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A claim has emerged over new Glasgow Rangers manager Michael Beale and his expected use of the youth squad at Ibrox…

What’s the talk?

BBC Scotland reporter Kheredine Idessane has claimed that the Englishman is set to hand opportunities to a number of young talents from the B team.

He tweeted:

“Further to this from a few days ago, expect @RangersFC youngsters Charlie McCann and Adam Devine to get a chance under Beale, as well as Lowry and Lovelace.”

This was quoting a Tweet from the 27th of November:

“Expect Michael Beale to be announced as new @RangersFC manager in the next 48 hours. Also expect him to let younger players get their chance. Good news, if all goes through as expected, for the likes of Lowry and Lovelace. Bigger question is: can he close the gap on @CelticFC?”

Could save the club millions

Beale unleashing Zak Lovelace in the coming weeks and months could be a masterstroke by the 42-year-old and save the club millions in the process by providing the club with a new senior striker.

The talented 16-year-old attacker joined the club at the end of last season and has been playing for the B team throughout the current campaign so far, with the new Gers head coach now appearing set to offer him a chance to impress in the first-team.

Wilson hailed the forward after his arrival from Millwall in the summer, saying:

“We are delighted to welcome Zak to Rangers. He is an exciting young player and one we are sure will progress here.

Craig Mulholland added:

“He has developed really well with the staff at Millwall and we can see lots of potential in him.

“Zak is a very exciting and quick forward player who our recruitment team, headed by David Stevenson, have been tracking for some time.”

The Englishman has lived up to the hype with an impressive run of form at youth level this season. Lovelace has scored 11 goals and provided eight assists in 25 matches for the under-19 and B team combined, including two goals and four assists in six UEFA Youth League outings.

He still has plenty of time left ahead of him, at the age of 16, and there is no rush for Beale to introduce him to regular first-team football but giving him the odd chance to make an appearance in the Premiership or cup could help his development over time.

Lovelace’s emergence could then save Wilson from having to spend millions on a new number nine to replace Alfredo Morelos, who is out of contract next summer, or Kemar Roofe, if they decide to part ways with the former Anderlecht man.

The dynamo has shown plenty of promise at youth level and it is now down to him to grasp any opportunities that come his way thanks to Beale’s willingness to bring through young talents.

West Ham United could be set to call time on Vladimir Coufal’s career at the club…

What’s the latest?

As per journalist Pete O’Rourke, the Czech Republic international seems to be moving towards an exit following rumours that Bayer Leverkusen are interested.

He told Football FanCast:

“It does seem things are pointing to a potential exit for Coufal, who has been a good player for West Ham.

“When they first signed him he was a solid right back for them, but he’s struggling for game time this season with Thilo Kehrer playing at right back, even though he’s predominantly a centre back as well.

“So that probably shows where he has found himself slipping down the pecking order at the London Stadium this season.”

His time is surely up at West Ham

Although he enjoyed a fine start to life in east London, his form has admittedly withered with each passing season.

Boasting a seven-assist debut campaign, he and Tomas Soucek were revelations as David Moyes reaped the rewards of Slavia Prague’s recruitment.

However, that number would drop to just four assists the season following, and as O’Rourke mentioned, the likes of Kehrer and even Ben Johnson have been preferred to the 30-year-old.

This drop off has also been noted in his average ratings, which have fallen from a respectable 7.01 in his first season to 6.78 of late, with his crossing accuracy having plummeted alongside, from 26% to just 12%, via Sofascore.

The £35k-per-week dynamo has been a fine option for the Hammers since his £5m move, and could now recoup a similar fee after nearly three solid years of service.

Given their apparent desperation to sell, rumours have since swirled linking them to potential replacements, with Celtic’s Josip Juranovic the latest to be mentioned.

With his side sitting just one point from the relegation zone following his vast summer overhaul, it is clear that Moyes is keen on bolstering his squad once again in January.

To do this he must make some sacrifices, and with his stock having fallen of late, it seems like Coufal is the unfortunate but probably viable candidate for the chopping block.

Leeds United have reportedly made contact with Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic over a move to Elland Road.

The Lowdown: Outstanding World Cup

The 2022 World Cup is finally heading towards its conclusion, with the semi-finals next up prior to this weekend’s final on Sunday afternoon.

Livakovic will start between the sticks for Croatia when they face Lionel Messi’s Argentina on Tuesday night, looking to continue his superb tournament.

The 27-year-old has started all five of his country’s games at the tournament so far, proving to be the penalty shootout hero in knockout wins over Japan and Brazil.

The Latest: Leeds make contact

According to Media Foot, Leeds have made their move for Livakovic, initiating direct contact with his agency.

The report claims Illan Meslier is likely to leave Elland Road, and Dinamo Zagreb would be happy to allow Livakovic to become his replacement if an £8.6million offer arrives in January.

The Croatian’s current deal expires at the end of next season, so time is running out for them to receive good money for his services.

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The Verdict: Ideal Meslier replacement?

Livakovic has shown what an impressive goalkeeper he is throughout the World Cup, looking like a dominant presence during games and performing heroically in the aforementioned shootout.

He could be seen as a natural replacement for Meslier at, should Leeds’ current No.1 feel like a new challenge is on the cards next summer.

Livakovic would actually be an upgrade in terms of experience, considering he has won 39 caps for his country, so it would be an exciting piece of business and presumably turn a profit given the calibre of teams eyeing Meslier.

This could truly be a masterstroke from Victor Orta and Andrea Radrizzani.

Sheffield Wednesday defender Akin Famewo being ready to return to action is ‘good news’, according to journalist Joe Crann.

The Lowdown: Spell on the sidelines

The League One promotion contenders signed the centre-back from Norwich City over the summer, but after sustaining a serious injury on his debut against MK Dons, hasn’t featured since.

The 24-year-old, however, recently made his return to action from the sidelines in a behind-closed-doors game vs Huddersfield’s B side last week, with Darren Moore confirming that he is now ready to stage his comeback in the third tier.

The Latest: Crann’s reaction

Taking to Twitter, Crann reacted to Wednesday’s positive update on Famewo, whilst revealing that Dennis Adeniran is also nearing a return. He wrote:

“Good news for #SWFC as Akin Famewo is given the all clear to play once again – and Dennis Adeniran is set to feature over the Christmas period.”

The Verdict: Boost for Moore

Famewo is a hugely exciting player and it’ll be a massive boost for Moore to have him available for selection once again to finally unleash him in a Sheffield Wednesday shirt.

The 6 foot 1 defender excelled on loan at Charlton last season, averaging 3.7 clearances and 2.2 successful aerial duels per game, highlighting the rock he can be at the heart of a backline (WhoScored).

The Owls host Oxford United this weekend and there’s a strong chance that Famewo could be set to make his home debut in front of the supporters at the Hillsborough Stadium.

Manchester United’s interest in Netherlands and PSV Eindhoven talisman Cody Gakpo is ‘very genuine and strong’, according to journalist Ryan Taylor.

The Lowdown: Gakpo off to United?

Few players have been talked about more in the transfer market in recent months than the 23-year-old, who has produced some huge performances for PSV this season, also being hailed as ‘wonderful’ by Dutch manager Louis van Gaal.

Gakpo’s form has seen him endlessly linked with a move to United, among other clubs, and it does feel as though a move is a given either in January or next summer, especially after manager Ruud van Nistelrooy admitted he may be powerless to stop an exit.

A new update has now emerged, with the Red Devils still right in the picture to snap him up.

The Latest: Red Devils’ interest is ‘strong’

Speaking in an interview Give Me Sport, Daily Express journalist Taylor delivered the latest on the versatile forward:

“I think the key point about Gakpo is he’s very tactically flexible, you look at the World Cup, he was playing as a centre-forward and as a creative midfielder for Holland.

“In that sense, he would be a really clever signing because he can play in multiple positions across the frontline, I think that’s important, and I do think that (United) interest is very genuine and strong.”

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The Verdict: Matter of time?

At this point, it would be a shock if Gakpo didn’t end up in a United shirt, given just how many transfer links there have been throughout this year.

A move almost happened during the summer transfer window and the transfer clearly appeals to the player himself given his comments over that ordeal, so a January bid makes complete sense.

United’s attack needs more fresh blood after the exit of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gakpo could dovetail effectively with the likes of Marcus Rashford and Antony, slotting into a central role and providing end product and physicality, having notched 105 goal contributions (55 goals and 50 assists) in 159 appearances for PSV.

Tottenham Hotspur are set for discussions with Napoli about Tanguy Ndombele, with the Serie A leaders now wanting to make his loan move permanent.

The Lowdown: Ndombele’s loan spell

The Frenchman joined Napoli on loan for the 2022/23 season in August, with the deal including an option to make the move permanent, and it appears as though the Azzurri have already been sufficiently impressed to commence talks about this possibility.

The midfielder – who turns 26 today – has made 18 appearances in all competitions this season, emerging as a vital player for Napoli in their title charge, with Luciano Spalletti’s team eight points clear at the summit of Serie A.

The Latest: Napoli set for Ndombele discussions

Foot Mercato reported on Monday evening that Napoli are able to sign Ndombele permanently for a fee of around £26m, although discussions are set to take place in January about lowering this amount.

While the player himself is in favour of extending his stay in Italy, a permanent deal will hinge upon Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy finding a suitable agreement, with the report claiming that the 60-year-old is renowned as a tough negotiator.

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The Verdict: Best for all parties

The 26-year-old was hailed as ‘fantastic’ by his former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino during his early days in N17 but he failed to kick on, never really managing to convince supporters that he was worth the club-record £63m fee that he cost in 2019.

Last season, the midfielder made just nine appearances in the Premier League, with it becoming clear that he was not up to the standard required to succeed at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, his 6.46 rating from WhoScored placing him a lowly 19th in Antonio Conte’s squad.

However, he has clearly impressed Spalletti with his performances in Serie A this season, so Spurs could have a good opportunity to recoup some of the money that they spent on him three-and-a-half years ago.

If Levy risks waiting until the end of the season, when Napoli are presented with the £26m option, Ndombele’s performances may have dipped, and Spurs could end up parting with the Frenchman for far less.

Liverpool attacker Roberto Firmino has shared an update regarding his injury situation ahead of the Merseyside club’s upcoming Premier League game against Leicester City. 

The Lowdown: Firmino’s injury situation

The Brazilian was ruled out of Liverpool’s 3-2 defeat against Manchester City in the Carabao Cup with a calf injury, and ultimately had to miss their recent 3-1 league win over Aston Villa.

Prior to that, the 31-year-old has scored nine goals and delivered four assists in 21 appearances for Jurgen Klopp’s side this season.

With the Reds set to take on the Foxes at Anfield tomorrow, Firmino has taken it upon himself to share an update on his fitness.

The Latest: Firmino’s update

Speaking to talkSPORT (via Liverpool Echo), Firmino had this to say about his fitness situation, revealing he expects to be back to face Brentford on January 2.

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“I’m already healed, thank God. I’ll probably train tomorrow. Then all being well I’ll be ready not for the next game [Leicester] but the one after that [Brentford]. So all great.”

The Verdict: Good news for Liverpool

While it’s unfortunate that Firmino is likely to miss Friday’s clash against the Foxes, seeing him make a return for Liverpool’s next league outing after that against Brentford will surely be a big positive for the team.

With seven goals and three assists under his belt in 13 league appearances this season, the Brazilian also has the second-highest rate of goals per shot (0.21) at Liverpool, as well as the second-highest total of shots on target (20).

His overall league performances have earned Firmino a solid season rating of 7.2/10 from WhoScored, making him the second-highest rated player in Klopp’s ranks.

This shows just how much of an important attacking figure the 31-year-old is for Liverpool and why having him back fit again will be a big boost for the Reds, who will be hoping that they can get past Leicester without him in the team.

Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes was not his usual self in the 0-0 draw against Arsenal on Tuesday and journalist Craig Hope has suggested he looks like he needs a rest.

What’s the latest?

Eddie Howe’s men were able to earn themselves a valuable point on the road to the Premier League leaders on Tuesday as they held out the league’s second-highest goalscorers to their first home blank this season.

The point kept the Magpies sitting pretty up in third spot of the table but made it just two points from a possible six in their last two games following their draw at home to Leeds United.

However, Hope did notice during the game at the Emirates Stadium that their star man, Guimaraes, did not exactly appear to be playing to his full potential with the Daily Mail journalist suggesting he could possibly benefit from a rest when speaking on his YouTube channel:

“I thought Bruno in particular at times is just missing that spark that we’d seen earlier in the season and towards the back end of last year.

“And that’s on the back of being away with, with Brazil, really, for the best part of four weeks, he hasn’t really had a break, he came pretty much straight back in it at Newcastle.

“He looks like maybe someone who could do with a little bit of a rest. He’s just lost that little bit of zip about him, hasn’t he, at the moment.”

  Bruno burnout?

It has been an exceptional start to the season for the Toon and that has drawn parallel to the impressive form of the Brazilian maestro who has not even been playing Premier League football for a year yet.

Guimaraes has been a regular feature in Howe’s side with 15 appearances in the Premier League to his name and all of them coming from the starting XI (via Transfermarkt).

And to add to that, the 25-year-old has had too deal with a hamstring issue back in the early stages of the campaign which saw him miss three of Newcastle’s league games.

On average this season, Guimaraes has averaged around 66 touches of the ball per 90, whereas, against the north London side he only managed 47 touches.

It was a game which the home side dominated with 67% possession, but this stat is perhaps evidence of the Brazilian’s lack of influence on the game which he committed three fouls and lost the ball eight times (via SofaScore).

Although Guimaraes did not feature that much for Brazil – just 67 minutes in total – it is also worth remembering the midfielder has not long returned from the World Cup following his country’s disappointing exit.

However, there is no break planned for Newcastle over the coming weeks with games aplenty ahead of Howe’s side who face a further three games before the end of next week.

But this weekend’s FA Cup clash against Sheffield Wednesday could offer Howe the opportunity to rest some of his stars with a trip to the League One side potentially a chance for some of the fringe players to show their worth.

Transfer expert Dean Jones has claimed that Aston Villa have an ‘edge’ over Bournemouth in the race to sign Juventus central midfielder Weston McKennie.

The Lowdown: Contact made

It has recently been reported that Villa have ‘made contact’ over the potential signing of McKennie, but CalcioMercato have stated that Bournemouth are also keen to bring the him to the Premier League.

Villa are also ‘closing in’ on the signing of Real Betis left-back Alex Moreno, according to journalist Fabrizio Romano, and McKennie could be next through the doors at Villa Park.

The Latest: Villa have ‘edge’

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones has claimed that Villa have an ‘edge’ over Bournemouth in the race for McKennie, as he is likely to have higher expectations if he moved to Unai Emery’s side:

“Weston McKennie is one of the more interesting names that’s going to appear in headlines over the course of this month because Juventus are open-minded about losing him.

“It would have to be on their terms, and even if you were looking to do a loan on this one, you would probably have to put an obligation in place and look to spend almost £20 million.

“I do think that Aston Villa would have an edge over Bournemouth in terms of a transfer like this because I think we have to understand that McKennie has very high expectations of where his career can get to.”

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The Verdict: Get it done

Villa should seriously be considering accelerating a move for McKennie given the competition that they are likely to face for his signature.

Hailed as a ‘monster’ in the air by football writer Wes Tucker, and a ‘pressing machine’ by journalist Chris Smith, the six-foot-one colossus ranks in the 90th percentile for non-penalty goals, 89th for touches, 87th for progressive passes received and 81st for blocks per game for all midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues over the past year (FBRef), and at 24 years of age, has not yet reached his full potential.

Lauded for a ‘sensational’ performance for the USA against England at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, McKennie has shown on numerous occasions that he can perform on the big stage, and so it would be a real coup for Villa if they were able to sign him.

West Ham United are interested in a deal to bring Terem Moffi to the Premier League in the January transfer window.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to Alex Crook, with the talkSPORT reporter revealing in a recent post on Twitter that the Hammers have now joined the race for the FC Lorient centre-forward, who the Ligue 1 club are believed to looking for a figure in the region of £25m in order to part with this winter.

However, David Moyes is not the only Premier League manager thought to be keen on the 23-year-old, with the Daily Mail reporting that Nathan Jones and Southampton recently saw a £15m bid for the Nigeria international rejected by the French side.

In his tweet, Jones said: “WHUFC have joined the race for Lorient striker Terem Moffi. Saints still at the table but looking less likely due to £25m asking price.”

“Jackpot”

Considering just how impressive Moffi has been in France so far this season, coupled with West Ham’s recent struggles in front of goal – with the Hammers’ 15 goals scored ranking them as the joint fourth-worst attack in the top flight – it is easy to see why Moyes would be interested in a deal to bring the 23-year-old to the London Stadium this winter.

Indeed, over his 16 Ligue 1 appearances in the current campaign, the £14m-rated talent has been in devastating form, having already hit the back of the net ten times – massively overperforming his xG of 6.55 – in addition to taking an average of 2.0 shots – 1.1 of which have been on target – and completing 1.3 dribbles – at a success rate of 61% – per game.

These returns have seen the £15k-per-week hitman average a simply sensational Sofascore match rating of 7.07, currently ranking him as Lorient’s fifth-best performer in the French top flight – playing a key role in his club getting off to an exceptional start to the 2022/23 campaign.

Rather unsurprisingly, Moffi’s performances have seen him earn a considerable amount of praise, with the former Lorient manager, Christophe Pelissier, stating his belief that the Nigerian “ticks all the boxes of the high-level player” back in 2021, while Football Talent Scout Jacek Kulig claimed that the Ligue 1 side hit the “jackpot” when signing the striker for just €8m (£7m).

As such, with the seven-cap international clearly being a forward who can hit the back of the net on an extremely regular basis, coupled with West Ham’s desperate need for a proven goalscorer up top, the argument that Moyes would be hitting the jackpot himself in landing the 23-year-old this winter is a very easy one to make.