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After already securing deals for Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Digne, as well as apparently being close to signing Kerr Smith, Aston Villa have been rather busy in terms of their transfer activity this month.

Even with some time still left in the window, it seems as though the club are eyeing up yet another deal to add a bit of strength and depth to Steven Gerrard’s side.

What’s the news?

In a recent Twitter post from journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Villa “have an agreement on personal terms” with AS Roma goalkeeper Robin Olsen, who is currently on loan with Championship club Sheffield United.

Romano also said that the Blades have yet to decided whether or not to let him go and that a potential move to Villa would see him join on loan until the end of the season.

Villa have also been linked with a move for West Ham goalkeeper Darren Randolph in recent days, only for Irons manager David Moyes to come out and say that they have no intention of letting their shot-stopper leave this month.Along with Romano’s claim of the club apparently agreeing personal terms with Olsen, this shows that Villa are certainly looking to add a goalkeeper to their ranks this month.With current Villa number one Emiliano Martinez playing in all but one of their Premier League games so far this season, it’s safe to say that any shot-stopper who does make the move to Villa Park this month may not necessarily knock the Argentine out of the team straight away.Taking this into account, it seems as though Olsen – who is currently picking up £13k-per-week according to Salary Sport – or any other goalkeeper who may come to Villa this month will have to settle with being a backup option not getting regular game-time.Labelled a “big presence” by Blades defender John Egan, Olsen has played in 11 Championship games with the Yorkshire club so far this season but has only managed to keep one clean sheet along the way, which suggests that Martinez may not have to be too concerned about his place in the starting XI if Olsen were to join Villa.Nonetheless, Gerrard would still be elated to have another goalkeeper in his squad with some experience of playing in the Premier League who can add some welcome depth in that area, and Romano’s update suggests that the Swedish netminder could well be in Villa colours by the end of the month.In other news – Imagine him & Coutinho: Gerrard can form scary Villa duo with “clever” £43k-p/w gem

Many Aston Villa fans have been left slamming the display of Douglas Luiz despite their 2-1 win at home to Leicester City in the Premier League.

The Brazilian was particularly poor in the first half of the game, and although he improved in the second, some members of the Villa Park faithful still did not think that his overall performance was good enough.

Luiz lost out on two of his duels, and also failed to block any shots or make any key passes from midfield, while he lost possession of the ball on no fewer than on 22 separate occasions in the match, the most out of any of his teammates on the pitch (SofaScore).

Nonetheless, with Morgan Sanson back fit and on the bench, he will most certainly have to perform better if he is to keep his place in the starting eleven under Steven Gerrard.

Villa fans on Luiz display

These AVFC supporters slammed his performance on Twitter, with a couple even going as far as to claim that he was ‘awful’:

“You could put a throw pillow on for Dougie and there’d be no drop in quality”

Credit: @VillaVirginian

“Dougie’s having a stinker”

Credit: @telekabba

“Can anyone tell me what position Luiz is playing??”

Credit: @ABCDEFC45833367

“Get Luiz off half time, passing has been woeful and offers nothing defensively.”

Credit: @villarichie

“Luiz off and Sanson on pls. Awful half from Luiz”

Credit: @AvfcSims

“Buendia, Luiz & Watkins have been awful this half”

Credit: @JBaker_24

In other news, find out what news involving this Villa ‘monster’ has fans buzzing here!

Following on from Celtic’s 3-2 win over Real Betis in the Europa League, the Bhoys are back in action this afternoon with a Scottish Premiership clash against Motherwell at Parkhead. 

On the Chalkboard

In terms of which players Hoops manager Ange Postecoglou could pick to be in his starting XI on this occasion, one figure that featured in the win over Betis that should not be in the team on this occasion is Adam Montgomery.

Despite starting the game in midweek against the Spanish side, Montgomery failed to prove himself to Postecoglou before being replaced by Mikey Johnston.

During his time on the pitch, Montgomery didn’t have much of an attacking impact on the team by failing to have even one clear shot at goal or complete any of the two dribbles he attempted.

Things weren’t much better for the 19-year-old in a defensive sense either by losing nine duels, surrendering possession of the ball on 15 occasions (once every 3.2 touches) giving three fouls away and getting dribbled past twice.

This display ultimately earned Montgomery, who is currently earning a weekly wage of £3.5k-per-week according to Salary Sport, an overall underwhelming match rating of 6.3/10, making him one of Celtic’s lowest-rated players on the day according to SofaScore, showing how much he flopped on this occasion.

One dubbed “tremendous” by Postecoglou, his display on the night was sadly anything but.

Even though Montgomery has predominantly played in the left-back position for the 16 appearances he’s made for the Bhoys so far this term, it’s a shame that he couldn’t do more in an attacking sense against Betis when given the chance to play a bit further forward up the pitch to fully show off his talents to the manager.

Taking this into account, it should be in Celtic’s best interest if Postecoglou doesn’t start Montgomery today against Motherwell, who have the chance of cutting the gap between them and their opposition this afternoon to seven points if they manage to secure a win.

Labelled as a “very talented young player” in the past by Postecoglou, Montgomery’s poor performance against Betis should be no cause for concern given his age. However, if he keeps delivering underwhelming performances when called upon, there could be some questions raised over his ability moving forward.

In other news: “No estimated return date”: Devlin drops big Celtic injury update, Ange will be fuming

In terms of squad depth, Liverpool have a comfortable number of players across all positions on the pitch, particularly in the midfield area.

One midfielder that has not seen as much action as some of the other midfield players in Jurgen Klopp’s squad is Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who has only started five of the 12 games he’s appeared in across all competitions.

With this in mind, it didn’t come as much of a surprise when it was reported earlier in the year that the Englishman could look for a move away from the Merseyside club to get his career back on track and get some regular minutes elsewhere.

Taking this into account, if Oxlade-Chamberlain does end up leaving, the club could already have their ideal long-term replacement for him in their youth ranks with 18-year-old midfielder James Balagizi.

After joining the Reds from fellow Premier League club Manchester City as an U11 player, Balagizi has gone on to make 35 appearances for Liverpool’s U18 side in which he has managed to score eight goals and provide 13 assists along the way, highlighting that he has some attacking prowess in him, in a similar way Oxlade-Chamberlain has shown during his time at Anfield, having 14 goals and 13 assists under his belt.

Balagizi, who has been previously likened to former Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure in terms of his style of play, has also made six appearances for Liverpool’s U23 side, showing that they believe he is capable of mixing in along with some of the older players in their youth ranks.

So far this season, in the 12 appearances he’s made across all competitions, Balagizi has played in numerous positions on the pitch in midfield and up front, showing his versatility, also in a similar fashion to Oxlade-Chamberlain when he’s been given the chance to play.

With all of this in mind, it seems as though Balagizi has the potential to continue with the U23s and eventually break into the first team at Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp in the same way fellow Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones has done, especially if Oxlade-Chamberlain ends up leaving in the summer to try and get more minutes on the pitch elsewhere.

In other news: FSG could secure LFC’s next Van Dijk with swoop for “incredible” £13.5m-rated machine – opinion

After managing to secure all three points in their previous League One game against Cambridge United, Sunderland are back in Papa John’s Trophy action on Wednesday with a clash against Oldham Athletic.

In terms of who Lee Johnson could select in his starting XI in midweek, it seems as though the Black Cats are in the midst of an injury crisis at the moment, particularly with a number of defensive players ruled out of action.

With this in mind, one defensive figure that Johnson will be able to rely upon and who should be in the starting XI to take on Oldham is  Tom Flanagan, who is currently earning £3.6k-per-week according to Salary Sport.

Time to unleash Tom Flanagan

After being named as an unused substitute in Sunderland’s league games against Ipswich and Shrewsbury, the centre-back played the full 90 minutes in their recent 2-1 win at Cambridge.

In that game, the 30-year-old proved to Johnson how useful he can be for the team by racking up seven clearances, three tackles and two interceptions, with one shot blocked and six of his eight duels won.

Praised in the past by Michael O’Neill for being a “leader” for Northern Ireland, this latest performance for Sunderland earned the defender a solid overall match rating of 7.4/10, making him the joint-highest rated player on the day according to SofaScore.

With this in mind, it would make sense for Flanagan to keep his place in the team to take on Oldham and give the Black Cats the best chance of overcoming the League Two side and getting into the next stage of the competition.

However, if Johnson thinks it would be better to keep the 30-year-old fresh for their next league outing against Oxford United at the weekend, perhaps he could sit out their midweek fixture and hope that the team can cope without him against a Latics side who are currently battling relegation in League Two.

Either way, with their current injury issues, it’s safe to say that Flanagan could act as a catalyst to keep Sunderland strong at the back for the remainder of the season, which is what they’ll need if they are to have any chance of getting promoted to the Championship.

In other news: Crushing setback: Sunderland dealt potentially big injury blow, fans will be gutted

Despite only appearing in five out of Liverpool’s seven Premier League games so far this season, Trent Alexander-Arnold has still managed to earn himself an overall season rating of 7.81/10, making him their second-highest rated player in terms of performances in the Premier League according to WhoScored.

Taking this into account, it’s easy to see why the defender has now been linked with a move away from the club.

What’s the news?

It has recently been reported by Spanish media outlet Fichajes that La Liga giants Real Madrid are interested in signing Alexander-Arnold and taking him away from the Merseyside club.

As a product of Liverpool’s youth academy, Alexander-Arnold made his senior debut for the club back in October 2016 during a Carabao Cup win over fellow Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur.

Since then, the 23-year-old, who is currently valued at £67.5m according to Transfermarkt, has gone on to make a total of 185 appearances for Jurgen Klopp’s team across all competitions.

During that time, he’s managed to score 10 goals and provide 47 assists in the process, which is very impressive for a full-back and suggests why Carlo Ancelotti’s side reportedly have their eyes on him.

Fans would be fuming

If Alexander-Arnold were to leave the club, this would surely make Liverpool less of an attacking force to be reckoned with. The Englishman made more key passes per game (2.1) in the Premier League last season than any other Reds player according to WhoScored.

Given how prominent the defender has been for Liverpool since making his senior debut for the club in terms of appearances as well as goals and assists, and the fact that he is a product of their youth system, it would be safe to assume that the Liverpool fans would be fairly angry if they sold him.

Alexander-Arnold recently signed a new long-term deal at the Merseyside club, saying that he was “honoured” to be offered it and that it was a “no-brainer” to sign on. That suggests to us that he isn’t likely to be leaving Liverpool anytime soon, or that he wants to be at another club anyway, which would be unfortunate for Madrid and their apparent hopes to lure him to Spain.

Moving forward, we expect Alexander-Arnold to keep playing regularly for the Reds and probably sign another contract nearer the time when his current one ends rather than be tempted to move elsewhere.

That said, if they did lose him for whatever reason, it would be a sizeable blow to Klopp and the Anfield supporters.

In other news: Liverpool could secure next Mane with move for £23.4m-rated “diamond in the rough” – opinion 

West Ham shouldn’t fear losing Ben Johnson after an exciting claim emerged this week…

What’s the word?

According to the ever-reliable ExWHUemployee, the Irons can trigger a two-year extension clause to keep the 21-year-old gem tied down at the London Stadium, with his current deal set to expire in the summer.

But it doesn’t stop there, as the club insider believes that the Hammers’ hierarchy could soon offer him a longer-term contract due to his performances for the club this campaign.

He tweeted: “They have a 2-year extension opportunity on his contract already but think they could go in for an even longer offer soon. The man has been sensational.”

Fans will be delighted

This latest update suggests that the Irons have learned from their past mistakes and there will certainly be no Jeremy Ngakia 2.0 when it comes to the impressive young Irons gem.

In the absence of injured first-choice right-back Vladimir Coufal, Johnson has really stepped up to the plate, so much so that the Czech Republic beast could even find it hard to make his way back into the starting XI.

Whenever the Chadwell Heath graduate has started this term, West Ham have not only remained unbeaten with six wins from six starts but they have not conceded a single goal in that time either, as per Transfermarkt.

There have been some tough tests thrown in there too, having faced Manchester City earlier this week, as well as Spurs, Everton, Genk and Rapid Wien – the latter two being his first appearances in Europe.

Hammers assistant boss Stuart Pearce waxed lyrical about the young defender following their win against the defending champions in midweek.

He said, via the BBC: “He’s a wonderful professional to deal with and work with. We’re very proud to have him out of our academy system as well, which is a real plus for us, especially with the connection to this club with the academy.

“I think he’s just developing and getting better and better, and like with all young players, the more game time they have, the better they’ll get, so I am delighted for the boy.”

His performances against City and Spurs also earned the praise of many of the London Stadium faithful, so this recent development is sure to leave those supporters absolutely buzzing.

AND in other news, West Ham takeover: ExWHUemployee drops big update…

On-loan Aston Villa starlet Brad Young told Carlisle United assistant manager Gavin Skelton that he was disappointed not to score more goals after netting in the EFL Trophy.

The Lowdown: Academy goal machine

The 18-year-old has made 43 appearances for the Villa under-18s and 11 for the under-23s, scoring 28 goals in the process, before being loaned out to League Two side Carlisle over the summer.

So far this season, the forward has appeared off the bench in five league outings and started in yesterday’s 2-0 defeat to league leaders Forest Green Rovers. He also started both of the EFL Trophy games against Hartlepool and Everton under-23s, scoring a brace against the latter last week.

With an eye-catching goalscoring record for the Villa academy at Bodymoor Heath, it will be no surprise when he starts contributing regularly to goals for Chris Beech’s side.

The Latest: Young wanted more goals

As per the News & Star, Young told Skelton that he should have scored more goals despite netting twice in 68 minutes.

The Carlisle assistant boss revealed: “That’s the first thing [he] said after the game – he was delighted, but should have scored more.

“He mentioned the header and the rebound in the first half. It shows the type of lad he is and how hungry he is to score.

“He’ll be pleased to get his first goals for the club under his belt – it was a good night’s work for him, and he’s greedy for more.

“As a forward you’re critical of yourself and you want those chances to go in, but he’s here to score goals and he’s done that for us.”

The Verdict: On the right path

As mentioned above, Young’s terrific scoring record for Villa’s youth squads puts him in good stead to impress. If he can manage to find the net in the Football League regularly, that should help him to possibly follow in the footsteps of fellow Bodymoor Heath starlets Carney Chukwuemeka and Jacob Ramsey.

As Skelton has said, the 18-year-old’s dissatisfaction with his goal return despite netting twice in midweek hints at a thoroughly professional and hungry mindset. Young certainly appears to be on the right path to making it at Villa with that sort of attitude.

In other news, a permanent move involving Aston Villa could be on the cards. Find out more here.

Luke Edwards has revealed that Arsene Wenger is a contender to be the next manager at Newcastle United after Steve Bruce is expectedly sacked.

The Lowdown: Bruce still in charge?!

It was widely reported by the media that Bruce was going to be sacked before their game at home to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon, but he will now take charge of his 1000th match as a manager (Sky Sports).

Nonetheless, it could well be nothing more than a token gesture by the Kingdom of Saud Arabia (KSA) consortium, who may still look to bring someone else in after.

The Latest: Wenger in contention

Writing in his latest piece for The Daily Telegraph, Edwards has revealed that Wenger is among a number of names that are in contention to replace Bruce once he leaves St. James’ Park.

The journalist adds that he would be ‘ideal’ in terms of helping with other areas of development, such as the Academy, and that it would be ‘foolish’ to rule him out at this stage.

The Verdict: Ship has sailed

Even though Wenger has no doubt had a glittering career in management, as he won the Premier League title three times with Arsenal, including that famous 2003/04 Invincibles season (Transfermarkt), he is 71 years of age now, and so the new owners should be looking to a manager for the long-term.

Sir Alex Ferguson once dubbed him a ‘phenomenal’ manager despite a humiliating 8-2 loss to Manchester United at Old Trafford over a decade ago now, but Wenger would risk tarnishing his legacy with the Gunners, the team he is very much associated with after 22 years at the North London club, should he go on manage another side in the top flight.

Nonetheless, there are younger managers available at the moment that the North East club should really be considering over Wenger.

In other news, find out which World Cup winner NUFC are moving ‘behind the scenes’ to sign here!

The Athletic’s Crystal Palace correspondent Matt Woosnam has offered the latest on Eberechi Eze’s comeback following the win over Tottenham Hotspur.

The lowdown

Palace landed their first win of Patrick Vieira’s tenure on Saturday afternoon, scoring three times in the final 20 minutes to defeat Spurs.

They did so without a key player in Eze, who has been out since the end of last season with Achilles tendon problems. He recorded a squad-high six assists in the Premier League last season and also led the way for key passes per 90 minutes with 1.3 (via WhoScored).

The 23-year-old is one of three absentees for the Eagles, with Jeffrey Schlupp and Nathan Ferguson also sidelined.

The latest

In a Q&A for The Athletic, Woosnam was asked by a Palace supporter to provide expected return dates for Eze and Ferguson.

The journalist replied that he is ‘not sure on Ferguson’ but said that the former QPR winger ‘is expected to be back next month at some point’.

The verdict

The next international break comes after the clash with Leicester City on 3 October. The Arsenal game a fortnight later might be a realistic target for Eze to make his return to action, which would be well ahead of the initially projected return date of 2022.

Palace fans should be counting down the days until he comes back into the side. If they can get a creative presence like him into the same team as Odsonne Edouard, Michael Olise, Wilfried Zaha and Conor Gallagher, then they could be a joy to watch and make life a complete nightmare for opposition defences.

In other news, some Eagles fans weren’t happy with this man’s display against Tottenham.