Soccer (FIFA)

Soccer (FIFA)

Nottingham Forest manager Sean Dyche is understood to be keen to sign a striker in the January transfer window. Forest are one place above the Premier League relegation zone and have scored fewer goals than anyone in the division with the exceptions of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Sunderland. Dyche, who replaced Ange Postecoglou who replaced Nuno Espirito Santo, has steadied his team but their tactical approach throughout the festive fixture programme was regarded as a little on the conservative side.

AS Roma have reached an agreement in principle to sign Aston Villa forward Donyell Malen on loan, with a conditional obligation to buy for around 25 million, according to journalist Ben Jacobs. The structure of the deal has been approved by all parties, with only final formalities remaining. The 26-year-old Netherlands international has made it clear that he wants the move, driven by a desire for consistent minutes and a guaranteed role as a central striker.

Newcastle United midfielder Joe Willock reportedly wants to leave the club this January and they could be prepared to sanction his departure. This comes as Willock supposedly attracts transfer interest from two Premier League clubs in the form of Leeds United and Crystal Palace, according to Football Insider. Willock had initially been a key player for Newcastle when he first joined from Arsenal a few years ago, but it's fair to say he's fallen down the pecking order in more recent times.

"A big blow but surgery is done so the comeback starts now," he posted. "It won't be for a little while but I already can't wait to get back playing for Liverpool and Northern Ireland. Thank you for all of the support."

Fowler, whose son Andrew is also involved in the club, will take on the position of chairman at LNER Stadium and will "assume responsibility for the funding of the club for the immediate future". The ownership shake-up at Lincoln, who are second in the table, was confirmed as a "future development" in the club's annual accounts covering the 12 months up to June 2025.

Cancelo, 31, was due to be presented as a new Barça player early in the afternoon, but with the media waiting to meet him, the scheduled time for his unveiling came and passed. In the meantime, the club deleted the official announcement of his signing from their website and social media channels. Club sources were quick to confirm it was a bureaucratic issue; Barça had jumped the gun, arranging the presentation without having all the documents signed off.

Rangers have agreed a loan fee with Wolfsburg for Andreas Skov Olsen, with the winger on his way to Glasgow to complete the deal. (Tipsbladet - in Danish), external Rangers are increasingly confident they will land Andreas Skov Olsen on loan and that they can strike a deal to make it permanent by negotiating an option to buy for much less than the 12m Wolfsburg paid Club Brugge a year ago. (Daily Record), external

All indicators suggest that Rashford is determined to remain at Camp Nou, while Barcelona are increasingly convinced he should stay in La Liga on a permanent basis, sources close to the agents industry have informed CaughtOffside. Rashford's performances, professionalism, and attitude have been widely praised inside the Barcelona dressing room. The forward has delivered crucial goals, added pace and directness to the attack, and demonstrated a level of maturity that has surprised even the club's technical staff.

I'm super happy for Guirassy. I came all the way up the pitch to congratulate him. I think he's an amazing player. When you're a striker, sometimes just scoring a goal is all you need, so I was extremely happy for him. And also [Sabitzer] scored an amazing goal. I know him for taking these types of shots [at goal]. He likes these shots, which can be really dangerous.

The Jose Earthquakes are reportedly close to a deal to acquire German forward Timo Werner of RB Leipzig, according to The Athletic. Should the signing take place, Werner would become a designated player for San Jose, offering the 29-year-old a fresh start in Major League Soccer. He saw only 13 minutes of Bundesliga action for Leipzig this past season. Werner will be a welcome addition to the Quakes' attack after the departure of Josef Martinez to Tijuana.

Embarking on what has become a famous Premiership fairytale, Hearts have only continued to shatter a string of records. In the midst of an iconic purple patch and riding a major wave of momentum, Derek McInnes' men can once again widen their buffer at the top of the table to six points here. With the mood around Tynecastle at a red-hot high, the Jambos will be smelling the chance to make another title statement on Wednesday night.

West Ham United are weighing up the possibility of signing Eric Dier after the experienced defender was offered to the club, according to Sky reporter Florian Plettenberg. While talks are not advanced at this stage, the opportunity is being viewed internally as one worth exploring, especially given West Ham's ongoing search for defensive reinforcements for the second half of the 2025/26 season.

Liverpool are reportedly closely monitoring the situation of their former player Xabi Alonso now that he's just been sacked as Real Madrid manager. The Spanish tactician struggled to make the desired impact upon taking charge at the Bernabeu last summer, despite previously doing such an impressive job at Bayer Leverkusen. Meanwhile, it's also been a frustrating campaign at Anfield, with Arne Slot not doing as well as he did in his first season and possibly coming under growing pressure.

How many games have we played this season? Probably around 30. I think about 28 of my pre-match meetings I could just throw in the bin, Slot said. I think only once or twice the team did what they did the 20 weeks before. Arsenal was one of them. But Barnsley always plays a 4-3-3 and today decided to go with five, which I can completely understand, which I would have done

Eddie Howe's future at Newcastle United is under increasing scrutiny, with a trusted source on X reporting that the manager's position could be under threat ahead of a full strategic review planned for the summer. The Saudi-owned club is expected to assess every aspect of the football operation, including whether Howe remains the right figure to lead Newcastle into their next phase of growth.

Arsenal could reportedly be open to letting versatile defender Ben White leave the club for around 20-25m, but only in the summer transfer window. There has been talk of Everton being interested in a possible move for White, but the Gunners seemingly have no intention of letting him go this January. That was reported by football.london yesterday and now Football Insider say similar, but add that Arsenal could be more open to a deal in the summer.

Image source, Getty Images A reward for promotion? A bye to the third round of the FA Cup. And the prize? A showcase clash with trophy-laden Chelsea under The Valley lights. For Charlton fans, it was the kind of glamorous tie that reminds you why the cup still matters. Yet as the fog rolled in to SE7 on a bitterly cold January night, you had to wonder, has the occasion come at a cost?