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The January transfer window is heading into the final stages and Rangers have been fairly busy in the market so far this month.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Ross Wilson have struck deals to sign James Sands and John Souttar, joining on loan and on a pre-contract deal respectively, and they have sold Nathan Patterson for a club-record deal to Premier League club Everton.

It remains to be seen if they are able to get any more moves over the line in the final days of the window, but they are still being linked with other players to bolster the squad heading into the second half of the campaign.

Prso 2.0

One player who has been touted with a switch to Ibrox this month is Rijeka attacker Robert Muric, formerly of Dutch giants Ajax.

In an article from Bulgarian outlet Tema Sports detailing Rangers’ interest in Ludogorets forward Kiril Despodov, Muric is mentioned as one of numerous players the Glasgow club are considering as they seek to bolster their options in the final third of the pitch.

Rangers can find their new wing wizard by snapping up the 25-year-old, who has shown impressive quality for his current club in recent years with 34 goals and 23 assists in 105 games – a goal contribution every 1.84 matches on average.

A Croatian forward who can score and create goals… remind you of anyone? Van Bronckhorst could land Dado Prso 2.0 for the Gers by sealing a deal to sign the Rijeka winger this month.

Prso racked up 35 goals and 16 assists in 116 games for Rangers during his time with the club. This included 31 goals and 15 assists in 93 Premiership outings – a goal contribution every 2.03 games on average.

The Gers could duly find their next Croatian wing wizard by signing Muric, who has a similar record in terms of goal contributions for Rijeka as Prso had for the Scottish giants. If the former is able to adapt to the Premiership and make a similar level of impact in the final third, then he could be a fantastic signing.

Fans would surely love to see a player running down the wing at Ibrox with the threat of being able to score and set up goals on a regular basis. The £2.7m-rated gem could give Van Bronckhorst another option to call upon in his frontline, so Rangers must look to snap him up before the end of the month.

AND in other news, Rangers can finally replace Gilmour by signing “phenomenal” 18y/o who “has everything”…

After a decent start to their Premier League campaign, West Ham United have stumbled in recent weeks with just one win in their previous six top-flight games.

With the January transfer window opening in a matter of days, journalist Paul Brown has dropped a claim on a potential piece of business that the Hammers could look to execute as they aim to end the season in the top four of the Premier League table.

What’s the news?

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Brown was discussing the possibility of West Ham making a move to try and sign Sparta Prague striker Adam Hlozek, with whom the club have been linked in recent weeks, in the upcoming window

He said: “It might be that kind of profile they look for. Yeah, I could see that. That kind of transfer being one they do more than [Andrea] Belotti or a [Anthony] Martial who would cost a lot of money and expects to play every week.”

As a product of Sparta’s youth academy, Hlozek has gone on to make 111 senior appearances for the club across all competitions, scoring 33 goals and providing 33 assists along the way, which is very impressive considering that he’s only 19.

Even though he may not have the experience of the likes of Belotti (238 appearances for Torino) or Martial (268 appearances for Manchester United), the teenager has still shown what an exciting goalscoring prospect he is.

Fans could be buzzing

With West Ham having signed the likes of Tomas Soucek, Vladimir Coufal and Alex Kral, all of whom come from the Czech Republic, Hlozek could be the next in line to follow in their footsteps and become a potential future star at the London Stadium.

If West Ham were to sign the teenager in January ahead of the likes of Martial and Belotti, the youngster could be just what the Irons need given how Michail Antonio hasn’t scored since their 1-0 win over Tottenham back in October, especially if the Czech youngster can hit the ground running in a goalscoring sense.

Moving forward, with January around the corner, the Hammers should definitely explore the possibility of signing Hlozek to see if he can relieve the scoring burden on sole centre-forward Antonio. A coup like this would leave the fan base buzzing, not least when looking at the 19-year-old’s excellent scoring record.

In other news: GSB could solve Moyes’ big issue at West Ham with move for “unbelievable” £19k-p/w “monster”

Newcastle United chief Nick Hammond is reportedly now preparing an offer to sign Jordan Veretout in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Window opens

The winter window has now officially opened, and Hammond is sure to be a busy man.

Hired as a transfer consultant on a short-term deal, he will oversee who comes in and who goes out at St James’ Park (Sky Sports) as the northeast club look to find the right players in order to try and help them get out of the relegation zone come the end of the season.

Nonetheless, the quality of player that they can attract will be questioned, given their current predicament.

The Latest: Veretout offer

As per Foot Mercato, Newcastle are now ‘preparing an offer’ to sign Veretout, who is an ‘indisputable holder’ under Jose Mourinho at AS Roma.

It is not clear how much he would cost, but he is currently rated at £27m by Transfermarkt.

The Verdict: Upgrade

Veretout would certainly be an upgrade on Eddie Howe’s options in the middle of the park.

The France international is averaging more interceptions (1.1), key passes (two) and crosses (1.2) per game than Isaac Hayden, Jonjo Shelvey and Sean Longstaff in their respective domestic leagues so far this season, not to mention the four goals and five assists that he has in Serie A (WhoScored).

He also has experience of playing in the Premier League before with Aston Villa, so he should have no problems in adapting to the division if he goes to Newcastle.

In other news, NUFC have a ‘definite interest’ in signing this England international

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has plenty to think about ahead of his side’s trip to Manchester United this evening.

The Gunners bounced back from their defeat to Liverpool with a win over rock-bottom Newcastle United on Saturday, meaning they have lost just one of their last 11 matches across all competitions.

And now they face an out-of-sorts Red Devils outfit with a place inside the top four on the line.

United’s new interim boss Ralf Rangnick isn’t likely to be in the dugout, so it’ll be Michael Carrick taking the team once again but what sort of lineup will the Spaniard select to try and defeat him?

Here’s what we are predicting ahead of kick-off…

There could be just two changes from the win at the Emirates over the weekend.

One major call facing Arteta is at left-back, does he stick or twist with Nuno Tavares after a pretty impressive display against the Magpies? Kieran Tierney has been pushing for a return and that could come in this fixture.

His experience in big-game ties should see him given the nod over the young Portuguese. He will go into an otherwise unchanged backline alongside Gabriel, Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu, in front of shot-stopper Aaron Ramsdale.

The engine room should remain the same with Granit Xhaka still on the sidelines, so Albert Sambi Lokonga keeps his spot next to Thomas Partey.

However, further up the pitch, there could be an enforced switch with Bukayo Saka a big injury doubt. He could be replaced by Gabriel Martinelli, as he was when substituted on Saturday, with Martin Odegaard and Emile Smith Rowe there to provide further support.

The 20-year-old Brazilian, who was dubbed “very special” by former caretaker boss Freddie Ljungberg has found game time hard to come by, being restricted to 185 top-flight minutes, so this is a huge chance to impress.

Pierre-Emerick Aubamyang has a case to be dropped but it’s likely that Arteta sticks with his skipper.

AND in other news, Arsenal’s next Hale End gem is shades of Cesc Fabregas…

Celtic will battle Hibernian in the race to sign Sligo Rovers forward Johnny Kenny, according to Irish Fan TV founder Paul Nealon.

The Lowdown: Kenny profiled

Kenny, described as a ‘really important’ signing by Rovers boss Liam Buckley earlier this year, is 18 years of age and is an out and out centre-forward.

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He’s under contract with his Irish employers until 2024 and scored 11 times in 33 appearances in 2020/21.

The Hoops were linked with Kenny over the summer, and it seems as if they are back in for the teenager heading into the January window.

The Latest: Nealon’s post

Nealon took to Twitter late on Tuesday evening to provide an update on Kenny’s future.

He claimed that the Hoops and Hibs, who will meet in the League Cup final on Sunday, are set to ‘battle it out’ for Kenny ‘over the next few days’.

The Verdict: Fourth January target?

Celtic aren’t hanging around when it comes to putting plans in place for the winter window, and it seems as if Kenny could be the club’s fourth January target.

Ange Postecoglou is looking to bring in Japanese trio Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Yosuke Ideguchi, so Kenny could well be the fourth addition of 2022.

Should Celtic pip Hibs in the race for Kenny, they could have a future star on their hands, with the youngster already finding the back of the net in senior football for fun.

Either way, the fact the club are prepared in advance and acting fast for the January window should have fans breathing a sigh of relief after the recent years of tumultuous transfer business under Peter Lawwell and Dominic McKay.

In other news: Celtic set to lose millions on colossus who wants out of Parkhead in January. 

Sky Sports journalist Keith Downie has revealed the latest on Newcastle United’s talks with Eddie Howe to become their new manager.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent days had pointed towards Villareal manager Unai Emery being the man the new owners wanted in place for this weekend’s Premier League game against Brighton, but after that fell through on Wednesday, attentions have quickly towards elsewhere.

Writing on Twitter, Downie said: “Talks are on-going between Newcastle and Eddie Howe over their vacant manager’s position. Howe is under serious consideration following Unai Emery’s rejection yesterday. Understand he also held talks previously with Newcastle pre-takeover.”

Newcastle’s search could finally be over

In what has been a roller-coaster of a couple of days, it appears the Magpies finally look set to end this managerial saga and appoint Howe as the man to permanently replace Steve Bruce in the dugout at St James’ Park.

While missing out on Emery is no doubt a big blow to the new ownership, getting someone in place for the clash against Brighton was absolutely critical.

Though the Premier League campaign may still be in its early days, the Tyneside club’s wretched start has seen them firmly fixed in the bottom three of the table with just four points – they remain six points off safety.

Howe’s appointment would at least give the Newcastle players and the fans as a whole a sense of relief and clarity about things going forward, instead of the state of uncertainty currently clouding the club.

Though Howe may not be everybody’s first-choice, the fact Downie claims that talks are ongoing with the former Bournemouth boss and that he is “under serious consideration” should delight fans who must be getting tired of all this managerial drama already. All they want is a manager, and that dream could finally be realised in the coming days.

Meanwhile, Craig Hope has dropped a late-night twist on Newcastle’s manager hunt…

Many Wolves fans have been left delighted as the Midlands club dropped an inspiring update involving Conor Coady.

As shared by Wolves Foundation on their Twitter page, Coady surprised a 13-year-old fan at Molineux as part of Anti-Bullying Week, after hearing that he was having a tough time at school.

The video was then shared by the Wanderers, who captioned their own post with ‘Our captain. What a human’, in reference to the central defender.

Having played in no fewer than 288 games in total over all competitions across seven consecutive seasons at WWFC, including being a key part of the team that got promoted up to the Premier League from the Championship (Transfermarkt), Coady has well and truly established himself as a modern day legend at the club.

Thus, it is no surprise to see the supporters swooning over his latest actions – because who doesn’t appreciate some heartwarming content from their skipper?

Wolves fans on Coady news

These Wanderers shared their thoughts as the club posted on Twitter, with one even going as far as to claim that it was ‘fantastic’:

“My heart”

Credit: @_ahxle

“There isn’t a better bloke in football than him.”

Credit: @Georgedent10

“Wow!!”

Credit: @stuartspence8

“The best captain we’ve had in my lifetime. Such a genuine nice bloke. Time for anyone”

Credit: @SteC9911

“Cutting onions here”

Credit: @AdamMB25551706

“This is fantastic!”

Credit: @PhilBethell

In other news, find out who Bruno Lage is now keen to sign here!

Everton have received a potentially significant boost after it was revealed Abdoulaye Doucoure’s injury isn’t as bad as first feared.

What’s the word?

The influential 28-year-old, who has been one of the Toffees’ standout performers in the opening weeks of the new campaign, picked up a foot problem in the 1-0 defeat against West Ham United last time out.

Originally, reports suggested Doucoure could be sidelined for up to seven weeks due to the stress damage in his metatarsal, but The Athletic’s Everton reporter Patrick Boyland has now provided a positive update on the situation.

He tweeted: “It is hoped that Doucoure will only be out for 5/6 weeks – better than feared but still a big blow… Our understanding is that it’s a very similar injury to one sustained last season but the issue appears less severe this time.”

Everton fans should be delighted

News that Doucoure could return to action sooner than first thought should leave Everton fans feeling delighted, given his importance to Rafa Benitez’s side.

The Frenchman has been in fine form at the start of the season, bagging two goals and providing four assists in just eight Premier League outings – bettering his output from last term already.

Boyland went into further detail regarding the box-to-box dynamo’s injury status in his report, stating: “The Athletic understands that the issue, stress damage in the metatarsal, could cause Doucoure to miss up to six weeks, although thankfully it is not likely to require surgery.”

But despite the good news regarding Doucoure, Benitez will still be concerned over his engine room options while the 6-foot maestro is on the treatment table.

Fellow midfielders Andre Gomes and Fabian Delph will leave the Blues extremely short of options in the engine room when Watford visit Goodison Park over the weekend.

It means the likes of Tom Davies, Jean-Philippe Gbamin and Tyler Onyango will have to step up in Doucoure’s absence, gifting the youngsters a rare chance to start and subsequently impress.

And, in other news…Everton suffer potential injury setback after Doucoure, Benitez surely devastated 

Celtic centre-back Osaze Urhoghide may seek a loan move away from Parkhead in the New Year, according to The Scottish Sun.

The Lowdown: Urhoghide’s struggles

Urhoghide was actually the club’s first signing following Ange Postecoglou’s appointment, with the Hoops boss labelling the defender as ‘ambitious’.

However, the 21-year-old, who rejected moves to the Premier League to sign for the Hoops, is yet to make a senior appearance in green and white and has had to make do with a place on the bench at the very best.

The 6 foot 1 beast had been a regular for Sheffield Wednesday prior to joining Celtic, and it now seems as if he may look to depart on a temporary basis to gain first-team football.

The Latest: Loan exit?

The Scottish Sun shared a story on Monday evening, looking at Urhoghide and Liam Shaw.

When it came to the pair, they suggested they’re not yet at the levels of those ahead of them in Postecoglou’s pecking order and could push for a loan exit if their situations remain unchanged.

The Verdict: Best for all involved?

Urhoghide, the senior of the pair mentioned, could do with playing first-team football following his breakthrough at Hillsborough last season, so a loan exit in January may suit all parties.

He’s yet to get going at Parkhead, so a change of scenery for the second half of the campaign and a run of games could benefit the centre-back ahead of the 2022/23 season.

Urhoghide is battling the likes of Carl Starfelt, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Stephen Welsh, Liam Scales and possibly Christopher Jullien soon for a place in the side, so on that basis, a loan exit could be a shrewd call.

In other news: ‘Frustrating’ injury news for ‘consistent’ Celtic regular emerges; he may now miss 16 games. 

Taking to Twitter, Fichajes reporter Ekrem Konur has made a interesting Tottenham Hotspur transfer claim involving Fiorentina striker Dusan Vlahovic.

The Lowdown: Vlahovic chased by Spurs…

Towards the end of the summer transfer window, reports indicated that La Viola’s star forward was very much a wanted man at Spurs.

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Indeed, talks were apparently held over a move for the Serbian powerhouse and there are claims that a bid was even made to bring him to north London by managing director Fabio Paratici.

Now, Konur has shared some news on Vlahovic in another update involving Tottenham.

The Latest: Konur drops interesting Spurs transfer claim…

Taking to his social media, the Fichajes journalist has made an interesting out-of-window claim with Spurs ‘preparing’ an offer to sign him.

The Turkish reporter says that the Lilywhites and Paratici are currently plotting an eight-figure bid of £30 million for Vlahovic despite some reports indicating he could cost over double that amount (Calciomercato.it).

It appears Spurs are planning to play low ball with the 21-year-old still yet to officially extend his stay with Fiorentina.

The Verdict: Certain rejection…

If Tottenham do submit an opening bid that low, we believe it is almost certain to get rejected considering how well he performed in Italy last year.

Vlahovic bagged 21 goals in Serie A alone over 2020/2021, with Italian football expert Conor Clancy calling him a ‘really exciting player’ when he spoke exclusively to The Transfer Tavern.

£30m is an optimistic first offer to say the very least for one of Europe’s hottest young strikers.

In other news: Spurs now want ‘outstanding’ 29 y/o who Pochettino wanted to make one of his highest earners, find out more here.