Glasgow Rangers have reportedly ‘agreed personal terms’ for one transfer target, despite having their latest bid rejected for the winger.

The Lowdown: Another bid rejected…

It has recently been reported that the Ibrox giants have had another bid knocked back from Swansea City for Morgan Whittaker, thought to be worth £2m.

The 22-year-old looks to be keen on the move, having asked to be omitted from the Swansea squad which drew 1-1 at QPR in the English Championship last Saturday, after admitting that he was not in the right frame of mind to feature.

The Latest: Personal terms agreed

As per Football Insider, Michael Beale’s side have already ‘agreed personal terms’ with Whittaker, despite their latest bid being knocked back.

He impressed while on loan at Plymouth Argyle in the first half of the campaign, scoring nine goals and supplying a further seven assists in 25 games in League One (Transfermarkt).

The Verdict: Get it done

With Whittaker seemingly keen on a move to Ibrox, and personal terms already being agreed, Rangers simply need to pay the money that Swansea are asking for now in order to get this deal over the line.

With just a few days left until the transfer window closes, they cannot afford to let this one fall through, after now having three bids rejected for the Englishman.

Lauded as a ‘top player‘ by performance manager Justin Walker when he was in the academy at Derby County, Whittaker managed to score a remarkable 43 goals and supply 21 assists at youth level with the Rams, and also went on to play 32 times for the senior side (Transfermarkt).

He continued those impressive numbers while on loan at Plymouth earlier this season, and there is no reason why he cannot replicate that kind of form at the Teddy Bears.

Nonetheless, all that needs to be agreed now is the fee, and Rangers should make sure that they reach the right figure with their next offer.

Everton could be set to instantly replace one outbound star with a potential upgrade…

What’s the latest?

That’s according to transfer expert David Ornstein, who took to Twitter to issue an update on the Toffees’ pursuit of Kamaldeen Sulemana.

With Anthony Gordon having now departed for £45m, the new boss Sean Dyche will look to reinvest it with intelligence to ensure his side has the best possible chance of ensuring survival.

This young wide man seems like he could be their first foray, as Ornstein wrote on Monday morning:

“Everton made verbal offer on Sunday for permanent signing of Rennes winger Kamaldeen Sulemana. Would see EFC reinvest some Gordon proceeds in direct replacement. Stade Rennais seeking ~€30m (£26m) for 20yo who wants to go. SaintsFC still keen”.

The news came just hours before news of another bid from the Toffees, one totalling £45m for Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher.

Gordon upgrade

It seems like the exit of Gordon from Goodison Park has been met with one of the more jovial reactions from the Everton fanbase, scratching their heads at what exactly spurred Newcastle United to spend that kind of money on a 21-year-old with just seven senior goals to his name.

Having burst onto the scene, the boyhood blue’s spark soon fizzled out and he struggled to find consistency in a royal blue shirt. As such, he was often dropped this season by Frank Lampard in favour of the equally woeful Dwight McNeil.

With clear attitude problems, outlined in his refusal to train in order to force a move, he will likely not be missed.

It does clear the way for some fresh talent to enter the club, and in Sulemana he would have a clean slate with which to hopefully fire Everton to safety.

With just three goal contributions to his name this season, it has admittedly been a poor campaign for the 20-year-old. To truly have a big impact on this second half of the season, he will need to be even better than last season, where he earned eight goal contributions across all competitions.

This is still a marked improvement on Gordon’s tally in the previous two seasons, who had only mustered three goal contributions this campaign and six the season prior in the league.

However, what the Ghana international will offer is pure pace and skill which few currently do at the club, which he uses to great effect.

Sulemana injects danger into any game he is part of, best outlined by the fact that he ranks in the top 2% for dribbles completed when compared against other wingers across Europe. He truly is the “young sensation” that journalist Yaw Ampofo Jr dubbed him.

What will please Dyche further is that he is also not afraid to do his defensive duties, and with him likely to be employed within a 4-4-2 system, this will be imperative. When compared against the same group, he ranks in the top 9% for tackles and the top 2% for interceptions, highlighting where he really shines.

With a sparkling work rate to pair with his insatiable talent on the ball, should he start to convert this into more of a tangible threat then he will likely far surpass Gordon’s short legacy at the club.

Aston Villa could see Lyon striker Moussa Dembele as the ideal replacement for Danny Ings this month, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

The Lowdown: Villa linked with Dembele signing

In recent times, the 26-year-old Frenchman has found himself linked with a move to Villa Park, having caught the eye greatly for the Ligue 1 side down the years.

Dembele has an impressive record of 69 goals in 160 appearances for the French giants, not to mention bagging 51 in 94 during his time at Celtic.

It doesn’t look as though Villa’s interest in the striker has gone away yet, following a fresh update.

The Latest: Possible Ings replacement?

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Jones claimed that Dembele could be seen as the best replacement for Ings, who has moved to West Ham:

“It’s a really interesting option. He’s one of the names that we floated at the start of the window as an option for somebody when they were desperate for a striking situation to be resolved.

“I think if you’re looking for somebody to replace Ings now in that frontline, Moussa Dembele would certainly be capable of that.”

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The Verdict: Upgrade on Ings?

It is important that Unai Emery brings in a new striker this month, mainly in terms of squad depth, and Dembele would be an exciting addition, with his aforementioned goalscoring record summing up his pedigree.

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In fact, the Lyon man could easily prove to be an upgrade on Ings, considering he is our years his junior and has been described as ‘excellent’ by Brendan Rodgers during their time at Celtic.

Looking at their underlying statistics, Dembele actually scores higher than Ings for every single attacking metric except for assists per 90 minutes, while he also wins out in many of the possession-based numbers, such as dribbles and pass completion.

The £66,000-a-week-earning Dembele could help take Villa up another gear in the second half of the season, at a point where Emery is threatening to build a formidable team, bringing more firepower to a side that has only scored 23 times in 20 Premier League outings this season.

Injury expert Ben Dinnery has said that Aston Villa ‘are in dreamland’ knowing that Diego Carlos could return before the end of the season.

The Lowdown: Month or two…

Carlos has been out of action since August after rupturing his achilles against Everton. The Brazilian, who joined from Sevilla in the summer, actually suffered the injury in his first game at Villa Park.

Unai Emery admitted last month that ‘Carlos is getting better’, however, he said that ‘it will be a month or two’ before he is back around the squad.

That appears to point towards a return to action before the end of the season, something which Dinnery has been reacting to.

The Latest: Dinnery’s comments

Talking to Football Insider, Dinnery, who contributes for Sky Sports, said that the defender is ‘making brilliant progress’ and said that ‘Villa are in dreamland’ knowing he could be back on the pitch before the end of the campaign.

“Diego Carlos is progressing really well.

“He’s not with the group as it stands, but he is training outside and working individually.

“He’s coming through those protocols and making brilliant progress.

“An achilles rupture is high on the list of injuries that will keep a player sidelined for a long time, and so Aston Villa are in dreamland after finding out he might be able to make a return to play before the end of the season.

“With things ahead of schedule at the moment, we’re certainly looking at game time towards the back end of February.”

The Verdict: Fingers crossed

Carlos was the marquee defensive signing in the summer, costing £26m, so the sooner he can return, the better. Villa have conceded 27 times in 20 Premier League games, more than West Ham who are just one point above the relegation zone.

The 29-year-old also comfortably outperformed Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa last season, as per WhoScored, so you’d expect he could be first choice when fully fit.

Therefore, returning before the end of the season could be key, especially when it comes to Emery preparing for his first full season in charge in the Midlands.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is already looking ahead to the summer transfer window with a view to improving his first-team squad.

Marco Asensio has already been linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium, and now the Gunners boss is eyeing up a potential swoop for Manuel Locatelli, with the Italian midfielder currently playing at Juventus this term after joining on loan from fellow Serie A club Sassuolo.

That’s according to Calciomercato (via Caught Offside), who claim that both Arsenal and Newcastle United are keen on signing him during the summer transfer window, with Arteta still clearly coveting a midfielder who could become a long-term option at the club as 31-year-old January signing Jorginho is evidently a stop-gap.

Edu Gaspar’s priority last month was to secure a deal for Moises Caicedo, with the young Ecuadorian a main target for Arsenal and a player who could feature in the first-team over the next few years, but the Gunners had a £70m bid for the Brighton star rejected on deadline day.

Locatelli could not only be a dream alternative to Caicedo, but he may also cost a significant amount less than the 21-year-old, with the CIES Football Observatory valuing him at €40m (£36m).

Indeed, the two midfielders are very similar statistically. FBref ranks Caicedo as the third-most comparable player to Locatelli, and with the youngster embarking on a meteoric rise as of late while catching the eye of some of the Premier League’s biggest clubs, it certainly isn’t a bad comparison to have.

This season, the two players have registered similar returns across a range of performance metrics, including total shots (14 each), goal-creating actions (five to three, Locatelli first), tackles won (19 to 26), tackle success rate (76.2% to 74.2%) and pass success rate (81.5% to 87.8%), proving that they can both excel across numerous areas of the pitch.

Neither Locatelli nor Caicedo have any significant weakness according to WhoScored, while they can both claim aerial duels as one of their key strengths.

Talent scout Jacek Kulig once described the Italian as a “real dominator in midfield”, and the 25-year-old could be another excellent option for Arteta to call upon while being just as proficient as Caicedo in the middle of the park.

If the 40-year-old can lead the Gunners to Premier League glory this season, it may well be easier to lure such talents from the continent to the club. In Locatelli, Arsenal could land a more viable alternative to the in-demand Brighton midfielder, while saving a good chunk of their transfer budget in the process.

Newcastle United may now face an obstacle in their pursuit of Hakim Ziyech with Chelsea believed to be unwilling to deal with the Magpies.

What’s the latest?

There are reports suggesting the Toon are eyeing the Moroccan forward, Ziyech, this month with a potential loan deal until the end of the campaign on the radar.

However, it seems their targets may now be narrowed down to just Gordon in the final days of the window which now seems to be all set to happen with the Londoners believed to be wary of sending any players to Tyneside.

Speaking on the Ranks FC Patreon page, insider Dean Jones has shared the word coming out of Stamford Bridge suggesting they are not keen on selling to their top four rivals:

(23:45) “They’ve obviously had interest in Ziyech too. I have heard from the Chelsea end that they wouldn’t be entirely willing to help Newcastle out right now. Obviously Newcastle, potentially stealing their top-four position at the moment.”

Not dealing with rivals

Although this may not be what some Newcastle fans want to hear, it has to be said many Toon fans would likely be unhappy to offload some of their players to the teams around them.

However, the irony comes in Chelsea’s struggles this season with Newcastle now 10 points clear of the Blues with over half of the campaign already gone.

There is a big gap between the two sides so there could be the view that loaning Ziyech to Newcastle may not make much of a difference with the Toon already well clear in third spot with Chelsea down in 10th.

However, there is still a long way to go and although Chelsea may need a miraculous second half of the campaign to land a spot in the top four, they could still battle for a spot in the Europa League.

And although Newcastle fans will not want to think about this, a handful of results going against them over the coming weeks could quickly pack the group back up together.

Now, Ziyech is a player who has not played much of a role in the Chelsea side this season and will likely return to the bench – at best – in the coming weeks with players returning from injury and with new faces having arrived in the transfer window.

However, he has shown his class with Ajax and it is apparent the Blues are wary of Eddie Howe helping the Moroccan to rediscover this form and help Newcastle secure that spot in the top four.

Arsenal could return for Moises Caicedo in the summer, after failing to sign him in the January transfer window, Pete O’Rourke has claimed.

What’s the word?

The Gunners had a number of large bids rejected for the Brighton midfielder late in the window, and the Ecuador international expressed his desire to join the league leaders.

However, Brighton remained firm in their stance that he was not for sale, and Mikel Arteta ultimately signed Jorginho from Chelsea instead.

Speaking to GiveMeSport, O’Rourke claimed that Arsenal could return for Caicedo in the summer, as their interest will likely still be alive as they search for a long-term solution in midfield.

“Moises Caicedo, obviously, admitted in a social media post that he would be keen to move on from Brighton and he wanted the opportunity to join a top club like Arsenal or Chelsea,”

“I’m sure Arsenal’s interest will remain and it’s a deal that they will try to rekindle in the summer.”

Caicedo or Rice?

Now that Jorginho has joined, it may be the case that Arsenal only pursues one of Caicedo and Declan Rice, whom they have reportedly made their top target.

Rice is older, and more experienced in the Premier League as well as being a full England international.

Caicedo, whose potential move deal with Arsenal was described as “outrageous” by Lee Hendrie, ranks more favourably for tackling as per FBref, indicating that he may be stronger at pure defending, but Rice ranks higher for passing and clearances, and may also bring a better sense of leadership to the club.

Arteta has brought in some strong personalities with the likes of Oleksander Zinchenko and Martin Odegaard, both of whom captain their national sides, and Rice’s experience as West ham captain may swing Arsenal’s preference towards him.

Crystal Palace look set to miss out on Antoine Semenyo this month but Patrick Vieira’s side could land an upgrade in Coventry City striker Viktor Gyokeres.

The Eagles have been in competition with Bournemouth for Bristol City striker Semenyo after his impressive performances for Nigel Pearson’s side in the Championship but it seems as if he is now heading to the Cherries.

Vieira’s side have also been linked with Gyokeres recently as a result of his superb displays in the second tier and the stats suggest that the Sweden international would be a far better option if Palace do bring in another striker before next week’s deadline.

This season has seen the former Brighton man light up the Championship with the Sky Blues, hitting 12 goals and two assists in 27 appearances, with WhoScored awarding him a strong 6.97 rating for his performances.

Considering this would rank him as the top performer at Selhurst Park, while his goal tally is also double the amount of Palace’s top goalscorer Wilfried Zaha, it is easy to see why Vieira might be keen on bringing the 24-year-old in this month.

While any deal for Gyokeres is likely to cost Palace around £18m, their lack of recent goals is a real cause for concern, and that fee will be just a drop in the ocean if it ensures the Eagles avoid relegation to the Championship this term.

Coventry boss Mark Robins certainly seems to think that his star striker has what it takes to play at the top level, as he sang his praises earlier in the season.

He said:

“He’s not the finished article by any stretch of the imagination but he has some unbelievable ability – power, technique. He has got everything in his locker and that desire and hunger to score goals.”

While Gyokeres currently sits second in the goalscoring charts in the Championship with 12 goals, Semenyo has managed just six goals in Bristol City colours so far this campaign.

He has also averaged fewer shots (1.7 vs 2.8), key passes (0.4 vs 1.3) and dribbles (one vs 1.8) per game in the second tier this season, which suggests that the Swedish forward is the more complete player, via WhoScored.

Therefore, if Semenyo does complete a move to AFC Bournemouth, Vieira should look at Gyokeres as a perfect alternative, as it seems clear that the Eagles need attacking reinforcements before the window closes.

Crystal Palace and Fulham are both are looking to complete a late move for QPR midfielder Sam Field on deadline day, according to a new transfer report.

The Lowdown: Field impressing for QPR

The 24-year-old has been an undisputed key man for QPR this season, making 29 starts in the Championship and shining at the heart of the midfield, ranking as one of the Hoops’ top five players, as per Whoscored.

Field has averaged 2.6 tackles and 2.4 clearances per game in the league, highlighting his work off the ball, and he could now feel that he is good enough for a move up to the top tier.

And while Dougie Freedman and Steve Parish look to be on the verge of a move for Albert Sambi Lokonga, it seems they are not stopping there.

The Latest: Palace eyeing up late move

According to Football Insider, Palace are battling with Premier League rivals Fulham and both sides have ‘made moves’ to snap up Field before Tuesday’s transfer cutoff.

It is claimed that ‘contact has been made’ regarding the transfer, as both clubs look to ‘bolster their midfield options’.

The Verdict: Ideal for squad depth

Granted, there is a risk element to Palace signing Field because of his lack of top-level experience – he has only made 22 Premier League appearances – but he is an impressive footballer who could shine as a squad player for Palace.

He once was hailed as ‘absolutely fantastic’ by Ben Foster during their West Brom days and he has matured into an influential figure for QPR, now playing 79 times for them.

Field could come in and provide genuine competition for the likes of Jeffrey Schlupp and Cheick Doucouré in Palace’s midfield, aiding the Eagles’ push up the Premier League table.

Arsenal head into today’s Premier League clash against Everton having enjoyed a solid January transfer window, adding Jorginho, Jakub Kiwior and Leandro Trossard to their title-chasing squad, and Mikel Arteta will surely be happy with the business that the club conducted.

Despite racing away at the summit of the table, the Gunners tasted defeat in their last match as Manchester City prevailed 1-0 in the FA Cup against a much-changed Arsenal side who appear to have one thing and one thing only on their minds – a first league title since 2004.

A trip to Goodison Park to face a struggling Everton side should give Arteta and co the ideal chance to bounce back to winning ways and assert their dominance in the league. The Spaniard may also unleash Jorginho and Kiwior at some stage.

The starting XI will also be back to near full strength following the rotation against City, and Arteta must surely unleash Martin Odegaard against the Toffees, with the Norwegian aiming to carry on his excellent form this season.

Odegaard has been a revelation since joining Arsenal on an initial loan two years ago. Nine goals and seven assists during his first 18 months in north London laid the foundation for what has simply been a magnificent campaign for the 24-year-old so far.

His performances during the first six months of 2022/23 has seen him receive a Sofascore rating of 7.49/10, ranking him not only as the club’s second-best performer in the Premier League this term but also as the fourth-best player in the top-flight, showing just how integral he is to Arsenal’s chances of glory.

Across 18 league appearances, he has scored eight times, registered five assists and created ten big chances, along with averaging 2.2 key passes per match. That underlines his attacking threat from a midfield role, helping to shoulder the burden from the injured Gabriel Jesus, the club’s main centre-forward.

Odegaard also chips in defensively, making 1.1 tackles and winning 3.4 duels per match, but it is his attacking feats which have been incredible and led to comparisons with a former Arsenal icon.

Football London editor Hush Kerai was full of praise for the 24-year-old’s performance against Nottingham Forest in October, describing Odegaard as like “watching Bergkamp”; and with the Dutchman gaining legendary status among the Arsenal faithful, there is arguably no higher praise.

Having appeared as a late substitute against Man City last week, the £115k-per-week star simply needs to be unleashed from the start against Everton today. Their new manager Sean Dyche could be set to walk into a baptism of fire if the Norwegian is in the mood, which he has been so often this season.