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A number of Liverpool supporters have bemoaned an update on Divock Origi, as he allegedly only has six months remaining on his current deal.

The Belgian is an undoubted Reds legend, despite not always being a regular starter during his time at the club.

Origi has produced some of the most iconic moments of Jurgen Klopp’s reign, famously scoring twice against Barcelona in the Champions League in 2019, not to mention netting in the final win over Tottenham in the same year and of course bagging that infamous winner against Everton at Anfield.

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The 26-year-old has also been hugely influential in this season’s title race, most recently against Wolves earlier this month, but according to the Mirror‘s David Maddock [via Anfield Watch on Twitter], his contract expires next summer.

It is an update that seems to have taken some by surprise given that he signed a new deal in 2019, but Transfermarkt’s data also seems to support Maddock’s claim, noting his deal is to 2022 but with a performance-based option.

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Liverpool fans bemoan Origi update

These Liverpool fans reacted negatively to the update on Twitter.

“He deserves at least another 3 years”

Credit: @LFC_marti

“Really??? Thought it was like 2023 or 2024?”

Credit: @LewYNWA

“Wait what?”

Credit: @chasin_mo

“Christ I thought he signed a five year deal after the CL final”

Credit: @lfcj__

“Renew it please”

Credit: @AnfieldOpinion6

“Awww come on we’re suffering enough now without more bad news”

Credit: @seanbaillie91

In other news, some Liverpool fans are fuming at another rumour that has emerged. Read more here.

Tottenham Hotspur have been dealt yet another injury setback ahead of their Premier League clash with Watford on Saturday.

What’s the latest?

In recent comments cited by football.london, manager Antonio Conte revealed that winger Steven Bergwijn missed out on Spurs’ 1-1 draw with Southampton on Tuesday afternoon as the 24-year-old forward was suffering from a calf strain picked up in the 3-0 win over Crystal Palace last weekend.

The 52-year-old went on to state that, as a result of this knock, the Netherlands international looks as if he will remain sidelined for the visit of Watford on Saturday afternoon, as the player will need more time to recover before returning to first-team football.

When asked whether Bergwijn was injured for the Saints game, Conte said: “Yeah, yeah. During the game against Crystal Palace, he felt a problem in his calf. Yeah, he was injured. Together with [Giovanni] Lo Celso and [Cristian] Romero and [Ryan] Sessegnon.”

The Italian was then asked whether the winger would be back for Watford, to which he replied: “I don’t think so. He has a muscular problem and he needs to recover more time than 10 days or only a week.”

Conte will be livid

As we are well and truly in the thick of the busiest period of the Premier League calendar, with Spurs having at least six fixtures to play between now and the end of January – with the potential of more being scheduled due to earlier postponements – the news that Bergwijn will be unable to feature against Watford is sure to come as a huge blow to Conte, as well as leaving the manager livid.

Indeed, with the 52-year-old recently revealing that he considers the forward as a backup to Harry Kane – currently Tottenham’s only recognised centre-forward – something that is evidenced by Bergwijn replacing the 28-year-old at Selhurst Park last week, the Dutchman’s injury severely limits the Italian’s options should he wish to give the England captain a rest in the club’s upcoming games.

Furthermore, with the likes of Lo Celso, Romero and Sessegnon already in the Tottenham Hotspur treatment room, a fresh injury is the last thing Conte needs heading into 2022, as the former Inter Milan manager will need as many of his first-team squad fit and firing as possible if he is to have any chance of guiding Spurs to a top-four finish in the league this season.

In other news: “Serious chance”: Romano drops teasing Spurs transfer update that’ll have fans buzzing

Celtic are interested in a deal to bring Hannes Wolf to Parkhead in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by German publication Bild, who claim that Celtic, as well as Trabzonspor and Rapid Vienna, are keeping a very close eye on the situation of the Borussia Monchengladbach attacking midfielder ahead of a potential swoop in the winter market.

The report goes on to state that the 22-year-old is not currently used by Adi Hutter, as well as claiming that, despite having splashed €9.5m (£8m) in order to sign the Austrian from RB Leipzig this summer, the Bundesliga side are willing to sanction his departure in the January transfer window.

Postecoglou must move

While it is true that Wolf has not enjoyed the best of campaigns with Gladbach this season, the youngster nevertheless proved during his time with Red Bull Salzburg that he would make a fantastic addition to Ange Postecoglou’s options in attacking midfield ahead of the second half of the current campaign.

Indeed, over his 22 Austrian Bundesliga appearances – only 15 of which came as starts – back in 2018/19, the £13m-rated man scored a highly impressive eight goals, registered seven assists and created four big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of 1.1 key passes and taking 1.9 shots per game.

These returns saw the Austrian earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.92, efforts which, alongside the likes of Erling Braut Haaland and Takumi Minamino, saw his side clinch their league title at a canter.

The £27k-per-week forward also impressed in the Europa League that year, scoring one goal, providing three assists and creating four big chances over his 10 appearances in the competition, playing a crucial role in his side’s run to the round of 16.

As such, it is easy to see why Ralf Rangnick made a move to sign the 22-year-old for RB Leipzig, with the now-Manchester United manager stating of Wolf: “Hannes caught our attention due to his prominent development, which is reflected in his numerous national and international outings, in spite of his young age. His strengths make him a versatile option across the attacking midfield. He stole the show with [Amadou] Haidara in the Europa League [in 2018/19].”

As such, with winning the league title and going deep into European competition undoubtedly being two of the biggest objectives of Postecoglou’s tenure at Parkhead, something which Wolf is clearly capable of helping his side achieve, it would indeed appear highly advisable for the 56-year-old Hoops boss to do all he can to land the attacker in January – as he could be one of the final pieces to Postecoglou’s first-team puzzle in Glasgow.

In other news: Big blow: Celtic dealt huge injury setback ahead of Dundee Utd, Ange will be gutted

Leeds United correspondent Phil Hay has revealed that the club’s ‘intention’ is to act in the January window after the huge news of an injury to Kalvin Phillips.  

The Lowdown: Phillips’ surgery

Marcelo Bielsa’s squad has been impacted massively due to a number of injuries this season, with plenty of key players sidelined.

Phillips is one of the latest out after suffering a hamstring problem against Brentford earlier this month. Liam Cooper and Patrick Bamford also injured the same muscle in the 2-2 draw with the Bees, whereas Rodrigo is sidelined with a heel issue and Pascal Struijk with a foot problem.

News emerged on Monday that the holding midfielder has now had surgery to repair the issue but is expected to be out for at least two months as a result.

The Latest: Hay’s claim

Hay ran a Q&A on The Athletic prior to Leeds’ defeat to Manchester City on Tuesday.

He was asked for an update by one fan in regards to any January incomings, to which he said:

“The intention is there after the injury to Phillips. But it will depend on budget and available options. You know the drill.”

The Verdict: Good news…

A midfielder appears desperately needed at Elland Road following the injury to Phillips. Bielsa has just four midfielders on the books, two of which are injured after Jamie Shackleton hobbled off at the Etihad.

That leaves just Adam Forshaw and Mateusz Klich as his remaining options, although Stuart Dallas can provide cover when needed.

However, it is clear to see that the Whites would benefit from a midfield addition for the second half of the season, and it’s good to see that owner Andrea Radrizzani is ready to take action over the coming weeks, should the right deal appear.

In other news: Leeds now back in for summer target who is ‘like a beast’ – reliable journalist. 

Celtic picked up a huge result in the Europa League on Thursday night as they beat Ferencvaros 3-2 away from home.

Kyogo Furuhasi, Liel Abada and Jota scored for the Hoops as they picked up the three points, which leaves them third in the group with two matches left to play and guarantees them some form of European football after Christmas.

Ange Postecoglou’s side are one point behind Real Betis and four points off Bayer Leverkusen, with matches against both of them to come before the turn of the year.

The likes of David Turnbull, Abada, Furuhahsi and Jota may get the acclaim for scoring and setting up the crucial goals, but Celtic’s unsung hero in the match was holding midfielder Nir Bitton.

Celtic needed a solid base from which to build and the Israeli provided that by putting in a sublime performance in the middle of the park. He started in the number six role behind Callum McGregor and Turnbull and was able to perfectly anchor the midfield to allow the forwards to thrive in the final third.

Defensively, he was superb. As per SofaScore, he won nine of his 11 individual duels on the pitch (81.8%) whilst making three tackles and one block throughout the match. This shows that he was strong in his battle against Ferencvaros and did not allow himself to be bullied in midfield, which helped Celtic to control the game and limited the number of attacks that the opposition were able to build.

He also offered value on the ball. As per SofaScore, he completed 88% of his attempted passes, including two of his four longer pass attempts, and only gave possession away five times from 53 touches. He also had a 100% dribble success rate and was fouled three times, highlighting his ability to retain the ball under pressure and force the opposition into giving away a free-kick.

Therefore, Bitton was Postecoglou’s unsung hero against the Hungarian side. He provided the balance in midfield to allow Celtic to be at their best at both ends of the pitch, and the Australian head coach will surely be over the moon with the 30-year-old’s display. The manager will surely be hoping that Bitton can maintain this level of performance throughout the rest of the season, particularly in Europe.

AND in other news, Forget Jota & Kyogo: “Quality” Celtic gem who made five key passes ran the show for Ange…

Celtic target Fernando Henrique has followed the Hoops on Instagram, @about_celtic report.

The Lowdown: Henrique links

Ange Postecoglou appears to be on the lookout for midfield reinforcements in the winter window after relying heavily on Callum McGregor, David Turnbull and Tom Rogic when fit this season.

Michael Nicholson and co made contact with Gremio over a move for Henrique last month, with the 20-year-old strong with both feet and able to play in three different midfield roles.

Reports in recent days from Brazil, cited by The Daily Record, have suggested that a move to Parkhead for Henrique is ‘likely’, and it seems as if a possible Scotland switch is on the cards following the midfielder’s social media antics.

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The Latest: Instagram follow

Hoops fan page @about_celtic posted two pictures on Wednesday afternoon.

They shared an image of Henrique’s verified Instagram account, with Celtic now one of the 1,253 accounts he follows.

The Verdict: January move imminent?

This latest spot regarding the Brazilian midfielder appears to be pointing in the direction of a Scotland switch in the New Year, especially after the reports in Brazil shared by The Daily Record.

Celtic’s two midfield additions over the summer, Liam Shaw and James McCarthy, have both struggled to make the impact they would’ve hoped for in Glasgow, so should Henrique seal a move in January, hopefully, he’ll make an instant start.

However, he hasn’t featured in Gremio’s last 14 games, so on that basis, it could take him a while to get up to speed at Celtic Park, so perhaps the 20-year-old could be a long-term project for Postecoglou.

In other news: Injury woes continue for Ange as worries on ‘excellent’ Celtic beast emerge prior to semi-final. 

Despite currently being in 15th place in the Premier League table with just seven points from their opening eight league games of the season, Southampton have a fairly respectable defensive record in comparison to the clubs around them in the bottom half of the table with just ten goals conceded, fewer than the likes of Arsenal, Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur.

One player that has been a fairly regular figure for Southampton in that respect is defender Jan Bednarek, who has played 90 minutes in each of the club’s four previous Premier League games.

Southampton signed Bednarek back in the 2017 summer transfer window from Polish club Lech Poznan for a reported fee of £5m.

Since then, the 25-year-old, who has been described as an “important” player for Southampton by Ralph Hasenhuttl, has gone on to make a total of 123 appearances for the Saints across all competitions in which he has managed to chip in with three goals and four assists in the process.

This season in the Premier League has seen Bednarek rack up an average of 1.6 interceptions per game, two tackles per game, 3.6 clearances per game and win 62% of all duels he’s been involved in, showing how much of a defensive unit he has been for the club in recent weeks.

In terms of his market value, in August 2017 shortly after he joined the club, Transfermarkt had it listed as £4.5m, that was despite signing for £5m. However, now it stands at £22.5m, highlighting a significant rise since making his move to Southampton, which proves just how much he has developed and progressed with the Saints.

This also shows just how much of a good bargain buy the defender has been for the club and why their recruitment team deserve a lot of credit for getting him to the club at such a low price, in our view.

Moving forward, with fellow Saints defender Jack Stephens out injured for the next few weeks after picking up a serious knee injury during the club’s 0-0 draw against Manchester City earlier in the season, we can see Hasenhuttl sticking with Bednarek in his side for the time being while Stephens recovers, and perhaps even beyond that.

Looking even further down the line, given how Bednarek is still only 25 and has another few years left on his current contract at St. Mary’s that isn’t set to expire until 2025, we feel that Bednarek’s market value could increase even further if he stays at the club and plays regularly for the foreseeable future.

In other news: “Athletic” Saints prodigy is smashing it on loan, he could cause Ralph a big headache – opinion

West Ham United have been told exactly how much it’ll take to secure mooted transfer target Noa Lang in January…

What’s the word?

According to Belgian outlet Voetbal Belgie, the Irons will need to pay in the region of €40m (£34m) to land the Club Brugge attacker as they anticipate a bidding war ahead of the upcoming transfer window.

Premier League rivals Arsenal and Leeds United are also said to be keen, along with Serie A giants AC Milan and German outfit Borussia Monchengladbach.

A fee in the region of £34m would be a record in Belgium and the Jupiler Pro League club are in no position to sell as Lang is contracted until 2025.

Shades of Payet

It’s no wonder the Dutch winger has become hot property in recent months as he has continued his remarkable form for both club and country this season.

The 22-year-old, who stands at 5 foot 10, delivered 17 goals and 11 assists as Brugge clinched the Belgian title last term with a whopping 16-point margin, with Lang evidently playing a major role in the attack.

That form has extended into 2021/22, where he has already bagged four goals and provided five assists in 17 appearances, via Transfermarkt, including a ‘Man of the Match’ showing against French giants Paris Saint-Germain – a really encouraging sign to his true potential as he clinched the award over the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.

“Lang is without a doubt the best player in the league, I think. Pure class,” suggested Belgian football pundit Filip Joos explained to Extra Time. “His technique is not normal. Lang is constantly on the move, he glides across the field, he likes to dribble, but he will always play at the right time.”

The young dynamo, valued at £22.5m by Transfermarkt, has also been dubbed a “phenomenon” by journalist Peter Vandenbempt for his achievements in Belgium.

Now capped twice by the Netherlands, Lang’s career trajectory is only going to go up, and given everything mentioned above, he could well become the most exciting and biggest signing since Dimitri Payet at the London Stadium.

Evidently, the 22-year-old gem has the flair and skillset to replicate the Frenchman’s thrilling exploits at the Hammers. Lang likes to cut inside, with dribbling and passing two key attributes of his, as per WhoScored.

That only further suggests he could become the next Payet in east London.

With everything in mind, West Ham’s new head of recruitment Rob Newman must do all he can to land Lang for manager David Moyes.

AND in other news, Moyes may have another Antonio in West Ham’s “hard-working” 17 y/o who “loves to score”…

Arsenal fans will be extremely excited about the future of Folarin Balogun given his superb performances in Ligue 1 with Stade de Reims so far this season but Mikel Arteta could have another superstar waiting in the wings at London Colney.

Nikolaj Moller arrived at the Premier League leaders with a big reputation and will be hoping to make an impression in the first team in the coming years, having spent time away from the Gunners on loan in recent seasons.

Who is Nikolaj Moller?

The 20-year-old joined Arsenal from Malmo in October 2020 and was an instant hit with the U23s side, hitting seven goals and three assists in 18 appearances in the Premier League 2 in the 2020/21 campaign.

He was sent out on loan to FC Victoria Koln the following season, and while he failed to find the back of the net in ten appearances in Germany's third tier, he did score three times and assist once in just two appearances in the DFB Pokal.

The Sweden U20 international has spent time with FC Den Bosch in the Netherlands in each of the last two campaigns, notching a combined five goals and two assists in just 27 appearances, which suggests that he is not struggling to adapt to senior football.

Moller, who is described on Arsenal's website as "a towering striker with devastating finishing ability and strong link-up play", will draw natural comparisons with legendary Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, because of his style of play and 6 foot 4 stature.

Indeed, he has already been compared to the great Swede, with one of Moller's former youth coaches, Robin Asterhed, not only labelling him a "super talent" but suggesting "there are some similarities with a young Ibra."

The former Barcelona and Inter forward is still going strong at the age of 41 with AC Milan and boasts an incredible record of 493 goals and 202 assists in 819 club appearances across his career thus far.

He has also scored a phenomenal 62 goals in 121 appearances for his country and has won a plethora of awards across a glittering career that has spanned across Europe and America, with 32 club trophies under his belt.

Naturally, if Moller was able to reach anywhere near that level in his time with Arsenal, then he could prove to be a huge success at the Emirates, and fans will be hoping that they can finally possess their own Ibrahimovic, having famously failed to sign the striker when he was just 19.

With Balogun attracting interest from across Europe after hitting 17 goals in 25 Ligue 1 appearances so far this season, Arsenal may have to look towards Moller as their next young striker to take up the wonderkid mantle.

Celtic are currently sat in sixth place in the Scottish Premiership after eight games as the Hoops twiddle their thumbs ahead of a return to action next weekend following the second international break of the campaign.

The break could not have come at a worse time for the Hoops as their last match was their first win in three Premiership matches. Instead of having the chance to build some positive momentum, Ange Postecoglou has seen various members of his squad jet off across the globe.

One player who is away on international duty is Scotland midfielder David Turnbull. The former Motherwell man has been one of Postecoglou’s key players this season and is proving himself to be a quality option for the Hoops in the middle of the park.

Turnbull has been a phenomenal signing at Parkhead, having been brought to the club by Neil Lennon in the summer of 2020. He did not get off to the best of starts, though, as he began the 2020/21 campaign with one goal and two assists in 13 appearances, with eight of those games coming at Celtic.

This led to Transfermarkt valuing him at £1.62m in January 2021, less than the £2.7m Celtic reportedly paid Motherwell for his services six months earlier.

He was able to adapt to life in Glasgow, however, and enjoyed a terrific end to the campaign under Lennon as he finished on nine goals and eight assists for the Hoops in all competitions, having managed zero goals and two assists in his opening eight games.

The £7.4k-per-week wizard has carried that form over to the 2021/22 season with Ange Postecoglou in charge and the Australian already loves him. Turnbull has played 18 times in all competitions this term and produced six goals and three assists, starting all eight of Celtic’s Premiership matches.

Only Anthony Ralston, who has started six games, and Ryan Christie, who has since left the club, have averaged higher SofaScore ratings than Turnbull for Celtic in the Premiership. The attacking midfielder has averaged a sublime score of 7.60 across his eight starts, creating an eye-catching 2.8 chances per game for Postecoglou’s side whilst also scoring three times.

At the time of writing (11/10/21), Transfermarkt value Turnbull at £4.5m. This is a 177.7% increase from his value in January of this year, which shows that he has progressed immensely over the past ten months, now establishing himself as a favourite of Postecoglou’s.

Speaking about him in August, the Aussie said: “He has all the ingredients, physically, he works hard, great technique, good temperament.

“The challenge for David is not to put any limits on the player he can be and the levels he can reach.”

His game time this season shows that the Australian already feels that he can rely on the 22-year-old to churn out quality performances on a consistent basis. Managers love this in players as it means they can select them week-in-week-out without worrying about whether they will perform or not. Turnbull’s average rating proves that he has not let the manager down in that respect.

AND in other news, Celtic could solve big issue by signing “extraordinary” 19 y/o, he may be the next Lahm…