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Eberechi Eze has been pictured behind the camera at Crystal Palace’s training ground.

Eze has yet to play for Palace this season, having suffered an Achilles tendon injury at the back end of the 2020/21 campaign.

Injury expert Ben Dinnery told Football Insider this week that Eze will now be ‘in and around those training pitches and moving to the next phase’ of his rehabilitation.

He ‘should be able to go out on the grass and undertake some light jogging’, he adds.

The 23-year-old is predicted to be back in action at some point next month.

Just how big will Eze’s return be?

Based on his performances in his first season at Selhurst Park, it will be a significant boost for Patrick Vieira.

Eze led the Palace squad for assists (six), key passes (1.3 per 90) and dribbles (1.9 per 90) last season (via WhoScored).

Palace fans will be keen to see how he links up with new signings like Conor Gallagher and Odsonne Edouard.

Here’s how supporters reacted as the official club Twitter account posted ‘Ebs content to bless the timeline’.

Palace fans enjoy Eze tweet

“On god he’s the happiest looking guy, makes me smile, he’s funny too, the FIFA card vid is gas”

Credit: @eaglism

“Never been so buzzing for a player to come back from injury”

Credit: @palacejoe_

“He’s always so happy”

Credit: @kimberley_e_

“Gods be praised”

Credit: @EvilSashPioneer

“Gotta be the happiest man on earth he is literally always smiling”

Credit: @C_sharp29

“The most anticipated comeback of all time, honestly can’t wait for it!”

Credit: @J_CPFC

In other news, Eagles scouts have been spotted at this fixture. 

Leeds United could revive their interest in Club Brugge’s Noa Lang, Leeds Live’s Joshua Hobbs writes. 

The lowdown

Victor Orta, Leeds’ director of football, reportedly carried out ‘a lot of analysis’ on Lang, only for former manager Marcelo Bielsa to turn down the suggested move.

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The Argentine apparently had concerns about Lang’s contribution off the ball.

Lang, who’s predominantly a left winger but can also play centre forward, has made 42 appearances this season.

He ranks joint-fourth in Club Brugge’s scoring charts with nine, and sits fourth in the Jupiler Pro League assist table with 11.

The Dutchman still has more than three years remaining on his contract and is valued at £19.8million by Transfermarkt.

The latest

Hobbs notes that Jesse Marsch, Bielsa’s successor, has moved away from Bielsa’s man-to-man defensive system and prefers to defend as a unit, and that could make Lang’s supposed shortcomings less of an issue.

He also believes that the 22-year-old, ‘excellent in compacted spaces’, would be well suited in Marsch’s ‘narrow system’.

The move is now ‘more likely’, particularly with Raphinha potentially set to leave Elland Road this summer.

Signing Lang could be part of Leeds’ plan to replace the Brazilian.

The verdict

If Leeds fans are concerned that Lang has only been delivering in a relatively weak league – the Belgian top-flight is the 13th-best in Europe – then they need only look to his displays in the Champions League.

For example, Lang won the Player of the Match award when Club Brugge drew 1-1 with French giants Paris Saint-Germain in September and looked, journalist Zach Lowy noted, ‘like prime Neymar’.

But what about those defensive concerns?

Well it’s true that Lang doesn’t press a huge amount – only 12.81 times per 90 minutes (placing in him just the 16th percentile) – but his numbers for tackles (1.54), interceptions (1.02) and blocks (1.2) are all closer to the average. There’s certainly enough there for Marsch to work with.

In other news, this Leeds transfer target struggled at the weekend.

Not only did Aston Villa manage to pick up their first defeat under new manager Steven Gerrard in the 2-1 loss at Villa Park against Manchester City in midweek, but they were also dealt a blow when winger Leon Bailey was forced off the pitch with an injury.

Speaking after the match against Pep Guardiola’s side, Gerrard revealed that the thigh injury suffered by the Jamaican “doesn’t look good” and that it “looks like he will miss at least a couple of games.”

Opportunity knocks

With this in mind, it could be the perfect time for one other Villa attacker to finally get the chance to prove himself to Gerrard while Bailey is out injured is Anwar El Ghazi.

Since Gerrard was appointed at Villa, El Ghazi has only made two substitute appearances, the first of which coming in their 2-0 win over Brighton in Gerrard’s first game where he played just six minutes, followed by a 13-minute cameo in the win against Crystal Palace where he provided an assist.

Even though Gerrard chose to bring on Ashley Young for the injured Bailey in the game against City in midweek, leaving El Ghazi on the bench for the duration, the Englishman failed to have much of an attacking impact to try and claw a positive result from the match.

With this in mind and the fact that El Ghazi, who has been labelled in the past as “unstoppable” by former Villa teammate Alan Hutton, has as many goals as Bailey and Emi Buendia in the league at this point in the season, this could the Dutchman’s best opportunity to show to Gerrard that he should be in the starting XI more often.

Looking ahead to the future, with Villa set to take on Leicester City on Sunday afternoon for their next Premier League clash, Gerrard should definitely consider giving El Ghazi a chance to prove himself from the start rather than from the substitutes bench again to see if he can make a difference to the team.

If Gerrard does pick El Ghazi to start against the Foxes and he manages to deliver a solid performance, he could well find himself at the start of a regular run in the team, which would be great for the winger given how he’s only started four league games so far this season.

In other news: Villa handed double potential injury boost ahead of LCFC that’ll leave fans thrilled – opinion

Celtic will look to move on left-back Boli Bolingoli in the New Year, according to The Athletic’s Kieran Devlin.

The Lowdown: Bolingoli under Postecoglou

Bolingoli was linked with a move to Turkish side Altay SK over the summer, however, as we know, a move never materialised.

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The 26-year-old hasn’t featured heavily under Ange Postecoglou, even though first-choice left-back Greg Taylor missed 17 games due to a shoulder problem. Bolingoli has made just two appearances in all competitions, the last of which came back in October.

Pundit Alex McLeish believes Postecoglou ‘doesn’t like’ something in the Ivorian’s game, while the club even labelled the full-back as ‘stupid’ following his health protocol breach last year. And it now seems as if he could leave Parkhead over the coming weeks.

The Latest: Devlin’s claim

Devlin shared a transfer mailbag on The Athletic on Wednesday, providing numerous Parkhead updates.

One fan said to the reliable reporter that Vasilis Barkas and Albian Ajeti should go in January.

Devlin responded by saying that Barkas is ‘definitely one the club are looking to move on’, before adding that ‘one source’ has suggested it is the same for Bolingoli.

The Verdict: Correct call

Celtic made 12 signings over the summer, and even though it may not feel like it due to injuries, the Hoops have a fairly big squad.

They are also looking at signing three Japanese players in January, so moving on the likes of Bolingoli and Barkas, who have hardly featured under Postecoglou, appears to be the right decision, trimming the fringes of the squad and cutting down the wage bill.

The pair have been expensive mistakes with Bolingoli costing £3m and Barkas £4.5m, so the Hoops should do all they can to get as much as possible for the pair in 2022.

In other news: Celtic now reach another January agreement on ‘tireless worker’; Nicholson isn’t hanging around. 

Arsenal are seemingly targeting a major addition this month if emerging reports are to be believed…

What’s the word?

According to Italian transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, the north London outfit are seeking a new option to bolster Mikel Arteta’s engine room before the deadline on January 31st and they have as many as three names on their shortlist.

“Arsenal are working to sign a new midfielder. Bruno Guimarães appreciated but currently not discussed as January target – deal too complicated, €45m fee,” he tweeted.

“Arthur Melo on loan has been discussed days ago – but still no talks/contacts with Juve. Three names in the list.”

Exciting news

This will come as exciting news to those around the Emirates Stadium as it is no secret that the Gunners desperately need reinforcements in the heart of midfield.

The north Londoners will be without Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny for the rest of the month as both players are competing at the Africa Cup of Nations, whilst Ainsley Maitland-Niles has completed a loan move to Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma, so that leaves Arteta even more light on options.

“We are very, very short at the moment. We are going to move and look for options because we are very short there,” the 39-year-old revealed to reporters this week.

Indeed, he now only has Granit Xhaka and Albert Sambi Lokonga to call upon for that deeper role, with Martin Odegaard and Emile Smith Rowe capable of playing further forward.

An injury to any of these names could quickly curtail Arsenal’s progress this campaign as they find themselves firmly in the race for a top-four finish.

There is only a four-point gap to seventh place, so the Gunners cannot afford a slip-up and that’s why the club’s hierarchy must push ahead with plans to land a new midfielder this month.

It is certainly encouraging to see them being proactive – as Romano states, they are working to sign someone – so that should leave supporters absolutely buzzing.

AND in other news, David Ornstein: Arsenal now lead race for “complete” goal machine…

The Celtic manager’s vacancy has to be one of the most talked-about subjects in football right now. Neil Lennon is no longer in charge and as a result, Dermot Desmond and Peter Lawwell have some big decisions to make on who replaces him.

Some impressive names have been touted with taking the job; one of which is current Scotland boss Steve Clarke.

The Express revealed last week that he was one of the names in the running to take over at Parkhead and if you judge him by what he’s achieved with Scotland, you’d take the manager in a heartbeat.

He has taken the national team to their first major tournament since 1998, a historic triumph for the 57-year-old. With that in mind, he will surely take charge of Scotland at the Euros this summer before considering a move elsewhere.

We’ve already looked at the negative influence his style of football could have on Ryan Christie but one player he could benefit is Ismaila Soro.

With Scott Brown out of contract in the summer, he will most likely take on the reins as the Hoops’ primary defensive midfielder.

He’d tick plenty of boxes for Clarke too, mainly because he prefers to operate with a more defensive style of play. That’s something Celtic podcaster John Paul Dykes has already picked up on: “I think the job he’s doing is reminiscent to Craig Brown. He’s basically shoring up the backline. That’s his absolutely key attribute as a manager,” he said earlier this season.

At Kilmarnock, the Scotland boss saw his team find the net only 1.4 times per game. At Reading, meanwhile, it was even worse; just 1.1 goals per match.

Clarke traditionally prefers to build from the back and stabilise a team’s defence, which would surely make Soro a major component of whatever XI he builds.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-celtic-manager-hunt-stories-wagner-marsch-martinez-lennon-news” title=”The last stories on Celtic’s hunt for a new manager!”]

At Killie, the coach conceded fewer goals in 2017/18 than Rangers as he guided them to a fifth-place finish. During their next campaign, his team finished third, a season where Kilmarnock conceded less than a goal a game and had the third-best defensive record in the entire Scottish Premiership.

One of the main reasons behind that was not only Clarke but the way he deployed Gary Dicker at the base of his midfield. He missed three league outings all season and laid a solid platform in front of the defence.

Soro could be a player of a similar ilk for Clarke. After all, he’s already proven what an asset he can be in that third of the pitch this season. In two separate games, the Ivorian has completed over eight tackles; one of which came in the Europa League during a combative performance versus Lille.

Combine that with Clarke’s astute defensive coaching and you could have a star in the making. The £11k-per-week brute would surely relish a partnership such as this.

AND in other news, Forget Harper: Celtic should swoop for 5-goal gem who’s been “on top of the world”…

Arsenal return to Premier League action on Friday night as they welcome Aston Villa to the Emirates Stadium, where they’ll be looking to extend their unbeaten run with a more convincing performance.

The Gunners got away with one earlier this week as they salvaged a point against Patrick Vieira’s Crystal Palace outfit to take their recent record to six games without defeat in all competitions.

Their last two outings have been lacklustre draws in the wake of their 3-1 thumping of Tottenham Hotspur in the north London derby, so something may need to change as Mikel Arteta needs to spark a more positive reaction.

It was Alexandre Lacazette who was the Spaniard’s hero on Monday night as he came off the bench to slot home the equaliser with effectively the last kick off the game, and he will be buoyed by confidence from that goal, so he must feature in the starting XI tonight.

Arsenal have Leeds United in the Carabao Cup next week and that’ll be the more tempting game to rotate his squad, but the current lineup is in need of a shake-up if the side are to get back to winning ways.

It was the Frenchman’s 68th goal for the club since his £52.7m move from Lyon in 2017. He actually has a pretty respectable record in north London, having averaged a goal or assist every 116 minutes across all competitions, as per Transfermarkt.

Previously described as a “goal machine” by former Gunners defender Sokratis, the 30-year-old forward proved this week that he can still be a game-changer for Arteta and he must be rewarded come kick-off.

“He is a bit like Ian Wright, really. You don’t seem to see him and then suddenly he moves,” the late Gerard Houllier once said of Lacazette, further suggesting that he has the ability to be a nuisance and a surprise threat.

The £19.8m-rated striker, who is out of contract in the summer, is yet to start in the Premier League this season, being restricted to only three top-flight appearances. When he has been given an opportunity from the off, like in the Carabao Cup, he has delivered with two goals and an assist in two games, per Transfermarkt.

It’s time for Lacazette to be handed the reins up top against Villa this evening.

AND in other news, Edu could secure Alexis Sanchez 2.0 in Arsenal swoop for £18m-rated “fox in the box”…

Rangers enjoyed a productive January transfer window as Ross Wilson completed a number of deals to reshape Gio van Bronckhorst’s squad.

Nathan Patterson left for a club-record fee and the sporting director made the most of that sale by snapping up fresh talent.

Aaron Ramsey, Amad Diallo, James Sands and Mateusz Zukowski all came in, with John Souttar also agreeing a pre-contract deal with the Glasgow giants to join on a free transfer at the end of the season.

The Welsh loanee from Juventus, Ramsey, has scored two goals in his last two Premiership outings as he is starting to show why he was brought to the club. However, Sands, Diallo and Zukowski are all yet to make their breakthrough in the first-team.

They may not be at their sparkling best right now but that does not mean that they are all poor signings by Wilson and the club.

In fact, the Gers have played a blinder with the addition of Zukowski at right-back as he is a player who has the scope to develop into a quality player for the club.

Upon the right-back’s arrival, Wilson claimed that he has “high potential” and his soaring market value over the last 12 months reflects that. Transfermarkt valued him at a measly £180k in May 2021 and his form for Legia Gdansk led to him being valued at £2.25m at the time of his switch to Scotland, which means that his value has risen by 1150% in less than a year.

In the Ekstraklasa this season, he averaged a solid SofaScore rating of 6.84 across 18 appearances. He managed two goals and one assist from full-back, whilst making an outstanding 3.9 tackles and interceptions per game – winning 5.4 duels per match, with these performances causing his stock to rise.

Meanwhile, Tavernier has made 2.9 tackles and interceptions per game in the Premiership. This suggests that, if he can carry his form over to Scotland, he may be more active defensively than the skipper, although it is unlikely that he will match the Englishman’s six goals and 11 assists.

The Gers veteran turns 31 later this year and could be heading into the final throes of his Ibrox career, with Zukowski lined up to take over from him at right-back in the future.

Whilst the Ibrox faithful may not be seeing the full benefits of this move yet, everything indicates that it is only a matter of time before he shows what he is capable of for the club as they have picked up a gem who is on the up and has room to grow. Wilson played a blinder by picking the 20-year-old up as his value continues to soar and, hopefully, he will be able to fulfill his potential in the coming years.

AND in other news, Gvb now plotting Rangers swoop for “exceptional” monster, he’d be a bargain “diamond”…

Many Everton fans have criticised the performance of Mason Holgate in their 3-2 loss at home to Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League this afternoon.

The defender was part of a back five whose defending was truly shocking at times, as they conceded three goals at Goodison Park to the Seagulls, which ultimately led to their ninth league defeat of the season.

Holgate had a poor game by his standards, losing out on two of his duels and only managing to make one clearance, interception and tackle (SofaScore).

The 25-year-old was particularly guilty of giving the ball away far too often throughout the match, 22 times in total, the joint-second most out of any player on the pitch (SofaScore).

Everton fans slam Holgate

These Everton fans slammed Holgate’s performance on Twitter, with one Toffees supporter even going as far as to claim that he was a ‘liability’ today:

“Rafa is a clown who hasn’t got a clue. Holgate and Kenny both shocking. Gordon can’t take corners. Kean looks terrified”

Credit: @paddymedic22

“Anthony Gordon is Everton’s standout player. Keane and Holgate are dreadful.”

Credit: @henrymcdonald

“Never thought I’d hate anyone in an Everton shirt more than Iwobi… Holgate is making me reconsider”

Credit: @PHarky83

“Holgate is no better. Liability. Ball watcher.”

Credit: @AdrianDodds5

“Holgate terrifies me every time he touches the ball”

Credit: @efcdylan_

“Especially Holgate, pains me watching him”

Credit: @aaronga33594931

In other news, many Evertonians were raging over this news prior to kick-off

Celtic have been dealt a major injury blow regarding Carl Starfelt ahead of their upcoming Europa League clash.

What’s the latest?

According to a report by Sky Sports, the centre-back has been ruled out of both Thursday evening’s trip to Ferencvaros TC and Sunday’s visit to Dundee due to a hamstring injury picked up in the 0-0 draw with Livingston last weekend.

Speaking about the 26-year-old’s injury, Ange Postecoglou said: “We lost Carl Starfelt in the last game and similar sort of timeline to Tommy [Rogic] I suppose, we are hoping he will be back after the international break, but he will definitely miss these two games.

“It is always a blow when you lose players to injury. To be fair to Carl, he has played every game since he got here and it’s not surprising that he has something like this happen.

“We would have loved to have rotated him earlier, but we tried to build some cohesion, consistency in the back four and we didn’t want to chop and change too much because we had to at the start of the season.”

Postecoglou will be gutted

Considering just how impressive Starfelt has been since his £4.5m move to Parkhead this summer, in addition to the fact that Celtic simply must defeat Ferencvaros if they are to have any chance of qualifying for the knockout stages of the Europa League, the confirmation that the centre-back will not be available for selection on Thursday is sure to have left Postecoglou gutted.

Indeed, over his 11 Scottish Premiership appearances this season, the £2.7m-rated defender has helped his side keep five clean sheets and has chipped in with one goal, as well as making an average of 1.5 interceptions, 1.1 tackles, 3.7 clearances and winning 6.3 duels per game.

These returns have seen the Sweden international average a SofaScore match rating of 7.23, ranking him as the Hoops’ fourth-best performer in the top flight of Scottish football of players still in Postecoglou’s first-team squad.

Furthermore, the centre-back has also been in impressive form over his three Europa League appearances for the Bhoys, helping his side keep one clean sheet, in addition to making an average of 1.3 interceptions, one tackle, 1.7 clearances and winning 3.7 duels per fixture – with these returns seeing the 26-year-old average a SofaScore match rating of 6.90.

As such, the fact that Celtic will be without Starfelt on Thursday evening will undoubtedly dent the Hoops’ chances of leaving Hungary with all three points in a fixture that could well prove to be season-defining for Postecoglou and his side.

In other news: Ange must unleash “aggressive” rarely-seen 20 y/o gem, could solve a huge Celtic issue