Sweden striker Alexander Isak's reputation continues to grow at Real Sociedad.

The 22-year-old has netted eight goals in all competitions this season after 17 strikes in LaLiga last term.

Isak is contracted with Sociedad until 2026, meaning they are under no pressure to cash him in.

However, there appears to be plenty of interest among clubs who want to test La Real's resolve to keep him.

TOP STORY – BLUES AND RED DEVILS ENTER ISAK RACE

Chelsea and Manchester United have both joined the race to sign Real Sociedad forward Alexander Isak, according to The Mirror.

Arsenal have been keen on the 22-year-old Sweden international, who has a £75million buyout clause in his contract.

United are said to view Isak as an ideal replacement for veteran forward Cristiano Ronaldo whose future at Old Trafford is unclear.

 

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Juventus are bullish that they can beat Tottenham in the race to sign Roma's Nicolo Zaniolo, claims La Gazzetta dello Sport. The Bianconeri view Zaniolo as a replacement for Paulo Dybala, whose contract is running down.

Manchester United and Liverpool have joined Real Madrid and Barcelona in keeping tabs on Serge Gnabry's contract situation at Bayern Munich, reports The Mirror. According to Sky Germany, Bayern and Gnabry are having a stand-off in discussions over an extension.

Liverpool's deal to land Fulham's Fabio Carvalho is not dead, says Football Insider, with the two parties set for new talks with a view to an off-season switch. Calciomercato claims that Milan have also reached out to Carvalho's representatives.

- The Sun reports that Premier League giants Manchester United and Chelsea are monitoring 16-year-old Blackburn Rovers defender Ashley Phillips, with Everton and Tottenham also keeping tabs on the teenager.

Steve Bruce has taken over as manager of West Brom, the club confirmed on Thursday. 

Bruce signed an 18-month contract to replace Valerien Ismael, who was dismissed after just seven months at the helm on Wednesday. 

West Brom have won just one of their past seven games in the Championship and slipped to sixth following a 2-0 loss at Millwall on Saturday, leaving them eight points adrift of the automatic promotion places. 

Bruce, who spent two years in charge of West Brom's rivals Aston Villa from 2016, has been promoted to the Premier League four times in his managerial career and was available after being sacked by Newcastle in October, shortly after the Tyneside club's lucrative takeover.

He has been named manager; Ismael was head coach at The Hawthorns.

"I am delighted to have the opportunity to manage a club that has such great history and tradition," Bruce said in a statement. "It is a club I obviously know well from my time in the Midlands, and I am already relishing the challenge of taking it forward. 

"I did not envisage I would return to management this quickly, but once I got the phone call from Ron [Gourlay, West Brom CEO], I knew I could not resist the challenge of getting this club back to where they want to be. 

"I am coming in with one aim and that is to get Albion to the Premier League."

Gourlay added: "Steve is a highly respected and experienced manager who has an impressive record of earning promotion to the Premier League. 

"His excellent man-management skills, tactical nous, and ability to hit the ground running were among the many reasons we decided he was the man to take us forward.    

"Promotion remains our objective for this season, and we are confident that with Steve leading the club we have given ourselves every chance of achieving that goal." 

A Fulham supporter has died after suffering cardiac arrest in the stands at Craven Cottage during Saturday's Championship game against Blackpool. 

The fan, named by the club as Paul Parish, received treatment from the medical staff of both clubs, while supporters provided privacy with flags. 

The match was suspended, and the players returned to the dressing rooms, later resuming to play out a 1-1 draw.

A statement on Fulham's official Twitter account published later on Saturday read: "It is with immense sadness that we inform fans of the passing of supporter, Paul Parish.

"Paul suffered a cardiac arrest and received treatment in the stand at this afternoon's match before being transferred to hospital.

"Our condolences go out to Paul's loved ones."

Wayne Rooney turned down an interview for the manager job at Everton in order to commit to Derby County's bid for Championship survival.

The former Manchester United and England captain said there was an approach from his boyhood club to his agent asking if he would discuss the prospect of taking over at Goodison Park.

The Toffees, who sacked Rafael Benitez after just over six months in charge two weeks ago, have yet to appoint a permanent successor.

Although Rooney is convinced he will manage in the Premier League in future, he took the "difficult decision" to decline talks with Everton as he wants to see through Derby's attempt to avoid relegation to the third tier.

"Everton approached my agent and asked me to interview for the vacant job, which I turned down," he said on Friday.

"They got in touch with my agent, my agent let the administrators know as well, and yes of course it was a difficult decision for me [to turn it down].

"I believe I will be a Premier League manager. I believe I'm ready for that, 100 per cent. And if that is with Everton one day in the future, that would be absolutely great. But I've got a job here that I'm doing at Derby County, which is an important job to me."

Rooney, who progressed through Everton's academy and rejoined the club in 2017 after 15 years at United, initially took on a player-coach role at Derby after Phillip Cocu was sacked in November 2020, with the club bottom of the Championship. He retired from playing to take on the permanent manager job in January last year and steered them to survival on the final day of the season.

Derby were hit with a 21-point deduction for 2021-22 after going into administration and admitting a breach of English Football League accounting rules, but while the future of the club remains uncertain, Rooney has overseen an almost miraculous battle against relegation, with eight wins and 11 draws from 27 matches leaving them a relatively modest eight points from safety.

Everton dismissed Benitez following a defeat to Norwich City left them six points above the Premier League drop zone. According to reports, their final three candidates are caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson, former Chelsea head coach Frank Lampard and ex-Porto and Fenerbahce boss Vitor Pereira.

Adama Traore has 18 months left to run on his Wolves contract, and it does not appear he will rush to sign a new deal.

The rapid winger was of interest to Tottenham in the off-season, when they were coached by former Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo.

Though Nuno's spell at Spurs was short-lived, it appears Antonio Conte is also an admirer of Traore.

 

TOP STORY: SPURS TO MAKE TRAORE MOVE?

Tottenham are looking for reinforcements this month, as they aim to provide Antonio Conte with the resources he needs to push for Champions League qualification. However, they were dealt a blow this week when Conte confirmed Son Heung-min is set to miss the rest of January with a muscular injury.

With Son out, Sky Sports believes Tottenham will reignite their interest in Traore, a player they wanted to sign before the season started.

The report also states that Spurs may bring in Traore to provide competition for both an attacking role and right wing-back duties in Conte's preferred 3-4-3 or 3-5-2 shape.

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- According to Fichajes, two Premier League clubs are interested in signing Barcelona forward Martin Braithwaite .

- Sky Sports reports that Aston Villa wish to sign Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Yves Bissouma this month.

- The same outlet has also claimed that Real Madrid's Gareth Bale may consider a move to the Championship, with Swansea City or Cardiff City mooted as possible destinations.

- Fabrizio Romano has said that Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum is unlikely to join Arsenal in January.

- According to the presenter Oriol Domenech on TV3, Barca president Joan Laporta has been telling people close to him that he is very confident of signing Erling Haaland later this year.

- Manchester United are preparing a bid for PSG forward Mauro Icardi, should Anthony Martial and Edinson Cavani leave the club, L'Equipe reports.

- Gianluca Di Marzio has reported that Juventus have received several offers for midfielder Arthur, who could leave this month.

West Brom have completed the signing of the in-demand Daryl Dike from Orlando City for an undisclosed fee.

Dike impressed for fellow Championship side Barnsley on loan last season, striking nine times in 21 appearances as Valerien Ismael's former club made it into the playoffs.

Barnsley ultimately faltered in their semi-final against beaten finalists Swansea City, but Dike has now followed Ismael to West Brom on a four-and-a-half-year contract.

The 21-year-old striker also registered 11 goals for Orlando in 19 MLS outings in 2021, drawing reported interest from Premier League sides Leeds United, Newcastle United and Everton.

However, Ismael and West Brom managed to secure a deal for Dike on Saturday – subject to international clearance – for a fee believed to be around £7million.

The Baggies manager believes his new signing can fire West Brom back into the Premier League.

"I'm delighted we have completed the transfer of Dike," Ismael told West Brom's official website. "He was always our first target and priority. 

"There's a lot of teamwork that has gone into this deal. Dike has everything we need from the No.9 position. He has energy, strength – he challenges defenders – and he scores goals.

"I worked with him at Barnsley and I know him very well. He has the mentality. He is 21 and is still a young player – but he has a lot of experience.

"Now it's about preparing Dike for the Championship. It was important to us to get Dike as early as possible because we know that he had four weeks off after the MLS season.

"For sure, he needs time and the schedule for him is to work hard in the next two weeks, so he is ready to play a part against QPR [on January 15]. That is our target and now, with my staff, we will work to have a very, very good build-up – using every day – to ensure he is in top shape by that game."

West Brom currently sit fourth in the Championship, four points adrift of second-placed Fulham and eight points behind leaders Bournemouth.

Sporting events in Wales will be played behind closed doors from Boxing Day as the government tries to control the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. 

With the coronavirus infection rate in the country at just under 550 cases per 100,000 people and rising, the government opted for an open-ended ban on crowds beginning with the festive season. 

Earlier on Monday, Cardiff City's scheduled Boxing Day game against Coventry City in the Championship was postponed, the second consecutive Bluebirds game called off due to coronavirus cases among the squad and staff. 

Several other fixtures across multiple sports also have been called off amid COVID-19 concerns. 

Amid that environment, Wales economy minister Vaughan Gething announced the new restrictions late on Monday. 

"Sporting events over the Christmas period are one of the big highlights of the year," Gething said in a release. "Unfortunately, the new Omicron variant is a significant development in the pandemic and could cause a large number of infections.

"We need to do everything we can to protect people’s health and control the spread of this awful virus.

"Throughout the pandemic we have followed scientific and public health advice to keep people safe. The advice is clear – we need to act now in response to the threat of Omicron. We are giving people as much notice of these decisions as we can.

"Crowds will come back as soon as possible. We want everyone to be here to enjoy their favourite sports."

In addition to league competition, the new restrictions likely will affect FA Cup play. Swansea City are set to host Southampton in a third-round tie on January 8, with Cardiff City to host Preston North End the following day. 

 

 

 

Manchester United have seen their preparations for the Premier League clash with Brentford disrupted by a COVID-19 outbreak.

Stats Perform understands the Red Devils saw a small number of positive tests returned among players and staff after they returned from the 1-0 win at Norwich City.

The entire group that travelled to Carrow Road for Saturday's match had tested negative in a round of routine testing.

The individuals who returned positive lateral flow test results on Sunday were sent home before training, which was then adjusted to consist of outdoor individual and non-contact sessions.

The club are understood to have notified the Premier League, with their match against Brentford coming up on Tuesday.

Sunday's game between Brighton and Hove Albion and Tottenham was postponed after Spurs suffered a COVID-19 outbreak that also led to their Europa Conference League game with Rennes being called off.

The Championship match between QPR and Sheffield United on Monday has been postponed too, after the London club said they would be unable to fulfil the fixture due to "a number of positive COVID-19 cases within their squad".

The United Kingdom government announced in the past week that fans attending sporting events with crowds of more than 10,000 people will need to provide proof of having had two doses of a coronavirus vaccine or a negative test result.

The change in rules, which is due to come into effect on December 15, is among measures aimed at reducing the spread of the Omicron variant of the virus.

The UK's COVID-19 alert level has also been moved from three to four. Authorities said community transmission of the virus was high and, while mostly driven by the Delta variant, the emergence of Omicron "adds additional and rapidly increasing risk to the public and healthcare services".

The race to sign Erling Haaland may have taken another turn.

Norway forward Haaland is a hot property being pursued by a host of top clubs, with Manchester United among them.

Borussia Dortmund retained his services at the start of this season but the race is expected to heat up in the off-season.

 

TOP STORY – UNITED HOPEFUL OF HAALAND EDGE

The Mirror reports that the imminent appointment of Ralf Rangnick at Manchester United can give them the edge in the race for Borussia Dortmund's Erling Haaland.

Rangnick and Haaland worked together previously at Salzburg and United believe that relationship can propel them to the front of the queue.

Manchester City, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are all in the race to sign the 21-year-old.

 

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- PSG will not let head coach Mauricio Pochettino exit the club during the season amid links with Manchester United's vacant managerial role, reports Goal. The Argentine may be allowed to leave at the end of the season.

- Marca report that Real Madrid will not be signing Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba in the off-season despite widespread speculation about a move.

- Sevilla are leading the race to sign Blackburn's Chile international Ben Brereton, according to The Sun. Rovers want £20m for his services.

- West Ham are set to launch a £7m bid to sign Burnley defender James Tarkowski,  report The Sun.

Another day, another Kylian Mbappe rumour.

The Paris Saint-Germain and France forward has long been linked with Real Madrid.

Madrid's high-profile chase could be reaching a conclusion.

 

TOP STORY – MADRID'S MBAPPE PLAN

Real Madrid's plan to sign Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe has been revealed, according to the front page of Saturday's Marca.

Mbappe is Madrid's top transfer target, with the PSG forward out of contract at the end of the season and both parties have made no secret of their admiration.

The recent report claims the offer is "unrejectable" as Madrid's interest dates back to Mbappe's time at Monaco in 2017.

Marca also reports Madrid are set for a busy January amid interest in other soon-to-be free agents – Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba and Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger.

 

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- Mundo Deportivo says Barcelona are negotiating a move for Manchester City forward Ferran Torres, though the Premier League champions are not interested in selling the Spaniard.

Bayern Munich could look to sign Barca goalkeeper and Germany international Marc-Andre ter Stegen in 2023, per El Nacional.

- Roma star Nicolo Zaniolo is wanted by Serie A rivals Juventus and Antonio Conte's Tottenham, claims Calciomercato.

Juve are eyeing Fulham star Aleksandar Mitrovic as an alternative should they miss out on in-demand Fiorentina forward Dusan Vlahovic, according to Todofichajes. Vlahovic has been linked with City, United, Madrid, Barca, Bayern, Atletico Madrid, Arsenal, Inter and Tottenham.

- The Star says Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips will turn down a move to Old Trafford. Phillips has attracted interest from rivals Manchester United but the England international midfielder is unwilling to spark backlash from fans.

Sheffield United have dismissed Slavisa Jokanovic and appointed Paul Heckingbottom's as manager until the end of the 2025-26 season.

Jokanovic signed a three-year deal to take over at Bramall Lane following the Blades' relegation to the Championship, but has departed only six months into his reign with the club 16th in the second tier.

Heckingbottom, who stepped in as caretaker boss last season following Chris Wilder's departure, has been installed as boss on a long-term deal.

The former Leeds United, Barnsley and Hibernian manager had been in charge of the South Yorkshire club's Under-23 side. Stuart McCall will be Heckingbottom's number two.

The Blades were relegated from the Premier League with a whimper last season, finishing bottom after winning only seven matches.

Derby County's total points deduction for 2021-22 has reached 21 and relegation looks a near certainty after the Rams admitted to breaching accounting rules.

The Championship club's financial woes came to a head in September when they filed for administration, which was subsequently followed by a 12-point deduction.

That sent manager Wayne Rooney's men to the foot of the table where they remain, having won once in nine league matches since.

Their points total of six had them nine adrift of safety with 17 matches played, though they will now see that dip below zero once again, with relegation to League One practically assured.

Derby confirmed their appeal against the initial 12-point deduction had been withdrawn, while the new sanction relates to rule breaches in respect to amortisation, the accounting process of gradually writing off the initial cost of a player.

Any future breach of terms of their 2021-22 budget will see a suspended three-point sanction also come into play.

A statement released by the club and the English Football League (EFL) read: "The EFL has today confirmed Derby County has received a nine-point sporting sanction with a further three points suspended after admitting to breaches of the league's profitability and sustainability rules.

"The club, via its administrators, has also agreed, following last week's adjournment, to the dismissal of its appeal against the 12-point deduction imposed as a consequence of the club entering administration in September 2021, meaning that the sanction continues to apply.

"The new nine-point penalty has been applied immediately, resulting in the club having been deducted a total of 21 points from this season's 2021-22 Championship table.

"The suspended three-point deduction will take effect if the club does not comply with the terms of the budget as set out in the 'Agreed Decision' for the remainder of season 2021-22.

"Both decisions are now final and are not subject to any further rights of appeal under EFL regulations."

Rooney, 36, is Manchester United and England's record goalscorer and became manager of Derby, initially on a caretaker basis, in November of last year. He was subsequently appointed to the role on a permanent basis in January.

Reading have signed former England striker Andy Carroll on a short-term deal.

The 32-year-old had been a free agent since being released by his boyhood club Newcastle United at the end of last season, but joined the Championship side on a contract until mid-January on Monday.

Carroll joins a Royals side that sit 16th in the second tier, but only four points adrift of sixth-placed Queens Park Rangers.

Capped nine times by his country, the former Liverpool frontman career has been blighted by injuries.

Reading boss Veljko Paunovic hopes Carroll, who has scored 80 goals in his career and made over 250 Premier League appearances, can hit the ground running.

Paunovic said: "This is a deal that we have been working on for some time and are confident it is the right move for both player and club.

"Andy is looking for a new challenge in his career and we need a player with his quality and vast experience. So this is a great match and I'm really looking forward to working with Andy over the next couple of months."

David Henderson, the organiser of the flight responsible for the deaths of Emiliano Sala and David Ibbotson, has been sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment.

Henderson, 67, was last month found guilty of endangering the safety of an aircraft.

Sala was on his way to Cardiff City on January 21, 2019, after signing from Ligue 1 club Nantes for £15million (€20m) when his plane came down over the English Channel, killing the striker, 28, and the pilot, Ibbotson, 59.

The court was previously told Henderson arranged the flight with football agent William McKay and asked Mr Ibbotson to fly the plane as he was in Paris on holiday.

Mr Ibbotson – who did not hold a commercial pilot's licence – was not qualified to fly at night and his rating to fly the single-engine Piper Malibu had expired.

A jury of seven men and five women were told that moments after finding out about the incident, Henderson contacted numerous people to ask them to stay silent, saying it would "open a can of worms".

The jury took seven and a half hours to come to a verdict before Henderson was convicted at Cardiff Crown Court, where he returned on Friday to be sentenced.

Henderson was given 18 months for endangering the safety of an aircraft, along with a three-month sentence to be served concurrently for attempting to discharge a passenger.

Manchester United youngster Tahith Chong has returned to the club after sustaining a groin injury on loan duty with Birmingham City that will rule him out for up to five months.

The 21-year-old has impressed during his third spell away from Old Trafford, having previously spent time with Werder Bremen and Club Brugge last season.

Chong had been a regular for Birmingham in the Championship, starting 13 of their 16 matches and assisting a couple of goals from midfield.

However, the former Netherlands Under-21s international has had his loan at St. Andrew's Trillion Trophy Stadium cut short by an injury sustained in training.

A statement on United's official website on Wednesday read: "Tahith has undergone surgery to repair a ruptured thigh tendon. 

"The operation went well, and he will return to Manchester United to complete an expected four-to-five-month rehabilitation."

Chong, who signed a new two-year deal with United in March 2020 with the option of a further year amid interest from Barcelona and Juventus, took to Twitter following confirmation of his lay-off.

"As a player, it hurts to be telling you guys this but, unfortunately, that's life and that's football," he posted.

"I have picked up an injury and will be out for a while. I would like to thank everyone at Birmingham City Football Club for everything they have done for me [in the] past couple of months. 

"The players, staff and everyone involved has made me feel very welcoming from day one. The coach has helped me a lot and showed a lot of confidence in me, something I will not forget.

"A special mention to the fans that, from day one, have supported me in a way that has helped me massively. Focus on recovery now and coming back stronger."

Chong has made 16 senior appearances for United in all competitions, five of those coming in the Premier League.

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