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An update has emerged on the African Cup of Nations, that will potentially affect Rangers and what players Gio van Bronckhorst will have at his disposal at Ibrox.

What’s the talk?

Journalist David Lynch has claimed that the competition is set to be postponed, with it currently set to take place in January and February, as the European Club Association has written to CAF with concerns about the wellbeing of players taking part.

He Tweeted: “I understand that CAF are expected to announce an indefinite postponement of the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations imminently. Discussions taking place over possible compensation for hosts Cameroon.”

CAF have confirmed that the tournament will not be ‘cancelled’, with Lynch’s claim that it will be postponed potentially being the alternative to cancellation.

Buzzing

Rangers fans will surely be buzzing with this news as it hands van Bronckhorst a potentially huge boost heading into some key fixtures over the winter period.

Earlier this month, the club were reportedly waiting on a response from the Nigerian FA regarding whether or not they would allow them to keep Joe Aribo, Leon Balogun and Leon Bassey for the clash with Celtic at the start of January.

This news now appears to suggest that all three of them, injury/fitness pending, will be available for selection against the Hoops. It would also stop them from potentially missing matches on the other side of the winter break at the end of the month, which is why this update will come as great news to those of a Rangers persuasion.

All three of the players who could now be available for the Gers have been in fine form this season. They rank fourth (Aribo), eighth (Bassey) and ninth (Balogun) in the squad for average SofaScore ratings when it comes to outfield players, with all of them averaging a score of 7.05 or higher.

This shows that they have all been able to perform to a high standard on a consistent basis in the Premiership this term. They have been able to turn up week-in-week-out and impress on the pitch, which is why fans will be buzzing to read that they could be set to remain at Ibrox instead of jetting away to play for their country.

Aribo, in particular, being available should leave fans delighted.

The midfielder has produced six goals and two assists in 16 matches this season, averaging an exceptional SofaScore rating of 7.18. He has shown that he has the quality to make a big impact in the final third and having his quality on the ball could be a fantastic benefit of AFCON being postponed.

AND in other news, Wilson masterclass: £8.3k-p/w Rangers “firework” who “plays at 100mph” is GVB’s dream…

Having secured a 1-0 victory in their previous SPFL match against Livingston, Rangers are back in action this afternoon with an away clash against Ross County next up for Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side in their latest attempt at moving a step closer to securing the league title.

On the chalkboard

In terms of which players Van Bronckhorst could select to be in his starting XI to take on County this afternoon, one figure that didn’t start against Livingston but ended playing a big part in the win that we feel should be in the team from the beginning on this occasion is Scott Arfield. 

After replacing James Sands in the 59th minute in midweek, Arfield managed to get his name on the scoresheet and score the vital goal that earned Rangers the three points on the day. 

With that in mind, it would be a good option to give Arfield, who is currently picking up a weekly wage of £16k-per-week according to Salary Sport, the chance to potentially add another goal to his tally for the season from the start rather than the substitutes bench again. 

Also, with Van Bronckhorst recently sharing his wishes at seeing the Canadian stay at the club for the foreseeable future after his current contract at Ibrox expires at the end of the season, starting him this afternoon would be a good way of proving just how important he is for the team.

Labelled as a “reliable” player for Rangers by Kenny Miller, Arfield has racked up 165 appearances for the Scottish champions across all competitions with 32 goals and 18 assists under his belt, showing not only how experienced he is but also how capable he is in front of goal.

Taking into account how the 33-year-old has already scored against County this season back in August during Rangers’ 4-2 win, he now has the chance to haunt them again this time around and terrify them with his goalscoring ability.

Moving forward, while the midfielder proved in the game against Livingston how much of a useful impact player he can be for Rangers off the substitutes bench, it could be worth starting him this time to see if he can help his side have a more comfortable game this time around.

In other news: “Monitoring”: Journalist delivers key Rangers transfer update which Van Bronckhorst will love…

Everton have been tipped to make a stunning summer swoop for Real Madrid’s Gareth Bale.

El Chiringuito TV report that Carlo Ancelotti wants a reunion with Bale at Goodison Park, having worked with him at the Santiago Bernabeu – Bale has spent the 2020/21 season on loan at Tottenham Hotspur, having fallen out of favour with Zinedine Zidane after Ancelotti’s exit.

How has Bale performed at Spurs?

A hat-trick against relegated Sheffield United at the weekend took the Welshman to nine Premier League goals for the season.

That’s more than any Everton player excluding Dominic Calvert-Lewin (15).

In total, Bale has scored 14 goals in all competitions, posting an impressive minutes per goal record of 105 (via Transfermarkt).

Bale, who will turn 32 in July, has just over a year left on his Real Madrid contract and is valued at £18million by Transfermarkt because of this.

He said during the March international break that his plan was to return to the Spanish capital at the end of the season, so it a long-term deal to stay in north London appears unlikely.

Ancelotti has already reunited with James Rodriguez and Allan on Merseyside – could he do the same with Bale?

Twitter fan feed The Toffee Blues relayed the rumour, and here’s how fans reacted.

These Everton fans urge club not to pursue Bale

“We going for the oldest team in the league ?”

Credit: @Stu17666455

“Does he want to sign Father Ted’s over 75’s too”

Credit: @efcshaz1878

“Hell we are becoming a retirement home”

Credit: @toddlonsdale

“Big no thanks”

Credit: @rowleydan

“NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!”

Credit: @alandean1878

“Is he really worth it? No”

Credit: @matthew_nestor

“At this rate we’ll be linked with Inzaghi, Kaka and Dida”

Credit: @mannie_efcIn other news, this ex-Everton star revealed what Carlo Ancelotti told him before he left.

In our Loan Watch feature, The Transfer Tavern takes a look at how Leeds United winger Helder Costa has fared during a season-long spell at Valencia.

The Lowdown: Option to buy

The Whites made Costa’s loan move permanent following promotion to the Premier League in 2019/20, penning a four-year deal at Elland Road.

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Costa went on to make 22 Premier League appearances under Marcelo Bielsa, scoring three times and registering three assists.

However, he was sent out on loan to Valencia last summer, which included an option to make a deal permanent at the end of the current campaign.

The Latest: Costa in 2021/22

Costa hasn’t fared well over in La Liga, as per SofaScore. The 28-year-old has started just 13 league games, averaging just 52 minutes per game, often hauled off as he consistently fails to leave his mark on proceedings.

He has failed to score a goal, provided just one assist, lost 63% of his duels and has lost possession 9.3 times per game.

His latest display against Villarreal resulted in a 3/10 match rating from one Spanish outlet, and it looks increasingly unlikely that Valencia will exercise their option to buy over the coming months.

The Verdict: Headache for Radrizzani and Orta

Costa returning to Yorkshire over the summer could provide Andrea Radrizzani and Victor Orta with a fresh transfer headache.

They managed to negotiate a £16.7m option to buy fee, which would have seen the Whites actually make a small profit.

His Transfermarkt valuation has now dropped to £7.2m though, the joint-lowest it has been since 2016, so Leeds may find it hard to bring in a respectable fee for his services. If Leeds can’t strike terms elsewhere, Jesse Marsch may well have to keep the underperforming winger ahead of his first full season in charge.

In other news: Sky Sports now share big news on Leeds star’s Elland Road future; ‘dealing’ already happening. 

David Moyes has confirmed that West Ham United will be without midfielder Pablo Fornals against Arsenal on Sunday due to injury, which should prove beneficial for Jarrod Bowen.

Fornals was forced to sit out the Irons’ 1-0 defeat to Manchester United last week after sustaining a groin issue and is not expected to overcome the blow in time for the London derby.

The Spaniard had regained a regular role in Moyes’ plans before the Hammers’ trip to Old Trafford, with the 25-year-old starting three straight Premier League fixtures.

Fornals had only enjoyed a single six-minute cameo in West Ham’s previous three top-flight games before opening the action against Tottenham Hotspur last month, and remained in the side for subsequent meetings with Manchester City and Leeds United.

Moyes will once again be unable to field the £16.2m-rated playmaker when West Ham host Mikel Arteta’s Gunners this weekend, as one of several players due to be sidelined.

“We’ve got just about everybody the same [as last week],” Moyes said on Friday. “Pablo Fornals is improving, and, on the injury front, Angelo Ogbonna is closing in and getting much closer to fitness but he’s a wee bit away.

“Arthur Masuaku and Andriy Yarmolenko are both getting much closer, as well, so hopefully, it won’t be too long until we’re back to a full squad.”

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/the-latest-west-ham-news-and-views” title=” The latest West Ham news and views!”]

The international break which follows Sunday’s London derby should prove vastly beneficial for West Ham with Ogbonna (ankle), Fornals, Masuaku and Yarmolenko (knee) all seemingly moving closer to making their returns from injuries.

However, as Arsenal’s visit to the London Stadium will likely prove too early for some if not all, those who featured yet struggled against Manchester United will likely be given a reprieve and the chance to prove their worth this weekend.

Bowen will almost certainly fall into that category after his efforts alongside Michail Antonio in a two-man strike partnership left Moyes vastly underwhelmed at Old Trafford.

“We thought tonight that the way we would play with two up, Jarrod and Michail as two forwards to start with, we thought that might give them a problem to start with, so I saw that as being positive in a different way,” Moyes said, via quotes by football.london.

“But ultimately, we got better as the game went on when we brought on Manu [Lanzini] and Said [Benrahma] I would say that. I would also say Man United might have been better than they were and that the team that was out did not concede any goals, only one from a set-piece at that time and it was only after that that you can judge it.”

Bowen should expect to be kept in the starting line-up against Arsenal as Moyes will be able to return the former Hull City forward to his natural wide position with Fornals unavailable.

Moyes had moved the winger centrally to accommodate for Jesse Lingard being ineligible to face his parent club, but the Manchester United loanee is in line to make his return on Sunday.

A switch back to a 4-2-3-1 with Bowen on the right should help to see the £27m-rated maestro – who Darren Bent has described as an “example” for Said Benrahma to follow – find the form which eluded him last week and impressed Jamie Carragher earlier in the campaign.

“Bowen, he has been a brilliant signing for him [Moyes],” Carragher said on Sky Sports, via quotes shared by Hammers News, after scoring the winner against Aston Villa on November 30.

“He’s just one of those players, he always nicks a goal every three or four games, you just see him on the scoresheet. And again, he’s got a vital goal for them. He does really well on that right-side coming inside and he’s been a great signing for them.”

AND in other news, a West Ham winter target is set to be available for £17m this summer…

Aston Villa are putting a good team together, former Premier League defender Steve Howey has told The Transfer Tavern in an exclusive interview.

The Midlands outfit recently signed Emiliano Buendia from Norwich City in a club record £40m deal before bringing in Ashley Young and all of his experience following his departure from Inter Milan.

There could also be more big arrivals at Villa Park if Jack Grealish is sold this summer. There is currently a lot of speculation about the Villa captain potentially joining Manchester City for £100m.

With that sort of money, manager Dean Smith could easily bring in a few more quality players.

On Villa’s transfer activity, Howey said: “I think they’ve been a bit more careful with their money.

“You’ve just got to build and build and build, and I think that’s what they’re trying to do. So I think Aston Villa are a team which behind the scenes seem as though they’re sneakily kind of assembling a decent squad.”

Villa fans will surely love Howey’s comments, a reminder of how the club’s summer is going so far if they needed one.

After a difficult period in the Championship, the Villans have firmly established themselves as a Premier League outfit and are clearly on everyone’s lips again, something supporters must be enjoying.

Liverpool have expressed an interest in Inter Milan and Italy midfielder Nicolo Barella, according to Italian journalist Enrico Camelio.

The lowdown

Barella made 36 league appearances for Inter last season, scoring three and assisting seven.

A well-rounded player, he averaged 1.6 tackles, 0.7 interceptions, 2.2 accurate long balls and 1.3 key passes per 90 minutes (via WhoScored).

The 24-year-old is currently on Euro 2020 duty and was on target on Friday night as the Azzurri beat Belgium to progress to the semifinals.

Retired footballer and commentator Ray Hudson tweeted during the game that Barella is ‘as slippery as an eel covered in Italian olive oil’.

The latest

Camelio claims Liverpool have ‘asked for information’ on Barella amid Inter’s financial struggles.

The Serie A champions are set to bank €71million from Achraf Hakimi’s move to PSG, but ‘another sale will be needed’ to solve their financial woes.

However, Inter don’t regard Barella as one of their ‘transferable’ assets and have made that clear to Liverpool – he is currently valued at £58.5m by Transfermarkt.

The verdict

Liverpool need to replace Georginio Wijnaldum this summer to ensure they’ll have the depth to compete.

And Barella would be an excellent candidate – it’s not a like-for-like replacement by any means, but the Reds don’t need to be stagnant.

At the Euros, he’s showcased his ability to play defence-splitting passes and gracefully elude challenges, boasting 1.8 key passes and 1.5 dribbles per game at the competition.

While Inter have rebuffed Liverpool’s initial approach, the need to offload another star means there could yet be hope.

In other news, Liverpool have entered the race to sign this England international. 

Former Rangers defender Graham Roberts has exclusively told The Transfer Tavern that he hopes Steven Gerrard’s men “shut a few people up” by going on to win the domestic double.

The Gers recently secured their first major trophy for a decade when Celtic’s draw at Dundee United last month handed them the Scottish Premiership title.

However, there’s still plenty up for grabs, with Rangers just four games away from going the whole league season unbeaten, although they’ll need to avoid defeat in the fourth Scottish Premiership Old Firm derby of the campaign at Ibrox next month.

But the two Glasgow rivals will meet before then, with the pair meeting in the fourth round of the Scottish Cup on Sunday.

Should Rangers get one over Celtic for the third time this season, they’ll be just three games away from a first double since 2008-2009.

And Roberts, who won two major honours during his two seasons at Ibrox, has urged his former side to go and silence the doubters.

“They haven’t lost a game in the league yet, so hopefully they can go all season without losing a game,” he told the Transfer Tavern.

“And now they’ve been draw at home to Celtic in the cup, so hopefully they can go on and win the double and might shut a few people up.”

Mick McCarthy is interested in a deal to bring Callum Elder to Cardiff City this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Football Insider, who claim that a source has revealed that the Bluebirds, along with Derby County, Preston North End and Huddersfield Town, are keen on a move for the Hull City left-back this summer – with the 26-year-old heading into the final year of his contract at the KCOM Stadium.

Forget Bennett

With the future of Cardiff’s current first-choice left-back, Joe Bennett, looking rather uncertain at present, as the 31-year-old has not yet put pen to paper on a new deal at the Cardiff City Stadium, with his contract set to expire next month, the argument could easily be made that the signing of Elder would actually be an upgrade on the Bluebirds’ defender.

Over Elder’s 44 League One appearances for Hull this season, the £720k-rated man highly impressed going forwards, scoring one goal, registering nine assists and creating 13 big chances, as well as making an average of 1.7 key passes per game.

The left-back has also been solid in a defensive capacity too, helping his side to keep 18 clean sheets and making an average of 0.9 interceptions, two tackles and 2.3 clearances per game in the league.

These metrics saw Elder earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.28, ranking him as Grant McCann’s second-best performer in Hull City’s title-winning campaign, as well as securing the defender a place in the League One Team of the Season.

In contrast, Bennett was much less of an attacking threat over his 28 Championship appearances for Cardiff, scoring one goal, providing two assists and creating two big chances, as well as making an average of 0.4 key passes per game.

Elder also seemed to slightly better the 31-year-old’s defensive output, with Bennett helping the Bluebirds to keep seven clean sheets while making an average of 1.1 interceptions, 1.4 tackles and 1.4 clearances per game.

These returns saw the left-back earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.80, ranking him as Mick McCarthy’s joint 14th-best performer in the second tier.

As such, should Bennett indeed go on to depart the club this summer and if Cardiff manage to bring in Elder – whom McCann dubbed an “excellent” player – when considering each of the players’ league form this season, in addition to the significant difference in their age, it would not appear to be an outrageous claim to make that the Hull City defender would be an upgrade on the Bluebirds’ current left-back – leading us to believe that McCarthy should do all he can to land the 26-year-old this summer.

In other news: Cardiff handed huge transfer boost over £8m “leader” that’ll surely have fans buzzing – opinion

Liverpool could be set for a sizeable payday thanks to a clause inserted into the deal which took Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona.

What’s the story?

According to Spanish outlet Sport, Barca will be forced to pay Liverpool a €20m (£17.1m) bonus if the 29-year-old makes more than 100 appearances for the Catalan giants.

The Brazil international has played 90 games for the Camp Nou outfit since joining them from the Reds back in January 2018, meaning that Jurgen Klopp’s charges could receive a substantial windfall later in the season.

Jurgen Klopp will be absolutely delighted

During his time at Anfield, Coutinho bagged 54 goals and provided 45 assists in 201 appearances for the Reds after being brought to Merseyside by former Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers.

Things haven’t worked out for the South American at Barcelona, though. Following an underwhelming 18 months, the Blaugrana hierarchy shipped him out on loan to Bayern Munich for the 2019/20 season.

The Bundesliga champions saw improved performances from the technically gifted talent, with Coutinho bagging 11 goals and providing nine assists in 38 appearances for the club, helping them to secure the treble along the way.

However, upon his return to Barcelona, his poor luck returned. A serious knee injury ended his season in December after just 14 uninspiring appearances under Ronald Koeman, resulting in speculation that Coutinho could join the likes of Lionel Messi and Miralem Pjanic in walking out the exit door.

A departure didn’t materialise, though, so the former Liverpool ace is part of Koeman’s first-team squad for the current campaign and was on the bench for Barca’s 2-1 victory over Getafe last time out.

With the Anfield outfit known to be restricted in their attempts to sign another forward player and possibly an additional midfielder due to their limited budget over the summer, the addition of £17.1m would leave Klopp feeling delighted.

It would allow the German far more room to manoeuvre in the transfer market come January or next summer, and if he is able to secure a top target, then it would surely go down as another masterclass from director of football Michael Edwards.

In other news… Huge blow: Liverpool suffer setback ahead of Leeds clash, Klopp will be fuming