All posts by z3u9t.icu

Celtic are back in action this weekend with one of their biggest games of the season in the latest Old Firm derby.

A win for the Hoops will see them open a six-point gap at the top of the Premiership, putting them in a good position to secure the title under Ange Postecoglou.

Looking ahead to Sunday’s clash at Ibrox, it seems as though the Bhoys have been handed a major boost regarding the fitness of one of their key players.

What’s the news?

Speaking ahead of the showdown against Rangers in his latest press conference, Hoops boss Ange Postecoglou revealed that striker Kyogo Furuhashi will be available to play after being out of action since December with a hamstring injury.

Since arriving at Parkhead from Vissel Kobe last summer, the 27-year-old has made 26 appearances for the Hoops across all competitions, scoring 16 goals and providing five assists in the process.

To further highlight the Japanese star’s attacking prowess, out of the 31 shots he has had on goal in the Premiership, 17 of them have been on target, with a shot-on-target average of 54.8%, higher than any other Celtic player to have had more than one attempt at goal.

Taking this into account, it’s safe to say that having the attacker back available will not only be a massive boost for Postecoglou and his chances of seeing his side beat Rangers, but also carry on and pick up more wins in the league to potentially fire them to the title.

While it will be great to have Furuhashi back, the 56-year-old will have a decision to make over whether or not the striker gets any minutes on Sunday.

Given how long he has been out of action, it would seem risky to play the Japan international from the start in such a big game against opponents who will be desperate to stop the Hoops from having any sort of grip on the match.

Therefore, it could be wise for Postecoglou to keep Furuhashi on the bench for starters and then potentially bring him on at some point in the second half if he is needed, so as to not risk him picking up another injury.

Either way, the Hoops boss must be buzzing to have this decision to make for Sunday’s pivotal clash.

In other news: Celtic will rue call on £25k-p/w gem whose value has rocketed 400% since Parkhead exit

Glasgow Rangers are reportedly now in a ‘strong position’ to sign Danilho Doekhi in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Souttar in

It has now been confirmed that John Souttar has signed a pre-contract agreement with the Ibrox faithful from Hearts, and he may even be able to play from this month if a further agreement can be made.

A few central defenders for the Teddy Bears are facing uncertain futures, and so bringing in a new centre-back was vital.

In truth, they could do with another one as well, given that both Connor Goldson and Leon Balogun’s contracts are up in the summer, with no sign of them renewing as of yet.

The Latest: Doekhi next?

As per The Athletic journalist Jordan Campbell, the Light Blues are now in a ‘strong position’ to sign Doekhi, after confirming Souttar’s signing.

The Dutchman is also a player whose contract is up in the summer, and so he could also be very attainable this month.

The Verdict: No-brainer

Assuming both Goldson and Balogun leave, it would be a no-brainer to sign Doekhi up alongside Souttar.

He has been described as having ‘all the ingredients’ for a good centre-half by Dutch football agent Freddy van der Hoorn, as he is ‘aggressive’ being six-foot-three, but also ‘very comfortable’ on the ball as well (Rangers Review).

Doekhi has also hinted himself that he would like the move, claiming that he is ‘flattered’ by the Gers’ interest, and that they are a ‘very beautiful’ club (de Gelderlander).

Nonetheless, to play under Dutch legend Giovanni van Bronckhorst could well be a match made in heaven.

In other news, find out what transfer update has Gers buzzing here!

Bill Young was critical of the build-up play from Glasgow Rangers despite their 4-0 away win in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday.

The Lowdown: Convincing win for Rangers

It was a convincing win for Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s team in the end, which ensured that they kept up the pace with their Glasgow arch-rivals at the top of the Premiership table.

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Unfortunately for them, the Hoops won even more convincingly, thumping St Johnstone 7-0 at home on Saturday, and in this kind of form they look very difficult to catch right now.

The Latest: Young unhappy with build-up play

Taking to Twitter, Scottish football journalist Young was critical of Rangers’ general build-up play during the game against St Mirren, despite going 2-0 up at half-time through a brace from Kemar Roofe.

The reporter stated: “Rangers 2 up through Roofe, Rangers have dominated the ball but not the game.

“The midfield is MIA and the build-up play is nothing short of ponderous which allows St. Mirren to get men behind the ball.

“Distribution has been poor and it’s all becoming a bit too predictable sadly.”

The Verdict: Win is a win

After winning 4-0 in the end, many Light Blues supporters will not be too worried about how well they played, as getting the three points was the most important thing.

However, for all of the possession that Rangers had (71% in total) they only mustered eight shots on target from 22, around 36% (SofaScore). They actually lost the ball more than the hosts as well, implying that their passing was not always clean and crisp.

Nonetheless, getting the three points was all that mattered, but the Gers will want to play better in their crucial second leg against Braga at Ibrox in the Europa League quarter-final on Thursday night.

In other news, Rangers have been hit by an injury setback

West Brom’s Championship woes have continued even past the sacking of Valerien Ismail, dropping points in three of the club’s last five and winning just three games since the turn of the year.

Just seven teams in the entire division have scored less than their total of 42 goals for the season – a terrible return for a club expected to bounce straight back up to the Premier League after being relegated at the end of the last season.

To make matters worse, Baggies academy graduate Tyler Roberts looks like he could remain in the top flight for another season with Leeds, after joining the club from West Brom back in 2018 for £2.5m – once again proving to them that they shouldn’t have sold him for so little.

Now worth £7.2m according to Transfermarkt, the Wales International remained part of Leeds’ plans under new manager Jesse Marsch, until he suffered an injury earlier in the month which ruled him out for the rest of the season.

He is also being tipped for a summer exit by the likes of journalist Dean Jones, who said: “You do get the feeling that his position is one of those that will be targeted in the summer to be strengthened.”

Despite that update, he could still be a valuable asset to a newly promoted Premier League team, and still has plenty of talent left to offer to his next club – which will likely not be West Brom due to their poor standing in the Championship right now.

The 23-year-old has previously been name-dropped by Spain manager Luis Enrique as one of Wales’ biggest threats, saying: “They have good, young players, like Tyler Roberts, and we know it will not be easy.”

Among midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues and continental competitions, Roberts ranks in the top 4% for pressures in the attacking third per 90 (5.75), top 1% for touches in the attacking penalty area per 90 (4.06) and top 6% for carries into the penalty area per 90 (0.55) – evidence that he can still compete in the top flight and be a solid option for teams in the lower half of the top-flight.

With great energy, work rate and attitude, the 19-time Wales international could have been a star at Albion, if they gave him more of a chance and a larger role within the squad – and now they are suffering the consequences while Roberts has become a Premier League level player.

In other news: Disaster: Ismael could now inflict even more misery on West Brom this summer

Celtic would have known at the beginning of January that the Scottish Premiership was not going to be a formality this season, as bitter rivals Rangers will push them all the way.

Therefore, manager Brendan Rodgers would have sought to seriously strengthen his squad last month, to give Celtic the chance of securing their third domestic treble in a row, their tenth Scottish Premiership in a row, and even for success in Europe.

Celtic were very busy this January, with a number of incoming and outgoing players. With that in mind, these were the biggest mistakes Celtic made this January:

Squad balance

The Bhoys brought in a number of players in last month, including some very high-profile loan signings. PSG’s promising striker Timothy Weah arrived at Parkhead, as well as 21-year-old Scotland international Oliver Burke amongst others.

Rodgers now has a job on his hands of balancing his squad. Given the success that Celtic have already had so far this season, the manager will not want to make wholesale changes, as this could not only affect the performance of the team but can make some players very unsettled.

In what could be a historic season, the Northern Irishman will need squad cohesion more than anything. Luckily, Celtic are still competing in a number of competitions and will therefore need squad rotation, meaning Rodgers will probably be able to pull this off.

Departing players

Amongst the number of arrivals at Paradise last month, there were also a number which departed on loan.

One notable departure was Lewis Morgan to EFL League One outfit Sunderland. The move saw the winger reunited with manager Jack Ross, with whom he played under at St Mirren last season. Ross was able to get the best out of Morgan last term, something that Rodgers has struggled to do this season.

If Morgan and Ross can earn promotion with The Black Cats, there is a good chance that the player may opt to stay with his former manager, meaning Celtic could have lost out on a very promising talent.

Of course, this is a move to help the player’s development, but it could backfire.

Newcastle United reportedly now ‘want’ to make Darwin Nunez their ‘marquee’ signing this summer.

The Lowdown: Highly sought after

Nunez seems to be the name on everyone’s lips at the moment after he scored yet another goal for Benfica in their 3-3 draw away at Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night.

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Incredibly, that was the 32nd goal that he scored in just 37 games in total over all competitions so far this season (Transfermarkt), and there is plenty of room left for more.

Fabrizio Romano has confirmed the player will leave Benfica this summer for a fee of around €80m (£66m), and it’s just a matter now of who wins the race.

The Latest: Wanted man

There is seemingly no doubt that Nunez is a wanted man this summer, and the St. James’ Park faithful are just one of the clubs on that list, as per iNews journalist Mark Douglas.

Taking to Twitter, Douglas revealed that they ‘want’ the ‘hot property’ as their marquee signing, but clubs in the Champions League are also ‘circling’ for his signature.

Expanding in his article, an executive from the Premier League has told Douglas that Nunez is ‘tailor-made’ for English football, while Jeremy Steele, the CEO of data company FC Analytics, believes that he could even be worth £100m.

The Verdict: Move on

Given the calibre of clubs that are likely to be in for Nunez, the North East outfit should just forget about trying to sign him this summer and move on to other targets.

Of course, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium would likely be able to offer the right financial package, but it seems too early in the project for them to able to snatch the likes of Nunez off of bigger and better suitors, likely forcing the club to pay over the odds and risk harming what has so far looked like a shrewd approach in the transfer market.

Nonetheless, the Uruguay international is still only 22 years of age, and so there may be an opportunity for the Magpies in the future, when trophies and Champions League football will hopefully be on the agenda.

In other news, find out who the Magpies have now sent officials to watch here!

Manchester United have appointed Erik ten Hag as their new manager to join the club this summer, and with a new manager, there will likely be new signings with speculation already mounting on who the Dutch coach will bring in to start his revolution at the Premier League club.

The Red Devils have struggled this season and become the centre of a media frenzy with the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solksjaer and reported dressing room leaks constantly hitting the headlines amongst poor form in all competitions on the pitch with the side entering their longest trophy drought in 40 years and looking unlikely to secure a top-four finish in the few remaining games.

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With that being said, Ten Hag has clearly been brought into the club to reinstate the identity and to improve the mentality amongst the players, something he can achieve by bringing in new players to begin a new era and a fresh start at Man United.

The midfield is one of the key areas that has been targeted for desperate improvement, and one player who has been linked to the club this week that would drastically improve the centre of the pitch is Frenkie de Jong.

The £164k-per-week ace who was hailed “amazing” and a “genius” by his manager Xavi, would be a huge upgrade in Man United’s midfield next season to replace Scott McTominay when you compare the pair on effectiveness for their respective teams.

For Barcelona, De Jong has scored two more goals and assists, completed over 300 more passes, has a better pass accuracy, completes more take-ons and has a higher ground duel success rate (64.2%) compared to Scott McTominay at United in the Premier League this season, per Squawka.

Manchester United will reportedly (via Sport) give ten Hag £210m to spend this summer, and the 24-year-old has become a prime target for the Ajax boss who will have full involvement in the transfer dealings at Old Trafford during his three-year contract.

Ultimately, the Dutch tactician will have a large workload when it comes to reviving the club from its current state, and along with identifying new signings will also need to make the right decisions when it comes to replacing and moving on players this summer to give Manchester United the best chance next season.

AND in other news: Man Utd plot bid for “special” 52-goal “wizard”, it’s an instant ten Hag masterclass

Following on from their 2-2 draw against Manchester United in the Premier League last weekend, when they came from 2-0 down in the second half, Aston Villa secured all three points in their latest league outing with a 1-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park this afternoon.

A headed goal from Emiliano Buendia just before half-time was enough to win the game for Steven Gerrard’s side against the struggling Toffees.

The Argentine was not the only Villa player who impressed on the day, with defender Tyrone Mings putting in the sort of performance which would leave his manager delighted.

Throughout the entire match, Mings was Villa’s defensive rock by racking up five clearances – with one off the goal-line – one tackle, one interception and two blocks (as per SofaScore), so it’s fair to say that he made a somewhat heroic contribution to his team recording a clean sheet as well as victory.

The defender also won six duels, showing how difficult he made it for Everton’s attacking figures such as Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin this afternoon.

This performance ultimately earned the England international an impressive overall match rating of 8.1/10, making him Villa’s highest-rated player on the day according to SofaScore and arguably Gerrard’s hero of the hour.

Birmingham Live’s Ashley Preece also picked up on the 28-year-old’s “excellent” display by saying that he “showed real leadership once again, blocking and clearing everything that came his way while he headed Godfrey’s goal-bound effort away as Everton pressed after the break.”

Having been praised in the past by former Villa attacker Gabby Agbonlahor for his “outstanding” performances on the international stage for England, Mings showed today that he is capable of delivering solid displays for his club as well, and that he is worthy of donning the captain’s armband.

Moving forward, if the 28-year-old can keep producing this standard of performance on a regular basis throughout the remainder of the season, he will surely give Villa every chance of comfortably finishing in the top half in the final Premier League table.

In other news: Ashley Preece drops Villa transfer claim amid Gerrard comments, fans surely delighted

Newcastle United are keen on signing Napoli striker Victor Osimhen in this final week of the January transfer window.

What’s the story?

According to Calciomercato (via Sport Witness), Eddie Howe’s side have got “concrete” interest in signing the Nigeria international, and that if a sizeable offer does come in for him, then Napoli owner, Aurelio De Laurentiis, would be willing to come to the table.

It is added that a deal in January would be difficult to do, but if that can’t be done, then it could well be set up for the summer.

He’s better than Callum Wilson

While Callum Wilson has certainly shown why Newcastle were keen to bring him in from Bournemouth a couple of seasons ago, his injury troubles haven’t meant that he hasn’t been able to feature week-in and week-out for the Magpies.

In the form of Osimhen, Howe would be getting an elite goal-scorer who has proven himself at the highest level with Napoli, both in the Serie A and in European competition too.

This campaign has seen him score nine goals in just 16 games for the Italian giants, including bagging four in just three Europa League group stage games – a couple of those coming away from home against Leicester to rescue a point for his team.

And, as per Whoscored, Osimhen also appears to be a far more complete striker than Wilson, averaging far more shots, key passes and dribbles per game this campaign, while his average match rating comfortably trumps that of the English ace.

Even back when he had just signed for Bundesliga side Wolfsburg, he had made an immediate impression on his coaches, with then manager Andries Jonker saying: “He has great potential in him. He is ambitious, quick and highly unpredictable, he will be a star in the future if he maintains his focus.”

But perhaps the biggest indication of why Osimhen may be the perfect signing for Newcastle is the way former Manchester United star and Nigeria teammate Odion Ighalo talked about him.

He said: “He’s the future, he’s going to do so well in football. I love him, he’s down to earth, he’s hard working, he has a future and he has the mentality of a winner, that’s what I love about him. He has that lion’s heart. I love him, I just want him to keep working hard the way he’s doing, he’s going to break so many records in Europe and Nigeria.”

With the Magpies well and truly in the battle to avoid relegation from the Premier League this season, getting someone with the mentality of Osimhen will help immensely.

The £54m-rated star would be a very exciting signing for the Magpies, and one that would be a real upgrade even on someone like Wilson.

Meanwhile, Newcastle are keen on a deal for this Ligue 1 star…it’s not Bruno

Aston Villa will be ‘keeping an eye’ on the situation at Burnley following links to winger Dwight McNeil, The Birmingham Mail’s Richard Cusack writes.

The lowdown

Burnley announced on Friday that they had parted company with manager Sean Dyche after 10 years in charge.

The Clarets, 18th in the table and four points from safety with eight games remaining, are facing the prospect of relegation after six seasons in the top flight.

It was Dyche who handed McNeil his debut in 17/18, and the 50-year-old picked him for almost every Premier League match across the last three seasons.

The Athletic’s Andy Jones reported last summer that Steven Gerrard’s predecessor, Dean Smith, had personally scouted McNeil, and Cusack wrote in January that Gerrard could possibly revisit the move this year.

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The latest

Aston Villa are ‘likely’ to be monitoring events at Turf Moor, Cusack writes, because the squad is ‘laden with talent’.

He picks out McNeil as a player Villa are said to admire and says that he ‘might well be available’ come the summer.

However, The Villans would potentially face competition, with other teams ‘no doubt’ considering a move too.

The verdict

McNeil has actually endured something of a difficult season. He’s only managed to record one goal involvement, when in the last three campaigns he’d managed at least seven.

He was even booed by his own supporters during last month’s 4-0 home defeat against Chelsea.

Villa may prefer to focus on how good McNeil can be at his best, whilst simultaneously hoping that this low-key season has driven the £19.8million-rated Englishman’s value down.

Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp has previously described him as a player with ‘real quality’ who should be commanding the attention of sides competing for Europe.

In other news, Pete O’Rourke makes this claim about an attacking target.