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Sky Sports journalist and Newcastle United supporter Pete Graves has been left thrilled by the decision to give Eddie Howe a new contract.

The Lowdown: Friday contract

As confirmed by the North East club on Friday, Howe has signed a new long-term contract at St. James’ Park.

Sporting Director Dan Ashworth commented on the deal, claiming that he is ‘delighted’ and that it is ‘great news’ for the Tynesiders, singing Howe’s praises in the process.

The Latest: Graves thrilled

Taking to Twitter shortly after the news was announced, Graves simply reacted with the word: ‘Buzzing’.

It was a timely announcement, as Howe and his team now prepare to face newly-promoted Nottingham Forest at home in their opening game of the new Premier League season.

The Verdict: Deserved

Howe’s new contract is certainly deserved, given the work that he has done so far.

As the Magpies mention in their announcement, the team had not won a match in the top flight when he took over back in November of last season, before he helped guide them to survival and a comfortable 11th-placed finish in the end.

Howe was also given the Manager of the Month award in February after an unbeaten run, and will now be aiming to take his side into the top half come the end of this campaign, and perhaps even push for the European places.

Former BBC pundit Noel Whelan has suggested that there is a ‘massive chance’ that Nottingham Forest are relegated from the Premier League this season after their extensive activity in the transfer market.

The Lowdown: Busy transfer window

Steve Cooper’s side recently confirmed the £12.7m signing of Orel Mangala from Stuttgart, with the club having now added 12 new players to the squad during the summer transfer window following their promotion to the top flight in May.

Following the Belgium international’s arrival at City Ground, Forest have reportedly brought their summer spend to more than £85m.

The Latest: Whelan’s warning

Whelan, who used to work as a pundit for BBC Radio Leeds, hopes that Forest can survive the drop this season, but he worries that it may take the squad too long to gel with one another.

Speaking with Football Insider, he claimed: “I do believe it will take time to blend these players and gel this group together. But they’ve got a very good manager in Steve Cooper, and he will give them the best possible chance.

“It is often the case that teams can sign too many players and it backfires – but Forest didn’t have a choice, they lost a lot of their best players after the play-off final.

“The owner has shown his intent and you just hope it doesn’t backfire. I think it would be great to keep Forest in the Premier League.

“They’ve got that history and that prestige. When you see them on the fixture list, it’s a game you look forward to.

“There is a massive chance that it could come back to bite them if these players can’t adapt to a new club and a new league. It’ll be intriguing and exciting for their fans to see how it pans out.”

The Verdict: Not a great start…

Embarking on a Premier League campaign on Saturday for the first time in 23 years, Cooper’s team were comfortably beaten 2-0 by Newcastle United at St James’ Park.

“Newcastle deserved to win the game,” the Forest manager told reporters. “They were the better team. We will always show respect to that.”

With so many new arrivals at the City Ground, this was always going to be a likely outcome at the beginning of the season, so it may take a few weeks or even months for the squad to settle in playing with one another.

Whelan is right to sound a warning that extensive summer spending does not automatically ensure a comfortable top-flight campaign, with Aston Villa scraping survival on the final day in 2020 despite spending more than £140m in the summer and winter transfer windows.

Newcastle United, and by extension club owners PIF, are interested in signing Chelsea attackers Conor Gallagher and Callum Hudson-Odoi this summer, journalist Ben Jacobs has claimed.

The Lowdown: Relatively low-key summer

The Magpies’ newfound wealth has made the headlines in the past nine months or so, following their big-money takeover that went through late last year.

While many were expecting Newcastle to spend a huge amount of funds on new signings this summer, things have been fairly serene, with Sven Botman (£33.3m) the most expensive arrival.

There are still a few weeks remaining in the transfer window, however, and a fresh update suggests more incomings could be heading to St James’ Park.

The Latest: Newcastle eye up Chelsea pair

Taking to Twitter, Jacobs claimed that Newcastle are keen on signing Chelsea duo Gallagher and Hudson-Odoi before deadline day ends.

“#NUFC interested in Conor Gallagher and considering Callum Hudson-Odoi.”

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The Verdict: Two shrewd additions

This is exactly the sort of business Newcastle should be looking to do, with Gallagher and Hudson-Odoi both hugely exciting young players who could strengthen Eddie Howe’s side significantly.

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Neither are looking like key starters for Chelsea, so the Blues would surely be happy to sell them on loan, while the players themselves would likely jump at the chance of being regulars elsewhere. For that reason, it feels like an ideal scenario for all parties.

Gallagher was superb on loan at Crystal Palace last season, scoring eight times in the Premier League, while Hudson-Odoi’s pace and trickery out wide could give Newcastle an extra dimension, with the 21-year-old potentially comes as an alternative to Allan Saint-Maximin.

Southampton have endured a very difficult start to the new Premier League season and have suffered another setback ahead of their home game against Leeds United this weekend.

Following their 4-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend, the Saints sit bottom of the Premier League, and rumours of unrest at the club have quickly surfaced.

It has been reported that manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has lost the dressing room, with a number of players surprised that the Austrian was able to keep his job after a shocking end to the 2021/22 campaign.

The former RB Leipzig boss opted to deploy a five-at-the-back formation against Spurs, with Yan Valery a surprising choice at centre-back.

Unfortunately for the Saints, Hasenhuttl’s gamble did not pay off as they shipped four goals, meaning they sit bottom of the Premier League ahead of the visit of Leeds United.

The Austrian confirmed in his pre-match conference that Brazilian centre-back Lyanco will miss the game against Jesse Marsch’s side, in what is another blow to Southampton’s chances.

He said:

“We had only Lyanco during the week not training with the team because he had a problem with his knee.”

Since joining from Torino last summer, the 25-year-old has made 18 appearances for the Saints, and with Hasenhuttl opting for a five-at-the-back, there are likely to be more opportunities for the defender this season.

Hasenhuttl was full of praise for the Brazilian last season after a 1-0 win against Aston Villa last season, saying:

“This guy is a fantastic character.

“You see how he was celebrating his first Premier League game and now again he is happy, you know how much it means to him to play for us.

“This is exactly the kind of player we want in our team.”

However, he will be without the centre-back as the Saints look to turn their fortunes around on Saturday, and not having him available in defence will undoubtedly come as a blow to the Austrian, especially when you consider how defensively poor they were against Spurs.

Ben Jacobs has dropped an update on reported Leeds United transfer target Ollie Watkins.

What’s the talk?

In a recent interview with GIVEMESPORT, the CBS Sport journalist stated his belief that, despite a number of reports linking Victor Orta with a move for the Aston Villa centre-forward this summer, there is little to suggest that the Whites would be able to get a deal for the 26-year-old over the line prior to next week’s transfer deadline.

However, Jacobs went on to suggest that, should there in fact be an underlying tension between the England international and Steven Gerrard – as has been reported – the Spanish director of football could yet see an opportunity arise to move for the striker, before the journalist stated his belief that Watkins’ arrival would excite the Elland Road faithful.

Regarding Leeds’ reported interest in the Villa forward, Jacobs said: “I think Ollie Watkins is the one that would excite Leeds fans the most, but there’s nothing to suggest that they can get a deal done quickly.

“Between now and when the window closes – unless these Villa denials are more PR [and] there is an underlying tension and Watkins does want a fresh challenge at that point – perhaps Leeds will see a window of opportunity to capitalise.”

“Unbelievable” signing

With Orta’s bid to add a new centre-forward to Jesse Marsch’s attacking arsenal at Elland Road prior to the closure of the summer transfer window being well known, should the Spaniard manage to pull off a deal for Watkins in the coming days, the argument that it would be an unbelievable signing for the Whites is an easy one to make.

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Indeed, following his £28m move from Brentford back in 2020, the £31.5m-rated talent made an immediate impact for Villa over 37 Premier League fixtures in 2020/21, scoring 14 goals, registering five assists and creating eight big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 2.6 shots – 1.2 of which hit the target – making 1.2 key passes and completing 1.1 dribbles per game.

The £75k-per-week forward followed this campaign up with another impressive haul over his 35 league fixtures in 2021/22, bagging 11 goals, providing two assists and creating four big chances, in addition to taking an average of 2.2 shots – 0.9 of which hit the target – making one key pass and completing 1.1 dribbles per outing.

For context, those returns would appear to better that of Bamford, who registered an equal 2.2 shots but only managed 0.6 key passes and 0.4 dribbles per game as he struggled in a number of metrics.

Yet again, the player who Justin Allen dubbed “deadly” and Dean Smith labelled “unbelievable” has caught the eye over his three Premier League appearances so far this season, with Watkins proving himself to be a well-rounded striker that would benefit Marsch enormously.

Indeed, he has already scored one goal, registered two assists and created one big chance, as well as taking an average of 1.3 shots – 0.7 of which hit the target – making one key pass and completing 0.3 dribbles per fixture.

As such, while it is true that Watkins’ reported £50m asking price does look rather steep, considering just how consistent a goalscorer, assist provider and chance creator the seven-cap international has proven himself to be in the Premier League compared to Bamford, should Orta manage to get a deal over the line for the 26-year-old prior to September’s transfer deadline, he would indeed appear to make an unbelievable addition to Marsch’s current attacking options at Leeds.

Former Premier League goalkeeper Paddy Kenny has backed West Ham United to make a ‘big statement signing’ before the transfer window closes on Thursday night. 

The lowdown: More to come?

So far this summer, the Hammers have already completed seven permanent signings for David Moyes’ first-team squad, with Lyon midfielder Lucas Paqueta expected to be the eighth addition.

The 24-year-old is believed to be nearing a club-record arrival and will undergo a medical ahead of a deal worth around £50.8m (Daily Mail).

However, one pundit has suggested that the east Londoners may not be finished there and has tipped the Irons to get at least one more transfer done before the September 1 deadline…

The latest: Kenny expects ‘statement signing’

Speaking to Football Insider, former Leeds United stopper Kenny has suggested that Moyes could still add another player to the London Stadium squad along with Paqueta.

The 44-year-old said: “Moyes is saying they need a few players, I think we all knew that. Listen, West Ham are still a good team, they have just had a few poor results at the start of the season, it happens.

“I just thought we would have seen a bit more activity from them this summer, maybe a big statement signing. There could be a huge statement signing alongside Paqueta, I can see it happening.

“There was fresh investment last year and that hasn’t really seen the light of day yet, it has just been a bit of a surprise. I really do rate that West Ham team, the likes of Bowen and Antonio.

“But they need a bit of help if they are to carry on fighting for those European places. Hopefully something changes before the window shuts.”

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The verdict: Fingers crossed

Should the deal for Paqueta be completed, as seems likely, West Ham’s spending this summer will surpass £175m, with only £16m recouped from the sale of Issa Diop to Fulham.

As such, any further incomings – perhaps in the shape of Club Brugge captain Hans Vanaken or Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher – would likely need to come from GSB and would be a sure sign of the hierarchy fully backing Moyes, and indeed rewarding him for his tremendous work over the past two seasons.

Another central midfielder and a frontline attacker certainly wouldn’t go amiss as the Irons gear up for a hectic campaign, having secured a place in the Europa Conference League group stage last week.

Arsenal would be foolish to not make a move for Moises Caicedo before Thursday’s transfer deadline…

What’s the word?

The Brighton and Hove Albion powerhouse has been linked with a switch to the Emirates Stadium in recent weeks and Express journalist Ryan Taylor has urged the Gunners to make a swoop.

“I think they’d be silly not to because of the high level of his performances in such a short space of time since making his debut,” he told GIVEMESPORT.

“I think one of his first games was away at Tottenham last year and that was only at the back-end of last season. Then he destroyed Manchester United in that 4-0 win, scoring, and the same happened on the opening day of the season.”

He cost the Seagulls just £4.5m during the winter transfer window’s deadline day and he is now thought to be worth in the region of €20m (£17m), as per CIES Football Observatory, who assess the transfer value of professional footballers on a scientific basis.

Shades of Vieira

The north London giants once had an aggressive and hugely competitive box-to-box midfielder by the name of Patrick Vieira. He captained the side for three years and became a legend, not just at Arsenal but in the Premier League overall, too.

Now the club could find a player very much in that mould with Caicedo.

The 20-year-old gem has set the league alight with his form for Brighton.

From just eight outings in 2021/22, Caicedo ranked as Graham Potter’s best-performing player with an average WhoScored rating of 7.07. He won tackles and 1.2 interceptions per game and contributed further up the pitch with 1.3 shots and 0.9 dribbles per game.

It’s perhaps no surprise to have seen him likened to N’Golo Kante, who only last week Vieira namedropped when asked about players similar to him.

“He is a terrific athlete who makes football look easy. A box-to-box midfielder,” claimed South American football expert Tim Vickery to talkSPORT. “A year ago he was saying that Kante of Chelsea is his role model but he is already more than that. He already offers more in the final third.

“That kind of box-to-box midfielder that’s very much in the tradition of the England game. Strong, quick, intelligent and cool. He really does look like the genuine article.”

Based on that endorsement alone, Caicedo could really become a Vieira-like beast in the Premier League over the next few years, so Gunners technical director Edu Gaspar must ensure it’s in the red and white colours of Islington, rather than the blue and white tones from the south coast.

Ecuadorian football historian and statistician Enrico Castro-Montes has added further weight to that comparison, claiming that the Ecuador international was “a cross between Kante and Pogba.”

In his own country, he is really seen as the crown jewel of a new generation,” he told Het Niuewsblad (via Sport Witness).

“Caicedo really has everything to become the best Ecuadorian footballer of all time. I think that off the ball, he is indeed somewhat reminiscent of Kante, but on the ball, he resembles Paul Pogba with his flair and his technique.”

With nearly less than 48 hours to go in the transfer window, Edu and co must look to lure Caicedo to the Emirates as he could well discover Arsenal’s next Vieira in the 20-year-old, who was also lauded as a “machine” by talent scout Jacek Kulig.

He’d be an extraordinary signing to end a busy and exciting summer of business for the Gunners.

AND in other news, Imagine him & Jesus: Arsenal could form a dream duo by signing “magical” £21m ace…

Leeds United are plotting another ‘push’ for PSV Eindhoven’s Cody Gakpo in January, according to Fabrizio Romano. 

The lowdown

The Whites agreed personal terms with the 23-year-old in the final days of the summer transfer window and even outbid Premier League competitors Southampton, but they were unable to pull off the transfer.

Leeds’ sporting director Victor Orta even flew out to the Netherlands for talks and hoped to bring Gakpo back him with on his private jet, but PSV ultimately refused to sell the Dutchman, a stance that the Yorkshire club hope will change in time for January.

Only three top-flight clubs – Nottingham Forest (21), Fulham (11) and Southampton (10) – signed more players than Leeds during the summer transfer window, with the Whites shelling out just under £100m on eight new arrivals.

The latest

Romano took to Twitter to share the news about Gakpo, who he cited as Leeds ‘main target’ for the winter transfer window. Their plan is already in motion, but the Italian cautioned that there will be plenty of rival suitors for the PSV star.

Romano tweeted: “Leeds are planning to push again for Cody Gakpo in January, after crazy change on Deadline Day. He’s the main target… but there will be lot of competition.”

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The verdict

Gakpo’s form in the early part of the season shows why the race for his signature will be so intense.

In 10 matches across all competitions, he has been directly involved in 13 goals (scored seven, set up six) and averaged a goal contribution every 60 minutes.

Unsurprisingly, he tops the early tables in the Eredivisie for shots, goals and assists (via FBRef).

It’s hard to disagree with the assessment of The Athletic’s Carl Anka that the Dutch ‘playmaker’ (to quote European football expert Alex Barker) would be a ‘huge’ signing for Leeds, if they can finally land him in January.

Aston Villa mustered just their second Premier League win of the season in their last outing, with a 1-0 victory over Southampton easing the mounting pressure on Steven Gerrard heading into the international break.

There were huge levels of anticipation before the season started, with Johan Lange and Gerrard working well together to bring in a number of quality players. Indeed, the likes of Boubacar Kamara, Diego Carlos and Philippe Coutinho all arrived at Villa Park on permanent deals this summer.

These signings didn’t automatically translate into excellent performances, however, with Gerrard’s side winning just once from their opening six league matches.

And, with the 42-year-old having just two senior strikers to call upon in Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins – who have scored only three goals between them all season – missing out on signing a centre forward in the summer could come back to haunt the club.

Lange left red-faced after not signing Gabriel Barbosa

Villa have been linked with Gabriel Barbosa for close to a year, with 90min reporting that the Midlands side were keen on signing him midway through last season.

However, a move ultimately did not materialise, and with the Brazilian highly impressing over the last few seasons with Flamengo, the Villa Sporting director must be red-faced after deciding against a move for the Brazil international.

Barbosa moved from Inter Milan to Flamengo on a permanent deal in January 2020 and has scored for fun during his spell at the club.

The 26-year-old has netted a truly staggering 109 goals in just 178 matches, leading the team to the Brasileirao title in 2019 and 2020, as well as scoring two goals in just three minutes to help secure Flamengo’s first Copa Libertadores title for over 40 years back in 2019.

Brazilian icon Zico has lavished praise on the player, saying: “I think Gabigol has everything to be the greatest striker in Flamengo’s history. It’s getting there. His performance got better and better, consolidating himself as one of the greats.”

There’s no doubt a move to the Premier League could take his performances to the next level if he was utilised correctly.

His performances are certainly showing Aston Villa what they are missing, and with Gerrard having to rely on Ings and Watkins for goals, it would appear an extremely wise move for Lange to regitnite his interest come the January transfer window.

Crystal Palace haven’t had the best start to their Premier League campaign and could end up in the relegation zone if Nottingham Forest beat Leicester City tonight as Patrick Vieira’s side lost to Chelsea on Saturday.

The Palace boss will be trying to find the solutions in his squad to start picking up points over the season ahead, but he may now need to wait until the January transfer window to fix some of the problems at Selhurst Park.

Last season Crystal Palace broke club records for their defensive performances in the Premier League, conceding a record-low number of goals over the campaign (46) and kept a joint-club record of 12 clean sheets too.

However, over the campaign so far the Eagles have only kept one clean sheet out of their first seven outings and their regular concession of goals is leaving them teetering on the edge of the relegation zone already.

As a result, the powers at the club could regret their decision not to complete the signing of Manchester United right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka as the season progresses.

The £83k-per-week defender was linked with making a move back to his former club this summer with Sky Sports reporting that Palace were interested in reuniting with the player on loan, however, nothing materialised before the transfer window slammed shut at the beginning of September.

Wan-Bissaka ranks in the top 3% of his positional peers over the top five European leagues for interceptions, blocks and dribbles completed, as well as ranking in the top 20% for pass completion. Indeed, he proved last season that he could be the perfect man to replace Joel Ward.

The 24-year-old outperformed the Palace right-back in many attributes including shot-creating actions per 90 (1.56 v 0.62) and blocked shots (56 v 53).

He also had a better pass completion rate (83.5% v 80%) despite playing eight fewer league games.

It shows that Wan-Bissaka isn’t just more creative, but he’s also more composed in possession of the ball, two elements of the game that are crucial to optimising Vieira’s exciting style of play.

The talented defender has been the recipient of high praise with Ole Gunnar Solksjaer labelling Wan Bissaka “top-notch”, whilst Wes Brown waxed lyrical over him in an interview with Sky Sports, saying:

“What else can you say about Aaron Wan-Bissaka? I’ve not really seen many like him and that’s the honest truth. Defensively, in one-on-ones, he’s definitely one of the best I’ve ever seen.”

With that being said, Vieira might get a second chance at signing Wan-Bissaka when you consider that Erik ten Hag has only given him one appearance this season. Thus, if the opportunity arises in January, Crystal Place must do everything to bring the player back to Selhurst Park. He would be a seismic upgrade on Ward and a player that could take the Eagles to the next level.