THE CLOCK IS TICKING: CAN DAVID MOYES SECURE VITINHO BEFORE MADRID STRIKES FIRST?
Atlético Madrid is outmanoeuvring Everton for Botafogo right-back Vitinho. Discover if David Moyes can fix his defence in time.
Atlético Madrid has jumped ahead in the race for Botafogo right-back Vitinho, leaving Everton scrambling to catch up, according to Brazilian radio station Tupi FM. Everton have tracked the 26-year-old closely, desperate to shore up their shaky defence, but right now, they’re lagging.
Atlético aren’t messing around—they’ve ramped up their pursuit and are looking hard at how Vitinho might fit into their plans. Everton’s scouts are still hanging around, but at this point, it feels like they’re just hoping for a window to open. Neither club has put in an official bid so far, but Atlético’s aggressive approach puts them firmly in front as the top European option for Vitinho.
Botafogo aren’t in any hurry to sell. Vitinho just wrapped up a brutal 2025 season, logging 59 matches with two goals and four assists. He’s become a mainstay for Botafogo, both in Brazil and in continental competitions. On top of that, his contract runs through December 2029, so Botafogo holds all the cards when it comes to negotiating a fee. For Everton, trying to get back in the mix is going to be an uphill battle. Right now, everything points toward Madrid.
Does David Moyes need Vitinho?
David Moyes needs a real right-back—fast. This season, he’s had to stick central defender Jake O’Brien out on the right, which has killed any attacking threat down that side. Seamus Coleman is 37 and winding down his career, and Nathan Patterson can’t stay fit or consistent. Moyes just doesn’t have a reliable option there.
Vitinho could be the answer. Playing 59 games in a season shows he can handle Moyes’s demands. But if Everton wants him, they have to move quickly. Making bold moves in January isn’t really Everton’s thing, and Moyes usually prefers players who already know the Premier League. Even so, tight finances might push him to look for bargains in South America.
Convincing Vitinho won’t be easy. Everton can offer regular Premier League football, but Atlético has Champions League nights and a bigger stage. If Everton really wants him, they’ll have to meet Botafogo’s asking price and hope the promise of a starting spot outweighs the glamour of Madrid. Right now, though, Atlético has the upper hand.
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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