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According to journalist Tom Hopkinson of The Daily Mirror, it appears Southampton have now entered the race for electric right-back Djed Spence.

The Lowdown: Saints being backed?

At the start of January, a new era began on the south coast with Serbian-born businessman Dragan Solak and Sport Republic completing a £100 million takeover of the club.

Despite still not quite possessing the illustrious wealth of some Premier League clubs, reports indicate that Southampton’s new majority owners are indeed backing manager Ralph Hasenhuttl and transfer chief Martin Semmens.

Reliable transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano recently lifted the lid on Southampton’s willingness to table a record £25 million bid to sign Armando Broja on a permanent deal from Chelsea.

Meanwhile, football.london correspondent Adam Newson later broke news of further talks as the Saints entered negotiations for another Blues starlet in Tino Anjorin.

Now, Hopkinson of The Mirror has shared news on another target for the club.

The Latest: Saints eyeing Spence move…

According to his sources, Southampton are eyeing a move for Middlesborough starlet Spence amid his brilliant loan spell at Nottingham Forest.

Hasenhuttl’s side have allegedly joined a queue of clubs who want to sign the 21-year-old with Tottenham, Roma and Arsenal also keen.

However, Spurs are apparently confident they can land him ahead of the Saints and other interested parties.

The Verdict: Exciting player…

The homegrown ace is, arguably, one of the most promising defenders in English football right now and would be a major coup for Southampton if they decide to try and beat Spurs to his signature.

Spence is a constant threat from out wide, as proven by the fact he has averaged more successful take-ons per match (1.7) than any Forest regular with more than three Championship starts (WhoScored).

The marauding wing-back has attracted plenty of Premier League attention for his form, with Sky Sports pundit Jobi McAnuff believing that he is already a ‘massive player’ at such a young age and may well continue to be in Forest’s push for promotion.

The Daily Express claim Spence could cost around £15 million, but going by his exploits this season, it seems like a worthwhile potential investment.

In other news: Southampton could also make last minute move to sign ‘world class’ international, find out more here.

Rangers have enjoyed a strong first transfer window under manager Gio van Bronckhorst as they have made two additions to their ranks at Ibrox.

James Sands has arrived on an 18-month loan from New York City FC and John Souttar is poised to arrive in the summer after penning a pre-contract agreement with the central defender.

Football Scotland reporter Mark Hendry has claimed that the Dutch head coach is now eyeing up a deal for a Scottish youth international this month.

He Tweeted: “EXCLUSIVE! Rangers interested in Motherwell and Scotland prospect Bailey Rice as Manchester City also weigh up move.”

Patterson 2.0

Van Bronckhorst could land the club’s next Nathan Patterson by securing a swoop for Rice this month as he is a promising young player with the potential to break into the first team down the line.

The right-back made the breakthrough at Ibrox and went on to play 27 times in the senior side before being sold to Premier League side Everton for a club-record transfer fee this month.

Managing director Stewart Robertson explained the thinking behind the sale, saying: 

“This is a deal which fits with our long-term, strategic vision for the club. We have been very clear that player trading is an important element of our business model but only when the circumstances suit Rangers.

“We are delighted for Nathan and his family, wish them all the best for the future and they will always be welcome back at Ibrox.”

This shows that the club are looking to bleed through youngsters from the academy and into the first-team in the hope of developing them into a player who can make them a large profit in the future.

Therefore, the signing of Rice could be a shrewd deal as he could follow in the footsteps of Patterson by impressing in the youth teams before breaking into van Bronckhorst’s side in the years to come.

Rice has captained Scotland at youth level and is said to be one of Motherwell’s most talented prospects, which suggests that he has the potential to grow into a top player.

The fact that Rangers and Manchester City have become alerted to his possible availability also indicates that they have seen enough from him at such a young age to believe that he could be a valuable asset moving forward.

This means that he could be the next Patterson for Rangers and Scotland in the future and that is why van Bronckhorst and Ross Wilson must work hard to pip Pep Guardiola’s side to his signature.

AND in other news, Major development emerges in “groundbreaking” Rangers move, GvB will be buzzing…

The captains of Ireland, Canada and Netherlands admitted there is plenty at stake for their sides as the ICC World Cricket League gets underway in Netherlands on July 1

Cricinfo staff30-Jun-2010The captains of Ireland, Canada and Netherlands admitted there is plenty at stake for their sides as the ICC World Cricket League gets underway in Netherlands on July 1. Ireland launch their title defence on the opening day against former champions Kenya, while last year’s runners-up Canada face Afghanistan; the hosts clash with Scotland.Ireland captain Trent Johnston believed the tournament was a good opportunity to launch his side’s World Cup preparations. “I think Phil Simmons and the selectors are pretty happy with the side we have here. I think it is a good opportunity for the players to put themselves forward for a place in next year’s World Cup squad,” Johnston said.”We have probably got five or six of the regulars here and rest of the guys are trying to put themselves up for further selection. We are in sort of a rebuilding stage, I suppose, before the tournament in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.”Johnston also saw the event as a stepping stone for the younger generation of cricketers in his squad. “We have a couple of guys who will be making their debuts, hopefully at some stage during the tournament. Craig Young, Andrew Bilbirnie, George Dockwell and Paul Stirling played in the Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand earlier this year. They are now in the senior squad and it is a fantastic achievement for Irish cricket to see these guys developing and making into the senior ranks,” he said.Johnston was eager for Ireland to retain their status as the top Associate side and challenge the top teams. “I just want to keep Ireland at top of the Associate tree and keep knocking at the door of the big boys above us. We were close to beating Australia a couple of weeks ago and if we can take that sort of commitment and ability on the field and put three disciplines together, we have got a very good chance of lifting the trophy again,” he added.Canada captain Ashish Bagai said his side was brimming with confidence ahead of this year’s event. “The 2009 tournament was very important for us as the pressure was obviously higher. We did well and what we can take away from that tournament is the confidence which we can use in this tournament. All the six teams are evenly matched so it is going to be a tough tournament but we believe we have enough gas in our tanks to finish at the top,” Bagai said.Bagai believed the tournament would give him a good idea of his side’s progress in cricket’s pecking order. “This is a very important tournament for us. It’s a milestone and a good checkpoint which we can use to see where we stand and what we need to do in future. It gives us a good time to try out a few youngsters and identify our strengths and weaknesses seven months away from World Cup 2011,” he said.Peter Borren also had the World Cup lead-up in his sights, but nothing short of victory in the WCL Division One would do for the hosts. “It is a home tournament and obviously, at the back of our minds is the World Cup but at this stage the most important thing is to win the tournament,” Borren said.”We have to win games of cricket and let’s try to put 100 overs of quality cricket together. It’s always a challenge and it will be the same for all the teams here. I have no doubt that at times during this tournament we’ll see some fantastic innings played by the Netherlands top six or seven batsmen. I also have no doubts that at times our bowling will be sharp.”It’s very often in cricket that you bat very well but let yourself down a little bit with bowling or fielding or the other way round. It has been a challenge for all the Associate sides to put it together for the whole match and our challenge in this tournament will be to be competitive and consistent match after match,” Borren said.

The South Africans continued their run of strong performances in the Caribbean with all their batsmen performing on the first day of the tour match against Trinidad and Tobago in St Augustine

Cricinfo staff07-Jun-2010
ScorecardThe South Africans continued their run of strong performances in the Caribbean with all their batsmen performing on the first day of the tour match against Trinidad and Tobago in St Augustine. Four batsmen made half-centuries and three others got close to one as the visitors ended on 347 for 7.Graeme Smith and Alviro Petersen put on 72 for the first wicket before the captain was run out. Petersen went on to make 65, the innings’ top score, and the in-form Hashim Amla reached 44 before retiring out to give his team-mates the chance to practice. AB de Villiers and JP Duminy also made 53 and 51 respectively before retiring.While Ashwell Prince didn’t make use of the opportunity, falling for 18, Mark Boucher, who will return as wicketkeeper for the Tests, made 51. Trinidad and Tobago used nine bowlers but only three – Amit Jaggernauth, Yannic Cariah and Dave Mohammed – took a wicket each. Three of the other four wickets were batsmen retired out.This is South Africa’s only warm-up game ahead of the first Test against West Indies, which begins at the Queen’s Park Oval on Thursday. The match was moved to Trinidad because of civil unrest in Jamaica. South Africa go into the Test series having won both Twenty20s and the one-day series 5-0.

Ross Taylor, the Royal Challengers Bangalore batsman, has said he’s happy playing the floater’s role in the line-up

Siddarth Ravindran06-Apr-2010Ross Taylor, the Royal Challengers Bangalore batsman, has said he’s happy playing the floater’s role in the line-up. He usually slots in at No. 4 spot in New Zealand’s Twenty20 batting order, but has been used in every position between No. 3 and No. 6 by Bangalore.”My job is to adjust to different slots. My role with the New Zealand team is a bit different from what I have with Bangalore. I am enjoying it,” Taylor said at the team hotel in Bangalore. “Depending on where I bat – either top three or four, five or six – my role changes. Whether you need 120 runs or 220 runs, you need to know your role and play accordingly.”Barely four days after completing a Test series against Australia, Taylor turned out for his first IPL match of the season on Sunday. He said the amount of cricket being played eased the switch between formats. “We play all formats each year and there is more of chop and change and you get used to it and you adjust with the transition period.”He was also unperturbed by the short gap between the end of the IPL and the start of the ICC World Twenty20 in the West Indies – the IPL finals are on April 25, and New Zealand take on Sri Lanka five days later. “The only issue would be jetlag I guess. You can’t get any better preparation than playing Twenty20 cricket. Maybe you could have some warm-up games in the Caribbean but the quality you get at the IPL is good.”Taylor’s six-hitting has made him something of a cult hero to Bangalore fans. During the Champions League last year, crowds at the Chinnaswamy were frequently clamouring for him to come out to bat. “I got a good reception here in the first year but I wasn’t expecting the reception I got (for the Champions League),” he said. “It was an amazingfeeling to hear people chant your name.”That popularity should translate into big money at the next IPL auction, but the future of New Zealand’s players will decided by the new central contracts that will come in place once the existing ones end in July. Negotiations are currently on between New Zealand players’ association and the board, with worries that the higher financial incentive offered by the IPL could lead to more freelance cricketers.”We have always had central contracts. Obviously the time our New Zealand season finishes in March, early April, it sort of clashes with the IPL. I guess in international cricket we will find the space and I hope we get to play in the IPL.” Taylor said. “New Zealand Cricket are trying their best to retain their players. We don’t get paid as well as other players and the money we get in IPL far outweighs what we get in New Zealand.”

A round-up from the latest action in the County Championship…

Cricinfo staff06-Sep-2009Division OneA strong second-innings performance from Yorkshire’s batsmen ensured a stalemate against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge, leaving the hosts 27 points behind Division One leaders Durham, who also have a game in hand. Yorkshire began the final day on 269 for 2, leading by 173 runs, and their middle and lower order built on that strong position. Jonathan Bairstow made 82 off 155 balls, Ajmal Shahzad contributed 45, while Rich Pyrah remained unbeaten on 50 off 96 deliveries. The efforts of the Yorkshire batsman against unthreatening part-time bowling stretched the total to 519 for 8 before both captains agreed to end the match in a draw. Paul Franks, who finished with 3 for 71, had the best figures for Nottinghamshire. Yorkshire ended the match on 136 points, above Sussex, Hampshire and Worcestershire in Division One.

Durham 13 7 00 6 0 195 Nottinghamshire 14 3 1 0 10 0168 Somerset 14 3 10 10 0 162 Warwickshire 14 2 2 0 10 0151 Lancashire 14 3 20 9 0 146 Yorkshire 14 1 2 0 11 0136 Sussex 13 2 30 8 0 128 Hampshire 13 2 3 0 8 0127 Worcestershire 13 0 90 4 0 70

Celtic have told Ewan Henderson that he can leave during the January transfer window, according to The Scottish Sun.

The Lowdown: Hibs links

The midfielder is into the final six months of his current Parkhead deal and has recently been linked with a move to Hibernian, whose new manager Shaun Maloney (once a Hoops player) is thought to be keen on bringing the 21-year-old to Easter Road on a long-term deal.

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Exits appear to be inevitable at Celtic Park over the coming weeks, which could then fund further winter additions.

John Hartson said it was ‘very special’ after Henderson scored his first goal for Celtic last month, and it seems as if that strike against Real Betis could be his first and last as a Hoops player.

The Latest: Monday update

The Scottish Sun seemed to share an update regarding Henderson’s Celtic future on Monday morning.

Within their live transfer blog, they said that Ange Postecoglou is considering offloading fringe players such as Henderson, Liam Shaw and Osaze Urhoghide. They added that Henderson has ‘been told he can leave’, with his deal expiring at the end of June.

The Verdict: The right call?

If Postecoglou isn’t convinced about Henderson, then looking to move him on this month is the right call. January will be the last time that the Hoops can receive any money for the midfielder, who will become a free agent in the summer should his situation remain the same.

He has featured just once all season, taking his total appearance tally for Celtic to 11, so it may be best for all parties involved if he leaves permanently and plays regular first-team football, with Celtic then putting any money they receive for the 21-year-old towards further signings who may have a brighter future at the club.

In other news: Celtic may swoop for 6 foot 1 beast who had Sadio Mane in his ‘pocket’ 

According to Sky Sports, a fresh transfer claim has come to light involving Newcastle United and Odion Ighalo.

The Lowdown: Newcastle set for January moves?

Ahead of what looks likely to be a long and arduous relegation battle for Eddie Howe’s side, the Magpies and their new owners PIF have been linked with a plethora of January swoops to boost their chances of Premier League survival.

The likes of Ousmane Dembele and Kieran Trippier have been mentioned in recent weeks, with the Magpies aiming to maintain their top-flight status and kickstart a new era on Tyneside.

It appears that some players are even keen to be a part of Newcastle’s new age as Sky Sports now share news on former Manchester United marksman Ighalo.

The Latest: Sky make Ighalo claim…

According to their information, the 36-cap Nigeria international has now been asked by his current club Al Shabab whether he would agree to join Newcastle and Howe should they make a move for him.

Ighalo’s response was apparently that he would seriously consider a move to St James’ Park should the Magpies and PIF come knocking.

The Verdict: Should they swoop?

Once called ‘superb’ by Geordie legend and all-time Premier League top scorer Alan Shearer (via African Football), the 32-year-old has previously turned it on for his former club Watford. Indeed, Ighalo bagged 16 goals and five assists in 27 Premier League appearances for the Hornets over 2015/16, but that was his last great season at an elite level.

Prolific campaigns have followed in both the Chinese Super League and Saudi Professional League but this arguably isn’t enough to prove that he could come in and seriously bolster Howe’s chances of Premier League survival.

It remains to be seen whether Newcastle do make contact, but it’s arguable that Ighalo’s signing wouldn’t pull up any trees.

In other news, find out which ‘world-class’ ace NUFC are now ‘most likely’ to sign here!

Dougie Brown admitted that the elevation of Ashley Giles to England’s one-day coach had created an opportunity for him at “a perfect moment” in his own career.

Jon Culley 31-Jan-2013Dougie Brown, who has succeeded Ashley Giles as Warwickshire’s director of cricket, admitted that the elevation of his predecessor to England’s one-day coach had created an opportunity for him at “a perfect moment” in his own career.Brown landed the job from a field of more than 40 applicants that chief executive Colin Povey confirmed included the current West Indies coach, Ottis Gibson. He said he was beginning to take notice of vacancies elsewhere when the departure of Giles offered the unexpected chance of promotion at Edgbaston.”I wasn’t about to jump ship,” he said. “But I have made no secret of the fact that I have ambitions to cut my teeth at the next level up. There are only a certain number of director of cricket roles that come up and I would be lying if I was not looking at what was available.”But if you are going elsewhere without experience you are always fighting against internal candidates, which seems to be the preferred way of doing things. So this came at a perfect time for me in my career.”Brown, who made his debut as a Warwickshire player in 1992 and had been working as assistant coach and academy director under Giles, inherits a team that won the County Championship in 2012, reached the final of the Clydesdale Bank 40 and was denied progression in the Friends Life T20, it could be argued, only because of the weather.That presents an unusual situation for a newly appointed head coach and Brown acknowledges that his approach to the job will have to reflect that, namely by resisting any urge to bring his own stamp to the job by making substantial changes.”It is unusual in that in the majority of cases a new director of cricket comes in because the previous one was not up to much and clearly that was not the case,” he said. “People wanting success again and again creates its own pressure but I have inherited a side with a great age profile who are very much driven towards improvement.”I think we know the strengths and qualities that won us the title. We know what we are good at doing, we know our values, we try to make sure that every day we give our full attention to what we set out to give our full attention to. Consistency was one of the key reasons we have been successful.”There are areas we need to improve on, especially in T20. But for the time being there is no necessity to change. We want to be slicker, smarter, more efficient but we don’t need to change much.”Apart from Gibson and the England fast bowling coach David Saker, Brown prevailed over a candidates list that also included Graeme Welch, Warwickshire’s fast bowling coach and a popular figure with many of the players. Welch remains on the coaching staff as assistant to his former colleague and Brown admitted the situation had not been without difficulty.”It has been difficult doing the day job in the circumstances,” Brown said. “We knew that one or both of us would be disappointed and I will not pretend that ‘Pop’ is not very disappointed not to have landed the job.”We had a chat yesterday and today. He is a very professional guy and is very clear what his job is and how we take the situation forward. There is nothing different in our relationship now compared with before the process started.”He is an outstanding bowling coach and someone I know very well having played with him all through my career. We have seen evidence of his work being very successful in the last couple of years and I hope that success continues.”I think the players have been incredibly mature. Thing have meandered a little lately with the players desperate for a bit of direction and you can see evidence of relief in the dressing room that we now know where we are going.”Povey was keen to emphasise Welch’s importance to Warwickshire and expressed a hope that the disappointment would not affect his commitment and loyalty.”‘Pop’ was interviewed and made a very good presentation but at the end of the day there was only one job,” he said. “We have changed his title to assistant coach to reflect the fact that his influence is much wider than just bowling coach.”He is disappointed but he is a guy like Dougie who is Warwickshire through and through and who puts the team first and I hope he will feel he can carry on as before, helping us lead the team.”Povey denied the story that Saker had been offered the job, in which Saker claimed he was misquoted. On Gibson and Saker, Povey said: “If I was in the position of coming to the end of my contract, I think I would take a look around the market and see what was available as well. But David was not offered the job, nor was anyone else before Dougie.”

A number of Liverpool supporters are hugely excited after the Reds were linked with a January move for in-form Porto attacker Luis Diaz.

Jurgen Klopp’s men are in superb form at the moment, responding brilliantly to the defeat at West Ham by picking up consecutive wins against Arsenal, Porto and Southampton.

Liverpool seem to have clicked into gear at just the right time, with a fascinating Premier League title race with Chelsea and Manchester City starting to take shape.

[freshpress-quiz id=“375258″]

The Reds will almost certainly have to make do without star attackers Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane for a chunk of January, though, due to their participation in the Africa Cup of Nations.

It means that a new forward could be brought in during the next transfer window, and according to Record [via LFC Transfer Room on Twitter], Klopp has given his ‘approval’ over the signing of Diaz.

The 24-year-old has scored 10 times in 12 Primeira Liga appearances this season and has come up against Liverpool in the Champions League. He gave a decent account of himself at Anfield last week, with two key passes and three successful dribbles in his team’s 2-0 defeat.

The Colombian has struck 10 goals in 12 league games for Porto in the current campaign, also netting twice in Europe (Transfermarkt), and he is the team’s highest-ranking performer according to WhoScored.

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Liverpool fans love Diaz claim

These Reds fans on Twitter reacted positively to the links with Diaz, with one Kopite proclaiming him as a “baller”.

“Please!”

Credit: @obg_21

“Yesss”

Credit: @amirullahR

“I beg for him to sign”

Credit: @LFC_Colman

“If this is true this would be great. He’s a class player and would be good to have during AFCON when Mo and Mane are gone, he’ll definitely put in a shift and will keep us on winning ways surely”

Credit: @vvd_era

“Don’t do that… don’t give me hope”

Credit: @ben_lfc__

“Please please. Baller”

Credit: @my_sum

In other news, some Liverpool fans are delighted after another transfer rumour emerged. Read more here.