Everton fans can’t decide what to do with Muhamed Bešić, as the midfielder continued his fine form for Middlesbrough this weekend.

Mo Bešić has been impressing again for Middlesbrough, this time in a 3-1 win over Barnsley. The Bosnian midfielder played 66 minutes in the win, as he continues to work on his fitness with his loan club.

The 25 year-old was loaned to the Riverside in January, after falling out of favour at Everton due mainly to injury problems.

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Bešić has started six Championship games since the move, managing the full 90 minutes in three of them. He is averaging two tackles per game, 1.2 completed dribbles per game, and 3.2 successful long balls per game.

Of the six games Bešić has started, Middlesbrough have lost just one, and his form has left Everton fans split on his future with the club. Everton have had their fair share of problems this season, as none of their big summer signings performed to the expected level.

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While some remain unconvinced whether the 25 year-old is good enough for a Premier League side hoping to fight for European places next season, others think his form in the Championship should earn him another chance.

Some of the best Twitter reactions can be found below…

According to reports in the Daily Star, new Southampton manager Mark Hughes is lining up a £20m summer move for Stoke City attacker Xherdan Shaqiri should he keep the club in the Premier League and stay on at St Mary’s.

What’s the word, then?

Well, the Daily Star says that Hughes, who has also been linked with a move for Joe Allen, would love to make the Switzerland international his first big summer signing for the south coast outfit and is willing to make a club-record offer of £20m – more than the £19.2m they paid for Guido Carrillo in January – although it of course relies on the 54-year-old helping Saints in their survival bid first of all.

The Daily Star reports Shaqiri will want out of the Britannia Stadium if the Potters are relegated and also says he won’t be short of offers, both in England and abroad.

The report adds that the 26-year-old is a huge Stoke fans’ favourite, and Hughes would like to be reunited with him again having bought him for £12m three years ago when he was in charge of City.

How has Shaqiri done this season?

While Stoke have been struggling down the wrong end of the table for much of the campaign, the Swiss playmaker has been one of their most consistent performers and something of a talisman.

The 26-year-old has scored six goals and provided a further seven assists in 29 Premier League appearances this term, while according to WhoScored.com he has made an impressive 65 key passes.

Would he be a good signing for Southampton?

If they stay up, he certainly would be.

While there may be some question marks over his attitude sometimes, there is no doubt about the quality that he has in his locker considering he has played for Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and FC Basel previously, as well as scoring a hat-trick at the 2014 World Cup for Switzerland.

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The 26-year-old is unpredictable and that is something the Saints need to add to their attacking options this summer given that the lack of variety in the final third has often meant that they have been toothless.

Shaqiri is versatile and can also play on the right or in the No 10 role, and the only potential problem for Southampton is that he may well have plenty of offers from elsewhere, especially if a prospective deal isn’t wrapped up before the World Cup.

Ander Herrera has become quite the favourite among some fans at Manchester United, but it does not seem that manager Jose Mourinho shares the same opinion.

The midfielder has struggled to hold down a regular spot in the team having started just eight Premier League games this season.

In total, the 28-year-old has been named in the first XI on 17 occasions in all competitions and has come off the bench in a further 13.

Herrera has played a full 90 minutes on just four occasions in his last 10 outings for the North-West outfit, and supporters feel that he deserves more.

On top of that, the midfielder has just one year left on his current contract, which means he is in that in-between stage of signing fresh terms or being sold.

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At the moment, there has been no official word from the Red Devils about Herrera’s situation, but many fans have urged the club to hand over a new deal.

In response to the midfielder’s interview with the club’s official website talking about the team’s targets for the remainder of the campaign, the supporters made their feelings clear.

Arsenal have ramped up their pursuit of Barcelona youngster Robert Navarro after Manchester City cooled their interest, according to the Daily Mail.

What’s the word?

City have been working hard on developing a state-of-the-art academy over the last few years in the hope of bringing through some top talent.

The North-West outfit were believed to be closing in on the capture of 15-year-old attacking midfielder Navarro, but the narrative has changed.

The Daily Mail reports that City have eased off and now Arsenal are ready to swoop in and snatch the youngster, who has been offered new terms by Barca.

Navarro will make a decision about whether or not to stay with the Catalan giants later this week when he turns 16.

Could Arsenal produce a future star?

The Gunners are certainly capable of creating a star from their academy, and they have experience developing youngsters from Barcelona’s youth ranks.

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Cesc Fabregas and Hector Bellerin made their way to North London from Barca’s famous ‘La Masia’ academy, and both can be considered success stories.

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Navarro is only a young teen, and even though he is widely rated, it does not mean that he is guaranteed to break into the first team in the future.

With the transfer market how it is, there is an argument that it has become easier for clubs to splash out millions on an established star for quick success rather than give youngsters time.

Manchester City’s 3-1 win over Tottenham on Saturday marked only the second time in which Nicolas Otamendi hasn’t started a Premier League game for Pep Guardiola’s side this season, and the significance of that should not be overlooked.

While some will look back at the Argentina international’s worryingly unfocused performance in the Manchester derby, particularly culpable for Chris Smalling’s winner, affording January signing Aymeric Laporte the game-time to prove himself at the heart of defence was most probably Guardiola’s ultimate motivation.

It’s never easy for a young player to come into a title-chasing team mid-season and with City’s Premier League title a mere formality even before Manchester United’s shock defeat to West Bromwich Albion on Sunday, the visit to Wembley marked a chance for Guardiola to test the young Frenchman against good quality opposition in strong form.

Not only do Spurs boast a real beast of a goalscorer up front in Harry Kane, but they hadn’t lost a Premier League clash since the reverse fixture at the Etihad Stadium back in December.

And it was an impressive performance from Laporte, who certainly looked the part alongside Vincent Kompany. While an admittedly out-of-sources and isolated Kane failed to register a single effort at goal, the former Athletic Bilbao centre-half made the most interceptions and won the joint-most aerial duels of any City player, also ranking joint-second for clearances and joint-third for tackles.

What will impress Guardiola most though, is how the 23-year-old contributed in possession as well – something obviously vitally important to this City side.

He had the most touches of the ball and made the most passes of any City player, although a completion rate of 84% may need to be improved upon to ensure the new Premier League champions don’t squander possession to high presses.

That display will only worry Otamendi, and even more John Stones. Whereas Laporte’s chance to audition in a tough game has inevitably put the South American’s place in the first team under some threat, at least in the short term, the injured Englishman now feels as far down the pecking order as he’s ever been since moving to the Etihad Stadium from Everton.

So, City fans, which centre-back do you think is the ideal partner for Kompany (fitness permitting) next season?

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Let us know by voting below…

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Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld have formed a formidable centre-back partnership at Tottenham Hotspur following the latter’s move to White Hart Lane in 2015.

This season, though, the pair have had relatively limited game time together due to the injury woes suffered by Alderweireld.

The 29-year-old spent around three months on the sidelines with a hamstring problem, but since returning in February, the defender has featured just three times in all competitions.

In the Belgian’s absence, compatriot Vertonghen stepped up with Davinson Sanchez by his side and has started all but one of Spurs’ 34 Premier League games.

In total, the defender has helped the team keep 14 clean sheets, and has even scored once and created an assist.

The futures of both defenders have been talking points in the press lately, with football.london reporting that Tottenham plan to offer Vertonghen a new contract before the start of next season.

Alderweireld, though, is expected to be up for sale this summer, according to the London Evening Standard.

The publication claims that the 29-year-old is struggling to come to an agreement over wages, which has caused contract talks with the North London outfit to stall.

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Numerous times this season, Tottenham fans have urged the centre-back to put pen to paper, but given how crucial Vertonghen has been, would he be the one that Spurs would miss the most in the event of a transfer?

Let us know by voting below…

As reported by The Sun, Manchester United face competition in the race to sign Tottenham Hotspur defender Toby Alderweireld this summer.

What’s the story?

Jose Mourinho will likely be a busy man in the upcoming transfer window as he looks to take his United side to the next level and compete for major honours at home and abroad next season.

One player on their radar is Toby Alderweireld, according to The Sun, who say that the Red Devils have now been joined by Chelsea in the battle for his signature.

The paper reckon the Spurs star is available for £45m and is now wanted by the Stamford Bridge side, with United previously showing interest.

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Would he be a good signing at Old Trafford?

With question marks around the abilities of players like Chris Smalling and Phil Jones at Manchester United, there’s no doubt that improvement can be made in the defensive positions this summer.

Bringing in Alderweireld would add real depth to an area of the pitch that is already well served by Eric Bailly and Victor Lindelof.

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The Belgian international has been a stand-out at Spurs for three years now and at 29 years of age has the experience to excel at the elite level for the Red Devils.

Although he’s struggled with a hamstring injury this season, when fit and healthy he is one of the better defenders in the entire league and if available he’s certainly someone that United should be targeting this summer.

Arsene Wenger’s future is not with Arsenal, but the Frenchman is ‘convinced’ that Jack Wilshere will still be with the Gunners entering the 2018-19 campaign.

Wilshere is yet to agree terms on a new contract at the Emirates Stadium, and as it stands, he will be free to leave at the end of next month.

The 26-year-old’s future at the club has been a bit of a merry-go-round, and it would be fair to say that the Arsenal supporters are a bit fed-up with the situation.

Wilshere, who is valued at £16.2m by transfermarkt.co.uk, has not exactly been brilliant for the Gunners in recent months, but is certainly a different player to the one that struggled on loan at Bournemouth last season.

Wenger is not involved in the contract talks with Wilshere, but the current Arsenal manager believes that the midfielder will ultimately sign a fresh deal at the Emirates Stadium.

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The club’s supporters have been reacting to Wenger’s quotes, and whilst there are plenty that want Wilshere to stay, it is not an opinion shared by all.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

According to The Independent, Liverpool want to sign Newcastle United’s Jamaal Lascelles or Burnley’s James Tarkowski in this summer’s transfer window.

Indeed, it is being reported that Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp wants to sign at least one new centre-back this summer, and Lascelles and Tarkowski are believed to be under consideration by the Champions League finalists.

Lascelles, 24, was excellent for Newcastle during the 2017-18 campaign, and Chelsea are also said to be admirers of the towering centre-back.

It seems that Newcastle will find it difficult to keep the Englishman on a long-term basis, and the Magpies could well be tested by Liverpool during this summer’s window.

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The Liverpool fans have been reacting to suggestions of interest in Lascelles, and there are a number that would welcome the central defender ahead of the new season.

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That said, there are also those who have doubted whether Lascelles, who is valued at £6.3m by transfermarkt.co.uk, is good enough to represent a top-four team.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Andreas Christensen’s successful transition from Chelsea’s loan army to the first team has been one of the biggest stories of the season at Stamford Bridge. The 21-year-old centre-back is clearly an exciting prospect, bringing real calmness and composure to the heart of the Blues defence.

However, Christensen has struggled at times against elite opposition during his first season as a Chelsea regular – that ill-fated pass against Barcelona in the Champions League particularly coming to mind. That’s perhaps why Antonio Conte has turned back to Gary Cahill in recent weeks for the business end of the season.

And that business end comes to a conclusion this weekend when Chelsea face Manchester United in the FA Cup final. So after both featured last time out in the 3-0 defeat to Newcastle, we asked Blues supporters who should start at the centre of defence in Saturday’s huge clash.

Our poll has revealed Chelsea fans are somewhat divided on the issue, but the majority – 55% – would start the experienced England international, demoting Christensen to the bench.

How would you line up Conte’s side this weekend, Chelsea fans? Let us know by commenting below…

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