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Flocking to Twitter, many Manchester City supporters have erupted over news shared by reliable reporter Fabrizio Romano concerning fan favourite Phil Foden.

The England international has been a revelation since manager Pep Guardiola began to play him more regularly in 2020, so much so he was even nominated for the 2021 senior men’s Ballon d’Or.

He also played a major role in City’s run to the Champions League final last season, scoring the winner in both quarter-final legs against German giants Borussia Dortmund.

Foden has continued in that vain so far after coming back from injury, most recently putting on a dazzling display away to Club Brugge as City ran out 5-1 victors.

Now, amid reports surrounding a possible new deal, Romano has some big news for Sky Blues out of Eastlands.

The reliable journalist says City are now ‘set to reach a verbal agreement’ with the 21-year-old over a new deal until June 2027, which includes a bumper salary increase (Twitter).

Flocking to this big update, it’s little wonder many fans have gone wild on Twitter – find all of their best reactions down below.

Man City fans go wild for Foden news…

“Tears in my eyes. Look at my son”

Credit: @Relly_95

“Just what I want to hear”

Credit: @KaineOduah

“huge”

Credit: @akgr21

“Great news…”

Credit: @ChrisFo07634557

“The best youngster in the Premier League”

Credit: @RiyadMahrezSZN

“Foden is a City fan first than a City player. You can see in his face he plays with pride. So happy he is getting pay rise, totally deserve”

Credit: @realxames

“Letsss goooo”

Credit: @MCFCnish

“We are here to stay”

Credit: @mcfc_joshua

In other news: ‘Incredible’, ‘About time’, ‘This is so amazing’…Man City fans flock to ‘exciting’ Haaland update, find out more here.

Leeds United and Newcastle United are keen on a move for Sampdoria defender Omar Colley, who has now changed agency, according to Clubdoria46.

The Lowdown: Colley profiled

Colley is a 6 foot 3 centre-back who is 29 years of age and has been on the books with Sampdoria since 2018. [Transfermarkt]

The Gambia international signed a new deal with the Serie A side 12 months ago and has made over 100 appearances for the club – 19 of which have come in 2021/22.

He once denied Cristiano Ronaldo a hat-trick in a previous encounter, with then-Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri praising the defender for his efforts in halting the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.

The Latest: Leeds keen

Clubdoria46 claim that Colley is keen on a move to the Premier League this month, with the Whites, Everton and Newcastle all interested.

He has recently switched agents to try and finalise a move to England, with Colley now busy preparing for the Africa Cup of Nations.

The Verdict: Avoid

Leeds don’t have a shortage of centre-backs at Elland Road, with Marcelo Bielsa even able to call upon right-back Luke Ayling and midfielder Kalvin Phillips to fill in if required.

As we know, Phillips is out of action until March, leaving Bielsa with a limited number of options in midfield, with Victor Orta eyeing a defensive and attacking midfielder this month.

On that basis, the Whites’ priority should be to bolster the middle of the pitch before looking at any further defensive additions, so allowing Everton and Newcastle to battle it out for Colley over the coming weeks wouldn’t be a disaster.

In other news: Sky Sports drop live-on-air Leeds transfer update regarding midfielder pursuit. 

Celtic have not been particularly reluctant when it comes to spending money in the transfer market to bring new players to Parkhead in recent years.

And, one player that the club splashed out a fee of £1.7m on back in the 2014 January transfer window was Stefan Johansen.

During his time at Celtic Park, the midfielder scored 19 goals and provided 22 assists in 114 appearances across all competitions.

In the 2016 summer transfer window, Celtic then sold the Norwegian to Fulham in a deal worth around £2m.

With 81 appearances in the Championship across the 2016/17 and 2017/18 campaigns, the midfielder managed to score 19 goals and register 16 assists.

After that, the 31-year-old found himself on the move again, this time for a loan spell with West Bromwich Albion where he made 14 appearances before returning to Fulham in May 2019.

The 2019/20 season saw the former Hoops star play in 36 games but fail to find the back of the net.

Last summer saw Johansen bring an end to his time with Fulham by joining fellow London club Queens Park Rangers on a permanent deal worth just £630k after he had spent some time there on loan.

This season has seen the Norway international pick up more yellow cards (7) than goal contributions, despite making 34 appearances in the Championship.

To further highlight how unimpressive the midfielder has been going forward, only eight of the 23 shots at goal he’s had in the league have been on target.

His overall performances haven’t been much to shout about either, with WhoScored giving him a rather underwhelming season rating of 6.61.

Described as a player that had a reputation of having a “bad attitude” by former Celtic manager Ronny Deila, Johansen has gradually seen his transfer value and yearly goal contributions go down since his early Fulham days.

Taking all of this into account, it seems as though not only did the Parkhead club get a lot out of the player on the pitch, but they also pulled a financial blinder by selling him when they did.

With the way Celtic have shot to the top of the SPFL table this season under Ange Postecoglou, it’s hard to imagine that many supporters will have been wishing their club had kept hold of the £11k-per-week midfield man.

AND in other news: Huge blow: Celtic suffer major injury setback, it’s terrible news for Postecoglou

Rangers are among the clubs eyeing teenage prodigy Zak Lovelace, according to The Daily Record’s Scott Burns. 

The lowdown

The youngster, who will turn 16 next week, became the second-youngest player in Millwall’s history when he made an appearance from the bench against Coventry City in December.

According to The Telegraph’s John Percy, the striker had to get ‘permission from his parents and his school’ to join up with the Lions squad for the fixture. Lovelace has been called to train with the club’s first team ‘several’ times.

The latest

Rangers have ‘regularly’ scouted Lovelace this season and are hopeful of signing him, as per The Daily Record. They face competition from the Premier League, with Leicester City and Brighton mentioned as prospective suitors.

Millwall are described as ‘desperate’ to keep hold of Lovelace, for whom they have ‘massive hopes’, and they are trying to persuade him to sign a professional contract at The Den.

The verdict

Millwall manager Gary Rowett has waxed lyrical about Lovelace, saying: “Zak is a really good lad. He has come in with a humility and hunger to want to do well – that exuberance of youth. I’d love to see how that develops over the next two or three years because he could be, from what I’ve seen, a top player.”

However, the 47-year-old admitted that the London club might not have full control over the teenager’s next move, so it could come down to who can offer him the clearest or swiftest path to senior football.

Rangers have clearly been impressed on their trips to watch Lovelace if they are interested in signing him, and they may even think that he’s a superstar in the making. After all, journalist Dan Marsh urged fans to ‘remember the name’ when the 15-year-old came on against Coventry.

In other news, Rangers are in a strong position to land this defender

Former Aston Villa striker Kevin Phillips has been reacting to the club’s move for Calum Chambers, as per Football Insider.

The Lowdown: Out-of-the-blue Chambers move

Villa recently announced a move for Chambers completely out of the blue, similar to how they brought Danny Ings to the club over the summer.

The under-the-radar transfer made Chambers Villa’s fourth senior acquisition of the January window, penning a three-and-a-half-year deal from Arsenal.

The Gunners failed to activate a clause in the versatile defender’s contract to allow them to extend his deal by a further 12 months, which ultimately placed the defender’s future in his own hands.

The Latest: Phillips comments

Phillips, who regularly features as a pundit on Sky Sports, was talking to Football Insider regarding the move for Chambers. He labelled Villa’s business as ‘amazing’ and heaped praise on the club’s hierarchy for backing Gerrard this month, saying:

“They are the big winners this window, in my opinion. The business Steven Gerrard and Aston Villa have done so far is just amazing. Hats off to the board for backing Steven.

“Steven has clearly had an impact in terms of the players the club can attract. Villa is a massive club, of course, but this calibre of signing hasn’t been seen at the club in a long time. The club is moving in the right direction.

“To bring the players in they have had, with the possibility of a couple more coming in… 1000 per cent Villa have had the best window.

“It has put them in a position where they could challenge for European football.”

The Verdict: Solid transfer window for Villa

Even though Villa haven’t bolstered their central midfield ranks following bids for Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur, they have still enjoyed a respectable transfer window.

They’ve made marquee additions in Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Digne and have also brought in experienced squad players in Chambers and Robin Olsen.

A central midfielder would have been the icing on the cake, but it seems as if that may have to wait until the summer for Gerrard ahead of his first full season in charge.

In other news: ‘Ridiculous’ – Lots of Aston Villa fans fume at ‘the dumbest’ deadline day move.  

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Leeds United secured their second successive Championship victory on Saturday to retain the initiative in the title race.

The Whites had to battle hard at Elland Road, but were ultimately deserving of their 2-1 victory over strugglers Bolton Wanderers. However, Marcelo Bielsa will feel that his side should have been able to secure a more comfortable margin of victory.

This is a recurring theme, as Leeds have struggled to take their chances in recent weeks.

Who do you want to see promoted this year? The Pl>ymaker FC squad have picked their 3 favoured teams in the video below…

On the chalkboard

If Leeds are to hang on and achieve automatic promotion to the Premier League this season then they must rediscover their clinical edge soon. However, the recent injury sustained by 14-goal top scorer Kemar Roofe will have come as a major blow in this regard.

Bielsa must now find a way to make his side more prolific without having the 26-year-old forward to lead the line. The likes of Patrick Bamford and Tyler Roberts must now step up. The Argentine coach must first find a way to configure his attacking talents in a cohesive and effective manner.

Adapting to Bamford

25-year-old summer signing Bamford will now be the first choice to lead the line for the Whites. The 6’1” striker’s season has been ravaged by injuries so far, but now fully fit he has the capacity to get amongst the goals. 

Bamford is a clinical and reliable finisher, but a very different kind of forward to Roofe. Leeds must now adapt to having the former Middlesbrough hitman up front.

Bamford is less mobile than Roofe, but his movement in the penalty area, strength, and hold up play make him an ideal target man. If he can cultivate a relationship with the likes of Roberts and Pablo Hernandez, who can break forward from deep in order to link up with the No. 9, then Leeds could suddenly find themselves banging them in with regularity again.

An update has emerged on Eddie Howe’s potential move to Newcastle United to take over from Steve Bruce.

What’s the talk?

According to Daily Mail reporter Craig Hope, the Magpies will officially confirm the appointment of the former Bournemouth boss on Monday.

This comes after the 43-year-old watched on from the stands as Newcastle held Brighton to a 1-1 draw in the Premier League at the AMEX.

Hope wrote:

“Understand Eddie Howe will be confirmed as NUFC boss tomorrow.”

Buzzing

Newcastle fans will surely be buzzing with this news as it puts an end to the constant barrage of speculation over the vacant managerial position. It means that the focus can switch entirely to on-field matters and attempting to stave off relegation, rather than worrying about who is going to be in the dugout.

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Graeme Jones has taken charge of three matches as the interim boss and picked up two points, against Crystal Palace and Brighton, with the Magpies still winless after 11 Premier League games. They are 19th in the table and only above Norwich on goal difference, five points off survival at this stage.

This is, without a doubt, a worrying position for the club to be in and something needs to change on the pitch in the coming weeks/months before the gap becomes too big to close. That is why getting Howe in with two weeks of an international break to implement his style of football is a key move by PIF and one fans will be delighted with.

Howe now has some time to work on the training pitch with the players who are not going away on international duty and that will allow him to prepare his side to fight for points starting with the clash with Brentford. He kept Bournemouth up in four of his five campaigns at the Vitality in the top-flight, which shows that he knows how to keep sides in the division.

The supporters will now be able to fully get behind the team and Howe, and drive the team with everyone gunning for the same goal – survival. From now up until January, Newcastle can fully focus on Premier League matches instead of off-field business. This should delight everybody at St James’.

AND in other news, PIF must seal £51m Newcastle deal for “complete number nine”, fans would be buzzing…

Since Marcelo Bielsa took charge at Leeds United, the Argentine has taken the club back to the Premier League after a 16-year absence and got them to a top-half finish in their first season back in the top flight.

One figure that has played a massive part in Leeds’ rise from the Championship to the Premier League is Luke Ayling, who has made a total of 200 appearances for the Yorkshire club across all competitions in which he has managed to score seven goals and provide 17 assists along the way.

Last season saw Ayling start all 38 of Leeds’ Premier League games as well as Stuart Dallas, showing how vital he is for Bielsa’s side.

Having now hit the age of 30 and with his current contract at Elland Road set to expire in the summer of 2023, there’s every chance that the club will be looking at who could be their potential long-term replacement for the long-serving Englishman.

With that in mind, it seems as though Bielsa could already have the perfect long-term heir for Ayling that could save Victor Orta millions in potential future transfer fees.

Since joining Leeds’ U23 side from Fulham’s U23 squad back in August last year, 20-year-old right-back Cody Drameh has made 33 appearances for Leeds’ youth side, scoring one goal and providing four assists along the way.

Drameh has also made two appearances for Leeds’ senior side, showing that Bielsa has enough confidence in him already to perform to a high standard in the first team alongside the senior players at Leeds.

This season has seen Drameh be involved in Leeds’ senior matchday squad on eight occasions in the league with one 19-minute cameo appearance in their 2-1 win away at Norwich City.

Labelled as a “revelation” in the past by Tom Hill and as a player that “loves defending” by Ben Parker, Drameh won Leeds’ U23s Player of the Year award last year, highlighting the quality he has.

Given how Ayling managed to rack up an average of 2.8 tackles per game in the league last season as well as winning 61% of the duels he was involved in, these are the sort of defensive numbers that Drameh will have to match if he wants to be recognised as Ayling’s long-term heir at Leeds.

However, with the praise he’s garnered since joining the Yorkshire club, it seems as though that Drameh is more than capable of doing that in the next few years given his apparent love for defending.

In other news: Exciting 4-word January transfer claim emerges that will have Leeds fans buzzing – opinion

Celtic are reportedly edging closer to signing defender Cameron Carter-Vickers on a permanent deal this summer.

The Lowdown: Carter-Vickers impressing on loan

The American traded Spurs for the Hoops last summer, having failed to force his way into Nuno Espirito Santo’s plans in north London after several loan spells.

Carter-Vickers’ signing has been a masterstroke by Celtic, with the 24-year-old proving to be a dominant performer at the heart of the defence, averaging 4.3 aerial duel wins per game in the Scottish Premiership and ranking as the club’s fifth-best player.

While his move is only temporary currently, recent reports have claimed that it could become permanent ahead of the summer transfer window, with an extremely exciting update emerging late last night.

The Latest: Permanent deal close

According to The Daily Record, sharing an update late on Monday evening, Carter-Vickers looks increasingly like sealing a move to Parkhead, fending off interest from Burnley, Wolves and Leicester City in the process.

A £6million option to sign the USA international is set to be triggered for the defender, as Ange Postecoglou looks to seal a significant piece of business, with the report claiming the player’s camp feel Glasgow is the best place for his permanent development.

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The Verdict: Huge signing for Hoops

Carter-Vickers has shown all season why he could be a great long-term capture by Celtic – he has been hailed as ‘outstanding’ by Greg Taylor – so this update is hugely positive in that respect.

At 24, the Spurs man is at an age where he is already experienced but has another decade or so at the top level, meaning he could be a fixture in the team well into the Hoops’ future.

Carter-Vickers has already forged a strong understanding with Carl Starfelt at centre-back – both were exceptional against Rangers last weekend, making 20 clearances and six interceptions between them – and that is a partnership that could be the bedrock for more success for Postecoglou’s side.

In other news, Kieran Devlin has hailed one aspect of Celtic’s win over Rangers. Read more here.

According to news outlet Fichajes, a transfer update has come out of Tottenham Hotspur involving Blackburn Rovers defender Ashley Phillips.

The Lowdown: Paratici eyeing defensive reinforcements?

Reports from reliable sources indicate that Spurs and transfer chief Fabio Paratici have set their sights on strengthening Antonio Conte’s backline for the summer window.

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Indeed, according to The Telegraph, they apparently have a number of central defenders on the list after they failed to bring one in during the January transfer window.

The likes of Sven Botman and Alessandro Bastoni have been mentioned, but as per Fichajes, the Lilywhites also have their eyes on rising stars for the future.

The Latest: Spurs make contact…

According to the Spanish news source, Tottenham have ‘already asked’ Blackburn about signing their promising young defender Phillips alongside fellow Premier League giants Man United, Arsenal and Everton.

The report goes on to state that an ‘important summer bid’ is on the cards from any of these sides with the race well and truly on.

The Verdict: Get it done?

Rovers boss Tony Mowbray hasn’t held back in his praise for the Ewood Park starlet despite not yet handing him his senior first team debut.

Indeed, Mowbray has waxed lyrical over Phillips – calling the 6 foot 3 defender an ‘exciting’ and ‘phenomenal’ player to the press recently.

The England Under-17 international could certainly be one to watch for the future and he is capable of playing at both centre-half and in front of the back four as a defensive midfielder.

His physicality and versatility are big incentives to swoop and it’s clear to see why many big top flight sides are taking a firm interest.

In other news: Tottenham have already reached an agreement to sign 183-goal star this summer, report claims…find out more here.