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Writing for football.london, Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Alasdair Gold has relayed the progress of youngster Troy Parrott as he continues his loan stint at Ipswich Town in League One – with the reliable journalist sharing how he has steadily improved for the Tractor Boys. 

He is yet to score a goal for Paul Lambert’s side, with his latest outing coming on Tuesday night as the Tractor Boys took on Lincoln City in a 1-1 draw at Portman Road.

Gold relays Troy Parrott update

However, despite still not being able to chalk up his first strike for Ipswich, Gold has relayed that Parrott has been making steady progress in east Anglia.

Indeed, the football.london correspondent shared, before his half an hour cameo against Lincoln on Tuesday as a substitute, that Parrott has racked up a few starts under Lambert recently – playing 87 minutes during a 2-1 win at Accrington and then 68 minutes in a 3-1 defeat to Gillingham at the weekend.

As well as this, the 19-year-old was lavished with praise by the East Anglian Times for his display against Accrington – as football.london quote, they branded him a ‘workhorse’ with ‘plenty of quality’.

Transfer Tavern take

At the centre of a public Jose Mourinho scolding last year, with the Portuguese questioning his attitude, Parrott slowly becoming an ‘asset’ for Ipswich could come as good news.

This isn’t the first time he has been praised this season either, with Millwall boss Gary Rowett branding the Irish starlet as ‘excellent’ after his debut for the Lions on another loan before the new year.

A previous update by Gold highlighted that a decision over Parrott lingers at the end of the season for Tottenham – whether to send him back out on loan or give him a shot in the first team.

Lilywhites supporters will surely be hoping he can live up to his potential and notch that first goal for Ipswich soon.

In other news: Tottenham remain keen on this ‘shining’ attacker, find out more here.

Your votes have been counted and we can now confirm the overall winner of the women's GOAL50 2021!

Check out the final standings, and the overall winner, of the women's GOAL50 2021!

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  1Alexia Putellas – Midfielder, Barcelona and Spain

  With 25 goals in all competitions, most scored with the captain's armband on, the Spaniard was outstanding as Barcelona won the treble. Player of the Match as they lifted the Copa de la Reina, she also scored in the Women's Champions League final.

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  2Irene Paredes – Defender, Barcelona and Spain

  The Spaniard was PSG's leader in defence last season as they kept 19 clean sheets to win a maiden league title. Before switching to Barcelona, she also helped them reach the last four in Europe, where they'd narrowly fall short against the Catalans.

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  3Asisat Oshoala – Forward, Barcelona and Nigeria

  The Nigeria international scored 18 goals in 18 league starts last season as Barcelona won the treble. She also netted a further four in the Women's Champions League, including a crucial pair in the quarter-final win over Manchester City.

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  4Lieke Martens – Forward, Barcelona and the Netherlands

  The Dutch winger scored 20 goals in all competitions for Barcelona as they won the treble, shining in the latter stages of the Women's Champions League in particular. She then scored four goals in as many games at the Olympics for her country.

While the likes of Lionel Messi and Eden Hazard will take most of the headlines, there is a new generation of talent about to burst onto the scene

The new La Liga season is just hours away, and fans are excited to see their club's latest big-money signings in action.

Perhaps even more satisfying for a supporter, though, is seeing a young player flourish when given the opportunity on the biggest stage.

But who should you be looking out for when the teams are named on the opening weekend?  Goal  breaks down some of the top talents the Spanish top flight has to offer in 2019-20…

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  Ander Barrenetxea | Real Sociedad

  While the likes of Martin Odegaard, Alexander Isak and Mikel Oyarzabal will capture most of the headlines when it comes to wonderkids at La Real, perhaps the most exciting youngster within their squad is Barrenetxea.

  Much like Antoine Griezmann a decade ago, the 17-year-old was promoted to the first team squad without having ever played in the club's B team last season, and scored his first goal for the club in a victory over Real Madrid late in the campaign.

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  Sergio Camello | Atletico Madrid

  It took 18-year-old Camello just 35 minutes of his Atletico Madrid debut to score his first goal for the club against Levante towards the back end of last season, and it is likely he will earn more opportunities this time around.

  Diego Simeone has bolstered his attacking ranks over the summer, but Camello's talent is such that he should earn more than a few chances to impress within the first-team squad.

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  Bryan Gil | Sevilla

  Though yet to start a match in La Liga, winger Gil was a regular on the Sevilla bench last season, and already has a goal and an assist to his name in the Spanish top-flight.

  Still just 18, he will have to fight for further opportunities this time around with Monchi and Julen Lopetegui having overhauled the squad at the Sanchez Pizjuan over the summer.

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  Takefusa Kubo | Real Madrid

  Tipped for greatness when part of Barcelona's famed La Masia academy, Kubo was forced to return to his native Japan in the wake of the Blaugrana's transfer ban in 2015.

  And while the training he received back home may not have been at the same level as that in Catalunya, it did allow him more opportunities in senior football as he became one of the star names within the J-League.

  Now 18 he is back in Spain, although this time with Real Madrid after they beat Barca to his signing. While he is likely to start the campaign playing with Castilla, some impressive performances in pre-season have hinted that he is ready to play a part for Zinedine Zidane.

Said Benrahma was David Moyes’ unsung hero as Jesse Lingard scored a brace on his West Ham United debut to help his new side beat Aston Villa 3-1 on Wednesday night.

Lingard joined the Irons on loan until the end of the season late in the winter market, having failed to play a second of Premier League football for Manchestr United this term.

Moyes wasted no time in introducing the 24-cap England international into his starting line-up, with the decision returning the Hammers’ second and third goals against Dean Smith’s Villans after Tomas Soucek opened the scoring with his eighth strike of the league campaign.

After a scoreless first half, Soucek broke the deadlock in the 51st minute when the Czech Republic international drilled the ball into the far corner of Emiliano Martinez’s net following a piece of superb link-up play between Michail Antonio and Benrahma.

Lingard soon hit Moyes’ men’s second of the night to make the visitors’ pressure count after they’d been dominating play for long periods of the game, and he later restored West Ham’s two-goal lead after Ollie Watkins pulled one back for his ninth goal of the top-flight campaign.

But, despite Lingard rightly getting plenty of attention after netting a debut double, Benrahma also shone brightly at Villa Park having played a pivotal role in the Irons’ attacking moves throughout the night, to leave Birmingham with a third assist of the league season as his wait for a maiden goal continues.

Benrahma registered his assist with a precision first-time pass threaded through the Villans backline for Soucek to score, while his decoy run allowed Antonio to find Lingard open on the edge of the Aston Villa penalty area to score his first of the night five minutes later.

Benrahma’s threaded pass left Aston Villa’s backline helpless, with Tyrone Mings only able to watch the ball roll through to Soucek to score. The £23,000-per-week maestro could have ended the night with further assists in his pocket, too, after recording three key passes – only Jack Grealish (4) created more goalscoring opportunities on Wednesday night, per WhoScored.

Not only was Benrahma creative with the ball at his feet, but Moyes further saw the £20m winger prove safe in possession with a 93% pass accuracy rating thanks to completing 28 of his 30 passes. No player who stared for either side completed a higher percentage of their passes than the 25-year-old.

The Algerian additionally came close to finally ending his Premier League goal drought and would have done just that had his volley gone a few inches lower.

Moyes would surely have loved what he saw from Benrahma at Villa Park as he linked up well with Lingard, who slotted in seamlessly to West Ham’s starting line-up, as the London Stadium natives closed to within two points of Liverpool after Jurgen Klopp’s side fell to defeat at home to Brighton.

AND in other news, West Ham eye future swoop for prolific £30m striker with “absolutely superb” movement…

According to Football Insider, Nottingham Forest have submitted a loan-to-buy offer for Celtic transfer target Siriki Dembele, and it could have big consequences for the linked-away Odsonne Edouard.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent weeks have claimed that Neil Lennon’s side are interested in signing the Peterborough forward, but it appears Championship side Forest have made the first move in the race to sign him.

Football Insider claim that Dembele wants to leave Peterborough this month, and that Forest have made a proposal that would see the 24-year-old join them on a more permanent basis at the end of the season.

The report adds that the bid is worth around £250k for a player who is out of contract in the summer.

Bye-bye Edouard

With Odsonne Edouard’s long-term future at Celtic still very much unclear – reports have claimed the club have slashed his asking price in this January transfer window – Nick Hammond will surely be on the look-out for a potential replacement for the club’s striker.

And in Dembele – the older brother of the Hoops’ very own Karamoko – they could find someone who could well fill the boots of the Frenchman.

Dembele had spent a lot of time playing out wide on the flanks, before Peterborough boss Darren Ferguson made the tweak of moving him infield into the number nine role.

And since then, it’s safe to say he’s been very impressive. This season in League One, he’s played 22 games in total, but 15 of them have come up front. In those games as the Posh’s starting striker, he’s managed five goals and five assists, including a dazzling hat-trick against Shrewsbury.

The tactical switch is something Ferguson has talked up too, saying: “But the boy has been absolutely outstanding since realising he can play as a central striker. He destroyed Ipswich last weekend with a goal and two assists.”

The 5 foot 8 ace would offer Celtic some versatility up front given he can play anywhere across the line, and it’s now up to Hammond as to whether he can get a deal done.

As the Turkey midfielder prepares to move back to his homeland, Goal takes a look at some of the least successful buys in Blaugrana history

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  Arda Turan

  The Turkey midfielder arrived at Barca in the summer of 2015 for a fee of €34 million, but had to wait six months for his debut as the Catalans were banned by FIFA from registering new players for a year due to irregularities in the recruitment of youngsters.

  The 30-year-old has made only 55 appearances since then, each one costing the club around €1m when the transfer fee and his wages are taken into account.

  He has not played a single minute this season and after all the excitement when he arrived, Barca fans will now he happy to see him leave, as he moves closer to a return to his homeland this month.

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  Dmytro Chygrnskiy

  A strange signing by Barcelona in 2009, Dmytro Chygrynskiy spent just one season at the Catalan club, and it was a disappointing one for the Ukrainian international.

  After arduous negotiations with Shakhtar Donetsk, Barca completed a €25m deal for the centre-back in the summer of 2009 and his last game was a UEFA Super Cup loss against the Catalan club he would later join.

  But he made only 14 appearances for Barca's first team and was sold back to Shakhtar for €15m in the summer of 2010 as incoming president Sandro Rosell insisted the club needed the money to pay debts incurred during Joan Laporta's tenure – even though coach Pep Guardiola had wanted to keep the defender.

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  Alex Song

  In the summer of 2012, Barcelona were looking for a player who could operate as a defensive midfielder and also as a centre-back. And after baulking at the €40m asking price of Athletic Club's Javi Martinez, they signed Alex Song from Arsenal.

  However, a disastrous display by the Cameroonian in defence proved he would not be very useful in that position and he did not seem suited to Barca's playing style in midfield either as some of their worst performances came when he was in the team.

  He then embarrassed himself in Barca's title celebrations by stepping forward to claim the Liga trophy from captain Carles Puyol when the Catalan had been beckoning Eric Abidal instead. After two seasons, Song left to join West Ham.

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  Alex Hleb

  Alex Hleb joined Barca for €17m in the summer of 2008 and although he did make a number of first-team appearances for the Catalan club, he did not really play much of a part in the team's treble triumph that season.

  The Belarus midfielder had impressed in his three seasons at Arsenal, but his 36 appearances for Barca were quickly forgotten and he failed to score in his time at Camp Nou.

  He was later loaned to Stuttgart, Birmingham and Wolfsburg – and was last seen in the Russian Premier League.

Southampton striker Daniel N’Lundulu has been linked with a move to La Liga side Real Betis recently but the Southampton board should ensure that he is still with the club at the end of the month.

What’s the word?

French news outlet Foot Mercato have claimed that Real Betis are interested in signing the 21-year-old and that they could make an approach for him this month.

The Saints academy ace has been on the fringes of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad this season after impressing with David Horseman’s B team.

Semmens must stand firm:

So far this season, N’Lundulu has made six appearances in the Premier League, all of which have come from the bench. The youngster also has five goals and one assist in just seven appearances for the B team, which certainly suggests he is ready to play with the senior side.

The form of Danny Ings and Che Adams so far this season has perhaps limited the youngster’s appearances for Hasenhuttl’s side but it certainly looks as if he has a bright future with the South Coast club, so it would be foolish to let him go to Betis.

N’Lundulu earned the praise of Hasenhuttl along with the other under-23 players that are pushing for a spot in the first-team, saying:

“He’s a type of striker we don’t have in our side so far. He gives us physical options, can keep the ball very well.

“He’s also learned to work hard in front. This was something our youth have to learn and in the past month, we were working a lot with the under-23s and with these teams.

“They are more and more adapted to what we are doing here in the first team and it is nice to see when they are coming out, they are now on a different level.”

With Moussa Djenepo and Nathan Redmond both currently sidelined, we might see Theo Walcott on the wing more often in Southampton’s upcoming fixtures, which could, in turn, allow the likes of N’Lundulu to be given more of a chance up front.

Certainly, the 21-year-old’s record with the B team, where he has 12 goals and three assists in 29 appearances, suggests that he has an eye for goal and a future in Hasenhuttl’s side, so Martin Semmens and the rest of the Southampton board should not even consider negotiating with Real Betis in January, should they make an official approach.

And, in other news… Worse than Tella: Southampton must axe “exciting prospect” amid manager update

David Sullivan could waste further millions if West Ham United seal a £13.5m swoop for Cadiz CF striker Anthony Lozano to replace Sebastien Haller.

What’s the word?

According to Diario de Cadiz (13/1, p. 50), the Irons are set to imminently offer €15m (£13.5m) for 27-year-old forward Lozano as boss David Moyes is desperate to bolster his attacking options after Haller’s move to AFC Ajax.

Haller’s departure left Michail Antonio as the sole recognised senior striker at the London Stadium, and deprived Moyes of the man responsible for three of the Hammers’ 24 goals in the Premier League so far this season.

Only Tomas Soucek (5) and Jarrod Bowen (4) had scored more often than Haller in the top-flight this term, and would be joined by a forward hardly boasting a prolific record if Lozano is signed with the Honduras international having found the net just three times in La Liga.

Lozano has been a regular for Cadiz since their promotion to the highest level of Spanish domestic football last season, starting nine of his 14 appearances after missing two games through coronavirus in November, but had only scored once prior to the New Year.

Wasting further millions

Sullivan would be taking a massive gamble by backing Lozano to be the forward to offer Moyes what Haller could not, as the 33-cap marksman’s frequent struggles to score in La Liga this season are nothing new.

Lozano hit home just once in 34 La Liga outings for Girona before joining Cadiz in 2019, and is proving immensely wasteful at the Nuevo Estadio Ramon de Carranza with a return of just 0.2 goals a game despite fashioning 1.3 shots per match so far this season, per SofaScore.

He has further missed five clear-cut chances to score over his 14 appearances, and rarely creates opportunities for his teammates, despite penning one assist, as the former Valencia and Barcelona trainee offers a mere 0.3 key balls from his paltry 19.4 passes per game.

Sullivan opting for the £7,500-per-week man would likely only serve to see the West Ham co-owner and Chairman flutter his millions down the drain once again, having lost close to £25m on the sale of Haller having allowed the Irons’ club-record signing to leave for less than half of the fee paid to Eintracht Frankfurt just 18-months earlier.

The fee the Irons are touted to pay for Lozano is additionally far beyond his considered market value, as TransferMarkt tout the attacker to be worth £2.25m less than a year on from considering the 6ft hitman to be worth just £1m.

West Ham’s need for another striker is clear in their lack of depth, but Lozano’s ability to fill the void would be questionable.

AND in other news: Exclusive: West Ham’s Declan Rice tipped to join Chelsea on one condition…

Leeds made a big mistake by letting Premier League rivals Crystal Palace edge them out of the race for rising talent Eberechi Eze.

The Eagles snapped up the attacking midfielder from Queens Park Rangers during the summer window, landing a deal worth £16million, plus a reported £4million in add-ons (via Sky Sports). He is reportedly earning a respectable £30,000 per week – not a deal that has broken the bank at Selhurst Park by any means.

For Leeds, who didn’t hold back when it came to splashing the cash over the summer, it was an odd decision to let talks with Eze falter.

Particularly at the moment, the Whites would hugely benefit from having a new attacking midfielder as their current roster is under threat. Tyler Roberts was recently predicted to undergo a January loan move and Pablo Hernandez has disappointed Marcelo Bielsa following his blow up during the Leicester game.

Orta dropped the ball by not signing Eze

Victor Orta has signed some brilliant players for Leeds over the years, but this is a deal that he will be disappointed not to have landed. The 22-year-old has already opened up his account for Crystal Palace, tallying a goal and an assist and proving that he can adapt easily to the high demands of the Premier League.

It’s no surprise though that he has taken to life at his new club so easily as his 2019/20 stats for QPR were astonishing. The midfielder notched a superb 14 goals and eight assists in the Championship, outscoring Jordan Hugill and finishing only behind striker Nahki Wells, who netted 18 for the league campaign, in the QPR top-scorer charts.

These numbers are hugely impressive for a midfielder and the Premier League is currently undergoing a new birthing of playmakers exactly like Eze. With the addition of the likes of Kai Havertz and Bruno Fernandes, England’s top flight is boasting an array of world-class goalscorers from the engine room. Eze could certainly be up there as one of the league’s best if he can recreate last season’s numbers on a consistent basis for Palace.

Mark Warburton heaped praise on the 22-year-old for his contributions to QPR and labelled him as a “tremendous talent”. If Eze does start to really showcase his goalscoring abilities, Bielsa and Orta will have their heads in their hands after missing out on him.

In other news, Exclusive: Carlton Palmer not surprised Marcelo Bielsa has succeeded with Leeds…

Celtic are reaching a point where they can no longer consider a future without Mohamed Elyounoussi. The Norwegian’s form this season has been nothing short of spectacular, outscoring star man Odsonne Edouard across all competitions so far. But with Elyounoussi only being in Glasgow temporarily, Neil Lennon and co need to scramble to make sure they can sign him on a permanent deal.

Darren Bent recently predicted that Southampton would be willing to cash in on the St Mary’s outcast, who has made just 19 appearances under Ralph Hasenhuttl, in which he is yet to find the back of the net. With the Saints flying in the Premier League at the moment, it’s difficult to envisage room for Elyounoussi in their current squad.

Indeed, Bent believes that the south coasters will sell up, providing they can recoup all, of if not in excess of, the £16million they signed him for (via Football Insider).

Celtic must not flinch Elyounoussi transfer fee

Whilst this is a hike from the original reported £8-10million quoted price tag, it’s not something that the Hoops can afford to shy away from. Elyounoussi has popped up with some crucial goals this season and has kept their Premiership hopes alive, despite currently trailing to Rangers by nine points.

His performance against Lille also gave Celtic a foot back in the door – bagging a brace to force the Europa League match into sharing the spoils. Undeniably, Lennon’s side would look very different without the influence of Elyounoussi. Tom English recently lauded Elyounoussi as a “dangerous player”, following his brace-scoring performance in Celtic’s 6-0 win over KR Reykjavik.

With talks of Edouard being “unhappy” at the club and top sides like Arsenal eyeing up a move for him, the Bhoys simply cannot afford to lose two top-class forwards at once. A £16million fee will mean Celtic will set a new transfer record, going above Edouard’s signing price of £9.2million (via Transfermarkt). Whilst this will be a big thing to consider, it makes perfect sense.

Elyounoussi has already established himself as a fan favourite too. Many are on board with bringing the 26-year-old to Parkhead permanently as surely without his influence, Lennon and his men would seriously struggle next season.

In other news, Celtic must take chance on injured starlet if they lose Mohamed Elyounoussi…