La Roma 24 cover the player today and how he can’t get into the first team, thanks to a surprising revival from Rick Karsdorp.

They explain that if you were to go back a year ago, the idea of Karsdorp shining and being the protagonist for Roma would have been very unexpected.

That’s because he had a very public falling out with manager Jose Mourinho, with the Portuguese boss seemingly giving up on the defender after a bad performance in Reggio Emilia.

He spent the summer with his suitcases packed and ready to go, with neither he nor the club seemingly wanting to continue their relationship. Hence the deal to sign Kristensen on loan from Leeds.

Kristensen began the season as the starting player but has quickly been forgotten and replaced by Karsdorp thanks to his revival.

He’s enjoying an ‘unexpected but functional return’ and replaced the Leeds loanee, who has proven ‘not up to par’ when given his chance to impress.

Whether that leads to questions being asked at Elland Road and a potential early exit from Rome remains to be seen, but so far it seems the loan deal hasn’t worked out and they’re less than convinced.

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The Spanish midfielder has been speaking to Marca about his time back in Spain so far after returning to his home country in the summer.

He’s on a season-long loan deal at Betis from Leeds, having taken advantage of a clause in his contract to leave Elland Road on a temporary basis following relegation last season.

He’s been enjoying his time at Betis ever since, quickly establishing himself as a key player under Manuel Pellegrini with a series of impressive performances.

He’s been very keen to share his happiness with anyone who’ll listen since, making it clear in various interviews how delighted he is to be back in Spain and enjoying his football after a difficult year at Leeds.

Whether he remains at Betis remains to be seen, as they have an option to make it a permanent deal in the summer should they wish to. He’s not sure whether that will happen and admits it won’t only be down to him.

“I feel the colors,” he said.

“The other day we had the derby. I felt a lot of emotion. I had goosebumps. I felt like crying with emotion. I said: oh man, these people… those things make you feel more colors.

“I’m very comfortable here. God will tell. In the end I have a contract with Leeds. This is a matter for the clubs.”

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The midfielder has been speaking to Radio Marca about his season so far, after shining with Betis, who he joined on loan from Leeds in the summer.

He took advantage of a clause in his contract at Elland Road to leave on loan following relegation to the Championship, becoming one of several players to do so.

He had only been with the Whites since the summer of 2022 after joining from Bayern Munich but was largely unable to impress for the club in what proved to be a disappointing campaign for everyone involved.

He’s bounced back under Manuel Pellegrini, becoming a key player in his Betis side and already posting numbers that have put him in line for the best season of is career.

That saw him make Luis de la Fuente’s pre-list for his Spain squad for this international break, further recognition of his good performances and the midfielder has again revealed how happy he is, explaining what he learned at Leeds and why it’s helped him back in Spain.

“I have always based myself on the principle of working day by day, trusting in myself and seeking those results,” he said.

“Outside of Spain I have grown as a person. I was clear that returning to Spain was a great option.

“From the first moment I felt at home in Betis. I understand very well with Guido (Rodriguez), we make a great couple.

“In England I have learned to be a box to box. It’s a luxury to play with Isco, he makes everything easier.”

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Relayed by Udinese Blog, the outlet mentions a potential swap between João Ferreira and Matheus Martins.

It’s pointed out that the fullback, who’s loaned by Watford to Udinese this season, is an ‘interesting prospect’ having a good season and could move to the Serie A side ‘permanently’.

Going the opposite way, there could be Matheus Martins, who’s having the inverse situation, loaned by the Italians to the Hornets until the end of the season.

Udinese bought the Brazilian from Fluminense last winter and immediately sent him to Watford on loan. Since then, he has four goals and one assist in 22 appearances for the club.

Ferreira is valued by Transfermarkt at €1m, while Martins has his price at €7m. But we all know their market valuations may not mean a lot in the end, since it’s the Pozzo family who will decide whether the players deserve to be exchanged between the clubs.

After all, that’s the benefit of owning more than one club in different leagues.

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The midfielder was restricted to 77 minutes of action from four games in the second half of the last season. The Seagulls allowed him to join Coventry City on a loan deal in the summer window, to continue his development.

The temporary move has paid off as the 20-year-old has made 11 appearances this season. The Brighton owned player is currently with the Sweden U21 camp, and it gave Fotbollskanalen an opportunity to have a chat with him.

Coventry City have endured a difficult run this season as they have managed only three wins from 16 league games. This has seen them sit 20th in the table. Despite this, Ayari is enjoying his time with the Sky Blues and insisted that his main aim was to enjoy more minutes this season.

“It has gone well. The team has gone a little worse and we are not really where we should be. But things are going well, matches and training are going well,” he said.

“I had no expectations at all. I went there because I wanted to play, to have fun and gain experience. And I’ve got it. I’ve played – maybe not as much as I’d like, but I’ve played and that’s the most important thing.”

When asked to describe life away from the pitch, Ayari explained: “It’s nice. It’s close to Sweden, only two hours away, so many people can come over quickly. Many people dream of living in England and playing in the Premier League or the Championship, so I won’t complain.”

Ayari will have to return to Brighton after this season, where he has a deal until 2027.

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That’s what OA Calcio are explaining on Thursday, as they look at the players who could be the catalysts of the rebirth of Italy’s young players.

The Leeds man is mentioned among those, as they explain that his presence in the squad ‘stands out’, before being told he will have to ‘rebuild himself’ with the national set up after some ‘dark months’ at Elland Road in the Championship.

That is the only way he will be able to return as a ‘protagonist’ in the senior set up, since Luciano Spalletti, despite being rather limited with striking options, has chosen to ignore him this time around.

This all comes after three substitute appearances under Daniel Park in wins against Huddersfield, Leicester and Plymouth, with his last start coming in the 1-0 loss against Stoke City.

It’s fair to say that Gnonto’s time at Leeds has been filled with ups and downs, and he is now facing a down moment in the season.

Perhaps a stint with the U21s is exactly what he needs to get back on track.

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Two days later, TuttoMercatoWeb said the winger is ready to leave the Whites in January, and the option to join the Serie A side was pushed forward.

Calcio Style now provide the latest on Lazio’s desire to sign the Leeds player.

Their president, Claudio Lotito, continues to follow the 20-year-old, and believes his profile would suit the Biancocelesti.

The Italian stance is that Gnonto is in favour of leaving the Championship side, in order to play at the highest level. A move to Lazio in January can help him achieve that and could also provide an opportunity to play in European competition.

It’s claimed a ‘costly loan’ deal with an option to buy set at €15m is ‘being evaluated’ by the Italian club. There’s no mention if this would be enough to convince Daniel Farke’s side to part ways with the attacker in the winter market.

The youngster is currently with Italy’s U21s and their manager, Carmine Nunziata, has heaped praise on him.

“Gnonto is a great guy, who presented himself very well but I had no doubts about this. He likes to play football and I know he will do it with us too,” he said, as quoted by Il Milanista.

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The Lisbon media is usually on the money about those transactions, so there hasn’t been big news about the deals made by the Lions.

There is just one transfer that is being covered by outlets such as Record, which is Issahaku Fatawu’s move to Leicester City.

What wasn’t known about this deal is that the Foxes had paid €750k to sign the winger on a year-long loan spell.

As previously reported, Leicester City can sign the player at the end of the spell, with Record claiming that’d cost them €17m.

The outlet claims that clause will be automatically triggered in case the Foxes get promotion to the Premier League this season.

Since his arrival at Leicester City, Fatawu has one goal and one assist in 13 appearances.

Just recently, the Portuguese media had been claiming Sporting were excited with the Foxes’ start to the season, as they hope they’ll get promoted and the sale will go through.

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However, the Belgium born centre-back remained at Elland Road, where he has been almost ever-present under Daniel Farke.

Now, with the January transfer window approaching, stories are starting to appear about a potential Leeds exit for the 24-year-old, with Sacha Tavolieri bringing the latest information he has gathered in a video on YouTube.

Recalling that Club Brugge were already keen in the summer, the journalist explains that the interest is still there, and could be acted on.

In fact, Tavolieri states the Leeds defender is ‘interested’ in potentially moving to the Jupiler Pro League side, who will also be glad to know that the ‘price has gone down’ from €18m in the summer to €15m for January.

Now, the question is whether the Belgian side will be willing to pay that much for the Leeds player in the next transfer window, but if they are, then they might be able to get a deal done with the Elland Road side.

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As the fullback could soon be making his debut for Cameroon, he spoke to the local media about possibly participating in the tournament in a couple of months.

Quoted by Actu Cameroun, Tchamadeu admitted there’s big expectations about the African competition, but is more focused on his first few appearances for now.

“The African Cup of Nations is in the back of my mind. I want to represent my country in one of the biggest international competitions so I’m thinking about it. But right now I have to stay focused on the next two games to help the team win,” said Tchamadeu.

“To be honest it’s a pride for me to represent my parents’ country and I’ve seen the love from the fans it’s incredible. It’s a dream come true to play for my parents’ country and I’m happy to be here.”

Following a good start at Stoke City, Tchamadeu was called up by Cameroon for the first rounds of the World Cup Qualifiers.

He’s in the squad that will play Mauritius and Libya in the coming days. The debut in the African Cup of Nations is only taking place on the 15th of January, when they play Guinea in the opening fixture.

It was last summer that Stoke City signed Tchamadeu from Colchester United. So far, the youngster has made four appearances for the Potters, and was even a starter in a sequence of games, although he soon went back to the bench. That’s why the 19-year-old has a lot on his mind before January.

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