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New Tottenham Hotspur manager Nuno Espirito Santo could be in line to secure his sixth signing during his short time in the dugout after the capital club were linked with a move for West Bromwich Albion goalkeeper Sam Johnstone.

What’s the story?

According to The Sun, Spurs are one of three Premier League clubs eager to secure the signature of the highly-rated 28-year-old, with West Ham United and Southampton also credited with an interest.

Johnstone has entered the final year of his contract at The Hawthorns, which means he could leave for free next summer or for a reduced price over the winter window.

The report stated: “Both West Ham and Tottenham have pencilled in offers for Johnstone if he leaves, while West Brom have let him know there will be a lucrative deal to stay.”

It also claimed that the Saints would be willing to make an offer for the ‘keeper in the January window rather than waiting for him to become a free agent in the summer, so new Spurs director of football Fabio Paratici will need to act quickly if he is to secure his transfer target.

Spurs fans would love him

Johnstone rose to prominence during 2020/21 after putting in several impressive performances despite West Brom’s struggles ultimately leading to their relegation from the Premier League. Indeed, the £7.2m-rated ‘keeper was named the players’ and supporters’ Player of the Year at The Hawthorns for his heroics as the Baggies’ last line of defence last season.

Based on that, it’s hardly a surprise that Micah Richards described him as “outstanding.”

He has carried his exceptional form into the current campaign, starting ten of Albion’s 11 Championship fixtures so far this term, keeping four clean sheets and conceding just seven goals.

A recent article published by The Atheltic revealed that Johnstone has also begun to adapt his game to the modern demands of a goalkeeper under Valerien Ismael’s tutelage, completing 31 keeper-sweepings and six-headed clearances already, which is the same as his last three campaigns combined.

He is also down on saves and catches per game as he has been forced to become a more modern shot-stopper, and he appears to be coping well with the change.

With current Tottenham number one Hugo Lloris set to turn 36 in December, the north London outfit will need a fresh face between the sticks before long, and Johnstone would likely prove to be a popular choice amongst the club’s fanbase given his impressive displays for West Brom.

In other news… Imagine him and Hojbjerg: Spurs must swoop for £25m gem, he’s an “outstanding talent” 

A number of Liverpool supporters have been left frustrated after Jurgen Klopp’s injury update regarding midfielder Naby Keita.

The Reds cruised to an impressive 3-0 win away to Norwich City on Tuesday night, booking a place in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup in the process.

Takumi Minamino put Liverpool in front early on, before Caoimhin Kelleher saved Christos Tzolis’ penalty before half-time.

[freshpress-quiz id=“359326”]

Divock Origi headed home his side’s second goal of the night and Minamino rounded off the scoring with a neat finish late in the day.

Keita started the game but was replaced at half-time by debutant Tyler Morton, and after the match, Klopp confirmed [via journalist Neil Jones on Twitter] that the midfielder had suffered an injury scare after “kicking the grass.”

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-3/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=“none”]

Liverpool fans angry at Keita latest

Needless to say, these Liverpool supporters were frustrated by yet another potential injury problem for the Guinean, taking to Twitter to provide their thoughts on the matter.

“If you don’t laugh you’ll cry”

Credit: @TimD2704

“Peak Naby this”

Credit: @Tayler_Ogden

“I have no words”

Credit: @icy7_YNWA

“Let’s just assume he’s out til New Year”

Credit: @Mikey_R_1992

“HE KICKED THE GRASSSS AND GOT INJURED I AM FINISHED”

Credit: @anaviiii4

“Oh god”

Credit: @CHADO_K_

In other news, one Liverpool player is reportedly attracting interest from abroad. Read more here.

Celtic’s attractive playing style under Ange Postecoglou could suffer following the departure of Ryan Christie, according to The Celtic Way reporter Anthony Haggerty.

Christie made the deadline day move to Championship side Bournemouth for a fee believed to be in the region of £2.5million.

It comes despite Postecoglou, who was appointed as Celtic’s new manager in June, wanting to extend the winger’s contract following an impressive start to the season.

Christie’s Bhoys deal was due to expire in January and, with deadline day looming, the 26-year-old was also linked with Bournemouth’s south coast rivals Southampton at a cut-price fee.

Saints were not the only Premier League outfit who raised an interest as Burnley explored the possibility of being able to tempt Christie to Turf Moor on deadline day.

Christie leaves a sizeable gap in Postecoglou’s preferred starting line-up, having appeared in all four of Celtic’s Scottish Premiership fixtures so far this season.

Haggerty admits Christie was a key cog as Postecoglou recovered from a poor start to his reign.

He told The Transfer Tavern: “I think there were machinations going on behind the scenes to try and keep Ryan Christie sweet and keep him on board.

“I think the Celtic supporters, to a man, woman and child, would say it was a no-brainer to try to keep him.

“But he has left and a big part of Angeball has left now because he hit the ground running under Ange.”

Sunderland have potentially been dealt a double injury blow ahead of their League One fixture on Tuesday night.

What’s the latest?

According to a report by the Sunderland Echo, both Corry Evans and Luke O’Nien are doubts for the trip to Burton Albion, with Lee Johnson set to make a call on whether or not he includes either of the duo in his matchday squad.

However, the report added that Evans is a major doubt for the clash, with the midfielder having been withdrawn in the second half of the MK Dons fixture as a result of a muscle injury.

Meanwhile, O’Nien appears to have a slightly better chance of featuring on Tuesday, with the right-back having missed Saturday’s 2-1 win due to illness.

Johnson will be worried

Johnson does have a number of options from which to choose in central midfield, with Dan Neil, Carl Winchester and Elliot Embleton all capable of operating in the position. However, the loss of club captain Evans would nevertheless come as a huge blow to the 40-year-old, as the former Blackburn Rovers man is a player who the Black Cats boss is eager to make a cornerstone of his Sunderland side this season.

O’Nien’s absence would more than likely cause Johnson a much bigger selection headache, as the 26-year-old is the only natural right-back in the Mackems’ squad.

The manager could potentially deploy one of Winchester, Tom Flanagan or Bailey Wright in the position, although the former will be needed in central midfield if Evans is not deemed fit enough to feature, while Flanagan and Wright will most likely be required at centre-back.

In any case, being without either player is sure to be a worrying blow for Johnson, especially as his side are facing a testing away trip to a Burton team who, along with Sunderland, are one of only four clubs with a 100% record in League One so far this season.

In other news: Johnson must unleash “immense” £2.25m-rated SAFC gem vs Burton, he’s a game-changer

With Southampton having failed to win a game in the Premier League so far this season, it’s safe to say that Saints fans have not had a lot to shout about recently.

However, one shining light that supporters can take some pleasure in is the progression and development of full-back Kyle Walker-Peters since his arrival at the club.

Southampton originally signed Walker-Peters on a loan deal from fellow Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur in the 2020 January window before securing him on a permanent deal in the following summer transfer window for a fee of £12m.

In terms of his development and progression since joining Southampton, the defender’s market value in April 2020 was £7.2 million according to Transfermarkt. However, after making a total of 51 appearances for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side across all competitions where he’s managed one goal and provided four assists along the way, Walker-Peters’ current market value has increased to £16.2m.

That’s a fine increase of 125% since penning terms on the south coast and suggests it was somewhat of a masterclass from the manager to sign him.

The rise in value shows just how well the 24-year-old, who is apparently earning a weekly wage of just over £23k-per-week according to Spotrac, has done since stepping away from Spurs and joining Southampton.

So far this season, the defender has made six appearances across all competitions where he has registered one goal and provided one assist, both coming in their 8-0 win over Newport County in the Carabao Cup.

For his five appearances in the Premier League, Walker-Peters has earned himself an overall season rating of 6.83/10 for his performances which puts him as Southampton’s third-highest rated player according to WhoScored.

Walker-Peters latest appearance for Southampton saw him play the entire 90 minutes in their recent 3-1 defeat at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea.

Despite the poor result, Walker-Peters still managed to earn himself a respectable match rating of 6.8/10 for his efforts against the west London club. He won six duels all while playing out of position on the left-hand side of defence. His rating, via SofaScore, made him the second-highest-rated outfield player on the day from a Saints perspective.

Moving forward, we see no reason why Hasenhuttl would consider not continue starting Walker-Peters throughout the remainder of their Premier League campaign. However, they will need to make sure they secure their first win of the season as soon as possible or else they could find themselves in real trouble.

In other news: Forget JWP: £12.5k-p/w Southampton gem who made just 6 passes let Ralph down v CFC – opinion

An update has been dropped on the reported interest from Glasgow Rangers in signing David Bates before the summer transfer window ends.

The Lowdown: Bates interest

It was reported earlier this month that the Gers hold an interest in bring Bates back to Ibrox this window, and look set to make a bid for him.

He only has a year left on his current deal at Hamburg, and the Glasgow club could afford to buy him should they end up deciding to make a move.

The Latest: Interest played down

Fussballnachrichten.de have now played down the reported interest from the Light Blues in Bates, even going as far as to claim that there is no interest in signing him at all.

As per the news outlet, there are no clubs currently looking into signing the six-foot-three central defender, who may be forced to stay with Hamburg until his contract expires.

The Verdict: Avoid

While Steven Gerrard’s team could afford to sign Bates if they wanted to, they should avoid looking into him for now.

The 24-year-old did relatively well while out on loan in Belgium’s top flight in the 2020/21 season, winning no fewer than 3.4 of his duels per game, as well as averaging 3.7 clearances and 1.1 interceptions per match, helping his side keep four clean sheets in the process (Sofascore).

However, the Gers are pretty healthy in the centre-back department at the moment, and should really be focusing on strengthening other areas of the pitch first of all.

Nonetheless, Bates has not tested himself in a major league since he was last in Glasgow, and so it is not guaranteed that he would adapt swiftly to Scottish football again.

In other news, find out what recent Rangers news has been lauded here!

Carney Chukwuemeka will make just his second start of the season for Aston Villa against Burnley on Saturday, The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece has predicted. 

The lowdown

Chukwuemeka’s only previous Premier League start this term came in the 1-1 draw with Brentford back in August.

He then watched on from the sidelines until returning to the fray as a substitute in the 2-1 defeat against Manchester City at the start of this month.

The 18-year-old’s runout at Norwich City in midweek only lasted seven minutes, but it was enough time for him to tee-up Ollie Watkins for a late goal.

Chukwuemeka, who’s been on Villa’s books since 2016, is only valued at £2.25million by Transfermarkt.

The latest

Preece thinks that Ashley Young could drop out of the starting line-up, pointing out that the 36-year-old has played 220 minutes in the space of ten days.

Jacob Ramsey could be pushed into a left wing position, but he reckons it’s more likely that Gerrard will turn to Chukwuemeka following his ‘brilliant’ assist against Norwich.

The verdict

In truth, Chukwuemeka didn’t make too much of an impression against Brentford. He only completed 13 passes during his 63 minutes on the pitch, and he failed to register a shot or create a chance (via SofaScore).

But having caught the eye at Carrow Road, he could well be in line for gametime over the busy festive period. Villa are due to play four matches in the next 15 days, and that could force Gerrard to rotate.

What’s more, handing opportunities to the ‘supremely gifted’ and ‘imposing’ youngster may convince him that Villa Park is the best place for him.

In other news, fans fumed at this news from the club.

Celtic followed up last weekend’s Old Firm victory with a blistering 7-0 thrashing against St Johnstone at Parkhead this afternoon.

The Hoops were 3-0 up and cruising at half-time thanks to goals from Reo Hatate, Giorgos Giakoumakis and Daizen Maeda. The second half saw a penalty from Josip Juranovic, a brace from substitute Matt O’Riley and a clinching goal from Liel Abada put the icing on the cake for Ange Postecoglou’s side.

Despite this emphatic victory and plethora of goals for the home crowd to enjoy, not every player wearing a Celtic shirt delivered a strong performance.

Having scored the equaliser against Rangers last weekend which eventually helped the Hoops to secure all three points at Ibrox, Tom Rogic found himself in the starting XI once again today.

However, with just 50 touches of the ball, nine fewer than goalkeeper Joe Hart, the Australian failed to have much of a positive impact for his team on this occasion. The 29-year-old ended up losing possession of the ball 16 times during the first half before he was replaced by O’Riley at the interval.

Rogic, who has been described as being like a “ballet dancer” in terms of his midfield play in the past by A Celtic State of Mind pundit Kevin Graham, also failed to complete two of the three dribbles he attempted.

Off the ball, things weren’t much better for the midfielder, who lost 86% of his duels, committed one foul and getting dribbled past on one occasion.

This display ultimately earned the Old Firm derby hero an underwhelming overall match rating of 6/10, making him the lowest-rated player in a Celtic shirt according to SofaScore.

Given how O’Riley had an instant impact on the scoreline in the second half, it turned out to have been a masterstroke from Postecoglou to put him on for Rogic at the interval.

The Hoops boss may well feel let down by what he saw from his compatriot this afternoon and will be hoping that the 29-year-old can improve on this less than stellar performance.

In other news: £2.7m down the drain as Celtic had a howler on “difficult” £450k-rated Parkhead flop

According to a report by Super Deporte, via Sport Witness, there has been a behind-the-scenes update on Leeds United’s search for a possible heir to Marcelo Bielsa.

The Lowdown: Bielsa era ending?

The Argentine, who has worked wonders at Elland Road overall, guiding them back to the Premier League after many years of waiting, could be on the way out of Yorkshire at the end of this season.

Sources suggest that the 66-year-old could decide to part company with his contract set to expire at the end of 2021/2022 as things stand.

There has been no sign of an extension at Leeds so far as the club hover just two points above the relegation zone after a very lacklustre start.

Former Granada boss Diego Martinez has been heavily tipped to potentially succeed Bielsa at the end of this season as an update emerges.

The Latest: ‘Everything suggests’ Martinez to Leeds…

As per Super Deporte (via Sport Witness), ‘everything suggests’ the 40-year-old will eventually succeed Leeds’ manager as the Spaniard is even in England studying the game.

Indeed, as per their information, Leeds chief Victor Orta has already held talks with Martinez – making a ‘first approach’ with him behind the scenes.

However, the out-of-work boss does not want to take charge of a team mid-season – with the feeling being he will arrive in the summer when Bielsa’s contract runs out.

The Verdict: Ideal replacement?

Lauded as a miracle worker and Spanish football revelation for his job at Granada, it’s safe to say Martinez certainly knows how to get the best out of what he has.

Guiding his former side from the second tier to Europa League quarter-finals, his candid interview with ESPN details a hard-working, charismatic boss potentially in the Bielsa mould.

He was adored by his former club’s supporters according to writers associated with Granada, with there being some suggestions they were calling for a statue (LaLigaLowdown).

Taking this into account, he could be a more-than ideal heir for Bielsa at Leeds.

Everton completed the ultimate smash and grab by winning a point from their game at Goodison Park park last night against Leicester City, with another point tallied up in their battle for safety from relegation this season.

Frank Lampard will be delighted that his team have managed to build a four-point gap between themselves and the relegation zone with just seven games left to go and the belief in the dressing room will hopefully push the team on to put in a performance in the Merseyside derby this weekend.

Despite only having 36% possession, fewer shots on goal and no big chances created throughout the game, the hosts refused to let the game pass them by to ultimately take a point away from the difficult game against the Foxes yesterday evening.

Leicester opened the scoring early when Harvey Barnes found the back of the net in the fifth minute of the first half, and from that moment it looked like it was going to be a tale of ill-fate for the Toffees, a situation we’ve seen the side find themselves in numerous times this season.

However, Lampard’s side remained resilient and held off the visitors from taking their further chances over the rest of the game, and Richarlison took the opportunity to find a last-minute winner scoring to undo Leicester’s work in the 92nd minute, sealing a point in the process.

One player who will go under the radar for his huge influence in the centre of the pitch with a performance that kept Everton in with a chance was Fabian Delph, someone who is currently enjoining a renaissance period at Goodison Park.

According to SofaScore, the 32-year-old midfielder won 100% of his five aerial and ground duels combined, made five blocks, two interceptions, one key pass and two tackles.

Furthermore, he only lost possession nine times in his 53 touches of the ball in an all-round impressive display that made him the real hero in the team.

The Toffees boss will surely be absolutely delighted that Delph has come back into the team to make such an influential impact on the side following a long-term injury.

The former Manchester City star also played a huge part in the victory over Manchester United, and Lampard will surely be hoping that his inclusion in the team will continue to inspire further positive results.

AND in other news: EFC plotting £25m bid for “dangerous” £152k-p/w ace, it could be bye-bye Richarlison