Nottingham Forest fans react as Roy Keane is appointed as Martin O’Neill’s assistant

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Nottingham Forest fans have taken to Twitter to react after former Red Roy Keane returned to the club as assistant manager, following the appointment of Martin O’Neill as manager, as revealed by the club’s official website.

The Irishman made over 150 appearances for Forest back in the 90s, per Soccerbase, before leaving for Manchester United, and will be reunited with O’Neill who he worked alongside at international level for the Republic of Ireland national team.

Impressively, the duo oversaw qualification for the 2016 European Championships, including a famous win over world champions Germany. They then managed to advance into the last 16, having progressed from a group including the likes of Italy and Belgium.

Thogden has ranked his top 5 sets of Championship away fans for Pl>ymaker FC. Did your club make the list? Find out in the video below…

Keane’s arrival should ensure that no Forest players even dare to misbehave, as the 47-year-old is a stern operator who takes no nonsense from anybody. O’Neill also used to play for the Reds, so a former Forest duo in charge of the team can only be good news for a club desperately chasing the play-off positions this season.

Let’s see how Forest fans reacted on Twitter…

Koch may’ve played his final game for Leeds

Jesse Marsch’s Leeds United all but secured Premier League survival on Saturday afternoon, with the Whites running out 3-0 winners over relegation rivals Watford at Vicarage Road.

Indeed, from the moment that Raphinha gave the visitors the lead in the 21st minute, Leeds never looked in danger of giving away their advantage, with Rodrigo and Jack Harrison sealing all three points with second-half goals.

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Despite the positives, there were nevertheless a couple of players in the Whites’ starting XI who turned in below-par performances on Saturday afternoon, with central midfield pairing Mateusz Klich and Robin Koch both having games to forget against the Hornets.

It was perhaps the Germany international who was the most disappointing of the duo, with the 25-year-old turning in the sort of display which could have many Leeds supporters questioning whether he may have just played his last game for the club, following recent reports suggesting that Marsch would be willing to cash in on the versatile defender this summer.

Lost 12 duels

Indeed, over the course of his 90 minutes on the pitch, the £13m signing was a passenger in the middle of the park. He had 59 touches of the ball, completed just 25 of his 43 attempted passes (a success rate of just 58%), failed to find a team-mate with any of his six attempted long balls and was unsuccessful with his one attempted dribble.

The £46k-per-week German also lost 12 of his 20 duels, committed one foul, was beaten by an opponent on five occasions and lost possession 22 times, meaning he gave the ball away with every 2.7 touches.

These returns saw the £15.3m-rated man earn a rather disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.3, ranking him as Leeds’ second-worst player to feature today.

Furthermore, Leeds Live’s Beren Cross also awarded Koch a five in his own player ratings, stating of the 25-year-old’s display: “Just doesn’t fit this role. Passing range or composure was not there to build anything for Leeds through the middle. Got turned time and time again by the Watford attacks through the centre.”

It is undeniable that the player who Danny Mills claimed looks like a “fish out of water” boasts a decent amount of potential, but should Marsch indeed be considering the sale of the eight-cap international this summer, it would not be surprising if Koch’s disasterclass against Watford was his last game for the Whites.

AND in other news: Orta can now axe “awful” £55k-p/w flop as Leeds eye “underrated” £12.5m-rated “threat”

Liverpool eyeing Jarrod Bowen transfer

Liverpool have had no issues when it comes to scoring goals in their latest Premier League season.

With 30 league games played, the Reds have found the back of the net 77 times, which is more than any other top-flight side have managed to score in this campaign.

One figure, in particular, that has contributed a lot towards Liverpool’s attacking power over recent months is winger Mohamed Salah.

Having appeared in 28 league games, the 29-year-old Egyptian has scored 20 goals and provided ten assists along the way, which is more league contributions than any other Reds player has been able to deliver.

Despite the 29-year-old’s deadliness in front of goal, it seems as though the Merseyside club could be looking to bring in another attacking talent that could potentially dethrone the iconic Liverpool star in the near future.

What’s the news?

According to journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, West Ham United winger Jarrod Bowen is one name on a list of players identified by the Reds for a potential summer transfer move.

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Since arriving at the east London club back in the 2020 January transfer window from Hull City, the Englishman has scored 22 goals and provided 21 assists in 93 appearances across all competitions, prior to their Europa League clash against Lyon.

‘Massive’ signing for Liverpool

With nine goals and eight assists to his name in 29 league appearances in this campaign, the 25-year-old has earned himself an overall performance rating of 7.23/10 from WhoScored, making him the highest-rated player in David Moyes’ squad. With that in mind, it’s hardly a surprise that he was dubbed a “massive” player for the club by Pablo Fornals.

To highlight how much of an attacking threat the £75m-valued former Hull star is, he has managed to rack up more shots on target this season (29) than the likes of Diogo Jota, Bukayo Saka and Raheem Sterling among many others.

While Salah may have more goal contributions than Bowen, the West Ham figure has proven himself to be a much more defensive-minded attacker by making 55 tackles and 45 interceptions more than the £90m-rated gem.

Having been labelled as an “unbelievable” player by Klopp in the past, as well as being a “special” talent by Sporting Index, Bowen would certainly be a solid addition to Liverpool’s already attack-heavy squad.

Taking into account how the Hammers star is a few years younger than Salah, he could well be a potential replacement for the Reds winger if his contract situation doesn’t sort itself out and he ends up leaving.

In other news: Liverpool now plot bid for £144m-rated “phenomenon”, he’s even better than Salah…

Leeds linked with Florian Grillitsch

Leeds United are monitoring Hoffenheim midfielder Florian Grillitsch ahead of a possible free transfer, according to The Telegraph.

The Lowdown: Grillitsch profiled

Grillitsch, who shares the same agent as Patrick Bamford, Dan James and Luke Ayling, has been with Hoffenheim since 2017 but is out of contract at the end of June.

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The Austria international has made 151 appearances for his current employers, contributing to 19 goals. The defensive midfielder has actually turned out as a centre-back in recent months, and it looks as if he is the latest player on Victor Orta’s radar.

The Latest: Whites tracking

The Telegraph’s Mike McGrath shared a transfer notebook on Friday morning, with Leeds getting a mention when it came to Grillitsch.

The Whites are thought to be monitoring the player ahead of a possible Bosman deal, with the reliable journalist also name-checking Arsenal and Everton with an interest.

The Verdict: Get it done…

Leeds appear in desperate need of midfield reinforcements ahead of Jesse Marsch’s first full season in charge with only four to choose from currently, so Grillitsch could be the perfect target to play alongside Kalvin Phillips.

Lauded as ‘extraordinary’ by Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann, Grillitsch has actually averaged more interceptions, clearances, key passes and fewer fouls than Phillips this season. [WhoScored]

Grillitsch can also play in a box-to-box midfield role, which could come in extremely handy at Elland Road, especially when you take into consideration the club’s injury woes this season.

The Whites can actually begin working on a pre-contract agreement for Grillitsch right now, however, their focus at this moment in time may well be on guaranteeing a third season in the Premier League before going after targets.

In other news: ‘Spoke to Leeds’ – Manager reveals talks with Radz for Orta signing; move possible before Palace. 

Celtic: Postecoglou must unleash Ralston

Celtic are back in action tomorrow with an SPFL clash against Ross County away from home to try and take another step towards securing the league title.

Last weekend saw the Hoops get knocked out of the semi-final of the Scottish Cup by Rangers in what was a disappointing afternoon for Ange Postecoglou and his side.

With that in mind, it could be bad news for County to have to come up against a wounded Celtic side looking to get back to winning ways.

However, one issue that the Bhoys will have to deal with is the absence of right-back Josip Juranovic, who will reportedly be out for the next couple of weeks through injury.

Despite this blow, it could pave the way for one Celtic figure to come in and shine for the team.

Opportunity knocks

Having only started one of Celtic’s six previous league games, Anthony Ralston has been in and out of the team since the turn of the year.

With 23 league appearances to his name in total this season, the right-back has shown what an attacking talent he can be by racking up four goals and seven assists.

Also, no other defender in Postecoglou’s squad has been able to have as many shots on target (13) or crosses (116) as the 23-year-old.

In addition to this, from a defensive point of view, only Juranovic (28) has won more tackles than the £1.62m-rated Scotsman (26).

This highlights just how much of a capable player Ralston is up and down the pitch and how much they will need someone like that while their other right-back is out injured, with the introduction of the 23-year-old potentially being a game-changer for the Bhoys.

Currently listed as the third-highest rated player at the Parkhead club, the full-back has earned himself an overall performance rating of 7.47 from WhoScored.

Labelled as a “soldier” on the pitch by Postecoglou, Ralston could use this time while the Croatian is recovering to really stake a claim that he should be the first-choice right-back at Parkhead.

Moving forward, in terms of the Hoops boss putting his starting XI together to take on County, he should have no reservations about putting the £10.5k-per-week Scotsman in from the beginning at right-back.

AND in other news: Sold at £2m, now worth £630k: Celtic struck gold on £11k-p/w dud with a “bad attitude”

West Ham set to keep Randolph

West Ham United could be set to hand Darren Randolph a new contract at the London Stadium.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Sami Mokbel, with the Daily Mail journalist revealing a post on Twitter that, following his link with a move to Aston Villa, David Moyes has no intention of sanctioning the departure of the 34-year-old this month, before going on to claim that the 58-year-old could even hand the Hammers third-choice shot-stopper a new deal in East London.

This comes following an earlier claim made by ExWHUemployee, with the club insider stating that West Ham are keen to move the goalkeeper on this winter – something that is largely down to the former Republic of Ireland international’s hefty weekly wage, which Moyes would rather spend on other areas of his squad.

However, in his tweet, Mokbel said: “Darren Randolph proposed move to Aston Villa unlikely to happen. David Moyes wants him to stay at West Ham and views him as a big part of the dressing room. Randolph could now be handed a new contract.”

Fans will be fuming

While Randolph is undoubtedly an extremely decent option as a third-choice goalkeeper, the fact remains that the goalkeeper is currently taking home a whopping £42k-per-week on his current deal, something that, considering his number of appearances this season, would indeed appear to be a waste of money – as ExWHUemployee suggests.

In the current campaign, the 34-year-old is yet to make a single appearance for the Hammers, with Lukasz Fabianski being Moyes’ first choice in the position, while Alphonse Areola has typically featured in both the Europa League and domestic cup competitions.

In fact, since the Irons resigned Randolph in a £4m deal two years ago this month, the ‘keeper has made a grand total of just nine appearances in all competitions, with only five of these outings coming in the Premier League.

Furthermore, in a recent poll ran on Football FanCast, the overwhelming majority of West Ham fans claimed that they would like to see the club allow Randolph to leave the London Stadium on a free transfer this month, as a result of the veteran shot-stopper’s lack of game time and hefty weekly wage.

As such, should the Irishman indeed be in line for a new deal in East London, as Mokbel suggests, it would undoubtedly leave fans of the Hammers fuming – and we have to say, we can understand why.

In other news: Sheth drops major WHU transfer update on “bombshell” signing, fans will be buzzing

Newcastle looking to snap up three players

A big update has emerged on Newcastle United and their plans to bring three players to St. James’ Park this summer.

What’s the talk?

90min reporter Graeme Bailey has revealed the three deals that PIF are plotting to complete heading into the upcoming transfer window as they look to bolster their squad for 2022/23.

Bailey Tweeted: “Newcastle United are ready to press ahead with the transfer plans they set in motion in January, and will look to finalise deals for Hugo Ekitike, Matt Targett and Jesse Lingard.”

Eddie Howe will be on cloud nine

The Magpies head coach will be left on cloud nine by this update as all three players would be excellent signings for the club.

Firstly, Targett would be a sensible, excellent, permanent signing for the Toon. He is a reliable, proven, Premier League performer who has been solid for Newcastle since joining on loan in January.

In the top-flight this season, he has averaged an impressive SofaScore rating of 6.92 across 29 starts, which shows that he can deliver on a regular basis from left-back in the division.

Secondly, Lingard has the potential to be an exciting addition to the team. He has found game time hard to come by at Manchester United this season but caught the eye on loan at West Ham last term as he scored nine goals and provided four assists in 16 league outings.

This shows that he has the quality to be a difference-maker at the top end of the pitch. The only question mark would be over whether he can sustain that over the course of an entire campaign as he caught fire in a six-month spell at the London Stadium.

Finally, Ekitike would be a phenomenal signing for now and for the future. He has produced nine goals and two assists in 14 Ligue 1 starts for Stade Reims and this suggests that he would be able to have an immediate impact on the team if he can adjust to English football.

However, he also has the scope to develop and improve over time at the age of 19. He has the majority of his career left ahead of him and that means he is a player the club can nurture over the course of a number of years, making him a good signing and investment at the same time.

Therefore, Howe will be on cloud nine if PIF can get all three of these deals over the line as they would all be fantastic additions in their own right.

AND in other news, Keith Downie drops exciting £50m Newcastle transfer claim that’ll delight supporters…

Wolves fans love Joao Moutinho goal footage

A number of Wolves supporters have been showing their love for Joao Moutinho after footage of his superb goal against Brentford was posted by the club on Twitter.

Wanderers carried on their magnificent recent form on Saturday afternoon, battling their way to a 2-1 win against the Bees in west London. A tight game saw Moutinho open the scoring with a great strike early in the second half, before Ivan Toney equalised and Ruben Neves bagged the winner.

It was another impressive day at the office for Moutinho, who is still producing big performances at the age of 35 and received an 8.6 match rating from Sofascore, the highest of any player in the match.

On Saturday night, Wolves’ official Twitter channel shared new footage of the veteran’s strike, further highlighting his evergreen brilliance as a footballer and showing why so many supporters are calling for his contract to be extended beyond its current expiry date of June 2022.

Wolves fans love Moutinho’s goal v Brentford

These Wolves fans took to Twitter to provide their thoughts on Moutinho’s goal, with one supporter hailing him as a “magician”.

“Jeff Shi I hope you’ve got his new contract ready to sign”

Credit: @juzzawwfc

“Magic!”

Credit: @mrwolf91231350

“Pure class today…there’s only one @JoaoMoutinho”

Credit: @NotoriousD0s

“He’s magic you know”

Credit: @shellwwfcsankey

“A massively underrated finish. Unreal from him”

Credit: @TomDudley97

“The greatest. Give him a new deal!”

Credit: @bromWWFC

In other news, Wolves have been boosted in their efforts to sign one player in January. Find out why here.

Rob Guest reveals Spurs’ transfer plans

According to football.london reporter Rob Guest, Tottenham are hoping to bring in three new additions before the January transfer window closes.

This will consist of a right wing-back, a central midfielder and a striker, with those positions “expected to be the priority”.

The Lowdown: Spurs rushed for time

Today marks two weeks until transfer deadline day, so Daniel Levy and Fabio Paratici haven’t much time left to deliver upon what was deemed a pivotal transfer window for the club.

Many rumours have arisen regarding additions and departures, but nothing has come to fruition so far, with zero signings or departures at Tottenham Way.

Antonio Conte recently indicated to Levy that the transfer situation at Tottenham is not where it should be, saying that the club’s “incredible” fans “deserve much more”.

The Latest: Three new additions expected

Guest said in a Q&A for football.london that Tottenham are hoping to secure three signings before the January transfer deadline, and it is expected that they will prioritise the additions of a right wing-back, a central midfielder and a striker.

He stated: “Hopefully it will be three new additions as a new right wing-back, central midfielder and striker are expected to be the priority this month. Monday marks two weeks until the transfer deadline and that leaves Daniel Levy and Fabio Paratici with limited time remaining to bring in new signings.

“However, Spurs have been known to be late movers in the transfer market in the past. As Jose Mourinho was backed in his first transfer window as Spurs boss with a couple of new additions, Levy has to do the same with Conte. Tottenham have a world-class manager at the club and they need to keep him happy about the level of backing he will get at Tottenham.”

The Verdict: Ambitious but necessary

Additions to Spurs’ squad are a necessity for a number of reasons. Firstly, the squad is light on depth, with a lack of cover an obvious issue in a few positions.

Perhaps even more importantly, transfer activity will be crucial in keeping Conte happy. If a hugely successful manager like him is not backed by the club after promises to the contrary, he could become disenchanted – you only have to look at how his time at Chelsea ended acrimoniously.

Also, if Spurs are to fight for Champions League qualification, they will need to bolster the quality of options they have in their squad, as currently a few injuries could leave a lasting impact on the Lilywhites’ season.

Three signings is an ambitious mission with two weeks left in the window, but Spurs need to do their utmost to try and deliver on that before the end of the month.

In other news: “All depends on…” – Alasdair Gold drops big Spurs transfer update as Paratici waits for club’s decision

Celtic on brink of permanent Jota deal

Celtic’s pursuit of a permanent deal for Jota could be ‘close to reaching completion’, according to The Daily Record. 

The lowdown: Busy Hoops

Celtic have had a busy January transfer window so far, with four deals already completed.

Reo Hatate, Yosuke Ideguchi and Daizen Maeda have all arrived from the J1 League, while Johnny Kenny has joined from Irish outfit Sligo Rovers.

The Hoops are also lining up another new face in the form of Charlotte FC midfielder Riley McGree.

And on top of that, they’re hoping to turn summer loan deals for Jota (who belongs to SL Benfica) and Cameron Carter-Vickers (a Tottenham Hotspur player) into permanent moves.

The latest

The Record’s Craig Swan and Michael Gannon write that the club have been in talks with Benfica over a ‘long-term agreement’.

And those discussions ‘have progressed well’, with Jota now described as being on the ‘brink’ of becoming a Celtic player.

It’s thought that he will cost them around £6million, potentially ranking the deal as one of the ten biggest in their history.

The verdict

You could make the argument that tying down Jota would be Celtic’s most important piece of January business so far.

The 22-year-old has proven that he can light up Scottish football, scoring five goals and providing four assists in his first 11 Premiership appearances.

Jota has also shone on the continental stage with four direct goal contributions in his five Europa League group stage outings.

Overall, only Kyogo Furuhashi (15) can boast more goal involvements, and he’s played four more games.

Jota may only get better in the coming years too, and so there’s also significant resale potential here if he keeps playing at the level he has this term.

Ange Postecoglou certainly can’t complain about a lack of backing midway through the season, with the McGree (£2.3million) and Jota deals set to take their January spend to roughly £10.5million.

In other news, Celtic are willing to sell a fan favourite on the cheap.

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