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There has been a lot of talk about Odsonne Edouard’s potential exit from Celtic in the ongoing summer transfer window. Of course, the young forward is an extremely hot property on the market and it doesn’t surprise that there is essentially a queue building for his signature.

All of this has led to countless speculation about his immediate future but Kris Commons has offered his insight into the whole matter, potentially calming down the nerves of many Hoops fans in the process.

Speaking in his Scottish Daily Mail column (via Daily Record), the former Celtic playmaker said the following: “For me, there’s absolutely no chance that Celtic will even contemplate selling their star striker at this late juncture. That ship has sailed. The season is already underway. If they were of a mind to cash-in on Edouard, they’d have done it six weeks ago to give themselves time to find a suitable replacement.”

He goes on to mention how the signing of Albian Ajeti changes nothing in that respect and that he doesn’t believe in the rumour that Edouard’s future at the club depends on the team’s efforts to reach the group stage of the Champions League.

Of course, the France U21 star has been linked with various Premier League heavy-hitters including Arsenal, Leicester and Everton. However, if Commons is to be believed, that ship has already sailed.

As for Ajeti, it’s unlikely that Neil Lennon wants to replace such a prolific young forward with someone who couldn’t establish himself at West Ham United.

Verdict

If this opinion ends up being true, Celtic will have received a huge boost for the ongoing season. Of course, Edouard could still leave in the near future but Celtic will have to cross that bridge when they get there.

For now, all that matters is that he stays in the Scottish Premier League for the time being.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

West Bromwich Albion are flying high in the Championship this season as they look like one of the firm favourites for automatic promotion.

The Baggies have lost just once all season, to Leeds United, who they still remain in front of. It seems like no one can stop them under the stewardship of Slaven Bilic.

They have been rather fortunate with injuries so far this campaign too. None of their lethal frontline of Matheus Pereira, Grady Diangana or Matty Phillips have faced an extended period on the sidelines as they have all featured in 18 of their 20 league outings.

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It’s the same in defence where the trio of Sam Johnstone, Kyle Bartley and Semi Ajayi have started every match.

However, left-back Kieran Gibbs has had his fair share of troubles with him pulling up last time out. His frustrations were clear to see as he slapped the turf in anger soon after going down unchallenged.

The £5.4m-rated (Transfermarkt) ace has only managed to play eight times at an average of 72 minutes per game, which just isn’t good enough for a player that is the fourth-highest paid in the squad at £20k-per-week.

Gibbs isn’t getting any younger at 30 years of age, and these persistent injury problems hardly help his cause going forward.

Albion are currently stacked in the full-back position with Conor Townsend and Nathan Ferguson being able to play on the left-hand side, even if the latter leaves, Bilic could dip into the academy once again or look to pull off another masterstroke in the transfer market.

The former Arsenal man isn’t an indispensable member of the squad, and that must be considered if he’s not playing enough to warrant such wages.

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In other news, West Brom’s win over Swansea City last weekend showed why history will not be repeating itself at the Hawthorns.

Jose Mourinho is determined to bring Arkadisuz Milik to Tottenham Hotspur this summer, no matter the cost.

According to the Daily Mail, Tottenham are prepared to send Lucas Moura in the other direction to try and persuade Napoli to part ways with the striker in the summer.

Mourinho is keen to find a backup for Harry Kane and has identified Milik as a suitable candidate. Spurs believe that the Polish international could be the perfect replacement if Kane leaves north London in the near future.

Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis admires Moura and tried to sign him last year, only to find that his request was blocked by former boss Mauricio Pochettino.

Despite his hat-trick heroics in the Champions League in 2019, Moura has struggled for Spurs this season, as he last scored for the club back in early February. He was the subject of major controversy after VAR disallowed Harry Kane’s equaliser in the defeat to Sheffield United as the ball was judged to have brushed his arm.

Milik’s contract is set to expire next year and he does not intend to renew it anytime soon. The Pole has often been compared to Robert Lewandowski, although it is fair to say he hasn’t quite hit the same heights as his esteemed compatriot as of yet, with the Bayern Munich striker netting an astounding 407 goals in 586 club career appearances.

Nevertheless, Milik has still scored 10 goals in 20 games in Serie A this season, taking three shots per game, with a passing accuracy rate of 82.9% (via WhoScored).

Spurs’ offer for Milik may not be enough as his agent Vincenzo Morabito recently played down talks of the Poland international moving to north London in the summer. Moreover, De Laurentiis currently values the Serie A star at €50m (£45m), whereas Moura’s valuation is priced at £28m by Transfermarkt.

Needless to say, Daniel Levy will likely have to splash the cash at some point as negotiations continue, amid interest from Atletico Madrid and Juventus. Whether he will be willing to spend so far above Milik’s apparent market valuation is another matter.

Tottenham fans, do you think Daniel Levy should sign Milik in the summer? Let us know in the comments below!

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Dean Smith’s decision to move the Aston Villa captain onto the wing could help Conor Hourihane rise to prominence in the Premier League.

On the chalkboard

Hourihane was a key player in the Villa side that got promoted from the Championship last season, making 35 starts and 11 substitute appearances throughout the season and play-offs, scoring eight goals and assisting another 12.

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However, with Douglas Luiz and Marvelous Nakamba adding further competition for Hourihane, alongside John McGinn and Grealish, it was always going to be a struggle for him to get consistent minutes in the Premier League.

And that has proved to be the case, with the Republic of Ireland international starting just one of the first six games this campaign, being left on the bench for three of those.

Getting more game time

However, things have been looking up for the 28-year-old, as he has made four starts in the team’s last seven matches.

This upturn in game time for him directly coincides with Smith’s decision to move Grealish to the left wing, where he has stayed since the Burnley draw – that was the first of Hourihane’s starts after his period of obscurity.

Hourihane has shown that this can pay dividends for the team, as was the case on Monday against Newcastle United, with the midfielder getting a goal and assist, as well as completing 98% of his passes.

Another important aspect of this is that Grealish has not suffered from the move, as the club captain has managed two goals and two assists in the five games he has played out wide – Smith may have made a masterstroke with this tactical switch.

In other news, Grealish has received a message of support from a fellow English talent.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Injury News series, which considers the impact of the latest updates on players’ fitness.

Allan Saint-Maximin has been one of Newcastle’s most exciting players this season and his injury creates a big headache for Steve Bruce.

What’s the latest?

The tricky winger left St. James’ Park on crutches following his substitution in the 2-1 victory over Southampton, raising fears that he could face a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Those fears have been realised somewhat through the news that he faces a month out after suffering a hamstring injury, though the Magpies’ fans and management alike will be relieved that it isn’t worse.

He is likely to miss seven games across a busy festive period, including matches against Manchester United, Leicester and Everton, with the clash against Wolves on the 11th of January perhaps targeted as a possible return date.

A football legend: Can you get over 80% on this Gazza quiz? Find out now…

Challenge for Bruce

While Newcastle are on a good run of form, many of the matches won have been closely-fought, narrow victories, and without a flair player like Saint-Maximin to unsettle the defence it is possible that those points would not have been won.

The Frenchman was really coming into form with an assist against Bournemouth and a headed goal against Sheffield United, which proved his quality in the attacking final third.

The Magpies have had to rely on goals from defenders and set-pieces for much of this campaign and although that means they have other sources of goals, Bruce will have to rely on the likes of Christian Atsu and Miguel Almiron to step up and prove their worth in the 22-year-old’s absence.

Bruce now faces his toughest test yet but he could combat it by varying his style a little and perhaps playing two up-front, particularly against Burnley where the aerial threat of Joelinton and Andy Carroll could be the best method to overcome the Clarets’ physical defence.

Those two have averaged 5.4 and 4.2 aerial duels won per game this season, and if Bruce can get Shelvey into more attacking areas on a regular basis then he should find some joy, as the 27-year-old has five goals and achieved an average of 0.8 crosses per game.

If the manager can continue to find a winning formula then it is a testament to the system Bruce has put in place as well as the belief he has installed in his players. In theory, Newcastle should struggle without a player who has managed 4.5 dribbles per game.

Bruce can call upon Atsu who is a like-for-like replacement, and his stats this season suggest that losing Saint-Maximin may not be too much of a worry after all.

It was supposed to be Pep vs Jose. That was the rivalry that we all expected to ignite the Premier League when both managers took the reins at their respective Manchester clubs back in the summer of 2016. With their caustic clashing of ideologies and verbal skirmishes still simmering from their time in Spain we duly sat back and awaited the fireworks.

That didn’t quite go to plan of course with Mourinho’s time at Old Trafford proving to be something of a damp squib and, while Guardiola was transforming Manchester City into a brilliant and dominant conception, the Portuguese scowler concentrated his acerbic ire on his board and the media.

If this was – and remains – a missed opportunity we didn’t have long to mourn what might have been, though, because flying up on the rails was Liverpool.

Jurgen Klopp and the Reds fit the bill nicely in offering up an epic duopoly with City to rival that of Arsenal and Manchester United back in the day, or Chelsea and Manchester United in the 2000s or indeed pretty much any side that rose to prominence during the long reign of Sir Alex Ferguson.

In creating a modern, box-office rivalry the supporters have certainly played their part with antagonism resplendent across social media, while on the pitch the two teams have been breath-taking and formidable. Since the start of last season they have accrued a combined 261 points from a possible 294 to this point – a staggering feat – and more pertinent still in that timeframe Manchester City and Liverpool have won every single trophy – both domestic and abroad – that at least one of them have been involved in.

As for the respective managers, a resumption of their competition in Germany has engrossed one and all with particular fascination deriving from their different approaches to the game. One is heavy metal, the other jazz.

Unquestionably Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola are two of the most charismatic and captivating men to prowl a Premier League touchline. Unquestionably Liverpool v Manchester City or vice versa is now the biggest game in English football. In fact it could be said that it’s missing only one key element, and with that it could truly be elevated into the pantheon of all-time unmissable rivalries: mind games.

Remember them? They were all the rage back around the turn of the century. A manager would walk into a press conference, play some psychological chess at the expense of an opposition coach. So the theory went, when the coded barb reached said opposition coach he would be so crippled with insecurity his subsequent team-talk that Saturday would be shoddy and substandard.

His team would then go on to lose and we would all champion the first manager as a Machiavellian genius; a Mr Miyagi-type who could probably shape-shift in his spare time so other-worldly was he. The ‘victim’ would be cast as a chump, outwitted in the public eye.

It was all utter nonsense of course but we needed something to entertain us before broadband. In reality it was always, without fail, just Ferguson or Mourinho or Wenger being petty or petulant or indulging in a moan, and we would all project onto it a deeper meaning and an impact that simply didn’t exist.

“Club X gets all the breaks. It’s not fair,” complains Manager Y, like an underdeveloped brat. Club X then fail to win the title a few months later. “Manager Y is a genius,” we all exclaim. “He has subtly influenced the referees into thinking twice about giving Club X free-kicks and more so has parachuted doubt into the opposition dressing room.”

It was a different time. We weren’t very bright back then.

It all began famously in 1996 when Sir Alex Ferguson suggested that Nottingham Forest would not try as hard against Newcastle United as they did against his own side and with both Uniteds locked into the closing stages of a fiercely contested title race this prompted Kevin Keegan to emotionally unravel live on air.

In hindsight though it is perfectly clear that Keegan is a brittle man at the best of times and here he was under extreme duress. Frankly, Ferguson could have saved himself a few words and simply said, “Boo. Pass it on” to have a similar effect.

Later, with Liverpool threatening to reclaim their perch in 2009 Ferguson had a whine or three about perceived favouritism from the authorities and this directly led to Rafa Bentiez’s ‘dossier rant’ and once again Ferguson was heralded as a mind games master thinking two steps ahead.

Yet he could have no way of knowing what would transpire. He was simply having a moan just like he always had a moan when things were not going exactly his way.

In between these heightened examples were a multitude of jibes and whines – let’s not forget Mourinho disgracefully calling Wenger a ‘voyeur’ – from a multitude of managers under pressure and all were legitimised by erroneously being considered as mental manipulation.

Thankfully, in the 18 months or so in which we have seen Liverpool emerge as a redoubtable rival to Manchester City we have seen no evidence of such silliness and this despite the fact that Klopp and Guardiola are asked about the other on an almost daily basis.

There is a healthy mutual respect there and respect too for the fans who now recognise ‘mind games’ for what they really are: an insult to our collective intelligence.

That is until last week when Pep Guardiola – peeved at discovering that his rivals had once again scored a late winner – petulantly described £34m Liverpool star Sadio Mane as a diver. It was uncharacteristic of the Catalan, that needs saying, but beyond that there is little excuse for his comment.

Because on no level do such words lead to anything positive. They make him – and by extension City – appear bitter, thus giving Liverpool an open goal to the moral high ground. They have taken to that high ground this week in their defence of the winger, as they are entitled to do. It has also allowed them to come across as the good guys.

With City heading to Anfield this weekend the timing too was so blatant in its intentions that a five day old kitten could see through it. Is the referee now going to be hard-line on the Senegalese attacker? Or will he be determined not to look swayed by a pretty rubbish attempt to get into his head? The latter is more likely.

More than all this though is that Guardiola’s petty and unnecessary words was a throw-back to an era when we knew little better. We do now. We’ve evolved. We’ve grown up.

Until the Manchester City boss sharpened his claws ‘mind games’ had been consigned to a naïve past. That’s where they should stay.