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West Ham, in out of the ordinary fashion, have actually been one of the busier Premier League sides so far this window as they look to try and salvage anything from this increasingly doomed season.

Their crushing 2-1 defeat at home to Nottingham Forest on Tuesday night has left them even more stranded in the bottom three with Nuno Espírito Santo’s future looking very uncertain.

Nevertheless, it’s never over until the fat lady sings, and West Ham’s business so far this month suggests they’re desperate to rescue their campaign.

The first order of business was to complete a surprise double-striker deal for Pablo Felipe and Taty Castellanos, who arrived from Gil Vicente and Lazio respectively for a combined fee of around £47 million.

It remains to be seen whether the centre-forward duo will be enough to keep West Ham afloat with seven points now separating them from safety, but the Hammers apparently aren’t done there.

According to some insiders, West Ham also want to splash the cash on a centre-back, a winger and a new goalkeeper in addition to the two new strikers they’ve already brought in.

Between the sticks, only one name has dominated the headlines — Al-Nassr’s Bento.

The Brazilian, who’s made just one Saudi Pro League appearance all season, is firmly behind Saudi international keeper Nawaf Al-Aqidi in the pecking order.

This has alerted interested clubs to the prospect of tempting the 26-year-old away from the Middle East this month, and West Ham are chief among them.

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According to Fabrizio Romano and other reliable media sources, West Ham are currently in talks over a deal for Bento, and a bid has already been made for the ex-Athletico Paranese star.

Romano didn’t go into too much detail in regard to the ins and outs of this offer, but Sky Italia reporter Gianluca Di Marzio has lifted the lid on some key aspects of West Ham’s bid.

Bento holds Tuesday exit talks as West Ham submit loan bid

Di Marzio writes that West Ham’s offer for Bento is a loan-to-buy worth around £4 million, and Bento held exit talks with Al-Nassr yesterday underlining his desire to leave this month.

However, it is also believed that the Irons are by no means the only club in the race for his signature.

Di Marzio also reports that Genoa have made an identical offer for the South American, and as things stand, the keeper actually prefers a move to Serie A over the Premier League.

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Because of this, West Ham are currently behind Daniele De Rossi’s side in pursuit of Bento, who wants a switch to Italy to showcase his very best ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

His situation at Al-Nassr is very intriguing when you factor in how he was basically undroppable in his debut campaign.

Bento played all but one of Al-Nassr’s games in all competitions last season, starting a seismic 49 matches and featuring over 4,410 minutes.

Still pretty young in goalkeeping years, Bento left Brazil in 2024 with huge potential, but it now appears West Ham have a fight on their hands to sign the £102,000-per-week ace before deadline day.

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Aston Villa are now preparing a contract offer to sign a “revelation”, who is available for a bargain fee this month.

Villa remain title contenders after Nottingham Forest triumph

Villa are still just six points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal, following a 3-1 triumph against Nottingham Forest on Saturday, but despite his side’s top form, Unai Emery has hinted there could be some new additions to the squad, if the right deal is on the table.

Emery said: “We are alert. We signed Alysson and we are trying to understand how we can improve our squad, but of course intelligently, and as well, with the financial rules.

“But we are a team and my mentality is: always be alert in case we can improve something in the squad, to do it. We must be ready for different options we can have in the transfer window.”

Signing a new forward appears to be of particular interest, with the likes of Manchester City’s Omar Marmoush and Borussia Dortmund’s Julian Brandt recently being named as potential targets.

However, according to a report from Caught Offside, Aston Villa are also keen on strengthening at the opposite end of the pitch, and they are preparing a long-term contract for Celta Vigo’s Oscar Mingueza, who they are looking to sign on a deal until 2030.

Mingueza will be available for the bargain fee of just €8m – €10m (£7m – £9m) this month, with the Spanish club willing to sanction a departure for a low price, given that his contract is set to expire at the end of the season.

There is no shortage of interest from the Premier League, with West Ham United and Newcastle United also named as potential suitors, and the defender’s versatility is of great appeal, as he is capable of playing at right-back, centre-back and in a back three.

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Posts ByEmilio Galantini "Revelation" Mingueza could challenge for Cash's starting spot

Matty Cash has been a reliable option for Emery this season, with the right-back impressing from an attacking point of view, amassing three goals and two assists in 19 Premier League outings, and most recently setting up John McGinn’s opening goal against Forest.

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The Celta vigo defender is able to make an impact going forward too, chipping in with four goals and six assists in La Liga last term, during which time he was lauded as a “revelation” by journalist Zach Lowy.

The former Barcelona man has also displayed his defensive attributes as of late, making a number of important contributions as his side triumphed 4-1 against Valencia last time out.

Oscar Mingueza’s key statistics vs Valencia

Number completed

Tackles

4

Clearances

4

Duels won

6

Having averaged a SofaScore match rating of 7.05, Mingueza is Celta Vigo’s third-best performing player in La Liga this season, and he could be a smart addition for Villa for around just £9m, given their well-documented FFP issues.

Tottenham Hotspur are set to lose the player who scored the winner in the Europa League final last year, as Brennan Johnson inches closer towards the exit door.

Crystal Palace are reportedly confident that they will have him in the building for their clash with Newcastle United on Sunday, after they agreed a £35m fee with Spurs for the Wales international.

The £47.5m signing from Nottingham Forest is set to move on from North London after a return of 27 goals in 106 games, as shown in the graphic above, and the most memorable of those 27 strikes has to be his winner against Manchester United in the Europa League final.

Johnson, though, has only managed two goals and no assists in 16 Premier League appearances for Thomas Frank, per Sofascore, which may be why the Danish coach is willing to sanction this departure.

Spurs preparing offer for Premier League attacker

Spurs will need to be in the market for a replacement for the Welsh attacker, with his move to Palace days or hours away from completion, and they are reportedly looking at a Premier League forward.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

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According to talkSPORT, Tottenham Hotspur are interested in a deal to sign Manchester City winger Savinho in the January transfer window.

The report claims that the Lilywhites are preparing a fresh offer to bring the Brazil international to North London, after they failed to get a transfer over the line in the summer.

Manchester City rejected their attempts to sign Savinho in the summer in a deal that could have been worth around £69m, but this update states that Spurs hope Antoine Semenyo’s rumoured move to The Etihad will convince them to part ways with the Brazilian.

It adds that the left-footed star was keen on a move to Tottenham ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, which suggests that he would be open to a transfer this month.

Why Savinho would be an upgrade on Johnson for Spurs

If Spurs can get a deal over the line for the City attacker in the coming days or weeks, Frank could have an upgrade on Johnson at his disposal on the right flank.

Savinho does not offer the same threat as a goalscorer, with just five goals since the start of last season (Sofascore), but his all-round play on the flank suggests that he can contribute more to the team’s overall performance than Johnson was doing.

The chart above illustrates the gulf in quality between their performances at Premier League level in the 2024/25 campaign, as it shows that the Brazil international is significantly better in possession, particularly as a passer and a creator.

Savinho has registered 13 assists in all competitions since the start of last season, after recording ten in the 2023/24 campaign for Girona, and has the potential to be one of the most creative wide players in the entire division.

Most PL assists in 24/25

Player

Assists

Mo Salah

18

Jacob Murphy

12

Bukayo Saka

11

Bruno Fernandes

11

Morgan Rogers

11

Mikkel Damsgaard

11

Anthony Elanga

11

Savinho

10

Heung-min Son

10

Jarrod Bowen

10

Stats via Transfermarkt

As you can see in the table above, the left-footed wing wizard was one of the top creators in the Premier League last term, despite the fact that he only started 21 top-flight matches for the Cityzens.

Savinho has only started four times in the division this season, registering one assist, and Spurs could provide him with an opportunity to play more regular football, to allow his creativity and quality in possession to shine through once again.

Early on last season, the winger “sent (Riccardo) Calafiori for a hotdog”, per U23 scout Antonio Mango, in the build up to a beautiful assist for Erling Haaland against Arsenal.

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Unfortunately, the clip of Haaland’s goal cuts out the part where he skipped past Calafiori by the touchline, but you can see his sublime through ball in the post below.

This shows that he is capable of game-changing moments against top-quality opponents in the Premier League, and he did not only deliver assists against the lesser sides in a dominant City side last season.

Overall, the Brazilian winger’s all-round game, creativity, and scope to improve further at the age of 21 suggest that he would arrive as an upgrade on Johnson on the wing for Spurs if they can get a deal over the line this month.

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The ICC has received a copy of the match referee’s report on the Kanpur pitch and is now waiting for a response from the Indian board on the same. But the BCCI played down the issue of what Mickey Arthur, the South African coach, called a “poor cricket wicket”.”It’s a normal process where the match referee submits a pitch report to the ICC at the end of the match, a copy of which is also given to the board,” said Ratnakar Shetty, the board’s chief administrative officer.South Africa beat India by an innings and 90 runs in Ahmedabad on a bouncy track but lost the Kanpur Test by eight wickets after their batting line-up crumbled on an under-prepared surface. Both matches ended in three days.”This is not the first time that a match ended in three days,” Shetty said. “Definitely there were suggestions for some corrective measures but I don’t think it was a notice to the BCCI.”Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive, said a letter had been sent to the BCCI seeking an explanation on the pitch.

‘I take this assignment as an honour and a big challenge’ © ICC

Ray Mali, the Cricket South Africa president, has been appointed acting president of the International Cricket Council following the death of Percy Sonn in May. Mali will assume the role of acting president with immediate effect and in so doing he steps down as president of CSA, also with immediate effect.Mali, who has been president of CSA since 2003, will remain in office until the ICC’s annual conference in 2008. CSA was asked to make a nomination in line with a recommendation made by the ICC’s Governance Review Committee (GRC) after its meeting in Cape Town on June 1.”I take this assignment as an honour and a big challenge,” said Mali. “I feel lucky to be taking over at a time when the game is in such good shape. With the inaugural World Twenty20 event just round the corner, I want all South Africans to come out and show their support for it. I strongly believe that the use of this shortened format of cricket is one of the ways to take this game forward.”Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive, supported Mali’s appointment. “Ray is an experienced and skilled administrator, a man of calm assurance and someone who combines a deep love of the game with an understanding of how best to secure its well-being.”

Dinanath Ramnarine prefers to wait and watch © Trinidad & Tobago Express

The West Indies Players Association (WIPA) have accused the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) of once more acting in bad faith by failing to have in place required retainer contracts (RCs) for players of the West Indies. In the view of WIPA this is a most “disappointing development” since, as reliably learnt yesterday, there have been frequent reminders by the Association to the WICB’s management.Ken Gordon, President of the WICB, was unavailable for comment either at home or at the Board’s office in Port-of-Spain. He is reported to be attending the football World Cup in Germany. But reached by phone in St Lucia, where he is attending the second test between West Indies and India, Dinanath Ramnarine, WIPA’s president and chief executive officer, confirmed that the players were “still, most regrettably and unnecessarily”, without retainer match or tour contracts.Ramnarine said that at this stage he preferred not to “deal with the problem in any detail” until the WICB has had the opportunity to give a response to WIPA’s “latest reminder to honour commitments we had accepted in good faith…commitments that are yet to be realised to the players who are making commendable efforts on the field, as shown against Zimbabwe and now in the duel with India”.

For some time, rumours have been circulating that all is not well within Team USA, and that the squad was not a happy place to be during the recent Champions Trophy in England.The man at the eye of the storm is Imran Awan, a fast bowler, who was replaced shortly after the USA arrived in the UK. The press release at the time cited “special circumstances” rather than injury as the reason for his early return home.Various reports have been circulating as to the circumstances which led to his replacement, most of them based on unsubstantiated rumour. But there does appear to have been a row of some kind when the squad were in Jamaica ahead of the tournament.A source close to the USA board said that a decision was made to deal with the matter after the side returned home. But Charlie Javed, a board member and part of the official tour party, insisted that the incident be addressed there and then. Awan returned home, but no mention was made on the official USACA website and details remain sketchy. Probably because of the vagueness of information, rumours have abounded ever since.The USACA are known to be concerned with the entire process and has said that it will look into all allegations, however spurious they might seem. But an unnamed official added that this was a complicated and sensitive issue, and would have to be handled with appropriate delicacy.At a time when the future of cricket in the USA is under the spotlight, this distraction is unwelcome and needs to be put to bed as soon, and as transparently, as possible.

Tim Lamb: bowing out in September© Getty Images

Tim Lamb, the chief executive of the England & Wales Cricket Board, has announced that he is standing down. He will be leaving Lord’s in September, after eight years in the job.His position had been weakened by the continuing confusion over England’s planned tour of Zimbabwe later this year, and there had been signs that he had lost the support of the counties who make up the ECB. There had been intense media speculation since a story in Tuesday’s Daily Mail which stated that he would be leaving.Lamb, 51, said today: “I feel that after nearly eight years in the role I have probably taken the ECB as far as I can. As the organisation moves into the next phase of its development with a revised strategic plan and new challenges to face, it’s time to move on and hand over the reins to someone else.”I have been privileged to be the first chief executive of ECB following its creation as the single national governing body for cricket in England and Wales back in January 1997, and I am very proud of the Board’s many and varied achievements since that time. I believe that cricket as a sport has a new vibrancy about it and has taken some significant steps forward at all levels in recent years. I hope that’s the generally held view among those who follow and support the game.”Looking back on his years in charge, Lamb reflected: “It’s a high-intensity role that has demanded my total focus and commitment for a considerable period of time now. Sometimes, if you’re not careful, the job can almost take over your life completely, and inevitably there have been sacrifices that have needed to be made from both a personal and a family point of view.”I still feel that I have plenty to offer, but I think now is the time to stand aside before I risk losing any of my motivation or enthusiasm. There are some important tasks to complete over the next four months, including the delivery of a world-class ICC Champions Trophy tournament on behalf of the international community in September. Then I shall feel ready to move on and let others build on what has been started.”David Morgan, the ECB chairman, added: “It has been a privilege to work with Tim in the establishment and subsequent development of the single governing body for cricket in England and Wales, and he will also be missed by those in the international cricket community where he has performed with distinction over the last decade.”

The Nine Network will broadcast live Australia’s matches in the SuperSix series of the 2003 Cricket World Cup.The Nine Network will also screen both World Cup semi-finals live onTuesday, March 18 from 7.00pm and on Thursday, March 20 from 11.30pm, aswell as the World Cup Final on Sunday, March 23 from 7.00pm.Times shown for Sydney and Melbourne. Please check your local guide.Friday, March 7: 7.00pm to 2.45am – Australia v Sri LankaSaturday, March 8: 11.40pm to 2.45am – Zimbabwe v New Zealand (secondsession only)Tuesday, March 11: 7.00pm to 2.45am – Australia v New ZealandFriday, March 14: 11.40pm to 2.45am – India v New Zealand (secondsession only)Saturday, March 15: 11.15pm to 7.15am – Australia v KenyaTuesday, March 18: 7.00pm to 2.45am – First Semi-finalThursday, March 20: 11.30pm to 7.15am – Second Semi-finalSunday, March 23: 7.00pm to 2.45am – World Cup Final

Yorkshire had to settle for 10 points from a draw as the weather ruined the prospect of a good finish against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road.The visitors needed 243 for victory going into the final day’s play, and had reached 10-1 from 7.4 overs when rain halted proceedings at 11.35am.Conditions failed to improve, and the match was duly abandoned after an early tea at 3.30pm.The Northants spinners, Jason Brown and Graeme Swann, were expected to find some last-day assistance in the pitch, but it was the seamers who enjoyed themselves at the start.Paul Taylor and Michael Strong were both able to swing the new ball under heavy, overcast skies, and Taylor struck an early blow when he trapped Matthew Wood leg-before with 2 on the board.Scott Richardson and Michael Lumb were at the crease when the rain started, and despite the draw Yorkshire are still 33 points clear of their nearest challengers Somerset at the top of Division One.For their part, Northants are still without a Championship win this season as they battle to avoid relegation.