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With the January transfer window fast appoaching, Bruno Lage and Jeff Shi will be starting to consider players who they could look to bring into Wolverhampton Wanderers in order to give the club the best possible chance of securing a top-half finish in the Premier League this season.

One such position will almost certainly be centre-back, with summer signing Yerson Mosquera being ruled out of action until at least February as a result of a hamstring injury, and both Willy Boly and Romain Saiss more than likely being unavailable for selection in January due to their potential involvement in the Africa Cup of Nations.

As such, Lage could well be left with just Conor Coady and Max Kilman as senior options for his three-man defence, something that would undoubtedly be a disaster for the 45-year-old manager.

However, before dipping into the transfer market, perhaps Lage and Shi should consider an option much closer to home – figurative speaking, at least – in the shape of Nigel Lonwijk.

Lonwijk could save Wolves millions

Having joined Wolves from PSV Eindhoven back in January of 2020, there was a considerable amount of hype about the 19-year-old centre-back, with Shi himself stating of the youngster’s signing: “To be able to get somebody of Nigel’s quality across the line was really pleasing and we’re delighted with the signing.

“He’s very good physically, a good defender one-v-one, and has strong technical ability, so we very much see him fitting into how our system as an outside centre-back. He’s got good physicality as well, so ticks the boxes in many of the things we’re looking for in terms of our centre-back positions.”

However, while it is not particularly unusual for a teenager making a move to England from another country, the £90k-rated defender is still yet to make a first-team appearance for the club, being sent on loan to Eredivisie side Fortuna Sittard for the 2021/22 campaign in order to continue his development in senior football.

And, if the 19-year-old’s most recent performance against PEC Zwolle is anything to go by, it would very much appear as if the youngster would make an extremely useful addition to Lage’s current options in the heart of his Wolves defence this winter.

Indeed, over the course of his 90 minutes on the pitch, the former Netherlands U16 international made a whopping 14 clearances, two interceptions, one tackle and won an incredible 11 of his 15 attempted duels.

Aside from this defensive masterclass, the 6 foot 3 centre-back also scored the match-winning goal for Fortuna, while his overall display saw him earn a SofaScore match rating of 8.3 – the highest of any player to feature in the fixture.

As such, with it being clear for all to see that Wolves are in desperate need of defensive reinforcements this January, bringing Lonwijk back to Molineux would very much look to be a smart move by both Lage and Shi, as, should the defender indeed impress when given a chance in the first-team, he could well go on to save Fosun millions of pounds in transfer fees this winter.

In other news: Tim Spiers drops 13-word transfer claim that will leave Wolves fans buzzing

Manchester United have been handed a potentially significant boost in their pursuit of Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane with the Spanish club becoming ‘increasingly resigned’ to losing the Frenchman after his representatives told them that he’s keen to face another challenge.

What’s the story?

According to a report from The Athletic, United are the most likely club to try and do a deal for the 28-year-old amid “informal interest” from fellow Premier League sides Chelsea and Manchester City.

The report claims that Madrid president Florentino Perez is hoping Varane can create an auction for his signature through a string of impressive performances at Euro 2020, with a price tag of £40-45 million currently thought to be placed on his head.

Fans will be buzzing

Ole Gunnar Solkjaer has made signing a new centre-back partner for Harry Maguire one of his priorities this summer after the continued struggles of Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly.

Villarreal’s Pau Torres is another potential candidate being lined up by the Red Devils, but Varane is believed to be the club’s first-choice as they aim to close the gap on English champions Manchester City.

United finished 12 points behind Pep Guardiola’s charges last term after conceding 12 more goals than their local rivals.

Although Varane may not be able to make up such a substantial difference on his own, the addition of a World Cup-winning defender would be a significant coup for the Old Trafford outfit.

It’s been eight long years since United last got their hands on the top-flight title, but the Madrid man has become accustomed to winning major trophies throughout his time at the Bernabeu.

Since arriving in the Spanish capital back in 2011, Varane has claimed four Champions League crowns, three La Liga titles and one Copa del Rey.

His world-class quality, winning mentality and extensive experience at the highest level would all be extremely welcome additions to United’s ranks.

Therefore, news that the France international is set to be available and that United are looking like the most likely club to sign him at this stage will surely have the club’s supporters buzzing.

With only 12 months remaining on Varane’s current contract with Los Blancos, his exit looks inevitable this summer, and if Solskjaer can attain his signature over the comings months, then a title challenge may be on the cards next term.

And, in other news…Fresh twist emerges in Man Utd’s pursuit of £55m beast, Ole will be gutted 

According to TEAMtalk, Glasgow Rangers are now favourites to complete the signing of Middlesbrough striker Britt Assombalonga.

Gers eye Assombalonga

The Gers had previously been linked with a move for the 28-year-old, who is out of contract at the Riverside Stadium at the end of the season (Transfermarkt).

It is now being reported that the 55-time Scottish champions are the favourites to sign the DR Congo international. TEAMtalk added that the forward is willing to take a substantial pay cut to move to Ibrox.

Bargain

Assombalonga has had a generally good career to date. Throughout his time in the game, he has managed 131 goals, and he would arguably have had plenty more had a serious injury not stopped his development. After Middlesbrough spent £15m on him in 2017 (BBC), he has perhaps not lived up to expectations, but 47 goals in 161 games is far from an abysmal record.

At 28, he still has a good few years left ahead of him and, if he could retrieve his best form, he could be a fantastic signing for the Gers. His wages would be a problem – he is believed to be earning £38,000 per week in the northeast of England (salarysport.com) – but his agreement to take a pay cut would surely solve that problem.

As Ross Wilson plans ahead for the coming seasons, it remains to be seen whether he can capture Assombalonga, but the striker has shown enough to suggest that he could be a good coup for the Gers if they lure him to Ibrox.

In other news, James Tavernier discusses the possibility of a British Super League.

Aston Villa have emerged as a potential suitor for Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly according to reports from Italy.

What’s the Word?

Italian outlet TMW has claimed that Premier League sides Aston Villa, Everton and Tottenham Hotspur are all interested in the Senegal international, labelling him a “real tressure” in what would undoubtedly be a sensational signing for Villa.

The centre back is in high demand, with European heavyweights Barcelona also interested, this is despite Napoli placing a €70m (£58m) price tag on his head.

Koulibaly will turn 31 in June and a fee of this size might put a lot of teams off, especially when they may only get a couple of years out of him at his peak.

Imagine him & Konsa

Villa have been leaking goals as of late and surely a centre back is high on the list of Steven Gerrard’s priorities as he looks ahead to his first full season in charge at Villa Park.

There aren’t many defenders better than Koulibaly at the moment, with the Premier League surely being an attractive move having spent the last eight years in Serie A.

Forza Italian football editor Connor Clancy previously stated his belief that the Napoli titan “improves any team” he plays for, as well as dubbing the defender “phenomenal.” High praise for the 30-year-old.

The most important aspect that Gerrard will be looking at is to create a solid centre back pairing of both Ezri Konsa and Koulibaly.

With Konsa having a rating of 6.74 on SofaScore this season, the onus would be on the Senegal international to come in and form a solid backline with the 24-year-old English talent.

Regardless of if Gerrard actually manages to secure his services or not, it shows just how far Villa have come since promotion three years ago that they are linked with one of the finest centre backs in the world.

What a summer Villa supporters have in store.

AND in other news, Gerrard now plotting AVFC bid for £46k-p/w “phenomenon”, he’s better than Phillips

According to a report by Corriere dello Sport, via Sport Witness, Tottenham Hotspur boss Jose Mourinho ‘doesn’t survive’ in north London after having played ‘all his credits’ – with the Italian outlet explaining that chairman Daniel Levy is still keeping tabs on Julian Nagelsmann to ‘immediately’ replace him should he be sacked.

Nagelsmann, who has been very heavily linked to the potential manager’s job at Tottenham, coming amid mounting pressure on Mourinho, is now at the centre of another update linking him with the position – this time from Italy.

Tottenham eyeing immediate Jose successor in Nagelsmann

Corriere dello Sport explain that Serie A giants AS Roma ‘would have preferred Nagelsmann’ when commenting on their links to Massimiliano Allegri, but their fondness for the exciting RB Leipzig boss is thwarted by both Bayern Munich and Tottenham’s interest.

Sport Witness relay this report that Spurs are indeed still keeping tabs on the 33-year-old, recently hailed as ‘fearless’ and a ‘trailblazer’ in an ESPN profile, and it is shared that his appointment would be ‘immediately’ post-Mourinho.

Providing a bleak view on the Portuguese boss’ future in north London, this report believes he ‘doesn’t survive’ after having played ‘all of his credits’ – with these phrases painting a serious picture amid the pressure on Mourinho.

Transfer Tavern take

Tottenham are already out of the Europa League after a humiliating Last 16 second leg defeat to Dinamo Zagreb, blowing a fairly comfortable two-goal cushion as they crashed out 3-2 on aggregate.

There is hope for the Lilywhites, however, as they remain in contention for a Champions League qualifying place and have a Carabao Cup final against Manchester City in April.

A strong finish to 2020/2021 could turn the tide, but as it stands, reports continue to link Nagelsmann with Mourinho’s seemingly tenuous Tottenham position.

In other news: Levy is also plotting this Vinicius replacement for Spurs, find out more here.

Many Everton fans have been left fuming as a fresh update emerged on Rafael Benitez.

As per Sky Sports, the former Liverpool, Chelsea and Newcastle boss is set to be appointed as the new manager at Goodison Park as early as next week.

He has agreed key aspects of his deal with the Toffees as they provisionally plan to confirm his arrival on Tuesday.

It is not surprising at all to see so many Evertonians strongly against his imminent appointment, given his past connections with Liverpool, with whom he won the Champions League back in 2005.

The Spaniard also previously called the Blues a ‘small club’ after a draw in the Merseyside derby in February 2007, and it seems that many Toffees fans have not forgiven him for that.

Everton fans on Benitez manager update

These Everton supporters fumed as the update on Benitez was shared across Twitter, with one accusing club owner Farhad Moshiri of being “absolutely clueless”:

“If Rafa becomes #Everton Manager, I’ll park my support into the deepest underground garage on earth until he’s gone. …and I know I am not alone…”

Credit: @SoccerExc

“Moshiri is absolutely clueless in how to run a club”

Credit: @scoobyefc

“Will be the same situation @Everton in 15 months, with another veteran manager coming in for a big paycheque and zero planning for the future. Don’t understand the club any more”

Credit: @R_Cog

“We’re an actual circus of a club. If Twitter thought I liked a rant before this season will be next level”

Credit: @MartinLobb6

“Oh god”

Credit: @wineandlemonad1

“Must visit Dr for anti angry meds”

Credit: @Phil16551649

In other news, find out what big transfer claim has been dropped about one Everton target

Glasgow Rangers fans appear to be far from happy despite the news that the Ibrox season ticket allocation for next season is already sold out.

The Gers enjoyed a fantastic campaign last term as they won the Premiership for the first time in 10 years without losing a single game in the competition (thefishy.co.uk).

Unfortunately, it was a season which the supporters could not enjoy as usual – the coronavirus pandemic meant all the fixtures were played in front of an empty stadium.

However, despite that, the club sold all of their season tickets last term, and they have done so again for the 2021/22 campaign (rangers.co.uk). That means 45,000 fans have bought tickets in advance for the campaign without knowing when Ibrox will be at full capacity. A number of fans though, are unhappy at the news as they are angry MyGers members have been given priority.

The news attracted plenty of attention from the fans, and they took to social media platform Twitter to share their frustration.

Let’s see what the Rangers fans had to say below

“So u don’t get access to stadium unless u are a my gers member”

Credit: @Craigfeguson

“Aye how many are my gers members getting priority treatment? Absolute disgrace.”

Credit: @christywhyte1

“Do we only get welcomed home if we are part of my gers aye?”

Credit: @JordanScott72

“Ticket availability was a shambles. I’m a MyGers Member n and have been on the waiting list for a few years. Got an email last week to say a ticket was available. Logged in put the ticket in the basket but would never let me checkout due to website error.”

Credit: @Quabba_Gaz

“My Gers is the worst loyalty scheme in the history of loyalty schemes. I remember for years taking ticking every away game to only get Dunfermline, Killie…insert any rubbish ticket. Our loyalty scheme has always been bad but this is a joke.”

Credit: @WalterW26948759

“Absolute disgrace from the club if it is mygers getting priority over ST , the club in one hand thanking All ST fans for loyalty and then comes BUT we want to squeeze more of you to go on priority list. Unbelievable really”

Credit: @brutra85

In other news, Rangers fans are livid at this 21/22 reveal.

The signing of Rodrigo has simply not worked out for Leeds United and Marcelo Bielsa, that is according to former Whites midfielder Carlton Palmer, who discussed the player in an exclusive interview with Football FanCast.

Rodrigo, 30, arrived at Elland Road for a club-record fee of £26m last summer but has not quite managed to make the sort of impact fans would have been hoping for.

In 21 league appearances, the former Valencia forward has only managed to score three times, while he has also had his trouble with injury.

Rodrigo is now being linked with a move back to Spain as he sweats over his future with the national team ahead of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Speaking exclusively to FFC about the Spain international, Palmer said:

“Listen, when you sign players, you can do your homework, you can do everything about that player. The Premier League is a different ball game, but it doesn’t matter even about the Premier League. Sometimes the players hit the ground running, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes the signings work, sometimes they don’t, that is a fact.

“Rodrigo is one of those that hasn’t worked out. As a manager, if you get seven out of 10 of your signings that work, you’re doing very well. If you’re getting less than seven, you’ll be out of work.”

The ex-Leeds player, however, did add:

“It doesn’t mean they’re bad players. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out at a football club.”

While Rodrigo has struggled this season, Bielsa does have some success stories from the last summer transfer window.

Raphinha, who joined from Rennes, has been brilliant in attack for the Whites, racking up six goals and six assists in the Premier League so far.

On-loan St. Johnstone goalkeeper Zdenek Zlamal believes the racism row involving Glasgow Rangers’ Glen Kamara was “great” for the Gers.

The Lowdown: Kamara racially abused at Ibrox

During Rangers’ 2-0 defeat to Slavia Prague at Ibrox in the Europa League, Kamara was racially abused by opponent Ondrej Kudela towards the end of the game.

Kudela has since received a 10-game ban, while Kamara was given a three-game suspension after assaulting Kudela in the tunnel (The Guardian).

The Latest: Zlamal makes astonishing claim

35-year-old Zlamal, however, has not only questioned the validity of the judgement, but also suggested the race row was good for Rangers. He told idnes.cz:

“We had a lot of discussion about the match at my club. There are a lot of guys at Hearts who are die-hard Rangers fans.

“Only the racism was discussed. They saw it differently than I did. The subject was quite hot and explosive, now it is calmer.

“No one in Scotland spoke about the tackles, only the racism. I pointed out how the match was played. Aggressive football is standard for Scots, but this went too far.

“Kemar Roofe kicked Ondrej Kolar in the head. It was a clear intention from him because strikers can peripherally see where the goalkeeper is. The apology was nothing.

“The racism was great for Rangers because it covered up all their shortcomings as Slavia beat them. Rangers players are definitely no saints.

“The whole thing annoys me because no one has presented any evidence. Innocent until proved guilty is supposed to be a big thing in the west, but that has not happened. I hope that Ondrej will be able to play in the Euros.

“If he said something racist, I agree with the maximum punishment, but there is no evidence.”

The Verdict: Outrageous

It is hard to know where to start with these comments. A player was racially abused during a football match, and now someone is saying it was something Rangers wanted? That is an absolutely outrageous claim. While Kemar Roofe’s challenge on Ondrej Kolar was awful – he received a four-match ban himself for it (Sky Sports) – it does not excuse the comments for which Kudela has been prosecuted. There was no need for Zlamal, who has career 276 appearances to his name (Transfermarkt), to share this opinion.

For some reason, it feels as though Czech figures are taking the punishment personally, as if the whole country was on trial for Kudela’s words. That, quite obviously, is not the case, nor should it be. Kudela is the man clearly in the wrong here, and is the one taking the heat for it, not the whole Czech Republic.

In other news, Danny Mills slams the Gers’ treatment of this midfielder.

Southampton have been linked with West Brom goalkeeper Sam Johnstone recently and he would solve a key issue in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side if he did move to St Mary’s.

According to The Athletic, Southampton will prioritise bringing in a new goalkeeper next summer and have already begun looking at potential options, with Johnstone high up on their list of targets.

It is no surprise that he is being considered by the Saints, who are outsiders for the drop with bembybet.com this year, as he has plenty of Premier League experience with West Brom, with whom he was relegated last season, and he will potentially be looking for a move back to the top-flight should Albion fail to earn promotion this season.

At 28, he is a good age for a goalkeeper, and his performances last season were extremely impressive and earned him his first England caps, with Micah Richards suggesting that he enjoyed an “outstanding” season.

He will also, as it stands, be available on a free transfer due to his contract at the Hawthorns expiring in 2022, so it would make a huge amount of sense for Southampton to consider signing him, especially considering their current goalkeeping situation.

[freshpress-quiz id=“594431”]

Hasenhuttl alternated between Alex McCarthy and Fraser Forster in the second half of last season after the former seemed to suffer a crisis of confidence following the 9-0 thrashing against Manchester United, whilst Forster’s impressive FA Cup form allowed him to come in for some Premier League games.

However, it is the former QPR man who has been preferred so far this season and he was handed a new three-year contract recently, which all but confirms his spot as the first-choice this season, whereas Forster looks set to depart at the end of the campaign when his contract expires.

It seems strange that the Saints weren’t keen on bringing in a new goalkeeper this summer as they conceded the second-most goals in the Premier League last season, despite only having the seventh-worst xGA, which emphasises that some of the blame must be attributed to their goalkeepers.

You could argue that neither McCarthy nor Forster are the ideal long-term options for Southampton and a new, younger, better shot-stopper such as Johnstone could solve a key issue for Hasenhuttl, so Martin Semmens should do everything he can to sign him.

And, in other news… 4 shots on target: Southampton ace continued his fine form with superb international display