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Premier League clubs have their eyes on Celtic winger Liel Abada, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano. 

The Lowdown: Abada’s time at Celtic

Celtic signed the winger back in July 2021 from Maccabi Petah Tikva on a five-year deal worth a reported fee of £3.5m.

Since then, the Israel attacker has gone on to make 78 appearances for the Parkhead club across all competitions, the latest of which being in their recent 2-1 SPFL win over Livingston, where he assisted both goals.

With domestic football now on the go again following the World Cup in Qatar, the Celtic star has caught the attention of clubs in England.

The Latest: Romano’s Abada update

Josip Juranovic is expected to be the subject of heavy speculation over the coming weeks after his displays in Qatar with Croatia, and now Romano has revealed there is serious interest in Abada as well.

“Premier League clubs are following Liel Abada for the future. Talented winger born in 2001, has scored 24 goals and also provided 13 assists in 18 months. Celtic consider Abada as key player and they want to keep him at all costs, even if PL clubs are tracking him.”

The Verdict: Celtic must keep hold of Abada

As well as scoring seven goals and delivering four assists in his 17 league appearances this season, Abada has racked up more shots on target (19) than any other Celtic player, as well as having the highest percentage of shots on target (59.4%) at the club.

This highlights how much of a useful attacking figure he is for Celtic and presumably shows why some clubs in England have their eyes on him.

In our view, the Hoops should have no intention of allowing the winger to leave the club any time soon as his goals and assists have proved how much of an impressive player he is at still a fairly young age.

Moving forward, unless Abada tells the Celtic hierarchy he wants to leave, the board should be holding out for the foreseeable future as his current form will only see his price tag rise even further.

Manchester United are in the race to sign one of Europe’s most talented young forwards, with a foray into the transfer market expected in the forthcoming window. 

What’s the word?

According toCorriere dello Sport, United boss Erik ten Hag is among the growing list of managers interested in the services of Dusan Vlahovic, who has also garnered attention from fellow Premier League giants Arsenal and Chelsea. 

Despite only signing for Juventus in a£66.6mdeal from Fiorentina in January 2021, the forward is open to a move away from the Old Lady, who have failed to win the past two league titles afternine in a row from 2012 to 2020, also sittingten pointsbehind leaders Napoli this term. 

With the Red Devils searching for a new striker following theacrimonious departureof Cristiano Ronaldo last month, who agreed a mutual termination of his contract following an explosive interview with Piers Morgan, Vlahovic could fit the profile of centre-forward that the club are seeking. 

United’s next Van Nistelrooy 

Juventus are understandably said to be reluctant to wave goodbye to their most coveted offensive asset, but with the Turin club currently plagued byfinancial difficulties, an enticing offer might be too good to refuse. 

Vlahovic has been in fine form in 2022/23, scoring seven goals and setting up two more from15appearances across all competitions. Last season, departing Fiorentina for Juventus midway trhough, the 22-year-old scored 29 goals and supplied six assists from 45 appearances, alerting the major players across the continent to his prowess.

Should Ten Hag surge towards a deal for the phenomenon, he could bring a potent attacking force to the the Premier League, with the19-capSerbian – scoring ten goals for his country – already demonstrating an innate ability in front of goal which sets him head and shoulders above most positional peers. 

FBrefranks Vlahovic within the top 19% of forwards for rate of non-penalty goals over the past year, while also highligting his relentless pressure in the opposition penalty box by ranking him within the top 11% for total shots. 

The marksmanship of the “monster” (as dubbed by his former coach Ivan Tomic) certainly bears a resemblance to a former Old Trafford striking sensation in Ruud van Nistelrooy, who etched his name into Premier League folklore with his devastating clinical ability, earning a reputation as one of the best goal-poachers in the game. 

The deadly Dutchman bagged 150 goals and 25 assists across219outings for the Manchester giants, winning the Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup during his time at the club. 

Should Vlahovic channel that aura and transfer his abundant talent to the Premier League, United might just acquire a forward who could emulate the success of one of their deadliest-ever strikers.

Newcastle United have been touted to potentially take advantage of recent behind-the-scenes rumblings at Juventus and make a move to sign Adrien Rabiot. 

The Lowdown: Chaos at Juventus

Earlier this week, it was revealed that the entire board at Juventus has stepped down from their positions, with a statement saying that they had “considered the centrality and relevance of pending legal and accounting issues”.

The Toon were linked with a move for Rabiot, who has impressed for France in the World Cup in Qatar, during the summer transfer window but ultimately didn’t sign him.

Now that the January transfer window is on the horizon, it appears that the midfielder has been mentioned with a move to St James’ Park once again.

The Lowdown: Newcastle touted to make potential Rabiot move

According to a recent report from Chronicle Live, as a result of the recent behind-the-scenes chaos at Juventus, this could see Newcastle pounce and launch a move for Rabiot.

The report also mentions Moise Kean and Weston McKennie as players previously mentioned with moves to St James’ Park.

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The Verdict: Would be a smart move by Newcastle

Focusing on Rabiot, his performances this season have shown why launching a potential move for him in January would be a smart one from Newcastle.

In addition to scoring three goals and providing two assists across his 11 Serie A appearances for the Old Lady this term, the Frenchman has made the third-highest number of passes into the final third of the pitch (32) at Juventus, also recording the fifth-highest combined total of tackles and interceptions (33).

In the World Cup so far, the 27-year-old’s performances have earned him an overall rating of 7.36/10 from WhoScored, higher than the likes of Ousmane Dembele (7.21/10), Dayot Upamecano (7.11/10) and Aurelien Tchouameni (7.03/10).

Taking all of this into account, if an opportunity to secure a deal for Rabiot arises during the January transfer window, this is definitely something that Newcastle should explore.

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has had plenty of success in the transfer market in his relatively short time with the Scottish giants so far.

The likes of Cameron Carter-Vickers, Jota and Kyogo Furuhashi have all come through the door, since the Australian arrived, and thrived in Glasgow, becoming key players on the pitch.

Another Celtic boss who had his fair share of glory in transfer windows was Neil Lennon, who has had two separate spells in charge of the club.

During his first time in the dugout, the Northern Irishman brought in English striker Gary Hooper as one of his first signings. The attacker joined the club from Scunthorpe for £2.4m in the summer of 2010.

He subsequently went on to enjoy a phenomenal career with Celtic as he plundered 82 goals and provided 30 assists in 138 matches in all competitions. This included 63 strikes in 95 Premiership outings and seven goals across various European competitions.

The marksman, who midfielder Elliott Bennett once dubbed “clinical”, scored 19 goals or more in all three of his seasons in the Scottish top-flight for the Hoops and was eventually sold to then-Premier League side Norwich City for a fee of £5m in the summer of 2013.

Whilst it appeared to be a huge loss at the time, given his fantastic record for the club, it turned out to be a blinder of a decision by Celtic and Lennon as his career failed to kick on at the top level.

Hooper only scored six goals in 32 Premier League matches for the Canaries as they were relegated down to the Championship, which shows that he was unable to replicate his goalscoring success in Scotland down in England.

He did produce 12 goals and six assists in 30 appearances as Norwich won promotion back to the top flight in the following campaign but did not do enough to convince Alex Neil that he was ready to play at the top level.

The ex-Celtic man only played twice in the Premier League at the start of 2015/16 before being shipped out on loan to Sheffield Wednesday and they have turned out to be his last outings in a major European league to date.

After an 89-game spell with the Owls, Hooper played for Kerala Blasters in India and Wellington Phoenix in Australia before joining Omonia Nikosia in Cyprus earlier this year, linking up with Lennon once again.

Hooper’s career after leaving Celtic shows that they played a blinder by selling him for £5m as he was never able to kick on and become a regular goalscorer at the top level.

West Bromwich Albion have opened talks to make Jody Morris their new manager, according to reports in the last 48 hours.

The Lowdown: Morris profiled

The Championship side have been on the lookout to find Steve Bruce’s successor following his departure earlier in the month, with a shortlist of candidates being compiled to take over at the Hawthorns.

The 43-year-old was previously Frank Lampard’s assistant at both Derby County and Chelsea, but has been out of work ever since leaving Stamford Bridge last year.

His only job as the number one came with Chelsea’s U18 side.

The Latest: West Brom enter Morris negotiations

According to Football Insider, West Brom are ‘in talks’ with Morris regarding the managerial vacancy, and he’s believed to be one of those ‘in the frame’ to take the job.

The former midfielder has admitted that he is looking for a return to the dugout, but would have to be ‘100% convinced’ by the presented opportunity.

The Baggies are ‘hoping’ to make an official appointment before this weekend’s game against Millwall.

The Verdict: Risk worth taking

Morris hasn’t held a senior managerial position before so this would be a huge risk for the hierarchy, but it could well be one worth taking given his record at academy level.

The Hammersmith-born coach won an outstanding 53 of his 65 matches in charge of Chelsea’s U18s (82%), averaging 2.55 points per game (Transfermarkt).

Morris also led his side to four trophies, taking home the English FA Youth Cup and English Youth League winner titles both twice, so will know what it takes to be successful in the Midlands.

Crystal Palace will host Leeds United at Selhurst Park on Sunday afternoon and Patrick Vieira will be hoping his team can pick up all three points from the clash after a poor start in the Premier League.

However, their chances won’t be boosted by some fresh injury news emerging out of the club.

What’s the latest?

According to Football.London journalist Robert Warlow, Joachim Andersen is a doubt for the game against Leeds this weekend.

Writing in an article for the publication, Warlow claimed that the Palace defender’s calf injury picked up in training ahead of the Chelsea clash could keep him out of the team for another week, meaning the game this weekend could come too soon for the player.

Andersen joins Nathaniel Clyne, James McArthur and Jack Butland on the long list of Vieira’s injury concerns.

Vieira should be worried

There is no doubt that Patrick Vieira should be worried about not having Andersen back in the team for the Leeds fixture, as the talented centre-back has been a standout performer for the Eagles already this season.

Andersen has the highest SofaScore rating in the entire Crystal Palace squad (7.38) due to his incredible defensive contributions over his six Premier League outings so far.

The Danish defender has scored one goal, making 1.5 interceptions, 1.7 tackles and a whopping 9.8 clearances per game, as well as winning 71% of his duels so far.

Not only that, Andersen currently ranks first for pass interceptions in his own half and ranks fourth for pass interceptions in total over the entire Premier League, proving further that he is a huge miss for Palace.

Vieira hailed the 26-year-old centre-back last season, outlining what makes him such a valuable asset to the London club.

The Frenchman commented: “He is massively important.”

“When you want to have possession and you have a centre-back who is really comfortable having the ball at his feet it’s quite important.”

The Dane is clearly a player who can put Palace on the front foot, laying the ball calmly into the feet of the young and attacking talents who blossom in the club’s starting XI.

Indeed, it is clear that Andersen this season continues to be a hugely significant part of the team as they lost to Chelsea without him last weekend. Thus, it will give Leeds United’s attacking threat an advantage on Sunday too, so getting him back to his best as soon as possible will be crucial for Palace.

Crystal Palace have established themselves as a Premier League mainstay since their promotion in 2013, finishing no lower than 15th place in the table under managers such as Roy Hodgson, Sam Allardyce, and Alan Pardew.

The club enticed some big names to play at Selhurst Park in order to improve the Palace side, with the likes of Yahan Cabaye, Andros Townsend, and Steve Mandanda playing for the team. although it was another Pardew signing which drained the club’s finances massively and didn’t represent good value for money…

Pardew had a Palace howler over Benteke

Pardew brought Benteke to the club in the summer of 2016 for a club record fee of £32m – £27m upfront followed by an additional £5m in potential add-ons. It came after the Belgian striker failed to settle at Liverpool, scoring only ten goals in 42 appearances in all competitions.

It was clear he wouldn’t be guaranteed a starting spot under Jurgen Klopp and the Anfield side would have been ecstatic are recouping most of the fee they paid Villa only a year earlier.

Fast forward six years and Benteke didn’t exactly have the desired input that Pardew or any subsequent Palace managers had hoped for.

Although it didn’t start off too badly, with 17 goals scored, but this was as good as it would get for the striker. Benteke would only score another 20 goals for the club in the following five seasons.

All in all, he netted 37 times for the Eagles, at a cost of £865k per goal, hardly the return the club expected when they signed him from Liverpool.

His finishing was even dubbed “woeful” by journalist Lee Ryder following a match against Newcastle United and proved to be the lowest point during his six-year stint.

The 31-year-old ended his six-year spell at the club this summer by making the move across the pond to MLS side DC United, who are managed by former England captain Wayne Rooney.

He became the club’s highest-paid player in their history, overtaking Rooney during his stint in 2019, and the move represents a chance for the Belgian to find his scoring boots again.

Pardew made a big howler with the striker, but Vieira looks much more assured in the transfer market compared to the Englishman and Palace might reap the rewards over the next few seasons.

West Ham United are interested in a deal to bring Scott McTominay to the London Stadium this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by talkSPORT, who claim that – following Manchester United’s £70m signing of Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro – the quartet of West Ham, Everton, Leicester City and Newcastle United have all registered their interest in the 25-year-old Scotland international, who is expected to lose his place in Erik ten Hag’s starting XI at the expense of the Brazilian.

However, previous reports have suggested that the Dutchman would not be open to parting with the United academy graduate prior to September’s transfer deadline, with the former Ajax head coach said to view the midfielder as a pivotal player in his squad. It is unclear, though, as to whether or not Casemiro’s arrival will have changed the 52-year-old’s stance.

Big mistake

It is undeniable that McTominay would be a solid addition to David Moyes’ current options in the middle of the park. However, considering the 25-year-old’s underwhelming performances so far this season, in addition to the asking price that United would likely demand for a player who has a current market valuation of £59m, a move for the Scot could well prove to be a big mistake.

Indeed, over his two Premier League appearances in 2022/23, the £60k-per-week midfielder has been in particularly poor form. He earned a hugely disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.3 for his display in United’s 2-1 loss to Brighton & Hove Albion, followed by a 6.8 rating for his efforts in the embarrassing 4-0 defeat to Brentford last weekend.

Following the loss to the Seagulls, legendary Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes singled out the 34-cap international for his performance, stating of the 25-year-old: “Scott McTominay was always trying to run with the ball, ridiculous.

“The quality in the middle of the pitch was really poor. The quality in the middle of the pitch was nowhere near good enough but we’ve seen that for the last few years with these two players. With Fred and McTominay, [Ten Hag] is going to have to go with just one of them but even one of them is probably too many.

“Fred gives the ball away all the time and McTominay is trying to run with the ball constantly and then gives it away. Pass it to your best players! It’s not that difficult. It’s criminal on a day like today.”

As such, with West Ham also having been linked with the likes of Teun Koopmeiners and Hans Vanaken – both of whom would more than likely cost significantly less than McTominay – in recent weeks, it is clear to see that there are much more suitable options for Moyes to pursue this summer.

That leads us to believe that a bid for the Manchester United midfielder would be a big mistake by the east London club.

Tottenham Hotspur chief Fabio Paratici remains keen on Adama Traore…

What’s the word?

That’s according to Daily Express journalist Ryan Taylor, who claims that the Spain international remains on the radar of the Spurs sporting director, having tried to sign him in January.

“Paratici is a huge fan, he tried to sign him when he was at Juventus, Conte obviously wanted him in January before he got the Barcelona move,” he said to GIVEMESPORT.

“But at the moment, there’s been surprisingly little interest in him.”

A versatile option

Perhaps the north Londoners should turn that interest into something formal as Traore could add a lot to manager Antonio Conte’s squad, given the fact that he can play on the right flank, up top and at wing-back, too.

Spurs are considerably well stocked at right wing-back right now following the arrival of Djed Spence but doubts will still linger over the futures of Matt Doherty and Emerson Royal, who by all accounts had an excellent game in their Premier League opener against Southampton on Saturday, though that is just one game and he has proven to be inconsistent as seen last campaign.

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Further up the field, Dejan Kulusevski doesn’t really have much backup – Lucas Moura may well no longer be good enough, whilst Richarlison is more a left-sided or striker option.

During his time in the English top-flight at Wolverhampton Wanderers, the 26-year-old powerhouse has received plenty of praise for his unique physical attributes.

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand once dubbed him a “machine” during BT Sport punditry duties (via the Birmingham Mail), whilst former teammate Carles Gil has previously deemed him “unstoppable.”

Also lauded as an “animal” by his former Barcelona boss Xavi, Traore is thought to be available for as little as £10m, as per Football Insider, which would make him a very low-risk signing for Conte and Paratici.

His threat is undeniable, not just given the aforementioned praise, as the Spaniard ranks inside the top 1% of his positional peers across Europe for dribbles completed (5.24 per 90), as well as the top 3% for progressive carries (10.49) per 90, via FBref.

Whilst unlikely to be a starter right now, Traore could become a wonderful and versatile depth option for the Lilywhites as they look to compete across all competitions, including the Champions League, this season.

As such, Paratici’s admiration must turn into a bid as Spurs look to make a seventh splash of the summer.

AND in other news, Paratici could sign Conte his own Frenkie de Jong in Spurs swoop for “incredible” 5 ft 10 gem…

West Ham United insider and reliable source ExWHUemployee has shared a promising update on the club’s chances of signing Napoli star Piotr Zielinski this summer.

The Lowdown: Moyes set for busy end?

Following the official signings of Nayef Aguerd, Flynn Downes, Alphonse Areola and now Gianluca Scamacca, with the latter man putting an end to David Moyes’ long striker search, it appears the Irons aren’t finished.

Aiming to keep pace with the Premier League’s elite, it is believed that West Ham are attempting to make more new additions with the likes of Filip Kostic (Eintracht Frankfurt) and Amadou Onana (Lille) on their list of targets.

It is believed they have been working on both players in recent weeks with Zielinski, as per reports, coming as another player West Ham have held discussions over signing.

The Latest: Ex shares Zielinski update…

Now, writing on his Patreon, Ex has shared an update on the club’s chances of signing Napoli’s creative midfielder.

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The West Ham insider says more talks are scheduled and ‘will continue’ for Zielinski, and what’s more, the Rush Green side are ‘getting much closer to an agreement’ and ‘hope’ to get it over the line ‘as well’.

The Verdict: Make the move?

The 28-year-old, having drawn comparisons to the likes of Kevin De Bruyne for his silky style and vision, has been called a ‘beautiful footballer’ by former Poland coach Paulo Sousa.

The Guardian have also described Zielinski as an ‘architect’ in midfield and the international ace could potentially arrive with that degree of composure and creativity – gifting Moyes another useful option and providing more attacking impetus from the middle of the park.