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Rangers midfielder Ryan Jack played alongside new boy Glen Kamara in the 5-0 Scottish Cup thrashing of Kilmarnock at Ibrox on Wednesday, and his comments to rangers.co.uk after the final whistle suggest that he enjoyed the experience.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Kamara completed his move to the Glasgow giants from Dundee on the final day of the January transfer window, but didn’t make his debut for the club until the 0-0 draw with St Johnstone last weekend – one Jack incidentally missed because of an injury issue.

However, the duo were both named in the starting XI as Steven Gerrard opted for a 4-1-4-1 system against Killie, and it proved to be a happy night for the hosts as Alfredo Morelos netted four times and Andy Halliday scored another in the comprehensive win.

Speaking post-match about his new teammate, Jack told rangers.co.uk: “Yeah it was good.

“Obviously I’ve trained with him a couple of times, and Glen’s a good footballer.

“I thought he was really good tonight and I really enjoyed playing alongside him. He’s good at keeping the ball, I really enjoyed it and hopefully there’s more of that to come.”

Budding partnership on the cards?

There might well be, with Jack’s comments certainly suggesting that he is keen to play with the Finland international more often.

The fact that Rangers have only just signed Kamara suggests that he has a big role to play at Ibrox in the coming years, while at 26 years of age his Scottish teammate has already established himself as a key man for the club.

The pair are likely to feature prominently in Gerrard’s central midfield both now and in the future with the likes of Scott Arfield and Steven Davis getting no younger.

A big update has emerged regarding Newcastle United and their pursuit of Manchester United winger Marcus Rashford.

What’s the talk?

Transfer insider Dean Jones has claimed that the Magpies are one of two clubs set to be at the front of the pack for the England international this summer. He has revealed that PIF are ready to go head-to-head with Arsenal to land the Red Devils ace, with the attacker potentially on his way out of Old Trafford at the end of the season.

Jones told GIVEMESPORT: “I think as soon as Rashford’s future came into doubt, we did a story on the fact that Arsenal and Newcastle would be the two teams expected to lead the chase for Rashford, and I think that is the case.”

Joy to watch

Manchester United reporter Rich Fay once dubbed Rashford a “joy to watch”, and that is what the 24-year-old would be to the Newcastle faithful next season if the club can reach an agreement for him.

He is a proven Premier League performer who has the ability on the ball to get fans off their seats with excitement. In 293 games for the Red Devils, he has scored 93 goals and provided 58 assists, including 59 goals and 39 assists in the top flight.

Rashford is reportedly valued at €100m (£84m) by Manchester United, and it may be justified by his age and his form from last season.

Whilst he has only scored four times in the league this term, he managed an outstanding 11 goals and 11 assists in the Premier League in the 2020/21 campaign. This shows that he does have the ability to score and create goals on a regular basis at the top level, even if he is not showing it at the moment.

He also led Europe in completed nutmegs that season, with 18 in the top flight. This was after he also topped the charts in 2019/20 with 13 nutmegs, which suggests that he will be a joy to watch for supporters as he makes defenders look silly with his impressive dribbling.

At the age of 24, he also has plenty of time left to develop and improve even further. He is not at the end of his career and lacking the time to develop his game, which means that Howe can work with him to help the English forward to fulfill his potential and become a major player for the Toon.

It is now down to PIF to ensure that they win the race between themselves and Arsenal to bring Rashford to St James’ Park.

AND in other news, Fabrizio Romano drops exciting Newcastle United transfer update, fans will be buzzing…

Rangers have been busy in the transfer market this month as the Ibrox side have brought two players in and made a club-record sale during Gio van Bronckhorst’s first window.

The Gers have signed James Sands and John Souttar, with the latter arriving officially in the summer, and sold Nathan Patterson to Premier League side Everton, but it remains to be seen whether or not their business is over in January.

TemaSport recently reported that Hammarby forward Akinkunmi Amoo is one of the club’s targets heading into the final days of the month.

Next Ryan Kent

Gers boss van Bronckhorst could find his next wing wizard for the future by securing a deal to sign Amoo before the window slams shut.

Whilst it does not appear as though, as it stands, Ryan Kent will be on his way out of Ibrox this month, the winger is not guaranteed to stay in Glasgow forever and the club could find their long-term replacement by landing the 19-year-old Hammarby forward.

The Gers could sign the next Kent who can come in and learn from the ex-Liverpool man before potentially replacing him in the side further down the line,

Hammarby’s director of football, Jesper Jansson, previously lauded the young player for his impressive qualities on the ball, saying: 

“With Akin, we get an explosive, skilled and offensive player with a nice left foot. But we must remember that he has just turned 18, so we must have patience and work together to develop Akin’s top qualities.”

Do these keywords remind you of anyone? Kent has been described as “explosive” previously and is exceptional on the ball with his ability to dribble past players to create and score goals, completing 1.9 dribbles and 1.8 key passes per game in the Premiership last term.

Amoo admitted that he is compared to a current PSG star known for his dribbling, saying:  “I usually hear that I play like Leo Messi, so I am sometimes called ‘Little Messi’. He’s my role model.”

The 19-year-old has 13 goals and six assists since the start of the 2020/21 campaign for Hammarby, showing that he has been able to chip in with regular contributions in the final third. This suggests that he has the potential to grow into a player like Kent who is able to be a huge threat in attack by exciting fans and making a big impact in the opposition penalty area, which is why van Bronckhorst must sanction a swoop for him.

AND in other news,  Gvb “interested” in sealing 3rd Rangers signing at Ibrox, he could be Patterson 2.0…

Wolves manager Bruno Lage has revealed the latest information regarding the future of winger Adama Traore, who has been subject to interest from other Premier League clubs.

What’s the latest?

According to Lage, Wolves are yet to receive a bid for the Spaniard. Speaking to the media, the 45-year-old said: “No [bids]. For now I know nothing.

“About Adama, the only thing I can say, it’s the same Adama since the first day. Every time training well, being the good professional he is. He is here with us, wants to play for us and always works hard.

“If you look at the 19 or 20 games we have had, he has started at least half the games,” Lage explained. “When he hasn’t been in the first XI, he jumped from the bench to help the team.

“In my mind, yes, nothing changes. But this is football. The club has talked with Adama before, he has one year left on his contract, and I need to understand that.

“It’s not just about Adama, if it’s good for the club and the player, we need to find a solution.”

According to Birmingham Live, Premier League duo Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea are interested as are Spanish giants Barcelona; it is Spurs who are currently leading the race.

Now in the final 18 months of his contract at Molineux, the 25-year-old will need to make a decision on his future soon.

Wolves fans will be relieved

Although the winger has been limited to ten Premier League starts this campaign, Traore is still an important contributor for Wolves and the fact they’ve received no bids for his services will leave the Molineux faithful relieved.

The 25-year-old netted his first goal of the campaign on Saturday in the 3-1 win over Southampton which will now hopefully act as a catalyst for more goal contributions this side of the season.

A lack of goal involvement has been the Spaniard’s major weakness during his time in the West Midlands, managing just 11 goals and 18 assists in 153 appearances for the Old Gold.

However, his lightning pace and colossal strength make the winger a nightmare to defend against, particularly when he’s in form, therefore making him the ideal weapon for Wolves to unleash from their arsenal in the latter stages of a game, particularly if they’re in need of a goal.

To lose a player mid-season is never ideal, especially if a replacement can’t be signed. Should Traore fail to sign a contract extension by the summer, then Wolves fans may be more open to the idea of the winger leaving.

However, to lose him at this stage of the campaign, with the Midlands side chasing European qualification, Lage and co. will be desperate to hold onto Traore this window.

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

West Ham United have failed in their attempts to bring Duje Caleta-Car to the London Stadium in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a recent claim made by Claret & Hugh, with the West Ham insider revealing in a recent post that, despite David Moyes’ side’s continued attempts to find an agreement with Olympique de Marseille regarding a deal for the centre-back, sources on both sides of the transfer have stated that a compromise between the two clubs does not look likely to be reached.

It is reported that the Hammers are looking to take the 25-year-old on a loan to buy deal, while Marseille are only willing to part with the Croatia international for an up front fee of £15m.

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In their post, Claret & Hugh said: “West Ham are believed to have finally missed out on signing Croatian central defender Duje Caleta-Car. The Hammers have been chasing the player for several weeks and are likely to continue doing so up until the end of the window.

“But Claret & Hugh’s information from both sides of the deal is that Marseille are unwilling to do a loan to buy option and continue to insist on a £15 million permanent deal. The Hammers have made it clear they have no interest in such a deal at this point and want to take a look at the player over the remainder of the season.

“We are planning to pursue things until the end of the window but Marseille sources insist no deal other than a permanent switch is considered suitable.”

Moyes can kiss top four goodbye

With West Ham’s absolute priority targets in the January transfer window having been a new centre-forward and a new centre-back – neither of which Moyes has managed to land – the news that the Premier League side are set to miss out on a defender they have been pursuing for a large portion of the current market is sure to have left Hammers fans livid with their club’s strategy this winter.

Indeed, with a little under 36 hours until the transfer window closes on Monday evening, each hour that passes from now on looks to reduce the club’s likelihood of bringing a new centre-back to the London Stadium this winter – meaning the stalemate with Marseille regarding a deal for Caleta-Car appears to have been extremely important time wasted.

And, with the Hammers pushing for a top-four finish in the league this season, should Moyes indeed fail to bring in both a new centre-back and centre-forward this month, the Scot may as well kiss goodbye to the prospect of Champions League football next season now – as the 58-year-old’s squad simply does not have enough strength in depth to maintain a top-four push in its current state.

In other news: “I can confirm…”: ExWHUemployee drops huge transfer update, WHU fans will be buzzing

Tottenham Hotspur may have advanced into the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup for the second successive season but the form of Harry Kane is surely a major cause for concern.

It was another game in which the out-of-sorts England international completely misfired as his struggles continued in Spurs’ win over Premier League rivals West Ham United on Wednesday evening.

On the back of Euro 2020 heartbreak with the Three Lions and an intense transfer saga that linked him with a move to champions Manchester City, the 28-year-old has found life very tough since returning late for pre-season training.

Indeed, Kane has scored just twice from 14 appearances in the English top-flight all season. Meanwhile, six of his nine goals in all competitions have come against minnows in the Europa Conference League, which is hardly inspiring.

You could forgive manager Antonio Conte if he’s left with nightmares after yet another disappointing outing. He must find out how to get the English talisman firing on all cylinders and that’s simply yet to happen since his arrival last month.

Kane lasted the entire 90 minutes on Wednesday, where he managed only one shot on target.

His 40 touches of the ball not only saw him lose possession 13 times (once every three touches) but it was also the second-lowest of any Spurs outfield player, meaning he evidently struggled to garner much of an influence on the game.

And when he was involved, he was wasteful, as seen by him losing the ball so frequently. Furthermore, he made only 20 passes at an accuracy rate of 77%, as per SofaScore.

Elsewhere, the £108m-rated forward was weak against the Hammers’ backline, winning just 28% of his 14 duels, whilst he was dribbled past on two occasions.

Both football.london reporter Alasdair Gold and the Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick were in agreement over Kane’s performance in their post-game columns.

‘Still nowhere near his best,’ wrote Gold, with Kilpatrick added: ‘Tested Alphonse Areola early on but otherwise had no chances of note as his finishing slump continued.’

It was another game without a goal and another weak and ponderous showing. Conte must be hugely worried by Kane’s disastrous form and it’s surely only a matter of time before something is done about it.

AND in other news, Spurs plan fresh transfer talks as inside source drops major January update, fans will surely love this one…

Rangers could potentially look to sign Heerenveen midfielder Joey Veerman after Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s arrival, according to journalist Stuart Hodge.

The Lowdown: Van Bronckhorst takes charge

A new era at Ibrox is now in full swing, with Van Bronckhorst replacing Steven Gerrard as Gers manager following the latter’s switch to Aston Villa.

The Dutchman won his first Premiership match in charge on Sunday, with his side picking up a 3-1 victory away to Livingston.

It is a promising start to life as Rangers boss for Van Bronckhorst, who will be hoping to achieve similar success to his playing career at Ibrox, when he won two league titles.

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The Latest: Veerman linked with Rangers move

He will be no doubt be eyeing up a few signings in order to further stamp his blueprint on the team and one player who could move to Rangers is Veerman, who has been linked with the Scottish champions in recent months.

That’s according to Hodge, who told GIVEMESPORT that he could see a transfer materialising. He said: “That one, yeah, potentially. But I think more so, that’s a market that van Bronckhorst will know well, that’s a market that’s affordable for Scottish clubs.”

The Verdict: Strong creative addition

Veerman is a midfielder with great potential, with Dutch coach Robert Molenaar once hailing him for having ‘extremely good’ technical ability.

Still only 23, he has already registered six assists in just 13 Eredivisie starts this season, highlighting the creativity he could bring to Van Bronckhorst’s team. Only James Tavernier (13) has accrued a higher assists tally for the Gers in 2021/22 across all competitions, with Ryan Kent (five) the next closest.

Veerman’s average of 2.4 key passes per game is also only bettered by Tavernier (3.9) at Rangers, so he is someone who could be an exciting and productive signing.

In other news, some Rangers fans have blasted one player after an incident against Livingston. Read more here.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola is set to be without another player alongside Ruben Dias as they gear up for today’s blockbuster Eastlands clash with arch title rivals Liverpool.

The Lowdown: Huge day…

A single point separates the Sky Blues and Jurgen Klopp’s side in the race for Premier League glory with today’s mouth-watering encounter coming as an absolutely pivotal one.

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City boast the best defensive record in England’s top flight, conceding just 18 goals all season, while their competitors today have bagged the division’s most strikes with 77 (Premier League).

Guardiola and Klopp, with barely anything between their sides, are set to go head-to-head again this afternoon in what could be a real 2021/2022 title race six-pointer.

The Sky Blues grabbed a deserved 2-2 draw at Anfield the last time these teams met, but with a win today, City could take one gigantic leap towards retaining their Premier League crown.

Guardiola will be hampered by the absence of star defender Ruben Dias, and as per the latest team news, he’ll be without another player alongside him at the Etihad Stadium.

The Latest: Pep without Palmer…

As confirmed, City’s head coach won’t be able to call upon electric starlet Cole Palmer today.

The homegrown ace has been sidelined for most of the calendar year, coming as a piece of frustration given his head-turning rise to prominence earlier in the campaign.

Palmer has thoroughly impressed at points but hasn’t been able to contribute lately due to ongoing fitness issues, prompting the Citizens to even consider surgery.

The Verdict: Blow for Pep?

The 19-year-old, CFG’s most exciting academy product since a certain Phil Foden, has been an arguable miss off the bench and City supporters will be hoping he can return to full fitness as soon as possible.

Palmer has attracted huge praise for some of his cameos this season with club legends Paul Dickov and Shaun Wright-Phillips raving over the exciting attacker.

Wright-Phillips in particular, speaking after the talent notched a goal and assist in City’s 4-1 FA Cup third round victory away to Swindon Town, labelled Palmer ‘outstanding’ for his form over the campaign (City’s matchday live show via The Manchester Evening News).

Guardiola could’ve done with the teenager’s obvious talent as an option off the bench, but alas, the Spaniard will be without him yet again as he prepares for Liverpool.

In other news: Man City discussions held as ‘unbelievable’ £33m star decides he wants to join Pep! Find out more here.

Many Everton fans have been slamming the performance of Dominic Calvert-Lewin in their 1-0 loss at home to Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday.

It was another disappointing defeat for the Goodison Park faithful, with Duncan Ferguson this time in the dugout following the departure of Rafael Benitez, as Emi Buendia flicked on the only goal of the match from a corner kick on the stroke of half-time.

Calvert-Lewin struggled to make any sort of impact on the game for his side, as he failed to record a single shot on target and only had a mere 36 touches of the ball in total, fewer than his own goalkeeper Jordan Pickford (SofaScore).

Villa’s defence seemed to routinely get the better of him, as he also lost out on no fewer than 17 of his duels, by far the most out of any player on the pitch.

Everton fans slam Calvert-Lewin

These Everton supporters slammed the England striker’s performance on Twitter, with one Toffees fan going as far as to claim that the 24-year-old was a ‘passenger’ against Villa:

“Calvert-Lewin gave it the big one the other day – stunk the yard out”

Credit: @tomosefc

“Calvert-Lewin was awful today as well”

Credit: @Kizzaefc

“Calvert-Lewin was an absolute passenger today.”

Credit: @rowloefc

“Dominic Calvert-Lewin is and always has been an overrated footballer. Couldn’t lace Rom’s shoelaces if he tried!!”

Credit: @saucyscouser

“Calvert-Lewin offers absolutely nothing, it’s like playing with 10!”

Credit: @Wazza23666

“1/10 performance from Calvert-Lewin here”

Credit: @IlGalkEFC

In other news, find out what club update has left these Blues fans buzzing

Leeds United are plotting to add to Marcelo Bielsa’s squad in the January transfer window, according to a report from Eurosport.

The Lowdown: Takeover news

News emerged earlier in the week that the San Francisco 49ers have an option until January 2024 to purchase the club in a deal worth more than £400m.

49ers Enterprises currently have a 44% stake at Elland Road after first investing back in 2018, with Andrea Radrizzani still holding the majority share.

Ahead of the January window and reported injury blows to Kalvin Phillips and Liam Cooper, it seems as if the NFL franchise and Radrizzani will look to make some signings in the New Year.

The Latest: Insiders claim

Eurosport shared a story on Tuesday lunchtime regarding Leeds’ January plans.

‘Insiders’ have suggested that although a January budget may not be huge, and therefore options could be limited, the club will look to invest with hopes of not being dragged into a relegation battle for the second half of the season.

The Verdict: Wise move

Bielsa likes to run with a small squad at the best of times, but Leeds’ ongoing injury woes have had an impact in Yorkshire. It seems as if Phillips and Cooper could be the latest absentees at Elland Road, so you’d like to think the club would look to bring in a central midfielder in January.

Leeds have just four out-and-out senior central midfielders on the books, with Phillips being one, so bringing in another option in that role could now be a priority.

It’s good to see that Radrizzani and the 49ers are willing to invest, though, leaving Bielsa and Victor Orta to draw up a list over the coming weeks as they look to add quality to the squad in the New Year.

In other news: Leeds receive boost in quest to sign 13-cap beast who’s been hailed as a “young star”