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Adam White has dropped a claim regarding Celtic’s interest in a deal to bring Zinedine Ferhat to Parkhead in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

In a recent interview with GIVEMESPORT, the journalist stated his belief that the Nimes winger – who has been heavily linked with a move to Parkhead this winter – would be an extremely impressive signing for Ange Postecoglou to get over the line, with White going as far to state that the 28-year-old would be one of the best players in the Premiership.

Speaking about the Celtic-linked forward, the journalist said: “He’d be a really good option. He can play as a number 10, can also play out wide and as an attacking midfielder, very graceful, creative, and I think he’d improve Celtic’s team and would be one of the better players in the SPFL.”

Bye-bye Johnston

While the likes of Jota, Liel Abada and Kyogo Furuhashi have been in deadly form for Celtic so far this season, with this trio having already scored 35 goals and registered 19 assists between them in the current campaign, Postecoglou’s backup options have been rather less impressive.

One such player is Mikey Johnston, the £10k-per-week 22-year-old who has so far failed to score a single goal over his 18 outings in all competitions this season, with Willie Miller going as far to describe the winger’s performance against Hibernian in the League Cup final as “pathetic.”

And, with the academy graduate being linked with a move to Aberdeen this January, it would seem a very wise move for Postecoglou to allow the winger to depart for Pittodrie, and subsequently make a move to bring Ferhat in as his replacement.

Indeed, over his 33 Ligue 1 appearances for Nimes’ last time out, the £4.05m-rated forward was in astonishing form, scoring six goals, providing ten assists and creating nine big chances for his teammates, as well as an average of taking 1.9 shots and making 1.6 key passes per game.

These returns saw the £13k-per-week Algeria international earn a sensational seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.07, ranking him by far and away as his side’s best performer in the top flight of French football.

As such, it would indeed appear as if the Nimes winger would be a huge upgrade on many of Postecoglou’s current options out wide – Johnston included – leading us to hold the belief that the 56-year-old must make a move for the player who has 82 career assists to his name before the end of the month.

In other news: Huge blow: Worrying behind the scenes Celtic update emerges, Postecoglou surely fuming

A number of Liverpool supporters are hugely frustrated after journalist Fabrizio Romano claimed that the Reds won’t be signing Denis Zakaria in January.

Jurgen Klopp’s midfield has remained relatively unchanged in recent years, with very few reinforcements made in that area during a great period in the club’s history.

Thiago is the only midfield signing of note since 2020, and there has been a feeling that things have grown a little stale in the middle of the park.

[freshpress-quiz id=“375258″]

The likes of James Milner and Jordan Henderson are now into their 30s, with many miles in their legs, while the likes of Thiago and Naby Keita are in and out of the team with fitness problems.

One player Liverpool have been linked with signing is Borussia Monchengladbach enforcer Zakaria, who has made 15 Bundesliga starts so far this season.

However, according to Romano on Twitter, the Reds won’t be signing the Switzerland international this month, with a move to the Premier League looking ‘unlikely’.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-19/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Liverpool fans furious at Zakaria latest

These Reds fans on Twitter were left fuming over Romano’s transfer claim, directing their ire at the club for seemingly yet more inactivity in the market.

“Bizarre that we haven’t gone in for him. €7m is nothing. Oh wait, we gave that to Hendo for his wages. Well played LFC, well played”

Credit: @Waz612

“Liverpool pulled out as soon as John Henry found out he wasn’t free…”

Credit: @Corballyred

“Pathetic”

Credit: @PeePapadopoulos

“When will the pain end?”

Credit: @lfckareem

“Find it mad we won’t go after him for such a cut price. Always feels like entering murky waters when talking about transfers with Liverpool”

Credit: @LFCHalps

“Liverpool can’t afford €7m???”

Credit: @Kee__P

In other news, some Liverpool fans love a fresh James Pearce update. Read more here.

Wolves have received a boost in their bid to sign Barcelona midfielder Riqui Puig this month, with journalist Pete O’Rourke talking up a potential move.

The Lowdown: Puig linked with Wolves move

Things are still relatively quiet at Molineux ahead of next Monday’s deadline day, barring the ongoing saga of Adama Traore’s likely move to Tottenham.

One player who has been linked with a move to Wolves is Puig, who has struggled to make an impact at Barca this season under both Ronald Koeman and Xavi.

The one-time La Liga champion has only started once in La Liga in 2021/22 to date and it looks as though he is not in the manger’s plans, potentially opening the door for a move.

The Latest: Wanderers given further boost

Speaking to Give Me Sport, O’Rourke claimed Francisco Trincao’s move to Wolves means they have good relations with Barca, possibly improving their chances of signing Puig:

“Wolves already have Trincao from Barcelona, so there’s obviously open dialogue there between the clubs and good relations.

“That would boost Wolves’ chances of getting him.”

The Verdict: Potentially exciting signing

Puig may not be a regular at Barca but he is still an excellent footballer with many years ahead of him, so Wolves would be wise to snap him up this month. He has been compared to Spain legend Andres Iniesta, which speaks volumes about his ability and composure on the ball.

The young Spaniard has proven that comparison to be fair too with an incredible 93.9% pass completion rate in La Liga this season, albeit across just 294 minutes, showing that he could excel in a similar manner to Joao Moutinho and Ruben Neves. The Wolves duo actually both complete passes at a lower success rate.

Bruno Lage could perhaps then mould Puig into a long-term replacement for Moutinho, ensuring the club continues to grow into the future, acting as a statement signing from a huge club at the same time.

In other news, Fabrizio Romano has given a key Wolves transfer update. Read more here.

Alfredo Morelos’ return will be a ‘welcome’ boost for Rangers against Hearts on Sunday, journalist Andrew Dickson says. 

The lowdown

Rangers host third-place Hearts on Sunday looking to produce a response after their heavy defeat in Wednesday’s Old Firm.

Celtic’s 3-0 win saw them wrestle top spot away from The Gers, but there’s still only one point in it.

Morelos was unable to play against The Hoops after Colombia called him up for their World Cup qualifiers.

But Rangers boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst said in his pre-match press conference that the striker would be available for Sunday’s game, having had enough training time.

The latest

“The return of Morelos on Sunday will be a welcome one,” Dickson wrote on Twitter in response to Van Bronckhorst’s comments.

He also expects Filip Helander’s comeback ‘in the not too distant future’ to lift the mood around Ibrox.

But in his eyes, it’s the set-up in midfield, rather than defence or attack, that’s ‘most crucial of all’.

He wants to see Aaron Ramsey and Ryan Jack ‘playing as much as possible’.

The verdict

It’s certainly hard to dispute Dickson’s assessment given that Morelos’ is Rangers’ top scorer this season with 11 goals in all competitions.

He was also in fine form before he jetted off to South America, with four goals in six Premiership matches.

What’s more, his replacement, Kemar Roofe, struggled to make any sort of impact in midweek. Rangers registered nine shots in total, but none of them came from Roofe, and he had as many touches as Celtic goalkeeper Joe Hart.

Elsewhere, GVB must make these changes today.

Rangers could be in a difficult situation in the summer transfer window as Ibrox maestro Joe Aribo’s contract continues to wind down.

His current deal expires in the summer of 2023 and that means that he will be in the final 12 months of it ahead of the start of next season.

Last week, journalist Pete O’Rourke suggested that the club could be forced to sell him to avoid losing him for nothing the following the year.

He told GIVEMESPORT: “It puts the pressure on Rangers maybe to have to cash in on him in the summer if they’re not able to agree on a deal.”

Rangers disaster

Ross Wilson is heading for an unforgivable disaster this summer and must act swiftly to agree a new contract with Aribo. The Ibrox chief must do everything in his power to pin him down to a fresh deal as he is crucial to Gio van Bronckhorst’s side and they cannot be forced into moving him on for a cut-price fee in the summer.

He has been in sensational form this season and the supporters will surely want to see the club keep hold of him heading into next season. In the Premiership this season, the maestro has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.11 in midfield as he has contributed with six goals and four assists.

Aribo has averaged 1.8 key passes and 2.0 tackles and interceptions per game in the division. This shows his ability to make an impact in both boxes as he helps Rangers on the defensive side of the game whilst showing off his quality on the ball in the final third to score and create goals, which is why he is a major player for Van Bronckhorst and losing him would be unforgivable.

His former Charlton teammate Ezri Konsa once lauded the £14k-per-week midfielder, saying: “Having Gerrard as his manager at Rangers, that has made him go up another level.

“Joe’s style is unique. When I was with him at Charlton he did remind me for a while of a left-footed Yaya Toure. But you don’t get a lot of midfielders like Joe, there aren’t many around.

“Like Toure, for a tall guy he’s got such great feet. But that languid style he’s got is actually fairly unique in the game.”

These comments from the Aston Villa centre-back highlight how big of a blow it would be to lose Aribo as he is, as the Englishman says, a unique player who could be difficult to replace. Wilson could have a tough job on his hands to find a player who is able to make such a big impact on a consistent basis, which is another reason why he is heading for a disaster with the Nigerian.

He must now throw the kitchen sink at the ex-Charlton man to ensure that his future is with the Light Blues and not south of the border in England or anywhere else.

AND in other news, GvB masterstroke: “Phenomenal” Rangers gem has seen value soar 150% in just 6 months…

Manchester United did not disappoint in putting on a show at Elland Road this afternoon, in a fiery clash against Leeds United that ended in a 4-2 victory for the Lancashire side.

In an attacking performance at both ends of the pitch, Manchester United players shared out the four goals across the pitch with Harry Maguire, Bruno Fernandes, Fred and Anthony Elanga all finding the back of the net over the game.

Leeds United didn’t go down without a fight though, dominating possession throughout (54%) and scoring two goals in 24 seconds in the 53rd and 54th minute.

However Manchester United’s quality all over the pitch was inevitably too much for the home team to handle, and Ralf Rangnick’s side go home with all three points, putting them four points clear inside the top four, fourth in the Premier League table.

One player who failed to make an impact in the game, despite the tenacious win from the Red Devils, was Jesse Lingard who was given the golden opportunity of starting in the side this afternoon but could have blown it.

According to SofaScore, the Man United forward dropped a disaster-class against Leeds United, losing the majority of his duels (67.5%), committed two fouls, was dribbled past twice and lost the ball every 3 out of 29 touches.

That eventually resulted in Rangnick benching him in the 67th minute to make way for Elanga, who came on and made a much bigger impact in less time on the pitch, by scoring the fourth goal.

This performance from the £80k-per-week gem will only further Rangnick’s point of leaving the player out of the starting side in recent months, as the Manchester United manager gave Lingard the green light to leave in January, but when the club blocked the move, it left the player to see out the last six months of his contract at his boyhood club. As a result, this could be the last opportunity the manager offers Lingard to squander, after an ineffective display this weekend.

Rangnick will be delighted that his side go into their Champions League game full of confidence and with a comfortable lead in the top four race as it stands, and will be hoping that the team can offer another collective performance to secure a win in the first leg against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night.

In other news: Lingard move blocked by the board

Crystal Palace journalist Mark Wyatt singled out one element of Conor Gallagher’s game for praise during the first half of the Premier League match against Burnley on Saturday.

The lowdown

The midfielder made his second successive start, and his 23rd of the season, after missing last weekend’s defeat against Chelsea because he was ineligible to face his parent club.

Patrick Vieira selected the Englishman alongside Luka Milivojevic and James McArthur in a three-man midfield.

It was a mixed afternoon for the 22-year-old at Selhurst Park, reflected in his SofaScore rating of 6.6/10. He won seven of the 11 ground duels he contested, but misplaced seven (25%) of the 28 passes he attempted and failed to register a shot.

The latest

In the 21st minute of the match, after Gallagher earned a free-kick for his side, Football.London journalist Wyatt took to Twitter to laud one particular trait from the Palace midfielder which may otherwise have gone under the radar.

Linking a live blog in which he was providing updates on the match, the reporter tweeted: “Conor Gallagher is the undisputed king of winning fouls”.

The verdict

Does Wyatt’s claim stand up to scrutiny?

Gallagher was fouled four times against the Clarets, level with Wilfried Zaha as the home side most-sinned against player this afternoon.

Alas, it’s the Ivory Coast winger who may have a better claim to being “the undisputed king of winning fouls”, leading the way for Palace over the season as a whole with three free-kicks won per 90 minutes. Jordan Ayew comes next with 2.4, and then it’s Gallagher on 1.7.

Still, the more important point is that these foul magnets can be a real asset for the Eagles as they seek to address one important shortfall – the number of goals they’ve scored from set pieces. They have only managed four this season, one of the worst records in the Premier League.

In other news, Newcastle are interested in this Palace star

Everton will not be forced into selling any key players despite the club’s ongoing sponsorship crisis, according to BBC Radio 5 Live pundit Danny Mills.

The Lowdown: Sponsorship blows

The Athletic recently reported that Everton’s shirt sponsorship deal with Cazoo will end after the current season, with the club exercising a break clause written into the contract. This deal is reportedly worth around £10m per year, so it seems like positive steps have been made in their search of a replacement.

Whilst it was the Toffees’ choice to exercise the clause, it has not come at a good time for the club, who now face commercial challenges following the suspension of three of their other sponsorship deals.

Earlier this week, it was announced that Everton had suspended their dealings with Russian companies USM Holdings, MegaFon, and Yota. These deals were associated with Uzbek businessman Alisher Usmanov, whose assets were frozen by the European Union on Tuesday and the UK on Thursday.

With all that taken into account, it could result in an annual shortfall of close to £30m.

The Latest: Mills’ claim…

Despite the off-field turmoil and the team’s battle with Premier League relegations, Mills – who regularly appears on BBC Radio 5 Live – doesn’t believe that Everton will be forced into selling some of their most prized assets.

When asked by Football Insider if those circumstances would prompt a fire-sale of star players at Goodison Park, the former England defender replied: “No. I think there will be an awful lot of this and it will take a long time to unravel. We’re talking 18 months, two years. 

“Everybody is doing what they see right at the moment and rightly so, disassociating themselves with certain things.

“But you have to go down and start looking at every single investment at every single club, every single board member and there’s probably a lot more with links to Russia than you think and some we’re not aware with.

 “It’s easy with Everton and USM as one of the main sponsors, you can see that, it’s quite loud and proud. But there will be others in there at different clubs.

“I don’t think it will be a massive issue. We’re all sympathetic to the situation in Ukraine. Clubs are doing what they think is best for the here and now.”

The Verdict: Everton’s relegation battle

Everton currently sit 17th in the Premier League table as they prepare for tonight’s clash against Tottenham. Despite the Toffees losing three of Lampard’s first four league games in charge, they are not in as dire a situation as the table might look on first glance.

Everton are just one point and one place behind Leeds with three games in hand, and five points behind Brentford in 15th with four games in hand. Should the Toffees put those extra fixtures to good use, the gap to the bottom three would look a lot healthier.

This could have a massive bearing on whether or not Everton will need to sell some of their star players to balance the books. Multiple sales would seem inevitable if they do drop out of the Premier League, especially with the club already having issues keeping within Financial Fair Play requirements.

In other news: Frank McAvennie has made a big prediction about the rest of Everton’s season

After a disappointing season for West Brom, currently 13th in the Championship, Steve Bruce has given an update on Andy Carroll’s future at the club ahead of the transfer window.

What’s the latest?

In an interview with Express & Star, the Baggies boss has confirmed that talks have been scheduled to make a decision on the striker’s future and whether his stay will be extended at the club or not.

Bruce confirmed:

“He has done well since he has been here and it’s great to see him fit. I’ve always said, when fit, Andy Carroll is a threat.

“I think it’s important in the next week or so that we sit down and make those big decisions which are never easy. We’ll see what develops.”

Time to go

Carroll was initially brought into the club to fill a gap in the striker role for West Brom after a freak hamstring injury to January signing Daryl Dike on his first full debut for the Baggies and has had an adequate impact on the side.

The £720k-rated star who was hailed “powerful” by former boss Alan Pardew, has delivered three goals in 15 appearances, scoring a goal in each of the two victories West Brom have picked up in their last six games, but with players returning from injury the striker has fulfilled his purpose and it is now time to go.

Dike returned to full team training last month but is yet to make an appearance in the team since he picked up his injury, and Bruce is hoping that he will be able to have a good summer working on his match fitness to reprise his star role as the striker in next season’s charge for promotion back to the top-flight.

With that in mind, keeping hold of 33-year-old Carroll doesn’t make sense in the club’s pursuit to rebuild and recharge for a chance to get back into the Premier League next season, and should be looking to invest in the future of the team, rather than prolonging the contract of a player who is nearing the end of his career.

West Brom needs to reflect on the nightmare season they have had in the Championship and re-evaluate what needs to be done to ensure they don’t find themselves in the same position again this time next year.

It is really important to keep moving forward in the best interests of the team, and accepting Carroll was a short-term solution and moving him on this summer could be the right decision.

AND in other news: Bruce can finally axe “lazy” flop as West Brom plot bid for “superb” 19 y/o sensation

Sunderland journalist Philip West was left slamming the display of Luke O’Nien in their 1-1 draw at home to Rotherham United in League One on Tuesday.

The Lowdown: Vital point?

It is safe to say that the Black Cats were not at their best at the Stadium of Light, but grabbed themselves what could be a vital point in their hopes of securing a play-off place.

A Michael Ihiekwe own goal in the 88th minute spared their blushes after the central defender had given the visitors the lead early in the first half, and that point keeps the Black Cats in the top six… just.

The Latest: O’Nien slammed

Taking to Twitter, West slammed a few of the performances from the Wearside club, including O’Nien’s:

“Too many of our players are having an off-night here. Matete went into his shell after the yellow, O’Nien has been poor, and Broadhead has been neutralised.”

The Verdict: Harsh

The criticism of O’Nien seems harsh as he was one of SAFC’s better players on the night.

Yes, he was guilty of giving possession away no fewer than 15 times in total, and also made two fouls, no dribbles or key passes (SofaScore), but the central midfield player at least put a shift in for his team and improved as the game went on.

O’Nien won 11 individual duels, more than anyone else on the pitch, and also recorded two tackles, one clearance and interception, while he himself was fouled five times, again more than any other player, as SofaScore gave him a respectable 6.9/10 overall rating.

Nonetheless, he looks to have secured his starting place as Alex Neil’s side face Morecambe away from home on the final day.

In other news, find out what exciting Sunderland update has Roker Report buzzing here!