Newcastle eye Manchester City midfielder as surprise Everton link emerges

Newcastle United are reportedly keen on bringing Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips to St James’ Park.

That’s according to 90min who state that the 27-year-old is not only open to the move but has eyed Eddie Howe’s side as his ‘ideal destination’ if he is indeed to leave the Citizens.

Phillips has had a turbulent time to say the least following his transfer to City from Leeds United and a move to the Magpies could be one that suits all parties.

The midfielder has only made 29 appearances in all competitions for Pep Guardiola’s side following his transfer in the summer of 2022 and the need for a fresh start at this point seems inevitable.

It’s no secret that Newcastle will be after a midfielder in January as a replacement for Sandro Tonali who was suspended for gambling offences and Phillips could solve the answer to that problem.

 From Toffees to Toon

A more surprising move that could be in the pipeline for the Toon is Everton’s Ben Godfrey.

With the loss of Tonali and several injuries this season, Eddie Howe is undoubtedly keen to strengthen the spine of his side and that includes that of his centre-halves.

And one name that has appeared as a target is Everton's Godfrey.

According to 90min, the Magpies have ‘expressed interest’ in both him and Lille centre-back Taigo Djalo as they look to bolster their ranks in January.

Primarily a central defender, Godfrey can operate at both full-back and in central midfield which could be vital in Howe’s team.

O'Hara slams Arteta

Away from transfer news and former Spurs and Wolves midfielder Jamie O'Hara has slammed Mikel Arteta for his comments surrounding the goal Newcastle were awarded versus Arsenal earlier this season.

Arteta has made no secrets in regards to his opinions on decisions from the game at St James' Park which he felt were against his side and VAR just recently released the audio from the discussion surrounding the goal itself.

But O'Hara feels the manager took it too far and has now called for him to be banned following his outburst.

Speaking during his evening show on talkSPORT, O'Hara said: “I think he’s out of order. The decision he is moaning about, we all know the referees can have a bit of a stinker and VAR has let teams down but Gary O’Neil should be the one who is coming out and making statements because he has had some howlers.

“That decision that went against him against Newcastle, I have looked at it back on the Sky Sports stuff when they have looked at it and gone through the process.

“It wasn’t conclusive that the ball was out, it wasn’t a clear and obvious error that it was a foul on Gabriel, it’s a goal. Alright it took time, it took a few minutes and that’s frustrating and they can improve that to make things quicker but the decision was right.

“For him to come out and slaughter the referees when referees are taking enough stick at the moment, it just puts more pressure on referees and more stick coming their way. I think he is out of order, I think he deserves a ban.”