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Aston Villa youngster Keinan Davis still has a bright future at the club despite a lack of playing time recently, according to journalist Luke Hatfield.

The Lowdown: Davis struggling for playing time

The 23-year-old is yet to make an appearance for Villa’s senior team this season, having fallen down the pecking order under Dean Smith.

Davis could have left Villa Park on loan in the summer but ended up staying put, and it could be that a temporary exit in January makes sense.

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The Latest: Hatfield provides key update

Despite Davis’ career stalling a little in recent times, Hatfield believes that he still has plenty to offer at Aston Villa.

Speaking to Give Me Sport, the journalist claimed that Villa think highly of the striker and that his opportunity to become a key figure could arise in the future, tipping him to possibly join Nottingham Forest on loan. Hatfield said:

“Aston Villa have high hopes for Keinan Davis, regardless of whether they send him out on loan or not.

“They just want to make sure he gets the time on the pitch and hopefully he develops into the football player that is potentially there to be.

“So, I’m sure Villa will be looking at teams that play a similar style, and it seems like Nottingham Forest would work out pretty well.”

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The Verdict: Persevere with him

At 23, Davis isn’t necessarily an up-and-coming player anymore, but there is still lots of time for him to develop as a footballer and become more polished.

A loan move away could do him the world of good, allowing him to pick up confidence and get minutes under his belt before returning to Villa next summer.

Jack Grealish once described his former Villa team-mate as ‘unplayable’, which speaks to how much ability Davis appears to have, so hopefully the striker will be able to forge out a stable future under Smith.

In other news, some Villa fans have reacted to an image of one player. Find out who it is here.

Leam Richardson’s Wigan side extended their unbeaten run to five matches in all competitions as they beat fellow League One outfit Bolton on penalties on Tuesday night in the second round of the League Cup.

Wigan had the better of the chances during the game and ended up with six more shots and twice as many on target in the 90 minutes, but they were unable to score as the match ended 0-0 in regulation time. It then went to penalties, where the Latics held their nerve and won 5-4 to progress into the third round of the competition.

Goalkeeper Jamie Jones will get the headlines after scoring a penalty in the shoot-out, before Nathan Delfouneso smashed his over the bar, but the player who stole the show for Wigan was defender Kelland Watts.

The 21-year-old, on loan from Premier League side Newcastle, was outstanding at centre-back and helped to keep Bolton at bay throughout the match. His defending allowed his attackers to dominate the game, albeit they were ultimately unable to make the most of their chances during normal time.

Watts was also key on the ball, with 69 touches during the game – the most of any Wigan player. Watts completed 83% of his passes, including seven long balls to stretch or switch the play in attack. This shows that he was comfortable with the ball at his feet and that he did not consistently give it away with loose passes out from the back, which could have allowed Bolton to put pressure on the Wigan goal.

Defensively, Watts had a near-perfect game. Per SofaScore, he won 100% of his duels on the pitch, winning four of his four ground duels and four of his four aerial duels. This shows that he was able to dominate the Bolton attackers and prevent them from holding the ball up. He also made three clearances, one tackle and two blocks, with the only blemish on his performance being that he gave the solitary foul away.

Watts, therefore, stole the show for Wigan with his showing against Bolton as he was able to show off his quality on and off the ball against a fellow League One outfit.

Hopefully, he will be able to keep up this standard of performance throughout the league campaign and help Richardson’s side to push for promotion back to the Championship before he returns to Newcastle.

Rangers have been linked with a few players going into the January transfer window, but one of the club’s prime targets may have been written off for a move to Ibrox.

What’s the story?

Hearts manager Robbie Neilson has made clear his stance about the current situation on John Souttar’s immediate future at the club. Speaking to Sky Sports about the £3.1k-p/w defender, the Jan Tarts manager said: “From our perspective he’s got a contract until the end of the season, and unless we get a bid we can’t refuse he will be here until at least the end of the season.

‘The owner and Joe Savage have been speaking to him and we feel we have put together a very good contract for him so it’s just negotiating that now.

“If he does decide to leave, it will take a huge bid in January or he will see out his contract and everyone will leave happy.”

Should GVB pursue Souttar?

Van Bronckhorst already has competition when it comes to securing the signature of Souttar, with nine English Championship clubs reportedly interested in the centre-back also.

When it comes to players running down their contracts, usually this encourages clubs to sell their out-of-contract players at a cut-price fee to cash in before they leave on a free a few months later. However, in this scenario it appears that Neilson has made it very clear that a large amount of money would need to be offered for the club to let the defender go before his contract his up, which will be frustrating for Rangers.

Van Bronckhorst has intimated that he would welcome some reinforcements in defence, and Souttar looks to be the perfect suitor to fit the club’s needs moving forward, but whether the Gers will be willing to pay over the odds for the Hearts defender remains to be seen.

Despite being a centre-back, the 25-year-old has three goals already for Hearts this season, proving that he is in fine form and possibly in a strong position to get a move in the January transfer window before his contract ends at Tynecastle in the summer.

However, Neilson’s firm comments indicate that Souttar is not likely to be leaving any time soon, which is sure to frustrate the Ibrox faithful who may have been eager to see him coming to the Scottish champions.

In other news: Van Bronckhorst must secure the signature of this transfer target

West Ham United boss David Moyes must keep the faith in Manuel Lanzini when his side travel to Turf Moor to face Burnley this afternoon.

The Irons bounced back in the Premier League with a stunning 3-2 victory over rivals Chelsea last weekend, having witnessed defeats to Manchester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers beforehand.

Moyes named a heavily-rotated starting XI for their final Europa League group game as a youthful-looking Hammers outfit were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Dinamo Zagreb.

The Scot now has several dilemmas to consider heading into today’s kick-off, not at least in the attack, where he could well bring Said Benrahma back into the fold after his axe against the Blues.

However, with Lanzini in much better form right now, the West Ham manager must stick with the Argentine against the Clarets.

His 40th-minute penalty was his second goal in three games, which is even more impressive considering his appearance at the London Stadium last Sunday was his first league start of the 21/22 campaign.

It’s now three direct goal contributions in his last five appearances and that is much better returns than the Algerian winger, who will be off on Africa Cup of Nations duty next month anyway. It could be wise for Moyes to find his replacement, sooner rather than later.

After starting the season on fire, contributing a pair of goals and assists in the Irons’ opening two games, Benrahma has now gone ten games without scoring a goal, in which he has provided just the one assist.

He has failed to register a WhoScored rating above 6.9 in any of his last eight outings either, with his performances in those two aforementioned defeats drawing his lowest two ratings of the season, a 6.04 against City and a 6.15 against Wolves.

There will be a temptation to bring him back into the fold as on his day, he can be a nightmare for the opposition but Sean Dyche’s side are a tough outfit and the 26-year-old lightweight could be exposed in the current form he’s in.

Instead, Moyes should start Lanzini for the second successive game. Last weekend, he was described as “West Ham’s main creative spark” by The Athletic’s Roshane Thomas, whilst in the past ex-Hammers boss Slaven Bilic likened him to Luka Modric.

Therefore, the £70k-per-week player, who was also dubbed a “top player” with “wonderful feet” by Darren Bent, must start against Burnley – and over Benrahma – this afternoon. It could be another game-changing call from Moyes if so.

AND in other news, Newman can seal West Ham’s biggest signing since Payet in “complete” £24.3m-rated gem…

Sunderland have had a dream start to the 2021/22 campaign with back-to-back wins under Lee Johnson’s stewardship. After beating Wigan 2-1 on the opening day of the League One season, the Black Cats progressed through to the next round of the League Cup with a 2-1 win over Port Vale on Tuesday night.

Josh Hawkes and Aiden O’Brien scored the goals for Sunderland to put them 2-0 up in the second half, with Jamie Proctor pulling one back for Vale with just over 20 minutes to go. Johnson’s side were able to see out the match without any major drama, sealing their spot in the draw for the second round.

Whilst attention may have been drawn to debutant Alex Pritchard’s performance, with an assist for the ex-Norwich playmaker, it was Hawkes who was able to steal the show on the night. Pritchard put in a good display, but Hawkes was outstanding throughout and took his goal brilliantly.

He latched onto the ball in the left-hand side of the box and clinically dispatched his shot into the far corner, despite the best efforts of the goalkeeper and a defender racing to the goal line. It was not an easy chance by any stretch and his sharp finish is sure to have caught a few eyes in the dugout, with Sunderland facing MK Dons away from home on Saturday.

Sunderland Echo reporter Phil Smith handed him a score of 7/10, highlighting his quality in front of goal. He wrote:

“Showed his end product with one fine finish and one effort that drifted just wide of the far post from the best part of 25 yards. Has real quality when he gets sight of goal.”

SofaScore seemingly agreed with Smith’s assessment, as they also rated Hawkes as a 7.0/10 for his display. He completed 85% (22/26) of his passes in the game – compared to Pritchard’s 70% – which shows that he was reliable on the ball and able to find a teammate the majority of the time – rather than being wasteful in possession and causing his team to be hit on the counter-attack.

The dynamo was able to marry an impressive all-around showing with an end product to make the most of his performance. He was able to offer a threat and be a solid option for Sunderland on the ball, whilst also being able to find the back of the net when presented with the opportunity.

Johnson will be delighted with his showing.

AND in other news, Sunderland dealt blow in pursuit of second-tier striker

An update has emerged regarding Sunderland’s interest in Manchester United midfielder Ethan Galbraith.

What’s the talk?

According to the Sunderland Echo, the 20-year-old has emerged as a loan target for the Black Cats. Lee Johnson is looking to bolster his midfield options this summer and is keeping tabs on Galbraith, who could be available on a temporary deal ahead of next season.

Last year, Northern Ireland boss Ian Baraclough compared him to Spanish greats Andres Iniesta and Xavi.

He told Manchester United’s official website: “Ethan, over the last six months, we’ve seen a maturity in his play and the way he goes about his work day to day.

“He’s excelled with the Under-21s and he’s a different type of player to anyone we’ve got in the senior squad.

“He has earned his right with the way he has gone about his play for the last six months

“Not to put too much pressure on his shoulders, but he’s our little [Andres] Iniesta or Xavi, someone who can get on the ball and manipulate the ball and find positive passes. Over the coming years, he will give us a different flavour to the squad.”

Forget Scowen

Josh Scowen is set to officially leave Sunderland next week upon the expiry of his contract at the Stadium of Light. This has left Johnson with a hole to fill in his squad and Galbraith could be the player who steps in to fill the void next season. It is time to forget about Scowen and start thinking about the possibility of Galbraith lining up in the red and white stripes later this year.

As with any young player coming in, the 20-year-old would be a risky signing for Sunderland. It is impossible to tell how he will manage the step up to senior football, but the signs are there to suggest that he could be an excellent addition to Johnson’s team.

He has already been capped twice by Northern Ireland at senior level, with his manager comparing him to Barcelona legends Iniesta and Xavi, and he has played for Manchester United once in the Europa League. This suggests that his managers at national team and club level believe he has potential.

Therefore, Kristjaan Speakman must ensure that he is able to seal a deal for the “little Iniesta” this summer. If Galbraith is even 5% of the player the nine-time FIFPro Team of the Year member was for Barcelona, then Sunderland would have a cracking player on their hands in League One.

He could be the midfield dynamo the Black Cats need to help push for promotion next season and that is why Speakman must take the gamble on him and why fans should forget about Scowen.

AND in other news, Major development emerges on £4k-p/w “revelation”, Sunderland fans will be buzzing…

Rangers will be looking to end thier run of two games without a win in all competitions as they come up against Livingston in the League Cup tomorrow.

After losing 2-0 to Lyon in the Europa League and drawing 1-1 with Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership, the Gers have a chance to get back to winning ways in the cup.

Steven Gerrard could make some changes to his team given that they played on Sunday and that they have another match on Saturday, against Dundee FC in the league.

One player he should unleash against Livington is experienced central defender Leon Balogun. He was rested against Motherwell as he watched on from the bench, despite an impressive start to the campaign.

The former Wigan defender has been in fine form this season and proved that he can be a quality option when called upon by Gerrard. In the league, Balogun has averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.15 and helped Rangers to keep two clean sheets in four games.

He has won 64% of his duels in the Premiership and shown that he is a strong centre-back who can be a brick wall in the defence for the Gers. Despite the result ending in a 2-0 defeat, Balogun also caught the eye against Lyon with a superb display, as he recorded a rating of 7.10 and made two interceptions, two tackles, two blocks and two clearances against the French side.

The £14k-per-week powerhouse must, therefore, be unleashed against Livingston to improve Rangers’ chances of progressing through to the next round. He is a quality centre-back who could prevent the opposition from testing his goalkeeper, or at least limit what they can test him with, as he has shown that in his performances in the Premiership and Europa League this season.

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Gerrard must name him in the starting XI and start him alongside Connor Goldson. It could give Rangers a solid platform to build on, allowing the attackers to go about their business without worrying about major defensive errors at the back costing them the game.

At the age of 33, Balogun could also bring some vital experience to the side if Gerrard wants to hand a couple of young players opportunities for this match. The head coach has the chance to play academy products to see what they can do, outside of the Premiership and Europa League, and having a wise old head like Balogun in the side could help ease them through the game.

AND in other news, Gerrard masterstroke: Rangers flop has seen value plummet 66% since Ibrox exit…

This season had been one of positivity so far at Celtic, even if the Hoops did taste a defeat in Ange Postecoglou’s first Old Firm.

Proceedings at board level looked rosier than last season and the Bhoys were happily going about their business during a new era for the club.

What’s the club?

However, little did we know that the environment upstairs has actually been rather toxic and confusing this season.

Dominic McKay became the club’s new CEO at the beginning of the summer when he took over from Peter Lawwell who retired.

However, it hasn’t been plain sailing for him as he was forced to step down from his role last Friday.

The reasons are complicated but in an article for The Athletic, Kieran Devlin helped to clear up the factors at play.

He wrote: “Sources have spoken of receiving mixed, contradictory messages from different club figures. One described Celtic as being “painfully slow” in some discussions and several mentioned not receiving replies to messages for days or sometimes weeks. When replies did come, they would sometimes be from a different club figure.

“One source described it as “messy, everyone stepping on each other’s toes”. More than one target is said to have been missed out on during this process.”

Fans fuming

In this instance, it appears to be a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth.

Postecoglou wasn’t in charge of transfers but it’s quickly become apparent that McKay wasn’t the only one going out and negotiating deals either.

In fact, the former CEO also had to contend with Dermot Desmond and his son Ross, Peter Lawwell, Jay Lefevre – their head of scouting – and finally, the club’s now acting CEO, Michael Nicholson.

Now, communicating with the board makes sense but when you have six different people negotiating the one same transfer, proceedings are obviously going to get messy.

This doesn’t bode well for supporters; particularly after hearing they missed out on some primary targets.

Celtic did still acquire 12 first-team players in the market but if they lose out on the Premiership title again, questions will be asked of what happened this summer.

That’s especially after McKay seemingly had the Hoops’ best interests at heart.

Devlin added in his column: “That long-term vision, aspiring to be something more than just trying to win the Scottish Premiership every season, had been absent from Celtic for some time — at least in the public realm — and many fans bought into it.”

With Desmond reportedly not keen on a modernisation of the football club, it’s claimed by other outlets that McKay actually jumped before he was pushed.

All Celtic needed was some stability and in modernising the club, it could have taken them to greater success in Europe too. It will also have improved the profile of players they could sign in forthcoming windows.

That, however, now looks unlikely. Fans should be extremely displeased by the events that have played out.

AND in other news, Ange could discover Celtic’s new Christie by signing £6.3m-rated “top player” in Jan…

Bruno Lage has an almighty job on his hands to improve this Wolves side.

Handed the keys to Molineux this week, he faces the task of rebuilding a squad who could lose some of their best players this summer.

On the chalkboard

Wolves are set to lose Ruben Neves in the coming months, with Arsenal courting the Portuguese midfielder ahead of a potential move.

There could also be exits in defence. Max Kilman’s future in the Midlands was uncertain during Nuno Espirito Santo’s tenure, while Romain Saiss’ time at Wolves is also shrouded in doubt. He has been linked with a move to France, where Rennes are interested in prising him away from the Premier League.

The Old Gold should have been searching for alternatives anyway judging by their defensive record in 2020/21, but this gives them an extra excuse to spend some money.

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They conceded 52 goals in the league last term, just one fewer than relegated Fulham and six more than 16th-placed Brighton. During a period between October and January, they kept only two clean sheets in 14 outings.

Willy Boly and Conor Coady can still be relied upon but there is a sense that a third dependable centre-back is required.

This week Wolves were linked with a move for Dael Fry, via Football League World. The Middlesbrough defender boasts a passing success rate of just 69.2% throughout his career but he would be an almighty upgrade in aerial situations.

The 23-year-old stands at a colossal height of 6 foot 4 and uses that to his advantage to bully opponents to one side. In the Championship this season, Fry won an impressive 6.3 aerial duels per match, the highest seasonal tally of his career to date.

The defender prevailed in 200 aerial battles last term, ranking him as the 12th best centre-back in the entire Championship.

That enormous tally usurps every single player at Wolves by a grand total of 115. Leander Dendoncker won the most with just 85 in comparison, while Boly’s average of 2.7 per match was the highest in that regard.

Described as a player who “has everything” by former Boro manager Aitor Karanka, Fry is a defender who appears to be improving all the time.

He needs to work on his distribution but he could offer some much-needed physicality to Lage’s backline. Boly offers that already, but a combination of the two would seem fearsome at Molineux.

A deal could also be done cheaply, with the Middlesbough centre-half rated at just £6.3m by Transfermarkt. Considering that Wolves have little to spend this summer, that would work out nicely for Jeff Shi and Fosun.

AND in other news, Forget Adama: Lage can save millions if Wolves unleash “outstanding” rarely-seen 19y/o…

Former Scotland manager Alex McLeish has claimed that he would not be surprised to see Christian Eriksen return to Tottenham Hotspur, despite interest from Newcastle United.

The Lowdown: Eriksen’s contract

Having been released by Inter due to not being allowed to play in Italy with a cardioverter-defibrillator implant device, the former Spurs man was snapped up by Brentford on a short-term contract which is set to expire at the end of the season.

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Consequently, rumours have emerged linking Eriksen with a whole host of Premier League clubs. This includes the Lilywhites, following Football Insider’s report which revealed that Tottenham are keeping tabs on the Denmark international.

The Northern Echo have claimed that Newcastle have a strong interest in the signing Eriksen, and are also hopeful of striking up a deal with the Brentford midfielder.

The Latest: McLeish’s claim…

McLeish, who can be heard on BT Sport nowadays, has admitted that he would not be surprised to see Eriksen lining up in a white shirt next season due to his ‘love’ of the club.

Speaking with Football Insider, he claimed: “Spurs did lose their rhythm a little bit losing someone like Eriksen. He was a key individual in those years where they came very, very close.

“He’ll be a free agent so it wouldn’t surprise me if he went back to Spurs with his love for the club.

“Newcastle are ambitious as well. They’ve had a couple of great results since Eddie Howe brought in a couple of great players in.

“Also, he seems a very honourable guy. If he stayed at Brentford it would be an incredible gesture.”

The Verdict: Could be a good move

Tottenham boss Antonio Conte heaped praise on Eriksen after his Spurs side were held to a 0-0 draw against Brentford at the weekend. He claimed that “it’s amazing” to see the midfielder performing at the level that he is after recovering from the cardiac arrest he suffered last summer.

With the 30-year-old ranking in the 99th percentile for non-penalty goals and the 98th percentile for shots and expected assists among positional peers in Europe’s top five leagues (via FB Ref), it is easy to see why Tottenham would be interested in bringing the Dane back to Hotspur Way.

Therefore, if Fabio Paratici can get a Bosman deal over the line, this could prove to be a strong addition to Conte’s squad on the cheap.

In other news: Tottenham Hotspur: Alasdair Gold leaks more info on Conte, Pochettino and PSG