot from the edge of the box.After their exploits against Real Madrid mid-week, the home side were notably not at their peak with Roy Hodgson’s Palace providing a spirited performance that could have been rewarded with points on another day.Known for their attacking exploits in the top-flight, it was the turn of their defensive stars to shine with the likes of Jan Vertonghen and Eric Dier shining at centre-back, in front of a similarly impressive Paulo Gazzaniga, who was making his debut.Supporters were delighted with the contribution of their defenders and took to Twitter in the wake of the victory to pay tribute…

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Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku has struggled in front of goal of late, scoring just once in his last 10 matches.

It is stark contrast to the start of the season when the Belgian found the back of the net 11 times in his first 10 outings.

Lukaku is not in scintillating form at the moment, but he may not have a chance to rectify his goalscoring antics any time soon.

The Daily Mail reports that the United hitman could be issued with a three-match ban for an incident involving Brighton defender Gaetan Bong on Saturday afternoon.

Video footage showed the 24-year-old appearing to kick out at Bong with his right foot and then hitting him with his left.

The incident was not spotted by referee Neil Swarbrick at the time, but Lukaku could face retrospective action for violent conduct, which carries an automatic three-match ban.

If found guilty, the striker will miss Premier League games against Watford and Arsenal, as well as the derby clash against table-toppers Manchester City.

United fans have been tweeting their thoughts on the potential ban, and some would not miss him.

Leeds United moved back into play-off contention as they beat Queens Park Rangers 3-1 at Loftus Road on Saturday, but it wasn’t all good news as manager Thomas Christiansen told reporters that striker Caleb Ekuban may have suffered a recurrence of his previous injury, and Whites fans were quick to have their say on the news.

The Yorkshire outfit signed the 23-year-old centre-forward from FK Partizani during the summer, but he suffered a broken foot on his first Championship appearance for the club against Sunderland in August.

The striker missed 12 league games before making his return as a substitute in the win against Middlesbrough at Elland Road last month, while he had started their last three matches, including as a centre-forward at Loftus Road before being forced in the 38th minute with another potentially broken foot.

Leeds supporters took to social media to give their thoughts on the update, and while one said he was “gutted”, another described it as “terrible news”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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