WATFORD'S RESOLVE TESTED BY PREMIER LEAGUE INTEREST IN ROCCO VATA
Watford winger Rocco Vata is linked with a £20M move to Premier League and European clubs like Crystal Palace and Fulham. His recent agency switch fuels January transfer speculation.
Watford's Irish winger, Rocco Vata, is drawing interest this January. Crystal Palace and Fulham, as well as clubs like Eintracht Frankfurt and Atalanta, are watching the £20 million-rated player.
Watford's season hasn't exactly been smooth.
After sacking Tom Cleverley, they brought in Paulo Pezzolano as head coach this summer. But after just three wins in ten games, he was out too.
Watford has a history of quickly firing head coaches, and this season is no different. Javi Gracia, who previously led the team to an FA Cup final, is now back in charge.
The Hornets are currently 15th after 17 games. Ahead of their Monday match against Birmingham City, The Daily Mail reported that several clubs are tracking Vata for a potential £20 million deal.
Vata, 20, is being watched by clubs as the winter transfer window approaches, according to The Daily Mail.
Interestingly, Vata switched to StormSportsX on Saturday, November 29, leaving CAA Base. He's not the first Watford player to switch agencies recently.
Vata has only started five of his 12 EFL Championship appearances for Watford this season. Now, he's being linked to clubs like Crystal Palace and Fulham, plus Atalanta and Eintracht Frankfurt.
The Irishman's contract runs until the summer of 2028, with Watford able to extend it for another year. He's valued at £20 million, and Watford seems hesitant to sell unless they get a huge offer.
Vata has missed the last four Championship games after getting a serious hamstring injury against Ipswich Town. Gracia said he'll be out for a long time.
Despite this, the rumour mill is starting up, and Watford's resolve might be tested in January for their Irish player.
Vata hasn't had consistent playing time since joining from Celtic FC.
He joined Celtic as a kid in 2012 and worked his way up to the first team.
Though born in Glasgow, Scotland, Vata has played for the Republic of Ireland at every youth level and has made his senior debut, choosing to play for his grandmother's country.
He could have also played for Albania through his father, Scotland through his mother, or Montenegro, where he was born, but he chose Ireland.
Since arriving at Watford in the summer of 2024, where the club paid Celtic a £250k fee, he hasn't secured a regular starting spot.
Only 20 of his 43 Championship appearances have been as a starter, with Kwadwo Baah, Giorgi Chakvetadze, Tom Ince, and Nestory Irankunda also competing for a place.
With a long period on the sidelines expected, Vata won't be able to impress before January, and it might be hard to get back into the team when he returns.
Even though he's only 20, Vata has plenty of time to make his mark in the league when he's fit again. If a move doesn't happen this winter, interest in him will likely return.
Vata has shown flashes of exciting talent, and it's not surprising that other clubs are interested, but he probably won't be sold for £20 million anytime soon.
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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