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Sunderland have performed well in the absence of a permanent manager following the sacking of Tony Mowbray, making it back-to-back victories in midweek thanks to Jobe Bellingham's late winner against Leeds United.

Still, as we approach the new year and the start of the January transfer window, the club and their supporters will want clarity over who will be in the dugout for the remainder of the Championship season and beyond.

Sunderland set to appoint Michael Beale

According to reports on Friday, Sunderland are closing in on the appointment of Michael Beale, who left Rangers earlier this season. The Black Cats will hope he can bring some of the ideas that saw him thrive at QPR to Wearside, despite a rocky campaign in Glasgow this time around.

However, speaking to Fotbollskanalen, in quotes translated by Sport Witness, Hammarby director of football Mikael Hjelmberg has revealed that he feared the allure of Sunderland would be too much for his new boss Kim Hellberg, and there was legitimate "concern" in Sweden that the Black Cats would win the race.

Hjelmberg regarded Hellberg as the "dream man" for the job, but says he was concerned when he learned of the Black Cats' interest: "I felt ‘Oh, wow’. There was some kind of concern, but I still thought [Hammarby would appoint him] because we had such an open and honest dialogue all the way.”

The Times reported last week that Sunderland would interview the 35-year-old over the vacancy at the Stadium of Light, but Hammarby jumped in and sealed the deal with the Scandinavian tactician this week.

Hellberg took on his first stint in management with Swedish top-flight club Varnamo at the start of 2022, leading them to a 10th place finish in his first season before an impressive ascent to fifth place in 2023. With the Allsvsenskan season operating according to the calendar year, Hellberg chose to part ways with Varnamo at the end of last month to pursue a new opportunity, and that caught the attention of Sunderland.

Sunderland missed out on an expert in player development

Hellberg would no doubt have been a bold appointment given his lack experience in British or indeed major European football, but it would also have been an exciting gamble.

In an interview with Fotboll Transfers, Jonathan Levi, who played for Norrkoping while Hellberg was an assistant coach, raved about the "absolutely perfect" coach. He sees him as a tactical mastermind whose expertise in positioning, the subtleties of movement and creating overloads developed him as a player.

"Kim is the coach who has taught me the most at senior level. When you’re young, of course you learn technical stuff, but that’s something else entirely.

"When it comes to after my elite career started, there is no one who has developed me more than Kim has done. He is incredibly good when it comes to how to position yourself, how to drive the ball, which shoulder to drive the ball towards in relation to the defenders, how to move in the box and how to get a four against three situation to be a three-on-two situation."

Now, for Sunderland, the attention turns to Beale and Saturday's trip to Bristol City, with caretaker boss Mike Dodds set to lead the team once again.

Manchester City's win over Fulham means it's now mathematically impossible for Liverpool to win the Premier League title this season.

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• Manchester City go top with win over Fulham
• Liverpool now unable to finish first
• Arsenal in action on Sunday at Manchester United

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Jurgen Klopp's final season at Liverpool will definitely not end with another Premier League crown, as the Reds have seen their dwindling title hopes ended by Manchester City's 4-0 win over Fulham. The victory sends the defending champions to the top of the table on 85 points. Liverpool sit seven points behind with just two games left to play, meaning they can't catch City even if they win their remaining fixtures against Aston Villa and Wolves.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  City's comprehensive win means the pressure is back on Arsenal to respond on Sunday at Old Trafford. Victory for the Gunners over Manchester United will take Mikel Arteta's side back to the summit, one point clear, with just one game left to play for the north London side. However, the destiny of the title is still in City's hands, as Guardiola's men have a game in hand on their title rivals. The match will take place on Tuesday when City head to Arsenal's neighbours Tottenham for a crunch clash.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  If Manchester City retain their title, they will become the first Premier League team to win the title four times in a row.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  If Arsenal do beat a struggling Man Utd side then the title race will go down to the final day of the season. Arteta's men finish their campaign against Everton at the Emirates, while Manchester City host West Ham at the Etihad.

Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney are three years into their reign at Wrexham, but which of the Hollywood superstars knows the most about football?

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• Takeover completed back in 2021
• Enjoyed back-to-back promotions
• Famous faces learning on the job

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  A stunning takeover at SToK Racecourse was completed in February 2021, and quite the journey has been taken in since then. Back-to-back promotions have lifted the Red Dragons out of the National League and into League One – with transfer plans now being drawn up for life back in the third tier.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Reynolds and McElhenney have been regular visitors to North Wales, alongside some famous friends, and have continued to learn on the job. Both openly admit to being soccer novices when they took the reins at Wrexham, but they are now well versed on the intricacies of a different kind of football to the NFL brand that dominates in the United States.

• WHAT KER SAID

  Quizzed on which of the co-chairmen at Wrexham is the most knowledge, executive director Humphrey Ker has told : “Well, if I have to pick between the two of them I'm going to say Rob and not just because he was my boss before this. Ryan has been so busy this year that he's just not had as much time to dedicate to being at the club to follow what's going on. He follows everything but he's making the most eagerly anticipated movie of the last five years at the moment (Deadpool & Wolverine) and it comes out in a month-and-a half, so he's just absolutely slammed.”

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  DID YOU KNOW?

  Ker added: “We've been doing this now for three-and-a-half years, four years. And there will still be strange occasions where something happens, where I'm like, I don't know that I've never seen that before. So they're these little things every now and then they're like, ‘Oh, what, what's this?’ And yeah, usually it's my job or Shaun [Harvey’s] job to go, ‘Oh, okay. I've worked out the sequence of events in my head and this is what's going on’. But they're pretty good.”

One year ago, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar served as a welcome break for Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp as he assessed the quandary that his campaign had morphed into.

What had went wrong? Why had Liverpool fallen off a proverbial cliff? To say that the Anfield side were a shadow of their former selves would insinuate a squad cut of the same shape, but Liverpool had been mangled and contorted and were unrecognisable from the team that mere months before had come within a whisker of an unprecedented Quadruple.

The Reds failed to quite return to form despite a late-season purple patch that painted brilliant colour back into Klopp's system, and the summer transfer work in refitting the engine room with shiny new signings has worked wonders: the Reds top the Premier League table after 16 matches.

But last year's issues closed the door on Champions League qualification, and while the return to the Europa League after seven years was poignant, Liverpool are righting their wrongs and have topped Group E with a match to spare.

Now, Klopp has the luxury to issue heavy rotation ahead of his team's final group fixture against Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium, with a crucial few weeks of festive football ahead on the domestic scene.

Liverpool team news vs USG

Mohamed Salah, Alisson Becker, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold have all remained on Merseyside as Klopp decided to rest multiple players for the trip to USG, with Alexis Mac Allister also sidelined as he recovers from a knee stamp.

The German manager has already confirmed that he will make multiple changes to the starting line-up in the dead-rubber contest, with forthcoming Premier League matches against Manchester United and Arsenal sandwiching a Carabao Cup quarter-final tie against West Ham United in midweek.

Spanish midfielders Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic remain long-term absentees, while Joel Matip is out for the season after rupturing his ACL and Andy Robertson continues his rehabilitation following shoulder surgery in October; Diogo Jota is nearing a return but will not be risked at the Stade Joseph Marian.

Why Elliott and Quansah must start vs USG

Harvey Elliott scored the winner as toiling Liverpool found a way to win against Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon, firing home in the 90th minute to send the travelling support into a red sea of rapture.

The creative midfielder, aged 20, is a special talent and has been a valuable member of Klopp's side over the past few years, but recently remarked that he wishes to shrug off the moniker of 'Super Sub', and instead start to wedge his way into the starting line-up with regularity.

Elliott has made 20 appearances this season and played every minute of Liverpool's Europa League campaign, but has only started once in the Premier League and was hooked at half-time on that outing (against Brighton & Hove Albion).

Despite this, he has scored once and supplied two assists in the English top-flight and received praise for "visionary" distribution by TNT Sports' commentator Ian Darke, ranking among the top 3% of midfielders across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for progressive passes and the top 9% for shot-creating actions per 90, as per FBref.

He's vital and offers something that perhaps none of his Liverpool confreres can quite replicate: a breezy and progressive presence blended with constant creativity.

He has to start, much like his defensive peer Jarell Quansah, also aged 20, who has excelled in breaking into the senior set-up this term after spending the latter half of the 2022/23 campaign on loan with League One side Bristol Rovers.

Described as "absolutely phenomenal" by Alexander-Arnold, Quansah has chalked up 11 displays for Liverpool and has impressed with his composed and commanding performances in the central defence.

While Matip's season is now over, Ibrahima Konate remains the No. 1 option to partner captain Van Dijk in front of Alisson's goal, but the 6 foot 5 titan has demonstrated his worth over his displays thus far, having started twice in the Premier League and secured three points on both occasions – away to Wolverhampton Wanderers and Palace.

He also ranks among the top 16% of positional peers for shot-creating actions, the top 7% for pass completion, the top 135 for progressive carries and the top 8% for successful take-ons per 90, highlighting the modern set of skills that make him a perfect fit to succeed a player such as Matip in Klopp's team.

Both players earn regular spots in the matchday squad and will be eager to take advantage of the upcoming tie to further stake their claim to increased responsibility.

Not the only players who should receive a starting berth in Belgium, left-back Luke Chambers has the perfect opportunity to really make himself known to Klopp after making his debut several months ago.

Why Luke Chambers must start

Chambers is only 19 years old but has taken advantage of Robertson's ongoing injury to earn his first start for Liverpool earlier in the campaign, playing 67 minutes as his side dismantled Toulouse 5-1 in the Europa League.

With Kostas Tsimikas the main man at left-back in Robertson's absence, it might be wise to give the Greek ace a break and entrust Chambers with a second role from the outset, having enjoyed a breakthrough loan stint with Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premiership last season.

Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes noted his "outstanding" displays in Scotland last season and praised his maturity, having averaged one key pass per game while winning 62% of his ground duels – showcasing his versatility.

Also described as a "diamond" by McInnes, Chambers can also play as a centre-half and could use his defensive experience to produce a sturdy display to really underline his potential to Klopp, who will still feel that he needs convincing before integrating the player into regular senior action.

But with such an important week up ahead, Liverpool must not take any more risks than necessary in the Europa League, and there is absolutely no reason why Chambers should not be offered the opportunity to follow in Elliott and Quansah's footsteps and use the dead rubber situation to rise to the fore.

Glasgow Rangers head into 2024 currently occupying second spot in the Premiership table, eight points behind the leaders.

However, they do have two games in hand and if the Gers win both of these clashes, the gap will be reduced to just two points and a title race will very much be on.

Philippe Clement won't be focusing on that right now, especially as they have one more match to come against Kilmarnock before the winter break stops the domestic season for the next three weeks.

The tie comes just three days after the defeat to Celtic, and it gives Clement the chance to rotate his squad slightly, as several players could be back in contention following recent injuries.

With this in mind, here's the Rangers starting XI that could take to the Ibrox pitch tomorrow afternoon to take on the Ayrshire outfit.

1

GK – Jack Butland

The one position that is never in doubt. Butland was perhaps unlucky to concede twice against Celtic, as he couldn’t do much more for both of their goals, especially the strike by Kyogo Furuhashi in the second half.

The Gers still have the best defensive record in the top flight, and much of this is down to how impressive Butland has been throughout the campaign as he seeks yet another clean sheet.

2

RB – James Tavernier

The captain added to his Old Firm goal tally on Saturday as he scored a wonderful freekick towards the end of the match, yet it wasn’t enough to secure anything from the game.

The clash against Killie represents a chance for the team to mend the wrongs of that painful defeat and Tavernier will need to inspire his teammates to a solid performance.

The Light Blues slipped up against the side in the first league tie of the season and another result like this would be a disaster.

3

CB – Connor Goldson

The Englishman will retain his place for the tie on Tuesday and while he won 100% of his aerial duels against Celtic, his passing wasn’t quite up to scratch.

The defender finished the match with just a 75% pass success rate and completed just three of his 13 long balls and these statistics will need to improve against Killie tomorrow.

4

CB – John Souttar

Leon Balogun partnered Goldson in the Old Firm derby, but a lapse in concentration saw him sent off following a tussle with Daizen Maeda during the second half, and he is suspended for the clash with Killie.

Souttar will be the natural replacement for the Nigerian. The Scot hasn’t started a game since the 2-0 win over St Johnstone prior to Christmas and Clement will be hoping he is raring to go.

5

LB – Ridvan Yilmaz

The Turkish left back will continue in his role as Borna Barisic will remain unavailable until after the winter break.

Yilmaz showed glimpses of his potential against Celtic as he won 100% of his duels and succeeded with both of his dribble attempts, yet he needs to become more consistent if he wishes to keep his spot on the left side of the defence.

6

CM – John Lundstram

Following a rough tackle that saw the midfielder come off against St Johnstone a couple of weeks ago, it appeared as though Lundstram would miss the next few games and return after the winter break.

Testament to his ability to recover, the Englishman made the starting XI against Celtic and put in a decent shift which saw him make four interceptions, three tackles and complete two key passes. Clement will be expecting more of the same on Tuesday, that’s for sure.

7

CM – Kieran Dowell

Surprise package Dujon Sterling started in the Old Firm derby, but for the final league clash before the winter break, Dowell will return to the starting XI.

Against Motherwell on Christmas Eve, the former Norwich City starlet scored his second goal for the club while he succeeded with 100% of his dribble attempts.

It was his defensive effort which impressed the most, however, as the midfielder won four of his seven ground duels, made two tackles and three interceptions. He deserves another start against Killie.

8

RW – Ross McCausland

The youngster has certainly made his mark in the senior squad over the previous few months. Not only has he signed a long-term deal until 2027, but the winger scored his first goal for the club against Aris Limassol in the Europa League.

He started against Celtic, and it was a baptism of fire for the Northern Irish starlet, yet more experience at this level will give him the confidence to improve further.

9

AM – Todd Cantwell

Cantwell didn’t have the best of matches against Celtic, completing just 15 passes during his spell on the pitch before he was subbed off after 69 minutes.

The attacking midfielder has shown plenty of promise in spells this season, but he really needs to start replicating the form that saw him score six goals and grab five assists in just 20 matches towards the end of last season.

10

LW – Abdallah Sima

The winger looked subdued against Celtic as he couldn’t add to his tally of 14 goals scored prior to the match.

Sima has been called up to the Senegal squad for the Africa Cup of Nations tournament which takes place in the Ivory Coast between 13 January and 11 February, and he could miss a few matches for the Gers, depending on how far Senegal progresses in the competition.

Lionesses star Georgia Stanway got into a drinking contest during Bayern Munich's Bundesliga title celebrations.

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• Bayern win Women's Bundesliga
• Stanway stars in league triumph
• Drinks huge beer at celebrations

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Bayern Munich Frauen retained their Bundesliga crown earlier this month, with England ace Stanway scoring in a crucial 2-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen. Now the season is over, thousands turned out in Munich to celebrate their triumph, with Stanway and team-mate Pernille Harder drinking beer out of a huge glass – without getting too far.

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• WATCH THE CLIP

• WHAT BAYERN MUNICH SAID ABOUT THE CELEBRATIONS

  In an Instagram video, the German giants wrote: "🏆 POV celebrating the championship in front of thousands – on a Tuesday at noon… 🤯🤩🥹Danke, liebe Bayern-Fans!!! ❤️🤍."

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Stanway's decision to leave Manchester City for Bayern in 2022 has proven to be a shrewd one. While she won seven trophies at the Women's Super League side, she has now lifted two consecutive Bundesliga titles and is arguably playing some of the best football of her career in Germany.

West Bromwich Albion have been making a push for promotion back to the Premier League for the first time in three years under Carlos Corberan but the side have been quite inconsistent in recent weeks.

The fire from the Baggies' back-to-back wins over Norwich City and Leeds United over Christmas was quickly extinguished following a 1-0 away defeat against relegation-threatened Swansea City on Monday.

West Brom must unleash “perfect” 7/10 star to ease Jed Wallace injury

Carlos Corberan might well be forced to start this West Brom gem owing to fresh injury concerns at the Hawthorns.

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Kelan Sarson

Jan 1, 2024

To add insult to injury, West Brom have lost a star man this week but could look to dip into the transfer market to rectify the loss and the club should definitely reignite their interest in one special attacker from Portugal.

West Bromwich Albion transfer news – Jeremy Sarmiento

It was confirmed by the club on New Year's Day that loanee Jeremy Sarmiento has returned to Brighton and Hove Albion, having spent a half-season at the Hawthorns.

It was believed that Brighton's recent injury crisis in the forward areas was the reason behind the Ecuadorian's return to the south coast, however, reports on Tuesday morning revealed that the Seagulls are willing to allow Sarmiento to go back out on loan, this time to West Brom's promotion rivals Ipswich Town.

Sarmiento's time in the Midlands didn't quite go as planned. The 21-year-old became a mere squad player under Corberan and averaged 35 minutes per game throughout the campaign. Overall, the youngster made 21 appearances for the Baggies, including 20 in the Championship, but this was spread across a total of 737 minutes in the team.

The biggest worry for the head coach will be his lack of depth in the wide areas as the experienced Matt Phillips has been ruled out until April at the earliest, while Grady Diangana will now head off on international duty with the DR Congo to compete in the African Cup of Nations.

As a result, the club must try to sign a new winger before the January window closes and one player in particular could be the perfect fit.

Tiago Gouveia's stats this season

One player West Bromwich Albion have been linked with in the past is Benfica attacker Tiago Gouveia. It was reported by The Telegraph's Mike McGrath during the summer transfer window that the Baggies were keeping tabs on Gouveia as Corberan was keen to bolster his attacking department, although a move never came to fruition.

However, given the recent loss of both Sarmiento and Diangana, reigniting interest in the 22-year-old would make a lot of sense from West Brom's perspective.

Gouveia has made eight appearances for the Liga Portugal champions this season, including three in the UEFA Champions League, but has played just 185 minutes in total for Benfica, which comes to about 23 minutes per appearance.

Nevertheless, Gouveia's career stats with Benfica and Estoril are quite impressive too as the winger, who can play on either flank, has recorded 28 goal contributions in all competitions since the beginning of the 2019/20 season. His most prolific position has been on the left wing which is the area that West Brom need to fill the most.

Furthermore, it has been reported that Tom Fellows could leave the Hawthorns this month, which could be yet another blow to Corberan and his side's hopes of promotion, but in 16 appearances this season, the Englishman has failed to register a single goal or assist. Furthermore, since the start of the 2019/20 season, Fellows has bagged 27 goal contributions for West Brom, none of which have come since taking the step up to the first team.

Gouveia could then represent something of an upgrade on the Englishman, having notably recorded 11 goals and assists in the league last season, as well as providing 11 big chances, while Fellow, meanwhile, has created just two 'big chances' since returning to the first-team fold this summer – having failed to score and bagged just two assists in League Two with Crawley Town in 2022/23.

Even if only a loan deal was possible, the £3m-rated gem could help temporarily plug a gaping hole in West Brom's forward line, buying Corberan time until next summer.

The midfielder opened the scoring in Bilbao before Alexia Putellas put the gloss on a memorable victory over the eight-time European champions

Barcelona made history in numerous ways on Saturday when they beat Lyon 2-0 to win a third Women's Champions League title. It capped an historic first quadruple for the women's team, saw them defend a European crown for the first time and took them third all-time in the list of UWCL winners, behind only Lyon and Frankfurt. It also gave Jonatan Giraldez, set to leave his role as coach to take charge of the Washington Spirit, the perfect farewell.

It was a result that took a lot of grit, hard work and concentration, because this was an incredibly even match. The first half was very tight, with half-chances for both teams, making it impossible at the break to predict whose name would be etched on the trophy come full-time. However, things changed just after the hour, when a sprinkle of Aitana Bonmati magic allowed her to burst into the box and, via a deflection off a super unlucky Vanessa Gilles, break the deadlock.

From there, Barca assumed control and they were never going to let go. Lyon threw everything at them but to no avail, the second goal in the match scored by the other Ballon d'Or winner in the Catalans' squad, two-time recipient Alexia Putellas, who came off the bench in stoppage-time and produced a simply world-class strike to put the result beyond doubt.

GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from San Mames…

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  WINNER: Aitana Bonmati

  Is it a stretch to say Bonmati's second Ballon d'Or is in the post? The midfielder shone brightest again on Saturday as Barcelona triumphed at San Mames to be crowned European champions, and a performance like that, on the biggest stage club football has to offer, means it feels incredibly likely that she will again be honoured by later this year.

  That's before we get to the Olympics this summer, too, where Bonmati will be central to Spain's quest to follow up their Women's World Cup triumph with a gold medal. With that in mind, something quite incredible would need to happen for anyone to pip her to that Ballon d'Or.

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• LOSER: Sonia Bompastor

  That this was Bompastor's final game in charge of Lyon was disappointing. The 43-year-old has had three wonderful seasons in the dugout at the club for whom she shone as a player, winning seven trophies in that time, including the Champions League in 2022.

  Before her widely-reported move to Chelsea is likely to be revealed in the coming days, it would've been a wonderful high to go out on had she made that total eight and added another European crown, then, and Lyon were well in this incredibly even game under Bonmati's game-changing strike.

  However, it was not to be and to go out on this note, one which doesn't represent the success of her time in charge, will hurt.

• WINNER: Caroline Graham Hansen

  One player who will certainly be in contention for that Ballon d'Or alongside Bonmati is Caroline Graham Hansen. The winger was electric throughout the encounter in Bilbao and constantly caused the Lyon defence problems, with most of Barca's best moments in the first half in particular coming through her.

  It was a performance typical of her simply incredible season, one which has produced numbers of sheer disbelief. In the league, for example, Graham Hansen has racked up 19 goals and 18 assists in just 23 games.

  But the Norway star has been playing at this level for years and, somehow, she's never even made the Ballon d'Or longlist. That is absolutely going to change in a few months' time – and she's sure to be quite high up the final rankings, too.

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• LOSER: Vanessa Gilles

  Gilles had a superb game on Saturday. She completed 29 of her 30 attempted passes, made a truly outstanding block to deny Mariona Caldentey in the first half and helped keep Salma Paralluelo extremely quiet. But unfortunately, it was off her that Bonmati's strike deflected to take it beyond Christiane Endler and give Barca an important lead in Bilbao.

  After that moment, the Catalans felt in real control and not at all like they would let it slip. There's no doubt, then, that it will hurt Gilles that this poor slice of luck fell her way on an otherwise strong night.

Celtic endured a difficult first half of the 2023/24 campaign and Brendan Rodgers will be hoping for more success during the second half of the season.

The Northern Irish head coach was brought in to replace Ange Postecoglou last summer after the Australian tactician opted to secure a move to the Premier League with Tottenham Hotspur.

He won the domestic treble with the Hoops last term and that was always going to be a tough act for Rodgers to follow, which proved to be the case when his side were knocked out of the League Cup by Kilmarnock in August.

The Bhoys also finished rock bottom of their Champions League group, with one win, and do not have European football to look forward to over the next five months.

However, the January transfer window opened for business at the start of last week and this has provided the club with a chance to bolster their squad in order to achieve success (trophies) between now and May.

Celtic transfer news – Mathias Kvistgaarden and Nicolas Kuhn

According to Football Insider, Celtic have opened talks with Danish side Brondby over a potential deal to sign Mathias Kvistgaarden this month.

The report claims that the Scottish giants are 'working' on a possible transfer for the talented young number nine, who has been in impressive form for his side.

Football Insider add that Rodgers is keen to improve his squad during the January transfer window and has identified centre-forward, central midfield, and left wing as the three positions that he would like to strengthen in.

However, the outlet does not reveal whether or not Brondby are open to cashing in on the superb youngster or how much they would demand for his services.

TipsBladet previously reported, though, that it could take a fee within the region of €10m (£8.6m) for Celtic to acquire his services in January.

The Hoops are also closing in on the signing of Rapid Wien forward Nicolas Kuhn in a deal reported to be worth around £2.8m to add to their options on the wing.

FootballScotland reporter Mark Hendry has claimed that the Scottish giants are waiting for Wien to land a replacement for the attacker before they are able to press ahead and finalise the move. He is expected to be in Glasgow next week to officially complete his switch to Parkhead.

Rodgers could now land a lethal partner for Kuhn by securing a deal to bring Kvistgaarden to the club alongside him ahead of the second half of the campaign.

Nicolas Kuhn's season in numbers

The £2.8m-rated whiz is a terrific creative threat who has the quality to consistently unlock opposition defences with his passing and crossing.

He has been in terrific form in the Austrian top-flight for Wien this season and Celtic will be hoping that he is able to translate his performances over to Scottish football in the months and years to come.

As you can see in the table above, Rodgers' current set of wide options for the right flank – with Luis Palma locking down the left side as his own – are not outstanding from a creative perspective.

Whereas, Kuhn has caught the eye with five assists, 11 'big chances' created, and 1.8 key passes per game across 16 Bundesliga appearances this term. He has also produced one goal and two assists in three cup matches for Wien.

This shows that the 24-year-old attacker, who has also completed 3.1 dribbles per match in the league, is able to create high-quality opportunities on a regular basis from the right flank.

The soon-to-be Hoops forward scored 24 goals in 35 appearances for RB Leipzig at U17 level during his youth career and Rodgers could look to unearth his scoring potential, which has not shone through in the first-team at Wien as of yet – with seven goals in 51 outings.

The statistics that show why Celtic should sign Kvistgaarden

Celtic could now land a lethal partner for Kuhn in the final third by securing a deal to sign Kvistgaarden from Brondby before the end of the month.

The 21-year-old whiz has been in fantastic form for the Danish outfit since the start of the Superligaen Championship Round towards the end of last season.

Since the start of that round, the Denmark U21 international has plundered an eye-catching 13 goals and 11 assists in 30 appearances in all competitions, which included six goals and four assists in nine outings in the Championship Round.

Talent scout Jacek Kulig hailed the talented forward as being "on fire" earlier this season, and it is not hard to see why when you look at his aforementioned statistics over the last eight months or so.

As you can see in the table above, the Hoops target showcased his potential at youth level and is now starting to show off his quality in senior football.

He has the ability to chip in with goals and assists at an impressive rate and still has plenty of time left to develop and improve at the age of 21, which means that Celtic could sign him to make an immediate impact whilst also being a long-term project.

Kvistgaarden could be a lethal partner for Kuhn to link up with at Parkhead as they could help to get the best out of each other this season, and in future seasons.

The Danish ace has a goalscoring record that suggests he has the finishing skills to make the most of the winger's creativity, whilst the Brondby star has also displayed an eye for a pass with 11 assists in his last 30 games and could, therefore, get Kuhn back on the goal trail.

These aforementioned statistics show why Rodgers must push for the club to get deals over the line for both players before the end of the window, as they could add more firepower to his attacking options.

Everything you need to know about the new Chivas kits for the 2024-25 season.

Founded in 1906 and known for only featuring Mexican-born players, Chivas are one of the most successful clubs in Mexico, having won 12 Liga MX titles, seven Campeón de Campeones and four Copa MX championships.

El Rebaño Sagrado's most recent Liga MX and Copa MX titles were won in 2017, while led by Matias Almeyda.

Chivas have had several kit manufacturers over the years, including Adidas, and Reebok, but Puma has been their official kit supplier since 2016 and may continue its partnership through the 2024-25 season as well.

So, what will Chivas be wearing in the 2024-25 season? GOAL brings you everything we know so far, including leaks, rumours, where to buy, prices and more.

• PUMA
  

  Chivas 2024-25 home kit, release date & price

  Puma released the new Chivas 2024-25 home kit on June 7, 2024. Fans can get their hands on the higher-quality 'authentic' version for $140 and the stadium version for $95 in adult sizes.

  Chivas' home kit typically consists of red and white vertical stripes with white shorts and socks. This famous stripe makes Chivas instantly recognisable on the world stage.

  And the Puma Chivas 2024–25 home football shirt keeps the tradition of red and white striped design going. The navy blue on the collar and cuffs gives it a subtle flex, or, better yet, a little wink to sophistication.

  Caliente will continue to be the main sponsor on the front, with a larger MG Motor chest logo without the brand's actual name.

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• PUMA
  

  Club America 2024-25 away kit, release date & price

  The 2023-24 away football shirt was white and featured traditional colors with red horizontal stripes on the upper part and thicker blue blocks on the lower part.

  Details relating to Chivas away jersey for the 2024-25 season remain unclear at this stage, with Puma yet to have officially released any information about appearance, release date and cost.

  Regarding pricing, the 2024-25 away kit is expected to retail at $100 for a standard adult shirt.

• Chivas 2024-25 third kit, release date & price

  There has not been much talk or any concrete leaks about the new Chivas 2024-25 third kit.

  The 2023-24 third shirt edition was inspired by the agaves. It combined a dark green base with silver logos and a modern graphic design. The graphic replicated the look of agaves from Jalisco, Mexico.

  Agaves are a group of succulent plants belonging to the Agavoideae subfamily. They are renowned for their role in the production of tequila, a famous distilled spirit.

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  Chivas 2024-25 goalkeeper kit, release date & price

  It is unclear as yet how the Chivas goalie kit would look like in 2024-25, but if last season's gear is anything to go by, a green Puma top could be among the options at hand.