Manchester United have enjoyed a revival in recent months under Erik ten Hag, with the Old Trafford outfit losing just once since the resumption of domestic action following the 2022 World Cup.

There is a good feeling at United right now, and it appears that the Dutchman is ready to take the club into a new era. They made it through to the Carabao Cup final following a semi-final victory over Nottingham Forest in midweek, and Ten Hag has the chance to end the Red Devils’ six-year trophy drought against Newcastle United later this month.

It was a composed performance against Forest, with goals from Anthony Martial and Fred securing a comfortable win.

January signing Wout Weghorst didn’t have the greatest of matches, recording just one shot all night and failing to score with a straightforward chance, and Ten Hag should consider unleashing Martial from the start against Crystal Palace.

The Frenchman has struggled with injury so far this term, missing 18 matches due to a variety of issues. However, he has still managed to score six goals in 14 games, a return which would surely improve if he is granted a sustained run of matches.

His display after replacing Weghorst in midweek was like watching the Martial of 2019/20. Despite playing only 27 minutes, he received a Sofascore rating of 7.3/10, scoring once and making two key passes during his cameo appearance.

There is no doubt that this will rebuild his confidence and put him in a positive frame of mind ahead of the next few months.

Palace have conceded 11 goals since Boxing Day, and Martial could be a better option against that leaky defence compared to Weghorst, who hasn’t quite found his feet at Old Trafford yet, scoring only once in his first five appearances.

The 27-year-old has certainly improved his displays this season compared to 2021/22, when he scored just once for United before being loaned out to Sevilla for the second half of the campaign.

Statman Dave has praised the Frenchman for his new-found focus this season, claiming that he is “rejuvenated”; and it appears that Ten Hag could be the ideal manager to bring the best out of Martial, who he deserves a start this afternoon.

With just one goal scored against Palace during his career at United, the attacker will be looking to improve on that return, as he has the scoring ability to truly terrorise the Eagles’ defence.

An update has emerged regarding the fitness of Aston Villa captain John McGinn ahead of their Premier League clash against Leicester City today…

What’s the talk?

Villa manager Unai Emery has confirmed that the Scotland international is in contention to feature this afternoon, alongside two of his team-mates.

Journalist Ashley Preece relayed the news from the 51-year-old’s press conference on Friday, tweeting: “#avfc team news from Bodymoor Heath: Lucas Digne & John McGinn both available for tomorrow, as is new signing Jhon Duran. Bertrand Traore will return to full training next week. Diego Carlos still stepping up for his return later this month/beginning of March.”

The Scotland midfielder has not played a competitive match for Aston Villa since featuring in the 2-0 win at Tottenham on New Year’s Day, having been struck down with a hamstring injury.

Unleash McGinn

Emery must now use this big injury boost to unleash the Scottish dynamo from the start against the Foxes this afternoon, as McGinn could improve Villa in the middle of the park.

Last time out, Emi Buendia struggled in midfield in the 1-0 win at Southampton. The Argentine wizard recorded a rating of 6.5 as he lost nine of his 11 individual duels, completed 74% of his attempted passes and failed to make a single tackle, interception, clearance or block, whilst being dribbled past three times (as per Sofascore).

McGinn has averaged a Sofascore rating of 6.91 across 17 appearances in the Premier League this season and won an impressive 58% of his duels, which shows that he is not easily beaten in physical contests.

The £55k-per-week “warrior” – as he was once dubbed by Graeme Souness – has also completed 79% of his attempted passes and made 2.9 tackles and interceptions, whilst being dribbled past 0.8 times, per game. This indicates that he could offer defensive protection to the back four in a way that the Argentine was unable to do at St Mary’s.

Creatively, McGinn has also provided twice as many ‘big chances’ for his team-mates (four) as Buendia (two) in the top-flight, which suggests that the Scotsman could offer more at both ends of the pitch on current form.

Also, the 28-year-old – who was once hailed as “unique” by presenter Dan Bardell – provides leadership qualities on the pitch as captain of the club, and this could be another reason why Emery may want to bring him back into the team today.

Therefore, the Villa manager could improve the team by dropping Buendia in order to name the captain in the starting XI, which is also why McGinn’s return from injury is a big boost for the Spaniard.

Ewan Murray believes that not having control over signings would put Ange Postecoglou off the Leeds United move.

The Lowdown: Postecoglou not in the frame

While Sky Sports have indeed spoken about how long Leeds United have tracked Postecoglou, and believe he is ‘highly regarded’, it looks as though he isn’t featuring very prominently on their list of potential candidates.

This is because they have seemingly been interested in people such as Carlos Corberan, Andoni Iraola and Arne Slot already, with very little success coming out of any of their pursuits.

However, Posetcoglou may not even be a suitable fit for Leeds as he clearly has the final say on all transfers given the number of players that have arrived from the J-League, a league in which he worked in for a decent amount of time, and it’s unclear if he’d get that control at Elland Road.

The Latest: Lack of control may put Postecoglou off

Murray has spoken on The Press Box podcast that Victor Orta and Andrea Radrizzani not relinquishing control over transfers could be why Postecoglou doesn’t leave Celtic for Leeds right now.

He said: (4:15) “He is the master of all before him at Celtic and Celtic sign players that he wants to sign, they don’t have a sporting director, they have a recruitment department obviously but the manager has his own knowledge of players that Celtic sign in conjunction with the chief executive that is what they do.

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“He wouldn’t get that element of control certainly not at a Premier League club in England where there are layers upon layers, of sporting directors and more interference for more of a better word from recruitment people, he wouldn’t get the scope he has at Celtic to do his job and he will know that.

“If you were him you’d be careful where you went to because there are not many clubs in major leagues in Europe that would give him that level of control.”

The Verdict: Leeds look to have other ideas

There hasn’t been much talk of Leeds going for someone such as Postecoglou but after being rejected by Slot from Feyenoord, they may well look towards the Australian as someone they could tempt.

With their next game on Sunday, it appears very clear that someone won’t be in the dugout on a permanent basis, but Orta and Radrizzani must get someone in at the beginning of next week as they have a huge game against Everton.

Whoever is going to be the next Leeds manager will want as much time as possible to look at what they will be working with as it’s a squad that was seemingly assembled for Jesse Marsch, only for the boss to be sacked a few days after the window closed, showing he probably had little say on the signings.

Journalist Jonny McFarlane believes Rangers need to sign a new goalkeeper in the summer after Jon McLaughlin’s error gifted Ross County an equaliser in the Gers’ 2-1 win at Ibrox.

The Lowdown: Rangers’ goalkeepers

Rangers have seen plenty of rotation in goal recently, with Allan McGregor and McLaughlin sharing the shot-stopping duties amid the uncertain future of the 41-year-old, who sees his contract expire in the summer (salary sport).

Gers legend McGregor is closing in on 500 appearances in total for his boyhood side (via Rangers), with him in his second spell in Glasgow and entering his 16th year as a Rangers player.

McGregor has played 23 times all season, with McLaughlin on his tail with 16, while the latter’s start against Ross County on Saturday afternoon was his first time back in the SPFL side since sitting out the previous two games.

The Latest: McFarlane’s comments

Writing in his player ratings after the game on The Rangers Review, McFarlane left a rather scathing assessment of the McLaughlin’s 4/10 performance, as well as his credentials as a future No 1 and successor to McGregor.

He wrote: “Spoiled his performance with a calamity in dealing with a ball into the box. Not for the first time this season, the experienced ‘keeper was caught in no man’s land at a cross and Jordan White profited with an easy header. If he had stayed on his line rather than coming and missing the ball, it would have been a simple save.

“Nearly had another disaster, a carbon copy of the first, in the 91st minute. The goalkeeper position continues to be an area of major concern that will have to be rectified in the summer.”

The Verdict: Not good enough?

With McGregor set to leave Ibrox come the end of the season, the No 1 shirt is completely up for grabs, with McLaughlin being given every chance he could wish for to make the spot his own, but again he disappointed.

A poor mistake as he misjudged the free-kick that saw Jordan White head into an open net is something that Michael Beale simply can’t risk in a first-choice ‘keeper, especially before getting himself in a mess in injury time to almost throw the lead away for a second time.

At 35 years old himself, he doesn’t have the safety net of youth, inexperience or high potential to merit himself a place and backing in the side.

With only two arrivals coming last month, Beale will surely be backed in the window and a new ‘keeper appear to be fast becoming one of the priorities.

Arsenal are considering an incredible swoop for FC Barcelona prodigy Ansu Fati, who has been subject to speculation over his future recently…

What’s the word?

According to Spanish outlet La Vanguardia (Wednesday edition, page 39), Edu is looking to compete against fierce north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur for the signature of the young ace.

The Premier League suitors both view the Spanish starlet as a long-term investment, and despite his injury troubles throughout the maiden phase of his professional career, the scope of his skill set is boundless.

Fati is reported to have grown unsettled with his lack of game time, and could be granted a departure from la Blaugrana if he instigates the first move, but with a remarkable release clause of €1bn (£885m), a move would only materialise with some heavy negotiation.

Their own Salah

Fati turned heads from all angles when he first burst onto the scene in Spain, dazzling as a 17-year-old in La Liga and chalking up seven goals and an assist from just 11 starts.

Progress was, however, detrimentally hindered when the now 20-year-old ace suffered a serious knee injury versus Real Betis in November 2020 that ruled him out of competitive action for the remainder of the season.

The “generational” talent – as dubbed by Barca boss Xavi – would continue to be plagued by setbacks until finally finding his feet and playing with regularity this term, although he is now resigned to a more peripheral role following the emergence of Ferran Torres and Gavi in this new-look Barcelona outfit.

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Regardless, the quality brimming from Fati’s boots is but a dream for the majority of the crop of aspiring starlets, and with a total of 25 goals and nine assists from just 89 appearances for his outfit since breaking into contention with the senior set-up, there is evidently world-class potential for this wily winger if the cogs indeed slot into place.

At Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, the ascension that Fati has striven for could solidify, and with FBref ranking him among the top 1% of positional peers in Europe for total shots and pass completion, and the top 16% for rate of assists, he would certainly bolster the ranks with a dynamic toolkit.

Mohamed Salah is listed as a comparable player on the statistical site, and with a transfer the Premier League side, it could mould him into a prolific monster to devastate defences for years to come.

Salah has been integral for Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool since signing from AS Roma for £34m in 2017, and the Egyptian has since gone on to plunder an incredible 173 goals and 70 assists from 285 outings, winning a plethora of major honours such as the Premier League and the Champions League.

Comparing the two, they are rather alike when it comes to their shot-creating actions, of which Fati registers 3.12 per 90 and Salah, 3.75 as a marker of their ability to make things happen.

It is perhaps their fleet-footedness that sticks out the most, though, with pair able to carry the ball forward in a ruthless fashion. For instance, the Egyptian wizard has registered 2.59 progressive carries over 90 minutes compared to the Barca gem’s 2.67.

Indeed, with Fati already a prolific presence with his output and slick with his passing play, Arteta would need only ensure his clinical hunger grows as he blossoms into one of the world’s most destructive forces.

The Gunners’ erudite manager has placed a discernible emphasis on youth, nurturing and developing Arsenal’s talented Hale End prospects and unleashing them into the first-team; this has been a resounding success.

According to Transfermarkt, the north London outfit boast the youngest squad in the Premier League, and despite this, they perch augustly atop the league table.

Goal stated that Fati is the “Jewel of La Masia”, and with a transfer to England, there is no reason why Arteta cannot craft him into a scintillating Salah-esque diamond.

Tottenham Hotspur were willing to allow both Lucas Moura and Davinson Sanchez to leave the club during the January transfer window.

What’s the latest?

The Lilywhites had a fairly busy deadline day with a number of outgoings as well as the two arrivals coming into north London across the month.

Spurs saw the likes of Matt Doherty, Djed Spence and Bryan Gil leave the club on Tuesday’s deadline with the Irish wing-back leaving permanently.

However, it seems as if there could have been two further departures with Moura and Sanchez players which the club are believed to have been open to selling.

This is according to Alasdair Gold who has been speaking on his YouTube channel and claimed there was more room for potential exits on deadline day:

“I know that towards the end, Spurs were quite willing to let Lucas Moura out and Davinson Sanchez go. That was mainly contract-related.

“Lucas Moura obviously now in the last six months of a deal and Spurs hadn’t taken up the option. Obviously, he’s had an injury-ravaged season as well.

“And with big Davinson Sanchez, he’s only got 18 months left on his. So I do think there was some element of trying to find them deals.”

Open to sell

Moura has endured a difficult spell in his Spurs career this season with the Brazilian having only played a handful of games so far as a result of an ongoing injury issue which has only just seen him return to training.

And there have been reports suggesting the north London club will not be looking to activate his one-year contract extension clause at the end of the campaign.

Meaning, the 30-year-old will be free to find himself a new club over the summer and, therefore, Spurs have missed their opportunity to cash in on the Brazilian.

As for Sanchez, the Colombian centre-back is also a player who has struggled for regular game time this season under Antonio Conte despite captaining the side in the FA Cup on the weekend.

The 26-year-old has only started six games in the league and will go into the summer with one year remaining on his current deal with the north London club.

With all of this in mind, allowing Moura to leave the club in January would have been a wise decision from Spurs as it would have allowed them to bring in some money ahead of losing him for nothing in the summer.

However, allowing Sanchez to leave the club would have been a big surprise given the Lilywhites’ defensive record this season has been far from inspiring.

Especially when the Colombian has a year left on his deal, potentially leaving Conte short at the back of the remainder of the campaign would have left huge question marks over the decision.

Arsenal could sell striker Folarin Balogun this summer, despite impressing on loan at Reims.

The Lowdown: Impressive season

Balogun is enjoying an impressive season at Reims, where he is currently Ligue 1’s top scorer with 14 goals, ahead of the likes of frightening PSG trio Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.

He even scored a well-taken equaliser against the Parisiens recently, rounding Italy star Gianluigi Donnarumma to score in the 95th minute.

He only has 18 months left on his current deal at the Emirates Stadium, so Arsenal have a big decision to make over his future this summer.

The Latest: Could cash in

As per The Sun, the Gunners could still look to cash in on Balogun this summer, despite his impressive form in France.

They did not expect him to be as prolific as he has been so far this season, with Reims manager Will Still labelling him as a ‘super complete striker’ at the age of just 21.

He even asked if Reims could sign Balogun on a permanent deal in the January transfer window, but the North London club refused at that time.

The Verdict: Only for big money…

Mikel Arteta’s team should only consider selling Balogun for big money.

With only 18 months left on his contract, they need to tie him down to a new one first of all to protect his value, before deciding whether to move him on.

It would be very tempting to keep Balogun, given that he has come through and impressed in the Arsenal academy, scoring 75 times and producing 18 assists in 103 games in total (Transfermarkt), while he is also performing in a major European league.

However, with Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah already at the club, the Englishman may struggle for game time if he stayed, so this will be a very tough decision to make.

Aston Villa have had a number of players breaking through their academy and into the spotlight in recent seasons with both Carney Chukwuemeka and Jacob Ramsey becoming well-known Premier League regulars since graduating.

The arrival of Unai Emery at Villa Park will leave supporters hopeful that he can build and develop the current squad to improve their consistency in the top flight over his tenure whilst also attracting some of the top talents across Europe with his experience of managing giant clubs like Arsenal and Villarreal.

Indeed, Aston Villa were linked with some of the hottest young prospects in European football over the January transfer window with Matteo Guendouzi, Nico Williams and Nicolas Jackson all touted for a move to the Midlands, however, nothing substantial materialised.

The Villans will need to significantly improve their balance of goals scored and conceded if they are to better their chances of breaking into the top half of the table over their remaining fixtures as they currently have the worst goal difference (-6) in the top 11 and the joint-highest amount of goals conceded in the top 12 Premier League teams.

Clearly, there will need to be improvements made to the defensive set-up at Villa Park which Emery will surely be keen to address in the summer transfer window, however, he may not need to look too far to find the solution to the inconsistency in the back-line.

The Villa boss may already have his Tyrone Mings heir in the academy with U21s centre-back Kerr Smith showing glimpses of quality that could see him follow in the footsteps of Ramsey by breaking through to the first team in no time.

The 18-year-old Scotsman – who was dubbed “talented” by Micky Mellon – completed a move to the club in January 2022 from Dundee United, becoming a consistent and reliable performer in the youth set-up over the last 12 months.

Smith has already tallied up 28 appearances in the Villa youth teams and this season has featured in the U21’s Football League Trophy campaign – tallying up an 88% pass completion rate and winning 100% of his aerial duels, proving himself to be a dominant but composed asset.

He also averaged two tackles and a whopping five clearances per game over his two appearances, proving he is a huge presence in his position.

The teenage machine has attracted a lot of praise over his short career so far with Daily Record journalist Scott Burns hailing Smith when analysing the player’s strengths upon his move to Villa:

“He’s done well, considering he’s only 17. He’s obviously quite big and strong, but he’s also very good on the ball.

“I remember Micky Mellon saying Kerr Smith was as good as anyone he’d seen at that age group.”

With that being said, the future is looking bright for Smith and if he can continue to develop and thrive in the U21s he could the perfect player to succeed Mings in the first team.

Glasgow Rangers’ transfer business over the previous two years under sporting director Ross Wilson has been markedly better than in the preceding five years since promotion back to the Premiership.

Steven Gerrard arrived in the summer of 2018 and it’s fair to say he more than steadied the ship.

The former Liverpool captain returned the Ibrox side to the top of the Scottish game while enjoying wonderful success in the transfer market.

Joe Aribo and Calvin Bassey joined for minimal fees before moving on for £10m and £23m respectively, the latter becoming Rangers’ record sale in the summer, proving that the club can generate lucrative transfer fees for players if they are developed correctly.

Last summer, however, Gerrard – and Wilson – made one of their greater signings in Englishman and ex-Evertonian John Lundstram, and he has gone from strength to strength over the subsequent 18 months.

How much is John Lundstram worth now?

The former Sheffield United midfielder arrived on a free transfer in the summer of 2021 as Gerrard looked to build a squad that could retain the Premiership title while qualifying for the Champions League group stages.

A topsy-turvy start by the 27-year-old at Ibrox led many to believe that despite his Premier League experience, he was perhaps too lightweight for the physicality of Scottish football.

Under Giovanni van Bronckhorst however, Lundstram blossomed into one of the club’s finest players, becoming a mainstay in the heart of the midfield, especially in the famous European run last year.

Across 14 Europa League appearances, the £22k-per-week gem averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.01/10, chipping in with two goals and 0.6 key passes per game while also showing his defensive capabilities by making 1.6 tackles and 1.7 interceptions each game while winning 3.3 duels per match – a success rate of 55%.

Rangers legend Ally McCoist declared him a “cult hero” after his form powered the side into a Europa League final and he has continued these impressive performances into this campaign, despite the Ibrox side struggling throughout the opening few months.

The Englishman has significantly improved his goalscoring ability, netting five in the first 25 league matches while taking 1.8 shots per game, yet it is his control and dominating presence in the centre of the pitch which has been the most encouraging aspect of his improvement this season.

On average, he takes 80.8 touches a match, while achieving a pass success rate of 90%, showing how effective he is at dictating the play and controlling possession.

His form has led FootballTransfers to value the player at €3.7m (£3.3m) and if he carries on like this over the next couple of seasons, it may still rise, proving that Light Blues chief Wilson has played a blinder with the midfielder.

Insider ExWHUemployee has revealed West Ham United that Mark Noble is looking to establish a relationship with Monaco amid transfer interest in Axel Disasi.

What’s the latest on Axel Disasi to West Ham?

At the start of this year, having retired just last season, the former club captain took over as sporting director for the Hammers.

It seems as though he is wasting little time in getting his feet under the table and making an impact. Indeed, in January, with Noble now involved, the club signed proven Premier League striker Danny Ings from Aston Villa.

It remains unclear just how much of an influence he has on that deal but it looks as though he’s helping the club potentially line up a deal for Monaco defender Disasi, who was linked with the Hammers during the January transfer window.

And while speaking on The West Ham Way podcast, Ex revealed that the sporting director had recently been in France on a business trip.

He explained the reason for the visit, saying: “Mark Noble was a guest at the Monaco-PSG game.

“He does know Monaco sporting director Paul Mitchell there, was invited as a result of [the relationship between] him and the Monaco sort of hierarchy.

“That was to get to know the role of sporting director, but also as a way of establishing strong links between us and Monaco. With the potential signing of Axel Disasi – a French centre-back that we were looking at previously – and he could be one that we’d look to sign.”

What does Noble’s relationship with Monaco mean for West Ham?

Still only 24 years of age, Disasi could be an interesting signing in the future for the Hammers. He’s clearly well-rated in Ligue 1 as he travelled to Qatar with France for the 2022 World Cup and featured three times, starting once.

If the East London club can establish a relationship with Monaco too, that wouldn’t be a bad thing. After all, they did help produce global superstar Kylian Mbappe.

Seeing as their sporting director Paul Mitchell is an Englishman who worked with Southampton and Tottenham before heading to France, it’s no shock to learn that he’s familiar with Noble and this could certainly help with a connection between the two clubs.

Taking it all into account, transfer dealings between West Ham and Monaco could be something to keep an eye on in the near future.