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Sky Sports journalist Keith Downie has talked up the possibility of a late Newcastle United loan move for Manchester United’s Donny van de Beek. 

The lowdown

The Athletic’s Laurie Whithwell says that that Van de Beek is one of the Man United players ‘looking at exits’ in the final week of the January transfer window.

But he anticipates that any deal will be ‘tricky’ given ‘the money required’.

Van de Beek, a £35.1million signing from Ajax in 2020, has only played 380 minutes of football for The Red Devils this season in all competitions.

He’s been an unused substitute in 14 Premier League matches already in 2021/22.

The latest

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Downie was asked whether Van de Beek was a potential marquee signing.

“I think he’s one that would fall into that bracket for Newcastle if he was available on loan,” he said.

“That’s the sort of signing that they could make, that big-name loan signing that could come in.”

The verdict

Van de Beek certainly ticks the ‘big-name’ box given the fee Man United paid to sign him. This is also a player who started all but one game on Ajax’s run to the 2018/19 UEFA Champions League semifinals and even earned a nomination for the Ballon D’Or.

It also feels like a fairly realistic transfer – Van de Beek will surely be desperate to play, whether that’s to prove to his current employers what he’s capable of when given a run of starts or to advertise his abilities to other suitors.

He might hope to make a similar impact to Joe Willock, who was an eight-goal revelation after making the loan switch from Arsenal this time last year.

Newcastle should, you’d think, be in a position to pay a hefty loan fee too, if that’s what the Red Devils demand.

In other news, could this outcast also be headed for SJP?

An update has emerged on Glasgow giants Rangers’ interest in bringing John Souttar to Ibrox next month…

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Record, Giovanni van Bronckhorst has taken over from where Steven Gerrard left off and may yet make a move for the defender in January.

However, the report does claim that English Championship side Blackburn Rovers have opened pre-contract talks with the 25-year-old, whose deal is up at the end of the season.

Ibrox could be rocking

Van Bronckhorst must ensure that Rangers can get a deal over the line for Souttar in January, as he could get Ibrox rocking by bringing him to the Scottish champions.

He is a proven Premiership performer who also has time on his side and he could be a phenomenal addition to the Gers’ squad. Supporters would surely love to see him playing for the Light Blues in the second half of the campaign and for many more seasons to come, and the announcement of his name on his debut could get fans excited if he does arrive at Ibrox to bolster the squad.

This season, he has averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.43 for Hearts across 18 starts. He has made 4.4 clearances per game and won a whopping 71% of his duels overall, showing that he has been consistently brilliant in his defending.

Former Hearts boss Craig Levein previously lauded the Scot, saying: “I’ve known him since he was 12 years old and he’s just got better and better. When he came here from Dundee Utd, we just needed to give him time. He’s grown into the player that I hoped he would be and for me he’s the best centre back in Scotland.

“Just for the fact that he can do wonderful things. His passing of the ball Saturday was fantastic, but he is also now capable physically of competing with any centre forward. His pace is very, very good and he’s strong, focused and aggressive.”

Along with his statistics from 2021/22, this shows why Souttar could be a fantastic player for Rangers, whilst he still has room to grow and improve at the age of 25. He could be the club’s first-choice centre-back for years to come and signing him in January could be a masterclass by Van Bronckhorst.

However, it will take some effort now to avoid losing out to Blackburn in the transfer race as they have already entered talks, which means that Ross Wilson and the Dutchman must get to work immediately to give themselves a chance of landing the Hearts defender.

AND in other news, GvB can finally axe the new “Alex Rae” from Rangers by signing £4m “conductor” in Jan…

West Ham United manager David Moyes is still interested in signing Manchester United star Jesse Lingard in this month’s January transfer window.

What’s the story?

The England international of course joined the London side on loan in January of last year, and was then kept by United during the summer.

But now, according to The Evening Standard, Moyes remains keen on exploring a potential January deal for Lingard, who despite his impressive campaign with the Hammers last year, has struggled to break into the United side this season.

Fans will be buzzing

After joining West Ham back in the January transfer window on a short-term loan, Lingard racked up an incredible nine goals and four assists in just his first ten Premier League games for the club – it was no surprise then that he was lauded as being “absolutely phenomenal”.

What marks Lingard out as a real threat is his timing of his runs, and it’s something Michael Carrick has previously raved about.

The United coach said: “He senses where the space is and how to use it. I wouldn’t necessarily say he’s a dribbler with skills and tricks but he’s dynamic. How he plays, he is unique in some ways. You don’t see so much of that now as everyone wants to get on the ball. Off the ball, he’s very effective.”

His performances with the Hammers showcased the kind of impact the £75k-a-week earning star can have when he’s on song and the confidence is flowing through his veins.

With West Ham still very much in the mix for a Champions League spot this season, adding that extra sprinkling of goals and dynamism in Lingard could well prove to be the difference-maker when it comes to those big moments and big games.

The £18m-rated star could enjoy another sparkling stint at the London Stadium were West Ham to make a move, and fans would surely be buzzing with seeing him back.

Meanwhile, West Ham are also interested in another Premier League star…

Even though Liverpool have managed to keep a clean sheet in all of their three previous games across all competitions against Arsenal, FC Porto and Southampton, the Reds have managed to concede more goals in the league than Chelsea and Manchester City.

With the upcoming January transfer window on the horizon, it seems as though the club could be in danger of losing one of their defensive players after Football Insider reported that West Ham United are interested in making a move to sign Nat Phillips.

Even though Phillips has only made two senior appearances for Liverpool so far this season, the club should have no plans to allow the defender to join West Ham in January.

Given how he ended up as Liverpool’s second-highest rated player in the Premier League last season with an overall performance rating of 7.29/10 according to WhoScored, Phillips certainly proved himself to everyone at the Merseyside club that he is more than capable of playing for them at a high level.

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In addition to his impressive overall performances in the league last season, the central defender also managed to rack up an average of 4.8 clearances per game, 1.3 tackles per game and 1.2 interceptions per game, highlighting his defensive talents.

Labelled as a “monster” for his efforts in the team last season by Klopp, it’s a shame that Phillips, who is currently valued at £7.2m according to Transfermarkt, has not been given the opportunity to shine once again this time out.

As a result of his impressive season, Liverpool offered the 24-year-old a long-term deal that will keep him at the club until the summer of 2025.

Taking this into account, it would seem rather silly for the Reds to let Phillips go in January after giving him a renewed contract just a few months ago.

With this in mind, it could be in everyone’s best interest if Jurgen Klopp starts to give Phillips some regular game time to make it clear that he is a valued member of the squad that has what it takes to be a long-term option for them in the future.

Furthermore, with Virgil van Dijk and Joel Matip now at the age of 30, Klopp could save Liverpool millions by unleashing Phillips once again. Cementing his place in the team could swerve Michael Edwards and co from hunting European shores for a pricey replacement.

In other news: Edwards must seal Klopp’s dream Liverpool deal in “electric” £20m “bulldozer” – opinion

Alan Hutton thinks James Forrest will travel with the Celtic squad for Sunday’s Scottish League Cup final against Hibernian. 

The lowdown

Celtic travel to Hampden Park to battle Shaun Maloney’s Hibs for the first silverware of the season.

Forrest secured their place in the final with a 73rd-minute strike against St Johnstone in the last four, having come off the bench.

Now he’s one of a trio of Hoops players hoping to prove their fitness in time to feature in the showpiece, along with Kyogo Furuhashi and Mikey Johnston.

Ange Postecoglou said in his pre-match press conference that he would use Saturday’s training session at Lennoxtown to make an assessment.

The latest

BBC Sport pundit Hutton thinks that, regardless of the results of that fitness test, Forrest will be part of the group that heads to Edinburgh.

Even if he can’t contribute on the pitch, he says, his presence will still be valuable.

“Forrest has been there, done it, bought the t-shirt,” he told Football Insider. “He’s got a pocket full of medals.

“You do need that big-game experience. He’ll be there, he will probably travel with the squad and he can keep the squad going.”

The verdict

Hutton is certainly right about Forrest’s track record: the winger has won a whopping 20 trophies at Celtic. Nine of those are league titles, but 11 are cups, indicating that he knows what it takes to prevail in an one-off, winner-takes-all contest.

And beyond that, former team-mate Mohamed Elyounoussi says the ‘amazing’ Forrest is ‘a brilliant boy off the pitch as well’.

It would be a blow if he couldn’t play, but in Liel Abada, who has notched a respectable 11 goal contributions in his first season at Celtic, Postecoglou can call upon an able replacement, and having Forrest around the squad could certainly help the likes of the Israel international shine.

In other news, Hutton also dropped this intriguing claim on Albian Ajeti. 

Former Premier League defender Alan Hutton feels Dan James is struggling to adapt to what Marcelo Bielsa wants at Leeds United.

The Lowdown: James not off to best start

£16.2m-valued James (Transfermarkt) made the move to Elland Road from Manchester United during the summer transfer window, with the Whites finally capturing their man after almost doing so two years ago (via Wales Online).

The Wales international has not had the best of starts in Yorkshire however, failing to score and providing just one assist in nine outings in all competitions (Transfermarkt), while he has already been used in four different positions by Marcelo Bielsa, perhaps suggesting the Argentine hasn’t quite found what the Wales international is best at yet.

The Latest: Hutton questions James’ ability to adapt

Speaking to Football Insider, Hutton, 36, believes James is failing to adapt to what his manager wants. He said:

“To be honest, I think it’s his all-round game.

“Let’s be honest, he’s still adapting to the style and what Bielsa wants from him. He was kind of stuck out on the left for a long period of time.

“Balls were going over his head and he was actually being asked to be a left-back at times. There was one he got caught out and Norwich had a really good opportunity from it.

“After that, Bielsa realised and put him through the middle, tried to utilise his pace.

“I think he’s still adapting to the way they play. It’s man-v-man covering, it can be hectic at times when you’re at the stadium when you’re actually watching it.

“These are things that he has to get used to. He has to get used to it quick because the expectation levels on him are obviously very high.”

The Verdict: Give him time

James was signed for a hefty £25m from the Red Devils (BBC) – only Rodrigo has ever cost Leeds more. As such, the expectations on the 23-year-old’s shoulders are heavier than they would be for most, especially given the Yorkshire outfit are currently 17th in the Premier League table.

It would appear the former Swansea City winger is struggling to match Bielsa’s defensive demands. He has averaged 0.6 tackles and 0.3 interceptions per game with his new club (via WhoScored). Raphinha for example, an attacking player just like James, has managed 1.4 and 0.6 respectively, which is the kind of standard the new boy must match if he wants to make an impact.

However, it is hard to make such a judgement after two months – he deserves more time than that.

In other news, Leeds want to sign this Championship star.

A number of Liverpool supporters have reacted positively to Curtis Jones’ tweet hinting that he is close to returning from injury.

The Reds made a scintillating return to Premier League action on Saturday evening, winning 4-0 at home to an in-form Arsenal side.

After losing 3-2 at West Ham before the international break, it was a huge response from Jurgen Klopp’s men, who kept within four points of leaders Chelsea.

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Jones was absent from the game at the weekend, having been unavailable in recent weeks after suffering an unlucky eye injury in training.

However, the 20-year-old took to Twitter on Sunday to hint that his comeback isn’t too far away, posting an emoji of a timer, which appears to suggest that he will be back imminently.

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Liverpool fans love Jones injury hint

It is a much-needed positive midfield injury update for Liverpool, who currently have numerous players sidelined, and these Reds fans reacted to Jones’ tweet with excited optimism.

“Please come back ASAP”

Credit: @Loyiso_Zako

“Will be soo good to have him back”

Credit: @SociallySober

“My guy is back!!”

Credit: @NiHADlfc

“Okay we are cooking”

Credit: @iam_kiddee

“My boy”

Credit: @bayowaaaa

“Let’s go!!”

Credit: @NegusSabali

In other news, James Pearce has provided a positive Liverpool injury update. Read more here.

Ashley Preece picked out John McGinn as one of Aston Villa’s worst players in their disappointing 3-1 defeat away to Arsenal.

The Lowdown: Villa humbled at Arsenal

Dean Smith’s men were hoping to bounce back from their shock 3-2 loss at home to Wolves last time around, but things didn’t pan out that way.

Villa were deservedly beaten at the Emirates on Friday evening, being comprehensively outplayed by a more energetic Gunners side.

The Latest: McGinn performance slammed

It was a game that saw many Villa players underperform and McGinn was undoubtedly one of them, losing the midfield battle and not covering himself in glory for two of the goals.

On Twitter after the game, Preece claimed that the Scot was ‘miles off the pace’ against Arsenal, and in his player ratings for The Birmingham Mail, he further outlined his struggles, giving him a measly three-out-of-10 score:

“At fault for two of Arsenal’s three goals here. The first he allowed Partey to get ahead of him from the corner before he passed straight to Smith Rowe under no pressure whatsoever.

“A real off-night for the Scot who, before this one, said he was in the best form of his career. Booked for lashing out at Lokonga as frustrations boiled over.”

The Verdict: Rare off-night

It is hard to feel too angry with McGinn, considering what a consistent performer he has been for Villa for a number of years, scoring 15 goals and registering 20 assists in 119 appearances.

As Preece alludes to, it was rare off-night for the midfielder, completing just 76 per cent of his passes and losing possession 15 times (Sofascore), and the hope is that he returns to his best for the visit of West Ham next Sunday.

The pressure is mounting on Smith after two bitterly disappointing results in a row – they have lost their last three matches – so the clash with the Hammers is a vital one.

In other news, some Villa fans slammed another player’s performance against Arsenal. Find out who it is here.

Retired Scotland international Kris Commons recently claimed that Rangers should attempt to sign Billy Gilmour on loan from Chelsea in the summer and take advantage of his lack of game-time on loan at Norwich.

The midfielder has not started a Premier League game since 18 September, losing his place in the middle of the park for the Norfolk side.

Interestingly, one of the players keeping Gilmour out of the team also has strong connections with Rangers – that’s Kenny McLean.

Not only was the midfielder a reported target for Rangers in 2020, he also came through the ranks at Ibrox in the academy. He played for the under-17 team for two years before joining St Mirren, where he eventually broke through into the first team.

McLean went on to join Aberdeen and then signed for Norwich in January 2018. He made 253 Premiership appearances for St Mirren and Aberdeen, scoring 36 goals and providing 21 assists to earn himself a move down south.

The £25k-per-week beast has gone on to make a name for himself in the Championship and the Premier League with Norwich. Despite suffering relegation in the 2019/20 campaign, Canaries boss Daniel Farke hailed McLean’s Premier League performances and claimed that he is “irreplaceable”.

He said: “Kenny for me last season was unbelievably important and he has developed further. He is a versatile, all-round player with the game to play a number of positions.

“Let’s be honest, we have some players with great possession skills, or finding a key pass, or maybe delivering a set-piece. But he is probably our most complete midfielder. He is competitive, his workload and his endurance are good and he is definitely our best defensive header.

“He is aggressive in the duels and our most dynamic midfielder.

“He is also composed on the ball, and a left-footer. He offers many skills, and that physicality at this level is irreplaceable for us. If you can dominate the ball in a game then maybe the defensive skills are not as important.”

The Scotland international has played 112 times for Norwich since the move from Aberdeen, playing 45 times in the Premier League and winning two Championship titles. In that time, he has scored eight goals and provided 15 assists from a deep-lying midfield position.

This suggests that he has the quality required to be a top-class player for Rangers, as he has proven his ability in the top two tiers in England and in the Premiership with St Mirren and Aberdeen. Therefore, the Gers fumbled the ball by opting against keeping him in their academy at the start of his career.

Instead of ending up in England with Norwich, McLean could have come through the academy at Ibrox and bossed the midfield for years at Rangers. They could also have brought him through into the first team before making a decent chunk of change by selling him on, with Transfermarkt valuing him at £4.05m in 2019. Instead, they axed him from the academy and watched on as he has enjoyed a fairly successful career.

He’s one who slipped through the cracks at Ibrox…

AND in other news, Imagine him & Aribo: Wilson could land dream Rangers midfield with “fabulous” maestro…

Celtic reporter Kieran Devlin answered a question on Sunday about Karamoko Dembele and his continued Parkhead absence.

The Lowdown: Injury issues

Ange Postecoglou has been without a number of players in recent weeks, with Dembele one of the first on the injury list after going off during a pre-season game with Bristol City back in July.

The likes of Christopher Jullien, Greg Taylor, Callum McGregor, Kyogo Furuhashi, Mikey Johnston, James Forrest and Giorgos Giakoumakis have also been missing, some long-term and others short-term.

The Hoops have struggled for wins as a result, winning just two of their last seven fixtures in all competitions.

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The Latest: Devlin’s response

Devlin ran a Q&A on The Athletic before the Dundee United game on Sunday to talk all things Celtic.

He was asked what was going on with Dembele after his injury two months ago, to which he responded with this nine-word claim.

“Still out through injury as far as I’m aware.”

The Verdict: Worrying times

With no positive update on Dembele, it could still be a while until we see the teenager in competitive action under Postecoglou.

The Hoops boss has had to rely heavily on Jota and Liel Abada in recent weeks, so having Dembele back fit as soon as possible would only help Celtic going forward.

However, it doesn’t appear as if Dembele will be featuring anytime soon, upsetting news for both the player and Celtic as more and more players join the absentee list.

In other news: ‘I have never heard’ – McLeish baffled by something happening behind the scenes at Celtic.