Newcastle United are looking to mount a challenge for the upper echelons of the Premier League and could turn to a talented striker to help their case.
Newcastle set to open talks over Bruno Guimaraes extension
While bringing in new players is ultra important for Eddie Howe, retaining key assets is also something the former Bournemouth boss will be keen to perform to guarantee his side put their best foot forward in the top-flight.
With that in mind, journalist Pete O’Rourke told Football Insider that the Brazil international will hold discussions with the club about putting pen to paper on an extension.
He stated: “As I said, Guimaraes seems like he’s happy at Newcastle. We know that Newcastle are very happy with him. I would imagine there’ll be discussions potentially to be held over a new contract to see if they can keep him on Tyneside as well, but a lot will depend on how Newcastle are doing and performing.
“If they’re competing in the Champions League, I don’t see any reason why Guimaraes would push for a move away.”
Forming his supply line, Nick Woltemade is still settling in to life on Tyneside and Yoane Wissa has been ruled out through injury, leaving Howe short of options in the final third and reliant on William Osula as an alternative.
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Alexander Isak’s departure has left a hole to fill through the middle, and supporters wouldn’t be too surprised to see another option added to the pack if Wissa continues to struggle with his fitness after signing from Brentford.
Ultimately, there is a long season to come, and the Magpies need to go with what they’ve got for now, but they are already reportedly making plans to enact a January transfer splash.
Newcastle eyeing Cruziero striker Kaio Jorge
According to Gavea News via NUFC Blog, Newcastle are plotting a move for Cruziero forward Kaio Jorge, and they could look to submit a £35 million offer for the Brazil international, even though he is said to be happy in his homeland for the time being.
West Ham United are also in the race for his signature after a return of 20 goals and six assists in 35 matches across all competitions for the former Juventus hitman.
Despite his time in Italy not going to plan, Jorge is pushing to be selected within Brazil’s World Cup squad and could be an ideal option to add firepower after the Geordies’ struggles to score regularly across the early portion of this term.
Eintracht Frankfurt saw a £30 million move for Newcastle striker Osula fall through during the summer, hinting that he may be a desirable asset to sell if he can continue producing, as it feels unlikely Howe would run with four strikers if he were to make a move for Jorge.
Either way, the Magpies retain a squad packed full of talent, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see PIF try and add to that in the near future should circumstances align.
Fifties for Robson and Holden but Middlesex fall away from strong position to post 260
ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay04-Apr-2025
Tom Aspinwall finished with a four-wicket haul•Getty Images
Lancashire 68 for 0 trail Middlesex 260 (Robson 70, Holden 69, Aspinwall 4-32) by 192 runsRookie seamers Tom Aspinwall and Ollie Sutton launched Lancashire’s bid for an immediate return to the top flight in positive fashion by bowling out Middlesex for 260 on the opening day at Lord’s.Relegated to Division Two of the Rothesay County Championship last season, the Red Rose began the campaign without injured ex-England veteran James Anderson and West Indies paceman Anderson Phillip, unavailable due to a visa issue. But 21-year-old Aspinwall, with figures of 4 for 32, and left-armer Sutton, who took 2 for 57 on his first-class debut, swung the game in their side’s favour after a century stand between Sam Robson and Max Holden had given Middlesex a strong platform.Having reached 215 for 3 in front of an impressive Lord’s crowd of 4257, the home side stumbled – losing their last seven wickets for 45 runs – and Lancashire’s openers shaved 68 off the deficit before the close.The visitors opted to bowl after winning the toss and gained some early swing and bounce, with Tom Bailey beating the outside edge several times before breaking through in the fifth over. Nathan Fernandes, restored to an opener’s role at Middlesex following Mark Stoneman’s departure, contributed just a single before he was tempted to nibble at a Bailey delivery that slanted across him.But, having seen off the new ball, Robson began to play with greater freedom and rattled off a spate of boundaries, steering Sutton to the midwicket fence to bring up his half-century from 60 balls.Holden played his part as Middlesex cruised along at around four-and-a-half an over, but the left-hander was given a life on 28 when he hooked Sutton to long leg, only for the ball to slip through Luke Wells’ fingers and over the rope. However, with Lancashire’s seamers toiling fruitlessly, Wells redeemed himself by coming on for an over of legbreaks just before lunch to pin Robson lbw on the back foot with his fifth ball.Holden posted his half-century in the first over after the resumption, squirting Wells to third man for three and looked a good bet to convert that 50 into three figures until he fell to a smart take by Matty Hurst. Standing up to the stumps, the young wicketkeeper – who had earlier spilled a similar chance to remove Leus du Plooy off Will Williams – snapped up Holden off the same bowler and claimed his third dismissal when Ryan Higgins nudged George Balderson behind.That triggered a middle-order collapse, with four more wickets falling in the space of just 21 deliveries – two apiece to Sutton and Aspinwall. Debutant Ben Geddes became Sutton’s maiden first-class victim when he miscued a pull to midwicket and Jack Davies was lbw shuffling across his stumps before du Plooy, having spent more than two hours over a watchful 41, was on the sharp end of a similar decision in Aspinwall’s favour.By contrast, Toby Roland-Jones’ dismissal was palpable as Aspinwall brought the ball a long way back down the slope to take his leg stump, mopping up the innings after tea with the wickets of Zafar Gohar and Henry Brookes.Lancashire skipper Keaton Jennings batted sensibly alongside new opening partner Michael Jones, capitalising on loose deliveries as they chipped away at the home side’s total. However, there were close calls for both openers before stumps, with Jennings’ inside edge off Blake Cullen rebounding off his pad but somehow avoiding the wicket and Jones almost playing on to Brookes.
Dois jogadores emprestados pelo Santos podem ter saídas confirmadas em breve. Trata-se de Rwan e Gabriel Pirani, que estão cedidos a Vasco e Fluminense até o fim do ano, respectivamente.
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O atacante vascaíno recebeu oferta do Ludogorets, da Bulgária, segundo apuração da reportagem do Lance! com pessoas ligadas ao Cruzmaltino. O clube carioca não fez esforços para segurá-lo e liberou o atleta para a negociação.
A tendência é que o Peixe também não coloque barreiras para as tratativas evoluírem, pois o time da Vila Belmiro pretende fazer uma ‘limpa’ no elenco. A intenção é aliviar a folha salarial e arrecadar mais dinheiro para investir em contratações.
A informação sobre a proposta a Rwan foi publicada inicialmente pelo portal “Atenção, Vascaínos”.
Outra saída próxima de ser oficializada é a de Pirani. O Fluminense informou em nota durante a tarde deste sábado (15) que foi notificado sobre o interesse de um clube dos Estados Unidos pelo jogador. O Tricolor das Laranjeiras, então, não exerceu a opção de compra e liberou o meia.
A equipe com negociações avançadas pela compra de Gabriel Pirani, que manifestou desejo de atuar no time estrangeiro, é o DC United, da MLS. O Fluminense ainda receberá uma quantia pela venda do Alvinegro Praiano devido ao percentual de ‘vitrine’.
Em contato com fontes santistas, o L! foi informado que as tratativas pelos Meninos da Vila estão em andamento, mas que ainda não foram 100% concretizadas.
UM RENDEU. JÁ O OUTRO…
Aos 21 anos, Pirani chegou por empréstimo ao Fluminense com contrato até o fim de 2023. Na equipe de Fernando Diniz, o camisa 20 vinha sendo peça importante e realizou 24 partidas, tendo marcado dois gols: contra o Flamengo, na final da Taça Guanabara, e diante do Bahia, pelo Brasileirão.
Enquanto isso, Rwan, de 22 anos, não teve sequência no Vasco e disputou apenas dois jogos pelo clube, pelo Brasileirão. No início do ano, ele atuou sete vezes pelo Paulistão, ainda com a camisa do Santos.
Ipswich Town’s deal for a young Premier League talent has been completed, but manager Kieran McKenna’s plan for the player does not involve first-team minutes this season.
McKenna trying to remain positive after draw
It hasn’t been an ideal return to the Championship for the Tractor Boys, with Saturday’s 2-2 draw at home to Derby County leaving them 20th in the league table.
Despite this, McKenna till tried to find positives after the game, saying he could see signs of improvement compared to the opening weeks of the campaign.
“We’ve been through a lot today and the supporters have been through a lot. There was a really good performance out there. You can see the growth in the team. You can see the direction of travel. You can see players coming in now having a big impact and the potential for us to really push on.
Ipswich Town managerKieranMcKenna
“But you can also see the challenges of the division and how hard people are going to make it for us. How we’re probably not up to full speed yet to do it for 90 minutes. How we probably don’t have the full consistency and the confidence in the group to really stay strong in that moment when it went against us with the first goal and we really did lose our way.”
Some late-summer business for Ipswich could help aid their quest to return to the Premier League at the first attempt, but while they are set to seal an exciting new arrival, this one will not boost their promotion hopes this term.
McKenna's plan for Luca Fletcher revealed
As first reported by Fabrizio Romano on X, Ipswich have agreed a deal to sign Manchester City attacker Luca Fletcher on loan for the rest of the season, with an obligation to snap him up permanently. However, Ben Jacobs has since revealed McKenna plans to use him in the youth team only this campaign.
Fletcher is admittedly a young player who is still raw, but he could prove to be such an exciting addition for Ipswich, initially shining in the youth team before making the grade at senior level. The 18-year-old striker bagged 20 goal contributions in just 46 appearances for City’s Under-18s, highlighting his prolific end product, and he is also a 12-cap England Under-17 international.
Bringing in talented homegrown youngsters is always something that should be encouraged at Ipswich, and with Fletcher’s path to the first team likely to be blocked at City, given their elite attacking talent, this could be a perfect move for him.
Sri Lanka seamer was leading wicket-taker on recent tour of England
ESPNcricinfo staff20-Dec-2024
Asitha Fernando took 17 wickets on Sri Lanka’s recent tour of England•Getty Images
Glamorgan have signed Sri Lanka fast bowler Asitha Fernando for the first two months of the season. He is expected to be available for seven County Championship fixtures up until the end of May.Asitha, 27, has taken 72 wickets 26.66 in Tests and impressed on Sri Lanka’s tour of England earlier this year, when he finished as the leading wicket-taker on either side as well as winning a spot on the Lord’s honours board for his first-innings five-for.He has played county cricket previously for Nottinghamshire, and will become the first Sri Lankan to represent Glamorgan.”I would like to thank Glamorgan Cricket so much for this opportunity,” Fernando said. “I am extremely thrilled to be a part of Glamorgan and to return to the county cricket scene this year.Related
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“My last stint helped me to improve my game a lot. I am looking forward to playing with Mason [Crane], Colin [Ingram] and all of the Glamorgan team, and am hoping to do my very best during the upcoming season.”Glamorgan’s director of cricket, Mark Wallace, said: “We’re delighted to be able to welcome a bowler of Asitha’s quality to Sophia Gardens for the start of the 2025 season.”Asitha has good experience of conditions in the UK having played county cricket previously and also while performing very well in Sri Lanka’s series with England here last summer. We look forward to Asitha taking the field for Glamorgan as the first Sri Lankan player to represent the club.”
Everton are believed to be in talks over the signing of a “fantastic” Premier League hero this summer, with the player in question even called better than Harry Kane in the past.
Moyes wants "five or six" new signings at Everton
The Blues have had a productive summer in the transfer market to date, not least acquiring the signature of big-money attacking signing Thierno Barry from Villarreal.
David Moyes will want to build on an excellent start to life back at Everton, however, with the Scot admitting that he still wants plenty of new faces through the door before the window slams shut on September 1st.
“Well, we’ve signed three, so if you take that off, we’re still in the need of maybe five or six players. That’s what we have to try and do. I’ve never had one of these times. In the past I have had to sign a lot of players, but I’ve never had to do so many in one window.”
Everton manager DavidMoyes
While Barry has come in as an exciting new striker for Everton, they may well feel the need to add further depth there, especially following the exit of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and the potential departure of Beto. Now, an intriguing name has been thrown into the mix to add more firepower to Moyes’ squad.
Everton in talks with Premier League legend Vardy
According to a report from Spain, Everton are in talks with Jamie Vardy over a move to the club this summer, in what would arguably be a shock piece of business. The Blues are the club who have “taken the initiative most seriously”, while the conversations are said to be “on the march” with the striker’s representatives.
The 38-year-old is a free agent after leaving Leicester City at the end of last season, following a legendary stint there that included winning the Premier League title back in 2015/16.
Vardy may not be the force he once was, given his age, but it is easy to see him being a good squad player at Everton for a year or two.
The Englishman still possesses plenty of pace and an eye for goal, and Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca even once claimed he is better than Kane and Wayne Rooney among the leading strikers of their generation, having worked with him at Leicester.
“Vardy is fantastic and people don’t realise how good he is. I know that England has been quite lucky with strikers, like Kane, Rooney and many others, but if you ask me he has been the best one. He can do many things, like run in behind and finish, but the best thing for me is his open mind.”
The fact that Vardy would be available on a free transfer almost makes him a gamble worth taking, and if he joins Everton and simply doesn’t have the impact of the past, it would be no disaster.
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On the flip side, though, he could be a great option off the substitutes’ bench, popping up with goals in key moments and becoming a crowd favourite with his infectious personality, having scored seven times in 16 appearances against the Blues.
With Martin Zubimendi already on the way, Arsenal have also now reportedly held positive talks to sign a defensive target over Liverpool who’s worth more than £40m.
Arsenal complete paperwork for Martin Zubimendi deal
A year on from deciding to stay at Real Sociedad instead of joining Liverpool, Zubimendi is finally set to become a Premier League player. But it’s Arsenal who have reason to celebrate. According to Fabrizio Romano, the Gunners have now completed all the paperwork and the Spaniard will become an Arsenal player for a fee around the €65m (£58m) mark.
Zubimendi could yet have the task of replacing Thomas Partey in Mikel Arteta’s side. The latter is yet to sign a new deal at the club and remains on course to depart as a free agent at the start of next month.
As replacements go, it’s clear to see why Arsenal have turned towards Zubimendi as speculation continues to grow about Partey’s future. The talented 26-year-old would slot straight in.
Minutes
2,962
2,797
Progressive Passes
195
185
Tackles Won
37
53
Ball Recoveries
140
138
Zubimendi’s best work undoubtedly comes in possession and Arteta’s system should provide him with the perfect platform to showcase that ability in the Premier League.
After agreeing a deal to sign the midfielder, however, Arsenal are not done there. They’re looking to deal Liverpool a blow with a focus on signing a defensive addition ahead of the Premier League champions this summer.
Arsenal hold positive talks to sign Jorrel Hato
According to reports relayed by Football Transfers, Arsenal have now held positive talks to sign Jorrel Hato from Ajax this summer. The Dutchman has also attracted the interest of Liverpool, but the Gunners are now hoping to steal a march on their rivals.
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The deal won’t come cheap, though. Reports are suggesting that Ajax are demanding as much as €50m (£42m) to sell their 19-year-old left-back in the coming months. Alas, it must be said that price tag becomes understandable when assessing just how talented Hato already is at such a young age.
Ajax defender Jorrel Hato.
Among those full of praise for the Ajax teenager, scout Jacek Kulig dubbed Hato a player with “immense quality” and a “fantatsic mix of complete full-back, playmaking full-back, and ball-playing centre-back” in traits that tick all of Arsenal’s boxes.
As the chaos of the transfer window continues, those in North London should do everything to ensure that they beat Liverpool to Hato’s signature this summer.
Liverpool will have a commanding presence in the transfer window this summer and could use that leverage to pull off an audacious player-plus-cash deal to land an exciting target, according to a report.
Liverpool look to build on Premier League title triumph
After laying claim to their second title of the Premier League era, the Reds are winding down for the campaign and won’t be too frustrated at surrendering a two-goal advantage in their draw with Arsenal last weekend.
Ultimately, Arne Slot has led his side to the goal they set out to achieve at the start of the season. Now, many are beginning to wonder what happens next once their celebrations are in the memory bank.
Arne Slot and Virgil van Dijk for Liverpool
That is still a while off yet, though Liverpool are active in their pursuit of summer reinforcements and could look to bring Bayer Leverkusen’s Jeremie Frimpong to Anfield. The Netherlands international is someone the club are aware of as far as his situation goes, with a release clause of between £29.5 million and £33.8 million being something they are willing to exploit.
Lyon winger Malick Fofana is also being targeted by Liverpool, potentially becoming a replacement for Luiz Diaz amid the latter attracting interest from Saudi Pro League outfit.
Liverpool’s final Premier League assignments
Brighton & Hove Albion (A)
Amex Stadium
Crystal Palace (H)
Anfield
Darwin Nunez is another that could be moved on to free up funds and space for reinforcements in a period where Slot is expected to be ruthless in his decision-making to mould a squad fit to defend their crown. Realistically, Liverpool have nothing to prove to anyone, but they could potentially surpass their jointly-held record of 20 titles that they share with Manchester United next term with a repeat performance of this season’s excellence.
Making strides to equip themselves to do so, the Reds are now eyeing a swap deal that could see one of Europe’s revered attackers arrive on Merseyside.
Liverpool eye Ademola Lookman and Federico Chiesa swap deal
According to reports in Italy via Sport Witness, Liverpool would be willing to swap Federico Chiesa for Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman to bring the Nigeria international back to the Premier League. Formerly of Everton, Lookman has registered 19 goals and seven assists in 38 appearances across all competitions this season. His current employers are unlikely to make allowances relating to his £50 million+ valuation, so Chiesa could be used to whittle that number down.
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The Liverpool star could now be thrown into a potential swap arrangement after struggling to make an impact following his move from Juventus. Earning £150,000 per week, the Italy international has scored twice and registered two assists in just 13 outings, making him a prime candidate for a summer departure.
That said, it remains to be seen whether a swap would be the preferred option for both clubs or if conducting seperate deals is a more viable alternative to put through the books.
Celtic ran out in front of their own supporters at Parkhead for the first time since they won the Scottish Premiership title when they faced Hibernian on Saturday.
The Hoops clinched the league title with a 5-0 win over Dundee United away from home at the end of last month, before they travelled across Glasgow to play out a 1-1 draw with their rivals last weekend.
It did, however, look as though Hibs were going to spoil the party when they took the lead at Celtic Park thanks to an opening goal from Martin Boyle in the 25th minute.
The Premiership champions, though, bounced back and led before the break after goals from Nicolas Kuhn and Adam Idah turned the game around, before Reo Hatate added a third in the second 45.
Cameron Carter-Vickers, who has suffered with hamstring injuries this season, was given the weekend off by Brendan Rodgers, in order to manage his minutes in the final few weeks of the season.
That opened up a position at the heart of the defence and the Northern Irish head coach opted to go with Auston Trusty next to Liam Scales.
Scales and Trusty's performances for Celtic this season
The Hoops reportedly paid a fee of £5m to sign Trusty from English side Sheffield United in the summer transfer window last year to bolster their left-sided centre-back options.
The USA international and Scales have competed for the starting berth next to Carter-Vickers at centre-back, but they have also had to play alongside each other at times when the former Spurs man has been unavailable, like on Saturday.
Although Celtic won the match comfortably in the end, Trusty, who lost 100% of his ground duels, had a moment to forget when his poor attempted clearance dropped straight to Boyle to find the back of the net.
Unfortunately, errors have been too common for the former Arsenal defender in the Premiership this season since his £5m move to Parkhead, particularly in comparison to Scales and Carter-Vickers.
24/25 Premiership
Cameron Carter-Vickers
Liam Scales
Auston Trusty
Appearances
29
25
21
Error led to shot
1
1
4
Error led to goal
0
0
1
Penalties committed
0
1
0
Dribbled past
3x
5x
11x
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, Trusty has made more errors that have led to shots, more errors that have led to goals, and been dribbled past more times, despite playing fewer matches than the other two centre-backs.
This also shows that Scales, who was unlucky to give a penalty away at Ross County, has been more reliable than the American dud in the Premiership.
This is despite the former Aberdeen loanee being worth just £3m, as per Transfermarkt, which is £2m less than the fee the club paid Sheffield United for the other left-footed defender.
The Ireland international has not made as many errors as the former Premier League flop and that may be why Rodgers has preferred him over Trusty alongside Carter-Vickers in recent weeks.
However, the Celtic boss did still opt to select Trusty on the right side of the defence over Maik Nawrocki, a naturally right-footed player, and the Hoops must ruthlessly ditch the Polish centre-back this summer as a result of his lack of minutes on the pitch this season.
Why Celtic should cash in on Maik Nawrocki
The 24-year-old defender, whose Transfermarkt value is just £1.7m, was an unused substitute once again against Hibernian, as he failed to add to his paltry two appearances in the Premiership in the 2024/25 campaign.
When questioned about Nawrocki’s lack of game time in March, Rodgers explained that it was because he prefers to have left-footed players on the left. He said: “I do always prefer where I can a left-footed centre-half on that side, in all honesty, because that allows you to get through the pitch quicker and have more speed playing forward.”
However, Carter-Vickers was unavailable against Hibernian and the manager still opted for Trusty on the right side, despite him being a naturally left-footed player who has the same problems that Nawrocki has playing out on his weaker side.
Chalkboard
Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.
This suggests that the former Legia Warsaw star’s lack of game time goes beyond Rodgers’ concerns about which side of the centre-back pairing he plays, as he was unwilling to give him minutes against Hibernian with no other right-footed centre-backs available and the title already wrapped up.
The most frustrating part of this for Nawrocki, however, may be that this has come after his impressive performances in the Premiership in his two outings in March.
All the way back in January of last year, Nawrocki told reporters that he was prepared for his moment to shine in a Celtic shirt, and that moment eventually came in March of this year when Trusty and Scales were injured and he was named in the XI against Rangers and Hearts.
Maik Nawrocki
Vs Rangers
Vs Hearts
Minutes
90
90
Clearances
7
9
Blocks
0
3
Tackles + interceptions
5
1
Duels won
7/10
8/9
Dribbled past
0x
0x
Pass accuracy
93%
98%
Error led to shot/goal
0
0
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, the Polish star took his chances to impress with dominant and reliable defensive displays in those two matches, which led to pundit Chris Sutton hailing him as “fantastic”.
However, Nawrocki has been an unused substitute for four matches, missed out on the matchday squad twice, and not played a single minute of football since the win and clean sheet against Hearts.
As aforementioned, his Transfermarkt value now stands at just £1.7m. This means that he is worth less than Scales (£3m) and Trusty (bought for £5m), whilst also being the least used centre-back option, with just two league outings.
Therefore, Celtic must brutally axe the 24-year-old outcast from the squad in the upcoming summer transfer window because he is a depreciating asset who is not getting enough minutes on the pitch.
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Rodgers has shown that he is not ready to trust Nawrocki ahead of Scales or Trusty and it is now down to the board to find a team that is willing to snap him up so they can recoup some money for his services ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.
A former Premier League manager is interested in taking over at Rangers, and is now just awaiting a call from the club’s hierarchy about a move to Ibrox, according to a new report.
Rangers slip up again as Celtic claim Scottish Premiership title
It was a weekend to forget for Rangers fans as rivals Celtic clinched their fourth consecutive Scottish Premiership title — and a 13th in 14 seasons — while the Gers slipped to another draw.
Celtic cruised to a 5-0 victory over Dundee United to seal the title, while Rangers were held to a 2-2 draw by struggling St. Mirren — results that highlight the contrasting fortunes of the two sides this season.
After the draw with St. Mirren, Rangers caretaker boss Barry Ferguson described his team’s performance as “not good enough.”
“I know it’s a difficult place to come, but when you take the lead twice, you need to maintain that lead,” he told BBC Scotland. “That’s been a problem all season, and that’s the reason we have not been challenging. You can do all the work on the training ground and say all the right things in meetings, but when you cross that white line, you have to deal with it yourself.”
On Celtic’s title triumph, he added: “It’ll be painful for my staff, it’ll be painful for the supporters. And I want it to be painful for my players. Because you’re at Rangers, and we need to start challenging, properly challenging, for trophies.”
Martin "interested" in Rangers move
Though Ferguson has undoubtedly been an improvement on former boss Philippe Clement, he may not stay in charge beyond the end of the season — meaning the Gers and the 49ers will need to find a new man to take the reins at Ibrox.
According to The Scottish Sun, that man could be former Southampton boss Russell Martin. Martin was sacked by the Saints earlier this season after a disastrous Premier League campaign that ultimately ended in relegation. However, he is a target to take over from Ferguson at Rangers.
The Sun reports that Martin is very interested in the job and is simply awaiting a call from the club’s hierarchy about filling the position.
Despite his poor record with Southampton, Martin received heavy praise from one of the game’s greatest managers — Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.
Speaking after City’s 1-0 win over Southampton back in October, Guardiola said of the former MK Dons boss: “It’s a good game to learn as a manager. I am going to learn a lot with Russell because they did really well.”
On how Martin set Southampton up that day, Guardiola added: “They are really good. I’m a spectator. I prefer the players to get the ball to feet, not the teeth.
“When I see the opponent do the things I like to do with my team and they do it really well, I make a compliment. I’m sure I will learn; there were some movements, the reasons why they do things, the movements they make to link to the striker. It’s not easy.”