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Championship side Stoke City have identified Barnsley’s ace centre-back Liam Lindsay as a late January transfer target, per The Sun’s Alan Nixon.

What’s the word?

The Sun’s transfer expert Nixon has claimed that while Stoke are looking to complete a deal for Portsmouth’s Matt Clarke, they may be put off by his £5million valuation.

As a result, the Potters may turn their attention to other young defenders in League One, such as Barnsley’s Lindsay, who remained at Oakwell in the summer despite the Tykes’ relegation.

The Potters would benefit from a new centre-back, as Nathan Jones’ side have won just once in their last eight games in all competitions and conceded 14 goals. Clearly, a leaky defensive line is a problem Stoke’s new manager will need to address in the coming weeks.

Barnsley, though, would be losing the services of a defender who has featured in 25 of their 28 League One fixtures so far this season, and would be forced to hand 10% of any transfer fee to Partick Thistle, who The Sun claim hold a sell-on clause from the deal that saw Lindsay move to Oakwell in 2017.

One of English football’s lesser known rivalries was reignited on Saturday thanks to an unlikely source. Check out the video above to find out which one…

Could it happen?

Unfortunately for Barnsley fans, Lindsay’s fate at Oakwell remains uncertain until Stoke decide whether they wish to pursue Portsmouth’s Clarke or not.

Should the Potters dig deep and pay Pompey’s £5million valuation, any Tykes supporter can then rest easy as Lindsay would likely remain one of their players, at least until the next transfer window opens.

But if Jones is not convinced that Clarke is worth the figure the Fratton Park outfit demand, Barnsley supporters will have to hope the 23-year-old defender is confident in their chances of gaining promotion back into the Championship this season.

With Ashley Williams and Ryan Shawcross both over 30, and struggling to produce the form that made them amongst the most consistent centre-backs in the Premier League during prior stages of their career, Lindsay would be a welcome addition at the bet365 Stadium.

He could be key in not only getting the Jones revolution underway in the second half of this season, but also the long-term rebuild of this Potters team.

A promising Rangers injury update has emerged on Gers talent Ianis Hagi with the Ibrox forward progressing well at present.

What’s the latest?

The Rangers midfielder’s dad, Gheorghe Hagi, has opened up on his recovery following the season-ending knee injury the Romanian international suffered in January against Stirling Albion.

Football Scotland quote him as saying that his son is “looking very well” as he continues with his rehabilitation.

Van Bronckhorst buzzing

This update will surely leave Gio van Bronckhorst relieved heading into the summer. Gheorghe’s initial three-word claim suggests that his son has not suffered any setbacks in his recovery and is still on course to be back for the 2022/23 campaign.

At the age of 23, it could be easy for Hagi to get himself down in the dumps about his injury nightmare. Instead, it seems as though he has taken it in his stride and is now working to get himself back in the best possible condition to attack next season with all his might.

Van Bronckhorst will, therefore, be delighted with his attitude. He will also be excited to have the talented playmaker back in his side later this year as he is a proven Premiership performer who can take control of a game on his own at times.

In the league this season, Hagi averaged a superb SofaScore rating of 7.10 – scoring two goals and creating 1.5 chances per game. This shows that he was able to consistently deliver top-class performances as he regularly created openings for his teammates to score from.

He also caught the eye in the 2020/21 title-winning campaign as he produced seven goals and 11 assists in 23 Premiership starts. The mercurial playmaker is a difference-maker at this level and has proven it over the course of two seasons, which is why van Bronckhorst will be buzzing that his recovery is going well.

It is now down to Hagi to continue making progress to ensure that he does not suffer any setbacks before the next season gets underway. He can be an important player for the club domestically and potentially in the Champions League or Europa League next term if he can get back to his best, as shown by his statistics, and this latest update suggests that he is well on his way to doing that.

AND in other news, Sold at £4m, then became a £22.5m hero: Rangers had a disaster on iconic “phenomenon”…

Celtic have seen a bid for Iran forward Mehdi Ghayedi rejected by Shabab Al-Ahli but intend to return with another offer, according to sports journalist Hatam Shiralizadeh. 

The lowdown

The 23-year-old is predominantly a left winger but can also play on the right and through the middle. His club compete in the UAE Pro League and currently sit in fourth place, just outside the AFC Champions League qualifying spots.

Ghayedi is under contract for another four-and-a-half years and is valued at just under £1.1m by Transfermarkt.

Ange Postecoglou already has nine forwards at his disposal, having added Daizen Maeda and Johnny Kenny to his ranks already this month, but it has been reported that Celtic could look to offload one of their existing options in Albian Ajeti during the current transfer window.

The latest

Shiralizadeh tweeted that Shabab Al-Ahli had rejected an offer from Celtic for Ghayedi, as they are relucant to sell him this month, but the Hoops are not set to go quietly in their pursuit of the 23-year-old.

The journalist outlined: “Shabab Al Ahli have turned down an official bid from Celtic for Mehdi Ghayedi. UAE side don’t want to sell the Iranian striker in January, however, Celtic are determined to sign the young talent, so they are planning to offer a new bid for the 23-year-old.”

The verdict

Ghayedi would arguably be a risky signing for Celtic if Ange Postecoglou were to raid Asia once more, having brought in Kyogo Furuhashi, Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Yosuke Ideguchi from the J1 League since taking the reins at Parkhead.

The Iranian’s record this season is reasonable – three goals and one assists in 11 league appearances, only six of them starts. Having been named as Iran’s young player of the year, he has also earned opportunities at senior level, scoring in just his second game against Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Could he cope with the step-up in quality to Scotland, though? No club from the UAE Pro League features in FiveThirtyEight’s list of the top 645 sides in the world, while UEFA rank the Scottish Premiership as one of the 10 strongest divisions in Europe.

That said, Furuhashi joined from Japan – a ‘largely untapped’ market in the words of Kris Commons – and he is the Hoops’ top scorer this season, so perhaps we shouldn’t be too quick to make a judgement on what Ghavedi could do if he becomes Celtic’s latest Asian acquisition.

In other news, Celtic are on the brink of this £6m deal

Newcastle United reportedly ‘reckon’ that they now have ‘a chance’ of signing Timo Werner, according to Christian Falk.

The Lowdown: A disappointment

For a player that promised so much after scoring £47.7m move to Chelsea in July of last year.

Considering the money that they have spent on him, the striker has only managed to score 17 goals in 66 games in total over all competitions for the Blues, including just five so far this season (Transfermarkt).

Thus, given that he is still at a good age at 25, Thomas Tuchel’s team may want to consider selling him now in order to recoup as much of that money back as possible.

The Latest: Newcastle swoop?

Speaking to BILD (via Sport Witness), Bundesliga journalist and transfer expert Falk has now revealed the latest on the St. James’ Park faithful’s hope of signing Werner in the January transfer window:

“With Werner, they reckon they’ve got a bit of a chance. They’ve got contacts with the management. One of their players (Fabian Schar) is also managed by the German agency that represents Werner.

“Whether Werner will end up feeling so frustrated at Chelsea and then say ‘I’ll give it a go in Newcastle’ is the big question.”

The Verdict: Avoid

The move for Werner to English football has clearly not worked out thus far, and so he may struggle even more in the North East compared to title hopefuls Chelsea.

Even though the new Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium have the money to spend, Werner is simply too inconsistent to justify paying his whopping £268,000-per-week wages, on top of a potentially hefty transfer fee given his age and position.

Nonetheless, their attack is not the main problem, with their 41 goals conceded by far the most in the top flight so far this term, and so the Tyneside outfit should be looking to prioritise strengthening the defence first of all.

In other news, find out what ‘worrying’ NUFC injury claim has now been dropped here!

West Ham United will not look to secure a deal to bring Alex Kral to the London Stadium on a permanent basis.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Claret & Hugh, with the club insider revealing that David Moyes will not look to take up the £12m option-to-buy clause for the defensive midfielder. Indeed, they may even look to terminate the 23-year-old’s loan deal before the end of the January transfer window.

In the update, Claret & Hugh said: “West Ham look likely to allow Alex Kral back to Spartak Moscow after the midfielder has been found himself unable to make any impact at the London Stadium so far this season.”

They later added: “The Hammers organised a loan with a permanent deal option at around £12m but given his shortage of any real action, one wonders why the boss agreed to such a move in the first place. Now it looks likely that he could even be back in Russia before the current season comes to an end.”

Fans will be buzzing

Considering how little impact Kral has made at West Ham since making his temporary switch from Spartak Moscow last year, the news that Moyes is not planning to sign him on a permanent basis is sure to have left the London Stadium faithful buzzing.

Indeed, so far this season, the £7.2m-rated Czech international has made just one Premier League appearance – coming on for the final minute of the 4-1 win over Watford – in the current campaign, as well as making three appearances in the Europa League and one in the Carabao Cup.

It is not difficult to see why Moyes is so reluctant to afford the 23-year-old more regularly game-time, as, over his three European outings, the £24k-per-week midfielder has averaged a disappointing SofaScore match rating of just 6.63 – ranking him as the Hammers’ joint fifth-worst performer in the competition.

As such, it is clear to see that the player who Moyes claimed has “bags of energy” is simply not of the standard required to be a first-team regular at the London Stadium. That leads us to believe that the 58-year-old simply must send the Czech Republic midfielder back to his parent club this month.

In other news: Moyes could finally replace Haller as West Ham plot bid for “complete” £13.5m-rated machine

Everton were unable to secure a single point in their game against Crystal Palace on Sunday evening and faced a defeat of 3-1 to the Eagles away from home, putting the Merseyside club firmly in 14th for the foreseeable in the Premier League table.

Rafa Benitez’s side failed to dominate throughout the game against Crystal Palace with just 39% possession throughout, which ultimately lead to a brace from Conor Gallagher and James Tomkins scored his first goal since December 2019 against the Toffees to secure a 3-1 comfortable win.

One player who failed to offer dominance and control in his position was Abdoulaye Doucoure, who started the game in his usual position, but over the course of the match had become a complete liability for the Toffees. Richarlison may have been the one to hauled off early after a shoddy evening but his midfield colleague didn’t have the desired impact either.

Via SofaScore, Doucoure lost possession a total of 16 times (once every 2.8 touches), won fewer than half of his ground duels, and failed to make any creative impact on the attacking third of the game with no key passes or crosses over the entire 90 minutes of play.

The £75k-per-week beast furthered his forgettable performance by committing two fouls, one of which cost him a yellow card, which he aggressively contested against with Kevin Friend, where he was lucky not to receive further punishment for his reaction.

In the French midfielder’s defence, he was playing further back during the first half, which would have added an element of hindrance to his ability to be creative in his play for the forwards.

However, it does not excuse his wasteful performance, losing possession on many occasions and failing to dominate the midfield to break down the build of play from Crystal Palace.

Benitez will go back to the drawing board early this week with the hopes of emulating the confidence his Everton side displayed against Arsenal last week, but they face an extremely difficult challenge as they are away from home again, against Chelsea on Thursday evening.

There will be time for the manager to assess the situation, and potentially make some changes to his team to refresh his side, ready to take on the challenge the Merseyside Blues face at Stamford Bridge midweek.

In other news: Everton can form a scary duo by snapping up Derby County’s Jason Knight

David Moyes should consider turning to U23 starlet Jamal Baptiste in light of West Ham’s recent blow to Angelo Ogbonna…

Ogbonna blow

During the Irons’ 3-2 victory over Liverpool last weekend, the 33-year-old centre-back sustained an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and could now be ruled out of action for the next nine months or more.

“After being substituted following a separate incident that led to him suffering a cut above his eye, Angelo felt some discomfort in his right knee so we scanned him to ascertain the extent of the injury,” said Head of Medical Richard Collinge.

“That scan has shown up some damage to the anterior cruciate ligament and we have begun his rehabilitation immediately. Angelo will see another specialist this week and we will then have a clearer picture around his timeline of recovery.”

Baptiste bargain

It now leaves Moyes a little short on options in defence. Yes, he does have Issa Diop and Craig Dawson as more than capable back-ups to play alongside Kurt Zouma, but in an ideal world, he’ll like to fill the available place in the squad.

January is still two months away and there’s no guarantee that the Italian colossus will return to the starting XI next year, so it could be wise to look at alternatives and they should look no further than the teenager who Ogbonna has backed to succeed after a pre-season win ove Wycombe Wanderers.

“He played really, really well and as a young player you can make one or two mistakes, but your behaviour has to be the right one, like Dec [Declan Rice] when he starts,” he told the club’s official website.

“Jamal has a lot of work still to do but he is composed. He is still young and has to take things step by step. This was just a pre-season game. He has to follow the senior players and the manager’s instructions and it’s good for him to have people he can look to.”

Meanwhile, Hammers legend Carlton Cole has compared him to Rio Ferdinand, claiming he’s a “massive prospect” to the ‘Irons Inside’ podcast. “He’s going to be the next Anton Ferdinand hopefully or the next Rio, so hopefully we can these boys on the right track and help them transition into being a professional footballer full-time.”

‘Tall, strong and comfortable in possession’ is how the club’s official website describes the 18-year-old sensation, whilst he claims both Virgil van Dijk and West Ham’s former defender and his academy mentor Matthew Upson as players he bases his game on.

Also dubbed a “monster” who is “one of the finest young prospects at the club” by former academy director Terry Westley to Claret & Hugh, it could be time to see Baptiste as the ‘fourth choice’ in the absence of Ogbonna.

Moyes is certainly a fan, so it would be an easy transition to make. It would mean that the club wouldn’t have to spend big in the upcoming winter transfer window and their finances can be used to bolster other positions, such as upfront.

Baptiste could save GSB millions.

AND in other news, Major GSB claim emerges after Daniel Kretinsky investment confirmed…

Speaking to GiveMeSport, journalist Pete O’Rourke has shared a transfer claim involving Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford.

The Lowdown: Rashford unsettled…

The Red Devils forward is thought to be unsettled at Old Trafford, according to recent reports.

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Football Insider made a pretty big claim at the end of March, saying Rashford has already told friends he wants to leave Man United as Tottenham striker Harry Kane is linked with a move to his club.

Ralf Rangnick’s side are apparently considering a fresh approach to sign Antonio Conte’s key man this summer, coming after their arch rivals Man City failed in a bid to take him last year.

Amid these claims, O’Rourke has now backed the possibility of a head-turning Tottenham deal.

The Latest: O’Rourke makes Rashford/Kane swap deal claim…

Speaking to GMS, when asked if Rashford being offered in a deal for Kane could entice Spurs, the reporter explained:

“Maybe the potential availability of Marcus Rashford could be interesting to Tottenham because he hasn’t really figured much for Manchester United, especially in the second half of the season, and is meant to be unhappy at Old Trafford.”

The Verdict: Something to consider?

Apparently valued at around €80 million (£67m) by Man United transfer chiefs (Sport), Fabio Paratici could feasibly bypass that fee entirely with Kane moving the other way.

However, given just how integral the latter man is to Spurs, we believe the deal would simply not be worth it unless a huge fee comes to north London alongside the player.

Called the ‘poster boy’ of Old Trafford (Frank McAvennie, Football Insider), Rashford’s impressive 2020/2021 rate of 2.1 shots and 2.2 successful take-ons per 90 in the Premier League simply hasn’t been matched this campaign.

According to WhoScored, Rashford has played half the minutes he did last campaign – managing just four goals and two assists so far.

When taking into account the 11 goals and nine assists he bagged over 20/21, his drop in form is evident, and it could arguably be a controversial Paratici call to swap Tottenham’s prised asset for the attacker.

In other news: In recent weeks: Tottenham step up chase to sign ‘incredible’ player as club brace for their bid! Find out more here.

Wolves will allow Adama Traore to join Tottenham in the January transfer window if a suitable offer arrives, according to journalist Luke Hatfield.

The Lowdown: Traore linked with Wolves exit

The Spaniard has again proven to be a hit-and-miss figure for Wanderers this season, making just 10 Premier League starts and not registering a single goal or assist.

Bruno Lage seemingly doesn’t see Traore as a regular starter and he has been linked with a move away from Molineux this month, with Spurs thought to be keen on snapping him up.

The 25-year-old’s current deal expires in the summer of 2023, so Wolves are running out of time before they risk losing him on a free transfer.

The Latest: Hatfield talks up Spurs move

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Hatfield admitted that he could see Traore joining Spurs in the January transfer window, should the right offer come along. He outlined:

“It’s a situation where I do think it would work best for Wolves, if they were to get a suitable offer, to cash in on him.

“They obviously won’t undercut themselves in terms of the price that they get for him but, ultimately, if he’s not playing games and the contract situation is continuing on then it makes more sense for Wolves to sell.”

The Verdict: Time to move on?

Traore has had long enough now to prove himself at Wolves, having been at Molineux since 2018, and while there have been moments of quality – Tim Sherwood has hailed him as ‘fantastic’ in the past – now is the time to accept an offer if a lucrative one comes in.

Wanderers should be able to receive a decent sum for the Spain international, which could then help go towards signing a top-quality replacement this month.

The returning Pedro Neto will also provide Lage with another attacking option, so Traore shouldn’t be a huge miss if he does move on during the current window.

In other news, Tim Spiers has made a big Wolves injury claim. Read more here.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta made a ‘schoolboy error’ by picking a fight with Jurgen Klopp against Liverpool, according to journalist James Pearce.

The Lowdown: Liverpool destroy Arsenal

The Reds romped to a 4-0 win against the Gunners on Saturday evening as they highlighted the current gulf between the two teams.

Sadio Mane opened the scoring with a header, before Diogo Jota, Mohamed Salah and Takumi Minamino all found the net in the second half.

The game sparked into life when Arteta and Klopp exchanged angry words on the touchline at 0-0, with the incident seemingly giving Liverpool an extra spring in their step.

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The Latest: Pearce critical of Arteta over Klopp row

Speaking in a Q&A for The Athletic after the match, Pearce claimed it was naive behaviour from the Arsenal boss, given how it energised the Liverpool supporters inside Anfield

The journalist said of the Spaniard’s involvement in the incident: “Such a schoolboy error. For half an hour Arsenal really frustrated Liverpool. They were well drilled and denied them space. But Arteta’s touchline antics ignited the atmosphere and Klopp’s players seemed to be energised by that noise from the stands.”

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The Verdict: Undoubted turning point

Up until Arteta lost his head, the game was 0-0 and Liverpool were actually looking fairly clueless, failing to create chances of note. The Spaniard’s antics allowed the crowd to get involved, though, and it genuinely felt as though the entire feel of the match changed from that moment on.

It was reminiscent of Frank Lampard taking on Klopp back in 2019/20, with his behaviour having a similar impact on the Reds as they beat Chelsea 5-3 on the night that the Merseysiders held the Premier League trophy aloft.

As Pearce said, Arsenal were frustrating Liverpool up until the touchline row, and Arteta may well look back at that moment as an unwanted turning point from his perspective.

In other news, some Liverpool fans think Klopp has hinted about his Reds future. Read more here.