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Promising Leeds United centre-back Leo Hjelde could miss the rest of the 2021/22 season through injury, according to expert Ben Dinnery.

The Lowdown: Injury setback for Hjelde

The 18-year-old is seen as a hugely exciting youngster at Elland Road, with his former Ross County manager John Hughes describing him as a ‘fantastic’ addition for the Whites upon signing him.

Hjelde has only made three appearances for Leeds this season and unfortunately he has suffered a severe setback, having picked up a leg injury against Everton.

It remains to be seen if the Norwegian will require surgery but the current situation doesn’t look positive.

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The Latest: Expert makes worrying claim over Hjelde injury

Speaking to Football Insider, injury expert Dinnery even hinted that Hjelde’s season could be over, especially if surgery is needed. He outlined:

“We don’t have a definitive diagnosis here, so we’re trying to read between the lines. In terms of the mechanism, it happened quite late in the game. Based on what we’ve seen in the past, it could be related to his meniscus.

“If that’s the case, they will try to manage it conservatively in this three-week period. The other option is surgical intervention, which is a real possibility.

“We’re two-thirds of the way through the season. Once you go under the knife, the expectation is that you can be three or four months out.

“If it is the meniscus, they will try it for that three-week period. If there’s a chance he can play again this season, great. But the reality is that, if you’re going to go under the knife, the focus is going to be getting ready for pre-season.”

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The Verdict: Don’t rush him back

It is vital that Leeds handle the teenager with care in his current situation, ensuring that he isn’t rushed back as it could potentially aggravate the problem further down the line.

The Norwegian is not in a situation where he is desperately needed by Marcelo Bielsa at the moment, having been used sparingly by the manager, and the most important thing is ensuring that he recovers fully.

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If that means Hjelde doesn’t return until next season, so be it, and he should be viewed as someone who can be a star in the future, rather than an inexperienced head who is thrown into the intense glare of Leeds’ current Premier League relegation battle.

In other news, another candidate has emerged in the race to potentially replace Bielsa. Read more here.

Leeds United could potentially sign Liverpool forward Takumi Minamino in the summer transfer window, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Minamino enjoying a productive season

The Japan international may not be a key figure at Anfield currently, with world-class names keeping him out of the starting line-up, but he is still having a good season.

However, Minamino has chipped in with an impressive tally of nine goals in all competitions, playing an important role in Liverpool winning the Carabao Cup.

Leeds have been linked with a move for the 27-year-old in the recent past and it may be a rumour which continues to circulate.

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The Latest: Leeds backed to make move for Minamino

Speaking to GiveMeSport, O’Rourke claimed that Jesse Marsch’s arrival at Elland Road could increase the chances of Minamino coming to Leeds, with the duo having previously worked together.

The journalist said: “Yeah, I still think it’s a position that Leeds need to strengthen. They’ve been so badly hit by Patrick Bamford’s absences this season through injury; they haven’t got much up there. Jesse Marsch knows all about him from his time at RB Salzburg.”

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The Verdict: Ideal summer signing

Minamino may not have been a huge success at Liverpool so far but he has shown his class sporadically and would be a shrewd summer addition at Leeds.

The fact that he and Marsch worked together at Red Bull Salzburg means that the Whites’ new manager is aware of his qualities, with Jurgen Klopp also hailing the 27-year-old as ‘exceptional’ after his match-winning double against Norwich in the FA Cup last week.

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Minamino’s versatility means he could thrive in a number 10 role, out wide or even leading the line. He could therefore be invaluable to squad depth, not to mention bringing undisputed quality in attacking areas.

Seventeen goals in 37 caps for Japan is also an impressive return, and if Liverpool are willing to part ways this summer, a move to Leeds could suit all parties.

In other news, Phil Hay has provided a key Leeds injury update. Read more here.

Brazilian midfielder Philippe Coutinho has been in excellent form since joining former teammate Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa side on-loan from Barcelona in January.

The 29-year-old has scored four goals and set-up three more in eight Premier League appearances, with one coming from off the bench, providing a big creative spark to a Villa team that have made great strides under their new manager.

One team that could do with some of that creativity in the final third is rivals Wolves, who have begun to be linked with the former Liverpool, Inter Milan and Bayern Munich star.

What’s the news?

In a report published by BirminghamMail, Wolves are waiting for Villa to make a final decision on Coutinho, with the West Midlands clubs both keen on permanently landing him.

Gerrard’s club have a clause with Barcelona to permanently sign him for £33m, but Wolves also have a good relationship with the La Liga giants, having sent Adama Traore on-loan there in January – with him expected to join permanently in the Summer.

If the chance arises, he’s a must sign

With Wolves having struggled to score goals this season so far, except in the week when they beat Watford 4-0, the club will be hoping to better their tally of just 28 at this stage of the season, next campaign.

However, with two of their most creative players in the shape of Portuguese duo Joao Moutinho and Ruben Neves both potentially out of the door, the Midlands club will be looking at potential replacements, as well as forwards with high output in the final third.

Ranking in the top 9% among attacking midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues and continental competitions for XG per 90 (0.43), and the top 3% for total shots per 90 (3.58), Coutinho would guarantee goal contributions wherever he ends up next season.

The “phenomenal” star with “magical powers” according to Liverpool striker Roberto Firmino, is rated by Transfermarkt at just £16.2m, but that valuation doesn’t reflect his performances in the Premier League this season, where he has averaged a 7.35.

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If Wolves do get the opportunity to bring him in, they must take it to ensure they get the best out of the likes of Pedro Neto and Raul Jimenez around him, and get them back to scoring plenty of goals – but also for the goals he would score himself.

In other news: Lage must ruthlessly axe “toothless” £19.8m-rated Wolves dud, he’s been a major flop

Rangers defender Jack Simpson remains the subject of interest from Birmingham City ahead of the summer transfer window, Football Insider report. 

The lowdown

Birmingham, along with fellow Championship side Middlesbrough, made contact with Rangers over a potential deal for Simpson late in the January transfer window but ultimately ran out of time.

The Englishman only moved to Rangers from Bournemouth a little over a year ago.

But he’s only made six appearances so far this season, totalling a mere 324 minutes of football.

Valued at £900,000 by Transfermarkt, he has more than three years left to run on his £161,200-per-year contract at Ibrox.

The latest

The report states that, as per a ‘recruitment source’, Birmingham are ‘still keen’ to land Simpson.

They’re said to be lining up a fresh bid for the 25-year-old ahead of the summer transfer window.

The expectation, following talks between Simpson and the Rangers hierarchy, is that he’ll return to England ahead of the 2022/23 season.

The verdict

Rangers’ Sporting Director Ross Wilson hailed the capture of a ‘much-coveted’ player last year, but that initial excitement has rather fizzled out as Simpson has struggled to establish himself.

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You can certainly understand why he’d want to leave, and there’s little need for Rangers to stand in his way. Most of his minutes this season have come against lower-league opposition in the domestic cup competitions.

The Gers are about to add to their centre-back ranks with the signing of John Souttar from Hearts, and you’d imagine that will only push Simpson further down the Ibrox pecking order.

In other news, the club have made a big call over Cedric Itten.

A major update has emerged on Newcastle United and their plans for left-back Jamal Lewis…

What’s the talk?

According to Football Insider, the Magpies are willing to part ways with the Northern Ireland international for a fee in the region of £8m.

The club signed him from Norwich City for £13.5m in the summer of 2020 and he was omitted from their Premier League squad for the second half of this season, with Eddie Howe now seemingly sanctioning his permanent exit.

Disaster

PIF are heading for a huge transfer disaster over Lewis as they will make a loss of £5.5m if they opt to sell him for the £8m touted in this report.

This potential deal will evoke bad memories of Mike Ashley for Newcastle supporters as the former Magpies owner sanctioned the transfer in 2020.

The move has been a failure from start to finish for the young defender as he has struggled throughout his time at the club, as he averaged a dismal SofaScore rating of 6.48 in his first campaign and a score of 6.46 this term.

It seems unlikely, at this point, that he will be able to force himself into the first-team fold again given his current situation. Matt Ritchie, Javier Manquillo, Emil Krafth, Paul Dummett and Matt Targett were all selected ahead of him as full-back options in January, which shows how far down the pecking order he is under Howe.

Newcastle have an option to sign Targett on a permanent basis from Aston Villa in the summer and that could put to bed any chance Lewis has of resurrecting his St. James’ Park career. This means that PIF are right to decide to cash in on the left-back, but that does not make it any less of a disaster for the club overall.

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They are set to make a huge loss on him within the space of two years and it is a timely reminder of what life was like under Ashley in regards to transfers.

It will also give PIF an idea of what not to do as they will want to avoid making the same mistakes as the Sports Direct supremo, as Lewis was brought in despite his attacking style of play not suiting Steve Bruce’s defensive set-up at St. James’ Park. They must ensure that they are signing players who suit the way Howe wants to play to avoid a repeat of this transfer failure in the future.

AND in other news, NUFC plot audacious bid to sign £81m-rated “genius”, he “makes football a pleasure”…

James Pearce admits it is hard to see where starts will come Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s way for Liverpool between now and the end of the season.

The Lowdown: Ox visibly frustrated at Forest

The Reds edged their way past Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Sunday, with Diogo Jota’s goal earning them a 1-0 win and a place in the semi-finals.

One player who struggled to make an impact at the City Ground was Oxlade-Chamberlain, who wasted an opportunity to shine in the middle of the park, completing zero of his four cross attempts and winning just one duel in the entire match (Sofascore).

The 28-year-old was visibly frustrated when he was substituted by Jurgen Klopp in the second half, reportedly shouting about his lack of chances to get up to speed.

The Latest: Pearce unsure over playing time

Writing in a Q&A for The Athletic on Sunday, Pearce admitted it is hard to see where Oxlade-Chamberlain will play a key role for Liverpool in their quest for an unprecedented quadruple:

“Ox struggled and yeah it’s tough to see where his next start comes from given the players ahead of him.”

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The Verdict: Time to leave Liverpool

Oxlade-Chamberlain’s Liverpool career has been more good than bad, with the midfielder his side’s fourth-top goalscorer in the Premier League title-winning season, but he is an increasingly peripheral figure who has so often struggled with injuries, missing 63 total games with two separate major knee injuries.

For that reason, and with his current deal running out in 2023, it makes sense to move him on this summer, with the club running out of time to receive a respectable fee for his services.

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Oxlade-Chamberlain earns £125,000 per week currently and those wages can go towards a younger signing who is viewed as a long-term option at Anfield.

In other news, Liverpool are interested in signing one attacking player this summer. Read more here.

Celtic are expected to make Jota’s loan move from Benfica permanent in the summer, Sky Sports report.

The Lowdown: Impressive Parkhead loan

Jota, who shares the same agent as Jose Mourinho, made the move to Glasgow on deadline day last summer, penning a season-long loan deal.

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That move included an option to buy at the end of the campaign, with reports believing a fee to make a move permanent is worth £6.5m.

The two-footed left-winger has starred in Scotland under Ange Postecoglou, scoring ten times and registering ten assists in 32 appearances.

He has been a key performer for the Hoops in what has been an impressive season, with a domestic treble still on the cards.

The Latest: Sky Sports claim

Sky Sports shared a story late on Tuesday evening, looking at 50 players who could be involved in transfers this summer.

One of those was Jota, with the report addressing the player’s long-term future. They said that Celtic are expected to sign Jota on a permanent basis, once again reporting a £6.5m fee.

The Verdict: Good news…

Jota has been a revelation at Parkhead, so it seems to be a no brainer to make his move permanent. No player has registered more assists than the Portuguese attacker, with Jota also high in the rankings when it comes to crosses completed and average match rating. [WhoScored]

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He would become Celtic’s eighth most expensive signing of all time, should a £6.5m deal go through, but he has shown this season what he will bring to the club, and you’d expect he’ll only get better due to being just 23 years of age.

In other news: Sky Sports: Celtic have opened talks for another player as well as Bayern midfielder Scott. 

Everton’s precarious position in the Premier League is likely to be a persuading factor among a number of their key players to leave the club this summer, along with their financial troubles.

If the Merseyside club survive and extend their stay in the top flight, manager Frank Lampard will likely face the toughest rebuild he has had to undertake during his coaching career, and there will likely be a strong emphasis on youth.

The £12.6m signing of Nathan Patterson in January from Rangers proved the club’s preference for signing younger talents to help rejuvenate the squad, and another hot prospect could be about to arrive at Goodison Park from the Scottish club this summer, 16-year-old Rory Wilson.

What’s the news?

According to the Daily Record, the Toffees had scouts watching the exciting Scotland U17 international, in their game against Germany U17s last week, as well as Celtic youngster Ben Doak.

The report also claims that the Rangers starlet was the focus of attention for Aston Villa and Brighton in a 6-1 thrashing of Georgia, which helped seal the Scots place in this summer’s U17 European Championship finals, scoring his third goal in three qualifying games.

Who is he?

Standing at 6 foot tall with plenty of time to grow even bigger, Wilson is potentially developing into a similar type of player as 6 foot 2 Dominic Calvert-Lewin – using his size, strength and athleticism to win duels and get into goalscoring positions.

The striker has scored seven goals in eight appearances at his current youth level for his country, showing signs of his enormous potential and demonstrating his prolific instincts in front of goal.

He has earned plenty of praise in his short time in the limelight, most notably from his international manager Brian McLaughlin, who believes he has an exciting future.

McLaughlin said after the Georgia victory: “Rory is another who can play again in the next campaign. We have been brave enough to go really young at this age group.

“So Rory is leading the line as a 2006 against big powerful 2005s.

“But he is a clever player, his touch is good, his attitude is superb and his finishing .. for a young boy to be able to finish the way he can finish, just clinical and calm in front of goals.

“It was another top performance from him and even when we put him on the left to give another young boy a chance off the bench it wasn’t a problem because he knows he can score off the left.”

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With the likes of Thomas Cannon and Lewis Dobbin also proving to be exciting young prospects already within the Everton youth team, Wilson would likely start behind them in the youth academy for at least a little while, but neither of them have made the same kind of impression on the international stage that Wilson has, and if the Toffees sign him, he will surely develop into a top talent.

Tall and devastating in front goal, having bagged 40 goals this season, he could certainly be their next Calvert-Lewin too.

In other news: Signed for £0, then became worth £35m: Everton struck gold over “king of blunders”

Tottenham have reportedly set a surprise price tag for the sale of star defender Micky van de Ven as Real Madrid plan a January move for the defender.

Tottenham set for busy January transfer window

Under-fire boss Thomas Frank has already confirmed the club’s intention to be active in recruitment next month, with the race heating up for Bournemouth star Antoine Semenyo.

Tottenham are reportedly prepared to shatter their wage structure in pursuit of Semenyo when the January window explodes into life.

The Ghanaian’s £65 million release clause activates on New Year’s Day, and the north London club have emerged as one of the most aggressive suitors for his signature, according to recent reports.

Frank views the 25-year-old winger as absolutely essential to transforming Spurs’ stuttering attack, with media sources claiming Tottenham are willing to make Semenyo their highest-paid player to win the race against Liverpool, Man City and Man United.

David Ornstein revealed this week that Spurs maintain genuine interest in the Bournemouth star alongside City’s Savinho as alternative options for wide attacking reinforcements.

Related Tottenham hold 'formal' talks with star over personal terms in 'crazy market'

Spurs have a battle on their hands.

Posts 1 ByEmilio Galantini

The club will have funds available if the right profile emerges, with January viewed as an opportunity rather than a luxury, according to credible reports.

Semenyo’s release clause carries a time-limited activation period early next month, specifically until January 10, before dropping closer to £50 million next summer — creating intense urgency among competing clubs.

Bournemouth, meanwhile, have reportedly accepted his departure is inevitable and are already identifying replacements, including Tottenham’s Brennan Johnson.

Right now, Janaury reports at Tottenham centre around their potential deal for Semenyo as Frank’s side try to inject some much-needed dynamism and creativity into their forward line.

Their first transfer window post-Daniel Levy carries plenty of intrigue, with the Lewis family undoubtedly keen to make a statement after plenty of boardroom changes in the last few months.

Therefore, this latest report from Spain on van de Ven and Real comes as all the more surprising.

Tottenham set bizarre Micky van de Ven price as Real Madrid circle

According to Spanish media sources, Xabi Alonso’s side are plotting a January deal for the Dutchman, who has marked himself out as one of the Lilywhites’ most crucial players this season.

Van de Ven’s stunning solo goal against FC Copenhagen, which drew comparisons to Son Heung-min’s Puskas winner against Burnley in 2019, is merely the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the centre-back’s contribution this season.

The 24-year-old has been a key man for both Ange Postecoglou and Frank, but it is now claimed that Spurs have set a £44 million ‘asking price’ for van de Ven as Real circle this winter.

Subscribe for in-depth Tottenham transfer insight and market context Get the newsletter for sharp analysis of Tottenham transfer moves—from van de Ven valuations to the Semenyo chase—and broader transfer-market breakdowns, contract context and transfer strategy. Subscribe for expert transfer coverage and clear explanations. Subscribe Subscribe for in-depth Tottenham transfer insight and market context Get the newsletter for sharp analysis of Tottenham transfer moves—from van de Ven valuations to the Semenyo chase—and broader transfer-market breakdowns, contract context and transfer strategy. Subscribe for expert transfer coverage and clear explanations.

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It’s safe to say that, regardless of the Bernabeu being an obvious temptation for any player, this should be taken with a pinch of salt.

Van de Ven is only an ever-present leader for Tottenham, but his contract also doesn’t expire until 2029, meaning the club are in a very strong position to demand big money for one of the Premier League’s most elite centre-backs.

Spurs are also believed to be readying talks over a new van de Ven contract which would double his salary, even if club legend Glenn Hoddle believes he won’t sign it.

Even if van de Ven being tempted away is a genuine possibility at some point in the future, if Spurs don’t improve, it certainly can’t be for just £44 million.

Related Scouts urging Tottenham to sign £40m star who's impressed PSG instead of Semenyo

Spurs have a quality alternative to the Ghanaian.

Posts 1 ByEmilio Galantini

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Graeme Souness has said that he feels the signings of Alisson Becker and Virgil van Dijk have allowed Liverpool to take a ‘quantum leap’.

Previously, with the likes of Simon Mignolet and Loris Karius sharing the gloves in goal, and players like Martin Skrtel and Alberto Moreno consistently in the starting eleven, the Reds were always susceptible to a defensive mix-up.

However, having splashed out £75m and £66m on the Dutchman and the Brazilian stopper respectively, Liverpool have shaped up at the back and are now gunning for the Premier League title – Jurgen Klopp’s men have kept the most clean sheets in the league this season with 17.

Is Jurgen Klopp a “serial bottler”? The fan in the video below certainly thinks so…

What’s he said?

Souness told Sky Sports: “People will point out if they don’t win the league or Champions League that it’s another year without winning a trophy, but each year they have got better and better.

“They have made a quantum leap this year by signing Virgil van Dijk and Alisson.

“They both got it wrong for the Fulham goal, but I can’t remember another time that has happened. They have been fabulous all year. Liverpool are a serious team now.”

Other clubs should follow Liverpool’s lead

We’ve seen in recent windows that some of the top clubs’ approach to the transfer window has been like a kid on FIFA, splashing huge amounts on any glistening name without thinking.

Chelsea, for example, have spent absurd amounts on the likes of Tiemoue Bakayoko, Danny Drinkwater, Davide Zappacosta and Alvaro Morata, all of whom play minimal roles in the first-team; two of them aren’t even at the club right now.

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In Liverpool’s case, they have been shrewd, patient and thoughtful in the market, and are reaping the rewards for identifying a target and ensuring that they get their man no matter what.