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Nottingham Forest are set to reignite their interest in Atalanta midfielder Ruslan Malinovskyi in January, according to a new transfer update.

The Lowdown: Forest linked with summer move

The Reds famously made over 20 signings during the summer transfer window, with the squad completely rebuilt after returning to the Premier League.

One player who was linked with a move to Forest but didn’t make the move was Malinovskyi, who is considered a real star quality target who could strengthen the midfield significantly.

The 29-year-old has tons of pedigree in the Italian top flight and on European and international stages, but stayed put at Atalanta in the summer, making 11 appearances in the Serie A so far this season.

The Latest: Forest ‘ready’

According to Calciomercato [via Sport Witness], Evangelos Marinakis is ‘ready to return’ for the signing of Malinovskyi in January, with West Ham also similarly interested.

The Ukrainian’s current Atalanta deal expires at the end of this season, meaning the next window will be the last chance to receive a fee for him.

The Verdict: Bargain?

This could be an ideal transfer for Forest midway through the campaign, injecting extra quality in the midfield and potentially getting Malinovskyi on the cheap due to his contract situation.

At 29, he has a huge amount of experience in the game that could be invaluable in a possible relegation battle, having won 51 caps for Ukraine and made 111 Serie A appearances – he has also been hailed as ‘extraordinary’ by current manager Gian Piero Gasperini.

Malinovskyi could come straight in as a key starter for Steve Cooper but also allow the manager to rotate even more, keeping legs fresh before the business end of the season.

Leeds United head into Saturday afternoon’s Premier League meeting against AFC Bournemouth in high spirits, with Jesse Marsch’s side having finally ended their eight-match winless streak with a shock 2-1 victory over Liverpool last time out.

However, with the Whites having lost a key player to injury in the week, coupled with a number of Marsch’s regular starters currently enduring something of a dip from their usual performance levels, the 48-year-old has a number of decisions to make regarding his starting XI for the visit of the Cherries this afternoon.

Will the American make any changes to the side which lined up in the win at Anfield last weekend?

Here’s how we at Football FanCast think Leeds’ starting XI could look against Bournemouth, along with the latest team and injury news…

Predicted Leeds XI – Meslier; Kristensen, Koch, Cooper, Struijk; Adams, Roca; Summerville, Aaronson, Gnonto; Bamford.

With Marsch revealing in his pre-match press conference that Luis Sinisterra is likely to be out of action until after the World Cup due to a foot injury, while also stating that both Stuart Dallas and Adam Forshaw remain sidelined with knocks, we predict that the 48-year-old will make two changes to the side which started the 2-1 victory over Liverpool last weekend.

The back five remains intact, with Illan Meslier – who enjoyed quite possibly his best performance in a Leeds shirt at Anfield – starting between the sticks, while right-back Rasmus Kristensen, centre-back pairing Robin Koch and Liam Cooper and left-back Pascal Struijk make up the Whites’ defensive unit.

In the middle of the park, Marsch’s tried-and-tested duo of Marc Roca and Tyler Adams once again get the nod, with the summer signings having highly impressed since their respective moves to Elland Road – currently ranking as the club’s second and fourth-best performers in the top flight respectively.

The first change comes in the three behind the striker, with the distinctly out-of-form Jack Harrison – who was linked with a £60m move to Newcastle United in the summer – dropping out of the XI. That switch sees Crysencio Summerville move over to his preferred right-wing role and 18-year-old “wonderkid” Wilfried Gnonto come in on the left flank.

This means that Brenden Aaronson is once again unleashed in the number 10 role just behind Patrick Bamford. Despite the 29-year-old striker being without a goal this season, he has looked quite lively in both the defeat to Arsenal and win at Liverpool win, and he replaces Rodrigo in leading the line for Leeds against the Cherries.

After their disappointing defeat to Leicester City over the weekend, it became abundantly clear that Everton were severely lacking additional firepower.

Although the midfield underperformed, and the front line looked toothless, what often hinders the Toffees most is their lack of offensive drive from the full-backs; especially in the absence of Nathan Patterson.

Seamus Coleman and Vitaliy Mykolenko were both solid against the Foxes, but a lack of speed and quality delivery holds them and the rest of the team back so much.

That could therefore explain Frank Lampard’s interest in Inter Milan left-back Robin Gosens, who could offer something completely different to the solid if unspectacular Ukrainian.

With the report suggesting competition from just Bayer Lervukusen, it should certainly be a doable deal for the Premier League giants.

In the German, who ordinarily has featured as a left midfielder for both Inter Milan and Atalanta, they would be gaining a versatile ace with a wide range of abilities.

Despite having yet to score or assist this Serie A campaign for the former, the £17.5m-rated talent still seems poised to travel with his nation to the upcoming World Cup. His powerful runs or silky dribbles could be the main factor behind that, as despite his lack of cutting edge the space he demands due to these drives would likely massively benefit his team.

He is averaging a 67% dribble success rate this season.

Having scored twice and assisted four during his 14 caps, he offers a huge creative threat as a bombing wing-back.

His displays have led Joachim Low to label him “amazing” after his side’s win over Portugal in Euro 2020, before journalist Josh Bunting suggested he had given Nelson Semedo “nightmares” in that encounter. There is every reason to believe he will once again find that level form in Qatar in a few weeks’ time.

Funnily enough, Gosens could once again provide that at Goodison Park.

Should the 28-year-old make the switch, Lampard will be hopeful of getting something close to his form at Atalanta, where he scored 29 and assisted 21 in 157 appearances.

This marks a huge improvement in Mykolenko, who has fewer goal contributions in his entire career thus far. 

For Lampard, this would add further depth to his squad which has shown in recent weeks just how lacking in game-changers they are. A tired performance against Leicester could not be altered despite all five substitutes being used.

With Gosens however, it would add further attacking prowess in an area that has gone without since the departure of Lucas Digne. Indeed, his eye-catching attacking ability could well give Premier League defences ‘nightmares’ if he moves to Merseyside this winter.

In sensational fashion, West Bromwich Albion seem to have well and truly left the misery of the Steve Bruce era behind.

Cruising to a 2-0 victory over Stoke City at The Hawthorns, Carlos Corberan has masterminded the most sensational of turnarounds which sees them creep out of the relegation zone at last.

It also marked their third successive victory, which was particularly impressive given how before this run they had not even won twice on the run, let alone three times.

Although they only had 49% of the ball, despite normally dominating, they still were fluid in their attacks and clinical when they had to be.

Their 16 total shots outline this, whilst another clean sheet will please the Spaniard more than anything.

Of the defence, Kyle Bartley once again announced himself as the hero, however, his goalscoring exploits have somewhat allowed the likes of Jed Wallace and Matt Phillips’ lack of cutting edge to go unnoticed.

The latter was particularly poor today, although the former did record the worst SofaScore rating of anyone on the pitch.

With just 34 touches all game, the invisible display of Phillips might have been what led to this lack of possession for the Baggies. He did not offer to receive the ball, and without possession seldom defended well enough to win it back.

This is exacerbated through his zero clearances, blocks, interceptions or tackles, whilst he was also dribbled past once too, via SofaScore.

When he did have the ball, the 31-year-old was especially wasteful, hence why he was dragged off with ten minutes to go.

Having lost possession eight times, this meant that for every 4.2 of the 34 touches he enjoyed on Saturday, he would have the ball stolen by the opposition.

This lack of control, therefore, trickled through into his lack of creativity, where he recorded zero key passes and managed no shots on or off target. With age one can expect the physical aspects of the game to start to desert a player, but today marked a lack of quality and effort unexpected from a man of his professionalism.

Despite recording an impressive result, this performance will worry Corberan and may make him think twice about relying on this stalwart to occupy the wing.

With quality such as Grady Diangana to replace him too, this display could, and likely should, have lost him his space in the Spaniard’s starting side.

Tottenham Hotspur may be in pursuit of quick silverware with Antonio Conte at the helm but recent reports suggest they could be planning for the long-term future, too.

According to Radio Kiss Kiss (via Tutto Napoli), the north London outfit are among the European giants interested in Fenerbahce prodigy Arda Guler, who is being considered as a ‘real coup’ despite being only 17.

Paris Saint-Germain and Napoli are also interested in the teenager.

Guler appears to be a real star of the future and that much is obvious by the fact that the Yellow Canaries have given him the famed no.10 shirt, which has a special meaning to supporters, having once been donned by club legend Alex de Souza for eight years.

Capable of playing anywhere behind the striker, the newly-capped Turkey international has delivered four direct goal contributions across 13 appearances, of which just three have been starts, this campaign.

A goal or assist every 75 minutes is good going for a teenager getting his first taste at the men’s game.

Guler’s future could lie in the very position that’s on his back, having already earned comparisons to Mesut Ozil, who was his teammate at the Ulker Stadium last season.

“A super goal. A super assist. Quality,” the former Arsenal maestro said of the 17-year-old after one game back in March. “I hope it will continue like this, brother. You will be a world star.”

Indeed, the early signs are there – not at least because of the clubs that have been linked with interest in the past. Per WhoScored, Guler is averaging 2.5 key passes, 3.3 tackles and 3.9 successful dribbles per 90 minutes across the Super Lig and Europa League this term.

It, therefore, comes as little surprise to have seen the young Fenerbahce gem described as “special” by his former youth coach Erol Tokgozler and “mature” by national team boss Stefan Kuntz.

This exposure to the first-team at such a young age will only bode well for his chances of coming to Spurs and making an impact under Conte, should their interest be genuine.

As such, Paratici and go must look to sign Guler as he’s certainly a future superstar, based on the evidence above.

Perhaps a similar sort of deal as the one for Destiny Udogie could be completed, in which the teenage wonderkid could remain in Turkey for the next six to 18 months to continue his remarkable development.

AND in other news, Spurs could find perfect Romero partner in £43.5m “monster”, he’s set to stun in Qatar…

Arsenal have a number of their first-team squad members in action at the Qatar World Cup this winter, with Bukayo Saka undoubtedly being the Gunners’ standout performer in the competition so far, with the winger scoring a sensational brace in England’s 6-2 demolition of Iran on Monday afternoon.

However, it was arguably one of Arsenal’s former players who stole the show in Wednesday’s batch of World Cup fixtures, with Takuma Asano turning in a match-winning display in Japan’s shock 2-1 victory over Germany – a result that sees one of the tournament favourites facing the very real possibility of a group stage exit.

Indeed, despite starting the fixture on the bench, the VfL Bochum winger made a huge impact upon his introduction in the 57th minute of the match, as, despite enjoying just 14 touches of the ball and completing a mere five passes, the £3.5m-rated talent proved a constant threat down Germany’s right flank.

In spite of the fact he had so little time on the ball, the 28-year-old still managed to take five shots at Manuel Neuer’s goal, with one being on target, two being off target and two being blocked, however, it was the one that did trouble the Bayern Munich shot-stopper that proved decisive in the meeting at the Khalifa International Stadium.

With just seven minutes of regulation time remaining, Asano magnificently plucked Ko Itakura’s hopeful long ball out of the sky, with his “Bergkampesque” first touch brilliantly taking him away from the onrushing Nico Schlotterbeck and towards the German goal, before the winger unleashed a fierce drive beyond Neuer at his near post.

And, while it would be difficult to argue that Arsenal’s £1m sale of Asano back in 2019 was a mistake, Arsene Wenger will have been watching on with glee on Wednesday, as the former Gunners manager was always convinced of the 38-cap star’s potential.

Speaking about the winger upon his £3.5m arrival in north London back in 2016, the legendary Frenchman said: “Takuma is a talented young striker and very much one for the future. We look forward to him developing over the next couple of years. He is a player I believe in a lot. I will take care of him and make sure he gets to the right place.”

As such, while Wenger may not have managed to deliver on this promise at The Emirates, it is undeniable that Arsenal supporters now know what Asano is capable of, as the 28-year-old well and truly proved his ability to the world against the Germans.

Tottenham Hotspur have apparently been told how much it could cost them to sign reported transfer target Manuel Ugarte from Sporting Lisbon. 

The Lowdown: Spurs linked with Ugarte

Earlier this year, it was reported that Spurs are interested in signing the midfielder, along with the likes of Leicester City, Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.

Despite being included in Uruguay’s squad for the World Cup, the 21-year-old has been an unused substitute for both of their group games so far against South Korea and Portugal.

In terms of a potential move away from Lisbon, it appears as though some behind-the-scenes details have emerged regarding how much it could take for Spurs to sign Ugarte.

The Latest: Tottenham learn Ugarte price tag

According to a recent report from Correio da Manha (via Sport Witness), Ugarte has a release clause in his contract worth €60m (£51m), and Sporting would only consider selling him for over €40m (£34m).

Another report from Jornal de Noticias (via Sport Witness) claims that Sporting are eager to keep hold of the midfielder and have even offered him a new deal with improved pay.

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The Verdict: Worth a shot

Across his 11 league games this season, the Uruguayan has racked up one of the highest passing accuracy percentages (91.7%) at Sporting.

In addition, Ugarte has the highest combined total of tackles and interceptions (57) at the club, while also making more blocks (16) than any of his team-mates.

Bearing in mind how Antonio Conte’s side have only kept four clean sheets in the Premier League this season, it could be said that signing someone with Ugarte’s evident defensive talents could be just what Tottenham require.

Taking all that into account, we feel that it would definitely be worth Spurs negotiating with Sporting to see if they would be willing to sell their midfielder in a deal which would be suitable for all parties.

An update has emerged on Aston Villa and their interest in signing Roma centre-forward Tammy Abraham in 2023…

What’s the talk?

According to Italian outlet Calciomercato, the Villans are thinking ‘concretely’ about a swoop for the England international as Unai Emery looks to shape his squad during his first window in charge of the club.

The report claims that fellow Premier League side Chelsea have a €75m (£65m) buy-back option but it is ‘difficult to imagine’ them triggering it.

It is stated that only teams from England have the financial power to snap Abraham away from Roma. The Serie A side are open to cashing in on him, despite previously viewing the dynamo as ‘immovable’.

Big Watkins upgrade

Ollie Watkins has endured a rough season in the Premier League this term as he has struggled badly in front of goal. The Englishman has plundered two goals from 14 appearances in the top flight, averaging a SofaScore rating of 6.64.

This comes after he scored 11 goals in 34 league outings in the 2021/22 campaign while averaging a SofaScore rating of 6.90. This shows that his performances have dipped this season after a respectable return last season.

Abraham, who claimed that Jose Mourinho is turning him into a “monster”, is in a similar position in that he has only scored three goals in 12 Serie A starts for Roma after smashing in 17 goals in 37 matches last term – averaging a rating of 7.06.

These statistics suggest that the former Chelsea man would be a better option for Emery if both players are at their best, as his average performance level and goal return dwarfed Watkins’ in 2021/22.

The striker has also proven himself in the Premier League in the past, as he scored 21 goals in 37 starts during his final two top-flight seasons with the Blues before he made the move to Italy.

This shows that his form in the Serie A last season was not a fluke as he has shown that he can score goals on a consistent basis in England and Italy, with his current form looking like an anomaly on paper.

At the age of 25, Abraham also has plenty of time on his hands to improve and develop as a player and this means that he could be a great signing for the here and now and for the future, rather than being a short-term option.

Therefore, Villa must swoop to sign Abraham in the January transfer window or next summer as he has the potential to be a big upgrade on Watkins at the top end of the pitch.

Newcastle United would be making a ‘big statement’ by signing West Ham midfielder Declan Rice, according to Sky Sports pundit Gabby Agbonlahor.

The Lowdown: Rice selected by Southgate

The Premier League sensation is currently in Qatar having been named in Gareth Southgate’s 26-man squad to represent England at the World Cup, though that hasn’t stopped speculation surrounding his future at the London Stadium.

The Magpies have been credited with an interest in the 23-year-old, and with just over 18 months remaining on his contract, could capitalise and attempt to bring him to St. James’ Park.

The Latest: Newcastle backed to move

Speaking to Football Insider, Agbonlahor backed Newcastle to make an approach for Rice and insisted that he is the perfect profile of player for the northeast outfit to acquire.

“I think he suits Newcastle. I think he’d be a great signing for them.

“It would be a big statement from Newcastle. Going and taking West Ham’s best player would show pulling power from Newcastle.”

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The Verdict: Get it done…

West Ham reportedly expect Rice to join a Champions League team at the end of the season, and with Eddie Howe’s side currently in line to qualify, that stands them in good stead in the race for his signature.

The Three Lions star, dubbed a ‘monster’ by journalist Rob Blanchette, has posted three goal contributions so far this season and has a remarkable 90.4% pass success rate in the top flight (WhoScored).

Rice would also bring leadership qualities to the side being the Irons captain at such a young age, so if the price is right, this is a no-brainer of a deal to complete.

Chelsea have emerged as frontrunners to sign AC Milan star Rafael Leao, according to journalist Dean Jones.

The Lowdown: Leao shines…

The Portugal international forward, who featured for his nation at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, has been the subject of intense interest from Premier League clubs heading into January.

Leao is said to be a target for the likes of Man City amid his brilliant form for Milan in Serie A, where he has bagged six goals and four assists in 12 league starts this season (WhoScored).

The 23-year-old is also their best-performing player by average match rating, leaving little wonder Chelsea boss Graham Potter is reportedly keeping tabs.

The Latest: Jones shares promising Leao to Chelsea update…

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, reporter Jones claims there is a real hope at Stamford Bridge they can sign Leao and Potter’s side are the main frontrunners.

He explained:

“Chelsea have great interest in Leao and there is some hope over landing him, especially after he briefly followed them on social media the other day!

“But Milan are so desperate not to lose him right now because replacing him will be hard.

“Chelsea are the frontrunners, though, if this opens up. We will have to see how this goes over the next couple of weeks.”

The Verdict: Real talent…

The Serie A star could well be one to watch heading into January and Chelsea owner Todd Boehly seems set to back Potter in the transfer market.

Called ‘absolutely unplayable’ by members of the media, Leao could undoubtedly strengthen the west London side in their bid to become a real top flight force again.