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Wolves are still prioritising the signing of a new centre-back in the January transfer window, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Wolves impress at the back

Bruno Lage’s side are enjoying an increasingly impressive season, sitting eighth in the Premier League table after 20 matches.

Wolves’ success has been built on an excellent defence, with the go-to back-three of Max Kilman, Conor Coady and Romain Saiss ensuring they have conceded just 15 league goals.

Despite this, a new defender could be needed this month – Saiss is currently away at AFCON – and a key update has emerged regarding the situation.

The Latest: Journalist makes centre-back claim

Speaking to Give Me Sport, O’Rourke claimed Lage still sees a centre-back addition as a fairly strong possibility in January:

“I don’t think they’re desperate to bring in another centre midfielder. I think a centre-back is Bruno Lage’s top target in this window if he is to bring somebody in.”

The Verdict: Makes perfect sense

While Kilman, Coady and Saiss have all impressed this season, added depth is required in the squad, in case one of them gets injured or fatigue sets in.

Willy Boly’s ongoing fitness issues mean Wolves feel light in that area especially while Saiss is away, so bringing in someone such as Duje Caleta-Car from Marseille would make perfect sense.

The 25-year-old has been linked with a move to Molineux and has averaged 1.2 tackles and 1.7 clearances per game in Ligue 1 this season, not to mention winning 20 caps for Croatia.

In other news, Tim Spiers has made a key claim regarding Wolves’ transfer business. Read more here.

An exciting transfer update has emerged at Tottenham Hotspur this week…

What’s the word?

According to Sky Sports reporter Paul Gilmour, the north London outfit have opened talks with FC Porto over a move for their star winger Luis Diaz, who is valued in the region of €60m (£50m).

“Tottenham and Porto in talks over Luis Diaz. Sources in Portugal have told us Spurs willing to pay €45m plus €10m in add ons. Porto holding out for €60m,” he tweeted.

The highly-rated 25-year-old has also been linked with Premier League rivals Liverpool and Manchester United in the past.

Get it done!

What an incredible signing and statement of intent this would be from the Lilywhites.

Diaz is one of the hottest talents in Europe right now and it’s easy to see why from just looking at his goal record – as per Transfermarkt, he has found the net 16 times from 24 appearances across the Primeira Liga and the Champions League, all from left-midfield.

The 31-time Colombian international would be a solid addition under a manager like Antonio Conte, who is desperate for quality additions this month and whilst a new winger wasn’t on his priority list, the Italian coach should not turn his nose up at a talent like Diaz.

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During the summer, he finished alongside Lionel Messi as the joint-top goalscorer at the Copa America, whilst the 5 foot 10 dynamo’s ability was summed up perfectly by Portuguese football expert Marino Peixoto after he bagged an absolute screamer against Marcus Edwards’ Vitoria Guimaraes.

“The rate at which Luís Diaz is churning out otherworldly performances coupled with his ability to score screamers like this on a consistent basis is genuinely frightening. Only a matter of time before somebody pays an astronomical fee for him,” he claimed.

Elsewhere, presenter Manas Singh described Diaz as a “livewire” in the final third, only bolstering the hype around his potential signature.

The £36m-rated sensation is also said to be hugely keen on a move to England, where he can perhaps best showcase his skills and show of his undoubted talent, if not at least test himself amongst the very best.

Therefore, Spurs should make sure it’s them who secures the Porto star as they will not want to line up against him, having held talks over signing him this month.

If the Lilywhites can secure him, then you’d imagine Conte would be a very happy man as he’ll be getting a top-quality addition to his struggling, lacklustre squad.

With less than a week to go, if Spurs can pull this over the line, it would be a real statement indeed.

AND in other news, Spurs could secure their next Dembele in swoop for “unbeatable” £22.5m-rated “machine”…

Everton are reportedly now in the race to sign Steve Ngunga in what would be an out-of-window transfer.

The Lowdown: Window shut

Although the January transfer window has officially shut for the Premier League, some signings can still be made outside of it, for example free agents or emergency loans with special dispensation from the Premier League.

The Goodison Park faithful did some shrewd business to say the least last month, selling Lucas Digne to Aston Villa, but bringing in Nathan Patterson, Vitaliy Mykolenko, Dele Alli and Donny van de Beek, as well as new manager Frank Lampard of course.

The Latest: Ngunga race

As per Football Insider’s recruitment sources, the Merseyside club are now in the race to sign non-league sensation Ngunga, who plays for Rising Ballers FC.

They, Brentford and Watford are keeping close tabs on the left-back, and he is expected to undergo a trial at each of them, having already had one at Belgian side Standard Liege.

The signing could then be made outside of the window, as Premier League teams are allowed to sign players from outside of the professional leagues at any time of the year.

The Verdict: Exciting

The fact that the Toffees could still make a signing despite the window being shut should come with some excitement.

Described as a ‘super-quick and athletic’ player likened to Brighton and Hove Albion full-back Tariq Lamptey by Football Insider’s source, 18-year-old Ngunga is certainly one for the future, and the Blues could eventually give him a pathway into first-team football.

Other graduates of the non-league club, like Sheffield United star Iliman Ndiaye, have landed professional contracts, and Ngunga could follow in his path by making the move to EFC.

In other news, find out what ‘great’ Everton development this Sky Sports man has reacted to here!

Newly rich Newcastle United are just one of the sides who have been linked with a move for Crystal Palace left-back Tyrick Mitchell.

The Lowdown: Mitchell’s England call up

Mitchell has been in fine form under Patrick Vieira this season and is actually the best performing defender at Selhurst Park going by WhoScored average match ratings.

The 22-year-old has started all 29 Premier League games in 2021/22 and his displays have earned him a first England call up by Gareth Southgate.

It now looks as if a number of Palace’s Premier League rivals are now after Mitchell, perhaps no surprise given his incredible 3.1 tackles per game, a number which is only bettered in the top flight by Brighton’s Yves Bissouma and Leicester’s Wilfried Ndidi.

The Latest: In demand

The Sun shared a story on Wednesday afternoon regarding Mitchell. They revealed that Newcastle, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham are all tracking the full-back, who is loving life at Palace.

Newcastle appear to be keeping their eye on a number of young talents at SE25, with Eddie Howe’s side also linked with a move for Eberechi Eze earlier this year.

The Verdict: Eagles in control

Although Mitchell shares the same agency as six Newcastle players, you’d like to think that the Eagles are in control of the situation when it comes to the player’s future.

He appears to be happy at Selhurst Park, with his deal not expiring until 2025. Therefore, Palace are under no pressure to sell their star left-back this summer, so it could take a mega-money offer for the club to even consider parting ways with Mitchell over the coming months.

Having splashed out over £90m in the January transfer window, could Newcastle be the ones to test the Eagles’ resolve with a big bid?

In other news: Palace twist now emerges as Textor looks to bring £10.8m-rated Brazilian to Selhurst Park. 

The Athletic’s Crystal Palace correspondent Matt Woosnam has been reacting to details regarding the club’s FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea next month.

The Lowdown: Palace’s road to Wembley

The Eagles booked their place in the last four of the competition with an impressive 4-0 win over Everton prior to the international break.

Patrick Vieira’s side have also defeated Millwall, Hartlepool United and Stoke City en route to Wembley, avoiding Liverpool and Manchester City in the semi-final draw.

Palace still have two Premier League fixtures to fulfil before thinking about the meeting with Thomas Tuchel’s side, with full details of the semi-final now confirmed, as per the Eagles’ official website.

The Latest: Semi-final details

Woosnam took to Twitter on Friday morning, relaying the date and kick-off information for supporters.

Palace will take on Chelsea at Wembley on Sunday 17 April at 16:30, with Woosnam labelling the kick-off time as ‘appalling’ for Easter Sunday.

The Verdict: Not ideal

It would make sense for the game to commence earlier due to travel on what will be a busy day, but that won’t be the case for Palace fans making they way across Londin.

Liverpool and Manchester City meet on Saturday 16 April in a 15:30 kick-off, with both clubs also unhappy about having to play the semi-final in the capital due to travel restrictions from the north-west.

Hopefully, no Palace fans wanting to go to the game will miss out, with season ticket holders set to get first choice when tickets go on sale.

In other news: Another Palace star now wanted by Eddie Howe this summer; has same agent as 6 Newcastle players

A worrying Newcastle United update has emerged on former Brighton chief Dan Ashworth… 

What’s the talk?

Daily Mail journalist Craig Hope has revealed that the ex-FA supremo is set to be made to wait until after the summer transfer window to link up with the Magpies.

Ashworth left the Seagulls earlier this year and is being eyed up by the Toon to work with Eddie Howe to build the club moving forward.

Hope Tweeted: “Dan Ashworth could be made to wait until November before taking up NUFC sporting director role. Negotiations with Brighton continue but no progress yet. Club relaxed if Howe/Nickson/Staveley oversee summer transfers, as was case in Jan. Scouting meetings this wk.”

He added: “Told that Ashworth has a nine-month notice period and, as it stands, will be made to see it out. Brighton not making it easy for him to join Newcastle, as is their right.”

Fuming

This update will surely leave supporters fuming as this news comes as a big blow to the club and their plans heading into next season.

Whilst PIF may be ‘relaxed’ over the situation, having a cloud of doubt hovering over the sporting director role throughout the summer is not ideal.

Ashworth may have ideas about who he would like the club to be signing and what direction he wants the team to go in with Howe and that may not perfectly align with what Steve Nickson does before he arrives.

This means that decisions could be taken throughout the next window that the ex-Brighton chief then has to work around and look to rectify. It is a difficult situation for all parties involved and it will be frustrating for the club as they will need to navigate a second window in a row without a sporting director in place.

Whilst the Magpies were able to bring in the likes of Bruno Guimaraes, Matt Targett, Chris Wood, Dan Burn and Kieran Trippier, they also struggled towards the end of the window. Howe wanted a striker and an attacking midfielder on deadline day and the Toon failed to complete moves for Hugo Ekitike and Jesse Lingard as they left those particular pieces of business too late in the window.

This illustrates what can go wrong without a dedicated sporting director in place to assist Howe to get deals over the line. Therefore, supporters will be fuming that the club are now set go through another window in a similar fashion because of Ashworth’s notice period.

AND in other news, Howe can unearth a new “outstanding” £20m gem in NUFC’s rarely-seen Darsley Park star…

Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United face off against Wolves tonight as they return to Premier League action at St James’ Park.

The Magpies were left humbled last time out in the top flight as Tottenham smashed them 5-1 in north London, after Fabian Schar had given the Toon the lead with a fine free-kick.

Howe’s side have now lost three games in succession and they will be hoping to turn things around against Wolves in front of their own supporters.

How many changes will the 44-year-old make to the team from last Sunday? Here is our predicted starting XI…

We are predicting that he will make three alterations to the side, with Jamaal Lascelles, Jacob Murphy and Bruno Guimaraes all coming in.

Wolves typically play in a 3-4-2-1 or 3-5-2 formation and Howe may look to counter that by moving to a 3-5-2 of his own, particularly after the manner of the defeat last week.

This means that he will need to bring in another central defender to play alongside Dan Burn and Fabian Schar. In that case, Lascelles must come in as the middle centre-back in the three, as he is strong in his individual duels and can win headers in the box.

He has won an outstanding 75% of his aerial battles this season and averaged 4.8 clearances per game. This suggests that he will be perfect for the role, as he has the defensive quality to deal with crosses coming into the box, which is why he must start tonight.

With the change in formation, Murphy could come in to play at right wing-back. Javier Manquillo lost three of his five duels and only made one tackle and interception combined last Sunday, and he could now be dropped to the bench to make way for the former Norwich man because of his poor display in north London.

Finally, Guimaraes may come in to replace Joe Willock. The English gem is struggling with an injury and is a doubt for the game tonight, which means that his place in the middle of the park may be up for grabs.

The £40m man should start next to Jonjo Shelvey and Joelinton if the ex-Arsenal youngster misses out. He impressed upon coming off the bench against Spurs last week and deserves his chance to show what he can do from the start tonight. As per SofaScore, he won seven duels and four tackles and completed 96% of his attempted passes in the 5-1 defeat, showcasing his quality as a substitute.

Guimaraes has been dubbed as “exceptionally talented” by former Celtic manager Neil Lennon and he must line up in the middle of the park for Newcastle tonight.

AND in other news, Signed for free, now worth £9m: Ashley sealed his final NUFC gift in £35k-p/w “dream”…

Transfer insider Dean Jones has now dropped some worrying news on Allan Saint-Maximin from inside Newcastle United.

The Lowdown: £50m value

It has been reported that the St. James’ Park faithful would now be willing to sell Saint-Maximin in the summer, if an offer of £50m came in for him.

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He has been their second-best performer in the Premier League this season according to WhoScored, and so it seems strange that the North East club would be willing to let him go.

The Latest: Contract dispute

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones has shared that Saint-Maximin wants a pay rise on Tyneside as he believes that he is their ‘main man’, but the Magpies are ‘not planning’ to meet his demands at the moment:

“Saint-Maximin, he’s got four years left on his contract. And he wants a pay rise, and thinks he’s the main man in that team, and he was the main man in that team, he was the talisman.

“But, Newcastle don’t really see it that way going forward, and they’re not planning to meet the demands that he wants.”

The Verdict: Worrying

The fact that both parties do not seem like they will be able to come to an agreement is certainly worrying going forward.

Yes, Saint-Maximin still has four years left on his current deal, but the new owners risk him forcing his way out if he is unhappy with his situation.

The Frenchman is simply too important of a player to lose at this stage in the project, given the influence he has on the team – after all, no teammate has come close to his six man-of-the-match awards in the top flight, while he also averages more shots and dribbles per match than any other Toon player (WhoScored).

Nonetheless, they need to come to an agreement soon, or risk losing him in the summer.

In other news, find out which Van Dijk-like colossus NUFC have now sent scouts to watch here!

Nikola Vlasic, Lukasz Fabianski and Craig Dawson all struggled in West Ham’s 1-1 draw against Burnley.

It was a case of after the Lord Mayor’s show for the Hammers as David Moyes’ side suffered in their quest to put pressure on the Premier League top-four at the London Stadium following their European heroics in France against Lyon.

After an inauspicious start, the game was halted for a lengthy period so Ashley Westwood could receive treatment. When the contest got back underway, it was visiting striker Wout Weghorst who opened the scoring. Things could’ve been worse for the Irons before half-time as Maxwel Cornet missed from the penalty spot having been brought down by Lukasz Fabianski.

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Despite an improved performance in the second half and a goal from Tomas Soucek, Moyes’ men were unable to seal three points and the Europa League now seems like the most realistic route to the UEFA Champions League next season.

According to SofaScore, there were three West Ham players in particular who were particularly below par on the afternoon.

Vlasic 6.6/10

Yet another appearance seemed to pass the Croatian by before being replaced shortly after the hour mark.

Overall, the 24-year-old lost possession on 10 occasions, failed to complete a single dribble, gave away two fouls and only had 36 touches whilst on the pitch, with only four of his teammates having fewer.

Fabianski 6/10

The guilty party for the penalty in the first half and booked for the incident, albeit the 36-year-old Pole was relieved to see the subsequent spot-kick fired wide.

Fabianski ended the match with a passing accuracy of 11/14 (79%), giving the ball away cheaply three times, and perhaps most surprisingly ended the contest without making a single save. 

Dawson 6.7/10

Far from his exploits in France on Thursday night, Dawson failed to have his usual impact on proceedings on this occasion.

The 31-year-old lost possession 10 times, gave away two fouls and was only accurate with 39/49 (80%) of his passes.

In other news: French source earmarks West Ham ace for summer move! Find out more here.

Journalist Christian Falk has confirmed that Liverpool are interested in signing highly-rated Aberdeen right-back, Calvin Ramsay. 

The lowdown: Growing interest

The Reds have recently been linked with a move for the 18-year-old in a report from The Press and Journal.

A product of the youth system at Pittodrie Stadium, Ramsey made a senior debut in March 2021 before establishing himself as the first choice under Jim Goodwin.

Recently targeted by Manchester United, Leicester, Southampton, Tottenham and Leeds United, now an update has emerged from Germany regarding the Liverpool interest…

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The latest: Falk doubles down

Taking to Twitter, the head of football at reputable German outlet Bild confirmed that the Anfield club were indeed keen on the Scottish youth international.

He stated: “True. Jürgen Klopp is interested in Calvin Ramsey as a Backup for Trent Alexander-Arnold.”

The signing of the three-cap Scotland Under 21 starlet would be the second raid north of the border from the Reds following the capture of talented Celtic youngster Ben Doak.

The verdict: Get it done

This is a no-brainer for Liverpool, especially as current Trent Alexander-Arnold understudy, Neco Williams, edges towards a permanent move to newly-promoted Fulham.

Whilst usurping the 23-year-old phenomenon seems an impossible task, Jurgen Klopp already boasts impressive cover at left-back in the shape of Kostas Tsimikas and adding a similar option to rest and rotate Alexander-Arnold is an important next step this summer.

So far this season Ramsay – who boasts a range of impressive attacking attributes including crossing, key passes and set-pieces – has scored once and provided nine assists across 31 appearances across all competitions.

Previously, Aberdeen have reportedly demanded £3.75million from Serie A outfit Bologna for the teenager once described as ‘brilliant’ by Stephen Glass, a fee that should provide no issues for Liverpool.

In other news, the finance expert details potential Liverpool windfall. Find out more here.