Hibernian manager Nick Montgomery revealed he is aiming to find more new recruits like Myziane Maolida who have the “hunger” to get their career back on track as he runs the rule over former Tottenham midfielder Luke Amos.
The Easter Road manager was thrilled to land Maolida on loan from Hertha Berlin until the end of the season, with the 24-year-old attacker having been the subject of an £8million transfer from Lyon to Nice in 2018 and then another multi-million switch to the German capital in 2021.
The French-born Comoros international has lost his way in recent seasons but Montgomery feels the Hibees can benefit from the “massively talented” loanee’s desire to get back on track.
“Myziane’s had some big-money moves but we had honest conversations before the loan happened and he probably feels everything was given to him a little bit early,” explained the Hibs boss.
“Maybe at times he didn’t really grasp the opportunity. Now he’s really hungry to get his career back on track and for us to be able to attract a player like that speaks volumes for the club. I’m really excited about the impact he can make.
“A perfect scenario is a player that wants to prove people wrong. The reality is we don’t get a player of his ability on the budget we have unless he really wants to play for the club.
“He had a lot of options to go to England, France and Belgium but I spoke to him and explained what I wanted from him and I think he just has to get enjoying his football again.
“I think it’s really powerful to bring a player in who is a perfect age at 24 years old and wants to prove people wrong and get his career back on track.
“I knew this window was going to be tight (budget-wise) and that we would have to be creative to bring players like Myziane. He’s a one-off situation but we need to keep looking for situations like that.”
Maolida is unlikely to be involved in Saturday’s Scottish Gas Scottish Cup fourth-round tie away to cinch League Two strugglers Forfar as he is still awaiting his work permit.
Another player on Hibs’ radar who is looking to resurrect their career is 26-year-old former Tottenham midfielder Amos, who has been without a club since leaving QPR at the end of the season.
“You don’t play 150-plus games in the English Championship unless you’re a good player,” said Montgomery.
“He’s had a couple of injuries and found himself not signing for anybody at the start of the season but he’s got himself back fit and he’s been training with Tottenham Under-23s.
“We were going to take him to Dubai (for their recent warm-weather training camp) but it was probably a little bit too soon so he’s up training with us just now.
“He’s a very good player and it’s very rare that you have a player of that quality who is looking for a platform to get back on track so we’ll have a look and see how that one goes.”
Al-Nassr 1-2 Al-Qadsiah: Aubameyang winner ends hosts' unbeaten run
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hit the winner as Al-Qadsiah inflicted a 2-1 defeat on Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League on Friday to end their 21-match unbeaten run.
Cristiano Ronaldo's seventh league goal of the season put Al-Nassr ahead, but Al-Qadsiah replied swiftly through Julian Quinones before Aubameyang struck the decisive blow.
The hosts drew first blood in the 32nd minute when Ronaldo slotted home after Al-Qadsiah goalkeeper Koen Casteels had spilled a routine catch from Talisca's cross.
However, Al-Nassr's joy was short-lived when Quinones brought down Turki Al Ammar's delivery five minutes later, with the Mexcio winger firing past Bento to level the scores.
Quinones also played a part in the winning goal after brilliantly turning the ball back across goal from Nahitan Nandez's search pass to tee up a simple finish for Aubameyang.
The result sees Al-Qadsiah move level on 22 points with third-placed Al-Nassr, with Al-Shabab also level with them.
Stefano Pioli's Al-Nassr are six points adrift of defending champions and leaders Al-Hilal, who also have a game in hand.
Arsenal handed another injury blow as White ruled out for 'months'
Mikel Arteta confirmed that Arsenal defender Ben White is facing "months" on the sidelines after sustaining a knee injury.
White had been dealing with several issues all season and has missed five games in all competitions for the Gunners already this term.
After struggling through until the November international break, the decision was taken for him to undergo surgery in order to finally address the ongoing problems.
It serves as a bitter blow for Arteta, with only Thomas Parety (13) making more interceptions than White (11) for Arsenal in the Premier League this campaign.
Though Arteta confirmed that the surgery was successful, White is set for a lengthy spell out of the team.
"It has been different kinds of struggles. It has never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision. He has not improved over the last few weeks, unfortunately," said Arteta.
"We know that Ben is going to push every boundary, but it got to the point where we have to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery.
"He agreed with that and it is going to keep him out for a few months."
Asked for a specific time frame, Arteta added: "We have to see how he reacts post-surgery. I don't expect it to be half a year, but I cannot tell you exactly."
It offers a concern for Arteta in the full-back area, with the Spaniard also revealing on Friday that Takehiro Tomiyasu is "going to be out as well for a bit".
There was, however, some positive injury news for the Gunners ahead of welcoming Nottingham Forest to the Emirates on Saturday.
After not featuring for England during the international break, Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice are expected to be fit to feature against Nuno Espirito Santo's side.
Leandro Trossard will also be available for Arteta despite picking up a hamstring injury during the international break with Belgium.
Defender Riccardo Calafiori is also in contention for Saturday's game after a month out with a knee problem.
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
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