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Financial expert Kieran Maguire has hailed Leeds United after they shared their 2020/21 accounts, Football Insider report.

The Lowdown: Profit

The Whites, owned by Andrea Radrizzani and the San Francisco 49ers, announced a profit of £26m for the 2020/21 campaign in the week, in what was their first season back in the Premier League after 16 years.

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Leeds, who made a loss of £62m in their Championship winning season, posted a turnover of £171m this time around, which was helped by new partnerships with Adidas and shirt sponsor SBOTOP.

The club also brought in just over £20m in merchandise sales, with £15m coming in from other commercial sources. [FI]

The Latest: Maguire reacts

Maguire, who contributes for Sky Sports, was talking to FI regarding Leeds’ annual numbers.

He labelled them as ‘very encouraging’ and pinpointed the club’s merchandise sales, describing them as ‘outstanding’.

“These are very encouraging figures.

“They had no matchday income or catering income, which together I would expect to be the thick end of £25m.

“When they get matchday income back, it gives them the opportunity to grow. Commercial revenue will only grow as well.

“For me, the outstanding figure was merchandise. To sell £20m worth of merchandise during Covid is indicative of the strength of the fanbase.”

The Verdict: Premier League status crucial

The two contrasting accounts just go to show how crucial Premier League football is to the club, with the Whites recording just their second profit in ten years.

And Leeds took a big step towards ensuring a third season in the division by beating Watford on Saturday.

Another year in the Premier League, along with a possible big-money move to Barcelona for Raphinha, could allow the Whites to back Jesse Marsch in his first transfer window at Elland Road, but there is still work to be done on the pitch before the club can think about any eye-catching signings.

In other news: ‘Strong’ Leeds defender out for weeks as worrying news emerges from Thorp Arch. 

Journalist Tim Spiers hailed evergreen midfielder Joao Moutinho’s performance in Wolves’ 2-1 victory at home to Aston Villa on Saturday afternoon.

The Lowdown: Big win for Wolves

Bruno Lage’s side hosted Villa in the Premier League, as they looked to continue their march towards European football next season.

It proved to be another positive day at the office for Wolves, who led 2-0 at half-time thanks to a Jonny strike and an Ashley Young own goal as part of an excellent counter-attacking display.

Ollie Watkins’ late penalty made for a nervy ending at Molineux but the Wanderers held on to jump to seventh place in the table, for the time being at least.

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The Latest: Spiers hails Moutinho

Taking to Twitter straight after the game, Spiers gave a brief but positive assessment of Moutinho’s display: “Moutinho’s class showed throughout.”

The Portugal international enjoyed an 88% pass completion rate against Villa, as per Sofascore, not to mention making three tackles and playing one key pass.

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The Verdict: Evergreen hero

At 35, Moutinho could be forgiven for being on the wane but he continues to produce influential performances week in, week out for Wolves, being hailed as ‘outstanding’ by Alan Shearer.

The Portuguese maestro brings so much experience and quality in the middle of the park and the hope is that he remains at Molineux for at least another year, with his current deal expiring at the end of the season.

It may be that Moutinho becomes more of a bit-part player over time but keeping hold of him makes far more sense than losing him this summer, as the Villa win showed.

In other news, Spiers has also provided a key Wolves injury update. Read more here.

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West Ham United would send out a serious message to the rest of the Premier League if they manage to secure the services of Maxi Gomez from Celta Vigo this month.

BBC Sport claim that the Hammers are considering whether to trigger the striker’s £43.3m release clause before the end of the January transfer window, at which point they would loan him back to the Spanish outfit for the rest of the campaign.

The Chalkboard

Gomez arrived at Celta from Uruguayan outfit Defensor Sporting in the summer of 2017 and the centre-forward has proved to be a fine addition for the La Liga club.

Check out the video below to see Pl>ymaker FC’s American Soccer Fan give his take on all six ‘field goals’ in West Ham v Burnley…

Indeed, Gomez has managed 27 goals and 10 assists in 58 appearances for Celta, including nine goals in 18 La Liga appearances this term.

Standing at 6ft 1in, Gomez can certainly handle himself and he could have a huge impact at West Ham moving forward.

Indeed, the thought of the Uruguay international operating alongside the likes of Felipe Anderson, Samir Nasri, Manuel Lanzini and potentially even Marko Arnautovic will be an extremely exciting one for the West Ham fans.

Breaking the club’s transfer record once again would also be another indication of the club’s intent moving forward, after an underwhelming start to life at the London Stadium.

Could Gomez play with Arnautovic?

Arnautovic has revealed that he will be staying at West Ham this month but his future beyond the end of the season – when Gomez would arrive should the Irons loan him back to Celta Viga – remains unclear.

Nonetheless, Arnautovic has played through the middle for West Ham but operated in a wider position for Stoke City and is capable of turning out in a number of areas in the final third. Gomez, although mainly a target man, also moves quite well and is clever enough to link with Arnautovic.

At the same time, Manuel Pellegrini has used a 4-4-2 formation eight times in the Premier League this season according to Whoscored and initially favoured a similar setup at Manchester City, utilising Alvaro Negredo as Sergio Aguero’s strike partner to great effect.

So, although there is an understandable assumption that Gomez is being targeted as Arnautovic’s replacement as claimed by The Guardian – which makes delaying his move to the summer convenient for both West Ham and Celta Vigo, who are fighting relegation – there is the potential for them to play alongside each other in what would be a fearsome strike partnership.

That, however, would appear to depend on Arnautovic staying beyond the summer. At this moment in time, that feels unlikely.

Leeds United have taken a big step closer to Premier League safety in recent weeks by going four games unbeaten.

New manager Jesse Marsch has truly turned things around at Elland Road at just the right time with his side now nine points clear of the relegation zone heading into the final six games of the season.

The American will have gotten to know his side well, having replaced Marcelo Bielsa two months ago and heading into the summer, he’ll have some idea of what he’d like to do to this squad.

One dilemma must be surrounding the long-serving Mateusz Klich, who despite the Whites’ run of form has been pretty underwhelming, and that’s backed up by the fact that he’s completed only one full game since Marsch was appointed.

Under Bielsa, the Polish international was rarely-ever dropped and was often a frequent figure of the starting XI, perhaps even being the first name on the teamsheet, especially in the Championship.

However, his form has fallen off a cliff this season and there has to be doubt over his future at the club, even more so amid interest in RB Salzburg sensation Brenden Aaronson, who the Leeds boss has worked with before.

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The 31-year-old was slammed as being “non-existent” by Sky Sports pundit Clinton Morrison during a defeat to Everton earlier in the season, whilst in the recent win over Watford, he was one of the team’s lowest-rated players.

“Looked bullied by Juraj Kucka in the middle of the park. Could not provide any platform for the side moving forward,” wrote LeedsLive journalist Beren Cross.

If you’re getting bullied by a midfielder in a side worse than you, in the midst of a victory, then it’s certainly not a good look and the fact that he cannot complete a game under Marsch is hugely telling too.

It could be plausible that the 38-cap international is heading towards the end of his Elland Road career in the coming months and based on his recent form, he’d be lucky to get game time.

In some sense, he’s been aided by recent injuries to Kalvin Phillips and Adam Forshaw, and the lack of other options in the role – with the pair returning, Klich should not play another game under the American this season.

AND in other news, Forget Joffy: Marsch could be about to unleash “phenomenal” Leeds gem amid Hay update…

Tottenham are interested in a deal to bring Lesley Ugochukwu to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by French publication L’Equipe (via Sport Witness), who claimed that Fabio Paratici, as well as Arsenal’s Richard Garlick and Borussia Dortmund’s Michael Zorc, is keeping a very close eye on the progress made by the Rennes midfielder.

The report added that all three clubs could launch a bid for the 18-year-old at the end of the current campaign, with Tottenham believed to particularly appreciate the profile of the France under-18 international, who apparently could well be swayed by the lure of joining Antonio Conte’s side.

The next Vieira

While Ugochukwu is a talent with a great deal of development still ahead of him in the professional game, the early expectations surrounding the teenager’s potential are extremely promising.

Indeed, L’Equipe claimed that Arsenal view the defensive midfielder as the next Patrick Vieira, while Football Talent Scout’s Jacek Kulig also stated his belief that the Rennes starlet is a “superb” player with “world-class potential”.

It is not difficult to see why these assessments have been made of the £2.25m-rated youngster, as despite his tender age (he turns 18 today), Ugochukwu has already made 13 Ligue 1 appearances for Bruno Genesio’s side. There is a belief at the French club that the teenager is “the new Camavinga”, a nod to the former Rennes sensation who joined Real Madrid in a €40m (£34.4m) move last summer.

As such, while the French youth international may not immediately become a first-team regular should he indeed make a move to north London this summer, it would nevertheless seem wise for Paratici to do all he can to land the 18-year-old midfield destroyer ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.

Indeed, signing Ugochukwu would not only add an exceptionally talented prospect to Conte’s current options in the middle of the park, but also delight the Tottenham faithful immensely if they beat Arsenal to a player who they believe could be their next Vieira.

AND in other news: Conte can now axe “out of form” £91k-p/w dud as Spurs plot bid for 22 y/o “phenomenon”

Everton have been one of the most active Premier League clubs during the transfer window, and with good reason.

The Toffees are in desperate need to turn their season around after a disappointing first half to the campaign. In order to rectify that situation, they have made three signings already in the first two weeks of January, and Rafael Benitez and co may not be finished yet.

What’s the word?

The Everton manager took to his press conference ahead of today’s match against Norwich to give an update on the club’s next steps in the winter transfer window, teasing the potential of more signings to come.

Benitez revealed: “We are always looking to strengthen the squad. The reality is we’ve balanced the books, which I think is a positive. We are open to any good option.”

“At the moment we’re happy with the three we’ve brought. But we are open-minded.”

This week has been a busy one at Goodison Park, with fan favourite Lucas Digne sold to Aston Villa after three-and-a-half years with the Merseyside club, and Anwar El Ghazi signing on loan until the end of the season, and Benitez isn’t ruling out further business yet.

Fans will be buzzing

Everton fans haven’t had an easy ride supporting their team this season, and many have definitely made no secret of their disappointment over poor performances, walking out of matches at Goodison Park and planning protests against the owners and the manager.

This transfer window has provided Benitez with the opportunity to change the trajectory of the club by signing new players and freshening up the squad, in the hope that a fresh perspective will help the Toffees climb back into the top half of the table, where they are expected to finish this season.

It is important that Everton start to pick up results, as they have a run of winnable games against bottom half teams such as Leeds United, Brentford, Aston Villa and Newcastle coming up over the next few weeks. That should give them the ideal opportunity to ascend to a much more comfortable position in the Premier League if they can capitalise.

For now, the manager’s claim that the Toffees are “open” to making further additions this month should bring some overdue happiness to the Goodison Park fan base, as the current squad just haven’t been delivering the goods.

In other news: Alan Myers makes January transfer window prediction regarding Everton

Celtic enjoyed a comfortable afternoon in the Premiership as they strolled to a routine 2-0 win on Sunday to send them six points clear at the top of the table.

Kyogo Furuhashsi opened the scoring in the first half and then Jota, who set up the first goal, sealed the three points with an 87th-minute strike.

The Hoops dominated the match as they ended the game with 74% of the ball and 22 efforts on goal, with Ross County fortunate that they only conceded twice.

Whilst Jota scored and assisted a goal in the match, the real star of the show for Ange Postecoglou was central defender Cameron Carter-Vickers.

It is easy to point at the attackers and praise them for scoring the goals to win the match but all of their work is built on the back of a strong platform. The solid defence allows the likes of Jota and Kyogo to go and do what they want to do without worrying about constantly needing to drop deep to win the ball back – allowing the opposition to press up on them.

Carter-Vickers was outstanding in central defence as he stood strong at the back and was reliable in possession. He played a major role in Celtic’s dominance throughout the game and the forwards should be thanking him for making their lives easier.

As per SofaScore, he won 85.7% (6/7) of his individual duels and made five clearances, one interception and one block to help his side to a clean sheet. This shows that he was superb defensively as he won the vast majority of his battles with Ross County players and did not allow himself to be beaten by the opposition – keeping them away from Joe Hart’s goal.

On the ball, he completed 85% of his passes from 62 touches and created one chance from centre-back. He is not expected to do anything special in possession from his position but Postecoglou will be delighted with his assuredness on the ball.

The £20k-per-week defender continues to impress at the heart of the defence and fans will surely be wanting to see him back at Parkhead next season on a permanent basis.

In the Premiership this season, the on-loan Tottenham man has averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.36 across 29 matches. Celtic have kept 16 clean sheets in those games and the latest one came with the help of his sublime display against Ross County on Sunday.

AND in other news, Source: Celtic on course to seal “immense” summer signing, Ange will be buzzing…

West Ham United manager David Moyes could finally axe Issa Diop by signing Nottingham Forest defender Joe Worrall in this final week of the January transfer window.

What’s the story?

According to The Athletic, the Hammers remain interested in signing the 25-year-old before transfer deadline day next Monday as Moyes looks to bolster his centre-back options.

Bye-bye Diop

Were Worrall to arrive at the London Stadium, it would allow Moyes to call time on Diop’s career at the club amid recent speculation that fellow Premier League side Newcastle are interested in signing the 25-year-old.

The Frenchman’s performance in recent weeks amid the Hammers’ injury troubles in defence have left a lot to be desired – not least his display against Leeds United earlier this month when the London side lost 2-3.

As per Sofascore, Diop was dribbled past twice over the course of the 90 minutes, the most of any player on the pitch, while he also looked extremely shaky on the ball, losing possession ten times and completing just one of his four attempted long passes.

It was no surprise that he duly came in for some big criticism from some sections of the Hammers’ fanbase, with a few calling for him to be dropped and pining for the return of his fellow Frenchman Kurt Zouma.

Writing in his post-match player ratings for Football.London, Tom Clark gave Diop a three, saying: “Should have done better with Leeds’ second goal where Luke Ayling ran off him and nodded down an assist for Harrison. Fortunate Mateusz Klich’s goal was disallowed after letting Raphinha get away from him too easily.”

In fact, his 6.45 average match rating from WhoScored in the Premier League this year ranks him as the worst-performing West Ham player of those who have started more than five games for the club.

In Worrall, the Hammers would be getting someone who is very much an old-school rugged and reliable defender who looks a perfect fit for the physicality and intensity of the Premier League.

As per Whoscored, Worrall has averaged two interceptions and two tackles per game in the Championship this season, while he is also making a whopping 3.7 clearances and one block per match too, placing him in the top five for each metric when compared to his teammates.

During his time at Rangers, then-Ibrox manager Steven Gerrard was a big fan of the defender and waxed lyrical about him in 2019, saying: “I thought Joe Worrall was outstanding. What a big goal to keep his team in the cup. It was a Man of the Match performance, and he will be a captain of whatever team he plays for. He is a leader and he stepped up today.”

The 6 foot 4 beast’s arrival could finally signal the end of Diop’s time at the London Stadium.

Meanwhile, ExWHUEmployee has dropped a transfer update on this West Ham target…

Leeds have made an increased bid of £20million for RB Salzburg and USA midfielder Brenden Aaronson, according to Sky Sports News.

The Lowdown: Leeds eye up on Aaronson move

Marcelo Bielsa is no doubt keen to sign a new midfielder this month, with injuries to the likes of Kalvin Phillips and Adam Forshaw leaving his squad horribly short.

Leeds have battled on bravely despite their injury problems, winning 3-2 away to West Ham last weekend, but this current issue isn’t sustainable for months on end.

Aaronson has been strongly linked with a move to Elland Road before deadline day and now another key update has emerged.

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The Latest: Whites table £20m bid

Speaking on Sky Sports News [via Football Daily on Twitter] on Friday, reporter Rob Wotton claimed Leeds have upped their bid to £20million:

“This is what we’re we hearing at this moment – Leeds, we understand, have made an increased bid of £20million for the RB Salzburg midfielder Brenden Aaronson.”

Journalist Phil Hay has also confirmed the news, saying on Twitter that the Whites are ‘upping their bid’ for the American.

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The Verdict: Snap him up

Aaronson has already grown into an important player for Salzburg this season, starting 14 Austrian Bundesliga matches and averaging two tackles per game.

At just 21 years of age he isn’t simply a quick fix, representing a long-term addition and someone who the rest of the team can be built around over time.

The fact that Aaronson has also averaged 1.8 dribbles per game shows he is effective on and off the ball – he has been described as a ‘killer’ by coach Jim Curtin, too – so his acquisition feels like a no-brainer for a team desperately in need of another all-action midfielder.

In other news, a journalist has dropped a key update on Leeds’ search for a midfielder. Read more here.

West Ham United are seemingly eyeing a move Burnley goalkeeper Nick Pope as manager David Moyes also sets his sights on three other major signings this summer.

The Lowdown: Moyes set for busy window?

As recently shared by Claret & Hugh, the Hammers boss will apparently have a ‘£150 million’ transfer kitty to play with this summer with Moyes set for major summer backing.

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This comes after a lack-lustre January window, where despite lodging marquee record-breaking bids, West Ham were unable to finalise any mid-season signings for Moyes.

Their intent, as per reports, is to make up for it in the summer as news emerges on just how many major signings Moyes personally wants to make – including the potential addition of a keeper who Sean Dyche branded a ‘monster’.

The Latest: The Time share interesting transfer update…

As per The Times, West Ham ‘could try to sign’ Clarets keeper Pope if they go down, as they now contemplate whether or not to make Alphonse Areola’s loan move from Paris-Saint Germain permanent.

Alongside sealing a reserve goalkeeper for next season in either Areola or Pope, it is believed Moyes also personally wants three more additions in a left-sided centre-back, central midfielder and forward.

The Verdict: Promising claim…

Moyes’ show of ambition for the next market could come as a promising bit of news for Irons supporters.

The aim from a West Ham perspective is to stay among the Premier League’s elite and continue their remarkable ascendancy against all odds.

To do that, however, new signings will need to come through the door at Rush Green for 2022/2023 – especially going by their current defensive crisis and serious lack of depth behind striker Michail Antonio.

In other news: £25.2m-rated forward could now be open to joining West Ham after failed Pellegrini bid, find out more here.