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Newcastle United are interested in signing Benfica midfielder Andreas Samaris and Monaco left-back Antonio Barreca, according to The Daily Mail.

The Magpies have thus far failed to sign a new player in January, but manager Rafael Benitez is keen to reinforce the club’s squad before the transfer deadline.

What’s the word?

The Magpies are just one place above the relegation zone, two points clear of 18th-placed Cardiff City.

And Benitez is desperate to bring in new blood before the transfer deadline at the end of the week in his side’s bid to avoid relegation, as per The Daily Mail.

According to the aforementioned report, Newcastle have enquired about the availability of Samaris, as they look to strengthen their midfield.

Former Wigan & Fulham man, Jimmy Bullard recently showed that he’s still got it! Check out the video below…

However, they face competition from Portuguese giants Porto, with Samaris in demand, as per The Daily Mail.

A defensive midfielder, the 29-year-old has struggled for minutes thus far this season, playing just three games in the top-flight, per Transfermarkt.

Barreca, meanwhile, has played seven times for Monaco in Ligue 1, but he has been left out of the club’s squad for their last nine French top-flight games, also according to Transfermarkt.

Easy pickings?

Newcastle have already failed with two recent mooted deals, meaning they are still yet to sign a new player this month.

A loan deal for full-back Jordan Lukaku from Lazio fell through, per BBC, while a mooted move for Gelson Martins never even got to the point of negotiations, as Chronicle Live report that he instead wanted to move to AS Monaco, ironically becoming Barreca’s teammate.

Though they face competition for Samaris, bringing in two players before the deadline may placate Benitez, who is reportedly growing frustrated.

The Telegraph claimed last week that Benitez will quit the club at the end of the season if he is not given two signings between now and the end of the window.

It remains to be seen if whether these deals, even if they’re completed, will be enough to keep the former Liverpool boss around.

Luke Cundle’s sensational goal for Wolves U23’s against Southampton U23’s on Friday was another demonstration of his ability, and a timely reminder to first-team manager Bruno Lage, who is going to have to prepare without Ruben Neves, who is set for a spell on the sidelines until at least May.

After combining with 20-year-old Taylor Perry in the closing moments of the game, then dribbling past two defenders and the goalkeeper before slotting the ball into an empty net, the 19-year-old has been called upon by fans to start for the club once again after the international break.

The upcoming fixtures could be the midfielder’s big chance to build on his already impressive showings for the club at senior level, including a solid performance in the club’s 2-0 away win against Tottenham back in February – which earned him a 7.1 match rating according to SofaScore.

After the game, Lage praised him while talking to Sky Sports, saying: “It was the way we play here and with the kid from the academy.

“He is just 19 and I am very happy with him. The most important thing is the confidence he gives to us. He was there against top players playing like he is in the playground.”

Indeed, similar sentiments were offered by James Collins last year who said that he was “intelligent.”

Since then, he has been left on the bench in all of the matchday squads he has appeared in – as he continues to impress with the U23s, making great progress and strides in his development as a player.

Making four goal contributions in just 12 Premier League 2 games so far this season, the teenager has been tipped to save the club millions by stepping up and replacing midfielder Joao Moutinho, should the experienced 143-time Portugal international fail to extend his stay at Molineux – with his current deal expiring at the end of the season.

However, with Belgian midfielder Leander Dendoncker expected to take Neves’ role in the team until he returns, we could yet get to see Moutinho and Cundle line up in the same team and potentially form an exciting midfield trio that will get Molineux on their feet.

Indeed, with the former Porto star also touted to leave in the summer, this feels like the perfect audition for a more prominent role in 2022/23.

In other news: Wolves will have nightmares over “special” £4.5k-p/w gem whose value has soared 380%

Valerien Ismael has eased fears surrounding an injury to Kyle Bartley during West Brom’s FA Cup defeat to Brighton, saying that it is nothing serious.

The Lowdown: Baggies beaten by Seagulls

The Baggies exited the cup at the third round stage on Saturday afternoon, losing 2-1 to the Seagulls after extra time at The Hawthorns.

It was Ismael’s side who took the lead but an equaliser for the visitors took the game into an additional 30 minutes and they went on to win, with West Brom not helped by Cedric Kipre’s red card.

Bartley picked up a knock towards the end of the game which immediately caused concern, with the centre-back set to be a key figure between now and the end of the season. He is certainly needed now with so many others in his position unavailable due to injury, suspension or international commitments.

[freshpress-quiz id=“375258″]

The Latest: Bartley fears eased

However, speaking after the match [via Birmingham Mail], Ismael claimed that there was no major issue regarding the West Brom defender. He outlined:

“I think it’s not too bad at the minute. For sure, he’ll have some assessment Sunday and after, but the next game is Saturday so we have lots of time between the two games to get the recovery.

“I’m not worried about him. I think it was more tiredness, and to play 120 minutes with a kick on the ankle. Our medical staff will do their job to make sure the player is back for Saturday game.”

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-16/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Verdict: Big boost

West Brom fans can breathe a huge sigh of relief, with Bartley a pivotal figure in their team’s Championship promotion charge, starting 23 league games this season and achieving the second-highest WhoScored performance rating in Ismael’s squad.

At 30, the centre-back possesses a huge amount of experience but is still arguably in his peak years, so losing him for an extended period could have been an almighty blow, having been hailed as ‘brilliant’ by journalist Chris Lepkowski.

As it is, there seems a strong chance that Bartley will be available for the trip to Queens Park Rangers next Saturday, which will come as a big boost to the Albion faithful following his scare over the weekend.

In other news, three West Brom players struggled in the loss to Brighton. Find out who they are here.

Many Crystal Palace fans were delighted with Will Hughes’ performance in their Premier League meeting with Norwich. 

Palace entered the game in the midst of a tricky run, having one only won one of their seven games since the November international break.

Norwich, meanwhile, were looking to halt a run of four straight defeats that’s left them bottom of the Premier League table.

There were four changes to The Eagles side that lost 3-0 against Tottenham Hotspur on Boxing Day. Wilfried Zaha was suspended, Conor Gallagher dropped out of the matchday squad entirely and Jack Butland and James Tomkins were benched.

Jean-Phillipe Mateta, Jeffrey Schlupp, Vicente Guaita and Marc Guehi replaced them.

Recapping Hughes’ performance vs Norwich

Hughes kept his place in midfield, lining up alongside Kouyate and Schlupp.

It was just his fourth start for Patrick Vieira’s side since his summer move from Watford.

And the 26-year-old shone, earning a superb match rating of 8.1 from SofaScore.

Hughes won a penalty in the early stages, with Odsonne Edouard stepping up to convert.

He also created three chances, made a game-high five tackles and won six out of eight ground duels overall.

Fans gush at Hughes display

“71% of the earth is covered by water. The remaining 29% is covered by Will Hughes”

Credit: @hollaatmefelix

“Will Hughes!!!!!!!!! He’s just everywhere he needs to be all the time!!!! He just appears!”

Credit: @milliebruv

“Will Hughes my Lord. Got a bit of baller there me thinks.”

Credit: @threluja

“Will Hughes is some player isn’t he?”

Credit: @samuelpjordan

“Will Hughes is incredible”

Credit: @miniaturelob

“Will Hughes oozes class. He’s going to turn out to be a great signing”

Credit: @ryanhirons

“Will Hughes is the best acquisition this club has ever made.”

Credit: @BDCPFC

In other news, fans offered their reaction to this dressing room revelation. 

Newcastle United are showing interest in former Tottenham midfielder Christian Eriksen, according to The Times (via The Chronicle).

The lowdown

The 29-year-old hasn’t played since he suffered a cardiac arrest during Denmark’s Euro 2020 opener against Finland last June.

In December, Inter Milan terminated his contract by mutual consent, in the knowledge that Eriksen would not be able to play in Serie A because he has an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator fitted. However, he can feature in another league where the rules are different.

The midfielder racked up 226 Premier League appearances during his seven-year stint at Spurs from 2013 to 2020.

The latest

According to The Times, Newcastle are said to be among three Premier League clubs keen on signing Eriksen, alongside Brentford and Leicester City.

Brentford’s interest is the most advanced, with the Bees offering the Dane a contract until the end of the season. Therefore, Newcastle may quickly have to present a rival offer to ensure that they don’t lose out.

The verdict

Eriksen was excellent for Spurs, recording 159 direct goal contributions (69 goals, 90 assists) in his 305 appearances.

His overall career tallies stand at an impressive 114 goals and 158 assists, and his individual accolades include a PFA Team of the Year nod, the Premier League Goal of the Month for April 2018 and a FIFPro World XI nomination. Newcastle fans may also remember that he netted a direct free-kick against them in a 3-1 win for Spurs in 2015.

Given that he hasn’t played in so long and is coming back from such a serious medical episode, this would have to be have regarded as a risky move. On the other hand, he would be arriving on a free transfer and, if Newcastle match Brentford’s proposal, on a short-term contract.

Perhaps it’s worth a go.

In other news, Newcastle are plotting an £18m raid on this Premier League club.

Steven Gerrard has enjoyed his start to life as a Premier League manager after swapping Rangers for Aston Villa last month, with his side winning three of their first four league games under the 41-year-old.

Game number five was a return to Anfield for the former Liverpool captain, for whom the Villa boss made more than 700 appearances as a player.

Despite a resolute performance from the Midlands outfit, the Villans lost out to Jurgen Klopp’s side as Mo Salah’s 67th-minute penalty proved the difference on Saturday. Defensively the visitors looked solid, but one player in particular who stood out was Douglas Luiz.

The 23-year-old was a real presence in the middle of the park for the visitors, completing 84% of his passes as well as having 65 touches. Furthermore, the Brazilian had a 100% long ball accuracy and also completed all of his attempted dribbles whilst winning 75% of his duels.

According to SofaScore, Luiz’s fellow midfielder John McGinn struggled to replicate similar numbers to his teammate. The Scotsman had a 72% passing accuracy whilst also having fewer touches (56).

Moreover, McGinn lost possession 19 times compared to Luiz’s 11, meaning that the 27-year-old lost the ball every 2.9 touches as opposed to every 5.9 touches for the Brazilian.

The Scotsman has been one of Gerrard’s standout performers since the 41-year-old took charge of Villa last month, averaging a performance rating of 7.95 prior to the Liverpool contest, according to SofaScore. However, the midfielder could only manage a 6.3/10 rating against the Reds, making it his worst performance under the new manager by some margin.

As for Luiz, it’s certainly promising to see the Brazilian getting a run of matches under Gerrard after endured a mixed start to the season, missing games against West Ham, Southampton and Brighton.

Alongside McGinn and Marvelous Nakamba, it appears that the 23-year-old is part of the Villa manager’s preferred midfield trio, with that particular combination now starting the last three games. Today’s performance suggests that Luiz is making the most of the chances being handed to him by Gerrard.

In other news: Aston Villa can start January with a bang by signing “unbeatable” £27m-rated machine

Ronald Koeman is reportedly now ‘one step away’ from becoming the new manager at Glasgow Rangers.

The Lowdown: No Van Bronckhorst?

It looked like Giovanni van Bronckhorst was certain to be the successor to Steven Gerrard at Ibrox, as the latter left to go and join Aston Villa.

It was reported that ‘positive talks’ were held between the Dutchman and the Glasgow club over the vacancy, but it now appears that he is merely one of three candidates still in with a chance of taking the job.

One of those other coaches could well be Koeman, who has been linked with the vacancy along with former Chelsea captain and Villa assistant manager John Terry.

The Latest: Koeman ‘one step away’

According to Fichajes, Koeman is now ‘one step away’ from signing for the Light Blues, having emerged as a serious candidate to take over from Gerrard.

The 58-year-old is reportedly the ‘main favourite’ to take charge at Ibrox, although Terry has also been named as a possible candidate to succeed his former England team-mate.

The Verdict: Avoid

After ultimately failing at Barcelona, where he was sacked last month after leaving them ninth in the La Liga table (The Guardian), Koeman should not be top of the Gers’ list to become their next manager, even if he has won nine trophies in his coaching career.

He would also not be a popular appointment with fans, who need someone to get behind straight away with an important Scottish League Cup semi-final clash against Hibernian coming up on Sunday.

Former Ibrox player Van Bronckhorst would be the ideal successor to Gerrard, given that he is loved by many Gers supporters. He also has an impressive managerial CV, guiding Feyenoord to their first Eredivisie title in 18 years back in the 2016/17 campaign (BBC), as well as winning four other major trophies with the Rotterdam club.

There is still time to bring Gio back to his old club and duly forget about any further talks with Koeman.

In other news, find out what official club post has left these Gers fans fuming

Manchester United are moving ever closer to appointing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s long-term successor at Old Trafford with Ralf Rangnick’s interim contract ending shortly.

What’s the word?

Man United have had two primary candidates when considering who to replace Solskajer with Mauricio Pochettino and Erik ten Hag in the running.

However, it looks as though it will be the latter who wins the race to become their new manager.

That’s according to Fabrizio Romano and David Ornstein, with the Italian journalist taking to Twitter on Monday evening to reveal the following news:

“Sources close to Erik ten Hag confirm @David_Ornstein report: his appointment as new Man United manager is at final stages. Nothing signed yet – back room staff to be decided. No announcement expected this week. Ajax and Man Utd will be in contact about €2m clause.”

Fans will be buzzing

At long last, the wait now finally appears to be over.

It has been a turbulent campaign for the Red Devils, moving from an outside bet for the Premier League title after signing the likes of Jadon Sancho, Raphael Varane and Cristiano Ronaldo, to a club now who are unlikely to even secure a place in next season’s Champions League.

As a result, to rid the club of those scars and bring in a new manager, especially one as exciting as ten Hag should be incredibly exciting for supporters.

Pochettino has long been admired by the United hierarchy and it was always going to take someone special to leapfrog him in their thoughts.

However, that’s exactly what ten Hag is; special.

The 52-year-old has only ever coached a senior team in the Netherlands so a move to the Premier League, and in particular United, will be an arduous task.

Yet, this only feels positive. The Dutchman was asking for assurances over the amount of say he’d have with incoming transfers and considering he is now close to being appointed, it must mean he is going to play a leading role in proceedings not just in the dugout, but behind the scenes too.

Considering the mess that Man Untied are embroiled in, having a boss with more of a say can only be a good thing for the progression of the club on the pitch.

Combine that with his winning mentality – he has secured two Dutch cups and two Eredivisie titles with Ajax – and this seems like a hire that United have done their due diligence on.

Fans will be elated to finally put this saga to bed.

AND in other news, Ten Hag can become instant hit if MUFC sign £100m “animal” who’s better than Haaland…

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Tanguy Ndombele is attracting interest in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Italian publication Corriere Dello Sport (via The Sun), who claim that in a rather big and surprising twist to the player’s future, Jose Mourinho is interested in a deal to bring the 25-year-old to the Stadio Olimpico this month, as the 58-year-old manager believes that the France international’s style of play would suit his Serie A outfit.

The report goes on to state that, although Spurs paid a club-record €60m (£53.8m) fee for the central midfielder only two-and-a-half years ago, Antonio Conte would be willing to part with Ndombele for a figure of around just €30m (£25m) this month.

Conte must axe Ndombele

Considering how much Mourinho criticised Ndombele during his own spell as the Tottenham manager, the news that the Portuguese coach is interested in signing the midfielder for his Roma side will undoubtedly come as something of a huge surprise to many of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium faithful.

Indeed, the 58-year-old coach previously said of the Frenchman: “I have to be honest, Tanguy is the kind of guy that you always expect more from than what he gives me. Because he is so talented that you always expect more. The talent is amazing.

“I think by the talent point of view, by the creation in midfield, by the vision, he is second to nobody in this moment in European football. But the feeling is that he always has more to give, he never reaches the limit of the effort, the sacrifice, even the ambition. So he is the guy I love as a player, but he frustrates me a little bit because I think he can be much better than what he is.”

And, when taking into account how little the 25-year-old has featured under the management of Conte, should Roma indeed be willing to stump up £25m for the central midfielder this winter, the Italian manager simply must sanction his sale.

Indeed, since Conte’s first game in charge of Spurs back in November last year, the £25m-rated man has played just 80 minutes of Premier League football – out of 720 minutes available.

Furthermore, over the three league fixtures these minutes have come in, the £200k-per-week midfielder will have far from impressed the 52-year-old manager, earning extremely disappointing SofaScore match ratings of 5.7, 6.4 and 6.3 against Everton, Liverpool and Crystal Palace respectively.

As such, considering his lack of game time and extremely hefty weekly wage, it would indeed appear wise for Conte to finally call time on Ndombele’s career in North London, as the player who Graham Roberts dubbed a “joke” is simply not worth the money he is costing Tottenham with each passing day.

In other news: “In talks…”: Fabrizio Romano drops teasing Spurs update that will leave fans buzzing

Wolves are the ‘first suitor’ to sign former West Ham forward Enner Valencia, according to a fresh transfer rumour that has emerged.

The Lowdown: Valencia linked with Wolves move

Bruno Lage’s side have jumped to eighth in the Premier League after a strong run of form and they host in-form West Ham on Saturday afternoon.

Despite Wolves thriving at the moment, there may still be the need for new signings to improve the depth and quality in the squad and one player who has been linked with a move to Molineux is Valencia.

The 32-year-old is currently plying his trade at Fenerbahce, where he has scored twice and registered three assists in the Turkish Super Lig this season.

The Latest: New update emerges

It is a rumour that is refusing to go away, with Fotomac [via Sport Witness] claiming that Wolves are at the front of the queue to sign him.

It is also stated that ‘negotiations with Fenerbahce will begin’ in the January transfer window, as he eyes up a fresh challenge.

The Verdict: Is he worth it?

This is a rumour that doesn’t make a huge amount of sense, with Valencia not someone who set the world alight during his time in England, despite being described as ‘dangerous’ by Ronald Koeman during a loan spell at Everton.

The Ecuadorian has scored a superb 34 goals in 67 caps for his country, in fairness, but he only managed 10 in 68 games for West Ham, suggesting he struggled in the Premier League. A 23-game stint at Goodison was also forgettable, with only three goals scored.

Valencia is also 32 and doesn’t represent the long-term future, so it feels like more of a quick fix that suggests Adama Traore could possibly be moving on and Lage wants a short-term replacement.

In other news, some Wolves fans have gushed over a club social media post. Read more here.