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As reported by The Mirror, Manchester United are interested in signing Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Fred.

What’s the story?

Jose Mourinho arguably still has not found the right blend in the central midfield areas to truly compete for the English Premier League title or UEFA Champions League, still searching for the perfect partner for Paul Pogba.

With Marouane Fellaini on the verge of leaving, The Mirror report that Manchester United are eyeing Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Fred as a potential replacement.

With La Liga clubs also chasing him, the Red Devils face competition, but The Mirror say a move to the English Premier League would likely turn his head.

Rated at £7.2m by Transfermarkt, the 24-year-old has been in sparkling form for the Ukrainians, but does he have what it takes to make it at United?

Ready for a step up?

Fred moved from his homeland to Ukraine way back in 2013 and since then has made himself a firm fixture in the Shakhtar midfield, showing this season he can perform at a level to be of interest to teams like Manchester United.

He’s been a standout for his club in the UEFA Champions League, helping them bag nine points from their first four fixtures, in an excellent position to progress to the last 16 of the competition alongside Manchester City.

His defensive contribution shines in the heart of the midfield, with his tackling and passing skills making him a fierce but classy opponent, the type of defensive midfielder that United could do with.

With Paul Pogba set to return to action soon, Mourinho still needs to find the perfect player to complement him and Fred appears to fit the bill, if he can deal with the pressure of stepping up to one of the world’s biggest clubs.

According to reports on ESPN FC, West Ham United starlet Domingos Quina is a target for Manchester United after the Red Devils scouted him on international duty for the Portugal U19s.

What’s the word, then?

Well, ESPN FC says that the Red Devils have reignited their interest in the 17-year-old, who they tried to sign before he joined the Irons in 2016.

ESPN FC says United scouts watched the attacking midfielder score for his country against Spain this week, and they are ready to make a move for the teenager who is rated as one of the brightest young prospects in European football.

The report adds that Quina’s future with the east London outfit could be in doubt as he is yet to commit to a long-term deal with his current contract due to expire in 2019, although discussions between the two parties have begun over extending that.

How has Quina done this season?

Despite how highly-rated he is and the fact that West Ham have been struggling in the Premier League, the 17-year-old’s only first team appearances this term have come as late substitute appearances in the Carabao Cup.

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The Portugal U19 international played a total of 15 minutes in those outings but the Irons’ poor performances in the English top flight could mean that new boss David Moyes is unwilling to risk using any of his younger players.

Why do Manchester United want him?

Considering he was born in Guinea, is a similar height to and plays in the same position as new Liverpool star Naby Keita, there are plenty of comparisons to be made between the two.

With the 22-year-old costing the Reds £48m following a hugely impressive season with RB Leipzig, the race to find a player with the same attributes for a low price will be fierce and it is no surprise that the Red Devils are keeping such a keen eye on Quina.

What’s the verdict, then?

Well, unless Quina gets a real first-team opportunity with West Ham soon he may consider not extending his current deal and moving on, and the interest from a club like Manchester United may be too hard for the young Portuguese starlet to reject.

As reported by The Daily Record, Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers doesn’t believe tiredness should be used as an excuse for standards slipping and mistakes potentially coming to the fore this December.

What’s the story?

Celtic are currently in the midst of a massively difficult December schedule of nine matches in 28 days and with five more still to go before the end of the month, Rodgers doesn’t want to hear tiredness as an excuse for any slip ups.

Despite comfortably winning against Hamilton on Wednesday night, there were a couple of occasions in the second half when the Hoops made mistakes that could have been costly, but the Hoops boss doesn’t think the schedule is to blame.

As quoted by The Daily Record, Rodgers said:

You have to expect something, but one of the chances came from us. It was loose play by Simunovic being short on the passback and the boy should maybe do better. But listen, it’s not an excuse for us. We know we’re in a run of games and it’s a really tight schedule – but that’s been since June. Since our first pre-season game started we’ve been training, playing, training, playing right the way through to now. It’s not an excuse for us. We have to be ready to work hard and press the game and when we have the ball look after it – and I thought in the main that the team did that really well.

Can Celtic navigate the remaining fixtures this month without dropping any more points?

Dangers ahead

The matches don’t get any easier with the Hoops having to travel to hostile Tynecastle to face Hearts this weekend before another home match next mid-week.

There’s then a massive trio of fixtures at home to Aberdeen, away to Dundee and at home to Rangers over the festive period, with any dropped points in those ones potentially damaging to their lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership table.

It’s a critical period for Brendan Rodgers’ side who have drawn some criticism for drawing more matches this season already than the entirety of last term.

However, they’re still in a strong position and if they can get through the rest of December unscathed, they’ll head into the winter break with their grip on Scottish football as firm as ever.

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Former Newcastle United goalkeeper Shay Given has claimed that the club could attract the likes of Arsenal star Alexis Sanchez if new owners come in.

Mike Ashley put the North-East outfit up for sale earlier in the season, 10 years after he purchased the club.

Amanda Staveley, who runs investment firm PCP Partners, has been in talks with the Premier League outfit regarding a potential takeover.

There has not been any official word about the current status of the discussions, but there is expected to be an injection of cash when a new owner finalises a deal.

The transfer kitty at St James’ Park in recent windows has had limited funds, but Given believes that if Ashley’s replacement is willing to spend, the Magpies could aim high.

In an interview with the Daily Star, the 41-year-old said:

“If the investors come in and have got endless amounts of money, they could sign [Alexis] Sanchez, for example. It depends who these new owners are. I’m not saying he’ll go there and they could instead trawl down the bottom part of the league – you just don’t know how much money they’ll have.”

Sanchez will come to the end of his current contract at Arsenal next summer, which means that he will be allowed to leave the Emirates for free.

Manchester City were heavily linked with a swoop in the summer, but a deal never materialised.

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According to The Liverpool Echo, Celtic will not be signing Liverpool youngster Harry Wilson on loan this summer. The 21-year-old has been repeatedly linked with a move to the Scottish giants in a bid to build upon his fine loan spell at Hull City last season, but with a deal seemingly off for the Wales international, Bhoys boss Brendan Rodgers must now turn his attentions towards a reunion with striker Danny Ings.

The Breakdown

Obviously, there is likely to be much disappointment among our resident Celtic fans in the Tavern that Wilson won’t be making the move to Parkhead, what with the 21-year-old enjoying a majorly impressive loan stint at Hull last term in netting seven goals and laying on four assists for Nigel Adkins’ side in 13 Championship appearances.

Thus, there is little doubting that Wilson would have brought a huge amount to the attacking ranks at Celtic Park as Rodgers’ men go in search of a third successive domestic treble, but the Bhoys shouldn’t dwell on that disappointment, as Reds striker Ings is reportedly available.

Rodgers was the man who brought the 25-year-old to Anfield back in the summer of 2015 after his fine spell at Burnley, in which the one-time England international netted 11 goals in 35 Premier League games for the Clarets.

That form earned him that solitary England cap and things were looking up for the forward when he moved to Liverpool, only for a serious injury to completely stem his momentum and progress, to the point that he has only managed 25 senior appearances for Jurgen Klopp’s side.

And with the likes of Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, and Mohamed Salah producing the goods at Anfield, it’s difficult to see how Ings commands regular football under Klopp, with reports recently suggesting that the 25-year-old is allowed to leave this summer.

And with Celtic seeking to maintain their status as the top club in Scotland amid pressure from Old Firm rivals Rangers, alongside their hope to finally make in-roads on the European stage, they should move for the Englishman.

Who do you think will win the World Cup? Let us know here

Scott Sinclair was the only Celtic player to exceed 15 goals last season to suggest that greater options are needed in the forward ranks, and with Moussa Dembele’s future seemingly unclear heading into the new campaign, the striker department could well do with another addition – Ings would bolster those ranks.

The 25-year-old may have struggled for minutes due to injury in recent years, but one mustn’t forget his efforts at Burnley to earn a move to Liverpool – Rodgers obviously thought he had ability given he was the one that signed him at Anfield.

Thus, with a move for Wilson seemingly off, Rodgers must now turn his attentions towards a reunion with £7.2 million-rated Ings (as per Transfermarkt) at Celtic.

Celtic fans… what do you think? Let us know!

After what can only be deemed as a successful World Cup or, at least compared to previous tournaments, there will be no large-scale media inquest of where it went wrong for England.

That being said, especially after taking the lead, many England supporters will leave Russia with a bitter taste in their mouth having felt the Three Lions were in the position to kill off Croatia after Kieran Trippier put the nation in front with a terrific free-kick.

Croatia, however, were able to equalise through Ivan Perisic before Gareth Southgate looked to the bench and brought Marcus Rashford on in place of Raheem Sterling.

The Manchester United striker, though, was unable to impose himself on the game with many Chelsea supporters believing Ruben Loftus-Cheek should have been the man Southgate called for instead.

The 22-year-old has impressed in Russia and had a major impact when brought on in England’s 2-1 win over Tunisia in their opening game of this World Cup. And ultimately, Chelsea fans on Twitter thought things could have ended differently if he was brought on against Zlatko Dalic’s men…

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Everton fans are fuming with their lack of transfer business, as the heavily linked Malcom is on the brink of joining Roma.

Everton fans are getting desperate for some transfer activity, and it seems they’re set to miss out on a target that would have made a massive different to their attack.

The Toffees have been strongly linked with a move for Bordeaux winger Malcom this week, but he is now edging towards signing for Roma.

The young Brazilian is wanted by a whole host of clubs, and Sky Sports claimed Everton were in “advanced talks” to sign the 21 year-old for around £30m.

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However, Roma have grabbed themselves a big wad of cash by selling Alisson Becker to Liverpool, and they’re ready to spend it straight away with a deal for Malcom.

The dazzling youngster scored 12 goals and added seven assists in Ligue 1 last season, and his agent has hinted strongly at a move to Roma.

“In the next few hours, I will have a word with Monchi (Roma’s director of football). The player would like to come to Italy and Roma are very interested,” said Fernando Garcia.

Left wing is an area that absolutely needs improvement with Yannick Bolasie likely to be moved on and Ademola Lookman still unproven, and fans are raging that they’ve missed out on this deal.

You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

West Ham United forward Andy Carroll is facing another three months on the sidelines following ankle surgery.

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The 29-year-old picked up the problem on West Ham’s pre-season training camp in Switzerland, and has since returned to England to undergo the operation.

There is a general feeling that Carroll would be a wonderful player for West Ham if he managed to stay fit, and Chelsea reportedly wanted to sign him earlier this year.

The Englishman only played 16 Premier League matches last term, however, and is now not expected to return to action until the middle of October.

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The West Ham fans have been reacting to the latest injury news, and many have called for the striker, who is believed to be on £90,000 a week, to be sold or released this summer.

Carroll would, of course, not be able to pass a medical at the moment, and he will therefore be staying at the London Stadium until at least the January transfer window.

However, that has not stopped the West Ham fans calling for his exit. A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Argentina international Marcos Rojo is the most likely of Manchester United’s five central defenders to depart the club to fund a big-money swoop for World Cup hero Harry Maguire, according to the Daily Mirror.

What’s the story, then?

The Mirror report that because United are facing the prospect of paying £65m for Leicester colossus Maguire, Jose Mourinho must sell one of his existing options first and Rojo is the most likely candidate.

They point out that Rojo has still not linked up with the United squad despite his Argentina side being eliminated three weeks ago and Mourinho struggling for senior players out in America.

They also claim that the recent contract extension that the centre-half – valued at £16.2m by Transfermarkt – signed was predominantly to protect his transfer value.

Jones and Smalling are worse than Rojo

It may well be that Rojo is most at risk because his extended deal gives him the most market value, because he is certainly not the weakest centre-half among the five at Old Trafford.

Yes, he can be impetuous in the tackle but he is an organiser, commanding in the air and capable of nullifying the best strikers when on top of his game.

By contrast, Englishmen Phil Jones and Chris Smalling are still an accident waiting to happen, still underdeveloped to the extent that they will never inspire confidence and still not at the standard required if United are to get where they need to be.

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Liverpool ended their pre-season tour of the United States with a 4-1 victory over rivals Manchester United.

Playing in front of 100,000 fans, Jurgen Klopp will be extremely pleased with his side’s performance. A penalty from Sadio Mane was cancelled out by an excellent free-kick from Andreas Pereira before Daniel Sturridge restored their lead. A late penalty by Sheyi Ojo followed by an exceptional overhead kick from Xherdan Shaqiri delighted the Liverpool fans in attendance.

Klopp will be extremely pleased with Liverpool’s pre-season preparations so far with a number of young players impressing thus far. While Divock Origi and Dominic Solanke have struggled, local lad Curtis Jones has earned plenty of plaudits for his showings against United and City. Another youngster to catch the eye is Portuguese star – Rafael Camacho.

The 18-year-old joined the Liverpool academy back in 2016 after leaving Manchester City. He quickly became a key member of the squad and excelled under Steven Gerrard’s tutelage last year – scoring eight goals and registering three assists in the U18 Premier League.

Primarily a winger who can play on either flank, Camacho has frequently been used in a right-wing back by Klopp in pre-season. He netted against Tranmere in the 3-2 win before crossing for Mohamed Salah to net the equaliser against City. His performance suggests it could be a long-term role for the youngster – which Gerrard suggested back in November – stating Camacho could be a top right-back ‘if he wants to’.

It’s probably too soon for a loan move; his development will be better served to stay in Liverpool with the U23 squad. However, if his form continues, he will follow Trent Alexander-Arnold to the Liverpool first team sooner rather than later.

Liverpool fans, thoughts?