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According to Sky Sports, Middlesbrough have the most clean sheets of any EFL club so far this season. 

This is obviously a very encouraging stat for Boro, but this only tells half the story with regards to the club’s success. As good as they are in defence, the club equally need an attack to complement them at the other end of the pitch.

This has been the main problem for Boro so far this season, they have just been short on goals on a few occasions. Nonetheless, they are still in a brilliant position in the Championship, sitting in second place, only two points behind leaders Norwich.

However, the upturn in striker Jordan Hugill’s form is an indication that Boro are fast becoming a lethal team at both ends of the pitch. The striker, on loan from West Ham, has now scored three goals in his last two appearances for Tony Pulis’ men. The 26-year-old had a poor start to the season, with many fans despairing over his form. However, the dip by fellow striker Britt Assombalonga forced the Welsh manager to turn to Hugill, and it is starting to pay off.

Given the fact that the manager has already emphasised the need to reinforce the team up front in January, Hugill is starting to solve some of the club’s problems that have arisen in the opening months of the season. With this new potency in attack, combined with their notoriously resolute defence, Middlesbrough have the recipe to be unstoppable this season.

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With no real standout attacking midfielder, aside from the excellent David Brooks who is more often used on the right flank, Bournemouth should definitely be in the market for a number 10 who can sit behind the striker and look to make things happen.

What’s the word, then?

Since arriving at the Vitality Stadium from Sheffield United back in the summer, 21-year-old Brooks has been in outstanding form, scoring three goals in 11 games to help Bournemouth into sixth place in the league as things stand.

However, behind the young Welshman, the Cherries have little competition. Junior Stanislas and Jordon Ibe can be deployed in that role, but the general feeling is that the pair are more suited to the wing and are not really threatening Brooks in that central attacking role.

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Having said that, the former Sheffield United man has only been used in the number 10 role on few occasions this season as Eddie Howe opts to play a flat 4-4-2, so the need for a conventional, out-and-out central attacking midfielder should be of priority.

Who could they realistically bring in?

In keeping with Howe’s love of young, exciting talent, Nice’s Youcef Attal should definitely be in the sights of the Cherries’ recruitment team. Similarly to Brooks, who wasn’t setting the world alight statistically when Bournemouth plucked him from the Championship, he only has one goal to his name in nine appearances in Ligue 1 this season, but he looks to fit the profile down to a tee.

The 22-year-old is ranked fourth in Europe for dribbles per game, with 3.8 successful ventures each time he steps out onto the pitch – only Neymar Jr, Allan Saint-Maximin and Lionel Messi better that.

Interestingly, the young Algerian combines an eye-catching dribbling ability with an effective trait of intercepting the ball, which seems to suit him to Bournemouth perfectly in the way that Howe likes to see his team press the ball and be hungry to win possession back.

As aforementioned, at just 22 years of age, there is plenty of time of time for Attal to grow as a player and fulfil the enormous potential which he looks to have in abundance, and he could easily be their next successful signing from abroad following the success of Jefferson Lerma.

What area would you like the see the Cherries strengthen in the transfer market? Have your say in the poll below…

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According to El Gol Digital, Javier Hernandez is looking to force a West Ham exit in January due to his lack of first team opportunities at the London Stadium.

What’s the word?

Hernandez is thought to be frustrated with his lack of game time under Manuel Pellegrini and wants to seek first-team opportunities elsewhere in the upcoming winter transfer window.

Given a rare start last time out, the striker reminded the world of his quality with a well-taken brace against Newcastle United. However, with Marko Arnautovic ahead of him in the Hammers’ pecking order, such chances to lead the line from the off in the Premier League look set to remain few and far between.

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As per the aforementioned report, Real Sociedad and Valencia are interested in bringing the 30-year-old back to La Liga. Before the 105-cap Mexico international can return to Spain though, Crystal Palace ought to offer him the opportunity to continue plying his trade in the English capital.

A golden opportunity

The Eagles are in desperate need of a goalscorer. The club’s £27 million striker, Christian Benteke, has scored just six goals for the club in all competitions since the start of last season.

Roy Hodgson must be desperate to find a goalscorer, as the likes of Alexander Sorloth and Jordan Ayew have failed to pick up the slack during Benteke’s drought.

Hernandez is a goalscorer through and through. The former Manchester United man has already racked up 148 career league goals, as well as 50 for Mexico, and is the kind of poacher capable of thriving off the service that the likes of Wilfried Zaha and Andros Townsend provide at Selhurst Park.

Clearly unsettled at West Ham and with a Transfermarkt valuation of just £10.8 million, January could offer Palace a golden opportunity to land the prolific forward they need.

[ad_pod ]Loads of Tottenham fans have been reacting to their win over Leicester, and they’re delighted to see Son Heung-min back to his best.After a slow start to the season and an ill-timed international tournament, Son is well and truly back at the forefront of Mauricio Pochettino’s plans.The South Korean international now has five goals and two assists in his last nine games in all competitions, and he was exceptional in Saturday night’s win at the King Power Stadium.Paul Pogba and Man Utd seem to be after Harry Redknapp’s ‘King of the Jungle’ crown! Check out the video below…After a terribly dull first half, the flying winger stepped up just before the interval and fired an absolute rocket inside Kasper Schmeichel’s far post.If that curling effort with his weaker left foot wasn’t good enough, he then set up the second goal in the 2-0 win, finding Dele Alli with an inch-perfect cross in the second half.The 26 year-old took three shots, completed one dribbles, made two key passes and even chipped in at the other end with three tackles, more than all but two Tottenham players.You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

West Ham were one of the most active teams in the transfer window over the summer from the Premier League, but that is unlikely to stop the east London club from dipping into the market again next month.

Manager Manuel Pellegrini is on the lookout for reinforcements with injuries having plagued his squad this season, and one player the Chilean could now turn to is Manchester United’s Andreas Pereira.

The Breakdown

According to the Daily Mirror, the Hammers are exploring the possibility of bringing Pereira to the London Stadium on loan in a deal that would make sense for all parties involved.

At Manchester United, Pereira is barely getting any minutes on the pitch, a problem he should not have in east London.

Capable of playing in attacking midfield and now much deeper, something that has been worked on quite a bit under Jose Mourinho, the 22-year-old could easily slot into Pellegrini’s side with various players currently out injured.

And with the ability he possesses, he certainly has enough about him to make an impact regardless of where he plays.

Be it from the centre or further forward, the Brazil international can dribble past opponents and make quick and progressive passes, attributes which could help take Pellegrini’s side to the next level.

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Crystal Palace must target Porto star Hector Herrera in January as they attempt to restore some order and assurance to their midfield following the departures of both Yohan Cabaye and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

What’s the word, then?

The Mexican international is set to become a free agent in the summer, as his contract is nearing its expiry date and his employers have not yet offered him a new deal to keep him in the Primeira Liga.

Palace are reportedly keeping tabs on the 28-year-old’s situation in Portugal (according to Record via Sports Witness), along with Arsenal and Tottenham, who are all looking to snatch the vastly experienced midfielder on the cheap.

Herrera is a player of huge pedigree, having starred at the World Cup as well as in the Champions League. He has three goals and an assist this season from a central-midfield role, including two in Europe against some of the best club sides around.

Why do Palace need him?

The absence of both Loftus-Cheek and Cabaye have been strikingly obvious this season, but the Frenchman’s has left a bigger hole in the Eagles’ midfield.

Max Meyer was bought in and has replaced the former Chelsea loanee’s impact in an attacking midfield role, but Cheikhou Kouyate was the only other arrival in midfield; the Senegalese international is a vastly different player to Cabaye.

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As a result, Roy Hodgson has been left with two physical, combative midfielders in the shape of Luka Milivojevic and Kouyate – the Serbian’s poor form at the start of the season showed he was missing the calming presence of Cabaye alongside him.

A move for Herrera would go some way to restoring that assuring presence alongside Milivojevic, and would help the former Olympiakos midfielder get on the scoresheet more often as he did so last season.

Palace may not have much money to spend next month, according to the News Shopper, so a cheap, shrewd move for Herrera would go down a treat in south London.

Southampton’s Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg holds the key to Ralph Hasenhuttl overseeing another shock result when the Saints face Manchester City on Sunday.

On the chalkboard

Since Hasenhuttl took charge at St Mary’s, they have dealt out defeats to Champions League hopefuls Arsenal and fellow strugglers Huddersfield.

If his side are to deal another upset when the former league leaders come to town, he must return Hojbjerg to his midfield following his suspension, with Mario Lemina stepping in against West Ham.

City will arrive on the south coast on the back of a sudden drop in form, which has allowed Crystal Palace and Leicester to deal the Citizens their first consecutive league defeats of the season – something they avoided entirely during their latest title-clinching campaign.

The last time the Sky Blues lost two in a row in the Premier League, Pep Guardiola had only been manager for four months, and you have to go back to March 2016 for the last time they lost three on the bounce, when Manuel Pellegrini was still in charge.

Check out the video below for Emma Conybeare’s rundown of which clubs need what in the January transfer window…

Lemina struggled against West Ham

For Southampton to stand a chance of upsetting the odds again, Lemina cannot feature.

The former Juventus midfielder struggled to make an impact against West Ham on Thursday night, with just one of his 43 attempted passes being deemed as a long ball by WhoScored.

The 25-year-old also accounted for 4.6% of the time on the ball for either side, as the Saints favoured playing down the left-flank with Stuart Armstrong and Matt Targett.

Hojbjerg can step up to the task

Prior to being ruled out against the Hammers, the 23-year-old played a key part in Hasenhuttl’s first wins as Southampton boss.

Against Arsenal, the Danish international intercepted the ball more than any other midfielder and was involved in more of the action than any Saints figure. Hojbjerg continued to be key at Huddersfield, with a 100% tackle success rate and assisting Nathan Redmond’s opening goal.

Should he feature against City, he could cause Guardiola’s side problems with his forward runs and incisive central passes, as the Sky Blues continue to miss Fernandinho in the heart of their system.

Who should start in midfield vs Man City? Let us know in the poll below…

Black Cats supporters have been reacting to Josh Maja’s latest dazzling display in black and red.

The 20-year old striker is proving key to Jack Ross’ plans to get the northeastern club back into the Championship, with his most recent strike taking the academy graduate to 14 goals for the season – Maja has contributed 31% of Sunderland’s total goals.

The centre-forward has also unfortunately entered the final months of his current contract, which is set to expire in June, leaving Sunderland forced to hand their star player an ultimatum.

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Ross informed Maja that if he does not commit his future to the club by the end of the first week of January, they will look to sell the Lewisham-born ace to prevent losing his services for nothing more than a minimal compensation fee in the summer.

Sunderland fans have been on the edge of their seats over Maja’s future for some time now, and the latest match-winning performance by the 5 foot 11 striker has only further alerted the loyal Stadium of Light followers to his vital importance to a promotion challenge.

Here’s the best of what the Black Cats fanbase have had to say…

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According to The Sun, Aston Villa are preparing to launch a bid for Brentford striker Neal Maupay.

What’s the story?

The Villans are in the market for a striker as Chelsea loanee Tammy Abraham looks set to leave the club in the coming days. The 2-cap England striker must soon make a decision on his future, which could see him either remain at Villa Park or join Premier League side Wolves, as reported by the Express and Star.

Considering Abraham has scored 16 goals in the Championship so far this season, Dean Smith can’t afford to let the forward go without securing a replacement.

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Villa won’t have massive transfer funds to play with, but they are a huge club who many would want to play for. This draw could be enough to tempt Maupay to the Midlands in this January transfer window.

One for now and the future

The Frenchman has been in scintillating form for the Bees so far this season, racking up 15 goals and 6 assists in 24 Championship appearances. If he could translate that form to Villa Park then the Villans would stand a great chance of making the play-offs.

The 22-year-old would be an ideal replacement for Abraham and as a permanent signing he would offer Smith’s squad a reliable goalscorer for years to come. With so much of his career ahead of him, those years could be prolific indeed if Maupay reaches his full potential.

What do you think, Villa fans, would Maupay be a good replacement for Abraham?

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Sunderland forward Josh Maja is widely expected to leave the Stadium of Light this month with his contract due to expire at the end of the season.

Maja has seemingly turned down the chance to extend his contract with the Black Cats and is therefore likely to be sold before the end of January.

The 20-year-old has scored 15 times in all competitions for Sunderland this season, with 14 of those coming in 23 League One appearances.

Last week, talkSPORT linked Tottenham with a move for the centre-forward.

And with that in mind, we recently asked the Tottenham fans whether they would be interested in signing the youngster.

As it transpired, 72% of the Spurs fans polled revealed that they did want to sign Maja.

Tottenham’s need for a new forward could well be accelerated with Harry Kane picking up an ankle injury during Sunday’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester United.

The full results of the poll can be seen below: