Tottenham should snap up Bundesliga interest in Onomah

According to The Sun, Tottenham’s on-loan midfielder Josh Onomah has been linked with a move to the Bundesliga. 

Both Hoffenheim and Borussia Monchengladbach are interested in the 21-year-old, who is currently on loan at Championship outfit Sheffield Wednesday.

It appears to be the new phenomena in European football currently for German clubs to snap up young English players that are not getting a look in for their clubs. This has been on show this season with the immense success of Jadon Sancho at Borussia Dortmund, as well as players like Ademola Lookman last season.

This is a system that suits both the English and the German club. The Bundesliga outfit will get a high-quality player on loan or permanently for a cheap price, and the Premier League team get to send their players out to one of the most competitive leagues in Europe, where the standard is usually higher than the Championship.

Therefore, from Tottenham’s perspective, this deal seems to make wonderful sense, and should be one that they pursue if they have any ambition of Onomah making it at Spurs. A move to the Championship rarely sharpens a player enough for them to be ready for the top flight, whereas the Bundesliga will do just that.

Furthermore, Onomah has only played 11 games for The Owls this season, scoring three goals. He is not seen as a valuable asset at Hillsborough, and is not getting the game time or experience that Spurs will want to see. If these Bundesliga outfits are interested, Spurs should snap up the opportunity.

Celtic handed injury boost ahead of Saints

Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou has been handed a huge injury boost ahead of the Hoops’ upcoming Premiership meeting with St. Johnstone on Sunday.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to a report by the Glasgow Evening Times, who claim that, despite Matt O’Riley limping off after playing just 15 minutes of Celtic’s 2-1 win over Rangers last weekend, the central midfielder has now returned to training at Lennoxtown – something which appears to suggest the 21-year-old will be available for the visit of St. Johnstone this weekend.

Concerning the Denmark U21 international’s knock, the report states: “Matt O’Riley is back in Celtic training despite having limped off against Rangers at Ibrox on Sunday… and looks to be available for St Johnstone this weekend.”

Postecoglou will be buzzing

Considering the revelation O’Riley has been for Celtic since his £1.5m move to Glasgow in the January transfer window, the fact that the 21-year-old has already returned to training is sure to have left Postecoglou buzzing.

Indeed, over his 11 Premiership outings this term, the £405k-rated midfielder has been in exceptional form for the Bhoys, having already bagged one goal, provided three assists and created four big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.2 shots and making 2.6 key passes – the third-most in the league – per game.

These returns have seen the former Fulham and MK Dons playmaker average an incredibly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.34, ranking him as the seventh-best player in the top flight of Scottish football so far this season.

As such, while a home fixture against the 11th-placed Saints should not cause Celtic too many problems on Sunday, considering the Scottish Cup semi-final double header coming up for the Bhoys, the news that O’Riley does not appear to have sustained a serious injury is undoubtedly fantastic news for the 56-year-old and his side.

AND in other news: Ange must now seal Celtic deal for “magic” £21.5k-p/w ace, he’s an “absolute dream”

Newcastle transfer news on Btoman

Transfer insider Dean Jones has now revealed some fresh Newcastle United transfer news involving Sven Botman before the trip to Tottenham.

The Lowdown: Two-way fight

As per The Times, the St. James’ Park faithful are now set to battle AC Milan to sign Botman in the summer, after failing to land him in the January transfer window.

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Lille stood firm on their valuation of the Netherlands international, but could now be tempted to sell if the price is right.

The Latest: Botman update

Speaking to The Transfer Tavern, Jones has revealed that Milan are ahead of the Magpies in the race for Botman, although that could change ‘very quickly’:

“Right now, AC Milan are up there, and Newcastle were still down here. That could change very quickly, but at the moment, they’re still up there.” The Verdict: Difficult

It will be difficult for the Tyneside outfit to beat Milan to Botman’s signature, based on where the two clubs are at.

The Italian giants are currently top of the Serie A, and look likely to secure their place in the UEFA Champions League for next season, if not win the league on top of that.

On the other hand, the Toon are not guaranteed safety in the Premier League just yet, and are only at the start of their long-term project.

Nonetheless, it is likely that Botman would choose Milan over them right now, but that is not to say that the North East club could not come back in for him in the future.

In other news, find out who NUFC have now ‘agreed’ to sign here!

Tottenham transfer news on Cambiaso

Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly now showing ‘much interest’ in signing super versatile midfielder Andrea Cambiaso before the January transfer window shuts.

The Lowdown: Time running out

Spurs targets seem to be falling like flies, with both Adama Traore and Luis Diaz looking like they are going to move to FC Barcelona and Liverpool respectively.

Thus, with just a few days left until the window closes, Daniel Levy and the board need to get on with bringing some new faces in, and may now have to settle for players who can play in a number of different positions as the time to bring in multiple top signings ticks down.

The Latest: Cambiaso interest

As per journalist and transfer expert Gianluigi Longari, there is now ‘much interest’ from the North London club, as well as Juventus, Inter Milan, Atalanta and Napoli in signing Cambiaso.

His current deal at Genoa expires in 2023, but the Serie A team ideally want to keep him until the summer.

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The Verdict: Just do it

Lilywhites fans have surely grown tired of how many targets that they are missing out on, and so this is a case of just making sure Antonio Conte is not left completely empty-handed now.

There is no doubt that Cambiaso is a good player too, as Italian media have pointed out that he has ‘showed his qualities’ in his debut season in Serie A, in which he has managed to score one goal and make four assists in 22 games in total (Transfermarkt).

As an Italian himself, Cambiaso could work well under Conte, and would save the manager a headache as he can play in a wide number of different positions on the pitch, including at right wing-back and in the centre of midfield.

Nonetheless, with the clock ticking, this is a deal that Levy needs to get done as soon as possible, adding some versatile depth to his manager’s squad.

In other news, find out which ‘extraordinary’ ace THFC could now sign here!

Newcastle linked with Gleison Bremer

Newcastle and Arsenal have joined the race to sign Torino’s Gleison Bremer.

The Lowdown: Bremer profiled

Bremer is a Brazilian centre-back who has been with the Italian side since 2018. He has made 107 appearances for the club, scoring 13 times and registering five assists. Bremer, labelled as an ’emerging superstar’ by Serie A journalist Rajath Kumar, has even captained Torino on several occasions this season and has two years remaining on his deal.

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The 25-year-old shares the same agent as January signings Kieran Trippier and Chris Wood, and it looks as if the Magpies have joined the race for the defender’s services.

The Latest: Newcastle interest

Sports Witness relayed an update from Gazzetta dello Sport regarding Bremer on Saturday.

They claimed that both Newcastle and Arsenal are the latest sides to show an interest in the defender who ‘everyone wants’, with his valuation now rising dramatically.

The Verdict: Shrewd signing?

Eddie Howe has five senior centre-backs to choose from at this moment in time, one of which is Fabian Schar, who is out of contract in the summer.

Bremer appears to be the type of player Newcastle could attract to the club, with Torino not in or challenging for any European competition.

However, it does look as if several clubs who are keen will be able to offer that luxury over the summer, possibly making it difficult for Amanda Staveley and co to get a deal over the line.

Staveley would have already spoken to Bremer’s agency in 2022 following deals for Trippier and Wood, so if an agreement can be reached with Torino, personal terms could be fairly straightforward.

In other news, find out what worrying Allan Saint-Maximin update has now been dropped here!

Newcastle: Big twist in Diego Carlos saga

Newcastle United supporters came into the January window expecting big things from their new mega-rich owners but sadly, reality has hit them hard.

The Magpies have still only won a solitary game all season and with now under two weeks to go in the transfer market, have just Kieran Trippier and Chris Wood to show for their troubles.

What’s the word?

This has been a topsy-turvy month for the Toon so far but there is an expectation that a number of deals will be wrapped up before the deadline on January 31st.

One of the biggest priorities for Newcastle in the window has been bringing in one or two central defenders.

Sadly, Sven Botman is now unlikely to join the northeast side this month but they are now also facing significant difficulties in their plans to bring Sevilla defender, Diego Carlos, to St James’ Park.

This is a deal that has been in the offing for a number of days now with the player even believed to have handed in a transfer request at his Spanish employers.

However, there has been a big twist to the tale. Despite Newcastle initially appearing to be the frontrunner, they are now facing competition for his signature.

The news was revealed by Kaveh Solhekol on a live edition of Sky Sports News’ Transfer Show on Wednesday evening.

He said: “We’ve been told another Premier League club is trying to sign Diego Carlos and they have made a bid for him.”

The Sky Sports reporter continued: “Our information is that the player would like to leave Sevilla and to come and play for Newcastle, so much so he handed in a transfer request yesterday (Tuesday).

“So it looked like there were positive signs that he could be going to Newcastle. Then another Premier League club came in for him today, they have matched Newcastle’s £30m bid. That has complicated the situation.”

Fans surely scared

After already missing out on their number one target in Botman, this is news that will severely deflate and scare not only the Toon Army but also the club’s recruitment team and hierarchy.

A deal to bring Carlos to the club was far from plane sailing in the first place but it did look as though Newcastle were making important breakthroughs in a bid to land his services this week.

However, that has now been thrown into disarray by one of their divisional rivals and if it was someone in the Premier League who stole him away from them, it would only make matters even worse.

This is a devastating blow to the club’s transfer plans and although they do have a number of other options at centre-back, including Benoit Badiashile of Monaco, Gleison Bremer at Torino, and Felix Uduokhai at Augsburg, Carlos was right at the top of their list.

His addition would and could still be a significant one for many reasons. Not only would it prove that Newcastle have the ability to pull players from top clubs in European football, but also because their defence has been diabolical this term.

They have kept just one clean sheet this season – against Burnley – and have shipped 43 top-flight strikes throughout 2021/22. For context, only fellow relegation rivals Norwich have a worse record than them.

As a result, signing Carlos was vital this month and if another Premier League side prises him away instead, it will leave the fanbase demoralised and frightened about their prospects for the rest of the campaign.

AND in other news, “I’m told”: Craig Hope issues major NUFC transfer claim that’ll get fans excited…

Everton: Myers reacts to penalty shout

Everton were denied a penalty in the Merseyside derby yesterday against Liverpool at Anfield, according to Sky Sports journalist Alan Myers.

He replied to a tweet from Everton player Anthony Gordon after the game, which was a video of the incident, saying “All day long, penalty!”. Many are likely to agree with him and believe that it was harsh not to give the decision in favour of the Toffees.

Liverpool ended up claiming a 2-0 victory with goals from Andy Robertson and Divock Origi, but it wasn’t made easy for them with Everton battling it out in a heated game that was still all square at half time.

The decision will leave Everton supporters fuming as the opportunity could have brought them back into the game at a time when they are desperate for the points. Frank Lampard’s men sit in the relegation zone and are in a huge battle for survival.

These days it’s never a game of football, let alone a local derby, without a controversial decision. With the addition of VAR technology, officials have no excuse not to be getting the big calls right. The challenge on Gordon yesterday was quickly dismissed by referee Stuart Attwell, and despite being in the box, the tackle wasn’t even reviewed by VAR.

Even The Professional Game Match Officials Board said they would have had “no complaints” if the penalty was awarded to Everton with manager Lampard stating that it was “a clear foul” but that “you don’t get them here.”

It raises the question once again as to whether the size of a club and its home crowd have any influence on the decisions that officials make? Gordon was booked for diving earlier on in the game before the penalty denial so did that play a part in Attwell’s decision too?

Former Toffees striker Kevin Campbell seems to think so, saying that the referee “bottled it” and that the decision was there to be made but he didn’t make it.

In games as big as the Merseyside derby, when there is a lot riding on the result for both sides, the referee is going to take a lot longer to think about the decisions he makes which allows doubt to creep in. The point of VAR is to prevent this and to assist the official on the field with the aid of replays and footage from different angles.

We certainly think that the technology should have been used a lot more in the game and if it was it would have produced a much fairer outcome for both sides. Last season VAR awarded 29 penalties and so has proven to be used successfully when it comes to these decisions, however, yesterday wasn’t one of those.

IN other news: Everton: Alex Iwobi was anonymous against Liverpool…

Newcastle: Duvan Zapata a target

Newcastle United have offered Atalanta €30million (£25.1million) for striker Duvan Zapata, according to Duncan Castles for The Daily Record. 

The lowdown

Newcastle have already signed one striker this month in the form of Chris Wood. They activated the £25million release clause in the New Zealand frontman’s Burnley contract.

But it seems that Eddie Howe wants even more firepower at his disposal, with Zapata in the club’s sights as he enters the final 18 months of his contract in Bergamo.

Of course, Callum Wilson is out for the foreseeable future with a calf injury, and the Magpies will need all the help they can get in front of goal, having scored just 20 times in 20 top flight matches this term.

The latest

The report states that, while Atalanta are willing to sell, they want another €15million (or £12.5million) on top of Newcastle’s original offer.

Encouragingly though, Zapata is thought to be ‘open’ to joining Newcastle if a fee can be agreed.

Newcastle’s top target for the striker position is SL Benfica’s Darwin Nunez, but the Primeira Liga outfit are demanding just over £50million. ‘Sources close to the negotiations’ say Zapata is being lined up as an alternative.

He’s one of a number of ‘high-value’ targets Newcastle are working on.

The verdict

Zapata’s record is excellent. In 152 appearances for Atalanta, he’s been directly involved in 116 goals (scoring 78 and setting up 38). He’s on 12 goals and seven assists for the 21/22 season so far.

His ‘quite incredible’ performances under Gian Piero Gasperini have, in the words of football journalist Maxi Angelo, made him ‘one of the most notorious strikers in Europe’, and at 6 foot 2 with tremendous physical strength it’s not hard to see him adjusting to life in the Premier League.

If he’s willing to trade Europa League football and a Serie A top-four battle for a relegation scrap, it suggests he’s certainly up for the fight.

But there is a question mark – do Newcastle really another striker approaching their twilight years? They’ve paid a sizeable fee for Wood, and Wilson is 29, while Wood and Zapata are both 30. From that point of view, you could also ask whether this is sensible squad-building.

In other news, Luke Edwards breaks some ‘difficult’ transfer news.

Tottenham prepare Edwards bid

According to Football Insider, some promising transfer news has come out of Tottenham Hotspur and it involves promising Peterborough United defender Ronnie Edwards.

The Lowdown: Lilywhites eye lower league talent?

Spurs and transfer chief Fabio Paratici have been no strangers to lower league talent, according to reports in recent months.

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The likes of Djed Spence, currently shining on loan at Nottingham Forest from Middlesbrough, has been at the centre of Tottenham’s interest alongside Posh defender Benjamin Mensah.

Tottenham have also apparently turned their attention to the signing of Oxford United defender Luke McNally in recent months with one bid of £2 million having already been put on the table (Football Insider).

Now, as per FI, news has emerged on another.

The Latest: Spurs prepare Edwards bid…

According to their information, Tottenham are preparing an offer for the centre-back as they line up a move.

Peterborough, it is believed, are braced for bids from the Lilywhites and other clubs with the north London side now stepping up their interest.

This comes after Spurs started making regular checks on Edwards ‘in recent weeks’.

The Verdict: Make a move?

The England Under-19 international is apparently very highly rated and has already been impressing in England’s second tier.

Edwards, still only a teenager, has played very regularly in the Championship under both ex-boss Duncan Ferguson and new manager Grant McCann.

In that time, he has stood out as a brilliant performer, averaging one of the highest pass accuracy percentages out of Peterborough’s squad whilst also a noteworthy amount of clearances per 90 (WhoScored).

Described as an ‘incredible talent’ by his former gaffer Ferguson, Edwards now attracting Spurs’ interest is hardly a surprise given some of his exceptional 2021/2022 performances.

In other news: Tottenham eye imminent agreement as they also make offer for exciting midfielder! Find out more here.

Manchester City: Fans flock to Nathan Ake transfer news

A number of Manchester City fans have flocked to the transfer news that AC Milan are interested in defender Nathan Ake.

According to a report by MilanNews.it (as relayed by City Xtra), the potential transfer of Ake to Milan is proving to be ‘difficult to achieve’, and sources close to Man City have stated that the centre-back will not be leaving the club in the January window.

The Dutchman has struggled for Premier League playing time this season, having made just eight top flight appearances for Pep Guardiola’s side.

However, lately Ake has been utilised in the various cup competitions that City are still in the running for, including the club’s recent 4-1 FA Cup victory against Swindon Town.

It would certainly be a surprise were he to leave, given he is just now beginning to stamp his mark after joining 18 months ago (BBC), particularly impressing against Brentford and Leeds in recent weeks.

These Man City fans flock to the Ake transfer news

Manchester City Twitter source City Xtra shared the news to fans, with many flocking to the comments to share their joy for Ake, who looks set to remain at the club. Supporters were reluctant to see the Netherlands international exit due to a number of fantastic recent performances.

Here’s what some of these fans said…

“Ake is getting better & better at City, top player, at CB or LB, hope he stays and sure he will”

Credit: @MCFCTone

“He’s absolute class and isn’t going anywhere. I was so wrong about him”

Credit: @ManCityKD

“You think Pep will let our defensive depth and stability go now that we finally have it again? In JANUARY? In such a crucial part of the season? Lmaooooooo”

Credit: @mvx_mcfc

“Def don’t give up Aké. That save against Arsenal should keep him a blue for quite a while.”

Credit: @NathanDean904

“AC Milan is one of my favorite clubs in Europe, but Ake needs to stay because he’s actually been very solid when starting.”

Credit: @SoraPalmer

“Tell those Italians to go shop somewhere else, Ake ain’t leaving, no chance”

Credit: @mxnxl_

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