Friday news (includes West Ham)

[Alan]

"BBC Arsenal are interested in Bayern Munich's 24-year-old Netherlands defender Matthijs de Ligt, although any deal is likely to take place this summer. (Athletic - subscription) England striker Ivan Toney is Arsenal's main January target but the Gunners could fall short in their bid to sign the 27-year-old because of Brentford's recent run of poor form. (Sun) Roy Hodgson's future as Crystal Palace manager is uncertain as they are considering a move for Steve Cooper, who was sacked by Nottingham Forest this month. (Telegraph - subscription) Hodgson, 76, is aware his job will be on the line when Crystal Palace face Brentford on Saturday. (Guardian) Brazil forward Roberto Firmino, 32, could leave Al-Ahli after only six months, with fellow Saudi Pro League sides Al-Shabab, Al-Ettifaq and Al-Fateh, Sheffield United and teams from Turkey interested. (Talksport) Guinea striker Serhou Guirassy, 27, is ready to leave Stuttgart in January and AC Milan, Manchester United and Tottenham are interested. (Gazzetta dello Sport - in Italian) Liverpool are set to send defender Nat Phillips, 26, on loan again in January after his spell with Celtic ended. (Liverpool Echo) Crystal Palace are keen on Sunderland's 21-year-old French midfielder Pierre Ekwah and Paris St-Germain's 21-year-old French striker Hugo Ekitike. (Standard) Nottingham Forest are in advanced talks with Monaco over a move for 28-year-old Portugal winger Gelson Martins. (L'Equipe - in French) A swap deal involving Juventus' Serbia striker Dusan Vlahovic, 23, and Chelsea's 30-year-old Belgium forward Romelu Lukaku, who is on loan at Roma, could take place next year. (Tuttosport - in Italian) Borussia Dortmund are considering a bid for Manchester United's 19-year-old English winger Dan Gore. (Football Insider) Chelsea have agreed a deal to sign Senegal Under-17 midfielder Pape Daouda Diong from Senegalese club AF Darou Salam when he turns 18 in June. (Fabrizio Romano) Juventus will prioritise the signing of Tottenham's 28-year-old Denmark midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in January. (Calciomercato - in Italian) Manchester City will let England midfielder Kalvin Phillips join Newcastle on loan, with the 28-year-old set to turn down a move to Juventus. (Talksport) Tottenham want to sign a centre-back by mid-January, with Nice's France defender Jean-Clair Todibo, 23, top of their shortlist. (Teamtalk) Manager Ange Postecoglou is hopeful Spurs can do early business in the January transfer window following injuries to key players. (Times - subscription required) The pressure is increasing on Steven Gerrard at Saudi Pro League club Al-Ettifaq, with the former Aston Villa manager's side winless since October. (Mail) West Ham are willing to sell 27-year-old Morocco defender Nayef Aguerd in January, with several Saudi Arabian clubs interested. (Football Insider) Eintracht Frankfurt want to sign Wolves' Austria striker Sasa Kalajdzic, 26, on loan until the end of the season. (Bild - in German) Former France midfielder Yann M'Vila is open to a return to Sunderland. The 33-year-old is a free agent after leaving Olympiakos at the end of last season. (Sunderland Echo) Sevilla, Lyon and Freiburg are interested in signing Manchester United's 20-year-old Hannibal Mejbri on loan in January. (Fabrizio Romano) West Ham defender Thilo Kehrer, 27, is a target for Roma, who want to sign a centre-back in January. (Corriere dello Sport - in Italian) Manchester City are closing in on a deal for River Plate's 17-year-old Argentine midfielder Claudio Echeverri. (Sky Sports) Echeverri is set to spend some time at Manchester City's sister club Girona before being integrated into Pep Guardiola's squad. (Mundo Deportivo - in Spanish) Sky Paper Talk DAILY MAIL Roberto Firmino could make a return to Premier League after his struggles in Saudi Arabia with Sheffield United one of the clubs interested. Crystal Palace believe they are clear to appoint Steve Cooper without paying compensation to Nottingham Forest amid growing uncertainty over Roy Hodgson's position. Former Liverpool star and Al Ahli forward Roberto Firmino is attracting interest from clubs in England, Turkey, and other Saudi teams, according to reports. Lisandro Martinez has potentially given Manchester United fans a slightly late Christmas present by revealing that his return to the team will be coming 'very soon'. Borussia Dortmund head a pack of top European and Premier League clubs chasing Port Vale wonderkid Liam Brazier. Arsenal and Chelsea have been dealt a transfer blow in their pursuit of Sporting Lisbon star Viktor Gyokeres. Chelsea have signed wonderkid Pape Daouda Diong, according to reports. Sir Lewis Hamilton was the only Formula One star who opted out of the vote for Driver of the Year. THE SUN Birmingham City are planning an audacious swoop for Steve Cooper - if Wayne Rooney's dismal form as manager continues. Manchester City have given Newcastle the green light to sign Kalvin Phillips on a loan transfer in the new year, a report claims. Roy Hodgson is under increasing pressure at Crystal Palace with some at the club feeling Saturday's clash with Brentford could be his last chance. Arsenal could miss out on main target Ivan Toney - because of Brentford's dismal form. Borussia Dortmund head a pack of top European and Premier League clubs chasing Port Vale wonderkid Liam Brazier. Arsenal and Chelsea have been dealt a transfer blow in their pursuit of Sporting Lisbon star Viktor Gyokeres. Chelsea have signed teenage star Pape Daouda Diong, according to reports. DAILY MIRROR Agents are bracing themselves for a different January transfer window to last year, with big clubs like Manchester United, Newcastle and Arsenal potentially looking at loan deals as their priority. Andre Onana is reportedly in talks with Cameroon in an attempt to delay his release for next month's Africa Cup of Nations. Getafe president Angel Torres has confirmed he has held talks with Manchester United over a permanent move for Mason Greenwood. THE GUARDIAN A British South Asian man is suing Liverpool Football Club, claiming it racially discriminated against him by rejecting his application for a job in favour of someone less experienced. THE ATHLETIC Arsenal are interested in Bayern Munich's defender Matthijs de Ligt. Burnley striker Lyle Foster has been left out of South Africa's squad for the forthcoming Africa Cup of Nations as he continues to receive treatment for his mental health. Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno is unlikely to face any action from the Football Association following his clash with a ball boy against Bournemouth. Former Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt has been named the new head coach of Belgian second-tier side Beerschot. Nuno Espirito Santo has been reunited with four familiar staff members at Nottingham Forest - Rui Pedro Silva and Julio Figueroa join as assistant coaches, with Rui Barbosa and Antonio Dias arriving as goalkeeper coach and fitness coach. DAILY RECORD Gwangju FC star Ho-Yeon Jung has claimed a move to Europe is ""getting closer"" with Celtic leading the race to snap up the midfielder next month. SCOTTISH SUN Rangers shareholders group Club 1872 have ended their long-running disagreement with the club's board. Guardian Arsenal‚Äôs title hopes hit as old boy Mavropanos seals West Ham win Jacob Steinberg at the Emirates Stadium Konstantinos Mavropanos outjumps Gabriel Magalh?£es to make it 2-0 to West Ham. Photograph: Peter Cziborra/Action Images/Reuters This was not the reunion that Arsenal envisaged. On a night when West Ham‚Äôs discipline and tremendous work ethic turned the Emirates Stadium into a pit of frustration, Declan Rice found himself powerless to resist as the narrative shifted to the goal from Konstantinos Mavropanos that raises further doubts over his old side‚Äôs staying power in the title race. Mikel Arteta has every reason to be concerned after a defeat that dashed Arsenal‚Äôs hopes of returning to the top of the Premier League. Statistics showing his side had 74% possession and finished a taut encounter with 30 shots to West Ham‚Äôs five spoke less of their dominance and more to their toothlessness and indecision in the final third. As Arteta acknowledged, supremacy in the middle hardly feels relevant when it is accompanied by such a lack of conviction in both boxes. By full-time Arsenal, who remain two points behind Liverpool and three ahead of Manchester City, had managed 77 touches in West Ham‚Äôs area. Two went to Gabriel Jesus, only for the hard-running No 9 to spurn a couple of glorious headed chances midway through the second half. They were pivotal moments, the kind that might have turned the game on its head, but there is a reason why City let Jesus go. Their view was that the striker was not potent enough and, for all the Brazilian‚Äôs excellent work off the ball, it is easy to understand the argument about Arsenal needing more firepower in January. At the moment they look reliant on Bukayo Saka, a weakness that West Ham exploited by crowding the winger out. Gabriel Martinelli, who was marked out of the game by the outstanding Vladimir Coufal, is simply not offering any threat on the opposite flank. Martinelli has only two league goals this season and, with Kai Havertz missing through suspension, the use of Leandro Trossard in midfield was not enough to break West Ham down. This was a solid, committed performance from West Ham, who rose to sixth after consecutive 2-0 wins against Arsenal and Manchester United. For David Moyes, who celebrated his first league win in 73 attempts away against Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and United, it was a tactical triumph. Time to give him a new deal? The evidence is compelling. West Ham may lack glamour but nobody can accuse them of being a soft touch under Moyes. They fought for everything after snatching the lead through Tomas Soucek and, having survived a storm before half-time, were in the clear when Mavropanos, a centre-back who made little impact before leaving Arsenal in 2022, headed in James Ward-Prowse‚Äôs corner early in the second half. Mavropanos‚Äôs first goal since joining West Ham from Stuttgart hit Arsenal hard. They were under pressure after wins for City and Liverpool earlier in the week. They were desperate for an early goal. Martin ?òdegaard linked with Saka, who tested Alphonse Areola. Emerson Palmieri, West Ham‚Äôs adventurous left-back, would have to dig deep against Saka. West Ham had conceded five in each of their previous two away outings and were without Nayef Aguerd and Kurt Zouma in central defence. Deputising for Aguerd and Zouma were Mavropanos and Angelo Ogbonna, the pairing that started when West Ham were demolished by Liverpool in the Carabao Cup. A notable feature, though, was the tenacious Edson ?Ålvarez dropping back to help West Ham‚Äôs defence. They soon tiptoed forward. Lucas Paquet?°, who had started despite injuring a knee during the warm-up, took over, spinning cleverly before finding Emerson‚Äôs overlapping run. The left-back‚Äôs cross caught Arsenal out. Jarrod Bowen missed it at the near post but Gabriel Magalh?£es and Oleksandr Zinchenko were in a muddle. The ball came back to Bowen, who pulled it back from the byline for Soucek to score from close range. There would be no reprieve from VAR for Arsenal, no replay to show the ball had gone behind before being funnelled to Soucek, and the anxiety rose. It grew further when Areola tipped Saka‚Äôs header over and Martinelli shot wide. West Ham were hit when Paquet?° went down again, depriving the visitors of their most accomplished player on the ball. Retaining possession was harder with Sa?Ød Benrahma on. Arsenal upped the pace. Saka hit woodwork after wriggling through. Soucek and Ogbonna made vital blocks. It had been 45 minutes of pure Moyesball. Mohammed Kudus worked tirelessly on West Ham‚Äôs right, tracking back and occasionally relieving pressure with neat footwork. Arsenal struggled to find space. Rice shot over from 20 yards but openings were rare after half-time and the angst grew when Mavropanos, running across Magalh?£es, met Ward-Prowse‚Äôs delivery with a header that went in off the bar. Arsenal‚Äôs response came from Jesus wasting headers and Trossard firing at Areola‚Äôs legs. There was time for Rice to concede a penalty for fouling Emerson. David Raya‚Äôs save from Benrahma was of little consolation to Arsenal. The Athletic How Moyes‚Äô remodelled West Ham have shown they can thrive without Rice By Roshane Thomas Life without Declan Rice was supposed to be a difficult transition for West Ham United, but their remodelled team would beg to differ. The 2-0 victory at Arsenal came courtesy of goals from Tomas Soucek and summer signing Konstantinos Mavropanos, with fellow addition Edson Alvarez excelling defensively once more and James Ward-Prowse ‚Äî a ¬£30million ($38.2m) recruit from Southampton ‚Äî registering his 10th assist in all competitions this season, becoming just the second Premier League player to reach double figures after Bukayo Saka (11). Before the match, Moyes played down the notion that West Ham were better as a collective following Rice‚Äôs ¬£105million move to Arsenal in July. He still believes his side misses the England midfielder‚Äôs presence in matches, yet the midfield quartet of Alvarez, Ward-Prowse, Soucek and Lucas Paqueta‚Äôs performances have been doing an increasingly good job of filling any hole that remained. Soucek has scored eight goals and has bettered his goalscoring record (3) from 2022-23. Ward-Prowse‚Äôs ability to interchange from a No 10 to a holding midfielder is a particular strength but, more importantly, his contributions from set pieces have been crucial ‚Äì eight of the 29-year-old‚Äôs 10 assists have been from set plays, the most of any Premier League player. Paqueta has a penchant for providing assists, too, with four in his last three games, and his absence with a left leg injury will be keenly felt after he had to come off after 30 minutes last night. But most impressive of all has been the addition of Alvarez, whose stock continues to rise. His defensive steel against Arsenal was pivotal in Moyes securing his first away win at the Emirates Stadium in 23 attempts. ‚ÄúFootball is played in many ways and today it was a brilliant defensive performance,‚Äù said Moyes. ‚ÄúSometimes you have to watch how you play teams. We did a great job in keeping them from scoring. This was the last game in 2023, it‚Äôs been an unbelievable year for West Ham. ‚ÄúI think we sold one of the best players to Arsenal as well. Probably all managers live or die by their recruitment. I think the new boys we‚Äôve brought in, (Mohammed) Kudus has been brilliant, Alvarez does a good defensive job for us.‚Äù Moyes‚Äô side rarely lost their defensive discipline. As shown in the graphic below, Gabriel Jesus, the Arsenal striker, is in possession, but his options of a forward pass are limited. Alvarez drops back to be nearer to Angelo Ogbonna, who deputised for the injured Kurt Zouma, while Soucek and Ward-Prowse are not far apart from one another. Alvarez produced a man-of-the-match performance. With Rice struggling to impose himself against his former side, his successor showed why West Ham wasted little time in making him their first summer signing. He is the defensive anchor and although Soucek, Paqueta, Kudus and Jarrod Bowen get the plaudits for their goals and playmaking abilities, Alvarez is the key that unlocks West Ham‚Äôs full potential. It is not uncommon for the Mexico international to drop between the two centre-backs both in and out of possession. It is a similar role he occupied at Ajax. Before Ward-Prowse‚Äôs corner to set up West Ham‚Äôs second goal, Alvarez makes two important contributions. As shown in the graphic, Oleksandr Zinchenko is marking Mavropanos, but Alvarez is about to make an important run, which allows his team-mate to run into space. Alvarez, in the yellow circle, attracts the attention of Zinchenko. With one obstacle out of the way, all Mavropanos is tasked with doing is getting on the end of a perfectly weighted cross from Ward-Prowse. The defender, who joined from Stuttgart in the summer, scores his first goal for West Ham against his former club. Although Mavropanos is considered the unlikely hero, the threat he has posed on set plays throughout his career shows it was just a matter of time. The centre-back muted his celebrations, but the recruitment team will be belatedly delighted with his impact. That sequence of play involved three new players: Mavropanos, Alvarez and Ward-Prowse. ‚ÄúWe‚Äôve been improving the team over the years and you could see what we were capable of through our performances in Europe,‚Äù said goalkeeper Alphonse Areola. ‚ÄúWe‚Äôve been working hard, showing that fighting spirit and you‚Äôve seen that in our recent performances. The summer additions were great for the team. It‚Äôs great for Dinos (Mavropanos) and his confidence that he scored.‚Äù There was one passage of play that highlighted how West Ham have improved as a team. With Gabriel Martinelli advancing forward (below), Alvarez makes an important interception. Yet West Ham‚Äôs midfield are not careless in their pursuit of a third goal, as they might have been previously. Moyes‚Äô side now has the personnel whose game intelligence shines in matches like these, with Alvarez launching a break from his own half with Bowen ahead of him. When he stops momentarily due to Bukayo Saka‚Äôs pursuit, Alvarez has the option of threading a pass to Bowen. Instead, he decides to be cautious and retreat before passing to Areola to keep possession and not allow Arsenal to regain the ball and set up an attack of their own with the play disjointed. West Ham recruited well in the summer and the best evidence of that was their win against Arsenal. Kudus‚Äô performance was key in the previous win against Manchester United, but at the Emirates, Mavropanos, Ward-Prowse and Alvarez showed why Moyes‚Äô side can mount a serious challenge for a top-six spot. The remodelled midfield will face tougher tests this season, but there can be few doubts about their ability to thrive in Rice‚Äôs absence."

[Texas Iron]

Cheers…

[Heavi995]

Cheers Alan

[Admiral Lard]

Thanks Max West Ham willing to sell Aguerd in the January window to a Saudi team? I don't think so

[Mex Martillo]

Thanks Alan 1:17 Fri Dec 29

[mallard]

That first picture sums up Rice’s contribution last night! Thanks Alan

[Thanks Alan]

Thanks Alan