AL-AHLI SAYS NO: IVAN TONEY'S £40M SAUDI MOVE BLOCKS JANUARY EXIT FOR TOTTENHAM
Ivan Toney's Premier League return is off. talkSPORT reveals the striker is settled at Al-Ahli, with the Saudi club refusing to sell in January despite interest from Spurs and others.
It sounds like Ivan Toney's potential reunion with his old Brentford manager, Thomas Frank, is looking less and less likely. Word is, he's expected to stay with Al-Ahli not just through January but possibly beyond next summer as well.
Since joining the Saudi Pro League's Al-Ahli in 2024 for around £40 million ($53m), the 29-year-old has fit right in. Right now, it doesn't seem like he'll be returning to play in England anytime soon.
Toney is likely to stay in Saudi Arabia
Toney has been a scoring machine, with 42 goals in 62 games, including 12 this season. This output has made him one of the league's top foreign players. He also helped Al-Ahli win the Asian Champions League and scored 30 goals in all competitions last season. But, with the 2026 World Cup approaching and England manager Thomas Tuchel not making any promises about who will be selected, people have been wondering if Toney might want to come back to the Premier League. Spurs, West Ham, and Manchester United have all talked about the possibility of bringing him back. Still, everything coming out of Saudi Arabia suggests he's staying put, as talkSPORT reported.
Al-Ahli firm: No sale in January
Al-Ahli's new sporting director, Rui Pedro Braz, is not planning to approve any sale or loan in January. The club, which has a lot of state funding, would only consider letting Toney go if they could find a really good replacement, which they think is very unlikely in the middle of the season. The Saudi team is also happy that Toney is content where he is. talkSPORT says that his representatives have told interested Premier League clubs that he is settled, gets paid well, and isn't currently pushing for a move. His contract lasts until 2028, and he makes over £400,000 per week tax-free, which makes any potential return difficult. On top of that, Toney needs to stay outside the UK until at least April 2026 to keep his non-UK tax residency. If he comes back too soon, he would have to pay a lot in taxes, which makes it even harder for English clubs to make an offer.
Braz mentioned: Ivan Toney is a great player, a top striker. The rumours about him possibly leaving in January aren't true. They're just not true. We're counting on him, so it doesn't make any sense to talk about this in November.
Toney is still hoping for an England recall
Even though he hasn't been playing much internationally, Toney is still hoping that doing well in Saudi Arabia will help him get back into the England squad before the World Cup. Between March and July 2024, he played five times and even made a difference at Euro 2024, assisting Harry Kane's winning goal against Slovakia and scoring in the shootout win over Switzerland. But since moving to the Middle East, he has only been called up once and has only played in England's 3-1 loss to Senegal. Still, Toney insists he hasn't asked Thomas Tuchel for clarification on where he stands in the squad.
He says: I need to focus on myself and give myself the best chance possible. Who knows? If I get selected, I'll do my best for my country, but if not, I'll be cheering the boys on. I don't expect to talk to him. I'm sure he has other things to worry about. My job is to do well. It is what it is. If you're good enough, you're good enough; it doesn't matter where you're playing. As long as you're doing the right things and scoring goals, you give yourself a chance.
Saudi League criticism dismissed
Toney has strongly defended the quality of the Saudi Pro League, despite some criticism from people in the European football community.
The level in Saudi Arabia is high. They know how to play football here. The players aren't as well-known as in the Premier League, but many could play there, Toney told The Guardian in September.
After a short break, Toney will be back playing against Damac in the Saudi League on December 19. At the same time, Tottenham will be trying to get back to winning after losing badly to Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain in their game against Fulham on Sunday.
AWONIYI DOUBLE LEAVES NOTTINGHAM FOREST ON THE VERGE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SAFETY
Nottingham Forest moved closer to safety with a 3-1 win over Chelsea, while West Ham fell into the relegation zone after Spurs won.
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Nottingham Forest came out of the weekend looking pretty safe after pulling off an impressive 3-1 win at Chelsea. They’re almost clear of the relegation mess. Tottenham’s big away win at Aston Villa shook things up too, and now West Ham are back in the bottom three, running out of time faster than ever.
Forest have stepped up just when they needed to, leaving West Ham and Tottenham behind with a string of solid performances. Honestly, no one saw this coming, especially since Vitor Pereira shuffled his lineup with eight changes, fresh off a Europa League win against Aston Villa.
Even so, Forest were ahead within 90 seconds, thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s quick strike. By the 15th minute, Igor Jesus calmly buried a penalty after Malo Gusto’s reckless foul in the box. Chelsea had a chance to get back in it, but Cole Palmer wasted a penalty right before the break after a scary head collision involving Jesse Derry.
Awoniyi doubled down and scored again early in the second half, pushing Forest six points ahead of West Ham with just three games left.
West Ham’s weekend started badly; they looked flat and lost to Brentford. Things got worse Sunday night when Tottenham pulled off their first back-to-back Premier League wins since August 2025, beating a heavily rotated Aston Villa side 2-1.
Forest is now out of West Ham’s reach, or almost. Tottenham’s still close enough for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team to worry, but with three tough games coming up, Spurs could stay up even without another win, unless West Ham digs deep and pulls off something unexpected before their home finale against Leeds.
Right now, Forest can practically taste safety. Spurs finally see a way out after weeks of struggle. As for West Ham, they’re left hoping for a miracle, a last-minute twist to dodge the drop.
CESC FABREGAS CONFIRMS INTEREST IN PREMIER LEAGUE RETURN AMID CHELSEA'S MANAGER SEARCH
As Chelsea searches for a new manager, Cesc Fabregas breaks his silence on his future at Como and his Premier League ambitions.
Cesc Fabregas recalls exactly how a conversation with Jose Mourinho prompted him to join Chelsea, despite having the opportunity to return to Arsenal.
After winning six trophies in just three seasons, the Spanish World Cup winner left Barcelona for the second time in 2014. That summer, Fabregas made a move back to the Premier League, signing with Chelsea for about €33 million.
He already knew English football well. Fabregas had arrived at Arsenal as a 16-year-old from Barcelona in 2003 and made 212 Premier League appearances for them. When he decided to leave Barcelona, Manchester City also wanted him, but Chelsea convinced him, mostly thanks to Mourinho.
Talking with talkSPORT’s Rory Jennings on YouTube, Fabregas laid out how it all happened. “Honestly, when I made up my mind to leave Barcelona, my first thought was just to go back to Arsenal. They had this buyback clause; they had two weeks to use it after I told them I was leaving. They knew about it but didn’t take it. That surprised me a little, but in the end, I had to think about my career. I was 27, at the peak of my career, and I wanted to continue performing and winning trophies. City and Chelsea were both options.
“But when Mourinho spoke to me, that was it. He showed me his plans for the team and told me about Diego Costa, Courtois, and Filipe Luis and how, with those guys, we’d win the league. He was right, by the way. We won both the Premier League and the Carling Cup.”
Fabregas wasted no time winning over Chelsea fans. On his debut at Burnley, he set up two goals, including a stunning assist for Andre Schurrle. He finished his first season at Chelsea with five goals and 24 assists, along with Premier League and League Cup medals.
Things dipped the next season. Fabregas got just 15 goal contributions, and Chelsea slipped all the way to tenth. But when Antonio Conte took charge in 2016-17, they bounced back, and Fabregas picked up another league title.
He added an FA Cup win in 2018, his second, after his earlier one with Arsenal, and left for Monaco a few months later. His last Chelsea match came in the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest. When he got subbed off, he couldn’t hold back tears.
Chelsea supporters still sing about him; that “Oh, Fabregas is magic...” chant sticks around. And with his name in the conversation for a possible return, maybe they haven’t seen the last of him yet.
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