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West Ham are interested in signing Crystal Palace striker Christian Benteke on loan for the rest of the season, according to The Guardian.

The Lowdown: Hammers need a striker

Since the departure of Sebastien Haller this time last year, David Moyes has been under pressure to bring in more attacking options due to the lack of depth his squad has in the final third. This has been particularly prevalent for the striker position, as Michail Antonio is the only recognised senior centre-forward at the club.

Antonio is currently the Irons’ top scorer in the Premier League this season, having netted eight times, but the Jamaica international has looked tired at points throughout the campaign, sometimes lacking that clinical edge in front of goal.

The club’s greatest Premier League goalscorer also has his fair share of injury concerns, so the Hammers enter the last day of the January transfer window in desperate need of an able deputy.

They have been very strongly linked to Darwin Nunez, but a brand new name has now emerged as a possible alternative.

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The Latest: Irons interested in Benteke

According to a report by The Guardian, West Ham are exploring the option of a possible loan move for Crystal Palace’s Christian Benteke.

The 31-year-old is struggling to secure a place in the starting XI under Patrick Vieira, but would provide a wealth of Premier League experience, having scored 86 goals in the competition – he has bagged a whopping 159 times across his senior career for club and country.

The Verdict: A good back-up option

Fans may be disappointed with the Benteke links, with previous rumours suggesting that the Hammers were interested in Blackburn’s Ben Brereton Diaz and Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

However, Benteke could be the ideal player to come off the bench and make an immediate impact. Vieira has said that having the striker at his disposal is a huge boost, claiming that ‘in the air he is one of the best if not the best in the league’, and that ‘this is a powerful weapon to have in the squad’.

With the ongoing push for Benfica starlet Nunez, Benteke could be a solid backup option if the deal for the 22-year-old fails to materialise.

Despite securing a deal for 21-year-old winger Chiquinho in recent days, Wolves still have enough time left in the January transfer window to add some more players to Bruno Lage’s squad as they aim to secure a European place in the Premier League this season.

One potential deal that the Old Gold could look to complete is for Barcelona’s 24-year-old winger Ousmane Dembele, who has been mentioned with a move to Molineux recently with current Wolves winger Adama Traore possibly going in the other direction.

With the Spanish club apparently telling Dembele to leave by the end of the month if he’s not willing to sign a new deal at Camp Nou, this is a situation that Wolves could potentially pounce upon to bring the Frenchman to Molineux for a fresh start away from Barcelona.

Having been compared to a young Cristiano Ronaldo by former Rennes sporting director Mikael Silvestre in terms of his characteristics on the pitch, Dembele has shown throughout his career that he is capable of scoring and setting up goals in a similar vein to the iconic Portuguese attacker. The 24-year-old has scored 53 goals and delivered 50 assists in 208 senior club appearances for Rennes, Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona across all competitions.

In addition to his comparison with Ronaldo, the £27m-rated winger has also been the subject of lofty praise from another footballing icon, with Lionel Messi describing his former Barcelona teammate as a “phenomenon” on the pitch.

If Jeff Shi and Wolves see a possibility of being able to secure a financially viable deal for Dembele this month, they should definitely go for it to see if he would be willing to test his game in the Premier League and put what seems to be an unsavoury situation with Barcelona behind him to potentially become Wolves’ own version of Ronaldo.

Given his fairly young age and Traore’s reported intention to leave Molineux, Dembele could also be Wolves’ dream replacement for the Spaniard and offer Lage’s side more of a goal threat going forward, given how Traore has only netted 11 goals in 153 Old Gold appearances across all competitions.

However, with a significant injury record against his name, this could potentially put off Wolves or any other club considering a move for Dembele from actually doing so.

In other news: Sky Sports journalist drops Wolves transfer update live on air, Lage will be delighted

West Ham United have made a move in a bid to bring Bamba Dieng to the London Stadium in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by French media outlet RMC Sport (via the Daily Mail), who claim that both West Ham and Crystal Palace have made an approach to Olympique de Marseille regarding a deal to sign the centre-forward this month.

The report goes on to state that the Ligue 1 side are now in a position where they have to sell in order to balance their books, and could let the 21-year-old leave the club for a fee of just €10m (£8m) in the current market.

The next Drogba

With a new centre-forward very much being a priority for David Moyes over the remainder of the January transfer window, the news that Dieng looks as if he will be available for such a small fee this winter is sure to have intrigued the 58-year-old Hammers manager.

And, it is clear to see why the Scot would be interested in a deal to sign the Senegal international this month, not only because West Ham’s only current senior centre-forward is Michail Antonio, but also because the 21-year-old is clearly a player who boasts a remarkable amount of potential for the future.

Indeed, over his 14 Ligue 1 outings this season – only seven of which have come as starts – the £7.2m-rated hitman has already scored four goals and created one big chance for his teammates, in addition to taking an average of 1.5 shots per game and finding the back of the net every 136 minutes of football played.

These returns have led to the player who Jorge Sampaoli dubbed “explosive” receiving some extremely high praise, none less so than from El Hadji Diouf, who stated of Dieng: “He’s a striker, a Didier Drogba. All he can do is score goals. He is a young person with a future. All I have to say is keep his head on his shoulders, keep working. He is an attacker who ends up in the box.”

As such, it would appear as if a move for the 21-year-old would be a very wise move for Moyes to make in the coming days, as, should Dieng continue his current rate of development following a switch to the London Stadium, the Hammers could very well have the next Drogba on their hands.

In other news: Moyes could form a deadly front three as WHU plot late Jan offer for £15m “greyhound”

Celtic appear to be edging closer to the signing of Daizen Maeda in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Dan Orlowitz, with the Japan Times journalist and J League insider stating in a post on Twitter that the Yokohama F. Marinos centre-forward’s proposed move to Celtic appears to be all but done, with the 24-year-old looking set to join the Bhoys on an initial loan deal with a €2m (£1.7m) purchase option to be exercised this summer.

In his post, Orlowitz said: “Multiple Japanese outlets reporting in the last 30 minutes that Daizen Maeda is expected to join Celtic on loan with a €2m purchase option to be exercised this summer. Based on [the] variety of sources I’d say this is done.”

Postecoglou will be buzzing

Considering just how impressive Maeda was in Japan this season, in addition to the fact that Ange Postecoglou is rather short of strength in depth up top, the news that the club’s deal to sign the striker looks to be all but complete is sure to have left the 56-year-old buzzing.

Indeed, over his 36 J League appearances this term, the £990k-rated forward scored a highly impressive 23 goals, provided three assists and created four big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 2.6 shots and making 0.9 key passes per game.

These returns saw the Japan international earn an excellent seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.09, ranking him as his club’s joint sixth-best performer in the league, as well as the joint top scorer in the division.

And, with all three of Kyogo Furuhashi, Albian Ajeti and Giorgos Giakoumakis suffering from various injuries this season, it would very much appear as if Postecoglou could use an extra body in attack ahead of the restart of the Premiership season next month.

As such, the news that the Maeda deal is close to completion will undoubtedly come as a major boost to the 56-year-old Bhoys manager, who will certainly be hoping to deploy the 24-year-old when Hibernian visit Parkhead on January 17.

In other news: Forget Jota: Ange can land the next Eriksen with Celtic swoop for £12.5m-rated machine

A number of Manchester United supporters have praised Edinson Cavani after it was claimed he would stay put at the club beyond the January transfer window.

The Red Devils are suffering a tough time of things at the moment, with poor results and performances on the pitch and Ralf Rangnick’s squad seemingly an unhappy bunch off it. The Mirror made a shocking claim last week that as many as 17 players are seeking to leave the club, with the Uruguay striker named as one of them.

The hope is that United enjoy an upturn in fortunes soon, starting with victory at home to Aston Villa in the FA Cup third round on Monday night.

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However, one player who seems to remain highly popular among many of the United faithful is Cavani, with the Uruguayan proving to be an excellent signing, scoring 19 goals in 50 appearances for the club thus far.

There has been speculation over a potential January exit but it now looks as though he will stay put, with journalist Fabrizio Romano sharing some comments from Ralf Rangnick via Twitter.

The interim manager said: “I spoke with Edinson Cavani almost half an hour. He told me he will definitely stay at Man United this January. I can rely on him to give his very best and to be a role model for young players.”

Man United fans hail Cavani news

These United fans took to Twitter to share their positive thoughts at the news that Cavani is committed to staying at Old Trafford for another few months at least.

“Can’t love this guy enough”

Credit: @Mitul__Mistry

“If only the rest of the squad was like this fella”

Credit: @DJMurph79322365

“Happy Monday”

Credit: @J_Oxborough

“More reason to love Edi!”

Credit: @IqieNaim

“Some good news for once”

Credit: @_All_United

“I AM IN LOVE, I CAN’T DENY”

Credit: @JIM365_

In other news, some United fans have reacted to a managerial update. Read more here.

Antonio Conte could be on the verge of making one of his first mistakes at Tottenham Hotspur after a recent claim emerged about central defender Joe Rodon.

What’s the word?

The 24-year-old Wales international has barely featured under the Italian since his arrival last month, featuring for only 54 minutes against NS Mura in the Europa Conference League, in what was just his fourth start of the season overall.

He was signed from Swansea City a year ago for around £11m and could now look to force an exit this January, in a bid to earn some more minutes on the pitch.

According to Football Insider, the 6 foot 4 colossus is “100 per cent” keen to secure an exit next month. Meanwhile, Spurs are seemingly on the lookout for defensive reinforcements, having been linked to the likes of Inter Milan’s Stefan de Vrij and Alessandro Bastoni, as well as AC Milan’s Alessio Romagnoli.

Now, Sky Sports reporter Michael Bridge, who is generally clued up on things behind the scenes at Hotspur Way, has delivered his verdict to GIVEMESPORT. He said:

“As it stands right now, I just get this feeling that Antonio Conte doesn’t think he’s at the level Tottenham need.”

Bad call?

This is a worrying claim as it almost certainly highlights the fact that the 52-year-old isn’t a fan of the Jose Mourinho addition, not at least because of his one start under him and that lasted less than an hour.

It is interesting that Conte will not turn to him despite their mini injury crisis that has seen star centre-back Cristian Romero ruled out for a couple of months heading into the start of 2022.

Rodon features regularly for his country and excelled at Euro 2020 alongside fellow Lilywhites defender Ben Davies, who the Italian has deployed in his back three regularly.

Indeed, the Welshman has played nearly as many times for Rob Page’s Dragons (12) as he has Spurs (16) in 2021.

But it’s a little perplexing as he clearly has a lot to offer and is a more natural centre-back than his compatriot and perhaps an even more reliable option than someone like Davinson Sanchez, who has been regularly lambasted as a “liability” during his time in N17.

Valued at £18m by CIES Football Observatory, Rodon has delivered fine performances for Wales, leading to praise such as “flawless” and him being a “special player” by journalist Ian Mitchelmore.

Meanwhile, in the past, he has been likened to two Premier League greats by Sky Sports’ Andy Hinchcliffe. “You look at Rio Ferdinand and John Terry and there are elements of both in Rodon’s game,” he claimed.

He’s also a player that the Lilywhites faithful have also been very keen to see and some feel that he should be in the starting XI more often, especially with Romero out injured – as seen in reactions relayed by This is Futbol earlier this month, once after the aforementioned Football Insider report and again after he was snubbed from a matchday squad.

They will not be thrilled by this latest update, so with the writing seemingly on the wall for Rodon, Conte could well be about to drop his biggest blunder yet in north London.

AND in other news, Imagine him & Conte: Spurs could form frightening duo with “fearless” £18m-rated beast…

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s Rangers side have been touted as a potential destination for a top-flight central midfielder at the end of the season.

The Chronicle have namedropped the Gers and Celtic as clubs who could land Newcastle United gem Sean Longstaff on a pre-contract deal in January, although it is unclear whether this is pure speculation or based around interest from the two Scottish giants.

Get it done

If this is a deal the club are lining up, van Bronckhorst must sanction the move and ensure that Ross Wilson is able to get it over the line in the coming weeks heading into January. His contract situation at St. James’ Park provides them with the perfect opportunity to pick up a bargain and it could be a shrewd deal for Rangers.

He is out of contract next summer and the Gers could land a pre-contract agreement with him in January, which would then allow him to join without the club paying a single penny in transfer fees at the end of the campaign.

Transfermarkt value him at £13.5m, suggesting that Rangers could save a huge amount of cash by signing him on a free. Therefore, it could be a fantastic swoop for the Scottish outfit from a financial viewpoint and could free up funds for Wilson to invest in other areas of the club.

In terms of his ability on the pitch, he has earned some high praise. Former Manchester United and England midfielder Michael Carrick previously lauded his attributes. The current Old Trafford coach said:

“Sean is a fantastic ­talent and doing well at the ­moment. He hasn’t played a awful lot of games yet, but the ­future is bright for him.

“I don’t like ­comparing his playing style to mine. It is not fair on Sean. He is ­carving his own career out. He has his own traits and strengths. I ­always enjoy seeing young ­players getting a chance.”

The £23k-per-week gem has made 3.3 tackles and interceptions per game in the Premier League this season, scoring once in 11 matches. This shows that he has the tenacity and strength to win the ball back consistently in the English top-flight, which is a quality he could bring to Ibrox.

At the age of 24, he also has plenty of room left to grow and develop as a player over the years. Therefore, he could be a superb signing for the here and now and the future, which is why the Rangers boss must sanction a deal for the Newcastle midfielder in January ahead of him arriving next summer.

AND in other news, Meeting expected: Report delivers Rangers transfer update that could leave fans gutted…

Wolves remain interested in signing towering Lille centre-back Sven Botman in the January transfer window, according to a fresh report.

The Lowdown: Botman a past Wolves target

Wanderers have been linked with the Dutchman in the recent past as Bruno Lage eyes up January and summer reinforcements. The 21-year-old may still be a very young player but he is already a hugely important figure for Lille, making 12 starts in Ligue 1 so far this season.

It looks as though Botman could still be on the move next month, though, with an encouraging update provided from a Wolves perspective.

The Latest: Interest in defender remains

According to Tuttomercatoweb, Wanderers and Roma are both interested in acquiring Botman’s signature and they continue to track the 21-year-old, with AC Milan and Newcastle also now joining the race for his services.

However, the Lille defender’s current deal with the reigning French champions doesn’t expire until the summer of 2025, so a hefty free may be required to prise him away.

The Verdict: Fantastic potential signing

While centre-backs Max Kilman, Conor Coady and Romain Saiss have all impressed for Wolves this season, the opportunity to sign Botman should not be dismissed. The monstrous defender has averaged 2.3 successful headers and 4.6 clearances per game in the league in 2021/22, with only Saiss (2.6) averaging more aerial duels won among those in Lage’s squad.

The Moroccan is also the only Wanderers player to outdo Botman in terms of clearances (5.2), highlighting how good a signing the Dutchman could be in making competition for places even stronger at Molineux.

In other news, some Wolves fans have fumed over a transfer update. Read more here.

Taking to Twitter, Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas has now broken a ‘boost’ for Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte ahead of Leeds United as Ryan Sessegnon returns from injury.

The Lowdown: Sessegnon sidelined…

September’s torrid international break, which Spurs fans will certainly believe to be the worst in recent memory, saw a plethora of Lilywhites stars return from their duties with various problems.

Indeed, the likes of Steven Bergwijn, Oliver Skipp, Son Heung-min and Sessegnon picked up knocks before their trip back to Hotspur Way.

Meanwhile, South American trio Cristian Romero, Giovani Lo Celso and Davinson Sanchez had to spend a 10-day training camp in Croatia due to quarantine rules before returning to London (Evening Standard).

Sessegnon, the last player to finally recover from this nightmare period, is reportedly back in contention as Sky reporter Thomas shares a social media update.

The Latest: Conte gifted Sessegnon ‘boost’…

As per the journalist, Conte is set to see the defender return to full training following his hamstring injury – and he could even be available to face Leeds United.

“Ryan Sessegnon will return to full training this week from the hamstring problem suffered in September and could be available for Leeds clash on Sunday,” he explained.

Sharing his piece, which describes the 21-year-old’s return as a ‘selection boost’, Thomas details that Sessegnon’s comeback could come of use to Conte given his preferred 3-4-3 formation – coming as just ‘the sort of player’ who could become ‘rejuvenated’ in the Italian’s system (Twitter).

The Verdict: Crunch time for Sessegnon…

Under former bosses Jose Mourinho and Nuno Espirito Santo, combination of injury issues and loan spells out of the club haven’t really handed Sessegnon a chance to cement his place in the Spurs team.

However, if Conte can be the man to full implement the Englishman, it’s safe to say Tottenham can have a more-than ideal rotational option to Sergio Reguilon and, potentially, one of the strongest left-back rosters in the Premier League.

Lauded as an ‘outstanding player’ with the potential to become worth around £50 million (Noel Whelan, Football Insider), former Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic’s praise for the ‘special’ starlet highlights his quality.

It is no coincidence that Nuno was a ‘big fan’ of the left-wing back, as reliably reported by Alasdair Gold (via Spurs Web), and these next few months could well be a crunch time in his Spurs career.

Time will tell whether he goes on to become a favourite, but the quality is certainly there for him to do so.

In other news: ‘I understand’, ‘In recent weeks’…Alasdair Gold shares exciting development out of Hotspur Way, find out more here.

India will live to fight another day in the Champions Trophy after rain prevented a result at Centurion, where Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey had led a strong Australian batting effort

The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale28-Sep-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were outMichael Hussey found some form with 67•Getty Images

India and Australia will have their Champions Trophy fortunes decided on Wednesday after a washout in the match between the two sides in Centurion on Monday, when Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey led a strong Australian batting effort. Australia reached 234 for 4 before the deluge that had appeared imminent for more than an hour finally arrived and set in.It meant the only winner was Pakistan, who are now assured of a semi-final spot. The fate of Australia and India now rests with the final two group matches, both on Wednesday. For India to progress they must thrash West Indies and lift their net run-rate while also hoping Australia lose to Pakistan; any win or no-result for Australia in their remaining match and they are through.Australia were the frontrunners when the match was abandoned. There was no centurion at Centurion but a string of half-centuries from Ponting, Hussey and Tim Paine, as well as a late flurry from Cameron White set them on a comfortable course. As the players toiled against the backdrop of lightning, White lifted the tempo with an unbeaten 35, including a monstrous six over midwicket off Amit Mishra.However, it was Ponting and Hussey who controlled the middle of the innings as they kept the scoreboard ticking over with little drama. Hussey was typically unobtrusive in compiling 67 from 65 deliveries, driving through gaps and haring through for single after single. There had been a reverse sweep early in his innings but he’d taken few risks until he lofted a wide ball from Ishant Sharma, who bowled poorly, straight to Sachin Tendulkar at long off.Ponting was more classical, if slower to score his 65 runs, until he was caught short by a magnificent direct hit from the deep from Gautam Gambhir. Until that moment, Ponting had looked set for a century as he settled into a rhythm with quick singles and the odd cracking cut or drive, as well as one brilliant, high lofted drive for six off a good-length Praveen Kumar delivery.Ponting was the anchor, combining in an 88-run stand with Hussey and an 84-run partnership with Paine, while India’s bowlers battled to make inroads into the top order. Paine was the aggressor early and took plenty of risks. He walked down the pitch to Ishant and turned him over midwicket for four, also pulling him for six as Ishant’s first over cost 16 and his first three overs leaked 30.The risk-reward strategy continued against Harbhajan Singh, whose first ball to Paine was paddle-swept for four from on the stumps and later in the same over Paine reverse-swept another boundary to bring up his half-century. However, Paine’s luck expired on 56, when he top-edged another paddle-sweep off Mishra to midwicket.Mishra and Ashish Nehra were the most impressive bowlers in an Indian effort that lacked bite. There was sharp turn for Mishra but not a great deal of assistance for the fast bowlers, although India could also have used a sharper fielding effort – Paine should’ve been run out on 6 and on 31 his edge off Mishra flew between MS Dhoni and Rahul Dravid at first slip.After India lost the toss, Nehra gave them the perfect start when he consigned Shane Watson to his third consecutive one-day international duck. Nehra found some extra bounce that surprised Watson, whose top-edged pull lobbed to Harbhajan at midwicket.There wasn’t much more joy for India, although the washout was a reasonable outcome for them given Australia’s solid batting. However, India need to find some spark to hammer a West Indies side that has fought well in this tournament, and they must also hope for a Pakistan win against Ponting’s men. Australia’s fate is in their own hands.