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Many Everton fans have been left lauding some news involving manager Rafa Benitez.

As per Football Insider, Newcastle United have not given up hope of luring their former coach back to St. James’ Park.

He is still the favoured choice among the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium, and a source from the North East club has told the outlet that there is still hope that he can be persuaded to leave Goodison Park.

After a promising start, Benitez seems to have lost the faith of some supporters of the Merseyside club, with back-to-back losses at home to West Ham United and Watford in the Premier League respectively.

Nonetheless, his past connections to Liverpool have added more fuel to the fire, and now it seems a lot of Toffees would like to see him go, a total U-turn from a couple of weeks ago.

Everton fans on Benitez news

These Blues lauded the news as it was shared on Twitter, with one EFC fan even going as far as to claim that Benitez is a ‘car crash waiting to happen’:

“Please have him”

Credit: @_Conorr__

“Rondon and Rafa package deal ..get it done Everton”

Credit: @Ctorres2144

“I’ll drop him off”

Credit: @bluetom77

“I’m begging you @NUFC please!!!”

Credit: @MarkBirch1988

“He can go, tra fella”

Credit: @reece_harwood

“He’s a car crash waiting to happen. And it’s started. Sooner he goes the better, before it gets even more toxic.”

Credit: @pauldaley73

In other news, find out what transfer news has Evertonians talking here!

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.

With David Moyes’ West Ham United side securing a famous 3-2 victory at the London Stadium on Saturday afternoon, it feels somewhat harsh to take aim at one of the club’s less experienced players for his display against an incredibly impressive Chelsea team.

However, it is, unfortunately, an unavoidable conclusion to draw from the fixture that 21-year-old Ben Johnson had something of a shocker against Thomas Tuchel’s side, a fact that, in being pointed out, is quite literally adding insult to injury – as the right-back was withdrawn shortly before half-time after pulling his hamstring.

Indeed, while it cannot be argued that Johnson is one of the most promising defensive talents to graduate from the Hammers academy in recent seasons, over his 45 minutes on the pitch against Chelsea, the versatile right-back far from enjoyed his finest game in claret and blue.

Being deployed on the opposite flank against the then-table-toppers, the £2.7m-rated man endured a rather torrid afternoon up against Hakim Ziyech and Reece James, managing a grand total of just 26 touches of the ball – 12 fewer than Lukasz Fabianski between the West Ham sticks – completed a mere six of his 12 attempted passes and lost possession of the ball on ten separate occasions.

The £19k-per-week defender also lost both of his two attempted duels – a failure rate of 100% – made no tackles, failed with all three of his attempted crosses and gave away one foul.

These returns saw the youngster receive a very disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.4, with no other player who started for the Hammers earning a lower score.

Indeed, Football.London journalist Tom Clarke also awarded the fan-favourite the joint-lowest score in his own West Ham match ratings, stating of Johnson: “Unfortunate to be injured and out of position for Mason Mount’s goal but had found himself beaten a couple of times by Ziyech on the left – 6.”

As such, while the 21-year-old who Moyes dubbed a “really important” player will undoubtedly bounce back following his recovery from injury, this was far from his finest display for the Hammers, and is a performance he will be hoping to put behind him as quickly as possible.

In other news: Forget Bowen: West Ham’s “fantastic” 5-tackle beast seized his “big chance” vs Chelsea

According to a report by Craig Hope in the Daily Mail, Newcastle United are set to face an injury crisis; Callum Wilson has suffered a torn calf and will be sidelined for months, while Allan Saint-Maximin and Ryan Fraser have picked up muscle injuries as well.

The Lowdown: Defensive injuries already a nightmare

The Magpies have already suffered a number of injuries this season and many of which have exacerbated their defensive issues. This has led to the worst defensive record in the league, as Newcastle have conceded a staggering 42 goals in 19 games this season – three more than second place Norwich City.

The longest of these defensive omissions has seen left-back Paul Dummett sustain a serious calf problem that has meant he has missed a total of 20 matches to this date.

More recently, centre-back Federico Fernandez and left-back Jamal Lewis have suffered thigh problems and hamstring injuries respectively, leaving manager Eddie Howe very light in his defensive options.

The Latest: Magpies face more trouble

According to a report by Hope in the Daily Mail, Newcastle fear that Wilson has suffered a torn calf muscle and he will be sidelined for a number of months. This comes as a big blow to Howe, who will now miss his top goal-scorer throughout the hectic winter schedule.

Hope understands that the injury Saint-Maximin picked up, also in the Magpies’ 1-1 clash with Manchester United on Monday, was calf related as well. Fraser, meanwhile, has sustained a different muscle problem.

Hope shared the news to Twitter, saying: “Understand Callum Wilson’s injury is torn calf muscle & fears are period of months sidelined. Allan Saint-Maximin injury is also calf related, while Ryan Fraser has picked up a hamstring problem.”

The Verdict: Newcastle need additions desperately

Howe was unsure after the game as to the extent of the injuries sustained by Wilson and Saint-Maximin. However, he will now be devastated if Hope’s reports are accurate.

Without his top goal-scorer, the boss will be wondering where his goals are going to come from. This issue is further exacerbated by Saint-Maximin’s injury, as he is the only other Newcastle player to score more than one goal this season, having scored on four occasions.

This makes it imperative that the Magpies spend big in the January transfer window, as they look set to fight a relegation battle, which, if victorious, could see them begin a huge rebuild over the summer.

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!

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.

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

Liverpool striker Roberto Firmino should return from a hamstring injury before Christmas, according to reliable journalist James Pearce.

The Lowdown: Firmino missing through injury

The Reds have again been hampered by numerous injuries this season, as was the case last time around, with the Brazilian one of those currently absent. The 30-year-old limped out of last week’s win over Atletico Madrid with a hamstring issue, with an extended spell on the sidelines being expected.

Firmino had just found some form again after struggling in 2020/21 – he has scored six times already this season – so the news was undoubtedly a setback for Jurgen Klopp.

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The Latest: Pearce predicts Firmino comeback date

Speaking in a Q&A for The Athletic on Sunday off the back of Liverpool’s 3-2 defeat at West Ham, Pearce claimed that the Brazilian would hopefully be back in action in the middle of December, a month before Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane are due to depart for the Africa Cup of Nations.

He wrote: “Looking for positives, Firmino should be back playing by mid-December so will be going into that crunch period fresh when Salah/Mane are away.”

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The Verdict: Reds desperately need him back

Firmino is such a subtle player that his brilliance isn’t always appreciated by the masses, but he is a vital player for Liverpool. His ability to drop deep allows space in behind for Salah and Mane, while his selflessness and work ethic make him a fantastic team player.

Liverpool rarely look as cohesive in attack when Diogo Jota plays instead of him, as shown in Sunday’s defeat to West Ham, when the 24-year-old had just 17 accurate passes in the match. Therefore, Pearce’s prediction of a pre-Christmas return for the Brazilian is very welcome news indeed.

In other news, Pearce has also discussed Liverpool’s interest in a Premier League player. Read more here.

West Ham could sign Flamengo striker Gabigol in an exciting initial loan deal in the January transfer window, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Gabigol shines in Brazil

The 25-year-old has enjoyed a hugely impressive career in his homeland of Brazil, being lauded by one of his country’s all-time great players, Zico, who claimed the striker has ‘everything to be the greatest striker in Flamengo’s history’.

Gabigol has scored 84 goals in just 124 appearances for Flamengo, not to mention netting five times in 17 caps for Brazil.

West Ham have been linked with an audacious January move for the striker with Sky Sports even claiming talks have started, and a fresh update has now emerged regarding their pursuit of him.

The Latest: Journalist backs move

Speaking to Give Me Sport, O’Rourke hinted at a potential temporary move then becoming permanent in the summer:

“I’m sure they’re talking to Flamengo to see if they could try and work out a deal where it’s an initial loan with an obligation to buy.”

The Verdict: Hugely exciting target

Gabigol could feel like a significant signing for the Hammers, considering his stature in the game and his aforementioned success at Flamengo.

Granted, he has already had two failed spells in Europe – he scored just one goal apiece during short stints at Inter Milan and Benfica – but he has since matured as a player and could be ready for a new challenge.

It is vital that West Ham sign someone to ease the burden on Michail Antonio between now and January, ensuring genuine top-four and Europa League challenges are mounted.

In other news, some West Ham fans are excited about another transfer claim. Read more here.

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