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Chelsea had a relatively quiet transfer deadline day, with the Blues not looking to bring in any major names as the window came to a close. However, that doesn’t mean that the club were inactive. In fact, to the contrary, as the Blues did confirm a couple of deals.

Lucas Piazon moved to Italy, whilst Michy Batshuayi’s loan at Valencia was cut short and he was sent across London to Crystal Palace. Of course, Batshuayi has had a tough season so far over in Spain, and it’s fair to say that a bit of a career restart was needed.

Palace should offer him a good chance at developing further. They’re in need of further depth going forward, and his knack for scoring important goals will be a huge help for the Eagles as they look to improve in the English top flight. He proved his goalscoring acumen last season at Borussia Dortmund, and if he can get even close to that form, Palace will have bagged quite the coup.

However, this deal could benefit Chelsea beyond just allowing their player to develop. It could also help them more directly – at least if you consider Crystal Palace’s upcoming fixtures. Palace have some huge games coming up, many of which are against some of Chelsea’s rivals. They face Man Utd later this month, whilst ties against Tottenham, Man City and Arsenal are also forthcoming.

For most players, this likely wouldn’t be a huge consideration, but Batshuayi is a game-changing goalscorer, and he knows how to score against big teams. Perhaps, then, Chelsea may have thought about this tactically – why send him abroad when he can have an impact in the Premier League for a team that won’t be amongst the top-four this season?

In truth, it’s a bit of genius from Chelsea, and a few goals from the Belgian in the aforementioned games could have a huge impact on the Blues’ season.

Thoughts?

Kalvin Phillips’ future at Leeds United is unlikely to be resolved until the summer, according to The Daily Mail.

The Lowdown: Watford start for Phillips?

The 25-year-old made a welcome return on the weekend, coming on in the second half of Leeds’ 1-1 draw with Southampton at Elland Road, and he is now in contention to start against Watford on Saturday.

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Phillips had been missing with a hamstring problem since December, with the likes of West Ham, Aston Villa and Newcastle United all being linked with a move for the England international during his time on the treatment table.

The 26-year-old has informed the club of his desire to pen a new deal at Elland Road, but it doesn’t look as if one will be signed anytime soon.

The Latest: Phillips contract update

The Daily Mail’s Simon Jones shared a story on Phillips late on Monday night, name-checking West Ham, Villa and Newcastle with interest.

The report claimed that Phillips is in the process of changing agents and that talks over the next stage of his career are unlikely to take place until that is finalised.

The Verdict: Worrying for Leeds…

June was named as a possible date for Phillips’ future to be resolved, which could be a worry for the Whites. You’d expect that they would have hoped to have tied down their star midfielder to a new deal before the current season comes to an end.

That doesn’t look likely now, which will give the three interested Premier League suitors fresh hope of luring him from Elland Road under a new representative.

Hopefully Leeds will remain in the Premier League and build a team around Phillips going forward, but it seems as if Whites fans may have to sweat a little longer when it comes to the midfielder’s future.

In other news: Leeds and Marsch handed early injury boost as ‘strong’ player may now return v Watford  

According to a report from The Telegraph, Aston Villa are preparing a summer approach to sign Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips. 

The lowdown: Hot property

The 26-year-old has been the subject of heightened speculation in the last 12 months and has been linked with big-money moves to Real Madrid and Manchester United previously.

Despite reported efforts from the Yorkshire club to tie down the England international and stave off suitors, it would appear that the upcoming summer transfer window is set to be a crucial one for the midfielder.

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The Villans now look set to make a fresh approach for the Leeds star.

The latest: Massive price hike for Phillips

As per The Telegraph, the Midlands club are preparing to ‘make a renewed £60million approach’ for the defensive midfielder.

It is claimed that, having had a £25m offer for Brighton colossus Yves Bissouma rebuffed, Villa manager Steven Gerrard will turn attention to Phillips.

Villa attempted to sign the 19-cap England ace back in 2019 for £25m (Birmingham Mail), but they are now said to be lining up a much more lucrative £60m move.

The verdict: Would be a smart signing

Phillips – who caused a stir when discussing interest from Villa before sharing his admiration for Gerrard last summer – has the ability to be a welcome boost to the Villa Park squad, particularly as Douglas Luiz continues to be touted with a summer exit.

Already a proven Premier League performer, adding the man once described as ‘phenomenal’ by Ian Wright following a standout display in England’s 1-0 victory over Croatia at Euro 2020 would be a shrewd move as Villa look to improve next season.

Boasting impressive attributes in both an attacking and defensive sense, the £45m-valued midfielder possesses strong tackling and interception prowess (WhoScored), and he could offer much-needed additional steel to the Villans’ ranks.

In other news: Journalist makes summer claim regarding current Villa star. Read more here!

After managing to secure another point against the reigning Premier League champions and current league leaders Manchester City with a 1-1 draw at home after their 0-0 result against them at The Etihad Stadium back in September, Southampton head into the winter break in 12th place with 25 points on the board.

As well as this positive result, it seems as though the club have been handed a fresh injury boost by the time they return to action next month.

What’s the news?

Speaking after the draw against Pep Guardiola’s side at St. Mary’s over the weekend, Ralph Hasenhuttl revealed to Hampshire Live that Saint winger Nathan Tella was not involved in the match due to a groin injury.

However, he should be back after the current winter break by the time Southampton play their next match against Coventry City in the FA Cup.

Talking to the press, the Austrian gave the following seven-word update: “After the break, he will be back.”

Fans will be pleased

This will be good news for Hasenhuttl and supporters as it’ll give the Saints an extra option to pick from in his squad when deciding his starting XI.

Even though he hasn’t managed to score a goal or provide an assist in the Premier League for the Saints so far this season, Tella has still proven himself to be a useful attacking option for Hasenhuttl with ten league appearances under his belt, showing how much the Southampton boss trusts him to do a job for the team.

With the game against Coventry in mind, it would not be a surprise if Tella is among those selected to start the game, especially when you consider the sort of attacking form that he has shown in previous FA Cup and Carabao Cup games this season, having provided two assists and one goal in four appearances across both competitions.

However, if the 22-year-old isn’t able to provide any goals or assists in the Premier League, then questions will surely be raised about his capabilities of playing in the top division on a regular basis at the level Hasenhuttl would want, especially with WhoScored currently listing him as one of the lowest-rated Southampton players in terms of overall performances in the league this season.

That said, the youngster is clearly a player with immense promise and seeing him return to full fitness is beneficial for every single party.

In other news: Solak heading for Saints calamity on “unbelievable” £100k-p/w gem, Ralph would fume – opinion

Tottenham Hotspur remain interested in Nicolo Zaniolo with sporting director Fabio Paratici eyeing up a swoop this summer…

What’s the word?

Calciomercato.it have once again linked Spurs with interest in the AS Roma midfielder but they face competition from Serie A rivals Juventus and AC Milan, as well as from Atletico Madrid and Sevilla.

It’s believed that the Rome outfit are looking for a fee in the region of €60m (£50m) to €70m (£58m) but they are said to be more likely to receive between €40m (£33m) to €50m (£41.5m).

It also remains to be seen whether manager Jose Mourinho would accept a sale or push for the board to try and renew the 22-year-old’s contract.

Bye-bye Ndombele

Lilywhites manager Antonio Conte recently hinted of his intentions to sign a new no.10-like player during the off-season to help the likes of Harry Kane, Heung-min Son and Dejan Kulusevski, so it’s no surprise to see the north Londoners mooted with a move for Zaniolo.

You’d have to then wonder what the future holds for Tanguy Ndombele – Spurs’ disappointing £55m club-record signing – as he is currently on loan to former club Lyon.

During his time at Hotspur Way, the Frenchman has been lambasted as being “very lazy” and as having a “bad attitude” by pundit Alan Hutton, as well as “disgraceful” by Sky Sports man Jamie Carragher last season.

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Meanwhile, despite persistent injury troubles, the Italy international remains one of the hottest prospects in his age bracket with Transfermarkt valuing him at £29.7m, which was higher than Kulusevski, 21, at the time of his departure from Juventus this winter.

The versatile attacking midfielder, who can also play on the wing, has featured in 36 matches this term, where he has delivered seven goals and eight assists, including a recent hat-trick in their Europa Conference League quarter-final win over Bodo/Glimt.

In terms of attacking output, Zaniolo is only tracking 0.1 shots per game behind top goalscorer Tammy Abraham at the Stadio Olimpico, whilst he leads the squad for dribbles (2.2 successive attempts per outing), as per WhoScored.

His ability and form in the Italian capital once caught the eye of legendary Roma striker Francesco Totti, who lauded the young maestro as “explosive” before also suggesting that he “plays like a veteran,” via the BBC.

Some have even likened him to Premier League greats Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, suggesting that he’s a more box-to-box beast that can contribute in the opposition’s penalty box, too.

As such, any Zaniolo arrival could finally force Ndombele out of the exit door at long last – at least, Conte would then have a valid reason to cash in on Spurs’ club-record disaster.

Paratici and co must look to sign the Italian this off-season.

AND in other news, Spurs “keeping tabs” on PL star that would excite the Lilywhites faithful…

Stuart Taylor has dropped an update on the future of Jamie Hamilton amid the midfielder’s links with a move to Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side in the January transfer window.

What’s been said?

In recent comments cited by the Daily Record, the Hamilton Academical manager stated his belief that the 19-year-old’s links with a transfer to Celtic this winter are nothing but pub chat in a big twist to their supposed pursuit of the player.

Although he did go on to admit he wouldn’t be surprised if the Bhoys were keeping a very close eye on the centre-back ahead of a potential swoop in the future.

On the Hoops’ reported interest in the youngster, Taylor said: “Nobody has spoken to me directly, but that would be normal. Other clubs don’t always go to the manager. But I’ve certainly not spoken to Allan [Maitland, the club chairman] in the last 24 hours about outgoings.

“I do expect there will be interest in Jamie and I expect there will be interest in a lot of our players, especially the younger ones. But going on websites it’s very easy to punch in names of teams and players, and it goes under the category of what I’d call ‘pub chat’.”

Postecoglou must move

While it would appear from Taylor’s latest comments that Celtic are yet to make an approach for the defender in the January transfer window, considering the sheer amount of potential Hamilton quite clearly possesses, it would appear highly advisable for Postecoglou to do so before another interested party does.

Indeed, despite having only turned 19 last year, the Scotland U21 international has already established himself as a first-team regular at the rather aptly named Fountain of Youth Stadium, making 16 Championship appearances so far this season, in addition to a further four outings in the League Cup.

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Furthermore, the £360k-rated man highly impressed in the club’s 1-1 draw with Rangers last February, with then-Hamilton manager Brian Rice stating of the centre-back’s display:

“I think you saw in young Jamie Hamilton today. Absolutely outstanding for an 18-year-old, absolutely fantastic. He needs the help of the experienced lads. It’s trying to get the blend right. I think we are nearly there. Jamie has certainly improved with Aaron Martin alongside him, Lee Hodson, talking to him.”

As such, with the likes of Liverpool, Brighton & Hove Albion, Brentford, Newcastle United and Burnley also reported to be interested in the youngster this winter, should Postecoglou wish to give himself the best possible chance of landing Hamilton, he simply must act as quickly as possible – as the 19-year-old will not likely be an Accies player much longer.

In other news: Ange can finally axe “explosive” £12.5k-p/w Celtic flop with Jan swoop for 22 y/o gem

Manchester United midfielder Donny van de Beek will be ‘excited’ about his chances of shining at Old Trafford following Erik ten Hag’s appointment at the club.

The Lowdown: Ten Hag comes in

Ten Hag has officially been named as United’s new manager, with the 52-year-old coming in at the end of the season after an impressive spell at Ajax.

The hope is that he is finally the right man to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford, with David Moyes, Jose Mourinho, Louis van Gaal, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick all flattering to deceive in the Premier League.

One player who Ten Hag knows inside out is Van de Beek, with the pair working together when Ajax reached the Champions League semi-finals back in 2018/19.

The Latest: Journalist makes Van de Beek claim

Speaking to GiveMeSport, journalist Paul Brown claimed that this could be Van de Beek’s time to seize his opportunity at United, saying:

“I think he’s quite excited probably about the prospect of finally getting a chance.

“If he doesn’t, there are probably other clubs in a better position than Everton to take him on loan, if possible.”

The Verdict: Make-or-break for Van de Beek

This certainly feels like a make-or-break moment in Van de Beek’s United career, with the Netherlands international on loan at Everton after a woeful spell at Old Trafford.

If Ten Hag can’t get a tune out of him, you’d start to wonder if anyone will be able to do so, with the midfielder such a key figure under the 52-year-old at Ajax, scoring 41 goals in 175 appearances in total.

It will be fascinating to see how Van de Beek fares next season, assuming he stays at Old Trafford, and if Ten Hag gets the best out of him, it could genuinely feel almost like a new signing for United, with the 25-year-old having once been hailed as ‘perfect’ by Owen Hargreaves.

In other news, United are reportedly keen on signing one Premier League star. Read more here.

Everton have sacked their manager, Rafa Benitez, and a number of names have been linked to being the sixth boss in as many years, and now there has been another potential candidate put into contention for the position at Goodison Park.

What’s the word?

Transfer insider, Dean Jones, has put a further name that could become a potential option for the highly anticipated Everton job, and it isn’t one that has been consistently reported by the media so far.

Jones revealed to GIVEMESPORT:

“I think if you want a left-field option then Rudi Garcia is one that could come onto the radar if the obvious paths are blocked. It’s interesting that he got down to the late stages in negotiations with Man United when they were looking to appoint a manager and Rangnick got the job.”

Roberto Martinez has reportedly already been approached by the owners of the club, however, he currently manages Belgium and is speculated to be unlikely to leave before the World Cup.

Forget Martinez

The former Wigan manager is a highly unpopular choice for the club, with fans holding protests during his third season in charge prior to his sacking in 2016, and supporters have already made it clear that they would not be happy to see his return.

Moshiri already has a fractured relationship with the Goodison faithful but could repair that by turning the season around by hiring the right manager, with Garcia potentially a perfect replacement for his fellow Spaniard, Benitez.

Garcia has been hailed “exceptional” in the past by Olympique Lyonnais president Jean-Michel Aulas, who spoke highly of the manager after he lead Lyon to Champions League qualification for the round of 16 in 2020, in a win over RB Leipzig;

“I don’t know if the half-time team talk given by Rudi was behind the players’ reaction but it was exceptional. I like working with Rudi Garcia and I have confidence in him. Today I’m saying he’s doing good work.”

That shows not only can he command the respect of a dressing room, but that he’s a strong motivator, something that would undeniably help to rescue Everton from the situation they currently find themselves in.

The 57-year-old manager has an impressive 50.84% win rate across his career, and would surely be welcomed by fans to Goodison who are desperate for a fresh start, compared to Martinez who already has a fragile history with the club.

Moshiri must make his decision as soon as he possibly can for the Toffees, as the side are set to take on Aston Villa in the early kick off this Saturday, with an FA Cup clash with Brentford following that, which will be an important game for Everton’s chance to salvage the potential of a trophy this season.

In other news: Myers names Christophe Galtier as his first choice manager

According to reports out of Spain, West Ham United and by extension manager David Moyes have set their sights on Real Madrid striker Luka Jovic as the Galacticos reportedly make a decision on the player’s future.

The Lowdown: West Ham set for interesting summer?

As the Hammers now become outside contenders for a top four place, with London rivals Tottenham and Arsenal seemingly in better positions, their pull in the next transfer window could hinge on whether they qualify for the Europa League or if they even go on to win the competition this season.

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Moyes has reportedly earmarked the signings of a centre-half and striker as major priorities for the club, with moves attempted in the winter, including for the likes of Darwin Nunez (Benfica) and Duvan Zapata (Atalanta).

As those transfers failed to come to fruition, West Ham must now look to the summer in an effort to boost Moyes’ options for 2022/23, with news now surfacing on a brand-new striker target in Galacticos forward Jovic.

The Latest: West Ham ‘fight’ for Jovic…

As per Spanish sources, West Ham and Moyes are eyeing a move for the Serbia international, who is allegedly ‘fed up’ with life at the Bernabeu.

Real Madrid, who are also eager to see him leave the capital, are ‘looking for the Balkan striker’s exit’ as the Irons ‘fight’ for his signature alongside their Premier League top-four competitors Spurs and Arsenal.

In addition, with both player and club eager to see Jovic depart, this report claimed that ‘all roads reach an imminent agreement’ with any interested club willing to negotiate.

Indeed, it seems that if West Ham take their interest further, a quick-fire summer deal could be on the cards.

The Verdict: Make a move?

Jovic’s return for Eintracht Frankfurt points towards a striker with much ability when at the very peak of his powers. The 24-year-old notched a brilliant 17 goals and five assists over 25 Bundesliga starts in the 2018/19 season, perhaps illustrating why West Ham and Moyes have set their sights on him.

In more recent times, during Jovic’s brief return to Frankfurt on loan last year, their ex-manager Adi Hutter lavished the forward with praise, branding him a ‘world-class’ player after a brace against Schalke 04.

Still fairly young, and reportedly on the market for around €30m (£25m), West Ham could give Jovic a new lease of life in the English top flight and take advantage of Real Madrid’s willingness to strike a quick agreement.

In other news: Blow for Moyes as journalist says ‘underrated’ West Ham ace is now ‘ready to leave’, find out more here.

Sky Sports reporter Michael Bridge has provided an update on Steven Bergwijn’s Tottenham future, with Ajax keen on the winger, Give Me Sport report.

The Lowdown: ‘Final stages’ claim

Bergwijn has started just three Premier League fixtures this season and is currently sidelined with a calf issue.

Ajax submitted a bid for the Dutch attacker earlier this month, with recent reports claiming an agreement is in the ‘final stages’.

Antonio Conte and Daniel Levy are apparently willing to give the green light to a north London exit for the 24-year-old, and reliable reporter Bridge has now been having his say.

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The Latest: Bridge’s comments

Bridge, talking to Give Me Sport, revealed that there has indeed been discussions between Spurs and Ajax.

He says Tottenham aren’t willing to accept an offer of £15m, however, especially with Levy forking out £27m two years ago.

“We do know that a bid has come in from Ajax. My understanding is that there has been a few bits of discussions, whether that’s a £15m offer or a loan with an obligation to buy in the summer for nearer the fee that Tottenham want.

“I know that Tottenham won’t accept £15m, but that’s the offer they had from Ajax.”

The Verdict: Understandable

A Jose Mourinho addition, it’s safe to say that Bergwijn hasn’t lived up to expectations in England following a big-money move from PSV.

He has scored just five goals in 64 appearances, with Conte yet to start the wide man in the Premier League. It doesn’t seem as if the Spurs boss is a massive fan of Bergwijn, however, Spurs still need to get the best deal possible when it comes to a sale.

Hopefully, they can recoup the majority of the £27m they spent on the player, but to do that, they need to negotiate with Ajax following a rumoured £15m bid.

In other news: Alasdair Gold drops ‘positive update’ as Tottenham close in on first piece of major Jan business.