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Celtic have been dealt a fresh injury concern ahead of their upcoming Europa League fixture.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to a claim made by Ben Dinnery, with the injury expert claiming in a recent interview with Football Insider that Stephen Welsh’s facial injury picked up against St. Johnstone in the League Cup semi-final could see him ruled out for a number of months – if the knock is bad enough to require surgery.

Speaking about the 21-year-old’s injury, Dinnery said: “If we are talking a severe break, surgical intervention is often recommended. There could alternatively be a minor fracture. Those will often heal without the need for surgical intervention.

“Otherwise, it might just be a case of pain management. The difficulty with that is that football is a contact sport. You don’t really want to take any chances because something trivial or minor could be exacerbated.

“In that case, instead of looking at weeks, you’re looking at months. You may need wires or plates inserted into your jaw if you do end up needing surgery.”

Postecoglou would be livid

While a recent report claimed that Welsh did not suffer a concussion in the coming together with Shaun Rooney, something that would appear to suggest the centre-back’s injury is not that serious, should the Scotland international’s knock indeed turn out to be a fracture, Ange Postecoglou would undoubtedly be livid.

Indeed, over his five Scottish Premiership appearances so far this season, the £1.08m-rated man has highly impressed for the Bhoys, helping his side keep two clean sheets and registering one assist, as well as making an average of 1.2 interceptions, 0.8 tackles, 2.2 clearances and winning 6.2 duels per game.

These returns have seen the 21-year-old average a SofaScore match rating of 7.12, ranking him as Postecoglou’s joint 11th-best performer in the league.

However, not only would Welsh’s absence result in Celtic losing one of their most exciting young talents, but it would also provide the 56-year-old with a real selection headache in the heart of his defence, with the Bhoys manager potentially only being left with the options of Cameron Carter-Vickers, Osaze Urhoghide and Liam Scales for a fixture against Bayer Leverkusen in which a loss could see the Hoops dumped out of the Europa League.

In other news: Celtic dealt big transfer blow, Ange will surely be fuming

There is a phenomenal feeling about Nottingham Forest at the moment.

Steve Cooper has worked his magic at the City Ground and they now sit right on the cusp of a play-off place in the Championship.

What’s sparked that is a wonderful run of form throughout 2021, with Forest losing just a single game in the league this calendar year as they time their run towards a potential place at Wembley just perfectly.

To see such a historic outfit back in the top-flight would be quite the sight and it would be interesting to see whether they’d be able to keep the likes of Joe Worrall, Brennan Johnson or Djed Spence in their ranks as a result.

The trio have been outstanding this season and Spence, in particular, has finally filled the vacant area left behind by Matty Cash following his move to Aston Villa.

Yet, speaking of full-backs, it is apparent that Forest nearly had one of the brightest talents of a generation in their ranks all the way back in 2009.

That just so happens to be Gareth Bale, an individual who transitioned from a flying wing-back into a devastating and dynamic offensive weapon.

Over ten years ago now, Bale was struggling to get in the side at Tottenham and was the subject of a £2m bid from Nottingham Forest for his services.

A move came pretty close too but it unfortunately eventually fell away. Recalling negotiations in 2013, Clive Allen commented: “It did go pretty close.

“I know there were discussions between the clubs. The clubs had agreed the potential of the move, so it was something that he had to think about.”

Sadly for the Garibaldi, a move never materialised and they were left to wonder what if.

Bale eventually broke into the Tottenham team and was a revelation, scoring 72 goals and registering 61 assists for the Lilywhites.

He would then travel to Real Madrid in a then world-record move worth £85m and since that moment, his career has been nothing short of remarkable.

The Wales international has won the Champions League four times, has picked up two La Liga titles, one Copa del Rey and four Club World Cups too. Furthermore, the 32-year-old has found the back of the net on 106 occasions, scoring some quite magical goals in the process too.

Who could forget the moment he took Marc Bartra to the cleaners or his absurd overhead kick goal that beat Loris Karius in the Champions League final.

He has also represented his country at two major tournaments and is on the verge of securing a third following a stunning free-kick against Austria last week. It was trademark Bale who stepped up, sent the ball fizzing over the wall and then into the top corner.

The veteran has done that on countless occasions for club and country, but the Forest fans never got to see him turn out for them.

It’s enough to provoke a sense of regret with the Madrid star being hailed as “legendary” and as a “messiah” to Wales by writer Megan Feringa.

Those two words aptly describe him and although it’s unlikely Forest would have been able to keep hold of him anyway, it was a mistake not to do more in order to bring him in.

AND in other news, Cooper can finally axe Forest “bulldog” by signing “very impressive” £135k-rated gem…

Tottenham Hotspur will target Sofyan Amrabat after sealing a move for Adama Traore this week, according to Fabrizio Romano…

What’s the one?

The Italian transfer guru delivered a fresh update on Spurs’ transfer plans to Twitter, where he revealed that the Fiorentina midfielder was their “main target” as they close in on the Wolves star.

“Tottenham are now focused on Tanguy Ndombele loan move to Paris Saint-Germain and Adama Traoré deal with Wolves. Negotiations [are] ongoing.

“Sofyan Amrabat’s the main target as midfielder in case Ndombele will leave, as revealed on Sunday,” he said.

It remains to be seen how much the 25-year-old Moroccan international would command with CIES Football Observatory valuing him at around €15m (£12.5m).

Onto the next

It certainly seems as if Traore will soon become a Lilywhites player after GIVEMESPORT reported that they had agreed to make him their fourth-highest earner on £120k-per-week with an initial loan move very close.

Now it seems their attention will turn to strengthen another key area that Antonio Conte is desperate to bolster – the engine room.

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Ndombele’s move to Paris Saint-Germain could well happen before next Monday’s deadline, whilst the futures of Giovani Lo Celso and Dele Alli are by no means certain either, so there’s going to be a position in the squad available if even two of the three depart N17.

It’s believed that the Italian head coach wanted three key signings.

One being right wing-back, where he is expected to convert the Spanish winger into his next Victor Moses, central midfield, where Amrabat has emerged as the top target, and striker, where Harry Kane needs some backup, as per football.london.

Capped 27 times for his national side and having featured in over 130 appearances across the Italian and Dutch top-flight, the 6-foot powerhouse is an experienced and reliable option in the heart of the pitch.

At the Africa Cup of Nations this month, he has been one of the best passers, averaging a success rate of 93%, only bettered by three other players, whilst the fact that he commits more fouls (106) than he has tackles (101) during his time in Italy suggests he’s an aggressive presence that isn’t afraid of putting in the graft, so he’ll be a midfielder right up Conte’s street.

On the above evidence, the 52-year-old will surely be delighted as Spurs close in on their first two signings of the winter transfer window, especially as they are in key positions he has requested for.

AND in other news, Bid accepted: Spurs close in on “extraordinary” £25m-rated beast, Conte will love him…

The ongoing feud between Everton left back Lucas Digne, and manager Rafa Benitez has been a hot topic of conversation, that has now lead to the player being linked away from the club and even included in a rumoured offer made to Newcastle United, but it looks like Digne is not about to do his current manager any favours.

What’s the word?

Fabrizio Romano has taken to his Twitter account to let his million followers know about the potential move of Lucas Digne to Newcastle, which is said to be in conjunction with a deal to bring Sean Longstaff to Merseyside, and it’s not good news.

Romano tweeted:

“Lucas Digne will decide his next club soon. He’ll leave Everton with Premier League move likely – but he’s not going to Newcastle despite rumours. Not even an option. No way.”

The transfer insider went on to add further claims of a move to Chelsea:

“Chelsea are interested since weeks but no official talks opened with Everton yet.”

The potential move stems from an alleged argument that took place in training, where the defender disagreed with the Spanish manager’s tactics, and has not been seen in the starting side since the Merseyside Derby at the beginning of December last year, but did return to the bench in the defeat to Brighton at Goodison Park last weekend.

A nightmare for Benitez

There are a number of reasons why the French defender’s apparent rejection of a move to Newcastle United could become a nightmare for Benitez and his plans moving forward.

Sky Sports journalist, Keith Downie, reported that the club could receive Sean Longstaff in a deal that included Digne, but with the Everton player apparently refusing the move, it could put off Eddie Howe and the board in the North East who are looking to bolster their defence over the January transfer window, as they won’t be getting what they need from the move.

It would also stop the Merseyside outfit from signing a player that their manager clearly loves.

Another reason why the 28-year-old’s rumoured snub of the move could cause problems for Benitez is that he wants to sell the player, not loan him out, which is the alleged premise and conditions of the Chelsea deal that Romano has suggested Digne prefers.

According to ESPN in a report this week, Everton are not interested in loan deals for the £110k-per-week star, and have valuated the player at around £25m, with the intention to boost transfer funds by selling the out of favour full-back.

It looks like Digne has no interest in doing his manager any favours when it comes to cooperating with the transfer plans the Everton board have outlined for the Frenchman’s future, and it will be interesting to see if he will get his own way on a Chelsea loan move.

Until he leaves permanently, however, this whole ordeal will continue to terrorise the mind of Benitez for this situation is nothing short of a disaster for the Toffees.

In other news: Rafa can axe Seamus Coleman after securing new signing

According to Charlie Eccleshare of The Athletic, talks between Tottenham and Milan are ‘expected to continue’ over the possible loan move of defender Japhet Tanganga.

The Lowdown: Increased playing time but more criticism

The 22-year-old centre-back has seen increased game-time this season, having made 11 Premier League appearances, 10 of which came in the starting XI. Tanganga’s ability to play in a number of positions across the back line has proven to be an invaluable asset for Spurs – he has been employed as a centre-back, right-back, left-back and even as a right midfielder during the current campaign.

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However, the defender has been on the receiving end of some criticism this year following a string of poor performances. Having averaged a tame 6.65 SofaScore rating, Tanganga has often been blamed for being the reason as to why Spurs have been shipping goals regularly; Premier League legend Rio Ferdinand described his performance in the 3-0 thrashing by Crystal Palace as being costly for Spurs, on a day that he demonstrated ‘a lack of experience’ throughout.

The Latest: Spurs and Milan in talks over Tanganga

As per Eccleshare on Twitter on Monday morning, talks between Tottenham and Milan are ‘expected to continue today’ over the possibility of a loan move for Japhet Tanganga.

Despite the aforementioned criticism, Spurs are wary of letting the defender go, as he has started the club’s last five games. However, if they do end up sanctioning the transfer, they would only permit a loan with an obligation to buy, whereas Milan want a straight loan deal.

The Verdict: A loan move could be the right decision

Tanganga reportedly ‘wants to stay’ at the north London club, but he is aware that the returns of central defenders Eric Dier and Cristian Romero could reduce his game-time over the remainder of the season.

However, joining the Serie A club could prove to be the right decision for Tanganga, who last August was hailed as a ‘really special’ player by Gary Neville.

If he ends up being shunted out of Antonio Conte’s starting XI, he may need to go somewhere he would enjoy regular top-flight football. Up to now, the 22-year-old has been thrown in and out of the starting XI by various Spurs managers, only utilised when he’s needed to fill in at the back due his ability to play anywhere across the defence.

Therefore, this prospective loan move could prove to be a blessing for Tanganga – that’s if the two clubs can come to an agreement over the arrangement of the deal.

In other news – “Still in talks”: Fabrizio Romano provides the latest on another player linked with a possible exit from Tottenham

A key claim has emerged on Blackburn beast Joe Rothwell, regarding Glasgow giants Rangers’ pursuit of his services…

What’s the talk?

The Sun journalist Alan Nixon has revealed that he has heard nothing about the club’s interest in the midfielder since Giovanni van Bronckhorst replaced Steven Gerrard at the helm.

It had previously been reported by The Sun that the Gers were leading the race to sign him on a pre-contract deal in January, but this update appears to throw the move into doubt.

Bye-bye Kamara

Van Bronckhorst has enjoyed a near-on perfect start to life at Rangers but this update from Nixon suggests that he could be on the verge of his first disaster at Ibrox.

The Dutchman has won seven of his eight games in charge of the side, conceding just two goals in that time, and is yet to taste defeat on the pitch.

However, he may be about to suffer a loss off the pitch unless he ensures that he carries on Gerrard’s work and secures a deal to sign Rothwell. It would be a disaster to miss out on the midfielder as his form for Blackburn suggests that he could be a superb addition to the squad, particularly on a free transfer.

This season, the 26-year-old has averaged an exceptional WhoScored rating of 7.06 in the Championship. He has chipped in with one goal and seven assists from midfield, averaging 1.4 key passes and 1.9 dribbles completed per game.

Rovers boss Tony Mowbray once heaped praise on the midfielder’s speed as he urged him to get closer to goal, saying: “He’s an exciting talent, he’s exceedingly fast, he keeps the ball really tight. We want him running towards the opposition goal rather than across the pitch.”

James Tavernier (10) is the only Rangers player with more than four assists in the Premiership this term, with Glen Kamara’s tally of three the most out of the midfield unit. This suggests that Rothwell could provide a creative lift to van Bronckhorst’s options in the middle of the park, whilst also being capable of delivering consistently high-quality performances.

With Kamara linked with a move away, it also suggests that the Rovers midfield general could be his perfect heir in the middle of the park.

Therefore, it would be a mistake to pass up on the opportunity to sign him after Gerrard seemingly laid the groundwork for the deal before he departed for Aston Villa. This is why the new Gers head coach must avoid a disaster and ensure that Ross Wilson gets a move over the line in the coming weeks.

AND in other news, Gvb set for major Rangers boost “this week”, fans will surely be buzzing…

With only one incoming signing secured for Wolves in the January transfer window so far which saw Japanese midfielder Hayao Kawabe join the Midlands club, it seems as though the Old Gold could be set to welcome a new face to their ranks.

What’s the news?

According to journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano in a recent Twitter post, Wolves have agreed a deal to sign Estoril attacker Chiquinho on a permanent basis for a fee of €3.5m (£2.9m).

He said: “Agreement completed between Wolverhampton and Estoril for Portuguese striker Chiquinho. Permanent deal for €3.5m plus €1.5m bonuses confirmed. Wolves Deal subject to medical – Chiquinho will be in England today in order to complete his move.”

Lage will be buzzing

Having made a total of 84 appearances for Estoril at senior and youth level, the 21-year-old winger has managed to rack up a total of 20 goals and ten assists along the way, highlighting the attacking capabilities he has at a fairly young age.

Chiquinho’s performances in the Portuguese league with Estoril this season have earned him an overall rating of 6.77/10 from WhoScored, which would place him as the sixth-highest rated outfield Wolves player in the Premier League at the moment.

With the likes of Francisco Trincao and Hwang Hee-chan only currently on loan deals at the Midlands club and the constant speculation surrounding Adama Traore’s future as a Wolves player, signing Chiquinho could be a great piece of transfer business from the club.

He is a young prospect that has the potential to grow and develop his game in the Premier League, which would surely please manager Bruno Lage if the previously mentioned current attacking options end up leaving.

Given the significant number of Portuguese players in Wolves’ squad at the moment, as well as Lage and his coaching staff, this will presumably help Chiquinho settle into his surroundings at the Midlands club swiftly.

Moving forward, it’ll be interesting to see what sort of game time Chiquinho will be given at Molineux before the end of the season and before any potential transfer business takes place next summer which could then have a direct impact on the minutes he’d receive heading into next term.

Either way, it’s still an exciting deal for Wolves to make for such a young prodigy that could potentially be the next Pedro Neto at Molineux; a young winger that has the capacity to score and assist goals on a regular basis.

If he can make anywhere near a similar contribution in the Midlands, Lage would be delighted.

In other news: £33k-p/w Wolves gem, who created two big chances, stars in victory over Southampton

Southampton really need to start picking up points, and capitalising on a Norwich vs Newcastle draw should be Ralph Hasenhuttl’s goal tonight by earning three points and pulling further away from the relegation zone into a safer position in the Premier League.

Hasenhuttl will have a challenge on his hands when it comes to beating Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester City side, but with only one player out with an injury, the Saints manager has the pick of the bunch to build a team and offer a tactical masterclass against the Foxes.

Saints had an awful first half against Liverpool last weekend, conceding three goals before the interval after Hasenhuttl set up the team all out for attack, which fell flat very fast when Jota scored in the second minute of the game.

The Austrian quickly changed the formation to the back four and made two substitutions at the break that were integral to stumping Liverpool from putting more than one goal past them in the second half of the game.

With that being said, here is how Football FanCast expect Southampton to set up against Leicester City;

We expect that Hasenhuttl will play it a little safer with his formation and tactics against Leicester, after the chaos of the first half against Liverpool, with a Ralph classic 4-2-2-2 formation, adding Nathan Redmond and Nathan Tella, whilst axing Jan Bednarak and Che Adams from the starting side.

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The £74k-per-week star, Redmond, and young winger, Nathan Tella, can be introduced into the starting team to help with building play and finding space to move the ball forward to assist both Adam Armstrong and Armando Broja in goal scoring opportunities that won’t come easy creating.

Redmond offers experience, high-quality dribbling skills and a strong attacking presence that will help Saints break down the Leicester defence to hopefully score and gain control of the game very early on.

Tella, who has scored two goals and offered one assist so far this term, we expect to come back into the team after being out of favour for the starting line up over the last few weeks. The wide man proved himself useful whilst playing a part in the damage control half of the heavy defeat at Anfield last weekend, so the manager may well deem him worthy of a starting position.

Southampton really need to take a win from the Foxes this evening and Saints fans will surely be hoping Hasenhuttl has learned from his mistakes last weekend.

In other news: An injury boost ahead of Leicester clash for Saints

Former Premier League striker Kevin Campbell has given his reaction to Leeds United transfer news involving Rangers winger Ryan Kent. 

The lowdown: Kent a target for Leeds

This comes following a report from Football Insider which claimed that the Whites are interested in signing the 25-year-old.

The ex-Liverpool academy prospect could be viewed as a potential replacement for Raphinha should the highly sought-after Brazilian move on from Elland Road.

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Kent is believed to have a £20m release clause in his contract at Ibrox – a deal which expires in 2023 (Transfermarkt) – although Campbell has suggested that it would be money well spent by Leeds.

The latest: ‘Very good business’

Speaking to Football Insider, the former Arsenal striker claimed that Kent would be capable of filling the void left by Raphinha if the Brazilian departs.

The 52-year-old said: “He’s done a great job up there under Steven Gerrard and now Giovanni van Bronckhorst, he’s been a real star.

“If Leeds look at him as the one who can come in and take that Raphinha role, with Dan James moving over to the right, then I think that would be very good business.”

The verdict: Time to move?

Since moving north of the border, Kent has been superb for Rangers and has directly contributed to 74 goals in 164 outings for the Scottish Premiership side.

So far this season, the man once hailed as ‘sensational’ by his former Ibrox boss Steven Gerrard has scored three times and provided 16 assists despite suffering with a hamstring injury for most of the autumn.

As for replacing Raphinha, the £12.6m-valued Englishman predominantly operates from the left wing and would require the switch for Dan James, as mentioned by Campbell, to work in order to make the move worthwhile.

Given that some of the Welshman’s best performances this season have come when operating on the right on occasion, it could be a reshuffle worth making, therefore adding weight to the theory behind Leeds moving for Kent.

In other news, journalist backs Leeds move for Austrian Bundesliga star. Read more here

Said Benrahma is surely facing the axe from David Moyes’ starting XI as his West Ham United side travel across London to face Arsenal later this evening.

The Irons have hit a rough patch in their season, with their impressive win against Chelsea being their only one across their last four games in all competitions.

It has seen their place inside the Premier League’s top-four put in grave danger as the chasing pack have narrowed the gap on them.

The Gunners will be no easy test, particularly as they are one of the many teams right behind them in the standings – indeed, a win for the home side could see them leapfrog the east Londoners today.

As such, it leaves Moyes with several decisions to make in terms of team selection after the Hammers drew 0-0 to a struggling Burnley side at the weekend.

West Ham’s futile frontline could only muster up three shots on target, with there being a substantial lack of creativity in the final third and it was another game in which the Algerian winger struggled.

As per SofaScore, the 26-year-old managed only one key pass and 37 touches of the ball in the 70 minutes he was on the pitch. By comparison, substitute Nikola Vlasic took his rare opportunity and created a whopping three key chances from only 13 touches in just 20 minutes.

Benrahma’s barren run now extends to six league games without a goal or assist, whilst he’s provided only one goal and one assist in his last 14 appearances, via Transfermarkt.

In recent matches against Wolves and Man City, the £22.5m-rated attacker failed to surpass a WhoScored rating of 6.15 and has only recorded better than his 6.88 average for the season just once since the start of October, which suggests his poor form has been a problem and it could be argued that he is now holding the Irons back in the attack.

The Athletic’s Roshane Thomas claimed at the start of the month that his form was “a concern” and this week he doubled up on that by suggesting that he had “been poor lately.”

Meanwhile, club legend Tony Gale suggested that the Hammers winger was “struggling” in that aforementioned clash at Molineux during commentary duties for the Premier League’s official feed.

So as such, it would be wise for Moyes to be ruthless and bold in his team selection and to do so, he must axe the passenger-like Benrahma from the starting XI against the Gunners this evening.

AND in other news, West Ham’s “unbelievable” £18m-rated star drops 5-word hint that’ll have fans buzzing…