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A penitent Graham Moger gets back in touch: “Mmm…apologies John. Perhaps I should have checked the ubiquitous AI first. Apparently ‘up-capped’ is UK speak – mainly amongst publishers (and presumably journos …oops….journalists!)“
ShareJacob Steinberg
“There has been plenty of uncertainty over whether West Ham will be able to convince Axel Disasi to join on loan. I’m told this deal is now moving in the right direction, with the Chelsea defender expected to undergo a medical this afternoon.”
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On Sky Sports News, the desperation levels are moving to the acceptance phase; not much happening. The reporter sent to Villa Park sighs that there will no incomings at Aston Villa. They’re also showing the make-up room at the Osterley HQ. One nugget, from Michael Bridge, their reporter – not the one-time Sunderland and Leeds tyro – is that Tottenham are after Hearts’ James Wilson, also on a Under-21 basis.
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Graham Moger gets in touch: “Good afternoon John….….or should i say ‘Howde y’all”.
“Thanks for the entertaining live reports, as always. But ‘Up-capped’ nouns indeed! Surely ‘capitalised’ nouns is the correct adjective for a UK-based report. You’ll be using uptick instead of increase, and push back rather than resist.
“Heaven knows to what extent North American idioms will continue to flood the Guardian offices during and after the World Cup this summer – hundreds….thousands… you do the math.”
Hate to do the well, actually but well, actually, that’s a phrase used in sub-editing, one I learned in the last century.
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On the subject of which, Loig gets in touch: “Apparently young Ruben Kluivert – who had started to impose himself and deliver – is already leaving l’Olympique Lyonnais to join Palace. Has a couple of assists (yesterday to name but one) and goals to his name.”
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Crystal Palace are clearly the club who like to do their Christmas shopping, with attendant variable results. Via our friends at Get French Football News
“Olympique Lyonnais have refused to negotiate with Crystal Palace over signing Ruben Kluivert (23) on transfer deadline day, according to Foot Mercato. The Dutchman has been a regular feature for Les Gones in recent weeks, and they want to keep him at the club.”
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Kev McCready gets in touch: “As a long-standing Liverpool fan, can I ask some LFC fans (I call them Tinfoil Toshacks) to give Arne a break and don’t blame Klopp for the collapse of the Geertruda transfer? This is Liverpool, not Grassy Knoll FC.”
I must have missed all this. Klopp being at Red Bull…back and to the left, back and to the left. All adds uo, right?
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Reports that Kalvin Phillips, one of those forgotten players who has been in limbo – see Harvey Elliott and Raheem Sterling – will head to Sheffield United on loan. Yes, he’s still a Manchester City player. He was at Ipswich last season and it never quite happened for him.
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Here’s Monday’s Football Weekly, which as far as I recall, includes very little transfer talk.
ShareBen Fisher
Done deal: West Brom have signed Aston Villa’s 19-year-old midfielder Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba on loan until the end of the season. The 19-year-old rejoins his former club, whom he joined aged six but left aged 16 for Villa. Jimoh-Aloba scored his first Villa goal to cap their comeback Europa League win against RB Salzburg last week but now leaves for the Championship in search of regular game-time. “This was the No 1 place I wanted to come to because of the emotions and feelings I have towards the club,” he said. “This is a massive club that should be in a much better place and I want to come here and help and do the best I can. I’m determined to help lift the team.”
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Updated at 13.38 GMT
Sack race news: A statement from Blackburn, including unnecessary up-capped nouns.
“Valérien Ismaël has today left his position as Blackburn Rovers’ Head Coach by mutual consent.
“Ismaël joined the club in February 2025, however it has been mutually agreed that he will step away from his role with immediate effect, along with Assistant Head Coach Dean Whitehead. Blackburn Rovers would like to thank Valérien and Dean for their efforts during their time at the club and wish them both the very best for the future.
“The club will now begin the process of appointing a new Head Coach and will make no further comment until an appointment is confirmed.”
Dom Booth caught up with the misery at Rovers over the weekend.
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Over on the Coventry Telegraph, they’re getting very excited about Frank Lampard’s Coventry signing Frank “The Tank” Onyeka.
Quite the intro here: “Similar to when white smoke rises from the chimney of Sistine Chapel, when Fabrizio Romano posts on social media you can pretty much be assured an agreement has been reached.
“And so, it seems, Frank ‘The Tank’ Onyeka is joining Coventry City today as the Sky Blues add a fourth new signing in the January transfer window, which closes at 7pm tonight.”
Onyeka is a decent player but hasn’t got the game time he’d like at Brentford.
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Done deal: Defender Leo Hjelde has joined Championship club Sheffield United on loan from Sunderland for the remainder of the season.
The 22-year-old, who joined the Black Cats from Leeds in January 2024, played his part in the club’s return to the Premier League at the end of the last campaign, but is yet to make an appearance this term after undergoing Achilles surgery.
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More Manchester United news, with reports suggesting “U21s captain Jacob Devaney is heading for St Mirren.” Seems some of the kids are being sent to test their credentials in senior football.
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More EFL, more Wrexham news, via the Sheffield Star’s Alex Miller, on X: “Understand Bailey Cadamarteri is scheduled for a medical at Wrexham this afternoon. Deal agreed with Sheffield Wednesday.”
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Andy Donald gets in touch: “Why is it always deadline day when everyone seems to try and buy Palace players? Is it that they say no repeatedly in the run up to deadline day until clubs make things more public out of frustration? This is two windows in a row in which Palace are scrambling around to find a replacement for an outgoing player but also the player might end up staying. It feels more like a Palace issue but that could be because they are the crisis club du jour.”
So does Bob O’Hara: “Unai Emery missed a trick if he wanted Liverpool to take Harvey Elliot back. Should have played him in defence on Saturday.”
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Will Unwin jogs my elbow to remind of this magnum opus on the Scanlon clan. Any relation to Craig Scanlon? Or even Albert Scanlon?
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James Carpenter gets in touch: “Going to assume that “ Chelsea need a strong centre-back, it’s a position they are short in” was sarcasm? Including loanees and bomb squadees, they have: Adarabioyo, Badiashile, Colwill, Chalobah, Fofana, Sarr, Anselmino and Disasi. You could throw in Hato and Acheampong in there as well.”
Well, yes, but do you see a John Terry among that bunch? Though perhaps JT would have been flogged off for “pure profit” by now by the BlueCo regime.
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Not transfer news but relevant to a team who have spent big this window and ended up disappointed at Tottenham on Sunday.
ShareBen Fisher
A bit of EFL news: Wrexham are dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s on a deal to take Davis Keillor-Dunn back to the club. The striker is poised to follow Zak Vyner through the door, the defender joining in a £1.5m deal from Bristol City. Elsewhere, Portsmouth striker Callum Lang has submitted a formal transfer request after the club rejected three bids from Championship rivals Preston North End, the latest of which totalled a £1.75m package. Preston believe they have matched the player’s valuation but Pompey are digging their heels in over the player, who joined from Wigan in 2024.
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Updated at 13.39 GMT
Manchester United youngster James Scanlon, 19, appears set to join Swindon on loan Scanlon, already a Gibraltar international, has outgrown academy football and his parent club want him to play EFL football.
Wiki fact: Scanlon’s mother Gabriella (née Falero) is a former athlete who jointly holds the Gibraltarian record for the women’s 4 × 100 m relay
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Interesting that Liverpool are beating Chelsea to Jeremy Jacquet, with the Blues linked for far longer. Chelsea need a strong centre-back, it’s a position they are short in. Liverpool are looking for a long-term replacement for Virgil van Dijk.
ShareWill Unwin
A number of Championship clubs are interested in the Burnley centre-back Joe Worral. Sheffield United, Southampton and Leicester are eager to bring in an experienced defender but the Premier League club are currently reluctant to let him leave. The 29-year-old has only made eight appearances for the Clarets this season but Scott Parker values his leadership inside the dressing room.
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Updated at 13.39 GMT
What of Harvey Elliott, landlocked but back in the Aston Villa squad? Should he make 10 appearances in the Premier League then a deal will be triggered, when Unai Emery has made it all but clear the player is not what he envisages in his midfield. Emery said after Sunday’s defeat to Brentford: “We have this issue, tomorrow is the deadline. There was nothing changing before today.” Liverpool would have to pull the loan, and that seems unlikely at this late stage.
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Another Arsenal transfer move being discussed is for Newcastle’s Sandro Tonali. The Italian is a player a few have predicted will depart in the summer. Newcastle have issued a terse response to speculation, their briefing to local reporters including words like “complete rubbish” and “stupid”. So that’s that.
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Ivan Toney sees his future in Saudi Arabia where he sees his best chance of playing at the World Cup being realised. In an interview with the Mirror’s Darren Lewis, he said:
I’ve said before and I’ll say it again, there are players in this league that could still play in the Premier League. The standard is high. I’ve played in the Premier League. I should know.
If Al-Ahli were in the Premier League, we’d finish quite high. That’s my personal opinion. People might kill it, no problem. But I know my teammates, and I know their qualities. You have to be on it every week, because if you’re not, you get pushed over. You have to be in the right mindset.
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Some extra info on that surprise James Wilson Arsenal move via the Scottish Sun reporter Robert Grieve, on X: “James Wilson to Arsenal would be a loan to their U-21s. No option to buy. Effectively a trial for a youngster not getting much football at Hearts. Their approach has now sparked interest from other clubs…”
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John Brewin
Anything can happen on deadline day…so let’s see what transpires.
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That’ll do from me. I leave you in the safe hands of John Brewin.
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Today’s headlines so far:
Jérémy Jacquet to Liverpool (£60m) – deal agreed, due for medical
Josh Acheampong to Crystal Palace (loan) – bid rejected
Jean-Philippe Mateta to Milan – deal in doubt
Joel Ordóñez to Crystal Palace (£30m) – bid rejected
Harry Wilson to Everton – enquiry rebuffed
Axel Disasi to West Ham (loan) – pending medical
Tyrique George to Everton (loan) – expected for medical
Brajan Gruda to RB Leizpig (loan) – done deal
James Wilson to Arsenal (loan) – talks ongoing
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Moussa Sissoko has left Watford for a second time. The 36-year-old former Spurs midfielder has joined Panathinaikos in Greece on a permanent deal after an 18-month second spell at Vicarage Road – he made one short of 100 appearances for the club.
ShareBen Fisher
Nottingham Forest have had an approach for the Middlesbrough captain, Hayden Hackney, rejected. The 23-year-old – arguably the best player in the Championship – scored the only goal in Boro’s win against Norwich at the weekend, a peach from the edge of the box. Afterwards the midfielder, who is leading Boro’s promotion push and is under contract until the summer of 2027, suggested he is happy to stay put.
“This is what I’ve wanted to do ever since I was a kid – play for Middlesbrough,” he said on Saturday. “And where we are in the league at the minute, as long as we just keep going, we feel confident. Winning promotion with Middlesbrough would mean everything to me.”
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Chelsea reject Crystal Palace’s Acheampong offer
Jacob Steinberg
Chelsea have rejected an offer from Crystal Palace to sign Josh Acheampong on loan. They are adamant the young defender is going nowhere. There has been plenty of interest in Acheampong – including from Bayern Munich and Manchester City – but Chelsea do not want to let him go.
There has been a lot of intrigue around the centre-back situation with the world champions this month. They have missed out on Rennes’ Jérémy Jacquet to Liverpool but aren’t panicking. Jacquet was a signing for the summer and Chelsea have options. They are bringing back Mamadou Sarr from his loan at Strasbourg. Sarr played loads when Liam Rosenior was in charge of the French club. The decision to hold on to Acheampong is also viewed as evidence of a desire to keep elite players at the club.
It could be pointed out that the previous ownership at Chelsea didn’t stand in Marc Guéhi’s way when Palace came calling in 2021 – and look how that turned out.
A lot of moving parts, though. Sarr’s place at Strasbourg will be taken by Aarón Anselmino, who was recalled from his loan at Borussia Dortmund last week. And there is interest in the Nantes centre-back Tylel Tati – however the 18-year-old is seen as a player for Strasbourg in the first instance.
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Ian Sargeant writes: “As a season ticket holder of long standing / sitting / groaning reading Jacob’s assurance that West Ham have other centre back options lined up doesn’t fill me with a great deal of enthusiasm.”
“My West Kent Sunday league Div 5 runners up medal from 1990 probably gets me on the list at some point……phones on just in case.”
To be fair, their No 1 target Axel Disasi hasn’t played since last year – maybe 1990 isn’t all that distant.
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The Turkish Super Lig did seem very much like a halfway house for Jhon Durán and a return to one of Europe’s major leagues from Saudi Arabia feels inevitable – he’s only 22. If West Ham hadn’t already signed two strikers this window, they’d surely be sniffing around.
ShareBen Fisher
One to watch as the deadline nears is Jhon Durán, the Al-Nassr striker who is on loan at Fenerbahce. The 22-year-old left Aston Villa for the Saudi Pro League this time last year, pocketing Villa £71m; it was an offer Villa deemed simply too good to turn down. He then moved to Turkey last summer, but now Durán is being offered to various Premier League clubs, with the player seemingly keen on a return to England. Will any be tempted and make a late move?
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Sverre Nypan has had his loan at Middlesbrough from Manchester City mutually terminated. The 19-year-old midfielder made just three starts in the Championship this season and joined City from Rosenborg last summer.
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Arsenal in talks to sign Hearts teenager Wilson
Ed Aarons
Arsenal are in talks with Hearts over a surprise move for teenage forward James Wilson. Mikel Arteta’s side want the 18-year-old, who became the youngest player in Scotland’s history in March last year, on an initial loan with any deal likely to include an opportunity to make the move permanently in the summer. Wilson has scored eight goals in 21 starts for SPL leaders Hearts this season and it remains to be seen whether an agreement can be reached before this evening’s deadline.
Arsenal are also in the market for a midfielder after Mikel Merino’s foot injury but Newcastle have dismissed reports linking them to Sandro Tonali. Oleksandr Zinchenko completed his move from Arsenal to Ajax on Sunday after cutting short his loan at Nottingham Forest.
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Updated at 11.22 GMT
Hello folks. Let’s take a look at the more interesting deals from across Europe in the last 24 hours or so.
In two departures from Ligue 1, Jérémie Boga has joined Juventus on loan from Nice until the end of the season and Mohamed Kader Meïté has sealed a £26m move from Rennes to Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.
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Righto, my watch is over (for now). Here’s Billy Munday to chill with you through the next bit.
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Updated at 10.59 GMT
“Honestly, some serious action needs to be taken against Rodri,” says Ben Monroe-Lake. “As is the style of the moment, conspiracy theories are becoming larger and more ominous parts of everyday conversations and football is very much susceptible to that.
You really don’t need to dig very far into football discourse to see people claiming all sorts of unsubstantiated nonsense about bias against their teams and a fellow professional should not be stoking those flames against refs. Football has long had an incredibly difficult situation with its officials but the league seem to be very resistant to stamp down on it.
For some reason, many people seem to think that millionaires should be able to scream in a colleagues face and we would lose something if that faded away. It doesn’t seem like it would be very hard to deal with. Start doling out some harsh punishments for even minor infractions, actually enforce the rule about only the captain speaking to the ref, make it consistent.”
I completely agree on Rodri. I used to think the need for players to defer to officials was a bit odd until, in a piece that’s linked lower down the page, I spoke to some grass-roots refs who were certain that the violence to which they’re sometimes subjected comes as a direct consequence of how Premier League players behave.
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“Morning Daniel, morning everyone,” begins Darrien Bold. “I might be late to the party on this one but I’ve just spotted David Moyes and the tough-tackling Vinny Samways having a sandwich together in a trendy Lytham cafe. Rumours of a cool £2 million swoop doing the rounds in these parts…”
Vinny Sideways, “tough-tackling”? I’m calling nah.
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“Rodri should have been sent off at least twice yesterday,” says Titan Tempura Ox, “so in my opinion he should shut his wonderfully talented pie hole, please and thank you.”
The desire to blame biased officiating for bussing a 2-0 lead against Spurs is bizarre.
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I’m looking forward to seeing how Jacquet goes because he comes with such a high reputation. We’ll need to remind ourselves that progress is often not linear, and he’s not necessarily a signing for next season, but for those which comes after. At some point, though, he might well become one fo the best centre-backs around.
ShareAndy Hunter
Liverpool’s £60m deal for Jeremy Jacquet (£55m plus £5m in add-ons) is in keeping with long-held plans to rebuild their central defence with some of the most promising young talent in Europe. Leny Yoro and Dean Huijsen – who Liverpool missed out on – and Giovanni Leoni, who did arrive at Anfield last summer but whose debut season has been ruined by an ACL injury, were also part of that strategy.
Several young defenders have been signed to the club’s academy in recent weeks too.
Jacquet, the 20-year-old Rennes defender, will undergo his Liverpool medical today and join the club in the summer, when both Ibrahima Konate and Andy Robertson could depart on free transfers.
Liverpool had also tried to sign Lutsharel Geertruida from Sunderland to cover more immediate concerns at right back but a loan deal for the Netherlands international, who played under Arne Slot at Feyenoord, is off. Sunderland were unable to sign the replacement they needed to allow their loan signing from Leipzig to complete the move to Anfield that he wanted.
As things stand, Jacquet is expected to be the only incoming at Liverpool today so Slot will have to make do without an established, recognised right-back until Jeremie Frimpong returns from the groin injury he sustained against Qarabag. Frimpong is likely to be absent for a few weeks.
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On SSN, Merse has just said that he doesn’t see Elliot Anderson running the midfield for Forest. I’ve not a clue how one might arrive at that conclusion – he’s in the top few for pretty much every relevant metric.
ShareJacob Steinberg
Everton had an enquiry for Harry Wilson knocked back by Fulham. The winger has been in stunning form and is out of contract at the end of the season. Fulham obviously don’t want to lose him today but there is plenty of interest. Aston Villa are said to be considering a move for Wilson this summer. Meanwhile Fulham appear to have failed with an attempt to sign PSV striker Ricardo Pepi.
In other Everton news, they are poised to sign Chelsea winger Tyrique George on loan.
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“Totally get your point about Glasner,” returns Mark Beadle, “and I think it was a mixture of things, a lot of frustration and emotion and a lot of people didn’t appreciate just how important Guéhi was to the whole club, selling him just before a game was crazy.”
I guess the question remains, but: was he promised funds to strengthen that were then denied him?
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Here’s this morning’s Rumour Mill.
ShareJacob Steinberg
Axel Disasi is heading to West Ham to undergo a medical before joining on loan from Chelsea.
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Not directly related to the transfer window, but accusing the ref of not being neutral? I daresay PGMOL will be contacting the authorities, and rightly so.
‘It’s a CLEAR FOUL! They don’t want us to win.’ 😡
Rodri was left absolutely fuming after believing Spurs’ first goal should not have stood.
↳ Premier League. Live & On Demand with 4K on Football’s New Home, Stan Sport. Stream now.#StanSportAU #PremierLeague pic.twitter.com/cazNAllyx2
— Stan Sport Football (@StanSportFC) February 2, 2026
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“On Liverpool,” begins Alex Ecob, “not forgetting they also lost Darwin Nuñez, and sent Harvey Elliott (who would often sub in for Salah on the rare occasions prior to this season when he was rested) out on loan. They went from having an attacking set of Salah, Gakpo, Diaz, Jota, Nuñez, Chiesa and Elliot to one comprising just Salah, Gakpo and Chiesa (who I adore, but has made no real claim to suggest he should be a regular starter for a top-level team).
I agree the signing of Ekitike and Isaac is a little strange given they’re a similar profile of player in the way they play, and were both bought for big big money but, though nobody was expecting Salah’s drop-off to be quite so sudden, I don’t think you can really argue that the forward line wasn’t in need of massive reinforcement.
The defence clearly needs an overhaul, though we now know that Konate was playing with a lot of personal baggage this season (and had his best game of the season at the weekend), they brought in Kerkez, Frimpong, and Leoni as a young backup, and had Guehi in the welcome sweet before the plug was pulled by Palace
If anything the issue this season has been too much overhaul, rather than not enough.”
I actually think Salah’s drop-off began last season and reminded me a lot – I wrote it at the time, so not being wise after the event – of Robin van Persie in 2012-13. He did enough to secure the title August-January, but was at an age where that level of performance was obviously unsustainable.
Having watched Liverpool last season, the midfield and defence is where I’d have started strengthening, and though full-backs were purchased, they effectively replaced two who were good going forward and not great the other way with more of the same. That being the case made centre-back and midfield in even greater need of reinforcement, and failing to do so is why Liverpool have conceded 33 goals in the league, losing seven matches.
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It transpires that Jérémy Jacquet is expected to have his Liverpool medical this morning. After that, he’ll return to Rennes, then join in the summer.
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Updated at 10.11 GMT
This is an interesting development. Everton is a good place for George to develop, I think, because the vibes are nice and he’ll get a run of games. I’m keen to see how he gets on.
ShareAndy Hunter
Chelsea forward Tyrique George is expected to undergo a medical at Everton today before a proposed loan move to Merseyside.
The 19-year-old enjoyed a breakthrough season at Stamford Bridge under Enzo Maresca last year and almost joined Fulham for £22m in September. That deal collapsed, however, and George has been limited to only 11 first team appearances this season. Everton have agreed a deal in principle to sign George on loan with an option to buy in the summer.
David Moyes has been looking to strengthen in attack and at right back this month but the Chelsea academy product is viewed as a potential replacement for Jack Grealish, who is expected to miss the remainder of the season with a stress fracture in his foot.
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“I’m wondering why Arteta can’t just rummage in the back of the cupboard and find the Norgaard that he allegedly signed last summer,” emails Simon Cherry, “if he needs a filler for the Merino hole? Or is the existence of the forgotten player just a myth?”
Norgaard played nicely in Europe in midweek, I think, but i guess old Artetz wants a different, er, profile. And given where Arsenal now are, six points clear in the league and still in all three cups, chucking just a bit more at things might seem worth doing. Saka aside, he’s been bought two whole teams, pretty much, and if they do win one of the big pots, that depth will be a major reason why.
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I’d be interested to see Angel Gomes back in England. I thought he was unfortunate not to get more opportunities at Manchester United because you could see he could play, and at 25 he’s in his prime. More or less, he’d be playing for move in the summer, and will want to prove that physically, he can hack it in the Prem.
ShareBen Fisher
Leicester City are looking for a new head coach, technical director, chief executive and commercial director. But that isn’t stopping them scouring for players too, with the Championship club keen to dip into the market before the deadline. Jamaal Lascelles, Newcastle’s longstanding club captain, Southampton midfielder Joe Aribo and Manchester City teenager Divine Mukasa are all options being pursued. Leicester are 16th in the second tier and facing a points deduction for allegedly breaching profitability and sustainability rules.
The big deal at Wolves centres on Jorgen Strand Larsen, who is expected to join Crystal Palace in a deal worth up to £48m. For Wolves, that would be £25m profit on the £23m they paid to sign the striker seven months ago. In terms of incomings, Wolves hope to finalise a £9m permanent deal for Southampton striker Adam Armstrong and a loan move for Marseille midfielder Angel Gomes, who has fallen out of favour under Roberto De Zerbi. Wolves retain an interest in Che Adams, the former Southampton striker now of Torino, but the Serie A club are reluctant to sell.
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