Aston Villa have submitted a £26m bid for a “world-class” forward, with the move receiving the green light from manager Unai Emery.

Villa return to form in victory against Forest

Villa’s 11-game winning run was brought to an end by Arsenal in their final match of 2025, but they kicked off 2026 in very promising fashion, securing a 3-1 victory against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

Ollie Watkins continued his improved form in front of goal, scoring for the fourth time in his last three Premier League outings, and Emery was clearly impressed by the performance, saying: “For him it is much, much better. Even when he wasn’t scoring, others were scoring. We need every player focused like him, and doing his task like him.”

The Spaniard then went on to describe the centre-forward as “fantastic”, while Donyell Malen, who has also been utilised at striker this season, has impressed too, chipping in with seven goals in all competitions.

However, with Aston Villa potentially looking to bolster their hopes of making a title push, they are keen to bring in another striker this month, and a €30m (£26m) offer has now been submitted for Real Madrid forward Gonzalo Garcia.

That is according to a report from Spain, which reveals Emery has now given the green light for Villa to make a move for the Spaniard, as he believes the Madrid ace is capable of making an immediate impact at Villa Park.

The Villans want to finalise a deal as quickly as possible, as they are keen to avoid being dragged into a bidding war, and they are confident the offer is high enough to tempt the La Liga club into a sale.

"World-class" Garcia may need to leave Real Madrid

When given the opportunity at Real Madrid, the 21-year-old has often impressed, most recently scoring a hat-trick as his side demolished Real Betis 5-1 in La Liga, while he also caught the eye at the Club World Cup in the summer.

Indeed, the youngster picked up four goals and one assist in six games in the USA, and journalist Zach Lowy believes his performances were top drawer.

However, consistent game time has been hard to come by for the centre-forward, who has largely been used as an impact sub late on in games this season, which suggests he may need to leave Madrid for the good of his career.

Related Aston Villa making "fascinating" move for £295k-per-week Man City star

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Although Watkins has returned to form as of late, the England international recently turned 30, which means it may be a savvy move to start thinking about potential long-term replacements, and Garcia has proven he could be up to the task.

What a whirlwind start to 2026 it has been for Chelsea Football Club.

In what is perhaps a surprising turn of events, Enzo Maresca has left after a string of poor results and has been relieved of his duties at Stamford Bridge with immediate effect.

As is the done thing when a manager is removed from his post, the Blues released a club statement to confirm the news. It clarified that the club “believe a change gives the team the best chance of getting the season back on track,” with half of the season still to go.

A new manager has yet to be confirmed, but rumours are already flying around.

Chelsea target Premier League manager to replace Maresca

One of the names flying around to replace the Italian in West London is Strasbourg manager Liam Rosenior. Of course, the two clubs are linked, with the French side also under the same BlueCo ownership as Chelsea.

However, those owners might instead look within the Premier League to find their new boss.

According to a report from the Mail, Bournemouth head coach Andoni Iraola is ‘being considered’ by the club, with Chelsea set to have an interim manager this weekend against Manchester City, and thus more time to find a manager.

Iraola is clearly one option that the Blues have as they hunt for Maresca’s replacement. What makes things slightly easier is the fact that he is out of contract down on the South Coast this summer.

That might reduce the compensation fee if he were to switch to Stamford Bridge mid-season.

Why Iraola would be a good appointment

There is no doubt that Cherries boss Iraola, a close childhood friend of Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, is one of the most highly rated managers in the top flight. Journalist James Horncastle even went as far as saying that he is the “best coach in the Premier League,” which is huge praise indeed.

Well, whether or not you agree with that statement, there is no denying that the Spaniard has impressed at the Vitality Stadium. In 107 games in charge of the club, he’s won 40 of them, and has a positive goal difference, with his side scoring 166 times and conceding 160.

Iraola key stats at Bournemouth

Stat

Number

Games

105

Wins

40

Draws

27

Losses

38

Goals for

166

Goals against

160

PL points per game

1.35

Stats from Transfermarkt

Across the board, the 43-year-old has managed to get the Cherries somewhat punching above their weight. There have been some memorable results in there, which included a wonderful 3-0 win away from home against Manchester United.

It would certainly be a different appointment compared to if the Blues were to go and get Rosenior. The former Hull City gaffer has also impressed at Strasbourg, helping them to reach the Conference League this term.

The ex-Brighton and Hove Albion player certainly has a good record in charge of Le Racing out in Ligue 1, winning 51.61% of his games so far. He has also helped guide his side to some iconic wins along the way. In the Conference League this term, they beat Crystal Palace 2-1.

However, there is one thing that might swing it in Iraola’s favour, and that is the fact that he has Premier League experience. Rosenior, of course, has never managed in the top flight of England, just like Maresca hadn’t done before.

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Perhaps BlueCo will not want to risk making the same mistake which has ultimately led to Maresca’s demise despite success on a more global scale. Even though the Strasbourg manager would be easier to appoint, there might be a view that it’s a riskier move.

Provided Iraola adapts and plays more of a possession-based game as Maresca looked to implement, rather than focusing on quick vertical transitions, this might be a masterstroke of an appointment from the Blues.

Rosenior might be a more logical appointment, but Iraola could be the dream alternative. One thing is for sure, it is going to be a fascinating few days down at the Bridge.

Related Chelsea could finally sack Maresca & hire "one of the best coaches ever"

Chelsea could finally get rid of Enzo Maresca by appointing this standout replacement.

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When West Ham United parted ways with Darren Randolph back in the summer of 2017, with the goalkeeper joining Middlesbrough in what was a £5m deal, very few Hammers fans would have expected their club to resign the 34-year-old shot-stopper just two and a half years later.

However, this is exactly what West Ham did, paying the Championship side £4.23m for the goalkeeper in January of 2020, handing the former Republic of Ireland international a three and a half year deal on £42k-per-week.

And, while the £900k-rated ‘keeper was undoubtedly a very decent backup option to Lukasz Fabianski at the time, especially with West Ham’s then number two, Roberto, enduring a disastrous season, the club have since brought the £138k-per-week Alphonse Areola to the club to deputise for the 36-year-old first-choice – seeing Randolph become David Moyes’ third inline between the sticks.

Indeed, since his return to the club two years ago, the Irishman has made just nine first-team appearances for West Ham, with only five of these outings coming in the Premier League.

And, when taking into account the fact that Randolph has so far cost the Hammers roughly £4.6m in wages over the 110 weeks since his return to the London Stadium, in addition to his £4.2m transfer fee, this means each appearance the goalkeeper has made for the Irons has cost the club just shy of a whopping £1m.

As such, while the player who the former Middlesbrough manager, Jonathan Woodgate, dubbed an “outstanding” talent between the sticks may well be exactly this, considering just how little the 34-year-old has featured for the club, it would very much appear as if the decision to resign the veteran was an extremely strange one.

Indeed, the third-choice position is typically one held by one of the club’s up and coming prospects, affording a promising youngster a chance at gaining some valuable first-team minutes.

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However, with Randolph not only remaining at the club, but Moyes reportedly unwilling to extend the goalkeeper’s current contract, it would appear this pathway is closed to the young goalkeepers in the West Ham academy, yet another reason why the Irishman’s position within Moyes’ side makes very little sense.

In other news: West Ham receive huge injury boost ahead of Wolves clash, Moyes will be buzzing

Having joined West Ham United on a free transfer back in the summer of 2018, it initially appeared as if the club had secured themselves something of a bargain on Ryan Fredericks – a 25-year-old right-back who had highly impressed for Fulham in the season prior.

Indeed, over his 44 Championship appearances in 2017/18, the £1.8m-rated defender was in remarkable form for the Cottagers, helping his side keep 14 clean sheets, registering seven assists and creating eight big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of one key pass, 0.7 interceptions, 1.7 tackles, 2.6 clearances and winning 5.2 duels per game.

These returns saw the former England U19 international earn a seasonal SofaScore rating of 6.97, ranking him as Fulham’s ninth-best performer in the second tier of English football.

As such, Manuel Pellegrini’s comments upon the right-back’s signing may well have been echoed by many of the Hammers fanbase, with the Chilean manager stating: “Ryan has good experience, with more than 150 senior appearances already but, at 25, he is still a young player with his best years ahead of him.”

However, after handing the defender a four-year deal on a reported £75k-per-week, three and a half years on, the signing of Fredericks had proven to be something of a nightmare for West Ham, as the now-29-year-old never managed to ever truly establish himself as a first-team regular at the London Stadium.

Indeed, the player who Football.London’s Tom Clark claimed had a “shocker” in his last outing against Newcastle United has started just 44 Premier League games in three and a half seasons in East London – making a further 16 appearances from the bench.

Furthermore, over his three complete league campaigns for West Ham, the defender has earned well below-par seasonal SofaScore match ratings of 6.67 in 2018/19, 6.78 in 2019/20 and 6.75 in 2020/21, as well as averaging an extremely disappointing 6.27 match rating over his four top-flight outings in the current campaign – ranking him as David Moyes’ worst performer in the league.

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As such, considering all of the above, in addition to the fact that Fredericks has cost the Hammers roughly £14.5m in wages over his 191 weeks at the club, there is, unfortunately, no conclusion to draw other than Pellegrini had a nightmare when signing the right-back back in 2018 – as the 29-year-old has been rinsing the Irons for the best part of four years.

In other news: Roshane Thomas drops update on worrying West Ham development, Moyes will be fuming

Everton will take on Tottenham Hotspur this evening and Frank Lampard should be seizing the opportunity to capitalise on Antonio Conte’s inconsistent side by stealing all three points in an important victory away from home.

Spurs have lost three of their last five games, so the ex-Chelsea boss will have a glimmer of hope in securing the points in London this evening, despite Everton’s relegation form and the side only picking up one win away from home all season.

To give the club the best chance of picking up points and pulling away from the relegation zone in tonight’s clash, Lampard must pick his best players for the challenge.

Despite his tendencies to favour an approach that rewards players with consecutive starts after good performances which we saw him do with Alex Iwobi after Leeds United, the Toffees boss must not make the same mistakes with his selection later by keeping Salomon Rondon in the starting line-up due to his goals against Boreham Wood in the FA Cup last week.

The 28k-per-week dud who was labelled a “problem” by former Everton player Michael Ball, scored two goals against National League side, Boreham Wood at Goodison Park last Thursday in a victory that has taken the Toffees into the quarter-finals of the domestic competition.

Despite the 32 year old’s fantastic efforts against the non-league side, it does not mean that Lampard should give the striker the opportunity ahead of others against Tottenham this evening, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Demarai Gray potentially returning to the side.

Therefore, the Toffees boss should not be sentimental in selection and be objective about who has the right profile and talent for the game ahead of the team.

Rondon made eight Premier League starts under Rafa Benitez and has made 14 appearances in total, with just one goal overall and only two minutes of league football since the new manager’s arrival on Deadline Day. Based on his dismal form, supporters will surely love to see him on the bench, rather than leading the line.

Other than his goal-scoring performance in the FA Cup a few days ago he has given no indication that he deserves to start over or replace any other forward player in the regular starting line up.

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Everton need to cause an upset at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium tonight by going back to Merseyside with all three points. Lampard and his squad are running out of lifelines to keep them out of the drop zone, just one point from potentially getting relegated this season, so every game counts in the few remaining months.

In other news: Lampard faces blow to selection as Godfrey is still out

Aston Villa have had a rather eventful season in terms of what’s been going on since last summer’s transfer window.

Having sold Jack Grealish to Manchester City in a record-breaking £100m deal, the Midlands club then brought in the likes of Danny Ings, Leon Bailey and Emi Buendia to bolster their attack.

In November, the club made a big change after a run of poor results led to Dean Smith getting sacked, with Steven Gerrard coming in to replace him.

Since then, the Villans have brought in four new players during the January transfer window and have now broken into the top half of the table after winning their three previous league games.

In terms of which individual players have stood out for Villa throughout their topsy-turvy season, one man who we think deserves a lot of praise is Matty Cash.

Having racked up more minutes in the league than any other Villa player, this shows just how important the right-back is for the team and how highly he was rated by Smith and currently is by Gerrard.

From an attacking point of view, the Poland international – who was recently dubbed “outstanding” by former Villa manager Tim Sherwood – has racked up three goals and three assists, highlighting how valuable he can be in terms of scoring or setting up goals from right-back.

In terms of his defensive input this term, the 24-year-old has made more tackles (75), interceptions (70) and blocks (63) than any of his team-mates, which shows how vital he has been at the back in addition to his attacking efforts.

With his overall performances in mind, WhoScored have given Cash an overall rating of 7.02/10, making him the third-highest rated player in Gerrard’s squad above the likes of Ollie Watkins, Lucas Digne and Douglas Luiz.

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Even though Philippe Coutinho has taken the Midlands by storm since his arrival in January, with four goals and three assists to his name in just eight league appearances, Cash has arguably been a more important figure for the Villans this season as an all-around performer throughout the pitch.

In other news: Gregg Evans drops behind-the-scenes Villa update which will have many Villa fans sweating

Rangers have had a number of success stories pass their way through the academy at Ibrox over the years, including current first-team player Allan McGregor.

The Gers recently sold graduate Nathan Patterson for a club-record transfer fee in the January window after he broke through into the first-team and made his senior bow for Scotland whilst in Glasgow.

However, they have not always got it right with their young prospects and some players have slipped through the cracks before excelling elsewhere.

Fumbled

One youth team player the club managed to fumble was midfield talent Lewis Morgan, who left Ibrox for £0 whilst in the U17s.

Morgan previously explained why he left the club, saying: “I was told at Under 17’s level that I’d be getting a full-time contract at Rangers, but after the Christmas break, some of the younger boys got playing ahead of me.

“At the end of the season I went in for a meeting with Jim Sinclair (head of youth), ready to sign a two-year deal, but he talked me out of signing.”

He joined St Mirren from the Gers and went on to establish himself at senior level with 29 goals and 23 assists in 118 outings for the club, earning himself a move to the other giant outfit in Glasgow – Celtic.

However, he found life at Parkhead difficult as he only made 31 appearances before signing for Inter Miami in the MLS. He produced 14 goals and assists in 58 matches and recently moved across the division to sign for New York Red Bulls.

The 25-year-old’s ability to take set-pieces with both feet was dubbed “rare to witness” by Miami and former Hoops boss Brendan Rodgres called the wizard “dynamic” as he hailed his qualities.

As you can see in the graphic above, Morgan’s market value has risen to £3.6m since leaving Rangers. Transfermarkt valued him at £90k whilst he was at St Mirren and at £675k at the time of his move to Miami, with his form in the MLS seeing him soar to £3.6m.

He caught the eye in his first season in America. The Scotland international averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.54 as he produced five goals and five assists in 24 appearances for Miami – creating a whopping 2.9 chances per game from midfield.

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In the current campaign, he has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.65 for New York Red Bulls – scoring three times and providing one assist in four matches. This shows that he is currently in terrific form for his new club and, at 25, he has the potential and time to kick on and improve further, which is why Rangers fumbled him in the youth set-up as they failed to tie him down to a professional deal.

AND in other news, Forget Tavernier: Rangers passenger with just 12 passes almost cost GVB the win yesterday…

West Ham United defender Issa Diop has struggled to make a positive impact at the London Stadium since his £22m move from Toulouse in 2018, a fee that, at the time, was a club record for the East London outfit.

Almost four years on from joining the Hammers, the French centre-back has struggled to win over supporters.

Recently, the 25-year-old received plenty of criticism for his display against National League North side Kidderminster Harriers in the FA Cup, with the Premier League defender struggling against a sixth-tier outfit.

However, the main measurement of Diop’s struggles at the London Stadium can be identified by his market value, which has steadily declined since swapping Ligue 1 for the English top flight.

In fairness to the defender, his first season was tolerable as the Frenchman made 33 Premier League appearances as the Hammers finished tenth. As a result, Diop saw his market value increase from £19.8m to £31.5m, according to Transfermarkt.

Unfortunately for West Ham, this appreciation in value was a false hope and the £61k-per-week defender’s time in the English capital has been a nightmare.

Over the past three years, the 25-year-old has seen his market value drop staggeringly from £31.5m to £10.8m, now worth three times less than three years ago.

It also means that the defender is worth less than half of what the East London outfit bought him for.

The centre-back has made 118 appearances thus far for the Hammers, with this season seeing manager David Moyes call upon him mainly in cup competitions, playing 12 times across the Europa League, EFL Cup and FA Cup as well as 11 Premier League matches.

There is no doubt that the 25-year-old is at the bottom of the West Ham’s defensive hierarchy below Kurt Zouma and Craig Dawson, with Angelo Ogbonna still recovering from an ACL injury that has kept the Hammers light at the back.

With just one year left on his contract after this season, Diop will certainly be considering his future and whether or not he could revive his tenure at the London Stadium.

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If the Hammers are to re-qualify for Europe for next season, there may be the occasional opportunity for the defender as West Ham juggle four competitions once again. However, after a disappointing January transfer window, it appears likely that the East Londoners will invest somewhat heavily in the squad this summer.

Therefore, it appears as though Diop’s days in claret and blue could be numbered as we enter the final two months of the 2021/22 campaign.

In other news: West Ham must swoop for £75k-p/w monster who Moyes will love, he’s “the new Vidic”

Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side have been dealt yet another setback ahead of Sunday’s Premiership meeting with Old Firm rivals Rangers.

What’s the latest?

In recent comments cited by the Daily Record, former Celtic midfielder Simon Donnelly claimed that, despite being pictured back in training ahead of the Bhoys’ trip to Ibrox this weekend, Kyogo Furuhashi will not feature against Rangers.

Hinting at possessing behind the scenes information on the current condition of the centre-forward, Donnelly said:

“He’s been out for three months and three days. I’ve heard that he is back training, but I think Sunday may come too soon for him. I think maybe they are looking more at the Scottish Cup semi-final. I think that might be more realistic.”

Bad news

Considering just how impressive Kyogo has been for Celtic since his £4.6m move to Parkhead last summer, should Donnelly be correct in his claim that the 27-year-old will be unavailable for selection against Rangers this Sunday, it would be extremely bad news for Ange Postecoglou and his side.

Indeed, over his 14 Premiership appearances this season, the £4.95m-rated forward has been in breathtaking form for the Hoops, scoring eight goals, registering two assists and creating four big chances for his teammates.

That’s as well as taking an average of 2.1 shots and making 1.1 key passes per game – with these returns seeing the Japan international average an extremely impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.03.

The £52.5k-per-week hitman was also in exceptional form over his five Europa League appearances this term, over which he scored two goals, provided two assists and created two big chances for his teammates – with these metrics seeing the centre-forward average an even more impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.10.

As such, while Kyogo never looked likely to start at Ibrox, should the Japanese sensation not be fit enough to play any part against Rangers this weekend, it would undoubtedly come as a huge blow to Celtic’s chances of leaving Govan with all three points.

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And, following the news that Stephen Welsh is now also a doubt for the potentially title-deciding clash, Postecoglou will certainly be hoping that no more of his squad pick up knocks or suffer further setbacks between now and kick-off on Sunday afternoon.

AND in other news: Ange could unearth the new Havertz as Celtic make move for “aggressive” £500k “threat”

While Tottenham star Harry Kane continues to hunt down the goal-scoring record for England, one of his Three Lions teammates could well have been playing alongside him at club level: Ollie Watkins.

The 26-year-old was initially reported to be of interest for Spurs back in the summer of 2020 when Jose Mourinho was still in charge, and Football.London’s Alasdair Gold admitted at the time that the striker’s arrival in north London would tick a lot of boxes.

He said: “This makes more sense than the Benrahma links, with the 24-year-old Englishman having struck 26 goals in the Championship this season for Brentford.

“With his homegrown status he ticks a few boxes and could prove to be an exciting back-up or partner for Kane. As with Eze though, it would be all about that game time and other Premier League clubs would be able to offer more. Brentford reportedly value him and Benrahma at more than £25million each which would put off Spurs.”

Watkins would of course instead make the switch to fellow Premier League side Aston Villa where he has blossomed into a star earning international honours with England – the striker was of course on the score-sheet against Ivory Coast in mid-week when he started in place of the rested Kane.

In September of 2021, it was suggested that Spurs were back in for the Three Lions ace as they looked to bolster their attacking options, but once again, couldn’t strike a deal for the 26-year-old.

The striker was a key reason behind Villa’s successful campaign last year, bagging 16 goals in all competitions and netting in home and away fixtures against Liverpool (including a hat-trick at Villa Park) and also against Arsenal.

This season has seen him continue to be a fine performer for Steven Gerrard’s side, netting seven times in the top-flight, and scoring against the likes of Manchester City and Spurs themselves.

Dubbed a “machine”, the £75k-a-week earning Watkins has proven himself to be a fine Premier League striker in his time at Villa Park, and it certainly comes off as a bit of a disaster that Spurs saw two attempts at signing him fail to materialise.

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The £34m-rated star would have been a perfect foil for Kane at Spurs.

AND in other news – Left for £0, now worth £40m: Spurs suffered huge howler over “very explosive” U21 star