FULLKRUG EXIT LOOMS: WEST HAM FOCUS SHIFTS TO UNLEASHING CALLUM WILSON'S POTENTIAL.
West Ham coach Nuno Espirito Santo is determined to maximise Callum Wilson's potential, despite his injury history, as the club faces a striking crisis and potential transfer moves.
Nuno Espirito Santo really wants to help Callum Wilson, the team's experienced striker, play his best even though he hasn't always been the most fit player.
Football Insider says that Nuno Espirito Santo is looking forward to getting the most out of Callum Wilson. He used to play for Newcastle United and has had fitness problems. The West Ham manager is ready to work with him in the near future.
Nuno Espirito Santo has a tough job trying to fix West Ham United's scoring problems. He doesn't have many choices. Right now, the main strikers are Callum Wilson and Niclas Füllkrug.
Fullkrug has also had his share of fitness issues since he joined in the summer of 2024. He missed parts of his first season because he was hurt. He's still injured this season, and the club might think about selling the German player in January.
Wilson came to West Ham for free in the summer after playing a long time at Newcastle United, but he also has fitness concerns. The Magpies decided not to keep him because he missed a lot of last season with injuries, and they didn't want to take the same risk as West Ham.
Wilson has been playing better recently, and Espirito Santo is pushing to get the best from him. The Portuguese manager wants a strong player up front who can cause problems for the other team's defenders and create chances for the wingers. Wilson has been doing okay lately, but there's room for improvement.
Will West Ham sign a new striker?
West Ham wants to improve Wilson and sell Fullkrug, so they might be looking for a younger striker in January. There are rumours about several possible players, and Promise David from Union Saint-Gilloise is a major target.
Santiago Gimenez from AC Milan is also being considered. West Ham might bring in a new striker to take some of the pressure off Wilson and, more importantly, Jarrod Bowen when it comes to scoring goals. If they sign someone in January, West Ham could have a pretty good attack for Espirito Santo to work with and maybe even avoid getting relegated.
MICHAEL OWEN DECLARES PREMIER LEAGUE "NEARLY WRAPPED UP" FOR LEADERS ARSENAL
Michael Owen tells talkSPORT that Arsenal have "wrapped up" the Premier League title, sitting six points clear with 14 games left.
Michael Owen says Arsenal has basically wrapped up the league.
Right now, Mikel Arteta’s team sits six points clear at the top of the Premier League. Fourteen games left, but they’re determined not to trip up like they did in the past. Three years in a row, they finished second—always just missing out on Manchester City or Liverpool. Remember that eight-point lead they blew to City in 2022/23? That one really stung, especially since City went on to win everything: the league, the Champions League, and the Carabao Cup.
On Wednesday morning, Owen—yeah, the former United and Liverpool striker—went on talkSPORT and talked about how easy Arsenal has it this season. “I don’t think anyone’s good enough to compete with them this year,” he said. “Even though I don’t think the points total will be that high.” He figured only Liverpool or City had a shot at the start of the season, but both have fallen off. So, in Owen’s mind, Arsenal has pretty much been handed the title. “Nobody’s put much pressure on them,” he said. “The league is nearly wrapped up.”
And Arsenal just beat Chelsea 1-0 at the Emirates in the Carabao Cup (4-2 on aggregate), so now they’re one win away from silverware—it would be their first trophy under Arteta since that FA Cup back in 2020.
Owen already thinks Arsenal will be champions this year, and he’s backing them for the League Cup too. “I think they could win the Carabao Cup, absolutely,” he said. “But the other two trophies are going to be tough.”
The Gunners are still chasing the quadruple. They topped their Champions League group, knocked Portsmouth out of the FA Cup, and haven’t lost in Europe—getting some big wins over Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan, and Bayern Munich along the way.
Owen, who’s got a Ballon d’Or to his name, thinks Arsenal will face stiffer competition outside England. “Everyone else will be focusing on the FA Cup now, since the league’s pretty much over,” he said. “It’s the only thing that can save their season, so clubs will put out strong teams.” Then there’s the Champions League, which feels wide open this year.
Alan Brazil from talkSPORT asked Owen if Arsenal could actually win all four trophies. Owen shot that down. “No, I don’t think so,” he replied. “But they’re special, a really strong, efficient side.”
ASTON VILLA VALUE MORGAN ROGERS AT £100M+ AS LIVERPOOL AND CHELSEA CIRCLE
Aston Villa face a fight to keep £100m-rated Morgan Rogers as Liverpool and Chelsea circle the England star for a summer move.
Aston Villa really wants to hang on to Morgan Rogers, but that’s going to be tough this summer. There’s serious money on the table, and both Liverpool and Chelsea can’t seem to take their eyes off him. One journalist even called Rogers “a joy to watch.”
Rogers is only 23, but he’s come a long way fast. Villa picked him up from Middlesbrough just over two years ago for an initial £8 million, which doubled when you count the add-ons. At the time, not everyone was convinced—he came in without much fuss, just another Manchester City academy kid trying to make his mark. But look at him now: one of the best signings Villa’s made in years, his value through the roof, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a starting lineup without his name for either club or country.
Villa now rates him at more than £100 million, and the whole “big six” wants him. He even landed a new contract in November, tying him to Villa until June 2031. But even with that deal, Mark Carey from The Athletic thinks Villa will have their hands full trying to keep him. Rogers isn’t just playing well under Unai Emery—he’s on fire, and with the World Cup coming up, his profile’s only getting bigger.
Nine goals and seven assists from 34 games this season say it all. That’s why the top clubs keep circling. Liverpool and Chelsea are both sniffing around, and if Chelsea loses Cole Palmer, they’ll be even more desperate. Carey says teams in England and abroad won’t be scared off by Villa’s tough stance or Rogers’ long contract.
Carey’s pretty blunt: Villa’s resolve is about to face its biggest test yet. He says it’ll be interesting to see how the club reacts, especially if they miss out on the Champions League for 2026/27.
So why is Rogers worth more than £100 million now? Carey points to the long contract as a bit of a safety net for Villa, but Rogers’ progress is off the charts. He’s that good—“a joy to watch,” in Carey’s words—and honestly, there’s no ceiling to how far he can go.
You could see this coming even last September. Transfer insider Dean Jones already knew Villa rated Rogers highly and figured he could be the club’s next £100m man after Jack Grealish. Jones said people close to Villa believed Rogers would hit that price by the January window, but selling him mid-season wasn’t really on the table. If Rogers kept playing like this, Jones said, the £100m tag would stick by next summer—especially with that long contract.
Jones summed it up: Rogers has become one of the most exciting attackers in the Premier League, and Villa is determined to keep him. Last summer, insiders said Villa internally priced him at £80 million and made it clear he wasn’t for sale.
But if Mark Carey’s right and Villa’s resolve gets pushed this summer, they won't settle for less than what Man City paid for Grealish (£100 million). Honestly, with the way things are going, they might even demand the kind of money Liverpool shelled out for Florian Wirtz—around £116 million.