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Former Nottingham Forest star Mark Crossley has told The Transfer Tavern that he is worried by the lack of goals coming from the strikers at his old side.

As per WhoScored, Forest are one of the lowest scoring teams in the Championship this season so far with just four goals to their name.

Part of that is down to the lack of goals up front. Between the two of them, forwards Lyle Taylor and Lewis Grabban have just the one goal combined, the former scoring in Forest’s 2-1 defeat to Coventry City at the start of the campaign.

For Crossley, that is a huge concern, with the former Forest goalkeeper believing that manager Chris Hughton was dying for the club to bring in some new forwards during the summer transfer window.

“It’s a worry for everybody. Where are the goals going to come from?” Crossley said in an interview with TT. “You just can’t see where the goals are going to come from at the moment and it’s a big worry.

“Chris Hughton must’ve been thinking, ‘I’ve got to get a couple of strikers in.’ I know those fans and they’re getting frustrated already.”

With the window now closed, Hughton will obviously have to work with what he has got.

Grabban’s overall Championship record is pretty good, so maybe he sparks into life soon.

Celtic have been dealt a major injury blow ahead of their upcoming Scottish Premiership fixture.

What’s the latest?

In recent comments cited by the Daily Record, Ange Postecoglou confirmed that David Turnbull is out of contention for the trip to St. Mirren on Wednesday evening, before going on to suggest that Kyogo Furuhashi is also a doubt for the clash.

Furthermore, the 56-year-old also went on to reveal that Benfica loanee Jota, who has been out of action since the start of the month after pulling his hamstring against Hearts, will not make a return to first-team football before the upcoming winter break, something that rules the winger out of the Old Firm fixture at the start of January.

Speaking about the current state of his squad, Postecoglou said: “Jota’s injury was quite significant, so we don’t think we will see him back out there before the break.

“Dave was the major one coming out of the final. We have had the scan, but we haven’t had the results yet. He will definitely be out for St Mirren, but I’m not sure how long he will miss.

“We will also have to particularly manage Kyogo during this period as he is not 100 per cent. I just need to see how he came through the game and look at St Mirren. I am not expecting anyone else to miss out and I also don’t expect anyone who was missing to return.”

Postecoglou will be fuming

While it is undoubtedly a major blow to lose the services of one of Celtic’s most impressive performers for the trip to The SMISA Stadium on Wednesday evening in the form of David Turnbull, the news that Jota does not look likely to return to first-team football before the club’s crunch match with Rangers on January 2 is sure to have left the Bhoys boss fuming.

Indeed, over his 11 Premiership appearances so far this season, the £3.15m-rated loanee has been in remarkable form for the Hoops, scoring five goals, providing four assists and creating two big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of three shots and making 1.5 key passes per game.

These returns have seen the £7.1k-per-week 22-year-old average an extremely impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.38, ranking him as Celtic’s fifth-best performer in the top flight of Scottish football – of the players who remain a part of Postecoglou’s first-team squad.

As such, while the loss of Turnbull and the potential absence of Kyogo ahead of the St. Mirren clash will certainly be frustrating for the Greek-Australian coach, the news that Jota looks likely to miss what could well be a make or break game in Celtic’s season against Rangers next month will undoubtedly come as a devastating blow for Postecoglou and his side.

In other news: Ange can finally axe “pathetic” £7.9k-p/w Celtic flop with swoop for £270k-rated beast

According to Football Insider, Tottenham Hotspur have agreed on a new contract with promising midfielder Oliver Skipp and it could be announced very soon. 

The lowdown: Breakthrough season

The 21-year-old came through the ranks at N17 and has enjoyed a breakthrough campaign in 2021/22 following a successful loan spell at Norwich City.

Skipp spent the entirety of last season at Carrow Road and helped guide the East Anglia club back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, drawing praise from Daniel Farke, who even wanted to buy him permanently.

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Having returned to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium though, the £18million valued ace has established himself in the first-team plans, making 28 appearances prior to a pelvic injury that has ruled the defensive midfielder out for 12 fixtures so far.

The latest: New deal set to be announced

According to Spurs sources at FI, despite the ongoing injury issue, Spurs have ‘reached an agreement in principle’ to extend the contract of the England youth international and it could even be just a matter of time before it’s confirmed, with Newcastle looming this afternoon.

Indeed, it’s claimed that the new deal is set to be ‘announced soon’ and contains a ‘major pay hike’ for Skipp – who ex-Lilywhites boss Jose Mourinho tipped to take the captain’s armband in north London.

The new contract had been in the offing for some time as a previous report from football.london Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold revealed that Fabio Paratici was in discussion with the midfielder, and Spurs fans will now have to wait anxiously to see if it gets announced before the Newcastle match.

The verdict: One of our own…

Securing the future and indeed rewarding players such as Skipp is a wise move from the club.

So far this season the tenacious midfielder – who was praised for his ‘great intensity’ by Antonio Conte – has produced on average 55.6 touches per Premier League outing, as well as 1.8 tackles and 42.3 accurate passes from 18 top-flight appearances (Sofascore).

Whilst some Tottenham fans may prefer to see Paratici’s behind-the-scenes work produce lavish summer spending or perhaps a new deal for Harry Kane, it’s undoubtedly another plus point to tie Skipp down beyond a current contract that expires in 2024 (Transfermarkt).

In other news, Tottenham are eyeing a swoop for EFL free agent! Find out more here…

Steven Gerrard’s Rangers side travel to Denmark on Thursday as the Gers get ready for another European outing away from Ibrox.

The Liverpudlian’s side beat Brondy 2-0 in their last group stage match, having lost their opening two games to Lyon and Sparta Prague.

The Gers come into the match off the back of a thumping 6-1 win over Motherwell at the weekend. Fashion Sakala scored a hat-trick as Rangers showed off their clinical edge in the Premiership.

He needs a rest

One player who should be ruthlessly axed from the XI is attacking midfielder Joe Aribo. Gerrard must take the ex-Charlton man out of the side and place him on the bench, for his own good and the team’s against Brondby.

The dynamo has had an incredible amount of game time this season and it appears to be catching up with him on the pitch. Aribo has started all 12 Scottish Premiership matches and all three Europa League group stage games so far, averaging 83 minutes and 81 minutes per outing respectively.

Over the last three games, he has averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.53. Across those appearances, against St Mirren, Aberdeen and Motherwell, he completed four key passes whilst losing the ball a whopping 45 times and losing 32 of his 53 duels – per SofaScore.

This shows that he has not been strong enough in his individual battles or in possession to make a positive impact for Rangers, with four chances created not an outstanding level of production to make up for it.

The Nigerian international has the quality to be a top player for Rangers when he is firing on all cylinders. Ezri Konsa once compared him with Ivorian legend Yaya Toure, saying: “Having Gerrard as his manager at Rangers, that has made him go up another level.

“Joe’s style is unique. When I was with him at Charlton he did remind me for a while of a left-footed Yaya Toure. But you don’t get a lot of midfielders like Joe, there aren’t many around.

“Like Toure, for a tall guy he’s got such great feet. But that languid style he’s got is actually fairly unique in the game.”

The £5.85m-rated gem averaged a superb SofaScore rating of 7.14 in the Premiership last term, producing seven goals and four assists from midfield. This shows the level he can play at when at his best and that is why he needs to be given a rest against Brondby.

Watching on from the bench on Thursday could allow him to recharge and get ready to go again at the weekend and produce a top performance. Gerrard will surely not want him to be in a position where he is suffering from burnout and then need weeks to get back to 100%, which is why axing him now could be a shrewd decision.

AND in other news, Kent 2.0: Gerrard could unearth new wing wizard in “exciting” 18 y/o Rangers flyer…

Crystal Palace shared details regarding their fourth-round FA Cup clash with Hartlepool next month on Thursday.

However, a number of Eagles fans weren’t happy with the club due to the pricing of tickets for the clash with the League Two side.

Patrick Vieira’s side came from behind in the third round to defeat rivals Millwall and will now take on Hartlepool at Selhurst Park on Saturday, February 5 at 3pm.

It will be the first meeting between the two sides since 2004, with Palace confirming that adult tickets will be priced at £20 in advance and £25 on the day of the game.

The Eagles also shared details regarding hospitality tickets and stated to fans that the best way to book would be online.

Palace fans react

This is what these fans had to say regarding details of tickets following the club’s official Twitter post, with many not exactly thrilled and one labelling it as ‘pathetic’.

“£20 is an outrage. Shame.”

Credit: @Wheddsta

“Pathetic making this £20 a ticket. Gonna be more Hartlepool there then Palace”

Credit: @cpfc_griff

“£20 adult ticket is a disgrace”

Credit: @CieronHem

“An Fa Cup game on Saturday at 3pm wow very rare”

Credit: @Ukhilal1957

“Greed”

Credit: @RussIIWestbrook

“If that’s what the fourth round is, the final is going to be starting at £120 isn’t it”

Credit: @palace_tommy

In other news: Matt Woosnam drops morning CPFC transfer news, names most likely signing. 

Many Glasgow Rangers fans have been left slamming the display of Alfredo Morelos despite their 2-0 win in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday night.

It was overall a very good performance from the team to get three points on the board at Ibrox, with Leon Balogun and Kemar Roofe the scorers in the first half.

Morelos was unlucky to hit the post for one of his chances, but was again pretty wasteful overall, not being able to score from four of his shots on goal, as his 100th goal for the Light Blues still escapes him.

The Colombia international was also guilty of losing possession of the ball on no fewer than on 13 separate occasions in total in the game, the fourth-most out of his teammates (Sofascore).

Rangers fans on Morelos display

These supporters slammed his performance on Twitter, with one Ger even going as far as to claim that the striker was ‘horrendous’:

“Morelos? Really! Not for me….poor performance again”

Credit: @willstorrie

“Massive result, & bar a couple of defensive howlers, thoroughly deserved, more like it at times. Big Aribo unplayable at times, sensational, but Alfredo Morelos folks, absolutely horrendous. The only thing for him now is the bench I’m afraid. Imperative that Balogun is fit.”

Credit: @cozy1872

“Alfredo Morelos poor show tonight”

Credit: @michellemacrae2

“Morelos poor again, we can’t really justify starting him on Sunday.”

Credit: @Rangers_View

“Morelos having a nightmare”

Credit: @Rf1195401550

“Morelos, Roofe and Hagi have been less than satisfactory!”

Credit: @penfoldcommando

In other news, find out whose first-half display had Gers stunned here!

Paddy Kenny has given his reaction to Football Insider after some injury news involving Callum Wilson.

The Lowdown: Wilson in training

As cited by The Shields Gazette earlier this month, Steve Bruce revealed that Wilson would likely come back to training in the ‘next couple of days’.

It is hoped that he will now be fit to return to action in time for their game at home to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

The Latest: Kenny reacts

Speaking to Football Insider, former top-flight goalkeeper Kenny, 43, has now claimed that St. James’ Park will be rocking if Wilson is deemed fit enough to play Spurs, especially after the news that the takeover by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium is complete:

“You can’t underestimate how big that is for them, I don’t think.

“He was out for a while last season and they struggled. They needed a goalscorer like him.

“Then he came back into the team, they had that good run towards the end of the season and they shot up to 12th in the table.

“If he is going to be fit after the international break, that’s great news for them.

“With the takeover stuff and him back, wow, St. James’ Park will be absolutely bouncing.“

The Verdict: Big boost

It will certainly be a big boost for the North East club should Wilson return to the starting eleven against Nuno Espirito Santo’s men.

The Toon Army are likely to be buzzing anyway given that the takeover has gone through, and would no doubt be voicing their support for the striker too.

The Tyneside outfit have not been able to win any of the last four matches in the Premier League without him, while only managing to score a mere four goals in that time (Transfermarkt), highlighting just how important he is to the team.

Nonetheless, he is their biggest threat in front of goal, and the Magpies will need him to play to have the best possible chance of getting all three points.

In other news, find out which ‘super-talented’ powerhouse is a realistic target for NUFC here!

Express and Star journalist Luke Hatfield believes that Aston Villa’s transfer window has been very good but would have been outstanding if they had managed to keep Jack Grealish. 

Dean Smith and sporting director Johan Lange made some terrific signings this summer with Danny Ings, Emi Buendia, Axel Tuanzebe, Leon Bailey and Ashley Young all penning deals at Villa Park.

In terms of outgoings, Villa saw a number of players depart the club either permanently or on loan during the transfer window with the most high profile of those exits being Jack Grealish to Manchester City.

He joined the Cityzens for a British record £100m and signed a six-year deal at the Etihad Stadium.

Hatfield graded Villa’s transfer window as a good to great one, telling Transfer Tavern: “Very good. I think Villa have managed to deal with a loss of such a substantial player in Jack Grealish really well, they’ve signed plenty of exciting players.  

“You could argue that they’re now more balanced this squad in comparison to the way they were last year. Jack Grealish was so relied upon by Villa, you could pretty much tell how Villa were going to play, the ball was going to go to Jack Grealish on the left flank and he was going to run the game from there.

“Now when Villa are fully fit and they’ve got the likes of Buendia, Bailey, Ings and Watkins all playing they’ve got so many more threats, so they’re a much more balanced side because of this window.

“Despite the loss of Jack Grealish in there, if they managed to keep him it would have been an outstanding window for them, but it’s still been a good to great one. 

Villa have bounced back from an opening day Premier League defeat to Watford, with a win and a draw in their next two matches against Newcastle United and Brentford.

Dean Smith’s side currently have four points and sit 11th in the league table which is where they finished last season and after a summer of good recruitment everybody connected with the club will be looking to improve on their league position this season.

Tottenham Hotspur moved into the top six in the Premier League with a win over Brentford on Thursday night, meaning Antonio Conte also maintained his unbeaten record in the top-flight.

A 12th-minute own goal from Sergi Canos and a well-taken finish from Heung-min Son sealed all three points in north London and whilst it was a vital victory, the Italian may well be concerned by the performance of Lucas Moura as he looked a little lacklustre in the final third once again.

The £22.5m-rated Brazilian winger is yet to score in the league this season and has provided just the one assist, coming against Leeds United nearly two weeks ago.

Conte has started him in every Premier League outing since arriving in N17 but he hasn’t seen any sort of substantial return from him barring that assist. It was a familiar story against the Bees.

Per SofaScore, Moura managed just one shot on target throughout the 77 minutes he was on the pitch, whilst he recorded only 15 accurate passes, in which none resulted in a key chance created.

One pass every five minutes is far from inspiring from someone who is supposed to support Son and Harry Kane in the final third and similarly, he registered just 38 touches, also losing possession 15 times.

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That means the 29-year-old gifted the ball back to the visiting team once every 2.5 touches.

‘As always he worked hard and his pressing led to opportunities but he was just lacking that decisive quality in the opposition half,’ is how football.london’s Alasdair Gold described the former PSG dynamo in his post-match ratings column, where he graded him amongst a couple of their worst performers.

That has to be of major concern to the Italian because the Lilywhites are still amongst the poorest teams in the division when it comes to attacking play, having averaged fewer shots per game (10.4) than any other team, even rock-bottom Newcastle United and Norwich City.

Elsewhere, the passenger-like Moura failed to provide an accurate cross and lost nearly 50% of his battles up against Thomas Frank’s back-three.

As a result, Conte may want to consider the Brazilian’s involvement heading into the weekend, when Spurs host the Canaries on Sunday afternoon.

AND in other news, Conte could right Daniel Levy’s ghastly £32m transfer mistake…

Former Rangers defender Michael Ball believes Leeds United are the main suitors for Rangers’ Ryan Kent this summer. 

Kent arrived at Ibrox permanently from Liverpool in 2019, with Sky Sports reporting the deal was worth up to £7.5m.

The winger had played for Rangers on loan the season prior to his permanent move, scoring six goals and delivering four assists.

Kent has continued to go from strength to strength under Steven Gerrard, with his contribution to the team improving year on year.

He produced the best return of his career so far last term, scoring 13 goals and registering 15 assists in all competitions.

It’s no surprise, then, that he is being linked with a move away from Ibrox, with Michael Ball exclusively telling Transfer Tavern: “I think Leeds are the main suitors right now for Ryan Kent.

“Since he came to the club, it was quite a surprise the amount of money Rangers paid for Ryan, but he’s paid that back in an abundance and the fans really like him.”

Leeds United have been looking at Kent for a while, as the Scottish Sun reported that the Elland Road outfit bid £11m for the winger last summer and that they may have to up that to £15m this summer if they want to finally land their target.