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Leicester have completed the signing of Youri Tielemans from Monaco, with the midfielder joining on a loan deal until the end of the season as reported by the club’s official Twitter account.

What’s the word, then?

The Belgian international arrives at the King Power Stadium, with the out-of-favour Adrien Silva moving to Ligue 1 as part of the deal. Tielemans has scored five goals in 20 Ligue 1 appearances for 19th-placed Monaco this season, proving to be one of the few bright lights in what has been an otherwise uninspiring season for the French club.

The 21-year-old was very highly-rated at Anderlecht, so his arrival at the King Power Stadium could be viewed as somewhat of a coup for Claude Puel and Leicester, and he should offer a lot more than Silva ever did for the club.

Be sure to check out the incredible story of the man who rose from a Tanzanian refugee camp to become one of Australia’s biggest football stars in the video below…

Tielemans was also linked with Arsenal, Newcastle and West Ham, so the Midlands-based club have done well to fight off the competition to get him into a Blue shirt.

Who could be under threat from his arrival?

Well, the young Belgian can play in a centre-attacking midfield role, or slightly deeper as a centre-midfielder, so he could realistically threaten any of the Foxes’ current midfield options.

James Maddison and Demarai Gray have started the last couple of games on the wing,  with Marc Albrighton also in the attacking trio behind Jamie Vardy. One would assume that Albrighton would be the one to drop out, given the significance of having Maddison and Gray in the side behind Vardy.

Tielemans has an impressive long-shot and a fantastic eye for goal, so it would be wise of Puel to drop the slightly limited Albrighton in favour of a more exciting option that would keep defenders on their toes.

The Belgian international, sat behind Vardy, with the aforementioned duo of Maddison and Gray either side of them would arguably be one of the best quartets outside the top six.

Rangers are now on the verge of announcing former Ibrox star Giovanni van Bronckhorst as the new Light Blues manager, according to The 4th Official’s latest update on the Gers’ hunt for a Steven Gerrard replacement. 

The lowdown: GVB profiled

Rangers are seemingly acting fast to replace Gerrard, who left to join English Premier League side Aston Villa last week.

Van Bronckhorst is well known to the Gers faithful after spending three years with the Light Blues during his playing career. He fetched a £12.15million transfer fee when he was sold to Arsenal in 2001.

The Dutchman has had two previous stints in senior management, first at Eredivisie outfit Feyenoord and more recently at Chinese Super League team Guangzhou R&F.

He boasted a near-62% win record in the former post, but that slipped to 35% in the latter (via Transfermarkt).

The latest: Matter of hours

The expectation following a ‘really really positive’ Saturday meeting between Van Bronckhorst and Rangers is that the deal would be done relatively swiftly, and that’s now coming to fruition.

“According to my source,” the The 4th Official’s post on Monday evening read, “we shouldn’t be surprised if Giovanni van Bronckhorst is announced by Rangers in the next 24-48 hours.”

The verdict: The one fans wanted

If Rangers can get Van Bronckhorst in within the stated timeline, then he should be able to take the reins for the weekend’s Scottish Cup semifinal clash with Hibernian. That would be something of a baptism of fire.

Still, they deserve credit for moving quickly, having scheduled discussions with a top candidate within two days of Gerrard’s official exit – compare that to Celtic, who spent the entire summer in chaos chasing Eddie Howe and eventually landing on Ange Postecoglou.

And according to The Daily Record’s Keith Jackson, Van Bronckhorst is the appointment most of the fans want too, so this update will be music to their ears and the atmosphere at Hampden at the weekend should be electric if all goes to plan.

In other news, Steven Gerrard wants these two players at Aston Villa. 

With their disheartening 2-1 defeat against Norwich City at the weekend now behind them, Southampton have a big task of taking on Liverpool at Anfield in their next Premier League outing at the weekend, who are coming off the back of a strong 4-0 win over Arsenal.

On the chalkboard

In terms of who Saints manager Ralph Hasenhuttl could pick to be in his starting XI to take on Jurgen Klopp’s side, one player that featured in the game at Carrow Road that should be in the team to face Liverpool is Ibrahima Diallo.

For the match against Norwich, Hasenhuttl played Diallo as a right-midfielder when he usually plays in a more central role but still managed to deliver a good performance for the Saints showing his attacking and defensive capabilities.

During the match against Dean Smith’s side, Diallo managed to have 60 touches of the ball, complete 40 of the 47 passes he attempted with two key passes and one accurate cross, showing that he has what it takes to be a useful wide player for the team rather than just a central player.

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In addition to this, Diallo did not sacrifice his defensive duties in the game by winning six duels and completing three tackles.

Overall, this performance in a fairly unfamiliar position earned the 22-year-old, who has been praised by Hasenhuttl for showing the “quality” the player has earlier this season, an overall match rating of 6.7/10 according to SofaScore.

Not only should Diallo be in the starting XI to face Liverpool at the weekend, he could potentially give the Merseyside club a lot of problems if he’s able to frustrate their attacking players with his defensive qualities but also cause their defence some nightmares as well if he’s able to make the most out of any attacking scenarios they may get in the match.

Given how the Reds have managed to score more league goals than any other side, with 35 scored in 12 games, it’s safe to say Southampton will have to be a defensively strong as possible if they are going to have any opportunity of securing a positive result. However, by including Diallo in the team, they certainly stand a chance of causing an upset.

In other news: Gao could seal dream Southampton signing for Ralph with colossal 6 ft 3 weapon – opinion

Tottenham Hotspur have one final game before Christmas as they welcome Premier League rivals West Ham United to north London for a Carabao Cup quarter-final.

And with a place in the last four up for grabs, it leaves manager Antonio Conte with plenty to ponder in terms of team selection.

Last time out, the Lilywhites were held to a 2-2 draw to ten-man Liverpool, whilst they defeated Burnley and Wolves to make it this far in the competition.

The Italian head coach has a largely fully-fit squad to choose from, so it will be interesting to see what decisions he may make ahead of kick-off, particularly with his midfield, where a rarely-seen trio of Dele Alli, Harry Winks and Tanguy Ndombele all featured on Sunday.

It’s the latter who could make way, surprisingly, as he was the most underwhelming of the three players, who all had a point to prove to Conte.

He was not only the first player to be substituted, coming off for Oliver Skipp in the 64th minute, but he too was their third lowest-rated player (6.4) as the French dynamo struggled to have much of an influence on the game.

Yes, he provided an assist for Harry Kane’s opener but as explained by the Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick, he was otherwise ‘largely a passenger’ who offered ‘little defensively’ and more than once was caught ‘overplaying in dangerous positions.’

Across his hour on the pitch, Ndombele managed only 11 passes and 30 touches, which shows that he was barely involved. For further context, goalkeeper Hugo Lloris managed more in both regards, and he’s stood between the sticks all game, not in an advanced midfield role.

Once dubbed a “world-beater” and “unplayable” by former Spurs shot-stopper Joe Hart to BT Sport’s Rio Ferdinand (via football.london), the £26m-rated maestro is surely in line for the axe tonight.

Meanwhile, Spurs’ embarrassing defeat to NS Mura last month saw ex-midfielder Jamie O’Hara dub the £55m man “absolutely shocking”, which only goes to show his vastly-contrasting performances in Spurs’ colours.

Conte cannot afford to carry someone in a game of his nature. Having been knocked out of the UEFA Europa Conference League, this tournament could be the north Londoners’ only genuine chance of silverware, so it must be taken seriously.

As such, the 52-year-old must be ruthless with the club’s inconsistent club-record signing. He must be dropped this evening.

AND in other news, Imagine him and Dier: Spurs eyeing swoop for £45m-rated “top player”, Conte “wants” him…

According to a report by TuttoMercatoWeb (as relayed by Sport Witness), Atletico Madrid could be set to battle West Ham for the signing of Fiorentina’s Nikola Milenkovic in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Milenkovic important for Fiorentina

The 24-year-old was frequently linked with a move to the Hammers last summer, with David Moyes keen on bolstering his centre-back options.

While this was put on the backburner when the Serbia international penned a new deal with Fiorentina, unusually the renewal only came to the summer of 2023, making the move a possibility in this year’s summer transfer window.

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Milenkovic has played an essential part in his team’s strong opening half to the Serie A campaign, having made 18 league appearances for sixth-placed Fiorentina as they remain on track for for European football. The defender leads the Viola squad for tackles, interceptions and clearances made per game, illustrating his importance to Fiorentina’s backline.

The Latest: Atletico Madrid could challenge Irons for Milenkovic

According to a report by TuttoMercatoWeb, Atletico could be interested in a summer move for Milenkovic and could be set to battle it out with the likes of West Ham, who are also said to be interested in the player.

Sport Witness claimed that “Milenkovic was ‘very close’ to signing for the Hammers in the summer, so the assumption is David Moyes’ side would be keen again, depending on what happens with their own defensive options.”

While TuttoMercatoWeb’s report stated that ‘some Premier League clubs’ are ‘following him with particular interest’, the Irons were the only English side to be explicitly mentioned in the article, which may suggest that they are the likeliest to bring him to England’s top flight.

The Verdict: A tough battle for the Hammers

If Moyes does decide to pursue Milenkovic again in the summer, Atletico will not prove to be an easy competitor to overcome, with Champions League qualification a near-annual occurrence for the La Liga title holders.

However, due to the deal having been ‘very close’ before, it would not be a surprise if the 24-year-old were to reignite talks with the Hammers.

Former Serbia coach Mladen Krstajic said that he saw a “new Vidic” in the defender, who has already made 32 appearances for his country.

With interest also coming from Inter and AC Milan, West Ham can expect to face tough competition in their pursuit of the 24-year-old if they go all-in for him this summer.

In other news: ExWHUemployee claims West Ham could make January move for 63-goal ‘monster’ loved by Irons chiefs

A number of Liverpool supporters have hailed FSG’s decision to create a new supporters board with the help of Spirit of Shankly.

The Reds are flying on the pitch at the moment, jumping to second place in the Premier League table and winning their last four matches in the competition.

Jurgen Klopp has masterminded a glorious period in the club’s history and the hope is that there are still many more great years to come with the German at the helm.

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The club is being run well in general too, and while some fans will certainly feel they could add stronger depth in the market, the business they have done can only be called astute, and a new venture sums up the Reds’ healthy situation off the pitch.

On Monday, The Athletic‘s James Pearce took to Twitter to confirm that Spirit of Shankly and Liverpool’s leadership have worked together to form a supporters’ board that will ‘provide fan representation at main board level.’

It was agreed by owners FSG and it is hoped that it will improve decision-making at the club further and give fans more of a say with key decisions, such as the much lamented creation of the European Super League.

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Liverpool fans hail new venture

These Reds fans took to Twitter to react positively to the news.

“Can only be a positive given what’s gone before”

Credit: @dan_clubbe

“First order of business, give Salah whatever he wants”

Credit: @Oyskalh

“This is soo positive”

Credit: @LFCaditya_

“Great news”

Credit: @Lfcbobbyy

“Good. Just let no one from Twitter join”

Credit: @NotoriousJOS

“GET IN”

Credit: @raameshk_LFC

“Finally”

Credit: @Ishank595

In other news, some Liverpool fans have erupted over a fresh injury update. Read more here.

Celtic are hoping to have a number of deals tied up prior to the opening of the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

In recent comments cited by the Daily Record, Ange Postecoglou revealed that he and his side are currently in the process of identifying a number of targets they would like to bring into the club during the winter market, as the 56-year-old does not want to repeat his rather frantic transfer business in the summer window.

Speaking about the Bhoys’ transfer plans, Postecoglou said: “We want to make sure we are well organised long before then, so we are going to identify targets and we will be talking to quite a few.

“There will be plenty of people putting their name forward because I think this is an attractive destination at the moment. There will be plenty of names. We are working towards them and we know what we need. We are just focused on being organised in January.”

Fans will be buzzing

Considering just how successful a number of Postecoglou’s summer signings have already proven to be at Celtic, the prospect of the 56-year-old bringing yet more of his targets to the club this winter, as well as having much more time to compile his transfer shortlist, is sure to have Hoops fans buzzing.

Indeed, with Cameron Carter-Vickers, Jota, Carl Starfelt, Kyogo Furuhashi, Liel Abada and Josip Juranovic – all of whom arrived in Glasgow this summer – ranking as the Bhoys’ third, fourth, fifth, sixth, ninth and 11th-best performers respectively in the Premiership so far this season – of players who remain in Postecoglou’s first-team squad – it is clear that the 56-year-old possesses a very keen eye for a signing who could come in and improve his team immediately.

And, with Celtic hot on the heels of the league leaders, should the Greek-Australian coach manage to bring in reinforcements that have a similar impact to his summer signings this January, we would certainly not bet against the Hoops going on to reclaim their Scottish Premiership crown come next May.

You sense all the Bhoys need now is a few additions to really complete their squad and elevate them to the next level.

In other news: Outrageous stat proves £1.8m-rated “menace” is closing in on 242-goal Celtic legend

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

Leeds United left-back Junior Firpo could be available against Watford this weekend, according to medical expert Ben Dinnery.

The Lowdown: Knee ligament damage

The Spaniard, who has been hailed as ‘strong’ in the past by Kevin Campbell, started Jesse Marsch’s first two games in charge at Elland Road but hasn’t been seen since being stretchered off against Aston Villa.

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Firpo suffered knee ligament damage after colliding with Emiliano Buendia and has watched on over the last three games as the Whites collected seven points from nine.

Marsch gave Firpo a timescale of three to five weeks over a possible return prior to the win at Wolves in mid-March, and it seems as if the 25-year-old could now return for the trip to Vicarage Road.

The Latest: Firpo return imminent?

MOT Leeds News relayed an update from Dinnery’s injury tracker, which shows that a possible return date Firpo is this Saturday.

Leo Hjelde, who has also been sidelined with a knee problem, also has the same date with regards to a possible return.

The Verdict: Boost for Leeds

Stuart Dallas has had to fill in at left-back for Firpo in recent weeks, but it would be good news if the Spaniards is able to travel with the squad for the crucial meeting with Roy Hodgson’s side.

A win against the Hornets would be a major step towards safety for Leeds, so even having the 25-year-old back on the bench would provide some much-needed strength in depth at left-back.

Marsch had limited full-back options last time out against Southampton, making Firpo’s return even more important.

In other news: ‘Bad news from Elland Road…’ – Big Leeds injury update emerges on Joe Gelhardt

Speaking to Give Me Sport, transfer insider and journalist Dean Jones of Eurosport has shared a West Ham United update as they allegedly eye a move for Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

The Lowdown: West Ham line up move?

Amid manager David Moyes’ hunt for a new striker this month, perhaps one of the most surprise links of the January window was to the England international earlier this week.

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The Sun and journalist Alan Nixon claimed that West Ham, and by extension recruitment chief Rob Newman, were eyeing a move to sign Calvert-Lewin valued at a sky high £60 million.

The Irons would have to break their transfer record to complete this move, an aspect of this potential deal which proves a huge obstacle, with Jones now sharing an update on the story.

The Latest: Jones drops Calvert-Lewin update…

As per his sources, speaking to GMS, it is believed that West Ham do not in fact hold an interest in moving for the Toffees forward ‘at this point’.

“West Ham aren’t actually interested in Calvert-Lewin at this point I’m told,” he explained.

“West Ham are obviously linked with 10 strikers every window, but Calvert-Lewin isn’t somebody that they’re looking to sign right now, especially as there’s a £60m fee that’s being talked about.”

The Verdict: Not a surprise?

The 24-year-old, especially going by his impressive 21 goals and five assists across all competitions last season at Goodison Park, would of course be a brilliant signing for Moyes.

Lauded as a ‘sensational’ striker by former West Ham favourite Tony Cottee, Calvert-Lewin would bring a different dimension up front and provide a real injection of quality alongside Michail Antonio.

However, it is no surprise to see West Ham aren’t currently eyeing a late window move going by his seismic price tag, and if that were to change, it would certainly be one of the shocks of the winter window.

In other news: ExWHUemployee says West Ham now want ‘battle-hardened’ £20m attacker, find out more here.