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With Southampton still searching for their first Premier League win of the season, Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side are set to take on Leeds United at the weekend once the international break has ended.

Ahead of the match against Marcelo Bielsa’s side, who are only two points ahead of the Saints in the league table, Southampton could be without one of their regular players for the clash.

What’s the news?

It has recently been reported by the Daily Echo that Adams has been ruled out of Scotland’s World Cup qualifier against the Faroe Islands and is also a doubt for Southampton’s match at the weekend, which surely won’t make Hasenhuttl happy.

Southampton signed Adams back in the 2019 summer transfer window from Championship club Birmingham City on a five-year deal for a reported fee of £15m.

Since then, the 25-year-old, who is currently valued at £18m according to Transfermarkt has made 83 appearances for the Saints across all competitions, managing to score 13 goals and provide ten assists in the process.

Even though Adams has yet to score a goal for the Saints this season across all competitions and has only managed to provide one assist, we still feel Adams will be a big miss for the club if he can’t play against Leeds.

With the striker racking up 1.4 shots per game, the joint-third highest of any Southampton player in the league so far this season alongside James Ward-Prowse, he has still been an attacking threat. Follow that up with his 1.4 key passes per game, the joint-highest also alongside Ward-Prowse, and it demonstrates why his absence would be felt hard by the boss this weekend.

If Adams does end up being unavailable for the match at the weekend, we feel that Hasenhuttl should give Armando Broja a chance to start. He managed to score in midweek for Albania in their World Cup qualifier against Hungary so is in good form.

However, the manager will undoubtedly be hoping that Adams’ injury is not a serious one so he will be available for selection as soon as possible. The Saints need that first win of the season in order to climb away from the relegation zone.

In other news: Ralph must unleash “perfect” £9m-rated Southampton gem, he’s a real game-changer – opinion

Leeds United are not currently planning on loaning out Cody Drameh, Sam Greenwood and Crysencio Summerville in January, according to journalist Phil Hay.

The Lowdown: Leeds short on options

The Whites have struggled to replicate their form of last season in 2021/22 so far, getting themselves into a potential Premier League relegation fight, although today’s win over 18th-placed Burnley has given them a more comfortable cushion from the bottom three.

Injuries have been a clear reason for that, with important figures such as Luke Ayling, Kalvin Phillips and Patrick Bamford all missing for sizeable chunks of the campaign.

The hope is that new signings are made in the January transfer window, but young trio Drameh, Greenwood and Summerville have all been linked with winter loan moves away from Elland Road in recent days.

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The Latest: Hay unsure over rumoured loan exits

Speaking in a Q&A for The Athletic on Sunday, Hay cast doubt over the trio leaving this month at a time when as many squad players as possible may be needed at Leeds. He warned:

“The head count is already very low so they’d need to be extremely careful about losing anyone. As it stands, there are no agreements for anyone to move out. Incomings could change that but it’s been quiet on that front too so far.”

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The Verdict: Makes little sense as things stand

In normal circumstances, it would make complete sense letting Drameh, Greenwood and Summerville leave on a temporary basis, allowing them to enjoy more regular first-team football elsewhere for the rest of the season.

However, the current injury situation means it would feel like a needless risk to send them out, even though they hopefully won’t be needed too often given their lack of experience. They have made nine appearances between them this season, which suggests that they can do a job when called upon.

Loan moves for the trio in the summer would make more sense for Leeds, but as Hay has said, if there are multiple January arrivals, it could allow Bielsa the luxury of arranging temporary exits for the youngsters later this month.

In other news, one Leeds player is set to leave the club this summer. Find out who it is here.

An injury expert has now dropped a Newcastle United claim on Callum Wilson before they play Norwich City away from home in the Premier League.

The Lowdown: Shooting drills

As cited by The Shields Gazette, Eddie Howe has revealed that Wilson has taken part in some low-level shooting drills as he looks to step up his recovery from injury.

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The striker was reportedly confident of making his return against the Canaries, and the Toon Army will no doubt be eager to hear an update on his situation from Howe before the game on Saturday afternoon.

The Latest: Injury expert

Speaking to Football Insider, medical expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in both medicine and data analysis, has claimed that Wilson is now ‘moving in the right direction’, and that it would be ‘fantastic’ if he could still play a part in the run-in:

“He is moving in the right direction.

“They will be proceeding with caution given his history with soft tissue injuries.

“With this injury specifically, you need to be careful with him because there is that danger there.

“If it was a choice between bringing him back too early or having a fully fit and firing Callum Wilson next season, you’d take the latter.

“If he does play some part in the run-in, fantastic. As long as he is moving in the right direction, that will suit Newcastle.”

The Verdict: Big boost

It would certainly be a big boost if Wilson could come back for the remainder of the run-in, starting with NCFC on Saturday.

Amazingly, he is still their top scorer this season with six goals despite his injury setback, and would be useful in getting the St. James’ Park faithful to finish as high up in the Premier League table as possible.

Nonetheless, a nice run of matches will get him best prepared for next term, where the North East club will be hoping to kick on after a potentially busy summer transfer window.

In other news, find out who NUFC’s three worst players were against Crystal Palace here!

Celtic have made a move to bring Riley McGree to Parkhead in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Anthony Joseph, with the Sky Sports journalist revealing in a post on Twitter that Celtic have made an offer of an initial £2.5m for the Charlotte FC midfielder, with various add-on fees currently being finalised between the two clubs.

Joseph goes on to state that both Nottingham Forest and Middlesbrough are also interested in a move for the 23-year-old, who has spent the last 14 months on loan at fellow Championship side Birmingham City.

However, Ange Postecoglou’s side are now believed to have reached an advanced stage in their discussions regarding the Australia international’s transfer this month.

In his tweet, the journalist said: “Celtic have made a move for Charlotte FC midfielder Riley McGree. Nottingham Forest and Middlesbrough also expressed their interest. But talks with Celtic are understood to have reached an advanced stage on a deal worth an initial £2.5m, with various add-ons being finalised.”

Fans will be buzzing

Considering how impressive McGree had been for Birmingham this season – before being recalled by Charlotte FC in December – the news that Celtic appear to be closing in on the signing of the central midfielder this month is sure to have left the Parkhead faithful buzzing.

Indeed, over his 13 Championship appearances in the current campaign, the £540k-rated man scored two goals, registered two assists and created three big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of 1.4 key passes and taking 1.8 shots per game.

The £5.7k-per-week midfielder also impressed in metrics more typical of his position, making 1.3 interceptions, 1.2 tackles, 22 passes and winning 4.8 duels per fixture.

These returns saw the 23-year-old earn a rather remarkable average SofaScore match rating of 7.02, ranking him as Lee Bowyer’s sixth-best performer in the second tier of English football.

As such, it is clear for all to see that McGree would make an exceptional addition to Postecoglou’s current options in the middle of the park at Celtic, which is why the news that the Bhoys appear to be closing in on a £2.5m deal for the Australian is sure to have left everyone involved with the club extremely excited.

In other news: Ange could be set for grave Celtic error on “rock-solid” 21 y/o as Jan bids confirmed

An update has emerged on Newcastle United and their pursuit of Marseille forward Bamba Dieng…

What’s the talk?

According to the Express, PIF are interested in a deal to sign the attacker for the Magpies and could land him on loan with an obligation to make it permanent in the summer.

The report claims that the Ligue 1 outfit are prepared to sell him for a fee in the region of £10-15m, with Newcastle, Brighton and West Ham are considering a swoop.

Howe’s own Drogba

Eddie Howe could find his own Didier Drogba by securing a deal to bring Dieng to St. James’ Park before the end of the month.

El-Hadji Diouf previously compared the forward to the Premier League and Chelsea icon whilst hailing his potential, saying:

“I knew him from the Senegal national youth teams. He’s a forward, a Didier Drogba [kind of player]. All he knows how to do is score goals. I watched him when he was with Diambars [Dieng’s former club in Senegal] and he wasn’t far off being one of the best strikers in the Senegalese league [Dieng was top scorer in the 2019/20 season, his first as a professional].

“He’s a young player who has a future. The Senegal national team has perhaps also found its own great striker. All I can say to him is that he should keep his head on his shoulders, and carry on working hard. Out of three chances, he’ll score two. He’s a striker who finishes when he’s in the box.”

Drogba scored 104 goals and provided 55 assists in 254 matches for Chelsea in the Premier League throughout his career, which shows how highly Diouf rates the young Marseille man. He is not performing to those levels yet but he could have the potential to get there and this is why he could be an excellent signing for Newcastle.

Dieng may not be the player they need to come in and save them from relegation this season, but he could be someone Howe is able to work with over time to develop him into being the next iconic centre-forward of the Premier League era if he is able to fulfil his potential.

At the age of 21, he has the world at his feet and the Magpies could bed him in slowly, allowing him to learn from the likes of Callum Wilson and Chris Wood whilst picking up Premier League experience along the way.

Jorge Sampaoli previously lauded him as an “explosive” talent and he has burst onto the scene in Ligue 1 this season, with four goals in 14 games (seven starts). He has also scored one goal in two games for Senegal at the African Cup of Nations, showing that he is starting to find his form at senior level for club and country.

This suggests that he could have the potential to score goals on a regular basis at the top level, but he is yet to show that he can do it over the course of an entire season let alone four or five. Therefore, he could be a great signing for the future and Howe could mould him into his own version of Drogba in the coming years.

AND in other news, “Hearing that NUFC have..”: Pete Graves drops big transfer twist, it’ll infuriate Howe…

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Crystal Palace have had a pretty unremarkable season so far and while there have been some spectacular high points – see the 3-2 win over Manchester City and Andros Townsend’s thunderbolt volley – the Selhurst Park faithful can feel disappointed that they have been unable to break their season-after-season relegation battle, considering the quality they have in all areas of the pitch.

Roy Hodgson is sometimes guilty of choosing the wrong approach or making peculiar tactical decisions but he and his players deserve credit for the extraordinary turnaround during the 17/18 season, in which a number of players stepped up to the plate and proved their value.

This season, though, there have been few remarkable performers and arguably more who have declined. Who, then, are Palace’s most improved and far removed players?

Most improved: Jeffrey Schlupp

While Aaron Wan-Bissaka has certainly been the Eagles’ most impressive and consistent player this season, the 21-year-old has been that good since his debut in February last year, while Jeffrey Schlupp has come on leaps and bounds since last campaign.

The Ghanaian is taking the label of ‘utility man’ to a whole other level – deployed at left-back, left-midfield and, more importantly, central-midfield, the former Leicester man has been the surprise package of Palace’s season.

Tucked into a three, the 26-year-old has brought rare pace and a quality finishing touch to the Palace midfield, scoring five goals – a tally that brings him level with Wilfried Zaha.

Far removed: Patrick van Aanholt

Previously keeping Schlupp out of the lineup, van Aanholt was hugely impressive last season and struck up a dangerous partnership with Zaha on the left-flank, although this campaign he has looked less confident on the ball and his defensive shortcomings are being exposed far more often.

In the 17/18 season, the nine-cap Dutchman was a scoring threat for the Eagles, striking five times in 28 league appearances – however, he has netted just once in 26 appearances in 18/19.

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

When he isn’t contributing going forward, the reasoning behind starting the 28-year-old is far less convincing considering his often poor positioning on the back foot can be a liability. He can undoubtedly bounce back from this disappointing six months, although he needs to get his act together sooner rather than later.

According to The Daily Mail’s Craig Hope, Aston Villa have made informal contact with Paulo Fonseca over potentially replacing Dean Smith as manager.

What’s the story?

The Villa boss has come under increasing pressure in recent weeks following a run of form that has seen them lose their last four games in the Premier League on the bounce.

And now, Hope has revealed that Villa have sounded out Fonseca over becoming the club’s new manager, and that the contact with the Portuguese “indicates that candidates are being explored in the event of Smith going.”

Villa fans will be excited

Fonseca of course will already be a recognisable name to English football fans having previously been linked with the manager’s job at Spurs over the summer, and journalist Fabrizio Romano was quick to praise the former AS Roma boss for his time in Serie A.

He said: “He is perfect in the dressing room and perfect in his relationship with the players, which is something really needed at Tottenham at the moment. He likes to play a 3-4-2-1 formation and likes to play with quality and fast players behind the striker, and so he and the club will try to convince Harry Kane to stay.

“But, let’s see. He’s experienced, he’s a good manager and he has great relationships with his players, so it could be something interesting. The dressing room was very good during his time there and he was already appreciated by fans.”

What should really excite Villa fans however is the decisiveness with which the club’s owners appear to be acting, and ensuring that this recent run of form doesn’t get considerably worse before they feel like pulling the trigger.

With the international break looming, getting rid of Smith and appointing a new manager would give that man plenty of time to work with his current crop of players, instead of being asked to hit the ground running with a Premier League game right around the corner for instance.

Meanwhile, Ashley Preece has dropped the latest on Dean Smith’s future…

Everton are reportedly still keeping close tabs on Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Harry Winks ahead of the January transfer window, with manager Rafa Benitez desperate to reinforce his struggling side.

What’s the story?

According to Sunday People (as relayed by Goodison News), the 25-year-old is still wanted by the Toffees despite the recent departures of director of football Marcel Brands and head of recruitment and development Gretar Steinsson.

The newspaper report in their print edition (page 54, 12 December) that Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy will consider the sale of Winks if a suitable offer arrives over the coming months in order to provide new manager Antonio Conte suitable funds to rebuild his squad.

Rafa Benitez must seal Everton swoop

After rising through the ranks at his boyhood club, Winks has made 182 appearances for the north London outfit in all competitions and started their 2019 Champions League final defeat at the hands of Liverpool.

The technically gifted talent featured prominently during the reign of former manager Mauricio Pochettino, who lavished praise on the midfielder after a late winner against Fulham two years ago, stating he has the “quality” to score more goals.

And Winks’ eye-catching displays at club level earned him ten senior caps for England, with ex-Spurs and Three Lions goalkeeper Paul Robinson lauding his important role in the national team setup.

“For me, I think Harry Winks is one of the best of the bunch,” said the retired 42-year-old when discussing Gareth Southgate’s midfield options.

“He dominates the game, defensively and offensively he offers you both and his ball retention, the stats speak for themselves. A fit Harry Winks is an important selection for England.”

However, the £18m-rated gem has struggled for game time in recent months, starting just nine Premier League games last term before slipping even further down the Spurs pecking order this time around.

But Winks could be the ideal solution to Everton’s engine room woes. Since James Rodriguez’s departure, the Blues have struggled to open up opposition defences on a consistent basis, scoring just 20 goals in their 16 top-flight games to date.

As per WhoScored, no Tottenham player who started a league match bettered or matched his average of 70 passes per game last season, and he also topped the charts for pass completion after achieving a 90% success rate.

Winks’ impressive figures weren’t just down to selecting the safe and simple options every time, either. He managed 1.3 key passes per Premier League fixture in 2020/21 and pulled off 4.4 long balls – of all of the capital club’s outfield players, only Toby Alderweireld completed more (7.3).

Therefore, the diminutive technician could be the catalyst to transform Everton’s disappointing campaign, and Benitez must sanction a swoop this winter in order to add more quality to his squad.

And, in other news…Everton eye swoop for “immense” 6ft4 goliath, he could be a Rafa masterclass

As per 90min, a concerning contract update has come to light regarding Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah. 

The lowdown: The wait goes on

Despite all parties seemingly being at the table for some time, speculation continues to rumble on as to whether or not the 29-year-old will sign a new deal to remain at the club, having arrived from AS Roma in 2017.

Now into the final 18 months of a deal on Merseyside, Salah has already been linked with a sensational move to Barcelona in recent weeks, and the off-field discourse has seemingly impacted his on-field output as the usually lethal winger has failed to score from open play since netting against Norwich City in mid-February.

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However, perhaps unsurprisingly given his extraordinary goal return over the last five years, the club remain desperate to tie down the Egyptian King to a fresh contract.

The latest: Salah and Liverpool ‘some way apart’

According to 90min’s sources, Salah and Liverpool have been in discussions for ‘more than a year’ without a tangible breakthrough.

The report claims that the Reds’ owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) are ‘willing’ to make the 82-cap Egypt star the highest-paid player at Anfield, but there is a ‘reluctance’ to pitch him amongst the best earners in the Premier League.

Furthermore, it is stated that the parties are still ‘some way apart’ in their negotiations as Salah attempts to earn a pay rise on a current £200,000-per-week salary (Spotrac).

The verdict: Just get it done

Of all the important decisions facing the club over the upcoming months and years, securing the services of the £90m-valued superstar is perhaps the most important alongside Jurgen Klopp’s own future beyond 2024.

Prior to recent struggles, the man hailed as ‘extraordinary’ by Ian Wright following a lightning-quick start to the 2021/22 campaign had been one of the leading lights in world football and remains pivotal to Liverpool’s trophy success this term and beyond.

Despite suffering a recent dip, so far this season Salah has scored 28 times and provided another 10 assists in 38 appearances – levels of output which make the potential completion of a new deal a salient moment in the Reds’ future at the very top table.

In other news, three Liverpool players in particular stood out against Benfica. Read more here.

Aston Villa have seen many players join the club since the arrival of current owners Wes Edens and Nassef Sawiris.

However, the Villans were not shy when it came to dipping into the transfer market before the duo took control of the Midlands club back in 2018.

Although, as tends to happen with a lot of clubs, not all transfers end up being successful. One prime example of this at Villa is with their 2016 move for striker Ross McCormack.

Signed from Fulham in the 2016 summer transfer window in a deal worth a reported fee of £12m, the Scotsman ended up having multiple loan spells away from Villa Park at Nottingham Forest, Melbourne City, Central Coast Mariners and Motherwell before being released as a free agent in the 2019 summer transfer window.

The attacker only managed to score three goals in just 24 appearances across all competitions, meaning that he ended up costing Villa an alarming £4m-per-goal, which isn’t exactly the sort of return they’d have been hoping for given the money they paid out for him.

Even current Villa outcast Wesley managed to score more goals (5) than the Scotland international during his debut season with the Villa Park outfit.

With 20 Championship appearances under his belt in the 2016/17 season, the striker could only rack up nine shots on target and ended up getting more yellow cards (4) than goals, making him a liability across the pitch.

His performances that season ultimately earned the former Fulham attacker an uninspiring overall rating of 6.59, making him one of the lowest-rated outfield players to start more than one league game in that campaign according to WhoScored.

In addition to being a waste of space during matches, McCormack’s conduct away from the pitch was also cause for concern.

Back in January 2017, then-Villa boss Steve Bruce spoke publicly about the striker’s “failure to turn up for training,” further highlighting the nightmare the club had with the player, who Bruce said “will not play unless his attitude towards training and missing training improves.”

This wasn’t the first time the player’s behaviour had been called into question, as former Leeds United owner Massimo Cellino claimed he sold the striker to Fulham after McCormack was “aggressive” towards him.

Taking all of this into account, it’s safe to say that signing the 35-year-old was a major waste of money for Villa and probably should never have been bought by the club in the first place.

In other news: Lange set for disaster on “old fashioned” £100k-p/w AVFC gem, supporters would rage