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Manchester United were unable to take all three points from their clash with Leicester City, drawing 1-1 with Brendan Rodgers’ side at Old Trafford on Saturday evening.

Despite the game ending in stalemate, it was full of controversial decisions throughout. Scott McTominay’s challenge on James Maddison prompted shouts for a red card, while a goal for Maddison was disallowed late in the second half after VAR picked up a foul on Raphael Varane during the build-up which prompted the referee to overturn the Foxes’ glimmer of hope for taking all three points.

United controlled possession throughout the evening with 54% possession of the ball, but after Leicester went 1-0 up in the 63rd minute when Kelechi Iheanacho found the back of the net, only one man could salvage something from the match for the Red Devils.

It wasn’t Bruno Fernandes, who had a generally good game yesterday off the back of his new four-year contract during the week. Instead, one of his midfield team-mates came up with a redemptive display.

We don’t talk about Bruno

Brazilian midfielder Fred has been imposing himself in a more advanced role since Ralf Rangnick arrived at the club, and his progression under the German coach has not gone unnoticed.

The 29-year-old has scored two goals and contributed four assists in 16 games since the interim manager arrived in November, with his latest strike rescuing a point against Leicester. Notably, his pre-Rangnick record was four goals in 137 United appearances.

Fred made a very quick response, imposing himself on the Foxes’ defence just three minutes after the away side took the lead at Old Trafford and netting the equaliser in the 66th minute to allow United to take something from the game.

According to SofaScore, the midfielder – who Owen Hargreaves once claimed “Sir Alex would have dropped” – not only scored the equalising goal but had a team-high 87 touches of the ball, made two key passes, two tackles and two interceptions. He was also successful in four out of his five dribbles during the game, proving that he was effective in both offensive and defensive play in the middle of the park.

United are currently three points adrift of Arsenal, who currently hold fourth spot in the Premier League table, and the Gunners could go six points clear of Rangnick’s side if they win on Monday night with another game in hand too. Following the Red Devils’ draw this weekend, they may have now squandered their chances of qualifying for the Champions League next season, but it would have been even worse had the much-maligned Fred not come up with the goods to at least salvage something from Saturday.

In other news – Forget Pogba: MUFC’s “great talent” lost the ball every three touches as he endured a howler on Saturday

West Bromwich Albion have only been able to score more than 50 league goals in just two of the nine Premier League campaigns they’ve been involved in since the start of the 2010/11 season.

Looking back down the years, one player the Baggies were linked with but didn’t end up signing that could have been a massive goalscoring threat for the team is Robert Lewandowski.

According to the Express & Star, former West Brom manager Tony Mowbray wanted to bring the then 20-year-old striker to the club in January 2009 when he was at Lech Poznan.

Having ended his time in Poznan with 41 goals in 82 appearances, it’s easy to see why the centre-forward was on West Brom’s radar.

The Polish side apparently wanted a fee of £2.6m for the striker, but Albion reportedly had no money to spend on him.Since then, the Poland international has shown with every season why the Baggies should have exhausted every financial possibility to be able to bring him to the Hawthorns when they had the chance.In the 2010 summer transfer window, the striker joined Borussia Dortmund for a fee of £3.7m where he then went on to score 103 goals and provide 42 assists in 187 appearances.The attacker then joined fellow Bundesliga side Bayern Munich in the summer of 2014 on a free transfer.During his time with the German giants, the 33-year-old has unbelievably found the back of the net 340 times in 369 appearances across all competitions.To highlight what an elite player he has become since moving to Germany, the veteran has won a combined total of 25 team titles and individual awards including nine Bundesliga trophies and one Champions League trophy.Labelled as a “breathtaking” player by Owen Hargreaves, Lewandowski has racked up a phenomenal total of 637 goals and assists throughout his illustrious club career.On the international stage, the former Poznan starlet has scored 75 goals in 129 appearances for Poland, showing just how much of an icon he is for his country.Taking all of this into account, it’s evident that had the Baggies been able to somehow finance a transfer deal for the striker, then they would have had a player in their side that could have been a vital figure for them.In other news: West Brom: Grady Diangana struggled in defeat to Stoke City…

Liverpool remain interested in West Ham United star Jarrod Bowen, with the club still following his development at the London Stadium this season.

What’s the story?

The Athletic have claimed that, following their summer interest, the Reds have continued to monitor the winger’s progress as they contemplate making a new signing out wide.

He was superb vs Liverpool

During his time at Hull City, Bowen was labelled an “unplayable” attacker by his then-manager Grant McCann, and he lived up to that billing and more with a superb individual display in the 3-2 victory over Liverpool back in November.

He set up two goals on the day as West Ham ended the Reds’ impressive unbeaten run, and his underlying stats were equally impressive.

As per Sofascore, he provided two key passes (the joint-most of any Hammer), while he created two official big chances too – the only player to do so in the game.

That’s not to mention he led the team in the number of crosses he put in, was tied second for successful dribbles, and was fouled the second most of any player too – the kind of exciting display which had Andy Robertson tied up in knots.

The Scotland international finished the game with no shots or crosses whatsoever (the mark of someone who had been pinned back for the entire match), made no tackles or interceptions, and won just the one duel over the course of the 90 minutes.

Writing in his post-match player ratings for The Liverpool Echo, Ian Doyle gave him a four, saying: “Plenty of overlapping down the left flank but delivery first half was inconsistent and had an absolute stinker second half.”

In fact, speaking before the game in his pre-match press conference, Klopp himself said: “I like Bowen a lot. He made his way up from Hull and took not too long to show exactly what kind of player he can be in the Premier League. He made big steps.”

He has scored six goals and provided nine assists in just 22 appearances in the Premier League, while he ranks as the Hammers’ best performing player with an average WhoScored match rating of 7.27.

The £31.5m-rated star could be a superb signing for Klopp’s side.

Meanwhile, James Pearce has dropped a Liverpool transfer update…

Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side have been handed yet another boost ahead of their upcoming Scottish Premiership Old Firm clash.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to a report by the Scottish Daily Mail (via Ibrox News), who revealed that Fashion Sakala has fallen ill while on international duty with Zambia, and is now self-isolating as a result.

The report goes on to that this means the 25-year-old is now a doubt for the Old Firm meeting this Sunday, with Giovanni van Bronckhorst claiming that it is a “wait and see” scenario regarding the winger’s availability for the visit of Celtic.

Great news for Celtic

Considering just how impressive Sakala has been since his arrival at Ibrox last summer, the news that the forward looks set to miss Sunday’s potentially title-deciding Glasgow derby is undoubtedly great news for Postecoglou and Celtic.

Indeed, over his 24 Premiership appearances this season, the £3.6m-rated attacker has been in deadly form for Rangers, scoring seven goals, registering two assists and creating four big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 2.1 shots and making 1.2 key passes per game.

These returns have seen the £10k-per-week winger average an incredibly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.01, ranking him as Van Bronckhorst’s 11th-best player in the top flight of Scottish football this term.

As such, following the news that both Aaron Ramsey and Alfredo Morelos are both serious doubts for the Old Firm clash, should Sakala also be ruled out of contention this weekend, it would certainly provide Celtic with another huge boost to their chances of picking up all three points at Ibrox – with a Bhoys victory at the home of their rivals going an extremely long way to reclaiming their Premiership crown this season.

AND in other news: £10.5m and counting: £23.5k-p/w “monster” should have played his final game for Celtic

Leeds United supporters are expecting one deal and one deal only on transfer deadline day: the permanent transfer of Swansea City’s Daniel James.

With the rumour mill refusing to throw up any other reason for Leeds fans to feel expectant on deadline day, all eyes are on James’ potential move from south Wales to Yorkshire.

Can Leeds get a deal over the line? Tell will tell but murmurs emerging from both clubs suggest that it’s one which is set to go right down to the wire.

Interest in James has arrived during a month in which Bielsa has clearly felt the need to strengthen in wide areas following the departure of Samu Saiz, with Pablo Hernandez expected to play a key role at number ten for the remainder of the season.

But the 21-year-old winger was relatively unheard of until just a few months ago, so why exactly did Bielsa decide to put all his eggs in one basket and launch a transfer mission to secure his signature?

Well, Yorkshire Evening Post reporter Phil Hay has shed some light on the matter, citing Leeds scout Craig Dean as the man who introduced James to Bielsa with a series of video clips.

‘James is understood to have been picked out first by Craig Dean, a scout who once worked for Oxford United and is Leeds’ head of emerging talent for players between the age of 17 and 21 (James turned 21 in November).

‘The video clips shown to Bielsa appealed to him. James was quick, direct and minded to go past full-backs, providing crosses for players arriving in the box as Kemar Roofe and Mateusz Klich like to do.’

If Leeds are ultimately successful in their endeavour to sign James, Bielsa will be desperately hoping that his crosses do indeed find their way to the likes of Klich and Roofe in the final months of the season.

Craig Dean, who left Oxford United for Leeds in October 2017, may well have been a focal figure in identifying Polish teenager Mateusz Bogusz as a player for Bielsa to bring in, but his decision to recommend James is the one which could really make or break Leeds’ season.

While football supporters appreciate that scouts are working behind the scenes to identify players worth signing, it’s intriguing to get this level of specific inside information from Hay on a proposed deal which has been in the media spotlight for the best part of 7-10 days.

Dean has done his part; Bielsa has taken the advice and given the green light; now it’s down to Victor Orta to conclude the deal before the 11PM deadline.

Leeds fans – thoughts? Let us know below!

Troy Parrott’s fine form continued this weekend as the Tottenham Hotspur youngster bagged his 14th goal contribution of the season.The 20-year-old is currently on loan to League One outfit MK Dons, where he scored a vital – and late – equaliser against arch-rivals AFC Wimbledon, taking his tally to eight goals and six assists.It was quite the strike indeed.

Like Marco van Basten’s effort for the Netherlands at Euro ’88, the Irishman fired a powerful and sublime volley in off the crossbar after a looping ball to the back post from his teammate, 37-year-old Dean Lewington.

His form this campaign has earned praise from those around him, including fellow loanee, West Ham midfielder Connor Coventry, who said to reporters last month:

“Troy is class. Obviously, I played with him before so I know his quality. I’m not surprised by how good he is. The way he’s been working for the team has been incredible, and it shows that he is still developing and learning.

“He’s a quality player and I’m just happy to play with him every week.”

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His initial loan spells at Millwall and Ipswich Town flattered to deceive but it’s now evident that Parrott has found his feet in Buckinghamshire; he’ll be hoping that he can forge his way into the first team at Spurs upon his return in the summer.

And Harry Kane may have provided the perfect blueprint to follow.

The England talisman had mixed loan spells at Leyton Orient, Millwall, Norwich City and Leicester City before making his mark in north London.

Parrott’s form for the Lilywhites’ youth teams, where he scored 31 goals in 38 appearances, drew comparisons between the 20-year-old and the first-team no.9 early on in his career.

Despite a lack of minutes in Spurs’ senior squad, the academy gem remains a regular presence in the Republic of Ireland squad, picking up nine caps and two goals.

According to The Athletic, the north London outfit are expected to extend Parrott’s contract until the summer of 2023 and he could go back out on loan next season, further following in Kane’s footsteps, given it would be his fourth stint away.

Some believe he has a reputation of being “flashy”, whilst Ireland’s assistant manager Keith Andrews said during the latest international break: “Troy has been flying in training. There has been a real noticeable difference, I would say, in Troy between this and the last camp.”

It remains to be seen if Parrott will emerge as a future first-teamer at Hotspur Way but if he continues to impress, then there’s a very good chance that he can follow the likes of Oliver Skipp and Japhet Tanganga into Conte’s setup.

He could save them millions in the transfer window in the future.

AND in other news, Ledley King would “love to see” Spurs sign “scary” £101m man, he’d be a new Mousa Dembele…

Alasdair Gold has dropped an update on the respective futures of Tottenham Hotspur midfielders Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso.

What’s the talk?

In a recent video posted on YouTube, the football.london journalist revealed that, with Antonio Conte and Fabio Paratici planning an overhaul of the Tottenham squad this summer, the France and Argentina internationals are two players who look certain to be moved on at the end of the season.

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Regarding Spurs’ potential outgoing transfers this summer, Gold said: “Ndombele and Lo Celso have to be moved on. Whether it’s selling them or whether it’s loaning them again, those are two players who – you’d think – are not going to be at Tottenham next season.”

Time’s up

While it is true that both Ndombele and Lo Celso have enjoyed something of a renascence since their loan moves to Olympique Lyon and Villarreal respectively, it is undeniable that, considering the sheer amount of money Tottenham spent on their signings, both players have been failures in north London.

Following Ndombele’s £63m signing back in 2019, the 25-year-old struggled to live up to his hefty price tag, something which was all too evident from his performances in the first half of Tottenham’s Premier League campaign this season.

Indeed, over his nine Premier League appearances this term, the £31.5m-rated France international scored one goal, registered one assist and created one big chance for his teammates, as well as made an average of a mere 0.1 interceptions, 1.1 tackles, 25.6 passes and won 3.6 duels per fixture.

These returns saw the £120k-per-week midfielder average a rather disastrous SofaScore match rating of a mere 6.58, ranking him as Tottenham’s third-worst player in the top flight.

Meanwhile, over Lo Celso’s own nine league outings this season, the £19.8m-rated Argentina international scored no goals, provided no assists and created two big chances for his teammates, as well as made an average of just 0.1 interceptions, 0.9 tackles, 13.9 passes and won 2.7 duels per game.

These returns saw the £100k-per-week midfielder average an extremely disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.72, ranking him as Conte’s sixth-worst performer in the Premier League.

And, while the 26-year-old has offered Tottenham slightly more than Ndombele in previous campaigns, it is nevertheless undeniable that Lo Celso has also failed to live up to his £55m transfer fee.

As such, while Tottenham are unlikely to recoup anywhere near their £118m outlay from the potential sales of the two players this summer, finally moving the duo on permanently would nevertheless appear an extremely wise move by Paratici – if for nothing else but to free up roughly £220k of Spurs’ weekly wage budget – as the pair’s time in north London is well and truly up.

AND in other news: Bid made: Paratici in talks for Spurs’ 1st summer signing, no one’s “identical to him”

Liverpool will be without Thiago for their Premier League clash against Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon following Jurgen Klopp’s recent update.

What’s the story?

Speaking about the 30-year-old in his pre-match press conference ahead of the Carabao Cup match against Arsenal in midweek, Klopp revealed: “Hopefully, he will be in full team training after the international break, to prepare for the Cardiff game.”

Big miss for Liverpool

The Spaniard has had his fair share of injury problems this season for Liverpool as he struggles to get consistent game-time under his belt – his longest run of action saw him make seven appearances in the Premier League consecutively between November and December.

However, that run illustrated signs of Thiago being back to his absolute best, with the midfielder starting in six successive games and seeing the Reds rattle off win after win – Klopp’s side scored 17 goals and conceded just twice in that time.

As per WhoScored, his average match rating of 7.07 ranks him as Liverpool’s second-best performing midfielder this season in the Premier League behind only Fabinho.

It’s therefore no surprise that Noel Whelan has recently admitted an early return for Thiago would be a huge boost to the Reds. He said: “It’s in those sorts of times where you perhaps turn to a player like Thiago with his bags of experience.

“A quick return would certainly be a timely return from Liverpool’s perspective. Players like him are the ones with the voices in the dressing room and out on the pitch.

“They’ll need to dig deep to win games without players like Mane and Salah, and if he can come back then it’ll be massive to have a wily old fox like him available.”

Alas, the news that he will still be missing against Crystal Palace is sure to be a blow for Klopp, and will also leave Reds fans gutted ahead of Sunday.

Meanwhile, Liverpool are still monitoring this Premier League star…

Taking to Twitter, sharing a piece by Sky Sports, their reporter Lyall Thomas has broken some news on a brand new Tottenham Hotspur target in full-back Djed Spence.

The Lowdown: Spurs eye new right-backs…

Strengthening at right-back is one of manager Antonio Conte’s major priorities for this January transfer window with the club in talks to sign Wolves star Adama Traore (Matt Law).

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They aim to convert the Spain international into a RWB for Conte’s system and he isn’t the only defender on that side they have been linked with this window.

Tottenham have also made an approach for Peterborough United full-back Benjamin Mensah as one for the future with news now emerging of yet another promising name on Fabio Paratici’s transfer radar.

The Latest: Spurs could move for Spence…

According to Thomas, Spurs are ‘interested in a deal’ to sign Middlesborough wing-back Spence – who is currently on loan at fellow Championship side Nottingham Forest for the remainder of the season.

Upon potentially signing the 21-year-old, Tottenham would have to immediately loan him back to Forest, but regardless, the Sky journalist says Spurs ‘could make a move’ before January 31.

The Verdict: Exciting player…

Spence has shone on a temporary spell at the City Ground this season, leaving little wonder he has now attracted Spurs’ interest.

The starlet has been a fixture in Steve Cooper’s side this season, with Boro boss Chris Wilder even taking note of his player from afar and calling him ‘outstanding’.

Making the third-most interceptions per 90 out of any Forest regular with more than five starts (1.6, WhoScored), Spence has also shone going forward.

Indeed, out of all of the English second tier side’s players with over two full starts, Spence has also averaged the most completed dribbles per 90 (WhoScored) – highlighting his obvious threat and how he could be an asset for Conte in future seasons.

In other news: Conte green-lights move for £220,000-per-week ‘jewel’ as he lays out transfer demand for Spurs chiefs, find out more here.

According to a report in the paper edition of The Mirror (via West Ham Zone), West Ham United are now eyeing a new target as news emerges on attacker Paddy Lane.

The lowdown: Bursting onto the scene

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Signed for current club Fleetwood Town from Non-League Hyde United in 2021, the Northern Irish winger hadn’t been involved at a professional level prior to making the switch to the League One outfit.

The 21-year-old has made an instant impact in the North West and has rapidly become a regular starter for Stephen Crainey’s side.

Now another rapid rise could be on the horizon for the talented youngster.

The latest: Hammers interested

As per the Mirror (Page 74 via WHZ), the Hammers, and by extension manager David Moyes, are reportedly ‘keeping tabs’ on Lane ahead of the summer transfer window.

It’s claimed that the Irons view the versatile ace as a ‘potential understudy’ to Jarrod Bowen.

Furthermore, the report states that West Ham have sent club officials to scout the one-cap senior Northern Ireland international who has been dubbed the ‘next Jamie Vardy’ due to the similarities in his career pathway to date.

The verdict: Make it happen

Albeit far from a well-trodden path to the elite level, every so often a story such as this comes along and this time the east London club should do everything in their power to be the benefactors.

In truth, Moyes has developed a penchant for creating a squad full of players that have taken different routes to the elite level, Michail Antonio and Bowen to name just two,  and adding Lane to the London Stadium ranks would be another smart addition this summer.

Described as a ‘top player’ by Crainey, so far this season the Northern Irishman has scored five times and provided another eight assists in 36 league outings whilst operating in a variety of midfield positions.

Whilst the report makes no mention of a fee, it’s unlikely that the League One Young Player of the Year nominated youngster would be an expensive outlay for GSB and therefore certainly one the club should be pushing to complete.

In other news: Three West Ham players struggled in 1-1 draw with Burnley! Find out more here.