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Leeds United remain interested in signing Sampdoria centre-back Omar Colley in the near future, according to a fresh transfer rumour.

The Lowdown: Colley linked with Leeds move

The 32-time capped Gambia international has been continually linked with a move to Elland Road this year, as Marcelo Bielsa eyes up defensive reinforcements – Victor Orta and co were allegedly interested as far back as June.

Despite summer interest from Elland Road however, Colley ended up staying put at Sampdoria, where he has made 17 Serie A starts this season, continuing to be a key man for the Genoa-based outfit.

With Leeds suffering from a centre-back shortage, it looks as though the 29-year-old is still on their radar ahead of the January transfer window.

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The Latest: Transfer rumour returns

That’s according to TEAMtalk, who claim that the Whites are ‘back on his trail’, with Everton and Newcastle United also seen as potential suitors.

Colley’s current Sampdoria deal doesn’t expire until the summer of 2025, so he may not come cheap with his current employers holding a strong negotiating position.

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The Verdict: Strong option

At 29, Colley doesn’t necessarily represent the long-term but he could be an ideal signing in the January transfer window, as Bielsa surely needs to bring in an immediate upgrade at centre-back in the absence of Liam Cooper and Pascal Struijk.

He is an experienced international player so he shouldn’t find it too difficult adjusting to life in the Premier League, averaging 1.8 tackles and 3.2 interceptions per game in Serie A – that is far more interceptions than any Leeds player this season.

Robin Koch (2.0) has the most interceptions for Leeds in 2021/22 but his average is still comfortably lower than Colley’s, showing what a savvy and dominant defender he is.

In other news, Phil Hay has made a transfer claim regarding one player. Find out who it is here.

Junior Firpo’s struggles at Leeds United continued despite a more encouraging display in their 3-1 win over Burnley on Sunday afternoon.

The victory proved crucial to Marcelo Bielsa and his side as it moved the Yorkshire giants a whopping eight points clear of the relegation zone, leaving plenty of breathing room heading into the second half of the season.

However, the summer signing bore the brunt of the Argentine’s anger once again, according to LeedsLive reporter Beren Cross.

Firpo has struggled to adapt to the Premier League since his £13m move from Barcelona, even drawing criticism from sections of the Elland Road faithful at times and once again, he may have failed to impress his boss.

“Much like [Jack] Harrison, it’s not really been Firpo’s season. But today was again, without being exhilarating and astounding, very, very solid. And it feels like another step forward for him,” explained the journalist before adding some cause for concern:

“And I think you can see he frustrates Bielsa at times with his positioning, and I mean, we joked at one point he was playing like the number nine off [Tyler] Roberts. And from where we’re stood, you have to kind of make some assumptions on what Bielsa is saying and who he’s saying it to, but it looked very clear like he was shouting at Firpo, saying ‘what are you doing up there?’

“We know he loves to roam forward, he can’t help himself. He’s almost like a kid in the playground.”

The former Spain U21 international has been trusted to start the bulk of Leeds’ matches at left-back but that’s mainly because the club saw the departure of both Barry Douglas and Gjanni Alioski during the summer window, so really, he’s the only out-and-out option in the role.

In terms of average performance across the 2021/22 campaign, Firpo ranks as Bielsa’s worst-performing player (of those to start ten or more games), per WhoScored.

He is one of three players to have already amassed five yellow cards, which suggests he has found it difficult to combat the opposition regularly – one particular game against Brighton stands out as a fine example.

Bielsa had to hook the £10.8m-rated dynamo after just one half due to his inability to handle Tariq Lamptey. He was a walking liability, so it’s no wonder he was withdrawn early.

Thought to be earning around £55k-per-week, it may be wise for Bielsa to be ruthless and just axe him from the starting XI for the foreseeable and in a transfer window, an adequate replacement could quite easily be found.

Cross’ comments provide little encouragement to Firpo ever cutting the mustard at Elland Road. A brutal call considering his slightly positive performance but ultimately one that may be required in the long run.

AND in other news, “They’ve been watching him”: Journo teases Leeds transfer claim, fans will be buzzing…

This week, Everton signed Anwar El Ghazi from Aston Villa on loan until the end of the season, with Toffees manager Rafael Benitez surely delighted that he has signed up another attacking threat for his side to create more chances after a poor first half of the season.

Fabrizio Romano has now added a further detail on the move which will be of interest to Everton fans.

What’s the word?

The journalist has taken to Twitter to add details of a €10 (£8.35m) purchase option on the loan signing of El Ghazi.

The transfer insider tweeted: “Official and confirmed. Anwar El Ghazi joins Everton on loan from Aston Villa, deal sealed and now announced. #EFC

“Buy option will be regularly included as reported yesterday – not mandatory, around €10m.”

The Netherlands international joined the squad at Goodison Park from Aston Villa on Thursday, the same day that Lucas Digne left the Merseyside club to join Steven Gerrard’s side in a £25m move.

Benitez will be delighted

Benitez’s first season at the Everton helm has been a tough one thus far, and the Spaniard is hoping to improve matters by making signings in January to cover key positions and adding new players to resolve clear issues in the side. One of those is scoring and creating goals, with only five wins in the league and 1.28 goals scored per game compared to the 1.78 per game they are conceding.

El Ghazi joins a number of attacking players in the squad, such as the likes of Richarlison, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend, with the first two missing large chunks of the season through injury. That has duly hindered the goal threat that Everton has posed so far this season, with the duo netting 34 times between them last term.

The 26-year-old Dutch winger has not had too many opportunities this season to make an impact at Villa Park, with just 12 appearances in all competitions. However, during his time at the club over the last three-and-a-half years, El Ghazi has either scored or set up a goal every 180 minutes (once every two games, effectively), with 26 goals and 16 assists in just 119 appearances for the club, proving that he can be a consistent threat in front of goal.

Benitez will be delighted to add a player with such consistency, something the Toffees have been completely lacking all season, winning just one of their last 12 games in the Premier League. For the bargain price of £8.35m, El Ghazi fits the club’s tight budget, and the loan move gives the Goodison Park hierarchy the chance to weigh up whether or not he would be worth the financial commitment of a permanent deal.

In other news: Benitez must make a move for this defender

Antonio Conte will be without as many as four first-team stars for the second leg of Tottenham Hotspur’s Carabao Cup semi-final clash with Chelsea this evening…

What’s the latest?

Spurs will need to overturn a two-goal deficit if they are to qualify for their second successive League Cup final but that seems an even bigger ask following a fresh injury update.

“[Eric] Dier, [Heung-min] Son, [Steven] Bergwijn, [Cristian] Romero all missing for tomorrow,” revealed Press Association Sport journalist Jonathan Veal to Twitter on Tuesday.

All four players missed the Lilywhites’ FA Cup third-round victory over League One minnows Morecambe at the weekend but the Blues present a much tougher test.

Big blow

Indeed, it is an even taller order for Spurs to get a result at home this evening as all four players would have improved their chances tenfold.

Aside from Harry Kane, who has been out of form for much of the season anyway, Son is Conte’s main source of goals and creativity. He leads the squad with eight strikes, four more than the Englishman, as well as assists (three) and key passes (1.9 per game), per WhoScored.

Elsewhere, without his first-choice defensive pairing of Dier and Romero, the Italian is left short on options at the back.

It means he will have to once again fall back on Japhet Tanganga and Davinson Sanchez, who were both at fault in the first leg last week, to partner left-back Ben Davies, who has been playing centrally.

Spurs also have the small matter of the north London derby on Sunday, so it’s a tricky dilemma for Conte – does he risk the remainder of his first-team squad in a game that seems out of reach or does he try and salvage a place in the final at Wembley?

That still remains to be seen but the Italian head coach will surely be frustrated – if not gutted – by these continuous and quite frankly, major injury problems, even more so as he faces his former club once again.

AND in other news, Contact made: Spurs have “sounded” out “phenomenal” 35-goal star, fans will be fuming…

Many Everton fans have been flocking to some early team news before their game at home to Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday lunchtime.

Speaking in his pre-game press conference ahead of the match, interim manager Duncan Ferguson has revealed (via Phil Kirkbride) that Fabian Delph has a ‘long term injury’.

He has critical of his performance in that fixture.

Nonetheless, his long history of injury problems has meant that he has never been able to get a consistent run in the team, and so with the January transfer window open, now may be the time for the Toffees to cut their losses on the central midfielder.

Everton fans on Delph injury news

These Blues were left reacting to the injury news on Delph as it was shared by The Liverpool Echo journalist Kirkbride on his official Twitter page:

“Absolute disaster of a signing. Illustrates the current challenges of the squad. High earner, non starter/performer. Get rid as soon as possible”

Credit: @nickjones314

“Release him. Pointless”

Credit: @CoppellRob

“Legs have seized up due to inactivity. One wage thief that”

Credit: @steven_mi11s

“Just pay him his robber money, rip the contract up and point him towards the exit door. Unbelievable fake footballer.”

Credit: @ninetitles

“Man is a stealing a living”

Credit: @Greeney73570937

“Cancel his contract”

Credit: @richythepigeon

In other news, find out what manager update has Evertonians raging here!

Sky Sports have provided a live TV update on Aston Villa’s pursuit of Juventus midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur.

The Lowdown: Bentancur or Kamara?

Villa are seeking a holding midfielder before the month is out and have seemingly moved on from Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma after a £25m bid was rejected.

Bentancur appears to be the club’s main target, although according to Fabrizio Romano, Marseille’s Boubacar Kamara is also on the list.

The latter is primarily a defensive midfielder whereas the former, who has won nine trophies at club level, has mainly been used as a central midfielder, and an update has emerged regarding Bentancur.

The Latest: Sky Sports update

Sky Sports provided an on-air update regarding Villa’s attempts to sign the Juventus beast on Monday.

Relayed by Football Daily, ‘some breaking transfer news’ was shared, with Villa yet to make an official bid for the Uruguayan.

A ‘significant’ sell on-clause inserted by Boca Juniors may impact a possible transfer, with Juventus valuing Bentancur at ‘over’ £16m.

The Verdict: Move for Kamara?

Should a deal for Bentancur prove complicated, then perhaps Johan Lange should move on to Kamara with just six days remaining in the transfer window.

As mentioned, his natural position is a defensive midfielder who can also play at centre-back if required, and he has plenty of experience for his current employers.

Kamara is out of contract at the end of the season, with Marseille seeking just £10m for a January switch. Villa have already spoken to his agent, so should a move for Bentancur fail to materialise, the 22-year-old could be an excellent alternative.

In other news: ‘Crazy to sell’ – Lots of Villa fans flock to update as Newcastle swoop for Gerrard regular

Fabrizio Romano has shared some ‘bad news’ for Manchester United regarding forward Edinson Cavani.

The Lowdown: Cavani’s injury problems

Cavani’s 2021/22 season has been one to forget, with the striker missing large parts of the campaign due to quarantine issues, knocks, tendon irritation and most recently a groin problem.

The 35-year-old has been limited to just six Premier League starts as a result, making a return to action against Tottenham prior to the international break.

He went away with Uruguay and featured against both Peru and Chile, however, Cavani appears to have picked up a fresh problem during the international break.

The Latest: Romano’s post

Romano took to Twitter in the early hours of Wednesday morning to relay news of Cavani’s latest injury. He said:

“Bad news for Manchester United as Edinson Cavani leaves the pitch with an injury during Uruguay game. New problem for el Matador.”

Manchester United have since confirmed that the striker is now a doubt for the match with Leicester City on Saturday following the fresh problem.

The Verdict: End of the road?

Cavani impressed during his first season at Old Trafford, scoring 17 goals in all competitions to earn him a new 12-month deal.

Unfortunately, the experienced striker hasn’t been able to replicate his form this year, so a summer exit could well be on the cards.

It looks set to be a summer of change for the Red Devils off the pitch, with a new manager coming in to replace interim boss Ralf Rangnick.

Cavani is just one of a number of United players out of contract at the end of June, so his days at the club could be numbered following this latest injury blow.

In other news: ‘Led to believe…’ – Insider now drops major claim on Bruno and Ten Hag following Man Utd talks. 

Celtic moved six points clear at the top of the Premiership table as they beat their rivals 2-1 in the Old Firm clash on Sunday.

Ange Postecoglou may have been fearing the worst when the home side took the lead in the opening minutes of the match, as Aaron Ramsey fired past Joe Hart to make it 1-0 at Ibrox.

The Hoops rallied quickly and soon found themselves level as Tom Rogic followed up on a save from Allan McGregor to make it 1-1.

A scrappy sequence of play in the box from a cross then resulted in Cameron Carter-Vicker smashing the ball past the veteran Scot to make it 2-1 just before half-time, with Celtic able to see out the three points in the second half.

One player who let Postecoglou down badly was left-back Greg Taylor as the defender looked well off his best form on the day.

On the ball, he was not a reliable option for his teammates. As per SofaScore, he gave possession away 17 times as he only completed 64% of his attempted passes. He failed to complete a single long ball or cross in his 71 minutes on the pitch, whilst completing zero dribbles to get his team up the pitch.

This allowed Rangers to intercept his passes and regain possession from his mistakes. He found himself incredibly lucky as the home side were unable to make the most of the attacks that he gifted them, with Carl Starfelt and Carter-Vickers producing colossus displays at centre-back to keep them at bay.

Defensively, he was sloppy. Ally McCoist, in the Sky Sports commentary, dubbed his defending as “very poor” and the statistics back that up. Via SofaScore, he lost four of his five ground duels and only made one tackle in the match, whilst being dribbled past once.

This shows that Rangers were able to get the better of the full-back on the physical side of the game. He was too weak in his individual battles and, again, was lucky that Gio van Bronckhorst’s side did not punish him for it.

Postecoglou will now be hoping that he will be able to turn in a better display against St. Johnstone next time out in the Premiership. This performance was not good enough, defensively or offensively, and he will know that he must up his standards if he wants to keep his place in the starting XI.

AND in other news, £3m wasted: Celtic had a shocker on £7.9k-p/w “loner” who rinsed Desmond for 129 weeks…

Matt Doherty is looking like a man possessed at Tottenham Hotspur under Antonio Conte.

On Sunday afternoon, the north London outfit moved into the Premier League’s top four with an emphatic 5-1 victory over Newcastle United and the Irishman notched his second goal and fourth assist from his last six outings.

It’s been a complete turnaround for the 30-year-old, who has seemingly been on the chopping block until now. A prolonged run in the side has catapulted his name into the Italian’s starting XI on a regular basis recently – even out of position, as with this weekend, he has delivered.

Signed in a £15m deal from Wolves by Jose Mourinho in the summer of 2020, Doherty had struggled to truly make his mark at the club. By February 2021, his future at the Lilywhites was described as ‘uncertain’ by ESPN, who claim that the Portuguese was unconvinced by his progress.

Mourinho could even be heard berating Doherty throughout one encounter against Liverpool. And then under his former Old Gold boss Nuno Santo at the start of this current campaign, he still couldn’t get into the lineup, which is rather damning.

The Athletic believed he was one player that could’ve been sold by Nuno and sporting director Fabio Paratici.

It’s a very good thing they didn’t because he’s now thriving under Conte and the weekend’s impressive win displayed his true qualities, playing in a system that suits him right to a tee.

As per WhoScored, the £10.8m-rated Doherty has now made 11 tackles, six interceptions and seven key passes across his last six outings, proving to be a major influence at either end of the pitch for Spurs.

He was one of a few players to be graded a standout 9/10 by Evening Standard reporter Dan Kilpatrick in his post-match ratings column.

‘Forced out of position to left wing-back, he finished with a goal and an assist to continue his resurgence. Has shown tremendous character to rebuild his Spurs career,’ he wrote.

Earlier in the year, Doherty was described as “utterly thrilling” by The Athletic’s Jack Pitt-Brooke, whilst analyst Statman Dave lauded him as “revitalised”.

Indeed, the £74k-per-week Mourinho flop is a completely different animal now.

AND in other news, Paratici could repeat Pogba masterclass at Spurs with “unbelievable” £36m-rated wizard…

Sky Sports have dropped a live TV update on Manchester United and their pursuit of Ajax boss Erik ten Hag.

The Lowdown: United closing in?

It seems as if the Red Devils are looking to get a deal for Ralf Rangnick’s long-term replacement in place before the summer.

United officials spoke with both Ten Hag and Mauricio Pochettino last month, with a move for Ten Hag now gathering pace.

The Telegraph revealed on Wednesday evening that United are close to appointing the Dutch manager at Old Trafford, with negotiations moving very quickly.

The Latest: Sky Sports update

Sky Sports senior reporter Melissa Reddy dropped a live TV update on Thursday regarding United and Ten Hag.

Reddy revealed that United have insisted that no deal has been signed with Ten Hag. However, ‘sources close to Ten Hag and Ajax’ told Sky Sports that compensation and an ‘announcement’ have been discussed regarding the 52-year-old, with formalities expected to be completed soon.

The Verdict: A matter of time?

It looks as if it is now just a matter of time until Ten Hag is announced as Manchester United’s next permanent manager.

The club have done extremely well when it comes to working behind the scenes for Ten Hag, who is leading his side in a title race with PSV.

Finalising a move before May should give the Red Devils the best possible chance of a successful rebuild, instead of the club searching for a new boss during the summer window.

In other news: Fresh Man Utd ‘concern’ after Romano shares ‘bad news’ at Old Trafford.