Over the weekend, Tottenham Hotspur were linked with a move for Norwich City right-back Max Aarons.

According to the Sunday Mirror (24/01, page 71), Spurs are keeping tabs on the England U21 international ahead of a potential bid while the Canaries currently value him at £20m.

Chief scout Steve Hitchen has been attending the Championship outfit’s matches in recent weeks, mainly to monitor the progress of on-loan midfielder Oliver Skipp but with Aarons regularly starting, he’s been getting a glimpse of him too.

In the 21-year-old emerging prospect, Spurs could find their next Danny Rose.

He may not be a left-back by trade, but the full-back position is very much the same craft whatever flank you’re on and the forgotten Spurs star is the embodiment to why an investment now could pay later dividends, as it did with Rose.

Before his acrimonious fallout in north London, Rose had become the long-standing option on the left of the Spurs defence. Indeed, he’s racked up 214 appearances since joining the club from Leeds United for just £1m in 2007.

Had that move been in this day and age, given he’d have been a young English talent, then Rose may have cost nearer to the £20m the Canaries are demanding for Aarons.

Just 17 at the time, Rose had to wait until the 2013/14 campaign to finally breakthrough into the first-team, and after four loan spells away, he featured in more than 25 league games for the first time that season, per Transfermarkt.

Aarons is still raw but unlike the 30-year-old, he would come with experience of playing in the top-flight as he was Norwich’s first-choice right-back and he still is, following their relegation to the Championship.

And like Rose, he’s an attack-minded full-back, which should be right up Jose Mourinho’s street.

Per WhoScored, Aarons has averaged 1.4 key passes, 1.2 dribbles and 0.8 crosses per game in comparison to only one interception and 0.7 tackles per match – which shows he likes to bomb on to be a creative source for Daniel Farke’s side.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-spurs-news-and-rumours” title=”Read the latest Spurs news, transfer rumours, injury latest and more!”]

One of Rose’s best-ever campaigns came in 2016/17, where he finished the season ranked third for average rating (7.42) behind Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen as he contributed towards four goals and averaged 1.4 key passes, 1.4 dribbles and 0.8 crosses per game.

That’s practically almost a carbon-copy of Aarons’ returns this season, aside from the goals.

The 5 foot 10 dynamo was dubbed a “special player” with an “unbelievable future” by Farke only last month, while his youth coach Darren Huckerby believes Aarons looks “like he’d been playing there forever” but is someone who “can get better,” as he told The Athletic.

Which is why Daniel Levy ought to make the swoop sooner rather than later. Aarons doesn’t need to be in the Spurs’ first-team set-up right away, especially as there’s already Serge Aurier and Matt Doherty, but in a season or two, it could be his position to lose.

Just like they did with Rose, perhaps purchasing Aarons now and sending him back to Norwich is one way to go about it. Former Spurs goalkeeper Paul Robinson certainly thinks so, he told Football Insider:

“Tottenham have always signed young players with great potential,” and added: “He could be signed and loaned back out as a potential one for the future. Spurs have done that type of deal in the past and they are likely to again. Daniel likes doing deals like that.”

Considering Man City splashed out £50m on Kyle Walker and that Man Utd paid a similar outlay on Aaron Wan-Bissaka, nabbing Aarons for a fraction of the price at this point could prove to be a masterstroke.

As evident above, the £18m-rated gem has the potential to become Spurs’ next Rose for many years to come.

AND in other news, Dembele 2.0: Levy mustn’t repeat his disastrous Spurs blunder with £18m-rated “leader”…

فاز الأهلي على الرجاء المغربي بركلات الترجيح ليتوج بلقب السوبر الإفريقي للمرة الثامنة في تاريخه.

والتقي الأهلي بطل دوري أبطال إفريقيا مع الرجاء المتوج بكأس الكونفدرالية، اليوم الأربعاء، للمنافسة علي لقب السوبر الإفريقي، وذلك على استاد أحمد بن علي (ملعب الريان) بالدوحة في قطر.

انتهى الشوط الأول بتقدم الرجاء على الأهلي بهدفٍ سجله حميد أحداد في الربع ساعة الأولى.

واستطاع طاهر محمد طاهر لاعب الأهلي في الشوط الثاني من إدراك التعادل في الدقيقة الأخيرة من الوقت الأصلي للمباراة.

ونجح الأهلي في الفوز على الرجاء بنتيجة 6-5 بعد الاحتكام لركلات الجزاء الترجيحية. أهداف مباراة الأهلي والرجاء وركلات الترجيح

  تفاصيل المباراة

الحكم يطلق صافرة انطلاق الشوط الأول. بداية اللقاء 

موسيماني يدفع بـ ياسر إبراهيم بدبلا لعمرو السولية قبل انطلاق المباراة بلحظات بسبب الإصابة. إصابة عمرو السولية قبل بداية اللقاء

لاعبو الأهلي يطالبون بضربة جزاء 

 حميد احداد يسجل هدف الرجاء الاول في الدقيقة 12. هدف الرجاء الأول أمام الأهلي 

فرصة خطيرة للأهلي أمام الرجاء 

بدر بانون ينقذ فرصة خطيرة للرجاء 

انتهاء الشوط الأول بتقدم الرجاء بهدف حميد أحداد على حساب الأهلي.

بداية الشوط الثاني

تغيير اول للأهلي بنزول محمد شريف بدلًا من أيمن أشرف.

مرور 10 دقائق على انطلاق الشوط الثاني وما زال الرجاء متقدمًا بالهدف الذي سجله حميد أحداد.

الأهلي يجري التبديل الثاني بخروج حسين الشحات ونزول أحمد عبد القادر على حسابه في الدقيقة 61.

أفشة يسدد تصويبة قوية من خارج منطقة الجزاء لكن تصدى لها حارس الرجاء في الدقيقة 63. تسديد أفشة على مرمى الرجاء

الأهلي يطالب بالحصول على ركلة جزاء بعد لمس الكرة ليد فابريس نجوما مدافع الرجاء داخل منطقة جزاء فريقه في الدقيقة 70. لحظة لمس الكرة ليد مدافع الرجاء أمام الأهلي

الأهلي يجري ثالث تغييراته بنزول طاهر محمد طاهر بدلًا من ياسر إبراهيم في الدقيقة 77.

ضغط قوي من الأهلي في الدقائق الأخيرة من زمن المباراة لإدراك التعادل لكن دون جدوى.

5 دقائق تتبقى على انتهاء المباراة المقامة على أرضية ملعب أحمد بن علي.

جووووووووووووول.. الأهلي يسجل هدف التعادل في الدقيقة 90 عن طريق طاهر محمد طاهر. هدف طاهر محمد طاهر أمام الرجاء

أطلق جان جاك ندالا صافرته معلنًا انتهاء الوقت الأصلي بالتعادل 1-1 ليتجه الفريقان لركلات الجزاء الترجيحية.

تفاصيل ركلات الترجيح

علي معلول يسدد الركلة الأولى للأهلي ويسجلها في الزاوية اليسرى للحارس أنس الزنيتي

محمد أزريدة لاعب الرجاء يسجل الركلة الأولى لفريقه بتسديدة على يسار الشناوي

بدر بانون يسجل ركلة الجزاء الثانية للأهلي بتصويبة على يسار أنس الزنيتي

زكريا الوردي يسجل ركلة الجزاء الثانية للرجاء بتصويبة أرضية على يمين الشناوي الذي حاول التصدي للكرة

بيرسي تاو يصوب الكرة في أعلى الزاوية اليسرى لمرمى الزنيتي ويسجل الركلة الثالثة للأهلي

مروان هدهودي يصوب ركلة الجزاء على يمين الشناوي ويحرز الركلة الثالثة للرجاء لتصبح النتيجة 3-3

أحمد عبد القادر يسجل ركلة الجزاء الرابعة للأهلي بتسديدة أرضية على يمين الزنيتي

محمود بنحليب يسجل الركلة الرابعة للرجاء في أسفل الزاوية اليسرى لمرمى الشناوي لتصبح النتيجة 4-4

طاهر محمد طاهر يسجل الركلة الخامسة للأهلي بتسديدة أعلى الزاوية اليمنى لمرمى الزنيتي لتصبح النتيجة 5-4 لبطل دوري ابطال إفريقيا

محسن متولي يسجل ركلة الجزاء الخامسة للرجاء بتصويبة على يمين الشناوي لتصبح النتيجة 5-5

أكرم توفيق يسدد ركلة الجزاء السادسة للأهلي ويسجلها في أسفل الزاوية اليمنى لحارس الرجاء

عبد الإله مدكور يصوب ركلة الجزاء السادسة للرجاء ويهدرها ليفوز الأهلي بنتيجة 6-5 ويصبح بطلًا للسوبر المصري للمرة الثامنة في تاريخه

MatériaMais Notícias

Um dos líderes do segundo turno do Campeonato Catarinense, o Criciúma retorna aos gramados nesta quarta-feira para encarar o embalado Joinville no clássico local. Considerado um dos destaques do Tigre nesta temporada, o lateral-esquerdo Wellington Saci pediu muita atenção dos seus companheiros neste compromisso.

– Assim como nossa equipe, o Joinville vem de duas vitórias nas duas primeiras rodadas. Além disso, eles estão embalados pelo triunfo na última rodada sobre o Figueirense. É um jogo para mantermos a atenção o tempo inteiro e aproveitar as chances para buscarmos os três pontos – disse.

Segundo Saci, o elenco do Criciúma está muito focado em conquistar o título estadual.

– Nossa ideia é continuar na briga pelo título estadual até o fim do campeonato. Não vamos desistir. O mais importante é fazer um grande segundo turno para ganhar ainda mais confiança. Nosso elenco está muito focado.

Glasgow Rangers fans are far from happy after the Scottish FA charged Kemar Roofe retrospectively following his poor tackle on St. Johnstone’s Murray Davidson.

The Gers were in action on Wednesday as they looked to maintain their 23-point lead at the top of the Premiership (BBC), and their 1-0 win over the Saints allowed them to do just that. However, they were arguably lucky to last the 90 minutes with 11 men on the pitch as Roofe made a late challenge on Davidson.

It could well have been a red card, but referee David Munro booked the 28-year-old, showing he had therefore seen the incident. Usually, that would be the end of the discussion, but the SFA have decided to add to that and go ahead and charge Roofe retrospectively – he is now facing a two-game ban (The Daily Record).

The Gers supporters were outraged by this news, and they took to social media platform Twitter to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Roofe news below

“The SFA are unfit for purpose. They have blatantly lied in citing Kemar Roofe. The challenge WAS seen and Roofe was booked.”

Credit: @deanomac54

“Wont stop 55”

Credit: @AndrewScobie5

“Still doing absolutely everything to try stop us winning the league”

Credit: @Dov1978

“SFA joke of world football shows obviously bad refereeing we have and the way treat one team and it’s SHOWING BIG TIME”

Credit: @GarySte22094927

“A joke of a discipline process in Scotland, rangers are probably the most fouled team in Scotland, don’t see many opponents having to go through this terrible process”

Credit: @graham13251541

“Tackle not worth of a red…. scandalous”

Credit: @njmaclean88

In other news, Rangers still want this Champions League ace.

Charlie Wyke’s turnaround at Sunderland simply has to be applauded.

After his first two campaigns in the North East, he cut a pillar of frustration. Everyone associated with the Mackems could quite easily be painted with a similar brush, but the way in which the target man has responded has been nothing short of emphatic.

Prior to this season, Wyke had bagged just 11 goals in all competitions across two campaigns for Sunderland.

Yet, in this term alone, the 28-year-old has beaten the opposition goalkeeper on 13 occasions.

The latest of those goals came against Wimbledon, when he notched a quite tremendous hat-trick in a 3-0 win for Lee Johnson’s side.

Though, what if we were to suggest the Black Cats could find their new Wyke? Well, they could certainly find that if they pursue a deal for Preston North End striker Jayden Stockley.

Football League World reported that both Sunderland and Hull were interested in a move for the 27-year-old this week but with him scoring just once this season, there are quite clearly obvious concerns.

To make matters worse, the Preston forward has netted only one goal in 22 League One outings previously. That being said, there is a lot more to the player than just his ability to find the net.

In fact, he offers rather similar traits to Wyke, someone who has become an imperious figure when leading the Sunderland side. For starters, the duo are both 6 foot 2 and both are colossal when it comes to aerial battles.

Wyke has won a massive 4.3 aerial duels per game this season, beating the ‘keeper twice with his head in League One. As for Stockley, he has won 3.8 aerial duels on average per match.

Although, what is the Sunderland target like when it comes to bringing others into play and utilising his strength?

We’ll let Preston teammate Chris Maguire do the talking here. He once waxed lyrical about Stockley, saying: “He’s a fantastic player and has really hit the ground running since he came here. The guy can hold up a house. He’s strong and his hold-up play is one of the best I’ve played with.”

So there you have it. Although the striker might not be the best at finding the net in the Championship, he is superb at doing what Wyke does best – holding things up.

It might not be the best of ideas to have two very similar players in the squad but it proves what he could bring to the Stadium of Light if Kristjaan Speakman signs him.

AND in other news, Drop him: Sunderland ace who lost possession 17x will surely have Johnson seething…

Speaking to the press (via football.london), Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho has shared that Carlos Vinicius has ‘one problem’ in star striker Harry Kane – with the Englishman a key reason why he hasn’t been afforded more opportunities in the Premier League.

Vinicius was signed from Benfica last summer in an effort to give Kane some much needed back up, but the Brazilian forward has been restricted to mainly Europa League cameos.

He is one of the top scorers in the competition with six goals and three assists to his name, putting in a dazzling display during his last outing at home to Austrian minnows Wolfsberger.

Bagging two second half goals for Spurs as they rounded off a comfortable Round of 32 victory, the Evening Standard claimed recently that Mourinho remains unconvinced by the 25-year-old’s readiness for the Premier League.

Jose Mourinho drops message involving Vinicius

However, in a message to the press, Mourinho has confirmed his stance on Vinicus whilst revealing Kane is his only ‘problem’ – going on to confirm he will play with a heavy fixture schedule ahead.

“He has one problem, and the problem is Harry Kane,” explained the Tottenham boss (via football.london).

“It’s as simple as that. You need to be a special guy, you need to be a special heart, a special mentality, a special feeling in relation to what you mean for the team, what the team expects from you,”

“He is giving us what we want. In the Premier League he is going to play because we have so many matches that Kane cannot play every match.”

Transfer Tavern take

After this admission, it appears Vinicius could be in Mourinho’s plans after all – and it will be interesting to see how and when he features over these next few months.

Lauded as an ‘exciting’ player by Glenn Hoddle at the back end of last year (BT Sport via the Daily Mail), Spurs could certainly use all the help they can get as Mourinho attempts to turn the ship around.

In other news: Tottenham are eyeing this ‘leader’, find out more here.

It’s hard for West Brom to make any long-term plans when their Premier League status is in serious peril.

The short-term goal will, of course, be to remain in the big time under Big Sam but several of the Baggies’ current stars are out of contract in the summer, meaning a decision will need to be made on them at some point.

One of which is Hal Robson-Kanu, who is very much out-of-favour at the minute.

And his chances of breaking into the starting XI are getting slimmer following the signing of Mbaye Diagne and Karlan Grant’s return from injury over the past few matches.

Indeed, the Welshman has only played 362 minutes in all competitions this term, and is yet to even start a match in the Premier League despite all of their goalscoring woes.

This would suggest that he’s just not fancied to make an impact. Slaven Bilic barely utilised him and nor has Allardyce.

The 31-year-old’s overall record in the English top-flight is hardly inspiring either having scored only 12 goals in 84 appearances, as per Transfermarkt.

Given that he’s not playing and is on a reported £30k-per-week – among Albion’s top earners – it would make sense to let him leave in the summer, regardless of the division they’re in.

And if Big Sam does the unthinkable and keeps the Midlands outfit in the division, then that decision should be all that easier.

Robson-Kanu’s career has been blighted by injuries, but as Jem Karacan told The Athletic last season, those setbacks helped transform him into an “absolute machine,” both physically and mentally.

“He’s great off the pitch. When you know his sense of humour he’s a great lad to be around,” added his former Reading teammate.

But things are no longer going to plan for the veteran forward anymore.

The Baggies’ finances are perilous as it is, so they’ll need every penny following what seems a likely relegation, which is why sporting director Luke Dowling and his team should move on from the long-serving star at the end of the season, regardless of the outcome of the current campaign.

His time is quickly running out.

AND in other news, West Brom made a foolish mistake over £50k-p/w FLOP this transfer window…

تمكن فريق الفتح من تحقيق فوز صعب أمام منافسه الهلال بنتيجة 3-2 خلال المباراة التي جمعت بينهما ضمن منافسات كأس الأمير محمد بن سلمان.

وأقيمت مباراة الهلال والفتح على أرضية استاد الأمير فيصل بن فهد بالرياض وذلك ضمن منافسات الجولة 14 من الدوري السعودي.

وسجل أندى كاريلو الهدف الأول للهلال بالدقيقة 12 بينما تعادل مراد باتنا لصالح الفتح في الدقيقة 16 من عمر الشوط الأول.

وتقدم سفيان بن دبكة لصالح الفتح في الدقيقة 71 بالهدف الثاني، ليتعادل جوميز للهلال في الدقيقة 75 من عمر اللقاء.

وأحرز مراد باتنا هدف فوز الفتح في الدقيقة 86 من ضربة جزاء. أهداف مباراة الهلال والفتح في الدوري السعودي

وبهذه النتيجة وصل فريق الفتح للنقطة الـ16 في المركز الثامن، بينما تجمد رصيد الهلال عند النقطة 21 بالمركز الرابع في جدول ترتيب الدروي السعودي.

وتعد هذه المباراة الثانية على التوالي الذي يسقط فيها الهلال في فخ الهزيمة بعد خسارته أمام النصر.

He’s eligible to make his Crystal Palace debut on Saturday, which will be music to the ears of Roy Hodgson heading into Saturday’s Premier League clash with Wolves.

Visa issues have kept Jean-Philippe Mateta waiting for a highly-anticipated Premier League debut, but he may now get the chance to show what he can do after Hodgson confirmed he will be available for selection.

“He’ll train with us on Thursday and Friday,” Hodgson said. “He now has his visa which was a slight problem we needed to sort out but he now has that. He will certainly be in the squad for Saturday and I’ll make a decision whether he starts or not.”

The target man, 23, has scored 10 goals in 17 games in all competitions this season, including seven in the Bundesliga and a hat-trick against Freiburg in November.

Hodgson could not hide his delight at the opportunity to work with Mateta, saying: “we’re very pleased to have him here, we’ve chased him for a period of time and luckily the club have been able to strike a deal with Mainz and we have him now for the next 18 months on loan at least, which is fantastic.”

The loan signing, therefore, must come straight into the starting line-up on Saturday as he could be the man to hit Wolves where it hurts the most.

On the Chalkboard

Nuno Espirito Santo’s men just haven’t looked the same without Raul Jimenez as they find themselves in 14th place, level with Palace on 23 points apiece, albeit with a game in-hand over Hodgson’s side.

The Eagles can climb above them with a victory and Mateta could prove he can be Palace’s main man by helping them pick up all three points.

You only have to look at the numbers to understand why Steve Parish parted ways with £2.5m for his signature – seven goals in 15 top-flight appearances, taking his total goal contributions for the season to eleven if you count the solitary assist as well, as per Transfermarkt.

He’s already bettered his slight tally of three goals from last season and racked up nearly the same amount of minutes.

Whilst Michy Batshuayi recently ended his goal drought stretching back to Chelsea’s 1-0 win over Ajax in the Champions League two years ago, it was a case of far too little, too late from the Belgian striker, who has been nothing short of disappointing since he returned to Selhurst Park from Stamford Bridge.

With Palace’s lack of an effective frontman upfront, Mateta should be deployed as the lone striker as he has shown he can hold up play and bring others into the game. On average, he wins 1.8 aerial duels and 1.7 ground duels per game, winning 3.5 duels overall, which is at least double that of Batshuayi (1.3), per SofaScore.

In layman’s terms, this means that he is both good in the air and good with the ball at his feet, whilst he add a natural goal threat through the middle of the pitch, as he takes 1.9 shots per game, via WhoScored. For context, this would place him third on the leaderboard topped by a certain Wilfried Zaha himself.

It’s this kind of work rate that could make the £9m-rated ace such a valuable asset for Hodgson’s side, given their struggles in front of goal this season.

Zaha has worked very hard, with nine goals in 18 games, but he can’t be expected to shoulder the burden by himself. Even he could benefit from playing alongside a striker like Mateta as part of a front two, as the pair could combine to cause Wolves all sorts of problems at the back.

There’s no doubting the fact that Mateta, who is still unproven in the Premier League, should be one of the first names on the team sheet.

AND in other news, Crystal Palace can sign their next Scott Dann in Stoke City’s Nathan Collins…

MatériaMais Notícias

O Vasco resolveu apostar em vários meninos nesta temporada. Aos poucos, o técnico Jorginho vai dando oportunidades aos garotos promovidos. É um deles tem vivido um momento especial na carreira. Utilizado nas partidas diante de Bonsucesso e Bangú, o atacante Caio Monteiro também foi convocado para a Seleção Brasileira Sub-20

– Estou muito feliz com o meu momento. É a realização de um sonho. Estou no Vasco desde pequeno, foi aqui que comecei a jogar futebol. Graças a Deus, pude disputar minhas primeiras partidas como profissional. Passou um filme na minha cabeça quando fui chamado pelo Jorginho. Pensei em tudo que passei para chegar até aqui, todas as dificuldades, sacrifícios, trabalho…Fiquei muito contente com a oportunidade. Agora vou trabalhar ainda mais. Quero seguir sendo utilizado pela comissão técnica – disse Caio, ao site oficial do clube.

Carioca, Caio Monteiro chegou em São Januário em 2005, quando apenas oito anos. Passou por todas as categorias de base do clube, acumulando títulos e artilharias. Em 2014, quando estava em seu último ano de juvenil, balançou as redes 36 vezes e encerrou a temporada como o jogador que mais marcou gols com a

Caio Monteiro se apresentou à Seleção Brasileira sub-20 no último domingo, após a estreia cruzmaltina na Taça Guanabara. Ele permanecerá na Granja Comary, em Teresópolis, realizando treinamentos, até o próximo dia 17.