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Speaking exclusively to FootballFanCast, former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has urged the club to make a summer transfer move for Josh Brownhill.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent days and weeks have suggested Dean Smith’s side are very much interested in signing the Burnley midfielder, with the club also said to be eyeing Sheffield United’s Sander Berge.

When discussing Villa’s reported interest in Brownhill in an exclusive interview with FFC, Hendrie said: “Josh Brownhill, I think he is a fabulous player, I really do. Out of (Sander) Berge and him, I’d take Brownhill all day just because Josh Brownhill reminds me of John McGinn.

“He’s very energetic, he’s very neat and tidy on the ball, he gets up and down the pitch well and you know what you’re getting when you’re getting a player from Burnley, Sean Dyche, what he expects. And, obviously, he’s proved that he can do this step up, coming from Bristol City, so I’d certainly take him all day.”

Lange’s priority

Valued at £26m by CIES, Brownhill has enjoyed an impressive debut campaign at Premier League level with Burnley this season – he has been a permanent fixture in Dyche’s starting line-up, playing 24 times in the top-flight.

As Hendrie noted, the midfielder’s energetic style of play sees him be an effective presence at both ends of the pitch, with his average of one shot per game in the Premier League only slightly below McGinn’s 1.1.

Crucially however, Brownhill outshines Villa’s Scotland international considerably when it comes to making a defensive impact, no doubt thanks to Dyche’s work on ensuring Burnley remain a solid outfit.

As per Whoscored, the 25-year-old averages an impresive 2.5 interceptions per game in the top flight, which actually ranks him as the joint-highest among all players in the division.

Not only that, he also wins 1.4 tackles per match, and both those key defensive metrics are far superior to McGinn’s measly 0.7 and 1.2 respectively.

That box-to-box presence and combination of offensive threat and defensive stability surely makes him a perfect midfield signing for Smith, and as Hendrie says, he should be someone who Villa really look to sign this summer.

Meanwhile, Villa must make a move for this Championship sensation this summer…

West Ham United will travel to Manchester City on Saturday with a near fully-fit squad, as boss David Moyes looks to strengthen the London Stadium natives’ place in the Champions League positions.

The Irons moved up to fourth in the Premier League standings with a 2-1 win over rivals Tottenham Hotspur last weekend, but face a huge hurdle away to the Citizens who have won their last 19 games across all competitions.

City have further lost just once all season when playing at the Etihad Stadium, with their sole defeat coming against Leicester in September. West Ham held Pep Guardiola’s title-chasers to a 1-1 draw in October, snapping a 10-game losing streak against the Sky Blues.

So, as Moyes strives to keep the Hammers inside the top-four and secure a rare win, here’s a potential line-up that West Ham could name away to Manchester City…

West Ham will boast a near fully-fit squad at the Etihad on Saturday as Moyes is facing no major new injury concerns, with Arthur Masuaku, Andriy Yarmolenko and Angelo Ogbonna the sole long-term absentees in the Irons camp.

Michail Antonio returned to the first-team picture and scored his sixth goal of the season last time out against Tottenham following a two-game absence with fatigue, though Ryan Fredericks has required treatment this week with a groin issue.

“We seem okay at the moment,” Moyes said on Friday. “We’re still waiting on Arthur Masuaku coming back and Andriy Yarmolenko still has his medial ligament injury too.

“Ryan Fredericks has picked up a little bit of a groin strain, which is not serious, but he’s touch and go [for Manchester City], so we’ll need to see how he is today [Friday] after training.”

West Ham being without any major new injury concerns will afford Moyes the chance to keep faith with the XI which faced and beat Tottenham, but could revert to a three-man defence after taking a battering at home to Jose Mourinho’s struggling Spurs side.

The North Londoners recorded 20 shots on goal at the London Stadium last Sunday to the four taken by Irons players, yet directed just four on target, per WhoScored.

Moyes could look to address his side’s openness at the back with the addition of a third centre-half, potentially allowing for Fabian Balbuena to earn his first top-flight start since falling out of the side in December.

The 29-year-old – who former Scotland defender Alan Hutton described as “excellent” earlier in the season – helped the Hammers keep four clean sheets during his 12 Premier League appearances this term.

Moyes would be expected to reduce his offence from four players to three in line with the addition of an additional centre-back, placing Pablo Fornals’ position in the XI at risk.

Fornals, who earns £67,000-per-week following his £24m move from La Liga outfit Sevilla in the summer of 2019, offered heaps of energy and had a hand Jesse Lingard’s third West Ham goal against Tottenham.

But the Spaniard would be likely to fall behind Lingard and Jarrod Bowen in Moyes’ pecking order, given the Spurs clash marked his first appearance in three Premier League games after playing just six minutes throughout February before taking to the pitch last Sunday.

Balbuena potentially taking Fornals’ place in the starting line-up will be the only change from the 2-1 Tottenham win expected from West Ham away to Manchester City.

AND in other news, West Ham have been given a potential boost in hopes to sign a 19-goal striker this summer…

Plenty of Southampton fans have been reacting to the news that Wesley Hoedt is set to return to the club at the end of the season.

Hoedt has spent this campaign out on loan at Italian side Lazio. Not so long ago, it seemed the Serie A outfit were eager to sign him permanently (lalaziosiamonoi.it). However, according to Radiosei (via lalaziosiamonoi.it), it appears the Rome-based outfit are no longer interested in pursuing such a deal.

The change in heart is reportedly down to a number of poor performances. He has actually started just four of the last 11 Serie A matches (Transfermarkt), which shows that Simone Inzaghi does not quite have faith in the £5.4m-valued defender.

The news was relayed by Twitter account @SouthamptonPage, and it is fair to say that some Saints supporters are not best pleased with the update as they took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Hoedt news below

“Stealing a living”

Credit: @stevebr27075195

“His arrogance gets in the way of everything”

Credit: @griffryan

“We’ll have to release him and lose a lot of money.. not being funny but no one is going to want him”

Credit: @WillsfcMitchell

“Probably one of the worse signings we’ve ever made. We signed him after he had a fight in training at Lazio with Felipe Anderson, was awful for us and now we can’t even give him away”

Credit: @Extr3me_Matrix

“Loan him out to Acrington Stanley for a year for a packet of hob-nobs and 241 vouchers at Chesington World Of Adventure.”

Credit: @bfgfox

“Such a failure for what we paid for him. The frustrating thing is there is a player in him, it’s his own ego and concentration that lets him down”

Credit: @HebbesAlex

In other news, Southampton enquire about this Premier League striker.

At Parkhead, there is a sense that Celtic may need numerous new faces if they’re to reclaim their dominance over Scottish football.

They are 21 points behind Rangers in their quest for ten titles in a row and a this point, not even a couple of signings will be able to bridge the gap.

What’s the word?

One potential signing Celtic are reportedly targeting is young Liverpool striker Taiwo Awoniyi.

The 23-year-old is currently on loan at Bundesliga outfit Union Berlin but the Hoops and Rangers are set to battle it out for his signature, according to 90min.

Awoniyi joined Liverpool in 2015 but after failing to secure a work permit, he has been sent out on six different loan spells to foreign territories.

A work permit in England is becoming increasingly unlikely but the system is different in Scotland so the Old Firm giants have hopes of being able to get him to Glasgow.

Shades of Edouard

Awoniyi has struggled to settle in European football in the past. Prior to the current season, he’d scored just once in Europe’s top five leagues. However, he’s developed nicely this term and he’s now looking like a top prospect.

For Union Berlin, the £8k-per-week earner has netted five times this term and is showing signs of why Liverpool signed him in the first place.

His goal scoring abilities certainly left a lot to be desired in recent years but he’s now demonstrating how capable he is front of goal. Though, the most eye-catching part of his play is undoubtedly his dominating presence when leading the line.

Standing at 6 foot, he is evidently a handful to deal with and that echoes the thoughts of Union sporting director Oliver Ruhnert: “With his physical robustness, his team spirit and work around the box, he should make our attacking game more flexible and further stimulate the attack.”

Indeed, it’s difficult to argue that he hasn’t achieved that. In 2020/21, Awoniyi has won as many as 3.3 duels per game. That accounts for both aerial battles with defenders and 50/50 challenges against the opposition.

Coincidentally, that’s remarkably similar to Odsonne Edouard, someone who has won 3.8 duels per game for Celtic this season.

Edouard uses his sheer power to wonderful effect in the SPFL and as a result, he’s scored plenty of goals – 72 in fact – while on Scottish soil.

Indeed, a passage written by the BBC’s Martin Watt said of Edouard’s style of play. “He [Edouard] developed his athletic potential and his tactical range. Especially regarding the diversity of his moves on the pitch – ball retention, the ability to be unmarked to receive possession to his feet and deep in the opposition half.”

A lot of those skills and attributes can also be attributed to Awoniyi.

Indeed, the duo have both lost possession on a similar amount of occasions this term. Awoniyi has lost it 10.8 times a match compared to the 11.1 occasions Edouard has registered on average.

The challenge for the Liverpool loanee is now finding the net with the same regularity as Edouard. If he can manage that, he’ll be some striker and will likely be fending off offers left, right and centre.

With Edouard continuing to field interest from elsewhere, a January swoop for Awoniyi would be timely. Nick Hammond must complete a deal for the robust goal scorer so the Hoops have a ready-made replacement for if and when Edouard leaves.

AND in other news, Forget Ajer: Hammond can save millions if Celtic unleash rarely-seen “weapon” in 2021…

Much like Celtic’s season as a whole, the January transfer window has been an insipid affair.

They are currently 23 points behind their fierce rivals in the race for the SPFL title and remarkably, they are yet to welcome any new players to the club.

This is a big month for the club’s hierarchy but they are only failing their supporters more.

It’s a desperate time at Parkhead but that being said, not even a couple of additions to the playing staff would bridge the current gap.

On the chalkboard

Come the summer window, Celtic could have plenty of holes to address in the squad. Odsonne Edouard continues to be linked with a move to the Premier League while Kristoffer Ajer has attracted the interest of AC Milan.

Though, they will also have to find someone to replace Mo Elyounoussi – that’s if he doesn’t pen permanent terms in Glasgow. He’s only on loan at the moment and given their lack of depth in a wide position, will need someone new.

That player could well be Karamoko Dembele’s brother – Siriki Dembele. The Hoops have been tracking the attacker since November but face increased competition for his signature. He has reportedly handed in a transfer request at Peterborough which has led to a bid for his services from Nottingham Forest.

Though, if the Bhoys stole a march in the race to sign Dembele, they could well find themselves their new Aiden McGeady.

The Irishman is undoubtedly one of the most exciting players we’ve seen in the green and white over the last 20 years, bringing unrivalled trickery and energy to the Celtic team.

In making 200 appearances for the Bhoys, McGeady scored 32 times, racking up 48 assists in the process. Furthermore, the 34-year-old won the Fans Player of the Year and became a 2x winner of the Player’s Player of the Year. If that wasn’t enough, his senior professionals voted him the best player in the Scottish Premiership for the 2007/08 campaign.

He was a brilliant winger for the Hoops, going on to create his own trick – the McGeady spin – and offering dribbling skills that not many players in Scotland could provide.

For a glimpse of what he’s offered in his career, the former Republic of Ireland international managed 2.3 dribbles per game for Spartak Moscow in the 2010/11 Champions League.

At Preston in the English Championship, he managed 2.5 dribbles an outing and then for Sunderland at the same level, he amassed a tally of 2.3 successful take-ons per match.

That’s remarkably similar to Dembele, a man currently playing his football in League One – the same division as McGeady. Just 24 years of age, the flanker – who can also play as a striker – has scored six goals.

Pivotally, though, is his ability to trick defenders and beat them with his dribbling. Described as “absolutely outstanding” by Posh manager Darren Ferguson, he has completed 2.9 dribbles a match this season.

For context, no player in the third tier of English football is more successful. The next best happens to be on 1.8 dribbles – that’s how good Dembele is.

A rampant attacker, his skills in this regard have huge similarities to McGeady. Nick Hammond may well have a chance of finally finding his successor this year.

AND in other news, Time to go Lenny: Desmond could revitalise Celtic by appointing “fantastic” 60 y/o…

Sheffield Wednesday were handed further misery on Tuesday evening as they were defeated in a Championship basement battle at the City Ground.

A victory for the Owls would’ve closed the gap to their nearest relegation rivals but now Tony Pulis’ men remain rock-bottom, seven points off Nottingham Forest, who defeated them 2-0 last night.

Reds left-back Yuri Ribeiro handed the home side an early lead, scoring in the fourth minute before talismanic striker Lewis Grabban came off the bench to seal it three minutes from time.

It means the Yorkshiremen are yet to win under the 62-year-old and have now lost four straight matches.

However, despite all the doom and gloom, there was one shining light and that was the performance of Chey Dunkley, who looks every bit like being Garry Monk’s finest signing.

In just his second appearance for the club, the 28-year-old looked like a leader without the armband. He was certainly demanding more and trying to encourage the team, unlike the real skipper, Barry Bannan.

Indeed, Dunkley was the only Owls player to record a rating above 6.7 with SofaScore grading his display a 7.4, which was only bettered by three Forest players.

He also won four of six aerial duels, made four clearances, four interceptions and two blocks, on top of managing 58 touches from central defence.

Following the match, YorkshireLive’s Dom Howson waxed lyrical about his performance, he said:

“Dominated the majority of his duels and constantly barked out orders to his defence. Is understandably still a little rusty as he continues to build up his match sharpness.”

It was the long-serving ex-captain Tom Lees that badly let the team down in defence on their way to leaking another two strikes, so there is certainly some encouragement to be had in the form of Dunkley.

You can thank Monk for nabbing him from Wigan this summer too.

Supporters on Twitter were also impressed with their £10k-per-week colossus – one said the centre-back was “the only leader at the club” whilst another claimed he “looked solid.”

AND in other news, Forget Pulis: £24k-p/w passenger who lost possession 22x let Sheff Weds down abysmally…

Rob Draper has shared his own insight on the proposed £300m takeover of Newcastle United by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) group.

The Mail on Sunday journalist reacted to a video of a greeting between the KSA’s Crown Prince in Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), who was very much part of the consortium looking to strike a deal with Mike Ashley, and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, as he arrived to attend the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in the Kingdom, which had the aim of settling various disputes between the two countries.

Draper tweeted that the greeting was probably the ‘best hope for a Newcastle United takeover’, given the disputes that the two countries have over the banning of the beIN network in the KSA.

Can the Newcastle takeover be revived?

The settling of the disputes between the Kingdom and Qatar is certainly a step in the right direction in terms of trying to get the takeover bid back on track.

With the banning of Qatari broadcaster beIN in the KSA, games from the Premier League were left to be illegally streamed in the Kingdom, worsening their relationships with both Qatar and those in charge of England’s top division.

However, if beIN were allowed to broadcast matches in the KSA as a result of this settlement, then it could well be a step towards a possible revival of the prospective takeover at St. James’ Park as the piracy issue in Saudi Arabia could become one more problem that’s been resolved.

In other news, find out what takeover claim has been dropped after the latest activity from Jamie Reuben here!

Jordan Jones faces an uncertain future at Ibrox after Steven Gerrard brought Brandon Barker off the bench as Glasgow Rangers crushed Hamilton Academical in a comfortable 8-0 win in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday afternoon.

Gerrard rang several changes to the side that blew a two-goal lead against Benfica in the Europa League, with Jermain Defoe and Kemar Roofe restored to the starting line-up, whilst Alfredo Morelos dropped to the bench.

Jones, who earns wages which are worth £9,100-per-week, is currently serving a two-week suspension after the 26-year-old breached coronavirus regulations along with George Edmundson, with Rangers reportedly ready to sell him when the transfer market re-opens in a few months time, per Football Insider.

It’s claimed that the Scottish Football Association have hit those who breach COVID-19 regulations with charges of complaint, which is probably why Barker made an appearance as a substitute in the second half against Hamilton after being left on the bench against Kilmarnock and Benfica respectively.

Barker, 24, has arguably struggled for consistency so far this season but has started to rediscover the form that saw him described as a “dangerous” player by the Ibrox boss. Whilst we’ve often been critical of his performances, it’s hard to deny the fact that he caught the eye during his brief cameo at the weekend.

SofaScore gave him a high grade of 7 for his efforts –  he completed 14 out of 15 passes (93%), had one shot on target and one shot blocked, took 20 touches of the ball in 32 minutes, and produced two out of three accurate long balls, whilst his heatmap reveals pockets of activity in the opposite half, which shows that he posed a real attacking threat on the left wing after he replaced Ryan Kent. We just hope Jones wasn’t watching the game, that’s for sure.

Given Barker’s recent form, the outcast winger could be facing the axe sooner rather than later having already been touted for a potential departure in the summer by The Daily Record. Jones seems to have undone all of his hard work in recent weeks with sporting director Ross Wilson not one to hang about when it comes to getting rid of the deadwood.

The Northern Ireland international has scored one goal in four games this season, with two of his four appearances coming from the bench, whilst he is averaging one shot and just 0.3 key passes per game in the Scottish Premiership so far, via WhoScored. By comparison, Barker has mustered 1.5 shots per league game, as per WhoScored.

Gerrard has at least four other wide options to choose from, as Joe Aribo, Roofe, Ianis Hagi and even Cedric Itten can also be deployed out wide, so his latest indiscretion will have done him no favours whatsoever. Get him gone, Gers.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers right-back James Tavernier hits back at critics in sensational style against Hamilton…

After parting ways with Phillip Cocu back in November after a run of just one win from their opening 11 Championship games, Derby County are on the hunt for a new long-term manager.

Wayne Rooney has currently stepped into the hot-seat for the time being, and whilst reports have suggested that he is keen on taking the job full-time, that may not be the smartest play in the book right now.

The other big name of course that is being linked with taking the vacant Derby job, is John Terry. The former England international is currently working alongside Dean Smith at Premier League level with Aston Villa, and would once again be another unproven option for the Rams.

Stuck in lockdown? Our mega footy quiz will cure any boredom…

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The man they should surely be trying to get though, is someone who’s performing fantastic work at another Championship club, Swansea. Steve Cooper hasn’t been in the managerial game long himself, but the job he has done in Wales has been nothing short of fantastic.

The Swans currently find themselves fourth in the table and well in the mix for a play-off spot at the end of the season, and boast the division’s best defensive record with just ten goals conceded in their first 17 games.

It has led to Tony Pulis to heap praise on the 40-year-old, saying: “I think the manager has done an absolutely fantastic job there… If you look at the recruitment – and lets not forget the players he’s sold – it’s been very, very good. It suits what Swansea want to do, and I think an identity for a football club is very important.

“You look at Swansea, and the manager, and they’ve put an identity together. I think he’s done an exceptional job.”With a potential takeover on the horizon, Derby desperately need someone at the helm who can establish an identity from top to bottom, and Cooper’s rapid work at doing just that at Swansea should be hugely appealing.His previous experience with working with the England youth set-up bodes well for nurturing some of the Rams’ younger talent, and it can allow the club to properly plan for an exciting future.

Leeds United’s transfer policy over the past few years has focussed heavily on signing young players for the U23s outfit.

Millions have been spent on bringing in young stars such as Sam Greenwood, Cody Drameh, Stuart McKinstry and Mateusz Bogusz, and it may be time for Leeds to start harvesting the fruits of their labour.

One man who could soon be ready to step up to the first-team is Liam McCarron. The young winger has been making waves over the past 12 months earning his first Scotland U21s call-up over the summer, and it’ll be interesting to see what he can offer the first-team in years to come.

His former coach at Carlisle gave him a glowing review earlier in his career, and it seems as though he could be a perfect Bielsa player.

“At 15 he was blessed with loads of pace, which is why we took a chance on him, but he was a young boy who would get very frustrated very quickly,” Darren Edmondson said.

“As he’s matured and come into full-time football, that’s been the biggest change in him. If he makes a mistake now, his work rate is unbelievable.”

One interesting thing to note is that the teenager was proactive in his pursuit of improving his work rate, and it wasn’t just something that came naturally to him.

In July 2017, McCarron was asked to answer a few questions for Carlisle’s website, and he revealed that one area he needs to improve was tracking back and helping the team defend, and within a couple of years he was in the first-team being praised for how hard he works.

This is exactly the type of player that Bielsa can mould to become a star. The Argentine has been lauded as one of the best coaches in the world, so it won’t take long for him to spot areas on McCarron’s game that need some work, and if the former Carlisle man can approach those issues with the same sort of attitude he had when faced with wanting to improve his work rate, he could become a star under Bielsa.

You only have to look at the way he has transformed the likes of Kalvin Phillips to know that the ex-Lille manager is someone who can get the best out of young talent.