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Glasgow Rangers must take a gamble on long-term target Jack Wilshere if recent reports are to be believed…

What’s the word?

According to The Scotsman, the former Arsenal star has been keeping himself busy by posting clips of his skills and fitness on social media, which suggests that he is itching for a move.

Reports in recent times revealed that Rangers had tried to sign Wilshere on loan when Walter Smith was still in charge in 2010 but the attacking midfielder ended up moving to Bolton Wanderers instead. And Ross Wilson must return for the free agent as soon as possible.

Worth a gamble?

The Gers cruised to a comfortable 2-0 win over their arch-rivals Celtic at Parkhead, whilst Gerrard enthused over his midfield, which seems to suggest that there wouldn’t be any room for Wilshere in the side as it stands.

However, squad rotation could be crucial, especially when you consider the fact that the Rangers boss will have to balance both domestic and European obligations.

Putting his injury problems aside, the former England international played some of his best football back in the 2013/14 season, having scored three goals and supplied four assists in the Premier League, whilst averaging 1.9 dribbles and 1.4 key passes per game, via WhoScored.

By comparison, even Glen Kamara is only managing 0.7 dribbles per game in the Scottish Premiership this season, whilst Scott Arfield is averaging fewer than one key pass per game in the Scottish top flight, as per WhoScored.

More recently, Wilshere made 13 appearances in the Europa League during his last season at the Emirates, and scored a goal and supplied two assists, whilst he averaged 1.2 shots, 1.8 key passes and 3.2 dribbles per game, via WhoScored.

Once lauded as an “outstanding” player by his former manager Arsene Wenger, Wilshere was once tipped to be the next big thing in British football.

There’s clearly a lot of mutual respect between the two former teammates, as Gerrard himself said that that it’s ‘scary’ how good he could be back in 2013.

Granted, his career has somewhat fallen by the wayside, but just imagine the damage the £4m-rated ace could cause in the Europa League. Now though, the 28-year-old has insisted that he is fully fit and firing on all cylinders.

He just needs to get some game time under his belt. And Gerrard could be the manager to get the best out of his countryman, as he has already worked wonders with Jermain Defoe. Surely it’s worth the risk? There’s no harm in trying, at any rate, especially considering he won’t cost the club a penny.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers have every right to be worried about Leeds target Ryan Kent…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, former Premier League goalkeeper Chris Kirkland has tipped West Brom to make a decision on the future of Slaven Bilic soon.

According to emerging reports last week, the Croatian’s job as manager of the Baggies would be put under scrutiny against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday afternoon.

Albion made it an eighth game without a victory, losing cruelly to a late Harry Kane header, but Bilic was bullish over his future.

The 52-year-old said it was “nonsense” to question his future at the Hawthorns after the match despite West Brom finding themselves third from bottom going into the international break.

Kirkland, who enjoyed a season-long loan spell at the club in the 2005/06 campaign, believes Guochuan Lai and the Baggies board will pull the trigger if results continue to go against them.

Speaking to FFC, he said:

“That was a huge game for both teams [last week]. That win was much needed [for Fulham]. I don’t think a draw would have done either team any good.

“But yeah, you can see it. I mean, there are managers that have been sacked after four games, when they lose four on the spin. Yes, he got them up last season but that goes out of the window now.

“Listen, there’s always normally someone that goes in there around October, November time during the normal season but whether this is a normal season or not, I’m not sure.

“But I don’t think we’ll be too far away from seeing somebody face the sack soon if results go against them.”

This two-week gap in the domestic schedule will leave the decision-makers in the west Midlands plenty to consider.

Kirkland himself believes Sam Allardyce is the perfect candidate to succeed Bilic whilst Albion have also been linked to Charlton Athletic boss Lee Bowyer, who has worked with both Karlan Grant and Conor Gallagher in recent seasons.

Three points from eight matches is not a good start for the top-flight newcomers either way.

AND in other news, “Influential” West Brom man shines in the absence of Pereira during cruel defeat…

Glasgow Rangers manager Steven Gerrard’s hopes of snapping up Jacob Murphy have been dealt a huge blow, with recent reports revealing Newcastle United are prepared to offer the former Norwich City star a new deal.

What’s the story?

According to Football Insider, Steve Bruce wants Murphy to remain at St James’ Park to stay and fight for a place in the starting line-up, having ruled out a loan exit for the winger amid interest from Rangers in the summer.

It’s claimed that the club want to give the Englishman a new and improved contract to fend off interest from elsewhere, with Sheffield Wednesday, Nottingham Forest and Stoke City in the race to sign him in the winter transfer window.

So Rangers chief Ross Wilson must act swiftly if Gerrard is to finally get his long-term target in January.

Major blow?

Murphy himself was thought to be keen on a move to the 54-time Scottish champions, yet now looks set to extend his stay in Tyneside for the foreseeable future. But there is still time for the 25-year-old, who currently earns wages worth £25,000-per-week, to sign a pre-contract agreement to join the Gers on a permanent basis next summer.

Wilson signed forwards Cedric Itten and Kemar Roofe on four-year-deals for undisclosed fees in the summer to bolster the firepower at Gerrard’s disposal. Whilst Roofe has been in such fine form, as he has even started on the right wing in recent weeks, it’s fair to say that Itten has been unable to hit the ground running, with a tally of just two goals in total to his name.

The ever-reliable Ryan Kent is one of the first names on the team sheet but if there’s one area the Gers urgently need to improve, it’s the opposite flank, as both Brandon Barker and Ianis Hagi have struggled for consistency at times so far this season. And that’s without even mentioning Jordan Jones, who is deemed surplus to requirements having been suspended by the Light Blues after breaching COVID rules.

Once lauded as a “fantastic” beast by former Aberdeen striker Noel Whelan, in five appearances in the Premier League this season, Murphy has scored one goal, whilst he is averaging 1.2 shots and 2 dribbles per game, via WhoScored.

By comparison, both Barker and Jones are managing fewer than one dribble per game in the Scottish Premiership, as per WhoScored, which implies that the former England U21 international would be an immediate upgrade on both Barker and Jones at Ibrox.

Given his age, he still has plenty of time left to continue his development as a player, whilst his strengths lie in his strong finishing and being able to take set-pieces. He’s certainly not just a pacey winger, his versatility could add some much-needed depth to the squad, as he can play on either wing. We’d love to see him don the light blue, that’s for sure.

AND in other news, Ross Wilson could land Glasgow Rangers the ideal Steven Davis replacement in John Lundstram…

After a fine debut season in the Premier League saw him named the Leicester City Players’ Player of the Year in 2015, followed by his arrival at Selhurst Park a couple of years later, Crystal Palace winger Jeffrey Schlupp has established himself as a first-team regular starter under Roy Hodgson in recent years.

The Ghana international has made over a hundred appearances for Palace in all competitions, scoring eight goals and supplying nine assists so far. However, his overall display against Newcastle United was arguably one of his worst since he moved to south London from the East Midlands.

Whilst Schlupp may have been left feeling a little bit aggrieved after Jordan Ayew fired wide from close range after the break, he produced a shocking performance against Steve Bruce’s side, with the Magpies managing to keep him quiet for the most part of the game.

Per SofaScore, the 27-year-old picked up an abysmal rating of 5.9 out of ten for his efforts, which was by far the worst of any Palace on the pitch.

Schlupp failed to register a single key pass, despite the fact he played the full 90′ minutes, whilst he lost possession 15 times and only won five out of his 19 duels in total too (26%).

It’s a far cry from the kind of performances he put in last season, where he scored three times and supplied an assist in 18 games in the Premier League, via WhoScored.

With Wilfried Zaha currently sidelined due to a positive coronavirus test, the stage was arguably set for Schlupp to stake his claim for a place in the starting line-up, after being benched for the past two games against Leeds United and Burnley.

But the £9m-rated ace failed to make the most of the opportunity as he drew blank against the Magpies, having spurned a golden opportunity to take the lead after goalkeeper Karl Darlow denied him in the first half.

Playing upfront for the first time this season, he couldn’t provide the cutting edge on Friday night, and looked increasingly isolated on the ball as the Eagles once again failed to find the back of the net for the second time in as many matches.

Palace were left to rue their missed chances after Callum Wilson and Joelinton scored two late goals which means Hodgson will have to go back to the drawing board before they travel to the Hawthorns to take on West Bromwich Albion on Sunday .

AND in other news, Get rid: Crystal Palace should offload Patrick van Aanholt in January…

Sheffield Wednesday were handed further misery on Tuesday evening as they were defeated in a Championship basement battle at the City Ground.

A victory for the Owls would’ve closed the gap to their nearest relegation rivals but now Tony Pulis’ men remain rock-bottom, seven points off Nottingham Forest, who defeated them 2-0 last night.

Reds left-back Yuri Ribeiro handed the home side an early lead, scoring in the fourth minute before talismanic striker Lewis Grabban came off the bench to seal it three minutes from time.

It means the Yorkshiremen are yet to win under the 62-year-old and have now lost four straight matches.

However, despite all the doom and gloom, there was one shining light and that was the performance of Chey Dunkley, who looks every bit like being Garry Monk’s finest signing.

In just his second appearance for the club, the 28-year-old looked like a leader without the armband. He was certainly demanding more and trying to encourage the team, unlike the real skipper, Barry Bannan.

Indeed, Dunkley was the only Owls player to record a rating above 6.7 with SofaScore grading his display a 7.4, which was only bettered by three Forest players.

He also won four of six aerial duels, made four clearances, four interceptions and two blocks, on top of managing 58 touches from central defence.

Following the match, YorkshireLive’s Dom Howson waxed lyrical about his performance, he said:

“Dominated the majority of his duels and constantly barked out orders to his defence. Is understandably still a little rusty as he continues to build up his match sharpness.”

It was the long-serving ex-captain Tom Lees that badly let the team down in defence on their way to leaking another two strikes, so there is certainly some encouragement to be had in the form of Dunkley.

You can thank Monk for nabbing him from Wigan this summer too.

Supporters on Twitter were also impressed with their £10k-per-week colossus – one said the centre-back was “the only leader at the club” whilst another claimed he “looked solid.”

AND in other news, Forget Pulis: £24k-p/w passenger who lost possession 22x let Sheff Weds down abysmally…

New Sunderland AFC boss Lee Johnson has been dealt the first major blow of his tenure at the Stadium of Light this week…

What has happened?

The Black Cats could be without starting left-back Denver Hume until at least the New Year, the 39-year-old revealed in his pre-game press conference yesterday.

He said:

“Denver picked up a hamstring problem and my guesstimate is that he will be out for three to four weeks with that. It’s frustrating because it’s a muscle injury. In six weeks’ time, I’ll take responsibility for those.

“I don’t want to see muscle injuries, but in this time of Covid muscle injuries have been up 45 per cent across the board, really, from the Premier League down to League Two – it’s a byproduct of having so many games in quick succession.”

Sunderland were defeated by Wigan Athletic on Saturday with the visitors ending a ten-game winless run. Hume hobbled off just after half an hour, and now it appears to be a bad one.

What does it mean?

Well, now with the 22-year-old out for not only tonight’s match against Oldham Athletic but also their crucial upcoming League One fixtures, it gives Johnson a massive decision over who takes the reins in his absence.

Indeed, the young Academy of Light graduate is the only out-and-out left-back in their ranks right now. Left-midfielder Callum McFadzean replaced him at the weekend, so it’s likely he deputises but it could leave the club with something to think about during the January transfer window.

In 14 starts this term, Hume has delivered two assists whilst averaging 1.8 tackles, 1.8 key passes, 1.5 crosses, 1.4 dribbles and 1.1 shots per game, via WhoScored.

Evidently, the dynamo has been a crucial influence at either end of the pitch, bombing down that left flank. No other Black Cat is averaging more tackles whilst only Chris Maguire has managed a better rate of key passes.

This time last year, Sunderland legend Gary Bennett claimed that the side looked “dangerous” was when Hume was one the ball, adding: “He gets the ball and brings a little bit more tempo into the game and goes past people. He’s direct and he causes one or two more problems.”

Whilst Elliott Dickman, former U18 head coach now in charge of the U23s, tipped him for stardom as he claimed Hume had done “terrific” in the youth set-up, as per safc.com (via 90min).

The Black Cats are ever so much weaker without the 22-year-old sensation, so it could be devastating for them this month.

AND in other news, Black Cats ace worse than Maguire who won 0 duels massively let Johnson down on Saturday…

Manchester United will look to close the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool when they travel to take on Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Boxing Day.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side set up a Carabao Cup semi-final with Manchester City after a late win at Everton, but it’s back to the top flight today as they chase their first league title since the 2012-13 season.

Solskjaer made several changes for the trip to the Toffees, meaning some of the first-team regular starters should be fresh for today.

Scott McTominay remains a doubt for the clash with Leicester and it’s unlikely he will be risked before the Red Devils travel to Wolves a few days later.

Here is FFC’s predicted starting XI, which sees Solskjaer make seven changes to the side that won away at Everton in the EFL Cup quarter-finals.

Dean Henderson started against Everton, but David de Gea should be back in goal today, while Victor Lindelof will most likely replace Eric Bailly alongside Harry Maguire at the heart of the defence.

Similarly, Luke Shaw will slot into place next to the club captain, which means Alex Telles drops to the bench, whilst the same goes for Aaron Wan-Bissaka coming in for Axel Tuanzebe.

Fred is set for a start in the midfield, with support from Paul Pogba alongside him. Nemanja Matic therefore will be forced to make room.

Donny van de Beek offered next to nothing against Everton, so bringing in the red-hot Marcus Rashford – who has scored five goals in the Premier League this season so far – and keeping Mason Greenwood on the right wing makes most sense, with Bruno Fernandes deployed just behind the striker in the advanced playmaker position.

On the other hand, Edinson Cavani terrorised the Toffees for the most part, but Anthony Martial is Solskjaer’s trusted man for the occasion and is likely to start instead.

AND in other news, Manchester United striker Edinson Cavani stole the show vs Everton…

Win at all costs. That will be the message Neil Lennon sends his players out with when Celtic face Rangers this afternoon.

The Hoops are a mighty 16 points off their rivals and a defeat today will surely banish any chances of retaining the SPFL title.

It has been a torrid season to date but if they can secure victory over Rangers, the positivity it will bring will be enormous.

The Scottish Cup win over Hearts lifted a weight off Lennon’s shoulders and three points here would take even more pressure away from their manager.

Thus, he will need to get his team selection spot on and in our predicted XI, we’re tipping the Northern Irishman to make four changes from the side that defeated Dundee United in midweek.

The first change to note is that we reckon Lennon should switch formation. It’s only a slight one but in order to combat Rangers’ attacking threat, we want to see a midfield two operated.

That means that Scott Brown comes back into the XI. We’ve already explained our thought process behind this and why he’d add some extra bite to the side in a hotly contested fixture.

Alongside Ismaila Soro, someone who has rejuvenated the Celtic team, they could create a mean layer of protection in front of the defence.

Speaking of the back four, we’re tipping two changes to be made there. Diego Laxalt was poor in midweek and as a result, he is dropped to the bench. Christopher Jullien also misses out in place of Nir Bitton, someone who took the plaudits after the Hoops beat Hamilton.

With Brown coming into the side, we think that Callum McGregor will sit out. It’s not often that happens but in terms of the balance of the team, it makes sense.

The final replacement is in goal where Conor Hazard returns in place of Vasilis Barkas. The Greek didn’t concede against Dundee but he’s not exactly the first choice at the moment.

AND in other news, Celtic must sign £39k-p/w gem in January, Rodgers thinks he’s “a David Silva type”…

Celtic are trying to fix their sticky situation by asserting their dominance ahead of the upcoming transfer window. The reigning Premiership champions will almost certainly hand over their crown to bitter rivals Rangers after an uncharacteristically poor season from the Hoops.

In order to mend their problems and oil the grand Celtic machine up again, Nick Hammond has been on the hunt for new personnel. One man on the radar is Liverpool loanee Taiwo Awoniyi, who is currently enjoying a spell with Union Berlin, as per 90min.

Should Celtic sign Awoniyi?

The 23-year-old is out of favour at Anfield due to the untouchable presence of Roberto Firmino and his back-up option Divock Origi. Awoniyi is currently contracted until 2023, bringing in a handsome £60,000 per week pay cheque.

However, because he is surplus to Jurgen Klopp’s team, Liverpool may be open to letting him leave for a small fee. His Transfermarkt value of £2.8million suggests an offer in this region would be enough to convince the Premier League holders to part ways with the striker.

Awoniyi would certainly be a strong asset to a Celtic side that has disappointed many this season. A lot of talks regarding Odsonne Edouard’s exit have been swirling, so the Nigeria youth international could take his place should the Bhoys star leave.

But due to the impact of coronavirus from a financial point of view, Edouard may be forced to wait longer for a move away. As such, it is more likely that Awoniyi would replace the controversial Leigh Griffiths.

Could spell the end for Griffiths

It’s common knowledge that the relationship between Griffiths and Neil Lennon is a rocky one. Last summer, the manager slammed his player for being “overweight” and “out of condition”, as per talkSPORT.

Griffiths has also been an inconsistent player for Celtic this season, sometimes popping up with crucial goals but also going far under the radar with his performances.

According to WhoScored, Awoniyi has outscored Griffiths this season, with five goals to his four. The Union Berlin ace has also recorded more successful aerials (1.4) and draws in more fouls (1.1) per game, compared to the Scot’s 0.8 and 0.1 respectively.

As a younger striker, Awoniyi has a good chance of catching Peter Lawwell’s eye. Celtic desperately need to return to their prolific form and with Lennon unhappy with Griffiths, signing a new forward could oust him from the team completely.

In other news, Stephen Welsh has the perfect chance to prove himself to Neil Lennon…

Whilst Liverpool will be frustrated to have suffered defeat in the FA Cup at the hands of their old rivals Manchester United on Sunday afternoon, one positive from the game was the performance of Roberto Firmino.

The Brazilian looked back to his best at times during his time on the pitch and was arguably Liverpool’s best performer at Old Trafford.

As per SofaScore, the former Hoffenheim striker would earn an 8.7 rating for his display, which comfortably ranked him as the best player on the pitch from either side.

For comparison, Mason Greenwood would earn an 8.3 match rating, whilst the scorer of both Liverpool goals Mohamed Salah picked up an 8.1 rating.

Firmino picked up two assists during the game, as he found Salah for the opening goal with a perfectly-timed through ball, before cutting the ball back for the Egyptian to make it 2-2 in the second half.

The 29-year-old was easily the most creative player on the pitch, as he played four key passes and created three big chances for his teammates at Old Trafford.

Considering he has averaged just one key pass per game in the Premier League this season, it definitely seems that Firmino was at his creative best on Sunday afternoon.

The striker, who earns £180k per week at Anfield, was far more involved than his opposite number Edison Cavani, as he had 48 touches compared to the Uruguayan’s 31 and played 16 more passes than the former PSG man, despite playing fewer minutes.

Firmino would also impressively win all three of his ground duels during the game suggesting that he was able to get the better of the Manchester United midfielders and defenders, as he regularly picked the ball up deep in order to create opportunities for the Liverpool wingers.

The only thing missing from his performance was a goal, and it could definitely be argued that he did not deserve to be on the losing side.

Hopefully, he will be able to start adding more goals to his game, as the Reds look to turn their form around in upcoming Premier League fixtures.

And, in other news… Worse than Williams: £67.5m-rated LFC gem who lost all of his duels was Klopp’s worst vs MUFC