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Tottenham fans have taken to Twitter to react after their former player Nabil Bentaleb hit a double against Manchester City in the Champions League.

The Spurs academy graduate left the club to sign for Bundesliga side Schalke back in 2017 after spending a season on loan with the German team, and has gone from strength to strength at the Veltins Arena.

On Wednesday night, the Algerian international got fans talking after scoring a brace from the penalty spot against Pep Guardiola’s reigning Premier League champions, which looked like it would give them an unlikely win but for Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling’s late heroics.

The 24-year-old has now scored eight goals this season in what has been an eye-catching campaign for him personally – impressively, he has also scored all 14 of his penalties for the club.

It must’ve been a proud moment for Spurs fans to see their academy graduate make an impact in the Champions League, so let’s see how they reacted on Twitter to Bentaleb’s performance…

Leeds ambassador Noel Whelan believes Jesse Marsch has a new ‘problem’ with Dan James in a central attacking role, Football Insider report.

The Lowdown: James’ Elland Road career

James finally made the move to Yorkshire last summer in a deal worth over £26m. Since then, the Wales international has made 30 appearances for the Whites, scoring four goals and registering four assists.

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He has been used as a centre-forward more than a winger at Elland Road due to Patrick Bamford’s injury struggles, once again occupying a central role in the 1-1 draw with Southampton on Saturday.

The 24-year-old was withdrawn on the hour mark for Joe Gelhardt, and Whelan thinks he may drop out of the starting line up for the trip to Watford on Saturday.

The Latest: Whelan’s comments

Whelan, now a Leeds employee, described ‘the problem’ to FI with James and said he may ‘have to make way’ for Rodrigo or Gelhardt.

“The problem with Dan James in that striker position is that he’s playing like a winger.

“His runs are always the same – in behind and using his pace. But part of a striker’s job is playing with your back to goal, holding the ball up and trying to bring others into play.

“That’s where Gelhardt or Rodrigo would be a more natural choice. I think if James is going to play going forward, it will have to be on that wing.

“With Jack Harrison getting the goal and Raphinha on the other wing, it could be that he’ll have to make way.

“I like to see these jigsaw pieces playing in the correct positions.”

The Verdict: Options limited

Gelhardt would be the natural replacement to lead the line, with Rodrigo just in behind, but he too has suffered a problem, hobbling off for the Under-23s on Monday.

The initial diagnosis was a dead leg, however, the teenager could be in a race against time to play a key role at Vicarage Road, which could result in James once again occupying a centre-forward role.

He has shown at times how much of a threat he can be there, scoring twice against Aston Villa in February, but since then, he hasn’t found the net, so if Gelhadt is ready from the off, it could be a wise move to make a change.

In other news: Elland Road source: Marsch and Orta now ready to axe ‘horrible’ Leeds ace after woeful season. 

Leeds are thought to be watching Nottingham Forest star Brennan Johnson, however, he had an afternoon to forget against Luton Town on Friday.

This forms part of our Transfer Watch series, where we react to a performance from a current transfer target.

The Lowdown: Leeds watching

Victor Orta confirmed last month that he tried to sign the Forest star for Leeds when he was just 16 years of age.

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Johnson is now catching the eye in the Championship in what has been a breakthrough campaign at the City Ground, contributing to 22 goals in all competitions.

Journalist Pete O’Rourke revealed in the week that the Whites are watching the 20-year-old closely, however, Johnson struggled at Kenilworth Road in his latest performance.

The Latest: 100% duels lost

Forest fell to a rare defeat on Friday but still occupy a play-off place with six games to go.

As per SofaScore, Johnson played in an attacking midfield role behind two strikers but struggled to make an impact, failing to complete a successful dribble and having just 26 touches all afternoon. Johnson also lost 100% of his duels, gave possession away 10 times and committed two fouls.

The Verdict: Sign if Forest remain in the Championship?

Even though Johnson failed to impress on Friday, he appears to be a shrewd target for the Whites, should Forest fail to earn promotion to the Premier League.

O’Rourke believes he could be a smart replacement for Raphinha, who is heavily linked with a move to Barcelona, and Johnson’s latest display appears to show he isn’t suited to an attacking midfield role.

The Wales international has had success on both wings and as a centre-forward in 2021/22 but has contributed to just one goal in five games as an attacking midfielder.

Therefore, although Orta may not have been impressed with Johnson on Friday, it could give him extra knowledge of where Johnson’s strengths lie and a move should still be pursued if the Reds remain in the second tier.

In other news: Leeds and Orta want ‘extraordinary’ ace in Bosman move; same agent as Bamford. 

Now that they are seemingly out of trouble, Newcastle United can look to level up their squad in a bid to achieve a higher Premier League finish next season.

And, according to reports, the Magpies could look to kickstart this gradual rebuild with the acquisition of the 110-goal machine that is Christian Eriksen.

What’s the word?

Indeed, the Northern Echo claim Eddie Howe’s side have identified the Danish midfield maestro as one of their primary targets in the summer transfer window.

Having returned to action in what has been one of the greatest feel-good stories in recent football history, Eriksen signed a short-term deal when he agreed to join Brentford in January.

And whilst Bees boss Thomas Frank would like Eriksen to join on a permanent basis, Brentford face a tough challenge to hold onto him.

A positive return

With one goal and one assist in five Premier League appearances, Eriksen’s return to England’s top-flight has been a success thus far.

The 30-year-old has also been in goalscoring form following his return to the international stage, having scored in back-to-back games for Denmark.

His performances this season have cast doubters – who thought he was too fragile for top-flight football – aside – with his four consecutive 90-minute appearances demonstrating his emerging return back to his best.

And, despite Newcastle’s rise to presumed safety, they do need to work on their assertiveness in midfield, as well as their goal-scoring acumen, which has only seen the Magpies net 34 goals this season.

Eriksen – who has been described by Thomas Frank as “unbelievable” – can offer experience in both of those aspects, with his veteran footballing status sure to help Newcastle reach that next level.

With his contract set to expire at the end of the season, Newcastle should do everything they can to sign a player who is valued at £13.5m in today’s market, for free.

Indeed, Eriksen would surely provide Newcastle United with a huge boost of creativity in the middle of the park, and, if he continues his impressive run of form since his return to the professional game, could even go on to become the Magpies’ new Chris Waddle – the legendary attacking midfielder who scored 46 goals over 170 appearances for the Toon.

In other news: NUFC eye £25m bid for £140k-p/w ace who “makes things happen”, it could be bye-bye ASM

Speaking to GiveMeSport, journalist Michael Bridge of Sky Sports has been praising the recruitment of Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou. 

The lowdown: Shrewd spender

Since being appointed at Celtic Park in June 2021, the 56-year-old has set about scouting world football for high-quality options to bolster the Hoops’ squad.

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Signings such as Liel Abada from Maccabi Petah Tikva, Carl Starfelt from Rubin Kazan and Kyogo Furuhashi from Japanese outfit Vissel Kobe all arrived as relative unknowns before becoming almost instant successes in Glasgow.

As the Bhoys stand on the brink of winning the Scottish Premiership title, much of the credit is being placed at the door of Postecoglou…

The latest: Bridge hails transfer nous

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Bridge, who works for Sky Sports, has lauded the Greek-Australian’s impact in the market.

“You’ve got to give credit to Celtic and their manager Ange Postecoglou. He’s just come in and steamrollered it. If you look at Rangers in the table, they’re not actually doing that bad, they’ve not lost a lot. They’ve just drawn too many games, and they’ve lost to Celtic a couple of times.

“Celtic have brought in this manager from Japan, people scoffed at it. Let’s not forget, that’s where Wenger came from. He’s bought four Japanese players who’ve absolutely ripped the league to shreds. He’s bought other good players as well.”

The verdict: Unequivocal success

It’s hard to argue with Bridge’s view as the Hoops march on towards a potential league and cup double in Postecoglou’s first season at Parkhead.

Having walked into a squad devoid of confidence, the former Australian national team coach has galvanised those existing players whilst also unearthing a host of diamonds in the transfer market.

Kyogo, Abada and Starfelt have all settled into life at Celtic seamlessly, whilst the likes of loan arrivals Jota and Cameron Carter-Vickers have been nothing short of a revelation this season.

January signings Daizen Maeda, Matt O’Riley and Reo Hatate have all made bright beginnings in their own Bhoys careers too and it would appear inevitable that Postecoglou would be back once again in the upcoming summer market.

In other news, former Celtic striker Chris Sutton has been left fuming. Read more here.

Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side threw down a huge gauntlet in the Premiership title race with a devastating performance in tonight’s Old Firm clash, with the Bhoys running out comfortable 3-0 winners at Parkhead.

In a whirlwind first half, Reo Hatate continued the breathtaking start to his Celtic career with two stunning long-range strikes that saw Celtic race into a two-goal lead, before the Japan international put Liel Abada on a plate with a pinpoint cross to make it 3-0 shortly before the interval.

The second half was much less dramatic, with the Hoops appearing happy to drop further back and allow the visitors more time on the ball – something that Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side failed to capitalise on, with the scoreline remaining 3-0 when the final whistle blew.

However, while Hatate will undoubtedly steal tomorrow morning’s headlines, it will perhaps be the performance of Josip Juranovic that will have most pleased Postecoglou on Wednesday night – as the right-back played a crucial role in a victory that Chris Sutton dubbed an “absolute pumping” of the former league leaders.

“Absolutely outstanding”

Over the course of his 90 minutes on the pitch, the Croatia international turned in a performance of the highest quality – both in a defensive and offensive capacity.

At the back, the £3.6m-rated defender made five tackles, one interception, two clearances, blocked two shots and won six of his nine duels – a success rate of 67%.

Going forwards, the 26-year-old completed one cross, three long balls, made one key pass and enjoyed 63 touches of the ball – the seventh-most of any player to feature in the match.

These returns saw the £16k-per-week dynamo earn a highly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.7, ranking him as the joint third-best player to feature in the derby – with Sutton dubbing his display as “absolutely outstanding.”

Indeed, it is easy to see why the former Celtic centre-forward felt this way, as Juranovic’s calmness in possession of the ball, solidity when defending and ability to set his side off on counter-attacks was clear for all to see on Wednesday, with the defender playing a crucial role in what is arguably the Bhoys’ biggest result of the season.

In other news: Maeda & Kyogo in, “outstanding” 20 G/A beast axed: Celtic’s strongest XI after January

Everton are interested in signing £27m-rated Atalanta defender Merih Demiral this summer and he could be the perfect replacement for Michael Keane.

What’s the story?

According to journalist Yakup Cinar (via Goodison News) Everton are among several sides who are “interested” in signing the 24-year-old who’s is currently on loan at Atalanta from Juventus.

They have the option to make the move permanent in the summer for £23.5m, but could potentially sell Demiral on for a profit like they did with Cristian Romero. When interviewed by TuttoJuve.com Cinar said that the interest in the player is high.

He’s miles better than Keane

Everton are battling for survival at the moment and are currently in the relegation zone. Whether or not they stay in the Premier League this summer doesn’t change the fact that they need a squad overhaul.

Many of their current players have underperformed massively this season, and one of those is defender Michael Keane, who Demiral could replace if he is brought to Goodison Park.

Keane has featured several times for the Toffees this season and has been a key part of their troubled defence. They have only managed to keep six clean sheets in the league all campaign, and it has led to Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher rightly calling their back four “Championship level”.

Demiral has been described by outlet Goal as a “brick wall” and at 6 foot 2, he is a strong presence in the box. He impressed when facing English side Manchester United in the group stage of the Champions League earlier this season, scoring versus the Red Devils and winning 100% of his duels in a 3-2 defeat, so he has proven himself against Premier League opposition already.

The Turkey international is a force in the air, being ranked in the top 2% when it comes to aerial duals won compared with other centre backs in Europe’s top five leagues over the last year.

When you compare him directly to Keane he’s also better on the ball with a higher pass completion percentage of 87.5% compared to 77.3%. He’s also tackled a higher percentage of dribblers than the Englishman.

If Demiral is available at a decent price in the summer then Frank Lampard should look no further than him to solve their issues at the back. At 24 he can also be a figurehead at the club for years to come.

IN other news: More misery: Alan Myers drops four-word Everton claim that’ll leave supporters fuming…

West Ham United have once again been linked with Fiorentina defender Nikola Milenkovic, with the Irons reportedly having the sights set on securing a transfer this summer.

What’s the story?

Italian outlet Corriere Fiorentino reported (via Sport Witness) that the 24-year-old previously had a contract which was set to expire this June, which duly alerted the east London outfit to push for a deal which ultimately didn’t happen.

Instead, the Serbian signed a one-year contract extension with the Serie A club, committing his services for the short-term future but having a gentleman’s agreement regarding the opportunity to leave the following summer.

West Ham are now back in contention to try and finally bring the defender to the London Stadium.

West Ham must sign Milenkovic

Previously dubbed ‘the new Vidic’, there has been plenty of hype surrounding one of Europe’s most exciting defenders over the last 18 months, but Fiorentina have so far been able to hold onto Milenkovic.

The £75k-per-week centre-back has made 25 appearances in the Italian top flight this term, with Fiorentina currently eighth in Serie A.

Having made the move to Florence from Partizan Belgrade in July 2017, the Serbian has made 163 appearances for La Viola but is yet to experience European football with the Italian outfit.

Adding a defender will likely be a priority for West Ham manager David Moyes, particularly if the east Londoners secure European football for another season.

Craig Dawson has established himself as the Scotsman’s first-choice, with the likes of Angelo Ogbonna, Kurt Zouma and Issa Diop battling to partner him in defence, but the former suffered an ACL injury in November.

If the Irons are to once again juggle four competitions next term, adding greater squad depth will be crucial. Moyes’ side still have eight Premier League matches left to play, in addition to a Europa League quarter-final against Lyon as they look to secure European qualification once again.

Regardless of how West Ham end their season, securing the services of Milenkovic this summer after numerous failed attempts would be a huge boost for the Hammers and would certainly make Moyes’ selection in defence a more pleasant headache, with the Serbian likely to line up alongside either Dawson or Zouma as the first-choice centre-back pairing at the London Stadium.

With a better aerial duels record (3.2 per game), more tackles won (1.6 per match) and a superior passing success rate (90.2%) compared to the Irons’ current centre-backs, Milenkovic is a player who Moyes would surely love to have at the London Stadium.

In other news: West Ham handed major injury setback which could cost them Europe

Leeds United made a late move for West Ham goalkeeper Darren Randolph in the January window, according to The Athletic.

The Lowdown: McGrath’s claim

In the end, Leeds’ winter window was relatively quiet, with teenage forward Mateo Joseph Fernandez the only Elland Road arrival.

There were rumours of late moves for Liverpool’s Takumi Minamino and Chelsea’s Kenedy, however, they were not needed after Crysencio Summerville’s loan move to Hamburg collapsed.

The Telegraph’s Mike McGrath also stated that the Whites were in the market for a back up goalkeeper, and it seems as if Victor Orta did indeed make an attempt to bring Randolph to Yorkshire.

The Latest: Hammers stopped late move

According to The Athletic’s Roshane Thomas, the Hammers stopped Randolph from leaving on loan late in the window.

Thomas name-checked Leeds and Aston Villa as the two possible destinations for the goalkeeper, whose talent has been labelled as ‘ridiculous’ by former teammate Ryan Shotton.

Leeds turned down moves for midfielders Harry Winks and Donny van de Beek in the final days of the window, but it seems as if Marcelo Bielsa was open to the idea of Randolph arriving as back up to Illan Meslier.

The Verdict: Not a disaster

Missing out on Randolph shouldn’t be a disaster, providing Meslier remains fit for the rest of the season.

The Whites will be having everything crossed that the Frenchman continues to be an ever-present figure under Bielsa, with Meslier missing just three of Leeds’ 59 league fixtures following their return to the Premier League.

Leeds do have young summer signing Kristoffer Klaesson to call upon, should Meslier be unavailable, but having Randolph, who has made 390 senior appearances, as a third ‘keeper would have bolstered the club’s goalkeeping ranks even further.

In other news: Phil Hay and Graham Smyth buzzing at free transfer news. 

The future of Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz could be one to watch on deadline day, with Tottenham keen on a late deal.

That’s according to talkSPORT’s Alex Crook, and his claim has had a lot of Villa fans talking on social media.

Villa have been planning to open talks with Luiz over a new contract, with his current deal set to expire in 18 months time.

However, in recent days, he’s been linked with both Arsenal and Tottenham, with the latter of the two preparing a bid in the region of £32m. The Daily Mail claim that Steven Gerrard values Luiz highly, with Spurs’ late swoop set to fail.

But according to Crook, a move to Antonio Conte’s side could still be on the cards. Taking to Twitter, the talkSPORT man revealed that Luiz ‘could be one to watch’ on Deadline Day, placing Tottenham’s hashtag in alongside Villa at the end of his post.

Villa fans react

This is what these Villa fans had to say in reply

“No way we sell a DM unless one is coming in the door so…”

Credit: @AvfcTalkTime

“Be moronic with nobody coming in”

Credit: @AVFCTranstweet

“We must have a plan then”

Credit: @BOOMBEEF

“Excuse me?”

Credit: @Villanfandan

“If he’s not going to sign a contract we need to sell.”

Credit: @avfcdiggy

“The only way he goes is if we have a replacement coming in.”

Credit: @JayVtid

In other news: Villa now keen on ‘special’ centre-back after Calum Chambers; he can also play in midfield.