Celtic supporters in the Transfer Tavern have been reasonably quiet in recent times after seeing their side endure a testing start to the new season, which has seen them exit the Champions League.

Brendan Rodgers’ men had twice qualified for the group stages of Europe’s elite competition under the Northern Irishman prior to this season, but they fell at the third qualifying round this term in going down 3-2 on aggregate to AEK Athens. As such, instead of playing tomorrow against Ajax in a play-off for that competition, they are in action on Thursday night against Suduva seeking to qualify for the group stages of the Europa League.

As such, there have been many despondent Bhoys fans up and down the country in recent times, several of whom have been bemoaning the evident centre back crisis currently at Parkhead, which has been compounded recently by reports that Dedryck Boyata is refusing to play for the club.

Thus, it’s clear that Rodgers needs to boost his centre back ranks in the final few weeks of the summer window, and he could do a lot worse than lure £2.7 million-rated Premier League star Wes Morgan (as per Transfermarkt) to Celtic Park.

Ultimately, an injury to Marvin Compper and suspensions for Jozo Simunovic and Kristoffer Ajer forced manager Rodgers to partner the young and inexperienced Jack Hendry with right back Mikael Lustig against AEK Athens last week, and while the latter duo have since returned to action, the ongoing situation surrounding Boyata’s future suggests that further reinforcements are needed at the back.

And while luring Morgan away from Leicester City isn’t necessarily a nod to the long term, given the centre back is 34 years of age, there is no doubting that he still retains the ability to make a big difference to the Bhoys backline.

The Englishman has been a stalwart in the Foxes defence ever since his move from Nottingham Forest back in 2012, with the defender going on to appear 272 times for the Midlands club, 135 of which have come in the Premier League.

And the centre back really proved his credentials during the 2015/16 season in captaining Leicester to the most unlikely of Premier League title triumphs, with Morgan appearing in all 38 league games and showing his defensive capabilities brilliantly in forming a sensational partnership with Robert Huth – the 34-year-old was simply outstanding that season.

And having continued to feature regularly for the Foxes since then, with varying degrees of success, it’s clear that Morgan still retains the ability to play at the top level, which can only be good news for a Celtic side in dire need of greater experience and indeed quality in the heart of their backline.

Ultimately, the 34-year-old could still do a fine job at the back despite the fact that he is reaching the twilight of his career, and following the arrival of Jonny Evans over the summer, alongside the fact that Harry Maguire stayed at the club, it remains to be seen whether he is a regular at Leicester this term – he dropped to the bench on Saturday in their victory over Wolves.

As such, Rodgers must be ready to pounce in a bid to finally solve Celtic’s evident centre back issues.

Celtic fans… what do you think? Let us know!

According to the BBC, Celtic have rejected a significant offer for star striker Moussa Dembele from French side Lyon, which sent Bhoys fans on Twitter wild with excitement.

The 22-year-old has struggled with a thigh injury so far this season but has scored three goals in the six appearances that he has managed for Brendan Rodgers’ side.

A former France U21 international, Dembele has netted 51 times in just 94 games for the Hoops following his move north of the border from Fulham during the summer of 2016, where he had been since coming through the youth system of French champions Paris Saint-Germain.

The transfer deadline for French clubs is at midnight on August 31 though so it remains to be seen whether Lyon will come back with an improved offer.

Celtic fans on Twitter were absolutely ecstatic with the news that their talented front man, who is valued at £6.3m by Transfermarkt, looked set to be staying at Parkhead for the near future at least. Check out the best tweets after Rodgers’ announcement below.

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Queens Park Rangers announced on Tuesday afternoon that Aramide Oteh had signed a new three-year contract with the Championship outfit.

Oteh came through the youth system at Tottenham Hotspur before leaving the club in February 2017.

QPR swooped to land the attacker last May, and he made his professional debut for the R’s last December, before registering his first goal against Burton Albion in January.

Oteh is yet to feature for the R’s this season, but it is clear that he is highly-regarded at the London club, and he now has a new contract until the summer of 2021.

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Things are certainly looking up for QPR, with the team now on a three-match unbeaten run in all competitions following a difficult start to the campaign.

And the club’s supporters, who also want Angel Rangel to pen an extension, have now received some more good news with Oteh’s future being addressed.

A selection of the Twitter reaction from the club’s fans in relation to the 19-year-old can be seen below:

According to Kick Off, Arsenal boss Unai Emery is hoping to lure Atletico Madrid full-back Filipe Luis to the Emirates Stadium in January.

What’s the story? 

Luis’ contract with the Spanish capital club expires at the end of this season, meaning that the Brazil international may be available for a cut price in the winter window. 

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The 6ft tall Atleti man has previous Premier League experience having spent a single campaign with Chelsea. He won a league title in his time at Stamford Bridge but generally failed to usurp Cesar Azpilicueta in the starting line up and subsequently returned to La Liga. The 33-year-old may well feel he has unfinished business in the English top flight though.

With Nacho Monreal ageing and the currently-injured Sead Kolasinac having struggled to make an impact for the Gunners so far, a new left-back may well be high on Emery’s shopping list. A move for Luis though would be a mistake and represent a backwards step for Arsenal.

Not the solution

Sven Mislintat made some baffling transfer decisions this summer, and at 33 years of age, and following an injury ravaged previous season, Luis would be another one of those. If he were to join the Gunners now, and take Kolasinac’s place as second choice left-back, that would mean that three of Arsenal’s four main full-back options would be aged 32 or above.

For a side looking to implement a high-pressing style and make use of attack-minded overlapping full-backs, employing so many such veterans in these key positions is not the way forward. 

Arsenal undoubtedly need to improve defensively and adding experience at the back could certainly help in that regard. That must be balanced with signing players who have plenty to give and are athletically up to the standard of the Premier League too though. Signing Luis would be the opposite of that, and would not make Emery’s big job at the Emirates any easier in the long run.

Leeds remain unbeaten this season as they go into a tough away game against Millwall this Saturday.

The Yorkshire club have taken the Championship by storm so far this year with Marcelo Bielsa’s brand of attacking football. Under the Argentinian, Leeds have transformed themselves into a team that smothers its opposition with its high press and ability to play forward at pace.

Refreshingly for the Leeds faithful, Bielsa has worked with a team that is basically the same one that played last season – aside from Barry Douglas. Specifically, Kemar Roofe, Samu Saiz, Kalvin Phillips and Gaetano Berardi have become the best in the league at their respective positions.

Under Bielsa, Phillips has become a reliable midfielder who plays a key role in shielding the back four while also providing a base for the team to build up from. So far this season, the English midfielder has been incredibly reliable but if Leeds do get promoted this season, they need to be looking to add more midfield depth and possibly more midfield quality.

One player they should be looking at in the summer is Brazilian international and Lille midfield man, Thiago Maia. Valued at £3.6 million, Bielsa managed Maia during his brief stint at Lille and should try to bring the Brazil international to Yorkshire in the summer.

Great with the ball but also able to break up attacks, Maia would be a brilliant signing for Leeds. While Phillips has been exceptional so far this year, Maia is the man that could be a hit for Leeds in the Premier League.

What do you think Leeds fans?

Tottenham should be in the market for a new goalkeeper when the January transfer window opens.

Spurs were handed a blow a few weeks ago when it was revealed Hugo Lloris was charged with drink-driving. The World Cup winner was forced to miss crucial fixtures, and Mauricio Pochettino was forced to use Michel Vorm in between the sticks. However, the Dutchman has looked far from confident, and his errors proved costly in the home defeat against Liverpool.

His dismal spell led to Pochettino opting for back up keeper, Paulo Gazzaniga, during the 2-1 victory over Brighton. Three points against the Seagulls will be a welcome relief for the Spurs boss during a difficult spell. Despite Gazziniga performing well, Tottenham need to be in the market for a more suitable backup and long-term replacement for Lloris.

One man they should be targeting is Lazio stopper – Thomas Strakosha. Valued at £18m by Transfermarkt, the Albania international enjoyed a superb campaign in the Serie A and kept 17 clean sheets in all competitions. Reports suggested Liverpool were interested in his services before breaking the world-record to sign Alisson Becker from Roma.

At just 23-years-old, the goalkeeper is still improving and working with Lloris could definitely improve his game. Known for his excellent shot-stopping ability and fantastic reflexes, he would be a massive upgrade on Spurs’ current back-up options. Whether Strakosha would want to sit on the bench remains the only stumbling block.

If Pochettino could convince him to move to North London, Tottenham would solve their goalkeeping dilemma for the foreseeable future.

Tottenham fans, thoughts?

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Arsenal have started to find their rhythm under Unai Emery after hitting a winning streak in the Premier League, while also overcoming Vorskla in their first Europa League match of the season.

Emery significantly overhauled the Gunners squad in January to sign the likes of Matteo Guendouzi, Lucas Torreira and Stephan Lichtsteiner, while the North London giants also waved goodbye to established favourites Santi Cazorla and Jack Wilshere.

Further midfield changes could be on the horizon as Aaron Ramsey is edging ever closer to the conclusion of his deal at the end of the season, which would leave Arsenal in need of a replacement if they were to lose the services of the Wales international.

Reports suggest Arsenal are considering a swoop for Monaco’s 21-year-old Belgium international Youri Tielemans, who has caught the eye for the French principality side so far this season by netting two goals in seven Ligue 1 matches.

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The former Anderlecht man is certainly a player who can offer a lot in the coming years but securing his signature would limit the developments of both Torreira and Guendouzi, who have already caught the eye so far this season.

Should Arsenal move for Tielemans? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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Sunderland youngster Josh Maja has started the League One campaign in sparkling form, and it appears as though the club’s hopes of finishing in the automatic promotion places may already lie upon his young shoulders.

With summer signing Charlie Wyke absent at the beginning of the campaign through injury, the 19-year-old perhaps unexpectedly started the season in the starting XI, and he has repaid the faith shown in him by Jack Ross, who has also suggested another teenager is ready to follow in Maja’s footsteps by becoming a first-team regular.

The striker has scored seven goals in 10 league appearances thus far, and with Wyke returning and then suffering another issue that could keep him on the sidelines for the rest of 2018, he looks likely to lead the line until the January transfer window comes along.

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Maja has shown this term the quality that he has and how clinical he can be in front of goal, which begged the question: just how much is he worth right now?

Given he is just 19 years of age, is already proving himself and looks to have huge potential for the future, we at Football FanCast suggested that he should already be worth more than £15m in the current crazy transfer market with inflated prices all around.

We asked Sunderland supporters to vote on our poll to see if they agreed with our suggestion, and as you can see from the results below 36% think the same thing, with 58% believing he is worth £10m or more.

Matt Phillips has missed the last three West Brom fixtures with a muscle strain and 35-year-old Tyrone Mears has struggled as his replacement, meaning Darren Moore must promote youngster Kyle Edwards to be Phillips’ backup for the rest of the season.

Mears started the 4-1 win over Reading on Saturday, but was dragged off by the Baggies boss after an hour with the scores still at 1-1. Edwards was his replacement and the 20-year-old gave his side far more attacking threat as they netted three times to win the game convincingly.

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Edwards has been used in a number of positions by the Baggies including at left-wing, central attacking midfield and at right wing-back. Like Phillips though he seems to be a forward who has taken well to the wing-back role and could excel with more game time.

The West Brom academy graduate will be hoping that after the international break he is given the chance to impress if Phillips is still on the injury list at the Hawthorns.

So, West Brom fans, do you think Edwards should be the back-up to Phillips or has Mears done enough so far?

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England manager Gareth Southgate surprised many with his recent squad selection. For the upcoming Nations League clashes with Croatia and Spain, the national team boss has named several players in his squad who have never received an international call up before, including James Maddison, Jadon Sancho and Mason Mount.

Mount, currently plying his trade on loan from Chelsea at Derby County, becomes the first Championship outfield player to be called up to the senior England squad since Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha in 2012. There is certainly plenty of excitement around the 19-year-old at present, though many will know little about him.

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Mount joined the Chelsea academy in 2005, at the age of six. Outstandingly talented from a young age, Mount rocketed through the age gradients in Chelsea’s youth system and was turning out for the under-18s side whilst still eligible for the under-15s. In July 2017, Chelsea handed him a four-year professional contract.

Whilst he is yet to play for the Blues’ first team, Mount has already made an impression at senior level. He spent last season on loan with the Eredivisie outfit Vitesse, where he quickly became a vital member of the starting XI. The young midfielder finished the Dutch season with 14 goals and 10 assists in 39 appearances and won the club’s player of the year award.

The teenager is spending the current campaign at Pride Park, under the watch of Chelsea legend and new Derby boss Frank Lampard. Mount’s excellent form has continued into his maiden season in senior English football. The attacking-midfielder has five goals from just fifteen appearances so far for the Rams. He also produced an exceptional performance in Derby’s historic triumph over Manchester United at Old Trafford in an EFL Cup tie.

A senior England call up is just reward for Mount’s remarkable rise in recent months. He is also fully aware of what it means to represent the Three Lions. He has represented his country at every age level from under-16s to under-21s and even won the Golden Player award as England’s under-19s triumphed in the 2017 European Championship. 

Playing for the senior team is, of course, another thing entirely, but as with everything else in his short career so far, expect Mount to take it in his stride and find a way to shine on the biggest stage of all.