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Former England defender and now pundit Danny Mills has been reacting to a recent update regarding Celtic midfielder Ryan Christie.

According to the Daily Mail, relayed by the Daily Record last weekend, the 26-year-old’s deal actually expires in January 2022.

It was thought his contract ran until next summer, but it seems as if that is not the case.

Former boss Neil Lennon admitted Christie was open to a new challenge at some stage, with the report suggesting he could use this summer’s European Championships as a chance to impress other clubs ahead of a potential Celtic Park exit.

Mills, 43, talking to Football Insider, shared his surprise when asked about the recent news coming out of Parkhead regarding Christie, labelling it as ‘bizarre’.

“I don’t understand that.

“Normally, contracts run from the 1st of July to the 30th of June and that’s every single football contract I’ve ever seen. Unless it’s a short-term deal or a loan.

“I didn’t think that was allowed, in all honesty.

Mills added:

“It’s a bizarre situation. I’ve never heard of that before and I didn’t think it would be allowed.

“All Football League contracts all run 1st of July to 30th of June as standard and that’s how it’s always been.

“I’m not sure who’s done that deal whether it’s a stroke of genius or they’ve just put the wrong date in.”

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Transfer Tavern take

We’re with Mills as far as the shock factor of the news, and we feel it could impact new CEO Dominic McKay over the coming months, who is going to be faced with numerous tough decisions while rebuilding a stagnant squad.

Should Christie refuse to discuss a new deal, McKay and Celtic may be placed in an awkward situation.

The midfielder regularly been criticised by several supporters during the season, but he’s actually been the club’s second-best Premiership performer with a match rating average of 7.33/10, as per WhoScored.

On that basis, McKay and the rest of the Hoops hierarchy may be torn as to what to do with Christie.

They could look to sell with six months remaining on his contract, with a number of Premier League sides keen at the turn of the year, or they could look to keep him for the first half of the 2021/22 season with the risk of losing him for nothing in January 2022.

It will definitely be a situation to keep a close eye on over the summer…

In other news: Hoops source shares Eddie Howe update, find out more here. 

An update has emerged on Eddie Howe’s potential move to Newcastle United to take over from Steve Bruce.

What’s the talk?

According to Daily Mail reporter Craig Hope, the Magpies will officially confirm the appointment of the former Bournemouth boss on Monday.

This comes after the 43-year-old watched on from the stands as Newcastle held Brighton to a 1-1 draw in the Premier League at the AMEX.

Hope wrote:

“Understand Eddie Howe will be confirmed as NUFC boss tomorrow.”

Buzzing

Newcastle fans will surely be buzzing with this news as it puts an end to the constant barrage of speculation over the vacant managerial position. It means that the focus can switch entirely to on-field matters and attempting to stave off relegation, rather than worrying about who is going to be in the dugout.

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Graeme Jones has taken charge of three matches as the interim boss and picked up two points, against Crystal Palace and Brighton, with the Magpies still winless after 11 Premier League games. They are 19th in the table and only above Norwich on goal difference, five points off survival at this stage.

This is, without a doubt, a worrying position for the club to be in and something needs to change on the pitch in the coming weeks/months before the gap becomes too big to close. That is why getting Howe in with two weeks of an international break to implement his style of football is a key move by PIF and one fans will be delighted with.

Howe now has some time to work on the training pitch with the players who are not going away on international duty and that will allow him to prepare his side to fight for points starting with the clash with Brentford. He kept Bournemouth up in four of his five campaigns at the Vitality in the top-flight, which shows that he knows how to keep sides in the division.

The supporters will now be able to fully get behind the team and Howe, and drive the team with everyone gunning for the same goal – survival. From now up until January, Newcastle can fully focus on Premier League matches instead of off-field business. This should delight everybody at St James’.

AND in other news, PIF must seal £51m Newcastle deal for “complete number nine”, fans would be buzzing…

Liverpool are reportedly amongst a host of clubs monitoring the situation of Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Florian Wirtz as manager Jurgen Klopp looks to strengthen his engine room options.

What’s the story?

According to reliable journalist Christian Falk, who is the head of football for German outlet Sport Bild, the Reds have joined fellow Premier League sides Manchester City, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal in taking a close look at the highly-rated 18-year-old.

However, Falk also revealed that Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich are leading the race for Wirtz’s signature ahead of a possible move in 2023.

He tweeted: TRUE @ManCity scout Florian Witz (18) intensely. Also @ChelseaFC @LFC @ManUtd and @Arsenal are interested. But: @FCBayern is leading the race for a Transfer in 2023″.

Jurgen Klopp would love him

Wirtz was awarded his first-team debut at just 16 thanks to his natural physical prowess and immense talent and has gone from strength to strength ever since, scoring 14 goals and providing 12 assists in 53 appearances for Leverkusen.

The youngster appears to have taken his already impressive game to another level this season, though. In just six outings for Gerardo Seoane’s charges, the attacking midfielder has bagged five goals, laying on a further four assists for his teammates.

His outstanding displays for the BayArena outfit have attracted the attention of several sides, although Wirtz’s immediate future appears to lie with the eternal bridesmaids as Wirtz is reportedly happy to stay at Leverkusen in the short term.

Nevertheless, with Liverpool’s squad in need of some younger, fresher legs and Klopp preferring to work with a smaller squad full of versatile players, the German tactician would surely love to bring his compatriot to Anfield in the near future.

Wirtz is comfortable in a variety of positions having played as a No.8, No.10, left-winger and striker throughout his short career, an attribute which will be extremely appealing to Klopp.

It remains to be seen whether director of football Michael Edwards can pull off another transfer masterclass and secure Wirtz’s signature, but if he can, it would surely go down as one of his best pieces of business.

And, in other news…3 key passes: Liverpool beast who took 100 touches excelled on the European stage 

Aston Villa could be about to sign their own version of Gonzalo Higuain after they were linked with a move for River Plate striker Julian Alvarez.

The 21-year-old Argentine striker has been on fire this season, scoring 17 goals and registering seven assists in 20 appearances in the Argentine top flight to push them to the top of the table after 24 games.

His fine form has seen him likened to Manchester United and Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo in the past, but it’s his former teammate Higuain who has been singing the praises of the young striker.

Both Alvarez and Higuain came through the famed River Plate academy and the former Chelsea loanee has revealed that he sees a lot of himself in the striker who has so far earned five caps for the Argentina national team.

Speaking to ESPN Higuain declared: “He is the best striker that River Plate has. He has scored 20 goals and half of Europe wants him.

“I saw how he moves, how he uses both feet. I see him similar to me in terms of his hunger, the desire to make it, the desire to learn.

“I love him in every way, how he plays, his humility… it makes me very happy that he is doing well.”

Combine that with his goal record and it’s there is every reason to believe that he could become as devastating as Higuain was in his career. After all, he’s also been compared to some other great South American strikers. River manager Marcelo Gallardo once said: “He is constantly hungry and I see that in players like Suarez, Cavani and Julián Alvarez.”

The forward has a €2om (£17m) release clause in his contract with the Argentine giants but they are hopeful of tying him down to a long-term contract.

Aston Villa currently have both Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins as central striker options, but with Ings turning 30 later this season there is no harm in looking ahead to the future. Watkins has been fielded on the wing at times this season and like Alvarez, became a striker after initially breaking through on the flanks.

It would also take the pressure off those two in front of goal and would allow Gerrard to be more flexible tactically, possibly playing two up front on occasion and still having a spare forward for the bench. The options in the squad will allow Alvarez plenty of time to adapt and bed in without too much pressure, while also bolstering the squad and adding firepower to a team that has only managed 21 goals in 15 games so far this season.

AND in other news, Aston Villa not regretting decision to reject £110k p/w “liability” last summer.

Premier League giants Arsenal are reportedly set to return for Emiliano Buendia in the summer transfer window.

Arsenal were linked with a move for Norwich’s Buendia in the January transfer window but ended up signing Martin Odegaard on loan from Real Madrid. Now though, it has been suggested that they could return to go after Buendia in the summer.

Norwich will fight to keep Buendia

EuroSport have recently reported about Buendia and Arsenal. The report states that Norwich will fight to keep their best assets at the club in the summer transfer window and this includes not just Buendia, but Todd Cantwell and Max Aarons as well.

The report mentions interest from Arsenal and suggests that while they wanted him in the winter, they were told that the Argentine wasn’t available at any price. But the Gunners will look to reignite their interest in the midfielder in the summer and they are also expected to make an official offer for the Argentine.

Buendia’s Norwich find themselves at the top of the Championship and they’re ten points clear of second-placed Watford. Buendia has had a superb campaign, with the 24-year-old scoring ten times and picking up 12 assists as well.

Buendia would be a good signing for Arsenal

Since Odegaard is at Arsenal on a loan deal the Gunners may need to replace him if they want to have a creative threat to rival Emile Smith Rowe for playing time. Buendia’s 12 assists are more than Willian (six) and Nicolas Pepe (three) combined.

Buendia’s goalscoring contributions this season suggest that he could add a lot of goals from the midfield for the Gunners. He is valued at only £14.40 million, meaning even if Norwich demand more than that valuation he certainly wouldn’t break the bank. All signs point towards this being an excellent move from Mikel Arteta and the club.

In other news, Arsenal have been linked with a move for a Ligue 1 defender – read more here.

Liverpool slumped to their sixth straight home defeat in the Premier League after their 1-0 loss to Fulham on Sunday.

Pearce reacts

Things went from bad to worse for the reigning Premier League champions as they fell further off the pace in the race for the top four. If there were any doubts of their title charge being over before the game, they have now surely been confirmed.

Mario Lemina scored the only goal of the game right on half-time to secure the points for the relegation-battling Cottagers, who latched onto a mistake from Mohamed Salah.

After the full-time whistle, The Athletic journalist James Pearce provided immediate analysis on the game as soon as referee Kevin Friend put the whistle to his mouth.

Transfer Tavern Verdict

Liverpool have had just 10 shots on target in their last three games, which is nowhere near good enough for a team which recently won the Champions League and the Premier League in the space of 13 months.

It’s becoming increasing unfathomable that their gruesome run has continued. Jurgen Klopp freshened the squad up and featured some new faces in a bid to provide some new ideas, but ultimately nothing new came to the table.

The mystery is growing. Only Klopp and his coaching staff can work on the possible answers with a huge Champions League game on the horizon in midweek.

In other news, Liverpool blockbuster move in trouble as ‘unplayable’ star’s hefty demands emerge

The Athletic’s David Ornstein has shared the latest news concerning Declan Rice’s future at West Ham United.

The Lowdown: Rice’s contract

As per reliable journalist Fabrizio Romano, the 23-year-old has turned down a third contract offer by the Irons. Consequently, he has revealed that the England international is open to a move away from east London at the end of the season.

However, Romano further claims that David Moyes still insists that his vice-captain is untouchable this summer.

Rice still has two years remaining on his current West Ham deal, and the club have the option to extend this by a further year, putting them in a fairly strong negotiating position.

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The Latest: Ornstein’s news

Taking to Twitter, Ornstein revealed the latest news on Rice’s situation, claiming: “West Ham expect to keep Rice now but sell in 2023.”

In the adjacent article, Ornstein shared the details reported by West Ham correspondent Roshane Thomas.

Thomas reported that the Irons are determined to keep their star player this summer, but they have conceded to the idea that they will have to sell him in 12 months time.

The Hammers will extend the midfielder’s contract by a further year and will then look to sell him for at least £150m in 2023, when he has two years remaining on his current deal.

The Verdict: Big dilemma for Moyes

Whilst Moyes insists that Rice is not for sale, £150m seems like a fair price for a player looking to compete at the next level. If a bid is received totalling this fee, GSB will likely be eager to accept, even though it appears Moyes will be reluctant to do so.

This will present the boss with a big dilemma; with the aim of Champions League qualification, he may be thinking that this goal isn’t possible if the club is willing to sell their best player.

Thus, Rice’s transfer saga could prove to be a majorly divisive point between the now beloved gaffer and much-maligned owners.

In other news: West Ham United: Declan Rice at centre of transfer tug-of-war

Joelinton badly betrayed Steve Bruce by producing a horror show performance as Newcastle United’s sole centre-forward in his side’s 2-0 defeat to Manchester City on Boxing Day.

Bruce was forced into facing Pep Guardiola’s Sky Blues without the Toon’s leading goalscorer Callum Wilson after the eight-goal striker sustained a knock that prevented his involvement.

Wilson was sorely missed by the visiting Magpies side throughout Joelinton’s time on the field, which ended whilst when he was replaced midway through the second half by Andy Carroll, with Bruce seeing United’s record-signing forced off after sustaining an apparent hip injury.

Joelinton often lacked any clear intelligence with his forward runs and hardly displayed any serious threat to Ederson’s net, as he rarely acted as Newcastle’s main goal threat whilst the now-£18m-rated man earned his 13th outing of the Premier League season.

The 24-year-old had struck just one goal in his prior 12 appearances this term and Bruce will be hoping for positive news on Wilson’s fitness ahead of the game against champions Liverpool on Wednesday night.

Joelinton was far worse than Matt Ritchie against Manchester City, despite Bruce feeling the need to haul the former AFC Bournemouth maestro off after 66 minutes having seen the winger lose all five of his ground duels and possession 14 times, per SofaScore.

Joelinton was by far the worst-performing Newcastle player at the Etihad Stadium on Boxing Day, where he lost four of his five ground duels, five of 11 aerial contests and possession 11 times while failing to direct his sole shot of the night on target.

Bruce never saw Joelinton attempt, let alone complete, a dribble, either, as he sought to palm off possession with 11 accurate passes despite taking 30 touches of which, a majority came in the middle third of the pitch.

The Brazilian attacker was additionally caught offside once, committed two fouls and offered zero key passes, and will now be fearing for his place in the starting line-up regardless of the extent of his potential hip injury.

Should Wilson not be passed fit to face Liverpool, Bruce will be able to call on Andy Carroll or Dwight Gayle after the pair entered the action as late substitutes on Saturday night.

AND in other news, a Newcastle gem with his “best years ahead” was Steve Bruce’s sole positive at Brentford.

At the end of what has been a rather catastrophic season for Sheffield Wednesday, Darren Moore’s side narrowly failed to complete what would have been a great escape from the Championship relegation zone.

Following a decent run of form which ensured that the Owls’ battle for survival lasted until the final day of the Championship season, Wednesday could not overcome Wayne Rooney’s Derby County despite battling to a 3-3 draw against the Rams.

A number of Wednesday’s players turned in impressive displays despite the result, but one man who will undoubtedly want to forget his performance in the fixture as quickly as possible is Adam Reach.

Over the 90 minutes, the midfielder was incredibly wasteful with his passing, completing just 18 of his 27 attempted passes – his success rate of 67% ranking him as Wednesday’s fourth-worst passer of those who started the fixture – as well as not finding his man with any of his eight crosses and successfully completing just two of his five attempted long balls.

Furthermore, the £23,000-per-week Reach lost possession of the ball a whopping 22 times, as well as being dribbled past twice by Derby players, highlighting just how much of a passenger the midfielder was on a day when the Owls needed everyone on song.

Indeed, this is reflected in the 28-year-old’s overall SofaScore match rating of 6.5,with his score only bettering that of Keiren Westwood’s 5.9 and Joey Pelupessy’s 6.3 of the Wednesday players who started the game at Pride Park.

With the result meaning Wednesday will be playing their football in the third tier of English football as of next season, Reach now has a long summer ahead of him to reflect on his performance, which appears to have cost Darren Moore and his Sheffield Wednesday teammates most dearly.

In other news: Encouraging update emerges on “excellent” SWFC star, Moore and fans will be buzzing – opinion

Many Southampton fans have been fuming over the performance of Theo Walcott in their 2-0 defeat at Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday night.

Sadio Mane and Thiago grabbed the goals to give Jurgen Klopp’s men all three points at Anfield, with the Saints left to rue some missed opportunities.

Walcott did not have the best of games against the Reds, as the former Arsenal man lost out on four of his duels and also failed to record a single shot on goal, dribble or cross (Sofascore).

He was subsequently taken off in the 66th minute after failing to make any real impact, recording a mere 25 touches of the ball in total and losing possession on 11 separate occasions in the match (Sofascore).

Southampton fans slam Walcott’s performance

These disgruntled Southampton fans slammed his performance on Twitter, with one supporter going as far as to claim that the 32-year-old was ‘shocking’:

“Walcott seriously has to be in the minus points rating for his performance tonight. God awful #SaintsFC”

Credit: @saintadam1981

“Get Walcott off. Just runs into people. Absolutely awful #saintsfc”

Credit: @saintstevo85

“Walcott really is terrible, isn’t he? #SaintsFC”

Credit: @HarryStokes_93

“Walcott bottles tackles too #SaintsFC”

Credit: @miserygutscoop

“Walcott on the counter makes my eyes hurt #SaintsFC”

Credit: @RahilMajid

“Get Walcott off at half time. Shocking #SaintsFC”

Credit: @JamesBe43198539

In other news, find out what big Ryan Bertrand hint has been dropped!