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A big update has emerged on Newcastle United’s pursuit of Czech Republic international Patrik Schick…

What’s the talk?

Sky Sports journalist Keith Downie has provided an insight into how much money Bayer Leverkusen want for the centre-forward, whilst also dropping claims on the club’s overall search for a number nine to bolster Eddie Howe’s squad.

He Tweeted: Newcastle in desperate need of a striker before Saturday. Multiple names have been linked (whether offered up or actual interest) at different times. Solanke, Schick, Wood, Azmoun, Origi…the list goes on. Getting one in without being ripped off the problem! #NUFC.”

Downie then revealed Schick’s valuation: “We understand there’s been no actual approach from Newcastle to Burnley for Chris Wood. And Leverkusen want £50m for Patrick Schick which would make anything there very difficult. Newcastle’s new owners finding out just how difficult this window is to work in #NUFC.”

Gutted

This will surely leave Newcastle fans gutted as it suggests that a deal for Schick is not on the cards due to how much Leverkusen want for his services.

The 25-year-old has had an incredible season in the Bundesliga and could be a phenomenal signing for the Magpies this month. He has scored 17 goals in 15 appearances for the German outfit, averaging a WhoScored rating of 7.60, and has one assist to his name. This comes after he managed five goals in five games at the European Championships in the summer for his country, showing that he can do it on one of the biggest stages.

His record in previous seasons is also impressive, albeit not to the same degree as his current form. Schick netted 19 times in 35 Bundesliga starts for Leipzig and Leverkusen combined between the 2019/20 and 2020/21 campaigns, proving that he can beat the goalkeeper on a consistent basis.

Therefore, he could provide an added goalscoring threat to Howe’s side in the Premier League. Schick has proven that he can score goals in the Bundesliga and at international level and supporters will surely be gutted that it appears as though he will now be priced out of a move by his club.

It will now be down to Howe and his team to identify alternative targets and ensure that they are able to get the best possible deal for the Magpies, both financially and in terms of what they offer on the pitch.

AND in other news, NUFC eye bid for £17m gem Shearer dubbed “absolutely sensational”, Howe surely elated…

Tottenham are still interested in signing Wolves winger Adama Traore in the January transfer window, according to journalist Fabrizio Romano.

The Lowdown: Traore linked with Wolves exit

The 25-year-old may have scored his first goal of the season last weekend but his Wanderers career looks likely to reach its conclusion at some point this year.

Traore has been strongly tipped to move away from Molineux this month, with the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham thought to be interested in signing him.

While it has been claimed that the winger will be staying put in January, a new update may suggest otherwise.

The Latest: Romano makes fresh Traore claim

Taking to Twitter on Tuesday, Romano confirmed that Spurs are still eyeing up a move, as Antonio Conte looks to bring in a new wide man:

“Tottenham are still trying to sign Adama Traore in January. Wolves manager Bruno Lage’s pushing to keep him until the end of the season – Spurs want to give Conte a new winger as he asked.”

The Verdict: Matter of time

It does feel as though Traore will be moving on in either January or the summer, with Bruno Lage seemingly not considering him a key part of his plans, with the winger having been in and out of the starting line-up throughout the season.

In truth, it makes sense for Wolves to get as much as they can for the Spaniard, using the money to bring in players who the manager believes would suit his style of play.

For all Traore’s entertainment value, he continues to be a player who flatters to deceive – one goal contribution by the middle of January is not good enough for a senior attacker – and it is time for the Old Gold to cut ties with him.

The only reason he should stay this month is if Wolves are unable to find a suitable replacement in time, with squad depth affected by losing him and signing nobody.

In other news, Wolves are reportedly ‘very interested’ in signing one player. Find out who it is here.

Tottenham target Franck Kessie has reportedly snubbed a January move to north London, according to Calciomercato, cited by Inside Futbol.

The Lowdown: Kessie a long-term target

Kessie has been on Spurs’ radar for some time now and Antonio Conte is allegedly a big fan after giving the green light to a transfer back in November.

The 25-year-old’s contract with AC Milan is set to expire at the end of June, meaning he could pen pre-contract terms with Spurs right now.

However, Tottenham seemingly want Kessie, who is currently away with the Ivory Coast at the Africa Cup of Nations, in the final days of the January window rather than the summer, and a key update has now emerged.

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The Latest: Agreement reached, but there’s a twist

Inside Futbol relayed an update from Calciomercato on Sunday evening.

They claim that Fabio Paratici finally reached an agreement with AC Milan to sign Kessie immediately, but the midfielder, labelled as ‘devastating’ by Antonio Cassano, has turned down a January transfer.

He wants to see out his contract with the Italian giants and is focused on helping the club push for the Serie A title in the second half of the season.

The Verdict: Pre-contract terms required

If Kessie isn’t willing to join in the final days of the winter window, then Paratici should now be after the next best thing and look to seal a pre-contract agreement ahead of the summer.

That way, Spurs would be getting hold of an experienced and versatile midfielder who is valued at a whopping £43.2m – without spending a penny on a transfer fee – before what would be Conte’s first full season in charge.

Of course, that would mean Conte having to make do with what he has got for the remainder of the season, and the risk may be missing out on top four, but Kessie could be worth the wait. He has scored five times in 13 Serie A starts this term and shone for his nation at AFCON, scoring in a 3-1 win over holders Algeria last week.

In other news: Fabrizio Romano – Morning transfer development with Spurs now ‘confident to complete’ key signing.

Rangers have enjoyed a strong first transfer window under manager Gio van Bronckhorst as they have made two additions to their ranks at Ibrox.

James Sands has arrived on an 18-month loan from New York City FC and John Souttar is poised to arrive in the summer after penning a pre-contract agreement with the central defender.

Football Scotland reporter Mark Hendry has claimed that the Dutch head coach is now eyeing up a deal for a Scottish youth international this month.

He Tweeted: “EXCLUSIVE! Rangers interested in Motherwell and Scotland prospect Bailey Rice as Manchester City also weigh up move.”

Patterson 2.0

Van Bronckhorst could land the club’s next Nathan Patterson by securing a swoop for Rice this month as he is a promising young player with the potential to break into the first team down the line.

The right-back made the breakthrough at Ibrox and went on to play 27 times in the senior side before being sold to Premier League side Everton for a club-record transfer fee this month.

Managing director Stewart Robertson explained the thinking behind the sale, saying: 

“This is a deal which fits with our long-term, strategic vision for the club. We have been very clear that player trading is an important element of our business model but only when the circumstances suit Rangers.

“We are delighted for Nathan and his family, wish them all the best for the future and they will always be welcome back at Ibrox.”

This shows that the club are looking to bleed through youngsters from the academy and into the first-team in the hope of developing them into a player who can make them a large profit in the future.

Therefore, the signing of Rice could be a shrewd deal as he could follow in the footsteps of Patterson by impressing in the youth teams before breaking into van Bronckhorst’s side in the years to come.

Rice has captained Scotland at youth level and is said to be one of Motherwell’s most talented prospects, which suggests that he has the potential to grow into a top player.

The fact that Rangers and Manchester City have become alerted to his possible availability also indicates that they have seen enough from him at such a young age to believe that he could be a valuable asset moving forward.

This means that he could be the next Patterson for Rangers and Scotland in the future and that is why van Bronckhorst and Ross Wilson must work hard to pip Pep Guardiola’s side to his signature.

AND in other news, Major development emerges in “groundbreaking” Rangers move, GvB will be buzzing…

Aston Villa have made no qualms in strengthening their squad during the current January transfer window with Philippe Coutinho, Lucas Digne and Robin Olsen all being brought in to help strengthen Steven Gerrard’s squad.

With those players now through the door and integrating themselves in the squad, the Midlands club look set to try and tie down the future of one of their key current players.

What’s the news?

According to a recent Twitter post from journalist John Percy, Villa are “are poised to open talks” with midfielder Douglas Luiz over a new contract following interest from Premier League clubs in the current window.

The midfielder, whose current deal at the Midlands club is set to expire in the summer of 2023, has garnered interest from Arsenal in recent weeks.

Gerrard will be thrilled

Villa signed the Brazilian from fellow Premier League side Manchester City back in the 2019 summer transfer window in a deal worth a reported fee of £15m.

Since then, the 23-year-old has gone on to cement himself as an important figure for the Villans by making 94 appearances across all competitions with three goals and eight assists under his belt.

Having started 16 of the 17 Premier League games he’s appeared in this season as well as racking up an overall performance rating of 6.91/10 from WhoScored, making him Villa’s third-highest rated player, it’s easy to see why the club would want to open talks with Luiz over a potential new contract to tie him down to Villa and shoo away any interest from Arsenal, which would surely please a lot of fans.

If the £31.5m-rated ace does end up signing a new deal at the Midlands club, this would surely please Gerrard as well the fans given how he clearly recognises Luiz’s talents by playing him so regularly.

The Villa boss made this clear by recently saying that he and his coaching staff rate the midfielder “extremely” highly.

Moving forward, if the Villans can get Luiz to sign a new deal in the coming days and pledge his future to the project that Gerrard is building, this could be seen as just as important as their recent transfer deals earlier in the window.

In other news: “I’m hearing”: Insider drops “emerging” AVFC transfer claim, Gerrard would be furious – opinion

Everton have appointed their sixth manager in as many years with Frank Lampard joining the Toffees on a two and a half year deal, and he now has a challenge on his hands to help the club turnaround the abysmal season they’re currently experiencing sitting 16th in the Premier League table.

Despite five signings being made in the January transfer window to bolster the squad after a huge injury crisis and a clear attempt to freshen up the side with new additions who can make an impact on the poor performances we have seen so far this season, there is still some talent within the existing ranks at the club.

One player who has to be credited for his hard work this season is Demarai Gray, who is currently the club’s joint top goal scorer this season alongside Andros Townsend with six goals and two assists.

According to One Versus One, the attacker is in the top three for completed blocks and in the top five for his successful dribbles in the Premier League this season so far, proving that he offers more than just goal involvement for the side, although he has also impressively created 12 big chances and made nine key passes inside the box.

Ironically, Gray who was hailed “a big talent” by Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers, is one of the least expensive signing in the Everton first team squad, at just £1.7m his impact has been worth it’s weight in gold when you look at some of the transfer fees the club has paid for less impactful players in the squad, like Alex Iwobi who was signed for £34m.

Now the club is entering a new era under Lampard, Gray has an opportunity to learn and further develop his game under the management of a man who knew exactly how to maximise his opportunities in and around the box in his playing days, becoming one of the greatest attacking players the Premier League has ever seen.

Previously, he has been a rather inconsistent individual but that could all change with the freedom Lampard potentially gives him to thrive in what has the potential to be an exciting front four at Goodison Park.

At 25 years old, the forward will be coming into the peak of his playing days and with the new manager’s guidance, alongside the output statistics previously mentioned, there is no doubt that the £42k-per-week gem can elevate his potential and talent.

There is a good chance that the winger will continue to feature in Lampard’s set up and will likely play on the right side of the attacking three behind Dominic Calvert Lewin in a 4-2-3-1 formation alongside Dele Alli and Richarlison.

It will be fascinating to see how the former Chelsea boss sets up his first starting line up this weekend against Brentford in the FA Cup clash at Goodison Park, but there is no reason why Gray shouldn’t be unleashed in that attacking threat going forward under the new manager.

In other news: Frank Lampard’s predicted XI for new era

Celtic are interested in a deal to bring Antoine Semenyo to Parkhead in the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Bristol World, who claim that the senior Celtic scout, Craig Strachan, was in attendance for Bristol City’s 2-1 win over Reading on Wednesday evening, with the 22-year-old centre-forward believed to be the focus of the talent-spotter’s gaze.

The report goes on to state that the Championship side are hoping to tie the striker down to a new deal at Ashton Gate, however, it is also claimed that the Robins would be willing to part with Semenyo this summer – should they receive an offer totalling somewhere around £20m for his services.

Imagine him & Kyogo

Considering just how impressive Semenyo has been for Bristol City so far this season, it is easy to see why Ange Postecoglou would be interested in a move for the 22-year-old this summer.

Indeed, over his 17 Championship appearances in the current campaign, the £1.08m-rated hitman has been in breathtaking form for the Robins, having already bagged five goals, registered six assists and created three big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 2.1 shots and making 0.7 key passes per game.

These returns have seen the £3.5k-per-week forward who Phil Parkinson dubbed a “dangerous” player average a SofaScore match rating of 6.99, ranking him as Nigel Pearson’s fourth-best performer in the second tier of English football.

Furthermore, with Semenyo also being comfortable operating on the right-wing, the 22-year-old could very easily slot into Postecoglou’s front three, or even play in a front two alongside one of Kyogo Furuhashi, Daizen Maeda or Giorgos Giakoumakis.

Either way, the signing of the Bristol City goal-machine would appear to be an extremely exciting one for the Bhoys, however, with a figure in the region of £20m being mooted for his services, whether or not Celtic will be looking to splash this sort of cash on a single target this summer is another matter entirely.

In other news: Postecoglou struck gold in landing “absolute bargain”, he could make Celtic a fortune

As per TUTTOmercatoWEB, there has been an update on Tottenham Hotspur’s transfer plans as the Lilywhites eye a move for Inter Milan striker Lautaro Martinez.

The Lowdown: Conte wants frontman?

Amid their real lack of natural cover for star man Harry Kane, with winger Steven Bergwijn even having to take up a makeshift centre-forward role at points, Spurs have been linked to strengthening in that department.

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Indeed, Alasdair Gold claimed last month that the signing of a striker was one of manager Antonio Conte’s four main transfer priorities at Spurs.

Football Insider went on to report that talks were allegedly held over Alvaro Morata towards the end of window, but after this alleged move didn’t come to fruition, Spurs ended the window with no striker signing.

The Latest: Spurs ‘at work’ for Martinez…

According to TMW, Tottenham and transfer chief Fabio Paratici are allegedly ‘at work’ over a move for Martinez in a ‘concrete way’.

This comes as Conte gives his seal of approval, with the Italian source claiming he would ‘gladly’ welcome the Argentine in north London.

The Verdict: Right move?

The £177,000-per-week attacker is someone Lilywhites supporters will be familiar with after their summer interest and it’s safe to say he could do a job in the Premier League.

Martinez grabbed a brilliant 17 goals and 10 assists in 38 Serie A matches under Conte at Inter last season and there is little reason to believe he couldn’t replicate those numbers in England.

Chelsea star Romelu Lukaku, a former teammate of the South American’s, is certainly an admirer – having called Martinez a ‘beast’ who ‘keeps improving’ (Goal).

Bearing this in mind, there are certainly far worse transfer targets out there.

In other news: Levy personally makes Spurs offer to sign ‘quality’ forward who Conte said has ‘incredible potential’…find out more here.

With just 23 points on the board from 23 played league games so far this season, Leeds United are in danger of being dragged into a tense relegation battle if they don’t manage to rack up some positive results on a more consistent basis.

One player that has had a particularly disappointing campaign with the Yorkshire club, especially from an attacking point of view, is Tyler Roberts.

Since making the move to Elland Road back in the 2018 January transfer window from West Bromwich Albion in a deal worth a reported fee of around £2.5m, the Welshman has made a total of 106 appearances across all competitions, chipping in with nine goals and 10 assists along the way.

With 21 league appearances under his belt so far in the current league campaign, the 23-year-old has only managed to score one goal and provide one assist, giving him a goal frequency of one every 928 minutes, which hasn’t really helped the team on a consistent basis whilst Patrick Bamford has been out injured.

As well as the lack of regular goals and assists, Roberts’ overall performances have been rather disappointing as well, with WhoScored giving him a rating of 6.36, making him one of the lowest-rated Leeds players to have started more than one league game, showing just how much he has let Marcelo Bielsa down.

According to SofaScore, the attacker, who is currently picking up a weekly wage of £22k-per-week according to Salary Sport, has lost possession 6.2 times per game, rack up a passing accuracy percentage of 74% and win just 46% of the duels he’s been involved in.

With all of that in mind, it’s easy to see why former Aston Villa attacker Gabby Agbonlahor previously claimed that it’s “shocking” how many times Leeds’ attacking moves keep breaking down when Roberts is on the ball.

Also, after being offered a three-year contract at the club back in the summer which he signed, his performances this season have not exactly justified such a deal in our view.

Moving forward, unless the former West Brom youngster can start to perform consistently for the Whites and get some goals or assists under his belt, he could find game time rather hard to come by in the future.

In other news: “It’s pretty clear”: Journalist drops worrying Leeds claim that’ll leave fans sweating – opinion

Wolves said goodbye to one of their key players during the recent January transfer window after winger Adama Traore joined his former club Barcelona on loan until the end of the season with the option of making the move permanent in the summer.

Looking ahead to the next transfer market when the current season ends, it seems as though the Midlands club could be in danger of seeing another one of their important and prominent squad figures make a move away from Molineux.

What’s the talk?

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, journalist Pete O’Rourke had this to say about midfielder Ruben Neves and what the future could hold for him after he was previously linked with a move away from the club.

He said: “Wolves won’t want to hear this because they would love to keep Ruben Neves, but I think this summer, it could be a hard battle to keep hold of Neves.”

Fans will be sweating

Since the Old Gold shelled out a Championship transfer record fee for the Portuguese international back in the 2017 summer window, the 24-year-old has become a seriously impressive midfield player.

He’s gone on to make a total of 203 appearances across all competitions in a Wolves shirt, scoring 23 goals and providing 11 assists along the way, demonstrating how crucial he is for them and well he’s progressed in the Midlands.

Having earned himself an overall performance rating of 6.88/10 from WhoScored, making him the fifth-highest rated outfield player currently in Bruno Lage’s squad as well as the highest-rated midfielder, it shows just how much of a miss he would be if he were to leave Molineux this summer.

That rating is owed largely to the 2.3 tackles he makes per game, a number no other midfielder at the club can top in 2021/22.

With that in mind, O’Rourke’s comments will now surely have lots of fans sweating over Neves’ future and the club’s ability to keep hold of him, especially if another side does indeed come in and try to sign him when the transfer window opens.

Moving forward, if Lage’s men are able to secure European football by the end of this campaign, it would surely give the club a big boost in their chances of keeping hold of the star for the foreseeable future, especially after he said himself how much he would love to play in Europe with his current team.

In other news: Fosun disaster: Wolves dropped huge clanger over “exceptional” £54m-rated “monster”