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Southampton are reportedly one of the Premier League clubs most interested in signing Brentford left-back Rico Henry, and if he were to make the move to St Mary’s, he could be a great addition to Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side.

According to the Evening Standard, Henry is likely to be a Premier League player next season regardless of whether or not the Bees earn promotion, and Southampton are leading the interest in the 23-year-old.

The Saints are clearly in the market for a left-back, as they have just Ryan Bertrand available as a natural option in the current squad, and his contract is currently set to expire at the end of the season.

Meanwhile, Jake Vokins’ lack of appearances on loan with Sunderland in League One suggests that he is some way off becoming a regular with the Saints, so signing someone such as Henry would make a lot of sense for Hasenhuttl.

The Englishman has been a key player for Brentford since signing from Walsall in 2016, making 121 appearances for the London club, in which he has contributed two goals and eight assists.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/southampton-saints-ralph-hasenhuttl-martin-semmens-st-marys” title=”Latest Southampton news, transfer rumours and more”]

Henry was a mainstay in Thomas Frank’s side last season as they narrowly missed out on promotion after losing to Fulham in the play-off final, as he appeared in all 49 of their fixtures, averaging a solid 6.83 WhoScored rating.

During his time at Walsall, current Aston Villa manager Dean Smith suggested that Henry was destined for a career at the top, saying: “If I were to liken him to anyone it would be a young Ashley Cole. And it’s up to him how far he can now go in the game.”

He later described the young defender as “something special” as a result of his impressive performances for Walsall as a teenager, and having now established himself as a top left-back in the Championship, it seems clear that the 23-year-old is ready for a move to the top flight.

[freshpress-quiz id=“594431″]

If Martin Semmens can convince Henry to make the switch to the south coast, it could prove to be an excellent signing. Even if Bertrand ends up prolonging his stay at St Mary’s, Henry could then go on to be his ideal long-term successor.

In other news… Signed for £9m, sold for £20m: Southampton enjoyed rare transfer success with 31 y/o liability

Speaking to Football Insider, pundit Frank McAvennie has dropped a major claim on Tottenham Hotspur’s sacking of former boss Jose Mourinho – going on to say he’s been told it had something to do with the now suspended European Super League.

The ESL caused shockwaves throughout the footballing world when the Premier League’s ‘big six’ announced they would be a part of the new European footballing division as founding members.

McAvennie drops claim on Mourinho sacking

However, following huge backlash from the media and supporters alike, those sides announced they would be pulling out – with Fabrizio Romano first reporting that the ESL has been officially suspended (Twitter).

McAvennie, dropping a claim on Mourinho being sacked by Tottenham Hotspur on Monday, believes his dismissal was related to Spurs’ original involvement in the ESL.

“I’ve been told that Mourinho’s sacking had something to do with the new Super League,” he explained to Football Insider.

“Obviously we can’t confirm that but Tottenham saying that it was a purely results-based decision is nonsense.

“The week going into a cup final? No chance. No chance you sack anyone. Jose will have told [Daniel] Levy that this is all a load of nonsense and Levy wouldn’t have that.

“He wants money, if it’s going to happen he wants it to happen. Mourinho knows the fans are the lifeblood of the game.

“I’m telling you, if there’s one person who can find a way to beat Man City in a cup final, it’s Mourinho. I don’t understand the logic, something else must’ve happened.”

Transfer Tavern take

While McAvennie holds this belief, many reliable journalists close to the matter believe this isn’t the case – so take it with a pinch of salt.

Alasdair Gold is one of them, and he understands that the club’s decision had ‘nothing’ to do with the ESL and was purely a results based decision.

The hunt for a new manager, however, could now begin after Tottenham confirmed Ryan Mason would take charge only on an interim basis.

Julian Nagelsmann and Brendan Rodgers appear favourites for the role, and we believe that the former is a prime candidate.

Described as the most exciting coaching talent in Europe, Sky Sports also believe his appointment could be ‘the smartest move that Daniel Levy and Tottenham could possibly make’.

In other news: Tottenham confirmed this ‘amazing’ news, find out more here.

Celtic’s Odsonne Edouard has been linked with numerous clubs since the start of the current campaign.

Italian giants AC Milan and Juventus reportedly joined the race for the Frenchman towards the end of 2020, with Arsenal, Aston Villa and Leicester City also keen on the 23-year-old.

Surprise Edouard twist; Celtic stance revealed

Reports earlier this month even claimed that the Foxes were closing in on a £15m deal for the Celtic star, however, Eurosport have now provided an update on the player’s future.

They claim that despite all the rumours, there is actually little concrete interest in Edouard, with an expected tussle for his services not yet materialising. The report name checks Leicester as seeing Edouard as a potential option for their front line in the future, though.

Eurosport also add that Celtic are not looking to sell the striker and won’t be disheartened by the lack of firm interest.

Transfer Tavern take

With interested clubs reportedly not convinced Edouard is worth £20m, the Hoops could be in for an interesting summer.

The forward’s deal will have just 12 months left to run during the summer window, so should he remain at the club and refuse to sign a new deal, Celtic could end up losing the player for nothing in 2022.

There’s plenty of time to go until we get to that stage, but at the minute, it doesn’t appear as if the Hoops will receive a fee above the £20m mark.

In other news: Celtic stalling over deal for in-demand winger due to off-field vacancies, find out more here. 

Celtic have made contact with former Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe to ‘assess his potential interest’ in the Hoops job, a source has told Football Insider.

Howe to Parkhead?

The English tactician left the Vitality Stadium at the end of last season by mutual consent after he was unable to keep the Cherries in the Premier League, suffering relegation on the final day despite a 3-1 win against Everton at Goodison Park.

Howe, who was described as “fantastic” by Livingston midfielder Marvin Bartley (via 67 Hail Hail), has been unemployed ever since. With Neil Lennon walking away from Parkhead after a forgetful 2020/21 campaign, there is a vacancy to fill at Parkhead despite John Kennedy taking charge until the end of the season.

Football Insider revealed that the Bhoys’ approach for Howe is at the early stages of their managerial recruitment process.

However, the source reportedly added that Howe is keeping his options open and is believed to prefer a move back to the Premier League if possible, especially Crystal Palace after Roy Hodgson admitted he was “uncertain” about his future at Selhurst Park (via talkSPORT).

Transfer Tavern Verdict

With chief executive Peter Lawwell retiring at the end of the season from his role, we don’t expect to see any changes made until Dominic McKay comes in as his replacement.

This could spell bad news for Celtic, as Howe may already be negotiating with another club to take charge if Lawwell is not making any immediate moves.

In light of this, Celtic may have to move quickly and get a pre-contractual agreement in place if they are to bring Howe to Glasgow.

In other news, Celtic warned against pursuing EFL manager doing ‘unbelievable job’ with current club.

Tottenham Hotspur look to have been dealt a blow in their chances of signing Aston Villa centre-back Ezri Konsa, as Dean Smith’s side are reportedly planning on handing the centre-back a new deal to try and convince him to stay.

According to the Mirror, Villa are in talks with the former Brentford man over a new deal, as they look to fend off interest from both Spurs and Liverpool.

The 23-year-old has been a key part of Villa’s impressive season so far, having made 24 appearances in the top-flight, in which he has contributed two goals and averaged a solid 6.82 rating.

This represents a huge improvement from last season for the young defender, who struggled as Villa only just staved off relegation, as he averaged a disappointing 6.47 rating across the Premier League season.

It comes as a blow for Spurs that Villa are in talks over a new deal with Konsa, as his current contract is set to expire in 2023, and any extension to that will surely see the Birmingham-based club demand a huge fee if Spurs do come knocking in the summer.

The centre-back is already valued at £10.8 million by Transfermarkt, a valuation which has shot up in the past two seasons, and it will only increase further if he signs a new deal, and if his impressive performances continue.

It will be a blow for Jose Mourinho if he does decide to stay with Villa, as he could’ve been the ideal man to replace Eric Dier in this Spurs squad, with the England international struggling to force his way back into the side at the moment.

Dier didn’t feature against in any of Spurs’ last three fixtures, which saw them win three times and concede just once, whilst the 26-year-old centre-back has helped the North London club keep just eight clean sheets in 26 appearances in all competitions this season.

His performances in the Premier League have seen him earn a solid, if unspectacular, 6.71 rating this season, which is significantly below what Toby Alderweireld has managed, and only slightly better than Davinson Sanchez, who has come back into favour with some recent strong displays.

Earlier this year, Smith was full of praise for his centre-back, saying:

“He’s excelling in his position; he’s been one of our best players this season, very consistent and reliable.”

Therefore, if Konsa were to join Spurs, you would imagine that it would be Dier who would be the man to drop out, especially with youngsters Joe Rodon and Japhet Tanganga also coming through.

It will be interesting to see if Konsa does sign a new deal with Villa, as if he doesn’t, he could definitely be one that Daniel Levy targets in the summer transfer window.

And, in other news… Levy should steer well clear of £4.8m-rated target; Alli is far better

The SPFL have confirmed the 2021/22 Premiership season will start on July 31st, just a few days before Glasgow Rangers’ appearance in the Champions League third qualifying round.

Rangers find out season start

The SPFL confirmed on Thursday that the new season will start on Saturday July 31st. There will also be a winter break from January 3rd 2022 until January 21st (spfl.co.uk).

The start of the league campaign will come a matter of days before the Gers’ Champions League campaign is set to start. The third qualifying round for that competition will be played on August 3rd/4th.

Potentially damaging

The upcoming Champions League campaign for Rangers is an important one. They have not appeared in the competition’s group stage since the 2010/11 season. To make it next term, they will need to go through two rounds beforehand, and they will need to prepare perfectly to be in the best possible shape.

To start the campaign a few days before the first qualifying round is unlikely to help the Gers in their quest. Hopefully, they will play on the Saturday so they have the most time possible to recover – a strong performance for Rangers in European competition will also see Scotland reap the rewards in terms of UEFA coefficient points.

In other news, Rangers fans react to this injury news.

Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed that Dominic Calvert-Lewin will make his return from injury when Everton host Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup on Sunday night.

The striker has missed the Toffees’ last two fixtures across all competitions with a hamstring problem first sustained before losing to West Ham United on New Years’ Day.

Calvert-Lewin played 79 minutes in the defeat before sitting out his side’s FA Cup win over Rotherham United and visit to Wolverhampton Wanderers, but is now in line to start this weekend.

Calvert-Lewin is without a goal in his last six appearances after failing to find the back of the net since recording his 14th of the season in a 1-1 draw with Burnley in early December, having previously only gone one match at a time without scoring at worst.

Ancelotti will have a heavily depleted squad to select from when Everton host Sheffield Wednesday on Sunday night, with the Italian confirming a raft of injuries for the FA Cup tie.

“We have Dominic available for the game,” said Ancelotti. “Unfortunately, we have some players out like [Jean-Philippe] Gbamin, Allan, [Fabian] Delph, [Lucas] Digne, [Alex] Iwobi and [Niels] Nkounkou.

“Iwobi and Digne will be unavailable for only this game – they will be available for the game against Leicester [on Wednesday]. The other players are in good condition and are ready to play this game and to compete.”

Ancelotti handed Cenk Tosun a start in the FA Cup at home to Rotherham United before favouring attacking midfielders James Rodriguez and Gylfi Sigurdsson as false nines for the 2-1 win at Wolves.

Ancelotti confirming that Calvert-Lewin will make his return to action against Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup will come as a bitter pill for Tosun, who would have hoped to be given another chance to potentially save his Goodison Park career.

Tosun continues to be linked with a potential move away from Merseyside in the January transfer window, with Fanatik claiming the Turkey international is Sam Allardyce’s top target at West Bromwich Albion after signing him for £27m in 2018 while in charge of Everton.

Allardyce described Tosun as the “best in Europe” at the time for the price paid to Besiktas, and saw the 29-year-old score five of his 11 career Everton goals before the one-game England boss was fired at the end of the 2017/18 season.

Ancelotti has only overseen one of Tosun’s goals in royal blue, coming in the FA Cup third round win over Rotherham during what was only his first start and seventh appearance of the campaign following his return from cruciate ligament surgery.

Tosun will no doubt be gutted to find that the bench will likely be his home, at first, on Sunday, having also been left an unused substitute on six occasions to date.

AND in other news, Everton are demanding no less than £9m to sell a Carlo Ancelotti outcast this month.

Tottenham Hotspur are back in Premier League action tonight as they head to defending champions, Liverpool, in a top-of-the-table clash.

Jose Mourinho will learn a lot about his side in a game like this, as will we – are they genuine title contenders?

We’re about to find out.

The north Londoners travel to Anfield on the back of a disappointing 1-1 draw to Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon.

Spurs rested on their laurels with a one-goal advantage and they were made to pay for doing so after Hugo Lloris spilled a ball into the path of Jeffrey Schlupp late on.

It was an off-day for much of the squad, though one player continued to look underwhelming yet again.

Sergio Reguilon.

As ruthless as it may be, the Spaniard should probably be dropped for this one, especially when you consider he’s going to be coming up against potentially the best right-flank in the division in Trent Alexander-Arnold and the ten-goal Mo Salah.

The pair can be devastating on their day, which is why the defensively-sound Ben Davies should be preferred to the £80k-per-week summer arrival.

In the past week alone, the 23-year-old former Real Madrid star has lost possession 19 times against an average Palace side and won just two of six duels against Royal Antwerp in the Europa League, per SofaScore.

And in the north London derby, he could only make 64% of his passing attempts.

Perhaps some of this form can be attributed to burnout, he has started eight of their last nine Premier League matches after all.

Davies can offer an alternative capable of frustrating Jurgen Klopp and his lethal-looking frontline – last season as the first-choice left-back, the Welshman averaged 1.6 tackles and 2.3 clearances per game, via WhoScored.

Spurs have another tricky fixture on the horizon in Leicester City, who themselves are hunting down a successive appearance in Europe next term, so rotation will be key this week going into a hectic festive period.

Once lauded as “unstoppable” by ex-Spain coach Robert Moreno and a player “everyone loves” on the training ground by Alasdair Gold, it’s time to give the popular Reguilon a little break ahead of a crucial run-in.

AND in other news, Get rid: Spurs must offload “pathetic” £80k-p/w disaster who’s been robbing Levy blind…

When Raul Jimenez fractured his skull against Arsenal, Jeff Shi would have immediately opened the notes page on his phone.

With Fabio Silva still incredibly raw and failing to find the back of the net, he realised that Wolves needed to sign another striker.

That appears to be the primary objective in the January transfer window with Patrick Cutrone returning from his loan spell with Fiorentina and a host of targets being linked.

Divock Origi and Diego Costa are two names who have been on the club’s radar but one report this week suggested they could target Montpellier’s Gaetan Laborde.

The Frenchman has contributed to 11 goals this season and wins an impressive 3.8 aerial duels per game. With that in mind, he’d be a superb replacement for the injured Jimenez. Laborde puts himself about and scores goals in the process. What’s not to like?

Well, his performance in a 1-1 draw with Nantes at the weekend won’t have done himself many favours, because in short, it was an absolute horror show. The forward was alienated and barely received any service, failing to show the robust signs we’re accustomed to seeing from him.

On Saturday, Laborde made just 13 passes all game – only four more than John Ruddy against Crystal Palace – and he lost possession on 13 occasions.

Every time the ball came to him, he appeared to lose it or completely fail to do anything positive. He was dribbled past on three occasions and he also made three fouls in a display where everything appeared to go wrong for Laborde.

The 26-year-old is a fierce warrior and usually battles for the ball impressively – just like Jimenez. However, that part of his game was completely lacking on Saturday as he lost 12 of the 15 duels contested.

This was a very out of sorts display from Laborde and if he does want to seal a dream move to the Premier League, he’ll need to eradicate this type of performance.

We’ve suggested in the past that the striker would be ideal for Wolves, but consistency is one thing he now has to work on. With Shi needing to get someone in quickly, he won’t have been impressed.

AND in other news, Wolves can land huge Silva upgrade in 9-goal beast, he’s on his “way to the top”…

West Ham United fans are eager to sign Danny Ings after it was revealed by ExWHUemployee that the Hammers are interested in the striker.

Ings is out of contract at Southampton at end of next season (Transfermarkt) and the 28-year-old is reportedly reluctant to put pen to paper on a new deal at St. Mary’s Stadium (Dan Sheldon) – he is said to be looking for European football. As it stands, West Ham are fifth in the Premier League table and just two points off the Champions League places (Sky Sports).

According to ExWHUemployee (via the West Ham Way podcast), the Hammers are interested in the forward. Ings has a fantastic track record, having scored 22 goals for the Saints in the top flight last term, while he has seven in 16 matches this time around. Throughout his career, he has 96 goals.

The news was relayed by Twitter account @WHUFC_News, and it seems the club’s supporters want him at the London stadium. They took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Ings news below

“I’m on my knees”

Credit: @1bbyWHU

“This would be a dream absolutely love Ingsy great ST seems like such a good bloke too”

Credit: @olliebruton

“Throw every cheque book we have at him”

Credit: @NickMarrable

“I would take him in a heartbeat mate? I think he would be a great signing for West Ham.”

Credit: @richpickering4

“What a signing it would be if we can keep him fit”

Credit: @ScoutSoucek

“Would love him at West Ham. Him or Bamford.”

Credit: @mitchelchilds

In other news, ExWHUemployee has revealed another of West Ham’s summer transfer targets.