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Sunderland will be looking to extend their run of five matches without defeat in the Championship as they travel to face Rotherham United tonight.

The Black Cats have not lost in the division since 14 January (against Swansea) and are heading into the clash against the Millers off the back of a 1-1 draw at home to Bristol City.

Jack Clarke put the hosts in front at the Stadium of Light with a stunning strike from distance before Trai Hume conceded a penalty in stoppage time, which Nahki Wells converted.

With fixtures coming thick and fast at the moment, Tony Mowbray may look to make some changes to his starting XI to keep players fresh and maintain a high level of competition for places.

Will Pierre Ekwah start against Rotherham?

One player who could benefit from alterations to the starting line-up is central midfielder Pierre Ekwah, who should finally be unleashed from the start by Mowbray tonight.

The former West Ham United gem, who was signed in January, has made three appearances as a substitute in the Championship, and this clash could be his first opportunity at Sunderland to showcase his talent for more than just a few minutes.

He impressed in a recent cameo against Queens Park Rangers, completing 100% of his attempted dribbles and ground duels whilst also creating one chance in just nine minutes of action, as per Sofascore.

Mowbray recently hailed the gem’s “silky-smooth left foot” and has been trying to get the best out of the midfielder’s physical attributes.

The Sunderland coach said of Ekwah: “His left foot is really smooth, and yet I have been trying to encourage him to bring his physicality because he is a big lad – he’s not a small, skinny, frail, kid. He’s got huge physical attributes that he should bring to the party.”

These comments suggest that the youngster has all the qualities that he needs to be an excellent player for Sunderland, and handing him an opportunity to play against Rotherham could allow him to put it all together to produce a complete performance.

In the EFL Trophy for West Ham’s U21s earlier this season, Ekwah averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.00 as he created two chances and made two tackles and interceptions per match across three appearances, which shows that the midfielder has the ability to make a big impact at both ends of the pitch.

Therefore, Mowbray must rest Dan Neil or Edouard Michut in order to hand the 21-year-old gem his first big opportunity to prove his worth in a Black Cats shirt.

Craig Hope has hinted on his YouTube channel that Allan Saint-Maximin is in talks with Newcastle United over a new contract.

The Lowdown: Newcastle working behind the scenes

Newcastle tasted defeat for only the second time in the Premier League last night and both of those losses have been inflicted on the Magpies by Liverpool, who were also the only side to beat them at St James’ Park in the league during 2022.

It shows that the Magpies do indeed have a sort of mental or physical block when it comes to facing Jurgen Klopp’s side, but one positive from a damning evening on Tyneside was the performance of Saint-Maximin.

The Frenchman was picked out as the Player of the Match by Jamie Carragher last night which may hint at a shift in his form heading into the Carabao Cup final next week, or he could be playing for something more than just a starting berth.

The Latest: Saint-Maximin heading for a new deal

Hope questioned post-match last night why Saint-Maximin was only starting to turn up his performance amid talk of a new deal going on behind the scenes.

He said: (4:25) “The opening 10 minutes I thought they were brilliant and one of those positives was Saint-Maximin. Why is it he only really turns it on when he’s in talks over a new contract on the eve of a cup final but I thought he was brilliant, the best we’ve seen in a long time from him during the first 10 minutes.”

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The Verdict: PIF making moves off the pitch

It is quite an interesting turn of events to see Saint-Maximin seemingly in talks over a new deal as he has been pretty much a squad player under Eddie Howe post-injury this season and has a current deal that ties him down until 2026.

Therefore, it would appear that there should be no urgency to be thrashing out new terms for Saint-Maximin, especially when reports have suggested over the last few months that the club were willing to move him on.

However, performances like the one last night – which saw Dominic Scurr labelling him a ‘bright spark’ reminds everyone of the talent that he does indeed possess and if he can carry the Magpies to glory next week and continues to step up his level of performance, PIF may see no other option but to hand him a new contract.

Chelsea are still attempting to seal the signing of Enzo Fernandez but Benfica are ‘holding firm’, according to Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth.

The Lowdown: Endless Chelsea links

No player has been linked with the Bkues more this month than the Argentine, who is still basking in the glory of his country’s 2022 World Cup success.

Fernandez enjoyed an exceptional tournament in Qatar, being named the Best Young Player, and he is now viewed as one of the finest young midfielders in Europe, ranking highly in several metrics on FBRef’s database.

With time running out in the January transfer window, a new update has emerged regarding Chelsea’s pursuit of the 22-year-old.

The Latest: Fresh update emerges

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Sheth said that the saga is still ‘definitely one to watch’, but Benfica are remaining stubborn:

“It is definitely one to watch but, as it stands with only six days to go in this window, Benfica are standing firm.

“They want that release clause or the deal doesn’t happen and you’ve got to think, with so little time to go, they’re still in the last 16 of the Champions League and how would they bring in a replacement in the time that remains?

“Also, a potential selling club would know that they’ve got £106million burning a hole in their pocket and they’ll just raise the price.”

The Verdict: Late signing would be huge

The longer this situation goes on, the more it looks as though Chelsea may have to wait until the summer to sign Fernandez, given Benfica’s unchanged stance.

That being said, there is still clear hope that the Blues could get their man this month and he is precisely what Graham Potter needs in the middle of the park, having been hailed as ‘spectacular’ by none other than Lionel Messi.

At 22, the £42,000-a-week earning midfield is almost a decade younger than the likes of N’Golo Kante, Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic, and he would bring fresh legs, having averaged an incredible 3.8 tackles per game in the Champions League this season.

A midfield signing is desperately needed, in order for Chelsea’s top-four challenge to gain some momentum, and Fernandez looks like the perfect addition given the technical ability and off-the-ball work he possesses.

Tottenham have made an opening bid to sign attack-minded Sporting CP defender Pedro Porro, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Lowdown: Spurs eye Porro move…

The former Man City wing-back has been made a transfer priority at Spurs over the last few weeks amid manager Antonio Conte’s search for an upgrade on his right flank.

Reports have suggested that the 23-year-old is top of the list for sporting director Fabio Paratici, but what could make this move difficult is Sporting’s stance on selling in January.

Reliable outlets like The Guardian have shared that the Portuguese giants are stern and Spurs may have to fork out Porro’s €45m (£39.5m) release clause to land him this month.

Conte is believed to be personally targeting the defender and Tottenham appear determined to negotiate their way around having to pay the player’s exit clause.

The Latest: Tottenham table opening Porro bid…

Reliable reporter Romano, taking to Twitter, has shared an update on the situation.

He claims that Spurs have made their opening bid for Porro, offering one player plus guaranteed money.

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However, in some bad news for supporters, Sporting have replied to their approach by rejecting this formula and maintaining that they must pay his release clause.

The Lilywhites are set for further talks with the club ‘insisting’ on his signing for Conte.

The Verdict: Keep pushing…

Porro could be the ideal solution for Spurs at right-wing-back as Conte seeks to guide his side to a second-consecutive top four Premier League finish.

The Spaniard tops the charts for his club in terms of league assists with five in 13 appearances, and that’s not the only piece of evidence for his real threat.

As per WhoScored, Porro also ranks in Sporting’s top two for shots at goal and key passes made per 90 in Liga Portugal.

Still just 23, he could come as both an instant upgrade for Conte and a signing of real longevity if all goes to plan, with members of the media lavishing Porro as one of Spain’s ‘incredible’ bunch of talented full-backs.

This saga looks like it could go to the wire as talks continue between Spurs and Sporting – but his numbers and reputation indicate he may be worth the transfer push.

Leeds United could look at another January transfer after finalising a move for a new forward, according to Graham Smyth.

The Lowdown: Rutter to sign?

It appears as if the Whites could secure the services of Hoffenheim forward Georginio Rutter in the coming days.

Sky Sports have said that a club-record transfer worth around £35.3m is close, with the 20-year-old expected to have an Elland Road medical in the next 48 hours. Rutter would become the club’s second winter arrival after Max Wober, but Leeds officials may not stop there.

The Latest: Another move incoming?

Leeds correspondent Smyth shared a transfer state of play for Yorkshire Evening Post in the last 48 hours, which included news on Rutter.

The reliable reporter teased even more recruitment after a move for a forward, saying that ‘the YEP understands it’s possible that they could now also add a further signing in another area of the pitch.’

The Verdict: Exciting for Leeds

Leeds supporters have had to make do with quiet January transfer windows since their return to the Premier League, with the club completing their business in the summer instead.

Therefore, the possibility of another arrival after Rutter is an exciting one, and it would be interesting to see what position Andrea Radrizzani would look to bolster.

A new versatile midfielder could be beneficial following Mateusz Klich’s recent departure, so this will be one to watch in the coming weeks.

Glasgow Rangers manager Michael Beale has enjoyed life back in Glasgow since the resumption of the Premiership season.

Four wins from four have given the Ibrox side some confidence as they head into 2023, but the performances haven’t quite been as free-flowing as the manager would have liked.

There have been positives, however, with the character shown to come back from a two-goal deficit twice in six days more than what was put on display under Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

His biggest challenge comes tomorrow, with Old Firm rivals Celtic arriving at Ibrox for what could be the most important match of the season so far. A win and the club will move to just six points behind Celtic, but a defeat and Beale can all but say cheerio to claiming the league title this season.

He must unleash his best players, and Alfredo Morelos deserves a chance to feature from the beginning.

On the chalkboard

The Colombian striker has looked rejuvenated under Beale recently, scoring against Hibernian and Motherwell in the previous two weeks and he certainly looks like he has something to prove.

The 26-year-old famously failed to score in his first 14 appearances against Celtic, but he finally broke the duck against them in the 2020/2021 season, netting two goals as the club strolled to the league title.

Morelos was described by former Premiership player – who wished to remain anonymous – as “a nightmare for defenders” while Jordan Campbell once dubbed the £33k-per-week hitman “lethal” and if Rangers wish to gain all three points against their rivals on Monday, they need these qualities to be in full flow from the striker.

Antonio Colak was in fine form before the World Cup break, scoring 14 goals for the club, however, he has not played under Beale due to an injury and it is highly unlikely that he will be thrust into the starting XI for such an important match having not played since November.

This means the 42-year-old must unleash Morelos and hope that he can rediscover the form he displayed against Celtic two seasons ago, where he finally got the monkey off his back and scored twice.

If he turns up, Celtic could be in for a long afternoon, but the rest of the Rangers side will need to be operating at 100% too, otherwise, it could be a repeat of September when the Light Blues lost 4-0.

Crystal Palace are reportedly interested in signing Leeds United right-back Cody Drameh and the youngster could be a big upgrade on Nathaniel Clyne in Patrick Vieira’s side.

According to TEAMtalk, Newcastle United, West Ham United and Crystal Palace are all interested in the 20-year-old, with Palace thought to see him as a great option for the future at Selhurst Park.

Leeds are reportedly keen to tie him down to a new deal at Elland Road but he is currently behind Rasmus Kristensen and Luke Ayling in the pecking order in Jesse Marsch’s side, which could lead to his exit in January.

The England U21 international has been limited to just seven appearances for the Whites’ senior side in his time with the Yorkshire club, but he did catch the eye during a loan spell with Cardiff City in the Championship last season, contributing three assists in 22 appearances for the Bluebirds.

And, the youngster’s former manager, Steve Morison, was full of praise for Drameh during his time with the Welsh side in 2021/22.

He said: “Barnsley was a horrible game. He’d never experienced anything like that and he came in with a couple of last-ditch tackles right at the death of the game, which was phenomenal.

“Tonight? It’s a good thing they can’t call him back after that because he was outstanding.”

While he was playing in the Championship, his performances last season would earn him a solid 6.89 rating from WhoScored, as he averaged 3.8 tackles, one interception and two clearances per game.

For comparison, Clyne has earned a woeful 6.19 WhoScored rating for his performances in the Premier League this season after averaging just 1.1 tackles, 0.6 interceptions and one clearance per game, which suggests that Drameh certainly has the edge from a defensive point of view.

During his time with Cardiff, the Leeds youngster also averaged more key passes (0.6 vs 0.5), dribbles (1.1 vs 0.1) and shots (0.3 vs 0) per game than Clyne, which suggests that he could easily take the 31-year-old’s place in Vieira’s starting side should he arrive at Selhurst Park next month.

West Ham United fans were not happy with David Moyes’ decision to take Said Benrahma off during their 2-1 Premier League defeat against Crystal Palace. 

The Lowdown: Last-gasp defeat for West Ham

Benrahma put the Hammers ahead with 20 minutes on the clock, only for Wilfried Zaha to score an equaliser minutes before halftime.

In the dying breaths of the game, the visitors scored a last-gasp goal through Michael Olise to snatch the three points.

Despite this late sucker punch, it was an off-field decision that riled up some West Ham fans during the game.

The Latest: Off-field fan fury

Just after the hour-mark, West Ham manager David Moyes decided to make a double substitution, with the removal of Benrahma not going down well with some supporters.

In a Twitter post, Thomas had this to say on the situation.

He said: “[Manuel] Lanzini and [Flynn] Downes replace Benrahma and [Tomas] Soucek. Loud boos for Benrahma’s substitution. Home crowd are singing his name. #WHUFC” 

The Verdict: A frustrating day for West Ham

While it was the Algerian that got the home side in front, it’s easy to see why some West Ham fans were not happy with Moyes’ decision to take him off.

However, bearing in mind how the goal was the only attempt Benrahma had to score and failed to successfully complete the two dribbles he attempted, it’s easy to see why the West Ham manager chose to take him off.

The winger ultimately ended the game with fewer touches of the ball (23) than goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski (46).

The changes the Scotsman made didn’t help his side seal the victory, leaving him and everyone else connected to the club with a real frustration over how the match panned out.

Moving forward, with a Carabao Cup clash against Blackburn Rovers in midweek followed by their final league game before the World Cup break against Leicester City at the weekend, everyone at West Ham will want to put today’s crushing defeat behind them and win those two games.

Sheffield Wednesday are thought to be eyeing up a move for Hibernian defender Ryan Porteous.

The Lowdown: Porteous profiled

Hailed as ‘excellent’ by Scotland goalkeeper Craig Gordon, the 23-year-old and is an out-and-out centre-back. He has progressed through Hibs’ academy and has made 150 first-team appearances in Edinburgh, scoring 12 times and registering eight assists.

The defender is also a Scotland international, making his debut against Ukraine in September.

The Latest: Wednesday keen on Porteous

The Daily Record’s Scott Burns shared a story on Thursday night regarding Porteous and Sheffield Wednesday.

He revealed that the Owls are one of four EFL clubs who are keen on the centre-back’s services, with his  current Hibs deal set to expire at the end of the season.

The Verdict: One to watch?

You’d expect that Wednesday are looking at a potential pre-contract agreement, which could see Porteous moving to Hillsborough for free ahead of the 2023/24 season.

Darren Moore’s side will be hopeful that they will be playing in the Championship next season, and securing Porteous’ services in the New Year could be a real coup.

He has a plethora of first-team experience and is still relatively young, so you’d like to think that he would only improve even further with time, making this one to watch heading into the New Year.

Arsenal have been dealt yet another injury setback ahead of their Premier League meeting with Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday afternoon.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to Kaya Kaynak, with the football.london journalist revealing in a recent post on Twitter that, despite only recovering from an injury that saw him miss FC Zurich and Brentford fixtures prior to the international break, Cedric Soares has now sustained a fresh injury that will rule him out for between one and two weeks.

In his post, Kaynak said: “Cedric Soares has picked up a fresh knock and will be out for a week or two. Really unlucky for him just after coming back from an injury that saw him miss FC Zurich and Brentford before the international break.”

A dilemma for Arteta

While it is true that Cedric is not exactly a guaranteed starter at The Emirates – having been an unused substitute four times already this season – considering the fact that both Takehiro Tomiyasu and Ben White are also injury doubts for the north London derby this weekend, the loss of the Portugal international will nevertheless come as yet another blow to Mikel Arteta, who could now have a big dilemma over his options on the right-hand side of defence.

Indeed, should both Tomiyasu and White be ruled out of Saturday’s clash, Cedric’s unavailability will leave the Spaniard with no natural right-back for the visit of Tottenham – something that, considering the fact Spurs’ left-winger, Heung-min Son, is coming into the fixture on the back of a sensational second-half hat-trick last time out, would represent a disaster for the 40-year-old.

And, despite not being first choice, the £5.4m-rated full-back nevertheless impressed over his 21 Premier League appearances last season, scoring one goal, registering one assist, creating two big chances and keeping three clean sheets, as well as making an average of 1.8 tackles, 0.8 interceptions, 0.9 key passes and winning 3.0 duels per game.

These returns saw the £75k-per-week defender average an extremely respectable SofaScore match rating of 6.86, ranking the 31-year-old as Arsenal’s joint 15th-best performer in the top flight of English football last time out – proving his importance within the Gunners’ squad.

As such, the unavailability of Cedric will certainly come as another blow to Arteta ahead of Saturday’s fixture, with the Spaniard already missing Mohamed Elneny and Emile Smith Rowe, while Thomas Partey, Kieran Tierney, Tomiyasu and White are also doubts for the meeting with Arsenal’s most fierce of rivals.