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Brazilian starlet Neymar will stay with Santos until beyond 2014, according to the club’s president.

Chelsea and Manchester City, as well as a whole host of top European sides, are said to be very keen on the 20-year-old, but Luis Alvaro de Oliveira Ribero has stated that he believes his star will stay in Brazil for the 2014 World Cup and possibly beyond.

It had been reported that deal between the Blues and Santos had been agreed, but Ribero rejected these rumours:

“When I met the lawyers and his agent, it was almost certain he would be sold to Chelsea but I left an empty seat in the meeting.” He told ESPN Brasil.

“I said that the last one that sat there was Ayrton Senna, the last Brazilian idol. And that Neymar could be the next one.

“Nowadays Neymar sits there and he needs to stay happy in the place where he is happy. I believe he will stay even beyond 2014.”

This statement will come as bad news to the Premier League duo, with both teams said to be preparing big money bids for his signature.

Neymar is widely believed to be one of the finest emerging talents in world football, drawing plaudits from the media in his home nation and abroad.

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Although he is still young, he’s already one of the superstars of Brazilian football and hailed as the future of the Seleção.

It’s widely believed that he will eventually join a top European club, but as of yet there is no official agreement.

Newcastle fans in the Transfer Tavern will be praying that the club can sign a striker to fill the void left by the long-gone Papiss Cisse. 

It’s unsure if Aleksander Mitrovic will return to the club, Dwight Gayle doesn’t seem to be able to cut and Joselu doesn’t seem to know where the goal is. Newcastle are desperate for a striker who can fire the club closer to the European places.

So far the Toon have been linked with a host of strikers but one who the club might consider as a cut-price alternative is Liverpool’s Divock Origi.

The Breakdown

At first, Newcastle fans may consider this an absurd idea but here’s why the Geordie faithful shouldn’t rule it out.

Origi’s teammate, Danny Ings has been linked with a move the Magpies but due to his terrible injury record, where he’s only managed 25 appearances since joining Liverpool in 2015. Newcastle have also been linked with Daniel Sturridge but similarly, we all know how poor his injury record is.

While Origi isn’t the readymade 30 goal a season striker yet, the 23-year-old has tonnes of talent. however, the Belgium international has a solid all-around game. Tall yet quick, hardworking and has the ability to bring other players into the game, Origi could be a great link man in Benitez’s midfield – especially if they can bring in players like Grealish and King around him.

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Origi might not be the top of Benitez’s list but if all else fails, he would still be a great addition to the squad and could really compliment Benitez’s squad.

A bit outlandish but is this a fair contingency signing Newcastle fans? 

Hector Bellerin caused a stir last week when he criticised those involved in online phenomenon ArsenalFanTV for their outspoken views.

The Arsenal right-back was speaking at a Q&A at Oxford Union, the Spaniard claimed that he ignores the opinions of supporters who blast the players on the YouTube channel.

Now, the 22-year-old could be in even hotter water following the emergence of an audio recording.

On Twitter, it has been alleged that the voice heard on the tape belongs to Bellerin.

Controversially, the person has been recorded claiming that he wants a fresh challenge in the next few years, suggesting that he could leave Arsenal.

It is worth stressing that there has not been any confirmation that Bellerin is the voice on the recording.

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The reaction from Arsenal supporters has been mixed, with some criticising the Spaniard while others do not believe for a second that it is a genuine audio of their right-back.

With England’s World Cup campaign drawing to its swift conclusion, the post-mortem into what went wrong has begun in earnest. Question marks over the formation, tactics, players and even substitutions have been banded around by journalists and on social media.

For many though, the biggest mistake that Roy Hodgson made this summer was leaving Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick at home. While Steven Gerrard and Jordan Henderson toiled in the defeats to Italy and Uruguay, the 32 year old Red Devil has been pictured sunbathing on holiday in Barbados.

For a select few on Twitter, Hodgson was correct in leaving Carrick out of his final twenty three man squad.

Granted, the 32 year old has suffered a poor season by his standards at Old Trafford and certainly isn’t on the same level as Andrea Pirlo. But in spite of all this, most believe that Carrick would have been the ideal man to sit deep in England’s midfield.

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In addition to its long-standing reputation as one of English football’s premier cup competitions, the League Cup’s record of showcasing the talents of football’s brightest young things has increasingly become its trademark. As we look forward to the next round of this year’s Capital One Cup, FootballFanCast is taking a look at just some of the famous faces to have cut their teeth in the competition.

This Thursday, David Beckham’s LA Galaxy will line up at home to the Vancouver Whitecaps, and one of the shining lights of the MLS is more than likely to be involved. Beckham of course, isn’t getting any younger, though. It’s over 20 years since Beckham first appeared in a professional football match for his first club, Manchester United – a League Cup second round away fixture against Brighton and Hove Albion.

Beckham came off the bench that night, making a limited impression as Brighton held his United side to a 1-1 draw ahead of an eventual Red Devils win in the second leg. But for Beckham, who had already won the 1992 FA Youth Cup with cohorts Gary and Phil Neville, Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt, it was the beginning of one of the most glittering careers of a generation.

Once he became established as a first team regular from the 1995-6 season (and that goal against Wimbledon and Neil Sullivan), Beckham would be an infrequent feature of United’s League Cup campaigns. He didn’t feature in his tenth League Cup game until his final season with the club, in the 2002-3 campaign, when he also scored his first goal in the competition.

Beckham might never have won the League Cup as a Manchester United player, but following his debut he went on to win every other prize there was with the club – six Premier Leagues, two FA Cups, four Community Shields, a Champions’ League and an Intercontinental Cup. Of course, for Beckham, the man made globally famous by his varying exploits in two World Cups and as the centrepiece of a golden age for Manchester United, there was much more to come.

Beckham’s time since – over 100 appearances for England, four years as a Galactico with Real Madrid, one of the biggest contracts in the history of football with LA Galaxy and a couple of loan spells with AC Milan – has confirmed his legacy. He will be one of the most remembered and admired players of the turn-of-the-century generation, and should pass 700 club appearances by the end of the Galaxy’s season. Whether it’s the free kick against Greece in 2001, the corners against Bayern Munich in the Nou Camp in 1999, or the arrival in America in 2007, many of Beckham’s crowning moments have been seen by global audiences.

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Everyone has to start somewhere, of course. It was two years before Beckham made a second appearance for Manchester United following his League Cup debut, via a loan period at Preston North End, but that first taste of the big stage, combined with his previous exploits at youth level, set the young David Beckham on the way to stardom.

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According to reports in The Mirror, Southampton have joined West Ham United in the race to sign Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere, rated at £18m by Transfermarkt, after he announced on Tuesday that he would be leaving the Gunners when his contract expires at the end of the month, and he should snub the Irons and join the south coast club.

What’s the word, then?

The 26-year-old confirmed via his Instagram account that he wasn’t going to be stay on after he was told by new boss Unai Emery that he would only be a fringe player next term.

The Mirror says that the England international already has offers on the table from the Irons, Wolves, Sampdoria and AC Milan, and now Saints manager Mark Hughes is ready to enter the chase to bring him to St Mary’s.

The Sun on Sunday reported on June 17 suggested that the east London outfit are ready to hand Wilshere a four-year deal worth £130,000-a-week – something that Southampton may need to match to sign the midfielder.

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How did Wilshere do last season?

While many still question whether he can stay fit on a regular basis, he certainly answered some of those critics during the 2017/18 campaign when he made 38 appearances in all competitions for the Gunners, scoring twice and providing a further six assists.

The 26-year-old has become known as something of a dribbling master during his career because of his ability to bring the ball forward and beat a man in the middle of the park, and he lived up to that reputation last term as he successfully completed 86 of the 117 dribbles he completed in 33 outings in the Premier League and the Europa League, as per WhoScored.com.

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Why should he pick Southampton over West Ham?

Wilshere seemed to thrive during a season-long loan spell with Bournemouth previously when he was the main man, and that would be the case if he joined Saints, whose fans hate the idea of signing a 26-year-old target following his opening World Cup display, too given they only narrowly avoided relegation to the Championship last term.

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Mark Hughes would likely build his team around the 26-year-old, but it is hard to see that being the same case at West Ham, where he would be joining the likes of Marko Arnautovic, Javier Hernandez and other potential marquee additions this summer.

It became clear over the summer that Virgil van Dijk wanted to move on from Southampton.

The club dug their heels in and refused to sell, but in the end, the defender got his desired move to Liverpool at the start of the January transfer window.

Some Southampton fans have not yet forgiven the Dutchman for leaving, while others are glad to see the back of him.

On Sunday, Van Dijk will come face to face with his former club for the first time when Liverpool play the Saints at St Mary’s.

Numerous media outlets, including Sky Sports, recently published quotes attributed to the centre-back, who said that he is preparing for a hostile reception from the Southampton fans.

Since moving to Anfield, Van Dijk has played in four games in all competitions, scoring one goal in the process.

Southampton recently ended a 12-game winless run in the top flight with a 3-2 victory over West Bromwich Albion.

Ahead of this weekend’s action, some supporters have predicted that Van Dijk will score for the Reds.

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Others are praying that he nets an own goal.

Everton’s Leighton Baines has called on the club’s hierarchy to back Roberto Martinez during this summer’s transfer window.

The Toffees have enjoyed an excellent campaign, but they look set to fall just short of Champions League qualification despite early ambitions of breaking into the top four.

Everton have long been seen as a club without the budget to compete with some of English football’s ‘big boys’, and have often relied upon the sensible management of former boss David Moyes and the sales of big name players for large fees – such as Marouane Fellaini last year.

However Baines – who was tied down to a major new contract amid interest from Manchester United recently – wants the club to back Martinez in the coming transfer window in a bid to close the gap between themselves and their rivals:

“I’m sure the manager will be looking to keep investing and keep improving the squad because every year that’s what everyone else does and I think to give him a chance to improve us to that level then he’s going to need money to invest.” He is quoted by the Daily Star.

“We’re working on what we’ve got here and what we’ve got at the moment I think the big teams have a lot of money to spend and they spend it every year and they improve every year so we’ll have to do the same.

“We’d always been seen to have done well but never quite managed to achieve the things we wanted and he wants to take us to the next level, but in order to do that we have to change our style a bit.”

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Everton have been linked with a deal to bring in on-loan star Romelu Lukaku, but the striker is likely to cost in excess of £20m.

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Everton manager David Moyes hopes his team can maintain their early season form and qualify for next season’s Champions League, according to The Metro.

The Toffees qualified for the competition for the 2005/06 campaign, but were knocked out of in the preliminary stages.

Following their 2-2 draw with Fulham on Saturday, Moyes compared his current squad to the one that finished fourth in Premier League, hinting that he feels European football may be possible:

“This is the best we’ve played in my time here.” Moyes said.

“I couldn’t say yet if it’s the best team because the side that finished fourth (2004-05) and got into the Champions League were very consistent, resistant and ground out results.

“This team has an awful lot of attacking options. We can score and create chances.

“I hope we’re still pushing for top four at the end of the season.

“I don’t know if we will be because of the quality you need to be there.”

Everton’s solid form owes a lot to the performances of Marouane Fellaini and the Scotsman lauded his two-goal display against the Cottagers:

“Fellaini has taken the goalscoring on when we needed it. He’s a really good player and was a handful at all times against Fulham,”

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“You need to get the points on the board and we missed the opportunity to do that. I’ve said ten games is a good time to assess your start, and we’ve had a good start compared to our usual starts.

“We’ve had a couple of games where we’ve felt hard done by, but against Fulham we have ourselves to blame.”

Winning a Premier League title puts a club in a very strong position in the transfer market.

Manchester City took the crown last season, and they did it in style by earning 100 points and finished 19 above second-placed Manchester United.

The North-West outfit have been linked to numerous players over the last few weeks and months.

There has been a story that has been constantly running in the background, and it is a bizarre one.

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According to The Mirror, former Manchester United defender Jonny Evans, who suffered relegation from the Premier League with West Bromwich Albion last season, has been keen to sign for City.

Guardiola previously held an interest in the Northern Irishman, but the publication states that the newly-crowned English champions will not move for him this time around.

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After learning of this, Evans reportedly began discussing a potential move to Leicester City.

It is safe to say that fans of the North-West outfit are delighted that Evans will not be signing on the dotted line.